"Mysticism is popularly known as becoming one with God or the Absolute..."
The pursuit of communion with the divine through direct experience or intuition, often involving contemplation, meditation, or other spiritual practices.
Definition of Mysticism: Mysticism refers to the experience of encountering the divine or ultimate reality through direct personal experience rather than through rational thought or study.
Mystic Practices: These include meditation, prayer, and contemplation and are often used to achieve a mystical experience.
Major Mystical Traditions: These include Christian mysticism, Jewish mysticism (Kabbalah), Islamic mysticism (Sufism), and Hindu mysticism (Bhakti).
Mystical Experiences: These are the subjective experiences that mystics report having, such as feeling a sense of unity with the cosmos or encountering visions of the divine.
Mystical Literature: This includes texts written by mystics themselves, as well as accounts of their experiences written by others.
Mystical Symbolism: Many mystical traditions use symbolic language and images to describe the mystical experience and the divine.
Mystical Interpretations of Scripture: In many religious traditions, mystics have a unique interpretation of scripture, emphasizing the symbolic and allegorical rather than the literal meaning.
Mystical Philosophy: This includes the theoretical frameworks that mystics use to explain the nature of the divine and the mystical experience.
Mystical Teachers and Leaders: Many mystical traditions have influential figures who have contributed to the development and spread of mystical practices and ideas.
Mystical Community: Mystical traditions often have their own communities, where members can support and learn from one another in their mystical journeys.
Christian Mysticism: This is a mystical tradition within Christianity that emphasizes the direct experience of God through contemplation, prayer, and meditation.
Islamic Mysticism: Sufi mysticism emphasizes the inner, spiritual dimension of Islam and encourages a direct experience of God through meditation, chanting, and other spiritual practices.
Jewish Mysticism: Kabbalah is a Jewish mystical tradition that emphasizes spiritual insight and meditation on the divine.
Hindu Mysticism: Hinduism includes several mystical schools of thought, including Vedanta and Tantra, each emphasizing the direct experience of the divine through meditation and other spiritual practices.
Buddhist Mysticism: Buddhism has several mystical traditions, including Zen and Tibetan Buddhism, emphasizing the direct experience of enlightenment through meditation and other practices.
Taoist Mysticism: This is a mystical tradition within Taoism that emphasizes the unity of all things and the attainment of spiritual enlightenment through meditation and other practices.
Native American Mysticism: Native American spirituality is characterized by a mystical worldview that emphasizes the interconnectedness of all things and the direct experience of the divine through nature and other spiritual practices.
Shamanic Mysticism: Shamanism is an ancient mystical tradition that emphasizes the use of altered states of consciousness, such as through meditation, to communicate with the spiritual realm and to help others heal.
Greek Mysticism: The Mysteries of Eleusis were a series of secret religious rituals in ancient Greece that emphasized the direct experience of the divine through initiation and other practices.
Egyptian Mysticism: The ancient Egyptian religion included several mystical traditions, including the worship of Isis and Osiris, which emphasized the direct experience of the divine through rituals and spiritual practices.
"...may refer to any kind of ecstasy or altered state of consciousness which is given a religious or spiritual meaning. It may also refer to the attainment of insight in ultimate or hidden truths, and to human transformation supported by various practices and experiences."
"...mysticism referred to the biblical, liturgical, spiritual, and contemplative dimensions of early and medieval Christianity."
"...meaning 'to close' or 'to conceal.'"
"During the early modern period, the definition of mysticism grew to include a broad range of beliefs and ideologies related to 'extraordinary experiences and states of mind.'"
"In modern times, 'mysticism' has acquired a limited definition, with broad applications, as meaning the aim at the 'union with the Absolute, the Infinite, or God'."
"...valuing 'mystical experience' as a key element of mysticism."
"Since the 1960s scholars have debated the merits of perennial and constructionist approaches in the scientific research of 'mystical experiences'."
"The perennial position is now 'largely dismissed by scholars'..."
"...most scholars using a contextualist approach..."
"...which considers the cultural and historical context."
"The biblical, liturgical, spiritual, and contemplative dimensions of early and medieval Christianity."
"A broad range of beliefs and ideologies related to 'extraordinary experiences and states of mind.'"
"The attainment of insight in ultimate or hidden truths, and to human transformation supported by various practices and experiences."
"...meaning 'to close' or 'to conceal'," hinting at the hidden nature of mystical experiences.
"...various practices and experiences" support human transformation in mysticism.
"...meaning the aim at the 'union with the Absolute, the Infinite, or God'."
"...valuing 'mystical experience' as a key element of mysticism."
"The definition of mysticism grew to include a broad range of beliefs and ideologies related to 'extraordinary experiences and states of mind.'"
"...most scholars using a contextualist approach, which considers the cultural and historical context."