Search Results (37)

It is widely acknowledged that there is a similarity between Wittgenstein’s later conception of language and a “religious point of view.” An equally well-received view is that there is an essential shift in Wittgenstein’s thought from early to later. However, what both of these contentions ignore is that there is also a similarity between his early philosophy and the “religious point of view”, the negligence of which has led to an exaggeration of the divergence between his early and later philosophy. This paper aims to show that Wittgenstein in fact conducted his early philosophical work from a “religious point of view” and continued to demonstrate such a view in his later writings. I will first identify some essential characteristics of the “religious point of view” in Wittgenstein’s early philosophy by focusing on the mystical. I will then illustrate how these characteristics continue and are developed further in his later thought. The findings of this paper are critical in two ways: on the one hand, they clarify a host of misunderstandings through a comparative investigation into Wittgenstein’s early and later thought; on the other, they provide a more comprehensive overview of Wittgenstein’s “religious point of view,” which will help to deepen our understanding of his philosophy. Full article

This study examines how the Japanese writer Furui Yoshikichi engages with Western mystical experiences, particularly through his reading of Martin Buber’s Ecstatic Confessions and his broader engagement with Meister Eckhart and medieval German mysticism. Furui’s literary inquiry revolves around the inherent tension between the ineffability of mystical experiences and their articulation through language. He critically engages with the paradox of verbalization, recognizing that while mystical experiences transcend linguistic and temporal boundaries, they nevertheless achieve resonance through written and spoken expressions. His reflections converge with Buddhist notions of Sūnyatā, underscoring intersections between Eastern and Western spiritual traditions. Drawing upon his background as a translator of German literature, Furui mediates mystical experiences within a comparative framework, navigating cultural and linguistic boundaries. His approach elucidates the concept of the multiplicity of qualities in mystical experiences, demonstrating particularity and universality simultaneously. By analyzing Furui’s interpretation of mystical texts, this study contributes to broader discussions on the limitations of language in conveying transcendence and the role of literary imagination in rendering the ineffable. Full article

Adopting a transdisciplinary approach, with specific emphasis on the post-Jungian transpersonal psychological theories on the ‘Spectrum of Human Consciousness’, this paper introduces a transpersonal psychological thread of understanding of ‘Mystical Consciousness’ through an interreligious field of comparative religious approaches to action, contemplation and non-action. This paper draws on Merton’s interreligious contemplative thinking in relation to three major world religious mystical traditions of Buddhism, Hinduism and mystical Islam/Sufism and elucidates comparative insights with the Christian mystical–contemplative tradition, akin to the ‘mystical contemplation’ of Evelyn Underhill. This paper introduces and applies the transpersonal perspective to the scholarly field of mysticism. The reader is invited to consider how Merton may have responded or written about interreligious contemplative depth mysticism in terms of his own writings on ‘pure consciousness’, had he had the benefit of the language of the transpersonal models of consciousness. Finally, the reader is left with a contemplative question at the ‘heart’ of mysticism—does the ancient sculpture of the Sleeping Hermaphrodite helpfully represent an art–theological symbolic analogy for the inner repose of an illumined soul, one with God’s Unity, in whose awakened consciousness through depth mystical contemplation, action occurs as an extended manifestation, a total gestalt of contemplative solitudinous action? Full article

In this article, I will touch on the ethical and moral possibilities of mysticism. On the one hand, I discuss the kinds of ethical work required to open and cultivate experiences of the divine. On the other hand, I look at how those experiences of the divine create new opportunities for kinds of ethical relationships to oneself, to others, and to the divine. In doing so, I connect the practices of asceticism—zuhd—with the types of experience characteristic of Sufi mysticism through the concept of tarbiya. Understanding taṣawwuf as an ongoing process in which experiences of the divine are a part, not an end, helps us grasp the intransitive nature of the term taṣawwuf itself. The goal in doing so is to think through what an ‘inner-worldly’ mysticism might look like—a category noticeably absent from Weber’s analysis. Part of its absence, I would suggest, is due to the fact that it does not map onto the passive–active distinction between mysticism and asceticism he tends to draw. But rather than merely critique Weber’s model, which, of course, is grounded in ideal types, and therefore nothing ever fits solely into one of his categories, my goal is to consider what an active inner-worldly mysticism might look like. In other words, what are the modes of ethical engagement and action made possible by those experiences which are considered to be direct experiences of the divine and how are those direct experiences in turn made possible by different kinds of ethical work? In this article, I will consider each of these in relation to two Sufi orders based on my fieldwork in Morocco—the Karkariyya and the Alawiyya. These are two closely related orders that are part of the Shadhiliyya, and they share several members within their spiritual lineages, with the split dating only to the 20th century. Through an analysis and comparison of the two groups, I investigate what an active mysticism could look like in the world today and hope to create new spaces for comparative mysticism that would see mystics as deeply concerned with changing their social worlds. Full article

The purpose of this paper is twofold: first, to depict, in its main elements, the conception of a Protestant “deconstructive theology”, and, secondly, to present the prophetic aspect of Eastern Christian Orthodox theology in comparison with it. According to the method of “deconstructive theology” as a method, the Scripture must be dismantled in order to be fresh and new. In the Orthodox understanding, the work of theology is understood to be, in the first place, a personal relationship with and experience of God, both from a mystical and sacramental perspective, and, through this, an actualisation of the work and message of God’s Revelation, making it present in the context of each historical and cultural circumstance. As will be presented below, this achievement could be completed only within the Church. Thus, Orthodox theology must deliver the eternal word and life of Jesus Christ, addressed to the contemporary context, in order to guide the Church and the Faithful toward the Kingdom of God. It is hoped that this comparative endeavour may be beneficial for general understanding between Christians, through placing in conversation two different perspectives regarding theology, which seldom encounter one another. Full article

This article examines the conceptions of divine revelation held by two prominent figures in Islamic thought, Ibn Sīnā and Al-Ghazālī, through a comparative lens within the context of metaphysical and epistemological processes. Ibn Sīnā views divine revelation as a metaphysical process occurring at the highest level of intellect. According to him, divine revelation is an abstract reflection of divine knowledge transmitted to the prophet’s imaginative faculty through the Active Intellect. This process, explained within a philosophical framework, is grounded in the development of human intellectual capacity. In contrast, Ghazālī defines divine revelation as a mystical experience and considers it a divine encounter beyond the limits of human reason. For Ghazālī, divine revelation manifests as an expression of God’s attribute of speech and occurs solely by divine will. Moreover, this experience cannot be fully comprehended by reason. Ghazālī’s approach, imbued with Sufi depth, regards divine revelation as an integral part of spiritual growth. This article explores the fundamental similarities and differences between these two thinkers’ understandings of divine revelation and metaphysics. By analyzing how Ibn Sīnā’s reason-based approach intersects and diverges from Ghazālī’s intuition and inspiration-based Sufi approach, this study provides an in-depth examination of how the concept of divine revelation has been shaped within Islamic theology and philosophy, highlighting the contributions of both thinkers to the discourse on divine revelation. Full article

This article introduces one of the forgotten figures of religious and literary studies: the Italian scholar, philosopher, metaphysician, poet and writer Silvano Panunzio (1918–2010). His contribution has so far been relegated to the margins of academic debate, and, currently, there are no academic studies on his work, in which mysticism plays a pivotal role. Panunzio believed that the transcendental and mystical dimension is fundamental for fully understanding the social, cultural, historical and political events of humanity. Another relevant aspect of his work is the importance he gave to literature and its relationship with mysticism, as in the case of Dante’s Divine Comedy or other European and Eastern writers and poets, such as Goethe, Shakespeare, Ibn Arabi and Dostoevsky. Significantly, Panunzio saved from oblivion the work of a forgotten man of letters of the nineteenth century, Gabriele Rossetti (1783–1854), who proposed the first symbolic and esoteric interpretation of Dante’s literary production and of European medieval love literature. Raising awareness of the intellectual amnesia around the figure of Silvano Panunzio may be a useful contribution to future research, both in the field of religious and literary studies. Full article

This paper examines the motif of divine play in Omar Khayyam’s quatrains within the broader context of Persian Sufi poetry. Given the strong association of “divine play” with Hinduism, a comparative approach is employed; to keep the focus on the main subject, this comparison is kept minimal. The comparison reveals three major themes common to both Sufism and Hinduism: God as the Player, God as the Playful Designer, and God as the Playful Dancer. To illustrate these themes, previously untranslated verses have been translated into English for the first time in this paper, highlighting a neglected aspect of Persian mysticism that scholars have often overlooked. Full article

Gamification is a specific type of experiential learning theory (ELT) that emphasizes student choice and activities to transform mundane tasks into a desirable opportunity to learn. This pedagogical approach is particularly useful in information-heavy courses, such as courses that engage in the study of religious mysticism or “hagiology”. In hagiology classes, students are exposed to new hagiographic media and discuss methods that are particularly complicated because this content is not only heavy on data but also engages the affective dimensions of human experience. This article explores leessons learned from the successes and failures of gamification pedagogy in my “Masters and Mystics” course, where students comparatively study Christian mysticism and Muslim Sufism. In particular, this article analyzes gamifacation’s ability to promote intrinsic student motivation through “game mechanics and experience design”, which is particularly salient in the hagiological classroom. I end the article with a discussion of how I have reworked the course with new gamification practices into a “Comparative Mysticism: Christianity and Islam” course. Full article

In popular discourse, it is not uncommon to highlight the distinctiveness of systems of “Eastern thought” (e.g., Daoism) in contrast to so-called “Western” systems. However, there is an interesting congruence between Daoism and Meister Eckhart’s mystical theology, particularly in regard to the concepts of the Dao and the Godhead. Like the Dao, the Godhead is the “ground” of all being, simultaneously radically transcendent and immanent, considered as distinct from all things and yet the enfolded totality of them. Both these concepts are also dynamic principles, continually manifesting in the flux of the ever-changing universe. In both systems, nature at its fundamental level is characterized by namelessness, emptiness, encompassment, and dynamism. Nature as “ground” is also a religio-ethical concept. Humans are called to align with this ground and enter into a state of wandering joy, called wuwei (non-action) in Daoism and the “wayless way” for Eckhart. Through reverting to their indeterminate source, the person is able to become detached from rigid teleological norms. Thus is laid the foundation for an ethics of non-attachment, wherein individuals dwell in an existential flow and are attuned to all yet anchored unquestionably to none. Full article

Wang Yangming’s emphasis on the concept of oneness establishes a significant connection between his philosophy and mysticism. This comparative study draws upon his mystical encounters and conceptual framework. Although “all things form one body” appears to be a typical formula of extrovertive mysticism, his doctrine is more inclined to be classified as a type of introvertive mysticism because of the special definition of “thing” and the deep involvement of heart–mind. The realm of oneness is based on the mode of a heart–mind pervading the entirety of the universe and all things, with the core concept of liangzhi as both pure consciousness and the base of the world. The adoption of a mystical philosophical perspective highlights Wang’s theory of oneness as a spiritual philosophy, transcending general ethical claims, thus enriching our understanding of Wang’s philosophy of mind. Full article

The mystical experiences in various forms are fundamental to major religious traditions. The idea of “mysticism” brings up the concept of the ineffable mysterium, which is seen as the central theme around which religions are based. The comparative studies of Rabia al-Adawiyya and Catherine of Genoa do not intend, as with phenomenological and essentialist approaches to the study of religion, to only focus on the similarities of the mystics in order to find universal structures and essential meanings. Nor does it seek to concentrate solely on the differences between the mystics as done by constructivist scholars. Instead, the comparative methodology used in this article highlights the similarities and differences between the respective mystics, Rabia and Catherine, and uses these comparisons to draw attention to an example of interreligious spirituality that cuts across religious traditions. To illustrate this point, it helps to compare two mystics: Rabia from the Islamic tradition and Catherine from the Christian tradition. This study is structured in four parts: an introduction to the concept of mystical experiences, a brief overview of the lives of Rabia and Catherine, a comparative analysis of their mystical characteristics, and a discussion of how their experiences can serve as a model for interreligious spirituality and friendship. Full article

Coriander, caraway, and mystical cumin are famous for their aromatic properties and widely used in Moroccan cuisine. The nutritional/phytochemical composition of their seeds (used for food flavoring and preservation) were compared. Their antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, cytotoxic and hepatotoxic effects were also explored. The fat content was similar among the samples (13%), with monounsaturated fatty acids being predominant. The coriander and mystical cumin seeds were extremely rich in C18:1n9c (81 and 85%, respectively) while, in the caraway, C18:1n12 (25%) was found together with C18:1n9c (32%). The caraway seeds also presented a higher proportion of C18:2n6c (34%) than the other seeds (13 and 8%, correspondingly). γ-Tocotrienol was the major vitamin E form in all the samples. The caraway seeds contained double the amount of protein (~18%) compared to the other seeds (~8%) but, qualitatively, the amino acid profiles among all seeds were similar. The seeds were also rich in dietary fiber (40–53%); however, differences were found in their fiber profiles. Caraway showed the highest antioxidant profile and anti-inflammatory activity and an LC-DAD-ESI/MSⁿ analysis revealed great differences in the phenolic profiles of the samples. Cytotoxicity (NCI-H460, AGS, MCF-7, and CaCo₂) and hepatotoxicity (RAW 264.7) were not observed. In sum, besides their flavoring/preservation properties, these seeds are also relevant source of bioactive compounds with health-promoting activities. Full article

This paper aims to decode medieval theology from the vantage point of ancient Chinese poetry, employing a cross-textual methodology that encourages a fusion of horizons. It highlights Saint Bernard’s profound and influential theological exegesis of the “Song of Songs”, particularly his comparison of the divine–human relationship to the conjugal bond. The present study posits that readers from Chinese culture can gain access to Saint Bernard’s mystical theology through the sentiment of love, as portrayed in the Book of Odes (Shijing). Initially addressing love as a core human sentiment, this study progresses by juxtaposing the representations of love in the Book of Odes with those in the “Song of Songs”. This comparative analysis culminates in an exploration of Saint Bernard’s theological perspectives, illuminated through these analogous depictions of love. The results affirm that engaging with Saint Bernard’s discourse on love via the Book of Odes is not only feasible but also instrumental in dispelling widespread misconceptions. Full article

This article examines the earthly journey of the saints in early Jewish and Daoist hagiographies. The major texts for comparative reading are Sefer Shivchei Ha-Ar”i and Shenxian Zhuan, namely, the foundation stones of each hagiographical tradition. Emphasis is laid on the most significant phases in the process of making saints while the candidates dwell in the worldly domain as quasi-divine beings: (1) Mystical Birth, (2) Life in Seclusion, and (3) Divine Encounters. During these stages of transition, the sages were imparted with the esoteric wisdom and the godly features that rendered them extraordinary exemplars of religiosity. My investigation demonstrates that this recipe is shared by both hagiographical traditions, despite the distance in time and space, to construct the image of saints, each expressed with culturally distinct characteristics of their own. I argue that both traditions display a pattern of human-centered sainthood instead of the divine-endorsed type—while the birth myth shows a discernible degree of predestined sagehood, painstaking periods, such as self-isolation and learning with the true masters, are more crucial to the sages’ transformation of identity in the realm of Earth, the dynamic incubator that breeds holiness for the most qualified souls. Full article