Mysticism

Mysticism

BIBLIOGRAPHY

It is a major premise of the mystical traditions that it is possible for humanity to come into direct contact with the one God, the one Goddess. These traditions can be found in many places and in many eras. This entry provides a brief introduction to this profound area of human experience.

One such tradition can be found in the Holy Kabbalah, which embodies the mystical, esoteric teachings of the Jewish faith. Its primary glyph is the tree of life, which is a complex symbol that represents both the microcosm and the macrocosm (the symbol of which is the Star of David—a hexagram uniting two triangles). The tree is composed of ten emanations of God, called sephira, and twenty-two connecting paths that correspond to the twenty-two letters of the Hebrew alphabet. Each sephiroth is associated with a different vision experience. The two greatest of these visions are the vision of God face-to-face and the vision of union with God. It is interesting to note that even Moses, who received the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai, was denied the vision of God face-to-face. He was only allowed to see his “hind parts.” The vision of union with God was experienced by several prophets in the Old Testament, including Elijah. Christians refer to this experience as being “translated.” Once one experiences this vision, in accord with Kabbalistic teachings, one is taken from the earth. A relatively modern manifestation of these teachings can be found in the writings of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, an organization that only lasted about twenty years but was composed of such important figures as William Butler Yeats (1865-1939), Dion Fortune (1890-1946), and Israel Regardie (1907-1985). Offshoots of this group can be found today.

The Holy Kabbalah is the centerpiece of a larger body of knowledge referred to as the Western esoteric tradition. It included such people as the Swiss physician Paracelsus (c. 1493-1541), Nostradamus (1503-1566), and Isaac Newton (1642-1727). These alchemists, in their search for the philosopher's stone, sought the hidden truths by which they could successfully engage in a process called the great work. This process entails transforming all that is lead or dross within one's nature into pure gold. These transformational processes allow one to transcend ordinary human limitations and bring one into contact with the higher powers and the beings through whom these powers flow. This approach is referred to as process theology, which is in close harmony with mystical traditions. This process is often described as being “on the path” or as one's “personal journey.” Perhaps the best known example of this is the story of Saul who was blinded for three days and nights on the road to Damascus. There he met a holy man by the name of Ananias who aided him in his spiritual transformation by which he became Paul, the Apostle.

The mystical tradition exists within Christianity as well, although it has been historically suppressed. The founding fathers, such as Origen (c. 185-254 CE), placed much more emphasis on the inner Christ than is true of most of Christendom today. The Gnostic movement in the early church promoted this approach by developing practices by which one could experience the Christ principle found deep within the consciousness of all people. This gave it a universalistic thrust that would appeal to mystics of all ages. Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948) stated, when asked what religion he was, that in his true essence he was a Christian, in his true essence he was a Hindu, in his true essence he was a Buddhist. Implied in this answer, is that all world religions flow from the same source. It is their concrete expressions that give rise to dogmatism and social conflict. Were all people to adopt this perspective, religious strife, bigotry, and arrogance would come to an end.

The centerpiece of Buddhism is the achievement of nirvana or enlightenment. That experience is so powerful that it releases one from the wheel of rebirth. This event happened in the life of Prince Siddhartha (who became an enlightened one) when he sat under the banyan tree 2,500 years ago and declared unto humanity that all is sorrow. He had what the Kabbalah describes as the vision of the sorrow of the world. He then gave us the noble eightfold path by which one can experience the ineffable bliss. This process entails the raising of the kundalini fire up the spinal chord, vivifying each chakra along the way until it reaches the thousand-petal lotus located within the crown chakra. Each petal of the lotus represents a different spiritual power. Thus, an enlightened one is born. Successful completion of this process frees one from the wheel of rebirth.

Native American spiritualism provides yet another fine example of mysticism. Wankan Tanka, the Lakota term for the Great Spirit, suggests the awe one experiences when one draws near these primal forces. Lakota culture, like many Indian tribal cultures, emphasizes the harmony ethos in which tribal members are encouraged to place their lives in harmony with these powerful forces found in nature. Such rites as sweats, crying for a vision, and the most sacred of all Lakota rituals, the sun dance, aid one in this process, termed the medicine path. The focus here is to come into an understanding of who one is and the spiritual purpose for which one has been placed on earth. Native culture is about being. Anglo culture is about doing.

Modern psychology also contains traditions that speak to these exalted states of consciousness. William James (1842-1910), the father of psychology, wrote The Varieties of Religious Experience (1902), which provides descriptions of these experiences. More recently, transpersonal psychologists have devoted considerable effort to better understand these phenomena. The American psychologist Abraham Maslow (1908-1970), a forerunner of this tradition, described these events as peak experiences that can have great meaning for those who experience them. Regardless of the tradition to which one subscribes, all agree on the premise that it is possible to come into contact with God.

SEE ALSO American Dilemma; Buddhism; Christianity; Cox, Oliver C.; Gramsci, Antonio; Hegel, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich; Ideology; Judaism; Lukacs, Gyorgy; Marx, Karl; Marxism; Myrdal, Gunnar

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Black Elk. 1961. Black Elk Speaks: Being the Life Story of a Holy Man of the Ogalala Sioux. As told to John G. Neihardt. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press.

Fortune, Dion (Violet Firth). [1935] 1998. The Mystical Qabalah. Boston: Weiser.

James, William. [1902] 1963. The Varieties of Religious Experience: A Study in Human Nature. Hyde Park, NY: University Books.

Maslow, Abraham. 1971. The Farther Reaches of Human Nature. New York: Viking.

Regardie, Israel. [1932] 2004. A Garden of Pomegranates: Skrying on the Tree of Life. St. Paul, MN: Llewellyn.

Paul R. Newcomb