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ous or mystical 27 page needed intuitive insight and enlightenment edit main articles divine illumination enlightenment in buddhism and sudden awakening some authors emphasize that mystical experience involves intuitive understanding of the meaning of existence and of hidden truths and the resolution of life problems according to larson mystical experience is an intuitive understanding and realization of the meaning of existence 28 note 10 according to mcclenon mysticism is the doctrine that special mental states or events allow an understanding of ultimate truths web 6 note 11 according to james r horne mystical illumination is a central visionary experience that results in the resolution of a personal or religious problem 29 note 12 according to evelyn underhill illumination is a generic english term for the phenomenon of mysticism the term illumination is derived from the latin illuminatio applied to christian prayer in the 15th century 30 comparable asian terms are bodhi kenshō and satori in buddhism commonly translated as enlightenment and vipassana which all point to cognitive processes of intuition and comprehension 31 spiritual life and re formation edit main article spiritual development other authors point out that mysticism involves more than mystical experience according to gellman the ultimate goal of mysticism is human transformation not just experiencing mystical or visionary states 2 note 1 note 2 according to mcginn personal transformation is the essential criterion to determine the authenticity of christian mysticism 21 note 15 history of the term edit hellenistic world edit in the hellenistic world mystical referred to secret religious rituals like the eleusinian mysteries 2 the use of the word lacked any direct references to the transcendental 11 a mystikos was an initiate of a mystery religion citation needed early christianity edit main article early christianity in early christianity the term mystikos referred to three dimensions which soon became intertwined namely the biblical the liturgical and the spiritual or contemplative 5 the biblical dimension refers to hidden or allegorical interpretations of scriptures 2 5 the liturgical dimension refers to the liturgical mystery of the eucharist the presence of christ in the eucharist 2 5 the third dimension is the contemplative or experiential knowledge of god 5 until the sixth century the greek term theoria meaning contemplation in latin was used for the mystical interpretation of the bible 8 and the vision of god the link between mysticism and the vision of the divine was introduced by the early church fathers who used the term as an adjective as in mystical theology and mystical contemplation 11 theoria enabled the fathers to perceive depths of meaning in the biblical writings that escape a purely scientific or empirical approach to interpretation 35 the antiochene fathers in particular saw in every passage of scripture a double meaning both literal and spiritual 36 later theoria or contemplation came to be distinguished from intellectual life leading to the identification of θεωρία or contemplatio with a form of prayer 37 distinguished from discursive meditation in both east 38 and west 39 medieval meaning edit this threefold meaning of mystical continued in the middle ages 5 according to dan merkur the term unio mystica came into use in the 13th century as a synonym for the spiritual marriage the ecstasy or rapture that was experienced when prayer was used to contemplate both god s omnipresence in the world and god in his essence web 4 mysticism was also manifested in various sects of the time such as the waldensians 40 apophatic theology edit under the influence of pseudo dionysius the areopagite the term mystical theology came to denote the investigation of the allegorical truth of the bible 5 and the spiritual awareness of the ineffable absolute beyond the theology of divine names 41 pseudo dionysius apophatic theology or negative theology exerted a great influence on medieval monastic religiosity although it was mostly a male religiosity since women were not allowed to study 42 it was influenced by neo platonism and very influential in eastern orthodox christian theology in western christianity it was a counter current to the prevailing cataphatic theology or positive theology renaissance edit in the 1400s leading theologian jean gerson wrote several books on mystical theology which was any theology or divine human knowledge that occurred in the affective relating to the will including the emotions realm rather than the intellective this kind of mysticism was a general category that included the positive knowledge of god obtained for example through practical repentant activity e g as part of sacramental participation rather being about passive esoteric transcendent religious ecstasy it was an antidote the self aggrandizing hyper inquisitiveness of scholasticism and was attainable even by simple and uneducated people 43 212 the outcome of affective mysticism may be to see god s goodness or love rather than say his radical otherness 43 248 the theology of catherine of sienna was analysed in terms of mystical theology by baron friedrich von hügel in the mystical element of religion as studied in st catherine of genoa and her friends 1908 von hügel proposed three elements of religious experience the institutional historical the intellectual speculative and the mystical experiential for erasmus mysticism subsisted in contemplating the deep secrets contained in the bible 44 43 notably the startling personality of christ 45 early modern meaning edit see also early modern period the appearance of the holy spirit before saint teresa of ávila peter paul rubens in the sixteenth and seventeenth century mysticism came to be used as a substantive 11 this shift was linked to a new discourse 11 in which science and religion were separated 46 luther dismissed the allegorical interpretation of the bible and condemned mystical theology which he saw as more platonic than christian 47 the mystical as the search for the hidden meaning of texts became secularised and also associated with literature as opposed to science and prose 48 science was also distinguished from religion by the middle of the 17th century the mystical is increasingly applied exclusively to the religious realm separating religion and natural philosophy as two distinct approaches to the discovery of the hidden meaning of the universe 49 the traditional hagiographies and writings of the saints became designated as mystical shifting from the virtues and miracles to extraordinary experiences and states of mind thereby creating a newly coined mystical tradition 6 a new understanding developed of the divine as residing within human an essence beyond the varieties of religious expressions 11 contemporary meaning edit see also syncretism and new age the 19th century saw a growing emphasis on individual experience as a defense against the growing rationalism of western society 17 web 4 the meaning of mysticism was considerably narrowed web 4 the competition between the perspectives of theology and science resulted in a compromise in which most varieties of what had traditionally been called mysticism were dismissed as merely psychological phenomena and only one variety which aimed at union with the absolute the infinite or god and thereby the perception of its essential unity or oneness was claimed to be genuinely mystical the historical evidence however does not support such a narrow conception of mysticism web 4 under the influence of perennialism which was popularised in both the west and the east by unitarianism transcendentalists and theosophy mysticism has been applied to a broad spectrum of religious traditions in which all sorts of esotericism religious traditions and practices are joined together 50 51 17 the term mysticism was extended to comparable phenomena in non christian religions web 4 where it influenced hindu and buddhist responses to colonialism resulting in neo vedanta and buddhist modernism 51 52 in the contemporary usage mysticism has become an umbrella term for all sorts of non rational world views 53 parapsychology and pseudoscience 54 55 56 57 william harmless even states that mysticism has become a catch all for religious weirdness 58 within the academic study of religion the apparent unambiguous commonality has become opaque and controversial 11 the term mysticism is being used in different ways in different traditions 11 some call to attention the conflation of mysticism and linked terms such as spirituality and esotericism and point at the differences between various traditions 59 variations edit based on various definitions of mysticism namely mysticism as an experience of union or nothingness mysticism as any kind of an altered state of consciousness which is attributed in a religious way mysticism as enlightenment or insight and mysticism as a way of transformation mysticism can be found in many cultures and religious traditions both in folk religion and organized religion these traditions include practices to induce religious or mystical experiences but also ethical standards and practices to enhance self control and integrate the mystical experience into daily life citation needed dan merkur notes though that mystical practices are often separated from daily religious practices and restricted to religious specialists like monastics priests and other renunciates web 4 shamanism edit main article shamanism a buryat shaman performing a ritual on olkhon island according to dan merkur shamanism may be regarded as a form of mysticism in which the world of spirit is accessed through religious ecstasy web 4 according to mircea eliade shamanism is a technique of religious ecstasy 60 shamanism involves a practitioner reaching an altered state of consciousness in order to perceive and interact with spirits and channel transcendental energies into this world 61 a shaman is a person regarded as having access to and influence in the world of benevolent and malevolent spirits who typically enters into trance during a ritual and practices divination and healing 62 neoshamanism refers to new forms of shamanism or methods of seeking visions or healing typically practiced in western countries neoshamanism comprises an eclectic range of beliefs and practices that involve attempts to attain altered states and communicate with a spirit world and is associated with new age practices 63 64 western mysticism edit further information western esotericism mystery religions edit main article greco roman mysteries the eleusinian mysteries greek ἐλευσίνια μυστήρια were annual initiation ceremonies in the cults of the goddesses demeter and persephone held in secret at eleusis near athens in ancient greece 65 the mysteries began in about 1600 b c in the mycenean period and continued for two thousand years becoming a major festival during the hellenic era and later spreading to rome 66 numerous scholars have proposed that the power of the eleusinian mysteries came from the kykeon s functioning as an entheogen 67 christian mysticism edit main article christian mysticism early christianity edit the apophatic theology or negative theology of pseudo dionysius the areopagite 6th c exerted a great influence on medieval monastic religiosity both in the east and by latin translation in the west 42 pseudo dionysius applied neoplatonic thought particularly that of proclus to christian theology eastern orthodox christianity edit the eastern orthodox church has a long tradition of theoria intimate experience and hesychia inner stillness in which contemplative prayer silences the mind to progress along the path of theosis deification theosis practical unity with and conformity to god is obtained by engaging in contemplative prayer the first stage of theoria 68 note 16 which results from the cultivation of watchfulness nepsis in theoria one comes to behold the divisibly indivisible divine operations energeia of god as the uncreated light of transfiguration a grace which is eternal and proceeds naturally from the blinding darkness of the incomprehensible divine essence note 17 68 it is the main aim of hesychasm which was developed in the thought st symeon the new theologian embraced by the monastic communities on mount athos and most notably defended by st gregory palamas against the greek humanist philosopher barlaam of calabria according to roman catholic critics hesychastic practice has its roots to the introduction of a systematic practical approach to quietism by symeon the new theologian note 18 symeon believed that direct experience gave monks the authority to preach and give absolution of sins without the need for formal ordination while church authorities also taught from a speculative and philosophical perspective symeon taught from his own direct mystical experience 71 and met with strong resistance for his charismatic approach and his support of individual direct experience of god s grace 71 western europe edit life of francis of assisi by josé benlliure y gil the high middle ages saw a flourishing of mystical practice and theorization in western roman catholicism corresponding to the flourishing of new monastic orders with such figures as guigo ii hildegard of bingen bernard of clairvaux the victorines all coming from different orders as well as the first real flowering of popular piety among the laypeople the late middle ages saw the clash between the dominican and franciscan schools of thought which was also a conflict between two different mystical theologies on the one hand that of dominic de guzmán and on the other that of francis of assisi anthony of padua bonaventure and angela of foligno this period also saw such individuals as john of ruysbroeck catherine of siena and catherine of genoa the devotio moderna and such books as the theologia germanica the cloud of unknowing and the imitation of christ moreover there was the growth of groups of mystics centered around geographic regions the beguines such as mechthild of magdeburg and hadewijch among others the rhineland mystics meister eckhart johannes tauler and henry suso and the english mystics richard rolle walter hilton and julian of norwich the spanish mystics included teresa of avila john of the cross and ignatius loyola the later post reformation period also saw the writings of lay visionaries such as emanuel swedenborg and william blake and the foundation of mystical movements such as the quakers catholic mysticism continued into the modern period with such figures as padre pio and thomas merton the philokalia an ancient method of eastern orthodox mysticism was promoted by the twentieth century traditionalist school western esotericism and modern spirituality edit many western esoteric traditions and elements of modern spirituality have been regarded as mysticism such as transcendentalism theosophy the fourth way 72 martinus spiritu...