Prayer, a little-studied aspect of religious experience, is examined within Daoism (Taoism), a Chinese religion often confused with Buddhism for its meditation practices. From its beginnings as an organized religion in the second century CE, Daoism prescribed methods of verbal communication with higher powers in communal and private settings. This essay explores a few of these methods to prompt further investigation into Daoist prayer.
Mystical experiences, though personal and shaped by different religious traditions, share a foundational resonance that can deepen interreligious understanding. This article examines the mystical experiences of Hallaj, from Islam, and Meister Eckhart, from Christianity, using a hermeneutic approach that interprets each mystic's experience through the other's. Despite their different religious languages and symbols, the article finds a strong resonance between their experiences. It argues that this resonance allows for an inter-experiential reading, suggesting that mystical experience can serve as a robust basis for interreligious dialogue, making such dialogue richer and more profound.