On the ineffability and the noetic quality of mystical experiences
Gabriel Martínez Villarreal
Eikasía Revista de Filosofía May 11, 2026 DOI: 10.57027/eikasia.136.1010 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Mysticism Mystical experience |
| Keywords | Consciousness Liminality Value mathematics Quality philosophy Dimension graph theory Epistemology Foundation evidence Psychoanalysis Salient Philosophy of religion |
| Key points | Argues that mystical experiences, while epistemically problematic from Wittgenstein's perspective, have pragmatic and subjective value for religious life. |
Abstract
According to William James, mystical states of consciousness are characterized, among other features, by their noetic quality, i. e., some knowledge obtained is through them. However, another common feature of mystical experiences is their ineffability. This raises an epistemological question: How can something be known, and yet cannot be expressed? Through the conceptual framework of Ludwig Wittgenstein’s Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus, we examine mystical experiences as sources of knowledge. In Wittgenstein’s conception, the mystical is placed at a liminal and negative position: it lies outside the limits of language and of the world, and it refers to that which cannot be said. Despite the weak and problematic epistemic foundation of these experiences from Wittgenstein’s early perspective, we conclude with some reflections on their pragmatic and subjective value for the religious dimension of human life.
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on mystical experience, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Religious and Mystical Experiences as Artifacts of Temporal Lobe Function: A General Hypothesis | 1983 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| The Psychedelic Mystical Experience in the Human Encounter with Death | 1969 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Vectorial Cerebral Hemisphericity as Differential Sources for the Sensed Presence, Mystical Experiences and Religious Conversions | 1993 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| The epistemic innocence of psychedelic states. | 2016 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Mystical Experience and Religious Doctrine | 1982 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |