Contemplative Death in Jewish Mystical Tradition
Lawrence Fine
Sacrificing the Self July 18, 2002 DOI: 10.1093/oso/9780195149999.003.0006 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Mysticism |
| Key points | Argues that martyrdom in certain Jewish mystical traditions is understood as contemplative or imagined rather than requiring physical death, thereby broadening the concept of religious martyrdom. |
Abstract
Abstract A feature normally assumed essential to martyrdom is that it results in physical death. This essay, however, focuses on a variety of traditions in which martyrdom has to do with something other than actual dying. In certain Jewish mystical traditions, particularly medieval Kabbalah and Eastern European Hasidism, we discover a range of rituals that encourage the practice of contemplative or imagined martyrdom. The study of such traditions expands our conception of the meaning of religious martyrdom.
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on mysticism, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| The mystical mind: probing the biology of religious experience | 2000 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Religious and Mystical Experiences as Artifacts of Temporal Lobe Function: A General Hypothesis | 1983 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| The Problem of Pure Consciousness: Mysticism and Philosophy | 1993 | Edited collection of essays | |
| Irreducible Mind: Toward a Psychology for the 21st Century | 2020 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Mysticism and schizophrenia: A phenomenological exploration of the structure of consciousness in the schizophrenia spectrum disorders. | 2016 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |