“Let Him Rejoice in the Roseate Light!”: Teaching Psychoanalysis and Mysticism
William Barclay Parsons
March 27, 2003 DOI: 10.1093/oso/9780195157680.003.0006 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
|---|---|
| Topics | Mysticism |
| Citations | 1 |
| Key points | Argues that Freud's interpretation of the 'oceanic feeling' is the foundational text for psychoanalytic theories of mysticism and contains the fundamental keys to understanding the historical drift of subsequent psychoanalytic theorizing on the subject. |
Abstract
Abstract In the present climate of fascination with mystical experience and spirituality, an informed grasp of the resurgent psychoanalytic theory of mysticism has become a desired end for those invested in teaching religion and psychological studies. Of course, the literature on this topic is rich and complex enough to be packaged for pedagogical purposes in diverse ways. What follows, then, is hardly meant to be an exhaustive or comprehensive survey of the variety of pedagogical options afforded by psychoanalytic studies of mysticism. On the contrary, I concentrate on but one instance of psychoanalytic forays into mysticism: Freud’s interpretation of the famous “oceanic feeling.” I do so partly because the latter is the locus classicus of the psychoanalytic theory of mysticism. But more, this one text also contains the fundamental keys needed to unlock the historical drift of subsequent psychoanalytic theorizing on mysticism.
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 |