Unintentional and Deliberate Methods of Attaining Mystical States
Routledge eBooks March 2, 2021 DOI: 10.4324/9781003138488-2 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Key points | Argues that mystical experiences fall into two categories, spontaneous and intentionally sought, and that comparing them shows their essential similarity. Contends that diverse psychological methods used worldwide and across recorded history, as well as the philosophical and mystical approaches of Plotinus, Hindu, Christian, Moslem, and Hebrew traditions, engender essentially similar experiential states. |
Abstract
In this chapter, I classify the mystical experiences in two broad categories: spontaneous and intentionally sought. In the first belong those states that arise unexpectedly for largely unknown reasons. In the other belong those states that are sought deliberately by means of different behavioral and psychophysiological methods. The purpose of the distinction and comparison of the two types is to demonstrate their essential similarity. Further, I highlight the main aspects of the psychological methods that have been used around the world and throughout recorded history to attain the mystical state. The philosophical method of Plotinus and those of the Hindu, the Eastern and Western Christian, Moslem and Hebrew mystics are described, again for the purpose of ascertaining the essential similarity of the experiential states they engender.