TramesOctober 30, 2025Swati Samantaray, Sahadeb Patro
Religion was our first attempt at literature, cosmology, ecology, making sense of where we are in the universe. All religions are inherently predisposed to mystical experience â a harmonious and balanced existence and substantiation of Nature and man â man, who is conscious of his existence both in the material and the spiritual realm, as man is the highest spirit and the lowest matter...
Abstract This paper argues that interactions with artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots, such as ChatGPT, can mediate genuine mystical experiences. Building off the framework of mystical experiences developed by William James, I argue that interactions with AI chatbots can mediate mystical experiences in a structurally comparable way to how guided meditation can produce mystical experiences. I...
Following Nietzsche’s declaration that ‘God is dead’, Lev Shestov (1866–1938) and Jacques Derrida (1930–2004) attempted to rethink Judeo-Christian theological and philosophical traditions by trying to free the relation to God from pretences of finite concepts and limitations of knowledge. In the second half of the twentieth century, the problematic discourse of the so-called ‘paradox of the...
Abstract The “irrational” nature of communicating with spirits in shamanic culture possesses a cultural and spiritual healing power that is difficult for modern science to match. The paradox of shamanic culture is that reason does not require us to eliminate irrational elements of emotion, mystical fantasy, and religious belief; rather, all that reason requires of us is to discursively...
In active inference, mystical experiences (MEs) could be characterized as adaptive learning events, where the ordinary expectations of an agent become challenged or change permanently. In the context of psychedelic-induced MEs, these (temporary) changes in information processing have been attributed to increased brain entropy, the effects of which have been seen to reorganize deep...
This article examines the parallels and distinctions between mystical experiences within religious and cultic contexts, using Mormonism and Happy Science as case studies. The study begins with a clarification of the theoretical framework, rejecting logical positivism and acknowledging the truthfulness of beliefs as held by followers. Definitions of religion and cults are explored, highlighting...
The paper critically discusses whether mystical experiences induced by psychedelics should be considered inauthentic or counterfeit forms of mystical experiences. It examines three arguments against the authenticity of these experiences: pimes are too easy; pimes do not have lasting spiritual or moral effects; pimes do not involve divine grace. Positive arguments for the authenticity of pimes...
The Bardo Thodol (bar do thos grol), commonly known in the West as The Tibetan Book of the Dead, has traditionally served as a spiritual manual guiding consciousness through the postmortem bardo (bar do) states toward liberation or rebirth. While prior interpretations have framed the text in ritualistic, psychological, or mystical terms, this essay proposes an original and interdisciplinary...
This study explores spirituality and mysticism in Islamic Sufism by examining the thoughts of two prominent figures, Ibn Arabi and Al-Hallaj. Both are known for their major contributions to the Sufi tradition, yet they present distinct approaches in understanding the relationship between humans and God. The study arises from the limited number of comparative analyses concerning the spiritual...
The educational philosophy of the Nuns’ Buddhist Academy at Pushou Monastery, Mount Wutai, is based on the principles of “Hua Yan as the foundation, precepts as the practice, and Pure Land as the destination.” This philosophy draws upon Buddhist scriptures, integrating descriptions of the Pure Land practice found in the Avatamsaka Sūtra and the Amitābha Sūtra. This approach translates the...
This research explores the acculturation of Sufi values and Javanes mysticism as manifested in the Keduk Beji tradition in Tawun, Ngawi, East Java. Indonesia. Beyond the aim of honoring ancestors by cleaning the sacred well, this tradition contains profound elements of self-cleansing, meditation and communal prayer, along with with mass chanting of dhikr and other sacred ritual processions....
The review is devoted to the Russian-language translation of the Abraham Isaac (Arthur) Green’s “Guide to the Book of Zohar” (2004) that was published in 2025. Arthur Green is one of the famous thinkers and researchers of Jewish mysticism, and his “Guide” is a small but capacious introduction to Jewish mysticism. It was published in 2004 as an addition to the publication of the English...
The main goal of the article is to study mystical theology of Archimandrite Sophrony (Sakharov) in his sacramentological dimension. The paper explores the role of sacraments in the author's understanding of the mystical aspect of Christian life. The methodological foundations of the work presuppose the understanding of mysticism as a semantic shade of theology, defined as a special interaction...
This research explored whether anomalous ‘dimensional-slip’ experiences—reported by an allegedly haunted woman named “Nell”—would systematically map to distinctive features of various transcendental spaces discussed in spiritual and psychological traditions. A two-part content analysis using ChatGPT-4o compared the phenomenology of Nell’s written accounts (n = 4) to an inventory of 32 classic...
This article examines the idea of the "Perfect Man" (insān al-kāmil) within the framework of religious anthropology and Islamic mysticism from a historical-philosophical perspective. The research focuses on the spiritual path to perfection in Sufi teachings, its main stages, and anthropological implications. The objective of the study is to reveal the religious meaning and spiritual experience...
Self-realization, the process of understanding oneself, has been a popular subject in philosophy, psychology, and spiritual traditions. “The Alchemist” by Paulo Coelho (1998), is the literary embodiment of this very idea as the book follows the personal odyssey of its hero and his pursuit of self-realisation and happiness. This paper explores how the novel embodies the philosophy of self or...
Mystical experience illustrates a fundamental aspect of human relations with the ultimate reality within the framework of religiosity. This article explores the mystical experiences of Hallaj and Meister Eckhart, both of whom came from different religious traditions. Employing a hermeneutic approach, this article attempts to read the experiences of both mystics by interpreting one with the...
This study provides a comprehensive critical analysis of Brother Gilbert (Athol) Bloomer's 2013 theological corpus, examining his ambitious attempt to synthesize Jewish mystical traditions with Catholic sacramental theology through what he terms "heretical kabbalah."Drawing on contemporary scholarship in Jewish mysticism, religious studies methodology, postcolonial criticism, and interfaith...
Abstract: McGinn’s Modern Mystics serves as a coda to his multivolume history, The Presence of God , but also stands as an introduction of sorts. It situates that historical project among the mystical authors of the twentieth century, but more importantly it begins to address the deeper connection between history and theology manifested in McGinn’s scholarship. To see this, one can attend to...