Eco-poetry as a modern literary theory is a branch of ecocriticism which focuses on the relationship between man and the physical world. Using the Latin American Nobel Prize winner Pablo Neruda’s selected poetry, this paper sets out to explore the themes of mystical and spiritual consciousness through eco-poetical evidence. This study utilizes the theoretical framework of eco-poetry to...
AbstractThis article proposes an exposition and analysis of perceptions intrinsic to rituals carried out with the use of the jurema plant, especially when mixed with Syrian rue (juremahuasca) in contexts of contemporary esoteric re‐actualizations in Brazil. These rituals are conducted by people who look at jurema as a spiritual path, once acquainted with its psychedelic properties. We highlight...
Ecstasy (literally, ‘standing outside’), that is, the sense of being outside or beyond the ordinary modes of consciousness, seems to be a universal trait of human existence. Among the many forms of ecstasy is religious, or ‘supra-normal’, ecstasy, which is seen as coming from the action of a higher source, or divinity. This essay examines the forms of religious ecstasy and related terminology...
ReligionsJuly 27, 2022Michael E. Asbury3 citations
The transfer of Sufism as a lived tradition to the Euro-American sphere, which first began in the early twentieth century, is a notable modern development that has been the subject of increasing academic interest in recent decades. Yet much of the literature on this topic to date has focused more on what has changed during the process of transfer, rather than on what has remained the same. It...
How a positive naturalist understanding of mystical experiences is possible and how these experiences and accompanying practices can be incorporated into a secular mysticism are discussed. Philosophical issues related to such a secular mysticism are also raised: is a truly secular mysticism possible? Are mystical experiences cognitive of transcendent non-natural realities? Can secular mysticism...
Abstract The aim of this essay is to elaborate structural epistemological and ethical equivalences between mysticism and psychoanalysis. This allows us to make the central concerns of mysticism accessible to contemporary secular thought. The article is driven by two intentions: on the one hand, not to misunderstand mysticism as a moral enterprise of self-perfection, and on the other hand, to...
Abdur Rahman Baba, a Pashto Poet, has not been discussed in international literature, very little. The aim of this study is to look deep into the poetry of Abdur Rahman Baba, to find out Islamic Mystical elements like love and subjugation towards Allah, devotion towards Prophet Muhammad, the last messenger, then love, care and concern for humanity. Few characteristics and thoughts from the...
Abstract Mystical experiences frequently precede decreases in human suffering or increased functioning. Therapies that include the ingestion of psychoactive substances in supportive environments often lead to improvements that correlate with the magnitude of the mystical experiences generated. A close look at these phenomena from a philosophy of science perspective might put empiricists in a...
It seems that the controversies over the nature of the beloved in classical Persian mystic poetry (also known as Sufi poetry) as an earthly or ethereal phenomenon would never end. Those in favor of the celestial reading of it consider their counterparts to be narrow-minded. The adherents of terrestrial love, though, see mystical readings dogmatic and outdated, prevailed by traditionalists. The...
ABSTRACT “Meister Eckhart’s Mysticism in Comparison with Zen Buddhism” originally appeared as the concluding section of Ueda Shizuteru’s first book, Die Gottesgeburt in der Seele und der Durchbruch zur Gottheit: Die mystische Anthropologie Meister Eckharts und ihre Konfrontation mit der Mystik des Zen-Buddhismus. It was first published in 1965 as an expanded version of Ueda’s doctoral...