Mystical experience Flashcards
What did William James argue about RE?
(The Varieties of Religious Experience) although beyond the empirical realm, a mystical experience has a positive impact on the lives of the recipients.
What four traits of mystical experiences did William James identify?
Passive
Ineffable
Noetic
Transient
What does ‘passive’ mean about religious experience?
The mystic is not in control of the experience. James writes: “Although the oncoming of mystical states may be facilitated by preliminary voluntary operations… the mystic feels as if his own will were in abeyance, and indeed sometimes as is he were grasped and held by a superior power.”
What does ‘ineffable’ mean about RE?
It cannot be put into ordinary words or expressed adequately for the benefit of others. James states: “it defies expression, that no adequate report of its contents can be given in words… its quality must be directly experienced; it cannot be imparted or transferred to others.”
What does ‘noetic’ mean about RE?
It imparts some kind of authoritative spiritual knowledge or insight. James states: “They are states of insight into depths of truth unplumbed by the discursive intellect… and as a rule they carry with them a curious sense of authority for after-time.”
What does ‘transient’ mean about RE?
They are short-lived, but their impact may not be. James states: “Mystical states cannot be sustained for long. Except for in rare instances, half an hour, or at most an hour or two, seems to be the limit beyond which they fade into the light of common day.”
