Jonathan and David B.,
It would be beneficial to the discussion if you would each define your
meaning of mysticism.
When I use the term, to quote K. Wilber, I am refering to the state of
consciousness where "one's sense of identity explodes into everything that is
experienced -- but then there is no separate experiencer nor separate objects
experienced, but just one encompassing and nondual experiencing."
To paraphrase James, it is the state of realizing that the page seen and the
seer of the page are just two aspects of the same experience.
It is the state where the boundaries of subject and object, and past and
future collapse into the present of pure experience.
Mysticism is a widespread well accepted state of consciousness that is known
to exist in virtually every recorded society. It is also borderline
'objective' in that there is a path to achieve it that can be followed by
anyone.
What is each of your definitions? ( I remember David posted a dictionary
version a few years ago -- is this still the one you would use D?)
Rog
PS -- There is one key similarity between alcohol and mystic awareness. If
mysticism is viewed as seeing that boundaries are the illusion of maya, then
mysticism can be viewed as a "No Boundary" condition.( Wilber uses this as a
name for one of his major works.) Alcohol also removes a boundary, namely
the boundary of a person''s social self from biological self. However, it
does it in a destructive rather than a constructive way. Alcohol represses
one half of the boundary, where as mysticism merges the halves and erases the
boundary of this and other dualities. (better yet, it reveals that the
boundary is illusory)
PPS -- The ultimate theme of Lila is to embrace mystic awareness, a term
which P. calls DQ or direct experience. He probably says this a dozen times
in the book. At least in my copy.......
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