Mysticism in the case of Peirce and many others does not refer to an ongoing designation but to a particular experience or experiences that convince one that she/he is part of a unity. It is a life-changing experiene but it has little to do with ones religious or theological formulations save that they tend to be based on some notion of pervasive unity. I would never choose the term mystic to describe Peirce because it would create misunderstanding. But I would push hard for a comprehension of pragmaticism as suggesting a spiritual understanding of things and of an advocated discipline such as that evidently practiced by Peirce and described in NA. To me that is where this discussion tends and where it becomes creative. I laugh to myself with a final thought as I once composed a major musical work to celebrate a Methodist event. Peirce was perhaps a Methodist! I do not mean that seriously but he does indeed propose methods for the apprehension of truth and beauty via play and musement (and need I add?) walking.
*@stephencrose <https://twitter.com/stephencrose>* On Wed, May 21, 2014 at 4:45 PM, Gary Fuhrman <[email protected]> wrote: > Søren, Ben, list, > > > > I don't want to downplay the affinities between Peirce and the mystics you > mention, Søren -- your previous post was quite eloquent and persuasive -- but > I don't want to downplay the differences either. Peirce's religious > orientation is, as Anderson says in *Strands of System*, quite > idiosyncratic and hard to classify. The idea of "the natural light" was not > original with Peirce, of course, but what he did with it is distinctive. > And in my view, significantly different from mysticism. But that's a vague > word, almost as vague as "God", so it would be unreasonable to argue about > it any more than I already have. > > > > Ben, thanks for the pointer to Anderson's book (and for the other > meticulous work you posted today!) -- I'd actually bought it from Google > Play but hadn't got far into reading it yet. He does quote the whole letter > to Rev. Brown, as Brent does, but I think his comments on it are more > balanced. He introduces the text of the letter by saying: "Because Peirce > did not mention the contents of this letter elsewhere and because we do not > know if he in fact sent it, it is difficult to know how much to make of it." > > > > His comment at the end of it goes like this: "I do not wish to make more > of this than necessary, especially since Peirce did not see fit to make > more of the event himself. Nevertheless, it makes less problematic the fact > that Peirce began to give voice to his thinking concerning religion in the > early nineties. Moreover, it suggests one source of Peirce's ability to > endure his subsequent logician's life of increasing sacrifice and > desperation." The suggestion is that what Peirce got from the experience, > aside from an increased interest in religion, was the strength to carry on > with his philosophical quest. It doesn't suggest that the *content* of > Peirce's philosophy, or his religious beliefs, was much affected by the > experience. So that's an alternate take on the letter somewhat different > from Brent's and Stephen's. > > > > gary f. > > > > } The train that can be expressed is not the express train. [gnox] { > > www.gnusystems.ca/gnoxic.htm }{ gnoxics > > > > *From:* Søren Brier [mailto:[email protected]] > *Sent:* 21-May-14 2:36 PM > > > > Dear Gary and list > > > > Your quote made me think of John of the Cross famous poem of the dark > night describing the mystical union. > http://www.ewtn.com/library/SOURCES/DARK-JC.TXT . I have italicized the > places where the a-personal in the union is described though the poem is > within the frames of Christianity, which John managed to stay within but > Eckhart was kicked out from after his death. > > > > STANZAS OF THE SOUL > > > > 1. One dark night, > > fired with love's urgent longings > > -- ah, the sheer grace! -- > > I went out unseen, > > my house being now all stilled. > > > > 2. In darkness, and secure, > > by the secret ladder, disguised, > > -- ah, the sheer grace! -- > > in darkness and concealment, > > *my house being now all stilled**.* > > > > 3. On that glad night, > > in secret, for no one saw me, > > nor did I look at anything, > > with no other light or guide > > *than the one that burned in my heart.* > > > > 4. This guided me > > more surely than the light of noon > > to where he was awaiting me > > -- him I knew so well -- > > *there in a place where no one appeared.* > > > > 5. O guiding night! > > O night more lovely than the dawn! > > O night that has united > > the Lover with his beloved, > > *transforming the beloved in her Lover.* > > > > 6. Upon my flowering breast > > which I kept wholly for him alone, > > there he lay sleeping, > > and I caressing him > > there in a breeze from the fanning cedars. > > > > 7. When the breeze blew from the turret, > > as I parted his hair, > > it wounded my neck > > with its gentle hand, > > suspending all my senses. > > > > 8. *I abandoned and forgot myself,* > > laying my face on my Beloved; > > *all things ceased; I went out from myself,* > > leaving my cares > > forgotten among the lilies. > > > > Best > > > > Søren > > > > *Fra:* Benjamin Udell [mailto:[email protected] <[email protected]>] > *Sendt:* 21. maj 2014 20:18 > *Til:* [email protected] > *Emne:* Re: [PEIRCE-L] De Waal seminar chapter 9, section on God, science > and religion: text 1 > > > > Quick followup on "L 482" or whatever it really is: > > Douglas R. Anderson quotes Peirce's whole letter to John W. Brown on pages > 15-16 in Chapter 1 in _Strands of System_ and adds, "MS, Fisch Collection" > > > http://books.google.com/books?id=jc5r7WoNEE8C&pg=PA15&lpg=PA15&dq=%22Peirce%22+%22John+W.+Brown%22&source=bl&ots=1aP337-t1e&sig=9mtD-IDxK7zpfD9NvbojyNy4IZ0&hl=en&sa=X&ei=rt18U8_sGsXisATup4BI&ved=0CEAQ6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q=%22Peirce%22%20%22John%20W.%20Brown%22&f=false > > There's a chapter end note 11 indicated but I can't access the page with > its text in Google Preview. > > Best, Ben > > > > > ----------------------------- > PEIRCE-L subscribers: Click on "Reply List" or "Reply All" to REPLY ON > PEIRCE-L to this message. PEIRCE-L posts should go to > [email protected] . To UNSUBSCRIBE, send a message not to PEIRCE-L > but to [email protected] with the line "UNSubscribe PEIRCE-L" in the > BODY of the message. More at http://www.cspeirce.com/peirce-l/peirce-l.htm. > > > > > >
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