Rational Mysticism?
What could rational mysticism be? The words don't seem to
belong together, especially when we look at the definitions of
mysticism, which include, "belief in the existence of realities
beyond perceptual or intellectual apprehension that are central
to being and directly accessible by subjective experience,"
and "vague, groundless speculation." That certainly
doesn't sound compatible with rational thought.
On the other hand, sometimes we have to read between the lines.
A more common definition, "Immediate consciousness of the
transcendent or ultimate reality or God," hints at mysticism
having to do with an experience that people have. Now, whether
this experience really is "consciousness of the transcendent
or ultimate reality" is open to debate. But the mystical
experience itself is real, as millions of people can attest to.
It may be psychological, it may be chemicals in the brain, but
it exists.
The Mystical Experience
The most beautiful emotion we can
experience is the mystical. It is the fundamental emotion which
stands at the cradle of true art and true science. - Albert Einstein
It is difficult to describe to those who have not had the
experience. Imagine trying to describe music to a person who
cannot hear. We can talk about the dropping away of any sense
of self, the "seeing" of things without the usual distortion
caused by our thoughts, the feeling of peace, and more. But this
won't mean much to someone who has never had a mystical experience.
There is a way, though, for almost anyone to get a taste of
what it is like. By using certain meditative techniques most
people can have a "transcendent" experience with only
a little practice. You can try the following if you would like
to test this.
Find a beautiful place, perhaps in the mountains or in front
of a small lake or pond that is surrounded by trees. Be comfortable,
but not entirely. For example, it might help to do this during
snow flurries, but with warm clothing on. The idea here is that
you don't want the distraction of pain, but the experience and
environment should be somewhat new and different for you, especially
when doing this for the first time.
Stand still and look at the things in front of you. Relax,
take a deep breath or two, and let your eyes close. Begin to
breath through your nose and pay attention to your breath. Let
other thoughts slip away as much as possible. Just watch your
breath. When thoughts intrude (they will) simply return your
attention to your breath. Continue this for five minutes, ten
minutes, or until your mind is calmer and your thoughts are less
frequent. Then open your eyes.
If your mind was sufficiently calmed, this is what might happen:
The beautiful scene in front of you looks different now, more
"real." You feel that in some sense you are seeing
it for the first time, or as though you are being let in on some
wonderful "secret." A peaceful feeling that you can't
quite describe will stay with you for a while. This is a hint
of what deeper mystical experiences can feel like.
Another experience many refer to as "mystical" is
the feeling we have when confronted with the mysteries of life.
Interestingly, the more one knows about certain subjects (physics,
psychology and astronomy come to mind), the more one realizes
how much is unknown. Answers bring more questions, and the "whole"
truth is forever retreating into the distance. This recognition
can be awe-inspiring and can create a sense of wonder that simultaneously
lets us appreciate the mystery while motivating us to decipher
it.
How Can it Be Rational Mysticism?
This experience itself is not rational nor irrational. It
simply is what it is. But the idea of rational mysticism is that
there may be good reasons to cultivate these experiences, but
we do not need to provide the usual irrational explanations for
them.
The experience itself is enough reason to pursue this kind
of mysticism. There certainly is nothing irrational about pursuing
a sense of wonder and peace and communion (and whatever other
good qualities the mystical experience carries for each person).
It can be more directly useful as well, reducing stress, for
example, or providing some insight that leads to better ideas,
or helping us learn to love or respect others and get along better.
The experience is not irrational then, nor is our desire to
have it. But the beliefs people have about it are often irrational.
This is because they are invented beliefs which people have "faith"
in, meaning they are willing to ignore evidence against them
and feel no need to gather evidence for them. This irrational
approach, then, is to simply believe an explanation because it
satisfies some psychological need.
A mind that takes this approach works something like this:
"I call this experience a union with God, because this makes
me feel special, and therefore this is what I choose to believe."
Naturally, this means being closed-minded about many related
facts or more accurate explanations that are discovered in the
future. Fortunately, we don't have to take this approach.
"Mystical" knowledge, for example, doesn't have
to be seen as connection with "realities beyond perceptual
or intellectual apprehension." It can be called intuition,
which can be understood as simply accessing parts of one's unconscious
mind. That's a better theory, in any case. More importantly,
though, we don't have to invent any belief or theory.
A rational approach is to simply leave some things unexplained
until the time comes when we have evidence to explain them. That
is how we can have a rational mysticism. |
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