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In modern times, "mysticism" has acquired a limited definition, with broad applications, as meaning the aim at the "union with the Absolute, the Infinite, or God". This limited definition has been applied to a wide range of religious traditions and practices, valuing "mystical experience" as a key element of mysticism.
"Mysticism" is derived from the Greek μύω, meaning "to conceal," [13] and its derivative μυστικός, mystikos, meaning "an initiate." In the Hellenistic world, a "mystikos" was an initiate of a mystery religion. "Mystical" referred to secret religious rituals [14] and use of the word lacked any direct references to the transcendental. [15]
The experiences of mystics are often framed within theological approaches to God, such as Quietism, Pietism, etc.; therefore, in order to aid in the understanding of Christian mysticism, this list includes some philosophers, theologians, anonymous theological books, religious groups and movements whose ideas and practices have had an influence ...
Zaehner argues that the experiences typical of 'natural mysticism' are quite different from the experiences typical of religious mysticism. [9] Natural mystical experiences are not considered to be religious experiences because they are not linked to a particular tradition, but natural mystical experiences are spiritual experiences that can ...
In religious terms, Revival is the substitution of religious fervor in life and worship, for an intellectualized, pragmatic approach to everyday conduct (often stigmatized by revivalists as 'pride'). Ritual : A formalised, predetermined set of symbolic actions generally performed in a particular environment at a regular, recurring interval.
The occult is a category of supernatural beliefs and practices, encompassing such phenomena as those involving mysticism, spirituality, and magic in terms of any otherworldly agency. It can also refer to other non-religious supernatural ideas like extra-sensory perception and parapsychology.
Jewish mysticism, from early Hekhalot texts, through medieval spirituality, to the folk religion storytelling of East European shtetls, absorbed motifs of Jewish mythology and folklore through Aggadic creative imagination, reception of earlier Jewish apocrypha traditions, and absorption of outside cultural influences.
In 1991 Henk Versnel argued that magic and religion function in different ways and that these can be broadly defined in four areas: Intention – magic is employed to achieve clear and immediate goals for an individual, whereas religion is less purpose-motivated and has its sights set on longer-term goals; Attitude – magic is manipulative as ...