Mysticism in English Literature by Caroline F. E. Spurgeon
page 4 of 156 (02%)
page 4 of 156 (02%)
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Chapter I Introduction Mysticism is a term so irresponsibly applied in English that it has become the first duty of those who use it to explain what they mean by it. The _Concise Oxford Dictionary_ (1911), after defining a mystic as "one who believes in spiritual apprehension of truths beyond the understanding," adds, "whence _mysticism_ (n.) (often contempt)." Whatever may be the precise force of the remark in brackets, it is unquestionably true that mysticism is often used in a semi-contemptuous way to denote vaguely any kind of occultism or spiritualism, or any specially curious or fantastic views about God and the universe. The word itself was originally taken over by the Neo-platonists from the Greek mysteries, where the name of μύÏÏÎ·Ï given to the initiate, probably arose from the fact that he was one who was gaining a knowledge of divine things about which he must keep his mouth shut (Î¼á½»Ï = close lips or eyes). Hence the association of secrecy or "mystery" which still clings round the word. Two facts in connection with mysticism are undeniable whatever it may be, and whatever part it is destined to play in the development of thought and of knowledge. In the first place, it is the leading |
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