Mysticism

Mysticism: East and West

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Mystical aspects of Buddhism

Buddhism is a religion of followers of Sakyamuni (Gautama Buddha). It is basically an offshoot of Hinduism but has many variations in beliefs and practices which includes vegetarianism in some of its branches. Buddhism is among the major religions in the world with about 3.5 million adherents. The most common Buddhism threads include the three jewels (Dharma, Buddha and Sangha ‘community’), and as well the goal of nirvana.

There are several mystical aspects of Buddhism. These aspects guide their ways of life and provide insight on the things they believe in. First is that Buddhism is a religion that is based on nothingness. At the core, there is no God and no absolute. This is followed by the beliefs of no self, no truth and no morality. They believe that there isn’t meaning to anyone or anything at all and thus evil is nonexistent and if one thinks differently, it becomes quite immaterial as they lack basis upon which they can judge otherwise. With the belief in nothingness, there are four major themes that can be discussed, this is truth, God, self and morality.

When taking a look at God and Buddhism, we find it quite normal for people to be concerned first about a religion’s perspective of God. Buddha on the other hand is reticent about God and insists that nothing is absolute as everything is impermanent and conditioned. Secondly, Buddhism and truth show that as there is no God, thus there is no truth. The lack of truth results to tolerance and relativism. On Buddhism and self. Self means the reality or substance which is the cause of evanescent and fluctuating qualities of an individual or the larger environment. When Buddha rules out self, what is left is the components and faculties which make up our own individual experiences. Finally, Buddhism and morality view moral issues are less about wrong and right than the issues of unskillful and skillful. Skillful is considered as a synonym for Buddhists as ‘good.’ Thus, the theory of morality does not focus much on duty or obligations.

The second mystical aspect is about devotion in Buddhism. Buddha discouraged excessive payment of veneration to him as he believed that the excessive emotional devotion can disturb or obstruct balanced character development. Buddha says that devotional mediations are important as he believes they help purify a defiled mind. They believe that if they indulge in devotional mediation, they can be able to live in the presence of the master as they will feel ashamed to either do or say anything that is unworthy and they will avoid evil at all cost. Beginners struggle with gaining concentration as they face frustrations by an uneasy self-consciousness.

The final mystical aspect is the dimensions of zenith mediation. It is a simple technique which has been mastered by many and is believed to have so many benefits. The Buddhist monks practice this and seem to be content with the little resources is life and it is believed that this is so because they practice Zen meditation. It is believed that it helps one remain calm mentally and can heal physical pain and stress. It is a good remedy for people who are stressed and would love to get rid of it. Zen meditation is perceived to help in reconnecting with the soul and mind and get answers and clarity on all the worries. Upon doing this type of meditation regularly, one can get to the point whereby they feel less expectations meaning they have reached the point of tranquility and it is believed that at this point the life worries end.

Nature and function of “concept”, Symbol and Metaphor

The Dao De Jing language is not conceptual but poetic and symbolic. It has an understanding of the dangers this language posse. Concepts are powerful and useful tools in expressing and conveying ideas in a formula which is precise. Concepts according to Dao have the intrinsic tendency of reducing meanings and ideas into specific frameworks. A concept is described by Dao as a logical and rational reduction of thoughts and ideas. When the thoughts and ideas become tangible and concrete, they become concepts. Symbols and metaphors on the other hand give the possibility of reducing them into forms like concepts which are rationally and logically constructed. Dao by nature is not a concept because it can’t be reduced into the definitive forms. Dao De Jing thus uses metaphors and symbolic language. It avoids any conceptual and systematic methods of describing Dao simply because this method of description is artificial and tends to be intellectually reductive.

Concepts are the most convenient and common as they can be used to express thoughts and ideas. They are as well very highly structured ways of expression. They require a particular formality, framework, rational and logical construction. A concept is a method of confining, limiting and defining the reality to ensure reality is made in form of intelligibility. A symbol on the other hand is a passive way of letting people receive reality. Symbols possess the power of opening our hearts and eyes to move, feel and comprehend directly the reality. Dao De Jing language is having a way of illustrating more than systemizing or analyzing to carry out its exploration. Conceptual analysis in this case has the benefit of making things clear and precise hence creating a confusion between concept and analysis.

The use of symbol, unlike concept, doesn’t reduce reality to an intellectual matrix but represents reality by the use of illustration. Symbols do not seek rational or logical explanations but gives a direct appeal to the immediate understanding. Symbols show a way of understanding and knowing the more holistic way. Reason or logic are the best ways of explaining reality. Symbols sets open reality through emotions, feelings, intuition and reflection. Symbols thus give us a chance of understanding reality in other ways.

Metaphors and symbols are used in Dao De Jing as they have the power of manifesting and revealing at the same time conceal are they refuse to be confined and defined. Unlike concept, metaphors and symbols are not definitive but tend to be allusive and suggestive. They have the power of revealing Dao reality without making any reductions to its conceptual definition. One unique aspect of concept is that it is concrete in form yet it is as well capable of transcending its concreteness and as well invoke in us creative thinking and image. The metaphors and images have the capability of going beyond the concreteness and make a revelation of the reality in a more creative way

We thus get to understand that concept doesn’t exist in Dao but there is the existent of metaphors and symbols which gives the manifestation of reality. The ultimate reality thus cannot be conceptualized but are meant to be symbolized. We get to experience reality in metaphors and symbols.

Nature and function of “paradox”

Dao De Jing is a text that is unique both in content and form. The style of Dao De Jing is cryptic, mystic, metaphoric and poetic. It has an understanding of the limit, the power and the mystery of language. There is the use of paradox in the text. Paradox is majorly used to create tension to the readers majorly by the placement of phrases or words together to make them appear as if they do not follow the accepted truth or the rule of logic. This contradiction makes the reader to have a deeper level of thinking about the meaning of the implied statement. The function of a paradox is to reveal the truth about an issue or a character and plants clues for the reader by adding humor and expressing themes. A paradox can as well be used to highlight some great injustices or hypocrisy in a situation majorly by proving its prevalence. They can as well be used to slow the reader down or set them up for an unexpected surprise twist.

In the Dao De Jing, a lot of paradox has been used for different meaning. These paradoxes tend to be interpreted differently based on their understanding. For example, when talking about longevity, it is stated that “The longevity of the heavens and the earth is due to the fact that they exist not for themselves” this paradox puts forth the nature of longevity. The heavens are a symbol of endless eternity while the earth is a symbol of perpetuation and the endurance of life. Another paradox that is used in the text is “those who find their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it” (Matthew 10: 39, NRSV). A Christian can understand this paradox basing on Jesus and Christ’s self-consciousness. Christians have an understanding of this paradox basing on its Christology while on the other hand Daoist have an understanding on its cosmetology. “Being ambitious can be risky, obsession for success can also be dangerous.” The spirit of Dao focuses on being natural and spontaneity rather than artificially to becoming self-righteous and prominent. Unlike contradiction, paradox is a way profundity can be understood in ultimate reality. Unlike factual and scientific truth, a profound truth uses paradoxical language. Dao is obviously paradox in nature. It however appears obscure when it is defined in a conceptual language but becomes obvious when we get to experience it on a personal level, in an experimental knowledge.

Mystical aspects of Zhuangzi

Lao Zi is known in the west as the father of the Daoist thought. Zhuang Zhou, was an influencer and a follower of Lao Zi and expanded several ideas about the limitations of life and the nature of experience. He thus expanded the principles of Lao Zi into a framework of thought which gives a description of both the inherent separation of the individuals and the holistic oneness of basically everything. The Zhuangzi works collection has an alternation between the speculations metaphysics to profound skepticism, from the passages where there is treatment of death with wondrous agnosticism to the stories about mingling with immortals (Cook, 2003). In this case, the spirit has pre-eminence over other personal aspects, being able to offer protection to the body and be protected by it in turn. It also involves being able to leave the body behind and forget about it. The spirit in the case of Zhuangzi defines the identity of a person in the essence of who one is. The ultimate essence and personhood of human beings is dependent on their spirit. A person who thus is spiritual in nature by default exists in heaven.

According to Coutinho, (2015), he examines nature’s relative experience; the idea that a decision that is carefully considered by a particular person might seem absurd to another person because of their not so good experiences in the past. Zhuang Zhou gave an argument against objectivity, anecdotal thought experiments and the subverting conventional; wisdom coupled with satire.

Zhuang Zhou believed that people should not worry about the happenings of life. He believes that no situation is permanent. And that what we expect to happen might not be the same thing that will happen but another. For instance, he indicates that, “he who dreams of drinking wine might weep when morning comes; he who dreams of weeping may in the morning go off for a hunt. While he is dreaming he does not know that it is a dream, and in his dream he may even try to interpret a dream. Only after he wakes does he know it was a dream.”

When his wife died, his brother went to pass his condolences but found him with his legs sprout out and was singing while pounding on a tab. The brother thought that was going too far as his wife had lived with her and brought up his children he should at least be mourning. He responded that when his wife first died, he grieved like any other person but found it wrong to continue grieving. He says that this was a season like any other. He said he took a look back at the time when his wife did not even have a body, when she got a spirit, when she got a body and when she was born. He says in a mysterious way, change happened and she got a spirit, another change happened and she got a body, change again happened and she was born. And now the final change occurred and she is dead. He sees it as progression like in the four seasons of spring, summer, fall and winter. He argues that if he were to sob and bawl, it would indicate that he does not have any understanding of fate.

Conclusion

As indicated in the above text, it is clear that that mysticism is made up of religious ecstasies, ethics, ideologies among others. Mysticism has been institutionalized in 90% of human societies. It occurs not only in the scripture based religions but in the oral religious traditions as well. whether the mystical experience occurs spontaneously or triggered by prayer, meditation or an entheogen, the experiences are the same. Different religions in the world have mysticism as part of their religious component. Several people have come up with concepts that are mystic in nature which have faced criticisms as well as support. Understanding the various mystic grounds can be beneficial in understanding the various ways of thoughts by different individuals or groups.

References

Cook, S. (Ed.). (2003). Hiding the World in the World: Uneven Discourses on the Zhuangzi. SUNY Press.

Coutinho, S. (2015). Conceptual Analyses of the Zhuangzi. In Dao Companion to Daoist Philosophy (pp. 159-191). Springer, Dordrecht.

Harvey, P. (2012). An introduction to Buddhism: Teachings, history and practices. Cambridge University Press.

Ivanhoe, P. J. (2003). The Daodejing of Laozi. Hackett drafting.

Jackson, R. R. (1996). How mystical is Buddhism?. Asian Philosophy, 6(2), 147-153.

Moeller, H. G. (2006). The philosophy of the Daodejing. Columbia University Press.

Yan, H. K. (2009). A paradox of virtue: The Daodejing on virtue and moral philosophy. Philosophy East and West, 173-187.