We speak of God as King, on high, A sceptered hand, a watchful eye. The Master Plan, the sovereign Will, Each motion bound, each moment still Beneath a gaze that sees and guides, Where destiny in preset tides Flows onward, sure, from source to sea, Bound fast by the divine decree. Ultimate Autocrat, we deem, [...]
Mystical experience seems to reveal that there is no separate self. What implications does this have for free will?
Joannes Stobaeus was a 5th-century AD compiler of Greek texts in Stobi, Macedonia. He likely read widely, and recorded many of the most interesting passages he came across from Greek authors, including poets and prose writers. The following seems to be a reference to the ancient Mysteries, religious rites, secret ceremonies and initiations, and what took place in them, perhaps a reference to the Eleusinian Mysteries
Thomas Merton (1915-1968) was a Catholic writer, theologian, Trappist monk, and mystic. The following is from his book New Seeds of Contemplation, describing his experiences in contemplation...
Bill Wilson, the cofounder of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), had a spiritual awakening that involved bright light, sometimes referred to as his “hot flash” or “white light transformation.”