Mysticism

Mysticism encompasses religious traditions of human transformation aided by various practices and religious experiences. Popularly, mysticism is used synonymously with mystical experience, a neologism which refers to an ecstatic unitive experience of becoming one with God, the Absolute, or all that exists.

Scholarly research since the 1970s had questioned this understanding, noting that what appears to be mysticism may also refer to the attainment of insight into ultimate or hidden truths, as in Buddhist awakening and Hindu prajna, in nondualism, and in the realisation of emptiness and ego-lessness, and also to altered states of consciousness such as samadhi.

The term “mysticism” has Ancient Greek origins with various historically determined meanings. Derived from the Greek word μύω múō, meaning “to close” or “to conceal”, mysticism came to refer to the biblical, liturgical (and sacramental), spiritual, and contemplative dimensions of early and medieval Christianity. During the early modern period, the definition of mysticism grew to include a broad range of beliefs and ideologies related to “extraordinary experiences and states of mind”.

Broadly defined, mysticism as a way of personal transformation can be found in a number of religious traditions, including Western mysticism and Western esotericism, Sufism, Buddhism, and Hinduism.

wikipedia/en/Mysticism

Freud viewed mysticism with deep suspicion, interpreting it as a regressive and infantile desire to return to a state of undifferentiated oneness. His rejection of mysticism was a key point of divergence with his former protege, Carl Jung, who embraced the mystical and spiritual aspects of the unconscious. Freud’s perspective was grounded in his atheist, scientific worldview, which dismissed religious and spiritual phenomena as illusions rooted in childhood helplessness.

The “oceanic feeling” and its origin The foundation of Freud’s analysis of mysticism is his concept of the “oceanic feeling,” which he described in his book Civilization and Its Discontents.

Prompting correspondence: The term originated in a letter to Freud from his friend, the French writer Romain Rolland. Rolland described a constant, “oceanic” feeling of being one with the external world and used it to explain the source of religious energy.
Freud’s interpretation: Freud responded by claiming he did not experience this feeling himself but sought to explain it through psychoanalytic theory. He defined it as a vestige of the “primitive ego-feeling” from infancy, before an infant learns to distinguish itself from its mother and the external world.
A defensive retreat: For Freud, the oceanic feeling was not a revelation of cosmic oneness but a regression to a state of primary narcissism. He saw it as a defense mechanism against the helplessness and misery of life, offering the illusion of returning to a state of limitlessness.

A scientific versus a mystical unconscious A major point of conflict between Freud and Carl Jung was their opposing views on the nature of the unconscious. This debate heavily shaped their different perspectives on mysticism.

Aspect of the unconscious	Freud’s view	Jung’s view
Nature	Consisted of repressed emotions and desires, primarily sexual in origin.	Included a “collective unconscious” in addition to the personal unconscious, with the collective holding universal, mythic archetypes.
Purpose	Must be explored and understood through rational, scientific inquiry to free the mind from infantile dependencies.	Could be a source of transcendent and healing wisdom with mystical or “numinous” dimensions.
Mysticism	An unscientific, infantile regression that offers no real insights into the external world.	A valid and important mode of experiencing a deeper, more spiritual layer of the psyche.

Mysticism and the therapeutic goal Freud maintained that mystical states were valuable only as an “embryology of the soul” when interpreted correctly through a psychoanalytic lens. He admitted that practices like yoga and psychoanalysis both access unconscious contents. However, he drew a firm line at the mystical claim of accessing “ultimate truths” or achieving “salvation,” dismissing such notions as religious promises. For Freud, the therapeutic goal was a mature, reality-oriented ego, not the dissolution of ego boundaries sought in mysticism.

AI responses may include mistakes.

[1] https://www.samwoolfe.com/2018/01/sigmund-freuds-perspective-mystical-experience.html

[2] https://www.samwoolfe.com/2018/01/sigmund-freuds-perspective-mystical-experience.html

[3] https://www.researchgate.net/publication/11747737_Mysticism_and_Psychoanalysis

[4] https://www.samwoolfe.com/2018/01/sigmund-freuds-perspective-mystical-experience.html

[5] https://minahil9.medium.com/the-breakup-of-carl-jung-and-sigmund-freud-e79ca1909190

[6] wikipedia/en/Oceanic_feeling

[7] https://loneberry.tumblr.com/post/153995404787/oceanic-feeling-and-communist-affect

[8] youtube/v=4O8SXBq3eGk

[9] https://www.reddit.com/r/askpsychology/comments/8nmf4b/what_is_the_oceanic_feeling_freud_is_attempting/

[10] https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/exploring-depths-human-psyche-legacy-carl-jung-adam-chism-dsd1e

[11] https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3330642/

[12] https://www.researchgate.net/publication/5537719_The_Oceanic_Feeling_Mysticism_and_Kabbalah_Freud’s_Historical_Roots

[13] https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11563769/

[14] https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/freud-and-religion/freud-and-eastern-religions/AF9121DAE16351C926DF8C8CD1DC0A24

[15] https://www.cambridge.org/core/elements/freuds-monotheism/B2E8E240D5EF1CD77425706D44751E04

[16] https://www.medschoolcoach.com/freud-psychoanalytic-theory-mcat-psychology/

Mysticism

Mysticism encompasses religious traditions of human transformation aided by various practices and religious experiences. Popularly, mysticism is used synonymously with mystical experience, a neologism which refers to an ecstatic unitive experience of becoming one with God, the Absolute, or all that exists.

Scholarly research since the 1970s had questioned this understanding, noting that what appears to be mysticism may also refer to the attainment of insight into ultimate or hidden truths, as in Buddhist awakening and Hindu prajna, in nondualism, and in the realisation of emptiness and ego-lessness, and also to altered states of consciousness such as samadhi.

The term “mysticism” has Ancient Greek origins with various historically determined meanings. Derived from the Greek word μύω múō, meaning “to close” or “to conceal”, mysticism came to refer to the biblical, liturgical (and sacramental), spiritual, and contemplative dimensions of early and medieval Christianity. During the early modern period, the definition of mysticism grew to include a broad range of beliefs and ideologies related to “extraordinary experiences and states of mind”.

Broadly defined, mysticism as a way of personal transformation can be found in a number of religious traditions, including Western mysticism and Western esotericism, Sufism, Buddhism, and Hinduism.

wikipedia/en/Mysticism

Prompting correspondence: The term originated in a letter to Freud from his friend, the French writer Romain Rolland. Rolland described a constant, “oceanic” feeling of being one with the external world and used it to explain the source of religious energy.
Freud’s interpretation: Freud responded by claiming he did not experience this feeling himself but sought to explain it through psychoanalytic theory. He defined it as a vestige of the “primitive ego-feeling” from infancy, before an infant learns to distinguish itself from its mother and the external world.
A defensive retreat: For Freud, the oceanic feeling was not a revelation of cosmic oneness but a regression to a state of primary narcissism. He saw it as a defense mechanism against the helplessness and misery of life, offering the illusion of returning to a state of limitlessness.

Aspect of the unconscious	Freud’s view	Jung’s view
Nature	Consisted of repressed emotions and desires, primarily sexual in origin.	Included a “collective unconscious” in addition to the personal unconscious, with the collective holding universal, mythic archetypes.
Purpose	Must be explored and understood through rational, scientific inquiry to free the mind from infantile dependencies.	Could be a source of transcendent and healing wisdom with mystical or “numinous” dimensions.
Mysticism	An unscientific, infantile regression that offers no real insights into the external world.	A valid and important mode of experiencing a deeper, more spiritual layer of the psyche.