The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions (1619 page)

 
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see
FUD
.

 
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Mysterium Tremendum
:

see
NUMINOUS
.

 
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see
THEATRE AND DRAMA
.

 
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Mysticism
.

The practices and often systems of thought which arise from and conduce toward mystical experience. Mystical systems are distinguished from other metaphysical systems by their intimate connection to a quest for salvation, union, or liberation realized through distinct forms of mental, physical, and spiritual exercise. In a classic definition: Mysticism, according to its historical and psychological definitions, is the direct intuition or experience of God; and a mystic is a person who has, to a greater or lesser degree, such a direct experience—one whose religion and life are centred not merely on an accepted belief or practice, but on that which he regards as first-hand personal knowledge (E. Underhill,
The Mystics of the Church
).
But mysticism need not be theistic.
Therav
da
Buddhism, for example, is more conducive to mystical thought, experiences, and practices than Islam in general; yet
Sufism
emerged in Islam giving priority to the mystical apprehension of God. Mystical experiences bring a serenity or bliss to the mystic. Such experiences may have some relation to the spontaneous experience of the unity of the world (‘panenhenic’ experience) and with certain kinds of chemical- and drug-induced experiences; but the connections are much disputed. See also
BIOGENETIC STRUCTURALISM
.

 
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