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Welcome to Mysticism
Welcome to Mysticism.
In every tradition, some people have sought not only to believe in the sacred but to experience it directly: to know God, Brahman, the Dao, or ultimate reality as near as their own breath. These are the mystics. Their writings are among the most beautiful in human history, and they have often been the reformers, poets, and peacemakers of their faiths.
Mysticism is also one of the places where women’s spiritual authority has been strongest. Because mystics claim authority from experience rather than from schools or ordination, women mystics such as Rabia, Hildegard, Julian, Teresa, Lal Ded, and Machig Labdrön were able to teach and lead when other doors were closed to them, though often at great risk.
In this course you will read the mystics in their own words, compare their paths, and consider what scholars, psychologists, and neuroscientists have said about their experiences. You will also learn the practical wisdom a minister needs, because many ordinary people have mystical experiences and few know where to turn.
How This Course Works
| Topic | Details |
|---|---|
| Prerequisite | None. Titles and degrees begin with ordination through the Ordination Orientation. |
| Pace | Self-paced. Most students finish in four to six weeks, studying about four to five hours a week. There are no deadlines. |
| Structure | Eight modules. Each module has a lesson, a reading assignment, and a ten-question quiz. |
| Book report | Read one of the books offered, pass its ten-question quiz, and write a one-paragraph summary, after Module 8. |
| Final exam | Fifteen multiple-choice questions and one essay of 1,500 to 2,000 words, taken after Module 8. |
| Credit | 3 credit hours toward further titles and degrees. |
Grading
| Part | To pass |
|---|---|
| Module quizzes (8) | Pass each with 70% or higher. Retakes allowed. |
| Book report quiz (10 questions) | Pass with 70% or higher. Retakes allowed. |
| Book report summary (one paragraph) | Approved by the school |
| Final exam, Part 1 (multiple choice) | Pass with 70% or higher. Retakes allowed. |
| Final exam, Part 2 (one essay, 1,500 to 2,000 words) | Approved by the school |
Required texts
- Mysticism, Evelyn Underhill (free online)
- The Interior Castle, Teresa of Ávila (free online in older translations)
- The Masnavi, Book One, Jalal al-Din Rumi, translated by Jawid Mojaddedi
Many of these books are available from public libraries, used bookstores, and as ebooks.
What you will study
Module 1: What Is Mysticism? Module 2: Christian Mysticism Module 3: Jewish Mysticism: Kabbalah and Hasidism Module 4: Sufism: The Mystical Heart of Islam Module 5: Hindu and Sikh Mysticism Module 6: Buddhist and Daoist Paths Module 7: Mind, Brain, and Mystical Experience Module 8: The Mystic in the World
Book report choices
Mysticism, Evelyn Underhill; The Interior Castle, Teresa of Ávila
Academic honesty
All written work must be your own. You may quote and discuss the course readings and other sources, but you must say where the words and ideas came from. Submitting work written by someone else, including work generated entirely by AI tools, is not permitted.