The Theo-Monistic Hierarchy

Abstract

Although constitutive of extremely diverse theological and philosophical developments, the Christian and Hindu mystic traditions we have examined in the preceding chapters exhibit an experiential typology that stresses an identification with the Divine that is achieved in the transformative processes associated with monistic mysticism. Theistic experiences and activities culminate from the monistic immersion, suggesting that the Divine expresses both impersonal and personal elements, thus bridging the monistic-theistic gap and reconciling apophatic and cataphatic theology. The typology corresponds to John Hick’s personae and impersonae categories of experience interpretation, which we outlined in Chapter 1, but insisting upon an experiential-constructivist epistemology whereby the mystic is actively inspired by a Divine who consists of both elements. The divine personae and impersonae are not mere conceptual distinctions of human categorization, but are actual aspects of a spiritual noumenon which the mystic experiences. Theo-monistic mysticism suggests that the Divine is both impersonal and personal in nature, and that these aspects of the Divine are correlated to monistic and theistic realizations respectively. In this theistic hierarchy, monistic experiences are necessary conditions for the highest theistic realizations, and they are associated with the conception of the Divine. But questions remain surrounding the status of paranormal, nature, and numinous experiences within the theo-monistic hierarchy. How do these phenomena fit into the typology? I will begin with an analysis of numinous experience.