Religious Experiences are believed to be a way in which humanity is given insight into the ultimate truths.

Only a lucky few have encountered a Religious Experience and every experience is said to be individual and unique.

This means that it is very hard to know whether or not the experiences are real as we have nothing to relate them to. Because of this philosophers for centuries have tried to sort the true experiences from the false.

In his book ‘Varieties of Religious Experience’ William James wrote about four characteristics which enable us to identify mystical experiences. These were:

• Ineffability – this when the experience goes beyond human powers of description.

• Noetic quality – this is when someone claims that they have experienced revelations or insights into vital truths which would otherwise be unavailable

• Transiency - This is when the experience is not permanent but has a long-lasting effect on the person and changes their view of the universe.

• Passivity – Which is when the subject feels a loss of control, of being in the grasp of a "superior power" and is normally when someone does not seek the religious experience

Arguments against the religious experience:

• Freud- ‘We are venerable, belittled in the face of nature’. They are also are just illusions of our mind.

• Karl Marx – thought that religion was ‘the opium of the people’ because he felt that it was about mythological beliefs and an unreal god that distracted people from their own reality in the physical world and so thought that it was like a drug which stopped people from seeing the reality of their situation and the world.

Rudolph Otto identifies and explores the non-rational mystery behind religion and the religious experience he called this mystery, which is the basic element in all religions, the numinous. He uses the related word "numen" to refer to deity or God.

Encounters with God are ‘Mysterious, tremendous and fascinating’Religious experiences are in the presence of the ‘wholly other’ meaning completely out of our knowledge and understanding. Otto explained the numinous as a "non-rational, non-sensory experience or feeling whose primary and immediate object is outside the self“.

Conversion- After having a religious experience many people change their lives from being an atheist to a theist or just simply lead a more virtuous life.

Mass blessings- Events which happen in crowds in which they celebrate their faith by drawing power from each other e.g Toronto blessing. Could be seen as psychological as they could be caught up in the moment. Some have even admitted to pretend to have the experience to fit in.

Types of Religious experience:

Vision-

One day Moses came to Mount Sinai with his flock. A winged angel appeared from a burning bush and talked to Moses. Then God spoke to him through the burning bush, but Moses hid his face in terror. God promised that the Israelites would be delivered from Egypt to a lush and fertile homeland. He told Moses that he had been chosen to bring about God's wishes. Moses was reluctant to take on the role, but God promised to support him, and showed him three signs to give him faith.

This is the most famous example of vision from God, however stories form the bible should not be taken literally as they are more metaphors or analogies.

Out of body experience- sensation like floating outside of the body. 1 in 10 have reported to have had one of these experiences.

Things you need to know about:

• Revelation (Refers to any act in which God is revealed to human beings)

• William James• Freud• Otto • Propositional (refers to God directly revealing truths about his

nature to people)

• Non- propositional view (refers to the idea that God does not reveal facts or truths to people, instead the religious believer recognises God acting in human history and human experience)

• Different types of religious experiences (direct and indirect)

The Ways in Which Buddhists Learn about

Ultimate Truths

MeditateMeditate

Pray to Pray to bodhisattvasbodhisattvas

Read Read scripturesscriptures

Teachers – Dalai Teachers – Dalai LamaLama

Even though Buddhism is split into many different schools,every Buddhist works towards the same goal ofenlightenment and follows the Buddha’s example. TheBuddha himself was only enlightened after experiencing bothsensual life and ascetic life which made him truly understanddukkha and the three marks of existence.

Therefore, Buddhism, and in particular Zen, stresses thatan individual cannot comprehend the ultimate truths and gain enlightenment by just reading scripture, but must completely understand how the dharma directly affects their life and future.

Buddhism emphasises the importance of an individual’sown experiences in the understanding of the “ultimatetruths” and therefore meditation, in which you could forexample spend time contemplating the teaching ofimpermanence on your own life, is an essential Buddhistpractise. This differs from a Christian’s gaining ofknowledge of the ultimate truths because they learn aboutGod through studying the Bible, through revelation and inreligious experiences.

However, both Buddhists and Christians use teachers to help to guide them through scripture and through the ultimate truths, whether it be God or the way to enlightenment.

Buddhists believe that we are unable to see the ultimate truths

because of the Three Fires/Akusala (greed, hatred and delusion)

within us, because they confine us to the realm of samsara these

and are the ultimate causes of dukkha.

Therefore, they strive to extinguish the fires through

understanding the three marks of existence (anicca, anatta and

dukkha), the four noble truths and embarking on the Noble Eightfold Path.

The Middle Way

Theravada – Noble Eightfold PathWisdom – right view right attitudeMorality – right speech right action right livelihoodMeditation – right effort right mindfulness right concentration

Mahayana – Ten ParamitasGenerosityMoral DisciplinePatienceDiligenceMeditationWisdomSkilful meansStrengthAspirationPrimordial wisdom

Due to experiencing such extreme ways of life, the Buddha realised, and thus taught, that to understand the ultimate truths and reach nirvana you must follow the Middle Way (Magga). The Buddha taught that the best way to gain insight into the ultimate truths is to lead neither a hedonistic nor an ascetic way of life, but a life of moderation. Buddhists believe that the Middle Way “gives vision, gives knowledge, and leads to calm, to insight, to enlightenment, to nibbana”.

MeditationBy adapting their lives to the Noble Eightfold Path or the Ten

Paramitas, their minds become less controlled by akusala and they become more able to learn the ultimate truths. This is greatly helped by meditation as it allows Buddhists to both still their minds and see into the true nature of things.

Firstly when meditating, Samatha is used as this calms the mind and trains the mind to ignore distractions. Buddhists see it is an essential ingredient for training the mind toward liberation.

Once the mind is tranquil, Vipassana meditation can begin, in which the individual is able to perceive clearly or deeply into reality and thus, the ultimate truths. Vipassana is renowned for the often sudden understanding that results from it.

Religious Experiences – Many Christians have learnt about the nature of God through the various types of religious experience and this is similar to a Buddhist’s view of meditation because it could be argued that meditation – particularly Vipassana - “reveals” the dharma to them.

Scripture - Buddhists, particularly Tibetan, stress the importance of understanding gained through reading of scripture and likewise, in Christianity, special revelation through the Bible is one way in which ultimate truths can be learned.

Comparisons Between Buddhism and the Judaeo-Christian Tradition

Linking Bit x2Buddhists on the whole, barr Pure land reach

a ‘religious experience’ through self effort by following a path whereas theists rely on a transcendent God.

Pure land Buddhists learn about ultimate truths in the most similar way to Christians, e.g. praying to Bodhisattvas.

Over to you - any questions or anything you would like to add…. Don’t be shy! We would love to hear your ideas and thoughts! Please enlighten us.