Prof Ursula King: Beyond Mysticism West and East: Towards a Global Spirituality
My lecture is an invitation to think about mystical spirituality in an inclusive, integral way, transcending all divisions through integration rather than negation. Weaving together different strands from Western and Eastern mystical traditions it will ask about the significance of mysticism in the contemporary world, including the world of science. Besides the vast connections that now exist globally in the areas of economics, politics, education and communications, humanity is growing ever more conscious that it is also closely interdependent in spiritual matters. As several writers from East and West have affirmed, it is the mystical quest that underlies and informs global spirituality today. I will look at the amazing rise of interest in the study of mysticism, and consider a variety of women and men whose mystical understanding and praxis is committed to a mystical ethic of personal and social transformation for the twenty-first century.