Browsing by Subject "Mysticism"
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Item Mysticism and allegory in Porphyry's De antro nympharum(2014-05) Hoffman, Nancy Marie; Hankinson, R. J.This report examines Porphyry’s De antro nympharum and its eclectic mixture of philosophy, allegory, and mysticism in the form of a Homeric commentary. The paper situates Porphyry’s commentary in the broader tradition of Homeric interpretation with special attention to Stoic exegesis and Platonic views on poetry and myth. It also contextualizes Porphyry’s philosophy in terms of the mystery cults, particularly Mithraism, that had grown very popular by Porphyry’s time. The paper argues that Porphyry devised a practice of reading intended to promote a level of philosophical contemplation beyond the level of rational discourse, in keeping with the Neoplatonic philosophy of his teacher, Plotinus, and that this practice is especially evident in the De antro nympharum.Item Mysticism in the landless rural workers movement (MST) of Brazil : secular religion or liberation theology repackaged?(2006-05) Smyth, Julia Chelise, 1979-; Garrard, Virginia, 1957-This thesis focuses on the use of mysticism in the Landless Rural Workers Movement (MST) of Brazil in their struggle for agrarian reform and social justice. Instead of stagnating or disappearing as has befallen many agrarian movements in Brazil, the MST continues to fight for agrarian reform more than 20 years after its formation, and has spread to all states in Brazil, gaining access to land for 250,000 families along the way. The purpose of this thesis is to examine the MST's own brand of mysticism, called mística, to ascertain both its historical roots and influences and its purpose within the movement. Given the movement's relationship with the both the progressive wing of the Brazilian Catholic Church and prominent liberation theologians and the influence socialist and humanist ideals in the organizational structure and implementation of the movement's practices, mística emerges as a tool for creating a community of landless who come to the movement with distinct economic, cultural, and political histories. Mística acts as both a secular religion and a reworking of liberation theology views on mysticism in the Catholic tradition, an act of daily remembrance and inspiration for the landless, with its own symbols and liturgy.Item Transcending immanence : poetic reason and mysticality in twentieth century Christian and Jewish Latin American poetics(2016-05) Malak, Stephanie Anna; Lindstrom, Naomi, 1950-; Salgado, César Augusto; Reed, Cory; Roncador, Sonia; Newman, MarthaThis dissertation considers the notion of “mysticality” in the works of Cubans Fina García Marruz and Cintio Vitier, Brazilian Clarice Lispector, and Argentine Jacobo Fijman, (the latter two both born Jewish in Russian-controlled territory). The present research engages with mystical, gender, and poetic studies in Latin American literature; broadly, I look at the way religion is incorporated into Latin American post-modern poetics. I analyze how Latin American writers use mystical language to address high-stakes secular issues, such as political revolution, feminism, and cultural identity. I will also discuss female writers whose poetic product is an exploration of a feminine Latin American lineage. Following the work of Spanish philosopher, María Zambrano, I develop her theory of poiesis, showing how these Latin American poets conflate the Divine and the quotidian in order to “divinize” aspects of everyday life. I contend that this poetic strategy of rhetorical divinization reveals both the profane and transcendent nature of their poetics.Item Transformations of the contemporary mystic discourse in Iran(2017-05) Antson, Agaate; Aghaie, Kamran ScotThis thesis examines the transformations of Iranian mysticism ‘erfan in contemporary Iran. It observes how ‘erfan manifests in society and how religious intellectuals use it to argue for liberal secular values in Iran. This study challenges the common scholarly discourse of mysticism, which focuses solely on either Islamic theology or Sufism. Instead, this thesis suggests that Iranian mysticism ‘erfan is a dynamic concept that goes beyond the limits of the aforementioned discourses. It argues that the mid-20th century Islamic world experienced a rising trend of legalistic Islamism, of which the Iranian revolution was part. Towards the end of the century, esoteric Islam has become increasingly present in the ideologies of religious intellectuals and in the public discourse in the whole Islamic world. Analyzing the ideas of three Iranian thinkers, namely Soroush, Azmayesh and Taheri, this thesis discusses the way ‘erfan has been transformed in order to suit the needs of contemporary Iranian society