MYSTICISM has not been well received in the modern world. Its popular expressions, as well as political applications that have frequently involved manipulative and cynical distortions, have led contemporary writers to label as ‘mystical’ any dubious phenomenon lying outside accepted canons of rationality. The term ‘mystical’ is frequently applied in a derogatory way to anything that does not accord with common sense or is not respected for cultural, social, religious, or other reasons. When dealing with complex cultural issues, however, it is prudent to refrain from hasty judgements and avoid presenting the rich diversity of the past in the light of the disputes of the present. The corpus of mystical writings in the traditional Jewish world developed over the course of thousands of years. With all its cultural and historical manifestations, mysticism embraces a rich world of thought, creativity, imagination, and inspiration, transcending existential experience. Currently disputed manifestations of mysticism should not be used as a basis for evaluating the entire mystical corpus, the religious and spiritual experiences that served as its foundation, or its manifold historical expressions.

The creators of mystical thought and those who gave expression to mystical experiences tried to decode the mystery of divine existence by penetrating to the depths of consciousness, language, memory, myth, and symbolism. They strove to rescue reality from its concrete, univocal meaning by delving deep into the psyche. They set out to discover concealed worlds and to create alternatives that would shed new light on reality as it is. Mysticism belongs to the history of human imagination, creativity, and language, and to the attempt to decode and transcend literal meaning. It is part of a sceptical and subversive outlook that defies the constraints of existence and opposes a single interpretation of reality. Mysticism draws from domains in which distinctions fade, norms are indefinite, paradoxes abound, and a unity of opposites is allowed—that is, from dream, myth, legend, imagination, vision, and madness. It uses paradoxical thinking, which is ‘beyond reason and knowledge’, and creative interpretation, which reveals concealed layers in the psyche and suppressed strata in language. In addition, it draws on mythical archetypes and ancient symbols, which both conceal and suggest.