It has been said that the mystic floats on the water that the psychotic is drowning in. I suspect there's not been that many definitive studies in this regard, but there is, I believe, a pattern of seeing that is held in common. Not in every case but certainly, it's the main element for many. Both involve seeing the part of the world that is invisible to, insignificant from, or ignored by the mainstream cultural, religious, and political society. Both are marginalized and labeled as not fitting in or not embracing all that makes up the way things are done by the majority. This is a very general understanding with lots of exceptions, yet in the context of history and human nature, similar dynamics are at play, regardless of development and advancement. Sophistication is not enough to change or coverup underlying realities.
This is all a bit of tosh, as the Brits say, if there isn't a practical, effective and meaningful understanding. Explanations, rationalizations, and suppositions are many times not enough to cover what is seen. Some live in air tight worlds in which all that is in their sight is accounted for in one way or the other. Many think they have most of it put together so what doesn't make sense about the rest is not enough to create any difference. Others wrestle with what they see and don't have any pat theories, theologies or ideologies as they've seen enough hypocrisy, incongruity, and inconsistency to believe there isn't an understanding that covers everything. But that doesn't mean there won't be one at some point. So, it's not hard to believe that a number of people can get lost in all of this, especially if they see it in a fuller way while still holding onto expectations.
The mystics here can be seen as a fools if they detach themselves from all that they see and live as if nothing in the world affects them. Rather, it is with an ever growing vision and empathetic awareness that they live without answers or fulfilled expectations. It's not like walking a tight rope or skydiving without a parachute. Help is there. It's just not predetermined where that help comes from, how it comes or who it comes through.
You usually don't wake up one day and decide to be a mystic. It's more likely that, after you travel for quite a ways spiritually and still haven't found a place to be, you find a mystical understanding has been fitting you for quite awhile. Some don't have to travel far at all before they find their spiritual home. Others seem to need more exploration before they settle down. And oddly, many who travel great distances, in the end, find themselves back where they started. I don't believe there's a right way or a wrong way to do the spiritual journey, but there are some understandings that can make a difference, especially if you don't believe the mainstream is doing as well as they claim.
The spiritual or mystical journey is an accumulation of stuff - insights, experiences, disappointments, hurts, elations, changes, ideas, dead ends, inspirations, and everyday struggles. All, I think, to help us see the way things really are for ourselves and for others, also to see and know who we really are.
Sometimes that begins with seeing that we have a soul to fully grow and develop just as we grow and develop in other ways. So much can be said about what it means to have a soul or like C.S. Lewis said, "You don't have a soul. You are soul. ....You have a body." Certainly we are heart , mind and spirit as well, but the essence as well as the sum can be seen as soul.
I'm as skeptical and untrusting as they come, so it took me a long time to follow the inner direction that was becoming stronger and stronger. I relaxed some once I saw that it was healing what needed to be healed and was revealing me my true self, warts and all. With this came a freedom to live as I saw fit, away from all that said you can't do it your way.
It is sometimes too hard to live from the inside out along the mystical journey, but that's were everything is happening. I wouldn't discount the exteriors of what it takes to live in this world as they all are parts of the journey and of being here, make of them what you will. But remember what is going to have the greatest value in the end.
The mystical journey is not for everyone. There are other modalities that can accomplish the same thing. It should not be seen as a higher way or existing in between two worlds or possessing special knowledge, even though some understand it that way. Likewise, it is not a panacea or cure all that takes care of all your concerns with little or no effort.
For me, there's still plenty that needs to be fixed, learnt, and changed along the way. But the list isn't as long as it used to be nor as detailed as the one my wife compiled. I'm confident in the direction, in the instruction and in the consultation. The more time I have given it, the more natural everything has become. After all, it's proven to be the right fit for me, and it is ....the path that will take me home.
BONUS PIC
CREDITS: IMG QUOTES, HUFFINGTON POST, POETRY IN MOTION, S. GROF-TRANSPERSONAL PSYCHOLOGY, JOSEPH CAMPBELL
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