glossary of terms used by frithjof schuon - Sophia Perennis

“discernment,” or from the element “Truth”; for one who discerns initially between the
Absolute and the contingent, between necessary Being and possible being – and this is
the very content of the Shahadah – will readily apply analogous discernments in the
sphere of contingency. As for the sense of beauty, it is related to the mystery of
Immanence. [IFA, The Mystery of the Prophetic Substance]
Mystery: Mystery is the essence of truth which cannot be adequately conveyed through
language – the vehicle of discursive thought – but which may suddenly be made plain in
an illuminating flash through a symbol, such as a key word, a mystic sound, or an image
whose suggestive action may be scarcely graspable. [TB, Treasures of Buddhism]
Mystery is as it were the inner infinity of certitude, the latter could never exhaust the
former. [UI, Islam]
By ‘mystery’ we do not mean something incomprehensible in principle – unless it be on
the purely rational level – but something which opens on to the Infinite, or which is
envisaged in this respect, so that intelligibility becomes limitless and humanly
inexhaustible. A mystery is always ‘something of God’. [GDW, Mysteries of Christ and
of the Virgin]
Mystical / Mysticism: The terms “mystical” and “mysticism,” which cannot be passed
over in silence here, lend themselves readily to misuse by being applied to everything
inward or intuitive at whatever level. In reality these words denote all inward contact
(other than the purely mental), with realities that are directly or indirectly Divine; and it is
only right that they should suggest above all a spirituality of love because they are
European terms and Europe is Christian. Their association with the idea of the
“irrational” is clearly false; spiritual intuition is not irrational but suprarational. In any
case, it seems to us that the only legitimate meaning one can give to the word “mystical”
is, first, that traditionally given to it by theology and, second, the meaning proposed
above, which compels acceptance by extension, or rather by considerations of etymology;
this usage clearly cannot be associated with ill-intentioned attempts to devalue the word
or with cases of simple misuse of language. [LT, The Contradiction of Relativism]
Mysticism: The word ‘mysticism’ denotes anything that refers in one way or another to a
supra-rational communication with Divinity; since this word is European it must of
necessity coincide with the mode of spirituality known in the West, which is a way of
love. The word is, however, often used to designate, either a way that is without a method
properly so called or one that is characterized by a predominance of a moralistic and
sentimental individualism. It may be added that in German the word Mystik has the
meaning of spirituality whereas Mystizismus means only a play of fantasies, and that in
French Mystique refers to true and Mysticisme refers to false mysticism. The theological
definition of ‘mystical states’ is doubtless too extrinsic, and this is explained by the fact
that the way of love is nurtured on faith and asceticism and not on intellection, and is
centered on grace and not on knowledge. [SPHF, Contours of the Spirit]
Myth: A myth is a doctrinal content and not a concrete spiritual force, a “saving
emanation.” [TB, Treasures of Buddhism]
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