VitorMSAlmeida.pt

Mysticism is the direct, experiential, and often ineffable search for contact with that which transcends the human: ultimate realities, higher consciousnesses, or cosmological principles that organize the universe. “Superhuman cosmological entities” appear in virtually all traditions as forces, intelligences, or presences that operate on scales far beyond the individual mind and body—gods, archangels, emanations, deities, archetypes, or even impersonal forces such as the Dao or Brahman.

Common Characteristics in Mysticism

Ineffability: These entities or realities are often described as “beyond words.” Mystics use paradoxes, silence, or symbols (e.g., “the formless God,” “the Light of Darkness,” “the Full Void”).

Hierarchy or Emanation: Many traditions describe an ontological cascade—from the impersonal Absolute to intermediate beings (angels, devas, sefirot, aeons, etc.).

Transformative Experience: The encounter is not merely intellectual; it alters the perception of the self, dissolving boundaries between observer and observed.

Apparent Duality: Many systems see these entities as simultaneously “inside” and “outside”—immanent and transcendent.

Examples of Traditions and Entities

Hinduism and Vedanta Brahman: The ultimate, impersonal, infinite, and attributeless reality (nirguna). Everything that exists is its manifestation.
Ishvara: Brahman with attributes—the personal God (Vishnu, Shiva, Devi, etc.). Devas: Personified cosmic entities (Indra, Agni, Varuna) that govern forces of nature and subtle planes. Mystics such as Ramana Maharshi or Sri Aurobindo emphasize the realization that the Self (Atman) is identical to Brahman.

Buddhism (especially Mahayana and Vajrayana): While rejecting a personal creator, it recognizes cosmic Buddhas (Amitabha, Vairocana) and bodhisattvas (Avalokiteshvara, Manjushri) as manifestations of the enlightened mind operating on a universal scale.
Dharmakaya: The “body of truth”—ultimate reality beyond form.

In Tibetan tantra, yidam deities are visualized as tools to realize the empty nature of the mind.

Judaism (Kabbalah): Ein Sof: The limitless Infinite.
Sefirot: Ten emanations or divine attributes that structure creation (Keter, Chokhmah, Binah…).

Archangels (Metatron, Sandalphon, Michael) act as channels between the divine and the material world.

Christianity: Mystic God and the Logos (cosmic Christ).
Mystics like Meister Eckhart speak of the “God-above-God” (Gottheit) — the impersonal foundation beyond the personal Trinity.
Sanctified entities: These are entities of human origin that were later sanctified and act on behalf of humans: Saint Anthony, Saint Cyprian, and Maria Padilha of the Souls. Maria Padilha was even exported to Latin American Shamanism due to her strength and qualities.

Islam (Sufism) Allah as the Absolute.

The concept of wahdat al-wujud (Unity of Being) of Ibn Arabi: everything is divine manifestation.
Angels and the “Angel of the Face” or figures like Khidr.

Gnostic and Hermetic Traditions Pleroma and Aeons (entities emanating from the Absolute).
The Demiurge (creator of the material world, sometimes seen as imperfect or illusory).
Sophia (Wisdom) as a fallen and redeeming cosmic entity.

Shamanism and Indigenous Traditions: Ancestral spirits, guardians of nature, “Great Spirits” or elemental forces that organize ecosystems and cosmic cycles.

Latin American Mysticism: A set of entities of European origin that “dress” in Indian and African influence. An example is Maria Padilha das Almas (originating from a real and historical character), queen of the 7 crossroads, who also comes to be called “Pomba Gira” due to these latter influences.

Philosophy and Neoplatonism: The One (Plotinus) — source of all emanation.
Divine Intellect and World Soul.

Contemporary Perspectives

Jungian Psychology: These entities can be interpreted as archetypes of the collective unconscious—universal patterns that manifest as gods, heroes, or monsters.

Physics and Cosmology: Some mystics and thinkers (e.g., Erwin Schrödinger, David Bohm) see parallels between the “unified field,” quantum consciousness, or the cosmic hologram and ancient visions of unity.

Quantum Mysticism: Mixes concepts from physics with spirituality, speaking of cosmic consciousness and universal interconnectedness (though scientifically controversial).

Simulationism and AI: The idea that we live in a simulation revives ancient notions of “architects” or superior intelligences that program reality.

Experiences with psychedelics and deep meditation: Modern accounts often describe encounters with geometric “entities,” archetypal aliens, or luminous presences that transmit cosmological knowledge.

How to Approach It in Practice

Mysticism is not usually a doctrine, but a path: Contemplative practices (meditation, centering prayer, Hesychasm, Dzogchen). Symbolic study (Tarot, Kabbalah, mandalas, myths). Surrender of the ego and opening to the “greatest unknown”.

Interpretations

Psychological: These entities would be archetypes of the collective unconscious (Jung) or projections of the mind.

Spiritual: Real beings on higher planes, accessible via ritual, meditation, or altered states.

Cosmological: Impersonal forces that govern universal laws (like Neoplatonic emanations).

Mysticism often emphasizes that contact with these entities is not for power, but for inner transformation, humility, and liberation from material illusion. Many mystics warn of dangers (illusion, spiritual pride, or contact with unbalanced forces).

Important warning: Serious traditions emphasize discernment. Not every “entity” encountered in altered states is necessarily high or beneficial. Many mystics speak of illusions, “egregores,” or intermediary beings that can deceive.