- Numinosum
Mystical, awe-inspiring wonder or religious experience whose source is perceived to be from outside of oneself.
The word is derived from the Latin root "numen," meaning "god," and "nuere," to nod or beckon. The word was first coined by
Rudolf Otto in his work "The Idea of the Holy", and was also used byCarl Jung .The term numinosum is a generic term and does not ascribe a philosophical or religious connotation to the event.
Characteristics
These attributes do not constitute a numinosum however they refer to the human response to a numinosum.
*Feeling of Trememdum. (fear, terror)
*Feeling of dependence on the numinosum. Despite the fear the person still desires to remain or even further encounter.
*Feeling of Omnipotence. An experience of something times less and space less. Wholly separate and other than this world.
*Feeling of Mystery. (the experience is difficult to explain or cannot be encapsulated in language and certainly not measurable in the sense of dimensions and attributes).Fact|date=June 2008
*Feeling of Fascination/Attraction. Once complete the person will want to explore the encounter further.
*Feeling of Wonderous/strange/marvelous/terribleEffects
The effect of the experience is to leave the subject with a new perspective on life. In a religious context this could be called conversion. An example might be that when a person has come close to dying this creates in them a deeper sense of the value of life and perhaps leads to works of charity. This could be as simple as visiting a place where people don't have adequate housing and when returning to your own house you feel more grateful.
Occurances
Whilst many renowned religious figures could be said to have encountered numinosum including Mohammed (encounter with the angel Gabriel), Jesus (Baptism by John) and Buddha (enlightened), numinosum in itself does not have a religious connotation and can be experienced by anyone regardless of religious belief.
Cause
The cause of Numinosum is unknown. It is worthy of note that a higher frequency of numinosum is reported in the writings of monastic type peoples suggesting that certain lifestyles or beliefs could predispose a person to encounter numinosum. However not everyone who lives this lifestyle encounters numinosum. Numinosum are encountered by anyone.
Examples
Examples would be the supernatural experiences reported by mystics from all religions through to the human response to seeing something like a volcanic eruption. Profound life changing moments like giving birth.
References
*Rudolf Otto, "The Idea of the Holy", Oxford 1923, ISBN 0-19-500210-5
*WikipediaMysticism
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