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The Varieties of Religious Experience

English BooksWhale Edition by William James

A classic study of conversion, mysticism, saintliness, melancholy, pragmatism, and individual religious life.

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The Varieties of Religious Experience

The Varieties of Religious Experience studies religion through individual experience rather than institution alone, examining conversion, mysticism, saintliness, divided selves, melancholy, prayer, and spiritual transformation. William James combines psychology, philosophy, biography, and pragmatism to ask what religious experience means and what effects it has in human life.

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William James died in 1910, and The Varieties of Religious Experience was first published in 1902. These dates support the public-domain basis for this original-language edition.

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The Varieties of Religious Experience

A Study in Human Nature

Being the Gifford Lectures on Natural Religion Delivered at Edinburgh in 1901‐1902

By

William James

Longmans, Green, And Co,

New York, London, Bombay, Calcutta, and Madras

1917

Preface. Lecture I. Religion And Neurology. Lecture II. Circumscription of the Topic. Lecture III. The Reality Of The Unseen. Lectures IV and V. The Religion Of Healthy‐Mindedness. Lectures VI And VII. The Sick Soul. Lecture VIII. The Divided Self, And The Process Of Its Unification. Lecture IX. Conversion. Lecture X. Conversion—Concluded. Lectures XI, XII, And XIII. Saintliness. Lectures XIV And XV. The Value Of Saintliness. Lectures XVI And XVII. Mysticism. Lecture XVIII. Philosophy. Lecture XIX. Other Characteristics. Lecture XX. Conclusions. Postscript. Index. Footnotes

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IN FILIAL GRATITUDE AND LOVE

Table of contents

Inside this edition

  1. 01Full text
  2. 02C. P. G.
  3. 03IN FILIAL GRATITUDE AND LOVE
  4. 04PREFACE.
  5. 05LECTURE I. RELIGION AND NEUROLOGY.
  6. 06LECTURE II. CIRCUMSCRIPTION OF THE TOPIC.
  7. 07LECTURE III. THE REALITY OF THE UNSEEN.
  8. 08I let a few other cases follow at random:—
  9. 09LECTURES IV AND V. THE RELIGION OF HEALTHY‐MINDEDNESS.
  10. 10LECTURES VI AND VII. THE SICK SOUL.
  11. 11LECTURE VIII. THE DIVIDED SELF, AND THE PROCESS OF ITS UNIFICATION.
  12. 12LECTURE IX. CONVERSION.
  13. 13LECTURE X. CONVERSION—CONCLUDED.
  14. 14I just now quoted Billy Bray; I cannot do better than give his own brief account of his post‐conversion feelings:—
  15. 15LECTURES XI, XII, AND XIII. SAINTLINESS.
  16. 16I find an excellent description of this state of mind in a sermon by Mr. Voysey:—
  17. 17LECTURES XIV AND XV. THE VALUE OF SAINTLINESS.
  18. 18I will waste no more words, then, in abstract justification of my method, but seek immediately to use it upon the facts.
  19. 19LECTURES XVI AND XVII. MYSTICISM.
  20. 20I could easily give more instances, but one will suffice. I take it from the Autobiography of J. Trevor.(239)
  21. 21M. Schmölders has translated a part of Al‐Ghazzali’s autobiography into French:(246)—
  22. 22I will take up these points one by one.
  23. 23LECTURE XVIII. PHILOSOPHY.
  24. 24LECTURE XIX. OTHER CHARACTERISTICS.
  25. 25LECTURE XX. CONCLUSIONS.
  26. 26POSTSCRIPT.
  27. 27INDEX.
  28. 28ACHILLES, 86.
  29. 29ACKERMANN, MADAME, 63.
  30. 30AL‐GHAZZALI, 402.
  31. 31ALI, 341.
  32. 32ALLEINE, 228.
  33. 33ALLINE, 159, 217.
  34. 34ALVAREZ DE PAZ, 116.
  35. 35AMIEL, 394.
  36. 36ANGELUS SILESIUS, 417.
  37. 37ARISTOTLE, 495.
  38. 38AUGUSTINE, SAINT, 171, 361, 496.
  39. 39BALDWIN, 347, 503.
  40. 40BASHKIRTSEFF, 83.
  41. 41BEECHER, 256.
  42. 42BESANT, MRS., 23, 168.
  43. 43BLAVATSKY, MADAM, 421.
  44. 44BLOOD, 389.
  45. 45BLUMHARDT, 113.
  46. 46BOEHME, 410, 417, 418.
  47. 47BOOTH, 203.
  48. 48BOUGAUD, 344.
  49. 49BOURGET, 263.
  50. 50BOURIGNON, 321.
  51. 51BOWNE, 502.
  52. 52BRAINERD, 212, 253.
  53. 53BRAY, 249, 256, 290.
  54. 54BROOKS, 512.
  55. 55BROWNELL, 515.
  56. 56BUCKE, 398.
  57. 57BULLEN, 287.
  58. 58BUNYAN, 157, 160.
  59. 59BUTTERWORTH, 411.
  60. 60CAIRD, EDWARD, 106.
  61. 61CALL, 289.
  62. 62CARLYLE, 41, 300.
  63. 63CARPENTER, 319.
  64. 64CENNICK, 301.
  65. 65CHANNING, 300, 488.
  66. 66CHAPMAN, 324.
  67. 67CLARK, 389.
  68. 68CLISSOLD, 481.
  69. 69COE, 240.
  70. 70CRICHTON‐BROWNE, 384, 386.
  71. 71CRUMP, 239.
  72. 72DAUDET, 167.
  73. 73DERHAM, 493.
  74. 74DIONYSIUS AREOPAGITICUS, 416.
  75. 75DOWIE, 113.
  76. 76DRESSER, H. W., 96, 99, 289, 516.
  77. 77DRUMMOND, 262.
  78. 78DUMAS, 279.
  79. 79ECKHART, 417.
  80. 80EDDY, 106.
  81. 81EDWARDS, JONATHAN, 20, 114, 200, 229, 238, 239, 248, 330.
  82. 82EDWARDS, MRS. J., 276, 280.
  83. 83ELLIS, HAVELOCK, 418.
  84. 84ELWOOD, 292.
  85. 85EMERSON, 32, 56, 167, 205, 239, 330.
  86. 86FIELDING, 436.
  87. 87FINNEY, 207, 215.
  88. 88FLETCHER, 98, 181.
  89. 89FLOURNOY, 67, 514.
  90. 90FOSTER, 178, 383.
  91. 91FOX, GEORGE, 7, 291, 335, 411.
  92. 92FRANCIS, SAINT, D’ASSISI, 319.
  93. 93FRANCIS, SAINT, DE SALES, 11.
  94. 94FRASER, 454.
  95. 95FULLER, 41.
  96. 96GAMOND, 288.
  97. 97GARDINER, 269.
  98. 98GERTRUDE, SAINT, 345.
  99. 99GODDARD, 96.
  100. 100GOERRES, 407.
  101. 101GOETHE, 137.
  102. 102GOUGH, 203.
  103. 103GOURDON, 171.
  104. 104GRATRY, 146, 476, 506.
  105. 105GURNEY, 527.
  106. 106GUYON, 276, 286.
  107. 107HADLEY, 201, 268.
  108. 108HALE, 82.
  109. 109HAMON, 367.
  110. 110HARNACK, 100.
  111. 111HEGEL, 389, 449, 454.
  112. 112HELMONT, VAN, 497.
  113. 113HILTY, 79, 275, 472.
  114. 114HODGSON, R., 524.
  115. 115HOMER, 86.
  116. 116HUGO, 171.
  117. 117HYSLOP, 524.
  118. 118IGNATIUS LOYOLA, 313, 406, 410.
  119. 119JOB, 76, 448.
  120. 120JOHN, SAINT, OF THE CROSS, 304, 407, 413.
  121. 121JOHNSTON, 258.
  122. 122JONQUIL, 476.
  123. 123JORDAN, 347.
  124. 124JOUFFROY, 176, 198.
  125. 125KANT, 54, 448.
  126. 126KELLNER, 401.
  127. 127KINGSLEY, 385.
  128. 128LAGNEAU, 285.
  129. 129LEJEUNE, 113, 312.
  130. 130LESSING, 318.
  131. 131LEUBA, 201, 203, 220, 246, 506.
  132. 132LOCKER‐LAMPSON, 39.
  133. 133LOWELL, 65.
  134. 134LUTFULLAH, 164.
  135. 135LUTHER, 128, 137, 244, 330, 348, 382.
  136. 136LYCAON, 86.
  137. 137MARCUS AURELIUS, 42, 44, 474.
  138. 138MARSHALL, 503.
  139. 139MARTINEAU, 475.
  140. 140MATHER, 303.
  141. 141MAUDSLEY, 19.
  142. 142MEYSENBUG, 395.
  143. 143MILL, 204.
  144. 144MOHAMMED, 341, 481.
  145. 145MOLINOS, 130.
  146. 146MOLTKE, VON, 264, 367.
  147. 147MUIR, 482.
  148. 148MULFORD, 497.
  149. 149MÜLLER, 468.
  150. 150MURISIER, 349.
  151. 151MYERS, 233, 234, 466, 511, 524.
  152. 152NELSON, 208, 423.
  153. 153NETTLETON, 215.
  154. 154NEWMAN, F. W., 80.
  155. 155NIETZSCHE, 371, 372.
  156. 156OBERMANN, 476.
  157. 157O’CONNELL, 257.
  158. 158PARKER, 83.
  159. 159PASCAL, 286.
  160. 160PATON, 359.
  161. 161PAUL, SAINT, 171, 357.
  162. 162PEEK, 253.
  163. 163PEIRCE, 444.
  164. 164PERREYVE, 505.
  165. 165PETER, SAINT, OF ALCANTARA, 360.
  166. 166PHILO, 481.
  167. 167PRINGLE‐PATTISON, 454.
  168. 168PUFFER, 394.
  169. 169RAMAKRISHNA, 361, 365.
  170. 170RATISBONNE, 223, 257.
  171. 171RÉCÉJAC, 407, 509.
  172. 172REID, 446.
  173. 173RENAN, 37.
  174. 174RIBET, 407.
  175. 175RIBOT, 145, 502.
  176. 176RODRIGUEZ, 313, 314, 317.
  177. 177ROYCE, 454.
  178. 178RUTHERFORD, MARK, 76.
  179. 179SABATIER, A., 464.
  180. 180SAINT‐PIERRE, 83.
  181. 181SAINTE‐BEUVE, 260, 315.
  182. 182SANDAYS, 480.
  183. 183SCHEFFLER, 417.
  184. 184SEELEY, 77.
  185. 185SÉNANCOUR, 476.
  186. 186SETH, 454.
  187. 187SIGHELE, 263.
  188. 188SKOBELEFF, 265.
  189. 189SMITH, JOSEPH, 482.
  190. 190SPENCER, 355, 374.
  191. 191SPINOZA, 9, 127.
  192. 192STARBUCK, 198, 199, 204, 206, 208‐210, 249, 253, 258, 268, 276, 323, 353, 394.
  193. 193STEVENSON, 138, 296.
  194. 194SUSO, 306, 349.
  195. 195SWINBURNE, 421.
  196. 196SYMONDS, 385, 390.
  197. 197TAYLOR, 246.
  198. 198TENNYSON, 383, 384.
  199. 199TERESA, SAINT, 20, 346, 360, 408, 411, 412, 414.
  200. 200THOREAU, 275.
  201. 201TOLSTOY, 149, 178, 184.
  202. 202TOWIANSKI, 281.
  203. 203TREVOR, 396.
  204. 204TRINE, 101, 394.
  205. 205TYNDALL, 299.
  206. 206“UNION MORALE,” 272.
  207. 207UPHAM, 289.
  208. 208VACHEROT, 502.
  209. 209VAMBÉRY, 341.
  210. 210VIVEKANANDA, 513.
  211. 211VOLTAIRE, 38.
  212. 212VOYSEY, 275.
  213. 213WEAVER, 281.
  214. 214WESLEY, 227.
  215. 215WHITEFIELD, 318.
  216. 216WHITMAN, 84, 395, 396, 506.
  217. 217WOLFF, 492, 493.
  218. 218WOOD, HENRY, 96, 99, 117.
  219. 219YOUNG, 256.
  220. 220FOOTNOTES
  221. 221I subjoin another similar case from Starbuck’s collection:—

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