Skip to main content

The Varieties of Religious Experience by William James: book review





The Varieties of Religious Experience: A Study in Human Nature (1902, this edition 2004) is a series of 20 lectures on ‘natural religion’ that psychologist William James conducted at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland from 1901-1902. 

Brother of the writer Henry James, William James (1842-1910) defined religion as ‘the feelings, acts, and experiences of individual men in their solitude, so far as they apprehend themselves to stand in relation to whatever they may consider the divine.’

James, therefore, defined religion, not by the church that people attend, but by what people do in their everyday life. For James, religion was not a ‘single quality’ but a ‘group of qualities’ that form actions. The lectures that form this book, although with radical views at the time, was considered one of the best works of non-fiction in the 20th century for its intellectual thoughts on religious tolerance and respect. 

The 20 lectures cover topics, such as: (1) religion and neurology, (2) circumscription of the topic, (3) the reality of the unseen, (4 & 5) the religion of healthy mindedness, (6 & 7) the sick soul, (8) the divided self, and the process of its unification, (9) conversion, (10) conversion – concluded, (11, 12 & 13) saintliness, (14 & 15) the value of saintliness, (16 & 17) mysticism, (18) philosophy, (19) other characteristics, and (20) conclusions. 

James draws on a number of sources, studies and themes, including a sense of the divince presence, mystical experiences, pathological unhappiness, character changes, characteristics of the faith-state, saintly life, democracy and humanity, fanaticism, cosmic consciousness, meditation, science of religions, religious leaders, and the pluralistic hypothesis.

From the Quaker to the Christian, from Immanuel Kant to Walt Whitman, from the abstract to the absolute, William James ends with theoretical and practical conclusions. For example, he looks for the commonalities: ‘there is a certian uniform deliverance in which religions all appear to meet.’

This is an interesting philosophical and psychological account of religious tolerance and social cohesion, written over a hundred years ago, from the author’s circuitous lifelong pursuit of the examination of a study in human nature. 


MARTINA NICOLLSis an international aid and development consultant, and the authorof:- Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom(2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

2016 update on Rike Park, Tbilisi: from construction to busy park

From a flat patch of uninteresting dirt, Rike Park in Tbilisi, Georgia, has transformed in four years (from 2014-2016) into a busy park full of trees, flower beds, sculptures, fountains, and events. Rike (Rikhe) Park is on the left bank of the Mt’k’vari River (the Kura River) near the Old City of Tbilisi. The Peace Bridge links the right bank to Rike Park. Rike Park is below the hillside Presidential Palace and, via cable car, it is the starting point for the ride to Sololaki Ridge (with the Narikala Fortress and the Mother of Georgia statue). The glass box-shaped cable car terminus was opened on 23 June 2012, and since then the park has continually developed into a ‘people’s park’ where people can walk around, eat at the nearby restaurants, sit next to the statue of American president Ronald Reagan, climb the steps to Avlabari district, and access the sights of Meidan Square, the Peace Bridge, the Metekhi Church, the Old City, the waterfall, the sulphur baths, and t...
Post a Comment
Read more

The acacia thorn trees of Kenya

There are nearly 800 species of acacia trees in the world, and most don’t have thorns. The famous "whistling thorn tree" and the Umbrella Thorn tree of Kenya are species of acacia that do have thorns, or spines. Giraffes and other herbivores normally eat thorny acacia foliage, but leave the whistling thorn alone. Usually spines are no deterrent to giraffes. Their long tongues are adapted to strip the leaves from the branches despite the thorns. The thorny acacia like dry and hot conditions. The thorns typically occur in pairs and are 5-8 centimetres (2-3 inches) long. Spines can be straight or curved depending on the species. MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of:- Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom (2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Suda...
1 comment
Read more

Hop on hop off bus tourism comes to Tbilisi, Georgia

City Sightseeing buses have arrived in Tbilisi. The iconic red double-decker buses, a feature of many cities around the world since the company was established in Seville, Spain in 1999, is now in six continents and almost 100 cities. The company established its Tbilisi business in November 2013, with its operations commencing in February 2014. The 90-minute tour stops at 11 major locations in Tbilisi (with 2 to 5 minute waiting times at each location): the Old City (where it commences), Freedom Square, Rose Revolution Square, Marjanishvili Square, the Dry Bridge, Konka, Avlabari, Metekhi, Akhundov Museum, the Sulfur Baths, and European Square. Passengers can hop off at any stop and see the sights, hopping back onto the next bus at any time. Alternatively, passengers can remain on the bus for the whole tour and take photographs when the bus stops at each location. There are one day (24-hour) passes (for 35 lari – about $20) and 48-hour passes for 55 lari, with family d...
2 comments
Read more