mysticism

American  

[mis-tuh-siz-uhm] / ˈmɪs təˌsɪz əm /

noun

• mysticisms
  plural

1. the beliefs, ideas, or mode of thought of mystics.

2. a doctrine of an immediate spiritual intuition of truths believed to transcend ordinary understanding, or of a direct, intimate union of the soul with God through contemplation or ecstasy.

3. obscure thought or speculation.

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mysticism British  

/ ˈmɪstɪˌsɪzəm /

noun

1. belief in or experience of a reality surpassing normal human understanding or experience, esp a reality perceived as essential to the nature of life

2. a system of contemplative prayer and spirituality aimed at achieving direct intuitive experience of the divine

3. obscure or confused belief or thought

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mysticism Cultural  

1. In religion, the attempt by an individual to achieve a personal union with God or with some other divine being or principle. Mystics generally practice daily meditation.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• antimysticism
  noun
• nonmysticism
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• mysticisms
  plural

Etymology

Origin of mysticism

First recorded in 1730–40; mystic + -ism

Explanation

Mysticism is a religion or religious belief based on union or communion with a deity, or divine being. Mysticism is what lets you transcend the physical to experience enlightenment — let's just say you'll recognize it when it happens. Mystical, mysterious, and filled with wonder, mysticism is easily associated with crystals, New Age theories, or the occult (the supernatural). The truth is that many faiths, including Hinduism, Judaism, and Christianity, have their own forms of mysticism, placing an emphasis on spiritual connection and union, and the mysteries of religion over dogma or rigid rules. Outside of religion, mysticism is applied to cryptic, obscure, or irrational thought — leaning toward mystery and wonder, rather than logic.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

mysticism mysticisms

Fortune telling and mysticism are common in Eastern Europe, she explains.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 4, 2026

Beta takes a similar approach to expressions of spirituality and mysticism, which there is a fair amount of in this book, given Alice Coltrane’s personal journey into becoming Swamini Turiyasangitananda.

From Salon ● Apr. 14, 2026

The intense chiaroscuro evokes the mysticism of William Blake.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 2, 2026

But mysticism also holds sway behind the closed door of politics.

From Barron's ● Dec. 21, 2025

Indeed, much of Newton’s intellectual development can be attributed to this tension between rationalism and mysticism.

From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan

They are happy, cheerful spirits, void of mysteries, and do not torture people with mysticisms.

From Old Fritz and the New Era by Peter Langley

He is not a poet dealing in mysticisms, but a rhetorical philosopher, propounding startling theories, partly true and partly false, which he logically enforces with matchless eloquence.

From Beacon Lights of History, Volume 13 Great Writers; Dr Lord's Uncompleted Plan, Supplemented with Essays by Emerson, Macaulay, Hedge, and Mercer Adam by John Lord

The Mormon people have a system of their own, somewhat complex, and gathered from the mysticisms of all the ages.

From Conditions in Utah Speech of Hon. Thomas Kearns of Utah, in the Senate of the United States by Thomas Kearns

Materialism, democracy, rationalism, anarchy contending against Medievalism of twenty sorts, and strange mysticisms out of the East.

From Towards the Great Peace by Ralph Adams Cram

When the confirmation of a theory that is already received, and which is doubly attractive by its mysticisms, depends, in some measure, on the result, the experiment becomes still less likely to fail.

From Recollections of Europe by James Fenimore Cooper