DeMystifying Mysticism: Modern Mindful Mysticism

We explore what Mysticism actually is: a direct experience of "The Sacred" that dissolves ego, widens love, and unites many paths into one sea. Through story, metaphor, and practice, we show why seeking—listening to silence, embracing depth—changes how you live.

• Defining mysticism as direct experience with The Sacred
• Questioning inherited beliefs and salvation narratives
• Seeking over asking; experiential over blind faith
• Reunion with source and the marriage of spirit and matter
• Many traditions (rivers) pointing to one reality (Ocean)
• The transformative power of Mysticism  
• Dissolving judgment and patriarchal hierarchies
• Commonly shared practices throughout Mysticism 
• Contemplation and the power of listening to silence
• Ocean Alive: a poetic journey from shore to depths as a living analogy

Transcript

Defining Mysticism’s Scope

Big Questions At The Door

Knocking Versus Walking Through

Darkness, Light, And Depth

A Teenager’s First Rift

Questioning Salvation Narratives

Core Definition: Direct Experience

Names Differ, Source Is One

Seeking Over Asking

Texts As Windows, Not Walls

Experiential Not Blind Faith

Beyond Religion And Dogma

Reunion With The Divine

Transcendence And Ego

Many Paths, One Ocean

Transformation After The Veil

From Judgment To Compassion

Unlearning Patriarchy

Common Threads Across Traditions

Vision Quests And Roadblocks

Listening To Silence

Oneness And Interbeing

Dissolving The Inflated Ego

Awakening Is Individual

The Golden Rule, Reframed

SPEAKER_00 0:32

Welcome. Bienvenidos misqueridos to the Seer Sight Podcast. I am Umani Najee, and today we are going to dive into the ocean that is mysticism. I'm not going to take you too deep yet, but we are going to start our dive nonetheless. What I'm going to try and cover is what is mysticism and what is the mystic. And initially, I wanted to put these two in one episode, but in researching my notes, it became a little too vast. So we're going to discuss mysticism this week and becoming a mystic next week. We're going to discuss experiencing the sacred, the other side. So that's not so mysterious. But show it as a living, breathing, intuitive journey that anyone can travel, whether you're a seer or not. You do not need to be a seer to be a mystic. Simply because mysticism causes you, causes us to see things from the viewpoint of the soul. And so in a nutshell, I want to demystify mysticism. Now, why to do this is to build a solid foundation on what mysticism actually is, and not build it on sinking sand so that further into this you don't understand things that I bring forth. And so with a rudimentary knowledge of what mysticism is, will allow you to understand things I speak of in the future and understand the mindset from which I view things. So throughout life, have you ever asked yourself some serious deep things? What is God? You know, that's a common one. What is beyond the veil? What's on the other side of death? What's in the spirit world? Is there a spirit world? You know, these ancient secrets and texts and civilizations. What's the meaning behind all that? Have you ever met someone or felt something so familiar? And you're like, how do I know that person? Why does this culture or this language or this music feel familiar to me when I can't identify it in my physical lineage? Where does that familiarity come from? Or do you ever question why do I question? Why do I question the things that I question instead of just walking by blind faith? If you are the type that has ever challenged your beliefs and asked these sorts of questions, then you have been knocking on the door of mysticism. Now the difference between mysticism and the mystic is the mystic walks through that door. And again, we'll get into being a mystic in the next, but these two things interlink. And so for many, you may have been knocking on the door of mysticism for longer than you know. But I will caution you, the depths of this ocean are deep. And the deeper, the darker. Does that make the darkness evil or scary? Not really. If you perceive it through the light, you will see varying colors and different forms of beauty. My questions began at the age of 16. If you remember from one of the other episodes, I described how I was raised in three different atmospheres of the Pentecost movement: the Black Church, White Church, and the Latino Church. And so I remember when I was 16, the minister at the white church we started going to gave one of those hell and damnation messages where everybody was going to hell that didn't know Jesus. And in the sermon, he was digging back into, you know, history long since past. So after service, I remember having a conversation with my dad, and and so I remember asking my dad. And for context, my dad's father was African American, my dad's mother was Native American, Saponi Chuckton. And so I remember asking my dad, so what happened to all of the people before there was a Jesus? All the natives and tribal people and things like that. Did they just go to hell? And I remember my dad's answer. He had a confused look on his face and said, Yeah. And I remember thinking, either God is a dick, or our interpretation of God is incorrect. And this is exactly what I thought. And so that was when I first started asking questions. And then later in life, I started to step into the waters of mysticism. With that, what is mysticism? What is the basic definition of mysticism? Well, mysticism and mystics alike center on a direct personal contact and experience with the sacred or with the divine. And it doesn't matter what you label the design, whether it be God, Allah, the great mystery, the great spirit, the ultimate reality or source. You know, just as in our oceans we have named seven bodies of water, whether it be the Pacific or the Indian Ocean, the North and the South Atlantic, etc. Yet it's one body of water. For the context of this particular podcast, I'll use the word the sacred. And so we may give it different names, but it's one source. Mysticism is a pursuit, a spiritual pursuit of an union with the divine, with the sacred, by directly seeking it. Not just asking for it, but seeking it. Mysticism is also, however, a mirror, the mirror from which the soul views its own reflection. Now, many are aware of my past in religion. And although this is not a religious podcast, far from it, I will use biblical text to expose mysticism, to show you some of the views of the depths of mysticism used in the Bible. And again, it's relevant whether you believe in the Bible or not. I view that it survived this long for a reason. I could use the Quran, I could use the Mahabharata, I could use a number of different texts that I've researched. I will use for this episode particularly just the Bible, simply because that's what I'm most familiar with. And it is a text that is most familiar in the country and society that I live in. For instance, ask and it shall be given, seeking you shall find. In my journey of mysticism, you can ask for blessings, but you have to seek for wisdom. And this is mysticism. Mysticism is experiential, not theoretical. There is no blind faith, the ignorance of blind faith and mysticism. Again, mysticism challenges beliefs and faith, and it strips away the bullshit, the ego. So mysticism isn't about religion, although religion often tries to contain it. Many journeys into mysticism begin under the confines, though, of religion. Many set sail on a journey of mysticism in the vessels of the Quran or biblical text or other forms made by man. All those streams again lead to the one source. So mysticism goes beyond the boundaries of dogma and intellect or even sensory perception. You see, mysticism is less about the belief in God or a higher being, and more about experiencing that being. Mysticism, while being eternal, is also internal. It's the attempt of interpreting and translating the mystical from the intangible to the tangible. And mankind has been doing this from the beginning, so it's nothing new. At the essence of mysticism is the union with source or the reunion with source. You know, once you dive in, you realize you are never separated. Again, a mental concept. And so mysticism is a reunion with the divine. In the Bible, this concept is called the marriage of the Lamb. If you know, you know. If you don't know, dive into these waters to know. And so mysticism is transcendent. It will change you. It will change you. Because it seeks to go beyond the confines of the ego, confines of the mind, the confines of the body, and the confines of any form. It is the intent to touch the formless. Mysticism is universal. You know, many from many religions and many walks of life have been on the mystical past for millennia. You know, in Christianity, it's considered Gnosticism. In Islam, Sufism, in Judaism, Kabbalah, in certain cultures and tribes, you know, such as the indigenous tribes of my grandmother. It was the medicine walk. Many of these indigenous tribes prior to the invasion of 1492 walked in these natural ways, these mystical ways, just as a normal part of life. It wasn't until the blankets of religion came and changed that mindset, that walk. You know, you have your monks in Buddhism, you have your yogis in in Hinduism. And then you have your visionaries and your free divers. I consider them the free divers that just dive without these vessels and protective gear. Mysticism has been a path for millennia in every culture with varying concepts. Many streams, many rivers coasting down to this mystical ocean. And mysticism is transformative, but the mystical experience will change you. It will change your perceptions, it will change your life. After you pierce the veil, things are different. Mysticism typically brings unity, compassion, awareness, interconnectedness. You know, when I was a Christian, Pentecostal Christian, I would go and debate other forms of Christianity. Catholicism with priest, Trinitarianism with other forms, you know, with other denominations. They used to debate that. In mysticism, when we get together, we don't argue. There is no more debate, there's no debate. We're all swimming in these depths. Now there may be currents that we have to swim against when we're coming together, but we swim through those currents because at the end, you realize there is no end. You just dive deeper. Some may remain in the shallow depths, while others may dive deeper into the darkness, into beauties that are unseen by the common observer. For instance, after diving into mysticism and in comparison to religion, it became so easy to love unconditionally. Again, born and raised in the church, as a deputy sheriff working in the courts where judgment was the rule, there was so much more judgment in the church. And not judgment, particularly judgment for others, which is a thing in Christianity, but you were always basically taught to judge yourself. And the way you judged yourself, the harshness with what we judged ourselves with is how we judged other people. In my personal journey of mysticism, this ignorance dissipated, it dissolved. And so loving unconditionally became so much easier. Another prime example. When I was a Christian, I used to teach new life and discipleship courses to new converts. New life was basically a course in welcoming to your new walk in life. And discipleship was how to walk that life. You know, how God was the umbrella, and then the man was holding the umbrella, and the woman was under the man, and the children were under the woman. And let me say this. To the dozens that I taught this nonsense to, please forgive me as I taught this out of ignorance. What mysticism revealed to me was the power of women, and that women are under nobody. This is a stupid patriarchal concept promulgated by man, enforced by man-made systems. And so, mysticism is transformative. You can't dive into the waters, into the deep, and come out and think you're going to be the same. This is the true baptism, and not a little pool of chlorinated water in a temple. This was my baptism. And I was baptized on three different occasions in the church because I felt like I was too young the first time, I learned more, got baptized again, learned a little bit more, and was rebaptized again. And so I'm not saying this lightly. This has been my experience. You know, there are some commonalities and communions across these mystical paths. The one being the universal force. Again, it all flows into the one source, no matter what names you give it. And this is evident throughout all mysticism. That's why there are no mystic wars like there are religious wars. In each form of mysticism, there's prayer, fasting, meditation, rituals and ceremony outside of the bounds of religion. Religion got those ideas from mystics and not the other way around. For instance, before the invasion of 1492, many indigenous tribes went on vision quests. This was their pathway to mysticism, let alone already living in its concepts prior to going on these vision quests. This is a natural journey that has had roadblocks of religion and theories and philosophies places roadblocks and buoys on the path, on the journey to the deep, on the journeys to its depths. One main commonality is contemplation and listening. Listening. Listening to what? Listening to the silence. This is the magic of mysticism. If you want to hear the hustle and bustle of the spirit world, silence yourself. Go figure. Magical. Yet odd. See in mysticism, there is a sense of oneness. Some call that the circle of life. Some call it balance, some call it prana. In the indigenous tribes of the Lakota, the First Nations of the Lakota, they live by a concept called Matakuye or Yasin. All are one, all are related, and they danced in a circle with all things. This is an example of walking in mysticism. Again, many were cut off of that path by religion. One of the greatest accomplishments in mysticism and goals is the dissolution of the ego that inflated ego. The path of mysticism dissolves that ego. Yeah, I know in many religions, oh, everybody had this awakening at the same moment, to which there is no valid proof or evidence of that. But everyone who's ever awakened to mysticism, it's always been an individual experience. Yeshua bin Yosef, an individual experience. Siddhartha the Buddha, individual experience. In each form of mysticism, there's a golden rule. You know, the do unto others as you would have done unto you. This is at the foundation of mysticism, and there's a reason why. Eye for an eye, tooth for tooth, all that, there is a reason why. You reap what you sow. In the depths of mysticism, there is understanding in this. I've gotten tired of those who learn a secret. And oh, look, I've learned a secret, and now I'm revered and I'm blessed, and you must revere me in order to get this information. That's the ego. That's bullshit. Don't follow the fool who resides on the shores of stupidity with this mindset. You know, for me, I learned a valuable lesson. And this is a combination, a soul combination that can help you reflect on your own life, the past, the present, and to see your own future. And it simply goes like this: as above, so below, as within, so without. Again, as above, so below. As within, so without. Solve that combination, and you will have solved the mystery of your soul. And so, mysticism isn't about escaping reality, as some religions do. It's not about coasting on the surface of the ocean, it's about diving deep into that reality. It's about seeing reality more fully, both spiritually and physically. Marrying those two. Again, the marriage of the Lamb. It's to see your life and its meaning and its purpose without guesswork. You see, mysticism is the journey, the mystic is the traveler. But again, that choice is yours. In our next episode, we will begin the journey of the mystic. Do you want to be a mystic? And so I hope in this episode you've understood the basics of what mysticism is. And so, with all of that, I would like to share a poetic analogy of my journey into mysticism that may help you to fully understand this journey. And I've written this down, so I hope you don't mind. Let me just read it straight. But it goes like this Mysticism is as an ocean. Vast, ancient, and alive. It is the deep where all waters dissolve into one. Every stream, every river, and every brook empties into its vastness, each carving its own path through the terrains of culture and history. Some gentle and winding, others powerful and turbulent. Each with its vessels of stories, cultures, myths, and beliefs drifting among them. No matter how they twist or turn, they all move towards the ocean, towards the whole. Along the coastlines, building temples, altars, and arcs of dogma, watching the waters with reverence, singing hymns to its rhythms and flows, speaking and learning of the ocean's mysteries and sacred tongues shaped by ritual and tradition, honoring the waters from the safety of sandy shores, is where I sat, staring, contemplating, imagining, among the religious in the isles of faith, philosophies and theories, studying the tithe while collecting seashells as sacred relics, where faith, although real, the experience of the depths and personal and indirect, yet again from the safety of walled waterfronts. But it called to me, it calls out to me the whispers of the waters, the siren songs of the mystical abyss. It calls. Do I heed this call? Do I leave behind the sands of certainty?

unknown 29:59

Do I

Against Gatekeeping Mysteries

As Above, So Below

Marrying Spirit And Matter

Invitation To The Mystic’s Path

SPEAKER_00 30:00

Step beyond the shores and surrender to the depths. I do. I venture in to the familiar, shallow depths, reminiscent of my baptisms. My feet steal beneath me, but the tide begins to draw me out. I fight against it. I become weary crusading against it. So the fear of drowning overtakes me, and in panic, I return to the shore, to the safety of man-made synagogues. Yet over time, the muscles of my ego develop in the arenas of life. I feel stronger now. I can traverse these waters. Or so my ego convinces me. So again I venture out, this time deeper than I did before. The profoundness of ego facing unknown depths, determined to withstand the waves. Stupid. I consider myself as I drift. The tide draws me out. It pulls me. And again, fear overtakes me, but this time I am in too deep. I fight, I struggle from the drowning. But now I am too weary and begin to sink into the dark depths of this mystic ocean. Do I drown? Doth death overtake me? I inhale, but when I do, my eyes open, though my vision is blurry and the vastness is dark and murky. I exhale with my vision clearing, my strength increasing, and the fathomless depths glowing with beauty. And I notice I am not drowning. My fear is now limited only to the new discoveries of these enduring depths. I inhale again, and the beauty of the ocean fills my lungs. However, with my exhalation, I simply dissolve into the one. This is my journey into mysticism. And I'm not here to diminish anyone's religion or their walk in life, but I'm also not here to shy away from it. This is simply an analogy of my journey into the depths of mysticism. So until next time, think clearly, see deeply, and journey well. I love you. Peace.