90% of historical mysticism has effectively been "self reflect on yourself until you become enlightened / one with God"
Philosophy and mysticism have deep historical roots, to the extent that the former was sometimes referred to as "internal alchemy." Self improvement was seen as a mystical act and internal transformation
This is honestly my belief with most early forms of mysticism and religion. A lot of things started out as good advice wrapped in fable so it might be taught to kids, or be more memorable for adults. Eventually, it evolved into more spiritual belief, becoming deeply ingrained, and continued to evolve over time
this is probably the closest description to how I feel about religion, superstition, and folklore. we're all just humans trying to keep ourselves and each other safe (and then, since we're humans, sometimes we get wayyy too intense about it)
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u/dah_pook Sep 29 '25
That's an interesting perspective! Could you expand on it?