IS SPIRITUAL EXPERIENCE NON_FICTION?

If I have an astounding experience where I see and hear things beyond the mundane physical world.....and no one else can verify it and science can't prove it....Is it non-fiction? Or are books on spirituality their own genre not included in non-fiction?

1 member likes this

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Sharon Lindenburger on September 28, 2012 at 3:09pm

You raise a very interesting question, Jill. In past historical times when some of the great mystics had visions and other mystical experiences, and then wrote about it, no one said this was fiction. Teresa of Avila's book on the seven mansions/castles has never been classified as fiction. But it's also true that a mystic can never prove the veracity of what he/she experiences, so I can see that in today's very reason-oriented world, there would be an inclination to classify mystical books as a type of fiction. But I don't think it's an accurate classification. "Spiritual memoir" may be better, and perhaps authors should acknowledge in the Preface of their books that they are aware that their experiences cannot be scientifically proven.

The situation is complicated by the fact that some "spiritual" authors do just make up things. There was one quite famous spiritual author who, years after he published a book claiming to have found an ancient civilization remnant of people, had to admit that it was all in his imagination, which he nevertheless claimed was "real" spiritually. He probably should have admitted that it was a mystical vision he was having rather than reporting it as factual.

Ultimately it is the reader who will intuitively decide if the information rings true or not.Some spiritual books I read I end up feeling they are just hooey; but there are other spiritual books involving mystic experiences that I intuit have a ring of truth. But then again, there's no way to "prove" my intuitions either!

Permalink Reply by Liz Gwyn on October 1, 2012 at 2:32pm

They are nonfiction. I just wrote one. All my stories are true.

Permalink Reply by jeff herman on October 1, 2012 at 4:44pm

It's writer's choice. If you don't think it's a hullucination, then anything the writer perceives and experiences is real enough as long as you put it in accurate context. But you have to be careful about imposing your perceptions upon what other people in the book are thinking and doing, unless you're clear it's merely your opinion/perception. For instance, you shouldn't say that G-d tells Michelle Bachmann what to do and she complies without also saying that it's simply your opinion not a scientifically proven fact.

Permalink Reply by Sharon Lindenburger on October 1, 2012 at 4:51pm

LOL, if God is telling Bachmann what to do, God must have slipped a gear somewhere...God clearly losing a grip. That's strictly my opinion, of course, and not scientifically proven!

Permalink Reply by jeff herman on October 1, 2012 at 4:59pm

Ah, but you might be looking at it through a constrained process. Just consider the variety of ripples that affect what people think whenever a seemingly loopy politician claims to be the Finger of the Lord. . . . . . .. . . . in mysterious ways.

Permalink Reply by Sharon Lindenburger on October 1, 2012 at 5:03pm

You mean that listening to loopy politicos who believe God is directing their career finally wakes up people to what crap it all is---i.e., God using these people to show us what God is not? Clever God....always knew God is a heyoka!

Permalink Reply by Jill Celeste on October 1, 2012 at 7:13pm

A friend of mine has always said "God really Loves atheists...they think about Him more than anyone else"... sort of the same concept...mentioning God's name , thinking about God even if you are thinking about not believing in him....Telling people God talks to you .....can be magnetic and lend even more power to His name.

How do we ever know who He really talks to? Maybe He is saying: "Michelle....I need you to go out there and act dillusional so people will pay attention......and when they hear you say God is talking to you...they are going to talk about me even more! The more they talk about God and discuss God the more I have influence in their lives".....

I don't know...I just thought that up....,Is it Fiction? or Non-Fiction? Can anyone prove it?

Permalink Reply by jeff herman on October 1, 2012 at 9:13pm

What about His conversations with Jihadists?

Permalink Reply by Jill Celeste on October 2, 2012 at 1:15pm

Hmmmm...It would be so easy to just say "Oh, of course God is not talking to them." But....in my world, God contains all...including the Jihad. In the dual world we can't see light unless it is seen in comparison to darkness (esoterically speaking). When we become "enlightened" ourselves.....We recognize the Light in All things.

How about this....If God contains all vibrations and everyone can hear God...possibly like a radio set some people are tuned into the lower vibrations and some the higher vibrations?

Jihadist.... tuned into lower

Buddha....tuned into higher

Permalink Reply by jeff herman on October 2, 2012 at 4:05pm

But I feel there's a separate spectrum focused on destruction which is accepted but not sanctioned, and may be a unilateral human creation. Pieces of that might be in all of us, like when we are angry. A person's struggle might be to leave that spectrum.

Permalink Reply by Jill Celeste on October 3, 2012 at 5:20pm

But destruction is part of the spectrum...Creator-Destroyer...both are aspects of Divinity..The third aspect is Balance.If creation continued without the balance of destruction all earthly systems would be overgrown and overwhelmed.

There is natural creation, destruction and balance in Nature....I think that you are referring to the man-made systems of destruction that are un-natural and rather heineous.....H-bombs, A-bombs, suicide bombs........Einstein was a genius and very spiritual and regretted deeply his contribution to destructive forces on earth. Einstein had a soul...just like the Jihadist has a soul....I don't think the Jihadists are listening to a soul vibration...which would be perfect and balanced. I think they are only tuned in to the lower vibrations of destruction....their mental fanatacism keeps them from accessing higher vibrations. They are not functioning at a highly conscious level. They do however, have that potential, just like any other human being.

The problem is when human beings become very pleased, proud, possessed, and happy with their lower vibration.....they have no desire then to grow and be at a different level of consiousness. This is not just the Jihadist...this is your neighborhood biggot, drug dealer, pimp any one steeped in anger and malisciousness....any human who is functioning at a low level of consiousness....not accessing the vibrations of higher mind and soul.

But, ultimately they are no less human or less a child of God than you or I.

Soooooo What do we do about "them" that are one of "us"??????

Permalink Reply by Liz Gwyn on October 2, 2012 at 8:46am

The Bible says, as long as His Word is being preached. Whether by mocking or a true heart. Still His message is going out. God is certainly BIG enough to take it.