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Introduction
In this book I seek to answer some fundamental questions. What exactly
is meant by the terms religious and spiritual experience and are they
synonymous? Are such experiences the same as mystical or psychical
experiences and how do they differ from what we might call ordinary
experiences? Who has what kind of experiences and how are they inter-
preted? What do they tell us about spirituality, religion and human con-
sciousness? Might such events in fact be a common thread linking humans
on a spiritual level, bringing the different religions together in a shared
recognition of the transcendent, however interpreted or worshipped?
If so, could such an approach perhaps contribute towards a more tolerant
and peaceful understanding of the different religions, viewing them as a
variety of responses to one all-embracing spiritual reality?
Spirituality may be understood as an awareness of another level of
existence. Such an awareness of a higher, all-encompassing reality is often
the result of an experience which cannot be explained merely with refer-
ence to the everyday world. Such experiences are at the heart of the
religious traditions, many of which can be traced back to life-changing
moments of revelation and transformation. Those are perhaps the most
intense and best known, but accounts of such occurrences come to us
from all ages and cultures. People of all religions and none have had such
experiences. They still do. Are these events simply unexplained but per-
fectly natural occurrences, which science has yet to understand or do they
indicate the existence of a transcendent level of reality? Might our present
definition of human consciousness need to expand to include another
level of awareness?
Many of the most admirable leaders of religious movements have expe-
rienced the power of wisdom, love and compassion. Here, I present a
wide range of religious traditions from the personal, experiential point of
view of such people, so far as these are known. Thus a series of biographi-
cal portraits is sketched, focusing particularly on the transformative
events in their lives. Inevitably brief, the accounts do not deal with the
development of the religious traditions from the original vision, nor is the
Religious and Spiritual Experience
2
context of the experiences considered in detail. This way of looking
at religions does, however, go right to the heart, to the starting point of
the tradition. I also consider the experiences of particular individuals
linked to the traditions – saints, mystics,
gurus
(teachers) and
avatars
(incarnations).
Throughout the book, I also include a variety of extraordinary experi-
ences of ordinary people. Some come from the RERC archive, others
from books and websites as I would like to introduce the reader to the
wide range of material available. However, many have been recounted
to me since I began writing, simply as a result of my talking about this
book. Most of these are life-enhancing and greatly treasured but I also
consider the downside – negative experiences, de-conversion experiences
and cases of spiritual abuse. In addition to the accounts of experiences
themselves, I look at the triggers and effects. It is extremely difficult to
classify these experiences, as researchers from Alister Hardy onwards
have found. Triggers merge with experiences, a vision can lead to a con-
version – so under which heading should such an event come? I have
simply used the headings as guides, to help the reader to find different
types of experience but in my view there are no clear boundaries and
I propose no formal categories.
There will always be uncertainty where personal accounts of inner
experiences are concerned, as to the veracity of the reports and the role
played by expectation and interpretation. There is a vast literature on the
subject, which I introduce.
Many people maintain that any religious belief is misguided and that
such delusions should simply be eradicated. This has in fact been attempted,
notably in communist countries such as the Soviet Union and China. That
didn’t work, as is attested by the research cited in this book. Religion
survived suppression and resurfaced as soon as permitted. Indeed, spiri-
tual values were often harnessed in opposition to political oppression.
Attempts to explain away spirituality as wishful thinking, childhood
brainwashing or as a kind of mental virus seem inadequate in the face
of the wisdom shown by people inspired by a spiritual attitude to life;
the comfort derived from religion; the great works of music, literature,
art and architecture inspired by faith; and the many charitable organi-
zations established through religious conviction. Yet in these days of
religious extremism, terrorism and warfare, perhaps a new approach is
needed, one based on an understanding of all religions as differing but
universal responses to one transcendent reality. As spiritual experiences
are found throughout history and in contemporary accounts all over the
world, the phenomenon seems to be common to humanity as a whole.
Humans seem to be hard-wired to relate to a spiritual dimension which
Introduction
3
leads to compassion and wisdom. If so, such a power needs to be
harnessed to enable people to live in harmony with their neighbours. We
need to co-operate to ensure the survival of the planet. If we are able to
understand humans as finite but within an infinite dimension, we may be
able to see the world in a different perspective and live in peace.
* * *
The book has its roots in the work of the Religious Experience Research
Centre, now at the University of Wales, Lampeter, but set up in 1969 at
Manchester College, Oxford by Sir Alister Hardy as the Religious Experi-
ence Research Unit.
Sir Alister Hardy (1896–1985) was a Darwinian biologist, who studied
under Julian Huxley and later became professor at Hull, Aberdeen
and eventually Linacre Professor of Zoology at Oxford. There, interest-
ingly, he taught Richard Dawkins. Hardy was Chief Zoologist on the
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