An introduction to religious and spiritual experience

The Numinous
It was Rudolf Otto in his 
The Idea of the Holy, 
published in Germany as 
Das Heilige 
in 1917, translated into English in 1923, who coined the term 

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‘numinous’. Taken from the Latin ‘numen’, meaning holy power, Otto 
formed the word ‘numinous’ to express that which is beyond the every-
day world, beyond the moral and rational aspects of holiness. He was 
referring to what he describes as the ‘mysterium tremendum et fascinans’, 
the awesome yet fascinating mystery of the divine. For him this power 
was wholly other, and filled him with fear and awe, and yet drew him 
constantly to itself.
He recognized the importance of the numinous at the heart of religion, 
indeed for Otto this numinous preceded formal religion. It was for 
him sui generis, unlike anything else, and in his view could not be taught. 
People may be led towards it, and then it may arise, awakened within 
consciousness. It comes from the spirit and may be manifest in many dif-
ferent ways, even in wild and non-rational ways. It is the mystery beyond 
human understanding, which generates feelings of awe and fear, and it is 
eternally fascinating to humanity.
The great physicist Albert Einstein who formulated the Theory of 
Relativity and fathomed the depths of time, space and the universe, felt 
this awe:
A spirit is manifest in the laws of the Universe – a spirit vastly superior 
to that of man, and one in the face of which we with our modest pow-
ers must feel humble.
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The Sufi poet and mystic, Mevlana Jalaluddin Rumi describes 
this awe:
Go and contemplate in God’s wonders, become lost to yourselves from 
the majesty and awe of God. When the one who beholds the wonders 
of God abandons pride and egoism from contemplating God’s work, 
that one will know his proper station and will be silent concerning the 
Maker. Such a person will only say from their soul, ‘I cannot praise You 
properly,’ because that declaration is beyond reckoning.
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Here is an account of an experience of the numinous.
A friend persuaded me to go to Ely Cathedral to hear a performance 
of Bach’s minor B Mass. I had heard the work, indeed I knew Bach’s 
choral works pretty well . . . The music thrilled me, until we got to the 
great Sanctus. I find this experience difficult to define. It was primarily 
a warning – I was frightened. I was trembling from head to foot and 
wanted to cry. Actually I think I did. I heard no ‘voice’ except the 
music; I saw nothing; but the warning was very definite. I was not able 

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to interpret this experience satisfactorily until I read some months later 
Rudolph Otto’s 
Das Heilige
. Here I found it: the ‘Numinous’. I was 
before the Judgement Seat. I was being weighed in the balance and 
found wanting.
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