Welcome To THE MYSTIC'S VISION!
Hosted by Swami Abhayananda
This website, dedicated to the praise and glorification of God, is founded, not on belief, but on my own mystical experience, and is intended to reaffirm and propagate the perennial teaching of the mystics--namely that the one Divine Spirit and source of this universe can be directly known and experienced as one's eternal Self.
All of the free books and articles found on this website are concerned, not with religious or philosophical doctrines, but with direct personal experience. This mystical experience, or 'the mystic's vision', occurs as one's individual consciousness is uplifted by Grace to union with the eternal Source of all consciousness and all being. That vision has been referred to as "enlightenment", "the vision of God","Self-realization", "the mystic marriage", or "union with God", but no matter what it is called, this unitive experience is one and the same for all regardless of religious affiliation.
This mystical experience, or 'the mystic's vision', challenges the ordinary way in which we see the world, for in that vision all is seen as divine; all is seen to be the one eternal Consciousness appearing as the various objects of the world. One who has experienced that vision and has known his or her transcendent Identity as the one all-pervading Spirit is said to be a mystic. He/she is enlightened and knows with certainty that he/she is a wave on the ocean of God, immersed in God, united with God, and made entirely of God.
Many believe that this nondual mystical experience opens a window into the true nature of existence, and that, therefore, the mystical perspective must be a significant determinant in framing any modern theory concerning the nature of reality. However, traditionalists, deeply rooted in physical materialism, stand resolutely against this mystical or spiritual interpretation, and continue to overwhelmingly dominate the public’s perception of reality. The reformation of this public perspective will no doubt coincide with a radical evolution in human knowledge and awareness comparable to the Copernican revolution, but such a reformation appears to be yet a long way off. Nevertheless, it is certainly humanity’s future paradigm and the unmistakable goal on the horizon of spiritual evolution to which all of us must aspire.
My own mystical experience occurred in 1966, when I was twenty-eight years of age. I had been drawn to a remote cabin in the Santa Cruz mountains of California by my desire to know God. Prior to that time, I had known nothing of mysticism or mystical experience. But it was there that God blessed me with His revealing vision which was to change my life forever.
On this website, I am telling of my mystical experience and the philosophical conclusions resulting from it. This is offered solely for your benefit by the merciful grace of God.
I wrote about that mystical experience and the circumstances surrounding it in my first book, The Supreme Self, published in 1984. This book is the best introduction to everything that I have written since that time, and should be read in its entirety or downloaded free at the 'READ OR DOWNLOAD BOOKS' page. However, if you would prefer to see a brief excerpt from that book, describing only the occurrence of my mystical experience, go to the Menu in the column on the left, and click on "MY MYSTICAL EXPERIENCE."
(NOTE: All downloadable Files are in PDF format. To open these Files, you will need to have a PDF Reader installed on your computer or device. The Adobe Acrobat PDF Reader may be downloaded free at this link: https://get.adobe.com/reader/)
My other books, such as History of Mysticism, which tells the extraordinary stories of the best-known of those few others to whom God has revealed Himself through the ages, may also be read or downloaded free on the 'READ OR DOWNLOAD BOOKS' page. I highly recommend these two books especially as fundamental to anyone wishing to familiarize themselves with the mystical experience and its perennial occurrence throughout history.
Here, below, is the Preface to my History of Mysticism:
"I am one of those who have been privileged, by the grace of God, to experience the ultimate Truth of existence. This “mystical experience” occurred, for me, on the night of November 18, 1966. Since that time, I have easily recognized, by their various descriptions of it, those who have also directly experienced that absolute Truth. And it has become abundantly clear to me that, over the course of man’s long history, many individuals of differing cultures, languages, and religious traditions have known that same unitive experience. Contained in this book are the accounts of the lives and teachings of some of the best known of those individuals, for whom I feel great empathy and comradery, as my own experience coincides with and confirms their own. In fact, their experience is my experience; for all who have realized the Truth have known that same eternal Self.
"The material contained herein presents no speculative philosophy; it offers no metaphysical hypothesis. Rather, it is the collected legacy of those who have experienced, first-hand, the unitive Truth underlying all existence. It is a record of the voices of the illumined souls of the past, all of whom gave their hearts, their very lives, to sharing their transcendent knowledge with unborn humanity. And so, to the prospective reader, I say: mark well what you read here. This is no ordinary history of people, places and events; it is the secret history of man’s perennial journey on the ultimate Quest, where all the travelers, arriving from widely diverse paths, arrive at the self-same unitive Truth. It is really the greatest, the most thrillingly wonderful, story ever told. May it awaken you and inspire you to join the great Quest."
-- Swami Abhayananda
You can also see some unsolicited comments from readers of History of Mysticism at the BOOK CATALOG page.
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For more choices, see the Menu in the left column: For example, you can learn more about me and view personal photos at ABOUT SWAMI ABHAYANANDA. Next in the Menu is the BOOK CATALOG, which describes my published books in order of publication. That is followed in the Menu by READ OR DOWNLOAD BOOKS, where all of my books are available for reading or free downloading (all downloadable files on this website are protected by Avast Antivirus software).
As a new regular feature of this website, I have added a THOUGHT FOR THIS WEEK column where I intend to offer a different brief message or suggestion each week. Have a look.
Next in the Menu (column left) is a number of topical Articles, beginning with MY MYSTICAL EXPERIENCE. I believe you will find that each of these twenty-five topical Articles , listed by title in the Menu, is highly informative and inspirational; each may be read online or freely downloaded to your device. Please Note: You may also download the complete two-volume Collection of these ESSENTIAL ARTICLES at the READ OR DOWNLOAD BOOKS page. This Collection of THE ESSENTIAL ARTICLES OF SWAMI ABHAYANANDA (last revised: 5-14-19) is the ultimate Collection of the best of my writings culled from all of my books and articles and comprises the best of my divine gifts to you. These Articles can only be passed on to posterity by your generosity. I will not be around forever, so download them to your computer, and preserve them. They are His gifts and blessings to all. But they must be preserved by you.
This is followed by a short ebook on THE MYSTICAL TRADITION, which describes the historical appearance of some of the Mystics within the various religious traditions. This is followed by THE MYSTIC'S VISION, Volume One & Two, an archival collection of my original Articles on the mystical experience and related topics which have appeared on this site over the last several years. Here, you will find numerous short pieces listed according to topic. By scrolling through the Contents Page of each Volume, you can find and read the individual pieces that interest you, or you may download each entire Volume individually.
Also, I have recently added to the Menu:
THE COMPLETE ASTROLOGER'S VISION from my alternate website, "The Astrologer's Vision" (www.theastrologersvision.weebly.com). This collection contains much valuable information about karma, free will, and the transmigration of the soul It may be read or downloaded here without having to switch to my other website.
Finally, I've included some LINKS TO OTHER WEBSITES that also focus on personal accounts of Mystical Experience.
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This website has been online since April 22, 2013, and as of August 5, 2019, has registered more than 76,000 visitors and many times that number of downloads.
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IMPORTANT NOTICE:
Dedication of Works To The Public Domain
I, Stanley Ross Trout, also known as Swami Abhayananda, on the date of Monday, March 12, 2018, do hereby permanently dedicate all of my previously copyrighted written works to the Public Domain. This means that I no longer maintain the exclusive rights to the publication of the books and articles written by me and listed on my website, and that now these works may not only be downloaded freely but may be published and distributed in whole or in part by anyone wishing to do so without any requirement of permission.
Included in the works dedicated to the Public Domain are the following books, all of which are authored by me:
The Supreme Self
History of Mysticism: The Unchanging Testament
The Wisdom of Vedanta
Jnaneshvar: The Life And Works
Dattatreya: Song of The Avadhut
Thomas á Kempis: On The Love of God
Plotinus: The Origin of Western Mysticism
Mysticism And Science: A Call for Reconciliation
The Divine Universe
Reflections On The Soul
Body And Soul
Mystical Theology
The Mystic’s Vision: Volume One
The Mystic’s Vision: Volume Two
The Essential Articles of Swami Abhayananda, Vol. One
The Essential Articles of Swami Abhayananda, Vol. Two
The copyright pages of the books on my website have been rescinded to indicate their Public Domain status, and I shall continue to maintain this website, “The Mystic’s Vision” (at www.themysticsvision.com), into the indefinite future in order to provide and maintain authentic texts of these Public Domain works to anyone who wishes to download or copy them. I ask only that, in reproducing or disseminating this material, proper attribution be given regarding the title of the work, author, publisher, and date of publication.
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If you have any questions or comments, you may email me at:
abhayananda @bellsouth.net Or at: abhayananda1@comcast.net
Also please visit my other website, "The Astrologer's Vision", at www.theastrologersvision.weebly.com. Enjoy. Thank you for visiting my websites.
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www.themysticsvision.com.
Established 2013 by Swami Abhayananda
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