Project 5: Interfaith Dialogue and Mystical Consciousness
Periods: 2016–Present
Results: 1 article (peer-reviewed), 1 doctoral thesis, 2 books, 1 practical reflection.
Results: 1 article (peer-reviewed), 1 doctoral thesis, 2 books, 1 practical reflection.
Description:
The goal of the project Interfaith Dialogue and Mystical Consciousness is providing frameworks to explore and appreciate religious diversity at the existential/mystical level. Building upon projects 1 to 4, Interfaith Dialogue and Mystical Consciousness offers the first articulation of an overarching project, which aims at understanding and participating in the future of religion, its ultimate concern being the mystical destiny of the human being within religious diverse societies. This larger, overarching project involves a variety of methodologies, keeping the focus of project 5—interfaith dialogue and mystical consciousness—as a foundational research question.
In Western societies, spiritual traditions are currently interacting at two levels. At a personal, practical level, spiritually inclined individuals adopt practices and teachings from different traditions—usually Buddhist, Taoist, and Hindu—while maintaining their cultural background—usually Christian or humanistic—as the primary lens to interpret their path and experience. At a collective—cultural and/or institutional—level, increasingly religiously diverse societies need of interfaith dialogue to find common ground and shared values that create a cohesive narrative and are the foundation for harmonious development. While this second—cultural or diplomatic—level is a more known form of interfaith/interreligious engagement (it is certainly needed to arrive at short-term solutions and agreements), it is the first—existential or mystical—level that determines the long-term implications of the encounter of spiritual traditions.
Hence, the focus of this project is the meeting of spiritual/faith traditions—interfaith dialogue—from the perspective of mystical consciousness. This research aims to better understand the significance of spiritual-existential dynamics and mystical narratives to explain human destiny, and the evolutionary formation of mystical consciousness within religious diversity. There is an emphasis on phenomenological approaches, centering the inquiry on mystical experience and existential discussions that are often overlooked.
The goal of the project Interfaith Dialogue and Mystical Consciousness is providing frameworks to explore and appreciate religious diversity at the existential/mystical level. Building upon projects 1 to 4, Interfaith Dialogue and Mystical Consciousness offers the first articulation of an overarching project, which aims at understanding and participating in the future of religion, its ultimate concern being the mystical destiny of the human being within religious diverse societies. This larger, overarching project involves a variety of methodologies, keeping the focus of project 5—interfaith dialogue and mystical consciousness—as a foundational research question.
In Western societies, spiritual traditions are currently interacting at two levels. At a personal, practical level, spiritually inclined individuals adopt practices and teachings from different traditions—usually Buddhist, Taoist, and Hindu—while maintaining their cultural background—usually Christian or humanistic—as the primary lens to interpret their path and experience. At a collective—cultural and/or institutional—level, increasingly religiously diverse societies need of interfaith dialogue to find common ground and shared values that create a cohesive narrative and are the foundation for harmonious development. While this second—cultural or diplomatic—level is a more known form of interfaith/interreligious engagement (it is certainly needed to arrive at short-term solutions and agreements), it is the first—existential or mystical—level that determines the long-term implications of the encounter of spiritual traditions.
Hence, the focus of this project is the meeting of spiritual/faith traditions—interfaith dialogue—from the perspective of mystical consciousness. This research aims to better understand the significance of spiritual-existential dynamics and mystical narratives to explain human destiny, and the evolutionary formation of mystical consciousness within religious diversity. There is an emphasis on phenomenological approaches, centering the inquiry on mystical experience and existential discussions that are often overlooked.
Outputs:
5. Ankur Barua and Isaac Portilla, "Rabindranath Tagore in Dialogue with the Beatitudes of Christ: A Hindu-Christian Theopoetic Response." Dilatato Corde Vol XV No 1 January – June 2025. 2. Reflections
4. Portilla, Isaac. Interfaith Dialogue and Mystical Consciousness in India: Sri Ramana Maharshi, Sri Aurobindo, the Hari-Hara Mystery, and the Hindu-Christian Encounter. Abingdon and New York: Routledge, 2025. Routledge Hindu Studies Series.
3. Portilla, Isaac. “Interfaith Dialogue and Mystical Consciousness: An Inquiry into the Hindu Sages Sri Ramana Maharshi and Sri Aurobindo and the Christian Interfaith Tradition in India.” Doctoral thesis. University of St Andrews, 2022.
2. Portilla, Isaac. “Interfaith Dialogue and Mystical Consciousness,” Harvard Theological Review, 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press.
1. Portilla, Isaac. The Possibilities of Spiritual Experience: An Autobiographical and Philosophical Exploration. Madrid: Editorial Mirlo, 2017.
5. Ankur Barua and Isaac Portilla, "Rabindranath Tagore in Dialogue with the Beatitudes of Christ: A Hindu-Christian Theopoetic Response." Dilatato Corde Vol XV No 1 January – June 2025. 2. Reflections
4. Portilla, Isaac. Interfaith Dialogue and Mystical Consciousness in India: Sri Ramana Maharshi, Sri Aurobindo, the Hari-Hara Mystery, and the Hindu-Christian Encounter. Abingdon and New York: Routledge, 2025. Routledge Hindu Studies Series.
3. Portilla, Isaac. “Interfaith Dialogue and Mystical Consciousness: An Inquiry into the Hindu Sages Sri Ramana Maharshi and Sri Aurobindo and the Christian Interfaith Tradition in India.” Doctoral thesis. University of St Andrews, 2022.
2. Portilla, Isaac. “Interfaith Dialogue and Mystical Consciousness,” Harvard Theological Review, 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press.
1. Portilla, Isaac. The Possibilities of Spiritual Experience: An Autobiographical and Philosophical Exploration. Madrid: Editorial Mirlo, 2017.
