--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What does mysticism really mean? It means…" description: "\"What does mysticism really mean? It means the way to attain knowledge. It's close to philosophy, except in philosophy you go horizontally while in myst..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd7/elie-wiesel-341_knowledge_what-does-mysticism-really-mean-it-means_3170273.png" --- # What does mysticism really mean? It means the way to… ![“What does mysticism really mean? It means the way to attain knowledge. It's close to philosophy, except in philosophy you go horizontally while in mysticism you go vertically.” quote by Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd7/elie-wiesel-341_knowledge_what-does-mysticism-really-mean-it-means_3170273.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd7/elie-wiesel-341_knowledge_what-does-mysticism-really-mean-it-means_3170273.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd7/elie-wiesel-341_knowledge_what-does-mysticism-really-mean-it-means_3170273.png) > “What does mysticism really mean? It means the way to attain knowledge. It's close to philosophy, except in philosophy you go horizontally while in mysticism you go vertically.” [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Mysticism seeks knowledge through direct, vertical experience, unlike philosophy’s horizontal, analytical approach. **In simple terms:** Mysticism is direct knowledge; philosophy is analytical. Key Takeaway Explore experiential learning. Themes philosophy knowledgeicismicism epistemology spirituality Mood contemplative inquisitive Type educational philosophical When to use this quote - personal meditation - academic study - spiritual practice - comparative theology Key Concepts vertical insight horizontal analysis intuitive understanding Questions to Reflect On - Do you prefer direct experience or logical reasoning? - How do they complement each other? A Different Perspective Mysticism may lack empirical verification. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Does Mysticism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/does-mysticism-5766858/) [Horizontally Mysticism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/horizontally-mysticism-5766860/) [Knowledge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knowledge/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [Mysticism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mysticism/) [Mysticism Really](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mysticism-really-5187538/) [Mysticism Vertically](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mysticism-vertically-5766859/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) [Philosophy Horizontally](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy-horizontally-5766861/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) ## Related quotes > [I like to say that I practice militant mysticism. I'm really absolutely sure of some things that I don't quite know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-bell/i-like-to-say-that-i-practice-militant-mysticism-i-m-really/) [Rob Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-bell/) > [I'll tell you what: I believe mysticism is a very serious endeavor. One must be equipped for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/i-ll-tell-you-what-i-believe-mysticism-is-a-very-serious-endeavor-one/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [What I don't like today is, to put it coarsely, the phony Hasidism, the phony mysticism. Many students say, "Teach me mysticism." It's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/what-i-don-t-like-today-is-to-put-it-coarsely-the-phony-hasidism-the/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [In my tradition, one must wait until one has learned a lot of Bible and Talmud and the Prophets to handle mysticism. This isn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/in-my-tradition-one-must-wait-until-one-has-learned-a-lot-of-bible/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [Mystical experiences (unlike scientific conclusions) cannot be communicated from one person to another. Philosophers and little children are continually amazed that we, unaccountably, find…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-keen/mystical-experiences-unlike-scientific-conclusions-cannot-be/) [Sam Keen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-keen/) > [...mysticism and empiricism go together in opposition to scholasticism...they base themselves on the non-linear world of experience rather than the linear world of letters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-watts/mysticism-and-empiricism-go-together-in-opposition-to-scholasticism/) [Alan Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-watts/) > [There is no future and there is no past, there never has been, there never will be. 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And ignore…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/you-have-got-to-get-your-power-up-and-do-something-and-not-just-sit/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [We must always be aware of the fact that the body, soul and mind are to be trained simultaneously, for otherwise it would be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-bardon/we-must-always-be-aware-of-the-fact-that-the-body-soul-and-mind-are/) [Franz Bardon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-bardon/) > [Without mysticism man can achieve nothing great.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-gide/without-mysticism-man-can-achieve-nothing-great/) [Andre Gide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-gide/) > [A lot of energy is lost to false teachers. Wherever dependency is created, energy is lost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/a-lot-of-energy-is-lost-to-false-teachers-wherever-dependency-is/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [“Whomever or whatever the visitors are, their activities go far beyond a mere study of mankind. They are involved with us on very deep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whitley-strieber/whomever-or-whatever-the-visitors-are-their-activities-go-far-beyond/) [Whitley Strieber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whitley-strieber/) > [“The ultimate aim of reality is to become science fiction!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-of-kittim/the-ultimate-aim-of-reality-is-to-become-science-fiction/) [Eli Of Kittim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-of-kittim/) > [You can draw power from everything in your life. In order to do that, everything has to be set up in a proper way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/you-can-draw-power-from-everything-in-your-life-in-order-to-do-that/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) ## More by Elie Wiesel > [A religious person answers to God, not to the elected or non-elected official.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/a-religious-person-answers-to-god-not-to-the-elected-or-non-elected/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [One more stab to the heart, one more reason to hate. One less reason to live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/one-more-stab-to-the-heart-one-more-reason-to-hate-one-less-reason-to/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [“What all these victims need above all is to know that they are not alone; that we are not forgetting them, that when their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/what-all-these-victims-need-above-all-is-to-know-that-they-are-not/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [I feel that books, just like people, have a destiny. Some invite sorrow, others joy, some both.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/i-feel-that-books-just-like-people-have-a-destiny-some-invite-sorrow/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [ \[Chinese\] are a huge empire now, you'll soon be - in a few years two billion people in the world. So, you should be… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/chinese-are-a-huge-empire-now-you-ll-soon-be-in-a-few-years-two/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [Did I write it so as not to go mad or, on the contrary, to go mad in order to understand the nature of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/did-i-write-it-so-as-not-to-go-mad-or-on-the-contrary-to-go-mad-in/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [Take the story of Cain and Abel. Why were we given that story? Scientifically, you may have an explanation for it, but I'm not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/take-the-story-of-cain-and-abel-why-were-we-given-that-story/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [Mankind must remember that peace is not God's gift to his creatures; peace is our gift to each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/mankind-must-remember-that-peace-is-not-god-s-gift-to-his-creatures/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [The world? The world is not interested in us. Today, everything is possible, even the crematoria...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/the-world-the-world-is-not-interested-in-us-today-everything-is/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [every question possessed a power that was lost in the answer . . .](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/every-question-possessed-a-power-that-was-lost-in-the-answer/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [I think this century more than any other really has seen the phenomenon of people being uprooted in such numbers, such a degree. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/i-think-this-century-more-than-any-other-really-has-seen-the/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [His cold eyes stared at me. At last, he said wearily: "I have more faith in Hitler than in anyone else. He alone has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/his-cold-eyes-stared-at-me-at-last-he-said-wearily-i-have-more-faith/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [As you know, I describe Shirat ha-Yam as part of an epic story that has qualities of history and which also has qualities of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/as-you-know-i-describe-shirat-ha-yam-as-part-of-an-epic-story-that/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [Every Jew, somewhere in his being, should set apart a zone of hate -healthy virile hate- for what the German personifies and for what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/every-jew-somewhere-in-his-being-should-set-apart-a-zone-of-hate/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [“Did hope help us to survive, or not? Too many families clung to it all through the war, thus falling into the enemy's trap.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/did-hope-help-us-to-survive-or-not-too-many-families-clung-to-it-all/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) [Explore all 662 Elie Wiesel quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) ## More Knowledge quotes > [“Knowledge without conscience is but the ruin of the soul.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabelaise/knowledge-without-conscience-is-but-the-ruin-of-the-soul/) [Rabelaise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabelaise/) > [For successful education there must always be a certain freshness in the knowledge dealt with. It must be either new in itself or invested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/for-successful-education-there-must-always-be-a-certain-freshness-in/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [Nothing is so powerful as an insight into human nature... what compulsions drive a man, what instincts dominate his action. If you know these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-bernbach/nothing-is-so-powerful-as-an-insight-into-human-nature-what/) [William Bernbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-bernbach/) > [But I already saw no great difference between the psyche and spirituality. To amass knowledge without becoming wise is not my idea of progress…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-scott-peck/but-i-already-saw-no-great-difference-between-the-psyche-and/) [M. Scott Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-scott-peck/) > [If we will not interfere with our thought, but will act entirely, or see how the thing stands in God, we know the particular…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-we-will-not-interfere-with-our-thought-but-will-act-entirely-or/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [An enlightened awareness is within each one of us, right at this moment. This enlightened awareness is truly unborn and marvellously illuminating; and everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bankei-yotaku/an-enlightened-awareness-is-within-each-one-of-us-right-at-this/) [Bankei Yotaku](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bankei-yotaku/) > [One of the deepest and strangest of all human moods is the mood which will suddenly strike us perhaps in a garden at night,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/one-of-the-deepest-and-strangest-of-all-human-moods-is-the-mood-which/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I never knew any man who had once tasted the sweetness of experimental knowledge, that ever afterward fasted after ye Vapour garlick and onions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-zimmer/i-never-knew-any-man-who-had-once-tasted-the-sweetness-of/) [Carl Zimmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-zimmer/) > [I would rather excel others in the knowledge of what is excellent than in the extent of my powers and dominion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-the-great/i-would-rather-excel-others-in-the-knowledge-of-what-is-excellent/) [Alexander the Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-the-great/) > [We know accurately only when we know little, with knowledge doubt increases.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/we-know-accurately-only-when-we-know-little-with-knowledge-doubt/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [I've always been a believer in research. 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