Reframing Religious Experience through ‘Ālam al-Mithāl: A Philosophical and Mystical Perspective in Islamic Thought
Teosofi Jurnal Tasawuf dan Pemikiran Islam June 15, 2025 Kholid Al Walid, Waode Zainab Zilullah Toresano, Rosmaria Syafariyah Widjayanti et al.
The paper argues that the Islamic concept of ‘Ālam al-Mithāl (the Imaginal World) provides a rigorous philosophical framework for understanding religious experiences as objectively real, rather than merely subjective or psychological. It analyzes Mullā Ṣadrā’s principles of the fundamentality of existence and the union of intellect and intelligible to substantiate the objective reality of experiences within this intermediate realm. The study also examines the role of esoteric interpretation in unveiling symbolic encounters. This framework challenges reductionist modern paradigms and highlights the imaginal realm’s significance for self-realization and acquiring divine knowledge.