The Mysticism study group welcomes proposals for 1. Mystical asceticism and martyrdom (possibly co-sponsored with the Islamic Mysticism Group) 2. Mysticism and cognitive neuroscience (possibly co-sponsored with the Cognitive Science of Religion Consultation) 3. Mysticism and madness/altered states 4. Mystical marriage or union, also considering the transgression of gender boundaries by deities and devotees (possibly co-sponsored with the Comparative Theology Group) 5. Mysticism in Chinese religions (possibly co-sponsored with the Chinese religions group). Our group is primarily thematic rather than methodological, so a variety of methodologies are welcome, including psychology, philosophy, theology, sociology or history of religion, textual criticism, biographical analysis, feminism, queer theory, art criticism, cultural studies, film studies, and anthropology of consciousness.

We accept submissions only via the official website of the AAR through its online paper proposal  (OP3) system. In order to present a paper at the Annual Meeting, one must be a current member of the AAR.