Comparative Mysticism: 

Daoism, Zen, and Sufism

Course Title: Comparative Mysticism: Daoism, Zen, and Sufism


Course Description: This course explores the mystical traditions of Daoism, Zen Buddhism, and Islamic Sufism. Emphasis is placed on core concepts, spiritual practices, historical development, key texts, and comparative themes. Students will engage with primary sources, interpretive commentaries, and contemporary scholarship to understand how mysticism functions within each tradition and across cultural boundaries.


Course Objectives: By the end of this course, students will be able to:

  1. Identify and explain the major mystical concepts in Daoism, Zen, and Sufism.
  2. Analyze primary mystical texts from each tradition.
  3. Compare and contrast the philosophical and experiential dimensions of these traditions.
  4. Examine the role of language, metaphor, and paradox in mystical discourse.
  5. Reflect on the relevance of mysticism in contemporary spiritual and philosophical contexts.


Weekly Topics & Readings:

Week 1: Introduction to Mysticism

  • Definitions, typologies, and phenomenology
  • Readings: Evelyn Underhill (excerpt), William James Varieties of Religious Experience (excerpt)

Week 2: Foundations of Daoist Mysticism

  • Dao, Wu Wei, Ziran
  • Readings: Daodejing (Ch. 1-25), Zhuangzi (Inner Chapters)

Week 3: Daoist Practice and Transformation

  • Alchemy, meditation, and immortality
  • Readings: Secret of the Golden Flower, Livia Kohn (excerpt from Daoist Mysticism)

Week 4: Zen Buddhism: Origins and Fundamentals

  • Mahayana roots, Chan in China, Zen in Japan
  • Readings: D.T. Suzuki (excerpt), Platform Sutra of Huineng (selections)

Week 5: Zen Practice: Koan and Meditation

  • Zazen, satori, koans
  • Readings: The Gateless Gate, Shunryu Suzuki Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind (excerpt)

Week 6: Islamic Mysticism: Introduction to Sufism

  • Origins, historical context, key figures
  • Readings: Annemarie Schimmel (excerpt from Mystical Dimensions of Islam), selections from Rabi'a and Al-Hallaj

Week 7: Sufi Doctrine and Experience

  • Tawhid, love, fana and baqa
  • Readings: Ibn Arabi (excerpt from Fusus al-Hikam), Rumi poems (from Masnavi)

Week 8: Comparative Symbols and Metaphors

  • Emptiness, silence, divine union, light/dark
  • Readings: Comparative passages from previous texts, Peter Kingsley (excerpt)

Week 9: Language, Paradox, and Ineffability

  • Mystical language, apophasis, metaphor
  • Readings: Selections from all three traditions; Michel de Certeau (excerpt)

Week 10: Gender and the Mystical Path

  • Women mystics, the feminine divine
  • Readings: Selections from female mystics (Rabi'a, Buddhist nuns, Daoist adepts), Grace Jantzen (excerpt)

Week 11: Contemporary Perspectives on Mysticism

  • Modern mystics, East-West dialogue
  • Readings: Thomas Merton (excerpt), contemporary scholarship

Week 12: Final Reflections and Student Presentations

  • Integration and synthesis of comparative insights
  • No assigned reading


Assessment Methods:

  • Participation and discussion (15%)
  • Weekly reading responses (20%)
  • Midterm comparative essay (25%)
  • Final research paper or creative project (30%)
  • In-class presentation (10%)


Required Texts:

  • The Essential Dao (Translated by Thomas Cleary)
  • The Platform Sutra of Huineng
  • The Sufi Path of Love: The Spiritual Teachings of Rumi (William Chittick)
  • Additional articles and excerpts provided digitally