Editing Spirituality (section)

===Spiritual experience===
{{Main|Religious experience}}
Spiritual experiences play a central role in modern spirituality.{{sfn|Sharf|1995}} Both western and Asian authors have popularised this notion.{{sfn|Hori|1999|p= 47}}{{sfn|Rambachan| 1994}} Important early-20th century Western writers who studied the phenomenon of spirituality, and their works, include [[William James]], ''[[The Varieties of Religious Experience]]'' (1902) and [[Rudolph Otto]], especially ''[[The Idea of the Holy]]'' (1917)

James' notions of  "spiritual experience" had a further influence on the modernist streams in Asian traditions, making them even further recognisable for a western audience.{{sfn|Sharf|1995}}

William James popularized the use of the term "religious experience" in his ''The Varieties of Religious Experience''.{{sfn|Hori|1999|p=47}} He has also influenced the understanding of mysticism as a distinctive experience which allegedly grants knowledge.<ref group=web name="Stanford">{{cite encyclopedia|url= http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/mysticism/ |last= Gellman |first= Jerome |title= Mysticism |editor= Edward N. Zalta|encyclopedia= The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy |edition= Summer 2011 |access-date= 2014-01-04 | quote = Under the influence of William James' ''The Varieties of Religious Experience'', philosophical interest in mysticism has been heavy in distinctive, allegedly knowledge-granting 'mystical experiences.' }}</ref>

[[Wayne Proudfoot]] traces the roots of the notion of "religious experience" further back to the German theologian [[Friedrich Schleiermacher]] (1768–1834), who argued that religion is based on a ''feeling'' of [[the Infinite|the infinite]]. Schleiermacher used the idea of "religious experience" to defend religion against the growing scientific and secular critique. Many scholars of religion, of whom William James was the most influential, adopted the concept.{{sfn|Sharf|2000|p=271}}

Major Asian influences on contemporary spirituality have included [[Swami Vivekananda]]{{sfn|Renard|2010|p=191}} (1863–1902) and [[D. T. Suzuki]]{{sfn|Sharf|1995}} (1870–1966). Vivekananda popularised a modern [[Religious syncretism|syncretic]] Hinduism{{sfn|Sinari|2000}}{{sfn|Rambachan|1994}} in which an emphasis on personal experience replaced the authority of scriptures.{{sfn|Rambachan|1994}}{{sfn|Comans|1993}} Suzuki had a major influence on the popularisation of [[Zen in the United States|Zen in the west]] and popularized the idea of [[Enlightenment in Buddhism|enlightenment]] as insight into a timeless, transcendent reality.<ref group=web>{{cite web |url= http://www.thezensite.com/ZenEssays/CriticalZen/whose%20zen_sharf.pdf |title= Robert H. Sharf, ''Whose Zen? Zen Nationalism Revisited'' |access-date= 2014-01-04 |archive-date= 2019-02-02 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190202090252/http://www.thezensite.com/ZenEssays/CriticalZen/whose%20zen_sharf.pdf |url-status= live }}</ref><ref group=web>{{cite web |url= http://www.thezensite.com/ZenEssays/HistoricalZen/Chan_in_China.html |title= Hu Shih: Ch'an (Zen) Buddhism in China. Its History and Method |publisher= Thezensite.com |access-date= 2014-01-04 |archive-date= 2020-02-17 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200217144149/http://www.thezensite.com/ZenEssays/HistoricalZen/Chan_in_China.html |url-status= live }}</ref>{{sfn|McMahan| 2008}} Other influences came through [[Paul Brunton]]'s ''A Search in Secret India'' (1934),<ref>{{cite web| url = https://archive.org/details/ASearchInSecretIndia| title = ''A Search in Secret India''}}</ref> which introduced [[Ramana Maharshi]] (1879–1950) and [[Meher Baba]] (1894–1969) to a western audience.

Spiritual experiences can include being connected to a larger reality, yielding a more comprehensive [[self]]; joining with other individuals or the [[human]] [[community]]; with [[nature]] or the [[cosmos]]; or with the [[Divinity|divine]] realm.<ref>Margaret A. Burkhardt and Mary Gail Nagai-Jacobson, ''Spirituality: living our connectedness'', Delmar Cengage Learning, p. xiii</ref>