Experiência Mística e Metafísica em Henri Bergson

Abstract

ABSTRACT: Over the centuries, human beings have always asked themselves questions about God: his existence, his attributes and his nature. In this article we will seek to approach the question of God from the perspective of mysticism. To address this issue we will turn to the thought of the French philosopher Henri Bergson, especially from his work The Two Sources of Morality and Religion. Our objective will be to analyze how Bergson proposes to offer philosophically a proof of the existence of God and also something of His Nature. For the French philosopher, the starting point for the question of the existence of God is our experience of God. Therefore, mystical experience can become a powerful aid to philosophical investigation because mystical experience is a metaphysical experience, in which we internally experience the existence of God. It is Bergson himself who states that mystics have revealed a path that all other men can follow and, therefore, indicates a possible path for the philosopher. Mystical experience is the experience of the existence of God. An exceptional experience, an experience of love, an experience in which the human being deeply feels the “elan” of life, the creative effort that life manifests, and this effort “is from God, if it is not God himself”. Mysticism is an internal experience that ultimately makes us feel the love of God that radiates to everyone. In this way we arrive at the central point of our analysis, according to which mystical experience allows us to approach the metaphysical question of the existence of God and also something of His nature, that is, that God is love.

Keywords: Mysticism, Metaphysics, God, Love.