Mysticism refers to religious traditions devoted to cultivating altered states of consciousness called “mystical experiences.” This essay reviews philosophical attempts to define mystical experience as well as arguments about whether mystical experiences justify religious beliefs.
Category: Epistemology
“Properly Basic” Belief in God: Believing in God Without An Argument
It’s often thought that religious beliefs—such as belief in God—require supporting arguments to be reasonable. Some philosophers have argued, however, that arguments are not needed for belief in God to be reasonable. This essay examines their case.
Epistemic Justification: What is Rational Belief?
Rational or reasonable beliefs are often described by philosophers as "epistemically justified." This is an introduction to the concept of epistemic justification.
Self-Knowledge: Knowing Your Own Mind
We usually know our own mental states better than others know them. And we usually come to know them in different ways than how others come to know them. How do we come to possess self-knowledge?
Arguments: Why Do You Believe What You Believe?
This essay is an introduction to what arguments are and how they can be good or bad.
Bayesianism
This essay is an introduction to Bayesianism. Bayesianism says that degrees of belief or justification can be represented by probabilities, and that we can assess the rationality of degrees of belief — of credences — by seeing whether they follow a certain set of rules.
Philosophy of Law: An Overview
There are many topics related to law that philosophers study. This essay provides an overview of common topics in philosophy of law.
The Ethics of Belief: Is it Wrong to Believe Without Sufficient Evidence?
An introduction to W.K. Clifford’s “The Ethics of Belief.”
Indoctrination: What is it to Indoctrinate Someone?
An introduction to the concept of indoctrination or what it is to indoctrinate someone, and whether that's problematic or bad or not.
George Orwell’s Philosophical Views
An introduction to the philosophical views of Animal Farm and 1984 author George Orwell.