The Varieties Of Religious Experience - Paperback

The Varieties Of Religious Experience is a book written by the American philosopher and psychologist, William James. It was first published in 1902 and is considered to be one of the most influential works in the field of psychology of religion. The book is a collection of lectures that James delivered at the University of Edinburgh in 1901 and 1902.In the book, James explores the subjective experiences of individuals in various religious traditions. He argues that religious experiences are not necessarily based on objective evidence but rather on personal and subjective experiences. James examines a wide range of religious experiences, including mystical experiences, conversion experiences, and experiences of prayer and meditation.The book is divided into two parts. The first part focuses on the individual and their religious experiences, while the second part examines the role of religion in society. James argues that religion has played an important role in shaping human culture and society, and that it continues to do so today.Overall, The Varieties Of Religious Experience is a seminal work in the field of psychology of religion. It provides a comprehensive and insightful analysis of religious experiences and their significance in human life. The book continues to be widely read and studied by scholars and students of religion and psychology.Abstractly, it would seem illogical to try to measure the worth of a religion's fruits in merely human terms of value. How CAN you measure their worth without considering whether the God really exists who is supposed to inspire them? If he really exists, then all the conduct instituted by men to meet his wants must necessarily be a reasonable fruit of his religion--it would be unreasonable only in case he did not exist. If, for instance, you were to condemn a religion of human or animal sacrifices by virtue of your subjective sentiments, and if all the while a deity were really there demanding such sacrifices, you would be making a theoretical mistake by tacitly assuming that the deity must be non-existent.This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the old original and may contain some imperfections such as library marks and notations. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions, that are true to their original work.