To Become a Mystic

It's Not a Performance, It's a Transformation: From the Inside Out

What does it take to become a mystic?

I often tell the story of how Kenneth Leech—who offered me some casual mentoring when I was first writing about mystical spirituality—cautioned me not to call myself a mystic, but to simply be one instead. I love this story because it brings mysticism out of the ego (as something we can “perform” like being a musician or a dancer) and situates it entirely in the body—to be a mystic is to embody the mystery. It’s as simple as that.

Still, what’s the game plan here? How do we know what the first step—or the fifty-first step—is on the path toward embodying the mystical life? How do we know when mystical spirituality has stopped being a shiny thing the ego wants to play with and instead has become an earnest manifestation of a truly transformed, compassion-centered life?

I imagine the answer to this question will be unique for every single one of us who ponders it. Your path up the mountain—or down into the cave of the heart—will necessarily look different from mine. And that’s not only okay; it’s as things should be.

But knowing that a path is yours alone does not remove the uncertainty we all bring to spirituality. That uncertainty, after all, is linked not only to the cloud of unknowing and the dark night of the soul; it is also a way of expressing one of the essential nutrients for a mystical life: humility. If pride has all the answers (and pride certainly thinks it does), then humility offers the tentative alternative to hubris—not only acknowledging that “I don’t have it all figured out,” but even “I have no idea where to get started.”

We can talk about all the various things mystics and contemplatives do: from a daily prayer practice to a deep friendship with silence, to a willingness to go on regular retreats and meet with a spiritual director. But there’s something deeper we need, for mysticism is less about something you do and more about who you are.

Do all the spiritual work, practices, exercises, retreats, etc., that you feel called to do. But even before you “do” anything, listen to the silence between your heartbeats. Imagine that silence as the foundation of your entire spiritual life. Give yourself to that foundation. That is what comes first. That is what matters most. That is the prerequisite to everything else you will do.

That’s what it takes—if not to become a fully fledged contemplative, then at least to be one who shows up to walk on the path.

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