Introduction

Mysticism, as an endeavor for direct experience of divinity, manifests differently across religious traditions. Sadeq Khademi in Consciousness and the Divine Human (2023) and Hypocrisy and Divine Religion (2024) considers existence exclusive to God, viewing creation as mere divine manifestation. He presents consciousness as a multidimensional path to realizing the divine human, identifies hypocrisy as an obstacle to innate religiosity, and views Jesus as the divine Word and symbol of innate religiosity resisting church distortions. Meister Eckhart (1260–1328), a Christian mystic, emphasizes detachment (Abgeschiedenheit) and the birth of the Word in the soul, aiming for union with God and seeing Jesus as the divine Logos and conduit for this union. This article, using a comparative method, examines their views on epistemology, ontology, soteriology, and Jesus’ role, highlighting intermediation in Khademi’s mysticism, which guides lovers on the divine path, while the beloved attain the divine essence directly, with mentors polishing their divine attributes.

Methodology

This study is based on textual analysis of Khademi’s Consciousness and the Divine Human and Hypocrisy and Divine Religion and Eckhart’s sermons and treatises (e.g., Book of Divine Consolation). Secondary sources in Islamic philosophy and Christian mysticism provide context. The comparative framework focuses on epistemology, ontology, soteriology, and Jesus’ role, conducted with academic rigor.

Epistemology: Modes of Divine Consciousness

Khademi’s Multidimensional Consciousness

Khademi in Consciousness and the Divine Human views consciousness as a multidimensional capacity reaching divine knowledge through:

• Empirical Method: Sensory perception and scientific inquiry form the basis of embodied consciousness but are insufficient for metaphysical truths.
• Philosophical Approach: Inspired by transcendent theosophy, conceptual reason analyzes divine attributes.
• Intuitive Presence: Direct experience of divine truth through the heart and spiritual practices.
• Qur’anic Revelation: The Qur’an, as the ultimate truth source, links consciousness to guardianship via the Ahl al-Bayt.
• Beloved-Knowledge: Passionate knowledge connecting the heart to truth through love for God and His saints.
• Grace: Divine favor enhancing consciousness without human intermediaries, leading to spiritual awakening.
• Direct Divine Revelation: Unmediated divine inspiration possible at higher consciousness levels for the divine human.

These tools elevate consciousness from sensory perception to revelatory and beloved-knowledge, reflecting harmony of reason, heart, and divine guidance in Shi‘i mysticism (Khademi, 2023, pp. 56–78). Intermediation (e.g., guardianship of Ahl al-Bayt) guides lovers on the divine path, but the beloved attain the divine essence directly via grace and revelation, with mentors polishing their divine gifts.

Eckhart’s Negative Epistemology

Eckhart posits divine knowledge through detachment and negation of limited human concepts. In his Sermons, he stresses God transcends intellectual categories, requiring the soul to empty itself of sensory and rational perceptions to meet God in “pure nothingness.” The soul’s ground (Grunt) is the site of divine consciousness, experienced through contemplation and the birth of the Word (Geburt) (Eckhart, 2009, p. 419).

Epistemological Comparison

Beloved-knowledge and grace in Khademi’s thought enhance the passionate and grace-centered dimensions of consciousness, aligning with intuitive presence. Intermediation guides lovers, but the beloved connect directly to God, with mentors refining their gifts. This resembles Eckhart’s birth of the Word, but Khademi prioritizes collective guardianship, while Eckhart emphasizes individual experience.

Ontology: Human-God Relationship

Unity of Existence and Manifestation in Khademi

Khademi considers existence a singular reality exclusive to God. Creation is merely a divine manifestation without independent existence. The divine human participates in divine attributes through consciousness and beloved-knowledge, within the framework of manifestation, not independent existence. The heart is the locus of divine manifestation. For lovers, the guardianship of Ahl al-Bayt guides toward realizing objective truth, but the beloved attain the divine essence directly, with mentors polishing their divine gifts. Khademi writes: “The simple divine existence is the absolute truth, and creation is its manifestations at various levels” (Khademi, 2023, p. 79). Beloved-knowledge deepens this relationship passionately (Khademi, 2023, p. 142).

Eckhart’s Divine Presence

Eckhart views God as pure existence (esse), with the soul’s ground as a divine spark sharing God’s nature. Creatures exist derivatively, dependent on God, but the soul’s ground enables union without distinction (unio mystica) through the birth of the Word, without external intermediaries (Eckhart, 2009, p. 420).

Ontological Comparison

Both attribute existence to God, but Khademi views creation as mere manifestation, while Eckhart sees creatures as derivatively existent. Intermediation in Khademi’s mysticism guides lovers, with the beloved accessing God directly.

Soteriology: Path to Divine Realization

Khademi’s Ascension and Guardianship

Salvation in Khademi’s thought is a spiritual ascension via purification, Qur’anic intimacy, beloved-knowledge, and divine grace, guided by the guardianship of Ahl al-Bayt for lovers, leading to divine proximity. The beloved attain the divine essence directly, with mentors polishing their divine gifts. Love for the Ahl al-Bayt (guardianship of love) is the transformative force (Khademi, 2023, p. 248).

Eckhart’s Detachment and Union

Eckhart depicts salvation through detachment, self-annihilation, and the birth of the Word in the soul. This individual, contemplative path emphasizes surrendering personal will to God (Eckhart, 2009, p. 421).

Soteriological Comparison

Both view salvation as union with divinity, but Khademi prioritizes collective structure for lovers and direct access for the beloved, while Eckhart emphasizes individual experience.

Hypocrisy and Egoism: Obstacles to Religiosity

Hypocrisy in Khademi

In Hypocrisy and Divine Religion, Khademi views hypocrisy as the distortion of religion for political and religious power, obscuring innate religiosity. Hypocrisy veils the human-divine truth (Khademi, 2024, p. 48).

Egoism in Eckhart

Eckhart sees egoism and worldly attachments as obstacles to union with God. Detachment from self and world is prerequisite for experiencing God’s birth in the soul (Eckhart, 1981, p. 89).

Comparison of Hypocrisy and Egoism

Jesus Christ in Khademi and Eckhart

Khademi in Hypocrisy and Divine Religion views Jesus Christ as the divine Word, a pure manifestation of God, and a symbol of innate religiosity resisting religious hypocrisy. He interprets the Kingdom of Heaven as an existential state and the Cross as resistance to religious distortion (Khademi, 2024, p. 112). Khademi sees Jesus as dependent on God (ibn Allāh), a conduit for divine rulings, not the divine essence. He argues the church distorted the lofty meaning of the divine Word, portraying Jesus as God rather than a divine manifestation. As a prophet, Jesus purifies innate religion from human cultures and distortions, freeing humanity from sin to attain divine truth. Khademi emphasizes Jesus as an intermediary guiding lovers toward monotheism, while the beloved connect directly to God (Khademi, 2024, pp. 150–152).

Eckhart views Jesus as the divine Logos, born in the human soul, enabling mystical union with God (Eckhart, 2009, p. 93). For Eckhart, Jesus is not merely a prophet but the embodiment of divine revelation, guiding the soul to “pure nothingness” where God manifests. Unlike Khademi, Eckhart emphasizes Jesus’ mystical unity with God, though not necessarily endorsing the church’s doctrine of divinity. This unity occurs through individual experience without institutional intermediaries. Eckhart sees Jesus as the high priest and conduit for the Word’s birth in the soul, a divine spark transcending ecclesiastical structures.

Comparison of Jesus in Khademi and Eckhart

Both see Jesus as the divine Word and a model for inner transformation, but Khademi emphasizes monotheism and critiques church distortions, while Eckhart focuses on mystical unity and individual experience. Khademi absolves Jesus of independent divinity, accusing the church of misrepresenting the Word, whereas Eckhart, without explicitly affirming church divinity, sees Jesus as a mystical conduit beyond institutional frameworks.

Theological and Cultural Contexts

Khademi operates within Shi‘i Islam, emphasizing the Qur’an and Ahl al-Bayt guardianship, viewing Jesus within monotheism and prophethood. Eckhart, in medieval Christianity, influenced by Neoplatonism and negative theology, sees Jesus as a mystical Logos. These differences explain the collective orientation of Khademi’s mysticism and the individualism of Eckhart’s.

Conclusion

Comparing Khademi and Eckhart reveals shared themes like inner religiosity, transcending self, the role of love, and Jesus as the divine Word. Differences lie in epistemology (integrative with beloved-knowledge and grace vs. negative), ontology (exclusive divine existence and creation as manifestation vs. derivative existence), soteriology (collective for lovers, direct for beloved vs. individual), and Jesus’ interpretation (divine manifestation guiding to monotheism vs. mystical Logos). Intermediation in Khademi’s mysticism guides lovers and polishes the beloved’s divine gifts, while Eckhart rejects institutional intermediaries. Emphasizing Jesus’ role, this study fosters interfaith dialogue and religious rapprochement.

Bibliography

• Khademi, Sadeq. (2023). Consciousness and the Divine Human. Shiraz: Sobh-e Entezar.
• Khademi, Sadeq. (2024). Hypocrisy and Divine Religion. Shiraz: Sobh-e Entezar.
• Eckhart, Meister. (2009). The Complete Mystical Works of Meister Eckhart. Translated by Maurice O’C. Walshe. New York: Crossroad.
• Eckhart, Meister. (1981). Sermons and Treatises. Translated by Maurice O’C. Walshe. London: Watkins.
• McGinn, Bernard. (2001). The Mystical Thought of Meister Eckhart. New York: Crossroad.
• Nasr, Seyyed Hossein. (2006). Islamic Philosophy from Its Origin to the Present. Albany: SUNY Press.
• The Holy Qur’an.
• The New Testament (Holy Bible), 1966.