perceive analogies with the post-participation mystique mindset following the
breakdown of the bicameral mind, of a more original, individual nature that was an
integral part of the primeval whole. The Romantics attempted to transcend the
apparent or sensate to reveal the mystery of a hidden reality; something that
transcended ordinary perception and led to an apprehension of the Universal. The
Romantics, like the Sufis, sought the experience of real existence and identity in the
all consuming power of the Universe and its Creator; love, knowledge, illumination,
ecstasy and reconciliation are keywords in Romantic poetry and philosophy. They
were undoubtedly impelled by the devastating events of the Napoleonic wars and
the dehumanizing effects of the I ndustrial Revolution; indeed, Wordsworth, Keats
and particularly Blake, the acknowledged mystic of the Romantics, feared
enslavement by the prevailing doctrines unless new philosophies were created
(Abrams, 1973:65-70).
The new philosophy espoused by the Romantics to counter the perceived
impending calamity was essentially one of transcendent mysticism undoubtedly
influenced by their knowledge and appreciation of Sufi mysticism and its similarities
with their own transcendent perspective. I ndeed, almost all of the Sufi mystics
were poets (Oueijan, 1999:6). John Carman’s criteria are useful in appreciating this
common view and comprise: a particular ontology, in accord with the mystic’s
insight, usually either monotheistic or theistic; an immediacy or intensity of
experience not present in other forms of religion; and a separation from the
physical, from ordinary social life, from ordinary forms of consciousness (Carman.
1983:192).
The Sufis believed in the Unity of Being, a concept which both appealed to
the Romantics and was reflected in their work; for example, Blake’s idea of The
Universal Man, Wordsworth’s ‘holy marriage’, Coleridge’s reconciliation theory,
Byron’s celebration of the Universe and its elements, Shelley’s view of the infinite,
and Keats’ perception of universal harmony are all, to some degree, analogous to
the Sufi Unity of Being (Oueijan, 1999:6). Of course, Romanticism still exerts a
significant influence on literary consciousness to this day, which causes one to
consider whether Romanticism is a moderate form of Sufism or whether Sufism an
early form of Romanticism. Whatever the case, it does show, even indirectly, that
MLC, even in spite of demographic, geographic and historic factors, reveals common
concerns in a unified nexus.