What is ecstatic poetry?

Ecstatic poetry is a distinct subgenre of poetic writing that has the potential to evoke mystical experience. This potential to be transformed through ecstatic poetry is present and possible for anyone. Whether you’re a casual reader, a committed enthusiast, a beginning writer, or a practicing poet, there are no entry requirements or prerequisites necessary. This website and the work of Brandon Thompson assert that all visionary art, specifically ecstatic poetry, has the ability to create deep, meaningful, and lasting personal and spiritual transformation. 

If you feel inclined to go deeper, the path of ecstatic poetry can reveal much more on its ever-widening journey towards essence… 

"I wonder: from these thousands of me's, which one am I?" ~Rumi

Experts agree that the expression of spirituality and self-transcendence through verse is nearly as old as human civilization itself, predating written records by millennia. These pre-historic ecstatic expressions, most often taking the form of oral poetry and song, are known to have been part of the cultures of Indo-European tribes as early as 6000 B.C.E. This is how and where ecstatic poetry was born.

As human cultures and consciousness evolved, ecstatic verse was a constant friend, offering humanity the ability to communicate transcendent ideals and mystical experiences in a way that other forms of expression could not. For instance, the Rigveda—the root text of Hinduism—is a collection of Sanskrit hymns written by poet-priests called rishis. Buddhist sutras and core texts such as the Mahayana’s bodhicharyavatara are both teaching vehicles for practitioners and are simultaneously classic works of ecstatic poetry. The Zen practice of haiku expresses the essence of an object or experience with the penetrating immediacy of ecstatic verse. The Homeric and Orphic Hymns from ancient Greece, early bardic texts from shamanistic Celtic tribes, Christian literature like the well-known “Dark Night of the Soul,” the early South American poetry of the Nahuatl poet-kings, and Sufi poetry popularized by modern translations of both Rumi and Hafiz are all examples of ecstatic poetry across both time and world cultures.

Ecstatic verse is intrinsic to the human experience and can be found like beacons of Spirit, landmarks along the terrain of history. But what are its characteristics? 

“For the poet is a winged and holy thing; and he cannot make poetry until he becomes inspired and goes out of his senses and no mind is left in him.” ~Plato

The word ecstatic is derived from the Greek ekstasis, meaning “to stand outside of oneself.” It is the opposite of enstasis, or “to remain fixed in the self.” Ekstasis is related to expansiveness and evolution, enstasis points to stagnation. This feeling of self-transcendence associated with ekstasis is central to the ecstatic poetic experience. 

Ecstatic poetry lives in two worlds: it is a literary practice that can be examined through a traditional academic lens and is, at the same time, a mystical gateway into insight and transformation. The effects of ecstatic poetry practice can be likened to Abraham Maslow’s concept of a plateau experience, which—as opposed to the comparably shorter duration of a peak experience—involves a fundamental change in attitude, a change to one’s entire point of view that creates a new appreciation and intensified awareness of the world. The effects of the ecstatic poetic experience are enduring and profound. Scholars have identified many of the core characteristics of ecstatic verse, such as spiritual illuminations, intensive positive affect (e.g. bliss, overpowering joy, intense happiness, awe, rapture, and love), and the ability to cultivate personal wholeness while overcoming fragmentation. In short, ecstatic poetry has the power to move our consciousness from enstasis to ekstasis, from a state of lesser awareness to a state of deeper realization, well-being, or wholeness.

It is of special relevance to note here that ecstatic poetry is visionary art. Visionary art is a term given to all forms of artistic expression that encourage or result from mystical or transpersonal states of consciousness. It is a widely-recognized denomination in artistic communities all over the world, claiming an array of well-known creators such as Alex Grey as contributing members. Ecstatic poetry should unquestionably be a crucial aspect of the visionary art dialogue. This matter is discussed in more than one place on this website. Ecstatic poetry is visionary art. The statement is plain, its implications revolutionary. 

 “The ecstatic experience is the catalyst that can trigger an alchemical transformation from either a less-than-desirable or even decent life into a full one. Ecstasy . . . is the apotheosis of human well-being.” ~D.J. Moores

Ecstatic poetry is a journey into the essence of what it means to be a human being. It is one of many creative methods that we can utilize to uncover our own hidden wells of inspiration, transformation, evolution, and joy. Ecstatic poetry is also teachable. An entire model for teaching the ecstatic poetic process has been developed and is facilitated in workshop and retreat settings by Brandon many times each year. For more information or to schedule an ecstatic poetry workshop, please visit the link.

In his book “The Mission of Art,” visionary artist and writer Alex Grey states “Art that emphasizes ecstasy and mystical experience will always fulfill profound human needs, bringing people back to the source of infinite love and ultimate reality.” So it is and so may it be with the practice and path of ecstatic poetry.