SOURCE: Johnston, William. Introduction to “The Cloud of Unknowing” and “The Book of Privy Counseling,” edited by William Johnston, pp. 7-32. Garden City: Image Books, 1973.

In the following essay, Johnston explains why the author of The Cloud of Unknowing rejects conceptualization and thinking, particularly about one's self; describes the Dionysian aspects present in the work; and considers its historical background.

Recent times have witnessed a revival of interest in Western mysticism. It is as though the West, long exposed to Zen and Yoga and the spiritual systems of the East, now searches for its own tradition and its own spiritual heritage. Strangely enough, the interest in mysticism is not just academic. It is also practical. Many people are anxious to read the mystics in order to practice the doctrine they teach and to experience the states of consciousness they depict. In short, interest in Christian mysticism is part...