Deb Platt

[Picture of my daughter and I exploring a cave]

I'm the web editor for a number of related sites. The principal site is Mysticism in World Religions. It has been divided into a number of sub-sites corresponding to each of the six religions represented at the principle site: Judaism, Christianity, Sufism / Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Taoism.

People send me email from time to time wondering who I am, so I'm going to say a few words about myself and address some of the more typical questions that people ask me.

My religious background

Although I'm obviously interested in religious literature, I don't have any formal theological training. Since I'm a Christian and since the site reflects my own personal reading, more Christian quotations are published here than those of any other religion. Nonetheless I've tried to approach other religions with the same kind of respect that I would wish for my own religion. My goal for the site has been to present all the material as impartially as possible.

My motivation in developing the site

It's my hope that an awareness of some of the similarities across religions will help to foster mutual respect and religious tolerance. Also since seeing unity within diversity happens to be a central theme of mysticism, it seems fitting to approach the topic of mysticism from the perspective of many different religious traditions, and then pull them together. In order to do this I've focused on the individual's personal struggle and on his or her interior religious experiences. Because this site makes very little mention of corporate worship or the outward rites and rituals of various religions, I've received quite a few letters from people who don't find corporate worship meaningful, and who assume that I'm of a similar mind. However that's not the case. I go to church regularly and I find the sacraments of my church to be quite meaningful.

The origin and structure of my site

My husband belongs to a different faith than I do. When we discuss religion, I tend to focus on the similarities that exist across the mystical traditions of various religions. This has interested my husband, and he's frequently encouraged me to try to publish this material, but I was reluctant to do so.

However with the appearance of the web and electronic-vanity publishing, I realized that I could publish this material myself. What's more, I found hypertext to be a really appealing medium. In making use of hypertext, I've tried to design the site so that the reader can plot his own way through the material, seeing as much or as little of the site as suits him.

When the site was originally launched in 1995 it featured three religions, each of which made reference to three books. Since then I've expanded the site by adding three more religions and by quoting many more mystics, theologians, and scriptures. In general I try to publish new material at this site every month, but since this is a spare-time activity, a lot depends on whatever else is going on in my life.

I have received a lot of email asking how I came up with the structure for the site. From my point of view I don't really feel as though I'm imposing any structure on the material at all. It's more like I'm allowing an inherent structure emerge. Or to put it differently, I'm showing you how I see things. Sorry to disappoint those of you out there who were hoping for a more supernatural explanation.

Requests for spiritual direction

I also get people writing to me who mistakenly believe that I'm qualified to give them spiritual direction. I'm not. What we're seeing here is the mother of all halo effects. Really I'm just a regular person struggling and stumbling along my own spiritual path. If you want to do something nice, say a prayer for me and my family.

Also I can't help thinking of that classic New Yorker comic strip where one dog is sitting at a computer while remarking to another dog, "On the Internet, no one knows you're a dog..." Please think twice before entrusting your soul to some stranger over the Internet. Although I'm not qualified to give anyone advice on an individual basis, my site is at your disposal. However if you're really set on entering into a relationship with a spiritual teacher, you might try praying for one. That's what St. Symeon the New Theologian did, and as you can see, he wasn't disappointed.

My professional and educational background

But I'm digressing... I've yet to say what I do. I'm what's known as a homemaker, if you can call someone a homemaker who can't cook. A long, long time ago I used to be a computer programmer, but I gave up gainful employment when my daughter was born.

My university degrees are in computer science and psychology.

Queries about my staff and the site's money-making potential

There isn't any staff, although a couple volunteer editors are helping me to develop and maintain this site's links to other sites. I occasionally get email asking whether there are any newsletters or meditation retreats associated with this site. The answer is no. The site is unaffiliated with any organization, and doesn't boast any of the trappings of an organization. The site is funded out of our household income. Since my husband is the sole bread-winner in the family, you could say that this site comes to you courtesy of him.

I'm also asked how I manage to make money off this site. I don't.

Other people have written offering to send in donations to help support the site. That's very kind, but outside financial support for the site is really unnecessary. It only costs $12 a month to publish the site, and this fee really isn't a burden to us.

My interests and hobbies

Actually I excel at all sedentary activities; however, my particular strengths are reading and playing with the computer. I don't watch a whole lot of television, but when I do, I tend to favor cartoons.

Nonetheless a couple years ago I decided to break out of my sedentary mold by taking up inline skating. Thinking it would be nice if I could brake in a straight line, I signed up for classes last fall. Not only did I learn to brake correctly, but my instructor also taught me how to skate backwards and do 180° turns.

Next on the agenda: street hockey.

Requests for my address or phone number

I occasionally get email from people who either want to send me books, look me up, or give me a phone call. Sorry, but I don't give out that information over the Internet.

Requests for assistance on your paper, thesis, book, etc.

I also get a lot of email from freshmen doing research papers in their religious studies classes. I regret to say that I am unable to assist them on their specific papers, but I wish them the best in their academic studies. The same goes for others who are also seeking help with their research.

Requests that I link my site to your site

When I first launched this site I tried linking to other Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, and Taoist sites. However after a year or so it became apparent to me that this was too extensive a task for me to pursue while simultaneously publishing new content at my own site. However in the spring of 1998 I once again began linking to external sites with the help of volunteer editors for three of the six religions represented at the site. At one point I was also seeking editors for the remaining religions, but I'm not currently trying to fill these positions. If you would like my site to link to your site, please contact the appropriate editor by using this form.

If you want to link to my site, that's fine. You don't have to ask my permission. On the other hand if you insist on exchanging links, then you are probably better off not linking to my site.

Requests that I join your web ring

What can I say? I'm just not interested in web rings.

Requests for me to add other religions to the site

I get a lot of requests to include additional religions at this site. If I had more time I would, but I don't. Sorry. I've also had people who've gone to all the trouble of finding quotations for all the categories at the site so I'll add their religion to the site. Please don't do this. It just makes me feel bad that you've gone to all this work and I'm not ready to add any other religions.

A few people have taken offense at the fact that I call my site Mysticism in World Religions, but I haven't included their religion. Am I suggesting that their religion isn't a world religion? No.

Queries as to whether the site is available in book or CD format

The site is currently not published in any other medium. I like the fact that people can access the material for free via the web.

At one point I was surfing the web and ran into a site that had re-published a number of the pages from this site without asking my permission. This didn't seem quite right to me. I regard Mysticism in World Religions as a work in progress, and I would like to maintain some control over the site's dissemination as I continue working on it. Hence the copyright notices.

Requests from people who want to download my whole site

A few people have wanted me to tar and zip the whole site so they can download it and read it offline. Sorry, I don't care to do this.

Contact information

Well this pretty much sums up the questions I usually get. If you'd like to send me some email, direct it to (mystic at digiserve.com).
*Mysticism in World Religions *©1999 by Deb Platt