Jorge Luis Borges was profoundly interested in the traditions of mysticism, especially the Swedish mystic Emanuel Swedenborg (1688-1772). This book examines the relationship between Borges’ own mystical experiences and his appraisal of Swedenborg and other mystics, as well as his engagement with scholarly writings on and responses to mysticism by figures such as William James and Ralph Waldo Emerson.

William Rowlandson is Senior Lecturer in Hispanic Studies at the University of Kent.

Contents: The tension between scepticism and religious feeling in Borges – Borges’ reading of Dante and Swedenborg – Was Borges a mystic, and does it matter? – William James and Borges as a scholar of mysticism – The influence of Swedenborg on Borges – Borges and Jung.