Re: Language and "mysticism," whatever that is.

To answer Sally's Questionnaire from the Druni viewpoint:

1.  Although I started inventing languages in isolation from the list, the 
list put a new fire under me and encouraged me.

    1a. I was forty years old when I actually started but was dreaming      
about it ever since learning Esperanto at age 16 and reading J.         R. R. 
Tolkien in the 1970s.

    1b. All my projects so far have been solitary.

    1c. My language creating attempts had no esoteric, erotic,              
religious, or mystical purpose.  I started conlanging because of        a 
fascination with words, wordforms, sounds, and structures.          However, 
I have always felt language itself has mystical                 properties.

2.  See above

3.  Word formation is indeed where the "mystical" part of it all comes  in.  
At first I would pull words out of thin air for their English   equivalent.  
I had an innate feeling of what my language would   feel like and sound like 
so the new words had to "feel" right from   the start.  Later, I started 
constructing new words from     preexisting roots.  Some words were discarded 
as well when I  began to feel that the Druni ways of expressing something was 
not     at all similar to the English way.

    To me it always seemed mystical that I would later find out that    words 
I had pulled out of thin air were similar or exactly the same   as their 
counterpart in natlangs THAT I DID NOT SPEAK OR     HAVE ANY KNOWLEDGE OF.

4.  I created no original phonology (no training) but I knew how my     
language should sound.  I created words (imagined words) that   sounded 
right.  They had to be pleasing to me in their basic form   and because Druni 
is a case language, in each of the forms they   might take in each of their 
variations.  Did held for verbs and     other parts of speech as well.

5.  Druni has many concepts that cannot be easily expressed in  English but I 
make no secret of the fact that the language I have     created is not meant 
to be unique in the sense that it is definitely     Indo-European in style 
and partially so in content.

6.  I have translated Bahá'í prayers into Druni and I have used it to   pray. 
 I also do a lot of talking to myself in Druni when I am alone.     I like 
composing poetry in it and keep a daily journal in it.

7.  For me it is a heart-mind-soul exercise.

8.  I started writing a story about the people who speak Druni and  my dance 
company even did a stage production of part of the  story.  It was a two 
hour, full costume and prop production.  120    people attended the one time 
performance.

9.  See question 1.

10. I feel all language is mystical in some sense.  As human beings we seem 
wired for language.  It is a large part of human identity.  The Druni are a 
particularly mystical people taken to spirituality and myth, philosophy and 
religion.  Their language is fully capable of expressing their feelings about 
these things.  As things of the spirit often cannot be expressed in words, 
even the Druni only approximate.

Hope this helps.
Jim Hopkins
Creator of the Druni language