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Kiss

World Religion
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A symbol of love, union, and the transmission of spirit, often used in mystical poetry to represent the soul's union with God.

Detailed Definition
The kiss is a powerful image of intimacy and merging. In the Song of Songs, it symbolizes the love between God and Israel. In Sufi and Christian mystical poetry, the divine kiss represents the moment of ecstatic union where the soul and God become one. It is an exchange of breath and spirit, a seal of love, and the ultimate fulfillment of desire. The poet uses the sensuality of the kiss to express the inexpressible bliss of spiritual communion.
Example
Example in poetry:
In Sufi poetry, the Kiss is divine union: “Layla’s lips—Kiss that burns the veil to ash”; In Song of Songs, Kiss symbolizes intimacy with God: “Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth”; In Rumi’s verse, the Kiss is initiation: “One Kiss from the Beloved—and I forgot my name”; Contemporary poets use Kiss as connection: “Stranger’s kindness—a Kiss that healed my loneliness.”
Additional Notes
The mystical kiss appears in the Song of Songs (“let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth”), Sufi poetry (Rumi’s “kiss of unity”), and Christian mysticism (Hildegard); it symbolizes intimate union, transmission of spirit, or the merging of lover and Beloved—using tactile immediacy to convey transcendent connection.
Also Known As
Holy Kiss Kiss of Peace
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