The Dark Night of the Senses and Using the Eyes of the Soul: A Mystic’s Journal Entry: Meditation Class, May 24, 2006
Wednesday, May 24
We are still reading The Ways of Mental Prayer by Rev. Dom Vitalis Lehodey (TAN Books and Publishers, Inc.) in meditation class.
Tonight, we again opened to the chapter on passive purification, or the Dark Night of the senses. This first Dark Night precedes the second stage of the Interior Life, the Illuminative period. We opened to a passage on dryness, or aridity, where it is difficult to pray or to even think on spiritual things. St. John of the Cross, who was a student of St. Teresa of Avila, defines this passive purgation : “when a man finds no comfort nor pleasure in the things of God, and neither also in created things. It is God who produces this universal loathing in the soul in order to annihilate and purge away its sensitive desires.” Here “sensitive” means the desires of the physical senses. We discussed this passage briefly, and came to the conclusion that to not find any comfort or pleasure in the material world or in God was spiritually strengthening only if we kept our spiritual goals before us: otherwise we could develop a nihilistic attitude, or fall back into the first stage of the interior life rather than progress to the Illuminative Period. I added that the most common mistake made during the Dark Night of the senses is that in our feeling of emptiness, we turn more fervently to the outer material world for comfort - instead of looking within. The more we look to the world, the more disenchanted we become. And so it is a downward spiral until we realize that the true answer and goal lies within our own soul.
Lehodey calls this aridity, or purgation of the senses, a “special action of God”. Lehodey then paraphrases St. John of the Cross: Our Lord “withdraws the former consolations, in order to humble the soul by the sense of her powerlessness, to detach her from sweetness, to purge her thoroughly, to remove thus the obstacles to the graces He destines for her.” This is the time when we should enter into contemplation, or meditation instead of vocal prayer or scriptural readings. Lehodey then gives a quote from St. John of the Cross: “the state of contemplation has commenced, the divine communications follow the way of pure spirit, a way inaccessible to the senses.”
We discussed “consolations” very briefly: i.e. gifts given to us by God, to enhance our prayer and mystical life. A mystical feeling of peace or joy or wonderment as we meditate or pray. Here, St. John of the Cross is saying that during these periods or aridity, the soul is being humbled, reminded that the peace and sweetness we might experience during our meditations is the result of grace, a Divine Gift. Without this grace, the soul experiences Her own poverty and littleness.
The second statement by St. John of the Cross: “the state of contemplation has commenced, the divine communications follow the way of pure spirit, a way inaccessible to the senses” was a bit more difficult to comprehend. Here, St. John is saying that in this period of aridity, a deeper form of meditation has already commenced, without our knowing. Contemplation is a state of meditation where the thoughts cease, and is beyond the initial stages of meditation where we inwardly repeat a verbal phrase to help us concentrate. St. John’s: “ the divine communications follow the way of pure spirit, a way inaccessible to the senses” tells us that in our deeper mystical experiences, the usual senses are left behind; in aridity, we are unaware of any divine communications, and yet they are being given to us. In other words, even during the Dark Night of the senses we are receiving great graces that we cannot perceive. Now his words: “to purge her thoroughly, to remove thus the obstacles to the graces He destines for her” take on a new meaning. This aridity, this new humility given to the soul, removes any obstacles of ego that might still remain in us. The implicit promise given by St. John of the Cross is that when the period of aridity ends, we will have progressed to a deeper stage of the interior life.
Then followed another passage from St. John of the Cross: this light that enters the soul during passive purgation “is at times so subtle and delicate - particularly when it is most pure, simple, perfect, spiritual and interior - that a soul may very easily be possessed of it, and yet neither perceive nor feel that she has it.”
I found St. John’s words: “particularly when it is most pure, simple, perfect, spiritual and interior” extraordinarily beautiful. The experience of this light entering the soul during passive purgation is often simple, subtle and fleeting - perhaps a momentary feeling of the quietness at dawn. For an unexplained instant, an inexplicable peace will surround and fill us, wordlessly and without any image. I questioned B. about her recent aridity, if she had experienced fleeting moments of unexplained and inexpressible subtle peace or quietness. She thought for a few seconds and then said that she had. These moments are given to us as an indication of the Divine at work in us.
Chris then took Lehodey’s volume and read us a passage from St. Teresa of Avila on mental prayer, or meditation: “we ought, little by little, to accustom ourselves to converse sweetly with Him, without raising our voice, for this God of goodness will of Himself make us feel that he is present in the soul.”
“without raising our voice” Here, St. Teresa is telling us to simply meditate, rather than use vocal or verbal prayer to communicate with God. In meditation, “this God of goodness will of Himself make us feel that he is present in the soul.” In meditation, God no longer will feel outside of us, distant or unknown to us. We can actually feel the presence of God within the soul.
St. Teresa continues: “Do not think that I ask of you long meditations upon this divine Savior, nor many reasonings, nor deep and subtle considerations; no, merely look at Him steadily. If you can do no more, keep the eyes of your soul, for a few moments at least, intently fixed upon this adorable Spouse.” These were words to her fellow nuns, who took Jesus as their Spouse in their holy vows. However, this meditation exercise, this simple and valuable spiritual practice - can be done by us all.
The Dark Night of the Senses and Using the Eyes of the Soul:
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