CHAPTER I.

THIS CHAPTER TREATS OF THE BEAUTY AND DIGNITY OF OUR SOULS AND MAKES A

COMPARISON TO EXPLAIN THIS. THE ADVANTAGE OF KNOWING AND UNDERSTANDING THIS

AND THE FAVOURS GOD GRANTS TO US IS SHOWN, AND HOW PRAYER IS THE GATE OF THE

SPIRITUAL CASTLE.

1. Plan of this book. 2. The Interior Castle. 3. Our curable self ignorance.

4. God dwells in the centre of the soul. 5. Why all souls do not receive

certain favours. 6. Reasons for speaking of these favours. 7. The entrance

of the Castle. 8. Entering into oneself. 9. Prayer. 10. Those who dwell in

the first mansion. 11. Entering. 12. Difficulties of the subject.

1. WHILE I was begging our Lord to-day to speak for me, since I knew not

what to say nor how to commence this work which obedience has laid upon me,

an idea occurred to me which I will explain, and which will serve as a

foundation for that I am about to write.

2. I thought of the soul as resembling a castle, [31] formed of a single

diamond or a very transparent crystal, [32] and containing many rooms,

just as in heaven there are many mansions. [33] If we reflect, sisters, we

shall see that the soul of the just man is but a paradise, in which, God

tells us, He takes His delight. [34] What, do you imagine, must that

dwelling be in which a King so mighty, so wise, and so pure, containing in

Himself all good, can delight to rest? Nothing can be compared to the great

beauty and capabilities of a soul; however keen our intellects may be, they

are as unable to comprehend them as to comprehend God, for, as He has told

us, He created us in His own image and likeness. [35]

3. As this is so, we need not tire ourselves by trying to realize all the

beauty of this castle, although, being His creature, there is all the

difference between the soul and God that there is between the creature and

the Creator; the fact that it is made in God's image teaches us how great

are its dignity and loveliness. It is no small misfortune and disgrace that,

through our own fault, we neither understand our nature nor our origin.

Would it not be gross ignorance, my daughters, if, when a man was questioned

about his name, or country, or parents, he could not answer? Stupid as this

would be, it is unspeakably more foolish to care to learn nothing of our

nature except that we possess bodies, and only to realize vaguely that we

have souls, because people say so and it is a doctrine of faith. Rarely do

we reflect upon what gifts our souls may possess, Who dwells within them, or

how extremely precious they are. Therefore we do little to preserve their

beauty; all our care is concentrated on our bodies, which are but the coarse

setting of the diamond, or the outer walls of the castle. [36]

4. Let us imagine, as I said, that there are many rooms in this castle, of

which some are above, some below, others at the side; in the centre, in the

very midst of them all, is the principal chamber in which God and the soul

hold their most secret . [37] Think over this comparison very

carefully; God grant it may enlighten you about the different kinds of

graces He is pleased to bestow upon the soul. No one can know all about

them, much less a person so ignorant as I am. The knowledge that such things

are possible will console you greatly should our Lord ever grant you any of

these favours; people themselves deprived of them can then at least praise

Him for His great goodness in bestowing them on others. The thought of

heaven and the happiness of the saints does us no harm, but cheers and urges

us to win this joy for ourselves, nor will it injure us to know that during

this exile God can communicate Himself to us loathsome worms; it will rather

make us love Him for such immense goodness and infinite mercy.

5. I feel sure that vexation at thinking that during our life on earth God

can bestow these graces on the souls of others shows a want of humility and

charity for one's neighbour, for why should we not feel glad at a brother's

receiving divine favours which do not deprive us of our own share? Should we

not rather rejoice at His Majesty's thus manifesting His greatness wherever

He chooses? [38] Sometimes our Lord acts thus solely for the sake of

showing His power, as He declared when the Apostles questioned whether the

blind man whom He cured had been suffering for his own or his parents' sins.

[39] God does not bestow these favours on certain souls because they are

more holy than others who do not receive them, but to manifest His

greatness, as in the case of St. Paul and St. Mary Magdalen, and that we may

glorify Him in His creatures.

6. People may say such things appear impossible and it is best not to

scandalize the weak in faith by speaking about them. But it is better that

the latter should disbelieve us, than that we should desist from

enlightening souls which receive these graces, that they may rejoice and may

endeavour to love God better for His favours, seeing He is so mighty and so

great. There is no danger here of shocking those for whom I write by

treating of such matters, for they know and believe that God gives even

greater proofs of His love. I am certain that if any one of you doubts the

truth of this, God will never allow her to learn it by experience, for He

desires that no limits should be set to His work: therefore, never discredit

them because you are not thus led yourselves.

7. Now let us return to our beautiful and charming castle and discover how

to enter it. This appears incongruous: if this castle is the soul, clearly

no one can have to enter it, for it is the person himself: one might as well

tell some one to go into a room he is already in! There are, however, very

different ways of being in this castle; many souls live in the courtyard of

the building where the sentinels stand, neither caring to enter farther, nor

to know who dwells in that most delightful place, what is in it and what

rooms it contains.

8. Certain books on prayer that you have read advise the soul to enter into

itself, [40] and this is what I mean. I was recently told by a great

theologian that souls without prayer are like bodies, palsied and lame,

having hands and feet they cannot use. Just so, there are souls so infirm

and accustomed to think of nothing but earthly matters, that there seems no

cure for them. It appears impossible for them to retire into their own

hearts; accustomed as they are to be with the reptiles and other creatures

which live outside the castle, they have come at last to imitate their

habits. Though these souls are by their nature so richly endowed, capable of

communion even with God Himself, yet their case seems hopeless. Unless they

endeavour to understand and remedy their most miserable plight, their minds

will become, as it were, bereft of movement, just as Lot's wife became a

pillar of salt for looking backwards in disobedience to God's command. [41]

9. As far as I can understand, the gate by which to enter this castle is

prayer and meditation. I do not allude more to mental than to vocal prayer,

for if it is prayer at all, the mind must take part in it. If a person

neither considers to Whom he is addressing himself, what he asks, nor what

he is who ventures to speak to God, although his lips may utter many words,

I do not call it prayer. [42] Sometimes, indeed, one may pray devoutly

without making all these considerations through having practised them at

other times. The custom of speaking to God Almighty as freely as with a

slave--caring nothing whether the words are suitable or not, but simply

saying the first thing that comes to mind from being learnt by rote by

frequent repetition--cannot be called prayer: God grant that no Christian may

address Him in this manner. I trust His Majesty will prevent any of you,

sisters, from doing so. Our habit in this Order of conversing about

spiritual matters is a good preservative against such evil ways.

10. Let us speak no more of these crippled souls, who are in a most

miserable and dangerous state, unless our Lord bid them rise, as He did the

palsied man who had waited more than thirty years at the pool of Bethsaida.

[43] We will now think of the others who at last enter the precincts of

the castle; they are still very worldly, yet have some desire to do right,

and at times, though rarely, commend themselves to God's care. They think

about their souls every now and then; although very busy, they pray a few

times a month, with minds generally filled with a thousand other matters,

for where their treasure is, there is their heart also. [44] Still,

occasionally they cast aside these cares; it is a great boon for them to

realize to some extent the state of their souls, and to see that they will

never reach the gate by the road they are following.

11. At length they enter the first rooms in the basement of the castle,

accompanied by numerous reptiles [45] which disturb their peace, and

prevent their seeing the beauty of the building; still, it is a great gain

that these persons should have found their way in at all.

12. You may think, my daughters, that all this does not concern you,

because, by God's grace, you are farther advanced; still, you must be

patient with me, for I can explain myself on some spiritual matters

concerning prayer in no other way. May our Lord enable me to speak to the

point; the subject is most difficult to understand without personal

experience of such graces. Any one who has received them will know how

impossible it is to avoid touching on subjects which, by the mercy of God,

will never apply to us.

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[31] Way of Perfection, ch. xxviii, 9.

[32] In her Life St. Teresa likened God to a diamond (ch. xl, 14); and

elsewhere (ch. xi, 10) the soul to a garden wherein our Lord takes His

delight.

[33] St. John xiv. 2: 'In domo Patris mei mansiones mult+ª sunt.' St. John of

the Cross uses the same comparison: 'If the soul shall overcome the devil in

the first combat, it shall then pass on to the second; and if it shall be

victorious there also, it shall then pass on to the third; and then through

the seven mansions, the seven degrees of love, until the Bridegroom shall

bring it to the «cellar of wine» of perfect charity.' (Ascent of Mount

Carmel, bk. ii. ch. xi. 7.)

[34] Prov. viii. 31: 'Delici+ª me+ª esse cum filiis hominum.'

[35] Gen. i. 26: 'Faciamus hominem ad imaginem et similitudinem nostram.'

[36] Way of Perf. ch. xxviii.

[37] St. John of the Cross on the words of his stanza: 'In the inner cellar

of my Beloved have I drunk.' 'Here the soul speaks of that sovereign grace

of God in taking it into the house of His love, which is the union or

transformation of love in God . . . The cellar is the highest degree of love

to which the soul can attain in this life, and is therefore said to be the

inner. It follows from this that there are other cellars not so interior;

that is, the degrees of love by which souls reach to this, the last. These

cellars are seven in number, and the soul has entered them all when it has

in perfection the seven gifts of the Holy Ghost, so far as it is possible

for it. . . . Many souls reach and enter the first cellar, each according to

the perfection of its love, but the last and inmost cellar is entered by few

in this world, because therein is wrought the perfect union with God, the

union of the spiritual marriage.' A Spiritual Canticle, stanza xxvi. 1-3.

Concept. ch. vi. (Minor Works of St. Teresa.)

[38] St. Matt. xx. 15: 'Alit non licet mihi quod volo, facere? an oculus

tuus nequam est, quia ego bonus sum?'

[39] St. John ix. 2: 'Quis peccavit, hic, aut parentes ejus, ut c+ªcus

nasceretur?'

[40] Imitation, bk. II. ch. 1: 'Regnum Dei intra vos est.' Luke. xvii. 21.

The Imitation is one of the books which according to St. Teresa's

Constitutions, (-º 7) every prioress was bound to provide for her convent.

[41] Gen. xix. 26: 'Respiciensque uxor ejus post se, versa est in statuam

salis.'

[42] Way of Perf. ch. xxi. 6; xxix. 4.

[43] St. John v. 5: 'Erat autem quidam homo ibi triginta et octo annos

habens in infirmitate sua.'

[44] St. Matt. vi. 21: 'Ubi enim est thesaurus tuus ibi est et cor tuum.

[45] Many an ancient castle was provided with a bear-garden where rare

animals were kept for the amusement of the inhabitants. This may have

supplied the material for St. Teresa's comparison.

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