Chapter XVI
RICHARD OF ST. VICTOR
soul gradually glows, burns more and more, and finally at last catches fire completely until it is thoroughly reformed to true purity and internal beauty. And that chamber of internal habitation is superbly adorned everywhere with purple garments, linen the color of hyacinth, and twice-dyed scarlet, until finally at some time after the chamber has been adorned and the beloved has been led in, when boldness now increases and longing distresses, when she is no longer able to restrain herself, she suddenly rushes into a kiss and with pressing lips fixes a kiss of intimate devotion. By devotion He is kissed often and in many ways while in the meantime the bedchamber is prepared, until the innermost recess of the soul is composed in supreme peace and tranquillity and finally, when the Beloved is brought between the breasts, she melts completely in desire for Him with a kind of ineffable infusion of divine sweetness and that spirit which clings to the Lord is made one spirit. Concerning the things that happen later, I think that after having known by experience so much sweetness and such inward pleasantness, the soul can no longer contrive any delay nor further weary the Beloved with any waiting while He is knocking. In this respect the soul will no longer say, "Wait and wait again," especially when to her every delay is excessively long and waiting seems burdensome. From now on I think she will gladly watch with the patriarch Abraham or even with the prophet Elijah at the entrance of her habitation so that she may always be prepared for receiving her Beloved. At this time, I think, our beaten work begins to make a great deal of progress and to approach consummation since our cherubim now begin to spread out their wings widely and to suspend themselves at every hour for flying, as it were.
Chapter XVI How it is almost impossible for any soul to pour itself completely outside of itself and to go above itself Although such a soul may be ready at this time to receive the One who comes, I do not know if it is equally prepared and prompt to run forth to meet the One who calls.
I fear lest in this respect it
THE MYSTICAL ARK
will now say to its Beloved: "Wait, wait again; wait, wait again; a moment here, a moment there." For I think that we do not receive the One coming and follow the One calling with the same ease.
It is one thing to go in with Him; it is another to go out to Him. In the former the soul returns into itself and with its Beloved enters into the innermost sanctuary of its heart. In the latter it is led out of itself and is raised up to contemplating lofty things. For what does it mean that the soul goes into itself, except that it gathers itself completely within itself? But what does it mean that it goes out from itself, except that it completely pours itself outside of itself?
And so when the soul enters with her Beloved into the bedchamber, she alone delaying and enjoying the sweetness with Him alone, this is nothing other than that she forgets all external things and delights in supreme and intimate love of Him. She sees herself alone with the Beloved, when, after having forgotten all exterior things, she aims her longing away from consideration of herself and toward love of her Beloved. And on account of these things that she considers in her innermost places, she kindles her soul with such affection and rises up with thanksgiving from the consideration of both her goods and her evils. Hence, on account of grace received and forgiveness granted, she renders sacrifices of inner devotion.
The Beloved is led into the innermost place and situated in the best place, when He is loved from innermost affection and above all else. Think what it is in your life that you have loved more ardently, craved more anxiously; what affected you more pleasantly and delighted you more deeply than all other things.
Consider, therefore, if you feel the same force of affection and abundance of delight when you burn with longing for the supreme Lover and when you rest in His love. Who doubts that He does not yet occupy that innermost recess of your affections if the dart of intimate love pierces your soul less and excites it less fervently in divine affections than it was accustomed to penetrate and excite it sometimes with respect to alien affections? But if straightway you perceive a force of delight, or perhaps a more powerful force of longing, in your innermost parts concerning divine things—something more powerful than you have experienced in other things—see if there is yet perhaps another thing of some sort by which you are able to be consoled or delighted. Certainly, as long as we are able to
RICHARD OF ST. VICTOR
receive consolation or pleasure from any alien thing whatsoever, I do not yet dare to say that our Beloved possesses the innermost recess of most ardent love. Whatever sort of soul you now may be, take action, hasten now to bring Him into the innermost and most secret sanctuary of your heart. For who would deny that the innermost sanctuary of the human heart has or even can acquire recesses of such a sort that the force of supreme and singular love cannot be torn away by any alien delight whatsoever, when it has been fixed by affection to something?
Certainly, if you seek or receive any sort of alien consolation, although you may perhaps love your God supremely, nevertheless you do not love Him singularly. Therefore, He is not yet led into the innermost place; He is not yet situated in the best place.
If you do not busy yourself to bring Him into your innermost place, how can I believe that you either wish or are able to follow Him to his sublime place? Whatsoever sort of soul you are, let it be a certain sign to you that you love your Beloved less or you are loved less by Him, if you are not yet worthy to be called to those contemplative ecstasies or to be following the One who calls. For how perfectly do you love or are you loved if in longing for supreme things you are not snatched to supernal places and do not pass over by means of alienation of mind into those anagogic endeavors? Do you wish to know that the loftiness of divine showings may be an open disclosure of divine love?
"Now I do not call you servants but friends," He says, "because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father" (John 15:15). Pay attention to this as well: The mode of a divine showing depends upon the magnitude of divine love: "Eat, friends; drink and become inebriated, most beloved"
(Song of Songs 5:1). Behold, those who are friends and beloved, eat; but those who are most beloved, drink. Indeed, they not only drink, but they also become inebriated.
Certainly those who eat, while they chew choice food, swallow that in which they delight, but not without delay or some sort of labor. But those who drink swallow with the greatest speed and ease that for which they thirst. Therefore, do not those persons seem to you to eat, who with great effort and prolonged meditation can scarcely reach the delights of truth?
However, in a certain manner those drink, who with the greatest ease and delight imbibe from divine showings what they ardently