Chapter XVI
THE MYSTICAL ARK
overshadow her. No less would she be lacking in that which would illumine the darkness of her ignorance, unless she saw light in His light. For this reason she says to Him: "For you light my lamp, O
Lord. My God, illuminate my darkness" (Ps.
17:29). And so from the gift of her Beloved and from the kindness of her Spouse, the lover receives two remedies against two principal evils: the cloud of coolness against concupiscence of the flesh; the light of showing against ignorance of the mind. How often one knows the way of truth, yet does not follow it, as he is drawn away and allured by his concupiscence. Here he has for a while a day of knowing but does not have the cloud of cooling grace. How often many persons have zeal yet have nothing as far as knowledge is concerned. Perhaps these persons feel no heat of concupiscence for a while and are refreshed by the restful coolness of the night, as it were. And indeed the persons who are of this sort seem to have the night, but they do not have the fire of illumining grace. Therefore, it is good to hope in the Lord and not to presume concerning oneself. How blessed are those for whom He is in a covering during the day and in the light of the stars during the night, spreading out a cloud to protect them and a fire so that it might be a light for them during the night. For it is not of the one who wills, nor of the one who runs, but of God who shows mercy (Rom. 9:16). The lover knows this, and for this reason she leans upon her Beloved. For this reason it is rightly written concerning her: "Who is she who comes up from the desert, flowing with delights and leaning upon her Beloved?" (Song of Songs
8:5).
Chapter XVI That especially in the third mode of ecstasy everything depends upon divine favor Although this beloved of her Spouse always and everywhere is in need of the aid of her Beloved so that without Him she is unable to do anything, nevertheless she relies, or finds it necessary to rely, more strongly on the cooperation of the soul in no place more than in this place where she comes up from the desert, now especially at
RICHARD OF ST. VICTOR
the time when she flows with deHghts. For if by desert is rightly understood the human heart, what will it mean to come up from the desert, except to go above herself? Therefore, what can a person do where one ascends above humanity, where human nature goes beyond the bounds of human possibility? Yet at no time does the holy soul lean more strongly on her Beloved than when she seems to flow with spiritual delights. Let us now think of a certain young and delicate girl, namely one who has been brought up in a great flowing of delights but is now a girl intoxicated with much wine, namely one who has been led into the wine cellar and has drunk from a rushing torrent of desire: On account of her very great youthfulness she is scarcely able to walk; on account of excessive inebriation she is completely unable to discern where she ought to be.
Is not this one who is described as flowing with delights and leaning upon her Beloved presented to you for consideration under such a figure of speech? But why marvel if flowing with delights restores youthfulness? Do you wish to hear how it is accustomed to bring about youthfulness? She is raised almost above that which can be believed and finally to such a degree that no exterior delight can have the least savor for her, nor can any glory of the world bring any kind of consolation, so that she dares to say and to confess: "My soul refused to be consoled" (Ps.
76:3). This is because she truly feels and certainly says, "Because all flesh is grass and all the glory of it is like the flower of grass" (Isa. 40:6). At last her soul is wearied of its life as often as she is not given to have accustomed delights as she wishes. And so life itself turns into weariness for her—nay into something hated, as often as those rejoicings of her internal solemnity are withdrawn. Think, therefore, of what sort is the customary condition of those persons with such delights, who delight to have nothing in their own power.
Without these delights, which she cannot acquire by her own activity or her own prudence, she cannot receive any consolation at all.
Whatever is for her consolation, whatever is for her pleasure, depends upon the will of another and upon the favor of another.
Therefore she rightly leans on the strength of that one upon whose generosity she can rightly presume completely for what she is hoping for, longing for, and loving. O how often in this state are those words which are said according to the warning of the Prophet
THE MYSTICAL ARK
turned into the word of the Lord for her: "Command, command again; command, command again; wait, wait again; wait, wait again; a moment here, a moment there" (Isa. 28:10). And so she is forced to wait and wait again, while her longing is deferred often and for a very long time, and while she is able neither to have her delights when she wishes nor to moderate her soul in such cravings.
I think it is evident from these things how whatever is done or felt in this ecstasy of mind is far above humanity and goes beyond a human mode.
Chapter XVII By what a person who has advanced to this third stage of such grace can be helped in himself Nevertheless, when a person who has advanced to this grace now feels that it is being withdrawn from him more than is usual, there is something he ought to do, by which he can be assisted much in every way to regain this grace and by which he can form his soul in this undertaking as much as he is capable of doing. And so, the soul that is in such a situation ought to recover exultation of the heart in itself by its own meditations and to call back before the eyes of its recollection the costly gifts of divine kindness to it. On account of such recollection it ought to incite itself to a deep and devoted act of thankfulness and at last because of inner affection to set that internal organ of spiritual harmony free for divine praises.
And so, when by such effort the inner affection of the heart is released with full devotion in the magnificence of divine praises, what is this other than that (if I may speak in this manner) an air hole is opened, by which an emanation of celestial sweetness and an abundance of divine pleasantness is poured into that small chamber of our heart? So it is that when Elisha the Prophet was asked for the word of the Lord, since he felt that he did not have the spirit of prophecy at that time, he had a minstrel brought to him. With the presence and singing of the minstrel, Elisha immediately drank in the prophetic spirit and soon opened his mouth with words of prophecy (4 Kings 3:15; RSV, 2 Kings 3:15). Perhaps some person