Margins
Dark Night of the Soul book cover
Dark Night of the Soul
1584
First Published
4.17
Average Rating
186
Number of Pages

“The clearer and more manifest divine things are in themselves, the more they are naturally obscure and hidden from the soul. It is here like natural light: […] the more we want to stare directly at the sun, the more we dazzle the visual power and deprive it of light […]. Likewise, when this divine light of contemplation invests the soul which is not yet completely enlightened, it produces spiritual darkness in it, because not only does it exceed it, but because it deprives it of its natural intelligence. and obscures the act. » On the mystical path, the experience of night is neither dark, nor dramatic, nor tragic. This magnificent poetic treatise shows, on the contrary, that she is the recipient of divine lessons. A major work of the negative path. « Plus les choses divines sont en soi claires et manifestes, plus elles sont naturellement obscures et cachées à l’âme. Il en est ici comme de la lumière naturelle : […] plus on veut fixer le soleil en face, et plus on éblouit la puissance visuelle et on la prive de lumière […]. De même, quand cette divine lumière de la contemplation investit l’âme qui n’est pas encore complètement éclairée, elle produit en elle des ténèbres spirituelles, parce que non seulement elle la dépasse, mais parce qu’elle la prive de son intelligence naturelle et en obscurcit l’acte. » Sur le chemin mystique, l’expérience de la nuit n’est ni noire, ni dramatique, ni tragique. Ce magnifique traité poétique montre au contraire qu’elle est réceptrice de leçons divines. Une œuvre majeure de la voie négative.

Avg Rating
4.17
Number of Ratings
11,022
5 STARS
48%
4 STARS
29%
3 STARS
16%
2 STARS
4%
1 STARS
2%
goodreads

Author

John of the Cross
John of the Cross
Author · 17 books
St. John of the Cross (Spanish: Juan de la Cruz), born June 24 1542, Juan de Yepes Álvarez, was a major Counter-Reformation figure, a Spanish mystic, Catholic saint, Carmelite friar and priest. He was a reformer of the Carmelite Order and is considered, along with St Teresa of Ávila, as a founder of the Discalced Carmelites. He's also known for his writings. Both his poetry & his studies on the growth of the soul are considered the summit of mystical Spanish literature & a peak of all Spanish literature. He was canonized as a saint in 1726 by Pope Benedict XIII. He is one of the 33 Doctors of the Church. (less)
548 Market St PMB 65688, San Francisco California 94104-5401 USA
© 2026 Paratext Inc. All rights reserved