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Without a Place and With a Place
Without a place and with a place
to rest — living darkly with no ray
of light — I burn my self away.
My soul — no longer bound — is free
from the creations of the world;
above itself it rises hurled
into a life of ecstasy,
leaning only on God. The world
will therefore clarify at last
what I esteem of highest grace:
my soul revealing it can rest
without a place and with a place.
Although I suffer a dark night
in mortal life, I also know
my agony is slight, for though
I am in darkness without light,
a clear heavenly life I know;
for love gives power to my life,
however black and blind my day,
to yield my soul, and free of strife
to rest — living darkly with no ray.
Love can perform a wondrous labor
which I have learned internally,
and all the good or bad in me
takes on a penetrating savor,
changing my soul so it can be
consumed in a delicious flame.
I feel it in me as a ray;
and quickly killing every trace
of light — I burn my self away.
– St. John of The Cross
[Trans Willis Barnstone]<\/p>\n\n\n\n
St. John of the Cross was a major figure of the Counter-Reformation, a Spanish mystic, a Roman Catholic saint, a Carmelite friar and a priest who was born at Fontiveros, Old Castle. Both his poetry and his studies on the growth of the soul are considered the summit of mystical Spanish literature and one of the peaks of all Spanish literature.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Without a Place and With a PlaceWithout a place and with a placeto rest — living darkly with no rayof light — I burn my self away.My soul — no longer bound — is freefrom the creations of the world;above itself it rises hurledinto a life of ecstasy,leaning only on God. The worldwill therefore clarify… <\/p>\n