From St. John of the Cross and Dr. C. J. Jung, Part III, Chapter 7. Inner Growth Books, 1986.

Temptations and Contemplation

  In the night of sense, instead of being fed, the natural faculties must be mortified. From an energetic point of view the night of sense is the passification of the sensible person by aridity. This aridity and privation which empties the natural faculties is the hidden onslaught of contemplation, which is a different and higher light which blinds the soul to its ordinary ways of praying. Its purpose is to strip it of its limitations that come to it in virtue of its senses. The soul "loses the strength of its passion and concupiscence and it becomes sterile because it no longer consults its likings ... the desires of the soul are dried up." (18)*,,This phenomenon St. John describes in his commentary on the verse "my house being now at rest". "The four passions of the soul - which are joy, grief, hope and fear - are calmed through continual mortification"(19); the night of sense quenches natural energy and concupiscence.

But if the natural energy which works through consciousness is quenched, what happens to it? In accordance with the principle of equivalence, we should expect to see it emerging elsewhere. In actual fact, there is extensive phenomena which surrounds the night of sense and the transition to contemplation which were carefully described by St. John, which can be attributed to this reappearance of energy in different forms.

For example, in the Living Flame St. John describes how:

"with hardly any trouble, the devil works the greatest injuries, causing the soul to lose great riches, and dragging it forth like a fish, with the tiniest bait, from the depths of the pure waters of the spirit, where it had no support or foothold but was engulfed and immersed in God."(20)

But how is it that the smallest bait can have such an attraction for the soul precisely when it is beginning to enjoy this higher spiritual experience?

In the Ascent of Mount Carmel John is describing "the fight against the beast of the Apocalypse and its seven heads, which are in opposition to these seven degrees of love"(21). It is unfortunate that those who have conquered the first heads of the beast and are "passing out of the state of meditation" should find themselves conquered by this beast "at the moment of their entrance into purity of spirit"(22). And even the attraction to sense objects which they had overcome early in the struggle is revived. Why is it that the beast arises precisely at this moment and even his first head, attachment to sense, comes to life?