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object:CHAPTER 29 - Continues to describe methods for achieving this Prayer of
Recollection. Says what little account we should make of being
favoured by our superiors.
book class:The Way of Perfection
author class:Saint Teresa of Avila
class:chapter

For the love of God, daughters, avoid making any account of these favours. You should each
do your duty; and, if this is not appreciated by your superior, you may be sure that it will be
appreciated and rewarded by the Lord. We did not come here to seek rewards in this life, but only
in the life to come. Let our thoughts always be fixed upon what endures, and not trouble themselves
with earthly things which do not endure even for a lifetime. For to-day some other sister will be in
your superior's good books; whereas to-morrow, if she sees you exhibiting some additional virtue,
it is with you that she will be better pleased-and if she is not it is of little consequence. Never give
way to these thoughts, which sometimes begin in a small way but may cost you a great deal of
unrest. Check them by remembering that your kingdom is not of this world, and that everything
comes quickly to an end, and that there is nothing in this life that goes on unchangingly.
But even that is a poor remedy and anything but a perfect one; it is best that this state of things
should continue, and that you should be humbled and out of favour, and should wish to be so for
the sake of the Lord Who dwells in you. Turn your eyes upon yourself and look at yourself inwardly,
as I have said. You will find your Master; He will not fail you: indeed, the less outward comfort
you have, the [much] greater the joy He will give you. He is full of compassion and never fails
those who are afflicted and out of favour if they trust in Him alone. Thus David tells us that he
never saw the just forsaken,99 and again, that the Lord is with the afflicted.100 Either you believe
this or you do not: if you do, as you should, why do you wear yourselves to death with worry?
O my Lord, if we had a real knowledge of Thee, we should make not the slightest account of
anything, since Thou givest so much to those who will set their whole trust on Thee. Believe me,
friends, it is a great thing to realize the truth of this so that we may see how deceptive are earthly
things and favours when they deflect the soul in any way from its course and hinder it from entering

99

Psalm xxxvi (A.V., xxxvii, 25).

100

Psalm xxxiii 20-1 (A.V., xxxiv, 19-20).

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St. Teresa of Avila

within itself. 101God help me! If only someone could make you realize this! I myself, Lord, certainly
cannot; I know that [in truth] I owe Thee more than anyone else but I cannot realize this myself as
well as I should.
Returning to what I was saying, I should like to be able to explain the nature of this holy
companionship with our great Companion, the Holiest of the holy, in which there is nothing to
hinder the soul and her Spouse from remaining alone together, when the soul desires to enter within
herself, to shut the door behind her so as to keep out all that is worldly and to dwell in that Paradise
with her God. I say "desires", because you must understand that this is not a supernatural state but
depends upon our volition, and that, by God's favour, we can enter it of our own accord: this
condition must be understood of everything that we say in this book can be done, for without it
nothing can be accomplished and we have not the power to think a single good thought. For this
is not a silence of the faculties: it is a shutting-up of the faculties within itself by the soul.
There are many ways in which we can gradually acquire this habit, as various books tell us.
We must cast aside everything else, they say, in order to approach God inwardly and we must retire
within ourselves even during our ordinary occupations. If I can recall the companionship which I
have within my soul for as much as a moment, that is of great utility. But as I am speaking only
about the way to recite vocal prayers well, there is no need for me to say as much as this. All I want
is that we should know102and abide with the Person with Whom we are speaking, and not turn our
backs upon Him; for that, it seems to me, is what we are doing when we talk to God and yet think
of all kinds of vanity. The whole mischief comes from our not really grasping the fact that He is
near us, and imagining Him far away-so far, that we shall have to go to Heaven in order to find
Him. How is it, Lord, that we do not look at Thy face, when it is so near us? We do not think people
are listening to us when we are speaking to them unless we see them looking at us. And do we close
our eyes so as not to see that Thou art looking at us? How can we know if Thou hast heard what
we say to Thee?
The great thing I should like to teach you is that, in order to accustom ourselves gradually to
giving our minds confidence, so that we may readily understand what we are saying, and with
Whom we are speaking, we must recollect our outward senses, take charge of them ourselves and
give them something which will occupy them. It is in this way that we have Heaven within ourselves
since the Lord of Heaven is there. If once we accustom ourselves to being glad 103that there is no
need to raise our voices in order to speak to Him, since His Majesty will make us conscious that
He is there, we shall be able to say the Paternoster and whatever other prayers we like with great
peace of mind, and the Lord Himself will help us not to grow tired. Soon after we have begun to
force ourselves to remain near the Lord, He will give us indications by which we may understand
that, though we have had to say the Paternoster many times, He heard us the first time. For He loves

101

Lit. "when they deflect the soul in any way from going within itself."

102

Lit.: "see."

103

Lit.: "once we begin to be glad."

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to save us worry; and, even though we may take a whole hour over saying it once, if we can realize
that we are with Him, and what it is we are asking Him, and how willing He is, like any father, to
grant it to us, and how He loves to be with us, and comfort us, He has no wish for us to tire our
brains by a great deal of talking.
For love of the Lord, then, sisters, accustom yourselves to saying the Paternoster in this
recollected way, and before long you will see how you gain by doing so. It is a method of prayer
which establishes habits that prevent the soul from going astray and the faculties from becoming
restless. This you will find out in time: I only beg you to test it, even at the cost of a little trouble,
which always results when we try to form a new habit. I assure you, however, that before long you
will have the great comfort of finding it unnecessary to tire yourselves with seeking this holy Father
to Whom you pray, for you will discover Him within you.
May the Lord teach this to those of you who do not know it: for my own part I must confess
that, until the Lord taught me this method, I never knew what it was to get satisfaction and comfort
out of prayer, and it is because I have always gained such great benefits from this custom of interior
recollection104 that I have written about it at such length. Perhaps you all know this, but some sister
may come to you who will not know it, so you must not be vexed at my having spoken about it here.
I conclude by advising anyone who wishes to acquire it (since, as I say, it is in our power to do
so) not to grow weary of trying to get used to the method which has been described, for it is
equivalent to a gradual gaining of the mastery over herself and is not vain labour. To conquer
oneself for one's own good is to make use of the senses in the service of the interior life. If she is
speaking she must try to remember that there is One within her to Whom she can speak; if she is
listening, let her remember that she can listen to Him Who is nearer to her than anyone else. Briefly,
let her realize that, if she likes, she need never withdraw from this good companionship, and let
her grieve when she has left her Father alone for so long though her need of Him is so sore.
If she can, let her practise recollection many times daily; if not, let her do so occasionally. As
she grows accustomed to it, she will feel its benefits, either sooner or later. Once the Lord has
granted it to her, she would not exchange it for any treasure.
Nothing, sisters, can be learned without a little trouble, so do, for the love of God, look upon
any care which you take about this as well spent. I know that, with God's help, if you practise it
for a year, or perhaps for only six months, you will be successful in attaining it. Think what a short
time that is for acquiring so great a benefit, for you will be laying a good foundation, so that, if the
Lord desires to raise you up to achieve great things, He will find you ready, because you will be
close to Himself. May His Majesty never allow us to withdraw ourselves from His presence. Amen.

104

Lit.: "of recollection within me."

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CHAPTER 29 - Continues to describe methods for achieving this Prayer of
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2

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CHAPTER_29_-_Continues_to_describe_methods_for_achieving_this_Prayer_of, #The Way of Perfection, #Saint Teresa of Avila, #Christianity
  object:CHAPTER 29 - Continues to describe methods for achieving this Prayer of
  Recollection. Says what little account we should make of being

The_Way_of_Perfection, #unset, #Sri Aurobindo, #Integral Yoga
  means by which we can make it a habit
  CHAPTER 29 - Continues to describe methods for achieving this Prayer of Recollection. Says
  what little account we should make of being favoured by our superiors

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