Book description
St John of the Cross was a 16th century Spanish mystic who wanted to
reform Catholicism and encourage the integration of meditative practices
by its followers. Because of this, he was locked up by other monks and
during his imprisonment he wrote one of the world's most famous
spiritual poems Dark Night of the Soul. After his escape, he then wrote
a commentary to the poem to explain how to deal with any period when one
feels completely cut off from God, and totally uninspired by anything.
This is the first time the poem and its commentary have been translated
by anyone outside the Catholic Church, and the language is exceptionally
contemporary and relevant to our everyday concerns, no matter whether
the reader is a Catholic, Buddhist or Muslim - or just having a hard
time. Mirabai Starr, who has studied Buddhism, Hinduism and Judaism,
brings the seeker's sensibility to Dark Night of the Soul. She is a
published writer of fiction and essays, and is adjunct professor of
philosophy, religious studies and Spanish at the University of New
Mexico at Taos. She has been studying St John of the Cross's text for
over twenty years.
