SpiritualWiki - Phoenix

Der spanische Mystiker und Kirchenlehrer des Karmeliter-Ordens Johannes vom Kreuz hat eine innerseelische Läuterung, die so genannte Dunkle Nacht der Seele, auf dem Weg zu Gott erfahren. In seinem Buch Die dunkle Nacht, welches das innere Fegefeuer der Ego-Häutung bekannt gemacht hat, unterscheidet er zwei Stufen der passiven Läuterung:

cc by iz*source

Läuterung der Sinne
Gesicht, Gehör, Geruch, Geschmack, Tastsinn und Phantasie, Vorstellungskraft. "Es geht nicht darum, den Sinnenbereich hinter sich zu lassen, sondern ihn vom Geist durchdringen zu lassen. Die Kräfte des Sinnenbe-
reichs sollen nicht sinnlos zersplittert, sondern in den Prozess der Liebeseinung mit Gott einbezogen werden."

Läuterung des Geistes
innerseelischer Bereich des Menschen, der es ihm ermöglicht, sein Leben bewusst in die Hand zu nehmen und sich seiner Verbindung zum Göttlichen innezu-
werden. "Dazu müssen allerdings die geistigen Kräfte des Menschen in der Nacht des Geistes geläutert und von Allem entleert werden, was nicht Gott ist.
Wie der Sinnenbereich vom Geist, so muss der Geist von Gott durchdrungen werden."

Siehe auch: ► Läuterung

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Zitate zum Thema Bewusstseinssprünge / Leaps in consciousness

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Zitate allgemein

Persönliche Bekenntnisse

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Mutter Teresas Dunkle Nacht der Seele

Exzerpt aus einem Brief an einen vertrauten Beichtvater

Tief in meinem Innern ist nur Leere und Dunkelheit. Ich habe keinen Glauben – ich wage es nicht, die Worte und Gedanken auszusprechen, die mich so unbeschreib-
lich leiden lassen. ⚡ Mutter Teresa [Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu, Engel von Kalkutta] (1910-1997) albanisch-indische katholische Missionarin, Nonne, Ordensgründerin, Friedensnobelpreisträgerin, 1979, Vater Dr. Brian Kolodiejchuk, MC, Herausgeber, kanadischer Priester, Komm, sei mein Licht! Die geheimen Aufzeichnungen der Heiligen von Kalkutta, Pattloch, München, 2. Auflage 5. September 2007

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Mutter Teresas Dunkle Nacht der Seele (Nox animi)

Alle "Geheimen Aufzeichnungen" von Mutter Teresa wurden in den drei-bändigen Seligsprechungs-Akten im Jahr 2002 hinterlegt. Im gleichen Jahr wurden sie von dem Redaktionsleiter Saverio Gaeta der katholischen Zeitung "Famiglia Cristiana" veröffentlicht.

In meinem Inneren ist es eiskalt. Der Himmel ist allseitig verschlossen. Ich habe keinen Glauben. Man erzählt mir, dass Gott mich liebt, jedoch ist die Realität von Dunkelheit und Kälte und Leere so überwältigend, dass nichts davon meine Seele berührt.
Mutter Teresa, zitiert in: Artikel Uups! – et orbi. Die Teresa-Tagebücher, präsentiert von dem deutschen Nachrichtenmagazin Der Spiegel, Alexander Smoltczyk, 10. September 2007

Empfehlungen

Vertraue dem Phoenix nicht, bevor er sich aus der Asche erhoben hat.
Pavel Kosorin (*1964) tschechischer Schriftsteller, Aphoristiker, zitiert in: Aphorismen.de

Zukunftsaussichten

Aber es kommt eine Auferstehung, die ganz anders wird als wir dachten. Aber es kommt eine Auferstehung, die ist
der Aufstand Gottes gegen die Herren. Kurt Marti (1921-2017) Schweizer reformierter Pfarrer, Aphoristiker, Mundartdichter, Osterbotschaftsschrift Das könnte manchen Herren so passen, 1969

Fabelwesen Phönix
Friedrich Justin Bertuch (1747-1822)
Bilderbuch für Kinder, 1806

Wie eine Lotusblume, die aus dem Schlamm wächst und über der schlammigen Wasseroberfläche blüht, können wir uns über unsere Verunreinigungen und Leiden des Lebens erheben. Gautama Buddha (563-483 v. Chr.) indischer Avatar, Lehrer der Erleuchtung, Zentralfigur des Buddhismus, zitiert in: Markus Schmidt, Kundalini – Der Innere Weg. "Transformation"
Teil II, S. 290, Twentysix, 2020

Mögliche spirituelle Krisen:
- Spirituelle Sinnkrise
- Die dunkle Nacht der Seele
- Begegnung mit dem Göttlichen
- Erwachen der Kundalini
- Episoden von Einheitsbewusstsein (Gipfelerfahrungen)
- Nahtoderfahrung
- Auftauchende "Erinnerungen an frühere Leben"
- Schamanische Krise
- Das Erwachen von außersinnlicher Wahrnehmung
- Kommunikation mit Geistführern, Channeling
- Begegnungen mit UFOs
- Zustände von Besessenheit

Dr. Christina Grof (1941-2014) US-amerikanische Psychotherapeutin, Gründerin des Spiritual Emergence Network (SEN), Mitbegründerin von Holotropic Breathwork, Künstlerin, Lehrerin, Autorin, Prof. Dr. Stanislav Grof (*1931) tschechisch-ameri-
kanischer Psychiater, Psychotherapeut, Medizinphilosoph, Mitbegründer der transpersonalen Psychologie, Lehrer, Autor,
Die stürmische Suche nach dem Selbst, Kapitel 8, Kösel, München, 1. Januar 1991

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Die dunkle Nacht der Seele

Zu den alarmierendsten und beunruhigendsten Dingen, mit denen Menschen in spirituellen Krisen häufig konfrontiert werden, zählen das Gefühl von Einsamkeit, Erfahrungen von Wahnsinn und die Gedanken an den Tod. Solche Geisteszu-
stände sind zwar intrinsische, notwendige und zentrale Teile des Heilungsprozesses, aber sie können erschreckend und übermächtig werden, besonders wenn es an menschlicher Unterstützung mangelt. Für jemanden in einer spiri-
tuellen Krise, sei sie nun eher subtil oder echt dramatisch, kann die Aufgabe, über den Tag zu kommen, die norma-
len Funktionen aufrecht zu erhalten, schon zu einer beachtlichen Herausforderung werden. Die normalen, schein-
bar so einfachen Handlungen, die Teil des täglichen Lebens sind, werden plötzlich als mühselig oder überwältigend empfunden. Menschen in der Krise werden oft von inneren Erfahrungen überflutet, die so voller Gefühl, visueller
Kraft und energetischer Macht sind, dass es schwierig wird, diese lebhafte innere Welt von Vorfällen in der äuße-
ren Welt zu trennen. Dann sind die Betroffenen vielleicht frustriert, weil es ihnen schwerfällt, den Bogen ihrer Auf-
merksamkeit gespannt zu halten. Oder die schnellen und häufigen Wechsel ihrer Geistesverfassung versetzen
sie in Panik. Da sie unfähig sind, in der gewohnten Weise zu handeln, fühlen sie sich vielleicht machtlos, ineffektiv
und schuldig.
Dr. Christina Grof (1941-2014) US-amerikanische Psychotherapeutin, Gründerin des Spiritual Emergence Network (SEN), Mitbegründerin von Holotropic Breathwork, Künstlerin, Lehrerin, Autorin, Prof. Dr. Stanislav Grof (*1931) tschechisch-ameri-
kanischer Psychiater, Psychotherapeut, Medizinphilosoph, Mitbegründer der transpersonalen Psychologie, Lehrer, Autor,
Die stürmische Suche nach dem Selbst, Kapitel 8, Kösel, München, 1. Januar 1991

Referenzen: de.Wikiquote-Einträge ► Phoenix und ► Johannes vom Kreuz

Literaturzitate

Unsre Leidenschaften sind wahre Phönixe. Wie der alte verbrennt, steigt der neue sogleich wieder aus der Asche hervor. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832) deutscher Universalgelehrter, Bühnendichter, Schriftsteller, Roman Die Wahlverwandtschaften, 2. Teil, 4. Kapitel "Aus Ottiliens Tagebuche", 1809, Goethe Werke. Hamburger Ausgabe. Band 6:
"Romane und Novellen I, Die Wahlverwandtschaften", Verlag C.H.Beck, München, 14. Auflage 1982

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General quotes

They gaze on thee with longing in their spirit,
as on a strong-winged bird that mounteth sky-ward;
On thee with wings of gold, Varuna's envoy,
the Bird that hasteneth to the home of Yama.
Hinduistic scripture Rigveda, Hymn CXXIII., Vena 6, ~1700–1100 BC

Personal avowals

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Awakening

After a profound mystical experience at age 42 Saint Hildegard became a polymath.

The heavens were opened and a blinding light of exceptional brilliance flowed through my entire brain. And it so kindled my whole heart and breast like a flame. Saint Hildegard of Bingen [Sybil of the Rhine] (1098-1179) German Christian mystic, Catholic saint, Doctor of the Church, Benedictine abbess, visionary, philosopher, polymath, composer, writer, cited in: article September saint: Hildegard of Bingen, presented by the publication Vermont Catholic, 17. September 2019

I realize that no contemplative path wants to advertise the cross or the suffering entailed in the crossing over. On the other hand we must not be naive about this or in any way mislead others. The truth is that getting to the other shore will stretch the human limits to the breaking point, and not once, but again and again. Who can take it? It is not for nothing that the cross is the central Christian symbol. Bernadette Roberts (1931-2017) US American Carmelite nun, contemplative in the Catholic tradition, author, cited in: The Deeper Meaning of the Dark Night of the Soul:Spiritual Crises and Breakthroughs in Western and Eastern Traditions, presented by the website makeheaven.com, Peter Holleran, undated

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Revealed in a letter to Ferdinand Périer, Catholic archbishop in Calcutta

There is such terrible darkness within me, as if everything was dead. It has been like this more or less from the time I started 'the work.'
Mother Teresa of Calcutta (1910-1997) Albanian-born Indian Catholic nun, saint, missionary, humanitarian, founder of the Order of the Missionaries of Charity, Nobel Peace Prize laureate, 1979; cited in: Phyllis Zagano, Ph.D., US American expert in Catholic studies and spirituality, Hofstra University, Hempstead, New York, Father C. Kevin Gillespie, S.J., Ph.D., US American associate provost, Loyola University, Chicago, Illinois, fellow in the American Association of Pastoral Counselors, Mother Teresa's Dark Night, presented by Franciscan Media, 2012

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Confession clips of a prolonged Dark Night

In my heart there is no faith – no love – no trust – there is so much pain – the pain of longing, the pain of not being wanted. I want God with all the powers of my soul – and yet there between us – there is terrible separation. I don't pray any longer. [...]
I want to speak – yet nothing comes – I find no words to express the depths of the darkness. In spite of it all – I am His little one – I love Him. [...]
I do not know how deeper will this trial go – how much pain and suffering it will bring to me. This does not worry me any more. I leave this to Him as I leave everything else. [...]
[T]here is such a deep loneliness in my heart that I cannot express it. [...] I want it to be like this for as long as he wants it. Mother Teresa of Calcutta (1910-1997) Albanian-born Indian Catholic nun, saint, missionary, humanitarian, founder of the Order of the Missionaries of Charity, Nobel Peace Prize laureate, 1979; cited in: Phyllis Zagano, Ph.D., US American expert in Catholic studies and spirituality, Hofstra University, Hempstead, New York, Father C. Kevin Gillespie, S.J., Ph.D., US American associate provost, Loyola University, Chicago, Illinois, fellow in the American Association of Pastoral Counselors, Mother Teresa's Dark Night, presented by Franciscan Media, 2012

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Doubting the afterlife, Saint Thérèse told her fellow nuns:

If you only knew what darkness I am plunged into. St. Therese of Lisieux (1873-1897) French Carmelite nun, cited in: Article A Saint's Dark Night, presented by the US American daily newspaper The New York Times, James Martin, 29. August 2007

I believe transformation almost always happens when you're inside of liminal space, when you're on the threshold. […] Being in liminal space doesn’t mean identifying with this victim theology that we have so much of today. […] There is meaning there precisely because at that point you can't fix it and therefore, the ego has to give
up control. That’s liminal space […] and that’s when God can get at you. As long as the ego is in control, as long as you're into the fixing mode of thinking you can explain it. All of our Christian mystics say that the great teacher
is darkness not light. Father Richard Rohr O.F.M. (*1943) US American Franciscan friar, Sadness, PDF, Yale University address to medical students, presented by the publication Malespirituality.org, November 2005

Recommendations

Set your life on fire. Seek those who fan your flames.
Jalal ad-Din Muḥammad Rumi (1207-1273) Persian Muslim Sufi mystic, jurist, theologian, poet, cited in: Goodreads Quotable Quote

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Five essentials

We can't reason with illness, crisis, or God.
Connect with meaning and purpose.
Courageously navigate the dark night of the soul.
Rely on the power of your graces.
Defy gravity and learn to reason like a mystic.

Caroline Myss Myss.com (*1952) US American spiritual teacher, mystic, medical intuitive, bestselling author, Defy Gravity. Healing Beyond the Bounds of Reason, Hay House, 13. October 2009, 2nd edition 15. January 2011; Review, by Integral Options Cafe, William Harryman, 20. December 2009

Conclusion

It's easy to be a naive idealist. It's easy to be a cynical realist.
It's quite another thing to have no illusions and still hold the inner flame.
Dr. Marie-Louise von Franz (1915-1998) Swiss Jungian psychologist, scholar, author, The Golden Ass of Apuleius. The Liberation
of the Feminine in Man [1970] Shambhala, London and Boston, 4. February 1992, revised edition 1. May 2001

The soul cannot enter into the fusion of divine love with its shadow clinging to its skirt. It must strip itself of identification of the small self and step naked into the Garden where the Beloved is waiting.
John of the Cross [San Juan de la Cruz] (1542-1591) Spanish Catholic saint, mystic, Carmelite friar, priest, leading figure of the Counter-Reformation, poem Dark Night of the Soul, 16th century, Penguin, 2003

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Fourth state: Dark Night

"Education in selfless constancy"

[S]ince Thou hast taken from me all that I had of Thee, yet of Thy grace leave me the gift which every dog has by nature: that of being true to Thee in my distress, when I am deprived of all consolation. This I desire more fervently than Thy heavenly Kingdom. Mechthild of Magdeburg (1207-1282) German medieval mystic, member of the Béguines, visionary, writer, cited in: Evelyn Underhill (1875-1941) British Anglo-Catholic mystic, theologian, pacifist, writer on Christian mysticism, poet, novelist, Mysticism. A Study in Nature and Development of Spiritual Consciousness, S. 408, 1911, New American Library, New York, 1974

No one has been united to his Beloved through mirth. Whoever has attained communion with him has done so after shedding many tears. If it were possible to meet the beloved while laughing and in a state of comfort, why should one suffer the anguish of separation? The people of the world are happy. They eat and sleep. Kabir alone is unhappy.
He is awake and is crying. Kabir (1440-1518) Indian mystic poet, saint, writer influencing the Bhakti movement, cited in: quote collection Deeper Meanings of the Dark Night of the Soul. Spiritual Crises and Breakthroughs in Western and Eastern Traditions, presented by Peter Holleran, undated

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Outgrowing the tribal frame

What triggers the dark night of the soul is that you're going to have a tribal revolution. You get to the point where you think, "I want to make decisions on my own. I want to manage my own perceptions, my own emotions, and my own choices." But the assumption of the tribal mind is that everybody loves being part of the tribe. So that's when you enter the dark night of the soul. Because that's when you begin the real deep journey of recognizing, "What do I believe?" It's one thing to fight about what you don't want to believe anymore. That doesn't necessarily mean you automatically and always know what you do believe. All you know is you can't go backwards, but the tribe is the only world you know. It doesn't feel right anymore and it doesn't offer you any comfort, but it is familiar.
What you are actually going through is the incredible experience of exploring what it means to take a look at all the false gods you've invested your spirit into – like belief patterns that have never really been true, but you put your energy into. For example, superstitions or attitudes you've held with the group, like being afraid of God; the notion that "God will punish you if you do that" [...]
In the tribe, we evolve by growing within the context of group perceptions and at the group's speed. How many my-
thologies do you have to go through until you can finally say, "God, I want you not through a group; I want direct contact? I don't want a toilet-water version of you in which I've agreed to experience you through the evolution and slow motion of a family, and the slow motion of a job, and a once-a-week ritual. As a tribe member, I keep you at bay and I've agreed to let my life evolve at a certain speed."
If you want more direct contact, a more direct voice, then ask for it. God will say, "Okay fine, you'll get that. But here's the thing – we're going to change the world you came from and you have to leave that world behind." And indeed,
that's dark night. Interview with Caroline Myss Myss.com (*1952) US American spiritual teacher, mystic, medical intuitive, best-
selling author, Pioneering The Anatomy Of The Spirit, presented by host Randy Peyser, past 2000

Sometimes our light goes out but is blown again into flame by an encounter with another human being. Each of us owes the deepest thanks to those who have rekindled this inner light.
Dr. Albert Schweitzer (1875-1965) German-Alsatian theologian, physician, medical missionary, philosopher, humanist, organist, author, cited in: Jack Canfield (*1944) US American motivational speaker, author, Mark Victor Hansen (*1948) US American motivational speaker, trainer, author, Chicken Soup for the Soul, S. 124, Chicken Soup for the Soul Publishing, 1993

The self which comes forth from the night is no separated self, conscious of the illumination of the Uncreated Light, but the New Man, the trans-
muted humanity, whose life is one with the Absolute Life of God. Evelyn Underhill (1875-1941) British Anglo-Catholic mystic, theologian, pacifist, writer on Christian mysticism, poet, novelist, Mysticism. A Study in Nature and Development of Spiritual Consciousness, 1911, New American Library, New York, 1974

This first dark night purifies all of the senses so that they can become the vehicle of the inner divine self. This first dark night is extreme, but it's not as extreme as the second dark night. It's a purification that enables the ordinary senses to start registering the divine world. Through devotion, through meditation, through intense mystical practice, you start to see the divine light. At first it just flashes, and then when the process is complete, you have an overwhelming experience in which you see the entire creation as a manifestation of the light, and your consciousness is one with that. This is not enlightenment. This begins what is called the state of illumination. Although the senses are purified, and although they're able now to register the divinity of the world, the ego is still subtly present. So there has to be a second death on the path, which is the death of the personal identity. Interview with Andrew Harvey (*1952) Indian-British religious scholar, Rumi translator and explicator, teacher of mystic traditions, architect of Sacred Activism, poet, novelist, author, Dark Night of the Soul, presented by Grace Cathedral, California, Colleen O'Connor, 19. December 2002

The third kind of person is found at the deepest level of life where integrity is grounded in vision and in values found only after losing the innocence of superficial hopes and dreams.
The third kind of person survives some life-changing defeat or loss and suffers a descent in life that makes them aware of the agonies and tragedies experienced by so many throughout the world. […] The stricken person finds themselves in a dark night of the soul, alone with the remnants of broken dreams, lost in a darkness that erases all sense of hope. Article by Michael Meade, US American storyteller, scholar of mythology, psychology, anthropology, ritualist, spokesman
in the men's movement, author, Three Kinds of People, presented by Mosaicvoices.org, ~November 2016

Question: Is marriage a particularly fertile place for dark nights of the soul to come about?
Answer – Thomas Moore: Marriage is a great mystery. [...] It is mysterious how you meet the person, what attracted one person to the other. [...] After you have lived together for a while it gets even worse, more entangled. Marriage is a great example of the life of a soul. [...] When you marry someone else you are really getting linked up with their soul which is largely unconscious to them. [...] The marriage often contradicts your conscious desires and wishes for it. [...] You got into something that is full of soul and heart. [...] The families are very much part of the married, the families get married, too. [...] It is an illusion that is only about two people trying to be compatible. [...] You may not be compatible
at all, but still you want to be together. Audio interview with Thomas Moore, Ph.D. careofthesoul.net (*1940) US American professor of religious studies, Catholic monk, psychotherapist, musician, writer, Marrying God. Diary of a Poet-Priest, Dark Nights
of the Soul, presented by the Canadian web radio station CBC Radio Tapestry, host Mary Hynes, Canadian journalist, minutes 21:26-26:22, aired 24. July 2005

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Between no longer in a state of death or lead and
not yet rebirth or gold:

By grace one arrives at the dark night of the soul. The transformational time between no longer and not yet is a thin sacred space, which requires courage and hope in order not to despair.

There are times in life when we die to whatever we were. Janet Quinn, Ph.D., US American nurse, active medical researcher of Therapeutic Touch, source unknown

The dark night of the soul is a transformative process
of freeing love from attachment.
Gerald May, M.D. (1940-2005) US American theologian, psychiatrist, author on psychology and spirituality, The Dark Night
of the Soul. A Psychiatrist Explores the Connection Between Darkness and Spiritual Growth, Harper, San Francisco, 2004

The sugar cane yields its sweet juice only after it has been crushed relentlessly in a mill. The human entity yields
its noblest traits and truest wisdom only after it has been crushed repeatedly in the mill of anguish.
Paul Brunton (1898-1981) [Hermann Hirsch] British philosopher of German Jewish origin, journalist, traveler, mystic, guru,
The Notebooks of Paul Brunton, Vol. 12, "The Reverential Life", S. 238, Larson Publications, Burdett, New York, 1988

Change is the constant, the signal for rebirth, the egg of the phoenix. Christina Baldwin, US American author,
cited in: Quotation Details

References: en.Wikiquote entries ► Phoenix and ► John of the Cross

Literary quotes

For, after all, you do grow up, you do outgrow your ideals, which turn
to dust and ashes, which are shattered into fragments; and if you have no other life, you just have to build one up out of these fragments. And all the time your soul is craving and longing for something else. And in vain does the dreamer rummage about in his old dreams, raking them over as though they were a heap of cinders, looking in these cinders for some spark, how-
ever tiny, to fan it into a flame so as to warm his chilled blood by it and revive in it all that he held so dear before, all that touched his heart, that made his blood course through his veins, that drew tears from his eyes, and that so splendidly deceived him!
Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky (1821-1881) Russian writer of novels, short stories and essays, White Nights. And Other Stories, 1848

You must be ready to burn yourself in your own flame;
how could you rise anew if you have not first become ashes?
Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (1844-1900) German classical scholar, critic of culture, philologist, philosopher of nihilism, writer,
Thus Spoke Zarathustra [Also sprach Zarathustra], Ernst Schmeitzner, 1883-1891, Viking Press, 1954

Poem

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Circular heroic journey toward the Self

We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.
T. S. Eliot (1888-1965) US American British literary critic, poet, playwright, Nobel laureate in literature, 1948,
Four Quartets, Harcourt, 1943

Song lyrics

You can blow out a candle
but you can't blow out a fire
once the flame begin to catch
the wind will blow it higher.
Peter Gabriel (*1950) British singer, musician, songwriter

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Benefit of dark hours

I love the dark hours of my being
My mind deepens into them.
There I can find, as in old letters,
the days of my life, already lived,
and held like a legend, and understood.
Then the knowing comes: I can open
to another life that's wide and timeless.

Rainer Maria Rilke (1875-1926) Bohemian-Austrian poet, novelist, The Book of Hours [Das Stunden-Buch], Insel Verlag, Leipzig, April 1905, Rilke's Book of Hours. Love Poems to God, translated by Anita Barrows and Joanna Macy, April 1905, Riverhead Trade, 8th edition 1. April 1997

See also: ► Poems

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Quotes by David R. Hawkins

⚠ Caveat See Power vs. Truth, January 2013

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Lotus arising from the mud

The Phoenix of spiritual awakening is birthed from the ashes of human despair. Like Mother Teresa said, the beautiful flower, the Lotus, arises from the mud and slime from the bottom of the pond.
⚡ Dr. David R. Hawkins (1927-2012) US American psychiatrist, physician, spiritual teacher, cult leader, author, source unknown

The state of feeling abandoned by God and being hopeless results in a global feeling of depression and may in-
clude an alteration of the experience of time comparable to the experiencial lower levels of Hell as described by Dante [LoC 505]: "Abandon hope all ye who enter here". This state may be a transitory phase as a consequence of intense spiritual work, especially in a devotee who throws all caution to the wind and explores the deepest levels of consciousness, at which depth the devotee intuitively senses that it is necessary to relinquish the ego and remove all doubt. Thus, this state may represent the need to reach inner validation of spiritual truth before total abandonment of the ego itself. ⚡ Dr. David R. Hawkins (1927-2012) US American psychiatrist, physician, spiritual teacher, cult leader, author, Transcending Levels of Consciousness, chapter 1 "Shame: Despair", S. 35, 2006

Severe spiritual depression can represent the last toehold of the ego as it fights for survival.
⚡ Dr. David R. Hawkins (1927-2012) US American psychiatrist, physician, spiritual teacher, cult leader, author, Transcending Levels
of Consciousness, chapter 1 "Shame: Despair", S. 36 (38), 2006

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The dark night of the ego

The ego's basic illusion is that it is God, and without it, death will occur. Thus, what is described as the dark night of the soul is actually the dark night of the ego. ⚡ Dr. David R. Hawkins (1927-2012) US American psychiatrist, physician, spiritual teacher, cult leader, author, Transcending Levels of Consciousness, chapter 1 "Shame: Despair", S. 36 (38), 2006

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Features of the dark night of the soul

Paradoxically, the dark night of the soul is often a sign of significant spiritual progress for it is not really the soul (higher Self) but the Ego that is in the 'Dark'. Some comfort can be obtained by recalling the spiritual dictum that
- one can only go as high as they have been low,
- or that Jesus Christ sweat blood in Gethsemane,
- or Buddha reported that he felt as though his bones were being broken
- and he was being attacked by demons.

⚡ Dr. David R. Hawkins (1927-2012) US American psychiatrist, physician, spiritual teacher, cult leader, author, Transcending Levels
of Consciousness, chapter 1 "Shame: Despair", S. 36 (38), 2006

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Book recommendation:

Alban Butler (1710-1773) English Roman Catholic priest, hagiographer, The Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs and Other Principal Saints, four volumes (resulted from thirty years of study), London, 1756-1759, Kessinger Publishing, 26. May 2006

Another form of the dark night of the soul arises as a consequence of experientially falling from a high state (such as devotional joy or ecstasy) as has been well described in the lives of the Christian saints (as though one has been abandoned by the Beloved). This may arise because one has used up their good karma, subsequent to which the remainder of karmic attachments and proclivities surface to be processed out and surrendered to God. Some of these are deep, such as self-hatred, resentments of God, and cherished beliefs that are often attached to beliefs about suffering itself. (e.g. that it will leverage God's favor).
⚡ Dr. David R. Hawkins (1927-2012) US American psychiatrist, physician, spiritual teacher, cult leader, author, Transcending Levels
of Consciousness, chapter 1 "Shame: Despair", S. 37 (39), 2006

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Spiritual dryness

There may be long, dry periods where seemingly nothing is progressing. That is a deception; a 'long, dry period' is what is happening as though it were a test of resolve. These periods can be traversed by transcending the spiritual ego's wish to seek gain via 'progress'. Frustration itself is therefore a sign of trying to control that which is not really controllable.
⚡ Dr. David R. Hawkins (1927-2012) US American psychiatrist, physician, spiritual teacher, cult leader, author, Reality, Spirituality and Modern Man, chapter 19 "Practicum", S. 351-352, 2008

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Periods of utmost of negative experiencing

Those who became enlightened often went through agonizing periods of facing the utmost of negative experiencing that was buried in their unconscious, of owning their own shadow, of looking at what they had held as most hateful and owning it, and then letting go of it (the 'dark night of the soul'). The letting go of what was the farthest removed from the truth in those positions at the bottom of the scale, the letting go of those positions that came out of self-honesty, led to the realization of the Truth. ⚡ Dr. David R. Hawkins (1927-2012) US American psychiatrist, physician, spiritual teacher, cult leader, author, Healing and Recovery, S. 164-165, 2009

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The crisis means success and spiritual healing.

By remembering our inner innocence when we begin spiritual work, we ask to have that which is not the truth brought to our awareness. The process is therefore the evidence of success. As a result, there may be a somewhat chaotic appearance to the lives of people who are labeled spiritual seekers. The inner person is pleased because it says, "I have been asked to see what stands between me and the truth, and that has been brought up from my awareness to be recognized, reowned, recontextualized, and healed." We provide a safe space and context about our spiritual work by being centered in the Heart – not the physical heart, but from the ultimate compassion, the owning of ourself from this level, the joy of the spiritual work, and the saying "thank you" to all the things that come up out of gratitude. The crisis is the very event of the spiritual healing. It is out of the crises that the healing occurs. ⚡ Dr. David R. Hawkins (1927-2012) US American psychiatrist, physician, spiritual teacher, cult leader, author, Healing and Recovery, S. 170-171, 2009

Question: Do you have any advice regarding the dark night of the soul?
Answer: You can expect that. You rise above your karma. You are entitled to bring up the next stack. It comes up and you think you are getting worse, but you now have the power to deal with that stack. Keep going through them and eventually it will clear up. It can seem like a lot at times! ⚡ Dr. David R. Hawkins (1927-2012) US American psychiatrist, physician, spiritual teacher, cult leader, author, Sedona Seminar Perception vs. Essence, 3 DVD set, 22. April 2006

(↓)

Women mystics

Facing their dark past

When you transcend your karma, then you have the capacity to handle more. More negativity comes up for you to clear. Famous women mystics would reach a high state and then crash. They would feel they had been deserted by God. Read about them in the Encyclopedia Britannica. You can read what they went though. There are about half a dozen. It's par for the course! You feel like you are going backwards, but you are not. You have earned the right to see how awful you have been. ⚡ Dr. David R. Hawkins (1927-2012) US American psychiatrist, physician, spiritual teacher, cult leader, author, Sedona Seminar Is the Miraculous Real?, 3 DVD set, 9. December 2006

[Edit]

Englische Texte – English section on Dark Night of the Soul

[Edit]

Prolonged duration of the Dark Night of the Soul

The crisis of the "Dark Night" is usually temporary in nature. Two known saints experienced it for an extended period.

༺༻	Duration	Period	Mystic
1.	49 years	1948-1997 With brief interludes of relief inbetween; "the darkness left" shortly before her death	⚡ Mother Teresa of Calcutta (1910-1997) Albanian-born Indian Catholic nun, saint, missionary, humanitarian, founder of the Order of the Missionaries of Charity, Nobel Peace Prize laureate, 1979 According to her letters released in 2007
2.	45 years	~1729-~1774 Ultimately recovered before death	St. Paul of the Cross (1694-1775) Italian mystic, founder of the Passionists
3.	Unknown length of time		St. John of the Cross [San Juan de la Cruz] (1542-1591) Spanish Catholic saint, mystic, Carmelite friar, priest, leading figure of the Counter-Reformation

[Edit]

Five phases of mystical development – Evelyn Underhill

The Anglo-Catholic theologian, mystic and author Evelyn Underhill (1875-1941) described in her
1911 classic Mysticism. A Study in Nature and Development of Spiritual Consciousness
five distinct phases of the development of mystics.

༺༻	Mystical experience	Legend	Reference
1.	Awakening of Self	Direct immediate God experience	Henry Suso [Heinrich Seuse], disciple of Meister Eckhart
2.	Purification of the Self Transcendence of "little self"/ego	No introduction of one's life calling	Theologia Germanica (14th century, anonymous)
3.	Illumination	Burning for God	William Law
4.	Dark Night of the Soul	Deepening of bonding with God	Mechthild of Magdeburg¹
5.	Unitive life	Unification with God	Sum of the mystic way

Source: ► Evelyn Underhill (1875-1941) British Anglo-Catholic mystic, theologian, pacifist, writer on Christian mysticism, poet, novelist, Mysticism. A Study in Nature and Development of Spiritual Consciousness, 1911, New American Library, New York, 1974

See also: ► Mysticism

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Mother Teresa's grave crisis of faith

Source: ► Article by David van Biema, US American TIME journalist, religious author,
Mother Teresa's Crisis of Faith [Mutter Teresa tiefe Glaubenskrise],
presented by the US American weekly news magazine TIME, S. 3-5, 23. August 2007

(↓)

Mother Teresa reassured Mr. Van der Peet:

Jesus has a very special love for you.

[But] as for me, the silence and the emptiness is so great, that I look and do not see, – listen and do not hear – the tongue moves [in prayer] but does not speak [...].

Lord, my God, who am I that You should forsake me? The Child of your Love – and now become as the most hated one – the one – You have thrown away as unwanted – unloved. I call, I cling, I want – and there is no One to answer – no One on Whom I can cling – no, No One. – Alone [...]. Where is my Faith – even deep down right in there is nothing, but emptiness and darkness – My God – how painful is this unknown pain – I have no Faith – I dare not utter the words & thoughts that crowd in my heart – and make me suffer untold agony.

(↓)

Addressed to Jesus, at the suggestion of a confessor,

Undated

So many unanswered questions live within me afraid to uncover them – because of the blasphemy – If there be God – please forgive me – When I try to raise my thoughts to Heaven – there is such convicting emptiness that those very thoughts return like sharp knives and hurt my very soul. – I am told God loves me – and yet the reality of darkness and coldness and emptiness is so great that nothing touches my soul. Did I make a mistake in surrendering blindly to the Call of the Sacred Heart?

(↓)

Mother Teresa prayed to the deceased Pope for:

Pope Pius XII died October 1958.

[P]roof that God is pleased with the Society. And then and there, she rejoiced, disappeared the long darkness [...] that strange suffering of ten years. It lasted for five weeks.

(↓)

Two types of dark night of the ego

Catholic theologians recognize two types of "dark night":
1. the first is purgative, cleansing the contemplative for a "final union" with Christ;
2. the second is "reparative," and continues after such a union, so that he or she may participate in a state of purity even closer to that of Jesus and Mary, who suffered for human salvation despite being without sin.
  By the end, writes Kolodiejchuk, "by all indications this was the case with Mother Teresa." That puts her in rarefied company.

Article Mother Teresa's Crisis of Faith, presented by the US American weekly news magazine TIME, David van Biema, US Ame-
rican TIME journalist, religious author, S. 5, 23. August 2007

(↓)

Mother Teresa's inner crisis of faith

Mother Teresa conceived of her doubts as being a trial and being a dark night of the soul. I mean she said that she suffered this terrible pain of loss of God not being God, of God not really existing, and she said there were so many doubts within her that she was afraid to face them because of the blasphemy and she said she even prayed 'If there be a God, forgive me', and she said that all these things whirling round inside her, she felt that they might unbalance her, and she's written all this in her letters that were published after her death. She even said that her cheerfulness was just a cloak to hide her inner misery and emptiness. And she felt heaven was a nothingness, and so the dividing line is fairly fine between the believer and the non-believer I think.
Radio interview with Colette Livermore, M.D., deleted MP3, transcript, presented by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation ABC Radio National, program "The Spirit of Things", host Dr. Rachael Kohn, aired 23. November 2008

Video sources:
► Video presentation Mother Teresa: The Legacy, official film of the occasion of Mother Teresa's Beatification in Rome, 2003, produced
by the Canadian filmmakers Anne Petrie and Jeannette Petrie, YouTube film, 4:56 trailer, 54:21 minutes duration, posted 21. March 2009
► Deleted video TV presentation Mother Teresa – Questioning, presented by the US American broadcasting corporation ABC News,
YouTube film, 2:45 minutes duration, posted 10. September 2007

See also: ► Mother Teresa

[Edit]

Links zum Thema Bewusstseinssprünge und Dunkle Nacht der Seele / Leaps in consciousness, Crucible, Dark Night of the Soul

[Edit]

Literatur

Johannes vom Kreuz [San Juan de la Cruz] (1542-1591) spanischer katholischer Heiliger, Mystiker, Karmelit (OCD), Kirchenlehrer, Dichter, Übersetzer: Dr. theol. Ulrich Dobhan, Elisabeth Peeters, Dr. theol. Reinhard Körner aus dem Orden der Unbeschuhten Karmeliten (OCD), Elisabeth Hense, Die Dunkle Nacht, 1576/78, Vollständiger online Text, Herder Verlag, Breisgau, 11. Auflage 21. Juni 1995
Dr. Christina Grof (1941-2014) US-amerikanische Psychotherapeutin, Gründerin des Spiritual Emergence Network (SEN), Mitbegründerin von Holotropic Breathwork, Künstlerin, Lehrerin, Autorin, Prof. Dr. Stanislav Grof (*1931) tschechisch-US-amerikanischer Psychiater, Psychotherapeut, Medizinphilosoph, Mitbegründer der transpersonalen Psychologie, Lehrer, Autor, Die stürmische Suche nach dem Selbst, Kösel, München, 1. Januar 1991

Ein Führer für das persönliche Wachstum in einer transformativen Krise

Prof. Dr. Stanislav Grof (*1931) tschechisch-US-amerikanischer Psychiater, Psychotherapeut, Medizinphilosoph, Mitbegründer der transpersonalen Psychologie, Lehrer, Autor, Dr. Christina Grof (1941-2014) US-amerikanische Psychotherapeutin, Gründerin des Spiritual Emergence Network (SEN), Mitbegründerin von Holotropic Breathwork, Künstlerin, Lehrerin, Autorin, Spirituelle Krisen. Chancen der Selbstfindung, Kösel, 5. Auflage 2000
Dr. Jens Baum, deutscher Frauenarzt, ärztlicher Therapeut, Autor, Wie's weitergeht, wenn nichts mehr geht. Strategien in schwierigen Zeiten, Kösel-Verlag, München, 15. Taschenbuchauflage 14. Februar 2002
Prof. Dr. Stanislav Grof (*1931) tschechisch-US-amerikanischer Psychiater, Psychotherapeut, Medizinphilosoph, Mitbegründer der transpersonalen Psychologie, Lehrer, Autor, Impossible. Wenn Unglaubliches passiert. Das Abenteuer außergewöhnlicher Bewusstseinserfahrungen, Kösel Verlag, Februar 2008
Dr. Dr. Katharina Ceming (*1970) deutsche Theologin, Philosophin, Christa Spannbauer (*1953) deutsche Filmemacherin, Rednerin, Autorin, Der spirituelle Notfallkoffer. Erste Hilfe für die Seele, Trinity Verlag, 2. Taschenbuchauflage 1. April 2015

[Edit]

Literature (engl.)

Saint John of the Cross [San Juan de la Cruz] (1542-1591) Spanish Catholic saint, mystic, Carmelite friar, priest, leading figure
of the Counter-Reformation, poem Dark Night of the Soul, 16th century, The Dark Night of the Soul, presented by the Christian Classics Ethereal Library, free online placement 13. July 2005
Alban Butler (1710-1773) English Roman Catholic priest, hagiographer, The Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs and Other Principal Saints, four volumes (resulted from thirty years of study), London, 1756-1759, Kessinger Publishing, 26. May 2006
Gerald May, M.D. (1940-2005) US American theologian, psychiatrist, author on psychology and spirituality, The Dark Night of the Soul. A Psychiatrist Explores the Connection Between Darkness and Spiritual Growth, Harper, San Francisco, 2004
Thomas Moore, Ph.D. careofthesoul.net (*1940) US American professor of religious studies, Catholic monk, psychotherapist, musician, writer, Dark Nights of the Soul, Gotham, 16. June 2005
Catherine G. Lucas, British spiritual emergency therapist, author, In Case of Spiritual Emergency. Moving Successfully Through Your Awakening, Findhorn Press, 1. August 2011

[Edit]

Externe Weblinks

Wikipedia-Einträge Phönix aus der Asche
Persönlichkeiten Dr. Carol Gilligan (*1936) US-amerikanische Professorin für Genderstudien, Psychologin, feministische Ethikerin (Gemeinschaft, Beziehung), Autorin, 4 Durchbruchsstadien (weibliche Entwicklungspsychologie), Johannes vom Kreuz

Betrachtung von Johann Wilhelm Wolf, Der Vogel Phönix, Datum unbekannt

Angelehnt an das Grimmsche Märchen Der goldene Vogel KHM 57 (1857), Deutsche Volksmärchen, 1857

Blogartikel von Tanja Braid, Dunkle Nacht der Seele – Fünf Zeichen, präsentiert von dem Blogspot Neoterisches Bewusstsein,
8. Oktober 2017

1. Körperliche Reaktion ✣ 2. Persönlichkeit ✣ 3. Spiegel ✣ 4. Emotionalität und Zeitbeschleunigung ✣ 5. Reinigung der Seele

Blogartikel von Ludmilla Rudat, Die Dunkle Nacht der Seele und der Weg in die Hingabe, präsentiert von der Publikation spirituelle-krisen.net, 2011

[Edit]

External web links (engl.)

Wikipedia entry Dark Night of the Soul, Phoenix
Personalities Dr. Carol Gilligan

Peter Holleran, The Deeper Meaning of the Dark Night of the Soul: Spiritual Crises and Breakthroughs in Christian and Buddhist Traditions, presented by mountainrunnerdoc.com, date unknown
Interview with Andrew Harvey (*1952) Indian-British religious scholar, Rumi translator and explicator, teacher of mystic traditions, architect of Sacred Activism, poet, novelist, author, Dark Night of the Soul, presented by Grace Cathedral, California, Colleen O'Connor, 19. December 2002

[Edit]

Audio and video links (engl.)

Video interview with Catherine G. Lucas, British spiritual emergency therapist, author, Spiritual Emergency, presented by the US American broadcasting service Waking Universe, host Lance Mungia, 59:03 minutes duration, posted 13. December 2012
Audio interview with James Finley, US American clinical psychologist, Merton scholar, James Finley: The Axial Moment of Healing, presented by the US American multimedia publishing company Sounds True, Insights at the Edge, host Tami Simon (*1953) US American founder and director of Sounds True, 53:24 minutes duration, aired 17. November 2015

[Edit]

Interne Links

Hawkins

¹ [S]ince Thou hast taken from me all that I had of Thee, yet of Thy grace leave me the gift which every dog has by nature: that of being true to Thee in my distress, when I am deprived of all consolation. This I desire more fervently than Thy heavenly Kingdom. Mechthild of Magdeburg (1207-1282) German medieval mystic, member of the Béguines, visionary, writer ⇑

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Literature (engl.)

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External web links (engl.)

Audio and video links (engl.)

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Übersicht

Linksammlung

Portale

Phönix aus der AscheDurchbruch – Die dunkle Nacht der Seele

X

Läuterung – Fegefeuer – Dunkle Nacht der Seele

Zitate zum Thema Bewusstseinssprünge / Leaps in consciousness

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General quotes

Benefit of dark hours

Quotes by David R. Hawkins

Englische Texte – English section on Dark Night of the Soul

Prolonged duration of the Dark Night of the Soul

Five phases of mystical development – Evelyn Underhill

Mother Teresa's grave crisis of faith

Links zum Thema Bewusstseinssprünge und Dunkle Nacht der Seele / Leaps in consciousness, Crucible, Dark Night of the Soul

Literatur

Literature (engl.)

Externe Weblinks

External web links (engl.)

Audio and video links (engl.)

Interne Links

Phönix aus der Asche
Durchbruch – Die dunkle Nacht der Seele