Dark Night of the Senses vs Dark Night of the Soul
The Dark Night of the Senses is the purification of how we experience God. The Dark Night of the Soul is the purification of how we relate to God at the deepest level of our being. They are related, but not interchangeable. One is the doorway; the other is the interior passage. 🌑 The Dark Night of the Senses This is the first night in St. John of the Cross’s map of spiritual transformation. It happens when: Prayer becomes dry, flat, or strangely unsatisfying Old spiritual consolations no longer “work” The senses — imagination, emotions, spiritual sweetness — stop cooperating You can’t go back to your old way of praying, but you can’t go forward either This night is not punishment. It is weaning . God withdraws the “milk” of spiritual feelings so the soul can grow beyond needing emotional feedback to stay faithful. The person is being moved from sense-based spirituality to faith-based spirituality . It is uncomfortable, but it is not annihilating. It is pruning, not uprooti...