What are locutions and how should one respond to them?
Locutions are one of the most misunderstood experiences in the spiritual life. They sit in that delicate space between prayer and revelation, between interior movement and divine initiative. They can be luminous, unsettling, clarifying, or confusing. And because they arise in the quiet interior of the soul, they demand both reverence and discernment. This post gathers the wisdom of St. Teresa of Ávila , St. John of the Cross , Fr. Thomas Dubay , and other classical spiritual writers to answer two questions: What exactly are locutions? How should a sane, grounded person respond to them? 🌿 What Locutions Are A locution is an interior communication that comes in the form of a “word,” “message,” or “instruction.” It is not a vision. It is not a feeling. It is not imagination. It is an interior word that arrives with a clarity and authority that feels “other.” Teresa distinguishes three kinds: Imaginary locutions — as if heard with the ears, though no sound exists. Imaginary‑intel...