The spiritual guide which disintangles the soul, and brings it by the inward way, to the getting of perfect contemplation, and the rich treasure of internal peace. / Written by Dr. Michael de Molinos, priest : with a short treatise concerning daily communion, by the same author. Translated from the Italian copy, printed at Venice, 1685.

CHAP. XV. Of the two Means, whereby the Soul ascends up to Infused Contemplation, with the Ex∣plication of what and how many the steps of it are.

140. THE means whereby the Soul ascends to the felicity of Contemplation and Affective Love, are two; the Pleasure, and the Desires of it. God uses at first to fill the Soul with sensible pleasures; because 'tis so frail and miserable, that without this preventive Conso∣lation, it cannot take wing towards the fruition of heavenly things. In this first step it is dispo∣sed by Contrition, and is exercised in Repen∣tance, meditating upon the Redeemer's Passion, rooting out diligently all worldly desires and vi∣cious courses of life: because the Kingdom of Heaven suffers violence, and the faint-heard, the delicate never conquer it, but those that use violence and force with themselves.

141. The second is the Desires. The more the things of Heaven are delighted in, the more they are desired; and from thence there do ensue upon spiritual pleasures, desires of en∣joying heavenly and divine blessings, and con∣tempt of worldly ones. From these desires ari∣ses the inclination of following Christ our Lord,

who said, I am the way, (St. John 14.6.) the steps of his imitation, by which a man must go up, are Charity, Humility, Meekness, Patience, Poverty, Self-Contempt, the Cross, Prayer and Mortification.

142. The steps of Infused Contemplation are three. The first is Satiety. When the Soul is fill'd with God, it conceives a hatred to all worldly things; then 'tis quiet and satisfied only with Divine Love.

143. The second is Intoxication. And this step is an excess of Mind, and an elevation of Soul, arising from Divine Love and satiety of it.

144. The third is Security. This step turns out all fear: the Soul is so drencht with love divine, and resigned up in such a manner to the divine good pleasure, that it would go wil∣lingly to Hell, if it did but know it so to be the will of the Most High. In this step it feels such a certain Bond of the Divine Union, that it seems to it an impossible thing, to be sespa∣rated from its beloved and his infinite trea∣sure.

145. There are six other steps of Contem∣plation, which are these, Fire, Union, Eleva∣tion, Illumination, Pleasure, and Repose. With the first the Soul is inkindled, and being inkin∣dled, is anointed; being anointed, is raised; be∣ing raised, contemplates; contemplating, it re∣ceives pleasure; and receiving pleasure, it finds repose. By these steps the Soul rises higher, be∣ing abstracted and experienced in the Spiritual and Internal Way.

146. In the first step, which is Fire, the Soul is illustrated, by the means of a divine and ar∣dent ray, in kindling the affections divine, and drying up those which are but humane. The second is the Unction, which is a sweet and spiritual Liquor, which diffusing it self all the Soul over, teaches it, strengthens it, and disposes it to receive and contemplate the divine truth: and sometimes it extends even to nature it self, corroborating it by patience, with a sen∣sible pleasure that seems celestial.

147. The third is the Elevation of the Inner Man over it self, that it may get fittest to the clear fountain of pure love.

148. The fourth step, which is Illumination, is an infused knowledge, whereby the Soul con∣templates sweetly the divine truth, rising still from one clearness to another, from one light to another, from knowledge to knowledge, being guided by the Spirit Divine.

149. The fifth is a Savoury Pleasure of the Divine Sweetness, issuing forth from the plen∣tiful and precious Fountain of the Holy Ghost.

150. The sixth is a Sweet and Admirable Tranquility, arising from the conquest of Fight∣ings within, and frequent Prayer; and this, very, very few have experience of. Here the abundance of Joy and Peace is so great, that the Soul seems to be in a sweet sleep, sola∣cing and reposing it self in the divine breast of love.

151. Many other steps of Contemplation

there are, as Extasies, Raptures, Melting, De∣liquium's, Glee, Kisses, Embraces, Exultation, Union, Transformation, Espousing, and Matri∣mony, which I omit to explain, to give no oc∣casion to speculation: And because there are whole Books which treat of these Points; though they are all for him who finds nothing of 'em, any more than a blind man doth of Colour, or a deaf man of Musick. In a word, by these steps we get up to the chamber and repose of the pacifick King and the true Solomon.