for actual union with Almighty God; and with this desire they labour to pray with the greatest continuance and frequency that they can: for prayer is as necessary for the perfect spiritual life of the soul as respiration is for the life of the body, according to that of David which says, "I opened my mouth and panted, because I longed for Thy commandments." [1] And in testimony of this, as often as they open their mouth to breathe, so often would they pray. And now, seeing this is not possible through our imbecility, they take at certain times some space for this exercise, frequenting in this way the ejaculatory prayers, of which we will presently speak, casting them up to heaven like darts or arrows which are shot from the heart as from a bow with vehement affection and love.
Chap. X. On contemplation, and on the manner how some may use mental prayer without variety of discourse.
By what hitherto has been said the ordinary forms that are to be used in mental prayer are explained, which are accommodated to all sorts of persons that desire to treat with Almighty God, though all proceed not after one manner. For some in their prayer have more discourse and less affection; others, on the other hand, content themselves with little discourse, and busy themselves most in affections. Others, again, have need of no more but a single sight of the truth, and with that they are moved to all the acts of devotion that have been rehearsed; and these enjoy that which we call contemplation; which (as St Thomas says) is a single view of the eternal truth, without variety of reasoning, penetrating it with the light of heaven, with great affections of admiration and love, [2] to which ordinarily no man arrives but by much exercise
