Novena St Teresa of Avila Day 5
Ahava and Blessings
Today we celebrate day 5 of our Novena to St Teresa of Ávila.
In many Spiritual Paths and religions there has been a tendency to see Ascension, Evolution as some type of Ladder where we go up the stairs and go into different dimensions or become more pure, or know more, or pray more. We tend to see this as something outer, not of this world. St Teresa of Avila believed that the spiritual path was circular, spherical, and at times messy. She invites us to stop for a moment, turn around, and see how we have grown. This growth is not a straight line, it has curves, bumps, we tend to repeat patterns and we see ourselves going back to the beginning of the circle -cycle. And if we look in front of us, there is no straight line either. We grow with the seasons, with the phases of the moon, with different experiences. Ultimately, the path of Spirituality is the journey into the Soul, which she called, THE INTERIOR CASTLE. This is the Heart, this is the Truth, and it is not even just one room, she described it as having many different chambers that we need to go through.
Union with the beloved happens in this Interior Castle. I see it as the Bridal Chamber described in the Gospel of Philip. When we reach the soul and fall in love with our true soul self, we are kissed by the Beloved. When we reach the Soul, we are emptied and again filled by the Beloved. Here, in this place, we melt into oneness.
Day 5 of Novena
Say out loud:
St. Teresa, I ask that you open the doors to the interior castle of my heart so I too may begin the journey into the power of prayer. I ask that you grant me this gift. Make me a channel of Creativity and Inspiration.
Read the following written by St. Teresa of Ávila. Please note that GOD as she calls the Divine has no Gender, I am just being faithful to the translation.
Self-knowledge is so important that I do not care how high you are raised up to the heavens, I never want you to cease cultivating it. . . . Enter the room of self-knowledge first, instead of floating off to the other places. This is the path. Traveling along a safe and level road, who needs wings to fly? Let’s make the best possible use of our feet first and learn to know ourselves. — Teresa of Avila, from The Interior Castle
St Teresa of Avila speaks of Self Knowledge, knowing ourselves, truly going deep within to know the soul, and as well to know how our ego personality has taken on karmic roles and different behavior patterns. We can put our wings on and go into the higher chakras, yet as she states, let us make the best possible use of our feet. This is healing, when we know our beauty, when we know our shadow, when we know our goodness, when we know what triggers us, when we know our sadness, when we know what makes us happy, when we can say I am sorry and when we can forgive. To know thyself is ultimately to know the soul and to get to the Interior Castle, we must understand and accept the different parts of ourselves.
It’s very important for us, friends, not to think of the soul as dark. Since we cannot see the soul, it appears to be obscure. We are conditioned to perceive only external light. We forget that there is such a thing as inner light, illuminating our soul, and we mistake that radiance for darkness. — Teresa of Avila, from The Interior Castle
This internal Light is what Yeshua called the NOOHRA, it is the Light that cannot be seen, it is the Light of the Feminine, it is the Light in the core of the Black Holes and the Cosmic Womb. St Teresa of Avila´s words remind us that we have been raised to believe that what cannot be seen is dark and dangerous, thus this is why the feminine has been pushed away. As we open up to the Divine Feminine Presence we see the light in the darkness of our infinity. We know that BLACK IS BEAUTIFUL. This is the essence of the Black Madonna. On this fifth day of the Novena, let us reflect on the following:
1. Are we living a grounded spirituality? Is the external a reflection of the inner work that we are doing? The more grounded that we are the easier it is to put on our wings and fly!
2. What are the parts of us that we still have not accepted? Are all of my different parts and experiences coming together so there is acceptance and growth?
3. How can I bring more of the Divine Feminine Presence as Dark Light, as Noohra, as the Black Madonna, into my life?
We try so hard to change ourselves when all we need to do is to Love the Abwoon which is actually the same as loving our Soul. If we make this intention to AWAKEN INTO LOVE, the Divine – Mother Father will do the rest.
When you are finished reflecting, chant and do the Movement Prayer in the video included below.
AHAVA
RACHAMIN
CHESED
SHALOM
INANA NOOHRA DI ALMA
Ahava,
Ana Otero
