My Journey through the Interior Castle - Essay Example

She wraps her hand around my wrist and her touch feels soothing to my skin. As we slowly move towards the castle she says, “I’ll leave you once we reach the gate. Then on, you’ll be alone on the journey. That’s how it is supposed to be.”

I nod without saying anything. Somewhere in my mind, I possess a sense of having spoken with her earlier, she had explained a lot of things to me about the purpose of life, and the purity of the human soul. That has helped me understand life in a better manner, and removed my ignorance. Kneeling, I begin to pray and I see her disappear like a wisp of smoke, dissolving into air. An inner vision gives me a sense that I am praying before a large “castle formed of a single diamond or a very transparent crystal and containing many rooms, just as in heaven there are many mansions.” (P.38-39)

An understanding dawns on me that my soul is purely dignified, it is where my god would choose to dwell; it is the place where I can find him. To be one with my god I have to eschew the elements of bad in me and focus on the good in the world, which only the soul could make me recognize. My body only compares to the coarse exterior of a beauty that lies within me. I beseech my lord to give me entry into the interior of this magnificent castle. I can see a few people hanging out in the courtyards, some thronging around tables filled with food while others encircle what looked like a roulette fable, but the food, despite its inviting aroma, and the jingle of the gold coins that clatter on the roulette table,   fail to evoke any sense of interest in me. Sentinels who stand guard also seem to ignore them. I keep praying and the vision of a gate emerges.

Crowding on either side are silhouettes of men and women who appear through misty shroud-like pale apparitions. But all of them seem to be unsure whether to enter the gate or not. They look at me as if sizing me up; questioning the propriety of my being there. I hesitate for a moment, a feeling of confusion foreboding me. Wailing sounds ring inside my ear and my mind conjures up the images of grotesque figures lamenting about their miseries.

“The soulless spirits of sinners…” I whisper. My steps begin to waver as I approached the threshold and I hold my palms together, the fingers of each hand pressing hard against the back of the other. The image of my Lord appears from the darkness behind. An intense glow of light falls on my closed lids and I feel a cool breeze wash over me. I raise my leg and step into the castle.

Then, suddenly, a sense of guilt engulfs me; for in this journey it is the Lord who is my companion, the guide who will lead me through these corridors to my innermost sense of fulfillment. I concentrate on praying and then feel the sensation of a warm touch on my arm; a hand nudging me forward. On the walls on either side, I see lizards and spiders; and scorpions slither on the smooth, glassy surface, crawling or the coiling bodies of serpents mating on the floor.