序言

本書名為《靈心城堡》，作者是迦密聖母會修女耶穌德蘭，寫給她的姐妹與女兒們——赤足加爾默羅會的修女。

服從交付給我的差事中，少有像寫祈禱這篇文章如此艱鉅。一來，我覺得天主既未賜我能力，也未賜我意願；再者，過去三個月，我頭裡老有嘈雜的聲響，又十分虛弱，連必要的書信都寫得辛苦。³⁰

不過我深知，服從的力量足以使看似辦不到的事化為輕省。我心甘情願順服，雖然身體十分為難——天主並未賜我足夠的力量，能毫無怨懟地一面與病魔搏鬥，一面分頭料理諸多職務。願祂在過往更艱難的處境中扶持我，這次也以恩典助我；我深信祂的慈悲。要說的話，恐怕在以往奉命所寫的書中都已說過，我擔心這次只是重複。我像隻學人說話的鸚鵡，只記得別人教過或聽過的，便一句句反覆吟誦。若天主願意讓我寫出新意，祂自會教導我，或喚起我曾在別處說過的話。即便只能想起這些，我也心滿意足；我健忘得很，若能想起別人稱許過的幾句話，免得它們散失，便已感謝。倘若連這也不蒙允許，只要我盡力服從，將腦力耗盡、頭疼加劇，至少能博得一份功德，即使我的字句對誰都派不上用場。如此，我在 1577 年聖三節這日，於我所在的托萊多卡梅爾會聖若瑟修院動筆寫下此書。一切文字皆呈交命我下筆的博學者裁定。倘有違聖羅馬公教教義之處，必是出於無知，絕非惡意，這點可以肯定。蒙天主慈愛，我向來忠於教會，今後也將如此。願祂永受讚美與榮耀。阿們。

命我下筆的這位長上告訴我，迦密聖母會這幾座修院的修女，需要有人為她們解開祈禱上的疑難。他認為女人之間最能彼此意會，姊妹們對我的情感也會讓她們格外留意我的話，所以我得把這道題目向她們講清楚。我這書只寫給我的姊妹們看，要說別人能從中得益，那便荒唐了。倘若主肯讓我幫得上其中一位修女、稍能更好地讚美祂，便是對我極大的恩惠；天主深知我別無所圖。書中若有切中之處，姊妹們自會明白那不是出自我，也不該歸功於我；憑我這點淺薄學識，本寫不出這樣的話，除非主恩慈相助。

THIS TREATISE, STYLED THE INTERIOR CASTLE, WAS WRITTEN BY TERESA OF JESUS, NUN OF OUR LADY OF CARMEL, FOR HER SISTERS AND DAUGHTERS, THE DISCALCED CARMELITE NUNS.

RARELY has obedience laid upon me so difficult a task as this of writing about prayer; for one reason, because I do not feel that God has given me either the power or the desire for it, besides which, during the last three months I have suffered from noises and a great weakness in my head that have made it painful for me to write even on necessary business.³⁰

However, as I know the power obedience has of making things easy which seem impossible, my will submits with a good grace, although nature seems greatly distressed, for God has not given me such strength as to bear, without repugnance, the constant struggle against illness while performing many different duties. May He, Who has helped me in other more difficult matters, aid me with His grace in this, for I trust in His mercy. I think I have but little to say that has not already been put forth in my other works written under obedience; in fact, I fear this will be but repetition of them. I am like a parrot which has learnt to talk; only knowing what it has been taught or has heard, it repeats the same thing over and over again. If God wishes me to write anything new, He will teach it me, or bring back to my memory what I have said elsewhere. I should be content even with this, for as I am very forgetful, I should be glad to be able to recall some of the matters about which people say I have spoken well, lest they should be altogether lost. If our Lord will not even grant me this, still, if I weary my brains and increase my headache by striving to obey, I shall gain in merit, though my words should be useless to any one. So I begin this work on the Feast of the Blessed Trinity in the year 1577, in the Convent of St. Joseph of Carmel at Toledo, where I am living, and I submit all my writings to the judgment of those learned men by whose commands I undertake them. That it will be the fault of ignorance, not malice, if I say anything contrary to the doctrine of the Holy Roman Catholic Church, may be held as certain. By God’s goodness I am, and always shall be, faithful to the Church, as I have been in the past. May He be for ever blessed and glorified. Amen.

He who bids me write this, tells me that the nuns of these convents of our Lady of Carmel need some one to solve their difficulties about prayer: he thinks that women understand one another’s language best and that my sisters’ affection for me would make them pay special attention to my words, therefore it is important for me to explain the subject clearly to them. Thus I am writing only to my sisters; the idea that any one else could benefit by what I say would be absurd. Our Lord will be doing me a great favour if He enables me to help but one of the nuns to praise Him a little better; His Majesty knows well that I have no other aim. If anything is to the point, they will understand that it does not originate from me and there is no reason to attribute it to me, as with my scant understanding and skill I could write nothing of the sort, unless God, in His mercy, enabled me to do so.