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Dark Nights of the Soul: A Guide to Finding Your Way Through Life's Ordeals
A continuation of his best-selling Care of the Soul explains how to use times of challenge, disappointment, illness, and dissatisfaction as an opportunity to explore the soul's deepest needs in order to provide healing and a new understanding of the meaning of life. 100,000 first printing.
329 pages, Hardcover
First published May 3, 2004
500 people are currently reading
3148 people want to read
About the author
Thomas Moore
137 books600 followersThomas Moore is the author of the bestselling book, Care of the Soul, Ageless Soul, and fifteen other books on deepening spirituality and cultivating soul in every aspect of life. He has been a monk, a musician, a university professor, and a psychotherapist, and today he lectures widely on holistic medicine, spirituality, psychotherapy, and the arts. He lectures frequently in Ireland and has a special love of Irish culture. He has Ph.D. in religion from Syracuse University and has won several awards for his work, including an honorary doctorate from Lesley University and the Humanitarian Award from Einstein Medical School of Yeshiva University. He also has a B.A. in music from DePaul University, an M.A. in musicology from the University of Michigan, and an M.A. in theology from the University of Windsor. He also writes fiction and music and often works with his wife, artist and yoga instructor, Hari Kirin. He writes regular columns for Resurgence and Spirituality & Health.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 179 reviews
January 25, 2008
This book got me through one of the toughest periods of my life. I checked it out from the library and after I finished the first chapter, I went to the bookstore for my own copy so I could mark it up as much as I wanted. It is now thoroughly underlined and bookmarked, with notes in the margins, and I've read it twice. It's earned a long-term spot on my nightstand.
Moore doesn't give pat, easy spiritual answers. So much of the modern, spiritually-oriented self-help literature is kind of shallow, in my opinion. This book is not. There's no magic prescription or formula for making your life better - in fact, he suggests that may not be the point. The point is to search meaningfully, to look at the challenges life throws at you full in the face, and try to learn from them. For those of us who can't buy into the easy answers, it manages to provide an uplifting, nuanced perspective on the "meaning of it all."
Moore doesn't give pat, easy spiritual answers. So much of the modern, spiritually-oriented self-help literature is kind of shallow, in my opinion. This book is not. There's no magic prescription or formula for making your life better - in fact, he suggests that may not be the point. The point is to search meaningfully, to look at the challenges life throws at you full in the face, and try to learn from them. For those of us who can't buy into the easy answers, it manages to provide an uplifting, nuanced perspective on the "meaning of it all."
August 5, 2014
A very helpful book to read during really hard times in your life. My husband died in January 2014, we were happily married for 34 yrs. and together for 5 yrs. before that. It was very sudden and I didn't know he was sick, though he was facing changes in his life that he didn't bring on himself and he dreaded.
I have found that grief doesn't travel in a straight line, and those who think they know what you are going through don't have a clue. I'm 59, and have friends who still have parents living, so they never even lost a loved one yet. They think after 6 months I should be dating.
I'm doing what I can, but there are days I feel paralyzed. I don't want to go out, it's just a step up from miserable. And if one more so called girlfriend wants to "take me out to lunch", a meal I don't even eat, so she can feel like she did something to help me, I'll scream. Nobody invites my son and I to holidays, or dinner. I am beginning to suspect either they think I want their husbands, or that they don't want to see me because it's a reminder they will be getting visits from Death too.
But Thomas Moore gets it. He realizes nothing, not one facet, or your former life is the same. He says not to separate your sense of self from how you feel, and to let the darkness in, trying to change it to creative energy and transformation. Now I'd go back to writing if all my work wasn't being plagiarized!
I have found that grief doesn't travel in a straight line, and those who think they know what you are going through don't have a clue. I'm 59, and have friends who still have parents living, so they never even lost a loved one yet. They think after 6 months I should be dating.
I'm doing what I can, but there are days I feel paralyzed. I don't want to go out, it's just a step up from miserable. And if one more so called girlfriend wants to "take me out to lunch", a meal I don't even eat, so she can feel like she did something to help me, I'll scream. Nobody invites my son and I to holidays, or dinner. I am beginning to suspect either they think I want their husbands, or that they don't want to see me because it's a reminder they will be getting visits from Death too.
But Thomas Moore gets it. He realizes nothing, not one facet, or your former life is the same. He says not to separate your sense of self from how you feel, and to let the darkness in, trying to change it to creative energy and transformation. Now I'd go back to writing if all my work wasn't being plagiarized!
March 31, 2014
"If your only idea is that you're depressed, you will be at the mercy of the depression industry, which will treat you as one among millions, for whom there is only one canonical and approved story. Maybe you're overwhelmed but not depressed. Maybe life has sent you a great challenge, and you need a vast spiritual vision to deal with it." - from the final pages of this book.
After a decade of "rough" years involving deaths of several loved ones, personal illness and other unavoidable darknesses, I found myself not able to bounce back like I have in the past. I found myself in a dark place where the inspirations that used to cyclically and reliably take me up on their wings were no longer available. Many past hopes and dreams no longer fed me - they seemed like delusions or failures and my ability to forge new hopes and dreams didn't seem accessible anymore.
I love Thomas Moore's writing and was delighted to see he had written a book on the Dark night of the Soul.
I took my time with this book - reading one chapter a week. Many topics are covered...creative freeze, broken hearts, divorce, anger, grief, disappointment, madness, illness, aging. In his usual fashion Moore steps outside of the current milieu's "fix it" mode and explores living with the realities of the dark side of our experiences. And as always he does this with great compassion, creativity and useful insight.
I highly recommend this book for anyone who's going through hard times but doesn't want to just accept the "depression" prognosis.
After a decade of "rough" years involving deaths of several loved ones, personal illness and other unavoidable darknesses, I found myself not able to bounce back like I have in the past. I found myself in a dark place where the inspirations that used to cyclically and reliably take me up on their wings were no longer available. Many past hopes and dreams no longer fed me - they seemed like delusions or failures and my ability to forge new hopes and dreams didn't seem accessible anymore.
I love Thomas Moore's writing and was delighted to see he had written a book on the Dark night of the Soul.
I took my time with this book - reading one chapter a week. Many topics are covered...creative freeze, broken hearts, divorce, anger, grief, disappointment, madness, illness, aging. In his usual fashion Moore steps outside of the current milieu's "fix it" mode and explores living with the realities of the dark side of our experiences. And as always he does this with great compassion, creativity and useful insight.
I highly recommend this book for anyone who's going through hard times but doesn't want to just accept the "depression" prognosis.
October 20, 2015
Abandoning this. Very unfocused. It starts off talking about spirituality and psychology, but soon whole chapters are devoted to more Alternative/New Age topics (i.e. using Tarot cards and talking about the Greek goddess Hekate for entire chapters). Some interesting ideas, but just not my type of book.
August 19, 2012
I recently spent a day in a bookstore where I read this and another book in a single sitting. The other book was planned; this one was random. Admittedly, in certain sections it was more of an aggressive skimming than an actual read, but the overall point was gotten and the themes understood and appreciated.
I read a lot of books similar to this one about seven years ago, as well as stacks of psychology and philosophy in an effort to educate myself on the pain I was going through at the time. I did so in an attempt to give myself at least the sense of perseverance being a worthwhile goal. I've since repeatedly acknowledged and justified both the importance and the enormous benefit of that period of my life. This book presents this kind of hindsight as a potential option to enduring such a period.
While there are certainly vast swaths of the self-help genre populated by tired platitudes, empty answers, and therapeutic cliches culled from textbooks and the DSM-IV, there are others written by people with the stink of experience on them. This book is certainly the latter. I also appreciate authors who can bridge the religion/philosophy/psychology gap by discussing how they complement each other without browbeating the reader with dogma. An ability to consider and appreciate the finer aspects of multiple viewpoints is a key ingredient to the acquisition of insight and self-awareness, which are among the best things that anyone coming out of their own personal darkness can hope for. I'd definitely recommend this book for anyone currently looking for the assurance of there being light at the end of the tunnel.
I read a lot of books similar to this one about seven years ago, as well as stacks of psychology and philosophy in an effort to educate myself on the pain I was going through at the time. I did so in an attempt to give myself at least the sense of perseverance being a worthwhile goal. I've since repeatedly acknowledged and justified both the importance and the enormous benefit of that period of my life. This book presents this kind of hindsight as a potential option to enduring such a period.
While there are certainly vast swaths of the self-help genre populated by tired platitudes, empty answers, and therapeutic cliches culled from textbooks and the DSM-IV, there are others written by people with the stink of experience on them. This book is certainly the latter. I also appreciate authors who can bridge the religion/philosophy/psychology gap by discussing how they complement each other without browbeating the reader with dogma. An ability to consider and appreciate the finer aspects of multiple viewpoints is a key ingredient to the acquisition of insight and self-awareness, which are among the best things that anyone coming out of their own personal darkness can hope for. I'd definitely recommend this book for anyone currently looking for the assurance of there being light at the end of the tunnel.
September 27, 2008
I appreciate all of Tomas Moore's books but this one is a reminder of the jewels in the compost. I think it could not be read and appreciated before going through a dark night, nor would I have been able to glean advice from it as I was going through my own dark night. But at the edge of the tunnel, as I once again immerse myself back into ordinary life, it makes a lot of sense and gives me a perspective I didn't have. For one thing he says you can't avoid it and you can't work through it with therapy, but you can appreciate beauty, practice your own creativity, and find meaning in it. He belive that a dark night deepens us. He speaks about the ways relationships can catapult us into the darkness. "The best way to deal with a dark night of the soul is to be made luminous by it. Not enlightened, but translucent... You are the candle being burnt for its luminosity." I like that! I met Thomas Moore at a book signing once and he was awesome. He gave his undivided attention in the split second that he signed my book, and I appreciate his revelations of his own struggles, the way I feel he connects to his readers.
May 31, 2008
Moore says, pay attention to the dark, gloomy, melancholy aspects of your life and being. Do not avoid these parts of you and your life---they can be powerful transformative teachers leading to your search for wholeness and depth as a maturing and creative person.
Moore borrows the title of this book (and not much more) from St. John of the Cross, a sixteenth century Spanish mystic and poet Carmelite monk. Although Moore only quotes from St. John of the Cross 2-3 times and only short snippets at that, he carries the dark night imagery poetically through the entire book. I think in order to appeal to a wider audience, Moore borrows much more from Greek mythology, Carl Jung and James Hillman to present the widely experienced concept of Dark Nights of the Soul and how to journey through them. Moore, as an expert on soul care and as a therapist, presents dark nights as periods of transformation---usually through unexpected struggles of all varieties (spiritual disenchantment, emotional, mental or physical illness, creative emptiness, aging, relational loss, existential angst, etc). In this way, Moore spends a great deal of time normalizing dark nights as essential aspect of a maturing life convincing the reader not to run away from them, but entering the transformation of the dark nights more fully through non-analytical means: Imagery, poetry, creative expression, eccentricity, etc.
While there are many great quotes, here are a few key concepts:
"For here lies another paradoxical secret of the soul: That which seems to have twisted your life or personality for the worst is the very thing that will heal you and give you meaning" (p. 256).
"...[T]he end result is not a final victory nor an end to suffering. It is a moral development, the result of an initiation in which the mysteries of life stamp themselves into you more deeply, not necessarily making life easier or happier, but allowing it to take place more intensely. You are more fully who you are. You engage life more energetically and in that engagement discover a level of meaning that dissolves any discontent you may have" (p. 303).
"Whatever you say about the nature of things has its opposite, and so you are always turned back into the questions you ask, always faced with mystery. The same is true of the dark nights of the soul. They are full of contradictions, and the main paradox is that as much as they seem to plague you, they are your salvation. They can heal in a way nothing else can. They can erase the false logic by which you have lived your life" (p. 306).
Moore borrows the title of this book (and not much more) from St. John of the Cross, a sixteenth century Spanish mystic and poet Carmelite monk. Although Moore only quotes from St. John of the Cross 2-3 times and only short snippets at that, he carries the dark night imagery poetically through the entire book. I think in order to appeal to a wider audience, Moore borrows much more from Greek mythology, Carl Jung and James Hillman to present the widely experienced concept of Dark Nights of the Soul and how to journey through them. Moore, as an expert on soul care and as a therapist, presents dark nights as periods of transformation---usually through unexpected struggles of all varieties (spiritual disenchantment, emotional, mental or physical illness, creative emptiness, aging, relational loss, existential angst, etc). In this way, Moore spends a great deal of time normalizing dark nights as essential aspect of a maturing life convincing the reader not to run away from them, but entering the transformation of the dark nights more fully through non-analytical means: Imagery, poetry, creative expression, eccentricity, etc.
While there are many great quotes, here are a few key concepts:
"For here lies another paradoxical secret of the soul: That which seems to have twisted your life or personality for the worst is the very thing that will heal you and give you meaning" (p. 256).
"...[T]he end result is not a final victory nor an end to suffering. It is a moral development, the result of an initiation in which the mysteries of life stamp themselves into you more deeply, not necessarily making life easier or happier, but allowing it to take place more intensely. You are more fully who you are. You engage life more energetically and in that engagement discover a level of meaning that dissolves any discontent you may have" (p. 303).
"Whatever you say about the nature of things has its opposite, and so you are always turned back into the questions you ask, always faced with mystery. The same is true of the dark nights of the soul. They are full of contradictions, and the main paradox is that as much as they seem to plague you, they are your salvation. They can heal in a way nothing else can. They can erase the false logic by which you have lived your life" (p. 306).
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 1, 2020
I was hoping this would be a stretching modern take on Dark Night of the Soul by St. John of the Cross. I was very wrong. Instead, it’s a poorly strung together stream of consciousness that lacks the depth needed to tackle such concepts. The first few chapters attempt to fuse the question of theodicy (why God allows suffering) and arm chair psychology together. Unfortunately, the author builds a poor foundation then randomly goes off about greco-roman gods and dark mysticism the rest of the book. A weird read. I made it halfway and skimmed the rest.
July 28, 2008
We each have times when life seems bleak and almost unworthy of continuing. Thomas Moore puts this into great perspective and helps one to go on. This book has saved me more than once.
March 17, 2020
I want to get excited about Thomas Moore's love for mythology and his desire to explain things using it, but I just can't. The result is that his books feel like punishment to me.
November 11, 2021
The first half of this book is completely applicable and I read much of it out loud to my hubby. The second half is a bit too out there spiritually for me.
April 18, 2009
I read half of this book and just had to put it down. The author is trying to say that depression can be a teaching tool, it shouldn't be labeled as a pathology, it can teach us things and inspire us... man, have I heard all that before. and I don't buy it. I've been depressed on and off since I was 13. yeah, I've written some interesting poems but believe me, there is nothing divine or soulful or enlightening about this. the author also draws quite a bit on spirituality and that seems like a cop-out. It's like he's saying, we don't know why people are afflicted with this so there much be a spiritual reason, god works in mysterious ways and all that. so hang in there folks, your soul is being tempered. eh, I just shook my head in frustration. I was hoping to get from this book some real life advice since the subtitle is "finding your way through life's ordeals". I'm sorry, thinking that all this bad luck and bad feeling is going to make me more interesting or more soulful just doesn't cut it. Oh well. I guess a spiritual person might find this helpful.. of course, I tend to think that the longer a person battles depression, the less spiritual they will become.
February 11, 2017
While this book had lots of good information and ideas that I incorporated; I found the author's circular style of writing to be very difficult to stay engaged with. So much writing and re-writing about the same thing over and over again. If the author had been straight forward the book could have come in at half its number of pages.
January 11, 2020
I relish in my Darkness for its my eternal light.
I couldn’t contain my excitement when I found this book until I began to read. Ugh! It could have been magical but too many stories, I lost interest.
I couldn’t contain my excitement when I found this book until I began to read. Ugh! It could have been magical but too many stories, I lost interest.
November 7, 2020
I disagree with almost everything mentioned.
This is just not my cup of tea. :(
This is just not my cup of tea. :(
February 11, 2024
Iepriekš biju lasījusi T. Mūra "Rūpēs par dvēseli"- šķita vērtīga grāmata, tāpēc ar interesi lasīju arī "Dvēseles tumšās naktis. Ceļvedis dzīves pārbaudījumiem".
Dvēseles tumšās naktis ir visa veida krīzes, negaidīti negatīvi dzīves pagriezieni, slimības, destruktīvas emocijas, dažādi sarežģījumi kas kaut kādu iemeslu dēļ atņem prieku. Parasti gribas tikt ātrāk ar šīm problēmām galā, taču, ja tas tik ātri neizdodas, rodas vēl lielāks stress un ciešanas. T. Mūrs nerada ilūziju, ka visas problēmas ir iespējams atrisināt, viņš piedāvā palūkoties uz dvēseles tumšajām naktīm nevis kā uz neveiksmi, bet iespēju iekšējai transformācijai, proti, paņemot no šīs pieredzes kaut ko vērtīgu, kas citādi nemaz nebūtu iespējams.
Šajā grāmatā T.Mūrs caur mītiem un filozofiju izskaidro dvēseles tumšo nakšu būtību.
Grāmata, ko izlasot, ir vieglāk pieņemt situācijas, kas radījušas pārdzīvojumus un ciešanas, paskatīties filozofiskāk un, iespējams, iegūt mazliet vairāk miera un izpratni par sevi un pasauli. Nomierinoša grāmata. Katrs attiecīgā dzīves brīdī var no tās paņemt kaut ko sev.
📝"Vesels rūpals padomdevēju, sludinātāju, psihologu, kouču un raibu raibo guru ir gatavi mācīt, kā būtu jādzīvo. Bet šīs aizgūtās un par naudu pirktās stratēģijas neko nelīdz brīžos, kad tumšā nakts ir tiešām pārņēmusi cilvēka dzīvi." (57.)
📝"Sirds un prāta izglītošana varētu izrādīties labākais veids,kā, pateicoties tumšās nakts pieredzei, kļūt par labāku un laimīgāku cilvēku." (295.)
Dvēseles tumšās naktis ir visa veida krīzes, negaidīti negatīvi dzīves pagriezieni, slimības, destruktīvas emocijas, dažādi sarežģījumi kas kaut kādu iemeslu dēļ atņem prieku. Parasti gribas tikt ātrāk ar šīm problēmām galā, taču, ja tas tik ātri neizdodas, rodas vēl lielāks stress un ciešanas. T. Mūrs nerada ilūziju, ka visas problēmas ir iespējams atrisināt, viņš piedāvā palūkoties uz dvēseles tumšajām naktīm nevis kā uz neveiksmi, bet iespēju iekšējai transformācijai, proti, paņemot no šīs pieredzes kaut ko vērtīgu, kas citādi nemaz nebūtu iespējams.
Šajā grāmatā T.Mūrs caur mītiem un filozofiju izskaidro dvēseles tumšo nakšu būtību.
Grāmata, ko izlasot, ir vieglāk pieņemt situācijas, kas radījušas pārdzīvojumus un ciešanas, paskatīties filozofiskāk un, iespējams, iegūt mazliet vairāk miera un izpratni par sevi un pasauli. Nomierinoša grāmata. Katrs attiecīgā dzīves brīdī var no tās paņemt kaut ko sev.
📝"Vesels rūpals padomdevēju, sludinātāju, psihologu, kouču un raibu raibo guru ir gatavi mācīt, kā būtu jādzīvo. Bet šīs aizgūtās un par naudu pirktās stratēģijas neko nelīdz brīžos, kad tumšā nakts ir tiešām pārņēmusi cilvēka dzīvi." (57.)
📝"Sirds un prāta izglītošana varētu izrādīties labākais veids,kā, pateicoties tumšās nakts pieredzei, kļūt par labāku un laimīgāku cilvēku." (295.)
August 8, 2017
This may have been worth four stars, but I had a hard time getting through it. The ideas that Thomas Moore presents feel useful and fresh, but the subject matter is a little heavy, and the way he treated the subject was very thorough, which was both good and bad, because there were many useful perspectives, but often about cases that didn't feel particularly compelling to me.
Still, this book is full of hope and insight and inspiration, and I would recommend it just in general to almost anybody to at least be aware of, and more particularly to people who feel weighted down with the circumstances of life.
Still, this book is full of hope and insight and inspiration, and I would recommend it just in general to almost anybody to at least be aware of, and more particularly to people who feel weighted down with the circumstances of life.
January 16, 2019
My friend brought me this, thinking it was St. Thomas More. Not that she knows the difference.
There's a big difference. Thomas M-o-r-e was a devout Christian. M-o-o-r-e is, well--I'm not really sure. But don't look for Jesus here. This is pop psych at its most repetitive.
Moore seems to be saying that your depression, your pain, your bad situation can be a blessing. Well, it can, but not with Moore's guidance.
I was getting more depressed by the page so I gave it up.
There's a big difference. Thomas M-o-r-e was a devout Christian. M-o-o-r-e is, well--I'm not really sure. But don't look for Jesus here. This is pop psych at its most repetitive.
Moore seems to be saying that your depression, your pain, your bad situation can be a blessing. Well, it can, but not with Moore's guidance.
I was getting more depressed by the page so I gave it up.
September 30, 2021
Hay libros que llegan en el momento indicado. En estas páginas, Moore explora ideas desde lo jungiano, lo espiritual y lo ritualístico, llevándonos siempre hacia lo más profundo del inconsciente, donde las palabras pierden sentido y la noche más oscura adquiere una belleza inconsciente distinta.
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October 13, 2025Ne tikai ceļvedis dzīves pārbaudījumos, bet arī skaisti mudina domāt par to, kā dzīvot un strādāt radoši un mīloši. Ņemšu līdzi šo citātu - manuprāt, vieds atgādinājums ikvienam, it sevišķi tiem, kas strādā ar psihi.
"Lai darbotos ar dvēseli maģiski, nevis heroiski, nepieciešams būt ārkārtīgi dziļā saskaņā ar visu notiekošo. Reiz pie manis nāca kāds pāris, kurš psihoterapijas seansa laikā skaļi un neganti strīdējās. Es nemēģināju viņus apvaldīt, kaut gan man personiski būtu patikusi rāmāka attieksme. Citi klienti man ir jautājuši: vai es drīkstu gulēt? Vai es drīkstu apgulties uz grīdas? Vai es drīkstu nodziedāt dziesmu? Vai es drīkstu spēlēt klavieres? Vai es drīkstu iekāpt skapī? Vai es drīkstu slēpties aiz mēbelēm? Esmu ļāvis darīt to visu un pat vēl vairāk. Es nemēģināju izlikties gudrs un piešķirt šīm darbībām pārāk lielu nozīmi. Es tās neslavēju un nevērtēju. Es vienkārši uzskatīju, ka magam ir jāiet vienu soli ar dabu, līdzīgi kā koks lokās stiprā vējā."
"Lai darbotos ar dvēseli maģiski, nevis heroiski, nepieciešams būt ārkārtīgi dziļā saskaņā ar visu notiekošo. Reiz pie manis nāca kāds pāris, kurš psihoterapijas seansa laikā skaļi un neganti strīdējās. Es nemēģināju viņus apvaldīt, kaut gan man personiski būtu patikusi rāmāka attieksme. Citi klienti man ir jautājuši: vai es drīkstu gulēt? Vai es drīkstu apgulties uz grīdas? Vai es drīkstu nodziedāt dziesmu? Vai es drīkstu spēlēt klavieres? Vai es drīkstu iekāpt skapī? Vai es drīkstu slēpties aiz mēbelēm? Esmu ļāvis darīt to visu un pat vēl vairāk. Es nemēģināju izlikties gudrs un piešķirt šīm darbībām pārāk lielu nozīmi. Es tās neslavēju un nevērtēju. Es vienkārši uzskatīju, ka magam ir jāiet vienu soli ar dabu, līdzīgi kā koks lokās stiprā vējā."
April 14, 2020
Sure a memorable one. This book is indeed a mess as many of you have pointed out. It sucked the energy out of me, but I was hooked on its wisdom and for the sake of my personal well-being, I needed a book that would at the same time, break and strengthen my spirit.
June 2, 2021
Way too wordy and repetitive, and a tad too mystical for my taste, which is sad because the overall premise is excellent and super important. I loved the uncommon message that suffering is positive and not something to avoid, rush through, or dread. Too bad the writing and length were tedious. I wish there was a condensed version!
August 14, 2017
A must read for anyone going through a dark time. This was an honest and transformative experience. Highly recommend.
July 23, 2016
"Just as the beauty of nature includes storms, droughts, and geological eruptions, so the beauty of a person includes emotional storminess, dry periods, and occasional explosions. To care for the soul in earnest, you have to learn to appreciate the dark elements as well as the light ones."-Thomas Moore
This is a very comforting book, inspired by the work of Spanish mystic and poet John of the Cross (1541-1597). Moore takes the mystic's Dark Nights of the Soul, which is commonly thought of as depression or major depression, and expands upon it as a transformational experience. It is so easy to fall into victim mode when things go wrong in life, or to be merely labeled as depressed, as if you have the flu and it will simply pass. This book shares amazing insights and examples of the reality of dark nights, what can bring them on, and how to grow from them, instead of the traditional approach - "just cheer up".
By the time I was done, I had affixed 24 sticky-tabs to the pages for later reference - but mostly in the sections that applied most to my current and/or recent experiences. The book actually covered several types of life events that can trigger dark nights, so at another point in life, more sticky-tabs may appear...
A few of the very quotable passages:
"A dark night is like a pie in the face-it relieves you of the stuffy ego you have been wearing."-Thomas Moore
"If nature can handle the destruction and reconstruction of a caterpillar into a butterfly, why shouldn't I surrender and trust that it can handle what is happening to me?"-Thomas Moore
"You are not the eye seeing in the dark, you are the candle being burnt for its luminosity."-Thomas Moore
"People are always on the cusp between clarity and fog. Pure unreasonableness lies like a shadow at the edge of all transactions. You may wish things were simpler, but they aren't. Your only recourse is to take into account at least a moderate degree of madness in every situation you encounter."-Thomas Moore
"You don't have to suffer your existence; you can enjoy it."-Thomas Moore
This is a very comforting book, inspired by the work of Spanish mystic and poet John of the Cross (1541-1597). Moore takes the mystic's Dark Nights of the Soul, which is commonly thought of as depression or major depression, and expands upon it as a transformational experience. It is so easy to fall into victim mode when things go wrong in life, or to be merely labeled as depressed, as if you have the flu and it will simply pass. This book shares amazing insights and examples of the reality of dark nights, what can bring them on, and how to grow from them, instead of the traditional approach - "just cheer up".
By the time I was done, I had affixed 24 sticky-tabs to the pages for later reference - but mostly in the sections that applied most to my current and/or recent experiences. The book actually covered several types of life events that can trigger dark nights, so at another point in life, more sticky-tabs may appear...
A few of the very quotable passages:
"A dark night is like a pie in the face-it relieves you of the stuffy ego you have been wearing."-Thomas Moore
"If nature can handle the destruction and reconstruction of a caterpillar into a butterfly, why shouldn't I surrender and trust that it can handle what is happening to me?"-Thomas Moore
"You are not the eye seeing in the dark, you are the candle being burnt for its luminosity."-Thomas Moore
"People are always on the cusp between clarity and fog. Pure unreasonableness lies like a shadow at the edge of all transactions. You may wish things were simpler, but they aren't. Your only recourse is to take into account at least a moderate degree of madness in every situation you encounter."-Thomas Moore
"You don't have to suffer your existence; you can enjoy it."-Thomas Moore
July 6, 2013
This is one of the top three most significant books for me thus far in my summer project. It's definitely not for everyone. But if you're interested in soul work, literature, spirituality, and gaining a deeper reflective sense of self, I recommend it.
"In each case, you can't cheat the process by knowing that it will all turn out right eventually. It may not, in fact, turn out in a way that you would wish for. Your mother may die, your friend may commit suicide, you may lose your job. The new life may depend on painful endings. You have to look through and beyond the literal facts. Failure and tragedy may be the only means by which life can continue."
After struggling very poorly with some of the darkness in my life, I have finally been coming to terms with how this may be a learning experience. His writing helped me reach that conclusion, providing insight and deeper reflection that my initial shift was lacking, and reassured me that I wasn't completely bonkers for choosing to learn through sadness.
With his gentle manner of getting you to shift your imaginary instead of simply giving a to do list, I have found myself washed over with a sense of calm. It's quelled a good deal of the angst that I have been carrying around for a few months. Along with the other purposeful steps that I have been taking (yoga, time for myself, healing), it's feeling like I am finally alright.
I was also surprised at how progressive and inclusive he is in his writing. I had expected that a white male with a background as a Catholic monk would be exclusionary, but he is so open. He talks about the dark night of the soul that a transgendered person may go through, and uses excerpts from a powerful autobiography. In this way, he conveys understanding and gives real depth to people with very diverse backgrounds.
"In each case, you can't cheat the process by knowing that it will all turn out right eventually. It may not, in fact, turn out in a way that you would wish for. Your mother may die, your friend may commit suicide, you may lose your job. The new life may depend on painful endings. You have to look through and beyond the literal facts. Failure and tragedy may be the only means by which life can continue."
After struggling very poorly with some of the darkness in my life, I have finally been coming to terms with how this may be a learning experience. His writing helped me reach that conclusion, providing insight and deeper reflection that my initial shift was lacking, and reassured me that I wasn't completely bonkers for choosing to learn through sadness.
With his gentle manner of getting you to shift your imaginary instead of simply giving a to do list, I have found myself washed over with a sense of calm. It's quelled a good deal of the angst that I have been carrying around for a few months. Along with the other purposeful steps that I have been taking (yoga, time for myself, healing), it's feeling like I am finally alright.
I was also surprised at how progressive and inclusive he is in his writing. I had expected that a white male with a background as a Catholic monk would be exclusionary, but he is so open. He talks about the dark night of the soul that a transgendered person may go through, and uses excerpts from a powerful autobiography. In this way, he conveys understanding and gives real depth to people with very diverse backgrounds.
November 11, 2015
Thomas Moore does it with this book that looks at the spiritual/psychological experience St. John of the Cross called the "dark night of the soul." While Moore begins the book comparing the dark night to the biblical story of Jonah in the whale he draws on a wide variety of spiritual traditions and the works Jung and Hillman to explore how the dark night which he claims is not depression can teach about ourselves. Unlike our culture's attempts at medical quick-fixes ("here take this pill and you will feel better), Moore suggests that we listen, observe and learn from our times of inner darkness. While not dismissing the reality of chronic depression he suggests that too often we miss a deeper experience of understanding by facing life's challenge by learning from them. He suggests that suffering and a feeling of incompleteness is part of what it means to be more fully human. He discusses the general experience of the dark night but then zeroes on common human experiences of grief, loving, longing for sex, ageing, sickness and the like. Each of these experiences in life can be an opportunity going deep and learning about ourselves in ways that make us more humble and compassionate. He suggests that we can be full of humor and hope while at the same facing our inner daimons and struggles. This is a book, like his Care for the Soul, that I will come back to time and time again
June 12, 2016
I enjoyed reading this book, as a matter of fact, as I approached the end, I felt somewhat melancholy. Like a friend was getting up to leave after a life enlightening discussion. This book confirms what I knew all along, and that is our "dark nights" have value. Although the feeling a dark night brings with it isn't a good one it leaves gifts we would not have received if it were not for those nights. One of many quotes I enjoyed is "Clearly love is not about making you happy. It is a form of initiation that may radically transform you, making you more of who you are but less of who you have been. If you don't realize that you are walking on coals and running the gauntlet and surviving the wilderness in quest of vision -all within the comforts of a simple human relationship- you could be undone by it. Love gives you a sense of meaning, but it asks a price. It will make you into the person you are called to be, but only if you endure its pains and allow it to empty you as much as it fills you." Reading this book will change you. If it doesn't, you simply aren't ready.
January 16, 2018
I'm not sure that anyone writes like Thomas Moore; his take on spirituality and soul is a wondrous mix of literature and experience, both personal and professional. What is so compelling about this book is that it offers a framework for thinking differently about life and its sometimes tortuous experiences. Instead of reason and intellect, here is how imagination and emotions can be harnessed in order to both understand and experience life fully even when there doesn't seem to be any purpose or meaning.
This is self-help, but not as it is normally offered. You will find no empty platitudes here. Moore knows that life is made up of the light and the dark and in this book he suggests that we open up to the mysteries of life. "A true dark night of the soul is not a surface challenge but a development that takes you away from the joy of your ordinary life"
This is self-help, but not as it is normally offered. You will find no empty platitudes here. Moore knows that life is made up of the light and the dark and in this book he suggests that we open up to the mysteries of life. "A true dark night of the soul is not a surface challenge but a development that takes you away from the joy of your ordinary life"
April 4, 2016
I just finished reading this interesting book. The author presents the idea that rather than avoiding our "dark nights" we should spend some time there and learn the lessons that they bring. I have often wondered why some experience more dark nights and as a therapist I want to get them out as quickly as possible. This book brings a different perspective on the dark nights, one of acceptance. Not a place where we need to hang out to be punished but a place where we can truly learn about our souls. There are several connections made to mythology and I attempted to see these as symbolic represenations of how this could work. If you've experienced dark nights, you are still haunted by them, or you really do believe in oppositions in all things, you may enjoy this book.
December 26, 2012
O.M.G....I have seen and lived the dark side!
Not a place I ever want to visit again.
In saying that.
A dark night?
Think about your worse secrets haunting you!
...now think about how to make those voices stop!
That us the importance if this book.
I can not find the words to express how grateful I have been in reading this book,
The depth in understanding and expressing how to make a dark night become your friend.
Is full of compassion.
It was like a cup of cold thirst quenching water.
Not a place I ever want to visit again.
In saying that.
A dark night?
Think about your worse secrets haunting you!
...now think about how to make those voices stop!
That us the importance if this book.
I can not find the words to express how grateful I have been in reading this book,
The depth in understanding and expressing how to make a dark night become your friend.
Is full of compassion.
It was like a cup of cold thirst quenching water.
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