Wisdom from the Western Isles: The Making of a Mystic

by David Torkington

When he loses his son and his wife in childbirth James is totally bereft. An introduction to a hermit gradually changes his life irrevocably. Although the Hermit turns out to be a Roman Catholic, James finds he can completely identify with his profound spirituality, precisely because it is so scriptural and drawn from the same Christian Masters who had originally inspired him.

Genres: Spirituality, Theology, Devotional

396 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 28, 2008

About the author

David Torkington is a Spiritual Theologian, Author and Speaker, who specializes in Prayer, Christian Spirituality and Mystical Theology.
He has sold over 400,000 books in more than twelve different languages. He was educated at the Franciscan Study Centre, England and the National Catholic Radio and Television Centre, Hatch End, London where he was appointed to the post of Dean of Studies.
He was extra mural lecturer in Mystical Theology at the Dominican University in Rome (The Angelicum). In addition to giving Retreats and lecturing all over Europe, he undertook five prolonged lecture tours to Africa, mainly Equatorial Africa, speaking on Prayer and Spirituality to Religious, Monks, Diocesan Priests and lay people.
His latest book is The Primacy of Loving.
He is a member of The Athenaeum, Pall Mall, London

Reviews

[Lisa Nicholas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Will revolutionize your understanding of prayer

In my youth, I wished to learn to pray well and deeply -- to know Christ. I read Brother Lawrence, St Teresa of Avila, The Cloud of Unknowing, and while these inspired me I found Teresa's descriptions of the spiritual ascent confusing and off-putting, and figured the contemplative life was something only cloistered religious could really pursue. (And, frankly, I found the pretentiousness of some lay "contemplatives" off-putting as well, but for other reasons.) So, for many years I muddled along on my own, attending Mass as often as possible, praying the daily office, the rosary, meditating on Scripture, engaging in adoration and praying from the heart often during the course of the day, particularly when life seemed hard, frustrating, and exhausting. I reached a point where any kind of prayer seemed difficult to sustain and realized that I would never reach the heights of union in prayer that the great mystics write of.

But then I read a series that David Torkington was publishing on the Spiritual Direction blog and I began to realize that God had, all this time, been leading me along the mystic way all this time -- and that He intends reach and every one of us to live the contemplative life. The modern Church had lost sight of this crucial fact of the Christian life, and David Torkington has dedicated himself to reminding us and showing us the way.

Excited by the blog series, I read this book, Wisdom from the Western Isles, and it really blew me away. Torkington (wisely, I think) write the book as a fictionalized account of an ordinary man being taught the life of prayer by a young hermit living on a Scottish island. In this way, the reader can learn along with the narrator. The hermit's instruction is down-to-earth and crystal clear, profound yet in no way off-putting or confusing.

This book has shown me that during the years I thought I was making little or know progress in my spiritual life -- or even losing ground -- in fact the Lord has been leading me farther along the mystic way into the heart of His Son, which is the path of every contemplative soul and the calling of every Christian.

I encourage anyone and everyone who has ever sought a deeper life of prayer to read this book -- here you will find great encouragement and instruction, and a new will to persevere in prayer. And I encourage every other Christian, particularly those who feel that prayer is just for "specialists" our the peculiarly devout -- this book will enlighten and challenge you and, I hope, convince you that you cannot live a truly Christian life without setting your feet on the mystic way, which leads straight into the heart of God, who is our eternal destination.

[booklady · Rating 5 out of 5]

September 21, 2025: Torkington narrates a semi-autobiographical narrative of spiritual instruction. He is both the semi-hermit and his student, a recent widower. Rich. Read it extremely quickly because it was so good. Don't recommend that, however.


September 15, 2025: Read another article by Torkington last night and finally succumbed. I have been reading and loving his writing for years now, but he has written so much, I hardly knew where to begin. Which book first? Basically, I just went, Eeny, meeny, miny, Moe and this is the one I picked. Someone will now tell me that I should have begun with _________, but that's okay, I am going to read this.

[A.K. Frailey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book did an excellent job of outlining the spiritual adventures involved in seeking a relationship with God. Though the narrative is told in the first person, for the most part, it incorporates several points of view and experiences through letters and stories. This is not for readers looking for a quick thrill or fast action. More appropriately, this is a wonderfully meditative encounter with the stages of prayer leading toward a closer union with God. I found much of what Mr. Torkington said to be amazingly true. Like C. S. Lewis, I felt I was discovering truth again, but in a new light, from a fresh approach that helped (and will probably help me for years to come) to step a little closer to God, or rather, to let God reveal His constant presence to me. As someone once said, "If you have lost God, it is not God who is lost." This book helps to point the reader's spirit in the right direction.

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

It starts strong giving both hope for tasty narrative and substance to the reader. But, the stilted, inconsistent writing is saved only by (too much) robust content. A book easily 200 pages too long was marred primarily by a scattershot plot that fails to really go anywhere and, in many places, left dangling like a lonely participle.

If he had decided that story was the more important thing here rather than mystics textbook tucked inside bits of disconnected story, this would have been a still better experience. That said, his thoughts on the life of mystical prayer are stellar and worth consideration. I would still recommend it to my friends, thirsty to know more about the depths of the mystical life.

[Joanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Average, probably won't keep the book. Read it for my book club.