Saint Teresa of Avila is one of the doctors of the Catholic Church. She is a mystic and a Carmelite reformer. This book is an attestation of her high spirituality and talks about her method of prayer. Though simple is astounding in sanctity and filled with humility and intensive recollection. She shows in this book that we may approach God through meditation and come to know Him intimately. She emphasises that God always rewards us more than we deserve. an astounding work by an astounding saint, a highly detailed and immensely useful guide to approaching the Lord through higher and higher degrees of meditative prayer and contemplation. Born to a pious family in 1515, Teresa grew up fascinated with the faith. A popular anecdote from her youth tells of an impromptu escapade with her brother: they attempted to flee to Africa to be martyred by Moors, only to be brought back from the city walls by their uncle. Teresa later joined the Carmelites at 20, but found their practices to be lacking in austerity. She herself was zealous in mortification, and frequently exerted herself to the point of illness. Upon recovery after a particularly long convalescence, she began to experience religious ecstasies, which continued throughout her life. She experienced interior visions (i.e. without sensory manifestation) of Our Lord, levitations, and other graces, including the famous transveberation, where her heart was mystically pierced by a lance borne by a seraph. St. Teresa's principal work in life was to reform the Carmelites. S she travelled all about Spain establishing new convents and, with St. John of the Cross, men's monasteries. Throughout all of her reform work, her attitude was joyful, saintly, and profoundly charismatic.
