A lover was once admitted to the presence of his
mistress, but, instead of embracing her, he pulled
out a paper of sonnets and read them to her,
describing her perfections and charms and his own
love towards her at length. His mistress said to
him, "You are now in my presence, and these lovers'
sighs and invocations are a waste of time. It is not
the part of a true lover to waste his time in this
way. It shows that I am not the real object of your
affection, but that what you really love is your own
effusions and ecstatic raptures. I see, as it were,
the water which I have longed for before me, and yet
you withhold it. I am, as it were, in Bulgaria, and
the object of your love is in Cathay. One who is
really loved is the single object of her lover, the
Alpha and Omega of his desires. As for you, you are
wrapped up in your own amorous raptures, depending on
the varying states of your own feelings, instead of
being wrapped up in me."
"I AM THINE, AND THOU ART MINE!"
Eternal Life is gained by utter abandonment of one's
own life. When God appears to His ardent lover the
lover is absorbed in Him, and not so much as a hair
of the lover remains. True lovers are as shadows, and
when the sun shines in glory the shadows vanish away.
He is a true lover to God to whom God says, "I am
thine, and thou art Mine!"