Summary
When Spiritual Progress Breeds Jealousy
Dark Night of the Soul by Saint John of the Cross
Beginners often confuse busyness with devotion, filling their schedules with spiritual activities to avoid the harder work of actual transformation. The envy shows up as resentment toward others' spiritual progress - feeling bitter when someone else gets praised for their growth, secretly hoping to tear down their achievements, or getting defensive when others seem further along the path. This jealousy poisons the very love and connection that spiritual practice is meant to cultivate. The sloth manifests as spiritual pleasure-seeking - only wanting the sweet, comforting parts of growth while avoiding anything that feels difficult or unrewarding. When prayer doesn't feel good anymore, these beginners get cranky. When asked to do challenging spiritual work, they resist like it's punishment. They cherry-pick only the experiences that make them feel good, running from anything that requires real effort or sacrifice. Saint John warns that this pleasure-seeking creates spiritual addicts who become 'peevish and unbearable' when they don't get their fix. Both patterns reveal the same core problem: making spiritual growth about the ego rather than genuine transformation. The envious person wants to be seen as spiritually superior. The slothful person wants spiritual growth to feel like a spa day. Neither approach leads to real development because both avoid the uncomfortable work of actually changing. This chapter matters because it shows how our worst human tendencies don't disappear when we start growing - they just put on spiritual costumes.
Coming Up in Chapter 8
Having diagnosed these spiritual diseases, Saint John will next reveal why God allows - and even orchestrates - the cure that strips away these illusions entirely.
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An excerpt from the original text.(complete · 307 words)
Of imperfections with respect to spiritual envy and sloth. With respect to the other two vices, which are spiritual envy and sloth, these beginners also have many imperfections. For, with respect to envy, many of them are wont to experience movements of displeasure at the spiritual good of others, which cause them a certain sensible grief at observing that their neighbors are ahead of them on the road to perfection, and they do not want to hear others praised. They become sad when others are praised, and sometimes they cannot refrain from contradicting what is said in praise of them, depreciating it as far as they can; and their annoyance grows because they themselves are not praised, and because others are preferred to themselves. All this is contrary to charity, which rejoices in goodness. And, although some have charity also in this, they are saddened because they have not the charity which they see that others have. With respect to spiritual sloth, these beginners are apt to find their most spiritual exercises irksome. As they are seeking sweetness in spiritual things, they are wearied by things in which they find no sweetness. If once they fail to find pleasure in prayer, which is their daily sustenance, they become peevish at it. If they are commanded to do that which is not to their liking, they become distressed as at a heavy burden. And thus these persons are always choosing the pleasant; they flee the cross, and because of this they grow languid and lukewarm in spirit. From these imperfections some souls come to such a state that they cannot abide themselves; and still less can they be patient with the things of God; and being so much the slaves of their own pleasure, the displeasure which they receive from their forced exercises makes them peevish and unbearable.
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Intelligence Amplifier™ Analysis
The Road of Spiritual Materialism
When our desire to look good or feel good corrupts the very process meant to help us grow.
Why This Matters
Connect literature to life
This chapter teaches how to recognize when your ego is corrupting your growth through envy or pleasure-seeking.
Practice This Today
This week, notice when you feel bitter about someone else's success or when you want to quit something just because it got difficult - pause and ask yourself if your ego is hijacking your growth.
Now let's explore the literary elements.
Terms to Know
Spiritual envy
Jealousy and resentment toward others' spiritual progress or recognition. It shows up as being upset when someone else gets praised for their growth, secretly hoping others fail, or comparing your spiritual journey to theirs in bitter ways.
Modern Usage:
We see this in fitness culture, career advancement, or social media - getting bitter when someone else's transformation gets celebrated while yours goes unnoticed.
Spiritual sloth
Wanting only the pleasant, comfortable parts of personal growth while avoiding anything difficult or unrewarding. It's like being a spiritual pleasure-seeker who gets cranky when the work gets hard.
Modern Usage:
This shows up as people who only want therapy sessions that feel good, or who quit self-improvement programs the moment they hit real challenges.
Beginners
People just starting their spiritual journey who haven't yet learned to handle the difficult emotions and ego battles that come with real growth. Saint John sees them as spiritually immature, not necessarily new to religion.
Modern Usage:
Anyone in the early stages of personal development - whether it's recovery, therapy, fitness, or career growth - who still expects it to feel good all the time.
Sweetness in spiritual things
The good feelings, comfort, and emotional highs that can come from spiritual practices. Saint John warns against becoming addicted to these pleasant experiences.
Modern Usage:
Like chasing the runner's high, the validation from self-help books, or the good feelings from motivational content instead of doing the actual work.
Charity
In Saint John's context, this means genuine love and goodwill toward others - being happy for their success and wanting the best for them. It's the opposite of envy.
Modern Usage:
Being genuinely happy when your coworker gets promoted, your friend loses weight, or your neighbor's kid gets into college - without making it about you.
Flee the cross
Avoiding suffering, difficulty, or sacrifice that's necessary for growth. The cross represents the hard parts of transformation that we'd rather skip.
Modern Usage:
Avoiding difficult conversations, quitting when things get uncomfortable, or looking for shortcuts instead of doing the real work.
Characters in This Chapter
The envious beginner
Cautionary example
This person gets bitter when others receive spiritual praise, tries to tear down others' achievements, and feels sad when others are preferred over them. They represent how ego can poison spiritual growth.
Modern Equivalent:
The coworker who gets resentful when someone else gets recognition
The slothful beginner
Cautionary example
This person only wants the pleasant parts of spiritual practice, becomes cranky when prayer doesn't feel good, and treats difficult spiritual work like punishment. They show how pleasure-seeking sabotages real growth.
Modern Equivalent:
The person who quits the gym when workouts stop being fun
Saint John of the Cross
Spiritual mentor/narrator
He's diagnosing these toxic patterns with the precision of a spiritual doctor, warning readers about how these attitudes will block their growth and make them miserable.
Modern Equivalent:
The tough-love therapist who calls out your self-sabotaging patterns
Key Quotes & Analysis
"They become sad when others are praised, and sometimes they cannot refrain from contradicting what is said in praise of them"
Context: Describing how spiritual envy manifests in beginners
This shows how envy makes people actively tear down others' achievements. It's not just internal jealousy - it becomes destructive behavior that poisons relationships and community.
In Today's Words:
They get upset when someone else gets complimented and feel compelled to point out why that person doesn't deserve the praise.
"As they are seeking sweetness in spiritual things, they are wearied by things in which they find no sweetness"
Context: Explaining how spiritual sloth develops from pleasure-seeking
This reveals how chasing good feelings creates spiritual addicts who can't handle the normal, unglamorous work of growth. They become dependent on emotional highs.
In Today's Words:
They only want the parts of personal growth that feel good, so they get tired and quit when it stops being pleasant.
"All this is contrary to charity, which rejoices in goodness"
Context: Contrasting envy with genuine love
Saint John is pointing out that real love celebrates others' success. Envy reveals that what we thought was spiritual growth was actually just ego in disguise.
In Today's Words:
This is the opposite of real love, which gets happy when good things happen to people.
Thematic Threads
Envy
In This Chapter
Spiritual beginners resenting others' progress and secretly hoping to undermine their achievements
Development
Introduced here as a specific corruption of spiritual growth
In Your Life:
You might feel this when colleagues get recognition you think you deserve more.
Pleasure-seeking
In This Chapter
Only wanting the sweet, comfortable parts of spiritual practice while avoiding difficult work
Development
Introduced here as spiritual materialism that treats growth like entertainment
In Your Life:
You might do this when you want results without doing the hard parts of change.
Identity
In This Chapter
Making spiritual progress about being seen as superior rather than actual transformation
Development
Introduced here as ego corruption of genuine growth
In Your Life:
You might catch yourself doing things to look good rather than to actually improve.
Personal Growth
In This Chapter
The corruption of growth when it becomes about ego gratification instead of real change
Development
Introduced here as a warning about how growth can be hijacked
In Your Life:
You might recognize times when you wanted the appearance of growth without the work.
Human Relationships
In This Chapter
How envy poisons the love and connection that spiritual practice should cultivate
Development
Introduced here as a consequence of spiritual materialism
In Your Life:
You might notice how comparison and competition damage your connections with others.
You now have the context. Time to form your own thoughts.
Discussion Questions
- 1
Saint John identifies two toxic patterns in spiritual beginners: envy of others' progress and sloth that avoids difficult work. How do these patterns actually sabotage the growth they claim to want?
analysis • surface - 2
Why does Saint John say that spiritual pleasure-seeking creates people who become 'peevish and unbearable'? What's the connection between avoiding difficulty and becoming difficult to be around?
analysis • medium - 3
Where do you see these patterns in modern life - people who get envious of others' success or who only want the easy parts of improvement? Think about work, fitness, relationships, or learning new skills.
application • medium - 4
When you catch yourself comparing your progress to others or avoiding something because it's not immediately rewarding, what strategies could redirect your focus back to actual growth?
application • deep - 5
Saint John suggests that both envy and sloth make growth about the ego rather than genuine transformation. What does this reveal about why real change is so difficult for humans?
reflection • deep
Critical Thinking Exercise
Track Your Growth Sabotage Patterns
Think of an area where you're trying to improve (work skills, health, relationships, finances). Write down three specific moments in the last month when you either felt envious of someone else's progress in that area, or when you avoided doing something because it felt too hard or unrewarding. For each moment, identify what your ego wanted versus what actual growth required.
Consider:
- •Notice whether you tend more toward envy (comparing yourself to others) or sloth (avoiding difficulty)
- •Look for the story you tell yourself to justify these patterns - how do you make them seem reasonable?
- •Consider what you were really afraid of losing or having to face in those moments
Journaling Prompt
Write about a time when you pushed through envy or difficulty and actually grew from it. What was different about your mindset then? How can you recreate that approach in your current challenges?
Coming Up Next...
Chapter 8: Three Attachments That Block Growth
What lies ahead teaches us three types of attachments keep us stuck in old patterns, and shows us letting go feels scary but creates space for transformation. These patterns appear in literature and life alike.