The fourth mansion signals a shift from active stages of prayer, pursued in the first three mansions, to mystical stages of prayer where believers can experience God’s supernatural presence. The third flower bed in the gardens hosts vegetables, and stands as a symbol for the developed ability to practice charity, avoid sins and be careful in one’s speech granted to those who move into the third house of the Interior Castle. In Venice’s Mystical Garden this is represented by medicinal herbs, which stand for the purification of the body in order to reach communion with God. The second “house” of the soul is dedicated to purification that can be achieved by prayer, conversations with good people, sermons and good books. Carmelite friars in Venice represented this “mansion” with a humble and simple grassy lawn. The first “mansion” in St.Teresa’s book is dedicated to “self-knowledge” and humility, which can be achieved through prayer and meditation. Teresa used to allude to the seven stages that need to be integrated on a soul’s journey to total communion with God. There they grew vegetables as well as medicinal herbs used to make their renowned herbal remedy called “Melissa.” In 2014, that centuries-old garden was restructured to replicate the seven “houses” that St. Since their arrival in Venice in the 17th century, they have maintained a vegetable garden near the Church of St.

The first Carmelite friars escaped the Holy Land after a Saracen invasion in the 13th century and established themselves in mainland Europe.

The Carmelite Order was founded in 1200 near Mt. The Order of Carmelite Friars in Venice, Italy, has created a “Mystical Garden” with seven flower beds, each representing one of the mansions of St. Today, you can visit a place that has actually turned her literary allegory into reality. Teresa of Jesus, as she is often referred to, imagined our soul as a castle-shaped diamond containing seven houses or mansions, each representing a step in the journey that leads to total union with God.Ī monastery garden based on a saint’s vision Her seminal work, completed in 1588, is titled The Interior Castle and provides imaginative insights on how to lead a fulfilling life in communion with God. Joseph in Avila, Spain, and compiled a series of texts that have become a staple of Catholic literature. Born a Spanish noblewoman, the Carmelite sister founded the monastery of St. Teresa of Avila is one of the most important female saints of Catholicism.

St teresa of avila interior castle