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Then said the Supreme and Sweet Truth of God, "Oh,
beloved and dearest daughter, you beg knowledge of
the reasons and fruits of tears, and I have not
despised your desire; open well the eye of your
intellect and I will show you, among the aforesaid
states of the soul, of which I have told you,
concerning the imperfect tears caused by fear; but
first rather of the tears of wicked men of the world.
"These are the tears of damnation. The former are
those of fear, and belong to men who abandon sin from
fear of punishment, and weep for fear. The third are
the tears of those who, having abandoned sin, are
beginning to serve and taste Me, and weep for very
sweetness; but since their love is imperfect, so also
is their weeping, as I have told you. The fourth are
the tears of those who have arrived at the perfect
love of their neighbor, loving Me without any regard
whatsoever for themselves. These weep and their
weeping is perfect. The fifth are joined to the
fourth and are tears of sweetness let fall with great
peace, as I will explain to you. I will tell you also
of the tears of fire, without bodily tears of the
eyes, which satisfy those who often would desire to
weep and cannot.
And I wish you to know that all these various
graces may exist in one soul, who, rising from fear
and imperfect love, reaches perfect love in the
unitive state. Now I will begin to tell you of these
tears in the following way."
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