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But since not only by passing through ourselves but also within

ourselves is it given to us to contemplate the First Principle, and this is

greater than the preceding, therefore this mode of thought reaches to the

fourth level of contemplation. It seems amazing, however, when it is clear

that God is so near to our minds, that there are so few who see the First

Principle in themselves. But the reason is close at hand. For the human

mind, distracted by cares, does not enter into itself through memory;

obscured by phantasms, it does not return into itself through intelligence;

allured by concupiscence, it never returns to itself through the desire for

inner sweetness and spiritual gladness. Thus, lying totally in this

sensible world, it cannot return to itself as to the image of God.