It is not so much from the amount read that we derive profit, as from the manner of reading. Those people who get through so much do not profit from it; the bees can only draw the juice from the flowers by resting on them, not by flying round them. Much reading is more for scholastic than for spiritual science; but in order to derive profit from spiritual books, we should read them in this way; and I am sure that this manner of reading accustoms us gradually to prayer, and gives us a deeper desire for it. The other way is _Meditation_, in which we should engage at a chosen time, and not in the hour given to reading. I think the way to enter into it is this:--After having brought ourselves into the presence of God by a definite act of faith, we should read something substantial, not so much to reason upon it, as to fix the attention, observing that the principal exercise should be the presence of God, and that the subject should rather fix the attention than exercise reason. This _faith in the presence of God within our hearts_ must lead us to enter within ourselves, collecting our thoughts, and preventing their wandering; this is an effectual way of getting rid of distracting thoughts, and of losing sight of outward things, in order to draw near to God, who can only be found in the secret place of our hearts, which is the _sancta-sanctorum_ in which He dwells. He has promised that if any one keeps His commandments, He will come to him, and _make His abode_ with him (John xiv. 23). St Augustine reproaches himself for the time he lost through not having sought God at first in this way. When, then, we are thus buried in ourselves, and deeply penetrated with the presence of God within us--when the senses are all drawn from the circumference to the centre, which, though it is not easily accomplished at first, becomes quite natural afterwards--when the soul is thus gathered up within itself, and is sweetly occupied with the truth read, not in reasoning upon it, but in feeding upon it, and exciting the will by the affection rather than the understanding by consideration: the _affection_ being thus touched, must be suffered to _repose_ sweetly and at peace, _swallowing_ what it has tasted. As a person who only masticated an excellent meat would not be nourished by it, although he would be sensible of its taste, unless he ceased this movement in order to swallow it; so when the affection is stirred, if we seek continually to stir it, we extinguish its fire, and thus deprive the soul of its nourishment. We must swallow by a _loving repose_ (full of respect and confidence) what we have masticated and tasted. This method is very necessary, and would advance the soul in a short time more than any other would do in several years. But as I said that the direct and principal exercise should be the _sense of the presence of God_, we must most faithfully _recall the senses_ when they wander.