Tears and Saints

Cioran is best known for epigrammatic little books of philosophy that reflect a dour, pessimistic view of humanity in the wake of World War II and the Holocaust. As a young man, however, Cioran took a more cheerful view of the world, tempered by his enthusiastic study of ascetics and saints. Here he introduces us to the religious ideas of the Middle Ages, to luminaries like Catherine of Siena and Teresa of Avila. He also invites us to open ourselves to the possibilities of such ideas. "No obstacle is unsurmountable when angelic voices cheer you along," Cioran writes, encouragingly. "One does not hear voices in the cool breezes of calm thoughts, and angels speak only to musical ears."