ECSTASY. 259 



ECSTASY. 



Though closely allied to catalepsy, ecstasy differs from it in several important 



One of the main points of difference is that in ecstasy the vision 



or train of thought that has been going on during the seizure is remembered, 



whilst in catalepsy there is complete oblivion. It often happens that the two 



sos alternate or co-exist. 



In ecstasy the limbs are motionless, but not rigid. The eyes are open, the pupils 



. tin 1 livid lips parted in smiles, and the arms extended to embrace the beloved 



M. The body is erect and raised to its utmost height, or else is extended 



j;t full length in recumbent posture. A peculiar radiant smile illuminates the 



countenance, and the whole aspect and attitude is that of intense mental 



ition. Sometimes the patient is silent, the mind being apparently absorbed 



in meditation, or in the contemplation of some beatific vision. Sometimes 



there is mystical speaking, prophesying, or singing, or the lips may be moved 



without any sound escaping. Various attitudes are assumed in consonance with 



the ideas passing through the ecstatic' s mind. Spots of blood sometimes appear 



on the hands and other parts of the body, and are said to represent the wounds 



of the nails in the hands and feet of Jesus, or the thrust of the spear in His 



side. Usually there is complete insensibility to external impressions. 



Ecstasy is often associated with religious monomania. It was formerly quite 

 common among the inmates of convents, and is now not unfrequently met with at 

 camp-meetings and other gatherings of a similar nature. Many truly devout 

 persons are ecstatics, the reason being that since the diffusion of Christianity, 

 religion has exerted a more powerful influence upon the mind and emotion than 

 anything else. 



Ecstasy is not a common complaint, but still many cases have been recorded 

 ven during the last five or six years. One of the best known is that of Louise 

 Lateau, who was born at Bois de Haine, a small village in Belgium, in the year 

 1850. Even as a child she exhibited symptoms of nervous derangement. We are 

 told that she loved solitude and silence, and spent most of her time in meditation 

 and prayer. She was subject to paroxysms of ecstasy, during which she spoke on 

 the subjects of charity, poverty, and the priesthood. She fancied that she saw 

 St. Ursula, St. Roch, St. Theresa, and the Holy Virgin. Bleeding, or " stigmatisa- 

 tion," as it is called, appeared soon after the onset of these seizures. One Friday 

 she bled from the left side of her chest; on the following Friday the flow was 

 renewed and, in addition, blood escaped from the backs of both feet ; whilst on 

 the third Friday not only did she bleed from the side and feet, but also from the 

 backs and palms of both hands. This continued for a long time, and finally other 

 bleeding points were established between the shoulders and on the forehead. The 

 evidence seemed to show that there was bond fide bleeding, and that it was not the 

 result of a wound made artificially. In addition to these phenomena, Louise 

 declared that she never slept, that she had had nothing to eat or drink for four 

 years, that she had not had a faecal evacuation for three years and a half, and that 

 the urine was utterly suppressed. This was undoubtedly untrue. On bein 



