3. Of the wonderful brightness and sweetness appearing in her cell

Apart from her mental illumination, over which great men of letters and religious, versed in spiritual studies, who often spoke with her, and not understanding it wondered exceedingly, very often by day and night when she was visited by the angel, or returned from the contemplation of the things above, she was discovered by her ST. LYDWINE of SCHIEDAM companions to be surrounded by so great a divine brightness, that, seeing the splendour, struck with exceeding fear, they dared not approach nigh to her. And although she always lay in darkness, and material light was un bearable to her eyes, nevertheless the divine light was very agreeable to her, whereby her cell was often so wondrously flooded by night, that to the beholders the cell itself appeared full of material lamps or fires. Nor is it strange if she overflowed even in the body with divine brightness, who, ac cording to the expression of blessed Paul, beholding the glory of the Lord with open face, was daily transformed into the same image from brightness to brightness as by the spirit of the was she wont to be surrounded by divine brightness, but with a wondrous sweetness also both herself and her cell were found to be redolent, so that those who entered thought that divers aro matic simples had been brought in and scattered there. And this wonderful sweetness was perceived when she was visited or touched by the Saviour or by the angel, or when she returned from ST. LYDWINE of SCHIEDAM Heaven or the regions of Paradise. Which most sweet odour indeed not only breathed upon the scent through the nostrils, but redounded also on the taste of those who perceived it ; and as strong a taste was felt upon the tongue, and bit the palate, as if they had eaten pepper or cinnamon. Chiefly, however, from the hand a fragrance of wondrous sweetness went forth when she had been led thereby by the holy angel to the joys above and thence brought back.