For everyone seeking to experience contemplative life, this guide brings together concise selections from the great writings of the tradition, from Saint Benedict to Thomas Merton. It explores the essentials of monastic life in brief chapters on such themes as speech, humility, discernment, patience, longing, and love. By providing an account of how monastic life evolved and examples of monastic writing through the centuries, from the desert fathers to the medieval nuns Julian and Hildegard to John Chittister today, Father Hugh Feiss offers monastic wisdom on living a full life.