Melancholy VS. Dark Night of the Soul – Difference, Proximity & Why Both Need Their Own Space

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Introduction: Darkness Is Not All the Same

There are phases in life when everything seems to derail. Meaninglessness, inner emptiness, withdrawal, gloom. Everyday life loses its colors. In such times, many people search for words – often finding them in old concepts: melancholy, for instance. Or, increasingly, the Dark Night of the Soul.

But what happens when these two terms are equated? When the "Dark Night" becomes a poetic synonym for depression – or melancholy is misunderstood as a spiritual crisis?

In this article, we want to take a closer look:
Where do the phenomena actually overlap – and where do crucial lines of distinction run? What is melancholy, and what is the Dark Night – and why shouldn’t we merge them too quickly.

1. What Melancholy and the Dark Night Share and what not

Indeed, there are points of contact. Both phenomena – melancholy and the Dark Night – involve an inner darkness. Both are subjectively associated with emptiness, pain, and a sense of loss of the world. And both resist purely rational explanation.

So what is similar?

  • Experienced darkness: Both states are marked by desolation, withdrawal, and existential upheaval.
  • Feelings of loss: In both, meaning seems to slip away. A sense of disorientation, even "abandonment by God," whether or not God is explicitly invoked.
  • Poetic-symbolic language: Melancholy has always been a poetic term – the Dark Night is increasingly romanticized in literature, coaching, and psychotherapy.
  • Risk of confusion: Subjective experience may appear similar – especially if melancholy is understood in a depressive sense.

The difference lies in being:

Melancholy, in the poetic-contemplative sense, is a state of introspection. The melancholic remains connected – to art, ideas, or an inner, indelible pull toward beauty. Even in sadness, this connection often provides resilience against destructive loss.

By contrast, the Dark Night represents an inner rupture. Not only does outer light fade, but inner anchors – faith, meaning, comfort – are withdrawn. Not because we are sick, but because we are undergoing a profound transformation.

Even in his writings on the “First Dark Night,” the Night of the Senses, John of the Cross emphasizes that melancholy is a human characteristic or temperament. He saw melancholics as people naturally prone to certain emotional states. On the distinction between the two stages of the Dark Night in another episode.

For John, melancholy arises from natural causes – temperament, physical disposition, or external circumstances. It can paralyze, cloud, and leave a person stuck in themselves. Sometimes, it is something to be worked through or healed.

2. The New Confusion: When Darkness Gets Diagnosed

In classical theology and mysticism, the Dark Night of the Soul was a precisely defined spiritual phase – described by John of the Cross in the 16th century as a necessary part of inner purification on the path to union with God. In its original sense, the Dark Night of the Soul is not a mood, but a spiritual crisis during which a person loses everything that once provided support – both external securities and inner comforts.

This process is barely under voluntary control. It often begins with a sense of abandonment by God – not as punishment, but as a transitional stage. Sometimes this person also feels cast-off by people, or even all creatures. It is as if everything that previously offered orientation is withdrawn – to make room for something entirely new.

What happens in this process?

  • The previous inner system – beliefs, spiritual practices, emotional anchors – fails.
  • An inner restructuring begins, dissolving old frameworks.
  • The person learns to hold onto nothing – not even the idea of comfort, meaning, or God.
  • This emptiness is not destructive but creates space for a new depth.

This process is painful – yes – but not pathological. It is not a sign of deficiency, but preparation for profound receptivity. One can interpret it religiously – but it is not necessary. The key point: this loss is not illness, but part of a deep inner transformation. The “night” is neither melancholy nor depression – even if it often feels that way.

Today, however, a shift is occurring:

In modern psychological texts, popular guides, and even therapeutic practice, the term Dark Night of the Soul is increasingly used as a synonym for depression. This trend is new – and problematic.

It blurs the boundaries between mental illness and spiritual transformation. It pathologizes the spiritual – and spiritualizes the pathological. Someone in deep depression needs professional help. Someone in a spiritual night needs a different space: silence, accompaniment, trust. Confusing the two benefits no one.

3. Two Paths Through the Night: A Comparison

To make these differences visible, a direct comparison helps. Here is an overview within the broader context:

Melancholy (in the spiritual, poetic sense) is an inner state of profound, often bittersweet sadness. It can be paralyzing, but also creatively inspiring. It is personal, contemplative, ambivalent. Sometime, it serves as metaphor for illness of which we will speak in a future episode. 

The Dark Night of the Soul, by contrast, is a spiritual crisis. Not a state, but a process – a path of emptying, in which former images of God, securities, and inner comfort vanish. Not because one is ill, but because something new wants to be born. A new risk is arising these days: dark night seems to replace melancholy is beautiful image for depression. 

Useful metaphor for comparison:

  • Melancholy is like a Gothic cathedral – a masterpiece of depth built in shadow. Sometimes sad, sometimes a bit ill. 
  • The Dark Night is like dismantling that cathedral to make way for an even greater temple. Illness may be only a by-effect as every craftsman is naturally limited. 
Here a small hint: In both, melancholy and dark night, depression can occur and co-exist. I treat this issue in another episode. 

4. Table: Melancholy vs. Dark Night of the Soul

Melancholy Dark Night of the Soul
State of inner depth, often tinged with sadness or longing Spiritual process of radical emptiness and reorientation
Can be experienced as “noble melancholy” with creative potential Purposeful process of divine guidance
Emotional, psychological, sometimes associated with depression Spiritual: withdrawal of divine grace – not purely psychological
Can persist without “transforming” A transitional process leading to new spiritual depth
Not a necessary part of a spiritual path Central phase in mystical development
Mood or state, not a clinical condition Not clinical – a process of spiritual maturation
Term rarely used medically today Increasingly misappropriated in psychological contexts

5. Why This Distinction Matters

The language of the inner life requires differentiation. Those who label all darkness as depression overlook the potential meaning inherent in the shadows. Those who spiritualize every psychic crisis risk ignoring the suffering of a truly ill person.

  • Melancholy has a poetic depth that is not automatically pathological.
  • The Dark Night has a spiritual depth that cannot be resolved therapeutically alone.
    Both deserve their own space – and careful attention.

Why the distinction counts:

  • For medically or philosophically trained readers: Melancholy ≠ clinical depression ≠ spiritual crisis. Clear terms preserve meaning and guide appropriate support.
  • For spiritually interested readers: Language requires precision and depth – without pathological distortion.
  • For general readers: Understanding these nuances helps identify inner states without automatically pathologizing or romanticizing them.

6. Conclusion: Darkness Is Not All the Same

What initially feels similar often has very different roots. In the night, despair may dwell – but so can transformation. What matters is careful observation and attention to the language of the inner life.

  • Not every melancholy is illness.
  • Not every night is a defect.
  • Not all darkness is to be feared.

In depth, we find ourselves again – sometimes lost in clarity. But precise distinctions open space for genuine compassion – and true transformation


📚 References

Burton, R. (2001). The Anatomy of Melancholy. New York Review Books. (Original work published 1621)

Grün, A. (2023). How to Live with Sorrow: Pocket Seminar for Reflection & Growth. Redemptorist Publications.

Guardini, R. (1993). The End of the Modern World (J. R. Betz & R. M. Winston, Trans.). ISI Books.

Jäger, W. (2001). Search for the Meaning of Life: Essays and Reflections. Crossroad Publishing.

John of the Cross. (1991). Dark Night of the Soul (M. Shrady, Trans.). Image Books.

Kierkegaard, S. (1980). The Sickness Unto Death (H. V. Hong & E. H. Hong, Trans.). Princeton University Press. 

Kristeva, Julia. Black Sun: Depression and Melancholia

Teresa of Ávila. (2008). The Interior Castle (A. Peers, Trans.). Dover Publications.

Authored by Rebekka Waldesruh
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