“Sadness purifies us. Man is truly man in sadness. In joy he is changed, he becomes someone else. In sadness he becomes that which he truly is. And this is the way, par excellence, that he approaches God. He senses his weakness. Many times, when he is in glory and joy, he feels that he is the “eye of the earth” or, if you prefer, the center of the universe: “I am, and nobody else!” In pain and sadness he feels like an insignificant ant in the universe, that he is completely dependent, and he seeks the help and companionship of God. Those of us who have passed through pains, either psychical or physical, know that we never prayed as hard and with such quality and length, as we did when we were in the bed of pain or when some heavy psychical sadness tested us. While, when we have everything, we forget prayer and fasting, and many things. It is for this reason that God allows pain.”

—Elder Epiphanios

Melancholy links pain with wisdom and beauty. It springs from a rightful awareness of the tragic structure of every life. We can, in melancholy states, understand without fury or sentimentality, that no one truly understands anyone else, that loneliness is universal and that every life has its full measure of shame and sorrow. The wisdom of the melancholy attitude lies in the understanding that we have not been singled out, that our suffering belongs to humanity in general. Melancholy is marked by an impersonal take on suffering. It is filled with pity for the human condition.

THE BOOK OF LIFE, CHAPTER 5: CULTURE: TRAVEL, The Wisdom of Nature

Melancholy is not rage or bitterness, it is a noble species of sadness that arises when we are open to the fact that life is inherently difficult for everyone and that suffering and disappointment are at the heart of human experience. It is not a disorder that needs to be cured; it is a tender-hearted, calm, dispassionate acknowledgement of how much pain we must inevitably all travel through.

THE BOOK OF LIFE, CHAPTER 5: CULTURE: TRAVEL, The Wisdom of Nature

Unmotivated Sadness
St. John Cassian tells us that ‘it sometimes happens that we are suddenly filled with an anxiety that has no cause; we feel overwhelmed by a sadness for which no motive can be found.’ He also says that there are two different kinds of sadness: the first consists of all those varieties considered above, ‘the second comes from unreasonable mental anguish or despair.’

Mental Disorders & Spiritual Healing: Teachings from the Early Christian East
Jean-Claude Larchet

Melancholy, if you’re doing it right, can be deeply, profoundly satisfying. Like Victor Hugo once wrote, “Melancholy is the happiness of being sad.” If that sentence doesn’t ring true, you have never been melancholy. You’ve just been vaguely blue.

You Won’t Find Happiness Without Deep, Dark Sadness

“There was so much sadness in everything, even when things worked.”

— Charles Bukowski

When not depressed he was an amusing companion, “very merry, facete, and juvenile”, and a person of “great honesty, plain dealing, and charity”.

Robert Burton