1 I am come into my garden, my sister, my spouse: I have gathered my myrrh with my spice; I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey; I have drunk my wine with my milk: eat, O friends; drink, yea, drink abundantly, O beloved.
Myrrh and Spice both symbolize Eternal Love and Spirit. Honeycomb symbolizes Truth and Honey symbolizes Abundance and Prosperity. Wine symbolizes Vitality connecting Soul and Body. Milk symbolizes Spiritual Sustenance and Support. These are all things that Spirit provides for the Soul.
2 I sleep, but my heart waketh: it is the voice of my beloved that knocketh, saying, Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my undefiled: for my head is filled with dew, and my locks with the drops of the night.
The Soul must become receptive to Spirit.
3 I have put off my coat; how shall I put it on? I have washed my feet; how shall I defile them?
The soul has become pure. Effort must be made continually to preserve that purity.
4 My beloved put in his hand by the hole of the door, and my bowels were moved for him.
Bowels being moved represent release. The Soul releases things to become pure and receive Spirit.
5 I rose up to open to my beloved; and my hands dripped with myrrh, and my fingers with sweet smelling myrrh, upon the handles of the lock.
The Soul is filled with Love, symbolized by Myrrh.
6 I opened to my beloved; but my beloved had withdrawn himself, and was gone: my soul failed when he spake: I sought him, but I could not find him; I called him, but he gave me no answer.
It is not enough to simply be receptive to Spirit. We must consciously engage in the Great Work of Spiritual Purification. Without such effort, Spirit withdraws.
7 The watchmen that went about the city found me, they smote me, they wounded me; the keepers of the walls took away my veil from me.
When Spirit withdraws from the Soul, the result is Pain.
8 I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, if ye find my beloved, that ye tell him, that I am sick of love.
The Daughters of Jerusalem are thoughts of Peace. These are strengthened when the Soul seeks Spirit.
9 What is thy beloved more than another beloved, O thou fairest among women? What is thy beloved more than another beloved, that thou dost so charge us?
Only Spirit can calm and empower the Soul. There is no other appropriate "love".
10 My beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand.
White and Ruddy symbolize pure life force. This is Spirit.
11 His head is as the most fine gold, his locks are bushy, and black as a raven.
The head symbolizes the Mind. Gold symbolizes purity. Locks of Hair symbolize spiritual power and Black symbolizes Matter. This passage is, thus, describing Spirit as having a Pure Mind and Spiritual Power that fashions all Matter.
12 His eyes are as the eyes of doves by the rivers of waters, washed with milk, and fitly set.
The dove is a symbol for the Holy Spirit and milk is a symbol of spiritual sustenance and support. As such, this passage means that a person, at this stage of development, has pure Spiritual Sight or Clairvoyance.
13 His cheeks are as a bed of spices, as sweet flowers: his lips like lilies, dropping sweet smelling myrrh.
Spices symbolize imperishable (spiritual) flesh that lies within the perishable (physical) flesh. Myrrh is the Eternity of Spirit and Love. Spiritual flesh is imperishable and filled with Love, at this stage of development.
14 His hands are as gold rings set with the beryl: his belly is as bright ivory overlaid with sapphires.
Hands symbolize action, while gold symbolizes purity and beryl symbolizes Prayer. The belly symbolizes the meditative faculty of the mind. Sapphires symbolize Spiritual Aspirations. Thus, the actions of Spirit are pure and occur through Prayer. We Meditate with Spiritual Aspirations.
15 His legs are as pillars of marble, set upon sockets of fine gold: his countenance is as Lebanon, excellent as the cedars.
Legs symbolize the understanding of Spirit that touches the external world. The sockets of gold symbolize purity. Lebanon is White, also symbolizing Spiritual Purity. Cedars symbolize the pure and peaceful soul.
16 His mouth is most sweet: yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem.
The Mouth symbolizes Communication. Speech is now inspired by the Inner Peace from Spirit. The forces of the soul that facilitate peace are now becoming more spiritual in nature, making them purer still.