Contemplation, Latin contemplatio, Greek theōria, is in the Christian tradition the simple gaze of the soul on God, in which thinking gives way to loving attention. The medieval ladder of prayer places it above reading, meditation and vocal prayer. Philosophers from Plato to Aristotle called the contemplative life the highest.
Contemplation
A loving, wordless attention to God or to reality, beyond reasoning and discursive prayer.
Also: contemplatio, theoria