Глава XXIV. Поучительное слово великого некоего старца к ученику своему. Читай с усердием и не ищи многих слов, ибо и одно слово может возбудить ко спасению

1. Rising from sleep, before every word, glorify God and say: I thank You, Lord, that You despised my iniquities and did not put me to death, but out of Your love for mankind raised me from my bed. Give grace and strength to always glorify Your all-holy name and bless You to begin songs and psalms at this hour. For whatever the mind receives into itself in the morning, like a millstone, it will grind all day long - whether it is the wheat of good thoughts or the tares of vicious thoughts. And when you go to sleep, remember the coffin, saying to yourself: will I get up tomorrow? – and pray diligently before going to bed. 2. If you see images of wives in a dream, pray that the Lord will deliver you from the memory of them during the day, for this is death and destruction of the soul. 3. Pay attention to yourself and do not keep the unclean in your thoughts, whether you are standing or sitting, do not remember any woman, even if she were a saint, but rather be jealous that Jesus Christ and the memory of death always remain in your heart - and this will save you from every satanic dream. 4. When a thought, day or night, tells you: get up, pray, know what your guardian angel is telling you. If you get up, he will stand with you and pray together, driving away the demons from you, who will gnash their teeth at you for this. If you do not listen to him and are too lazy to get up, he will retreat from you, and you will fall into the hands of your enemies. 5. When you do some work with your brothers, do not show them that you work harder than them, even if it were so, for otherwise you will lose your reward. 6. When you are sitting at handicraft and the hour of your prayer comes, do not say: I will finish this little and then I will get up, but get up cheerfully every hour and repay God the debt of your prayer, otherwise, little by little, you will get used to not caring about prayer, and your soul will become empty as a result. 7. If evil thoughts trouble you, do not hide them, but immediately express them and expose them, for the longer a person hides his thoughts, the more they multiply and grow stronger. Just as a serpent, driven out of a hole, hurries to escape from the gaze of its pursuers, so evil thoughts, when they are confessed and revealed, immediately disappear from the heart and memory, and like a worm hiding inside a tree, eats away at it, so an evil thought devours the heart while it is hidden in it. He who reveals his thoughts is immediately healed, but he who hides them is overcome with pride. 8. When you go to confess your thoughts to your father or ask him about something, first pray in your heart and say: Lord, whatever pleases You, put it in my father’s mouth so that he can tell me it, for I receive his word as from Your mouth. Confirm him, Lord, in Thy truth, so that I may always hear Thy holy will from him. And then keep faithfully and with fear what he tells you. 9. If someone asks you to pray for him, say this: May God, through the prayers of our holy fathers, have mercy on you, brother, and me, as He pleases. 10. If someone comes to you about whom you have heard that he has reviled and slandered you, do not reveal to him that you have learned about this, but be welcoming to him and turn to him with a bright face, so that you yourself may have boldness before God in prayer. 11. If you happen to be burdened with food, take up some kind of bodily labor and do not go to sleep, so as not to be defiled by unclean dreams, be a good fighter against the devil and, from which side he attacks you, from that side you answer him, that is, if he defeats you by eating too much, you fight him with vigil; if he fights you with sleep, you fight him with bodily labor. 12. If vanity overcomes you, do some disapproving, but not sinful deed in front of people, or take on some dubious appearance, so that they begin to speak about you without honor, for know that nothing crushes the devil more than when someone with all his heart seeks humility and humiliation. 13. When you walk through the city, lower your eyes to the ground and cover them with your cupola. 14. When you are on the side and they do not accept you, do not grieve, but rather say: if I were worthy, then God would give me peace. For know that sorrow or dishonor of some kind comes to a person only from God, either to test him or to cleanse his sins. Whoever does not believe this does not know that throughout the entire earth there are God’s destinies. 15. If a thought of arrogance attacks you, tell the demon who puts it in: The Lord said: everyone who exalts himself will humble himself (Luke 18:14). When you stop telling me that I am good, then I will be sure that I am good, because I will have humility; By telling me that I am good, you thereby confirm to me that I am an enemy of God, for the Lord opposes the proud (Prov. 3:34). 16. Likewise, you must say the following: woe is me, woe is me! In appearance I am a monk and live in a monastery, but in deed I am a layman, and my soul wanders around the world. People venerate me as a saint, thinking that I follow the rules of asceticism of the holy fathers, but I eat and drink incontinently, sleep and be lazy, am overwhelmed by all sorts of negligence every day and am shameless in evil thoughts. 17. If you live with any brother, be careful not to order anything authoritatively, so that your heart does not become exalted, and in appearance remain impudent, but in your soul consider yourself your brother’s slave. 18. If, having fallen into sin, you rise up and come to contrition and repentance, do not cease to lament and sigh before God until the very day of your death, otherwise you will soon fall into the same ditch again. 19. When you see that the Lord has mercy on you and gives contrition to your heart, then you yourself force yourself to maintain silence, fasting and prayer, for then Satan will give you supposedly necessary and urgent tasks, so that by taking them up, you will lose contrition. But don’t listen to him and, leaving everything, even what is really necessary, kindle only contrition until it completes its work, for its price is great. If you do this, soon expect temptation and abuse either from people or from demons, since Satan strongly rebels against a person when a person leaves his power. Anger most of all destroys humility and contrition of the soul. 20. When you sit and demons surround you like bees with different thoughts, disturbing the tripartite parts of your soul, immediately get up and pray, condemn yourself, reproach and cry, and they will dissipate. 21. If you want to have tears, love humility and poverty, do not have thin clothes and nothing superfluous in your cell, for when the soul wants something and does not find it in the cell, it will sigh and humble itself, for which God will console it and give it tenderness. When the soul tastes the sweetness of God, then it will hate everything worldly, even the clothes it wears and its very body, for, I tell you, my son, if a person does not hate his body as an enemy and rival, he will not free himself from the snares of the devil. 22. Abba Isaiah said: do not take anyone by the hand, do not touch someone else’s body, except in need of great weakness, but even then carefully - with fear. Likewise, do not allow someone else’s hand to approach you or touch you. For the rest of your life, never sleep close to someone else. Do not give a kiss to a young man who does not have a beard, and do not laugh with him, so as not to destroy your soul; do not go or sit near him; In general, never get close to each other, for the truly reverent are ashamed even of themselves. Many, from neglecting this, as an unimportant and insignificant matter, fell into the great ditch of destruction. Remember that all evil begins small and then reaches great things. 23. If you love Christ and desire the consolation that comes from mourning for those who seek it, in everything and always choose what is sorrowful for the flesh of the Lord for the sake of Him who suffered for us. So, if white bread comes to you, save it in case of a sick person, and taste the black one yourself, for Christ’s sake; if you happen to have good wine, mix a little vinegar into it, for the sake of Christ, who drank otset for you. When you eat vegetables, do not be filled, but leave a little, saying: here is a portion of Christ; if you encounter a soft head, leave it and put a stone under yourself, for Christ’s sake; if you get cold during sleep, be patient, saying that others do not sleep at all; if they revile you, remain silent for Christ’s sake, saying that He too was reviled for my sake; If you prepare a brew for yourself, spoil it a little, saying: others who are worthy do not even eat bread, so how can I, an unworthy one, eat a good brew when I should eat dust and ashes. So, in general, mix in a little something bitter and unpleasant for the flesh into every activity - whether you eat or drink, sleep or work, and spend the whole time of your life in cramped conditions and in humility, remembering how the saints lived, so that when the hour of your exodus comes, it will find you in sorrow and cramped conditions, and then, undoubtedly, you will find peace in the land of the living. 24. Do not keep your clothes or anything else that is unnecessary or superfluous in your cell, for this is death for you. Others, more righteous than you, are cold, but you, a sinner, have too much. 25. Do not hoard money throughout your life, for otherwise God will no longer care about you, but when you have it, then if you need clothes or food, buy it immediately, but if you don’t have it, give it away. And don’t let them lie with you in your cell for one night for the rest of your life. 26. If a thought tells you: prepare more food for the holiday, do not listen to it, otherwise you will spend the holiday like the Jews. They usually prepare them, and among the monks the fertilizer of the holiday is crying and tears. 27. If you hear that someone is slandering you or blaspheming you, send him a small blessing according to your strength, so that in prayer you can boldly say: forgive us, O Master, our debts, just as we forgive our debtors (Matthew 6:12). 28. If you have a cell, even one that only covers your height, do not at all look for another in the desire to have space and breadth in it. 29. Whenever you sell or buy something, it is better to suffer a small loss and do not haggle for a long time, so that, wanting to achieve the real price, you do not fall into quarrels. 30. If you come somewhere and notice that your crying and contrition are weakening, quickly return to your cell and accept the previous dispensation, so that you do not completely drive them away from you. 31. If brethren are coming to you, then, as soon as you see them from afar, stand in prayer and say: Lord, deliver us from slander and condemnation. Then receive them in peace and send them off. 32. If you want to acquire true mourning and humility, make sure that all the things you need are poor, like those of the beggars sitting in the market and begging for alms. 33. Do not even keep books and icons - valuable and unnecessary - in your cell. 34. Let them look for things of silver or gold, even the smallest ones, and not let your hands rest in your cell. 35. Let new clothes not come over your body and the cuculi, if it is beautiful to look at. 36. Do not have a soft cloth and do not hang it on your belt, for all such things drive away crying. 37. When you see a good thing from your brother, do not covet it, so as not to fall into great evil, for he who desires small and great things will covet and sin. 38. If you have a vessel, or a knife, or anything else and you feel partial to it, throw it far away from yourself, so as to teach your thoughts to absolutely love nothing except God alone. 39. If at night you are too lazy to follow your rule, do not give yourself food that day, for the Apostle says: if anyone does not want to work, let him eat (2 Thess. 3:10). Think about it this way: if there is a thief or some other criminal in the world, he does not stand before God at the proper time to pray without extreme weakness and illness. However, God also requires from the sick a prayer of the heart, which can be raised to God even without standing physically. 40. If you condemn a brother and he finds out about it, go and bow to him and say: forgive me, brother, that I condemned you. If he does not find out, do not tell him anything, so as not to embarrass him, but confess it to God and your father, reproaching yourself and intending not to be ridiculed in this way in the future. 41. Hearing about the great deeds of the fathers, try to lift one of them yourself, calling on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, may he strengthen you. If you are able to accomplish the deed, give thanks to God; if you cannot, reproach your weakness, recognize your powerlessness and humble your thoughts until your very end. Always reprove your soul, which it began and did not finish. 42. When you fall into carnal sins, do not remember how you did them, so as not to defile your soul again, but rather pray to God, saying: Lord, You know my nasty and immeasurable sins! You yourself, as you wish, blot them out. But I do not dare to remember them, so as not to anger You even more. 43. If lust troubles your body and heart, find out why this conflict arose, and eliminate the reason. It arose, of course, either from excess food, or from excessive sleep, or from arrogance, or from the fact that he considered himself better than others, or condemned someone, as if he does not work as God should, or lives badly, or his work is not pleasing to God, but considered himself to be working hard for Him, living well, and his deeds pleasing to God, for without these reasons a person is not susceptible to the attack of fornication. 44. When starting any task, tell yourself with attention: what will happen if my Lord visits me at this hour? And see what your thought answers. If he condemns you, immediately give up that task and take up another, for the worker must be ready for his journey at every hour. Whether you are sitting at needlework, or on the road, or visiting someone, or eating food, always say to yourself: what will happen if God now calls me? Look what your conscience tells you, and do as it tells you. 45. If you take upon yourself some feat and fall behind, take it up again and do not stop doing this until your death, for whatever death finds you in is what you will go there in, whether in negligence or in deed. 46. ​​Every month, year, week and day, test yourself to see whether you have demonstrated success in any way, that is, whether you have established yourself in vigil, prayer, fasting or obedience, and most of all in humility, for this is a sign of true progress of the soul. This can be found out by whether you consider yourself the last among everyone and whether you sincerely say in your heart: every person is better than me, for without such a thought, even if a person performed signs, even if he raised the dead, he would be far from God. 47. When you come to any elder and, after prayer, he invites you to sit, tell him: Father! Tell me the word of life, how can I find God, and pray for me, for I have many sins. Apart from this, don’t say anything unless you are asked. 48. If one brother reveals a secret to you, and another conjures you to tell him about it, do not be afraid of the spell and do not betray your brother’s secret, for this oath will fall on the head of the conjurer. 49. If you do not have contrition, know that you are possessed by vanity or gluttony, or carnal rest, that is, sleep and idleness, for all this prevents the soul from coming into contrition. 50. If someone of his own accord gives you something as a gift of love, and you have a need for it, take it, for this means that God sent him. If you do not need it, do not take it at all, for Satan may be tempting you to take something beyond your need. 51. If any person praises you to your face, immediately remember your sins and ask him: For God’s sake, do not praise me, brother, for I am weak and cannot bear it. If it is one of the great ones, then pray to God, saying: Lord! Cover me and deliver me from the praise and humiliation of people. 52. Put a seal on your eyes and do not look at beautiful faces - whether female or male. He who does not control his eyes is also incontinent in his thoughts, and his mind becomes a prisoner of passions. 53. While you are young, keep your body and face in some neglect, for this is good for you. 54. When crying comes to you, do not think that anything special happened to you because you are crying. Blessed is the one who has no need to cry. Humble yourself; otherwise, when God sees that you are ascending because of the grace of tears, He will take them from you, and then your heart will become hard as a stone, incapable of any good deed. 55. If your soul desires various dishes, deprive yourself even of bread for a while. When you are hungry, you want to be satisfied with at least bread. 56. When you ask respected elders about something, accept their word with faith and try to fulfill what they told you. If you become lazy and fail to do it, do not, however, stop asking them again, condemning yourself and humbling yourself. And never forget this good deed: will the Lord finally give some elder such a word that will inflame your inner being and turn your heart entirely to God. 57. If you fall into carnal sin, and the person with whom you sinned is close to you, get away from that place, for otherwise it is hardly possible for you to leave sin behind. 58. If you see your brother sinning with your eyes, and your thought says to you: condemn him. Open this thought and tell it: anathema to you, Satan! You are to blame, and my brother, what did you do? And confirm your heart not to judge your brother, for otherwise God’s mercy will depart from you. 59. If a brother condemns a brother before you, be careful not to irritate him even more by saying: yes, it is so. But either be silent, or tell him: I myself am condemned and cannot judge another, and in this way you will save both yourself and him. 60. When you walk, keep your hands at your waist and do not wave them, as is typical for the laity. 61. When, in the weakness of the flesh, you ask someone for something, and he does not give it to you, do not grieve at him, but rather say: if this were useful for my soul or if I were worthy to receive it, then God would inspire my brother to give it to me. 62. May our Lord Jesus Christ establish you, child, in His fear, may He strengthen you to do His all-holy will and may He make you worthy of His kingdom, so that you do not hear the terrible decision: I know you not, depart from Me, all you who despise My commandments (Ps. 6:9; Matt. 7:23; Luke 13:27). You might be interested in: