Chapters on Prayer

Sometimes, to get more tired, sit on a bench, sometimes on a bed, but rarely, in moderation and only for rest; you must patiently remain in the sitting position according to the following remark of Scripture: they [the apostles] were constantly in prayer (see: Acts 1:14). One should not get up quickly due to negligence, because of painful sadness, mental crying and continuous affirmation of the mind [in prayer]. For behold, says the prophet, sorrow has come upon us, torment, like a woman in labor (Jer. 6:24). Therefore, with your head down and your mind gathered in your heart, if, of course, it is open, call on the Lord Jesus for help. Working [in prayer] and often feeling pain in your head and shoulders, bear it, seek the Lord in your heart with tension and jealousy. The Kingdom of Heaven is taken by force, and those who use force take it away (Matthew 11:12). With these words, the Lord rightly emphasized the importance of these 1 works, since remaining in them with patience is the mother of diseases of the soul and body. 2. How should the prayer be read? Some of the fathers said [the prayer] like this: Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me; others [read] half of it: Jesus, Son of God, have mercy on me, which is easier due to the powerlessness of the mind. From himself, without the [Holy] Spirit, no [person] can call on the Lord Jesus purely and completely, unless he prays in the Holy Spirit, babbling more like a baby, unable to utter [words] separately. However, one should not often change the invocation of names out of laziness, but [it is important] to pronounce them with consistency and for a long time. Moreover, some teach to say the prayer orally, others mentally. I believe - in one and the other [way], because sometimes, due to exhaustion, the mind is not able to utter a prayer, sometimes the lips. For this reason, one must pray in two ways: both with the lips and with the mind. One must cry out quietly and calmly so that the voice, confusing the feeling and concentration of the mind, does not interfere with prayer. Until the mind, having become accustomed to [this] matter, receives strength from the Spirit and is perfected, until then it learns to pray undividedly and firmly. Then, [that is, in the power of the Spirit], there will be no need to say [the prayer] verbally, and it is impossible, because there is enough strength to perform the [prayer] exercise with just a healthy mind. 3. How should one keep the mind [from wandering]. Know that no one on his own can restrain himself with his mind (from absent-mindedness) unless he is restrained by the Spirit. As always moving, the mind is not unstable by nature, but is disposed to rotate due to our carelessness and from the beginning [of the Fall] has acquired a tendency towards absent-mindedness. When we, by breaking the commandments, separated from God, who regenerated us [in baptism], then we interrupted our unity with Him, and in our feelings we [lost] our rational sense of Him. Hence, the mind that has deviated and moved away from God is everywhere as a captive, and cannot establish itself [in the heart] otherwise than if it does not submit to God, does not put itself [depending] on Him, does not unite joyfully with Him, and unless it prays to Him often and intensely. Let the mind 2 each time, mentally confess what it falls into, immediately to the Forgiver of all, to those who contritely and humbly ask for forgiveness and always call upon His holy name. [Not without reason, David] says: “Confess the Lord and call on His holy name” (see: Ps. 105:1). Constriction of breathing when closing the lips keeps the mind [from distraction], but only partially; [then] it dissipates again. So, when the effect of prayer comes [in the heart], then it will completely keep the mind near itself, will delight it and will not allow it to be captured. However, it also happens that 3 the mind and thought of the one praying and established in the heart wanders, worrying about strangers 4 . Thought is subject to no one except those who are perfect in the Holy Spirit and who have achieved undistractedness [of mind] in Christ Jesus. 4. How to eliminate thoughts. None of the beginners will ever expel a thought unless God removes it. Only the strong tend to fight thoughts and reject them. But even these do not drive them out on their own, but move to resist them with God, as if clothed in His full armor. But you, when thoughts come, continually and diligently call on the Lord Jesus, and they will run away, unable to bear the warmth of the heart that comes from prayer, and will dissipate, as if scorched by fire. In the name of Jesus, says Climacus, scourge your enemies, because our God is a fire that destroys evil. The Lord, quick to help, will soon take vengeance for those who cry to Him with all their souls day and night. He who does not have the effect of prayer overcomes thoughts in a different way. God drives them away from him when he, imitating Moses, stands up and turns his hands and eyes to him (see: Ex. 17:11), then, sitting down again, patiently begins to say a prayer. This method is used by those who have not acquired the power of prayer. But prayer 6 is also powerful in influencing bodily passions—I mean fornication and despondency—cruel and heavy passions—often standing up, [prayerfully] stretching out his hands in order to protect himself from them. However, out of [fear of] delusion, he does not do this for long and sits down again, so that the enemy does not deceive his mind by showing some image of truth in the sky, since having a mind, even safe from falling, above, below, and in the heart, and everywhere keeping it intact is characteristic only of one pure and perfect. 5. How to sing psalms. Some say that [you should sing] little, others that you should sing a lot, and still others that you should not sing at all. To avoid confusion, do not sing often, nor do you stop singing altogether due to subsequent relaxation and carelessness, but imitate those who sing a little, because moderation in everything is the best, according to the unwise sages. It is appropriate to sing a lot for those going through an active life due to their ignorance [of contemplation] and as a result of work, but not for those who are silent, who have enough strength to be in God alone and, praying to Him with all their hearts, refrain from thoughts. According to Climacus, silence is the deposition of thoughts about sensory and mental objects. Having spent all its strength on prolonged psalmody, the mind relaxes and is not able to pray strongly and patiently. At night, said Climacus, devote yourself more to prayer and less to psalmody. This is what you should do too. When you notice that prayer is active in you while you are sitting 7 [on the bench] and is continuously moving in your heart, never leave it until a certain time in order to get up to sing, until it providentially leaves you. Otherwise, leaving God inside, you will stand and conduct a conversation with Him outside, deviating from the heights to the earthly. In addition, you will create confusion [in the soul] and take the mind out of [the state of] peace. By its name, silence finds and work is carried out in peace and silence, especially since God is peace, rising above noise and confusion. Our singing, in accordance with the structure of life, should also be not carnal, but angelic. Singing with an exclamation of the voice symbolizes a mental cry and is given to us in case of carelessness and [spiritual] coarseness to renew the true mood. Only those who do not know that prayer, according to John Climacus, is a source of virtues, feeding the strength of the soul, like plants, it is appropriate to sing a lot, without measure, and always be busy with many varied exploits, until they grow in contemplation from extremely intense activity and acquire mental prayer operating within them. In general, the activity of silence is different and the activity of community is different. Everyone who remains in what he is called to will be saved. Therefore, I am afraid to write because of the weak, seeing that you are among them. Anyone who prays patiently 8 according to hearing or [book] teaching, without obtaining a guide, ruins [his work]. He who has tasted grace should, according to the fathers, sing moderately, practicing more in prayer, and while relaxing, sing or read the active [chapters] of the fathers. The ship does not require oars when the wind inflates the sails, since this wind provides a favorable breeze for easy navigation of the salty sea of ​​passions. When stopped in a calm state, [the ship] is set in motion by oars or a boat. Some, as an objection, refer to the holy fathers, or at least to the well-known 9 of them, in the sense that they performed all-night standing and kept incessant psalmody. With this, in the light of 10 Scriptures, we answer: not all ascetics are perfect, either due to a lack of zeal or due to poverty of strength. The small for the great is in any case not insignificant, and the great for the small is not completely perfect. Therefore, not always - now or long ago, figures - and not everyone followed the same path or always firmly adhered to it to the end. Many from active life came to contemplation and stopped all [things], keeping 11 Sabbaths according to the spiritual law, and rejoiced in God alone, being satisfied by the grace of Divine food, which did not allow them to sing or practice anything else [except prayer]. They, having already partially reached the edge of desires, were at times in amazement, as if in the form of a guarantee [of eternal bliss]. Others were saved by activity until the end [of life], calming down in anticipation of future reward. Some were confirmed [of salvation] at their death, or after death exuded a fragrance as evidence of their salvation. [These are those] who, like everyone else, having the grace of baptism, thanks to ignorance and the captivity of their minds, while they lived, did not experience 12 [tangible] mysterious communion with God. Others are distinguished by their skill in both, that is, in singing and prayer, and thus spend their lives, possessing abundant grace as ever moving and not encountering obstacles in anything. Others in particular remained silent until the end. As if they were the only ones united with the One God, they, being simpletons, found complete contentment in prayer. Those who are perfect, as we have said, are able to do everything through Christ who strengthens them, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. 6. To someone who asks about curbing the belly. What can I say about the womb - the king of passions? If you can kill him or make him half-dead, do not cut him any slack. It has subjugated me, beloved, and I, as its slave and tributary, serve it, the collaborator of demons and the receptacle of passions. Through him our fall occurs and through him our uprising occurs when it obeys good discipline. Through him we fell from the first and second Divine dignity, because, having been corrupted from the beginning, we are again restored in Christ. And now they have again become alienated from God by neglecting His commandments, which protect and increase grace in the perfection of [the soul]. Without knowing it, we are deceived into thinking that we are with God. Bodies have many differences in nutrition, as the fathers said. One [person] requires little, another requires a lot to maintain his natural strength. Everyone is content with food according to strength and habit. However, the silent one must always be hungry 13 without being satisfied. When the belly is burdened and the mind is clouded due to this, then [a person] is not able to say the prayer intensely 14 or purely. Under the influence of 15 fumes from many dishes, he tends to sleep, strongly desires to lie down quickly, and thanks to this 16 in his sleep, countless fantastic images attack his mind. In view of this, for those who wish to receive salvation and for the sake of the Lord force themselves to live in silence, as I think, ¾ pound of bread is enough, water or wine - three or four cups daily; One should eat little by little from all incidentally available nutritious foods, avoiding satiety, so that by such wise consumption [of food, namely] tasting all [foods], one can move away from pride and, thanking God for everything, not show disdain for God’s creations, which are very beautiful. This is the reasoning of the prudent. For those who are weak in faith and soul, it is more beneficial to abstain from food 17. The apostle also commanded them to eat grains (see: Rom. 14:2), because they do not believe that God will preserve them. What can I tell you? You looked for rules [in nutrition], but it is very difficult for you, the old one. Young people can maintain weight and measurements in food. How can you keep that [rule]? When eating, you should observe freedom in everything. If you are overcome [by gluttony], repent, begin [to correct yourself] again and do not stop doing this every time, falling and rising, always reproaching yourself and not another, and you will have peace, wisely, according to the Scriptures, achieving victory through falls. However, do not overstep the boundaries that we outlined before, and it will be enough for you, since other foods do not strengthen the body as much as eating bread and water. That’s why the prophet, not counting anything else, said: “Son of man, eat your bread by the weight and drink your water by the measure” (see: Ezek. 4:9 et seq.). Nutrition 18 has three limits: abstinence, contentment and satiety. Abstinence is expressed 19 in the feeling of hunger even after eating; contentment is expressed in not starving or being burdened; satiety is in a slight burden [of food]. After being full, eating is the door of gluttony, through which fornication enters. But you, having carefully understood what has been said 20, without transgressing boundaries, choose the best according to your strength, because, according to the apostle, it is characteristic of those who are perfect to be satisfied and hungry, and to be strong in everything (see: Phil. 4:12–13). 7. About beauty and many things. Look, I want you to know exactly about delusion, to beware of it, and so that, led by ignorance, you do not seriously harm yourself and destroy your soul. The free choice of man is easily inclined towards association with enemies, especially among the inexperienced, as those most persecuted by them. Near and around newcomers and self-willed demons usually deploy networks of thoughts and disastrous dreams and [prepare] ditches of downfalls, since their [spiritual] city is under the rule of foreigners. And one should not be surprised if one of the inexperienced is deceived or falls into a frenzy of mind 21, or accepts and accepts delusion, or sees something alien to the truth, or speaks inappropriately due to inexperience and ignorance. Others, often expounding on the truth, ignorantly and imperceptibly saying one thing instead of another, are unable to correctly say how [this or that] matter stands. He frightens many, and brings censure and laughter to the silent ones with his insane activities. And there is nothing surprising in the fact that some beginner, after much work, falls into delusion. This has happened to many who seek God now and before. The memory of God, or mental prayer, is higher than all types of activity. She, like the love of God, is the head of virtues. But one who shamelessly and arrogantly desires to enter God and purely confess Him and who strives to acquire Him in himself, if allowed [from above], is easily killed by those - I mean demons - since he who arrogantly and boldly seeks something that does not agree with his personal 22 state is drawn vainly to achieving [the sought-after] prematurely. The Lord, who takes pity on people, often paying attention to how daring we are in [self-]exaltation, does not allow us to be tested, so that everyone, having recognized his own conceit, returns [to true asceticism] himself and before he becomes a disgrace 23 and a laughing stock for demons and weeping for people, especially when someone seeks this wondrous thing with long-suffering, humility, and most of all with submission and asking the experienced, so that unnoticed you would not reap thorns instead of wheat, or bitter instead of sweet, and you would not find destruction instead of salvation. The strong and perfect are the ones who always fight against demons and constantly stretch out the spiritual sword against them, which is the word of God (see: Eph. 6:17). The weak and beginners use reverent flight as a fortress, avoid single combat with fear and, not venturing into it prematurely, thereby save themselves from death. But you, if you successfully remain silent and expect to be with God, never accept anything sensual or spiritual that appears outside or inside [you], even if the image of Christ or apparently an angel, or the appearance of a saint, or [at least] light shines through your mind and is dreamily imprinted. The mind itself has a natural ability to dream. He can easily build images of what he seeks from those who do not carefully listen to this and [thus] causes harm to himself. Such recollection of good and evil usually suddenly forms mental images and leads to daydreaming. Hence [such a person] 27 arbitrarily 28 becomes a dreamer, and not a silent one. Therefore, be careful whether you believe something because you are quickly carried away, before asking and doing a lot of research, even if it seems good, so as not to receive harm. Always remain indignant at dreams, 29 keeping your mind constantly colorless, formless and formless. Often many were harmed and sent by God to test for the crown. Our Lord wants to test where our free choice tends. But he who sees something mentally or sensually and accepts it without [the advice of] experienced people, even if [the appearance was] according to the will of God, is easily deceived or will be deceived in the future, as one who perceives [everything] thoughtlessly. The beginner needs to be attentive to the activity of the heart, as if it is not deceptive, but not to accept anything else until the moment of pacification of passions. God is not indignant at the one who, strictly paying attention to himself, in order to avoid delusion, will not accept [signs] from Him without asking [experienced people] and much research, but rather praises him as wise, although he was indignant at some. However, not everyone should be asked, but one who is entrusted with the management of others, who shines in life and, being, according to Scripture, poor, enriches many (see: 2 Cor. 6:10). There were many inexperienced [leaders] who harmed many foolish ones, for whom they will stand trial after death. [The right] to lead others does not belong to everyone, but only to those who have been given divine reasoning, or, according to the Apostle, discernment of spirits (1 Cor. 12:10), dividing the word worse from the best with the sword. Everyone has his own reason and natural active or scientific reasoning, but not everyone [has] spiritual [reasoning]. Therefore, the wise Sirach said: Let those who live with you in the world be many, and let one of the thousand be your advisor (Sir.6:6). It is no small task to find a leader who is not mistaken either in words, or in deeds, or in thoughts. Whether someone is free from delusion is determined by whether he has evidence from the Divine Scriptures for his activity and his understanding of it, being humble in what he must reason about. Clearly comprehending the truth and being clean from what is incompatible with grace is no small task, because the devil usually shows his charm in the form of truth, especially to beginners, and transforms his insidiousness into the spiritual. As a result, one who diligently strives in silence to achieve pure prayer must go to [his goal] by asking experienced ones and in great trepidation and sadness, continuously mourning his own sins, grieving for them and fearing [hellish] torment, falling away from God and separation [from Him] now and in the future [age]. When the devil sees someone living in mourning, he does not hesitate there, fearing 32 the humility produced by crying. If someone with conceit dreams of achieving something high, having acquired a satanic and not a true desire, then [Satan] easily entangles him, as his servant, 33 with his nets. Therefore, keeping oneself in prayer and crying is the greatest weapon against falling into conceit from the joy of prayer, but, having chosen consoling sadness for oneself, to keep oneself unharmed. Prayer, free from [Jesus’] delusion, casting fire on the earth of our heart, is accompanied by warmth, burning passions like thorns, and creating silence and joy in the soul. Warmth comes not from the right or left side, not from above, but flows into the heart like a source of water from the life-giving Spirit. Desire to find it alone in your heart and to own it, always keeping your mind dreamless, naked from reasoning and thoughts, and do not be afraid, because He who said: Be of good cheer: it is I, do not be afraid (Matthew 14:27) - He Himself, Whom we are looking for, is with us and invariably protects us. When we call on God, we should not fear or complain. If some, having lost their reason, have become seduced into delusion, then know that they suffered this out of self-will and pride. And in obedience with questioning and humility, one who seeks God will never be harmed by the grace of Christ, who desires all people to be saved. If a test happens to such a person, then it arises and is allowed to evaluate and crown it and is accompanied by the quick help of God through the means known to Him. Whoever lives correctly and treats others impeccably, avoiding man-pleasing and arrogance, [against] even the entire regiment of demons raised countless trials, would not harm him, as the fathers say. Those who move arrogantly and willfully [in life] are easily exposed to harm. Therefore, the silent one must always adhere to the royal path. Usually, excess in everything is unhindered by conceit, which gives way to charm. In prayer, moderate not only the breathing of the nostrils, as the inexperienced do, but also the breathing of the mind by some closing of the lips to prevent harmful arrogance. There are three virtues of silence that should be carefully preserved and hourly recognized whether we always preserve them, so that somehow, robbed of oblivion, we do not begin to walk in life outside of them. They are as follows: abstinence, silence and self-abasement, that is, humility, generating and protecting each other. From them prayer arises and continually increases. The beginning of the action of grace in prayer is revealed differently in different people, since in us, in the words of the Apostle, the diverse division of the gifts of the Spirit according to His will is noticed and recognized (see: 1 Cor. 12:11), revealed in us in the image of Elijah the Thesbite 34 . Namely, the spirit of fear comes to some, destroying the mountains of their passions and crushing their cruel hearts like stones, so that from fear their flesh is, as it were, nailed with nails and becomes dead. In others, shock or joy appears, which the fathers very clearly called leaping. And among the first [this leaping] is also found inside as immaterial and essential, but it itself is impersonal, insignificant and sensually indefinite. For others, especially those who have perfected themselves in prayer, God produces a subtle, peaceful and complete breath of light when Christ, according to the Apostle, mysteriously dwells in the heart (see: Eph. 3:17) and manifests itself in the spirit. Therefore, on Mount Horeb God told Elijah that the Lord is not in this or that, not in the private actions of beginners, but in a subtle breath of light - there is the Lord, who showed the perfection of prayer. Question: What will someone do when a demon transforms into an angel of light and deceives a person? Answer: Because of this [phenomenon], a person needs a lot of prudence in order to recognize the difference between good and evil. Do not frivolously trust 35 to the images that present themselves quickly, but, being slow, accept the good and reject the bad with much testing. You must first evaluate and consider, and then believe. Know that the actions of grace are obvious, and although the demon changes, it cannot arouse meekness, friendliness, humility, hatred of the world, or the cessation of [carnal] pleasures and passions, which constitutes the action of grace. The demonic 36 actions [are]: pride, arrogance, intimidation and all kinds of evil. By these actions you can recognize whether the light that has shone in your soul is from God or from Satan. Friedax is similar in taste to mustard and vinegar is similar in color to wine. But by tasting the larynx recognizes and determines the difference between each [of these things]. Likewise, the soul, if it has reasoning, can, through the sense of the mind, cognize the gifts of the Holy Spirit and the illusory dreams of Satan. The scientific merit of the Slavic and Russian translations of the works of St. Gregory of Sinaite From the 14th century to the present day, only five works of St. Gregory of Sinaite have survived. Their original text is Greek. In the 150th volume of the Ming Patrology, published in 1865, they are entitled as follows: 1. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. 2. Τοῦ αὐτου ἕτερα κεφάλαια. 3. Τοῦ αὐτου εἴδησις ἀκριβὴς περὶ ἡσυχίας καὶ προσευχῆς. 4. Τοῦ αὐτου περὶ ἡσυχίας καὶ δύο τρόπων τῆς προσευχῆς. 5. Τοῦ αὐτου περὶ τοῦ πῶς δεῖ καϑέζεσϑαι τὸν ἡσυχάζοντα εἰς τὴν εὐχὴν καὶ μὴ ταχέως ἀνίστασϑαι 37. The creations of the monk contain invaluable lessons that determine the normal course of life of ascetics - activists and contemplatives. In 1824, on the pages of the 16th book of the magazine “Christian Reading”, for September, a translation into Russian of the work of St. Gregory “Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος” was first published. The author of the translation is unknown. Following this, in the second half of the 19th century, the Athonite Panteleimon Monastery, in a series of books “Philokalia”, translated by Saint Theophan from Greek into Russian, published three works of Saint Gregory of Sinaite: “Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος”, “Περὶ ἡσυχίας καὶ δύο τρόπων τῆς προσευχῆς”, “Πῶς δεῖ καϑέζεσϑαι”. In addition to the two aforementioned Russian translations, we also know the Slavic translation of all five works of Saint Gregory of Sinaite, made by the famous Russian ascetic Venerable Paisius Velichkovsky. It was published at the Moscow Synodal Printing House in 1793. Reprints of it were published twice: in 1822 and 1832 under Metropolitan Philaret of Moscow 38 . The following must be said about the scientific merit of Saint Theophan's translation. The great reclusive saint, with his translation work, in fact, pursued not strictly scientific interests, but the satisfaction of the moral needs of the wide mass of believers of various levels of mental development. “Our collection,” notes St. Theophan the Recluse in the preface to the fifth volume of “The Good Love,” which he translated, “has in mind not mental, but almost exclusively active life” 39 . The quoted words of the saint correspond to the critical review of his famous biographer P. A. Smirnov about the Russian “Philokalia”, which says: “The translation of the “Philokalia” made by the Right Reverend Theophan is free, free, and it can rightly be called a paraphrase of the original” 40. Satisfying precisely the needs of the believing soul, St. Theophan actually gave society in the Russian “Philokalia” a clear, but at the same time too simplified in content and phraseology, inaccurate translation of the works of St. Gregory. The translation techniques of Saint Theophan in handling the original text of the works under consideration are characterized by significant freedom. In the work “Περὶ ἡσυχίας καὶ δύο τρόπων τῆς προσευχῆς” the saint left the entire first chapter completely untranslated. He often presents the thoughts of St. Gregory briefly. In order to maintain the count of 137 chapters in the work “Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος,” he often translates one or two initial phrases of a particular chapter, and the rest is deliberately omitted. Thus, in the discussion of Saint Gregory of Sinai about Eden, Saint Theophan omitted details concerning the vegetation and irrigation of Eden 41 . For clarity, he paraphrases the reverend’s obscure remark about the reasons for the biblical designation of words about things with the term “thoughts” and thoughts with the term “words” 42 . The pages of his translation do not contain excerpts from the teachings of St. Gregory about the multi-significant structure of the human body and the laws of bodily activity 43, about the nature of demons and their relationship to people 44 and the philosophical characteristics of the “divine orator, philosopher, scribe” 45 are completely omitted. From the long tirade of St. Gregory of Sinaite: “...μετεωροπορίαν τοῦδε τοῦ παντόσ, ἔκστασιν διανοίας ἐν πνεύματι ὁλικὴν τῶν αἰσϑήσεων, ἁρπαγὴν νοὸς τῶν οἰκείων δυνάμεων, ψυχῆς κίνησιν ἀγγελικὴν ϑεοκίνητον πρός τε τὸ ἄπειρον καὶ τὸ ἄναντες κινουμένην..." - St. Theophan keeps in translation only these words: "... in the spirit there is a complete frenzy and a God-moving angelic soul excitement" 46. The advice of St. Gregory of Sinaite on the position of the body of the silent when performing the Jesus Prayer, comments on the 6th verse of the 11th chapter of Ecclesiastes and thoughts on the consequences of improper breathing of the person praying 47 are also omitted by St. Theophan. When transmitting into Russian the contents of the first chapter of the creation “Πῶς δεῖ καϑέζεσϑαι,” the saint limits himself to some general phrases, and in chapter 3 of the same work the words: Πλὴν ἔστιν ὅτε τοῦ νοὸς προσευχομένου καὶ ἐν καρδίᾳ ἱσταμένου, καὶ ἡ διάνοια ῥέμβεται, ἄλλα μελετῶσα – concisely translates with the phrase: “It happens, however, even after this there is a soaring of thoughts” 48. Following his goal, Saint Theophan the Recluse, in translating the works of St. Gregory of Sinaite, did not always comply with the requirements of literalness, arbitrarily cutting off the translated passages and preserving in them only freely conveyed thoughts. To illustrate, we present a number of Greek phrases that are missing in Bishop Theophan’s translation: …Τῆς ὑψηλὸς λίαν, ὡς εἶναι τρίτον ἕως οὐρανοῦ, καϑὼς οἱ ἱστορήσαντες φάσκουσι… Οὔτε οὖν τελείως ἐστὶν ἄφϑαρτος, οὔτε πάντῃ φϑαρτός 49 . Ἔϑος γὰρ τῇ Γραφῇ ἁπλῶς περὶ τῶν τέως ἀπόρων ποιεῖν τὴν κατάφασιν καὶ ἀρεριέργως 50 . …Ταπείνωσις, ἡ τῆς ἀγάπης ἀρχὴ… 51 → τὸ ζωτικὸν συγκέκραται πνεῦμα. Ἀρρωστεῖ γὰρ κυρίως ὁ ἄνϑρωπος, ὅτε τὴν γενικὴν τῶν παϑῶν ἀσϑένειαν ἐπιφέρει, ἐν τῷ νοσοκομείῳ τῆς ῥᾳϑυμίας ἀεὶ κατακείμενος 52. As for individual Greek words and entire expressions from the original of the works of St. Gregory that were not translated by the saint, examples of such omissions can be indicated in many places in the Greek text of the works. In the work “Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος” the following chapters have omissions: 8 (released by χωρὶς χυμοῦ); 10 (issued διηνεκῶς and starting with the words ὅϑεν διερχόμενος to the end of the chapter); 11 (issued by φασίν; ἀνϑρώπῳ; κἂν φϑαρτὸν φέρῃ σῶμα διὰ τὴν πρόσκαιρον ζωήν); 29 (issued ἄποιος and περιχώρησιν); 30 (issued ἀπερίγραπτος γάρ); 39 (issued from the words ὥσπερ γὰρ ἡ νὺξ ὑπνῶσαι until the end of the chapter); 41 (issued πρὸς συμπλήρωσιν); 47 (issued from the words ἢ τυχὸν καὶ καϑαρϑεῖσα to the words ἡ κατ᾿ ἄλλην and from the words μηδενὸς τῶν ἐν τοῖς until the end of the chapter); 58 (issued by ἡνωμένα and from the words of ἔρως δὲ ὁ διττός until the end of the chapter); 67 (issued ὥσπερ καὶ τῶν πραγμάτων οἱ λόγοι καὶ τὰ νοήματα); 69 (issued from the words αἴτιοι δὲ εἰσι until the end of the chapter); 70 (issued with the words εἰ γὰρ καὶ πέπτωκεν until the end of the chapter); 71 (issued ἐγρηγορότως); 78 (issued with the words τὰ μὲν σωματικά until the end of the chapter); 81 (issued from the words νόμος φυσικός to the words ζητητέον δὲ τίνι; from the words διὰ τὴν ἀρρήτως to the words ἡ ψυχὴ γὰρ καϑ᾿ αὑτὴν; from the words ὅτε γὰρ συνεφύρησαν); 82 (issued ἐπικρατείᾳ τῆς φϑορᾶς); 85 (issued ἐν τοῖς φυσικοῖς; τῶν ϑεολόγων); 86 (issued from the words ὥστε δύνασϑαι to the words καὶ ὅτε ἡμῖν δοϑῇ); 87 (issued by εἴτ᾿ οὖν μειονεξία); 89 (issued ὥσπερ τι κέντρον and from the words ὑποκείμενον γάρ ἐστιν until the end of the chapter); 90 (issued from the words ἔϑος γὰρ τὰ ϑεῖα until the end of the chapter); 92 (issued from the words εἴπερ τύπος to the words ἐπειδὴ ὀλίγοις λίαν); 93 (issued by κατὰ Παῦλον; μάλα σοφῶς and from the words of ἱερουργία γὰρ κυρίως until the end of the chapter); 94 (issued καὶ διαφόρως; ἐκ τεσσάρων εἰδῶν); 110 (issued ἀδιορίστως; ταλαίπωρον); 115 (issued νεανικῶς and from the words ὄντως καὶ χείρων to the words γῆν δὲ καὶ ᾅδην); 118 (issued νεκρὸς ἐκ πάντων γένηται); 122 (issued from the words καὶ γὰρ καὶ οὐρανὸς to the words ἐπειδὴ γὰρ; issued ὀμφαλοῦ; ἄβυσσου; δύνων; ἕρπων; πάλην and from the words τὰς παρατάξεις αὐτοῦ to the words ὁ δὲ ἄρχων); 123 (issued from the words καὶ τὰ μὲν πνεύματα εἰσὶν ὑλώδη until the end of the chapter); 124 (issued τὰ παρὰ φύσιν); 126 (issued with the words χρὴ γὰρ τὸν ἐρωτῶντα until the end of the chapter); 129 (issued καϑὼς καὶ ἐκλήϑητε; ἀμιγῶς); 131 (issued ὅν τινα τρόμον καὶ κλόνον ψυχῆς); 133 (issued from the words οὔτε γὰρ κατ᾿ ἐκείνους to the words δηλοῖ δὲ καὶ ἐμφαίνει); 134 (issued from the words ὡς τοὺς λόγους τῶν ἀρχετύπων until the end of the chapter); 135 (issued from the words οἳ καὶ ὡς μὴ εἶναι to the words τὰ τρία ταῦτα πάϑη). The same incompleteness of content characterizes the chapters of the second work of St. Gregory of Sinaite translated by Saint Theophan: 3 (released by ὅτι δὲ ὀφείλεις κρατεῖν τὴν ἐκπνοήν μάρτυς; according to καὶ τὸν ἔμφυτον λόγον before the words τῶν ἐντολῶν δέ ὡς); 5 (issued from the words ἀλλὰ μόνην τὴν εὐχὴν to the words ἔστι δὲ ἡ λύσις; issued δὲ μὴ παραδεχόμενοι τοῖς ἐπιστημονικῶς); 10 (released by τούτων καὶ τῦφον ὁρᾶσϑαι τικτόμενον; τὴν αυτοῦ πλάνην ἡγεῖσϑαι βιάζοιτο); 11 (issued ἐπιεικῶς; εὐσταϑῶς; συνετῶς; εὐρύϑμως; λογικῶς); 13 (issued from the words ταύτης οὖν τῆς ἀλληλογενεσιουργίας until the end of the chapter); 14 (issued by ἐν ζεούσῃ προϑυμίᾳ καρδίας; from the words of ἴσως δ᾿ ὅτε καὶ ἀπόνως to the words of ὑπὸ ἀκηδίας εἰς περισπασμοὺς); 15 (issued ὡς ἐν ἅλατη ἠρτυμένην). Finally, in the work “Πῶς δεῖ καϑέζεσϑαι” in the saint’s translation, the chapters are somewhat shortened in comparison with the original text: 2 (issued from the words ὅπερ εὐκολώτερόν ἐστι to the words οὐκ ὀφείλει δὲ συχνῶς); 3 (issued from the words ἐξομολογεῖσϑε γὰρ to the words ὅτε οὖν ἔλϑῃ); 5 (issued from the words ἀποκρινόμεϑα τούτοις to the words διότι οὐ πάντες εἰσὶν; issued ὡς πάντες; ὡς εἴπομεν); 7 (issued from the words καϑορᾶται καὶ γινώσκεται to the words ἔν τισι μέν πνεῦμα; from the words κράτει τὸν ἀνασασμὸν to the words τρεῖς δὲ ἀρεταὶ). In some cases, Saint Theophan, at his own discretion, allowed repetitions, additions and explanations of what was clear without commentary and what did not raise doubts or difficulties. For example, instead of the two words of the 22nd Psalm quoted by St. Gregory of Sinaite, the rod and the club, Saint Theophan the Recluse translates the entire phrase of the psalmist: “Your rod and the club are my mentor” 53 (Ps. 22:4). He translates the Greek concept ἀνείδεος into Russian in two words: “invisible” and “formless” 54. And in general, he often inserts his explanations into the context of the patristic speech. This is his personal explanatory phrase: “[You must say] either Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me, or change [these words] and say [another part of the Jesus Prayer]” 55. Sometimes some brief Greek expression prompts the saint to translate it at length. "Οὐχὶ ταῦτα πράξεις εἰσίν;" - St. Gregory exclaims in one place. And Saint Theophan, instead of these words, makes his own remark, saying: “We do not affirm this, but the fact that, in addition to an active life, mental activity is also required, without which it is impossible to succeed in prayer” 56. Along with arbitrary additions to the text in the translation, there are many sentences with incorrect placement of words that remain with the Slavic construction of speech, allowing one to reinterpret the true meaning of the content of many chapters of the works of St. Gregory the Sinaite. “Anger,” we read in one place in the translation, “is tamed and replaced with cordiality by nothing other than courage and mercy” 57 . Or let’s take for consideration the following phrases of St. Theophan the Recluse: 1. I exist in a smart place for the people of thoughts and thoughts - διάνοιαν τόπῳ 58. 2. [Man] acquired a certain kind of material fatness, calving himself according to rank and action, with which he was effectively qualified - τὴν τάξιν ἢ ἐνέργειαν σωματούμενος, οὗ ἐνεργῶν πεποίωται 59 . 3. Madness is more than virtue, which seems to have such in self-delusion - Ἀπόνοιαν μαλλον, ἢ ἀρετὴν δοκῶν ἔχειν ἠπάτητα 60. In addition to the incorrect placement of words, the translation of St. Theophan is riddled with Slavicisms. When translating the works of St. Gregory of Sinaite, he often used either new word formations that he himself produced, or words borrowed from the Slavic lexicon. These are the concepts: ἱερουργὸς - priest 61, χηρεύοντες ἐκ Θεοῦ - widowed by God 62, ἤρκει - dominated 63, ἡ ἁρμόνια – restoration 64, κυματουμένη – excited 65, ἐνέργεια πράξεως – action of the matter 66, ἡ γεννητικὴ τῶν παϑῶν ἐπικράτεια – passion-generating area 67, κοινωνοῦσι – variably combined 68, ἀνϑρωπαρέσκεια – word of mouth 69, ἀληϑεύουσι – truth 70, γαλήνη – otishie 71, ἀροτῆς – oratay 72, φιλοϋλίας – love 73, ναρκῶσαν – stupefaction 74, οὐλὰς τῶν τραυμάτων – wound ulcers 75, καύσωνα – var 76, τριστάτης – tristat 77, φϑέγγεσϑαι – speaking 78, ἀνάτασιν – prostrate grief 79, ὑψοποιὸς – highly creative 80 . ἀπλανὴς – unlost 85. Such words have not acquired, so to speak, the rights of citizenship in the modern Russian language. They are a kind of archaisms or neologisms, although they do not distort the thoughts of St. Gregory of Sinaite. It would be unfair to classify their use as shortcomings of the entire saintly translation. Saint Theophan the Recluse as a translator has another drawback. He puts inaccurate content into Greek terms and concepts and therefore too freely conveys the meaning of Greek words and phrases into Russian. Thus, the saint translates ἐκυρίευσεν with the word “taken away” 86, σιπόμενα – crumbly or rotting – with the word “falling” 87, αἰνιττόμενος – to hint, to speak in secret – with a verb “indicate” 88, φαίνονται – are – the word “take root” 89. Further, the expression ἢ κόλασιν διδοῦσα - giving over to torment - St. Theophan translates with the words “sending to hell” 90, πνεύματα - spirits - with the concept of “demons” 91, ὑστερεῖται - suffers a deficiency - the word “sins” 92, νόϑους - illegitimate - brings it closer to the concept of “deceitful” 93. Without striving for literal translation, Saint Theophan often allowed freedom in the translation of both individual words and entire sentences. To specifically see how much he sometimes deviates from the original, let’s compare a number of Greek passages and their parallel Russian translation. 1. Λήϑη γὰρ τὴν ϑείαν ἐξ ἀρχῆς μνήμην ἀπώλεσε – Oblivion of God destroys us 94 . 2. Δεῖ δὲ νοεῖν καὶ ἀποκαλεῖν τὰς μὲν ἐντολάς, ἐνεργείς, τὰς δὲ ἀρετάς, ἕξεις. Actions according to the commandments must be understood and called good deeds, and virtues - good dispositions rooted in skill. Likewise, sinful deeds and dispositions differ from each other 95. 3. There are two types of frenzy in the spirit of 96. 4. Τὰ υπάρχοντα ϑελήματα – Desires 97. 5. Τοὺς κόπους γὰρ ἐντεῦϑεν καὶ τοὺς τύπους οὐ τὰς ἀρετὰς κυρίως ἐνεργοῦμεν καὶ ἀπολαμβάνομεν - The largest part of us only have certain similarities of virtues, and not their very essence 98 . 6. Σύγχυσιν μὲν τῷ νοΐ, ϑόλωσιν δὲ τῇ διανοίᾳ – [Passion] clouds the mind, darkens the heart 99 . 7. Ὡς γὰρ δήμιός τίς ἐστι φοβερὸς τοὺς ὑπευϑύνους πολυτρόπως κολάζων, καὶ τὸν ζῆλον ἢ ἔλεγχον ὡς ῥομφαίαν ἄτομον τυραννικῶς ἀπογυμνῶν ἀεὶ φαίνεται – She [conscience], holding the sword of jealousy and reproach naked, tortures the guilty without pity 100. 8. Οὐδ᾿ ἐμεῖν αἷμα δυνηϑείη ποτέ – [Leech] insatiable 101 . 9 . Πῶς οὖν λέγεις χωρὶς πρακτικῆς, τὴν ψαλμῳδίαν προβαλλόμενος μόνον, προσευχὴν κρατῆσαι ἀδύνατον; - How do you think and say that we propose to succeed in prayer without an active life? 102 Often the laconicism of the saint's translation does not embrace the richness of Greek thought. The tendency of Saint Theophan the Recluse to simplify the text as much as possible is often reflected in the accuracy of the translation of not only minor, but also its most significant details. As a result, the translation of the saint, useful as a guide to salvation, is little adapted to the needs of objective science. Undoubtedly, the St. Petersburg Russian text of the work of St. Gregory “Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος”, published in 1824, is more faithful to the Greek original and more scientifically satisfactory. However, here too there are many major shortcomings, such as the translator’s ignorance of patristic terminology and the assignment of inaccurate meanings to ascetic terms. The unknown author of the St. Petersburg translation renders the term προσβολή - preposition - with the words “tide” (chap. 64), “presentation” (chap. 65) and “suggestion” (chap. 76, 79). The concept ἡσυχία - silence - is used in the meaning of “peace” (chap. 83, 99, 106, 107, 110, 111, 113) and “solitude” (chap. 104, 108); ἡσυχάζων – silent – ​​is identified with the concepts of “monk” (chapter 99), “ascetic of peace” (chapter 104) and “silent” (chapter 113). He translates the terms νοερὰ προσευχή - mental prayer - and πλάνη - charm - with the words “spiritual prayer” (chap. 111) and “deception” (chap. 123, 126). Disregarding patristic terminology, the author of the St. Petersburg translation is extremely inaccurate in the translation into Russian of certain commonly used words and expressions. He simultaneously assimilates the word λόγος to mean mind and understanding (chapter 2), χηρεύοντες - widows - translates by participle “not having at all” (chapter 12); ὁλόκληρος δικαιοσύνη - complete truth - brings closer to the concept of “complete perfection” (chapter 32); ϑέωσις - deification - sometimes taken as the concept of “Divinity” (chapter 46); ἔρως and ἀγάπη are translated by the noun “love” (chapter 59), and the expression δεῖ ἀποκαλεῖν and the numeral ἑπτά is mistakenly translated by the words “not to be called” and the numeral “five” (chapter 3, 117). To clearly confirm the extent to which the St. Petersburg Russian text of the work “Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος” does not comply with the elementary scientific requirements of exact correspondence to the original, let us compare several quotes from the Greek and their corresponding translations, taken from the named work. 1. Προσβολῆς ἀνείδεος κίνησις – Imageless representation (chapter 67). 2. Εἶδος ἀρετῆς συμπληροῦσιν - A form suitable for virtue (chapter 84). 3. Ἄνευ πενϑικῆς ἐργασίας καὶ πολιτείας - Without heartfelt contrition (chap. 108). 4. Δι᾿ ὧν αἱ ἀφορμαὶ τῶν παϑῶν τῷ βίῳ τοῖς ἀϑλίοις ἡμῖν ἐπεισῆλϑον - They [fornication and laziness] give the opportunity for passions to intensify in us (chap. 110). 5. Τοὺς μὲν γὰρ λόγους, ἐνταῦϑα, τὰ δὲ πράγματα τῶν μυστηρίων ἐκεῖσε - Here we have the letters of the sacraments, and there the being (chap. 112). 6. Ἡ ἀκολασία… ϑολώσασα τῷ τῶν ἰνδαλμάτων συνουσιασμῷ - Aspiration that disturbed the mind with visual representations (chap. 131). 7. Μεϑ᾿ ἧς ἡ συγκατάϑεσις τῆς ἁμαρτίας - From this comes sin (chapter 64). 8. He [the venerable] made many sons of the Kingdom 104. In these passages of the St. Petersburg translation, the translator’s desire to express himself elegantly and concisely is noticeable. For this reason, he incorrectly conveys the content of Greek phrases in Russian. This is a significant flaw that entails distortion of the original text. The St. Petersburg translation also shortens the Greek original of the creation “Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος”. He omits chapter 11 from it. Because of this, the counting of the Russian translated chapters does not coincide with the Greek counting until chapter 19. Chapter 18 of the said Greek work in the St. Petersburg translation is divided into two chapters - 17 and 18. Only from the Russian translated chapter 19 is the division in the Russian and Greek texts identical. As for the minor abbreviations of the Greek original of the creation “Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος”, they can be indicated in the following translated chapters: 9 (issued περιττωματεῖν καὶ γαυριᾶν); 15 (actually, this issue is in chapter 16) (released by ἐν χειρὶ); 71 (issued from the words ποικίλην οὖν καὶ πολύμορφον to the words ἐναέριοι δαίμονες); 97 (issued πρὸς ἐνέργειαν); 103 (issued ὀπίσω τοῦ νώτου σου); 104 (issued ὡς ὀξεῖαν); 105 (issued by ψυχὴν ϑάλασσα); 125 (issued δράκοντος); 127 (issued ἐκ τούτων; εκείνων); These are the St. Petersburg and Feofanovsky translations of the works of St. Gregory the Sinaite, which are not distinguished by either completeness or accuracy. The translation of the Venerable Elder Paisius Velichkovsky is free from these shortcomings. He translated, with some editions, all five works of St. Gregory of Sinaite, placed in the Patrology of Minya 105. The Monk Paisiy Velichkovsky, in his autobiographical notes, defines the principles that he laid as the basis for his translation works: “To achieve the desired clarity [of Slavic speech], my first duty was to carefully preserve the spelling properly in all words of the singular and plural and did not leave a single word without it, unless by mistake or oblivion; in other words, I used that type of translation that is called literal” 106. Excessive worship of the letter of the Greek text to the point of the desire to keep cases in Slavic speech intact, the arrangement of Greek words and other features of purely Greek phraseological construction imparted considerable intricacy to the Slavic translation in many of its places. Some thoughts of St. Gregory of Sinaite in the Slavic transmission are completely incomprehensible without the help of the Greek original. For example, the following Slavic quotes are unclear: 1. The origin of the royal right paths, that is, similar to the virtues of malice, disappear from the earth and proceed unsuccessfully. 2. Wisdom gives warmth from her breasts about Christ as a baby to return. 3. To have an equivalence to the image existing in Christ will be prenatural deification, then there will be unspeakable suffering. 4. Horror is a hedgehog for those who have understood and united the magnificent glory of spiritual forces, a perfect exaltation. 5. They imagine our mind, but, moreover, they imagine from ourselves and are added by habit to the passions possessed in the soul. 6. Usually, Divine grace transforms, but it is also brought to the same level and to the kindred undeception in those who are able to create things. 7. The most elegant and short way of speaking about the extremes with the environment is shortened, having much breadth 107. When reading such sentences, you can get confused in obscure phrases characteristic of the Slavic phraseology of St. Paisius Velichkovsky. He incompletely expresses the true thought of St. Gregory of Sinaite, using cumbersome constructions of Slavic speech and introducing into it a number of new words, such as mountainous - αναντες 108, naturalistic - φυσιολογικὸς 109, other kinship - ἡ ἀλληλογενεσιουργία 110. Despite the desire to preserve all the Greek verbal nuances on the pages of the translation, the Monk Paisiy Velichkovsky sometimes betrays his translation method. Some Greek expressions are not accurately translated into Slavic. For example, the monk translates the word διαφϑαρεῖσα 111 with two verbal participles: “corrupted” and “fallen to corruption”; the expression Ἱεράρχην ἔχοντες πρὸς τὴν Τριάδα 112 is replaced by a more complete Slavic phrase: “The Priest in the Trinity has the property of the Intercessor”; words ἐπιϑυμητικὸν ἐκκαίουσι, τὸ δὲ διανοητικὸν συγχέοντες 113 assimilates what does not belong to them meaning: “the desirable is liquefied, the violent is outraged, and the verbal is embarrassing.” Further, ἀκρασία 114 has the meaning of “unbridled”, διὰ τὴν ἀδυναμίαν 115 is expressed in the words: “due to weakness and infancy.” However, the presented examples of some lengthiness of speech are rare exceptions in the Slavic translation under consideration. Usually the Monk Paisiy Velichkovsky is lexically brief. He even often leaves untranslated not only individual Greek words, but also entire phrases and chapters containing the original comments of St. Gregory of Sinaite on the texts of the Holy Scriptures, as well as his speech about wet dreams and the rules for the use of alms by the silent. In the work of Saint Gregory of Sinaite “Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος”, the Monk Paisius shortened the chapters: 10 (issued from the words ἔστιν οὖν ὁ τῆς ἐδὲμ until the end of the chapter); 71 (issued from the words ποικίλην οὖν to the expression ἔχει δὲ τὴν αἰτίαν; 73 (issued from the words ἐν ᾧ τὰ ϑηρία τοῦ ἀγροῦ until the end of the chapter); 80 (issued from the words τριαδικὴν ἐν ἑκάστῳ until the end of the chapter); 123 (issued from the words καὶ τὰ μὲν πνεύματα to the words τὰ δὲ κοῦφά τινα; from the words περὶ γὰρ τούτων ἡ Γραφὴ until the end of the chapter, released εἰς πετεινὰ); With the editions, chapters 5 and 7 of the work “Ἔιδησις ἀκριβὴς” were translated into Slavic (in chapter 5 it was released from the words δηλοῖ δὲ τὴν διαφορὰν until the end of the chapter; in chapter 7 - ὅταν καϑ᾿ ὑπερβολὴν γένηται ζέσις, ὥς φασι, τοῦ περὶ καρδίαν αἵματος… καὶ ἄλλος ὁ τῆς κατάρας, διὰ τοῦ Κάιν δοϑεὶς τῷ τῶν ἀνϑρώπων γένει). Chapter 3 of the essay “Περὶ ἡσυχίας καὶ δύο τρόπων τῆς προσευχῆς” (released by καὶ δῆλον ἡ ? chapter 5 of sayings “Πῶς δεῖ καϑέζεσϑαι” (issued by ἐν τῇ πολλῇ ψαλμῳδίᾳ). Chapters 6 and 7 of the work “Ἕτερα κεφάλαια” are completely absent in the Slavic translation. The noted omissions were made by the Monk Paisiy Velichkovsky, undoubtedly, not by accident, but for some of his ascetic reasons, and they cannot be considered a shortcoming of the translation itself. His translation errors are most likely due to excessive literalism or, on the contrary, in some places due to the inaccurate use of Greek terms. Some freedom of treatment of the Greek text by the Monk Paisius is revealed, by the way, when he translates the concept ϑεωρία 116 into the Slavic language with the term “beautiful vision”, ἐκταράττων ϑολοῖ 117 translates it with the word “outrages”, ἔστιν ἰδεῖν γινομένην 118 – with the word “happens”, ἀληϑῶς 119 – with the noun “truth”, μὴ φοβοῦ 120 – with the word “do not be afraid”. Saint Paisius inaccurately translated the following two phrases from Saint Gregory of Sinaite into Slavic: 1. … Ὁ φόβος… εἰσαγωγικὸν καὶ τὸν τέλειον… καὶ τρόμον δεῖ κυρίως καλεῖν... - There is introductory fear, which is also complete and angry, and trembling is truly worthy of being called 121. 2. Καϑαροὶ γεγονότες, τὸν ἀρραβῶνα τοῦ πνεύματος... – Purify having received Christ by betrothal of the Spirit through baptism 122 . Thus, the Slavic translation of the works of Sinaiti is not entirely satisfactory due to the complexity and difficulty of understanding the text. In view of all that has been said, we offer a new experience of a complete Russian translation of the works of St. Gregory of Sinaite, in which special terms adopted in Orthodox ascetic literature are retained. Thus, ἔρως, in contrast to αγάπη - love - we translated the word “jealousy” 123, retained the shades of λογισμός - thought and ἔννοια - thought - and retained in our translation a number of the following Greek terms with a special ascetic meaning: νήψις - sobriety, πλάνη - charm, προσβολή - preposition, ἡσυχία - silence, ἡ νοερὰ προσευχή - mental prayer, σκίρτημα - leaping. Explanatory or implied words in the proposed Russian text of the works of St. Gregory of Sinaite are placed in direct brackets. Bishop Veniamin (in the world Viktor Dmitrievich Milov) was born in Orenburg in 1887. He graduated from the Vyatka Theological Seminary, studied at the Kazan Theological Academy, and completed his education at the Moscow Theological Academy. In 1920, in the Moscow St. Daniel Monastery, on the feast of the Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos, he was tonsured a monk with the name Benjamin, on Bright Week he was ordained a hierodeacon, and in the fall, on the day of remembrance of St. Sergius of Radonezh, by Bishop Peter (Polyansky) - a hieromonk. Upon his elevation to the rank of archimandrite, Father Veniamin was appointed vicar of the Moscow Intercession Monastery, where he spent almost ten years, opposing the reforms of church life introduced by the “progressive clergy” at that time, trying to save the monastery churches and buildings from destruction. Before the monastery was closed, he was exiled to Solovki, where he stayed until 1932. In 1946, Archimandrite Veniamin was enrolled in the brotherhood of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra and headed the departments of patrolology and pastoral theology at the Moscow Theological Academy, and since 1948, after defending his master’s thesis on the topic “Divine love according to the teachings of the Bible and the Orthodox Church,” he became a professor and inspector of Moscow theological schools. In 1949, Father Veniamin was again arrested and deported to Kazakhstan, and after his release in 1954, he served at the parish - in the Elias Church near Serpukhov, Moscow Region. In 1955, Archimandrite Veniamin was consecrated bishop and appointed to the Saratov See. As a strict ascetic, the bishop demanded from the clergy of the diocese a righteous life and deanery in everything. He often celebrated the Divine Liturgy, and the churches were crowded with worshippers. Vladyka stayed at the Saratov See for only six months. On August 2, 1955, on the day of remembrance of the holy prophet Elijah, he died suddenly before the liturgy. A zealous servant of God, a true ascetic, a famous theologian and preacher, His Grace Veniamin was buried in the city cemetery in Saratov. Bishop Veniamin wrote the following works: “The experience of adapting the “Dogmatics” of Metropolitan Macarius (Bulgakov) to the needs of a modern theological school”; “The Fall of Human Nature in Adam and the Rebellion in Christ (according to the teachings of St. Macarius the Great, an Egyptian ascetic of the 4th century)”; "Readings on Liturgical Theology"; “Collected lectures on pastoral theology and asceticism”; “Trinity flowers from the spiritual meadow. From the memoirs of Archimandrite Kronid (Lyubimov), former governor of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra.” One of the Bishop’s first theological works was his candidate’s dissertation “The Life and Teachings of St. Gregory of Sinaite,” written upon graduating from the MTA. Part of it was a new translation from Greek into Russian of five works of St. Gregory. The full translation is published for the first time. St. Gregory’s periodic speech begins with the words “let the mind.” We break it down into sentences. Ἔστιν ὅτε – lit.: it happens when. Ὁ ἔχων τὴν τῆς προσευχῆς ἐνέργειαν – lit.: having the effect of prayer. Ἐν προσευχῇ πάσχων – lit.: patient in prayer. Τινας – lit.: some. Μὴ κοινωνήσαντες – lit.: did not have. Διαφεύγκυσι – lit.: avoid. Ὁ τοιοῦτος – lit.: such. Πρὸς αὐτό – lit.: indignant at that. Τῶν ἐναντίων – lit.: from the opposite. Δειλιῶν – lit.: fearing. Κατά τὸν τύπον Ἠλιοῦ τοῦ Θεσβίτου. Μὴ ἐπιδίδου – lit.: do not indulge. Migne J.-P. Patrologiae cursus completes. Series graeca. Paris, 1865. T. 150. (Hereinafter referred to as PG). See: Life and writings of the Moldavian elder Paisius Velichkovsky. M., 1892. P. 4. Philokalia, 2nd ed. M., 1900. T. 5. P. 180–237. Smirnov P.A. The life and teachings of the Right Reverend Theophan. 2nd ed. M., 1915. P. 374. See: PG. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 10. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 118; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 207, 208. See: PG. Περὶ ἡσυχίας καὶ δύο τρόπων τῆς προσευχῆς. Cap. 2. PG. Πῶς δεῖ καϑέζεσϑαι. Cap. 3; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 218. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 10. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 24. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 16; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 183. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 130; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 213. Πῶς δεῖ καϑέζεσϑαι. Cap. 2; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 217. In the phrase of St. Theophan that we quote, our explanatory words are in direct brackets. Περὶ ἡσυχίας καὶ δύο τρόπων τῆς προσευχῆς. Cap. 2.; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 230. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 13; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 182. Philokalia. T. 5. P. 203; cf.: Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 108. Philokalia. T. 5. P. 210–211; cf.: Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 123. Philokalia. T. 5. P. 237; Wed Περὶ ἡσυχίας καὶ δύο τρόπων τῆς προσευχῆς. Cap. 15. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 7; Compare: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 181. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 12; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 182. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 28; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 185. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 41; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 188. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 64; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 191. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 62; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 190. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 73; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 192 Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 78; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 193. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 79; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 193. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 81; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 194. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 84; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 196. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 93; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 198. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 105; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 202. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 107; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 203. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 108; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 203. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 110; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 204. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 117; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 206. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 118; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 207. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 120; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 209. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 131; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 214. Περὶ ἡσυχίας καὶ δύο τρόπων τῆς προσευχῆς. Cap. 14.; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 236. Πῶς δεῖ καϑέζεσϑαι. Cap. 3; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 224. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 1; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 180. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 10; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 181. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 21; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 184. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 36; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 186. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 40; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 187. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 72; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 192. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 109; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 203. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 121; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 209. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 17; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 183. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 35; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 187. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 59; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 190. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 83; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 195. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 92; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 198. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 125; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 211. Περὶ ἡσυχίας καὶ δύο τρόπων τῆς προσευχῆς. Cap. 6; cf.: Philokalia. T. 5. P. 230. Christian reading. St. Petersburg, 1824. Book. 16. September. PG. Notitia, col. 1237; cf.: Preface to the work of St. Gregory of Sinaite // Christian Reading. 1824. Book. 16. September. P. 114. See: Philokalia, or Words of the main principle of sacred sobriety, collected from the writings of the holy and God-inspired fathers, in which the mind is purified, enlightened and perfect by moral action and contemplation. M., 1832. Biography of Russian ascetics of piety of the 18th and 19th centuries. M., 1907. Book. 9. September. P. 473. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 14, 21, 42, 58, 71, 90; Ἔιδησις ἀκριβὴς. Cap. 2. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 118. Περὶ ἡσυχίας καὶ δύο τρόπων τῆς προσευχῆς. Cap. 13. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 11. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 43. Πῶς δεῖ καϑέζεσϑαι. Cap. 2. Κεφάλαια δι᾿ ἀκροστιχίδος. Cap. 57. Πῶς δεῖ καϑέζεσϑαι. Cap. 7. Περὶ ἡσυχίας καὶ δύο τρόπων τῆς προσευχῆς. Cap. 3. The Monk Paisiy Velichkovsky translates ἔρως with the term “zeal,” and Saint Theophan the Recluse sometimes with the word “zeal,” and sometimes with the concept of “love.”