Venerable Barsanuphius of Optina about the feat of the retreat of St. Theophan

Annotation. A well-known researcher of the spiritual heritage of Theophan the Recluse, Archimandrite. Georgy (Tertyshnikov) called the saint’s retreat the “center” of his spiritual life, where “his great works and exploits appeared in all their might.” A poem by St. Barsanuphius of Optina “In memory of the late Bishop Theophan the Recluse in Bose.” In this poem, the saint speaks about the saint, glorifies his exploits, is edified by his creations and prayerfully honors his memory. The word “blessed” runs through the poem as a refrain, which testifies to the high spiritual life of the ascetic. The poem has four parts, highlighted by the author himself. Several times Rev. Barsanuphius calls the saint's retreat mysterious, hidden from people, but known to God. The purpose of the retreat, as well as of a godly life in general, which the saint also wrote about in his works, is communion with God. The main significance of the literary works of St. Theophan the Venerable. Barsanuphius sees in the spiritual awakening of people, their return to “their native shelter from the region of spiritual exile.” According to the famous researcher of the spiritual heritage of the saint, Archimandrite. Georgy (Tertyshnikov), “the time of retreat is the most important period, one might say, the center of the life of the Right Reverend Theophan, for it was then that his great works and exploits appeared in full force…” [4, p.82]. Poem by St. Barsanuphia of Optina “In memory of the late Bishop Theophan the Recluse in God” († January 6, 1894), dedicated to the spiritual exploits of the saint, is a “wreath on the grave” of the Vyshensky ascetic, which contains an assessment of his exploits given by the spirit-bearing elder of Optina, the bearer of the Optina spiritual tradition, now glorified among the saints. In this poem, the saint speaks about the saint, glorifies his exploits, is edified by his creations and prayerfully honors his memory. In the St. John the Baptist monastery of the Optina Hermitage, St. Barsanuphius wrote several poems dedicated to the memory of the great Russian ascetics, his contemporaries: “In memory of the deceased Elder of Optina Hermitage, Hieroschemamonk Father Ambrose,” “In memory of the Elder of Optina Hermitage, Hieroschemamonk Father Anatoly, the successor and bearer of the old man’s covenants after the death of the Elder Hieroschemamonk Father Ambrosy” (January 25) 1894) and “In memory of the late Bishop Theophan the Recluse in Bose” (+January 6, 1894). Poetic dedications to three famous elders were due to their spiritual community, as well as the author’s desire to tell his contemporaries and descendants about the spiritual significance of their feat for the Russian Orthodox Church. In the poem “In Memory of the Reposed Elder of Optina Pustyn, Hieroschemamonk Father Ambrose in God,” St. Barsanuphius remembers with filial love the elder who blessed him to become a monk. In the poem, the word “blessed” runs through the refrain, which testifies to the high spiritual life of the ascetic, who throughout his life “kept the gospel verb” and was honored to enter the “Abode of eternal beauty, where the Savior reigns in glory.” In a poem dedicated to St. Anatoly (Zertsalov), who, like St. Theophan, died in 1894, St. Barsanuphius, as a witness to the high prayer life of his brother in skete life, writes that Elder Anatoly “... served like a heavenly angel, full of faith before the Lord of Hosts, like a lamp shining among us!”, and asks for the prayers of Elder Anatoly for all at the Throne of the Most High. The poem “In memory of the late Bishop Theophan the Recluse in God” is the most extensive of the poetic dedications to his contemporaries and ascetics. The poem has 4 parts, highlighted by the author himself. In the first part, the feat of St. Theophan is compared with the spiritual feat of St. Ambrose of Optina. The ascetics are called “fighters”, “spiritual giants”, who are contrasted with the sons of the “age of violent spiritual corruption”, whose idol is “gold, earthly pleasures, and not striving for heaven”, as well as materialists who consider the retreat to be fruitless, in their opinion: For beneficial useful work We don't need faith, we need knowledge. The time for aimless, empty contemplation has passed; A different star now guides us, A different lever now moves the world. The second part, one of the most important in terms of meaning, describes the seclusion of St. Theophan. The saint's cell is described in detail, although it is known that St. Barsanuphius had never been there. Wretched poverty, humble simplicity His solitude showed. There are traces of severe deprivation on everything, And there are no objects of vanity in it. Only piles of books are visible everywhere - Great creations of the Holy Fathers, What heavenly aspirations awaken in us, Freeing the spirit from sensual chains. It was this cell that stood as a mute witness to the “silent mystery” of the saint’s seclusion. It can be assumed that Rev. Barsanuphius read the memoirs of an eyewitness who visited the cell immediately after the death of the saint. It was this detailed description of the cell that was given in the article by an unknown author, “In the Cell of a Recluse,” published in April 1894 in the magazine “Soulful Reading” [1]. The uniqueness of these memoirs is that they were written immediately after the death of the saint, when things were being sorted out in his chambers. All the furnishings in the cell at that time were completely intact. Following the author, readers were able to get acquainted for the first time with the internal structure of the cell, which was located on the second floor of the monastery room. “The walls are wooden, without wallpaper, somewhat darkened with age. The furniture and all furnishings are extremely simple and shabby. A cabinet with a square made of simple wood, valued at one ruble... A chest of drawers - two rubles... A simple table, dilapidated... A folding lectern, dilapidated... An iron bed, foldable, priced at one ruble... Birch wood sofas, with tin seats - all worth three rubles gray... Everything else is of the same kind...” [1, p.687]. In the cell there were many things that testified to the saint’s versatile knowledge: two boxes with tools, turning, carpentry, bookbinding, a paint palette and brushes. Photographic apparatus, wood sawing machine, workbench, lathes. Telescope. Two microscopes, an anatomical atlas, six atlases of general, ecclesiastical and biblical geography. The author was amazed by the huge library, which was located in a separate room: “What a huge collection of books! Everywhere there are books, books, whole piles of books... Here is the history of Russia by Solovyov, the world history of Schlosser, the works of Hegel, Fichte, Jacobi... But the overwhelming majority of books are of spiritual content: almost all spiritual magazines, the works of the great fathers and teachers of the church: St. Gregory the Theologian, St. Basil the Great, St. John Chrysostom, Isaac the Syrian, St. Nile of Sorsky, St. Tikhon of Zadonsk, St. Demetrius of Rostov and many, many other great mentors and ascetics... Chetya-Minea and prologues in Greek, Chetya-Minea of ​​St. Demetrius of Rostov... Many books of theological and church-historical content in French, German and English, for example, the Theological Encyclopedia in French in 150 volumes" [1, p. 699]. The works of icon painting written by St. Theophan the Recluse were also described in detail: “The saint loved the sacred art of icon painting and was himself a good artist. Carrying in his soul images of another, higher heavenly world, he apparently wanted to surround himself on earth with their bright reflections. What an abundance of icons and paintings of sacred content! Most, if not all, of them were probably written in his holy hand. “The Crucifixion”, “The Resurrection of Christ”, “The Descent from the Cross”, “The Savior in the Crown of Thorns” - on the canvas, a full-length image of the Savior, a full-length image of the Mother of God on boards, “The Epiphany” - on the canvas, a full-length image of St. Tikhon - slightly unfinished, icons of St. Mitrophania of Voronezh, St. Anthony and Theodosius, St. Alexander Nevsky... and many other paintings and icons on canvas and boards. There are also portraits, for example, of Seraphim of Sarov... The artistic creativity of the deceased especially often returned to two subjects: to the image of St. Tikhon of Zadonsk and the Epiphany” [1, p.699]. Separately, the author describes the “church” of the saint, noting an important detail: “...what is especially touching is that in the altar near the altar, on the wall you can see a bag hanging, all filled with notes to the Right Reverend with requests to remember him in your prayers at the throne of God...” [1, p.700]. The third part of the poem describes the prayerful care of St. Theophan for Russia and serving it with his literary works. “For posterity he left for edification Your creations are great works, The mind of the dispassionate high creature And the fruits of wondrous feats. They are imbued with one desire: Fill our path of life with light And inhale the holy fire of jealousy In us, weakened by passions and doubt. He clarified in them the path of spiritual salvation And showed Christian life Great and wondrous meaning." The fourth part of the poem is filled with deep lyricism and warmth. St. Barsanuphius describes the portrait of the saint, which he carefully examines. The detailed description allows us to say that the portrait of the saint was well known to the Optina brethren. We see the seal of heart purity And meek blissful humility And a reflection of pure thoughts. His features Filled with holy tenderness, They are imbued with spiritual beauty, Seeing them with good thoughts A swarm of heavenly feelings arise in the soul...” Separately, I would like to draw attention to several thoughts of St. Barsanuphius about the shutter. The reason for St. Theophan’s departure into seclusion is called the saving “path of silence,” the “great feat” that the saint accomplished, “submissive to the highest heavenly command,” i.e. by the will of God. The purpose of the retreat, as well as of a godly life in general, which the saint also wrote about in his works, is communion with God. “He gave himself entirely to the Lord And in Him alone is the highest bliss He relied entirely on his soul.” The spiritual fruits of reclusive labor are purification of the heart and communion with God: “Like an Angel, he stood before God And in his pure heart he founded A miraculous and bright abode for Him..." Having achieved communion with God, “he found bliss in silence.” St. Barsanuphius sees the main significance of the literary works of St. Theophan in the spiritual awakening of people, their return to “their native shelter from the region of spiritual exile.” Several times St. Barsanuphius calls the saint’s retreat mysterious, hidden from people, but known to God. St. Barsanuphius himself knew well the life and spiritual structure of St. Theophan; his solitary, reclusive life was close to him. July 28, 1909 St. Barsanuphius’s student Nikolai Belyaev, later the venerable confessor Nikon of Optina, wrote: “Once Father told me that there is a time when a person is tired and incapable of prayer, writing, or reading, then let him do handicrafts, which is what the Right Reverend himself did in practice: he had, it seems, a lathe” [5, pp.265–266]. In February 1909 at the moment of revelation, St. Barsanuphius said to Nicholas, his close disciple and co-secretary: “I’ve already told you, brother Nikolai, more than once and I’ll tell you again: the thought comes to me - to leave everything, go to some cell. Life becomes scary, scary. I’m just afraid to leave on my own and have no one to consult with. If Father Varnava were alive, he would go to him, but he is no longer there. But I’m afraid: I’m afraid, like a sentry is afraid to leave his post - they’ll shoot him. In this situation, you begin to understand the words of the prophet David: “Save me, Lord.” ...If we take only one part of the phrase, then it goes without saying that no one wants destruction and does not say: “Destroy me, Lord.” Everyone can always say: “Save me, Lord.” But he further adds: “Because the monk is impoverished.” There is no one to turn to, “Lord, save me.” Only now does it become clear to me why the saints fled. fathers from the world, but they just fled... I want to run away into the desert too. “Father,” I say, “how can one escape alone?” You can't do it alone... “No,” Father objected very firmly, “no, you can’t do it alone, but you can do it alone with God.” For example, Bishop Theophan tried for a long time and repeatedly to give up everything and go into seclusion, but it was not God’s will. As if in response to his desire, he was moved to the episcopal see in Vladimir. And only a few years later he retired to his dear Vysha... Yes... Someday you and I, Nikolai Mitrofanovich, will be at “!Vysha”? Sooner or later, but it must... What do you say? Yes, that’s right, my friend...” [5, p.226]. The desire for a “mysterious” and great retreat was kept in his heart by St. Optina elder. And he sincerely wished for all monks to find “their Highest,” as he wrote. Apparently, due to some misunderstanding, one of the most profound poems by St. Barsanuphius of Optina, dedicated to the memory of the Vyshensky ascetic, was not included by the compilers in “the most complete edition of the spiritual heritage of Schema-Archimandrite Barsanuphius of Optina,” published in 2012 in Optina Hermitage [3]. Of course, this is a big loss for the publication. 1. In the recluse’s cell // Soulful reading. 1894. Part 1. April. pp.687–702. 2. Barsanuphius of Optina, St. Spiritual heritage. Holy Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius, 2005. 3. Barsanuphius of Optina, St. Conversations. Cell notes. Spiritual poems. Memories. Letters. "Wreath for Father's grave." Ed. Vvedensky stauropegial monastery Optina Pustyn, 2012. 4. Georgy (Tertyshnikov), archimandrite. The life and work of Theophan the Recluse, Bishop of Vladimir and Suzdal. Thessaloniki, 1994. 5. Diary of novice Nikolai Belyaev (Reverend Optina Elder Nikon). M., 2004.