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Whoever uses the lustful power of the soul to enjoy carnal and unclean pleasures is vile and intemperate; but whoever turned it to the love of God and the desire for eternal blessings is worthy of imitation and blessed (1). · How to eradicate the passion of evil lust in yourself? · An ardent desire to do the will of God, similar to that which he discovered in himself who said: the judgments of the Lord are true, all of them together are righteous, more desirable than gold and precious stones and sweeter than honey and honeycomb (Ps. 19:10, 11). For the desire for the best, when there is the opportunity and power to enjoy what is desired, as the holy fathers taught, always forces one to neglect and abhor that which is less important, and even more so that which is bad and shameful (5). Those who practice military affairs, those who engage in physical exercises, tend to strengthen their flesh with an abundance of food in order to take on work with greater strength; but whoever wrestles not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against the Spirits of wickedness (Eph. 6:12), then it is necessary to prepare for the feat by abstinence and fasting. For oil anoints the fighter, and fasting strengthens the ascetic of piety. Therefore, as much as you take away from the flesh, you will give to the soul so that it can shine with spiritual health; because it is not through bodily strength, but through constancy of the soul and patience in sorrow that victory is achieved over invisible enemies (1). It is also necessary to overcome the belly, because the training of the belly is the curbing of passions, and the curbing of passions is the serenity and silence of the soul, and spiritual silence is the most productive source of virtues. The best continence of the womb is that which in everyone is commensurate with bodily strength. For to others, the increased suffering did not seem regrettable and seemed more like relaxation than labor, due to the hardness and inflexibility of their bodily composition and strength. But what was tolerable for such people was the cause of danger for others. For one can find as much difference between one body and another as between copper and iron and trees and bushes. Therefore, one must choose abstinence according to the strength of each one. Thus, the virtues performed by one soul are equally prescribed to everyone. These are: meekness, modesty, humility, kindness, brotherly love, simple-heartedness, love of truth, compassion, courtesy, philanthropy. These virtues are primarily called spiritual, because the body no longer contributes to the soul in acquiring and perfecting them, but only serves as a meeting place for it, where the soul discusses these virtues. Continence for everyone should be determined according to his bodily strength, so as not to stop at what is below the strength that a person has, and not to extend to what is above strength. And I think we need to pay attention to this, so that by excessive abstinence we weaken the bodily strength, and not make the body lazy and inactive for the most important activities. For God, when creating man, of course, did not want him to remain idle and motionless, but to be active in what he should. And in paradise He commanded Adam to cultivate it and preserve it (Gen. 2:15) (although these words are associated with a higher meaning, but in their own meaning they are worthy of jealousy and zeal); after being expelled from there, He determined that he should eat bread by the sweat of his brow (Gen. 3:19). And that what was said to Adam was said to all those born of him is clear from the following: and God determined death as a punishment for Adam, saying: dust you are and to dust you will return (ibid.), but all those born of him became, like him, participants in this disaster. Therefore, one should not make innovations contrary to nature and the regulations of the Benefactor of nature, but, adhering to them, one must keep the body active, never weakening from immoderation (5). First of all, you need to practice abstinence, which serves as a reliable guardian of chastity, and not allow the leader - the mind - to rush here and there. Just as water, locked in pipes, not being able to spill out to the sides under its oppressive force, strives straight upward, so the human mind, when temperance, like a narrow pipe, compresses it from everywhere, without having any opportunity to dissipate, by the nature of its movability will rise to the desire of sublime objects. For it is impossible for him to ever stop, having received from the Creator a nature destined for incessant movement; and if they prevent him from striving towards anything vain, then, of course, it is impossible for him not to go straight to the truth. And we think of defining abstinence in such a way that it is not only abstinence from food (for many of the Hellenic philosophers succeeded in this), but primarily abstinence from wandering the eyes. For what is the benefit if, while abstaining from food, you devour the lust of fornication with your eyes, or willingly listen with your ears to vain and devilish speech? There is no benefit in abstaining from food, but not in abstaining from arrogance, arrogance, vain glory and all passion. Or what is the benefit of observing abstinence in food and not abstaining from evil and vain thoughts? (5) That the law of abstinence is necessary is clear, firstly, from the fact that the apostle ranks abstinence among spiritual fruits (see Gal. 5:23); then from the fact that the apostle attributes success in the integrity of service to abstinence, when he says: in labor, in vigils, in fasting, in purity (2 Cor. 6:5, 6), and in another place: in labor and in exhaustion, often in vigil, in hunger and thirst, often in fasting (2 Cor. 11:27), and again: All ascetics abstain from everything (1 Cor. 9:25). And the mortification and enslavement of the flesh is not accomplished as successfully by anything as by abstinence, because the ebullience of youth and the indomitability of aspirations, as if by some kind of bridle, are restrained by abstinence. Pomp is unbecoming for a fool, according to Solomon (Proverbs 19:10); and what is more unreasonable than flesh devoted to pleasures and whirling youth? Therefore, the apostle says: do not turn cares for the flesh into lusts (Rom. 13:14); and: the lustful one died alive (1 Tim. 5:6). And the example of the rich man’s luxury proves to us the need for abstinence, lest we otherwise hear what the Rich Man heard: you have already received your good things in your life (Luke 16:25). And how terrible intemperance is, the apostle also showed this, classifying it among the distinctive properties of apostasy and saying: in the last days difficult times will come. For people will be selfish, and having listed many types of vice, he added: slanderers, intemperate (2 Tim. 3:1-3). And Esau, as of the greatest vice, is accused of intemperance, because for one meal he gave away his birthright. And the first disobedience happened to a man from intemperance. Yet all the saints have a testimony of their abstinence. The whole life of saints and blessed people and the example of the Lord himself at His coming in the flesh oblige us to it. Moses, with the help of long-term fasting and prayer, accepted the law and heard the words of God, as if he were speaking to his friend (Ex. 33:11). Elijah was then honored with the sight of God when he also achieved an equal measure of abstinence. What about Daniel? When did you achieve extraordinary visions? Isn't it on the twentieth day of fasting? How did the three youths extinguish the fiery power? Is it not abstinence? And for John, the entire direction of life is determined by abstinence. The Lord began His appearance to them (5). We call abstinence, of course, not the complete abstinence of oneself from food (this would be a violent destruction of life), but the abstinence of oneself from sweets, which is acceptable when overthrowing carnal wisdom for a pious purpose. In general, while pleasure is desired for those living in passions, abstinence is necessary for those who are trained in piety. The feat of abstinence does not concern only the pleasure of food, but extends to any elimination of obstacles. Therefore, the one who is strictly abstinent will not gain victory over the belly and at the same time yield to human glory; will not overcome shameful lust and at the same time be enslaved by wealth or some other ignoble disposition, for example, anger, sadness and everything that ignorant souls are usually enslaved by. For what we see in all the commandments, namely, that they hold on to one another and it is impossible to succeed in one separately from the other, the same thing is especially seen in abstinence. He who abstains from the consideration of property fulfills the gospel measure of non-covetousness; one who refrains from irritation and anger is not angry. The strict law of abstinence assigns measure to the tongue, limits to the eyes, unquestioning hearing to the ears. He who does not remain within these boundaries is intemperate and self-willed. Do you see how around this one commandment everyone, like in a round dance, clings to one another? (5) He who is above all passion and does not allow himself any irritation caused by pleasure, but firmly and unflaggingly avoids all harmful pleasure, is a perfect abstinent, and such a person is obviously free from all sin. And sometimes it is necessary to refrain even from what is permitted and necessary for life, when abstinence has in mind the benefit of our brothers. So the apostle says: if food makes my brother stumble, I will not eat meat forever (1 Cor. 8:13), and having the right to live from the gospel, he did not use the right, so as not to put any obstacle to the gospel of Christ (1 Cor. 9:14, 12). So, abstinence is the destruction of sin, alienation from passions, mortification of the body even to the most natural sensations and desires - the beginning of spiritual life, the giver of eternal blessings, destroying the sting of voluptuousness in oneself, because the great bait to evil is voluptuousness, for the sake of which we, people, are most susceptible to sin, by which every soul, like milk, is drawn into death. Therefore, the one who is not ingratiated or weakened by voluptuousness has succeeded in avoiding sins entirely through abstinence. And if he has escaped most of it and is dominated by one, then he is not yet abstinent, just as someone who is troubled by one bodily infirmity is not healthy, and someone over whom there is at least one Master is not free. Other virtues performed in secret are rarely made known to people, but abstinence makes the abstinent person noticeable when you meet him. For just as a wrestler is distinguished by the fullness and good color of the body, so the dryness of the body and the pallor that comes from abstinence prove about a Christian that he really strives in the commandments of Christ, overcoming his enemy in the weakness of the body and showing strength in the exploits of piety, according to what was said: when I am weak, then I am strong (2 Cor. 12:10). How useful is it to see only an abstinent person who barely even touches the necessities of life, as if performing a difficult service to nature, gets bored with the time spent on this, and immediately runs away from the table to get busy with business! I think that no word can touch the soul of someone who is not accustomed to abstaining and lead to correction as much as one meeting with someone who is abstinent. And this, it seems, means eating and drinking to the glory of God (see 1 Cor. 10:31), so that at the meal our good deeds shine to the glorification of our Father in heaven (see Matt. 5:16) (5). Abstinence shows that a person died with Christ and put to death his earthly members (Col. 3:5). And we know that it is the mother of chastity, the vigilante of health and sufficiently removes obstacles to the fruition of good deeds in Christ: since, according to the word of the Lord, the sorrows of this age, the pleasures of life and other lusts choke the word, and it becomes fruitless (Matthew 13:22). Demons also flee from him, as the Lord himself taught us, that this same race is driven out only by prayer and fasting (Matthew 17:21) (5). In mental infirmities, one measure of abstinence is complete alienation from everything that leads to harmful pleasure. And in the discussion of food, just as everyone has their own needs, varying according to age, occupation and state of the body, so the measure and method of consumption are different. Therefore, it is impossible to bring everyone in the school of piety under one rule (5). You might be interested in: