Глава 12. Пользование старцем Леонидом относившихся к нему посторонних посетителей, монашествующих и мирян. – Его предсказания, наставления, исцеления, обличения, советы, между коими – общий совет желающим вступить в брак и прочее, в рассказах

Elder Fr. lived for about five years (from February 2, 1837 to October 11, 1841). Leonid in the monastery after his transition from Skete. And all this time, despite obstacles from the diocesan authorities and some unfriendly persons, and despite the weakness of his health, at the right opportunity, he did not cease, in addition to his Optina brethren, to receive outside visitors, remembering the word of the Savior: He who comes to Me will not be cast out (John 6:37); and again: eat tuna, give tuna (Matthew 10:8); and until his most blessed death he showed tireless zeal for serving God in the person of suffering humanity. According to the foresight given to him by the Lord, he predicted their future for some and consoled them, admonished some, denounced them, gave useful advice, and so on. He was especially disposed to accept the common people. For the needs of the poor required urgent help, and mortal sorrows required quick consolation. Many lived in the hotel for weeks at a time, waiting to see the Elder. Some, coming to him, could barely say a word due to heart disease and only expressed it with groans. Others, possessed by demons, were dragged to the Elder’s cell by compassionate relatives or friends. Others carried children to receive his blessing. At that time, the elder was likened to a great tree, covered with abundant fruits, to which all those seeking spiritual benefit stretched their eyes and hands. On this occasion, he said: “God himself will help those who benefit from this to come to me.” Here are examples of the many different ways in which Elder Leonid used outside visitors who approached him. The late Optina rector Archimandrite Isaac 110 spoke about his first meeting with the elder Fr. Leonid the following: “Being a worldly person, I came for the first time to Optina Pustyn and wished to accept the blessing from Fr. Leonida. I came to the Elder early in the morning. He didn’t have any people yet; only some woman was kneeling before him. The cell attendant reported about me: “Ivan Ivanovich Antimonov has arrived.” “Let him wait,” the Elder said loudly. I sat down on a bench in the hallway. Having released the woman, the Elder called loudly: “Vanyushka!” “Without thinking that this word applied to me, I sat quietly. The cell attendant smiled and said: “It’s Father calling you.” – To me, a provincial dandy, such a patriarchal name seemed very unexpected, but I was not at all offended by it. On the contrary, such a simple appeal from the great Elder struck a chord with me and for some reason comforted me greatly, and I still remember this with spiritual joy. “Vanyushka!” Come here,” continued the Elder, “here I am!” “I approached the Elder, received his blessing and, kneeling down, explained to him the circumstances that were bothering me. The elder, having listened to everything with fatherly love, greatly consoled me with his conversation and, dismissing me, predicted that in time I too would become a monk. Seven years later, this prediction came true.” - Subsequently, Fr. Archimandrite Isaac recalled that his grandfather, who loved him, also called him Vanyushka in childhood. In 1839, one young man named Mikhail, from Bolkhov citizens, wishing to enter monasticism, went to the Beloberezh hermitage for this. Here, among other stories about the Optina elder Fr. Leonida, he heard the following remarkable incident. When Fr. Leonid was the abbot of the White Beach, in the monastery forest there lived a monk, a guard, who taught the peasant children who came to him to read and write. One day a drunken peasant came to him and, without any reason, beat him so much that the monk soon died. When this was reported to Fr. To Leonid, he said affirmatively: “Because this peasant killed an innocent person without any just cause, he himself will soon die.” And indeed, three days later this man suddenly died. – From this and other stories that testified to the spiritual wisdom of the Elder, Mikhail’s heart flared up. He wished to undergo monastic life under the guidance of Fr. Leonida and with this thought set off from the Beloberezh Desert to Optina Pustyn. The elder, after talking with him, blessed him to enter the Tikhon Hermitage “under the leadership of Fr. Gerontius." Mikhail, not wanting to part with Fr. Leonid, asked him for permission to stay in Optina Pustyn. The elder allowed it. But some of the Optina brethren explained to Mikhail that, having remained in the Optina Hermitage, he disobeyed the Elder and in this followed his own will. Confused by this, Mikhail asked the Elder for forgiveness that he did not go according to his appointment to Tikhon’s hermitage. The elder said to this: “Nothing, live here for now; but know that in the Tikhonova Hermitage you will still be, you will be, and you will be.” – This young man Mikhail, later Optina hieromonk Fr. Moses, 18 years after this prediction, by the will of the diocesan authorities, was appointed rector of the Tikhon Hermitage, under whom this monastery flourished 111. Optina hieromonk Pachomius said that when he first arrived in Optina Pustyn and came to the elder Fr. Leonidas, then, seeing his obesity, he was tempted and, stopping at the door of his cell, thought: “What kind of schema-monk is this?” - Noticing him, the perspicacious Elder stood up and, striking his stomach with his hands, loudly said through all the people surrounding him: “What is Koptsev? Apparently, the tambourines are glorious beyond the mountains, but when you get close, they’re like a basket. Look, brother, how small I am.” Fear fell on the newcomer: he knew Elder Leonid only by correspondence, but until now had not seen him in person, and having arrived in Optina, without visiting anyone, he went straight to the Elder - how could the Elder, who had never seen him, call him by his last name? How could he find out his secret thoughts? “With involuntary trepidation, the stranger fell at Fr.’s feet. Leonid, who immediately denounced him in front of everyone about how he had quarreled with a cab driver on the road. The Kozel resident Semyon Ivanovich, who was one of the elder’s devoted admirers, told the story. Leonida: “In the thirties (19th century), as after, I was engaged in the preparation of pottery. My mother and I lived in our little house; We didn’t have a horse, but we had a decent cart. Sometimes I would load some pots into this cart, ask someone for a horse and take the pots to the market. So, it happened, and he added on. At that time, a Pole soldier was standing in our house, but then he moved away from us and became confused. Once, finding a convenient time, he climbed into our yard and stole the wheels from our cart. I explained to Father Fr. Leonid expressed his grief and said that I knew the thief and could find the wheels. “Leave it, Semyonushka, don’t chase your wheels,” answered Father; it was God who punished you, you will bear God’s punishment and then with a small sorrow you will get rid of the big ones. And if you do not want to endure this small temptation, then you will be punished more.” I followed the Elder’s advice, and as he said, everything came true. Soon the same Pole again climbed into our yard, pulled out a bag of flour from the barn, put it on his shoulder and wanted to walk with it through the garden; and at that time my mother was coming from the garden and met him. “Where are you going,” she said, “are you taking this?” He threw the bag of flour and ran away. Soon after this there was another incident. We had a cow and we decided to sell it. They found a merchant, made a deal and took a deposit. But for some reason the buyer did not take the cows from us for several days; finally took her to him. And the next night a thief broke into our place and broke open the closet where our cow lay, no doubt in order to take her away; but she was no longer there. So again the Lord, through the prayers of the Elder, delivered us from the misfortune. “After this, many years later, a third similar incident happened to me, after the death of my mother. Holy Week was ending and Easter was approaching. For some reason, the idea occurred to me to move all my necessary things from my house to my neighbor’s sister. So I did. And when the first day of the holiday arrived, I locked my house on all sides and went to morning. I always used to spend this morning joyfully; and now, I don’t know why, there was something unpleasant in my soul. I come from Matins and look: the windows are up and the door is unlocked. “Well, I think to myself, he must have been an unkind person.” And indeed there was; but since I carried all the necessary things to my sister, he left with almost nothing. Thus, Father Fr.’s prediction was fulfilled on me three times. Leonidas, that if I suffer a small punishment from God, then God will no longer punish me.” This Semyon Ivanovich lived for a long time near Optina Pustyn as a worldly man and managed the monastery brick factory. He died at a very old age, having been secretly tonsured into the schema. “Upon my entry into the Belevsky Convent,” said nun N., “at first I lived in someone else’s cell. My parent had the means and could have bought or built me ​​my own cell, but the elder Fr. Leonid did not allow it. In time they offered me to buy a place for a cell in the monastery; O. Leonid allowed, but did not order the cell to be built until a year later. The then abbess, who was not related to Elder Leonid, and many of the sisters found this elder decision very strange and incomprehensible. “Having space and funds, why not build a cell?” - they said. And I myself really wanted to live in my cell. Due to my foolishness, I used some cunning. I went to see my parent and invited him to build me a cell, as if at his own request. He agreed. I announced to Father Fr. Leonid that my parent certainly wants to build a cell for me now. The elder objected: “He wants it because you asked him to. Well, perhaps you can put up a log house. But don’t put in the stove until a year, so that you can move to a cell next year.” But I, overcome by the desire to have my own cell as soon as possible, was not satisfied with this, but again persuaded my parent to lay the stove without delay; I told my father that this was my father’s will. “Well, look,” said the Elder, “your cell will not be of any use to you, you will not be consoled by it.” Soon these words of the Elder came true. As soon as I moved to my own cell, God’s punishment befell me for not listening and deceiving him. I lost my spiritual peace, began to experience joyless melancholy, and finally suffered a terrible mental illness, or, better to say, by God’s permission, an attack by spiritual enemies and became darkened in mind. For three years, severe and unspeakable suffering continued. I can’t even tell you what happened to me at that time. Having come to some sense of my suffering, I turned to the Elder with repentance. “I told you,” said Father Leonid, “that your cell will not be good for you. Now you have suffered for your disobedience and wickedness, and you must still suffer. Now you have only one salvation - sell your cell; without this you cannot heal.” After everything I had experienced, this time I accepted the word of the Elder with faith and decided to obey him at all costs. My parent was very indignant at me for my intention to sell the cell he had built; He was very opposed to this and threatened to leave me without help in the future. Despite everything, I still sold my unfortunate cell, and only then did I receive mental relief, although, according to the Elder’s prediction, the painful illness did not suddenly leave me. I suffered a lot of sorrows while living in other people’s cells, and I especially experienced severe suffering when I learned about the death of the elder Fr. Leonida. I reached despair, not having received permission from the Elder to live in my cell and not knowing how my life would work out. But, by the grace of God, little by little everything worked out. In time, the successor of Elder Leonid, Father Fr. Macarius blessed me to buy a cell. I was afraid to do this; but Father reassured me, saying that the time of my trial had passed, and that the hour of God’s will had come for me to live in my cell. With his blessing, I moved to the cell I bought, in which I lived for more than thirty years. Taught by the bitter experience of my life, I understood how disastrous it is to disobey my spiritual mentors in anything. From then on, no matter what the Elder told me, I always tried to carry out his will exactly and without reasoning. I would like my example to serve as a lesson for others who look to the elders for advice.” One Tula merchant's wife, after the death of her husband, had a daughter, a girl, whom her mother wanted to give in marriage, and went for a blessing to the elder Fr. Leonid. He ordered her to be brought to him, saying that he had a wonderful groom for her. The mother herself brought her daughter to the Elder; and he blessed to take her to the Belevsky nunnery, in which she soon ended her earthly life, uniting with her Heavenly Bridegroom Christ. “Since childhood, I had a great desire to live in a monastery. Therefore, in 1837, when I was 12 years old, I asked my mother to leave me in a nunnery in Kyiv, where we were passing through. She did not agree to this, but promised to place me in the Borisov hermitage in the Kursk province when I was 15 years old. But soon after that she died. My father did not want to let me go to the monastery before the age of 35. I grieved a lot about this, and in 1840, when I was 15 years old, I was very afraid that my fate would be decided against my wishes, and therefore I already wanted to secretly leave my parental home. But one of my aunts, who was well disposed towards me, took me to her house, and then persuaded my father to go to Optina Pustyn to visit Father Fr. Leonid and let him decide my fate. My father agreed. When we came to the Elder, he, having never known us, called us all by name and said that he had been expecting such guests for a long time. At such an unexpected meeting, we were all at a standstill, not knowing what to answer. Then we entered his cell one by one, and then Father told everyone the present, past and future according to arrangement. They let me in after everyone else. While waiting for the moment when I needed to go to him, I was in great fear, but I left his cell calm and with great spiritual consolation. He blessed me straight into the Borisov hermitage, and for his prayers my parent no longer held me back; but he didn’t give me any financial security. And when the Elder was asked how I would live, his answer was: “She will live better than the best.” The words of Father Fr. Leonida's dreams came true in everything. In 1841, my parent himself brought me to the Borisov Hermitage, where I stayed to live, and I always experienced the Providence of God over me in everything for the holy prayers of the Elder.” According to the words of the Borisov schema-montress M. Anatolia, a former noblewoman in the world, the maiden Paraskeva Trunova, the following is recorded: As a child, this girl was observant and loved to reason. Looking at her older married sister, how she cared for her young children, who were constantly making noise and crying, not giving their mother peace, Pasha began to be embarrassed by her hectic, hectic life. This embarrassment finally reached the point where she resolutely said to herself: “I will never get married.” When did the elder Fr. become famous in their house. Leonid, she decided to go to him and ask him for advice and blessings on how she should live, whether to go to a monastery or something else. In 1839, when Pasha was 14 years old, she came to Optina and came to the Elder. But since her intention to enter the monastery was still unsteady, it was probably partly for this reason that the Elder did not say anything positive to her. To her brothers, Pavel and Simeon, who lived as novices in Optina, he decisively said: “In a year she will be in the monastery, just don’t tell her about this.” And he only said to her: “In a year, come visit us.” With that, the Elder sent the girl home. This year was difficult for her. Various embarrassments, doubts, and bewilderments tormented her heart, and she often cried inconsolable tears. In this grief, she saw the elder Fr. twice in a dream. Leonidas, who the first time gave her a piece of bread without salt, and the second time with salt, and said: “Don’t grieve, I said that you will be in the monastery, just come to me first.” When a year had passed, Pasha went with one of her friends to Optina. Having come to the Elder, she wanted to convey her dreams to him. But the Elder, not allowing her to utter a word, said: “Well, why did you grieve and cry? After all, I gave you a piece of bread without salt, and you ate it, but now I add salt.” – The meaning of these dreams seems to be this: the year the girl Trunova spent was as unpleasant and tasteless for her as bread without salt; and now her life was supposed to change for the better and become pleasant, like salted bread. She immediately received from the Elder a blessing to enter the Borisov Tikhvin hermitage, contrary to her desire to enter some other monastery, closer to the Elder, and was assigned to cohabit with the Borisov nuns, the aforementioned M. Tabitha Varpakhovskaya and M. Alipia Sukacheva (both noblewomen), who by chance arrived at this time in Optina. At the same time, the Elder blessed her to go to his cell and listen to his prayer rules. One day Pasha and his companion stood before the Elder in his cell. There were also some other nuns who asked his permission to come to him the next day after early mass to receive a parting blessing from him, since they were going to leave Optina. But suddenly the Elder says to them: “But you’ll sleep through mass.” “They answered: “Well, why, Father, should we wake up; We’ll ask the hotelier to wake us up.” “But the Elder insisted: “No, sleep it off, sleep through mass.” “Pasha also thought: “Well, how is it possible for the nuns to sleep through mass?” The next day after Matins everyone lay down to rest. Waking up, Pasha asks the innkeeper who met her: “What, did they strike for mass?” “Why did they strike,” the hotel replies, “the mass is now on its way out.” Pasha, who had slept through mass, was very embarrassed, and immediately, having left, together with her companion, they both hurried to the Elder. Mass, by the way, had already ended, and in his cell stood the nuns from yesterday who had come to receive a parting blessing from him. Not paying attention to anyone or anything, the embarrassed Pasha fell at the feet of the Elder, asking for forgiveness for her unintentional sin: “Forgive me, father, we overslept the mass.” - And the Elder responded: “Well, everyone says about me that I am a healer, that I recognize. Where did I find out? I said about them that they would sleep, but they didn’t; I didn’t even say about you that you would oversleep, but you overslept. Where will I find out? What kind of healer am I?” Another time, together with Pasha, two monks, Mikhail Ivanovich Antimonov and Alexey Polikarpovich Bochkov, who had arrived from the Kaluga Tikhon Hermitage, stood near the Elder. Turning to them, the Elder asked: “What, will Pasha be ours?” - Looking at the girl, Antimonov replied: “Yes, it seems, Father, that it will be ours.” “That’s it,” the Elder assented, “and I also think that Pasha will be ours (i.e., a nun).” Repeatedly in the presence of Pasha, one novice came to the Elder. But every time he came, the Elder would ask: “Who is there?” The answer will be heard: “Your novice.” “To this the Elder objected: “What novice? - Landowner." Soon this novice went out into the world and got married. Also, according to the stories of Pasha Trunova, Fr. Leonida with six people, one possessed. As soon as she saw the Elder, she fell in front of him and screamed loudly: “This gray-haired one will drive me out. I was in Kyiv, in Moscow, in Voronezh, no one chased me, but now I’ll come out.” The elder read a prayer over her and anointed her with holy oil from the lamp from the icon of the Mother of God. At first, 284 when the sick woman was led to the Elder, she resisted strongly and stepped on his foot, so that she trampled his big toe until it turned blue, which afterwards hurt for a long time. After the Elder’s prayers, the possessed woman stood up quietly and left his cell. Then every year she came to Optina, already healthy, and after the death of Fr. Leonida faithfully took soil from his grave for other sick people, from which they also benefited. The time has finally come for Pasha to return home and, in the end, as directed by the Elder, to go to the Borisov hermitage for permanent residence. At parting, the Elder told her: “You will live in a monastery for ten years and will not need anything.” And so it was. But even after the decade she spent in the monastery, although her circumstances had changed, she still lived without great need. She lived in the monastery for a very long time (more than 60 years) and died as a schema monk in old age at the beginning of the 20th century. The Seva nun of Nazareth, who was in Optina Pustyn in 1862, reported the following about herself: “Even during the life of the late elder Hieroschemamonk Leonid, I suffered from a severe disease in the chest, called cancer, which ate away at my chest, not responding to any means of treatment. The doctors predicted my death in three days. But during the vigil on the feast of the Entry into the Church of the Mother of God (the main monastery feast of the Optina Vvedenskaya Hermitage), when my suffering, intensifying day by day, reached its highest degree, I see in reality two elders whom I had never seen before. Congratulating me, they looked at me, and I looked at them. Here is one who was older and said to me: “Come to Optina, pray to God and you will receive healing.” I didn’t see them again, but these words revived my hope for healing from the disease. Gathering my last strength, I hurried to hit the road. When Pustyn arrived in Optina, two elders came to my hotel, sent those who were with me out of the room, sat me down in the middle of the room on a chair, and they themselves sat down next to me, one on the right side and the other on the left. I took advantage of this opportunity to find out more accurately whether the elders who came to me were really the same ones who appeared to me in our monastery. Rising from the chair and turning my face to them, I was amazed to see that it was definitely them. When I was a senior, I learned about. Leonid, and in the younger one – Fr. Macaria. Father Leonid, taking me by the hands and putting me in my place, said sternly: “When she came to us, there is no need to stare, sit down and listen.” And they both started asking me about something. The next day, early in the morning, as soon as the bell was rung for matins, Fr. came to me. Leonidas anointed my sore chest with oil from a lamp and sprinkled it with holy water. My pain immediately subsided, and in the evening I already felt completely healthy. And now I have been living behind the prayers of the elders for more than 20 years instead of the three days the doctors promised me.” “Soon after I arrived at Optina Pustyn (around 1832), - said Fr. Abbot P., - when the cell attendants of Fr. Leonida were Fr. Gerontius, Fr. Makariy (Gruzinov) and Pavel Tambovtsev brought to the Elder a demon-possessed peasant woman who spoke foreign languages ​​during her demonic possession. The elder read a prayer over her three times, anointed her with oil from the unquenchable lamp before the icon of the Mother of God and gave her this oil to drink. Another time she was brought to the Elder while still sick, and the third time she was already healed. When Tambovtsev asked her to speak, as she had spoken on previous occasions, in foreign languages, she said: “And, father! Where can I speak in foreign languages? I can barely speak my own way (Russian) and can hardly walk. Thank God that my previous illness has passed.” “I remember,” said the Kiev-Pechersk Hieroschemamonk Anthony, “I came to the elder Fr. Leonid there was one woman who had a wound on her chest. Casting aside modesty, she revealed it to the Elder in the presence of all of us, his cell attendants. Father, without hesitation, dipped his index finger in the oil that was warming before the saint. with the icon of the Mother of God of the lamp, anointed the woman’s wound and sent her home. A week later, this woman came to the Elder with thanksgiving and told us all that her wound healed soon after the Elder anointed her with oil.” “It happened often,” added Fr. Anthony, “a sick person will come to Father, he can barely drag his feet, but he will walk away from him cheerfully and cheerfully and announce to everyone his joy that he has been healed.” “Once,” said Optina old-timer Hieromonk Pimen 112, “when I, still a novice, came to Fr. Leonid with three other novices, and we, kneeling before him, explained to him what everyone needed, a visiting gentleman in thick epaulets entered. The elder asked him: “What do you want?” The gentleman replied: “I heard a lot about you and, having arrived in Optina Pustyn, I wanted to look at you.” “Please take a look,” said Fr. Leonid. At the same time, he gets up and, stroking his chest and stomach with both hands, turns to the visitor with his side, his back and the other side, and then again turns his face to him, repeating: “Here, if you please look at me.” Puzzled and embarrassed by this act of the Elder, the gentleman immediately went to the abbot to complain that he had come to the monastery for the benefit of his soul, and the Elder received him very strangely - getting up, he only turned around in front of him. The abbot asked: “How did you come to the Elder and what did you tell him?” “He answered: “I told him that, having heard a lot about him, I wanted to see him.” “There was an answer to your question,” the abbot noted, “Fr. Leonid sometimes half-acts like a fool, but I assure you that the Elder is wise and holy.” “We hardly had time to leave,” continued Hieromonk Pimen, “when the gentleman with thick epaulets again appeared to Father Fr. Leonidas and bowed to his feet, although the Elder held him back. - “Forgive me, Father,” he said, “I was unable to explain to you about myself and did not understand you.” “Then Father waved his hand at us, and we left, and the Elder spent two hours working with the visiting gentleman. What they said, I don’t know. Only after this gentleman lived for a whole month in the monastery hotel, very often went to Father Leonid, and after that he wrote to him many times that he was in a desperate situation, and that the Elder revived and resurrected him." The story of the above-mentioned Kiev-Pechersk Hieroschemamonk Anthony: “In 1812, Colonel Kulnev was killed in the war with the French. He was left behind by his wife Anastasia Stepanovna and their son Nikolai. The boy was assigned to government education. And the widow Kulneva was so upset by the deprivation of her husband that she lost the ability to manage and distributed all her property to the poor, leaving herself a beggar with two of her serf peasant women, who, however, were set free by her. Despite this, they voluntarily remained with their good mistress and laid her to rest until her most blessed death. At first, Kulneva lived in Kursk and benefited from the spiritual advice and care of the abbot of the Root Hermitage, Palladius (Belevtsov). And then, when Fr. Abbot Palladius was appointed governor of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra, she moved to Orel and finally to the city of Volkhov, closer to Optina Pustyn and to the elder Fr. Leonida, in order to be able to use his advice through her servants, since for several years she could no longer write letters. The Volkhov residents, as before the Oryol residents, provided her with maintenance in abundance, especially when it became known in Volkhov that Kulneva was a secret schema monk and lived under the leadership of the Optina elders, Fr. Leonida and Fr. Macaria. And where her only son Nikolushka was, as she put it, she did not know at all. But one day an army of soldiers, assigned to quarter in the city of Belgorod, Kursk province, passed by Optina Pustyn. There was a day in Kozelsk. The head of the army, the general, out of curiosity, went with several officers to the designated monastery, where he asked the monks to acquaint him with the monastic sights. By the way, he was offered to meet the elder Fr. Leonid. The proposal was accepted. And when the general, accompanied by his officers, entered Father’s cell, the latter invited all the guests to sit down and began to ask the general who he was and where he served. He said his last name: “Kulnev; I remained a minor after my father, entered an educational institution, completed a course in science and have been in the service since then.” - The elder: “Where is your mother?” - Kulnev: “Really, I don’t know whether she’s alive or not. For me, however, it doesn’t matter.” - Elder: “How so? You’re a good son.” - Kulnev: “But what? She didn’t bring me anything, she gave away all her property, that’s why I lost track of her.” - Elder: “Oh, general, general! What are you talking about? Your mother did not bring you anything, but she lived through everything. And how do you say that she gave everything away? But you won’t even think about this, that she could barely bear the blow of being deprived of your parent, and of her husband; and from that time to the present she stands before God like an unquenchable candle, and like a pure sacrifice she dedicated her life to all suffering and poverty for the good of her only son Nikolushka. For about thirty years now she has been undergoing such a selfless feat. Are these prayers of hers really not an inheritance for her Nikolushka? Many generals, despite all the sophisticated means, have children no better than scoundrels, but Nikolushka has no means, but what a general!” Kulnev was deeply shocked by these simple but truthful old words. Turning to St. icons, he burst into tears. The officers followed his example. Each of them had a heart ache. The general kneels before the Elder and says: “My Father! You have revived my spirit. The more I tried to neglect the name of my mother, the more ashamed my soul was. I tried to kill faith in all that is holy; and if I am not desperate, then I was held back by the authority that I value throughout my life. My Father! You resurrected me. I now clearly see the care of God’s Providence for me. Tell me now, when and where am I Can I see my prayer book, mother?” “Father told him, and the general said goodbye to the Elder with countless thanks. Upon arrival in Volkhov, Kulnev entered the hallway where his mother lodged and asked to report that her son Nikolai wanted to see her. Hearing the voice of her son, the old woman exclaimed: “Nikolushka, Nikolushka, my darling! come here; but I can’t get up - I’ve been in a sitting position for how many years now.” And Nikolushka, as soon as he saw his mother from the door, immediately fell to his knees and crawled on his knees to her bed and kissed her hands and feet, with a sincere, filial sob from the heart. She later said: “And I don’t know how I could have endured such a joyful meeting for me. Thank God for everything!” From that time on, Kulnev supported his mother until her death and received her parental blessing for the marriage. The good daughter-in-law visited her; At the suggestion of her husband, she also visited Father Fr. Leonida. By the way, Kulnev told his mother how he got on her trail, and how the simple, artless words of the elder Fr. Leonidas greatly influenced his heart. “Oh, I will never forget them,” added Kulnev, “I will pass them on to my friends and posterity.” Another story is also from Hieroschemamonk Anthony. “Two Mtsensk partners sent barges with bread, which they hoped to sell either in Kolomna or, in any case, in Moscow. According to their custom, they stopped by Optina to receive from the elder Fr. Leonidas parting blessing. Seeing them, the Elder asked: “Well, gentlemen, how are things going with the grain?” - “Yes, it’s still sluggish,” the merchants answered, “bless us, we’re going.” - The elder: “No, I think you’ll go tomorrow.” - Merchants: “Father, bless today.” - But the priest decisively said: “No, no, it says tomorrow; what else is there to argue about?” - And tomorrow we still waited until evening. “Well, now with God,” said the Elder, bidding them farewell. Thus, the merchants were overdue for about three days on their journey. And at this time, the prices of bread rose; and they received good profits from the sale of grain. That’s one thing. And then something else followed. Having received a decent amount of money for the bread, the said merchants had to take the money home with them. On the way back, they again stopped at Optina; and As soon as they entered Father’s cell, he congratulated them on receiving a large profit: “What, well done merchants?” We waited a little, but reaped a lot. And if you still listen, you will eat well and sweetly.” “And Father kept them in Optina for a whole day. Then they returned safely to Mtsensk. What happened? When the merchants received money for bread, they were noticed and pursued by swindlers, who took a room for lodging in the same hotel next door to them, entered into a friendly conversation and said that they were traveling along the same road with them to the city of Belev. The intention of the attackers was to rob merchants on the road and even take their lives. And they would have achieved this goal if the Elder had not detained them in Optina. The villains themselves notified in writing about this evil intention and failure to those who were miraculously delivered from the danger that threatened them. This event disposed all residents of the city of Mtsensk to unconditional obedience to the elder Fr. Leonid, and then to his successors - Fr. Macarius and Fr. Ambrose." The rector of the seminary arrived in Optina Pustyn. When he was offered to talk to the elder Fr. Leonid, he said: “What am I going to talk to him, a man?” However, he went to the Elder. When he entered his cell, Fr. Leonid repeated his words: “What are you talking to me, man?” Despite such an unceremonious meeting, the rector was not offended by the Elder and talked with him pleasantly for two hours, and then expressed himself about the Elder like this: “What is our scholarship? His learning is laborious and grace-filled.” One archimandrite, who was once famous, came to Optina on purpose to see the elder Fr. Leonida. The visitor was surrounded by all sorts of signs of attention, but Fr. Even for him, Leonid did not interrupt his usual reception of the sick, the strange, the nuns and his students. In order to give the archimandrite the opportunity to talk with more freedom with Fr. Leonid, together with the guest, they decided to invite Fr. to dinner. Abbot Elder and his closest persons. This was probably suggested by the guest himself. The Optina people knew that Elder Leonid never went to the ceremonial abbot's receptions and reluctantly put on a cassock and kamilavka with a hood, considering his laboring hours both work and rest; and these dinners were the hardest work and torment for him. The elder put on his worn fly robe and, out of obedience, came to dinner. After the first courses and preliminary silence, the Archimandrite asked the Elder the question: “Tell us, Elder, a word of benefit,” imitating this question to the ancient monks, who, however, sought a word of benefit not at dinners, but after mental prayer, surrounded by all monastic poverty. Father Leonid winced and answered flatly: “What was useful, he poured it all out to the women; now there is nothing left.” The answer was considered humility and fell silent. The archimandrite blushed, feeling a hint of his life, which had passed between women, his admirers. We don’t know whether the Elder said this with intention. But if they were waiting for a word of benefit, then the soul of the Elder itself uttered this word for the edification of the archimandrite, an intelligent and spiritual man. I once spoke with the elder Fr. Leonid, one of his former students, the abbot of the monastery, about his brethren and, among other things, said: “So-and-so lives with me.” “The elder suddenly jumped up from his chair, threw down his knitting and made a large sign of the cross on himself, striking him with force on his forehead, chest and both shoulders. “Oh my God! - he exclaimed, - how much insane pride in small words! I have! I have! What do you have of your own? Only your sins, only your senseless vanity. The monastery is not yours, - the venerable one; the brethren did not come to you, but to Christ their Lord, hoping for salvation from Him. What are you, a contractor or something, and they are farm laborers, why are you recommending one of them to me? At least you said: our brothers find that such and such lives in such and such a way. And you say: with me. Do you want to rule over the brethren? Do you want them to be your serfs? Do you know why the brethren were seduced by me in the White Beach? Not because of my arrogance, but, on the contrary, because I behaved too simply in front of them, that I traveled to Bryansk in a simple cart, sometimes driving the horse myself. That's why. And they, like you, wanted the abbot to be like a master. Even then the worm of ambition began to gnaw at the brotherly hearts. From them came people like you; But was their leadership good for the soul? No, brother, there won’t be a good superior from a master. You should imitate Father Abbot Moses, at least by holding back your words and being thoughtful about them. Do you remember what the apostle says in his epistle, that he who is able to restrain his mouth is able to restrain his whole body 113 . Remember my words: you won’t be abstinent either!” – The abbot blushed, but did not make excuses. One day, landowner P. came to Optina Pustyn and, seeing the Elder, thought to himself: “What do they say, that he is an extraordinary person? The same as the others, nothing unusual can be seen." Suddenly the Elder said to him: "You should build all the houses; here are so many windows, here are so many, there is such and such a porch. " It should be noted that this landowner, when traveling from Kaluga to Optina, saw a beautiful area and became so interested in it that he decided to build a house on this place and was already drawing up in his mind a plan of what it should be like, and how many windows it should have, what The elder denounced the landowner. When P. began to confess to him, Father Leonid reminded him of a sin that he had long forgotten and which he did not even consider to be a sin. Then P. recognized the Elder as an extraordinary person. There lived a gentleman not far from Optina Pustyn who boasted that as soon as he looked at Fr. Leonida, he will see right through him. One day this gentleman comes to the Elder, when he had many guests, and enters his cell. He was tall in stature and corpulent in body. Elder Leonidas had this custom: when he wanted to make a special impression on someone, he would block his eyes with his left hand, putting it to his forehead with a visor, as if looking at some object in the sun. This is what he did when this gentleman entered and said: “What a fool he is coming! I came to see through the sinful Leonid. And he himself, a scoundrel, has not been to confession or Holy Communion for 17 years.” The master shook like a leaf, and then cried and repented that he was an unbeliever sinner and indeed had not confessed or received the Holy Mysteries of Christ for 17 years. The next three stories show zeal for God in the Elder. Some lady brought Fr. Leonid received a handwritten service with an akathist to God the Father and asked him to consider it. The service, written by the charter, was richly bound with a gold edge. The elder handed over this manuscript to the then head of the monastery, Hieromonk Anthony, for consideration. Having examined the manuscript, Fr. Anthony noted that since the Holy Church does not accept a special service to God the Father, he considers the acceptance of this dangerous. Then Fr. Leonid said: “Give it here, we’ll put it in the oven.” - Father Anthony objected: “What will the lady say?” “Let him say what he wants, we won’t look at her,” answered the Elder and burned the book. Father Leonid, loving of children and most merciful to the repentant, devoting himself to the service of his younger brothers, was adamant before those of the worldly people who put their wealth, power or importance on a par with the laws of the Church and, fearlessly violating the rules of the church, demanded permission from the spiritual fathers for obvious sins. One of the landowners, who was a benefactor of the monastery and visited it, although not often, lived in an obvious illegal relationship with his serf woman until old age, although he already had adult and married children from his first legal wife. Having heard a lot about the glorious old man Fr. Leonida, who received many for confession, the landowner, having arrived in Optina, did through Fr. the abbot suggested to the Elder that he wanted to confess to him. Father Leonid refused, much to the insult of the landowner, who began to ask Fr. abbot and Fr. Macarius to be his intermediaries before Fr. Leonid. After a second request, the Elder reluctantly agreed, saying that he was not responsible for the consequences. The landowner confessed and the Elder was not allowed to receive Holy Communion. One can imagine the shame and disgrace of the master, who looked down on everyone, and now had to humble himself in front of the entire monastery, like a catechumen. To his greater shame, his married daughter, who accompanied him, was ready to thank the great Elder for such a decision. The master attempted to ask Fr. abbot and Fr. Macarius about intercession, but they refused, both out of conscience and knowing Fr.’s inflexibility in such matters. Leonida. What happened? Returning home, the landowner in a month or less broke off his long-term relationship with his concubine, to the general joy of his entire family. Probably, in the depths of his soul, the Elder prayed for the lost one and asked the Lord to soften the heart of his spiritual son. Another time I wanted to confess to the elder Fr. Leonida is a certain gentleman who came from Vyazma. After confession, the Elder blessed him to begin Communion, but on the condition that he firmly decided to correct his life, which he promised to do. “If you don’t keep your word,” the Elder concluded, “then don’t come to me.” “The following summer, the Vyazma gentleman came to Optina again. But when he approached the cell of Fr. Leonidas, the Elder, seeing him through the open window, stopped him with the words: “Stop, stop! So, did you fulfill your promise?” “I heard from the visitor: “Father! forgive me...” – Elder: “Didn’t fulfill it? Well, turn back and don’t come to me.” “So this gentleman was forced to leave without even accepting the blessing from the Elder.” Long, long after the death of Fr. Leonid in Vyazma and throughout the Smolensk province remembered this incident, which then became known and brought saving fear to many, admonishing that those who wish to use the spiritual instructions of the elders are not enough to just ask them, but must try and do what they say. In addition to these, there were also various miraculous incidents from Elder Leonid. - Yes, oh. Anthony (Putilov) told one of his spiritual children that the son of one couple whom he saw at Fr. Leonida, had, as it were, a certain ugliness of soul and a complete dissimilarity of face and matter with his father. The elder said that this was God’s punishment for his parents’ failure to observe the holidays. One Karachev family came to Optina Pustyn, in which family misfortunes had repeated more than once. Those who arrived found their fellow countryman here, the treasurer of the old hieromonk Gabriel, and explained to him their circumstances. He decided to help their grief with cherub incense, but without the blessing of Fr. Leonidas did not dare to give them any advice and went to the Elder to be blessed. - “You're an eccentric! – the Elder told him. – Will cherubic incense help here? Where the wrath of God is, there the Lord does not spare His shrine. Here something else is needed, that is, sincere repentance for sins, for which God’s wrath and correction were sent.” The wife of a Mtsensk merchant from the Oryol province. Nikolai Vasilyevich Lomakin, Ekaterina Ivanovna, suffered from wine drinking for a long time, so that she was ready to lose everything just to get and drink wine somewhere and somehow. She took a lot of beatings from her husband for this, but she could not stop drinking wine. They finally decided to go to Optina to visit the elder Fr. Leonid. And as soon as they entered his cell, the Elder, turning to the woman who was suffering from drinking, said: “Katya! Let’s go, I’ll confess you to a living thread” (quickly). After confession, her illness immediately stopped. Returning home to Mtsensk, the woman could not even tolerate the smell of wine. These Lomakin merchants had a son, Vasily Nikolaevich Lomakin, 18 years old. He suffered from stone disease. People advised taking him for an operation, for which purpose they first took him to Elder Leonid for a blessing. But the sick man, having spent a short time in Optina Pustyn, through the prayers of the Elder and without surgery, received complete healing and returned to Mtsensk healthy. – Optina novice Pyotr Lomakin, their relative, spoke about these two cases 114. Many who belonged to Elder Leonid from the laity turned to him for a blessing before committing marriages. Mostly the residents of some cities of the Tula province did this, and it was noticeable that the marriages performed with the blessing of the Elder were successful. But, on the other hand, if those who adhered to this custom for some reason did not want to take a blessing for marriage, then it turned out that these marriages were not always successful. This difference prompted some, unwillingly, to turn to the elders for a blessing not only for marriages, but also for other enterprises. Those who asked for a blessing for marriage about. Leonidas usually advised carefully considering all favorable or unfavorable circumstances. So, for example, pay attention to the fact that both the groom and the bride are both healthy and that they have something to live with; so that rank does not differ sharply from rank, and so that there is little difference in years or age. He especially did not advise poor families to take a rich bride, so as not to be her slaves. At the same time, the Elder repeated the simplest old proverb: “Know the boot of the boot, and the bast shoe of the bast shoe.” In addition, he told those who asked about the choice of the groom to pay attention to the properties of his father, and to those who asked about the choice of the bride, to pay attention to the properties of the mother. At the same time, he used to say: “An apple will not travel far from an apple tree.” Finally, he advised the bride and groom and their parents to look at their hearts during fervent prayer. If, with the final decision to marry, the bride and groom and their parents began to feel peace of mind, then the Elder advised them to decide on such a marriage. Otherwise, if there was doubt, unaccountable fear, anxiety and embarrassment, then the Elder would say that this was an unfavorable sign and advised to look for another groom or another bride. This was the general advice of the elder Fr. Leonida for everyone. But he himself, according to the foresight given to him by God, sometimes taught advice that was dissimilar to human opinions and considerations. “One day a poor man came to the Elder and, explaining that three suitors were wooing his daughter, a tradesman, a factory worker and a wealthy villager, asked him which of them to give him his daughter to. Father Leonid advised to give it for a villager, saying that it would be more satisfying here. Then came a hungry year, after which the father of the said bride came to thank the Elder for advising him to give his daughter to a villager who fed him during a time of hunger, adding that the tradesman and the factory worker themselves almost died of hunger. A native of the city of Przemysl, Kaluga province, who lived for a long time in Saratov, merchant Vasily Ivanovich Bogomolov said the following about himself. As a young man, he found himself a bride, a girl whose mother adhered to some sect and was preparing her daughter, according to the custom of the sectarians, to accept the title of “Mother of God.” But before marriage, he went to the elder Fr. Leonid for advice on whether to marry her or look for another bride. The elder gave his blessing to marry. Bogomolov's advice was accepted, and the marriage was consummated. Thus, this person, having married an Orthodox man, became Orthodox herself and, by the way, did not live long in marriage, only a year and a half. This merchant Bogomolov had two virgin sisters, who, with the blessing of the elder Fr. Leonida, both entered the Kaluga Convent. He predicted the imminent death of the eldest of them, whom her parents wanted to marry, telling her personally: “You only have 12 years left to live.” And so it happened. After 12 years of monastic life, she died. In addition to these and similar special cases, Elder Fr. Leonid was constantly surrounded by peasants and, predominantly, peasant women, with whom, as mentioned above, he was more inclined to work. There have been very strange cases regarding this. Archimandrite A. said that when he came to Elder Leonid for the first time, he found him working with peasant women. The elder was wearing a simple stained canvas robe; in one hand he held a damask filled with some kind of liquid, and in the other a glass and, pouring it from the damask, handed it to one of the peasant women around him. At the sight of this, the archimandrite was dumbfounded. - “Why are you surprised? - said the Elder, - or don’t you remember how you yourself brewed this potion in barrels? With these words, the unexpected sight was explained very simply for the archimandrite. The elder gave the sick peasant woman bitter water, with which the visiting archimandrite had once, while still a worldly man, treated many sick people and for this purpose he prepared it in large quantities. After this, the temptation in the archimandrite gave way to surprise at how the Elder, who saw him for the first time, could remind him of such a circumstance from his life, which even he himself had forgotten about. Seeing Elder Leonid in such a popular rumor, some of the visitors expressed some dissatisfaction with him, probably considering his work with the common people not very important, and perhaps useless or even inappropriate. But the Elder knew how to reason with them. – One day, the venerable dean from the city of Belev came to Optina Pustyn. Archpriest John (Glagolev), who loved and respected Fr. Leonid and was mutually respected by him. Having come to the Elder, Fr. John found him, as usual, surrounded by peasant women. “You want to mess with women, Father,” he said with his characteristic simplicity. - “Well, oh. John, it’s true: that would be your business,” answered the Elder, “but tell me, how do you confess them?” Ask two or three words, that’s the whole confession. But you would put yourself in their position, delve into their circumstances, figure out what’s in their souls, give them useful advice, and comfort them in their grief. Are you doing this? Of course, you don’t have time to deal with them for a long time. Well, if we don’t accept them, where will they, the poor, go with their grief?” – The ashamed archpriest confessed to the thoughtlessness of his words spoken to the Elder. Died August 22, 1894 Died November 4, 1895 Died September 1, 1881 Died April 26, 1904