Spiritual world. About the existence of ethereal forces

Contents Chapter One. About the existence of Angels. 1. Appearances of good Angels, represented by the Holy Scriptures of the Old Testament. 2. Appearances of good Angels, represented by the books of the New Testament. 3. Stories from church history about the protection of people by Angels. 4. Stories about the appearance of Angels from the lives of contemporaries. Appendix A. About Guardian Angels. B. Angels are not real. Q. In what form did the good Angels appear? D. Signs by which one can recognize the presence of evil and good angels. Chapter two. About the existence of demons. 1. The existence of evil spirits. Appendix Solution of objections to the assumption of the existence of the devil. 2. The fall of evil spirits. 3. The hierarchy of evil spirits. 4. The moral state of evil spirits and their actions in relation to humans. 5. Limitation of the power of evil spirits. 6. The good purpose of God's Providence is to allow evil spirits. 7. About the appearance of evil spirits and the manner of their appearance. 8. About the so-called miracles of the devil. 9. The certainty of the influence of evil spirits on people. 10. Over whom do demons have power? 12. Stories about the victory of Christians over temptation from the devil. 13. About means of fighting demons. 14. About those possessed by evil spirits. 15. Cases of possession from evil spirits. 16. The power of church spell prayers. Appendix Ecstasy and obsession (possession) Ecstasy Possession Possessed mediums 17. The influence of evil spirits on people after the death of the latter. 18. Phenomena in restless houses, proving the existence of dark (demonic) forces. Letter from V. A. Shchapov Stories about phenomena on the farm of A. V. Shchapov Strange phenomena in a Russian peasant hut. Mysterious phenomena in Chernigov in the 40s In “Memoirs of the Polish rebellion of 1863” Mr. Ponomarev From the memoirs of an eyewitness to mysterious phenomena in the Liptsy settlement. Strange phenomena in Yekaterinburg. Message from Mr. Przhetslavsky Appendix A. Several hypotheses about the so-called restless houses. B. A brief historical overview of the troubled houses of Charles du Prel. 19. Thoughts about the relationship of evil spirits to humans. 20. About the so-called exordia. 21. The beginnings of the cult of Satan in Europe. 22. Worship of Satan in Freemasonry. 23. Participation of the devil in seances. Inner lies and harm of spiritualism as a religious doctrine. 24. Do not cast spells or tell fortunes. 25. Those who resort to conspiracies seek help from Satan. Appendix A. Stories from the lives of devotees of piety in the 19th century, testifying to the existence of the spiritual world and its closeness to man. 1. From the life of St. Philaret, Metropolitan of Moscow. 2. Cases of clairvoyance from the life of Joseph, Archbishop. Voronezhsky. 3. Cases from the life of Fr. Nazarius, abbot of the Valaam monastery. 4. From the life of Hieroschemamonk Ambrose, the Optina elder. 5. From the life of Seraphim of Sarov. 6. From the life of Parthenius, Hieroschemamonk of Kiev-Pechersk. 7. From the life of Hieroschemamonk Theophilus. 8. From the life of Hieroschemamonk Macarius, the elder of the Optina Hermitage. 9. Spiritual gifts of Elder Hilarion Troekurov. 10. From the life of the ascetic Fr. John, priest of the city of Yelets. B. Modern unbelievers are “wise men of this world”, convicted by simple common sense logic. B. Facts from the field of experimental psychology, leading to the undoubted recognition of the soul in man as an independent spiritual entity Brief Church Slavonic Dictionary Chapter one. About the existence of Angels. 1. Appearances of good angels represented by St. Scripture of the Old Testament. The books of the Old Testament convey to us many facts about the appearance of good Angels. Cherubim 1 were placed before the entrance to the earthly Paradise; Angels appeared to Abraham 2 and foretold to him the birth of a son; appeared to Lot and predicted to him the destruction of Sodom and other wicked cities 3; The angel spoke to Hagar in the wilderness 4; Jacob, on his way to Mesopotamia, saw in a dream Angels ascending and descending along a mysterious staircase 5; The angel revealed to Jacob the secret of how to ensure that the sheep were born motley 6 - and fought with them on his way back to Mesopotamia 7 . – All these were kind, beneficial Angels of light. In the same way, that Angel who spoke to Moses at Horeb from a burning thorn bush 8 and handed him the tablets of the law on Mount Sinai, and to whom the name of God is usually appropriated, because he acted on the instructions and authority of God 9 ; An angel who led the Jews through the desert in the form of a dark cloud during the day and at night in the form of a light cloud; The angel who spoke to Balaam and threatened to kill his donkey 10 - all these, without a doubt, were also good Angels. The same must be said about that Angel who, with a naked sword in his hand, appeared to Joshua in the plain of Jericho, calling himself the Archangel of the Heavenly Powers 11. It is rightly believed that this was the same Archangel Michael who, according to the testimony of the Apostle Jude 12, argued with Satan about the body of Moses. The angel appeared to Manoah's wife and then to Manoah himself and announced to him the birth of Samson 13. An angel told Gideon that he would free the Israelites from slavery to the Moabites 14 . Archangel Gabriel appeared to Daniel in Babylon 15. Raphael accompanied the young Tobiah to Media 16. The Prophet Zechariah in his book mentions the appearance of an Angel to him 17. In the books of the Old Testament, the very Throne of Hosts is depicted in the following terms: the Lord sits on Cherubim 18, before His Throne stand seven highest spirits 19, always ready to fulfill His will 20; the four Cherubim sing His praises forever and prostrate themselves in prayer before His Supreme Holiness. 2. Appearances of good Angels, represented by the books of the New Testament. The Holy Scriptures of the New Testament also convey many cases of the appearance of good Angels. 1. Archangel Gabriel appears to Zechariah, the father of Saint John the Baptist, and announces to him the birth of a son who would be the forerunner of the Messiah 21. 2. The same Archangel Gabriel foretold to the Blessed Virgin Mary the birth of the Son of God from Her 22. 3. When the Lord Jesus was born in Bethlehem, the Angel of the Lord appeared to the shepherds at night 23 and preached to them about the birth of the Savior of the world in Bethlehem. 4. Further, we can take it for granted that the star, which appeared to the wise men who came to worship the baby Jesus and led them on a straight path to Jerusalem and from there to Bethlehem, was controlled by a good Angel 24. 5. Righteous Joseph, at the request of the heavenly messenger, fled to Egypt with the baby Jesus and His Mother in order to thus deliver the Holy Child from the hands of the cruel Herod. The same Angel informed Joseph about the death of Herod and commanded him to now return to his native land 25. 6. After the temptation of Jesus Christ in the desert, angels came to Him and served Him 26. The tempter says to Jesus: “God will command His angels to keep You, and they will bear You up in their hands, lest You dash Your foot against a stone” 27 . These words are borrowed from the ninetieth psalm of David (Ps. 90:11–12) and prove the faith of the Jews in the existence of Guardian Angels. The Savior confirms the truth of the existence of such Angels when he says that the Angels of children constantly contemplate the face of His Heavenly Father 28 . At the last Judgment, good Angels will separate the righteous from sinners 29 and plunge sinners into eternal fire 30. 7. During the spiritual struggle of Jesus Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane, before His suffering, He was strengthened by an Angel who descended from Heaven 31 . 8. After His Resurrection, Angels appeared to the holy women who came to the tomb of the Savior to anoint His body. 9 . According to the book of the Acts of the Apostles, Angels appeared to the apostles immediately after the ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ to Heaven 32. 10. St. Apostle Peter, being imprisoned, is freed from it by an Angel 33, who then walks along the same street with him and hides. When Saint Peter knocked on the doors of the house in which the faithful were then present, none of them wanted to believe that it was Peter himself: everyone thought that his angel was knocking and speaking. 11. The Apostle Paul also recognized the existence of Angels and the reality of their appearances 34 . When this apostle told the people gathered around him how he was thrown to the ground on the way to Damascus, the Pharisees who were present remarked to those who were crying out against Paul: “If ... a spirit or an angel spoke to him, we should not resist God” 35. The holy evangelist Luke says that in Troas Paul had a vision at night that a Macedonian (probably the Guardian Angel of Macedonia) appeared to him and asked him to come to Macedonia to preach the Gospel 36. 12. Saint John the Theologian in the Apocalypse speaks of seven Angels who are entrusted with the supervision of the seven churches of Asia Minor. It is known that the bishops of these churches are called by the name of Angels here in John. But, according to church tradition, each church also has its own Guardian Angel. In general, the Apocalypse presents many different visions and appearances of Angels. Saint John the Theologian, for example, says: “And... I saw four Angels standing on the four corners of the earth... so that the wind would not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree. And I saw another angel rising from the east of the sun and having the seal of the Living God. And he exclaimed with a loud voice to the four Angels, to whom it was given to harm the earth and the sea, saying: Do not harm the earth, nor the sea, nor the trees, until we put a seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God.” If the predictions of the Greek and other oracles are rightly recognized as the work of an evil spirit, then with equal right it can be said that God gave true prophets and God-enlightened men to know the future through good Angels. Thus, Archangel Gabriel was sent by God to Daniel 37 to inform him about the fate of the four great monarchies, about the seventy weeks and about the end of the Babylonian captivity. The Prophet Zechariah clearly says that the Angel told him everything he says, and repeats this remark in several places in his book 38 . St. says the same thing. John the Theologian in his Apocalypse, it is he who says that an Angel was sent to him by God and revealed to him everything that he had told the churches 39 . Elsewhere, 40 of the Apocalypse of St. John the Theologian also mentions an Angel who spoke to him and in his presence measured the Heavenly Jerusalem. St. Apostle Paul says in his letter to the Jews: “If the word proclaimed by the angels was sure...” 41, etc. 3. Stories from church history about the protection of people by Angels. a) Angels protect people from various dangers that threaten their lives. 1. When Rev. Kirill was building the Belozersky Monastery, all the neighboring residents, surprised at the success of the construction, considered Kirill a great rich man. With such rumors, one selfish landowner gathered all his servants and set off into the night to rob Cyril and the monastery. Approaching the fence, the attackers see that a countless number of warriors with drawn sabers are walking around the monastery. The robbers waited until the morning for these warriors to fall asleep, but they did not wait; so we went home. On the second night, the attackers noticed even more warriors, and again returned without success. When morning came, the landowner sent a servant to the monastery to find out which regiment was stationed in the monastery, and how long would it stay here? The messenger returned and reported that for more than a week not a single pilgrim had been in the monastery, not just the army. Then the landowner realized that the monastery was guarded by the Angels of God, and repented of his intentions. (“Thu-Min.” July 9). 2. The pious ascetic Abba Isidore once elevated to a high place another ascetic who was exhausted in the struggle with thoughts - Abba Moses, and said to him: “Look to the west.” Moses looked and saw countless demons there: they were in confusion and noisily rushed to battle. Abba Isidore again tells him: “Look to the east.” Abba Moses looked and saw a countless number of holy Angels, clothed with glory. Then Abba Isidore said to him: “These are those whom the Lord sends to help the saints; and those in the west rise up to fight against us. But we have many more helpers.” The vision encouraged and calmed the old man, who was struggling with his thoughts. (“The Tale of the Underground St. Father”, page 186). 3. Blessed Theodore, Bishop of Edessa, asked one perspicacious stylite how he recognizes and distinguishes between the righteous and the sinners. The pillar answered: “If a righteous man who fears God passes by my pillar, then I see the grace of God, and bright angels walk with him on both sides, and demons walk from afar, not daring to approach him; If a sinful person passes by, then I see a horde of triumphant demons around him, and the Guardian Angel follows him in the distance, lamenting and lamenting the death of the sinner. But when the demons want to completely destroy this person, then an Angel appears with a fiery weapon and drives them away.” This is how the holy Angels protect us from being absorbed by the enemy. (“Thu-Min.”). 4. They observe people not only in their waking state, but also during sleep. A certain monk came to the Monk Paisius, having the need to talk with him. Finding him sleeping, he saw the holy Guardian Angel standing in front of him in the form of a beautiful young man, and said with surprise: “Truly God protects those who love Him.” He did not dare to approach the sleeping elder for the sake of the angelic presence and, giving thanks to God, left. In a similar way, the Angels of God were visible, with fans in their hands, over the deceased Peter, Bishop of Sebastian, brother of St. Basil the Great. These heavenly messengers care not only about spiritual salvation, but also about the physical health of people. Thus, in the Patericon it is mentioned that one hermit, suffering from severe stomach pain, was healed by an Angel. Having come to the sick man and having learned the cause of his suffering, the Guardian Angel, with his finger, as if with a knife, cut the painful place, cleaned the pus that had accumulated there, then smoothed out the wound with his hand, and with this action healed the hermit and returned him to bodily health. But the most striking example, undoubtedly proving the care of the holy Angels for the people entrusted to their care, appears in the story of young Tobias, which constitutes the main content of the sacred book of Tobit. (From “V. Ch.”, 1865). 5. For several years, one man, who had previously led a pious life, was darkened by the heresy of Theodotion. One day, during his deepest sleep, an Angel suddenly appears to him and reminds him with blows that he has wrongly betrayed his original faith. Awakened by such a wonderful phenomenon, and most of all by the pain of the blows, the elder sent for a council of bishops and, telling them a dream vision, humbly asked to be accepted as one of the Orthodox Christians, the true sons of the Church. (Historical Evsev. book 2). 6. When Rev. Onuphrius the Great (who lived in the 4th century), having fallen in love with the desert life, left the monastery in Thebaid and went into the desert; upon entering it, a ray of light appeared to him, and Onuphrius was afraid, so he wanted to run back to the monastery. But a ray of light approached him, and a voice was heard: “Do not be afraid, because I am your Angel, from the very day of your birth I have been assigned by God to guard you - I constantly walk with you, and now, at the command of the Lord, I am leading you into this desert; be perfect and humble in heart before the Lord, serve Him with joy, and I will not leave you.” b) Angels appeared to St. to the martyrs during their suffering and strengthened them in this feat. The angels appeared to St. Martyr Akakios, they washed his wounds with warm water and healed them. When St. The martyr was imprisoned and surrounded with iron bonds, the Angels again appeared to him and released him from the bonds (“Ch.-Min.” May 7). An Angel appeared to the holy martyrs Eustathius and Anatoly, imprisoned and condemned to death by starvation, released them from their bonds, made them healthy, and, giving them manna for food, said: “In all your sufferings I will be with you, for I was sent from Christ the Lord to keep you” (“Ch.-Min.” November 20). When Theodore Tyrone prayed in prison, tightly closed and sealed, the Angels joined his prayer. The guard first heard loud singing, and then through the window he saw many young men with Tyrone, who were dressed in white clothes and sang with him; the ruler himself came to the prison and heard many singing voices, while the great martyr was imprisoned alone (“Chet.-Min.” Feb. 17). c) Angels take a special part in saving the human soul. St. David was a robber for a long time, but later he repented and, having entered a monastery, began to lead a strict ascetic life. Archangel Gabriel appeared to him in his cell and said: “David! The Lord has forgiven your sins, and from now on you will work miracles” (“Thu-Min.” Sept. 6). – Archangel Michael, appearing to St. Evdokia, said: “I am the prince of the Angels of God; I have been given the ministry of accepting repentant sinners and leading them into a blessed life. There is much joy in the heavenly faces if a sinner brings repentance; for God, the Father of all, does not want the soul of man, created in His image, to perish. All Angels rejoice when they see the human soul adorned with righteousness; they greet her as their sister” (“Thu-Min.” March 1). The angel who appeared to St. Gregory Dvoeslov, said: “The Lord sent me to you, so that I would be with you throughout your life and offer up your prayers to God, so that you receive everything you ask for with faith” (“Thu.-Min.” March 12). Rev. Niphon once saw a harlot in the form of a young man and an angel crying at the gates of the house and asked him about the reason for the crying. The angel answered: “There is a man in this house with a harlot, for whose keeping I have been given by God. I cannot see the lawlessness that he is doing. How can I not cry when the image of God has fallen into such darkness?” (“Thu-Min.” Dec. 23). St. Paul the Simple had the same gift of insight into the spiritual world. Once, during the evening singing, he observed who entered the church with what disposition. The one whose soul was pure had a bright face, and the Guardian Angel joyfully entered the church with him; but one sinful brother entered the church, surrounded by demons, and the Guardian Angel followed him from afar and cried (“Thur.-Min.” Oct. 4). d) Angels keep those who trust in the Lord unharmed from evil when it either only awaits them or has already befallen them. What do the Angels do in the first case? The psalm answers: “They will lift you up in their arms, but not when you dash your foot against a stone,” that is, like a mother, when a child learns to walk, watches his every step, and if she sees that it might stumble over something, she immediately takes him in her arms: similarly, the Angels act with people who, having childlike devotion to the will of God, are entrusted to their supervision. Angels with maternal care protect them from stumbling on a stone, that is, they do not allow them to be tempted and seduced by sin. Joseph, the betrothed of the Blessed Virgin, having fallen into doubt about Her virgin purity, had the intention of secretly ending the condition of betrothal to Her, but was restrained from this injustice by an Angel, and thus did not stumble over the stone of temptation. Protecting the purity of our souls, the Angels also protect our bodily safety from visible and invisible enemies, from obvious and secret dangers. A once large detachment of troops, sent by the king of Syria to capture the prophet Elisha, surrounded the city where the prophet took refuge. At the sight of the threatening danger, his disciple was brought into great fear, but was reassured by the prophet, through whose prayer the eyes of his disciple were opened, and he saw a host of Angels encamped around the prophet to protect him (2 Kings 6:17). All, like Joseph, Elisha and other saints, who fear the Lord and trust in Him, receive similar protection from sinful temptations and troubles from the Angels, although not all of them are granted angelic visions. Each of us can testify to this comforting truth through our own experience. Often we happen to avoid dangers that we learn about after we have passed them. Who, if not the Angels, averts these dangers, invisible to us, but obvious to their insight? Whose, if not theirs, secret suggestions remove us from the road on which we would certainly stumble over a stone that would be harmful to us? (Extracted from the “Collection for lovers of spiritual reading” by Archpriest V. Nechaev, now Bishop Vissarion of Kostroma. Moscow, 1884, pp. 61–63). e) Angels take part in a person at the hour of his death. The holy Guardian Angels do not leave us even during our transition from temporary to eternal life. “Always keep the thought of death in your mind,” says St. Theodore the Studite, - reflect on the very separation of the soul from the body, - a separation that will be under the commanding supervision of your Angel" (Dogma. God. St. Macarius, p. 432). Therefore, the Holy Church commands us to turn to the Guardian Angel with the following prayer: “Before this (Last) Judgment, do not forget your servant, my leader... cover me from the body, so that I do not see the vile face of the demon” (Can. Guardian Angel). We believe that the presence of the Guardian Angel and his bright, joyful gaze will ease the difficult moments of separation of the soul from the body and will calm the good Christian who has not deprived himself of this last heavenly help on earth. The Holy Church also believes that the Guardian Angel is the patron of the Christian soul even after its separation from the body, during its ordeal. Therefore, each of us Christians prays to the Guardian Angel: “Be my protector and invincible champion, when I pass through the ordeal of the fierce world ruler” (Can. Guardian Angel). The Holy Fathers of the Church testify to the same thing. For example, St. Cyril of Alexandria, in his word on the exodus of the soul, says: “The soul is supported by the holy Angels in its journey through the air and, rising, meets the ordeals that guard the sunrise, hold and stop the ascending souls” (Dogma. God. St. Macarius, p. 432). In what exactly and how can the intercession of the Guardian Angel be expressed during ordeals, we find clear evidence of this in the life of St. Niphon, Bishop of Cyprus. Once praying in church and raising his eyes to heaven, Rev. Niphon saw open heaven and many Angels, some of whom descended to earth, while others ascended to heaven, lifting human souls there. Two Angels were carrying some kind of soul into the heights. When they approached the fornication ordeal, demons came out of there, saying with anger: “This is our soul; How dare you carry it past when it’s ours?” The angels answered: “What sign do you have on her, calling her yours?” The demons answered: “She sinned to death, desecrated herself by condemning her neighbor, and, even worse, died without repentance, and what do you say to this?” The angels answered: “Truly, we believe neither you nor your father, the devil, until we question this Guardian Angel of the soul.” The Guardian Angel said: “True, this soul sinned a lot, but from the hour from which she became ill, she began to cry and confess her sins to God. If God forgave her, then He knows why; He has the power; to His righteous judgment be glory.” Then the Angels, laughing at the demons, entered the heavenly gates with their souls (December 23). The believing Christian soul expects consolation and help from its Guardian Angel even on that terrible day, “when thrones are set up and books are opened, and the Ancient of Days sits and men are judged, and Angels appear and the earth shakes, and everyone is horrified and trembles; then - the Christian prays - show me your love for mankind, and deliver me from Gehenna, begging Christ... Whenever the terrible voice of a trumpet calls to resurrect me from the earth for judgment, then become quiet and joyful near me, taking away my fear with the hope of salvation” (Can. Guardian Angel). But, of course, the Guardian Angel “quiet and joyful” will only become close to that person who in this life, according to the word of the Apostle, fought a good fight and kept the faith. On the contrary, he will be far from such a soul that here on earth has closed the gates of the Kingdom of Heaven for itself. Rev. Niphon also saw such a soul drawn by demons to hell. It was the soul of a certain slave, whom the master was starving and wounding. He, not enduring the torment, having been taught by demons, took the rope and hanged himself. The angel of this soul, walking from afar, wept bitterly, and the demons rejoiced. So grave is the sin of suicide! (“Thu-Min.”). 4. Stories about the appearance of Angels from the lives of contemporaries. 1. The story of one Athonite ascetic about the near-death appearances to the disciple of his Angels. Halfway from the sea to the very top of Athos there is an area called Kerasia or, in popular expression, Kerashi. In this area there are about 12 ascetic cells; In one of these cells, an old man, a Greek by birth, Schemamonk George, nicknamed Hadji, has been laboring for more than thirty years, who constantly has with him up to twenty, and sometimes more, students, most of them young. At this cell there is a church dedicated to the name of the Holy Great Martyr Demetrius of Thessalonica. The rules and lifestyle of this elder and his disciples are very strict: for a whole year, even on Easter, they do not eat fish, cheese and butter, and also never drink any wine. All of them are constantly managed in prayer and handicrafts. One day I found in the cell of our Russian confessor, Father Macarius, the aforementioned Elder George, who was telling Father Macarius about the death of his disciple, Schemamonk Gabriel, and about the apparitions before his death. Since this story does not raise any doubts, I considered it necessary to write it down in my memorial book. This is exactly what Elder George said: “Our brother, Schemamonk Gabriel, who had been ill for only two weeks, died at the age of 26. Three days before his death, he had the following vision: four young men appeared to him, dressed in deacon's surplices and girded with oraria, and invited him to go with them on the journey. To this he answered them this way: although it is pleasant for me to travel with you, wherever you go, without the blessing of my elder I do not dare to leave this cell. Wait a little while I ask him for his blessing. Those who showed up agreed to wait. Then Father Gabriel called me to him and said: “Father! So four young deacons in vestments came for me and invited me to go with them somewhere from here. Bless me to go with them from here. I see that they are very good people, they fell in love with me and want to take me to where they live, I will feel good with them everywhere; So, I beg you, Father, let me go with them as soon as possible.” After listening to these words, I thought whether Father Gabriel was delirious due to a severe illness, or whether he was in demonic delusion, and therefore I answered him this way: make the sign of the cross on yourself with the pronunciation of the Jesus Prayer and tell those who came for you: “I cannot go with you, the elder will not let me go, because neither he nor I know what kind of people you are.” He fulfilled this instruction of mine now, in my presence. The young men who appeared told him: “We are giving you three more days, during which you can think carefully and prepare yourself to leave with us: in three days we will certainly come for you again!” Then the young men who appeared became invisible to the patient. Having announced this to me, the patient was very cheerful and calm in spirit, as if he had completely recovered from his illness. However, despite his change, for some reason I had a presentiment that he would not live long, and therefore I advised my hieromonk to perform the Sacrament of Anointing on him and to receive the Holy Mysteries every day, with the consent, of course, of the patient. On the third day after the appearance of the young men, the patient quickly began to weaken in body, although he was still calm in spirit and was fully conscious until his last breath. An hour before his death, one of the brothers living with us in a deserted cell asked the patient to leave him some things as a keepsake. To this request the patient firmly answered: “What will I give you? You know that I have nothing of my own; take, if you want, in that corner over there (the patient showed with his hand) five small stones, which I alternately held in my mouth so as not to idle.” “And the stones are not yours, but God’s, and you can give them to someone only with the blessing of our elder,” another brother, standing near his bed, remarked to the sick man. “Well, forgive me, for God’s sake, for my arbitrariness,” said the patient. After that, he began to breathe more often, heavier than before, and look around in all directions. At this time, I looked carefully at the patient and noticed that he was smiling; then, in the hearing of us all, he said: “Behold, those four deacons and another new deacon with them came for me again, and therefore now forgive me, Father, and bless me to go with them.” “God himself bless you, child, to move into eternal life, go and pray there for us sinners, the Most Holy Trinity,” I answered him. After this, the patient, without saying a single word, died quietly and peacefully. The deceased entered our desert cell at the age of 16, and in the twenty-sixth year of his life he reposed in the Lord; During his entire stay with us, he was very meek and obedient, had love for everyone and was himself loved by all of us. May God grant him the Kingdom of Heaven!” With these words, Elder George concluded his story about the death of his student. It is not difficult to guess that those who appeared to the sick man were Angels. Hieromonk of the Sviyazhsk Mother of God Assumption Monastery Michael (tonsured on Mount Athos, in the Russian Panteleimon Monastery). (See Soul Reader, 1875, pp. 474–476). 2. White people. (Fact from the missionary activity of Metropolitan Innocent of Moscow 42). It is known that Metropolitan Innocent began his church service as a simple priest at the Annunciation Church in Irkutsk and soon felt a calling to devote himself to missionary work in the Aleutian Islands in the colonies of the former Russian-American Company. Having settled with his entire large family on the island of Unalaska, his initial task was to build the first church on the island, which until then had only a wooden chapel, and then carefully study local languages ​​and dialects to teach the Aleuts the truths of the faith of Christ in their native language. Having become accustomed to them, he began to make frequent voyages for the sake of preaching to other smaller islands surrounding Unalaska, during which he was often exposed to considerable danger. About one of these trips to the island of Akun, the future Metropolitan of Moscow, and then still Father John Veniaminov, often told his family and friends the following: “Having lived on the island of Unalaska for almost 4 years, during Lent I went for the first time to the island of Akun to the Aleuts to prepare them for fasting. Approaching the island, I saw that they were all standing on the shore dressed up, as if on a solemn holiday; and when I went ashore, they all joyfully rushed to me and were extremely kind and helpful to me. I asked them why they were so dressed up. “They answered: “Because we knew that you left and should be with us today, we were overjoyed and went ashore to meet you.” - “Who told you that I would be with you today, and why did you recognize me as Father John?” “Our shaman, old Ivan Smirennikov, told us: wait, a priest will come to you today; he has already left and will teach you to pray to God; and described your appearance to us as we see you now.” - “Can I see this old man of yours, the shaman?” - “Why, you can; but now he is not here, and when he arrives, we will tell him; Yes, he himself will come to you without us.” Although this circumstance surprised me extremely, I ignored all this and began to prepare them for fasting, having previously explained to them the meaning of fasting and other things; This old shaman also came to me and expressed a desire to fast and walked very carefully, but I still did not pay much attention to him and, during confession, I even neglected to ask him why the Aleuts call him a shaman - and to give him some instruction on this matter. Having introduced him to the Holy Mysteries, I released him... - So what? To my surprise, after Communion, he went to his toen and expressed his displeasure with me, namely because I did not ask him in confession why the Aleuts call him a shaman, since it is extremely unpleasant for him to bear such a name from his brothers, and that he is not a shaman at all. Toyon, of course, conveyed to me old man Smirennikov’s displeasure, and I immediately sent for him for an explanation; and when the messengers set off, Smirennikov came to meet them with the following words: “I know that the priest, Father John, is calling me, and I am going to him.” I began to ask in detail about his displeasure towards me, about his life, and to my question: “is he literate?” - He replied that although he was not literate, he knew the Gospel and prayers. Then I asked him to explain why he knew me, that he even described my appearance to his brothers, and: “How did you know that on a certain day I should appear to you and that I would teach you to pray?” “The old man answered that two of his comrades told him all this. - “Who are these two comrades of yours?” – I asked him. “White people,” answered the old man, “they, moreover, told me that in the near future you will send your family along the shore, and you yourself will go by water to the great man and will talk with him.” - “Where are these comrades of yours, white people, and what kind of people are they and what do they look like?” – I asked him. “They live nearby, here in the mountains, and they come to me every day,” and the old man introduced them to me as they depict St. Archangel Gabriel, that is, in white robes and belted with a pink ribbon over the shoulder. - “When did these white people come to you for the first time?” “They appeared soon, as Hieromonk Macarius baptized us.” After this conversation, I asked Smirennikov: “Can I see them?” “I’ll ask them,” the old man answered and left me. I went for a while to the nearest islands to preach the word of God, and upon my return, seeing Smirennikov, I asked him: “Well, did you ask these white people if I can see them, and if they want to accept exchange?” “I asked,” the old man answered, “although they expressed a desire to see and accept you, but at the same time they said: why should he see us when he himself teaches you what we teach? “Okay, let’s go, I’ll bring you to them.” “Then something inexplicable happened in me,” said Father John Veniaminov: “some kind of fear attacked me and complete humility. What if, in fact, I thought, I see them, these Angels, and they confirm what the old man said? - How can I go to them? After all, I am a sinful person, therefore, unworthy to speak with them; and it would be pride and arrogance on my part if I decided to go to them; and, finally, by my meeting with the Angels, I might have been exalted in my faith or would have dreamed a lot about myself... And I, as unworthy, decided not to go to them - having previously, on this occasion, given a decent instruction to both the old man Smirennikov and his fellow Aleuts, and so that they would no longer call Smirennikov a shaman.” Father John Veniaminov, as the author of the book then reports, attached so much importance to this event that upon returning to Unalaska, in a report dated May 1, 1828 to Archbishop Mikhail of Irkutsk about his voyage to Akun Island, he described it in particular detail. “From nature and from my upbringing,” he writes, “I, being very far from any superstition, and even more so from the invention of false miracles, and however, not wanting to hide from Your Eminence, as my merciful archpastor, anything, even my very weaknesses, - I have the honor to bring to the attention of Your Eminence the following case, not as an impossibility, - for the power of God’s grace has not become scarce and will become scarce - but in modern times it is extremely rare or, at least, unheard of. During my stay, this April 1828, on the island of Akuna and the three islands adjacent to it, I learned through the interpreter Ivan Pankov that a resident of the island of Akuna, the village of Richeshnago, lying on the north-eastern side of it, at a distance of 10 versts from the main village, Toen Ivan Smirennikov, an old man of more than 60 years old, is revered by all the local and many other residents a shaman, or at least not a simple one, because: 1st. Artelnovsky village of Toyon Fyodor Zharkov's wife, October 1825, fell into a kleptsa (a trap made for fox hunting) with her foot, so there was no means to heal her, and she was already dying, since the blow was to the kneecap with all three iron teeth, up to 2 inches long. Her relatives secretly asked the said old man Smirennikov to heal her, and he, after thinking, said that she would be healthy in the morning: and indeed, to the surprise of everyone, she got up in the morning and walked, not feeling any pain even to this day. 2nd. In the winter of the same 1825, the residents here had a great need for food, and some of them asked the old man Smirennikov to give him a whale (these are their words), and he promised to ask; and after a very short time, he tells all the inhabitants to go to the place indicated by him for the whale: and indeed, when they arrived, they found a whole fresh whale, in the very place where he said. 3rd. Last autumn, I intended to visit Akuna, but the government ships that were here from Russia prevented me, and when everyone was expecting me, especially because they came for me from Akuna. He boldly asserted that I would not be there in the fall, but would be there in the spring. And indeed, the winds held me back, and the time became later, and therefore I abandoned my intention until spring. There are also such cases that prove his extraordinary knowledge and power, but I am silent about them. Such narratives, confirmed by reliable witnesses, convinced me to personally ask old man Smirennikov: “why does he know the future and how does he heal?” “He, thanking me for wanting to ask him about this, told me the following. Soon after his baptism by Hieromonk Macarius, first one, and then two spirits appeared to him, invisible to anyone else, in the form of people, white in face, in white robes and, according to his description, similar to surplices, surrounded by pink ribbons, and told him that they were sent from God to instruct, teach and protect him. And, for 30 years, they appeared to him almost every day during the day or in the evening, but not at night, and appearing, 1st, they instructed and taught him all Christian theology and the sacraments of the faith; I do not find it necessary to speak here, because it is the teaching of the Christian faith. 2nd, they gave him and, at his request, others, although very rarely, help in illness and extreme lack of food. But in terms of helping others, they always responded to his request by saying that we will ask God, and if He is pleased, we will fulfill it. 3rd, sometimes they told him what was happening in other places and, very rarely, the future, but always with that, if it pleased God to reveal it, and assured that they were not doing everything by their own power, but by the power of Almighty God. And although their teaching is the teaching of the Orthodox Church, I, knowing that demons also believe and tremble, doubted whether this was not a cunning and subtle network of the evil one from time immemorial, and asked him: “How do they teach to pray, to themselves or to God, and how to live with others?” He answered that they teach not to pray to themselves, but to the Creator of all things, and to pray with spirit and heart, and sometimes they prayed with him for a very long time; and they teach to perform, in a word, all the pure Christian virtues (which he told me in detail), and most of all they advise observing fidelity and purity, both in marriage and outside marriage (and this, perhaps, because the local residents are most inclined to this); Moreover, they taught him other external virtues and rituals, such as: how to depict a cross on his body, not to start any work without blessing himself, not to eat early in the morning, not to live together in many families; do not eat quickly killed fish and animals that are still warm; and some birds and sea animals should not be eaten at all, etc. After this I asked him: “Did they appear to him now, after confession and Communion, and ordered him to listen to me?” - He answered that they appeared both after confession and after Communion, and said that he should not tell anyone his confessed sins, and that after Communion he should not eat fatty foods soon, and that he should listen to my teachings, but not listen to the industrialists, that is, the Russians living here; and even today on the way they appeared to him and told him why I was calling him, and so that he would tell everything and not be afraid of anything, because nothing bad would happen to him. Then I asked him when they appear to him what he feels, joy or sadness. - He said that only at the time when he does something bad, seeing them, he feels remorse of his conscience, and at other times he does not feel any fear; and since many people revered him as a shaman, he, not wanting to be revered as such, repeatedly told them to leave him and not appear to him; They answered that they were not devils and they were not ordered to leave him, and to his question: “Why don’t they appear to others?” - they told him that they were ordered to do so. One might think that he, having heard from me or learned from someone else, told me Christian teachings, and only for embellishment or out of vanity, he invented the appearance of pestening spirits to him. But to refute this, I will say, moreover, that all pure Aleuts are almost completely alien to pride, vanity and emptiness. 1st. When teaching them, for the shortness of time, and especially so as not to burden their memory, I always omitted from history the creation and fall of Angels, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, the first murderer, Noah, Abraham, the Forerunner, and sometimes the Annunciation and the Nativity of Jesus Christ. But he told me all this in detail; During my teaching, he was the first to confirm my words, and in the tone of a man versed in the Holy Scriptures. 2nd. The Aleuts, all of them living here, except the interpreter Pankov and a very few others, although before my arrival they believed and prayed to God, they hardly knew Who they believed and prayed to; since Father Macarius, my predecessor, hieromonk of the Kodiak mission, 1794 and 1795, who baptized all the local Aleuts, taught them very little, in the absence of even a mediocre interpreter - since very recently good interpreters began to appear, and Pankov is perhaps the first of the best and most intelligent. But Pankov, fearing to fall into error and having a firm faith in the One God, never entered into such conversations with the old man, and strongly rebelled and reproached others who asked and begged Smirennikov. This was witnessed by the Aleuts. Therefore, he could not have heard these stories from anyone, either directly or indirectly. 3rd. He himself, being illiterate and not knowing the Russian language at all, could neither read nor hear from others, and 4th. Finally, in order to make sure whether his mentors really appeared to him, I asked him: “Can I see them and talk to them?” - he answered that he didn’t know, but would ask them; and indeed, an hour later he comes and says what they said in response: “And what else does he want to know from us? Does he still consider us devils? Okay, let him see and talk to us if he wants”; and they also said something in my approval; but I, so as not to be considered vanity on my part, will keep silent about this. But I refused an interview with them. You can tell me: why didn’t I see them to verify their appearance? – But I will say to this that I was perplexed whether it was possible and whether I should see them in person. I thought this: why do I need to see them if their teaching is Christian teaching? Is it just out of curiosity to find out who they are, and so as not to be punished for such an act of mine; and that it is necessary to ask for the blessings and instructions of His Eminence, and moreover - so that, having seen them, somehow and someday not fall into some kind of error or bewilderment, etc. - these are the reasons why I refused to see them in person. So, everything that was said by him and confirmed by oath, and by me, although not always in his exact words, but stated without addition or concealment, and also freedom, fearlessness and some of his pleasure in telling his story, and even more so his shameless life, convinced me to think and even be convinced that the spirits that appear to this old man (if they are) are not devils, because although the devil can sometimes transform into an angel light, but never for instruction and edification and salvation, but always for the destruction of man. But since an evil tree cannot produce good fruits, they must be of service to souls, sent for those who want to inherit salvation. Therefore, in order not to weaken in some way faith and hope in the One Most High and Omniscient, I, before the permission of Your Eminence, dared to give him the following instruction: “I see that the spirits that appear to you are not devils, and therefore listen to their teachings and instructions, unless it is contrary to what I taught you in the general meeting. But tell others who ask you about the future and ask for your help to ask God themselves, as the common Father of all. I do not forbid you to heal, but only with those whom you intend to heal, say that you are not healing with your own power, but with God’s, and advise you to pray more diligently and thank Him alone; I also do not forbid teaching, but nothing more than giving instructions to minors. Don’t say a word to anyone, not even to myself, about the future.” He told and ordered the other Aleuts who were there at that time not to call him a shaman, but not to ask or ask him for anything other than the One God. Reporting this to Your Eminence, I considered it necessary and ordered the interpreter Ivan Pankov, who translated the words of me and the said old man, to verify the truth of my story and to confirm the correctness of his translation, to sign here with his own hand and keep this until time as a secret.” The Eminence Mikhail responded to this report with the following letter, dated May 5, 1830, from Irkutsk. “All the papers, dated different dates of June 1828, sent by you to me and received by me on September 9, 1829, were carried out in accordance with your wishes and intentions. It remains for me to answer only one of them, namely, regarding the incident that you described in great detail, on the island of Akune, with the Aleutian toen Ivan Smirennikov. Truly, this incident is extremely rare and unheard of in our times. Therefore, I had the need to communicate this, although not to all my acquaintances, but to many men who were distinguished in mind and heart, in whom a special jealousy was aroused to hear over time an explanation of everything that is dark and incomprehensible both in this and in other similar stories, and that during this and next year something extraordinary may happen to your Smirennikov. So, thanking you for this rarity and frankness, I thank you for the prudent advice and very decent instruction you gave to both Smirennikov and his fellow Aleuts, so that they would not in vain call the first a shaman, and this shaman would not want to seek and desire the glory of a miracle worker. Unfeignedly, I will tell you to your face and in absentia that you, without giving room to curiosity to rise above your faith, are more blessed than all those whose things of faith, like St. to the Apostle Thomas, subjected to touch. But just as Fomino’s unbelief is called good in our church songs, I would like, and many others will wish with me, that you, for the greater glorification of our pious faith, decide, if old Smirennikov is still alive, to see and speak with the spirits that appear to him. No greater precaution is required for this, except your pure faith and heartfelt prayer: remember only during this meeting and throughout it the Lord’s Prayer, which you repeat together with the spirits. Your conversation with them can be nothing other than about the fate of the newly converted Aleuts, your parishioners, for whom you wish what good, ask them to ask God for it. Sat sapienti. What God, by the gift of His Christ, will let you know, let me know in a letter at a convenient time, or in words during a future pleasant meeting. Invoking God’s blessing upon you, I have you, Dondezh, as an all-benevolent servant, Michael, Archbishop of Irkutsk.” But Father Veniaminov, as we personally heard later from the Moscow ruler, never managed to see the “white people” himself. When he, upon receiving permission from Archbishop Michael for this meeting, returned to Akun Island, he did not find old man Smirennikov alive. (See book above and N. Barsukova). A. About Guardian Angels. The Word of God, both the Old and New Testaments, as well as the Fathers of the Church and church history, clearly teach us that not only every believer, but also every human society, every nation, every state, every church has its own Guardian Angels - and presents the facts of the appearances and actions of these Angels. Thus, Evangelist Matthew tells us that Jesus Christ, urging respect for every believer, no matter how small and weak he may seem, said to the apostles: “Be careful that you do not despise one of these little ones: for I say to you, for their angels in heaven will see the face of My Heavenly Father” 43 . The Apostle Paul says: “Are not all souls of service sent out into service for those who would inherit salvation?” 44. In both places, the existence of Guardian Angels is obviously affirmed. The books of the Old Testament convey many such events in which one cannot help but see the actions characteristic of Guardian Angels. Such, for example, are the following events: the Angel was the visible companion of Tobias in Ragi, saved him from danger at the Tigris, gave him beneficial advice, disposed everything for the good and, which most of all served to the happiness of the pious family, arranged the healing of Tobit 45. The books of Kings say that the prophet Elijah, in his wondrous ministry, repeatedly received benefits, instructions, and guidance from the Angel 46. Abraham, sending his servant to procure a wife for his son, said to him among other things: “The Lord God... will send His angel before you, and get a wife for my son Isaac from there” 47. There are places in the Old Testament which, according to the unanimous understanding of the Church Fathers, contain the doctrine of Guardian Angels. These are mainly the following passages: “The Angel of the Lord will encamp around those who fear Him and deliver them” 48, and another following passage: “no evil will come to you, and no wound will come near your body. As His Angel commanded you, keep you in all your ways." 49 The Holy Scriptures provide fairly clear indications in favor of the idea that every human society, every nation and every church has its own special Guardian Angels. Thus, the prophet Daniel speaks of the prayerful intercession before God of two Guardian Angels, the Guardian Angel or prince of the Persian kingdom and the Guardian Angel of the people of Israel. The first Angel prayed to God to keep the people of Israel under the rule of the Persian kingdom, the other, on the contrary, prayed for the liberation of this people from the Persian yoke. Daniel also says that, together with these two Angels, an Angel, the prince of the Hellenic kingdom, turned to God with prayer 50. If not only the people of Israel, but also the Persian and Hellenic peoples had their own special patron angels, then from here we can rightfully conclude that every other people has its own Guardian Angel. – Evangelist John in the first chapter of the Apocalypse conveys the words of the Lord about the seven Angels of the seven churches of Asia Minor 51. True, as we have already said, the name of Angels here should also mean the bishops of these churches, but at the same time, according to the teaching of the Fathers of the Church, here we should also see an expression of the truth that each church has its own Guardian Angel. “I am sure,” says, for example, Gregory the Theologian, “that a special Angel patronizes each church, as John teaches me in revelation” 52. This truth has always been clearly recognized by the Orthodox Church. Saint Basil the Great wrote to the presbyters of Nikopol: “It saddens you that you were thrown out of the enclosure of the walls: but you are installed in the blood of the Heavenly God and the Guardian Angel of the Church is with you” 53 . Gregory the Theologian, saying goodbye to the see of Constantinople, exclaimed: “Forgive me, Angels, overseers of this church” 54. The keeping and service of the holy Angels for human salvation is confirmed, in addition, by numerous examples from the lives of the saints. Here are a few such examples: St. John Climacus testifies about himself: “When I longed for greater success, then in this case an Angel who appeared to me enlightened me” (Ladder. step. 27). The life of the holy martyr Sebastian (December 18) tells that when one leader was destroying idols, an angel appeared to him in the form of a young man and said: “The Lord Jesus Christ, in whom you have believed, is sending you through me perfect health. He jumped up and wanted to throw himself at the Angel’s feet and kiss them, but he said: “Do not dare to touch me, for you have not yet been washed from the stench of idols by holy baptism.” From this we see that the holy Angels serve the salvation of only baptized people. In the parable of our Lord Jesus Christ about the rich man and Lazarus it is said: “The poor man was to die, and the angels were carried into the bosom of Abraham” (Luke 16:22). These words of the Lord give us reason to believe that the ministry of our Guardian Angels extends to the last minutes of our life and beyond the boundaries of our present life. That Guardian Angels are present during the separation of the soul from the body, there are many legends about this in the history of the death of pious and sinful people. St. Cyril of Alexandria, in his homily on the exodus of the soul, says: “The soul is supported by St. Angels in a procession through the air and, rising, meets the ordeals that guard the sunrise, hold and stop the ascending souls. The angel tries to protect her from evil spirits and finally leads her to the Lord God before His terrible Throne.” Knowing that Guardian Angels are constantly with us, and that they are the closest and ever-present witnesses of our lives, we must be careful not only in actions, but also in words and thoughts not to offend them and thereby remove them from ourselves. In the event of the Fall, let us hasten through quick and sincere repentance to attract to ourselves our heavenly guardians and helpers, in order to please not only them, but also all the other Angels in heaven, rejoicing over the one sinner who repents (Luke 15:10). (Prot. Grigory Dyachenko). B. Angels are not real. Look what St. says. Damascene about Angels, and you will agree that under no circumstances can one assume in it the idea of ​​the materiality of the angelic nature. Listen, for example, to how St. Damascene explains the mutual communication of Angels among themselves. “Angels,” he says, “are mental lights, the second from the first and Originless Light, having enlightenment, not needing language and hearing, but without words spoken by the tongue, transmitting to each other their thoughts and desires” (Book 2, Chapter 3). What is the substance here? If St. Damascene recognized them as material; he would say that Angels have tongues, eyes and other members, see each other, converse with each other, visit each other. If St. Damascene does not allow anything like this, but, on the contrary, explains the mutual communication of Angels in a spiritual, mental way, it is obvious that he does not recognize Angels as material. Listen again to how St. understands. The Damascene attitude of Angels to the place. “As minds, they exist in mental places, not being describable like bodies: for, by their nature, they do not have a form or image similar to bodies, they do not even have three dimensions, but they are mentally present and act where they are commanded, and cannot at the same time be and act here and there” (ibid.). This completely frees the nature of the Angels from those crude forms in which the new teaching, which wants to give them materiality, presents them, based on the appearances of the Angels and transferring the image of the appearance to the image of nature. And St. Damascus teaches that although they are not in heaven when they are sent to earth, and although they cannot be here and there at the same time; but when they are in some place, they do not appear to be outlined here by any shape extended in height, length and width. They do not have such dimensions, they do not have any form, as bodies tend to have. Therefore, we can only say that they are here, and not there, that they exert their effect here, and not there. - So that they don’t think that I am arbitrarily interpreting the words of St. Damascene about the relationship of Angels to the place, which he called a “mental place”, I write out how the saint himself understands his “mental place”. Damascene. “There is a mental place where mental and incorporeal nature is contemplated and exists, where it is present and acts mentally, and not being encompassed bodily or like bodies. For it does not have the form to be embraced bodily” (book 1, chapter 13). Well, this is how there is an incorporeal thing in a certain place. It exists, is inherent, acts, but does not occupy it and is not embraced by it. – And here are some more of his words about the angelic place. “An angel is not kept in a place like bodies, so as to take on some form or form. But it is said that he is in a certain place for the sake of what is mentally present in it and acts according to his nature, and that at the same time he does not happen in another place, but mentally imagines himself there, where he acts. For he cannot act in different places at the same time” (ibid.). But if, therefore, according to St. Damascus, Angels do not take up space and are not embraced by him, if they do not have any extension and appearance, then it is obvious that, according to his teaching, they do not have any substance, no matter how subtle it may be imagined; because nothing material can exist without these accessories; and what does not have them is already immaterial. The new teaching, as soon as it recognized the Angels as material, then began to insist that they are subordinate to space, have a form, are outlined by their limits and extremities, have their own appearance, began, that is, to repeat completely contrary to what St. asserts. Damascene. But there is one more place at St. Damascus not to please the new teaching, namely about the time of the creation of Angels. “Some argue,” he says, “that the Angels were created before all creation, as St. Gregory the Theologian: “First, (God) conceives angelic, heavenly powers, and thought has become action...” I completely agree with the Theologian. For first the mental nature had to be created, then the sensory one, and finally man, one of both” (Book I, Chapter 13). Basil the Great is of exactly the same opinion. Here are three witnesses! With three witnesses, every verb will become. But which one? Of course, not the verb of the new teaching, but ours. For if the Angels were created first of all corporeal and material without limitation, then how can one think that they were a body, even a subtle one? They don't say St. fathers, that first subtle bodies were created - Angels, and then other gross bodies; but in general they assert that the Angels were created before any material creature. Consequently, according to their teaching, one should see absolutely nothing material in Angels. So, I conclude regarding the testimony given from St. Damascene, in proof of the opinion about the corporeality of the soul and Angels, that from consideration of the place itself and from consideration of the entire teaching of St. Damascus about Angels it turns out irrefutably that St. John of Damascus had no thought about the corporeality of the soul and the Angel. Therefore, the new teaching cannot point to St. John, as his patron and predecessor, who allegedly laid down his first features (See the work of Bishop Theophan: “Soul and Angel,” 1891, pp. 27–33). Q. In what form did the good Angels appear? The more common form in which, according to the stories of the Old and New Testaments, good Angels appeared was human: in this form they appeared to Abraham, Lot, Jacob, Moses, Joshua, Manoah - the father of Samson, David, Tobiah, and the prophets. The angel who appeared to Joshua in the plain of Jericho had the appearance of a warrior, so Jesus had to ask him: “Are you ours or one of our adversaries?” 55. Angels appeared in human form to the holy women after the Resurrection of the Savior. But sometimes Angels appeared not in human forms, but in some other forms; for example, an Angel appeared to Moses in a burning bush 56 and guided the Israelites through the desert in the form of a pillar of cloud during the day and fire at night 57 . The psalmist says that God, in order to carry out His will, creates “His spirit angels and His servants a fiery flame” 58 . In the prophet Ezekiel, the Cherubim are presented as half-humans and half-animals with human bodies, eagle wings and ox legs; their heads are different: either human, or oxen, or lion, or eagle; their two wings are outstretched, and with the other two they cover their entire body; they shine like hot coals, like burning lamps, like the sky illuminated by lightning. “This is truly a menacing sight.” The angel who appeared to David 59 had a human form, was dressed in linen clothing and his loins were girded with an Uphaz belt; his body is like chrysolite, his face is like lightning, his eyes are like burning lamps, his hands and feet are like shiny polished copper, and the sound of his words is like the voice of noise. Saint John the Theologian saw around the Most Holy Throne four animals (which, without a doubt, were four Angels), which had many eyes in front and behind. “And the first living creature... was like a lion, ... the second living creature was like a calf, ... the third living creature had a face like a man, and the fourth living creature was like a flying eagle. And each of the four animals had six wings around... neither day nor night they have no rest, saying: Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, is and will be 60. The angel placed before the entrance to the earthly Paradise was armed with a flaming sword 61. The angel who appeared to Balaam and threatened to kill his donkey 62, the angel who appeared to Joshua in the plain of Jericho 63, and the punishing angel who appeared to David 64 were also armed with swords. The angel Raphael, who accompanied young Tobias to Media, had the appearance of a traveler 65. The face of the Angel, whom the holy women saw at the tomb of the Savior, who rolled away a huge stone from this tomb and sat on it, was as bright as lightning, and his clothes were white as snow 66. The angel who, according to the book of the Acts of the Apostles 67, freed the apostles from prison and commanded them to fearlessly testify about Christ in the church, also appeared in human form. The way in which this Angel freed the apostles from prison is extremely remarkable: the servants sent by the high priest to the prison to take the apostles from there and bring them to the judgment seat found the prison locked and the guards standing at its doors, but when they opened it, they found no one in it 68 . How an Angel could lead the apostles out of prison without damaging the doors, when apart from them, of course, there was no other way out, and lead them out without either the guards or other prisoners noticing, this is beyond our understanding. But this was just as possible as it was possible that the Savior rose bodily from the tomb, without opening it and without even damaging the seal attached to it, that He walked through the closed doors into the room in which the apostles were gathered 69, spoke with His disciples going to Emmaus, without being recognized by them, then opened their eyes and became invisible to them 70; how was it possible that for forty days after His Resurrection He appeared to His disciples, ate, drank and talked with them; but despite all this, he was visible only to those who, according to the predestination of the Heavenly Father, were destined to testify to His Resurrection. Sometimes Angels, as well as God Himself, appeared without any visible image, but made their presence known with a loud voice, through moral suggestions, through amazing natural phenomena, through words, revelations of the unknown future or past; sometimes they cast darkness, blindness, and numbness on people, thus allowing them to feel God’s wrath towards them. Thus, when God spoke to Moses at Horeb and told him the law, 71 the Israelites did not see any likeness of God; when the Archangel Gabriel informed Daniel about the fate of the great kingdoms that had to exist one after the other, he was visible only to Daniel alone, and the other men who were present did not see the phenomenon, but a great horror fell upon them, and they fled in fear 72 . When the Lord spoke with Samuel for the first time and informed him of the misfortune with which He determined to punish the house of the high priest Eli, the youth Samuel did not see any image, but heard only one voice, which at first he mistook for the voice of the high priest Eli. The Sodomites first saw the Angels coming to Lot's house, but then, when they decided to forcefully break into Lot's house, they were blinded by the same Angels and could not find the doors of the house. Saint Cyprian tells that, during the persecution of Christians in Africa, one bishop fell ill and, during the continuation of his illness, constantly and relentlessly asked to be guided by the Holy Mysteries - and then one day he saw before him a young man of majestic appearance and with bright, penetrating eyes. The Angel addressed him menacingly and with anger with the following words: “You are afraid of suffering, you die reluctantly; what do you want from me? When the bishop learned that this reproach applied to all the faithful, he gathered his last strength and exhorted everyone to have courage in the coming suffering; After this, he received the Holy Mysteries and died in peace. Church history presents many similar appearances of Angels in human form. (See the book “On the manifestation of spirits. Secrets of the afterlife” by A. Kalmet, translated from German, 1877). D. Signs by which one can recognize the presence of evil and good angels. “The vision of the holy angels,” says St. Anthony, it happens calmly. They usually appear silently and meekly; why joy, cheerfulness and boldness are immediately born in the soul; mental thoughts remain unperturbed; the soul is filled with the desire for future blessings and communication with saints. If others come into fear from the sudden appearance of good Angels to them, then those who appear at the same moment destroy this fear with their love, as did Gabriel and Zechariah and the Angel who appeared to the women at the Holy Sepulcher, and also the Angel who said to the shepherds of Bethlehem: “Do not be afraid!” And fear in this case is felt not from spiritual fear, but from the consciousness of the presence of higher powers. This is the vision of the saints... The invasion and vision of evil spirits is outrageous, with noise, voices and screams, like the invasion of robbers. From this, fear, confusion, disorder of thoughts, despondency, sadness, fear of death and, finally, bad desires, negligence about virtue and moral disorder arise in the soul. Therefore, if, having seen what has appeared, you come into fear, but your fear is immediately destroyed, and instead of it, unspeakable joy, complacency, boldness, inspiration, equanimity of thoughts, love for God appeared in your soul, then do not lose hope and pray; and if whose appearance is accompanied by confusion, external noise, worldly pomp and threat of death, and the like, then know that this is an invasion of evil angels.” (See the book “The life of the teacher, our father Anthony the Great and his oral and written spiritual and ascetic instructions.” Holy Trinity. Serg. Lavra, Hierom. Agapit. M. 1865., pp. 30–34; 36–38). Chapter two. About the existence of demons. Tradition has preserved the concept of evil spirits in all nations. Such, for example, is the teaching of the Persian religion about the evil principle - Ahriman and evil spirits - Yatsats; This is the teaching of the Greek religion about the Furies, etc. (Iliad verse 24, 145, 144, 159). The Egyptians believed that at birth every person is given a guardian demon; Chinese Buddhists also recognize evil spirits; According to their teaching, there are two regions of spirits: the pure ones - the Erigons Negri and the unclean ones - the Assurs 73. It goes without saying that all these beliefs, as not sanctified by Divine Revelation, are distorted; but the very existence of these beliefs among peoples shows that the existence of evil spirits does not contradict the principles of sound reason, just like the existence of good ones. In fact, firstly, if in the world we see there are many diverse objects, then why not admit that rational and moral beings are not limited to one human race? Secondly, if we notice a gradualness in creatures, going from lower to higher forms, then a similar gradualness is assumed in moral creatures - in relation to God. That is why Plato, the philosopher, taught that “there are spirits in between man and God, who move away from evil people and help good ones; they cannot be visible, although they are present with us" (Plato's Dialogues: Timaeus). Actions of spirits are possible in themselves, just as there are actions of one person on another, actions of a person’s soul on his body. Therefore, only corrupt people deny good spirits, because they are far from them, and evil ones, because, without noticing it, they are their slaves. The living confidence of the ancient world in the existence of evil spirits is confirmed by the fact that ancient philosophy was often combined with magic (Ex. 7:11), as we see in the wise men of Pharaoh who opposed Moses, in Cyprian - later a martyr and bishop of Antioch. To obtain a clear understanding of the spirits of evil, we have one means - Christian teaching, contained in the Holy Scriptures, revealed and approved by the works of the holy fathers and teachers of the Church. What the devil is, what his actions are, we learn from the Holy Scriptures, which also show us the means to fight the devil; and how to take these means in practice - we learn from the works of the holy fathers and the lives of holy ascetics, who devoted their whole lives to the fight against the spirit of evil. The knowledge of the spirits of evil by holy ascetics is a special gift of God; it is “spiritual reasoning” (1 Cor. 12:10); it is associated with victory over sinful thoughts, dreams and sensations. The Lord revealed this gift to the prophet-king David, and he cried out on behalf of all mankind: “bring my soul out of prison” (Ps. 142:8). True, due to our carnal state, we are not able to see spirits, but we “imams know the prophetic word: and heeding him, like a shining light in a dark place” (2 Pet. 1:19), we can know our enemies enough to be able to resist them. According to the wise of this age, the devil is the personification of the evil principle inherent in us and operating in the world, and subordinate spirits are the further development of this personification. But the word of God reveals to us that the space between heaven and earth, the entire azure abyss visible to us, serves as a dwelling for fallen angels cast out from Heaven (Eph.6:12; Rev.12:7). We encounter the doctrine of the devil as a truly existing, personal, living and evil spirit on the first pages of the Bible. According to the book of Genesis, the devil, having entered the serpent, deceived our first parents and persuaded them to transgress the commandment of God (Gen. 3:1-19). That the devil was the author of sin, which in Adam destroyed the entire human race, is testified by the wise Solomon: “For God created man unto incorruptibility, and in the image of His likeness created him; But through the envy of the devil, death comes into the world: they eat of it, which is part of it” (Wis. 2:23-24). For this reason the devil is called a murderer from the beginning (John 8:44). The book of Deuteronomy testifies to the fact that Moses also knew the existence of evil spirits. Listing the iniquities of the Jews, Moses says that they “offered sacrifices to demons, and not to God” (Deut. 32:17), that is, as St. John Chrysostom, sacrificed to idols in which demons sit 74. The way the evil spirit is portrayed in the book of Genesis is the way it is described in the book of Job, that is, a slanderer. There he slanderes God, and here his righteous man, whom he struck with fierce pus from his feet to his head. He would have struck the righteous man he hated with death, if this had not been forbidden to him by God (Job 1:6–22, 2:1–7). The devil allowed David to “let the people of Israel be numbered” (1 Chronicles 21:1). The demon Asmodeus killed seven husbands, to whom Sarah, the daughter of Raguel, was married in turn (Tov.3:8); an evil spirit took possession of Saul (1 Samuel 16:14–15). St. John the Theologian closely connects the truth of the existence of evil spirits with the truth of the coming of the Son of God into the world: “The sin that is created is of the devil, for from the very beginning the devil sins. For this reason the Son of God has appeared, that he may destroy the works of the devil” (1 John 3:8, cf. Matt. 12:24–29; James 2:19; 2 Cor. 2:11). From these words it follows that, without knowing who the devil is, we cannot know what Jesus Christ did for us, and the denial of evil spirits leads to the denial of the mystery of the fall, and, consequently, the mystery of redemption. In fact, why did Christ come to earth when there was no devil? And the denial of the atonement must necessarily lead to the denial of all Christianity. That Jesus Christ came in order to destroy the works of the devil is evidenced by the entire gospel history. “Your father is the devil,” Jesus Christ says to the Jews, “and you want to fulfill the lusts of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and did not stand in the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks his own way, for... he is a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44). Then Christ, both in positive teaching and in parables - in the explanatory part of them, often mentions the devil and his angels, and everywhere teaches about them as real beings, as evil spirits trying to harm people, destroy them, and are reserved for eternal fire. Depicting the last, Last Judgment, Christ says: “The Son of Man will say to those on the left hand: Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matthew 25:41). The Lord pronounces His condemnation on sinners - real beings; Isn’t it clear from this that the devil and his angels are also real beings, for for them, first of all, eternal fire is prepared, awaiting their followers - sinners? According to Christ the Savior, Satan tormented the unfortunate crumpled woman for 18 years (Luke 13:11–16); he asked the Lord to sow the apostles like wheat (Luke 22:31). Elsewhere in St. The Gospels cite the words of Jesus Christ that there is a whole kingdom of evil spirits, that the devil is the evil prince of this kingdom, has his servants and is therefore called the prince of demons (Matthew 12:25-27; Luke 11:17-20), that the devil - the prince of demons - is “the prince of this world” (John 12:31), that the devil and his angels act together, without interfering, but supporting each other to the detriment of people (Matthew 12:25–27; Mark 3:24–28; Luke 11:17–20). The holy apostles did not doubt the existence of the devil. Like Jesus Christ, they taught about the harmful activities of evil spirits and their harmful influence on the human race. Speaking about Christ that He healed everyone possessed by the devil (Acts 10:38), the apostles themselves, following the example of their Divine Teacher, healed those possessed by demons (Acts 5:15–16, 16:18) and, preaching Christ to people, looked at the transition from paganism to Christianity as a transition from the power of Satan to God (Acts 16:18). According to the teaching of the apostles, Christ took on our flesh and blood in order to by His death deprive the one who had the power of death, that is, the devil (Heb. 2:14). The devil is a real person, otherwise the Apostle Jude would not have depicted him arguing about the body of Moses with the Archangel Michael (Jude 1:9). The apostles taught that demons are intelligent spirits (James 3:15), but evil (Acts 19:13). Being numerous (Rev. 12:4), they form their own kingdom, headed by Satan (Rom. 16:20; 1 Cor. 5:5). From these passages of the apostolic writings it is clear that the devil is a person who really exists. This is how the holy fathers of the Church understood these passages. St. Ignatius the God-Bearer repeatedly in his epistles exhorts us to avoid the deceit and tricks of the prince of this age and to strengthen ourselves against the devilish roots with meekness, faith and love. The angel, who by his birthright was wiser than the others, for his crime and disobedience became a demon, and with him those who imitated him and were carried away by his dreams formed a regiment of demons 75. The devil, according to the teachings of St. Irenaeus of Lyons, is a creation of God, like other angels. He himself was the cause of his apostasy 76 . According to Tertulliani, everything that offends God should be attributed to demons and unclean spirits 77. All other fathers and teachers of the Church also acknowledge the existence of evil spirits. In their works (which we will see more than once below), they talk about the nature of evil spirits, their first sin, their machinations against people, and so on. The existence of evil spirits is especially convincingly proven by the history of holy ascetics, as we can see from their edifying writings. All their lives the ascetics waged a fierce battle against the spirits of evil. It often happened that demons appeared to them in a sensual form. Fighting off demons with their high moral life, the holy ascetics cast out demons from other people, which they boldly pointed out to the pagans as proof of the truth of the Christian faith. In the second apology of Justin the Martyr we read: “Jesus became a man and was born, according to the will of God and the Father, for the sake of people who believe in Him and the destruction of demons. We can now learn this from what is happening before our eyes, for many Christians have healed and are still healing many people possessed by demons, conjuring in the name of Jesus Christ, crucified under Pontius Pilate, while they were not healed by other exorcists - hypnotists.” “Most of you know,” says Minucius Felix, “that the demons themselves come into great awe from our incantatory words in the name of the One True God and either immediately leave the bodies of those possessed by them, or gradually leave, depending on the faith of the sufferer or the desire of the healer” 78. Tertullian writes: “As for demons, we not only do not reject them, but we fight them, we pursue them, we expel them from the human body, as everyone knows. Bring into court a man known to be possessed by a demon, and let the Christian, whoever he may be, command the demon to speak. The demon confesses that he is indeed a demon, and that in other cases he falsely pretends to be God 79." Belief of St. The Church in the existence of evil spirits and their harmful influence was most convincingly expressed in her prayers and prayer services. In his prayers, St. The Church persistently teaches believers to ask God for deliverance from evil demons, crafty demons, and disembodied enemies. “Deliver me, Lord, from the present demonic situation... Deliver me from the mouth of the destructive serpent, who yawns to devour me and bring me to hell alive.” (Pray for sleep ridges. 8). “May God rise again, and His enemies be scattered... May the demons perish on behalf of those who love God and sign the sign of the cross...” “Deliver me, Lord, from the devil’s haste.” “Save me, for you are my God and Creator... Let Satan not kidnap me and boast of the Word that he has torn me away from Your hand and fence... Grant me, O God, to work for You without laziness, as I worked before the flattering Satan” (Mol. of St. Macarius, 13). Instructs St. The Church resorts to the Most Holy Theotokos with the following prayer: “Deliver me from eternal fire and evil worms and tartar; Do not show me joy to the demons, who am guilty of many sins.” He also teaches us to pray to the Guardian Angel, so that he does not give “place for the evil demon to possess the violence of this mortal body,” so that he forbids the demons to torment us (Can. English Chron. 6). In the rank of St. Baptism, which is used in the Church to this day, is required of recipients so that for the person being baptized they renounce “the devil and all his works, and all his pride.” The Church recognizes the possibility of the existence of demoniacs as truly possessed by evil spirits by the fact that it has a special rite “about deliverance from unclean spirits.” This following at the same time reveals to us the undoubted faith of the Church in the power of the name of Christ and the power He gave to the shepherds of the Church “over unclean spirits to cast them out” (Matthew 10:1). So, everything convinces us of the existence of evil spirits: the tradition of peoples, and sound reason, illuminated by the light of Divine Revelation, and the experience of holy ascetics and, finally, the faith of the Church. Therefore, as Fr. John of Kronstadt, “stubborn disbelief in the existence of evil spirits is a real demon, for it goes against the truth, contrary to Divine Revelation 80; a person who denies the evil spirit is already consumed by the devil (1 Peter 5:8) and, sitting in darkness and the shadow of death, is unable to see the Sun of righteousness. (See the book of Abbot Mark: “Evil Spirits”, St. Petersburg, 1899). Resolution of objections to the assumption of the existence of the devil. Rationalism denies the possibility and reality of the existence of Satan and other evil spirits as living personal beings. This, of course, is a consequence of his denial of the existence of any spirits in general or the angelic world in general. But in this case, intentionally or unintentionally mixing the biblical teaching about evil spirits with vulgar popular ideas and images about them, the devil in poetry (Lucifer and all demonic types, like Manfred, Cain and others in Byron, Mephistopheles in Goethe, Demon in Lermontov), having little or nothing in common with him, rationalism, except for various extraneous considerations, tries to point out in the very Christian teaching has such features that make it incredible or implausible in psychological and other respects. Of the countless objections collected and put forward especially by Schleiermacher, the most important can be pointed out: a) It seems unthinkable to have such a deep fall in which the entire being turns from good to evil, and, moreover, as a result of a single sinful act. – But such a fall is completely natural for the highest angelic nature, especially the most powerful of the angels. His falling away from God was not a matter of external seduction, as it was partly among people in Paradise, it was not a matter of weakness, but a firmly accepted, conscious and intentional decision of his own will, not a human will, but a powerful will, and not a human mind, but an angelic one. He who stands high falls low and deep; this is a general law observed in the human moral world. – The law is quite clear. The richer the nature in a person, the stronger, deeper and wider, of course, are all its manifestations - both in bad and in good: mediocrity in everything remains mediocrity, genius is great in everything. He who feels and desires deeply falls deeply when the will is directed in a bad way; He who thinks deeply is deeply mistaken: a tree never makes mistakes, for it does not think; an animal rarely and makes little mistakes, because it rarely and little (badly) thinks; a foolish man makes more mistakes, but the mistakes of a great mind are terrible. In angelic nature, everything exists and happens on a scale unusual for humans; nothing in us can compare with the strength, depth, power of all the movements of their spiritual being: these movements are strong, fast and irrevocable. In man, the very weaknesses of the body and spirit, his weakness and physicality often serve as a limitation to sin or evil will. The decisions of the evil will find obstacles to their implementation and their limitation is that they often originate in unstable and changing movements of the body, external impressions or feelings, quickly changing and being replaced by new ones, in a word - from the outside, and not in the very depths of the spirit. The external world with its various impressions does not allow the evil will (evil) to concentrate inside, once it has appeared, it lures it out and thereby weakens it, makes it superficial and petty, so that absent-mindedness serves a person’s benefit. Boredom, fatigue, and the limitation by space and time of all movements or acts of his mind, will and feelings serve him well, as a result of which the acts of evil of the soul require tension, time, and at the same time entail fatigue and rest. And the very thought in a person, no matter how fast it is, is subject to the measure of time (1/6 sec.) and space (the impression reaches consciousness from the peripheries to the central organ 90 feet per second). But nothing binds the angel in all the acts and movements of his being: nothing distracts him from himself, everywhere he is alone with himself, he cannot, even if he wanted, hide from himself behind the body and the external world - go with his own forces into the external world: his forces are not distracted and are not spent on the side in the struggle with matter and to fight against it, but are concentrated, without losing anything, in himself. Nothing slows down or weakens the madness of his spirit, which is active and never requires rest; His evil will has no boundaries in time: his movements are instantaneous, fast and cannot be measured; there are no boundaries to them in space: the angel is quickly transported from place to place where his evil will attracts him, and there are no physical obstacles for it! b) It seems implausible for the highest angel with his high and bright mind to have a reckless intention to compare with God or, at least, to become independent from Him. – But this intention arises in the angel under the influence of the passion of pride that has gripped him, which has never made and does not make anyone smart like all passions, if not more (love, jealousy, envy, vanity, etc.). It has long been a hackneyed truth, which, however, must be repeated here, that passion blinds and suppresses reason, and this is especially applicable to sinful passions. Each sin separately carries with it, in varying degrees - in accordance with its importance, a terrible punishment for a person: it turns him from a rational being into an unreasonable one. This cannot be otherwise in view of the close connection between all aspects of spiritual activity and the undoubted connection between knowledge and the heart. Errors of the heart are reflected in the mind, and this is not only in the practical, but also in the scientific sphere, where very often you see the action of this law, according to which the thinking of undoubtedly gifted and strong minds is struck by some kind of sterility, emptiness and immutability, when these strong and not petty minds lack a noble heart, an exalted character. A lie of the heart entails a lie in the mind, and, moreover, in such spheres of the mind as scientific thinking, where, apparently, the so-called “pure thinking” operates; but “what will be pure from what is unclean, and what will be pure from what is false?” (Sir.34:4). Unreason in everything, more or less obvious, is the first curse of sin, which in its essence is unreason, that is, the denial of the rational. – Analysis of the objections stated above under “a” and “b”, thus, only clearly reveals the psychological truthfulness of the Christian teaching about the devil, without shaking it at all. c) The actual doctrine of evil spirits, say rationalists, is an element alien to the Bible: it does not appear before the return of the Jews from Babylonian captivity, and therefore was undoubtedly taken out by the Jews from there and, of course, from Persian mythology with its extremely developed demonology. By the time of Jesus Christ and the apostles, it had already spread and established itself among the people so much that in their religious consciousness it had become a dogma. Therefore, Jesus Christ and the apostles, without challenging this belief and at the same time not sharing it, spoke casually on this subject in the general current expressions of their time, adapting to the language and concepts of it, without giving them a special meaning (accommodation 81). – This strange statement about the post-exilic origin of the doctrine of evil spirits in the Bible (when the devil is already mentioned in Genesis 3) is obtained only due to the arbitrary assertion of negative biblical criticism about the later origin of books written before the exile, like the book. Job (chap. 1), book. Kings (1 Samuel 16:14, 18:10, 19:9, 28:16; 2 Kings 24:1, 22:20), Chronicles (1 Chronicles 21:1; 2 Chronicles 18:19). The devil is mentioned in the Deuteronomy of Moses (Deut. 32:17), the Psalms (Ps. 109:6, 67) and the Prophets (Is. 13:21; cf. Rev. 18:2; Is. 36:14). In addition, the biblical teaching about the devil and evil spirits is of a significantly different nature than the teaching about them in the Persian religion: a) here they are personal beings, in Parsism they are personifications or representatives of evil phenomena and forces of nature; b) here evil spirits are presented as such not by their very nature, but as a result of their free deviation from good, for they, like everyone else, were first good and originated from God, in Parsism - they are evil by their very nature, etc. Finally, the national-Jewish, and not foreign, nature of the Jews’ beliefs in evil spirits is evidenced by the fact that their most zealous adherents were zealots of the law and the first patriots - Pharisees. The theory of accommodation is completely inapplicable to the teaching of Jesus Christ about evil spirits: it disagrees with the moral character of the absolutely truthful person of Jesus Christ and with the general character and principles of His teaching. According to this theory, adaptation extends not only to the form (which would be true), but also to the content of the teaching of Jesus Christ; this, in other words, would mean that there is an admixture of lies in His teaching: the truth (that is, the real thoughts of the Teacher) is silent in it, and the minds of the listeners are deceived by deliberately inaccurate sayings. Christ is unknown to us even in the views of rationalists who deny His Divinity. Accommodation both in the teaching of Jesus Christ and His apostles (1 Cor. 9:19–23; Heb. 5:11–14; cf. Acts 24:10–21, 22:22–32) referred only to the form, and not to the content of the teaching. Thus, adapting to the understanding of the listeners and their moral state, the Savior spoke to the people in parables, and to the disciples about the same subjects without a parable and directly (Matthew 13:10, etc. ), and always revealed the truth to the extent that it could be accommodated by the minds of the listeners (John 16:12), and therefore did not say much until the time came. All the more unnatural is material accommodation in relation to a doctrine of such importance as the doctrine of evil spirits under consideration: it is important not in one theoretical respect, entering as one of the elements in the general worldview with a known meaning in it, but in a moral and practical sense, deeply influencing life itself and, as history shows, is always subject to gross abuses, which further expand its influence (remember witchcraft). Thus, this teaching is far from an indifferent point in the general system of religious-Christian dogma and morals; but accommodation is alien to the teaching of Jesus Christ in points of even less importance, where it would be more, comparatively, conceivable, as in the ritual question of the Sabbath, for example, about the laws of purification, about fasting, etc. In addition, the doctrine of evil spirits is presented and expressed in such a situation and in such a way that excludes any thought about accommodation, that is, a concession forced by circumstances (the ignorance of others) to incorrect concepts. These concessions are not easily made even by mere mortal people who avoid reasons for it: is it conceivable that Jesus Christ, without extreme need, without any promptings and reasons, not caused by anyone, would not once, but very often express the doctrine of evil spirits, and, moreover, not in general terms (lines), but in details, not expected or required by anyone? And He very often acted in exactly this way or even mostly (for example: Matt. 13:39, 25:41; John 8:44, 12:31, 14:30, 16:11 and many others). Finally, the Savior often revealed this teaching to His disciples alone, in relation to whom such accommodation would have been inappropriate within the meaning of the theory of accommodation itself (for example, Matt. 13:39, 17:21, 12:26, etc. (See “The experience of an apologist, an exposition of Orthodox Christian Doctrines,” Priest. Svetlova, prof. theological, vol. I, ed. 1896). God, teaches St. Anthony the Great did not do any evil; It was not from His will and not from their nature that the demons received the beginning of evil, but from their own will. They were created at first good, because they were created by the Good God; but for their pride they were cast out from Heaven to earth 82. An evil angel, they said to St. martyrs - Eustratius, Mardarius, etc., who had power among the other angels, by his will, retreated from the Creator of him and, becoming proud, fell from his rank and from God, and God deprived him of his angelic glory 83. 3. The hierarchy of evil spirits. And evil spirits have their own ranks and degrees: among them there are the weak, the strong, the strongest, the so-called princes of demons, and one, their main leader, Satan. One dishonest young man, wounded by unclean lust for St. the girl Justina, asked her to marry him; she refused, saying that she already had a Bridegroom, Christ, whom she served and for whose sake she kept her body pure. Offended by her refusal, he went to the then famous sorcerer Cyprian, so that he would attract the holy virgin to him by the power of magic. The sorcerer called one of the demons to his aid and instructed him to arouse bad lust in the girl’s heart. The saint, by the power of prayer to the Lord Jesus Christ, made the seductions of the unclean spirit unsuccessful: the demon fled from her in shame. The sorcerer then called upon the fiercest demon; but this one too was driven away by the prayer and fasting of the saint. pleasers. The sorcerer finally called one of the demonic princes. This one reproached those demons for weakness; but he himself had to flee from the holy maiden with great disgrace and shame 84 . “I,” said the demon, who appeared in the form of the bright angel St. maiden Juliana, one of the chief princes of darkness, sent from the father of Satan to tempt and deceive you” 85. 4. The moral state of evil spirits and their actions in relation to humans. The moral state of evil spirits is the darkest, and their activities in relation to humans are the most harmful and destructive. The demon who appeared to St. Irina, he said about himself that he was a teacher of fornicators and adulterers, a mocker of drunkards, rejoicing over bloodshed, a teacher of all lies and untruths 86. The demon who appeared to St. Juliania, announced to her that he advised Eve in Paradise to break the commandment of God, taught Cain to kill Abel, seduced Solomon, gave Herod the idea to beat the children, Judas to betray his Teacher and hang himself 87. All the activities of evil spirits in relation to a person are aimed at seducing him from the path of virtue and corrupting him, and so that a person seduced from the path of wickedness will be with them in eternal torment and unquenchable fire 88 . Great is the power of Christ, which helps you, said the devil to St. Pachomius; but I will not stop fighting you and will do my job 89. The malice of demons is varied and varied, teaches St. Anthony, they wage war against all virtue. Fierce is their hatred of all Christians, especially monks and virgins of Christ: their paths are foiled with mud, they try to fill their hearts with godless, unclean thoughts. If they stop deceiving them, it is for a short time: when they are disgraced, they attack with greater force. When they cannot seduce a person in their thoughts, they change the way they fight and begin to tempt with dreams, sometimes transforming into a female likeness, sometimes into a scorpion and into bodies so large that they can reach with their heads to the top of the church, and sometimes into warlike hordes. When this treachery of theirs is revealed, they begin to predict the future. When this is also recognized, then the demons call on the anger of their boss for help 90 . All these and other similar types of malice of evil spirits can be found in the lives of St. saints of God. Evil spirits act on the soul and body of a Christian person, arousing unclean and blasphemous thoughts in the soul, and infecting the body with diseases. Rev. The demon gradually put into Nifont the thought: “There is no God, where is God? And there is no Christ! I alone contain everything and reign over everything” 91. Nikita, the recluse of Pechersk, was not ordered by a demon, who appeared in the form of an angel, to pray to God, but only to read books and give useful words to those who came to him, and promised to pray for his salvation 92. Body of St. The devil struck Simeon the Stylite with such a fierce ulcer that it began to rot, and pus with worms emanated from his ulcers 93 . The devil pierced St. Ioannikis in the ribs with such a disease that he was speechless for seven days 94 . For the seduction and seduction of St. Evil spirits transformed the ascetics into various images and used all sorts of means to seduce them - great, small, and even insignificant. The demon in his lordship came to Pachomius and said: “Rejoice, Pachomius! I am Christ and I have come to you as a friend” 95. To seduce St. Simeon the Stylite, the devil was transformed into an angel of light and descended to him from heaven on a fiery chariot 96. To the temptation of St. The devil placed shameless naked wives on Hilarion’s bed; during times of hunger and thirst, he presented him with sweet foods and drinks 97 . St. Pachomius saw the demon in the form of a beautiful wife going to the monastery with many servants 98. Rev. The demon appeared to Theodora the widow in the form of her husband 99 . Rev. Theodore was healed from the disease of love of money by St. Vasily. The demon, taking on the image of Vasily, appeared to Theodore and said: “Theodora! How do you keep up? Has the demonic warfare ceased with you, or is the demon still bothering you, bringing to mind the property distributed to the poor?” - Theodore said that he was able to keep up with his (Vasily’s) prayers, and at the same time promised to continue to do everything he ordered. The demon told him to ask God for a lot of gold, so that he could have peace and reward for the property given away and be able to give to the poor. Fyodor began to pray about this, and the devil showed him a lot of gold in one cave. When Fedor received the gold, he advised him to leave the monastery for another country - and buy estates there, so as not to again suffer the temptation of grief over wealth. Theodore was inclined to do so, but God sent the reverend to him. Vasily, who exposed the seductions of the devil and saved his soul 100. The devil appeared to St. Theodore Sikeot in the form of a young man - a friend of Gerontius, who studied at the school with him. While walking with Theodore, he placed him on the highest hill above the abyss and invited him to show his courage and jump down. “I’m afraid,” answered Theodore, “very high!” “In school you were more courageous than all of us,” the devil shamed him, “but now you are timid; So I’m not afraid if I jump off.” - Theodore tried to persuade him, fearing that he might crash. - “There will be no trouble, don’t be afraid.” - “If you rush first, and I see you whole, then I will do the same.” The devil rushed down and stood up straight and called Theodore to him. While Theodore was still standing in amazement at the exploits of Gerontius, St. Great Martyr George and, taking him by the hand, said to him: “Get out of here; this is not Gerontius, but an enemy of our family” 101. Sometimes demons serve to seduce St. the ascetics appeared in the form of a pious man. Rev. Abraham the recluse, during his prayer, the demon set up a lamp and sang psalms 102. Many demons once came to the Rev. at night. Macarius of Egypt and they said to him: “Get up, Macarius, and sing with us, why are you sleeping?” The monk, having recognized the demonic delusion, cried out: “Christ God! Help us and deliver me from those who have bypassed me,” and the demons disappeared with a noise 103. Demons also took the form of various animals. During the prayer of St. For Hilarion, the devil appeared to him either as a howling wolf or as a galloping fox 104 . Demons frightened St. Sergius, transforming into animals and snakes 105. The devil appeared to St. Tryphon in the form of a large dog 106. Even people who have communication with demons can produce demonic dreams, for example, change the air, produce winds, thunder and rain, disturb the sea waves, cause harm in gardens and fields 107. Cyprian the sorcerer against a young man who was wounded by unclean lust for St. Justina, placed a bird image with the ability to fly through the air. To seduce people, demons sometimes predict the future; They know this future not because they have the gift of prophecy; but they predict what they either did themselves, or they themselves taught evil people something, for example, to kill or steal. So, when those who wanted to hear a word of consolation from him came to the recluse Nikita, then the demon in the form of an angel announced to him everything that had happened to them and predicted the future - and so it came true 108. They can know the future, like disembodied spirits, on the basis of long-term experience and observation of things and human affairs; but they also often lie and deceive. “Do you know,” asked St. Pachomius of the demon who appeared to him, “that after our death the brethren will not serve the Lord as diligently as they do now?” “I know right,” answered the demon. - “You are lying to your bad head; knowing the future belongs to God alone, and you are one lie.” “I have no foreknowledge,” the demon confessed, “and I myself don’t know anything; I know what will happen in the future through knowledge of past and present things” 109. Attacking and villainizing a person during his earthly life, evil spirits do not leave him even after his death. With special force they attack a person at the hour of death in order to disturb the peace of his soul. “When the hour of my separation from the body came,” said St. Theodora, I saw many Ethiopians standing around my bed; their faces were like soot, their eyes were like fiery coals, they all looked at me menacingly, gnashed their teeth, prepared and developed scrolls in which my bad deeds were recorded. I turned my eyes away so as not to see those terrible faces, but I saw them everywhere, and my soul was in great fear and trembling” 110. “Oh my God! - prayed St. Joseph the hymn-writer at the hour of his death, “You have kept me all the days of my life, and now guard my spirit to the end and help me to escape the prince of darkness and the aerial monsters, lest my enemy rejoice over me.” 111 So gloomy is the moral state of evil spirits, and so destructive and evil are their actions on humans! Some of these actions and the means for these actions seem insignificant, even ridiculous, and seem not to correspond to the nature of disembodied spirits. But what is important here is the purpose for which these means and actions are used, and not the means and actions themselves. The all-evil, deceitful, nasty spirit is satisfied if its seemingly insignificant and ridiculous means and actions achieve their evil and nasty goal - to seduce the holy ascetic, ridicule him, humiliate him, laugh at his holy exploits and draw him into sin. A dirty man of the flesh can do all sorts of dirty tricks to deceive pious people. The gloomy and destructive moral state of evil spirits becomes even more bleak because they cannot get out of it, cannot, that is, bring repentance. One day a demon in the form of a human sinner came to St. Anthony the Great and, comparing himself to an evil spirit, asked whether God could accept repentance from demons if any of them repented. Saint Anthony began to pray and asked the Lord to resolve this issue. An angel sent from God revealed to him that ancient evil cannot be new good - that the former leader of evil cannot begin good deeds - one who has become accustomed to pride cannot humble himself in repentance and find mercy from God. And so that Anthony himself could be convinced of this, the Angel commanded him to force the demon to do the following: so that the demon, for three years in one place, day and night, would cry out: “God, have mercy on me, ancient malice! God, save me, my darkened beauty! God, have mercy on me, you abomination of desolation!” The next day, when the demon came, the monk offered him these conditions. “No, elder,” answered the demon, “how can I call myself an ancient evil, when I am now so glorious and so many people obey me? How can I call myself an abomination of desolation and darkened beauty, when all sinners love me and do what I please? No, let it not happen that through repentance I will become indecent and humble and, out of great honor, accept such dishonor for myself” 112. Thus, the evil spirit himself testified that repentance is impossible for evil spirits, and this does not depend on God, but on their freedom, directed towards only evil, and on excessive pride, excluding all humility. 5. Limitation of the power of evil spirits. No matter how great the dominion of evil spirits and no matter how strong their power, and no matter how diverse their evil actions on man, their power and power are so limited by the death on the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ that the saints of Christ, as well as all pious Christians, can not only resist the suggestions of evil spirits, but also defeat them. Christian virtues, especially those associated with invoking the name of Jesus Christ and the sign of the cross, are arrows that sting the devil, disgrace and drive him away. “Believe me,” says St. Anthony, “Satan trembles at the vigilance of Christians, their prayers and fasting, meekness, arbitrary poverty, humility, and especially a pure heart in Christ’s love” 113. “Oh, Macarius,” the demon said to Macarius of Egypt, “I grieve a lot because I cannot overcome you. I do everything that you do: you fast and I don’t eat anything; You are awake and I never sleep. One thing you overcome me with is humility; I cannot resist him" 114. One day they brought him to Rev. Anthony a young man possessed by an unclean spirit from the rank of rulers, princes of darkness. Anthony sent him to St. Pavel the Simple. This one said to the demon: “Father Anthony orders you, the devil, to come out.” The devil didn't come out. “Either you go out,” said the saint, “or I will go and tell Christ, and you will be in trouble.” The demon did not come out. Then St. Paul stood on a stone and cried out: “Jesus Christ, crucified under Pontius Pilate! I will not leave this stone until You hear me; I will not eat bread and water until You cast out the demon from this young man.” The demon came out. So, it is noted in the life of St. Paul, small demons are cast out by people who are strong in faith, but the humble rulers of the demons are defeated by the humble 115. It was noted about the Monk Theodosius of Pechersk that he had such power over evil spirits that they did not dare to approach the place where he prayed 116. St. Potitus said to the demon who was in one of the girls: “My Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God, forbids you, unclean soul, and commands you to leave this creation and never enter it again.” The demon came out and disappeared 117. The name of Jesus Christ, not only pronounced by the lips of St. saints, but what they wrote in letters had the power to cast out demons. St. Evangelist John the Theologian sent a letter with his disciple Prokhor to someone possessed by an evil spirit. The letter was written: “John, the apostle of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, I command the inquisitive spirit: in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, depart from the creation of God and never enter it, but be outside the island, in dry places, and not among people.” When Prokhor came with this letter, the demon left the man 118. The holy saints, armed with the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and the name of the Most Holy Trinity, even had dominant power over demons and sometimes used the same means to shame demons that demons used to seduce them. Rev. Theodore of Pechersk was once grinding wheat, while singing psalms from the Psalter, and, having become tired, stopped grinding. Then thunder roared and lightning illuminated, and the millstones began to grind again. Having recognized the demonic action, the monk forbade the demon in the name of God to do this. The demon did not listen. Then Theodore, in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, commanded the demon not to stop grinding until he had crushed everything. The demon obeyed and ground. Another time, demons threw down from the mountain the trees brought by the brethren from the Dnieper, which were needed to build cells. Rev. Theodore, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, forced the demons themselves to move all the trees from the river bank to the mountain in one night to the place where the cells were to be built 119. St. John of Novgorod tied up the demon, who was placed in the washstand, and did not order him to leave there for a long time 120. St. Basil the Great forced the devil to give back the boy’s receipt, in which he renounced Christ and forever surrendered to the devil 121. In the lives of the saints there is much evidence of how the demons themselves were aware of their weakness and their powerlessness from the time of the Lord’s coming to earth and especially after His death on the cross. Ever since Jesus was crucified, the demon the Venerable has testified. Nifont, I have become weak 122. Satan spoke Rev. Anthony: “Behold, I do not have a single place, I do not possess a single city, I have no weapons; in all generations and countries the name of Christ is glorified; the deserts were filled with monks" 123. “Woe is me! - the demon cried when St. Potitus drove him out of one possessed girl with the sign of the cross - woe is me, the boy defeats me! Where can I calm down now, who should I aim my arrows at?” 124. The holy martyr Tryphon expelled a demon from one of the royal daughters and, making him visible to everyone, asked: “Who gave you demons power over God’s creation?” “The demon answered: “We have no power over those who know God and believe in His Only Begotten Son, Christ. From those we run in fear. We inflict temptations on them when we are allowed (by God). Over those who do not believe in God and His Son and walk in all their lusts, we have power over them to torment them” 125. The Devil Who Appeared to St. Pachomius, said: “No one has ever humiliated me as much as you have: you not only put me under the feet of the old, but you also teach others to trample on me, and you have gathered such a multitude of ascetics against us, protecting them with the fear of God, that it is impossible for my servants to approach them. This power and authority over me began to exist from the time of the incarnation of God the Word, who gave you the power to attack all our strength” 126. 6. The good purpose of God's Providence is to allow evil spirits. The actions of evil spirits on humans are hostile, malicious and disastrous; but one cannot help but see in them the good purpose of Divine Providence for man. A person’s struggle with evil spirits protects him from carelessness and negligence in the exploits of salvation, encourages him to constantly be spiritually vigilant over himself and provides an opportunity to develop and strengthen that virtue that is attacked by demons; their various temptations teach a person, even one perfect in virtue, humility, encouraging him not to rely on his own strength, but to turn for help to the conqueror of hell and all the power of the enemy, the Lord Jesus Christ; victory over the temptations of the devil increases the power and glory of the name of Christ. “Whenever I fight you,” says the demon Venerable. Pachomius, “I am more useful to you than I am guilty of vanity” 127. 7. About the appearance of evil spirits and the manner of their appearance. The books of the Old and New Testaments and church history convey many experiences of the appearance of evil spirits. 1. The most famous and most harmful manifestation of the devil for a person is when he, under the guise of a serpent, appeared to Eve and tempted her 128. Since then, the image of a serpent has been the most commonly used sensual image of the devil. In the Holy Scriptures, the devil is often called the ancient serpent 129 - it is said that the hellish dragon will fight with the Woman, under whose guise the Church appears, and that he will be defeated by the Archangel Michael and overthrown by him from the heights of heaven 130. From the book of the Old Testament it is known that in this image he was revered by the pagans. In Babylon, for example, they rendered divine worship to a living dragon, which Daniel killed by allowing it to swallow a composition of various poisonous substances 131 . The pagans had a kind of fortune-telling through snakes, which they called ophiomancy. The Egyptians, Greeks and Romans revered snakes and looked at them as something divine. They gave divine veneration to the reptiles 132. Blessed Augustine 133 notes that no animal was used so often in sorcery as the snake, as if as a punishment for the fact that it seduced the first man. However, the more common form in which the demon appeared to people and tempted them is the image of a man: probably in this form he appeared to Jesus in the desert (Matthew 4) and tempted Him. In almost all those appearances of the devil, which are conveyed to us in such countless numbers through the lives of saints, he had a human image. In order to present factual evidence of the reality of the appearances of the devil and several examples of exactly in what form and why he appeared, we present several facts of his appearance, borrowed from the lives of saints. 2. Shortly before the Persian invasion of the Greek Empire, in the second Cilician diocese, in the city of Adanna, the following incident happened to the steward of the cathedral church of this city, Theophilus. Theophilus was distinguished and known to everyone for his impeccably honest and extremely active performance of his duties in office and for his Christian virtues. He was the eye and right hand of his bishop. He was a father to orphans, a nourisher to widows, a generous giver to the poor, an intercessor to the downtrodden, a helper to the helpless, and therefore enjoyed universal love and respect. And when the bishop of Adanna died, everyone unanimously wanted Theophilus to be made bishop, and they turned to the Cilician primate bishop with a request for this. The bishop shared the common desire. But Theophilus, out of a sense of Christian humility and too much respect for the episcopal rank, resolutely refused to accept this rank. All the requests to him about this from all the people, the clergy and the primate bishop were in vain. Theophilus stood by his decision. They were forced to make another bishop, but Theophilus remained in his previous economic position. Despite Theophilus’ impeccably honest life, there were people who, inspired by the spirit of malice and envy, began to slander Theophilus before the bishop and accuse him of the most obscene things. The bishop, knowing Theophilus well as a highly pious and virtuous man, at first for a long time did not give any faith to these slander and accusations. But since they did not stop, but became more and more intensified, the bishop little by little began to believe them and finally decided to remove Theophilus from his economic post under the pretext of giving him peace from prolonged hard work. Theophilus obeyed unquestioningly. Now the demon's envy and anger took a different direction. Previously he acted through other people, now he began to act with all his might on the soul of Theophilus himself. The demon began to excite and develop in him the idea that he was subject to completely unfair humiliation from the bishop, that for his labors and virtues he was paid with insult and neglect. Little by little, this thought developed in Theophilus to such an extent that he finally imagined that he was extremely humiliated, insulted, and scolded by everyone, and in connection with this, his soul was soon overcome by an irresistible desire to rise as high as possible among people. He now strongly desired, at first, to at least get his former position. Theophilus was so possessed by the lust for power that he finally decided to seek help from magic and demonic power to fulfill his ambitious desires. And so, he goes to the most famous sorcerer and sorcerer at that time, reveals his desires to him and with tears asks him for help, promising a due reward. The sorcerer happily agrees to help the unfortunate man and, having reassured him, orders him to come to his place the next night. Theophilus left overjoyed, and the next midnight he again appeared to the sorcerer. The sorcerer takes him to the hippodrome, that is, to the place of the horse races, and says to him: “If you see any vision or hear any voice, do not be afraid and do not make the sign of the cross.” Theophilus agreed to everything, and immediately such a ghost appeared before their eyes: they saw many strange faces, dressed in different light dresses and with candles in their hands. It was a host of demons; they praised their prince Satan, who sat among them with pride and arrogance. The sorcerer took Theophilus by the hand, led him into the gathering and appeared with him before the prince of demons. Satan asked the sorcerer: “Why did you bring this man to us?” The sorcerer answered: “I brought him to you, my lord, because he is very much offended by his bishop and asks for your help.” Satan said to this: “How can I help a man who is a servant of his God? If he agrees to become my slave and join the ranks of my servants, then I will help him so much that he will receive greater power than he had before, and even that which the bishop has.” - “Do you hear what the prince says?” - said the sorcerer to Theophilus. “I hear,” answered Theophilus, “and I will do everything that he commands me,” and with these words he threw himself at the feet of the demonic prince and began to kiss his feet. Then the devil said, turning to Theophilus: “Let this man deny the Son of Mary and Herself, because I deeply hate them. And let him write this renunciation with his own hand and give this manuscript to me, and then let him demand from me everything that he pleases; I will do everything.” “I agree to do whatever you command,” said Theophilus, “as long as I get what I want.” Hearing this, Satan extended his demonic hands and began to hug and kiss Theophilus, saying: “Rejoice, my sincere and faithful friend!” Then Theophilus renounced Christ and His Most Pure Mother, wrote this renunciation on paper prepared in advance for this by the sorcerer, sealed it and gave it to the prince of darkness. And, having hugged and kissed each other in a friendly manner, the new friends parted. Satan and his retinue became invisible, and Theophilus and the sorcerer happily went home. The next day after this incident, the bishop, one must believe, by inspiration from God, and not from the devil, repented of dismissing Theophilus from his economic position, called him to himself and again elevated him to this position and at the same time entrusted him with power in all church affairs twice as much as he had previously possessed. The bishop then even publicly asked Theophilus for forgiveness in front of the entire clergy and people for the insult he had made to him. And all the honor and respect from everyone that Theophilus had enjoyed before not only returned to him again, but became even incomparably greater than before. Theophilus's ambition was satisfied, he was reassured. But this disastrous calm did not last long. The merciful Lord did not allow the sinner to perish completely. He soon aroused repentance in his heart. Soon Theophilus clearly realized and deeply felt the misfortune of his situation. His repentance was too deep and sincere; He spent day and night in tears about his boundless insult to the Lord and His Most Pure Mother, about his deepest fall. And no matter how great his guilt before God was, the thought of the boundless mercy of God, who does not want anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance, inspired him with hope for mercy and the boldness to turn to the Most Merciful with a prayer for forgiveness and salvation. And so, Theophilus leaves all his work and decides to use all his strength and all his time to seek forgiveness from the Lord; for this purpose, he is confined to one church of the Mother of God and here, in front of the icon of the Blessed Virgin, spends forty whole days and forty nights in constant deep contrition for his sinfulness, in the strictest fasting and constant tearful prayer for his pardon. Finally, after forty days, at midnight, when Theophilus was praying as usual, the Mother of God appears to him and says to him: “Why are you so shamelessly turning, calling and praying to Me so that I can help you? After all, you have denied My Son and Me! How can I pray for you to My Son and God, when you have given yourself over to the devil and given him your handwriting in this - when you are a slave of the devil? And I Myself cannot tolerate insults to My Son and God. I can forgive you for what you have sinned against Me, but the bitterness and insults that you make to My Son, crucifying Him a second time in this way, I cannot see or hear. From those who have committed such bitterness and insults, many feats and deep heartfelt contrition are required in order for them to be pardoned by the Lord, since although He is Most Merciful, He is also a Righteous Judge, rewarding everyone according to their deeds.” Theophilus, encouraged by the appearance of the Mother of God, expressed before Her all his deepest contrition, all his sincere repentance, and brought to Her a fiery, tearful prayer to intercede for him before the Lord and intercede for him pardon. Seeing Theophilus's sincere and deep repentance, the Mother of God ordered him to make an Orthodox confession of faith. Theophilus fulfilled this command with sincere feeling. After this, the Mother of God promised him to pray for him before the Lord and disappeared. – Theophilus continued to incessantly lament and pray. Three days later, the Mother of God again appears to him with a joyful face and bright eyes - and announces to him that his repentance is pleasing to the Lord, that his prayer has been heard, and that God has granted him mercy, on the condition that he remain faithful to God until the end of his life. Theophilus expressed sincere gratitude to the Most Merciful Lord and to His Most Pure Mother and his sincere desire and readiness to be devoted to the Lord all the days of his life, and prayed to the Mother of God that the handwriting given to him by him be returned to him. - The Mother of God became invisible. After three days, during which Theophilus continued to fast and incessantly pray, when he finally, already too depressed by the feat of repentance, fell asleep; In a sleepy vision, he saw that the Mother of God was carrying this manuscript to him. He woke up with joy and, indeed, saw that this handwriting was lying on his chest. After this, Theophilus, partly from the spiritual labors he had endured, partly from extraordinary joy, fell into a kind of half-dead state. Having regained consciousness, he offered due thanks to God and the Most Merciful Intercessor of the Christian race, and then, for great purification of himself, he wished to make a public confession. For this purpose, he appeared to the bishop during the service, told him the whole story of his fall and salvation and asked him to announce this story publicly, for general edification. His request was fulfilled. The whole story was announced before all the people, and the bishop then made a speech befitting the occasion. During all this, Theophilus lay at the feet of the bishop and cried. Then Theophilus received the Holy Mysteries, and all the people brought praise and thanksgiving to the Lord God. – Theophilus spent the rest of the short time of his life in feats of prayer and abstinence 134. 3. The Holy Hieromartyr Cyprian 135, who before his conversion to Christianity was a magician and had direct relations with demons, tells the following about himself: “Believe me,” he says, “I saw the devil himself, I begged him for a meeting with him through many sacrifices; Having met him, I hugged and kissed him and enjoyed the conversations of him and his most honorable servants.” 8. About the so-called miracles of the devil. “Is the idea that the devil can perform miracles acceptable from a theological point of view?” - this is one of the questions that were proposed for discussion by the Society of Lovers of Spiritual Enlightenment on March 11, 1899. The very possibility of the question being posed in this way and its proposal for public discussion in the mentioned meeting clearly show that not all our theologians adhere to the same and very definite answer to it. This, indeed, became clear during the oral discussion of the issue. Finally, in a printed response from one of the members of the Society, Fr. Archimandrite Amphilochius, on the one hand, the idea of ​​the possibility of the devil performing miracles seems to be rejected, on the other hand, it seems to be allowed (subject to the connection with the word “miracle” of a broader concept) 136 . Is it really impossible to answer the question with certainty: “can or cannot the devil work miracles?” – In our opinion, it is not only quite possible, but from a theological point of view in this case the very grounds for raising this kind of question are not entirely clear. Only God can work miracles: from a theological point of view, the idea that the devil can work miracles is certainly unacceptable - this is the only possible answer to the mentioned question. Each dogmatic position is usually confirmed by 1) the teaching of Holy Scripture, 2) the testimonies of the fathers and teachers of the Church, and 3) considerations of reason. Let's follow this order. 1. There are places in the Holy Scriptures that seem to speak in favor of the fact that the devil can work miracles (Gen.3:1-5; Exod.7:11-12; Deut.13:1-3; Job.1-2 ch.; Matt.4:8 and parallels Mark.1:23-24, 34; Luke 7:21; Matt.8:28-32 and many others. etc. Matthew 24:24 and parallels Rev. 13:3, 13–14, etc.), and those that contain the opposite idea, that is, that miracles can be performed only by the power of God (Ex. 4: 1–9, 7: 8–10, 16, 12 chapters, etc.; Ps. 72:18; Matt. 11: 3–5, 12:24–28; John 5:36, 10:25, 37–38; Acts 2:22; 2 Cor. 12:12; But, obviously, Holy Scripture cannot contradict itself and give contradictory answers to the same question in different places. What should we do in this case? – The basic hermeneutical rule states that, when interpreting Holy Scripture, it is necessary to take down the so-called “parallel passages” and, according to the reason of those of them, where the thought is expressed clearly and definitely, interpret others, where the thought is expressed less clearly, without the closest and most precise definition. Is there now, between the listed places, where the answer to the above-mentioned question would be given with precision and certainty that does not allow for misinterpretation? – Since it is undeniable that God can work miracles, the question is: “can the devil work miracles?” - is completely unambiguous with the question: “can anyone besides God work miracles?” And to such a question in the Holy Scriptures there is a direct and completely definite answer: “Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, who alone works wonders,” says the Psalmist (Ps. 71:18). Only God alone can create miracles and no one else; therefore, the devil cannot create them with his own power - here is a brief teaching on this issue from the Holy Scriptures. Further: according to the teaching of the Holy Scriptures, God creates either Himself directly, such as, for example, the miracle of the confusion of tongues (Gen. 11), the miracle of the burning of the burning bush (Ex. 3), and all the miracles of Christ; or through people: in the Old Testament through the leaders and prophets, in the new - through the apostles, saints. saints of God and other persons. There is no essential difference in all these cases, because in them the same omnipotent power of God always and invariably operates. The idea of ​​Psalm 71, verse 18, that only God alone can work miracles, is confirmed by a number of places in Holy Scripture, where miracles are pointed out as an undoubted and indisputable demonstration of the power of God. Jesus Christ Himself repeatedly pointed to miracles as clear and undoubted evidence of His Divine messenger. To the question of the Baptist: Is He the Messiah, the Savior answers through his disciples: “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the ascetics give sight, and the lame people walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the dead preach the good news” (Matthew 11:3-5). In another place He says: “Am... I have a greater testimony of John: for the works which the Father gave Me that I should do, the same works which I do bear witness of Me, that the Father hath sent Me” (John 5:36 cf. John 10:32, etc.), and even more decisively: “Unless I do the works of My Father, ye have not faith in Me: if I do, even if you do not believe Me, by the work Believe in mine: that you may understand and believe that the Father is in me, and I in him” (John 10:37–38). Likewise, St. The apostles consider the miracles they performed to be the most convincing evidence of their apostolic dignity and Divine mission. Ap. Paul writes to the Corinthians: “the signs... of the apostle wrought in you (that is, the signs of the apostle appeared before you)... in signs and wonders and mighty works” (2 Cor. 12:12), which in another place he directly calls the power of the Spirit of God (Rom. 15:19). The question arises: what would be the meaning of all these passages of Holy Scripture if, besides God and His almighty power, someone else could perform real (not just apparent) miracles with his own power? Obviously, they would lose their meaning and their identification value. Thus, that only God alone can perform miracles, that if any messenger of God performs them, it is only by the power of God deliberately given to him - this position finds the most solid and clear foundations for itself in the Holy Scriptures. From what has been said, it becomes clear in itself how one should look at those passages of Holy Scripture where we are talking about the so-called miracles of the devil. Obviously, the latter must be understood as not true and real miracles, but only imaginary and apparent ones, which in fact are not miracles. This idea has direct confirmation in Holy Scripture. Here are the most important places in it where it talks about the performance of “miracles” by the power of the devil: Deut.13:1-3; Matthew 24:24 et al. 2 Thessalonians 2–9; Rev. 13:13–14. The first of these passages speaks of “miracles” that false prophets and dreamers can perform for an ungodly purpose; in the second about the “miracles” that false Christs and false prophets are about to perform to deceive people before the destruction of Jerusalem 137, in the third and fourth about the “miracles” of the Antichrist. The greatest and most amazing will be the “miracles” of the Antichrist, for Satan will give him his power, and his throne, and a great region (Rev. 13:2); and his coming, according to the working of Satan, will be with all power (2 Thess. 2:9). In other words: “Satan will rely on him with all his power, for it is the end for him too” 138 . And yet - what kind of miracles will these be? Are they true and valid? – To great consolation for the entire Christian race, St. ap. Paul gives a deliberately immediate and precise definition of these “miracles” of the Antichrist. According to the apostle, the coming of the Antichrist will be in “signs and lying wonders, and in general in all deceitful lies of unrighteousness...” (2 Thess. 2:9-10). These words of the apostle mean that the “miracles” of the Antichrist will only seem to be miraculous actions, but in fact they will be lies and deception for the purposes of deception. Here, obviously, lies the key to understanding the true and exact meaning and those places of Holy Scripture where the so-called miracles of the devil are discussed without any immediate definition of whether only apparent or real miracles should be understood by them. So, all the so-called miracles, performed apart from the almighty power of God, by the power of the devil, are actually miracles, but only seem to be such, are presented as them, in reality they are only lies and deception - this is the conclusion that is clearly revealed from a comparison of various passages of Holy Scripture related to this 139. 2. The teaching of the fathers and teachers of the Church cannot be different from the teaching of Holy Scripture. This idea, which appears in itself, a priori, is fully confirmed by their interpretations of the sacred books that have survived to our time. Yes, St. Chrysostom, in his interpretation of 2 Thessalonians 2:9, gives the following explanation for the words in false miracles: “deceptive (apparent), or deceptive.” Ecumenius explains them in a similar way, who writes: “The signs will be false either because he (the Antichrist) will show them ghostly and avert his eyes, or because through them he will lead into lies.” The conjunctions: “either... or,” obviously relate to which of these two, mutually non-mutually exclusive, thoughts, according to the interpreters, is predominantly expressed by the apostle, and, of course, without saying anything favorable to the assumption of the reality of the “miracles” of the Antichrist. For the first interpreter prefaces his words with a remark about the “miracles” of the Antichrist, that there will be nothing true in them; and the second more closely defines his last words with the explanation immediately following them: “this is how he will represent things that can deceive even believers.” Obviously, neither one nor the other interpreter connected with their words thoughts about the reality of the Antichrist performing miracles. The idea that the miracles of the Antichrist will only be apparent is expressed with the greatest clarity and certainty by Blessed. Theodoret and especially St. Cyril of Jerusalem. The first writes: “The miracles will be untrue, and such miracles are performed by those who deceive with the dexterity of their hands, because they show for gold that it is not gold at all, and they do something else, which is quickly exposed.” St. Cyril notes about the Antichrist: “Being the father of lies, he will deceive the imagination through false actions, so that the people will imagine that he sees a dead man raised, while he is not resurrected, he will see the lame walking and the blind seeing, while there was no healing.” St. argues in a similar way. Ephraim the Syrian 140. So, the idea of ​​the possibility of miracles being performed by the power of the devil not only does not find support in the interpretations of the fathers and teachers of the Church, but, on the contrary, one might say, it is directly rejected by them. 3. The impossibility of the devil performing miracles is revealed with no less clarity from considerations of reason. From the point of view of our concepts of a miracle, of the limited nature of the evil spirit, as a being, although higher in comparison with man, but still created, based, finally, on our concepts of God’s relationship to the phenomena of evil in the world, it is completely unthinkable to admit at least any possibility of the devil performing miracles. Indeed: what are miracles? - The Catechism of M. Philaret, which has the significance of a symbolic book of our Church, directly and definitively answers this question: deeds that are above the ordinary order of things and cannot be done by any force or art, but only by the special help of God, for example: to raise the dead. The answer not only gives a positive definition to the concept of a miracle, but eliminates and denies the very possibility of applying this name to anything other than the extraordinary actions of God in the world. How then can we understand the raison d'etre of the issue being raised and discussed?... Those who think differently usually make a reservation: “if we adhere to the broader concept of a miracle...” and so on. Deriving the word “miracle” from “alien,” or in addition to this, they want to give such a definition to the concept of “miracle” that it means something generally alien to man, that is, exceeding the strength of man and incomprehensible to him 141 . Is it possible to “expand” the concept of a miracle in this way? Obviously not; such a definition is untenable, first of all, from a logical point of view, because it does not concern the essence of the concept being defined, but only one aspect of it - the relationship to a person. And for what purpose do they resort to such a definition of the concept of a miracle? – To resolve the question of whether this concept is applicable to the actions of the devil... Should we then be surprised that the “ad hoc” constructed definition turns out to be completely untenable and leading to absolutely nothing? Can anything that exceeds our strength be called a miracle? – “Increase your height by even one cubit” - this exceeds our strength (Matthew 6:27), but do we consider the growth of the human body constantly occurring before our eyes to be a miracle? – No, we even directly call it natural. And how many things do we see around us that exceed our strength, which, however, no one has ever called a miracle?... We also do not call everything that is incomprehensible to us a miracle. We do not comprehend the essence of such phenomena of our spiritual life as human thought, self-consciousness, etc. The relationship of the spiritual principle to the material in ourselves, the interaction of force and matter in external nature, the origin of life in a child during the period of uterine life, etc. - all these are deep secrets that our minds do not and will not comprehend. However, can all this be called miracles? - No, we consider these phenomena of a natural nature and bring them under the concept not of a miracle, but under a completely different concept - the laws of nature. If the definition of the concept of a miracle can be expressed in a more general form, then only this: a miracle is a supernatural event or action. It is not difficult to show that from the point of view of this definition, the idea that the devil can work miracles is completely unacceptable. Indeed: what idea is contained in this definition? – The one that a miracle is a victory, an excess (for a given place and time) of the laws of nature and their usual action during the creation of the world established by God. Who now, by the action of his will, can overcome, exceed, even temporarily abolish, as it were, the order established by the Creator Himself in the life of the world? Can any created being, even the highest among others, do this? Obviously not; and to allow this would mean, at least temporarily, to place the creature above the Creator. Moreover, this conclusion follows in relation to the evil spirit. a) Those who hold a different view on the issue under discussion sometimes think to help themselves with the idea that the devil can supposedly perform miracles by God’s permission. But, after all that has been said, the complete inconsistency of this consideration is obvious. By God's permission we mean that what God provides does not prevent any rational being in one way or another (wrongly) from using its natural powers and abilities, that is, already given in its nature. If the devil, as a created being, cannot, as has been shown, perform supernatural actions in the field of the God-established world order, then, therefore, the concept of God’s permission is certainly inapplicable here. b) From a formal point of view, it would be more like the truth if we were to say that God sometimes temporarily grants the devil the power to perform miracles (in which sense such passages of Holy Scripture as Gen. 3:1–5; Deut. 3:1–3; Matt. 24:24, etc. are sometimes understood). But this is only from the formal side. In the essence of the matter, such a thought would contain an obvious incongruity. Since the devil always strives only for evil, it would turn out that God Himself sometimes assigns His miraculous power to the service, at least in the immediate sense, of evil 142. In order not to destroy the freedom of rational and moral beings, God can allow evil arising from their bad use of freedom. But He cannot increase this evil by giving the evil spirit, even if only temporarily, powers that exceed its created nature. In this case, there would be something more on God’s part than simply allowing evil... Thus, considerations of reason inevitably lead us to the same conclusion as follows from the teachings of Holy Scripture and the interpretations of the fathers and teachers of the Church. Should we be surprised after this that in all our dogmatists and in all systems of theology in general there is such a view of miracles according to which they can be performed only by the power of God, while the miracles of the devil are always spoken of only as false, or imaginary, only seeming miracles? In conclusion, we note that all those places of Holy Scripture where, without any immediate definition, they speak of miracles performed by the devil and his power, should be understood and interpreted this way: they speak of actions that only seem miraculous, but in fact are performed by natural, only higher and secret forces of spiritual and material nature. Here we will limit ourselves to only the following indication regarding the limits of this kind of explanation. The devil, as a being of a higher order than us, not bound by the material principle, is given the ability to know and do many things that are inaccessible to us in either one respect or another. Hence, many of his actions in the area of ​​the human soul (possession), or in external nature (the serpent in Paradise, the Magi of Egypt, the story of Job, etc.) - although they do not contain anything supernatural, but, as accomplished through the mediation of higher, secret for us, forces of spiritual and material nature, can be, through various kinds of analogies with what we have in experience, only partially close to our understanding. We, forgetting this, sometimes want to comprehend this kind of action of the devil with such clarity that our knowledge of ourselves and our own relationships to the outside world often does not have. Hence comes the unfortunate phenomenon that when the latter turns out to be beyond our strength, we begin to incline towards confusing certain and firmly established concepts and are even ready to attribute to our primordial enemy what belongs to God alone. (See “Past, social service.” 1899, No. 31). 9. The certainty of the influence of evil spirits on people. After the descent of evil spirits from Heaven into the region of the heavens or the air (Eph. 2:2, 6:12), the world of the celestial beings became completely inaccessible to them, and therefore all their malicious attention is exclusively focused on the land close to them, in order to sow, grow and establish evil here among people. Evil, thus, is the urgent need of the devil, who thinks of nothing but evil, desires nothing but evil, and finds no peace or pleasure in anything except evil activity. The Kingdom of good, like the Kingdom of God, is hateful to him, which is why he tries, through people or spirits under his control, to put up obstacles in every possible way to the spread of the concept of good; is trying to destroy the Kingdom of God on earth (2 Cor. 4:4). According to the Lord Himself, the devil is His enemy: for in the field where the Lord sowed wheat, the devil sowed tares (Matthew 13:24–25). In enmity with God, the devil tore people away from Him back in Paradise, and what happened was that “man,” as Gregory the Theologian says, “created for the glory of God, through the envy of the devil through the taste of sin, unfortunately, moved away from God. Having removed people from God, the devil directed all his efforts to keep people in his power, and for this he always tried to turn people’s hearts away from God. If people had a desire to return to God, then the devil hindered these aspirations in every possible way and kept people in his power. To attract people under his power, the devil took advantage of their misdirected desire to find God and deceived them according to his desire; leading them like blind men searching for a way, scattered them along various rapids and cast them into the abyss of death and destruction” 143. This abyss, before the advent of Christianity, was idolatry. “When the pagans make sacrifices, they offer them to demons, and not to God” (1 Cor. 10:20), writes St. ap. Paul. The justice of these words of the ap. History confirms Paul. In the story of the suffering of St. Great Martyr George the Victorious tells that after many torments of St. George, King Diocletian, by the way, told him: “If you want to submit to me, I will make up for all the torments that you suffered with many honors.” The saint said: “If you allow, king, let’s go to the church and look at the gods you worship.” The king joyfully went to the church of Apollo with all his retinue and people, bringing with him the saint. George. When they entered the church and prepared the sacrifice, the saint, going up to the idol of Apollo and raising his hand to it, asked him soulless, as if alive: “Do you want to accept a sacrifice from me, like God?” Having said this, the saint made the sign of the cross over the idol. The demon who lived in this idol answered: “No, I am not god. There is only one God, Whom you preach, and we, from among the angels who serve Him, have become apostates and, possessed by envy, we deceive people.” The saint again said to him: “How dare you stay here when I, the servant of truth, have come?” After these words, a certain mournful voice came from the idols, and then suddenly they all fell and broke 144. St. Athanasius the Great testifies that “demons misled the minds of people with various ghosts, staying in springs and rivers, trees or stones, and frightened ignorant mortals with ghosts” 145. And about how demons relate to the sacrifices made to them, says St. John Chrysostom in the “Tale of Babylon” (against Julian and the pagans). Having described the circumstances that gave rise to the construction of the church of Apollo in Daphne, a suburb of Antioch, Chrysostom says that the devil, taking advantage of a fabulous legend, placed a demon in the church to seduce and destroy people. The demon, being present at the idol, gave prophecies that supported the errors of the pagans. The relics of the holy martyr Vavila were transferred to Daphne, and the demon first fell silent and then completely withdrew from the church. “This is the custom among demons,” adds St. father, - when people give them Divine worship with the stench and smoke of blood, then they, like bloodthirsty and insatiable dogs, stay in those places for food and pleasure. When no one makes such sacrifices for them, then they disappear, as if from hunger. As long as sacrifices are made, as long as bad mysteries are performed, the demons are present and have fun" 146. The devil deceives people through the magicians. Ap. Paul calls the sorcerer Elymas “full of all deceit and all evil, the son of the devil, the enemy of all righteousness” (Acts 13:10). Taking on the appearance of a bright angel for convenience in achieving his goals (2 Cor. 11:14), the devil arouses ungodly thoughts and desires in people, as evidenced by the story of Ananias and Sapphira in the book of Acts. “Why,” says the Apostle Peter to Ananias, “did you allow Satan to put into your heart the idea of ​​lying to the Holy Spirit” (Acts 5:3)? The devil sometimes acts on the body, causing physical suffering in it. “Given to me,” says the apostle. Paul, “a thorn in the flesh, an angel of Satan, to afflict me, so that I would not become conceited” (2 Cor. 12:7). On this basis, everything that is only evil in the world, according to the teaching of the holy apostles, is the work of the devil. “Whoever commits a sin is of the devil, because the devil sinned first,” says St. Evangelist John (1 John 3:8), and St. The Apostle Paul calls seduction into the path of sin “seduction after Satan” (1 Tim. 5:15). The devil acquires the blindness of all those who do not accept the Gospel (2 Cor. 4:4); they appear to be caught in the snare of the devil, who has ensnared them into his will (2 Tim. 2:26). The Holy Scripture calls those who do not love their brothers children of the devil (1 John 3:10). Even the circumstances that prevented the Apostle Paul from visiting Thessaloniki are recognized as having been accomplished under the influence of Satan (1 Thess. 2:18). The fathers and teachers of the Church saw the cause of all the disasters of the Church: external persecutions, and internal heresies and schisms, in the machinations of Satan and his servants. Minucius Felix says: “I will turn to the very source of lies and error, from which all this darkness arose; I will try to penetrate deeper into it and show it more clearly. There are lying spirits who have lost heavenly purity. These spirits have lost the purity of their nature, having desecrated themselves with vices, and to console themselves in misfortune - having already perished themselves - they do not stop destroying others; the damaged ones themselves are trying to spread disastrous delusion, and those alienated from God are trying to remove everyone from God, introducing false religions and all sorts of delusions among people. These unclean spirits are demons; they inspire soothsayers who utter prophecies mixed with lies. They are deceived and deceive, sometimes not knowing the truth, sometimes knowing it, but not revealing it, but darkening it, so as not to destroy themselves. They turn people away from God and from Heaven, disturb human life, cause anxiety to everyone, secretly inhabiting people’s bodies; produce diseases, instill fear in the minds" 147. St. Irenaeus says: “Satan made man ungrateful to his Creator, darkened the love that man has for God, and blinded his mind so that he would think unworthily about God, comparing himself and putting himself on an equal footing with God” 148 . Let us cite some more characteristic words of St. Athanasius of Alexandria about the influence that the devil has on people. “Our adversary the devil, jealous of the great benefits that we should receive, walks around us and carefully watches in order to steal the seeds of the Word that are in us. For this reason, the Lord, imprinting His commandments on us with a warning, says: “Take heed that you are not deceived: for many will come in My name, saying that I am: and the time is drawing near. Do not go out after them” (Luke 21:8). Without a doubt, something great is provided to us by the Word: we are left to avoid the deception that could be produced by the external appearance of objects... If the great demon... immediately revealed himself, then everyone would drive him away like a snake, like a dragon, seeking to devour anyone he could. For this reason, he hides... in order to deceive people with a false appearance and bind those deceived in his chains. Just as someone, wanting to entice other people's children into slavery for himself, takes, in the absence of their parents, the likeness of these parents; through this cunning, having deceived the sons burning with love for their parents, he takes them far away and destroys the unfortunate ones: so the wicked demon... does not dare to show himself to anyone as he is; Knowing how much people love the truth, he takes on the guise of truth” 149. In these words St. Father speaks not only about the undoubted influence of the devil on people, but also about the cunning with which the spirit of malice pours poison into his followers. The influence of evil spirits on people is also evidenced by the experience of those who monitor their spiritual lives. This is what Fr. writes. John of Kronstadt: “No, no matter what you say, a person is sometimes too irritable and angry, not on his own, but with the most zealous help of the devil. Just watch yourself or others during times of irritability and anger, when you or someone else would like to destroy a person hostile to you, truly or imaginary; Compare what follows (sometimes soon, through the action of the Guardian Angel) the calmness, meekness and kindness of your character or the person you were observing - with the opposite state that has just passed, and you will say to yourself: “No, this seems to be not at all the same person who was recently angry and furious, this is a person from whom the demons came out.” There is not even a shadow of the former malice and the former senselessness in him. Some reject the existence of evil spirits: similar phenomena in people’s lives should clearly indicate their existence. If every phenomenon has a corresponding cause, and the tree is known from its fruits, then who would not see in an insanely malicious person an evil spirit operating within him, which cannot manifest itself otherwise than in such a worthy way, which often does not correspond to the character of the evil person and his subsequent actions. Whoever, in the outpouring of human malice, does not see the action of the leader and creator of malice, belongs to those who have ears, but do not hear, and who have minds, but do not understand... After all, every person who is subject to irritability and breathes malice, himself clearly feels in his chest the presence of a hostile evil force, forcing him to act, as if involuntarily, contrary to how he would like to act according to reason and desire. So, the influence of evil spirits on people is undeniable and extends, according to the Savior, to the point that the devil dwells in a sinner as in his own home; and not only dwells himself, but brings even fiercer spirits (Matthew 12:43–45). Now let’s imagine: what can’t the owner do with his house? Anything: the devil does the same with a sinful soul. The Savior testified in another place about how great the sinner’s dependence on the devil is. “You,” He says to the unrepentant Jews, “are of your father the devil, and want to do the lusts of your father” (John 8:44), - the comparison here is very strong. Just as a son receives his being from his father, so a sinner receives his spiritual being from the devil, who raises his son in evil. Very clearly depicts the dependence of the sinner on the devil and the saint. ap. Paul. He calls the sinner quickly caught from the devil into his will and commands believers to pray for such, “when God gives him repentance into the mind of truth, and the devil’s snare arises” (2 Tim. 2:25–26). Just as the bird is entirely in the hands of the fowler, so the sinner is in the hands of the devil. But, while the bird feels its captivity and struggles in the net to break through it, the sinner does not notice his captivity, and therefore does not try to free himself from it. But are there people possessed by demons in our time, similar to those whom the Lord deigned to heal during His earthly life? This question is answered by Fr. John of Kronstadt: “There were demoniacs before, and they still exist now; only now, in the new grace, demons act more secretly and cunningly than in that old time, when their power and authority over people had not yet been solemnly crushed, and they had much more room in the world. And now, however, there are a lot of rabid people. How many of us are not aware of the current generation of demoniacs or rabid drunkards... there is another kind of demoniac: these are evil, irritable, angry people... there is the obsession of the stingy... there is the rage of carnal passion, as well as many other genera and types of obsession. But I also saw real demoniacs, in whom demons took possession through the inscrutable destinies of God and caused mental insanity in them, uttering terrible blasphemies and foul language; I saw how horribly they threw one unfortunate man from corner to corner, forced him to climb the wall, and so on.” 150. (See the book of Abbot Mark: “Evil Spirits”, St. Petersburg, 1899). 10. Over whom do demons have power? Holy Martyr At a young age, Tryphon healed illnesses and cast out demons. The Roman Emperor Gordian, from whose daughter St. The martyr Tryphon cast out the demon - he wished to see the expelled demon with his own eyes. Much. Tryphon really summoned the demon, and everyone saw him in the form of a black dog with fiery eyes. St. torment. Tryphon asked the demon: “Who sent you to become a young woman?” The demon answered: “The Father, the ruler of all evil, who sits in hell.” Martyr Tryphon: “Who gave you such power?” Demon: “We have no power over those who know God and believe in the Only Begotten Son of God; only by God’s permission do we inflict light temptations on them; and over those we have complete power who do not believe in God, walk in their own lusts and do what pleases us; the things that are pleasing to us are: idolatry, blasphemy, adultery, envy, murder, pride, etc. These people are entangled in sins like nets; they are our friends, and the same fate awaits us” (“Thu-Min.” Feb. 1). 11. Stories about the temptation of people to sin from the devil. 1. Lavsaik tells that one ascetic, named Valens, lived for a long time in the desert, exhausted his flesh a lot and was a great ascetic throughout his life, but then, deceived by the spirit of conceit and pride, he fell into extreme arrogance, so that he became the playground of demons. Puffed up by the destructive passion of conceit, he finally began to dream, in self-delusion, that Angels were talking to him and serving him in every way. The devil, convinced that Valens has completely given himself over to deceiving him, takes on the appearance of the Savior and comes to him at night, surrounded by a dream of demons in the form of Angels, with lit lamps. And behold, a circle of fire appears, and in the middle of it Valens sees, as it were, the Savior. One of the demons, in the form of an Angel, approaches him and says: “You pleased Christ with your exploits and holiness of life, and He came to visit you. So, don’t do anything else, but just stand in the distance and see Him standing among the entire crowd, fall down and worship Him, then go to your cell.” Valens went out and, seeing many spirits with lamps, fell and bowed to the Antichrist. The deluded man revealed his madness to such an extent that, coming to church the next day, he said in front of all the brethren: “I have no need for communion: today I saw Christ.” Then St. the fathers, seeing that he had fallen into a frenzy, tied him with chains and within a year completely healed him, destroying his pride with prayers, various humiliations and a harsh life, as they say: healing the opposite with the opposite (Lave. ch. 29-31). 2. One of the Thebaid elders told about himself that he was the son of an idol priest, that, when he was a child, he sat in the church and saw his father making sacrifices to idols. One day, after the father left the church, the son secretly entered the church and saw Satan there. Satan sat on the throne; a large army stood before him. And behold, one of his princes comes and worships him. Satan asked him: “Where are you from?” The prince answered: “I was in such and such a country, caused war and great confusion there, caused bloodshed, and came to tell you.” Satan asked: “What time did you do this?” He answered: “In thirty days.” Satan ordered to beat him with whips, saying: “You have done so much in such a long time!” - And so, another came and bowed to him. Satan asked, “Where are you from?” The demon answered: “I was at sea, raised a storm, sank ships, killed many people and came to tell you.” Satan asked: “What time did you do this?” He answered: “In twenty days.” Satan ordered this one to be beaten with whips, saying: “Why have you done so little in so many days?” And the third came and bowed to him. And to this he said: “Where are you from?” The demon answered: “I was in such and such a city, a wedding was celebrated there: I stirred up quarrels and caused great bloodshed; Moreover, he killed the groom himself and came to tell you.” Satan asked, “On how many days did you do this?” The demon answered: “At ten.” Satan commanded that this one, too, as one who had not acted zealously, be beaten with whips. And another demon came to worship him. Satan asked: “Where from?” The demon answered: “From the desert: it’s been forty years since I fought there with one of the monks, and barely won a victory over him: that night I plunged him into fornication.” Satan, hearing this, stood up from the throne, began to kiss the demon, taking off the royal crown that was on his head, placing it on the demon’s head, and seated him next to him on the throne, saying: “You have done a great and glorious deed.” Seeing and hearing this, the priest’s son said to himself: “The monastic order must mean a lot to God.” He accepted Christianity and entered monasticism. (“Fatherland”, bishop. Ignatius, p. 480). 3. One day the Monk Niphon saw that the devil approached a man who was doing work in the field, whispered something in his ear, which the worker did not notice at all, and walked away; then he went up to another man working not far away and said something in his ear; both of these workers, leaving their work, came together and started talking; At first they spoke calmly and affectionately, then they scolded, and finally they quarreled fiercely (“Chet.-Min.” December 23). 4. St. Nikita, Bishop of Novgorod, was a native of Kiev and from a young age entered the Pechersk monastery. Striving for higher achievements, he soon decided to become a recluse, despite all the suggestions of the abbot about the prematureness of such a difficult task for a young monk, and indeed, he was subjected to bitter temptation while in reclusion. At the suggestion of the devil, who appeared to him in the form of an Angel of Light, Nikita completely stopped praying to God, completely devoted himself to reading the books of the Old Testament, began to receive people who came to him, give them advice, make predictions, and through this acquire vain glory for himself. No one was able to compete with him in knowledge of the books of the Old Testament, and he not only did not read the Gospel and other books of the New Testament, but never wanted to see or hear. The combined prayers of the Pechersk fathers, among whom were Abbot Nikon, Matthew the Seer, Saint Isaac, Gregory the Wonderworker, Pimen the Faster and the Chronicler Nestor, freed the unfortunate monk from the charms of the tempter - and Nikita, leaving the seclusion and suddenly deprived of all the knowledge for which he was proud, began to study again in the monastery both literacy and monastic life. This time he followed the path of true humility, abstinence and obedience, and little by little he achieved that he surpassed everyone in his virtue. For his high virtue, the ascetic was elevated to the rank of Bishop of Novgorod (in 1096) and for 11 years he did not cease to serve as a model of piety for his flock. The Lord honored His saint during his lifetime with the gift of miracles: twice he saved Novgorod from disasters - once with his prayer he brought down rain from heaven during a long drought: another time with prayer he stopped a terrible fire that was destroying the city... (See “about Nikita the recluse” and in the handwritten Pechersk patericon; also Pol. collection of years. 1, 109; 11, 3, 122, 179, 213). 5. In the form of not only an Angel, but even Jesus Christ Himself, the devil once tempted St. Isaac of Pechersk, a wondrous ascetic, who labored in a solitary retreat for seven years and remained in unceasing prayer. One prosphora and some water were his daily food. This wondrous ascetic never went to bed, but sat and rested. And so, one day, when at nightfall, tired from singing the Psalter, he put out the candle and sat in his place, he saw an extraordinary light in the cave, and two demons appeared to him in the form of radiant youths, saying: “We are Angels, and behold, Christ Himself is coming to you.” The monk did not guard against the tempting, proud thought of seeing Christ, did not overcome this thought with the humble thought of his unworthiness and did not protect himself with the sign of the cross, but frivolously fell and worshiped Satan in the image of Christ. As soon as this happened, the demons joyfully exclaimed: “Our Isaac!” Immediately surrounding the monk with timbrels, pipes and harps, they grabbed him, began to jump with him and tormented him so much that in the morning he was found unconscious and after that for several years he remained in mental and physical relaxation. (Pater, Pechersk). 6. One day, a demon came to the cell of the Rev. at night. Macarius of Alexandria, (d. 394 or 395), said to him: “Get up, Abba Macarius, and let’s go to church for worship.” Macarius, being filled with the grace of God, understood the temptation of the devil and answered him: “Oh, liar and hater of goodness! What kind of participation can you have in the divine service and what can you have in common with the council of saints?” The devil said: “Don’t you know, Macarius, that without us there is not a single church service and not a single monastic meeting; come and see our deeds.” The elder answered: “May the Lord forbid you, you unclean demon.” And, turning to prayer, he asked the Lord to show him whether what the devil said while boasting was true. When the time came for the midnight service, he went to church, asking God within himself to reveal and show him whether what the devil had said was true. And so, throughout the church he sees, as it were, some small youths in the form of Ethiopians, quickly walking around the church and flying. In that monastery there was a custom: one brother read psalms, and the others sat and listened, and so, next to each of the brothers, those Ethiopians sat and laughed at them. Those who touched their eyes with their fingers now began to doze off, and those who placed their fingers on their lips immediately woke up; before others they walked in the likeness of a woman, and before others they did something else. And what they presented to someone, he reflected on that within himself. But for some, as soon as they began to do something like that, they were immediately driven away and removed by some force, and could no longer stand in front of them or even pass by. And some of the weak brothers, who did not listen to the prayers, sat on their necks and shoulders, mocking them. Rev. Macarius, seeing this, sighed from the depths of his heart and said: “Look, Lord, and do not be silent; rise up, O God, so that Your enemies may disperse and flee from Your presence, for our soul is full of reproach.” At the end of the service, Rev. Macarius, calling each brother one by one, asked what he was thinking about during the service, and each one revealed his thoughts. It turned out that everyone was thinking about what the demon was mockingly representing in front of him. (“Thu-Min.” Jan. 19). 7. One young monk, who labored in a monastery, wanted to live as a hermit and begged the abbot to go to a remote place in the desert for a hopeless life. God blessed the monk's intention and showed him a special sign that showed him the very place of such residence: when on the way the future hermit, exhausted, fell asleep together with the monks accompanying him, an eagle flew in and, striking its wings, woke them up; then the eagle flew away from them and sat down in sight of them on the ground. The accompanying monks said to the young monk: “Here is your angel, get up and follow him.” He stood up, said goodbye to his brothers, followed the eagle and walked to the place where the eagle was sitting. Then the eagle rose, flew further and sat down again, and the monk followed him; and again the eagle rose and flew away not far away, and the brother followed him. This went on for three hours. Finally, the eagle turned to the right and did not appear again. The monk followed him and saw three palm trees, a source of water and a small cave. He said to himself: “This is the place that the Lord has prepared for me.” And the young monk began to remain silent here, eating dates and drinking water from the source; He lived here for six years as a hermit, not seeing anyone. But then the devil came to him in the form of a worldly young man and began to examine him from head to toe. His brother asked him: “Why are you looking at me like that?” He said, “Don't you recognize me? I am your father’s neighbor,” and named the name of the hermit’s father and mother and sister. Then he said: “Your mother and sister died more than three years ago, and your father died only recently, making you his heir; before his death, your father asked everyone to find you, so that you would come home, accept the property and distribute it to the poor for your soul and your father; many went to look for you, but did not find you, but I, having come on my own business, recognized you; do not delay, go and do the will of your father.” The hermit answered: “I should not return to the world.” But the devil, through various seductive suggestions, persuaded the hermit to leave his cell, escorted him to the city where his father lived, and then left him. The monk enters his parents' house with the confidence that his father is no longer alive; and now, the father himself comes out to meet him, alive and well. At first, the father could not recognize his son, and the son was ashamed to explain the true reason why he left his cell, but said that this was due to his filial love and affection for his father... So he remained in the world, finally betraying his monastic vows. (From Otechn. 8, 94). 12. Stories about the victory of Christians over temptation from the devil. 1. One of the holy ascetics says: “Among the hermits there was one venerable elder. Sorrowing from the temptations of demons, I once came to him for advice. He was sick and lying down; After the greeting, I sat down next to him and said to him: “Pray for me, father; I am greatly tormented by demonic temptations.” He opened his eyes, looked at me intently and said: “My son, you are young; God will not send temptations to you.” I told him: “So, I am young, but I bear the same temptations that mature people bear.” He said to this: “This is how God wants to make you wise.” I said, “How will He make me wise? I taste death every day." He said: “Be silent, God loves you, He gives you His grace.” Then he added: “Know, my son, that I struggled with demons for thirty years, and for twenty years I was completely without help; but when five years had passed after that, I began to find peace; it increased over time; after seven and with the onset of the eighth year, it increased even more. When the thirtieth day passed and was already approaching the end, the peace intensified so that I do not even know the extent of it. And he added: “When I want to join the service, I can only say words. However, even if I stand for three days, I am in such rapture with God that I don’t feel the least bit tired.” (“Sunday Thu.” 1855–56, 16). 2. “This is what happened to me once,” says St. Rev. Theodosius of Pechersk, - I stood in my cell in prayer and sang the usual psalms. Suddenly a black dog stood in front of me, so that I could not bow. Since he stood in front of me for a long time and interfered with me, I wanted to hit him, and he became invisible. Then fear and trembling seized me, so that I wanted to run away from that place. But the Lord helped me; Having recovered from the horror, I began to diligently pray to God, make frequent prostrations and kneel. Then fear left me, and from that time on I was no longer afraid of what appeared before my eyes.” (From the book “Lives of the Saints” by Archbishop Philaret Gumilevsky, May 3, p. 97). 3. One day, in the form of not only an Angel of Light, but even in the form of Jesus Christ Himself, the devil, Venerable, appeared. Pachomius the Great and said: “Rejoice, old man, who has pleased me so much! I am Christ and I have come to you as to My friend.” The reverend was amazed. Pachomius, looking timidly at the ghost, began to reason: “Christ’s coming to man is accompanied by joy; the heart does not feel any fear, all thoughts immediately disappear; the mind becomes the eyes of the seraphim and is all fixed on the sight of the glory of the Lord; the soul forgets time; the person then becomes incorporeal, and now I am embarrassed, afraid... No, this is not Christ!” Then, having protected himself with the sign of the cross, he boldly said: “Get away from me, spirit of malice! Damn the deceit of all your undertakings." Instantly the ghost disappeared, and the church was filled with stench, and the wind rustled through the air. (“Taught, good man.” II vol., p. 26). 13. About means of fighting demons. “The devil, like a lion, walks roaring, seeking to devour one of us.” To fight it we need to use all the weapons of God. What kind of weapons are these? 1. The first remedy is calling on the name of God. “In My name the demons will be destroyed” (Mark 16:17), said the Lord. “In the name of Jesus, hell shakes, the underworld shakes, the prince of darkness disappears. This name is a powerful weapon against adversaries,” says St. John Climacus (v. 21). “Always beat the warriors in the name of Jesus, for no stronger weapon can be used than this, either in heaven or on earth.” “To this day the demons still tremble at the name of Christ; The power of this name is not weakened by our vices,” says St. Gregory the Theologian (Word 3 in the “Tv. of the Holy Fathers” I, 67; Phil. II, 10; “Even-Min.” word on the Circumcision). Abba Elijah conveys the following story: “One elder lived in an idol church. One day demons come to him and say: “Get out of our place!” The old man did not want to go out. The demon grabbed him by the hand and forcibly dragged him out of the church. When the elder approached the doors, he grabbed them and exclaimed: “Jesus, help!” “The demon immediately disappeared.” (About the sub. of the Holy Blessed Fathers, p. 88). 2. The second remedy is the Life-giving Cross of Christ. “Your cross, O Lord, has given us a weapon against the devil,” sings the Holy Church (Praise, verse, chapter 8): “for it trembles and shakes, impatient to look at its power.” Even the demons themselves involuntarily admit that the sign of the cross “binds them, burns them like fire, and drives them far away.” (See in “Chet.-Min.” the life of Cyprian and Justina, Oct. 8; the life of Barlaam and Joasaph, November 19). One day the devil appeared to the Monk Simeon the Stylite on a magnificent chariot, in the form of a bright Angel, and said: “Hear, Simeon! God sent me to you with a chariot and horses to take you to heaven like Elijah, for you are worthy of this.” Simeon already wanted to step on this imaginary chariot with his right foot, but first he made the sign of the cross, and the devil in the blink of an eye disappeared with the chariot (“Chet.-Min.”, Harvest of St. Simeon, Sept. 1). The Monk Theodora and other saints also drove away demons with the sign of the cross (Sept. 11, life Pelag. Oct. 8, Grieg, Nov. 17). But in order for this invincible, incomprehensible, Divine power of the Honest and Life-giving Cross not to leave us sinners, for this we need to use the sign of the cross not just as usual, out of habit, not with carelessness, as we often do, and therefore we are deprived of the power of the cross, but with full awareness of the power and importance of the Holy Cross, with fear and reverence, with heartfelt and firm faith in the merits of the cross and with the remembrance of the Passion of Christ. “The cross should not just be depicted with just fingers,” says St. Chrysostom (on Matthew b. LIV) - but first write it in thought, with all faith... with the recollection of all the power of the Cross, all the work of the cross.” 3. The third weapon against demons is prayer and fasting. Christ the Savior said: “An unclean spirit cannot come out except through prayer and fasting” (Mark 9:29). “Whoever prays with fasting,” teaches St. Chrysostom - he has two wings, the lightest of the wind itself; he is faster than fire and higher than the earth; That is why such a person is especially an enemy and warrior against demons, since there is no stronger person who sincerely prays and fasts.” (See “Interpretation of the Gospel” by Bishop Michael, p. 335). St. Basil the Great teaches about the power of fasting: “Fasting is a reliable defense of the soul, a weapon for those at war, it drives away temptation” (Bes.13). On St. The devil made frequent attacks on the martyr Justina, but could not defeat the righteous woman. One day she stood at prayer and during prayer she felt an influx of unclean, lawless desires in her heart; The righteous woman was surprised at such a sinful movement in herself and was ashamed of such uncleanness; but the wise Justina soon realized that this temptation came to her from the devil: she began to fast and pray to the Lord God - and with her prayers and fasting she shamed and defeated the enemy. (“Thu-Min.” October 2). 4. The fourth means of our struggle and victory over the devil is humility. The devil himself once confessed to St. Anthony that he defeats him with humility alone (“Chet.-Min.” life of the saint. Ant. Jan. 19). "When St. Anthony, seeing all the snares of the devil spread out, writes St. Dorotheus (Teaching about humility) sighed and asked God: “Who will escape them?” - then I received the answer: “Humility avoids them.” One day the devil appeared to a certain hermit in the form of a bright angel and said to him: “I am Gabriel and was sent to you from God.” The hermit objected to him: “See if you were sent to someone else; I am not worthy to see Angels, as a sinful man.” The devil disappeared at these words (Prol. April 21). Humility is hateful to the devil, because it puts a Christian on the very path that the Accomplisher of our salvation, the Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ, walked. 5. The fifth remedy against demons is acquiring the gift of “spiritual discernment” (discernment of spirits) (1 Cor. 12:10). Without it, the influence of the devil can easily be mistaken for a good suggestion from an Angel or from God, as happened with many ascetics. Someone, Elder Iron, who labored for fifty years in the desert, received a command from the spirit of evil, transformed into a bright Angel, to throw himself into the deepest ditch in order to make sure by experience that he was no longer subject to any misfortune due to his great godly virtues and works. Not recognizing in his mind the one who advised this, he threw himself into the ditch at midnight. On the third day after he was taken out of the ditch, he died. (Christ. Read. 1828 Feb. p. 133). Someone, also mistaking a demon for an Angel, received a command from him to sacrifice his son to God, following the example of Abraham. And he would have carried out this ungodly command of the enemy if his son had not escaped (ibid.). There were many similar examples. This gift of discerning of spirits is given by the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 12:11) and is acquired through humility. But before anyone is awarded the gift of discernment, he must not trust his own thoughts or the suggestions of his own heart and mind, but submit everything to the judgment of leaders experienced in the spiritual life. 6. The sixth powerful means in the fight against the demon is girding our loins with truth, that is, so to speak, surrounding ourselves with the truths of the Christian faith. A Christian, knowing and keeping them in mind constantly, will prevent the enemy, often acting through false teachers, from gaining access to himself, for he is a lie and the father of lies and cannot show himself where the truth is; a Christian needs to put on the armor (armor) of truth (righteousness or all right, good and holy dispositions of the heart and deeds); and in the one who is clothed in it, although some evil thought of the enemy will creep in, it will not produce a bad effect in the heart; he needs to put on his nose with the preparation of the gospel of peace, that is, to be ready to live according to the Gospel, ready for all kinds of sacrifices and even death because of it, or to be ready to preach the gospel of peace, or otherwise the truths of the Gospel; above all, i.e. “on top of all these three, you need to put a new row of weapons, on top of each special one: firstly, to accept the shield of faith, to have a firm and unshakable conviction in the holiness, truth and immutability of everything revealed to us by God,” or “a child’s confidence in God, so closely united with Him that it does not separate itself from Him and Him from itself,” “which is why it is omnipotent, for the active one in it is God Himself, who gives it,” - shield, in it (with which) we will be able to extinguish all the arrows of evil kindling (internal and external temptations, strong and decisive, as if the last efforts of the enemy); secondly, to receive the helmet (the strongest covering of the head on all sides) of salvation, i.e., “combination with the Lord Savior in the Sacraments, namely, through frequent confession and communion,” or to learn the art of salvation, to have wise and strict prudence and constant success in the Christian life, and thirdly, the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God (Eph. 6:11, 14–17), i.e., the revealed word. “To receive such a sword means to know the Divine sayings by heart, and at appropriate times to wear them out of the heart, in defiance of the devil’s suggestions (Bishop Theophan) - to read aloud the sayings of the word of God against all passion.” Especially the words of Psalm 67: “Let God rise again, and let His enemies be scattered,” as the experiences of spiritual life show, have an amazingly quick effect on the enemies of our salvation, who with the speed of lightning disappeared from those Christians who uttered them with faith and reverence. St. Basil V. says that when St. The men asked the devil, who appeared to them, what prayer the demons were especially afraid of, the devil answered them: “There is no word so terrible and driving us away as the beginning of Psalm 67 of David.” And indeed, as soon as St. men, the opening words of this psalm: “Let God rise again, and let His enemies be scattered!” - the devil immediately disappeared from them with a cry. (“Sunday Thursday” 1842 No. 13). 7. Finally, the seventh and last powerful weapon against demons is the help of saints. When St. Andrei embarked on the feat of foolishness, then Satan attacked him with such force with the demons under his control that Andrei thought that the last hour had come for him. And so, being in a desperate situation, he exclaimed: “Holy Apostle, John the Theologian, help me!” After these words, thunder struck and the voices of many people were heard. And an old man appeared with menacing eyes, whose face was almost as bright as the sun, and many people appeared with him, dressed in white robes. And the elder said with anger towards those with him: “Close the gates so that no one from the demons can escape from here.” And the elder’s will was fulfilled. Then a demonic voice was heard: “Woe to us in this hour, in which we have been so deceived. John is menacing and cruelly wants to torment us.” And behind these words, demonic cries were heard: “have mercy on me” and “have mercy on us!” Then the people dressed in white robes disappeared, and the demons also disappeared. The elder who appeared said to Andrei: “You see how quickly I came to your aid, and know that I care very much about you. God Himself commanded me to lead you to salvation and care for you. Be patient and endure everything without complaining. The time is not far when you will receive complete freedom and will walk according to your will wherever you please.” Andrei asked: “My lord, tell me who you are?” The one who appeared answered: “I am the one who reclined on the honest breasts of the Lord.” And having said this, he disappeared from the eyes of Andrei, who then glorified the great mercy of God shown to him. (prologue Oct. 3). Here are all the weapons against the principles, authorities and rulers of the darkness of this age, the spirits of evil in the heavenly places! “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you” (James 4:7). (Compiled according to Sunday Thursday, 1842, No. 13; creative work of the Holy Department; book of Priest I. Shastina: “Ladder to Heaven,” “Thur.-Min.” and other indications in their place of origin). 14. About those possessed by evil spirits. Among the manifestations of an evil spirit between people is rightly considered the so-called demonic possession. Those possessed by demons, or those possessed by an evil spirit, are of two kinds: some of them are influenced by the evil spirit only from the outside, while others it controls the internal image, controls their entire being, makes them spew blasphemies, speak in languages ​​that they have not studied at all, reveals to them various hidden things, introduces them to various dark subjects of philosophy and theology. The possibility and reality of demonic possession are beyond any doubt. They are clearly established both by Holy Scripture and by the teachings of the Church. The Holy Scriptures, on the one hand, tell us many facts of possession, on the other hand, it conveys that Jesus Christ Himself and His apostles recognized those possessed by demons as truly possessed by evil spirits. Saul was possessed by an evil spirit 151 ; the evil spirit from time to time aroused in him melancholy, anger and envy in relation to David; or even if Saul became angry for some natural reason, the demon would take possession of him and make him furious. The demoniacs, about whom it is said in the Gospel 152 that they shouted loudly that Jesus is the Christ, that He came ahead of time to torment them, that He is the Son of God, obviously represent an undoubted example of those possessed by an evil spirit. Sarah, daughter of Raguel, who was possessed by the demon Asmodeus, who killed her first seven husbands 153; those people about whom the Gospel tells that they were infected with incurable illnesses and diseases, who foamed at the mouth, went on a rampage, avoided human society, who were so strong and terrible that they had to be tied with chains in order to protect others from their attacks - all of these were obviously possessed by an evil spirit. The Savior, as proof of His Heavenly messenger, points to His healing of those possessed by demons. He refutes the Pharisees who said that He casts out demons by the power of Beelzebub; He proves that he drives them out by the power of God 154 . He spoke to the demons who lived in the possessed, threatened them, commanded them to remain silent. All this obviously proves that Jesus Christ looked at the possessed as truly possessed by evil spirits. Like their Divine Teacher, the apostles and leading Christians also looked at them as if they were possessed by evil spirits. When the seventy disciples of Christ, having returned from their apostolic activity, gave Jesus Christ an account of their labors, they, among other things, told Him that even the demons themselves obeyed them 155. After His Resurrection, Jesus Christ promised His disciples that in His name they would perform miracles, cast out demons and receive the gift of prophecy 156. All this came true literally. The enemies of Christians themselves, Jews and pagans, since they themselves were eyewitnesses of the miraculous expulsions of demons from the possessed, performed by Jesus Christ, His apostles and Christians in general, did not reject the reality of these expulsions, but only explained them in their own way: some attributed them to the power of the prince of demons, others to the power of magic, the power of famous herbs, etc. The Holy Fathers of the Church of the first centuries, St. Justinian, Tertullian, Lactantius, St. Cyprian and others talk about the Christians casting out demons from the possessed with such confidence and positivity that there is no room for doubt about the reality of what they are talking about 157. They refer to their own enemies as witnesses to the cause they are defending, and with firm confidence challenge them to perform experiments in their own presence on how the power of faith in Christ drives out evil spirits from the possessed, forces them to reveal their real name, to the realization that the pagans in their temples worship only one demons. Let us listen, regarding this subject, to the own words of the most enlightened writers of those times when the struggle between Christianity and paganism was still taking place and when those possessed by an evil spirit often wandered among Christians. Arnonius says: “Was there ever a mortal like Jesus? One only needs to pronounce His name, and evil spirits flee, soothsayers fall silent, prophet-priests become mute, and all the art of cunning magicians is put to shame.” (Advers, gentec 1. 1. 27 Ausgabe von jahre 16–51). Lactantius says: “The disciples of Jesus in His name and in St. the sign of His suffering drives out unclean spirits. This is proven by the fact that in the presence of Christians, magical sacrifices remain without any effect and even the most famous oracles do not give any answers” ​​(Institutiones divinae 1. 41 p. 27). St. Cyprian wrote to the Roman mayor Demetrius: “Come, see and listen to what is happening in our presence with the gods whom you honor. Conjured and driven out by the power of the Divine Word, they are forced to leave the people possessed by them. Struck by Divine power, with pitiful cries, in a human voice they proclaim the truth of the future Judgment, about which our faith teaches. Come and see for yourself the truth of our words; you will see that the spirits that you so slavishly marvel at, whom you so slavishly honor, trembling, captive, chained, lie at our feet. You will see your error especially clearly when you see how your gods, driven out by the power of our command, in your own presence, against their own will, will confess to their own deception and lies. (Ad Demetrianum p. 221. ausgab, von jahr. 1726). “Bring,” says Tertullian in one work against the pagans, bring to the judgment seat someone truly possessed by an evil spirit, and the demon, at the request of every Christian, will just as publicly confess that he is an evil spirit, just as before publicly he pretended to be God; or bring to the judgment seat one of those of your people who say that they act only by Divine power, who, under the influence of stinking sacrifices, come into ecstasy and from time to time hear the words that they proclaim at the top of their lungs like oracular sayings..., and if the demon that operates in these people does not confess in the presence of Christians that he is a truly evil spirit, and will not be thus put to shame, then shed blood these Christians. Is even clearer evidence, more solid arguments possible? (Apologeticum p. 23). How much confidence, how much conviction in this solemn speech! How numerous and well-known must have been the cases when Christians, appearing publicly before the worshipers of the power that produced pagan miracles, forced it to consciousness (of its insignificance)! What a victory, then, over ancient magic the Christians won even before they proved by their own death that the name of their God conquers all the magical powers of hell! “There is almost not a single father of the Church,” says one learned writer, “who would not have taught Christians the power to cast out demons in the name of Christ. All believers of the first centuries were convinced of the reality of this power; Not a single truth was clearer or more undoubted among them and enjoyed greater fame. And it is impossible to point out a single pagan, even among those who were primarily hostile to the Christian religion, who, I do not say, would not be completely convinced that Christians really cast out demons, as they spoke about it in their writings, but who would suspect Christians of deception and would completely deny the reality of the facts of this expulsion.” (Baltus, suite de la reponse a l'histor des oracles, cb. 16). The constant existence in the Church of incantatory prayers against the possessed constitutes new evidence of the actual existence of the possessed; it proves that the Church and her ministers have always recognized the reality of demon possession, since they have always used these prayers against it. Even Jewish exorcists of evil spirits in the name of Christ healed those possessed by demons 158; they also believed that Jesus Christ could give this healing. They also sometimes pronounced the name of Solomon and used spells allegedly established by this king, as well as various roots and herbs; but all this produced only something similar to what a skillful physician does when curing the chondriacal, the insane, and people imagining that they are possessed by an evil spirit, or what a wise spiritual father does when he calms and brings to a normal state those tormented by conscience, deeply shocked by the consciousness of their sinfulness and tormented by the fear of hellish torment of the soul. The demoniacs who were healed by Jesus Christ and Christians were truly possessed by an evil spirit, who could only be healed by Divine power, the name of Jesus Christ, and the power of spells. The son of one Jewish priest Sceva 159 wanted to drive out a demon from one possessed by the name of Jesus Christ, preached by Paul; the demoniac rushed at him, saying that he knew Christ and Paul, but was not afraid of him, and the Jew was almost strangled by the evil spirit. It is necessary to strictly distinguish real demoniacs from imaginary ones, as well as real doctors of demoniacism from deceivers. It is possible and there are also those who are possessed by demons who only pretend to be possessed in order to thus arouse compassion for themselves and receive alms. It is possible and there are also such spellcasters who only abuse the name of Christ for the purpose of deception; It is also possible and there are such deceivers who persuade others to pretend to be possessed in order to gain glory for themselves through their imaginary healing. (See the book “On the manifestation of spirits.” Secrets of the Underworld”, A. Kalmeta, trans. from German, 1877). 15. Cases of possession from evil spirits. a) Twenty-six years ago, in the village of Novovasilievsk, Verdyansk district, Tauride province, lived Ekaterina Lavrentievna Mazaeva, my grandmother, my mother’s own mother, says a certain G. Mamontov. I happened to visit her very often, and sometimes stayed for a week or longer. Grandmother had a maid Dunya. This Dunya is the heroine of my story. Dunya was possessed by an evil spirit. I call him an evil spirit, as all eyewitnesses called someone outsider staying in Duna, since the voice was heard against her will; she did not open her mouth, there was no movement of her face or larynx, her voice seemed to come out of the internal parts of her body, and her accent was Mordovian, while Dunya spoke purely Russian. The evil spirit called himself “Svirid Stepanovich” and loved to talk to everyone. Svirid Stepanovich demanded that Dunya feed him what he liked, but Dunya was honest and never, without asking my grandmother, took anything and constantly refused Svirid Stepanovich. Then he began to worry, Dunya fell, writhing in strong convulsions, screaming, groaning. Those present ask: “What are you doing, Dunya? What's wrong with you? - “I’m not Dunya, I’m Svirid Stepanovich.” I asked him myself: “Who are you, Svirid Stepanovich?” He answered: “I am from the Mordvins 160, I went to Kyiv to pray and quarreled with my travel companion. At the same time, having no water to drink, I became angry with my life and committed suicide - I hanged myself on a pine tree. After my death I had to wander for many years; I was not accepted into any society of “spirits”, and so one benefactor put me in Dunya, and she offends me, does not give me what I want; Grandma doesn’t forbid her to feed me what I like, but she’s ashamed to take it. So I’ll ask her!” (I'm reporting what he said). Then the writhing, screaming, and moaning began. Sometimes there were prophecies; through Dunya’s lips it was said what was being done over long distances. I remember how once, when Svirid Stepanovich rebelled and shouted, my grandmother came up and asked: “What are you shouting, Svirid Stepanovich? Shut up! He replies: “How can I remain silent when your brother, who lives in Novogolka, not far from Alexandropol in the Caucasus, died today; he was ill for three weeks. During a trip to Tiflis, he caught a cold, and today they wrote you a letter about his death, which you will receive in two weeks.” And indeed, two weeks later the grandmother received a letter, which informed her about the death of her brother and that, while traveling to Tiflis, he got a cold, fell ill and died. There were many similar cases, which I currently cannot describe in detail, without remembering the persons to whom he spoke. Subsequently, Svirid Stepanovich did not tell, saying that one person had forbidden him, but he did not explain who exactly. (See "Rebus" 1896, No. 12). b) The village of Syrak in the canton of Realmont was recently the scene of some very interesting phenomena that occurred in the family of a poor peasant. The main character in this strange story is a young twelve-year-old girl who has become the object of an invisible spiritual force. Here's what eyewitnesses worthy of complete confidence said about it. The phenomena first appeared around mid-January 1890. One day, during lunch, a young girl, sickly since birth, turned to her parents with the following words: “Do you see this man who wants to throw our dish onto the floor? Please order him to come out.” The parents, who saw nothing, assumed, of course, that the girl was delusional. From that very day, her illness began to intensify, and an invisible force began to torment her in various ways. Either the poor girl was going to tear out her own eye (and this idea left her only after she actually became blind in that eye), then she beat herself; in a word, her health became worse and worse, as an invisible force took possession of her. At the same time, various knocks began to be heard on the walls, furniture and other objects that were in the house; bottles and dishes in the cabinets clanked and seemed ready to shatter into pieces. All this attracted many curious people to the house who wanted to look at strange, unprecedented phenomena. One of the curious, a bourgeois from a neighboring town who recently visited the Paris exhibition, witnessed the following incident. The girl, as if waking up from lethargy, said: “Oh, what a long journey we have made. We returned from Paris where we visited the Eiffel Tower; how good she is." And she began to describe in detail the structure of the tower and other objects she saw on her imaginary journey. Bourgeois was extremely surprised that the girl, who, as he knew, had never left her village, could so correctly describe the Eiffel Tower, Paris and other cities through which he passed. He was even more surprised and even frightened when she told him: “Yesterday you were riding in a carriage, and the horse almost knocked you over; We were not far from this place and broke a poplar tree that was growing there.” In fact, the bourgeoisie was riding in his carriage the day before, and the horse almost tipped him into the abyss, frightened by the fall of a tree broken by the storm. On August 6, the day of the fair in the neighboring town of Grole, a strong whirlwind that arose at about 2 o'clock in the afternoon overturned a cart at the fairground and destroyed several barracks of traders. That same day in the evening, the girl told the people who came to her: “We were also at the fair, we overturned a cart there and destroyed several barracks.” Meanwhile, no one had told the girl about this incident before. Another time, while she was sitting on a chair, suddenly an invisible force lifted her to the very ceiling and from there threw her onto the back of the chair, on which she held herself for some time in a horizontal position. At the same time, while all this was happening, the girl was losing more and more weight and finally became so weak that she was forced to stay in bed all the time. Every evening a crowd of curious people besieged the patient, wanting to verify the extraordinary phenomena about which there were so many rumors. It was especially surprising to visitors that the candles that were standing in the patient’s room were extinguished by themselves and lit again. All these unusual phenomena led to the decision to put an end to them by subjecting the girl to a spell. Seven authorized persons gathered for this ceremony. When, on the appointed day, one of these persons began to cast a spell, the girl shouted: “Do you want to expel me? But you can't do it! You know very well that last year you stole grapes from your neighbor’s garden.” “Yes, it’s true,” answered the spellcaster, “I took the grapes without asking, but I put money there that corresponded to its value.” The girl reproached another authorized person for his behavior, calling him shameless. In short, out of seven people there was only one who had nothing to reproach. This last one was left to perform the ritual of the spell, during which the girl writhed and tore violently; Finally, she cried out loudly: “You will force me to go out for a while, but I will still come back again,” after which she calmed down. And indeed, after several days of calm, the same phenomena returned again, and the unfortunate girl went to bed again. (“Revue Spir.” 1891, no. 3; see “Rebus” 1891, no. 35). c) In the Madras Times, the following incident is reported, entitled: “Young Lady Possessed by a Spirit at Ooti.” Mrs. Floralina, a young girl, lives in a house near the General Market. Some time ago, she went with her friend (now married and bearing the surname G. X.) to the Catholic cemetery. Three days before this visit, a man who committed suicide was buried in this cemetery. Being of a cheerful and easy disposition, the girls chose the cemetery as the place of their celebration, and, carried away by their prank, began to jump and dance on the grave of the suicide and went so far as to dig up the embankment over the grave and overturn the cross placed over the ashes of the unfortunate suicide. Returning home, they suddenly felt unwell; and soon a rumor spread that the young girls were possessed by an evil spirit. They became terribly violent, looked at everyone with wild eyes and became so restless that they were forced to keep them locked in the room for safety. They tore their clothes, and if any woman tried to stop them from going crazy, they attacked her and threw her to the ground; if men tried to do this, then they partly yielded to their threats. Days passed, and the unfortunate women continued to rage: they walked with loose and disheveled hair, and their appearance became so terrible that even men were afraid to approach them. This possession was, however, removed from them by a native woman after performing certain rituals. After this they became cheerful and healthy. The second of the girls, Miss Grace F., soon married and left home. On Sunday evening, April 25th, I had the pleasure of being introduced to Miss Floralina. She seemed calm and healthy. The next evening I was called to her again, and Miss Floralina, together with Mrs. F., with whom, it seems, Miss Floralina and her brother live in a boarding house, told me things that I refused to believe until I myself witnessed them. Mrs. F. told me how the two girls mentioned above became possessed by an evil spirit, their further behavior, in short, everything that was told above. She added that, starting on April 20 or so, between seven o'clock in the evening and midnight, stones are thrown at the windows from somewhere outside; These stones smash the windows to pieces with great force, but do not harm anyone. On April 27, I was returning home at about seven o’clock in the evening when I suddenly heard the sound of broken glass. Having walked a few more steps, I heard a sound as if from many stones hitting the walls of the house, and the sound of breaking glass; Following this, the voice of the inhabitants of the house was heard calling for help. I hurried home quickly to take with me Mr. H. G. L., whom I know well, and the police constable. The police post was located between our two houses, just a few meters away. The three of us went to Miss Floralina's house and, to our great amazement, we saw glass broken into pieces by stones thrown with great force. What especially surprised us was that even the glass that was inaccessible to stones thrown from any side of the house was broken. While the stones continued to fall, Miss Floralina Burbalina told us that a large stone fell from the ceiling, slightly hitting her head, while she was in her boudoir around 2 o'clock in the afternoon. She also told us that the throwing of stones and breaking of glass began around noon. Convinced that all this was the work of some malicious persons, we took several more constables to our aid, searched all the nearby ditches and bushes and continued these observations until 11 o'clock, since during the entire time of our observation stones continued to fly in abundance onto the ill-fated house from the outside. On Wednesday, April 28th, several constables, with two chiefs, Mr. H. G. L. and myself, went to the house about 7 o'clock in the evening. At the same time, we noticed several times how stones hit the glass, and sometimes the glass broke by itself, without any impact from the stone. This circumstance aroused suspicion in us. After talking to us a little about these incidents, Miss Floralina told us that she would go to her room as she felt very tired. As she headed to her room, a medium-sized piece of granite broke the glass very close to her with great force. Soon after she had retired to her room, her brother informed us that she was lying unconscious on her bed. Entering her room, we found her on the bed, without breathing, as if dead. With great difficulty we managed to bring her to her senses. A few minutes later, she fainted again, and we managed to revive her again with even more difficulty than the first time. On Thursday 29, Mr. X. G. L. and I heard the sound of breaking glass since noon. In the evening we went to Miss Floralina's house and found there a number of police constables with two chiefs. We asked the young lady how she felt, to which she replied: “As soon as evening comes, I feel a feeling of coldness throughout my whole body, my hair stands on end, and I become not myself.” On the 30th, the destructive effect of the stones lasted from 5 to 7 pm. Floralina was sitting on a chair in the corner of the room and modestly talking to us with her usual natural gaiety, when suddenly she suddenly fainted, became restless and began to rush about with such force that five people were unable to restrain her. And a wonderful thing: while she was unconscious, not a single glass was broken. A few minutes later, she suddenly rose from her chair with such force that some of those holding her were knocked off their feet. She rose to her feet and almost lifted those who were holding her. Using all our strength, we managed with great difficulty to put her back on the chair. Finally, we took her to the room and laid her on the bed. A few minutes later, the large glass door fell to the floor and shattered. It should be noted that this glass was inaccessible to a stone thrown from the yard. On someone's advice, the constables decided to send for a Malay who was engaged in exorcism through spells. While we were awaiting the arrival of this man, still holding Miss Floralina, suddenly Floralina's prayer book, which was in the chest of drawers in the next room, was thrown into our room through the broken glass of the door and fell near Floralina's right hand. We were all very amazed at this fact and asked where Floralina's prayer book was; and she assured that it was in the chest of drawers in the adjoining room. Finally, the Malay we had been waiting for impatiently came, and as soon as he approached, the young girl, who had been lying with her eyes closed all the time, suddenly opened them, looked at the newcomer with a strange look, and at the same time made an effort to rush at him. The Malayan began to say something sternly to her in Malay, and the girl could not take her eyes off him all this time. The Malayan then began to write something on a long paper strip, after which he rolled it in the shape of a cigar and stuck it in the hair of Miss Floralina, who began to resist and even spit at him, but the Malayan extended a Malayan cane towards her, which, according to him, has magical powers, and she resigned herself. After that, he lit the folded piece of paper, gave it a sniff, and soon it finally came to its senses and became almost normal. Finally, at about 11 o'clock, the Malay left, and soon we left too. In the following days, although stones continued to fall and dishes were broken, it was much less frequent, and the patient became much calmer. Soon the girl's father, who lived at Goodalur, 130 miles from Ooty, arrived, and had been telegraphed about his daughter's illness, and last night they both left our town. As a result of all the incidents described, the house was so ruined that Mrs. F. and her children had to move to another apartment. In my story I adhered to the strict truth and, without exaggerating anything, told the facts as they really were 161. (“Ann. Des Sc. Psych.” 1897, no. 5; see “Rebus” 1898, no. 8). d) The case of mysterious phenomena in ancient Rus', in the 11th century 162. “Under the rule of the most pious Tsar Alexy Mikhailovich, the autocrat of all Russia, a great thing happened in that very reigning city of Moscow. In the patriarch's beggar's house on Kulichki, which is behind the Varvarsky Gates near the Ivanovo Monastery, through the action of a certain sorcerer, a demon took possession and created various dirty tricks on those living there, Abba Marko narrates about this, saying that at that time he himself was with the monk in those almshouses and was a witness to this. And the demon did not let anyone sleep night and day, dragging people from their beds and benches, and out loud to everyone in an absurd, blatant manner, knocking and rattling on the stove and on the floors in the corners, screaming in absurd voices, terrifying everyone. The pious Tsar Alexy Mikhailovich commanded the spiritual rank of men to say prayers to drive away that demon; Both were insignificantly successful, but even more so the devil, like a lion, accelerated the most fiercely of all, and exposed and shamed those sins, and drove them out with green insurance and beating them all out. I tried so hard to drive out that demon, but with no success.” “Then someone close to the king announced the reverence of Hilarion, as if he had been granted the power from God over unclean spirits to receive the power to drive them away from people through prayer. The pious Tsar commanded to call the Venerable Hilarion before him, who had previously been in Moscow at that time. The message found the monk on the way, going nowhere, and announced to him that the pious king was demanding him, so that he would deign to go with them immediately. The monk, not knowing what to answer to them, only said: “Lord, have mercy!” He was afraid, having made some slander against him to the Tsar. Either way, go with them. The monk’s clothes at that time were: a sheepskin coat, belted with bast wattle, and over the fur coat a worn cloth cassock. And having brought the monk, he placed him before the king. The monk, thinking that there would be some anger from the king, prayed according to custom to the Lord God before the holy images, and bowed to the king to the ground, saying nothing. The pious king said to him: “Do not be afraid, honest father; I have not called you here for fear, but for good advice.” And they began to say to him: “Work hard, for God’s sake, and do not disobey our request; I have heard about you, that you live well before God.” The monk said: “I am a sinner, this earth and ashes.” The pious king of the verb: “Besides, do not listen to our request: go to the women’s almshouses, my name, and pray to the Lord God with your diligent prayer, and cast out the demon from there, as he does many dirty tricks and labors to those living there.” The monk responded to the contrary with the verb: “O pious one to the king! For you commanded us to do this above our strength; This is not our business, but the work of the great holy fathers, who shone forth in virtues, and who received such power and strength from God over unclean spirits. I am this earth and ashes, and the first sinner. Truly, this matter exceeds our measure; however, pious king, show mercy to me, the poor one, let me cry about my sins and bring repentance, for I am unclean before God.” The pious king answered him: “Do not deny, Holy Father, to do good deeds, as the Scripture says: for with all your good deeds have holy obedience. For it is more valuable than fasting and prayer and is of great value before God, for He Himself says: I want mercy, not sacrifice. God does not look at faces, but to do the will of those who fear Him, and He listens to them mercifully.” The monk, answering, said: “Even if the imam were not heard, O pious one to the king! Otherwise, for obedience, I will go as a sinner against my strength, for I can no longer say anything against your royal will, or I am disgusted to be! And so, having bowed to the king, go. At that time, the ecumenical patriarchs came to Moscow. The monk, at the command of the king, went to these almshouses, entrusting himself with deep humility. And when with monk Mark, and with monk Joseph, nicknamed Ryabik, having arrived at those almshouses in the evening, they began, according to their custom, to perform evening singing, as well as Little Compline, and three canons: to the Sweetest Jesus, to the Most Holy Theotokos and the Guardian Angel, between the canons - an akathist to the Most Holy Theotokos and sleeping prayers and all according to the order of service, even in the desert it is customary to do. The devil, not being able to bear hearing such singing, began to knock hard on the floor and shout in absurd voices, reproaching the monk with cold-hearted things, saying: “Have you come, Kalugere 163, to drive me out? Come to me, let’s talk with me.” The monk looked around, and the devil kept shouting: “Come, Kaluger, let’s talk with me.” When the time came to read the akathist to the Most Holy Theotokos, and then, looking up at the sky, raised your hand and struck your chest hard; tears flowed from his eyes like hail, and he fell on his face to the ground out of great pity, and again from the earth he began to recite the akathist loudly, according to his custom. The devil, with the prayers of the monk, like a fire, jump back from there, like a quick arrow, and keep silent at that time, Dondezh the akathist the venerable read. When you do it, then the devil begins to scream in absurd voices, saying: “Oh, you crybaby! You also burst into tears; come to me, I’ll talk to you.” When the monk and those monks, according to their custom, had completed the church rule and had extinguished the fire at night, then the monk and those monks began to correct the cell rule. And the monk began to weep inconsolably against the devil before God, so that he might be cast out from there. The devil cried out in a great voice: “Oh, oh, Kalugere, you burst into tears in the darkness”; and he knocked very hard on the floor, saying: “I’m coming to you,” and kept silent. “Monk Marko says: I wanted to run away from my cell out of fear, but the monk confirm them to stand strong in prayer and make diligent prayers to God, and not to be afraid of anything at all, saying that the devil has no power over pigs without the command of God. The devil turned into a black cat and began to jump up under the reverend’s knees. Whenever the monk begins to bow down, he creates the following obstacle: if he would somehow bring the monk to anger and lead him away from prayer. He, being gentle, when the devil jumps under his knees, then he throws him away with his hand, and thus bows. Having sent out that cell rule, you commanded, crossing your faces, not being afraid of anything to sleep. Avvo Marco says: I hid deep under my fur coat for fear. When the burden had passed and the day was approaching, then the monk, rising from his sleep, performed morning singing according to custom, and after the funeral service of Matins, went about his monastic work. At that time, the devil spoke to the almshouse women about his reverence, saying: “How well this Kaluger lives before God: when they began to cry before Jesus and Mary in the akathist, they frightened me greatly, and as if at that time he burned me with fire, and because, unable to bear it, I escaped; and when he began to pray in the dark, he knocked hard, but he was not at all afraid, and he confirmed to his disciples not to be afraid; I jumped up under his knees like a black cat and hindered him in numbers, wanting to make him angry and take him away from prayer, but I couldn’t.” This accursed one spoke to them, but he himself is invisible. At the same time, the woman put the boy in the cradle; the devil, snatching the boy and invisibly taking the woman herself, put her in the cradle, began to shake her, saying: “Luli, woman; Lyuli, you fool! And when the monk went back to the almshouse and was already approaching, then the devil, leaving the woman in the cradle, said: “He’s going back to that kaluger; Otherwise I’ll be sick of him”; hide and remain silent. The monk, having come to the almshouse, commanded that a table be prepared and a shroud laid, and a cup filled with clean water, he himself put on his vestments and, taking up the cross, began to sanctify the water. The devil began to shout with absurd voices and throw large white stones, as if the entire almshouse table and bowl were shaking from the knocking; Otherwise, do not harm the saint with that stone, only in front of his feet, and in front and behind him, and on the sides of the stone. The monk, being in no way afraid, looked below, only performing the usual blessing of water with many tears, and the devil just screamed absurdly, saying: “Have you burst into tears yet, Kaluga! Come to me, I’ll talk to you.” When the monk has blessed the water, then we take the cross in our left hand, sprinkle it in our right hand, having first sprinkled the holy icons, then turn and go, where the devil is absurdly shouting, saying: “Where are you, the enemy of all righteousness? I am a servant of my Lord Jesus Christ, who endured crucifixion on the cross for us sinners! In His name I am coming to brother with you! Be gone, you wretched and unclean one!” And they began to sprinkle holy water everywhere, on the stove and on the floors, on the benches and under the benches, and did not leave a single place where they did not sprinkle it. Then the devil kept silent, and hid out of fear, and did not come there for three days. Three days later, he showed up again, and began to shout to the living poor women: “How well this Kaluger lives before God, it is impossible for me to get closer to him, as if he is scorching with fire.” Then the saint came from nowhere, and the devil began to scream and shout, but not as boldly as before; they began to be exhausted, and the verbs were dumb. The monk spoke to him: “Are you the only one who is unstudent, wretched one? I conjure you in the name of God, by telling me, where have you been in the past three days? And when I sprinkled sacred water, where were you hiding? The devil answered: “When you sprinkled water, I was sitting on a pole under my dress; and when he couldn’t sit there, he jumped onto the pole, and you forgot to sprinkle it there too, and you’ve been resting there for hours, sitting.” The monk again asked him: “Where do you get the white stone?” The devil answered: “I take it from the white city.” The monk again asked: “What is your name?” The devil said: “My name is Ignatius, of a princely family, but I am carnal; my mother sent me to the demon, and the demons took me.” The monk cursed him in the name of God, and you commanded him to go out from there. The devil said, “I can’t get out of here; because I was sent here, and did not come on my own.” Rev. verb: “I am the imam to say prayers to God; get out, damn you!" The devil does not speak as boldly as before, but is very mute and bold, and has already begun to disappear. The monk fought with that devil for five weeks, diligently making his prayers to God, sprinkling holy water everywhere; That demon, little by little, disappeared from there, of course, and then again there, burning with God’s grace and the prayers of the Reverend Father Hilarion. And the monk lived in those almshouses for ten weeks, and so returned to his monastery in spiritual strength, like a brave warrior of the king and a strong victor in battle, but by no means overcome by the adversary, he appeared to be terrible with an unclean spirit, and to the whole world a clear and wondrous miracle worker.” (“Rebus” 1895, No. 12). 16. The power of church spell prayers. Having been in the priesthood for more than 30 years and dealing with people of different conditions, I have heard more than once from some that evil spirits do not exist, and that the so-called demoniacs are either sick with natural illnesses, or are pretending to avoid work, or to gain compassion for themselves in rich but superstitious people. I will not go into any considerations about the existence of spirits: for an Orthodox Christian this truth is above all doubt. I will only point out the examples I have seen of such ailments, which cannot be explained either by natural causes or by pretense: they were truly cruel, and were inferior only to the power of incantatory prayers prescribed by the Church to expel evil spirits. On August 12, 1856, I was with my wife, due to economic needs, in the provincial city of Orel. Without us, the children, of whom I have eight, especially young ones, walked, frolicked, and joked. More distinguished than all of them was my ten-year-old son Orestes. His family and neighbors laughed at him a lot and were amazed at his various inventions. Two days later, in the evening, we returned home and, thank God, we found all the children healthy. At dusk, the worker, according to rural life, went to the field with the horses for the night, and I went to my garden with two children, Orestes and another, nine-year-old son Arkady, there to guard the vegetables from the cattle wandering at night. I don’t know, my sons, when they went to bed with me, they prayed to God or not, but they soon fell asleep, but I didn’t sleep for a long time. Around midnight, suddenly my Orestes hurriedly jumped up, began to run around the boxes and seemed to be catching something. Seeing this, I said to him: “Orestes, why did you get up and what are you doing?” And he responded to me: “Please wake up Arkasha: we’ll catch this cat and kill him; she suddenly threw herself on my chest, woke me up and hurt me painfully.” While saying this, he did not stop catching something. I woke up Arkasha and ordered him to help Orestes catch what he was catching. Arkady, waking up, thought that his brother was catching some kind of bird, ran to him and asked: “Where is it?” - “Here, here, catch her.” - “Yes, there is nothing here.” - “You yourself are like a blind cat; see, the cat is running.” This is how it all appeared to Orestes. Without allowing the children to quarrel, I ordered them to lie down on the bed again. Arkady soon fell asleep, and Orest groaned and groaned. At dawn he went home, but from chest pain he barely reached the door. In addition, the veins under his knees began to cramp: his back ached, an unbearable pain appeared in his head, and soon terrible cramps began, his breathing became heavy, his eyes became bloodshot. He could neither drink nor eat, and from a beautiful and slender child he became a freak. A week later we took him to the city of Orel to the famous doctor Dashkevich there. I told him about the time and causes of my son's illness. The doctor was surprised at my stories and ordered me to take him to the hospital, where he himself soon arrived. Here he ordered the servant to carry the patient into the hospital hall; He ordered the paramedics to undress him, stretch the patient’s legs and straighten his torso. The patient screamed with all his might. After the examination, the doctor turned to me and said mockingly: “Why did you bring a freak, to test my knowledge? I see that he was born a freak, and he cannot be treated.” “For mercy, doctor,” my wife and I remarked to him, “we have no need to test you, because we consider you to be the best doctor, which is why we turned to you with the most humble request to help us in our grief. He was not born this way, but only became this way one week ago.” Then the doctor said: “Well, this does not concern our science, but take him to the Russian grandmothers, and buy cod oil in reserve, smear it on him and let him drink a tablespoon in the morning and at night, and make a bath of hay dust so that he steams and sweats; change your linen more often. That’s what I, for my part, can advise you!” He said this and left. Having bought cod oil, we brought the patient home and did everything that the doctor prescribed, but the patient got worse: his breathing became gusty; delirium appeared; the child became close to death, which he himself wanted from the unbearable pain. We all grieved for him, especially his mother. She went to the neighbors and told them that the doctor refused to treat, but ordered to take the patient to some Russian grandmother, does anyone know who this is? Then the old neighbor, a widow of clergy, having listened to my wife’s story about her son’s illness, said to her: “A bad hour, mother, has happened to him; He got the evil eye, my dear. Don’t take it, mother, to the grandmothers, but serve a prayer service to the Mother of God, the Three-Handed One, and give it to God’s will.” My wife told me about the old lady’s neighbor’s advice; it was in the evening. At dawn, all the children and I picked up the sick man, carried him to the church and laid him in front of St. icon. I served a prayer service with an akathist to the Mother of God and sprinkled it with St. water and read the Gospels over him, namely, from John. 1, Mark 71, Luke 51 and 57, then St. gave him. swallow water. After that, although with support and difficulty, he was able to walk from the church to the house, where they laid him on the bed, and he soon fell asleep. During sleep, the patient groaned and sighed, stretched and yawned, and slept for the whole day almost without waking up. At dawn the next day, straight from bed, he quickly ran up to his mother and joyfully said: “Mama! Stop crying for me, I’m completely healthy now.” And indeed, since then he has recovered and is now studying at the Oryol district school. Another case: on June 23, 1858, on the 24th, in the village of my parish, a peasant wife, about 40 years old, named Vera, of a gloomy and grumpy disposition, strongly and hotly scolded the neighboring children for some insignificant offense caused to her. I heard this, since she lived near my house, but I did not want to stop her, postponing until tomorrow to reprimand her. That same night, very late, her husband Vasily came to my window and knocked. I asked, "Who's there?" “I, father,” he answered, “come see the sick woman.” - “Who is sick with you?” “Yes, my wife is dying,” was the answer, “I was not at home yesterday, but at corvée; I came home late, and something very bad happened to her.” I took the church keys and wanted to go with him to the church to get the monstrance, but he told me that there was no need to take the Holy Gifts, but that I should take the book from which I read over my son Orestes during his illness. Then he added: “My wife is so furious that I’m afraid to approach her.” Then I went straight to their house with a missal and stole. There was a crowd of people there, and a demoniac woman in only a shirt, with disheveled hair, sat on the stove, looked at me brutally and began to spit, then began to cry bitterly, saying: “My poor little head, why did he come?” - “Why are you crying, Vera?” – I asked her, not going close to her. She scolded me in common language and said: “I’m not Vera, but Ivanushka is a good fellow, and why did you come?” - and threw a log from the stove at me, which flew past my head and hit the door lintel. Then I said to those present: “Take her and bring her to me.” Four strong men barely pulled her off the stove, and others helped them bring her to me. Meanwhile, she scolded me in every possible way and cried. Despite this, I, covering her with an epitrachelion, began to read prayers over her for the expulsion of demons and at each prayer I asked: “Will you come out?” “No, I won’t go out,” he answered, “I’m fine here too.” - “But fear God, come out.” And he answered: “I’ll go out”, then “no.” Finally, the time came for me to go to matins, and I ordered her to be carried with me to church. They brought it. When the people had gathered, I asked everyone to kneel down and fervently pray to God to deliver Vera from the demon, and I again began to read the prayers and the above-mentioned Gospels. Then the demon, in the voice of Vera, shouted loudly: “Oh, oh, oh, I’m sick, I’m sick!” Vera began to cry in an inhuman voice, saying: “I’m afraid, I’m afraid, I’m afraid; I’m sick, I’m sick, I’ll go out, I’ll go out, don’t torment me.” During all this time I did not stop reading. Then Vera began to sob and fainted on the floor and became as if dead. A quarter of an hour passed like this. I sprinkled it with St. water, and she came to her senses, then he gave her water to swallow, and she said a prayer, crossed herself, stood up and asked to serve a prayer service to John the Baptist. Third case. In my parish there is the village of Zaitseva; it is inhabited by peasants belonging to the department of the Ministry of State Property, wealthy and Orthodox people. But most of all, two siblings live in special houses, both are married and have children, only their wives often quarrel. One day, in good weather, the wife of the younger brother decided to dry out her dowry property, and she hung it on the fence of her estate. About two hours later, while collecting the hanging dress, she suddenly saw on her calico shirt a spot the size of a copper patch cut out on her calico shirt, right against her heart, and she thought about her eldest daughter-in-law, with whom she often quarreled; Then she felt unbearable pain in her chest and aching in her bones. From that time on, for the whole night there was no peace from her, neither her husband nor her children: she kept screaming, raging, demanding a knife or rope to destroy herself and others. She no longer imagined anything familiar, nothing sacred; there was neither modesty nor the former prudence. Her husband had to inform the neighbors about her actions. The neighbors gathered, looked at her, and everyone unanimously decided: “This is damage, we need to take her to the healer-grandfather to talk her out.” But one old woman said: “No, don’t sin, don’t take her, but go to the priest, let him look at her.” They came for me. At this time, the patient began to rage even more. As soon as I appeared in the upper room with the cross and breviary, she began to shake all over and, pale as snow, looked at me from under her brows, like an animal. “What’s wrong with you, Avdotya?” – I asked. - “What does it matter to you? - she answered. - Nothing". I ordered her to be brought to me. Let us down. When I began to read prayers and the Gospels and at the same time made the sign of the cross over her while reading, she either shook, then spat, then hiccupped, then was cold as ice, then turned black and blushed. At the end of reading the prayers, I sprinkled it with St. water, forced her to cross herself, gave her holy water to drink and asked: “Are you feeling better?” She bowed at my feet and said: “Thank you, father, I’m healthy now, only my bones hurt.” Now she is completely healthy. (From the magazine “Wanderer”). Ecstasy and obsession (possession) 164 A major hysterical attack can take many different forms, with one or more phases being skipped, and the rest as a result of this giving the attack a specific form. These special forms played a significant role in the development of superstition, and, depending on the nature of the attack, they were attributed either to the manifestation of the will of God or to the machinations of the devil. We are talking mainly about two forms: ecstasy and obsession. Let us briefly describe each of these forms. Among the many cases described by Richet, I will choose one that is distinguished by a variety of features. "G. sits down; sometimes her head maintains an almost natural position, her eyes are directed slightly upward, her hands are folded in prayer. In other cases, she takes a pose in which the Illuminati, St. Teresa and others; the head is thrown back, the gaze is fixed on the sky, the face takes on the imprint of infinite meekness and expresses ideal satisfaction; the neck is swollen, breathing is barely noticeable, the body is absolutely motionless. The hands folded in a cross on the chest further complement the resemblance to the images of saints in the paintings. The patient maintains all these poses for ten to twenty minutes or even more. However, the seizure always ends with the same changes in facial expression that mark ordinary seizures; erotic delirium begins, which is even more striking due to the contrast with the first state. An observer, seeing everything for the first time, cannot look without amazement at these facial features distorted by sensuality and uncontrollable manifestations of passionate desires.” Here, therefore, the attack takes various forms according to the feelings overwhelming the patient. If one mood predominates, for example, religious, then the ecstasy is monotonous all the time. These were undoubtedly the cases that history tells us about, and the same was observed with Louise Lato (See about her in our book “From the Realm of the Mysterious,” pp. 292 – 294). The latter was so imbued with the impression of the Passion of the Lord that she began to have bruises in the places of her body where there were wounds of the cross. In her ecstasies, which were regularly repeated on Fridays, she carefully depicted the entire story of the crucifixion of Christ. One eyewitness describes the scene this way. “Suddenly she falls silent, her eyes stop motionless; for several hours she maintains the once assumed pose and is apparently immersed in deep contemplation. Around 2 o'clock she leans forward, slowly rises and then suddenly falls face down on the ground. So she lies with her whole body stretched out, her head resting on her left hand; the eyes are closed, the mouth is half open, the legs are extended in a straight line. At approximately 3 o'clock, with a sharp movement, she spreads her arms in a cross shape and places her right leg on top of her left. She maintains this position for up to 5 hours. The ecstasy ends in a terrible scene. The arms fall along the body, the head drops to the chest, the eyes close. The face becomes deathly pale and covered with cold sweat, the hands are cold as ice, the pulse is barely noticeable, she wheezes. This state lasts from 10 to 15 minutes. Then the warmth returns, the pulse beats faster, the cheeks regain their previous color, but the indescribable expression of ecstasy lasts for some time.” Some of the patients on whom Richet studied major hysteria, in addition to ordinary seizures, are sometimes subjected to others that have the nature of demonic possession. In this case, the second period - clownism - comes forward very sharply, large movements are performed with terrible force. The wildest convulsions and writhings replace each other. The patient tries to bite herself, torments her face and chest, tears out her hair, emits terrible screams, howls like a wild animal, and tears off all her clothes. It is not surprising that the appearance of such an attack suggests that the patient has been possessed by an evil spirit. In ancient descriptions and images of demoniacs we almost always find well-known features that are also observed in our time. Richet's patients lack the entire somnambulistic stage, during which the patient hallucinates, considers himself possessed by demons and speaks on their behalf, but in ancient descriptions it is this stage that is most prominent. Richet's patients do not believe in a personal devil, and therefore in the possibility of him possessing a person. Given the existence of such faith, the last period of the attack takes on a characteristic imprint in precisely this sense. During the epidemic in Morcin, young girls went into a complete frenzy against religion, priests, etc., and answered questions only by peppering their speech with terrible curses, despite the fact that in the intervals between attacks they were calm, modest and pious. Thus, these modest girls did not hesitate to publicly utter the most indecent words, “But,” says an eyewitness, “it was not them, but the devil who possessed them, speaking on his own behalf.” Northern legends also preserve an excellent description of demonic possession. In the book “The Huskors Code” we come across a description of a hysterical epidemic that gradually engulfed all the residents of one house. Although the description was made by a simple bourgeois at the beginning of the 17th century, the characteristic features of great hysteria were noticed very clearly. It is said about the boy Jacob, for example: “Then Satan attacked him even more stubbornly: sometimes he crucified him so that no one could move him; he bent his head to one side and crossed his legs one over the other, just as the Savior hung on the cross; turned out the whites of his eyes as if he were dead.” Obviously, here we are talking about strong contractures. In the other inhabitants of the house, gradually overcome by the disease, we also discover the familiar symptoms of hysteria. About the householder Hans Bartkiar it is further said: “From day to day he was subjected to great attacks; Every day from 11 to 2 o’clock the evil enemy sat on his back like a big sack of flour, and sometimes curled up on his side like a chicken egg.” (The hysterical ball is an almost constant symptom of hysteria). However, things get even worse when the youngest member of the family falls ill. “We had a little boy in his ninth year. Something so wonderful happened to him that it was impossible to understand what was hurting him. He said that something was running through his body and stabbing him. We gave him baths and tried various tips, but he kept getting worse. We sent to the barber to ask what illness he had. He could not give us any advice, but said that a doctor had arrived at our place and that we could consult with her. They sent for her: she said that the child had been possessed by an evil spirit, and could not give any other advice on how to pray to God. We suffered a lot of grief, trying to send such a guest away from us. Once I was standing in the room, and the child was lying in a wicker bed like a basket; suddenly she rose one and a half arshins into the air and began jumping up and down. I ran after Hans and brought him. When we entered, the boy had been lifted out of bed and was standing on his head with his legs up and his arms outstretched. With great difficulty we put him to bed. From that day on, he and I had a lot of grief. An evil spirit ran around him like a pig and swollen his belly so that it was scary to look at; stretched his tongue up to his neck, and then rolled it up like a rag, so that blood poured out of his mouth. The demon grunted in his stomach like a pig, and writhed his members so much that four healthy guys could not straighten them. He crowed like a rooster, barked like a dog, drove the boy into the attic, onto the firewood in the yard, and, leading him there, threw him. The boy sat there, cried and could not come down. The demon even threw him over the fence to his neighbor Yakov Meyer. It drew his eyes into his head, as well as his cheeks, and made him so hard and rigid, like a stick, that anyone who did not know it would say that he was made of wood. We leaned him against the wall, and he stood like a wooden idol. In the evenings, when we sang Luther’s hymn or read (the Bible), he neighed like a horse and mocked us as best he could.” Here you can recognize all the phases of a hysterical attack, although all the phenomena are very confused: there is even a final delirium, where Satan blasphemes in the language of a child. The story becomes more interesting when the priest, Master Nils Glostrup, intervenes. - “When the shepherd once came to check on us, Satan turned to him: “If I were not afraid of the Great Man, I would have dealt with you to your disgrace; You pray too hard to the Great One for this child and for the whole house and thereby torment me. Today I already climbed into your dress, but when you prayed for the boy, I fell down and was embarrassed.” Master Nils replied: “You have already been disgraced, damned spirit.” Satan answered: “I know that myself.” Master Nils said: “When will you, damned spirit, leave this home and leave this boy alone, whom you are torturing day and night?” Then Satan said through the mouth of the boy: “Do you want me to leave?” “God Almighty,” answered the master, “will expel you to where the eternal fire burns.” Satan answered: “When the Great One says: go away, then I will have to leave.” The master spoke to him in Latin, and Satan answered mockingly that he did not want to rack his brains over this.” Since the trance into which mediums fall differs significantly from fits of demonic possession, a few words need to be said about it. When describing trance, it is sometimes difficult to determine the characteristic features of this state. One time it can only be autohypnosis - this is probably the most common case - another time it is a hysterical attack with predominant phenomena of somnambulism, during which the medium, under the influence of self-hypnosis, considers himself possessed by a spirit. I once had to witness such a seizure at a spiritualistic seance, although a detailed study of the issue in a meeting of believers was out of the question; Moreover, I did not have the necessary equipment with me, and I had no experience in using them, so I could not establish the hysterical nature of the phenomena. But the entire course of the attack, which was accompanied by vomiting, groans, convulsions, and a great tendency toward clownism (arched position), left no room for doubt that what I was facing was an attack of hysteria, ending in a very long somnambulistic state. In this case, the medium was possessed by the spirit of a Swedish priest. The priest's sermon was interrupted, however, more than once by abuse and blasphemy, which all closely resembled demonic possession. The spiritualists gave this explanation that the spirit of the priest had to give way to another spirit, very imperfect and suffering. They began to drive out the latter with all possible solemnity, with prayers and spells, so that the result was a completely medieval scene. This kind of medium does not seem to be particularly rare. One of the most famous in our time is the American Mrs. Pieper. Many people saw and examined it, but, unfortunately, not doctors. It was only established that her visual acuity and the size of her field were normal, but this, of course, in no way excludes the possibility that she had symptoms of hysteria, which is confirmed by many reports. So Richet writes: “Mrs. P. occupies a middle position between ordinary American mediums and our French somnambulists. Magnetic passes do not put her to sleep, but lead directly into a trance; only she does not fall into it spontaneously, but for this she must hold someone’s hand. In a dimly lit room, she takes someone's hand and remains calm for several minutes. Then she begins to have small convulsive contractions, gradually intensifying and ending in a weak epileptic seizure. After this, she falls into a faint for several minutes, from which she awakens with a loud cry. Here her voice changes, and we no longer see Mrs. P., but Doctor Finuit, who speaks in a rough male voice and with an accent that is a mixture of an American dialect with the French slang of blacks.” From this description it is clear that here we are dealing with a hysterical attack and a change in personality. This is also indicated by the fact that Mrs. P. cannot always induce a trance state at will, but a change in personality sometimes occurs against her will, and when she does not expect it, for example, in a dream. The somnambulistic state in which Dr. Finuit finds her lasts from a few minutes to an hour, most often about an hour. – The seizures were first discovered when Mrs. P. in 1888 sought medical advice from a blind medium, Mr. Coke, who was “controlled,” that is, possessed by the spirit of a French doctor named Finny. Already during the second visit, she fainted, and the spirit of an Indian girl possessed her. After this she developed into a medium and was "controlled" by the spirits of Dr. Finuit and others: Sebastian Bach, Longfellow, Commander Vanderbilt, etc., but in the end Finuit certainly prevailed. Finuit reports the following information about himself: he was a French doctor; born in Marseille in 1790, died in 1860; at the same time, it was described in detail where he studied, where he visited and lived. However, despite all efforts, they could not find anywhere the slightest trace of the real existence of such a person. Of course, she is the purest fantasy of Mrs. P., created through self-suggestion. The most surprising thing is that this Frenchman could not speak French. He justifies himself by saying that, living for many years in Metz, he always moved among the English, which is why he forgot his native language. In any case, it is surprising that a person, living in his homeland, could forget his language. Mr. Hodgson, during one session, made the same remark to Finuit and added that, in his opinion, such an interpretation is much more likely: the doctor cannot communicate in his native language because he is forced to use the brain of Mrs. P., who does not know foreign languages. In one of the subsequent sessions, Finuit gave this explanation as his own; therefore, he is susceptible to suggestion. Dr. Finuit's specialty is to give opinions on the most intimate matters known only to the person who holds Mrs. P.'s hand during the trance. Astonishing stories were reported about his answers, and this was the main reason why the English public undertook an investigation into the matter. At first they thought that Mrs. P. was collecting information about her clients through detectives, so they began to follow her, but this did not lead to anything. In addition, complete strangers were brought to her sessions under false names, but Finuit gave them a lot of information about their personal affairs. Finally, members of the Psychiatric Society. research invited her to England; successively she lived under the strictest supervision in Cambridge, Liverpool and London, where she knew no one. She was tested in many sessions and the answers were written down in shorthand: the result was still the same. Of course, not all Finuit's messages are created equal; many of them are mostly incorrect. Sometimes he carefully probes the questioner and himself poses preliminary questions, the answers to which give him the opportunity to orient himself. There is no doubt, however, that in many cases he answered questions that even an interested person could hardly answer, and, moreover, correctly, as it turned out later. We cannot dwell for long on the enormous material collected about him and his activities; but all the data lead to the conclusion that it comes down to reading and transferring thoughts, sometimes even those that the author himself is not clearly aware of. We have talked more than once about how, unnoticed by the questioner, answers to the questions he himself may pose can be suggested in an elusive whisper. This may explain the fact that foreigners who do not know English received no answers from Finuit, who in turn only speaks English. To all the questions that Richet asked his compatriot and colleague, he answered incorrectly. Only the name of the dog, Riche, was indicated correctly, and even then with the wrong pronunciation. Thus, Finuit’s information is not at all supernatural: he repeats only what the hysterical somnambulist Mrs. P. hears during a session (See the book “The History of Superstitions and Magic,” Dr. Lehmann, issue X, M. 1900). 17. The influence of evil spirits on people after their death. The influence of evil spirits on people does not end with a person’s earthly life, but continues after death. According to the teachings of the Orthodox Church, Angels of God and tormenting spirits appear to people who are dying when the soul is separated from the body. Jesus Christ himself, in the parable of the man who “got the field,” says: “And God said: you fool! this night they will take your soul from you” (Luke 12:20), - they will take it, in Slavic: “they will exhaust”, that is, unkind spirits; and in the parable of the rich man and Lazarus he said: “The beggar died and was carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom” (Luke 16:22). “Then the Angels took Lazarus away,” says St. John Chrysostom. “On the contrary, the soul of him (the rich man) was taken by some terrible forces, perhaps sent for this purpose, for the soul does not itself depart from this life, since this is impossible. If we, moving from one city to another, need a leader, then all the more will the soul, plucked from the body and presented to the future life, need leaders. That is why, flying away from the body, it fears and trembles; the consciousness of sins always torments us, but especially at the hour when we are about to be taken to the tortures there” 165. And in fact, if the entire air is filled with evil spirits (Eph. 6:12), then the human soul inevitably, upon separation from the body, enters their realm. St. Athanasius the Great narrates the following: “One day, Anthony the Great, at the approach of the ninth hour, was suddenly caught up in the Spirit and placed on high. The air demons opposed his procession, the Angels, arguing with them, demanded to state the reasons for their opposition, because Anthony had cleansed himself of sins. The demons tried to expose the sins he had committed from birth, but the Angels stopped the slanderers, telling them that they should not count his sins from birth, already blotted out by Christ’s grace, but let them present, if they had, the sins he committed after he accepted monasticism. When accusing the demons, they uttered many blatant lies, but since their slander was devoid of evidence, a free path was opened for Anthony” 166. St. Basil the Great says in one place: “Let no one flatter himself with vain words, for “all destruction will suddenly attack you” (1 Thess. 5:3), and the revolution will befall you like a storm. A gloomy Angel will come, forcibly lead and drag away your soul, bound by sins, often turning to what it leaves here, and weeping silently, because the instrument of weeping has already closed.” 167 Blessed John the Merciful, Patriarch of Alexandria, discusses the departure of the soul from the body: “When the soul leaves the body and begins to ascend to heaven, it is met by demons and subjected to many tortures... During the procession of the soul, the holy Angels cannot help it; the only thing that helps it is repentance, good deeds, and most of all alms. If we do not repent of some sin here due to oblivion, then with alms we can get rid of the violence of demonic ordeals” 168. The Monk Isaiah the hermit in the sixth word says: “When the soul leaves the body, it is accompanied by Angels; Dark forces come out to meet her, wanting to do something to hold her back. At that time, it is not the Angels who confront the enemies, but the deeds performed by the soul protect and protect from sins, preventing them from touching it. If her deeds prevail, then the Angels will sing a song of praise to her and lead her with joy before the face of God” 169. It testifies especially clearly that the power of evil spirits over people extends even after death, St. Cyril of Alexandria in “The Sermon on the Exodus of the Soul”: “What fear and trembling awaits you, soul, on the day of death! You will see terrible, wild, cruel, unmerciful, shameless demons, similar to the gloomy murins, coming to you. One vision of them is worse than any torment. The soul, seeing them, becomes confused, worries, is restless, seeks to hide, and resorts to God’s Angels. Holy Angels hold the soul; passing through the air with them and rising, she encounters ordeals that guard the path from earth to heaven. Each ordeal experiences the sins that belong to it; every passion, every sin has its tormentors. What fear, trembling and anxiety the soul must feel, seeing all this, until the sentence is pronounced that frees it. Divine powers stand against the face of evil spirits and represent good thoughts, words and deeds that belong to the soul, and it, in fear and trembling, in the midst of Angels and demons bickering about it, has either justification and liberation, or condemnation and destruction. If she led her life piously and pleasing to God, then the Angels accept her, and she already calmly walks towards God... If it turns out that the soul has lived in negligence and fornication, then it will hear the fiercest voice: “Let the wicked be taken, and not see the glory of God.” The holy Angels of God leave her and are kidnapped by the demon murins. They begin to beat her without mercy and bring her down to the ground; then they plunge her into a dark and gloomy country, where there is neither light nor life for a person, but eternal illness and endless sadness. There one hears the incessant: “alas! Alas!". There is a call, and there is no one to help; there they cry, and no one delivers. There is no way to tell about the disaster there, there is no way to express the disease there, to which the souls imprisoned there are exposed” 170. The justice of the above words of St. father is confirmed by the following case cited in Chet. - Less. In Carthage there lived a warrior named Taxiot, who spent his life in sins. The pestilence that occurred in the city had a beneficial effect on Taxiot. Fearing death, he repented and settled outside the city, but, at the suggestion of the devil, he became involved with the wife of a farmer. Soon he was bitten by a snake and died without having time to repent. He was buried in a nearby monastery. 6 hours after the burial, he resurrected, but came to his senses a little on the fourth day, and this is what he told the blessed Bishop of Carthage Tarasius: “When I was dying, I saw the Murins appearing to me. Their appearance was very terrible: my soul, looking at them, was very indignant. Then I saw two beautiful young men, in whose company I began to ascend to the heights. And so, we have reached the ordeals that guard the sunrise and hold every soul. And I saw that the Angels were holding all my good deeds in a little box and comparing them with evil ones. So we passed several ordeals and approached the ordeal of prodigal life; here evil spirits held me and presented me with all the carnal deeds committed since childhood. The angels who guided me said: “God forgave you all the sins you committed in the city, because He repented of them.” To this the demons objected: “But, having left the city, in the village you fell into sin with the farmer’s wife.” The angels, hearing this and not finding a good deed that could atone for my sin, withdrew; then I was descended into the pit of hell" 171. The teaching of the Holy Church about the power of evil spirits over us even after death runs through all divine services. Wanting to sow soul-saving fear in our hearts and prepare us for a good answer “at the Last Judgment of Christ,” the Holy Church in its hymns reminds us of the ordeals. In the canon of prayer to the Lord Jesus Christ and the Most Holy Theotokos, sung at the separation of the soul from the body, it reads: “The prince of the air, the rapist, the tormentor, the champion of terrible paths and the vain tester of these words, grant me permission to pass without restraint, departing from the earth” (paragraph 4 tr.4). “Take away the bitter ordeals of the boss, the ruler of the world, far from me” (clause 8 tr.2). In the prayer before the kontakia and ikos, the akathist to the Mother of God reads: “Through You (the Mother of God) the dead are revived, for You gave birth to hypostatic Life: those who are silent before, are kind, lepers are cleansed, sicknesses are driven away, many aerial spirits are defeated” (4 tr. 8 p.). In the “Ordinance for the separation of the soul from the body, when a person suffers for a long time,” it reads: “Behold, a multitude of wicked spirits appeared, holding the record of my sins, and they called my humble souls, looking for shamelessness” (item 7 tr.2). In the canon to the Guardian Angel we read: “I pray to you, my Guardian, to be my protector and invincible champion, when I go through the ordeal of the fierce world ruler.” The following prayers to the Mother of God are sent in the Octopus: “At the hour, Virgin, of my end, the hands of demons will snatch me up, and judgment and debate, and terrible torture and bitter ordeals, and a cruel prince”... (Tuesday, chapter 4, paragraph 8). “I am tortured, Most Pure One, in the hour of death, to be delivered from demons” (Quarter. Chapter 4 p.b). From the above words, borrowed from church hymns, the faith of the Orthodox Church in the existence of ordeals clearly follows. How disappointing is this faith for sinners! The evil spirits to which the sinner surrenders himself do not leave him when the instrument of sin—the body—disappears. They poison the last minutes of his life, prevent him from imitating the thief “who repented for one hour”; In fact, will repentance come to a person’s mind when evil demons surround his bed, when in a troubled soul there is a consciousness of the gravity of sins, leading it to despair. Such people die with curses, and those who have won the fight over evil spirits while in a mortal body will not be approached by evil spirits after death. (See the book of Abbot Mark: “Evil Spirits”, St. Petersburg, 1899). 18. Phenomena in restless houses, proving the existence of dark (demonic) forces 172. 1. In 1874, Vilna province, in the village. Shakoldanakh, in the house of the peasant Begansky, throwing stones, firewood, etc., and walking around the hut with bottles of milk; They tied her with a rope to a nail - she untied herself and started walking again; They threw her out into the yard and returned to the hut. Suspicion fell on the horseman Bardadym, who whispered about this bottle of milk for Begansky’s sick child. A matter arose. The Vilna United Chamber of Criminal and Civil Court, by its ruling dated May 28, 1874, released the peasant Bardadym from trial on charges of fraud, but the sworn testimony of six witnesses to the former apparitions did not lose their significance. – The definition of the chamber is printed in its entirety in Rebus 1894 (p. 182). 2. In 1873, Simbirsk province, Ardatovsky district, in the village. Barashev, in the priest’s house, from December 23 to December 28, “various self-movement and flying of objects,” a samovar with boiling water rose from the floor and flew off two arshins: bricks were torn out of a Russian kitchen stove and smashed to pieces; household dishes and utensils flew in different directions and broke. “The moment of lifting some thing from a certain place and its flight, with my careful observation, was never noticed, but only its fall,” 173 writes priest N.P. Tsvetkov in his letter to A.N. Aksakov dated June 14, 1874, which was published in “Rebus” 1882 (p. 391). 3. In 1880, St. Petersburg province, in the village of Ruchakh, near the Lesnoy Korpus, in the house of the colonist Beach, knocking, throwing various household utensils, mainly at the girl Pelageya; a broom is chasing her; a ladle of water is poured on her head, or the water simply splashes into her; hats are thrown off and jumping on the floor; the cat is lifted into the air and thrown into Pelageya's back. After she was removed from the house, the phenomena stopped (Rebus 1888, p. 129). 4. In 1883, in Tashkent, in a city prison, in a cell occupied by three officers, mysterious phenomena began at the end of April, with the arrival of the last of them, artilleryman Zh., which continued until his release from prison, on May 18 of the same year: self-propulsion and flying of objects located in the cell; bringing in things that were in other rooms of the prison and seemed to fall from the ceiling; At first this was observed in moonlight, and then in full lamp light. One day, in the presence of the prison warden and the guard on duty, they wrote themselves: they put a paper on the table with questions in pencil, and they got short, sensible answers. (Rebus 1885, pp. 336–354). 5. In 1886, Yaroslavl province, in the city of Danilov, in the house of the merchant M-va, knocking, self-movement and flying of all objects: a boiling samovar and dishes were transferred to the floor, etc.; The invisible force did not touch only the images in front of which the lamp glowed. It continued for more than a month in front of the eyes of a whole crowd of curious people, without any damage to people or objects. (Reported by a witness in No. 180 of the Petersburg Leaflet; see Rebus 1886, p. 280). 6. In 1887, Tomsk province, near the city of Mariinsky, at the tannery of the merchant Savelyev - on the night of September 1, there was a complete pogrom: almost all the windows of the two-story outbuilding where the owners lived had broken glass and a lot of all kinds of utensils. The investigator, the prosecutor's comrade, and the military commander arrived; the owners and 40 factory workers testified that they saw things that were lying quietly suddenly rise from their places and quickly fly into the windows and break them. “No one could catch the moment of lifting, but everyone clearly saw the flight of the thing. The correspondent witnessed how, in front of everyone, a large stool standing by the stove rose into the air and flew out the window. (Correspondence from Mariinsk in the Sibirsky Vestnik; see Rebus 1887, p. 429). 7. In 1890, in St. Petersburg, in one of the barracks, in the apartment of Colonel A.B., almost every year since 1886, various phenomena were noticed: steps, sighs, voices, scratching on a dress or furniture, a piercing whistle, harmonious singing were heard; human figures were seen in full light; doors opened and slammed by themselves, etc. – Message from the witness himself and the owner of the apartment (“Rebus” 1890, p. 176). 8. In 1891, Kursk province, near Oboyan, in the village. Goryainov, in the village of peasant Simeon Pashkov, for almost a year - throwing stones and bricks at the window, the frame was broken, and stones flew out into the street; this was repeated almost every day in front of a crowd of people. Pashkov’s daughter, 9 years old, sees different human figures in connection with the phenomena that took place, she herself suffers various persecutions - as if someone beats her, knocks her down, confuses her legs, throws her out of bed; shortly before the cessation of the phenomena, the owner hears a scream, a whistle, a stomp and a voice in the entryway: “I won’t be with you long”; the neighbors also heard this noise and screaming. – Reported at the request of the editors of “Rebus” by local priest Joseph Sergeev (“Rebus” 1891, p. 411). 9 . In 1893, in Tobolsk province, in the Tyukalinsky district, in the village. Syropyatsky, in the village of the priest Donarsky - for six months they were persecuted by various mysterious pranks: pulling plants out of pots, breaking off leaves and branches, so that they were forced to move the flowers to another house; then the overturning and throwing of all utensils began; taking away, hiding and even destroying various things. After the prayer service with the blessing of water, everything stopped. (Letter from Priest Donarsky dated September 10, 1893, see “Rebus” 1893, p. 427). 10. At the end of 1889, on the outskirts of Canada, in the province of Pontiac, near the town of Shawville, extraordinary phenomena suddenly began in the house of farmer Datt: knocking, the movement of objects, their sudden disappearance and reappearance, and various mischief, sometimes of a far from innocent nature, for example, repeated spontaneous combustion of curtains on the windows and various persecutions directed mainly against the 11-year-old girl Dina, the Datts’ adopted child. Soon, in her presence, in the air, a few steps away from her, a rough, senile voice began to be heard, pursuing her everywhere with all sorts of abuse and obscene speeches; the voice was heard equally both in the house and in the open air; everyone present heard him and talked to him. The newspapers trumpeted about these wonders, and soon Mr. Woodcock, a member of the Royal Canadian Academy in Brockville, who had long been interested in these phenomena, arrived on the scene for an accurate study. He immediately entered into a public conversation with the mysterious voice. To Mr. Woodcock’s first question: “Who are you?” - he replied: “I am the devil! Get away, or I’ll break your neck.” For five hours, in broad daylight, in front of a crowd of people, Mr. Woodcock admonished the imaginary “devil,” and, finally, he began to give up and apologize for his mischief. To the question “why did he pursue this family?” - he replied: “I was sent by a neighbor, Mrs. Wallace.” Then Mr. Woodcock went to his neighbor, took her with him and confronted the “devil.” After all sorts of subterfuge, fabrications and abuse, he was caught in a lie and finally admitted that he was doing it all for fun; said that he left the earth twenty years ago 174, revealed his real name, under the condition of not making it public; He asked everyone for forgiveness and promised to say goodbye to everyone on such and such a day - which he did. 11. Letter from V. A. Shchapov to the former manager of the Iletsk villages, Major A. V. Pokotilov, in response to a request from the Orenburg branch of the Imperial Geographical Society dated January 18, 1871. Fulfilling your request for information about miracles that have happened and are still happening, I only ask you to forgive me for the fact that my story may not be as coherent and consistent, but that it is true and not fictitious - I guarantee and present witnesses who will confirm all this. I’ll start with the fact that on November 16, having returned from the Iletsk town to my farm, I learned from my family and employees that during my absence, precisely from November 14 to 15, that is, on the eve of Sunday, at about 2 o’clock in the morning, something extraordinary began to happen. Precisely, as they said, at first they were frightened by a strong knock on the wall with a fist, then by a defiant knock on the glass of the outer window facing the forest; then they clearly hear that someone is dancing above their heads, that is, on the ceiling, and this dance was so distinct and natural that at first they thought that it was our cook Marya who was still making fun of her, whom my wife, as a joke to entertain the child, made dance in the room that evening. According to the information, it turned out, however, that the cook was sleeping; and the knocking, repeated from time to time, and the dancing did not stop until the morning. The next night, they said, at about 11 o'clock the same story repeated itself again. Despite the fact that all the employees in our house (up to 6 people) were gathered and cordoned off the house, strictly watching whether this was a joke of some eccentric or swindler, but all their observations and even shots from a gun near the house did not lead to anything; knocking on the wall, on the window and dancing, with short breaks - everything continued as before, so that they spent that night almost without sleep. I listened to their story rather indifferently and mockingly, having been cleared from childhood, so to speak, of all superstitions, and I let my wife feel this, reproaching her for it; and also gave them at the same time my word that if this story were repeated in front of me (which my wife wished, being offended by my reproach), then I would undertake to explain to them that phenomenon, which, in my opinion, occurred from some, of course, natural reasons, and not from the delusion of the devil, onto whom they now placed all the blame. Around 10 pm, when everyone had gone to bed, and at that time I was lying on the bed in the room adjacent to my wife’s, calmly reading a book, when a rather careful knock on the window, and then a real dance on the ceiling, raised me to my feet. A few minutes later, there is a strong knock on the wall with a fist. I didn't know what to think. It was difficult to allow some scoundrel to decide for the third night in a row to disturb us without any purpose, probably knowing that I was at home (I arrived at about 2 o’clock) and that he would not get away with this with impunity, especially since, as I said, shots were fired the day before. Besides this, looking intently out the window, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t notice anything. All that was left was to think that this was some kind of madman who was somehow cleverly hiding, and with this thought I, with a gun and accompanied by others, went to the outer eastern wall facing the forest. Approaching her, we all, to our common surprise, heard that a fist knock was heard near us, but only now we could already hear it from inside; while those in the room all unanimously asserted that they clearly heard a knock from outside. I myself, having entered the house, was really convinced of this when the old mother outside was putting crosses on the rubble. I had already given up before such a mysterious phenomenon, because there was nothing in my head that could explain this to myself. After that, about an hour later, everything else stopped; nothing was heard anymore, and we fell asleep. I only knew that this was not an illusion of hearing, not a hallucination, but something so extraordinary that everyone around me dubbed it “devilishness” and with which, sad as it was, I had to agree, at least for a while. The following nights were quiet, although occasionally some things were repeated; So, for example, one evening the sofa jumped for no reason, and there was a knock somewhere behind the wall, similar to the fall of a sack of flour, but it was all somehow vague. But then, on December 20, an acquaintance came to spend the night with me and, having heard before about the miracles taking place, was very interested in hearing something similar; and since I said that before that everything was quiet, I could not vouch for success, but nevertheless, as an experiment, I resorted to an artificial challenge of this phenomenon, namely, by forcing my cook Marya, a woman of a very cheerful character, to dance in the room, which she did. Although there was no reason to think that this phenomenon had any connection with the dancing, however, after an hour or an hour and a half, to our general surprise, the performance began with the same phenomena, the only difference being that instead of dancing on the ceiling, drumming was now heard, first on the wall, and then on the window, and very tactful, and one cannot also say monotonous, at times with strong knocking on the wall, which lasted up to 12 o’clock. The next evening, i.e. on the 21st, also around 11 o’clock, everything that had gone before was supplemented by a wild whine that was heard in the general conclusion of the chimney, and then the spontaneous flying of various things, for example, felt boots, boots, etc., lying on the floor and quickly thrown up to the ceiling or hitting the door, wall, etc. with force; at the same time, it was noticed that sometimes a flying thing makes a hissing sound, or suddenly something from under the bed flies up from under the bed, something from black linen, for example, a shirt, and, falling on the floor covered with felts, makes a knock, as if from the fall of a heavy body. On New Year's Eve, several people I know gather at my place, and they are all extremely interested in hearing our miracles. In the evening, of course, our Marya danced properly beforehand; and then, at about 2 o’clock, we went to bed and contemplated our miracles until 4 o’clock, which again broke out into very sharp trills on the glass window in my wife’s room, and even spread to the glass door in the room itself. Here we checked again and were convinced of the strangeness of the phenomenon: the knocking heard on the wall, firstly, is completely similar to blows with a fist, and secondly, those on the outside hear it from the inside, and those in the room hear it from the outside. This knocking goes on to various objects in the room itself and is clearly felt by the hand when you put it against the wall, against the glass, or, for example, against the iron bed on which my wife sleeps. We could hear hooting and various sounds at the window such as mooing, growling, etc. Then someone breaks into a door that is locked with a hook, or out of the blue some thing, for example, a scarf or some kind of shoe, rises from the floor or stove and hits with force somewhere to the side. That evening, my wife, who, to tell the truth, is not one of the cowardly dozens, clearly saw a hand sticking out between the shutters, the size, in her words, of a ten-year-old child, completely black, but with red nails, or, as she says, with translucent ones, i.e. when you raise your hand to a lit candle, that is the color of your nails. That same evening, in the same place on the window, she saw two kind of appendages, so to speak, that is, like large leeches; but when she hurriedly called me from another room to marvel at this miracle, the vision had already disappeared. I can assure you that at this time, as at the rest of the time, she was in a completely normal state and that in general she was not predisposed to any painful attacks. On January 8, when two acquaintances were spending the night with me, and when the drumming on the glass door was especially distinct, my wife saw a ball fly out opposite her, in the corner, from behind the head of another bed, on which her mother was lying. Its color, according to her, was dark crimson and not luminous, that is, not emitting light from itself, but only transparent and very much like an inflated gutta-percha ball, which are usually on sale; At the first time it appeared, it was the size of a teacup, and then it began to turn in one place, increased in volume to the size of a tea saucer, and at the same time began to fall down again near the wall and from under the bed (only in a smaller size), rushed at her, as a result of which she could not stand it and fainted with a weak cry. At this time, her mother also confirmed that she saw something red flash past her, and that at the same time she already saw that my wife, having fallen out of bed, fainted. All this happened, of course, instantly, so that we did not have time to notice. Until then, it was still tolerable and even funny to watch and listen to all these things, but from this evening, that is, from the appearance of this, as stated in the letter (Geographical General), the famous ball, we already began to be hostile to these phenomena, because, for example, that damned knock on the window of my wife’s room on January 9 was heard already in the afternoon, at about 3 o’clock, when my wife lay down to rest, and after that on the same day he began to pursue her everywhere; so, for example, when she was sitting on the sofa having tea, there was a drumming next to her on the arm of the sofa, and when I sat down in her place, the knocking went again next to her to the oilcloth of the sofa, etc.; it even rang out in the closet where she put the dishes, or when she went into the pantry, and haunted her there. It is clear that we were all excited, especially since she said that although she was not actually afraid of this knock, she felt weak and had a strong urge to sleep. Fearing any consequences for her health, and especially mental disorder, we decided to go to Ilek for a while; It was there that we met Dr. Alec, whom I knew. Dmitry Shustov, who, surprised by our divas, reassured us by explaining, albeit superficially (since we were passing through), that this was probably a matter of electricity and magnetism, manifested due to the special composition of the soil under our house, and that all this was grouped around my wife, since she, probably, also has special and individual predispositions to this. I think it would not be out of place to note that my wife is a woman of short stature, blonde, and not particularly weak in build; His character is quite calm and concentrated, his temperament is rather phlegmatic. These doctor’s instructions, indeed, calmed us down somewhat, and all of us, that is, who could understand anything in the slightest degree, stopped attributing it to devilry. But since the doctor was very interested in this, the next day we galloped back to our farm, located about 30 miles on the river. Kindele. There, according to Marya’s preliminary dance, we, at about 10 pm, observed repeated miracles in the form of knocking on glass, on the wall, and all again in my wife’s room, scratching behind the carpet, near her bed, while she was sleeping. But this time, as if on purpose, there were no sharp knocks or tossing, but, nevertheless, the fact was confirmed, and we were glad; and the doctor, taking advantage of this, made us a few more explanations, which convinced us even more that this was not devilry. But, in order not to remain under this impression, he advised us to leave home for the city for a while. During the 11 days we lived there, according to information from those remaining in the house on the farm, not once did any of them, day or night, hear the slightest knock. But imagine our horror when, upon returning to the house, on the 21st, and after night fell, that is, as soon as my wife went to bed, the knocking and throwing of things in her room resumed again; Moreover, the table knife lying on the stove was forcefully thrown into the door, after other things, which forced us from then on to tidy up increasingly heavy things. But before the discovery we made the next evening, that is, on the 24th, everything that had happened before positively paled, namely, at the time when my wife had already gone to bed and the drumming on the wall near her began, I was walking in another room with my little daughter and humming to her: “I am a young gypsy...”; then my wife and others around her, including my good friend, Lukyan Semenovich Alekseev, ask me to continue this tune, since it turns out that the drumming on the wall clearly echoes my singing. I change “gypsy” to “figurant”, and they echo this motive completely correctly. To be convinced of the musical ability of this echoing or accompanying force, L.S. starts a drawn-out Cossack song: “Not clear falcons...”, and this knock apparently tries to imitate the drawn-out tone of the song as carefully as possible: although it is noticeable that it is very difficult for him. But as soon as they change it to a more cheerful tune, the sounds will become much sharper and more cheerful. Finally, the wife took the child to her bed; the knocking stopped at once, and despite all our howls and efforts to somehow call it again, he remained stubbornly silent until the child, who had fallen asleep next to his mother, was put in the cradle; and this force, as if overjoyed, at that very moment manifested itself by throwing both bundles that were lying on the floor by the bed into the wall. To continue our experiments, my wife, at our request, moved to another bed in the same room, next to the glass door, on the other side of which we all sat in another room for our musical studies. The knocking on the glass was more audible and distinct, and then the fun began and all kinds of songs, polkas, marches and mazurkas were performed brilliantly. But then the old woman, my mother, decided to sing a prayer, and we quietly sang the “Our Father”; what would you think? no gu-gu - they are silent! Only at the end is a chord made. Thinking that there was little tact in this motive, we began “Easter” as a rather lively motive; but no, you can’t deceive me - not a sound, as if nothing had happened. But then, again, they immediately begin a drawn-out song, even deliberately with breaks, “In the pockets” - he echoes and, pausing at times, tries to keep in time. At this time, I called my worker, a Tatar, and asked him to sing a prayer in his own way, only more often - silence. Twice he began to say “Allah Bismillah”, and not a sound in response. And as at that very moment I began to deliberately imitate the Tatar from “The Magic Marksman: “Oh, spirits, spirits, from the dungeon...” in a recitative manner, then the sound in the glass loudly and clearly knocks out every beat. We begin to simply call, for example: we knock once, and in response there is one blow. Twice - and the same number of return knocks! We begin to make the shot, and the same shot is heard clearly and skillfully made on the glass. I make all sorts of variations with sounds, even ordering a number of them, and there has never been an error. There were even whole dialogues with various questions about the cause of the origin of all these phenomena, and the answer was that all this was done by an “evil spirit,” a “devil,” “let loose” into the house by a Cossack neighbor with whom I am in litigation. But then, the child wakes up, the wife puts him next to her, and the sound fades away, and our efforts to call him remain in vain. We noticed the same fact more than once during the continuation of musical studies, which immediately stopped even when I appeared in my wife’s room. Even, according to witnesses, I did not have time to reach the threshold of her room when the sound caused by some song had already fallen silent, while the presence of others, who deliberately went alternately to her room, did not have the slightest influence on the drumming on the glass. What is it? - they will ask us. - Don't know! but that these are facts and that nothing here is distorted, distorted or exaggerated, many outside witnesses who heard all this with their own ears will vouch for this. So, for example, in addition to all our servants, three times there was the respected Fyodor Filippovich Solovyov, a man with information and even less than superstitious; Fedor Fedorovich Feduleyev; Dr. Alexander Dmitrievich Shustov; several traders from Ilek, like Savin Ivanovich Syromyatnikov; local chief, Vasily Ivanovich Zagrebin and Lukyan Semenovich Alekseev and others, up to 20 people in total. Now I think it’s not superfluous to add the fruits of our careful observations over 24 months. Namely, we were convinced that all these various sounds that previously occurred immediately after Marya’s dance are now repeated without her; and also that they are performed exclusively near my wife, who only needs to lie down in bed and calm down whenever, that is, day or night - and this knocking is heard, either loudly, somehow: on the wall, on the bed, on the glass, or quietly, like: on the carpet, on the pillows, etc., but it will certainly be heard; therefore, she alone is the culprit of all these phenomena, which sometimes last for more than 2 hours, sometimes for less than an hour, and also louder or quieter, more often or less often, as it pleases. In a word, there is no consistency. So, for example, on the 23rd in the afternoon or 24 in the evening it was in full swing, but yesterday nothing was heard; and today, when I am writing this draft, this force is freaking out and walking around in full splendor, throwing things and drumming so hard that my wife’s bed is raised; despite the fact that it (the power) is being conjured by someone who came on his own accord - the healer-sorcerer Ivan Fedorovich, who spoke in the evening about his power over spirits and allegedly cured many from various diseases, so that he became known almost to “the whole world”, about which he asks, however, to make inquiries in the city of Barnaul, Tomsk province. This is also consistent, nothing to say! In conclusion, I will say one thing: you need to hear all this with your own ears and see it in order to form a clear understanding of all this, and a story, even ten times better than mine, will not make even a hundredth part of the real impression. So this, indeed, is all strange and incomprehensible, that involuntarily, throwing aside the little-known electricity and even less understandable magnetism, you involuntarily believe in devilry. We hope, however, that with the help of people enlightened by science (who have now learned about this) - sooner or later - we will find the answer. And I will continue observations and report them as needed. With my respects to you, I have the honor to be your most humble servant Izmailovsky farm. January 26, 1871. Stories about phenomena on the farm of A. V. Shchapov 12. Stories about phenomena on the farm of A. V. Shchapov (Ural region) in 1870–1871. All this, stated in Shchapov’s letter above, was nothing for us, compared to what we had already endured, if only this had ended; but imagine our horror that as soon as we moved to the farm in the first days of March, from the very first step this force began to roam the house again. And this time the apparitions took place even without the presence of his wife. So, one day, before the evening, before my eyes, a large heavy sofa was jumping on all four legs, and even while my old mother was lying on it, who, of course, was terribly frightened. This incident has a special significance for me because before that, it was as if everything was different “well I could test myself in many ways from what I saw and heard, since there were strangers all the time, and I could be under someone else’s influence, although, I repeat, there were no doubts even then, but here, after all, the whole sofa was in sight, since it was during the day, there was no one and nothing under it, the old mother was lying on it completely calmly, in the room, except for me and the boy at the door in the front room, there was no one there was none, and yet the five or six pound sofa, with an old woman lying on it, jumped three or four times, as they said, on all legs at once - it is clear that this was by no means a hallucination. Then, on the same or the next day, in the evening, when we were sitting in our sick room - suddenly in full view of all of us from under the wash cabinet that stood in the hallway - a bluish-phosphorus spark flew out with a crack, towards my wife’s bedroom (where she was not at that time) and, simultaneously with the rapid flight of this spark - we saw that something instantly flared up in the bedroom. Rushing there headlong, I saw that the unfinished cotton dress lying on the table in the front corner was on fire. My mother-in-law, who was alone in this room and managed to pour a jug of water on the flaring flame, warned me to put it out. I, stopping at the narrow doors and not letting anyone go ahead of me into this room, began the first duty of research: whether the cause of the ignition of the dress was something other than the spark we saw, such as a fallen candle, match, etc. But positively there was nothing of the kind near this place, and meanwhile, at the same time, a rather strong and stinking smell of sulfur was felt in the room, coming precisely from the drenched dress, the burnt places of which, despite the fact that they were wet from the poured water, were still hot to the touch, and steam was coming from them, as if the water had been poured on hot iron, and not on chintz. No matter how difficult and dangerous it was to leave my family at such a time - two old women and a wife with a child, but on one urgent matter I had to go to the city for one day, and so that the family would not be afraid to be alone (since we were all seriously afraid of these phenomena) - I asked one young man, our neighbor A.I. Portnov, to stay with them. Returning a day later, I find the whole family getting ready with their things already packed on the cart; They tell me that it is absolutely impossible to stay any longer, because spontaneous combustion of various things in the house began and it got to the point that last night the dress of the owner of the house (i.e., my wife) spontaneously caught fire, and Portnov, who rushed to extinguish it on her, burned all his hands, which turned out to be, indeed, bandaged and almost completely covered with blisters. This is what Portnov told me about it. In the evening, on the day of my departure, the phenomena, in addition to knocking and so on, were further complicated by the appearance of luminous meteors that appeared in front of the window overlooking the outer corridor; there were several of them and of different sizes, ranging from a large apple to a walnut; round in shape and dark red and bluish-pink in color, not entirely transparent, but rather matte. For quite a long time, according to him, this amazing flying of luminous lights, replacing one another, continued. Such a ball will fly up to the window, spin around on the other side of the glass for a while, without any noise, and just disappear, as if to replace it, from the opposite wall of the corridor, another, third; then two, three together, etc. this playful change of lights continued, as if they wanted to get inside the house. My wife was not sleeping at that time. The next day, in the evening, they had just gone out to sit on the porch (it was already warm), when Portnov immediately returned for some reason to the room and saw that the bed was on fire. He calls for help, throws off the bedspread, the sheets, which have already burned quite a bit, and, having carefully extinguished everything and looked around to see if there is any fire left anywhere, they again come out into the air from the smoke in the room and wonder where the fire could have come from on the bed, when there was neither a lit candle nor smoking cigarettes... when suddenly they again hear smoke in the room. This time, the hair mattress turned out to be on fire, on its lower side, near the corner, and the fire had already managed to penetrate so much inside the thick hair (without any admixture) stuffing of the mattress that, in their opinion, this could not have happened from an oversight when extinguishing the first fire, because the burning places were completely extinguished, and there should have been no fire left, especially since the hair stuffing is not a flammable material - not to mention sponge or cotton wool, which were not there. But it didn’t end there either, but ended that same evening with such a catastrophe, after which it was decided to leave the house completely and move somewhere, despite the fact that the snow had already melted and spring streams were running all around. The same Portnov relayed this incident to me as follows: “I was sitting, he said, playing the guitar, and the miller who had been sitting here before left the room, and Elena Efimovna (my wife) soon came out after him, and the door had just closed behind her when I heard from somewhere, as if from afar, a dull and drawn-out plaintive cry. The voice seemed familiar to me and, dumbfounded for a moment by the unaccountable horror that gripped me, I rushed out the door and in the entryway I saw literally a pillar of fire, in the middle of which, all engulfed in flames, stood Elena Efimovna - her dress was burning from below and the fire covered almost all of her. I immediately realize that the fire is not strong, since her dress is thin and light - I rush to put it out with my hands; but at the same time I feel that they are burning terribly, as if they were sticking to burning resin; There is some kind of crackling and noise coming from under the floor, and at this time the whole floor is shaking and shaking violently. A miller came running from the yard to help, and the two of us carried the victim in our arms in a burnt dress and unconscious.” The wife said the following. She had just walked out the door into the hallway when the whole floor suddenly shook under her and a deafening noise was heard; and at the same time, from under the floor, with a crash, flew out exactly the same bluish spark that we had previously seen flying out from under the wash cabinet, and she had just managed to scream in fright when she suddenly found herself all on fire and lost her memory. At the same time, it is very remarkable that she herself did not receive the slightest burn, while the thin gigonette dress she was wearing was burned all around above the knees, and there was not a single burnt spot on her legs. The miller told me this: leaving the room, he headed through the garden to the outbuilding and, before reaching it, he heard first a noise behind him, and then a scream and, looking back, saw that it was burning in the entryway. He was so frightened that his legs gave way, and he was barely able to run to help. What, really, could be done? In front of me was Portnov with his hands crippled from burns, a burnt dress, on the thin material of which there was not the slightest trace of any flammable material - it was clear that all that was left was to run! This is what we did on the same day, moving to a neighboring village into a Cossack’s apartment, where we lived throughout the flood without any worries. There was no repetition upon our return to the house, which I, however, ordered to demolish that same summer, fortunately, even before that I was thinking of moving from my estate to another place, but it would probably have taken another year or two; the same catastrophe forced me to speed up the fulfillment of my desire. And so these phenomena ended and were never resumed; Yes, we must admit, we avoided even talking about it among ourselves, both from the heavy impression left by these phenomena, which even led us to fear for our existence, and from the troubles we suffered from slander and gossip. I also forgot to mention in my place that there were two cases of seeing what is now called materialization (at that time we simply called it a devilish obsession). So, for the first time, the wife saw in the window, from the outside, a delicate, pink, as if childish, hand, with transparent, luminous nails, with which she drummed on the glass. Then in the same window I saw two dark-colored living creatures like leeches, which scared her to the point of fainting. And another time, I myself, being alone in the house and trying for several hours to spy: who and how (maybe the wife herself, pretending to be asleep) was drumming on the floor in her bedroom - several times I quietly crept up to the bedroom door, where the knocking on the floor was continuous, but every time, as soon as I looked a little into the bedroom, the sounds stopped and immediately resumed again when I walked away or only averted my eyes from the inside of the bedroom, as if they were teasing me. But then, I guess for the twentieth time, or even more, I somehow suddenly burst into the room, as soon as the knocking started and... froze with horror: a small, almost childish, pink hand, quickly bouncing off the floor, darted under the blanket of the sleeping wife and buried itself in the folds near her shoulder, so that I could clearly see how unnaturally quickly the very folds of the bedspread were moving, starting from its lower end to the wife’s shoulder, where the pen was hidden. And, it seems, there was nothing special to be afraid of, but, as I say, I was frozen with horror, because the hidden hand was not my wife’s hand at all (although that hand was also of small size). I noticed this clearly, and, besides, the very position of the sleeping wife was such (on her left side, turned towards the wall) that with her motionlessness, in front of my eyes, it was impossible to lower her hand to the floor and then so unnaturally quickly raise it in the same vertical line with her shoulder... What was there to think about - a hallucination? But no, a thousand times no! I'm not susceptible to this at all. Deception on the part of the wife, her painful predisposition to it? But the shape, color, size of the handle itself, what did I see? Finally, the deceased was a completely respectable woman, a serious, loving mother and wife, strictly religious and was not subjected to any painful attacks until her death (from childbirth, in April 1879). And, meanwhile, almost all the phenomena, such as the flying of things and knocking, seemed to be hiding behind her, which is why it seemed to many that it was she herself who was doing this, especially in those cases when they observed with distrust or doubt, although at the same time one could give a hundred odds against one for the impossibility of carrying out what was being done to her, since things often flew out, for example, from closed spaces - closets, chests, etc., to which she was in I haven't touched it at the moment. So one day, when our commission, consisting of three people and the same number of us strangers, sat down to dinner, and at that time my wife was returning from the pantry with her hands full of jars of pickles, then as soon as she began, with difficulty from her hands occupied with the burden, to open the outer doors from the hallway, opposite which there was a dining table - at that very moment various small things fell onto our devices and onto the table: lead bullets, old rusty nuts and other rubbish in the amount of several handfuls, which was previously (as I barely remembered) in a closed and littered with various bulky junk box, in the same pantry, which, however, according to the servant’s certificate, the lady had not touched. And it was impossible to throw so many things to her directly on the table across one room with her hands full. It was also strange that, despite the force with which these heavy things fell onto the plates, not one of them was broken. And yet it seemed that she had given up, although everyone, seeing her entering the door, could not notice the slightest gesture or effort on her part (See A. N. Aksakova: “Harbingers of Spiritualism.” St. Petersburg, 1895, pp. XIX-XXI, 229–230; 185–197; 165–174). Strange phenomena in a Russian peasant hut. 13. Strange phenomena in a Russian peasant hut. A good friend of mine, under whose command I served in Nizhny Novgorod, in the chamber of state property, P. L. Betling, now living in retirement on his estate in Ardatovsky district, Nizhny Novgorod province, informed me in January 1889 about a remarkable incident that happened completely unexpectedly in the village of Silin, located 15 versts from it. This incident caused some noise in the neighborhood, especially since the peasant family, an unwitting witness to these phenomena, was brought to criminal responsibility and almost paid for a matter that was incomprehensible to them. The essence of the matter boils down to the fact that in the village of Silin, in the house of the former village elder of Chekanov, from September 23 to November 1, 1888, strange phenomena began to occur: knocks were heard, things were thrown, and - which is the main feature of the phenomenon - various voices were heard that entered into a conversation with members of Chekanov’s family and strangers who came to inquire. It is remarkable that these phenomena, as in mediumistic sessions, occurred in the dark, and were discovered only in the presence of Chekanov’s ten-year-old daughter. There is no reason to assume deception here, for these phenomena soon became a source of trouble for the owner, and he did not know how to get rid of them until he accepted the advice given to him to resort to prayer, which we will discuss below. Now let's move on to the details. G. Betling personally questioned Chekanov himself and his family, as well as his son-in-law, Mironov. From the testimony recorded by them from their own words and delivered to me, I extract the following. The Chekanov family consists of the owner, Ivan Timofeev, 45 years old, an old father, his wife Anastasia, 42 years old, and daughters: Alexandra - 14 years old, Anyuta - 10 years old, and the youngest girl - 4 years old. The eldest daughter is married to Mironov, who lives in a neighboring village. Anyuta, a rosy-cheeked, dark-blond, gray-eyed, pretty-looking girl, seemed very petite and looked no more than 7-8 years old. According to Chekanov, the matter began like this: one night, around September 23, his wife Anastasia and both daughters were sleeping in the front hut on a konik (counter) near the front door; he himself, Ivan Chekanov, slept in the back hut, and the old father slept in the yard, since it was still warm. At night, Anastasia noticed that the hut door had opened by itself; she locked it, but the door opened again. Then Anastasia tied the door by the bracket with her long belt. The belt was untied, and the door opened again. She tied it a second time and, despite that, the door still opened. Then, in fright, she called her husband; in turn, he tied the door very tightly, in several knots, but it still dissolved. Then a knock was heard in the bunk and in the tents, as if with a stick. Anastasia took her 4-year-old daughter, whose heart was beating with fright, in her arms, laid Anyuta on the front bench, and Ivan went to the stove. At this time sighs were heard in the hut; Ivan decided to ask from the stove: “What is this, for worse or for good? Isn’t that you, grandfather brownie?” The answer followed in a hoarse voice: “Don’t be afraid, it’s me, your brownie grandfather. Let me warm up on the stove." When Ivan came down from the stove to lie down on the bench where his daughter Anyuta was lying, she was no longer there; Anastasia, who was sitting on the bunk opposite the windows, said that it seemed to her as if she had passed from the bench to the stove, and Anyuta was already on the stove, who herself did not know how she got there - “her grandfather told her to lie down.” From that time on, conversations began in Chekanov's house, always in the evenings and lasting an hour or two, always in the dark. The conversations concerned ordinary peasant affairs: then a voice forbade selling a horse, calling it by color; then he forbade Ivan to share with his father, threatening ruin; a voice asked Ivan: “Are you the headman?” “I am,” answered Ivan. - “Don’t put the peasants under arrest; let the constable plant.” One evening a hoarse voice said: “I don’t want to talk anymore, but Mashenka will come,” and soon a thin, feminine voice was heard: “You live well, God help you.” It was heard as if the speaker was calming the baby who was in her arms and crying like a child. “Don’t cry,” she said, “I’ll give you sugar.” To the question of a stranger who was here one day: “Is it your daughter?” “Shameless,” answered the voice, “do girls really have children?” This is my mother’s daughter, my sister.” – Mashenka, according to Chekanov, spoke in pure, master’s language, and grandfather clicked (pronounced the letter “ch” as “ts”). When others in the hut sang, the voices sang along. The voice from the stove called the people standing on the street under the window and spoke so loudly that these people clearly heard his words. It was impossible for those who heard it to even imagine that it could be Anyuta’s voice. The answers were mostly humorous, even ironic. So to one, to the question: “Why are you wheezing?” - the voice answered: “I was at the holiday”; to another: “I’m tired, I was moving logs.” When leaving, saying goodbye, they said: “Now let’s go - it’s time to drink tea,” or: “It’s time for dinner.” According to another witness, Pavel Mikhailov Mironov, married to Chekanov’s daughter and living in the village. Zverev, in the workers of the city. I. I. X. - a good friend of Mr. Betling, the last one wrote down the following: The apparitions in Chekanov’s house began a week before Sergius Day (September 25); at first, for no reason, knocks were heard in different parts of the hut; the doors began to open by themselves; when they were pretended, they were revealed again by someone. Then, unknown to someone, the words began to be uttered: “Don’t be afraid of me, I’m your brownie grandfather.” The voice was heard as if from the stove, about ten-year-old Anyuta. He called himself Ivan Ivanovich Varlamov. The phenomena occurred in the evening, and only when the fire was extinguished. Conversations began only when Anyuta was sitting on the stove or on the floor. The speaker had a special affection for her; if she was not in the hut, then no voices were heard; the voice said not to let her wander in vain. One day the family put Anna to sleep on the floor, and everyone lay down next to her, then a voice said: “Why have you sent the whole hut, there’s nowhere to spit.” Another time, when Anna was put to sleep on the front bench, they moved her to the bed at night. The speaker said that he sees everything that is happening in the hut. Once, Alexandra’s sister, 14 years old, hit Anna on the head during dinner, in the evening a voice began to reprimand her for this and said to Alexandra: “Why are you beating Anyuta, I’ll beat you with a scraper for that.” Then the speaker began to explain that he was not alone, that he had a father, a brother-soldier and a sister Mashenka with a child; Then everyone heard that it was as if someone had entered, and immediately a woman’s voice was heard: “You live well.” Mashenka apparently had a child in her arms, who began to cry in a thin voice; She lulled him and consoled him, saying: “Don’t cry, you have sugar on you.” As soon as the fire was blown, the conversations stopped. During conversations, everyone in the hut heard noise and fuss. As soon as the voice was heard, you could hear someone going to the stove, where Anyuta usually slept; She heard this too, and always told her family about it. For Anna, it seemed as if the voice was coming from behind the wall, while for the others it was heard as if in the hut itself, at a close distance from them, the conversation was always conducted in a rough, loud voice. Someone present suggested somehow putting a cross on the speaker, he agreed; Then they put the cross on a long gaitan (cord) and, according to the ear where the voice was heard, quickly put the cross on. They immediately stoked the fire, but the cross ended up on Anna, who was sitting on the stove. One day a voice asked for a drink; They poured holy water into a cup and put it on the stove. After a while the fire was blown up and water was poured onto the threshold. When the fire was put out again and they asked why he poured out the water? He replied that he did not throw out the water, but drank it. The voice read and repeated prayers; when someone sang the Cherubimskaya, Ivan Ivanovich sang along in a thick voice; He also sang along with the girls when they started singing. In the family of Mironov's father-in-law, that is, between father and son Chekanov, things were not going well before Sergius Day; They decided to share, but the voice positively forbade sharing, threatening ruin. Among the curious people who were in the Chekanovs’ house was the blacksmith S. Silina, Vasily Ilyich Chitanogov; Hearing a voice, he said: “What is this? Give me a gun, I’ll kill him!” “I’ll kill them myself,” was the answer, and at that moment a footcloth lying on the police (shelf) flew into his face. The constable also came; but when he heard a knock on the tent, he immediately asked to turn up the fire and left the hut. When strangers came, the voice answered some, but not others. In the village they said that the mother must have “either cursed her daughter (Anyuta), or scolded her badly,” that “unclean ones” had gotten in touch with her, and on the street some began to reproach Anyuta, running around her in games and walks. Chekanov’s father even drove out “them” in a local way - by hitting the walls with fake balls. G. Betling persuaded the Chekanovs to come to him to do an experiment in his house. They acted like normal people: they took Anyuta into a dark room; She calmly remained alone, and her father began to call the brownie’s grandfather to talk to him, but there was no answer, despite all the efforts and various requests of Chekanov: “Speak up, grandfather! Why are you silent? His wife also took part, but there was no success. They treated Anyuta in every possible way and found her a girl of the same age with whom she willingly played. She behaved like an outsider, like a child who doesn’t understand anything. She liked the dolls and didn’t want to know anything more. From his meeting with the Chekanovs, Mr. Betling got the impression that they treated what was happening completely simply, and were completely sincere in their stories. In response to my questions, Mr. Betling supplemented the previous with the following details, received through the son of a local priest, a completely trustworthy man. Voices were heard near the girl, mostly from the stove she was on; if she was on a bench, then above the girl, near the ceiling, or under the bench. At first a quiet, barely audible old voice was heard, then it became stronger and louder, so that it was heard in the other room. The words were pronounced clearly, distinctly, especially Mashenka’s voice was ringing. They didn’t speak together with Anyuta. They found out in the dark where someone was sitting. One peasant, holding a cross in his pocket, told Mashenka that he had brought her an apple. “You’re lying, you have not an apple in your pocket, but a cross,” answered Mashenka. To the question of resident Pavel Bazaev: “Whose are you?” Mashenka replied: “We are from here, the Povalishinskys” (part of the village of Silina belonged to the Povalishinskys). - “From which house?” - “Varlamova”. There is such a house in the village; but at the Varlamovs everything was calm, and they don’t remember Mashenka there. Mashenka also answered questions and sang along. “Grandfather” started to sing “Soldiers”, but immediately stopped. In Anyuta's presence, the clock was stopped and started running, on the orders of the owner. Clothes were thrown from the shelves onto the floor; but the hanging lamp was not touched. The knocking was heard mostly on the floors, and so loudly that one day a board was broken. With this knock, the “grandfather” announced his presence, and then the conversation began; but sometimes the peasants themselves called him, asking: “Grandfather, are you here?” Frightened by the appearance of a police officer who drew up an act to bring Chekanov to justice on the basis of Article 37. mouth about punishment, tax world. court, for spreading false rumors and agitating minds - he did not know how to get rid of the misfortune. On November 1, together with his wife and daughter, he went on a pilgrimage to the Ponyataevsky Convent, where they were advised to serve a prayer service at home with the blessing of water and pray fervently, which they did; prayer turned out to be more effective in such a case than police measures, and from that time on the phenomena in the Chekanovs’ house stopped. Meanwhile, the criminal case was proceeding as usual; The bailiff of the 2nd camp of Ardatovsky district conducted an inquiry on November 13, on the basis of which the peasant Chekanov was brought to justice for an offense under Art. 37. mouth about punishment, tax world. court. By order of the judicial investigator, on December 20, a secondary inquiry was carried out, more detailed, in which everything stated above was confirmed, in general terms. Based on this inquiry, the judicial investigator found that the said peasant could be held accountable only if there had been some kind of deception on his part, but as witnesses who were in the village. There were other people at the same time as the phenomena, who confirmed the same thing, and the inexplicability of the phenomenon does not yet serve as evidence of deception, and since it is not clear that Chekanov derived any benefit from the stories about these phenomena, but, on the contrary, tried to get rid of them, the judicial investigator did not see signs of any crime in the present case. Based on this conclusion, which was also agreed with by the associate prosecutor of the Nizhny Novgorod District Court, the case was dismissed. Thanks to such a reasonable and fair resolution, the Chekanovs avoided the responsibility that threatened them before the law, which knows what was known. (See "Rebus" 1889, No. 20). Mysterious phenomena in Chernigov in the 40s 14. Mysterious phenomena in Chernigov in the 40s 175. It was in 1843 or 44 (I don’t remember exactly), in Chernigov, in the house of my uncle (aunt) priest Father Ioann Gerasimovich Menailov. Father John in Chernigov was known and revered as a priest of the strictest life, always ready to be there and with those where and who needed him; he was considered a saint. At the same time, I was in the district theological school and was a singer in the Yeletsk singing choir (the choir of the rector of the seminary), which lived in the Yeletsk Chernigov monastery. As Mother Menailova’s nephew, every Sunday and holiday I went to them and spent the whole day with them until the evening. The Menailov family consisted of a husband, wife, two sons, two daughters, and a niece, my cousin, Anna Emelianovna Kornukh, temporarily lived with them. There was only one servant, tall, a healthy girl, not in her early youth, a local native. Arriving at them, I don’t remember what day, I noticed some kind of horror on all their faces and a terrible bustle throughout the house and yard. Already two or three days earlier, something terrible, incomprehensible began in their house and in the yard! It started when everyone woke up in the morning, slept quietly and calmly, and saw that next to each member of the family, and even the maid, on the bed, next to the man lay a doll in the form of a woman, and next to the woman in the form of a man. All the dolls were made from things that belonged to them. Much was taken from locked chests and chests of drawers—the aunt always had the keys. All the floors were covered an inch or more thick with various rubbish - the kind that happens when an old stove is broken. There was nothing like this in the yard - where did all this come from?! This kind of pranks were repeated for several days in a row. Aahs, aahs, questions, searches, assumptions began, but everyone just crossed themselves and gasped. Everything was in order, everyone was in their places all night, the doors and windows were closed and locked. That same day, both in the house and in the yard, all inanimate objects began to move; There was not a single thing that did not move or move from place to place. Everything inanimate seemed to live an active life. Everyone living in that house and coming there was at first terrified and scared, then they gradually got used to it, especially since where was there to go? And they lived there peacefully, because then things began to happen, both cheerful and funny - like this: they light a candle and hear - “ugh!” and the candle goes out, they repeat the same thing another time; then they say: “stop fooling around!”, and everything calms down - the candle burns. Either they are sitting over tea, or with guests, a candle is burning, but then the priest’s cane breaks from its place (near the door), walks through the air and extinguishes the candle with itself; again they ask you not to fool around - and everything is calm! Or you have to go to the market to buy what you need, they open the box (locked), there is no money; But what is it, they say, that we shouldn’t stay hungry? - and money falls from nowhere at the speaker’s feet. Or a guest is sitting, holding a cap in his hands; but I got up to go, but my cap was gone, like no! They search for a long time, ask to return - no; a thorough search begins, and the cap is found in the same room, in a chest of drawers, wrapped in linen, or something else. It also happened that a cap was found in a chest, and in the cap a herring prepared for a snack. There was a case, and a very unpleasant one: a friend of hers came to see my aunt, I remember her last name - Boborykina; groans, sighs and says: “Of course, all this is bad, but the worst thing is that it all happened in the priest’s house!” At that very moment, a dirty, very dirty broom came from somewhere, and well, whip this unfortunate lamenting woman in the face! The whole city visited this house, everyone saw much of what I told and much more. The police jealously watched everyone living in the house and everything that was done there, but they could not open anything! Of course, my uncle, the whole family, and many friends fervently prayed to the Lord God to deliver them from such horror, but... At that time, the rector of the seminary was Archimandrite Adrian, of the strictest life, an ascetic, the most zealous pilgrim; He especially avoided women. They asked him to serve a prayer service; came with his singing choir, including me. There was a governor, a gendarmerie colonel, a police chief and many other nobles and acquaintances. The prayer service began; suddenly, instantly, all the furniture that was in the room turned upside down - everyone gasped, but the prayer service continued, and when everyone calmed down, a doll, the size of an adult woman, flew off the stove, stood facing the archimandrite and began to bow to him. The prayer service ended, but something fabulous, unsolved, inexplicable continued. One day, my aunt went with her daughters to pray at the Trinity Monastery, where the bishop lived, and a maid followed them. When they are quite far from the house, her own lipstick jar falls in front of the aunt. This gave rise to a reason to pay special attention to the maid - is it she who is doing this? They let the police know. The police intensified their surveillance of the yard, house and maid, but everything continued as before. Anna Emelianovna, who was visiting her aunt, went to the village to visit her brother priest. When she arrived there, they began to ask her what and how was in the Menailovs’ house? It was already evening, a tallow candle was burning; Anna told the story, and her brother and his wife listened attentively and were horrified. Suddenly they hear something rustling behind the partition, where no one was; they go there and see a pair of boots and a pair of shoes dancing opposite each other! Something terrible began there too: everything inanimate also entered and moved. There were cases that threatened people: a heavy copper candlestick flew off from somewhere and hit a child’s cradle, but did not hit the child; the knife fell off the table and flew straight at the peasant who entered, and only thanks to the fact that the peasant was wearing a thick cloth scroll, he did not receive a wound on his body; Potatoes and beets were torn off the bench and flew around the kitchen, etc., etc., just like in Chernigov. After Anyuta’s departure it became quieter in Chernigov, although it continued for a long time, with her brother, from the moment of her arrival, the same thing began as in Chernigov. They began to think and say that all this incomprehensible depended on Anyuta’s will! Anna Emelianovna was very, very beautiful, smart, well brought up by one of her benefactors (she was an orphan); had a small but very pleasant voice and sang like a bird! Many people looked after her, and among them was a certain Zenkov. Zenkov is a seminarian, a very smart young man with unparalleled energy in studying everything he had the opportunity to learn. He was the seminary's assistant librarian; and the library of the Chernigov Seminary has, as they say, such book treasures that, perhaps, the St. Petersburg Public Library does not have. That’s why they made it up that Zenkov dug up cabalistic books there, borrowed something from them that was incomprehensible to us, and taught it to Anyuta, but she was unable to cope with the matter. Zenkov went to St. Petersburg to the medical academy, and died there. They said a lot of other things, but no one proved anything. Anna’s brother, too, after her departure, became quieter and quieter; and on the day of the Resurrection of Christ, when the bell was rung for matins, the priest was already in the church, and mother and the other family were still at home, suddenly the window window opened by itself, and something, quite noisily, seemed to fly out of it! Anna Emelianovna married Mr. Vinogradsky, who later became a priest. They lived wonderfully, lovingly, and nothing miraculous ever happened to her again. (See "Rebus" and 1897, no. 4). In "Memoirs of the Polish Uprising of 1863" Ponomareva 15. In "Memoirs of the Polish Uprising of 1863" Mr. Ponomarev, in the September book of the “Historical Bulletin” for 1896, the author tells the following inexplicable fact, which he himself witnessed, together with the officers of the Lulansky regiment, where, shortly before the start of the uprising of 1863, the author was released from the corps. The third squadron, the author says, in which I was, was assigned a stop in the village of Kvitki, located ten miles from the headquarters, which remained in the city of Korsun (Kyiv province). The large village consisted of several hundred houses, and since in Little Russia almost every house has a garden, Kvitki, surrounded by greenery, occupied several miles in circumference. The apartment owners who met us announced that there were comfortable apartments for the city. there were no officers, and the only tolerable premises were reserved for the squadron commander, and they added that there was a good mansion, but they did not dare to occupy it either. - On what basis did you not take him? - asked the senior officer, turning to the non-commissioned officer. – Your Honor, according to the peasants, evil spirits have been present there for several years now. -What nonsense are you talking about? - the officer cried with a laugh, - probably the women told you that. - No, your honor, on this occasion the manager left it. And not a single peasant will touch the apples and pears in the garden. – Good, your honor: four large rooms, a kitchen and a servants’ room. – Can we all fit in? - Captain Markovich continued to interrogate. - Quite, your honor. -Will they give her up as a guard? - With great pleasure. We happily agreed and, six officers and eight servants, headed to the enchanted house. The house was one-story, surrounded by a large orchard and decently furnished. As soon as the manager found out about our desire to take the premises, he immediately came to us. He was a man of about 60, with a very good-natured face. Here's what he told us: “I have been serving His Lordship for thirty years and five years ago I was transferred from another farm.” Since the day I moved in, at night there has been some kind of hum in this house, reminiscent of a groan; and sometimes it happened that some invisible hand rearranged all the furniture. Somehow I struggled for two months, but then I couldn’t stand it, and with the prince’s permission I moved to another house. There are a lot of apples and pears in the garden, but make any peasant rich, he won’t touch the fruit. There is a legend that this place is cursed, and that here, several decades ago, one of the managers, being in delirium tremens, killed the entire family, including an infant child. My predecessor did not listen to the peasants and built a house here. He lived there for five months, and one morning he was found lying on the floor without signs of life. So I took his place. Or maybe with your arrival - he finished the story - everything will be fine, and the evil spirits will leave this house alone. Having thanked the manager for the information he gave us, which did not change our decision at all, we settled down perfectly in the room favored by the sons of hell. Having gathered in the dining room, we chatted cheerfully, remembering the old parking lot. Suddenly there was a rumble, as if someone was beating iron with a hammer, and after this a groan was heard in the house. We looked at the clock: it was exactly a quarter to twelve. The frightened servants jumped out of the kitchen and ran to us. With lanterns in hand, we examined the whole house, all the nooks and crannies, visited the cellar, walked around the garden, and did not find anything suspicious anywhere. The noise continued until a quarter past twelve, and then everything died down. “This is the first benefit performance organized for us,” said Captain Markovich, “you know, gentlemen, I’m willing to bet that this is nothing more than some kind of hoax.” Probably someone needs this house to be free of occupancy, so they blamed it all on devilry. Tomorrow I’ll start looking for the dungeon, and when I find it, my spirit will be gone. We took part in the search, but did not find the dungeon. There was an assumption that someone climbs into the garden at night and, hiding in it, plays mysterious music, and therefore, with the permission of the squadron commander, Major Osmanov, in the evening, sentries were posted in the garden, as well as around the house. But nothing helped. The next day, exactly from a quarter of 12 to a quarter of one, the same thing happened as the day before. The sentries also heard a groan, as if coming from our room. If our servants did not consist of orderlies, we would have lost them. Only strict discipline could keep her in place. One of the young officers told us that his nerves were so bad that he immediately went to look for premises. No matter how we tried to persuade him, nothing helped. An hour later he returned very pleased, since he managed to rent a room from a peasant for three rubles a month. His orderly, probably with joy that he was leaving the damned place, got drunk and P. was forced to send him under arrest. With the help of our orderlies, the comrade moved to a new apartment. At the appointed hour the hum resumed, and half an hour later everything died down. We went to bed. After this, no more than twenty minutes passed when a strong knock was heard at the door, and after this we heard the voice of P... - Gentlemen, open it quickly, it’s me. Our comrade came in, pale as a sheet. -What happened to you? – we cried out in one voice. - But listen. At 12 o'clock I went to bed. After the excitement I had experienced, I looked around my tiny room with pleasure. Suddenly someone knocked on my door. Assuming it was the owner, I asked: “Who’s there?” There was no answer, but the knocking, but even stronger, was repeated. My orderly, as you know, is under arrest, but I, wanting to show whoever was knocking on my door that I was not alone, said loudly: “Ivan, look who’s there?” Following this, a third knock was heard, but so strong that the door shook. The thought flashed through my mind that the men had rebelled again and, taking advantage of my loneliness, decided to attack me. Well, I think to myself, I won’t sell you my life cheaply. Instantly I jumped out of bed, put on my coat, grabbed the saber from its sheath, took it in my left hand, and the revolver in my right. Approaching the door, I threw off the hook with my elbow and opened the door with my foot. The corridor was empty. The exit door was locked with a wooden beam. Here, gentlemen, I got goosebumps. I returned to the room, lit the lantern and extinguished the candle. Having placed the saber in the corner in the corridor, I opened the beam and went out into the garden. You couldn’t see anything on the street, and despite the fact that I had a flashlight, I couldn’t find the gate. I had to climb over the fence. I hit the fence with my spur, and, of course, I stretched out on the ground. The lantern broke and went out, and my weapon fell from my hands. I barely found him and only got to you by force. At this phrase a Homeric laugh was heard. He was so infectious that P... himself burst out laughing. The next day, our comrade, having released the orderly from arrest, sent him for his things, and also ordered him to bring the owner of his apartment. We were all gathered when he came to the call. He was an old man about 70 years old, white as a harrier. “Well, brother,” said P..., “take the ruble given to you as a deposit, but I won’t return to your damned hut again.” “Thank you, your honor, for your mercy, but I brought your money back to you. In my old age, I shouldn’t have deceived you, but poverty made you gravitate towards these three rubles.” Yes, I had to blush for deception. - For what deception? - asked P... – It was necessary to reveal the whole truth to your honor. If you please, I had an only son, a kind, quiet guy. When I was twenty, I married him. His wife was exemplary, and they lived in perfect harmony. A year later, the little woman brought me her granddaughter, and gave her soul to God. After that, my darling son withered away, and a year later he himself went to the next world for the woman he loved. There were tears in the old man's voice. “My granddaughter, God rest with her, she was a beauty, just like my late son.” My old woman and I found only joy in her. She grew up, well, suitors began to follow her. There were rich people, but she, the beauty, did not like them. We had one little boy, a soldier’s son, his granddaughter fell in love with him, and she began to ask for our blessing. The old woman and I were even glad that since we were welcoming a little boy into the house, our granddaughter would stay with us. They played a wedding. They lived happily for two years, only one thing was missing - children. We began to notice that our adopted child began to think. No matter how we asked him, he remained silent. Later it turned out that he was jealous of our little dove for some guy, and, God knows, in vain. One night he stabbed Masha, and wanted to kill himself, but the Lord did not allow death. He was cured, but the trial sent Peter to hard labor. I just didn’t get there, I died on the way. Since then, twice a month, someone knocks on the door. For this very reason we left this room. Here, your honor, your ruble, forgive me, an old man, my sin. P... almost forced the owner to take the money for himself. Officers came from regimental headquarters almost every day to personally verify the mysterious knocking. Having listened to him, they carried out searches themselves, but achieved no results. Soon we received an order to go to winter quarters in the town of Medzhibozh, Podolsk province, and the question of the mysterious phenomenon remained unexplained. (“Hist. Gazette”, September 1896). From the memoirs of an eyewitness to mysterious phenomena in the Liptsy settlement. 16. From the memoirs of an eyewitness to mysterious phenomena in the Liptsy settlement. I come from the Black Sea region, the son of a Cossack captain, and was raised in Kharkov as a military scholarship recipient. The Black Sea Army (since 1860, renamed the Kuban Army) in the 40s did not have its own gymnasium, and for the further education of the children of Cossack officers who successfully graduated from the 4-grade military school in Yekaterinodar, they were assigned at their own expense to a boarding school at the 1st Kharkov Gymnasium, and with the end of the course, to the Kharkov University, where at that time there were five vacancies each. After graduating from college in June 1848, I received a military scholarship in Kharkov and in September of the same year, at 11 and a half years old, I was admitted to the first grade of the gymnasium. A month earlier, Konstantin Zhandak, who was then barely 10 years old, had also entered the same class as a boarder; the boy is weak, scrofulous and naturally timid and shy. As a “newcomer,” he was constantly subjected to all sorts of school tests and, under the weight of them, as his fellow wits addressed him, “never dried up from tears.” Poor preparation also brought him its own disappointments. I myself had previously, while still at school, gone through the school of persecution and all kinds of bullying, which “newbies” usually went through at that time, especially in closed institutions, and most importantly, as a Cossack, capable, according to the opinion established in the boarding school, of using the most extreme means in the form of self-defense, I soon managed to secure my position in this sense and most decisively took upon myself the defense of the persecuted Kostya Zhandak. In his studies, he also constantly had to provide him with comradely assistance. Thus, gradually getting closer and often talking about “home stuff,” we became familiar with our family environment in which we grew up before entering the boarding school, and, finding a lot in common in it, we became even closer to each other. Kostya’s father, Nikolai Prokhorovich Zhandak, from the nobility of the Chernigov province, began his service in the hussar regiment in the western provinces as a volunteer. After completing his term of service, Nikolai Prokhorovich was expelled from the regiment, promoted to ensign and enlisted in the Kharkov garrison battalion. Here he also excelled in his knowledge of combat and economic units and his diligence. With promotion to lieutenant, he was appointed head of the Liptsk equestrian team. In the year of my first visit to them, Nikolai Prokhorovich’s wife, Daria Ivanovna, looked like a woman of middle age, although she was already 43 years old. Below average height, with traces of her former beauty, she seemed to compete with her husband in courtesy, she was friendly, affectionate, helpful, calm in character and even in manner. Speaking Russian poorly, she was often embarrassed by her mistakes and constantly tried to make up for them with her kind, as if guilty, smile; That’s why, perhaps, she was silent and a big homebody. She was a good housewife: she cooked dinner herself, loved to keep poultry, and start a vegetable garden; I scrupulously looked after the washing of the clothes. Nikolai Prokhorovich treated his wife with special respect, warmth and consideration. Daria Ivanovna answered him in the same way. There was complete agreement between them. They were very pious people, healthy and preserved beyond their years. They had two children, a daughter and a son. They buried their daughter in Liptsy and always remembered her with some quiet sadness. They cherished, pampered and cherished their son Kostya like the apple of their eye. A few days after they took us to the gymnasium after Epiphany (in January 1852), something very mysterious happened in their new apartment, in the kitchen where the orderly Korablev and Afimya lived. At night, when everyone in the house was already asleep, there was a strong knock on the kitchen door, Afimya’s exclamation and the cry of a child. Daria Ivanovna was the first to wake up in fright and lift Nikolai Prokhorovich to his feet. He lights a candle and asks through the doors in the hallway: “What happened?” Korablev reports in a frightened voice: “We, your honor, are in trouble in the kitchen,” and, let into the reception room, adds: “Someone is throwing stones and logs in the kitchen...”. Having calmed his wife, Nikolai Prokhorovich went into the kitchen and from questioning the orderly and Afimya learned that Korablev was the first to wake up, having heard in his sleep the terrible knock of an abandoned thing. Having called out to Afimya and not receiving an answer from her, he blew up the fire, went to wake her up and, having forcibly pushed her away, was convinced that she was not the one making the fool. While they were talking behind the partition, there was another knock on the door in the kitchen. When they rushed into the kitchen, they saw on the bench and nearby, on the floor, a broken clay cup, which after dinner had been washed and put on the stove to dry; and at the door in the entryway lay a log, one of those that had been prepared for tomorrow’s fire of the master’s stove and was lying in the kitchen, on the floor by the stove. Here they became timid. Afimya got scared and “cryed,” and he “ran out” to report. They began to search behind the partition, under the bed and on the stove, and in the kitchen - nothing; The bolts in the windows were blocked. Leaving both of them in the kitchen with them and in front of them, Nikolai Prokhorovich and Daria Ivanovna, who came into the kitchen after her husband and listened to the orderly’s report, began to watch the room behind the partition, and the stove, especially the servants, who were immediately taken into suspicion by them in the case of the night’s antics that had so unexpectedly appeared. Soon, before the eyes of the owners, from the open door of the partition and towards them, some object in the form of a dark lump quickly rushed, and at the same instant fell at their feet with the clink of tin dishes. It turned out that this was a tin mug that Afimya had placed with water at night by her bed, on the window, where it had been seen when examining the room half an hour before. They lit a lantern in the entryway and turned up the light in the kitchen. The gentlemen were sitting on a bench near the table, facing the street, Afimya was on the other side of the table, in the corner of the partition, laying the girl on the orderly’s bed, Korablev stood at the door in the hallway. After a long period of time, Nikolai Prokhorovich clearly saw that through the gap between the partition and the stove, from top to bottom, a dark spot flashed - and at the same instant Korablev screamed in fear from a blow to his right shoulder. The blow was struck with a piece of dry clay, which Afimya had saved under her bed for smearing the stove. Then everything became quiet. The gentlemen and servants were on duty long after midnight and fell asleep only in the morning. The next day it was quiet in the morning. Korablev was sent to the horse team instead of Vodopyanov, and the latter was ordered to replace the orderly in the house. Vodopyanov appeared and received instructions. Afimya was busy at the stove, Vodopyanov was more busy observing her, the door behind the partition and the skylight. A knock was heard in the master's quarters. Nikolai Prokhorovich into the kitchen. Confused, Vodopyanov reported that a clay jug was “thrown at him”, which almost “crashed” into his head, hit the wall towards the street and broke into small pieces while Afimya, bending over the stove, put the brew to the fire. He clearly saw that the jug flashed from the stove above through the gap... Having hastily finished dinner, during the preparation of which, in the presence of Nikolai Prokhorovich and Vodopyanov, Daria Ivanovna received a strong blow in her right hand from a plate that had previously stood with something on the stove and the flight of which was missed by both Nikolai Prokhorovich and Vodopyanov (it fell as if from above, completely unexpectedly for everyone). Daria Ivanovna, frightened, went to her half, where at that time Afimya was washing the floors; she was not in the kitchen when Daria Ivanovna was hurt by a plate. Then calm for the whole day; in the evening the same way. At about 10 o’clock, when Vodopyanov and Afimya were having dinner, a piece of cobblestone, which was not in the house, and whose flight Vodopyanov “missed,” “hit” the wall facing the street and fell onto a bench. The “night guard” appeared, with whom Vodopyanov alternated holding an observation post. But during the night everything was quiet. Early morning of the third day the same. We got up late. Daria Ivanovna, as usual, made her bed herself: that was her rule; Kostya and I were accustomed to this routine of preparing and cleaning our bed. Vodopyanov brought water for washing and a samovar. The stove usually flooded later, and therefore no one except Vodopyanov came out of the kitchen. Towards the end of tea, the old people noticed a stench that smelled like burnt wool or feathers. The samovar was closed tightly, meanwhile the stench grew stronger and stronger, and it seemed to be coming from the bedroom. Nikolai Prokhorovich goes there and searches: nothing anywhere. He throws back the blanket that covered the bed, the stench became stronger, and smoke appeared. He rips the blanket, sheet, pillows onto the floor, the smoke and stench intensify... picks up the down jacket - and cannot believe his eyes: on the lower mattress, stuffed with straw, there is a handful of burning coal... the lower mattress is burned out, the bedding of a wooden bed is smoldering; There is also a burnt spot in the down jacket. The old man is lost. Darya Ivanovna, despite her terrible fright, was found, grabbed a jug of water from the tea table and put out the coal. Later it turned out that it was coal, which was not in the house, in anyone else in the settlement, and nowhere except the forge. This attempted arson ended the January 1852 mysterious phenomena in the apartment of Captain Zhandak. The tense state for three days, when these mysterious phenomena were revealed and lasted, and especially the attempted arson of the bed in an incredible situation, undermined Darya Ivanovna’s vitality and health and was the real cause of her illness, from which she barely recovered at the Saint’s. Wanting to avoid troubles and fruitless “red tape” - which would have been inevitable if the police and authorities had intervened in this matter - Nikolai Prokhorovich decided to put this matter out, especially since there was no evidence to suspect anyone, not excluding the servants; everything was so supernatural and incomprehensible. And since Nikolai Prokhorovich, for his part, did not give an official reason for starting an “inquiry” about the incident, the case about it did not arise 176. He was judged, paraded among close people, and talked about a lot among the people, despite the threat of “not making rumors”; but everything calmed down, and the incident little by little began to be forgotten. In January 1853 there was deep snow; Epiphany frosts reached 28°. There were two or three days left before we left for the gymnasium. Although we were in the 5th grade and I was already 16 years old, we always left home reluctantly and, like kids, were sour. I slept somehow uneasy. On the morning of January 5, at about 8 o'clock, while we were still sleeping, we heard the sound of broken glass. I shuddered and woke up at once. They started fussing and running around; the kitchen door opened and slammed hastily; a discreet conversation could be heard in the entryway. At the same time, in the old people’s bedroom, Daria Ivanovna spoke in fear, apparently explaining something to the sleepy Nikolai Prokhorovich. Finally, hastily dressed, she goes into the kitchen and returns a few minutes later. - What's happened? - I ask. “It’s starting again!...” she answered in a fallen voice and disappeared into the bedroom. It was not difficult to guess what was “beginning”... It must be admitted that, under the impression of popular rumors, we did not think that phenomena of this kind, like those of January 1852, would end at once; each of us silently but anxiously awaited, first, the six-month anniversary, and then the anniversary of the apparitions, which was just about approaching. Soon Nikolai Prokhorovich and I were on our feet and completely dressed. Kostya also got dressed and went to his mother’s bedroom, hoping with his presence to distract her from difficult thoughts. And we are in the hallway and kitchen. The lantern hung in its place, but with broken glass that lay on the floor underneath it; Right there, against the wall, next to the door to the master's half, lay a cobblestone the size of a goose egg (there were no cobblestones in the house or in the yard). Judging by the fact that of the four glasses of the lantern, two opposite ones were broken, one of which was facing the kitchen, and the other to the master's half (the third glass was cracked) and that the stone was lying at the master's door, one had to think that the cobblestone was directed from the kitchen. Korablev, who appeared from the yard, explained that, having opened the shutters on his half and returning to the kitchen, he closed the doors to the yard. Afimya prayed to God, and he began to wash himself. Suddenly - a “splash” in the entryway! I run... I open the door to the courtyard again; Afimya also came out, and we saw that the lantern was broken. We had barely entered the kitchen, and Korablev had time to close the door behind us, when something clearly flashed from the gap (between the partition post and the stove), and there was a knock on the bench under the windows onto the street. Turning towards the knock, we saw clay on the bench and then on the floor a piece of brick that had been in use, since it had clay grease on it. It was almost 1/3 of a brick. That the brick appeared from the gap and seemed to separate from the ceiling was beyond doubt: this part of the kitchen was the subject of our observations from the moment we entered and was well lit from the window behind the partition, through the door and the gap, and by two windows from the street (the window in the kitchen to the north and the window to the north behind the partition, due to the cold, were closed with shutters). At the moment the brick appeared, Afimya was fiddling with the samovar, blowing it out, and remained indifferent to everything around her. Apart from two servants and the two of us, there was no one in the kitchen. I was in an excited state; to see a phenomenon and not understand the reasons for it, not to know from what a thrown object gets movement!, an absurd, comical situation!, and at the same time not safe... But at that time, the last thing anyone thought about was danger; all the power of thinking was strained and aimed at revealing, unraveling the trick... Yes, a trick, many thought... and in this regard, they recalled the story of a prisoner who was severely punished by the captain for drunkenness in his cell, and his words: “You will remember me for a long time...” he openly threatened in the presence of the guard, lying in the cart and turning towards the house, when the party, heading north, stopped as usual in front of the captain’s apartment, and when he himself went out into the street to check the party and swallowed the threat... More like a trick than a “brownie”! “He” will not pursue and harass a person “silently”, “in the dark!” In the kitchen there was only a brick stove, so I started inspecting the stove, and Nikolai Prokhorovich began a thorough inspection of Afimya’s room. The outside of the stove was without flaws. Climbing onto the bench from which we climbed onto the stove platform, bounded on two sides by walls at an angle, and on the third by a box that removes smoke (cleaver), I was amazed... I call Nikolai Prokhorovich, and we see that the middle of the stove platform is all deep, right up to the furnace vaults, blown up, whole and broken bricks are turned out, lie in disarray and mixed with heaps of clay lubricants; along the edges of this depression, on all sides, there are clear traces of strong claws..., the piece of brick thrown at us was taken from here... To Nikolai Prokhorovich’s question: “who drilled the stove,” Afimya answered with a sigh: “God knows!...” And Korablev explained, “that in the evening he put the dishes on the stove, but it was not visible that the stove was damaged. Today we haven’t climbed onto the stove yet: we haven’t had anything to do. “And in my sleep I heard it,” he added guiltily, “as if there was a hefty scratching, I thought the cat was asking at the door... Now I remembered how I saw this thing... I was very confused by the flashlight,” he sighed. Let's go to our half. Daria Ivanovna calmly talked to Kostya, and she herself began to tell him about last year’s story, how “he” went on a rampage, and, turning to me and Nikolai Prokhorovich, expressed confidence that now he would continue to rebel for several days until he calmed down... Nikolai Prokhorovich, seeing that his wife was interested in the details of the discovery on the stove, calmly and submissively treated the new “misfortune”, and he himself became cheerful. The samovar was brought. In order to weaken the impression of this morning and divert Daria Ivanovna’s thoughts aside, I said: - Mom! Will the pies with cabbage and eggs promised for today be available? “They will if you come with me to the kitchen,” she answered, smiling. “Of course, it’ll do...whatever, let it be...” Kostya remarked and fell silent. Afimya appeared and called the lady into the kitchen. Soon Kostya and I went there too. He silently examined the stove and went to his father. Daria Ivanovna stood at the table, with her back to the exit door, preparing minced meat; on the side of the table facing the partition, Athenia was making dough. I sat on a bench under the windows onto the street, next to Daria Ivanovna, smoked and joked, looking behind the partition, out the window and behind the stove, and remembering the flight of a brick in the morning. Suddenly a spot flashed in this direction, heading straight for my head; By instinct, I lean towards the table... the noise goes past my ear and hits the wall..., I quickly jump up and feel that I am turning pale and my breath is being taken away... I bend over..., a cobblestone the size of a fist. - Lord, have mercy! – Daria Ivanovna whispers, turning in my direction. - This is a treat for me! – I try to joke and send “him” a corresponding wish. “Don’t scold me,” she inspires me, “get out of here!” Not even twenty minutes have passed when Daria Ivanovna screams. - Look! - she turns to me, pointing to the table. I see a layer of ash on the already rolled out dough, from which it has not yet settled and there is a light dust in the air. None of us noticed where it was thrown from, but we had to think that it was from above, since it settled on the arms and head of Daria Ivanovna and Afimya. - It’s okay, we’ll make another dough, but you can’t get enough of the pies! – I made noise, and went to report to my half. Here we jointly decided to report the incident to the police officer, who was expected at the station’s apartment in the evening. By midday it became quieter. In the evening the chief and several close acquaintances appeared. They were embarrassed, questioned, examined the stove and witnessed a spoon, a piece of wood, etc. flying into the kitchen from behind the partition. Stanovoy proposed to create a squad of people from the volost as guards and for surveillance, who would take a post in the kitchen; and in the entryway and outside the house he advised the captain from his lower ranks to establish an external post. In this sense, the orders were sent. The next morning, the posts took their places. On this day, Kostya and I were awakened by a strange incident. The touch of something cold falling from above on our head and face woke us up. “Are you sleeping, Kostya?” - I scream. - “What is this cold thing falling on your head?” – he asks just as loudly. This conversation woke up Daria Ivanovna, who came into our reception room, took out the latches from the window bolts and went into the kitchen to order Korablev to open the external shutters, which were locked with bolts installed inside the house. This is how my mother usually woke us up in the morning. This time she was forestalled by the incident I mentioned. When the shutters were open, we were both deeply indignant: there was wet, cold sand in my hair, on the pillow, on the blanket, Kostya and I. I had to get up early and clean myself. The day passed in receiving friends, asking questions, explaining things. It threw some of the kitchen utensils and caused confusion and fear in the men holding an observation post in the kitchen, but it was thrown less often. Afimya and Korablev prepared lunch for us at the neighbors’ place, from where they served it, then taking with them the dishes and everything else - knives, forks, etc. Vodopyanov, who occupied the kitchen with the men-guards, served in their place. The last to come to visit us that day were one of our acquaintances, a lady and her sister, a young lady. Nikolai Prokhorovich and I undertook to escort them to the scene of action. When leaving, Daria Ivanovna whispered to me to take a stearin candle from the table, since there was not enough light in the kitchen. Went; I’m in front with a candle, the guests are behind me, Nikolai Prokhorovich is in the rearguard. There were only men in the kitchen. We inspected the stove, fragments of broken dishes, broken glass in one of the windows. The ladies were not timid - they joked, I did not lag behind. “Daria Ivanovna,” I turned to the guests, “advised me to take a passionate candle with me 177 to protect you during the inspection; but it turns out that stearic acid also works: as you can see, everything is quiet... - Don't be stupid! - Nikolai Prokhorovich remarked to me with a smile, but reproachfully. The ladies laughed and left the kitchen, but in the reverse order: I remained in the back. The men began to sit down on the bench, near the tub of water. As soon as I lifted my leg over the threshold and extended my left hand to the door to grab the edge and close it behind me, I felt a strong blow to my left shoulder blade, screamed in surprise and pain and bent down to the threshold, which I did not manage to cross... Nikolai Prokhorovich grabbed me, stepped into the kitchen, I followed him; the ladies are back again; again inspection without result. The men didn't notice anything; besides them, there was no one else; a decent piece of brick in clay lay at the threshold, apparently taken from the oven... they examined it, even weighed it in their hands and threw it among other material evidence... On January 7, the clergy were invited to serve a prayer service in the cathedral with the reading of “incantatory prayers.” But at the same time something absolutely incredible happened. A prayer service was served in the kitchen. In addition to the three priests with the clergy, in the kitchen there were several parishioners who brought the shrine, there were four of us (Daria Ivanovna with Kostya at the partition, Nikolai Prokhorovich against the gap, closer to the mouth of the stove, I was nearby, but closer to the corner), there were guards at the door in the entryway, servants and other parishioners behind the threshold. That morning the stove was heated for warmth, and water was boiled in a bucket cauldron just in case. The stove was heated, and its mouth was blocked with a cast-iron damper. Although everything was quiet in the morning and at the time the clergy arrived, everyone was in a tense state; looking at each other warily, as if waiting for events to happen. Events were not long in coming; three incidents occurred, quickly, one after the other. Even at the beginning of the prayer service, the celebrant visibly shuddered and quickly turned in our direction, at the same time there was the clink of a copper pot with holy Jordanian water in the hands of the cleric, who stood behind him close to the priest. The clerk timidly shook his bowler hat in our direction. Let's see, there's a cobblestone again... Obviously, having hit the priest in the right shoulder and reflected from him, it fell into the pot with a ringing sound... There was movement between the priests and the clergy... As soon as the "spells" began, there was a double knock with a crash in the corner where the image hung; all eyes are directed there - and we see: part of the board on which the image was written (about half of it) separates and falls on the table, following the brick that split the board. The confusion is general and complete... Reading is interrupted for a moment; the celebrant takes the fallen fragment of the icon, reverently leans it against the church image and kneels... everyone, as one person, follows his example... exclamations are heard between the parishioners: “Lord, save me! Lord, have mercy!...” The reading of prayers resumes, but in a voice suppressed by a spasm, in which tears can be heard. The impression of what happened has not yet subsided when a cauldron with boiling water appears from the stove... heading out of the stove through the air, between me and Nikolai Prokhorovich, and moving rapidly, it hits Nikolai Prokhorovich’s left thigh with such force that it pushes him to the right, and the cauldron itself, bouncing to the side, falls between the clergy and the parishioners, spilling water and filling the front part of the kitchen with steam... The parishioners were dumbfounded... The service ends hastily, the shrines are raised, and the priests with sprinklers and holy water rush from the kitchen, and then completely from the house, where such extraordinary, supernatural phenomena are taking place. It was quiet for two days after that. Having rested, on the third day we left for Kharkov and arrived at the boarding house late, forced to explain to the inspector the true reason for the delay. The story about the extraordinary incident in Liptsy passed from one to another, giving Kostya Zhandak and me special interest in the eyes of not only our comrades, but also our teachers. This circumstance depressed Kostya to the point of pain, so that he finally fell silent, and the curious began to turn exclusively to me. Three weeks later, Nikolai Prokhorovich notified us about the “finale of events”... After our departure, he was convinced to move to a temporary apartment, leaving the previous one under the protection and surveillance of watchmen and sentries, as it was. Needing rest, he relented. At that time, two rumors stubbornly persisted among the people: one: “This is ruined for him,” sent; “Why is he a prisoner who boasted!...” and another: “Then I ruined my soul, I died without repentance, they don’t find peace.” An allusion to the long-standing rumor that the evicted janitor, who sold the hut to the community with a plan for building a stage apartment, stabbed two nuns who came to stay with him for the night and hid them in the basement. They began to wait to see what would happen next. Was this personal persecution concerning Captain Zhandak, or were these phenomena belonging to this place? It was necessary, in view of these considerations, to experiment and observe. 8 days have passed; everything was quiet in both the temporary and abandoned apartments. Nikolai Prokhorovich is encouraged, goes back, and a prayer service is served again. For two more days it was quiet, only at night we clearly heard a mournful human groan in the kitchen, which was confirmed by the testimony of the servants and watchmen during the investigation. Then the phenomena resumed with greater force than before: throwing, breaking glass in the windows, which therefore had to be shuttered from the street; overturning dishes with winter supplies in the cellar, etc. Finally, despite security and vigilance, on January 23, the roof (from the attic) caught fire and burned along with the ceiling: only the walls were protected. Captain Zhandak was given another apartment in the same order, the last house on the outskirts, opposite the empty hut of the peasant Salamakha. We lived through the holy day and half of the summer vacancy of 1853 safely, confident that with the change of place the life full of anxiety, excitement and danger ended. But that was not the case. In the middle of the vacation, exactly six months after the fire, on July 23, the same phenomena were again discovered in the outbuilding and in the kitchen. Pillows were scattered in the outbuilding, from which the fluff had been released, textbooks were torn; in the kitchen, the same destruction of the stove with traces of claws was carried out, kitchen utensils and other objects began flying from Afimya’s room through the door from behind the partition into the kitchen, as in the previous apartment. Vasily Korablev was replaced by a new orderly, Martyn Kuderka, on July 11, 1853. I cannot help but note the coincidence (perhaps completely random) of two circumstances: the appearance of Vasily Korablev on July 22 and in Liptsy to Captain Zhandak for his things with the resumption of phenomena in the new apartment on July 23!... From the very first day of the resumption of the phenomena, from July 23, the bailiff, notified of the incident, established, by agreement with Captain Zhandak, the same precautions: in the kitchen - watchmen from the volost, in the entryway and outside the house - sentries from the team. On the very day of their arrival, the watchmen were embarrassed by a tub of water, standing in the corner of the kitchen near the door, overturning before their eyes; an ax thrown in their direction and other incidents of flying objects. I note here in detail, as I noted in the January apparitions of 1853, only those facts that I was an eyewitness, touching on the rest in passing, since they are needed for the clarity of my story. In this regard, I made only one digression - for the story of Captain Zhandak about the phenomena in January 1852, but this is because his story was distinguished by the thoroughness of observation and, I guarantee, is certainly true. I believed and believe him, as if I had seen all this with my own eyes. In view of the fact that Captain Zhandak (not wanting to subject us high school students to the procedures of “summoning and giving testimony”), in his reports about the incident, whenever possible, avoided those cases that would later have to be confirmed by me or his son, my “memories” are, as it were, an addition to the material that was collected by the investigator in the case “about the apparitions in the settlement of Liptsy” in 1853. Those four cases that I want to talk about are similar to the case of the second period of the January phenomena (when I was hit in the shoulder blade with a brick) and are characterized by one common feature: their connection with a person’s thoughts, which is clearly revealed in them. All you have to do is mock, express some concern, even jokingly, or just think about something, and your answer is ready! It was a kind of game of “riddles” - a dangerous game!... First case. Kneeling during morning prayer in front of the shrine, when Kostya had not yet woken up, and the old people in the bedroom were getting dressed, I noticed the open scissors lying on the windowsill and thought: “Well, how can they stick into my neck like Korablev’s knife 178”; and before bowing, I involuntarily glanced to the right every time, towards the window where the scissors lay. A minute or two passed, I bowed, then another, and I felt the touch of something cold on my hair, on the crown of my head... something tinkled..., I quickly raised my head - and was taken aback: scissors sticking out in the floorboard, sharper than their half. I call Daria Ivanovna without getting up from my knees. Both Daria Ivanovna and Nikolai Prokhorovich came in, and both turned pale when they looked at me and in the direction of my hand, quickly realizing what was going on. He sighs heavily, she begins to cross herself and whispers a prayer... Second case. We sit over tea, and I tell the details of what happened. Kostya also sits down, having just washed his hands after anointing his head and putting a bottle of Macassar oil in my box right there, on the table in the corner. - Is the castle damaged? - he asks - it won’t lock... as if the oil would be stolen,” he added. “Yes, it’s spoiled, but in order to provide you with the Makassar, we’ll hide the box away.” Where would she go? – I’m thinking. - Put it in the cupboard, behind the bottom door; No one goes there except me,” Daria Ivanovna noted. I stood up and, in front of everyone, moved the box to the closet. In the summer we drank tea and had lunch in the old people's room. About two hours later, one of the curious people appeared. As soon as greetings have been exchanged, the door opens and the sentry reports: – Your Honor, threw the bottle at the door, and the spirit left!... All three of us looked at each other. Nikolai Prokhorovich comes out, followed by the guest and me. A bottle from a bottle sticks out in the door to our half, and a strip of Macassar oil stretches from it... To the box - the cabinet is closed, the box is still in its place as it was placed. Third case. Over evening tea we tried fresh jam made by Daria Ivanovna in the morning. After transferring it to a jar and handing it to me, she asks to put the jar in the oven further away, where it is colder. - And so that it doesn’t go after Macassar, look, I close the door and put the latch on the hook, I wink in the direction of Kostya, who was very upset by the loss of oil. “Well!... you’ll scribble something else,” Nikolai Prokhorovich responded, giggling. – In the evening, at dinner, behind our backs there is a knocking and rumble on the floor. They looked - a jar of jam, tilting to the side, was quickly spinning head over heels... I jump out from behind the table and grab the jar with my hands, then, handing it to Daria Ivanovna, to calm her down, I begin to sign the sign of the cross on the jar... “I’ve told you more than once – don’t be a farce!...” Nikolai Prokhorovich reproachfully remarked to me. “We looked at the stove, the door was open, but everything else was in its place. Fourth case. The next morning, Daria Ivanovna and I went to the cellar for provisions. Leaving there, she stops and counts the heads of fresh cabbage sent to her by one of her neighbors as a gift, as a rarity at that time. In the presence of one of the strangers, - I had to say, - I joked that Daria Ivanovna is more afraid for her fresh cabbage than we are for Makassar oil, because she keeps it behind two locks... After some time - a knock on the door... followed by the report of the sentry: “Your honor, he threw the cabbage!...” We all turn our eyes towards Daria Ivanovna; she flushed and looked down... - This is not ours! - I help her out: it’s a reward for us that we faithfully take care of ours!... Daria Ivanovna instinctively reached into her pocket for the keys and handed them to Nikolai Prokhorovich. We are waiting, interested in the result of the check. - How much was it? - he asks, entering us. “Five,” Daria Ivanovna answered confidently. “Four,” Nikolai Prokhorovich snapped seriously, and we all looked at each other in confusion... On the third day, July 25, in the morning the voice of a sentry is heard: “the roof was on fire from outside!...” Soon their neighbors came running and put it out. But at about five o’clock in the afternoon, when the wind strengthened and turned towards the settlement, the alarm rang out again: “fire!...” The entire roof of the house immediately caught fire, the barn adjacent to the house caught fire, it was thrown from here to the opposite one, and in a few minutes the entire farmstead was in flames... and everything burned to the ground... Several neighboring farmsteads and houses also burned down. The police officer arrived that night, and the next day an investigation was launched into the fire and the “appearances in Captain Zhandak’s apartment.” So: 1) the “appearances” in Captain Zhandak’s apartment are immediately recognized as supernatural and are discovered three times: in January 1852, then almost a year later - from January 4 to 5, 1853, and exactly six months later on July 23, 1853, and generally speaking - with the same family members and the same staff in the house, except for the 1st period of “apparitions”, when I was with Kostya was in the gymnasium, and the 3rd period - when the new orderly Kuderka (from July 11, 1853) replaced the former Vasily Korablev, who, however, arrived in Liptsy by noon on July 22 and on the same day came to the captain’s apartment for his things. 2) In the “phenomena”, from the first to the last, hostility and the spirit of destruction are sharply revealed. Damage is caused, even injuries 179, household utensils are broken, supplies are spoiled, and finally, two apartments and almost all the property of the “disgraced” captain Zhandak are destroyed by two fires. 3) “Appearances” cannot be confined to a place, since, having appeared in one apartment, with its destruction, they are resumed in another, where Captain Zhandak moves. But neither in two temporary apartments (in the interval between fires), nor in his own house, which was separated from apartment No. 2 only by an empty plan, they do not pursue him. Moreover, in apartment No. 2 itself, in which the “phenomena” were initially discovered, and which was later rebuilt and taken into the apartment of the police officer of the 2nd camp of the Kharkov district, the peace of the owners was never disturbed. One can only assume that the “phenomena” were limited to a certain period of time, since no changes or changes occurred either in the living conditions of Captain Zhandak, or in the composition of his family and servants (with the exception of the replacement of the orderly Korablev with Kuderka). I continued to spend my free time in the house of Captain Zhandak until December 1859, when, after graduating from university, I parted with them, and then, from correspondence that lasted until 1865, I know that everything was “quiet and safe” in their house and with their neighbors. (See Rebus 1897, nos. 12–16). Strange phenomena in Yekaterinburg. 17. Strange phenomena in Yekaterinburg. The Ural newspaper contains the following description of the phenomena observed in Yekaterinburg and which took place in the house of the priest of the village of Loginovsky, Father Nikolai. “Father Nikolai has been living in this house for 13 years. Last summer the house was completely renovated. Before the renovation, the house was completely calm, and after the renovation, we lived in complete peace for another two months. But recently, the priest began to hear that in the kitchen, someone was scratching from inside the floor, sometimes whistling. He carefully examined the floor, looked into the underground, but found nothing there. Three days passed like this. He didn’t say anything to anyone, for fear of embarrassing his family. Then, in addition to scratching and whistling, knocking on the floor began, quite strong. It seemed like someone was scraping the floor with their claws; scratches and whistles. Then all the household heard and knew it. It is clear that at first they were scared, and then they began to look for the reasons for such phenomena. It was believed that these were mice, hamsters or other animals, but no signs of the presence of mice were discovered. They put food and various baits underground, scattered flour to reveal animals or at least their traces. The baits remained untouched and there were no traces on the flour. The knocking and whistling continued, either under the cabinet standing near the trap in the underground, or at the opposite wall of the kitchen. It knocked in the morning at about 9-10 o'clock, knocked during the day, the knocking and sounds were especially annoying late in the evening, at night even until 3-4 o'clock in the morning. No one could sleep, everyone was in a tense state. They defended themselves only with prayer and the cross. Once a whole company gathered to investigate the phenomenon. They lit a fire, and several people went underground. They look and rummage around there, but they don’t find anything and don’t even hear anything, but upstairs, on the contrary, the tapping and whistles clearly continue. The whole village became agitated. Crowds came to observe the spirits. One afternoon there were people in the yard and in the house, and suddenly a stone flew into the kitchen from above from the yard. He flew into the window when the window was not open, even the frame was not closed, but the glass remained intact. Pieces of dry clay and lime flew into another window, in a different direction, and fell to the floor. Those standing in the yard did not see anything special, but only noticed that the people who were in the kitchen seemed very frightened. Pieces of clay and lime. Nikolai still keeps it today. One piece hit the woman's hand, who felt considerable pain for some time. There was nothing left to do but resort to prayer. Father Nicholas ordered the holy icons to be lifted from the church and brought home. As soon as the icons were placed in the room, the kitchen knocked twice more. They served a prayer service and read the corresponding prayers; since then it has been calm” (“Ural”; see “Rebus” 1898, No. 44). Message from Mr. Przhetslavsky 18. I intend to tell you a strange incident that happened to me in 1825. And then I could not, and even now I cannot explain it by any laws known to us from science of factors operating in nature, reports a certain O. A. Przhetslavsky in “Russian Antiquity”. From the very moment I arrived in St. Petersburg in 1822, I lived constantly with my friend, a fellow student at the university, Alexander Parchevsky. At the time of the incident, we were lodging in the famous house of Joachim, in the former Meshchanskaya (now Kazanskaya) street, opposite Stolyarny Lane. Our apartment, on the 3rd floor, was located as follows. At the entrance from the stairs there is a small hallway, from it to the left there is a large kitchen, with a window overlooking the stairs so that through it one could see who was coming to us. Then the second front one is larger than the first. It led to a large room that served as our common living room; from it to the right there is also a common office, where each of us had our own bureau. To the left of the living room is a dark room, our shared bedroom. We did not dine at home, and our footman Anton stayed in the kitchen. We had a dog, a large pointing dog, Bekas. This dog was a remarkably intelligent animal, to the point that he understood our conversation in what interested him personally. Leaving the yard in the evening, when we went to visit close friends, we took Bekas with us, which gave him great pleasure. Other times he stayed at home. When we were getting ready to leave, Bekas listened intently to our speeches, having learned to understand them himself. If we agreed among ourselves that he would go with us, then he would fall into joyful delight, jumping around the rooms, handing us hats and sticks. If he realized that he had to stay at home, he would lie down under the sofa with a sad expression in his eyes and, indignant, would not even accompany us to the door. At night it was the most sensitive guard. In mid-October, my friend left for some time to his estate in the Vilna province, and I was left alone in the apartment with a footman and a dog. At that time I led a rather distracted life, I was a lot in society, but most importantly I belonged to a circle where we played a lot, mainly the most enticing game “quintich”; As a result, I returned home very late, sometimes the next morning, and generally did not go to bed before the third or fourth hour. One day I fell ill with the so-called toad (a dangerous inflammation of the throat) and had to stay at home; then I read for about two hours in bed. The very first night I spent at home like this, I continued to read in bed when the clock rang “the terrible hour of midnight.” Snipe was sleeping in the corner on his pillow. Only suddenly I see that he gets up with a muffled grunt and with his eyes fixed on the bedroom door. Then I notice signs of extraordinary excitement and fear in the dog. She comes up to me, all her fur stands on end, her eyes are turned to the door, and she continues to grumble and shake her whole body. This surprised me all the more because when something bothers her at night, she usually does not grumble, but barks loudly and rushes forward. I remain perplexed when suddenly there is a strong knock on the front door, and someone moves the handle of the lock, as if trying to open this door, locked with a key. At first I thought whether my comrade had suddenly returned from the road, and, calling the footman, asked him: did he see from his window who was banging on the door so late without ringing the bell? Sleepy Anton belonged to that category of servants who do not stand on ceremony with their masters, which is why he answered rudely: “You can’t see anyone through the window, and there’s no one there.” - “Who is that knocking?” - “Who knows? This is already the fifth night. If you had come home earlier, you would not have heard it for the first time. At first I was scared, and I asked a familiar footman from the second floor to spend the night with me; Now I’m used to it, let him knock.” I got up, took a candle and went to the door, calling the dog, but Bekas, instead of following me, jumped onto my bed and hid under the blanket. I first made sure, looking out the window of the footman's room, that, indeed, no one was standing at my door, while meanwhile the lock handle did not stop knocking, rising and falling vigorously. I suddenly opened the door, thinking to catch someone amusing myself in this way, but there was no one. When the door stood open, the handle stopped moving. The thought came to me that perhaps, from the apartment opposite my door or from the stairs leading to the upper floor, some joker had hooked a thread on the handle and was moving it. But after a thorough examination, there was nothing of the kind. Anton, meanwhile, allowed himself to make fun of my searches. As soon as the door was locked again, the handle continued to knock loudly. I asked how long will this last? Anton replied that he usually knocks for a quarter of an hour or twenty minutes; and, indeed, everything soon calmed down. Then Bekas returned to his pillow. I admit that I did not fall asleep soon after this. The next day I sent for the manager of the house. The German listened to me with Teutonic phlegm, then said: “Oh, so this is now in front? This is okay, be patient, Caspadin, this will only last a week. That’s how it was with Toktor Sfotherus, with Anklichann Kapp, with Tapakerechnik Polle (Bolle), and now with Fas. Well, it’s okay to go away.” I asked Dr. Svedfrus, and he told me exactly the same thing that I heard from my Anton. The doctor even forced his footman to sleep outside the door at night, and a janitor kept watch on the stairs, and all this did not prevent the door handle from moving, and the footman and the janitor tried in vain to hold it; the restless latch was stronger than both of them. I kept knocking for two more nights, but I no longer went to the door and tried only to calm the trembling Bekas. I inquired at the house office and found out that after me other tenants experienced the same thing. Would anyone from Mr. jury “philosophers” to explain the phenomenon described here, which at one time became known to all residents of a large house. I will be indebted to the one who will tell me a satisfactory solution, at least one thing: what prevented an angry and very sensitive dog from barking, hearing such a noise at the door, but made it tremble and squeal in fear? As for me, without trying to explain the present case by the hitherto known laws of physical nature, I only have to quote for the thousandth time the words of Hamlet to Horace: “There are many things in heaven and earth that our philosophers never dreamed of.” (“Russian Star.”; see “Rebus” 1883, No. 39). A. Several hypotheses about the so-called restless houses. The phenomena with which we will deal undoubtedly belong to the darkest and most mysterious phenomena of psychism. The purpose of this article is to introduce readers to some possible hypotheses and generalizations of the facts. We consider, however, that it is necessary to preface that the hypotheses and parallels mentioned below represent only the first attempts to understand the chaos of the phenomena under consideration, that so far not one of them can be considered as something final, firmly established in psychism, and that most of these hypotheses and parallels are given by us only in the form of simple examples, the number of which could easily be multiplied. Whether all of the hypotheses given below seem equally probable from the point of view of modern psychism is, of course, a question of a completely different kind. The hypothesis that defends the hallucinatory nature of ghosts and other similar phenomena undoubtedly attracts a lot of attention at the same time. That is why we will dwell on it in some detail. The question of restless houses, due to the extreme poverty in terms of quality of cases of this type of phenomenon, should be considered a completely infantile question. However, this same remark is applied to a greater or lesser extent to many other questions of psychism. Under the name of the restless in psychism, houses are known in which inexplicable noises are heard, figures of people appear, sensations are experienced as if from the touch of someone’s fingers, etc. The term "troubled houses" is not entirely accurate. Although in most cases the phenomena are indeed limited to certain houses, even certain rooms of this or that house, other cases are also known when these phenomena cover rather large areas, for example, entire rather vast areas. In psychism, there are two views on the true nature of the phenomena observed in restless houses. Some psychists consider ghosts, noises, etc. to be purely subjective phenomena, hallucinations (phantasms) caused by the action of some force possessing a certain degree of individuality on the inhabitants of restless houses. Other psychists, on the contrary, consider all these phenomena to be something objective, belonging to the physical world. So, for example, they look for the key to the noises heard in restless houses (steps, groans, screams, etc.) in actual sound vibrations of the air, floor, walls, etc.; the key to observed light or visual phenomena in general lies in the actual vibrations of the light ether, etc. We will denote the hypotheses of the first group by the name “hallucinatory”, the hypotheses of the second group by the name “physical”. One of the stumbling blocks for hallucinatory hypotheses is the localization of the phenomena that occupy us in known, often tightly limited spaces (for example, in certain parts of a given house). We present here three attempts to explain the purely local, endemic nature of the phantasms under consideration. Due to the excessive abuse of hypotheses of the posthumous (afterlife) influence of the substance of the spirit of the dead by the spiritualist school of modern psychism, hypotheses of this kind are extremely discredited among serious psychists. Therefore, from the point of view of modern psychism, the third of the hypotheses proposed below would deserve the most attention, since the first two resort to the assumption of the afterlife telepathic influence of the substance of the spirit of the dead. Unfortunately, this hypothesis is very weak in many respects, extremely artificial and stands completely alone, while the hypotheses of afterlife telepathic influence very neatly subsume the phenomena of posthumous ghosts (phantasms) under the same reason as the phenomenon of intravital phantasms. That is why we give strong preference to the first two of the hypotheses given below, although at the same time we look at them only as an ultimum refugium, to which only extreme necessity, complete exhaustion and the inapplicability of other methods of explanation forces us to resort. So, we repeat once again, the hypothesis of the afterlife influence (in one form or another) of the substance of the spirit of the dead deserves serious attention in the theory of restless houses 180. Let us now proceed to the outline of the hypotheses themselves. Assuming that readers are familiar in general terms with the telepathic theory of intravital phantasms, let us recall here that this theory assumes that there is no type of mental activity that could not be caused telepathically (we leave aside telepathically caused disorders in the motor sphere). And indeed, the richest collection of cases of this type of phantasm, published in both volumes of Phantasms of the Living, contains all types of mental processes - phenomena of mental activity in the narrow sense of the word (the phenomenon of intellect), manifestation of the will, emotions and, finally, those types of mental activity that are known as hallucinations of the senses (ghosts, voices, etc.). The laws governing telepathic phenomena are still completely obscure. One important fact, however, cannot be doubted. From the study of cases of intravital phantasms, the conclusion should be drawn that the inducers of this type of phantasms are, for the most part, persons in a state of strong emotions (death, mortal danger, etc.). d.) Hence the well-known belief that seeing someone absent, whom you rarely think about, or seeing someone’s double portends danger or death of that person. The greatest attention, due to their unusualness, is drawn to the telepathically caused hallucinations of various senses and mainly, of course, visual hallucinations (ghosts in the strict sense of the word). In almost 3/4 of all cases of completely objectified (i.e., the most striking of all), hallucinations of the senses cited in Phantasms of the Living, the inducers were dying people and, mainly, those who died a violent death. In particular, a huge percentage is given by drowned and suffocated people, probably due to the painful and long agony of this type of death. How to explain this effect of emotions? Readers know, of course, that the general name of emotions in psychology refers to mental processes of strong tension or brightness. Readers also know that any mental process, no matter how weak it may be, always has some influence on the processes of the bodily life of the body, and is always accompanied by some objective signs - weak, barely noticeable muscle contractions (recall the theory of muscle reading of thoughts), barely noticeable disorders in the innervation of the vasomotor system, etc. It goes without saying that the more intense, the brighter a given mental process, the stronger the influence it will have on the processes of bodily life. Hence the well-known fact that emotions have a powerful effect on the body; Thus, in mortal danger, strength sometimes increases tenfold, or, on the contrary, a complete loss of strength occurs, the face becomes deathly pale, etc. So, the above-mentioned action of emotions in telepathic cases forces us to assume that the telepathic action of mental processes depends on the degree of their intensity or brightness. It is known that during sessions of mental suggestion, inductors constantly practice persistent, long, intense concentration of all attention on a given thought, which they want to transmit telepathically to the perceptor (“reader”). The whole point of persistent, focused attention on a given thought is precisely to make this thought as bright or intense as possible. To what extent, however, does this condition seem essential and necessary? Despite the relatively extreme poverty of good telepathic experiments, we already have some indications that a thought quickly flashing in the field of consciousness of the inductor can sometimes be transmitted to the perceptor telepathically (see, for example, Dr. Shiltov’s speech about radiant force in “Rebus” for 1886). On the other hand, there are cases when the perceptor was informed of thoughts that apparently were not at all in the inductor’s consciousness at the moment, or at least flashed in his field of consciousness so quickly that they went unnoticed. Yes, Prof. Gregory reports that he happened to observe this kind of facts at mesmeric sessions: a given person, brought into rapport with a clairvoyant, orders him to begin describing the house in which this person lives. Suddenly, a dispute begins between the clairvoyant and the owner of the house about some detail, for example, about this or that painting. The clairvoyant claims that the painting hangs in such and such a place, the owner claims the opposite. Upon returning home, the owner is convinced of the truth of the clairvoyant’s words and at the same time remembers that he himself recently moved the picture (see Gregori. Animal Magnetism 1883. Chapter III, § 8). Similar facts are found in the practice of automatic writing (for examples see Myers's article in Proceedings Part. VII, pp. 234-237, also Phantasms of the Living vol. II, p. 670, also Phantasms of the Living, vol. I, p. 84 and vol. II, p. 670), etc. Finally, among the cases of intravital phantasms, there are those, although, admittedly, very few, in which the inducers were persons who were in a completely unconscious state. The facts under consideration are of great importance for hypotheses of afterlife telepathic influence. Opponents of this hypothesis usually argue that it does not make sense for the simple reason that a thought can be transmitted telepathically only with persistent concentration of attention (consciousness) on it, and consciousness is dependent on the brain, precisely on that part of it that is known as the cerebral cortex. After death occurs, which entails the destruction of the brain, there can be no talk of consciousness, and, consequently, of telepathy. The above facts show, however, that persistent concentration of attention, i.e., the brightness or intensity of the mental process, although, apparently, seems to be a favorable circumstance for the manifestation of telepathic influence, it does not yet seem to be a condio sine qua non; so, even admitting the destruction of consciousness with the destruction of the brain, we are not at all in the need to necessarily admit the cessation of telepathic influence with the destruction of the body. From everything that has just been said, we can conclude that it does not seem incredible that a telepathic influence can be exercised not only by our phenomenal, conscious “I”, but also by that higher, transcendental “I” (let's call it the substance of the spirit), of whose existence the more and more recent successes of experimental psychology are beginning to convince us. This Ego is awake both during sleep and during fainting, and it also experiences the destruction of the body. Its vital activity is manifested, in all likelihood, in restless houses and in other still extremely dark phenomena 181). The immediate nature and properties of this transcendental “I” can only be determined by a careful study of the mental life of a living person, as well as by the study of those groups of phenomena in which it does not seem impossible to admit its influence. From this it is clear that there are two different ways of scientific development of the great question of the continuation of existence beyond the grave - the way of studying the mental life of a living person and the way of studying that group of still extremely dark phenomena, an example of which can be the phenomena observed in restless houses. We have already said that in cases of so-called lifetime phantasms, the inducers are for the most part persons who are in a state of emotions or mental phenomena. It is remarkable that when investigating the history of this or that troubled house, one often comes across a legend about some terrible drama that took place in the house, a murder, suicide, etc., after which the phenomena began. The perpetrators of these dramas, in most cases, are suicides who have transferred to another, higher form of existence and are experiencing strong mental disturbances (remorse, horror, etc.), and seem to be inducers of phantasms in troubled homes. The key to localizing phenomena in certain areas can be sought in concentrating the thoughts of inductors precisely on these areas (houses, rooms, etc.), which served as the arena for the terrible dramas that played out. There are two possible hypotheses: 1) It can be assumed that telepathic interaction between two or more subjects is greatly facilitated if the thoughts of these subjects are occupied with the same subject, directed at the same objects. The scientific secretary of the London Psychical Society, Edmond Gurney, does not even consider it impossible to resort to this hypothesis to explain the fact that experiments on mental suggestion work best when the inducer and the perceiver are in the same room, that is, in the same external environment; admitting this hypothesis, it no longer seems necessary to resort to the unlikely assumption of a weakening of telepathic influence with distance (Phantasms of the Living, vol. II, p. 265, note). Let us note in passing that both Gurney and Myers are both of the opinion that the so-called telepathic force is not a physical force, that it does not belong to the physical world. (See Proceedings of the S.P.R. Part. X, Oct. 1886, p. 174, and also Phantasms of the Living vol. I., Introduction p. I, and also vol. II, p. 315). Following the hypothesis under consideration, the telepathic interaction between the inductor (the deceased) of a given restless house and the persons entering under its roof is established precisely because the attention (thoughts) of the inhabitants are drawn to the same area, the same situation, as the attention of the afterlife inductor. Let us note in passing that there are some indications that after the alteration or reconstruction of a given house, with a change in the surrounding situation, the phenomenon, that is, the telepathic interaction between the afterlife inductor and the inhabitants of the house, suddenly ceased. 2) It can be assumed that in restless houses, as a result of intense concentration of the attention of afterlife inductors on them, something like focuses of telepathic power are formed, the irritating effect of which is exposed to persons entering such houses. We find some indications of the possibility of the formation of this kind of tricks at certain points in space in some experiments on living people, although one cannot help but admit that this question, like other questions in this dark area, cannot yet be considered finally clarified due to the paucity of factual data. So, for example, mesmerizers are well aware of the fact that ordinary manipulations, such as passes, pressing hands, etc., often remain without effect if the experimenter’s attention is not focused on the patient or on achieving the desired effect in general. This curious circumstance was very recently confirmed by Professor Janet in Le Havre. (See Revue Philosophique, Fevrier 1886; pp. 192–193). The essence of the method of immersion in hypnotic sleep through the so-called exertion of will lies, perhaps, in the fact that during this action, “mental suggestion” is enhanced by focusing the experimenter’s attention on the patient himself, while in ordinary sessions of mental suggestion the inducer’s attention is more focused on the objects of experience (drawings, maps, etc.) than on the perceptor or “reader” himself. In Phantasms of the Living vol. I, ch. III, among many other related experiments, the following one was published, carried out in 1881. One gentleman, a friend of the secretary of the London Psychical Society, had the idea of ​​designing his “double” in the bedroom of two girls he knew who lived on the 2nd floor of the same house, 5 miles away from the experimenter’s apartment. Without warning his acquaintances with a single word, he decided to carry out the experiment one night at 1 o’clock, and at the chosen moment began to persistently focus his attention on the intended room with the firm intention of instructing the girls to see his “double”. As was verified the very next day, one of the girls (25 years old) woke up at the time of the experiment and saw a ghost (the inductor’s double) approaching her; she woke up her sister, an 11-year-old girl, and she also saw the “double.” This gentleman made experiments of this kind more than once; their description is placed in Chapter III of the volume Phantasms of the Living. Unfortunately, we cannot categorically state that in this case the role played was focusing attention specifically on the room (the formation of an irritating focus in it), and not on the girls themselves. To fully resolve the issue, a control experiment would be necessary. But even admitting that focusing attention specifically on the room played a role here, it will not seem impossible to admit that the experimenter, by focusing attention on a given room, formed in it a focus of irritating telepathic force and turned this room into a “restless” (hantee) for one night. It goes without saying that the term “focus” should not necessarily be understood in the usual physical sense of the word, but simply in the sense that the effect of the telepathic influence of an afterlife or other inducer on one or another person intensifies when this person enters a given house or area. In general, as is not difficult to see, in cases of this kind it is impossible to draw a sharp boundary between the first and second hypotheses. The previous two hypotheses can give at least a partial account of all the phenomena observed in restless houses; they can explain the localization of phenomena in certain areas, the intensification or cessation of the phenomenon for certain periods of time (increasing or weakening of the emotional unrest of afterlife inductors, etc., etc.). These hypotheses can even explain those cases when the phenomena inherent in restless houses are observed only on the anniversaries of tragic events (hardening of emotions, for example, remorse, on the anniversaries of these events). Finally, these hypotheses do not at all require that the person whose ghost appears in a given house would certainly die in that very house. It is enough if this face is connected with the house by some memories. To put hypotheses of this kind on solid scientific ground, cases of certified ghost identity (ghost identiti) are especially desirable. Unfortunately, the development of materials about restless houses is still in its infancy, despite its rather large wealth in quantitative terms. And this, of course, will not surprise those familiar with the enormous difficulties that researchers of the history of troubled houses have to contend with. From the point of view of the "personality of spirits" of all the cases collected by the London Psychical Society, only three are worthy of attention: 1) An incident that took place in 50 years. Every day at 2:45 a.m., from the room where suicide had been committed 50 years earlier, steps were heard and moved along the suite of rooms. The inhabitants of the house even tried to walk with candles following the invisible steps. Other phenomena also occurred in the house. (Journal of the S.P.R. Sept. 1886). 2) A case that happened in 1856, when a ghost that appeared three years later was recognized by a portrait. (Proceedings Part II, pp. 106–8 and Part. VIII, pp. 100–101). 3) An incident that occurred in 1872. A ghost that appeared repeatedly one night was recognized the next day by a portrait. The ghost was previously seen by a different person. (Proceedings. VIII, 101 – 102). It remains for us to mention one more interesting fact. As is known, patients immersed in mesmeric sleep are often in telepathic rapport only with their mesmerizer, while they are often completely insensitive to the mental suggestion of other persons. To bring them into rapport with some outsider in such cases, it is enough to establish contact. This rapport can, however, be established not only by direct contact, but also by handing over to the patient any object that was shortly before in contact with this person - a tuft of hair, a piece of paper, etc. There is, of course, no doubt that this experiment, under certain conditions, can be successful in a normal state. Readers, of course, know that the mesmeric dream does not represent anything miraculous or supernatural, and that the manifestations of various abilities observed in it in patients represent simply the development or aggravation of abilities that exist in a weak degree or in the beginning and in a normal state. In some individuals, even in a normal state, abilities (for example, clairvoyance) reach a significant degree of development. The experience mentioned above seems to show that the force flowing from the body and saturating objects has a certain degree of individualization, since otherwise it remains incomprehensible why, in order to establish rapport with any given person, it is absolutely necessary that the given object (a piece of paper, a piece of hair, etc.) must be in contact with that particular person and not another. The force acting in restless houses also has a certain degree of individuality, since the nature of the phenomena in each restless house is usually strictly defined (certain ghosts, certain noises, etc.). Let us finally mention that contact is often practiced at mesmeric sessions, for passes are usually made almost in contact with the body, but are subsequently successful at great distances; similarly, falling into sleep, which at first was successful only through passes, subsequently often begins to be successful at a distance, through a simple act of will. Finally, contact is often practiced in mediumistic sessions, and sometimes it is observed that when the chain is broken, one or another phenomenon immediately stops. So, under certain conditions, a special force can be released from the body, capable of saturating various external objects. But if it can saturate external objects, then it must also saturate the body itself; and after the death of a given person, his corpse can have a specific effect on the nervous system of those persons who happened to be near a similar kind of corpse. Some psychists consider it possible to explain from this point of view those rare cases when the inhabitants of a given house experienced strange sensations in it, and this continued until a corpse was accidentally found somewhere in the house, with the removal of which the sensations stopped. It goes without saying that only those cases of this kind deserve serious attention in which the smell from the corpse could not reach the inhabitants of the house. A similar case is published in Proceedings 1886. Part X, pp. 154–155. The case dates back to 1874. The inhabitants of the house experienced strange, very strong sensations until the corpse of a child, dried up and therefore unable to emit a strong odor, was accidentally found in the attic, after which the “sensation” ceased. Myers considers it possible to explain the present case in terms of hypotheses of a specific effect on the nervous system of the substance of the corpse itself. Let us note, however, that any inveterate spiritualist would not think to explain the cessation of “sensations” upon the removal of the corpse by purely psychological reasons. Let us note, finally, that the hypothesis under consideration of the specific effect on the nervous system of the very substance of restless houses can also give an account of the above-mentioned fact of the cessation in other cases of phenomena after remodeling the house. The hypothesis under consideration, however, seems too artificial. It may perhaps be applicable to those cases in which we are dealing with such vague, vague sensations, as in the above-mentioned case of the corpse of a child in the attic. But it is positively powerless to explain the most mysterious and interesting cases of restless houses - cases of the appearance of ghosts, noises, etc. Let us note, finally, that a compromise is also possible between the hypothesis under consideration and the hypothesis of afterlife telepathic influence. It can be assumed that the substance of restless houses, saturated with the force released from the body of the persons who died in them, only facilitates the establishment of rapport between the inductor and persons entering under the roof of such a house, just as during sessions of mental suggestion, rapport can sometimes be established with a given even absent person (inducer) by handing over to the “reader” any object that was in contact with this inductor and thus (probably) saturated force emanating from his, the inductor, body. So, following the hallucinatory hypotheses, the phenomena observed in restless houses are phenomena of a purely subjective nature. What evidence can we give to support this view? In reports of restless houses, there are often descriptions of undoubtedly physical phenomena - movements of furniture, etc. Messages of this kind should, however, be treated with extreme caution. The inhabitants of troubled houses, for very understandable reasons, are inclined to attribute mystical significance to the most ordinary phenomena, which at any other time would go completely unnoticed. In any case, physical phenomena of this kind do not constitute indispensable accessories of restless houses, they do not represent anything typical for them; usually they are very weak and transient. Do they, however, represent anything truly impossible from a theoretical point of view? If we only assume that the process of transmitting thoughts at a distance is accomplished through the action of a telepathic force emanating from an inductor on the brain of the “reader,” we thereby already assume that the telepathic force necessarily produces changes in the physical world, in the substance of the brain. From this it is clear that it does not seem impossible to admit the possibility of the action of telepathic force directly on the world of matter. Let us now go a little further in our messages. Readers know that in so-called mediumship sessions there is a manifestation of some force capable of producing profound changes in the physical world. Facts of this kind show that under certain conditions the spirit can act directly on matter and, moreover, through all sorts of screens. Therefore, this force can also act on the brain. And from here it follows that it can also cause various types of mental activity, since, according to the teachings of modern psychophysiology, any physical change in the brain must necessarily be reflected in the course of mental life. (Prof. Varrett's article in Proceedings, Part X, p. 40). In reports of restless houses, one sometimes comes across descriptions of noises, as if from moving furniture, from the knocking of dishes, etc. Observers claim, however, in such cases that there is never noticeable disorder in the rooms. The author of these lines is even aware of a case in which the inhabitants of one troubled house, out of curiosity, traced various objects in the room with chalk in order to check their immobility; noises occurred, but in the morning the objects appeared not to have been moved even a hair's breadth. In the Proceedings (Part VIII, p. 80, note) a remarkably strange incident is reported that took place 30 years ago. There were footsteps in the house almost every night. The observer sat down at one staircase many times and listened to invisible footsteps here. The bottom step of this ladder, when pressed with your foot, usually creaked. The author of the report claims that whenever invisible steps reached this step, a creaking sound was heard, as if some invisible force was actually pressing it. Let us note, however, that it does not seem impossible here to resort to the assumption that the creaking heard by the observer was a purely subjective phenomenon, caused by his habit (association) of constantly hearing a creaking when stepping on a given (known to him) step. In some cases, observers claim to have seen ghosts reflected in mirrors. This is case No. 181 (Journal of the S.P.R. Anp. 1886, pp. 249–262) and case No. 163 (Journal. Dec. 1885, pp. 136–141). However, even this kind of facts, taken by themselves, cannot yet serve as proof of the objective reality of ghosts. Brilliant experiments by Binet et al. showed that purely hallucinatory images evoked by suggestion in hypnosis can not only be reflected in mirrors, but also deflected by prisms, covered with screens, etc. To explain this kind of phenomena, Binet resorts to the following hypothesis: he admits that the hallucinatory image evoked in the patient is associated with any real point in space - a point on the floor, wall, etc. When such a point is reflected by a mirror or deflected by its prism, etc., the image associated with it is naturally reflected or deflected. Binet, therefore, considers this kind of images to be something between hallucinations and illusions. Let us note in passing that the properties of hallucinatory images observed by Binet can also be explained by simple laws of associations: if, for example, the entire situation surrounding a given hallucinatory image is reflected in a mirror, then naturally the same image will be repeated in this environment, so that it will seem that this image is also reflected in the mirror. The same should be said about experiments with prisms, etc. etc. In his experiments, Binet caused hallucinations of butterflies on a desk, portraits on sheets of white paper, etc. In cases of this kind, the theory of associating hallucinatory images with objective points in space does not encounter any difficulties. But Binet assures that even in those cases when the hallucinatory image was projected, for example, into the middle of the room and moved, screens could sometimes be used to shield it from the hallucinant, etc. Finally, in case No. 476 (Journal of the S.P.R. May, 1886), the ghost, simultaneously visible to two spouses, having caught up with the lamp, casts a clear black shadow. Moreover, he says two words. The phenomenon of shadow casting can also be explained to a certain extent by the laws of associations. As for the utterance of words, this fact proves very little, since cases of simultaneous hallucinations of several senses are rarely observed. Against the hallucinatory nature of ghosts, not only the facts of the tangibility of this type of phantasm cannot be cited, but even cases of this kind when the ghost’s hand, pressing, for example, on the shoulder, left fingerprints on it (blood stains as if from pressure). This phenomenon can be explained simply by the influence of imagination on the vasomotor system; it is enough just to recall the miracles of hypnotic suggestion, when red spots are caused under sheets of plain paper, as if from real mustard plasters, etc. A subjective visual sensation, like a real one, can produce a consistent sensation; for example, a color subjective sensation can cause the sensation of an additional color (Wundt, Biie, Feret, Perino). Phenomena of this kind were known at the beginning of this century to the famous physiologist Johann Miller, Grunthuysen, and Meyer. See on this matter: 1) Wundt. Physiological psychology. 1881, p. 905; 2) Delboeuf. La Psychology. 1876, pp. 58–59; 3) Binet et Fere. Le magnetisme animal. 1887, p. 183. Finally, if a hallucinant is suggested that a given hallucinatory image is approaching or moving away from him, one can observe on the hallucinant’s pupils their adaptation to distance, exactly as if a real object were moving away or approaching. Similar phenomena can be observed in other senses: a strong subjective auditory sensation can cause a “ringing” in the ears, similar to real noise; strong subjective taste sensation – consistent taste in the mouth. In the experiments of the London Psychical Society on the telepathic transmission of taste sensations, it often happened that the sensation evoked in the perceptor was so strong that it was necessary to stop further experiments due to its inability to discern further tastes. Acrid tastes caused increased activity of the salivary glands, etc. Thus, to study the objective reality of visual, auditory, and other similar phenomena in restless houses, there is only one way left. If the noises heard in houses represent real vibrations of the air or the floor, walls, etc., and the observed ghosts are actually visible due to the effect on the retina of the eye of the vibrations of the ether they cause, then both the noise and these vibrations of the ether can be translated into other forms of physical energy. So, for example, vibrations of the ether can be converted into chemical energy, i.e., prints on photographic plates can be obtained from ghosts, etc. But here, too, one should not rush to conclusions. If in the future the possibility of obtaining prints from ghosts on photographic plates is confirmed, then it will not at all follow that we are dealing here with matter in the usual sense of the word. Let us now return to the above two hallucinatory hypotheses of ghosts and other phenomena in troubled houses. The hypothesis that seeks the source of the power that makes the inhabitants of such houses hallucinate in their very substance is, of course, worthy of attention - although it is weak in many respects. As experience shows, the specific effect of a substance on the nervous system is very weak and is detected only at the most insignificant distances; Moreover, as noted above, this hypothesis is hardly able to account for the constancy, the certainty of the type of phenomena in each house (constantly the same ghosts, etc.; small individual differences between the testimony of individual observers can, of course, occur). Above we presented two attempts to explain the localization of the phenomena under consideration in certain, sometimes strictly limited areas (in given houses, in certain rooms of a given house, etc.). In the parallels that we then tried to draw between experiments with living telepathic inductors and the phenomena observed in restless houses, readers could notice all the weaknesses in drawing such parallels. By using such expressions as the emotions of (supposed) inducers, focusing their attention on certain areas (arenas of bloody tragedies, etc.), we thereby seemed to draw a parallel between our conscious mental life here on earth, between the mental life of our conscious “I”, and the life of the transcendental “I”. Let us now pay attention to the following circumstance. The casuistry of phantasms, collected by the London Psychical Society, contains many cases of the occurrence of phantasms a few hours after death. How should we look at this kind of delayed phantasms? The assumption about the influence of distance (the final speed of propagation of a telepathic impulse), as well as any other assumption based on the assumption of the possibility of applying the laws of the physical world to the force under consideration, as we have repeatedly noted above, should be treated with extreme caution. Facts such as telepathic interaction between two antipodes, between which the entire thickness of the globe is placed in the form of a screen, do not fit well with our ideas about the forces of the physical world. In addition, the phenomenon of delay is also observed during sessions of mental suggestion, i.e., at the most minimal distances. The reason for it should be sought in the fact that the impression received telepathically, like the impression received through the senses, is not perceived instantly and can remain in a latent state for a certain time. So, for example, during sessions of mental suggestion, it sometimes happens that the “reader” names the card that the inducer conceived some time ago, and not the one that he is looking at or thinking about at the moment. But this property of telepathic impressions comes out especially clearly in experiments on the influence of mental suggestion on automatic writing (on writing “mediums”). In cases of this kind, one can clearly notice how the hand of the “medium” suddenly writes an answer not to a question conceived at the moment, but to a question that was conceived some time ago. (For examples, see Proceedings Part VIII in Myers on Automatic Writing pp. 6ff., and Phantasms of the Living, Vol. I, pp. 63ff.). So, the whole question now is this: how long can an impression received telepathically remain in a latent state? Let us briefly summarize several cases of delayed phantasms with different time intervals. 1) No. 350 (Phantasms of the Living, vol. II. 244 – 7). One woman, who served as a maid in one house, dies of a chronic illness in the hospital (the case took place in 1882). A few hours (about 12) after her death, in the kitchen of the house where the deceased served, the cook and two other maids sit down to dinner. It's pouring rain outside. Suddenly a dog tied on a chain under the window starts howling. One of the witnesses, sitting facing the window, sees a pale face in the window through a loosely closed shutter and tells the other two women about it. The shutter is opened and the pale face of the former maid is seen in the window (one of the women did not know her, but later recognized the ghost from the portrait). The women are surprised that the visitor is standing in the pouring rain with her head uncovered. At this time, the face begins to take on the color of a corpse and finally disappears. The next day they learn about the death of the maid. (The hypothesis of the influence of concentrating the thoughts of a dying maid on a given area - the house of her former ministry - is applicable to this case). 2) In case No. 476 of posthumous ghosts (Journal of the S.P.R. May, 1886), Mistress and Mr. P. saw simultaneously at night in a locked room the figure of Mr. P.’s father (a naval officer in a cap who had died 15 years earlier, and whom Mrs. P. had never seen in her life); hallucinate in troubled houses quite often. The casuistry of lifetime phantasms shows that for some the figure was seen by Mrs. P., who woke up her husband. In response to Mr. P's question, the figure said in a voice full of sadness: “Willy! Willie! (a shortened name for Mr. P.) - and then began to move towards the wall. When she caught up with the lamp, a clear black shadow was cast from it. Upon inspection of the constipations and locks, everything in the room turned out to be intact. The phenomena of posthumous ghosts in the vast majority of cases are purely local, endemic in nature, that is, they are associated with one or another locality, and not with this or that person, like the phenomena of lifetime phantasms. This position, however, must be understood with a certain limitation. First of all, as we noted at the beginning of our article, they are not always limited to cramped spaces, but sometimes they also cover quite vast areas, and the concept of terrain is a very flexible concept. Moreover, not all people are apparently capable of seeing ghosts, and it often happens that some of the inhabitants of a given house encounter ghosts several times, while others do not see them even once. Consequently, here too the personal element (personal equation) plays some role. On the other hand, in some cases of lifetime phantasms, the appearance of the phantasm apparently had more to do with a given area than with a given person. Finally, there are some indications that posthumous phantasms may also have a close relationship to the person, and not to the location. Some persons seem to be completely incapable of seeing ghosts, while others, on the contrary, undoubtedly have an innate susceptibility to telepathic influences (see Journal of the Society for Psychical Research, July 1885, p. 469). For an example, see Phantasms of the Living vol. I, pp. 196 (case no. 21) et seq. The author of the report, Mr. Keulmann, a very famous artist in England, experienced so-called telepathic clairvoyance on October 3, 1883; he saw his child, a baby 13 months old, fall out of bed onto the chairs and roll onto the floor. The vision picture was not objectified: he saw everything as if with a “mental eye.” On the same subject, see Phantasms of the Living, vol. II, p. 77. Finally, there are indications that in some cases susceptibility to telepathic influences may be hereditary. The numbers of examples of this kind are listed in note 2 on page 132 of Volume II of Phantasms of the Living. Let us recall, finally, that there are undoubtedly persons who are especially susceptible to the action of “will at a distance” (the so-called sensitives). Are there inducers who have a special ability to induce phantasms, that is, a special power of telepathic influence? In cases of lifetime phantasms, the inducers in the vast majority of cases are persons who are in a state of strong emotions - in mortal danger, which is rarely repeated in life, or in agony, which by its very essence cannot be repeated. From here, readers can see how difficult it is to answer the above question. In the Journal for July 1885, page 470, there is a case in which a double of a lady was often observed by her relatives and once by two of her daughters at the same time (the lady was in a normal state at all times). Perhaps this lady had a special ability to induce her visual phantasm. It does not seem improbable that some cases of collective phantasms can be explained from a similar point of view (a special force of influence capable of affecting several persons at once. See Phantasms of the Living vol. I, p. 445 and Journal of the S. P. L. July, 1885, p. 470). Finally, there are cases where the phantasm was repeated several times at short intervals (from several minutes to several hours). Repetitions of this kind can hardly be explained by the individualities of the corresponding perceptors, since the richest casuistry of physiological hallucinations of the London Psychical Society (up to 600 issues) contains only one indication in this regard (Phantasms of the Living vol. I, p. 445). On the other hand, it is extremely difficult to admit the same individuality in this respect in two or more witnesses, as, for example, in case No. 310 (Phantasms of the Living, vol. the very moment of one of their friends. Very surprised, they went out into the dining room and told about what had happened to another friend of theirs who had been invited to dinner. At that moment, all three heard the same word again. In this case, a repetition of the impulse of telepathic force is very likely. So, the hypothesis of the manifestation in some cases of a particularly strong influence does not seem incredible. Apparently, this hypothesis deserves attention in cases of restless houses; in some of them, as casuistry shows, phenomena are observed very often, in others - extremely rarely 182. It goes without saying that when assessing the repeatability and intensity of phenomena, it is necessary to take into account the possible influence of the individuality of witnesses. In troubled houses, observers are usually persons who are completely alien to the supposed inductors. But even in cases of lifetime phantasms, consanguinity between the inducers and the perceptor is stated only in 47%; in 4%, telepathic interaction occurred even between persons completely alien to each other (Phantasms of the Living, vol. II, p. 723). It is remarkable that cases of this latter kind make up a very large percentage (about 1/2 of the total number) of collective cases. Let us now consider in some more detail the phenomena observed in restless houses. In cases of lifetime phantasms (about 800 in total), the perceptors were: 64% in a state of full wakefulness, 16% in a state intermediate between sleep and wakefulness; the remaining cases belong to dreams. Of the waking cases, in 423 cases we are dealing with hallucinations of the senses. In 80 cases, more than one sense was affected: in 53 cases, vision and hearing were simultaneously affected, in 13 - vision and touch, in 6 - hearing and touch, in 8 - vision, hearing and touch. (Phantasms of the Living, vol. II, pp. 23–24 and pp. 707–722). In telepathic cases, there is a significant predominance of visual hallucinations over auditory ones, the opposite of which we find in cases of ordinary hallucinations (both physiological and pathological). This fact is of great importance for refuting the hypotheses of random coincidences (our scientific opponents consider telepathic cases to be simply ordinary physiological hallucinations, accidentally coinciding in the time of their occurrence with the death of this or that person, etc.). Another feature of telepathic hallucinations is the extremely small percentage of unrecognized ghosts and voices (out of 250 ghosts, only 13 were not recognized, out of 57 “voices” that uttered words, only 21 were not recognized. Phantasms of the Living, vol. II, p. 24). In cases of purely subjective hallucinations, the number of recognized and unrecognized ghosts and voices is the same. Let us now turn to restless houses. Let us note first of all that testimony about noises heard in restless houses should, of course, be treated with extreme caution. Everyone knows from personal experience how easily the slightest noise reaches the ear, especially at night and when attention is strained (as usually happens with the inhabitants of restless houses, who, for very understandable reasons, in most cases are prone to exaggeration and to attach importance to the most absurd phenomena). In this circumstance, perhaps, one should look for the reason for the fact that noises in houses, generally speaking, occur more often than the appearance of ghosts 183. It is remarkable, however, that cases of houses with only auditory phenomena are very rare and account for only about 9% of the total number of cases. (Prceedings, vol. VIII, p. 81). This fact does not speak in favor of the possibility of explaining the circumstance in question solely by some purely subjective reasons. The most demonstrative of all noises should, of course, be those noises that are somehow related to a person (screams, voices, noise as if from footsteps, etc.). But even in cases of this kind you should be very careful with your conclusions. So, for example, any periodically frequently repeated knock can be mistaken for steps, etc. 184. Just as in cases of ordinary subjective hallucinations, cases of tactile sensations in restless houses are extremely rare. Perhaps in this circumstance we should look for the key to the opinion that ghosts cannot be tangible, and therefore, in order to decide whether you see a ghost in front of you or not, it is enough to feel it with your hands, i.e., resort to evidence of the sense of touch. Note, however, that testimony about tactile sensations should be treated very carefully: even when sensations of this kind are accompanied by hallucinations of other senses, for example, vision, a slight clonic spasm of any muscle can easily be interpreted in the sense of touch, etc. The same should be said about other types of possible sensitivity - about the temperature sense (the possibility of a simple vasomotor spasm), etc. As examples of tactile sensations, we point to No. 477. (Journal for July 1886, pp. 347–353). One of the witnesses, while descending the stairs, on which the ghost of a woman especially often appeared, felt the touch of a soft hand: she felt each finger clearly (Loc. cit. p. 351). Let us also point out No. 24 (Journal for December 1885, pp. 133–5). Some of the inhabitants of this house woke up 2-3 times from a hand touching their face and, turning around, noticed the figure of a woman. Both cases, of course, are rather weak, especially the second, since both witnesses here are people of little intelligence (the maid and the coachman). Let us note, finally, that in reports of troubled houses, certain emotions are often mentioned - for example, a feeling of horror, a sensation as if someone was staring intently or following on their heels, etc. Sensations of this last kind are especially common. The key to most phenomena of this kind is, of course, to be found in the simple act of imagination. As for the feeling of horror, it is remarkable that animals are not free from it. Ghost literature contains indications in this regard. In essence, the fear inspired by unusual, out-of-the-ordinary phenomena is as characteristic of animals as of humans (for observations and experiments related to this, see Romanes’ article “L Imagination des animaux,” published in the Revue Scientifique for 27 Sept. 1884). Sometimes the inhabitants of troubled houses experience vague, difficult-to-describe sensations without seeing any ghosts. That the cause of this kind of sensation should be sought not only in the influence of the imagination is proved, among other things, by the fact that sensations of this kind are sometimes experienced only in certain rooms of the house. See, for example, the testimony of miss P. M. (loc. cit., p. 348). She and her sisters experienced strange sensations while in the bathroom; Later they learned that some time ago a lady had drowned in a bathtub. In support of this hypothesis, one can also cite the fact that sensations of this kind - for example, as if someone is present - sometimes precede the appearance of lifetime phantasms, for example, the appearance of ghosts of the dying. In this kind of cases, there can be no question of any tense expectation (expectancy) or imagination, for phantasms of this kind arise completely unexpectedly. As examples, let us point out Nos. 195 and 201 in Phantasms, Vol. I, pp. 528–9 and 542–4. It may very well be that in some cases of this kind such weak emotions are called the vague presence in consciousness of auditory or visual sensations (even if caused telepathically), just as, for example, we sometimes vaguely sense the presence of a living person in a room through semi-conscious perception of the subtle noises produced by him. Finally, sensations of this kind sometimes precede the appearance of ordinary hallucinations (see, for example, the case of Merrillier “Revue Phiolosphique” Fevrier 1886). Readers know, of course, that by intense concentration of attention any type of mental activity can be evoked. The doctrine of the so-called mental ability, i.e., the ability to cause any motor acts or to contract any muscle group by evoking more or less vivid ideas about expected acts, constitutes only a small chapter of the doctrine of the influence of imagination (thought) or expectation (expectancy) on the processes of human mental activity. Everyone knows that by constantly concentrating thoughts on the subject of love, sorrow, hatred or any other emotion, you can not only strengthen this love, sorrow or hatred, but even cause an almost non-existent emotion (“imagine” yourself, as they say in the community, suffering and, finally, even really cause suffering, etc.). And, conversely, you can suppress or at least weaken any feeling. In the same way, you can strengthen, weaken, and even invent any desire (“convince” yourself that you passionately desire something, and little by little, indeed, arouse in yourself a strong desire). Finally, by focusing attention, you can stimulate the activity of any of the sense organs, that is, cause any hallucination. In Chapter XI Volume I of Phantasms of the Living contains several cases in which the intense anticipation of a given person’s return home actually caused a visual hallucination (“double”) of that person. Likewise, fear and other similar emotions are a favorable moment for the development of hallucinations. That is why one should treat with such caution those cases when the perceptor of one or another ghost is in a state of expectation, anxiety, fear, etc. As for the strength and duration of attention or the strength and duration of emotion (fear, etc.) required to cause a hallucination, it goes without saying that no strictly defined rules or laws can be established in this regard, since everything depends on the individuality of each individual observer. But, generally speaking, the stronger, the more intense the concentration of thoughts or emotion, the less time is required to achieve the desired effect. The duration of the mental process evoked by the considered path also varies widely and depends both on the individuality of individual observers and on the intensity and duration of concentration of thoughts or emotions. So, for example, in order to cause a hallucination of feelings in a subject in a state of hypnosis, a simple one-time verbal suggestion is often sufficient, that is, any visual, auditory or other idea is objectified unusually quickly; in a normal state, a simple verbal suggestion usually evokes only a pale idea, a pale image, visible, as they usually say in the community, with the “mental eye” or heard with the “mental ear,” i.e., a so-called pseudohallucination (and a very pale one). But some people with a vivid imagination (artists, poets, etc.) are often able to objectify, for example, any visual image without much difficulty, that is, cause any visual hallucination. We have gone into such detail about the theory of concentration of thoughts (expectancy) with the purpose of showing what significance it has in the theory of hallucinations. It is impossible, however, not to notice that the importance of concentration of thoughts and other related factors is usually excessively exaggerated by our scientific opponents. The casuistry of restless houses contains cases (and, moreover, the most typical cases) in which various witnesses knew absolutely nothing about each other's observations, but, nevertheless, observed the same ghosts. It goes without saying that not every case of a troubled house is equally valuable and conclusive from a scientific point of view, and that in each individual case not all testimony is equally conclusive. We consider the above to be sufficient to give readers a general understanding of the hallucinatory theory of posthumous ghosts and its relationship to the hallucinatory theory of lifetime ghosts. We repeat once again that the casuistry of posthumous ghosts is still in a completely infantile state and presents many gaps. The same remark, however, applies to a certain extent to the casuistry of lifetime ghosts. It is almost never possible to restore the complete history of this or that troubled house. Usually, phenomena occurring or occurring in the house are learned very late, sometimes after many years, when the phenomena have long ceased 185. Residents of this type of house usually avoid talking about the phenomena they observe out of fear of the ridicule that is so common in such cases, and the homeowners out of fear for the reputation of the house. This fear is far from unfounded. The casuistry of troubled houses contains cases of unusually low rents for this type of house. Let us point, for example, to No. 182 (sing, ghost) “Journal” for September. 1886: a huge three-story house with a park was sold for 12 pounds. erased (total about 120 rubles) per year. In case No. 163 (sing, ghost) “Journal” for December. In 1885, a large house with an adjoining plot of land was rented for only 80 pounds. (about 800 rubles) per year, a price that amazed everyone with its insignificance. Due to the reasons just mentioned, finding out before the onset of phenomena and verifying the identity of ghosts in haunted houses always presents enormous difficulties. But the very fact that the phenomena in each given restless house have their own special character, represent their own individuality (for example, in each house a certain type of ghost appears) 186 undoubtedly speaks in favor of the individualization of force in each given particular case, i.e. in favor of self-personality. Finally, as we noted at the beginning of the article, the hallucinatory hypothesis does not at all require that the person whose ghost appears in a given house would certainly die in that same house. It will be enough if it was connected with this house by any memories. (Compiled from the magazine “Rebus”, 1887, No. 40–42; 46–49). B. A brief historical overview of the troubled houses of Charles du Prel. From time to time, quite often, however, people or inanimate objects, such as houses, serve as the target of attack by some incomprehensible force, and stones or other objects at hand are used as weapons of attack. The purpose of these attacks, however, is always definite: it seeks to cause harm, and the forces are used expediently and wisely. We find reports about these phenomena throughout the Middle Ages. Psellus also speaks of angry stones, and in modern times these phenomena have become even more frequent. The stone throwing in 1890 in Berlin, on the Alsace Street, lasted six weeks, and despite strict measures taken by the authorities, and a high reward assigned for the discovery of the culprit, nothing was discovered. “I have nothing,” says Karl du Prel, “against the desire of the police to discover the culprit among living people before looking for mysterious phenomena in distant spheres. This desire is completely legal and logical. “I am, however, against it,” continues du Prel, “that the police see the only cause of phenomena in their own assumptions, without being privy to the history of these phenomena, and that they do not want to learn from their own experiences, but only from one prejudice against spiritualism they prefer to admit their powerlessness. This circumstance deserves all the more attention because in almost no such case the most rigorous investigations not only did not reveal the participation of any living people, but also proved the complete illogicality of such assumptions. The various circumstances surrounding these attacks rule out such speculation. These circumstances are very typical and are repeated in reports from century to century and in all countries, and since the attacks themselves are in plain sight and are easy to ascertain, then, consequently, the police, boasting of their all-seeing eye, should have discovered the real cause of the attacks. An experienced researcher would pay attention first of all to the direction in which the guns are flying, trying to hit a known target or damage the intended object. In this case, it would be discovered that the target of the attack is a specific object, and that the one carrying out this attack is an intelligent being. In the Rue de Gres, in Paris, a house located in a garden was bombarded with stones, causing great destruction. The stones were so heavy and came from such a distance that it was impossible to attribute it to human hands. People gathered on the roofs of neighboring houses to watch the performance. The stones flew over their heads and hit their targets with mathematical precision. The police were here, but could not open anything, despite the fact that the bombardment lasted three weeks. This is what the official police organ Gazette des Tribunaux reported on February 3, 1849. When the windows and doors were destroyed and boarded up, a narrow gap was left between the boards in one of the windows, and from then on stones began to fall through this gap 187 . If we assume living people to be the culprits in this case, then they would need to resort to the help of throwing machines. Since the shooting continued proportionately, with uniform accuracy, it would be most prudent to involve a mathematician in this matter, who, by means of inversely lengthening the segment, would calculate the place where the throwing machine should be located. And since, probably, nothing would have been found in this place, the spiritualistic origin of the phenomena would have explained itself. Another type of phenomenon is demonstrated by the so-called Grobenev knocks. Despite the fact that at least twenty people watched the falling stones, no one, however, could notice the stones before they hit the roof with noise and crash. Another time it was seen how stones also flew from the ground and fell onto the roof with great force. Pastor Gainisch writes the following about this: “I saw several stones fly from the garden gate onto the roof, having first described a semicircle near the barn, which is completely unnatural for ordinary stone throwing.” In the same way, the speed of movement is not natural, and the sudden cessation of increased energy can only be explained by transcendental physics. “I remember,” continues Pastor Gainish, “that sometimes it was visible where the stones were coming from, and sometimes not, and sometimes, despite the fact that the stones flew very slowly, their fall onto the roof was, however, accompanied by great noise and crackling.” He further says: “We were all forced, to our great embarrassment, to see with our own eyes how stones flew with incredible speed through the windows, now from outside to inside, now from inside to outside, and we were never able to see a stone before it flew through the window with a crash. When we were in the room, near the window, at the very time when the stones were flying in, then, despite the fact that the glass was breaking into pieces with great force, the stones immediately fell to the floor, right next to the windows, as if tired or held by someone. When I was once walking up the stairs to the top floor, and a stone was falling from above my head, the servant standing below screamed, fearing that the stone would hit me or her; however, without touching any of us, it flew down and instead of falling in a straight line to the floor, it flew out with great energy through the window of the lower floor, thus describing “a semicircle or forming an angle” 188 . During the Minhoff Knocks, one day more than sixty people saw stones weighing from 1/4 to 15 pounds fly out from under the kitchen benches and, having described almost three-quarters of a circle, then fly out through a window located in the very wall where the benches stood. Household items of all kinds also flew; Some of them, despite their large volume and speed of movement, stopped in the window panes, others only lightly touched the glass and fell vertically to the floor. The people on whom large stones fell, to their utter amazement, felt only slight impacts, and the stones themselves fell vertically to the floor. Everything that the family tried to protect from damage by taking it out of the kitchen was torn out of their hands and thrown away. One of those present was hit on the head with a 3/4 pound iron kitchen spoon, and the blow was only slightly felt by him 189 . A certain Aschauer, a teacher of mathematics and physics, who examined the entire house and the lightning rod with an electroscope, vouches for the authenticity of all the phenomena described above 190 . During the Klapotiven knocks, things as they fell, as they say, also described semicircles 191. As you know, police searches, even in ordinary cases, have significance only when they are confirmed by the investigating judge. From this it is clear that in such cases, where phenomena are physically impossible, the police are not at all in their place; on the contrary, every student of a technical school knows that the human hand is only able to throw a thing in a straight line, which, according to the laws of gravity, can only bend downwards and not upwards, as happened in the cases described above. The matter, therefore, is either about transcendental physics or about the hands of ghosts. This is a task, the solution of which, again, is not the job of the police. In the same way, any natural scientist could easily notice that the sudden interruption with which the described phenomena cease is already sufficient proof of their unnatural origin. The naturalist Wallace, in his description of the mysterious phenomena in Sideville, says that the hammer, being thrown by an invisible hand in the middle of the room, fell to the floor without any knock, as if someone had calmly laid it down 192. Particular attention is paid to the fact that when any object falls on a living person, it only slightly touches him without causing harm 193 . This is repeated in all reports of mysterious phenomena of this kind. Cuillaume d'Auvergne also mentions that demonic stone throwing rarely or never harmed people 194 . Despite all the terrible throwing of stones in the Rue de Gres in Paris, no one, however, was injured 195. During the so-called Tedworth knocks, a stake was thrown by an invisible hand at one preacher, but he touched him no more than a bundle of wool would have done 196. In Kabsdorf a 14-pound mortar was thrown at a woman, but without any harm. Various dangerous objects were also thrown at others present, but the blows were felt as if from the touch of a sponge 197 . Phenomena of this kind in Colmar lasted for twenty years, but the local residents were not at all worried, because they did not harm anyone 198. The daughter of the lawyer Yoller, while one day at the well, suddenly saw a whole rain of stones around her, but not a single one of these stones touched her 199 . Sometimes the force of the fall of flying things, even when falling on inanimate objects, encounters obstacles along the way. About the mentioned Klapotiven knocks they say this: “A round stone appeared from somewhere, with incredible speed it rushed between the heads of those present, partly in the room, partly in the kitchen, and, falling on the table, broke a bottle, and itself remained right there on the table” 200. Since it is very difficult to find any specific purpose among the perpetrators of such phenomena, we involuntarily dwell on their connection with spiritualism. This is also confirmed by the fact that throwing stones is very often just an episode among other various kinds of phenomena of spiritualistic origin. The incident described by Yoller, which was already mentioned above, began with loud knocks, which subsequently appeared at the request of those present; then it came to materialized hands and faces, visible to everyone, and, finally, the flight of stones began. In Remigius's description we find that a naked hand was visible, throwing various objects, and once even a whole figure 201 was visible. In cases in which stones were thrown, they tried to enter into relations with invisible culprits, as is done in spiritualistic séances. One description from 1656 says: Mr. Tournay took a stone that fell at his feet, marked it with coal and threw it into the far corner of the house, but the stone was instantly thrown back, and when Mr. Tournay picked it up, it turned out to be hot, or rather as if it had flown from hell 202. During the mysterious apparitions that occurred in Jawa in 1836, the overseer of an indigo factory, while sitting in the yard in a cart, was pelted with earth and dung; and when he was in his room, buffalo bones and even once a whole skull fell from somewhere. These bones fell vertically from above and became visible only a few feet above the floor, and did not harm anyone. The regent from Sukanura, who once spent the night in this restless house, marked several of the adjacent stones with a line or a cross and threw them into a nearby mountain stream, but a minute later the same stones flew back wet 203. Both in the above and in many other cases, we see that throwing stones has a connection with the bringing of things known in spiritualistic séances; and what is especially characteristic is that, both at seances and here, phenomena occur at the request of those present. The above-mentioned Aschauer, during the Ming knocks, once said to a stranger who came into the house: “What would you say if this cup, without our help, were thrown in the opposite direction?” - before he had time to finish the phrase, the cup instantly flew from its place 204. Having the opportunity to enter into communication with the rational perpetrators of this type of phenomena, we thereby acquire a reliable way to firmly establish their spiritualistic character, as long as the phenomena occur at will, be it bringing things to séances or throwing stones and other objects in restless houses, as long as it is an action that excludes the participation of a living being in it. But since it is usually not spiritists who are competent in such matters who are invited to investigate the phenomena mentioned, but gendarmes and lawyers who are completely helpless about this problem, it is not surprising that always in such cases, as it is not difficult to imagine, reasoning is of such a kind that even a person’s brain can easily go crazy. But, in addition to the inability to investigate the causes of the phenomena, there is also a fear of unfairly convicting someone in these cases. We should always remember that mysterious phenomena in restless houses can be equally anemic as spiritualistic ones, that is, they occur either with the help of known forces of invisible intermediaries, or with the help of unknown forces of living intermediaries. In the latter case, the phenomena occur, however, to a weaker degree and often in connection with the mediator being in ecstasy. This analogy, according to spiritualist theory, is one of the proofs that the invisible culprits are dead people, for the abnormal forces of the living are the normal forces of the dead 205. If the phenomena in restless houses are anemic, that is, if they occur only in the presence of a medium, then a lawyer who is not initiated into spiritualism and somnambulism will consider the medium to be the culprit for the restless phenomena, which, in essence, is nothing more than a condition of the phenomena and, moreover, on his part, completely unconsciously. An uninitiated person in this kind of matter will not pay attention to the fact that there is a difficult riddle to be solved here, and will innocently condemn the medium, although the basis for such a condemnation will be a lack of logical thinking. The times will come when the concepts of such phenomena will become more general, and spiritualists and natural scientists will be the first to be attracted to their research. The latter will have to observe phenomena that will prompt them to look into transcendental physics and chemistry. Since spiritualism is also based on established laws, although on those that are not discussed in university departments, then here too we find phenomena with such signs that as yet cannot be explained. It was already described above that, during the Masconian mysterious phenomena, one of the thrown stones was completely hot; the same thing happened in other places. During the Portsmouth apparitions in 1682, windows were broken by stones that came not from outside, but from inside the house. Some of them were so hot, as if they had jumped straight out of the fire 206. Perhaps the reason for these phenomena is the same for which stones, as is known, arrived dry during rain 207, and in other cases smoking 208. It is the responsibility of natural scientists, when observing such cases, to also pay attention to whether these are local stones, located at hand, or flown from somewhere. In most cases, the stones are local, for example in Hevigna, where more than fifty people watched as bricks were torn off the roof, stones from the fireplace and clods of dirt from the ground, and from a distance of several meters they hit one young girl 209 . In other cases, the place where the stones came from has not been discovered, and there is reason to assume that they belong to the “offerings” with all the mystery inherent in these “offerings”. It happened, for example, that the flight of objects could not be traced along their entire path, but only from a known point. During the Liverpool Mystery Apparitions, a house was bombarded with stones and coal for two days; all attacks were directed against the same window, which was finally destroyed. However, the police were not even able to trace the direction from which the stones came 210. During the apparitions in Iawa, Major Michiels, experienced in research, covered the entire room with canvas, turning it into a tent, so that there was no hole in it. Despite this, stones fell from above and became visible only at a short distance from the floor. One day a fruit called papaya fell into the room, and when searched in the neighbourhood, the tree and branch from which the fruit was plucked 211 were discovered. Gerstecker reported in 1871 that such phenomena are not uncommon in Java, and especially in Indian countries. Local residents have a special name for these phenomena: Gendarua 212. During disturbances in the church house in Groben, stones flew onto the roof from the yard, where there had been no stones before. Some stones seemed to be torn off from the stone walls and, nevertheless, the walls remained intact; on the contrary, in another case, when one girl was pursued by a rain of stones, the stones, just touching her, fell to the ground, but immediately disappeared and could not be found 213. In a word, here, as in the bringing of various things to the sessions, we are faced with a riddle: either recognize four-dimensional space, or the materialization and dematerialization of objects. All the circumstances surrounding the stone-throwing of ghosts point, therefore, to the legitimate existence of transcendental physics. If, in spite of this, we decide in advance that all these phenomena are carried out by malicious living people, as the police usually do, then we will then face the kind of human impossibility that exactly occurs in cases of throwing stones, or we will face such useless work that the attackers recklessly complicate it for themselves, as happens when heating flying stones. Zellner 214 also noticed similar elevated temperatures in spiritualistic seances, and this is simply based on molecular changes in bodies. What I would like, adds du Prel in conclusion, is the following: in order to take all possible measures to clarify what is happening in the described adventures, the police can, in any case, be involved. But once at least one of those extraordinary phenomena described above has already been proven, then the police can calmly go home, which is what they usually do sooner or later. Actually, the study of phenomena concerns spiritualists and natural scientists. Natural scientists, generally speaking, have no right to keep themselves aloof, for by proclaiming the unity and transformation of all forces, natural scientists themselves have found themselves in mysticism. In cases similar to those described above, they can learn something new and even very interesting things, the practical assessment of which is only a matter of time. As for spiritualists, instead of being useless spectators, they should be involved in establishing, where possible, a method of investigation, the only one applicable in troubled houses. Any participation of lawyers must be eliminated not only in the name of humanity and protecting mediums from undeserved condemnations, but also in the name of promoting science, which remains motionless, thanks to the fact that scientists, against all abnormal natural phenomena, like an ostrich, hide their beak in the sand and remain in ignorance, in which they live so sweetly and do not need to sit down on the school bench again. (See Psychischc Studien, November 1894. S. n. Rebus 1895, no. 21–22). 19. Thoughts about the relationship of evil spirits to humans. Every believing Christian who tries to live piously, according to faith, must expect, among other things, that heavy, bitter attack of the devil, the object of which will be the theft of faith from the heart, so that he, having believed, will not be saved (let him who does not believe be saved). If, with God's help, a person has managed to cut off many passions and addictions with which the devil tempts us as the most available, most convenient means, then he rushes into the very depths of our being, tries to establish his dominion in the heart and there, like a skilled master of destruction, undermines the very foundation of our life - faith. It is difficult to fight when faith, so to speak, is torn out of the heart: then the very support of the struggle is lost, all moral strength is taken away, because faith is our strength and our victory, as the apostle says: “This is the victory that has overcome the world, our faith.” So what is victory without faith? How we must stand in faith, take courage, and strengthen ourselves! One day Satan approached the Savior and said to Him: “Give me Your disciples, so that I can sow them like wheat.” Soon after this, the Savior said to Peter: “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan asks you to sow you like wheat; I have prayed for you, so that your faith will not fail: and once you have turned, strengthen your brethren.” These are the temptations our envious person sometimes indulges in: he tries, as if to scatter through the air, our good and holy thoughts, sometimes collected with great difficulty, to tear faith out of our hearts and scatter it in all four directions, so that, having believed, we will not be saved. And how noticeable in us is often the trace of a dark force that is intensifying to destroy all good in us! In the most important, decisive moments, requiring unshakable faith, this holy child of heaven sometimes breaks out of our heart; We look for it and, to our shame, we do not find it, and with it we lose the support for a good life. Who will pray for us, so that our faith does not become weak under such temptations? Divine Savior. Just as You prayed for Peter, that his faith might not fail, so in us, Lord, kindle Your faith according to Your unconditional goodness and strengthen it in us, so that I may not go away disgraced from Your presence, and may I not somehow cause temptation to Your people, and may I not destroy some from them with my unsteadiness in faith. A person who allows passions, the offspring of the devil, to live in his heart, little by little becomes infected with satanic pride, which makes it difficult for a person to turn to virtue. Such is sin that, no matter what it touches, it certainly has pride as its companion. It has been generally noticed that a sinner, during the action of his passions, does not easily realize that he is a great sinner, but that he does not seem to be doing anything particularly reprehensible, that he is supposedly right in his so-called passions. The presence of the spirit of darkness in a person is revealed by darkness, darkness in the head, confusion, fear, despondency, and heavy languor in the heart. But its presence is more noticeable in the heart: it spirals, tightens it with hellish rivets. Those who have experienced it know this. He begins his actions from the heart and from there extends them to the mind, imagination and memory, extremely constricting the circle of their actions through obscuring them. A person exposed to its action is usually blind in broad daylight, like a bat: with open eyes he sees almost nothing except the object of his passion, if an evil spirit has entered him through some passion; It’s as if nothing exists for him. The darkening of thoughts, the rebellion of thoughts brought upon a person by the devil, is mentioned in the prayer of water blessing at the Sacrament of Baptism, and many know from experience before receiving the Holy Mysteries, when the devil especially attacks us in order to deprive us of the fruits of Communion. The confusion and fear that comes to us from the devil is mentioned in the prayer of Basil the Great at Great Vespers. It is driven out of the soul by fervent prayer and the sign of the cross, placed with faith on the toes and belly. In this case, it is easy to notice the moment of his exit. (See the book: “Knowledge of God and self-knowledge, acquired from experience,” Archpriest I. I. Sergiev, St. Petersburg, 1900, pp. 58, 80, 94). 20. About the so-called exordia. Even the peoples of the pre-Christian world, and especially the peoples of the East, always recognized the existence of evil spirits as an undoubted fact. Along with this belief, from the depths of pre-Christian antiquity, there was also a belief that evil spirits, as beings stronger than humans, can take possession of the latter, can inhabit him and cause him various suffering. At the same time, however, the same pre-Christian peoples recognized as certain that a person who was possessed by demons could get rid of their torment through spells invoking the name of God. Belief in all this, we repeat, was universal in the east, and therefore, even before the advent of Christianity among many peoples of eastern countries, we encounter the existence of spells and exorcists, that is, persons who expelled evil spirits. In support of this, we can refer to the testimony of Josephus, who says that in Judea there were many exorcists who cast out demons through a certain kind of action. With the coming of Jesus Christ, faith in the possibility of a person being overcome by an evil spirit and in the possibility of deliverance from this received even greater reinforcement. Jesus Christ Himself repeatedly healed those possessed by demons and at the same time gave both the apostles and all those who believe in Him the power to drive out demons from people possessed by them. Speaking the promise to believers, He, among other things, said: “In My name demons will be given birth” (Mark 16:17). And the apostles, indeed, used the power given to them and not only cast out evil spirits themselves, but even their things healed those possessed by demons (Acts 19:12). With the cessation of the activities of these witnesses to the earthly life of the Savior, their power over unclean spirits passed to their immediate successors, the shepherds of the Church, who used and use it in necessary cases, using spells. However, at first, as can be seen from numerous testimonies of antiquity, spells were performed mainly by those believers who received a special gift from God for this purpose. But in the 3rd century, special persons appeared whose duty it was to conjure demons, which is why they received the name exorcists (exrcista). These persons received initiation to fulfill their position (Laod. pr. 26) and constituted one of the degrees of clergy of the ancient Church. This degree, as a transitional one, however, has been retained in the Western Church to this day (See Pntific. Roman, de ordination. Exorcist.), while in the Eastern Church the duties of exorcists are assigned to priests. What did the spells consist of and consist of? In ancient times, we do not find a specific order of exorcism of demons: they generally conjured in the name of God, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and laid hands on the possessed. But over time, a special order of spells was compiled in both the Western and Eastern Churches, from which the Russian Church borrowed this order. In the latter we find actually two orders of spells: one is Northern Russian, representing a literal translation of the Greek order, the other is South Russian, created under the influence of the order of Catholic rituals and called the order of “zkzordia”, although in the Southern Russian and Uniate breviaries it bore the following name: “The prayer service for the deliverance of the ailing person from the overwhelm and violence of unclean spirits” (see. “Trebn. Lviv,” 1768, l. 373; “Trebn. Pochaev,” 1771, l. In the missals of the Orthodox Church, approved by the Holy Synod for general use, it is inscribed as follows: “A prayer service for the weak, overwhelmed by unclean spirits and cold” (Bolsh. Treb., Moscow, 1862, l. 173). So, from what has been said, it follows that the power to cast out demons belongs to every priest, that for the exorcism of demons in the Orthodox Church there is a special rite, usually placed in the so-called Great Breviary, and that there is absolutely nothing strange or illegal in the reading by a priest of special prayers to cast out demons. To this we need to add only one piece of advice - the pastor of the Church must be very careful not to mistake the nervous disorder that occurs in the so-called cliques, or even pretense, or hysterical illnesses for demonic possession 215 . 21. The beginnings of the cult of Satan in Europe. It is significant, but quite logical, that after the denial of the existence of God, a kind of cult of Satan, “the god of this age,” appears on the scene. In Paris, statues and figurines of satans and crouching red devils appear and gradually become fashionable. The public walking by, including children, stopped, admiring it; They decorate their offices with them. In 1871, Count Bismarck negotiated with the French Minister, Jules Favre, for the surrender of Paris in the study of the country house of some wealthy Parisian, where a large statue of Satan towered over the fireplace. The fashion for depicting the spirit of darkness even spread to children’s toys and costumes: metal buttons for children’s costumes with small “dragons” carved on them, toys of a jumping devil in a bottle of liquid appeared. There was even a satirical newspaper called “Satan,” an idea that found imitators in literature. In 1893, the play “Madame Satan” was performed in Paris. Here Satan appears on stage, in the form of a boulevard Parisian, and his wife, who begins an affair with a clerk from “Magasins de Lovre”. There is a house in Paris with the sign “Enfer” (hell) - a kind of hotel with a large hall; everything that is vicious in Paris gathers here. The decoration corresponds to the name of the place: all the servants are in black clothes. Socialists also come here to preach their teachings. Paris is known to be a trendsetter. Every new product is transferred across the Rhine, to Brussels, Berlin and beyond. In 1890, on the occasion of the resignation of Prince Bismarck, for the birthday of his wife, signs of sympathy were sent to him from all over Germany: telegrams, letters, precious gifts. Among the parcels was one box sent from Berlin. It contained a figure carved from wood and depicting the devil in an elegant costume of the 17th century. In his right hand, covered with suede, Mephistopheles held a letter from a certain Berlin resident, which explained that he had taken this exemplary work from Italy and, considering this figurine the best decoration of his home, dared to present it to the prince’s wife 217. As an echo of Parisian fashion, figurines of devils began to appear in the windows of shops on Nevsky Prospekt in St. Petersburg. “For some time they disappeared, but in November 1893, walking along Nevsky, we,” says N. Astafiev, author of the brochure “The Spirit of the Times,” “stopped in amazement at the window of R.’s store. Before our eyes there was a whole group of black and red devils dancing to music, other devils with trumpets, Turkish drums and kettledrums; from behind, a giant figure of Satan dominates everyone, bending over, taking a step forward, smiling sarcastically, with a tall torch in his hand; behind him are six light figures, each with a small torch of the same type; before Satan there are two - a performance. There, near the Gostiny Dvor, you constantly see a figurine of a devil jumping in a bubble, under the innocent name of “American Resident,” and at one of the theaters, in 1891–1894, the operettas “Devils on Earth” and “The Secret of Satan” were performed. At another theater, on Easter Day, April 13, 1897, we gave a performance of “The Demon.” We were told that at one time Russian ladies decorated their dresses with images of dragons and devils, perhaps seeing originality in this. Newspapers publish (for example, in 1886) advertisements from the Sh. tobacco factory about a new variety of high-quality cigarettes called “Demon.” In 1898, at an art exhibition in St. Petersburg, a demon’s head was displayed between the works of sculpture.” Thus, whether through the whim of spoiled taste, which gradually became fashionable, or through satire or amusement, the gloomy image of Satan is popularized; he no longer frightens, he becomes familiar and sympathetic. Along with this, the most sacred names are profaned: one of the theaters in Paris was given the name “Eden Theatre” (Eden), and blasphemous caricatures of Jesus Christ were exhibited on its streets 218. From imitation, probably, theaters with the same name appeared in Hamburg, St. Petersburg, Kyiv, and Nizhny Novgorod. On one of the streets of St. Petersburg, above a toy store there is an inscription: “Children's Paradise.” (See brochure “On the spirit of the times”, N. Astafieva, St. Petersburg, 1899, pp. 7–10). 22. Worship of Satan in Freemasonry 219. Spiritual life is expressed in unique communal forms, stronger and more durable than state ones, living a unique and original life. As the bearer of the ideal, the Church must have a guiding influence on human society. In the space of centuries one can see how many states with their state ideals collapsed, how people one after another left the historical stage, filling it with splendor and glory, and at the same time the Church, persecuted or triumphant, remained in its place, consoling the vanquished, trying to harmonize the tasks of new historical figures with its eternal ideal. The reason for the separation of the Churches of the East and West was the infection of the western half of the Universal Church by the state principle of a single power, which was introduced into church life by the Roman patriarchs of the West. Having assigned himself the title of vicar of the Triune God on earth, the pope had to demand recognition of his infallibility, which conceals in its depths complete sinlessness, and, consequently, unconditional power over human conscience. The Western world is split into shepherds and flocks. The internal connection between them was broken, for the first were given power, the second were condemned to obedience alone, and the will of the Roman ruler became the law for both. In such a situation, clashes between the pope and the state, between free will and external authority, became inevitable. It was followed by the disintegration of the Western Church. The abuse of church authority for purposes alien to the Church caused a terrible push in the opposite direction. Protestantism rejected authority, gave free rein to personal reasoning, and made everyone their own pope. The limitations of this principle turned out to be so untenable that in its own depths Protestantism was fragmented into many private divisions and sects, which, having taken the path of rationalism, reach the denial of the very foundations of Christianity, to Semitic deism, to pantheism, to utilitarianism, which does not need any religion as such, to complete and outright atheism. Western Christianity is uncontrollably going down, losing at each step of the fatal ladder one Christian belief after another, blinded by external material culture, which also seduces those peoples alien to it, who, partly out of a sense of self-preservation, are seduced by its successes. At the last stage visible today, the Western peoples, at least the classes leading them, reach the point of completely denying Christianity, which allegedly disagrees with the fold that their spiritual, namely mental, rationalistic development has acquired... Everything that is forever inaccessible to reason is subjected to merciless denial. The leader of historical life must be reason, directing active life exclusively to the well-being of the majority. Confucius preached to his hardworking Chinese anthill to think more about the current needs of modern life and not to deal with theological issues: Western European progress directly rejected church life as an experienced theological period that constitutes one heritage of history. The economic prosperity of the masses is declared to be the essence of the historical life of mankind. Thought fell from the mountain heights and, along the ladder along which it strove upward, rushed down to matter, mocking the previous transcendental tasks. But at this stage, suddenly, with astonishing surprise, a whole series of incomprehensible phenomena contradicting the prevailing worldviews burst into the apparently emerging kingdom of the “enlightened” mind. The light of religion was extinguished with great zeal, introducing the darkness of religious ignorance; and so, from this darkness, dark, unknown forces began to appear, the existence of which rationalism attributes to ignorance and superstition. These forces, like a nightmare, fell upon the confused and faithless Western man. They were personified in forms that defied systematic research. Unknown creatures showed superhuman power, beyond the control and denial of all those empirical conclusions that are called the laws of nature. One after another, rationalistic objections collapsed, and ridicule of superstitions as a legacy of semi-savage or medieval life fell silent; on the contrary, damage, the evil eye, clairvoyance, all-permeability, suggestion, incomprehensible objective phenomena provided such a mass of facts, attested not only by reliable witnesses, but also by strictly scientific observations, that there can be no talk of unfounded denial. The unknown factor, apparently breaking into life more and more often, is of a predominant spiritual nature, manifests itself as an expedient force, acts primarily on the spiritual side of a person and through his will; he needs communication with the soul and gradualness in order to develop the power of his manifestations; to see them, you need to have faith. Faith was needed from below just as it was needed on the path to grief. Thus, this terrible power essentially belongs to the realm of religion and is given through religious processes - ecstasy (trance) and revelation. At the same time, a number of witnesses establish its anti-Christian character. Not only Christian believers present during such experiments, but also objects of Christian worship turn out to be an obstacle to the successful outcome of these experiments. In view of such amazing phenomena, they began to revise the ridiculed “superstitions” of past centuries and, to great amazement, found that modern supernatural phenomena exactly correspond to what was recognized as the childish gullibility of the times of ignorance, as deceptive witchcraft, for the erroneous recognition of psychiatric phenomena as the actions of evil spirits: this evil spirit manifested itself again and, moreover, on a vast, hitherto unobserved scale, as if finding for itself There is now a more receptive and prepared environment than ever before. In the full swing of materialistic aspirations and a mechanical worldview, spiritualism suddenly arose, and, moreover, in a negative form, as a principle opposite to the teachings of positive religion, as hostile to this religion. While experts were studying the physical and mental aspects of the facts given by observation, mystics and those thirsting for faith found out the demonic nature of the new trend and formed into various groups of a religious nature, established a hierarchy, and recreated new magic in a number of rituals. These societies, the clear establishment of which in Western Europe was confirmed already in the first half of the 18th century, went on, multiplying, and, gradually entering into communication, are heading towards merging into one. To characterize the described phenomenon in its entirety, it is customary to call it occultism. The society, which has now spread its network throughout the entire cultural world, not excluding the Muslim, Indian, Chinese worlds, but, remarkably, has not found sympathy only in the Orthodox and Eastern Christian ones, is called Masonic, but it has not yet completely united all its lodges; In addition, next to it there are societies devoted to occultism that are not part of the Masonic organization, but the weakness of their organization inevitably leads them to absorption into Freemasonry. The Society of "Freemasons", or the Order of Freemasons, traces its origins to the medieval corporations of masons, builders of Gothic cathedrals and to the Order of the Templars, the Templars. The former allegedly inherited traditions, secretly passed down from generation to generation from the builders of Solomon's Temple, along with rituals and external differences (aprons, compasses, hammers, etc.). The latter are credited with the true knowledge of God, preserved in secret and untouched since the time of Solomon and acquired by the Templars in the east. Paul Rosen, a former Freemason, reports that in the 12th century in the east there was a Christian sect of Johannists who gave the Gospel only an allegorical meaning. Their leader, Theocletus, initiated into the mysteries of the Ionists the knight Hugues Payan (Reuen), the Master of the Templars, established in 1118, and transferred to him the leadership of the sect. Thus, the Templars professed Gnosticism, and their teaching passed on to the Freemasons, and was reflected in the “church rite” (le rite templier) of 1543. The Ioanists are also known as Mandants and still exist in Persia and Mesopotamia. Their teaching is a strange mixture of Manichaeism, Christianity and paganism. Loe Taxil in his book “Les mysteres de la Franc Maconnerie” attributes the depravity of the Templars to the influence of Muslims on them, especially the Ishmaelites, whose creed was formed under the influence of Manichaeism. The Templars secretly worshiped the idol Baphomet. This name is complicated, according to the archbishop. Merena, from the Greek words: “Vafi” - immersion and “Metis” - wisdom and means: “baptism of wisdom.” Hammer found up to twelve of these “Baphomet heads” and made out the Greek, Arabic and Latin inscriptions that were on them. “Metis” - wisdom, is depicted on these idols under the guise of a human with signs of both sexes and is accompanied by the letter “tav”, i.e. the Egyptian phallus, serpent, sun, moon, radiant star, apron, seven-branched candlestick, etc. The same symbols, hieroglyphs and inscriptions are found on castles, churches and tombs of the Templars. The order was destroyed by Pope Clement V after a lengthy process. The Templars were accused of criminal relations with infidels against Christian sovereigns, in alliance with the Abyssinians, in a conspiracy to overthrow all the royal thrones in Europe, in the renunciation of Christ, in spitting and trampling on the Cross, which they did on Fridays, and outrageous debauchery, in the burning of children born from the Templars, in magic, in oaths. to unquestioningly carry out every command of the Grand Master, to consider everything permissible, which leads to the benefit of the order, and especially not to reveal the terrible secrets of their nightly meetings, under the threat of cruel punishments. The Templars, captured with the Grand Master, were tortured; and they obeyed, with few exceptions. The Grand Master and several dozen knights who did not confess were burned in 1314; the rest took advantage of permission to join other knightly orders. It is clear that torture undermines confidence in the sincerity of confessions. The Templars suffered the same fate in England, Italy and most of the German states. Several French knights took refuge in Scotland, under the protection of the king, and founded a convention in Kilwining. As a reward for assistance in the Battle of Bannekburn, King Robert the Bruce turned this convention into the knightly Order of St. Andrew's Rhein, otherwise called the Order of Herodom. Another chapter of the order was established at York. According to Masonic writers, the knights secretly brought their idol of Baphomet to Scotland. The chapters in Kilwinning and York served as the basis for the first Masonic lodges, and from there Freemasonry spread throughout Europe and America. In 1801 Baphomet was transferred to Charleston in America, located at 33° latitude, chosen because Freemasonry is divided into 33 degrees. Baphomet in the Charleston church constitutes the palladium of Freemasonry, the center of its highest degrees, whose members were called Palladists. The Templar Order, represented by its main representatives, died in the flames of the fires, firmly denying the accusation of heretical teachings. Freemasonry, having declared itself the legitimate heir of the order by uninterrupted succession, developed in its secret teachings and symbolic rituals exactly what constituted the essence of the accusations: hatred of the Christian Church and monarchical power. Although the assimilation of some symbols indicates a connection between modern Freemasonry and the Templar Order, nevertheless, the name of the order and reliable documents indicate the direct origin of Masonic lodges from medieval corporations of masons. Recent historians of Freemasonry 220 have discovered the influence of medieval heretical and mystical teachings on the religious life of mason corporations. The Albigensians, Waldensians, Apostolic Brothers, Lyons poor, Beigards and Beguins found refuge in these corporations from the persecution of the inquisitors, entering the corporation as lovers of labor and bringing with them the doctrine of the spiritual creation of a church to God in the human soul, the symbol of which should be the creation of stone Gothic cathedrals. At their best, the medieval mystical sects followed their own path, parallel to the Church, without merging with it, but in most cases they were directly hostile to it. The Albigensians, direct followers of Eastern Paulicianism and Manichaeism, recognized the invisible world and the soul as the creation of one, and the visible world and the body as the work of another god; all church teaching is false, the government is tyranny, the criterion of truth is the free interpretation of Holy Scripture, not subject to the authority of the Church; They denied marriage and property in principle. Their sacraments were kept in the greatest secrecy, and admission to them was preceded by many years of trial. The sect elders were carefully hidden. The Kafars, another branch of Manichaeism, spread along the Rhine in Westphalia. Revolting against the Church, they at the same time declared themselves determined enemies of the feudal nobility. At the same time, a similar phenomenon is represented by patars in France, where the carpenter Durand founded in 1181 a society of “brothers in white hats”, whose goal was to transform the entire social system on the principles of equality and fraternity. These revolutionaries enjoyed the full sympathy of the Jews and in turn considered them their brothers. Mutual sympathy arose not only from a common hatred of the oppressive social conditions of the time, but was also rooted in the similarity of teachings. The eastern elements of sectarianism contained the same ancient teachings of the Gnostics and Manichaeans, to which Kabbalah, which also developed under the influence of Alexandrian Gnosticism, was not alien. The persecution scattered the sectarians and broke their ties with the Jews, but this break was temporary, although long-lasting. By joining mason corporations, hidden heretics brought with them a spirit of protest against the medieval Church and feudal society, reformation and revolutionary aspirations. The activities of German corporations covered, in addition to Germany, Holland, Belgium and England, the countries richest in religious diversity in the Middle Ages. Masons, coming to a foreign land, united in fraternities or joined similar local unions, which in England already in the 15th century were called building lodges and existed there from time immemorial, perhaps already in the Roman era. Particularly significant was the migration of German masons to England in the last thirty years of the 17th century. Nowhere, however, has Freemasonry, transplanted from England, been greeted with such sympathy and experienced such a turbulent history as in France. The ostentatious humanitarian goals of Freemasonry coincided with the ideals of the “Age of Enlightenment” and secured the sympathy of progressive people. The Grand Lodge of France was established in 1726 by the deputy of the Grand Lodge of England, Count. Deventueter in Paris. In 1726, Ramsay founded the Scottish Doge in Arras and put Chevalier Delagno and Robespierre, the father of Maximilian Robespierre, at its head. With extraordinary speed Freemasonry became an all-powerful fashion. To be a Freemason meant to stand at the level of modern liberalism and freethinking, and became a sign of decency and enlightenment. The nobility and bourgeoisie flocked en masse to the boxes, where class lines were blurred under workers' aprons; where ceremonies and mysterious rites promised some tempting deep meaning of real truth to many dissatisfied with the dry materialistic teachings of the age; where, finally, the tribunal was hidden in secret, invested, in addition to vision, also with power, about the power of which exaggerated ideas were created. At the court of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, only the king and queen were not Freemasons. But the French lodges were not distinguished by either the conservatism or restraint of the English ones, led by people of the upper classes, not disposed to democratic hobbies and obvious violations of respectability. The elastic program of society in France soon expressed itself in such actions that brought Vatican thunder and legal persecution against the Freemasons. In 1767 the lodges were closed by royal decree, but continued to exist secretly, and in 1772 they were allowed again, in 1789. in France there were already up to 700 lodges, headed by the Grand Orient (Le Grand Orient de France), under the control of the Duke of Orleans (later citizen Philippe Egalite). The lodges were centers of the revolutionary movement. Victoriously succeeding politically, successfully spreading among the bourgeoisie and through it gaining predominant influence in representative governments - which is especially evident in France and Italy - Freemasonry is the sworn enemy of the monarchy and the Church. His innermost political ideal is a bourgeois republic, in which the principles of freedom, fraternity and, in particular, equality have a very conditional meaning. In this regard, the democratic tendencies of medieval workers' brotherhoods and corporations were subjected to a radical, specifically English reworking in England and, in a new form, were adopted from England by Western Europe. But, having undermined the monarchical principles, Freemasonry collided with the Church and Christianity. From the very beginning, Freemasonry had a negative attitude towards the Church and Christianity, however, not a single society that claims to dominate and spread can survive on denials alone. You cannot move away from Christianity and the Church that embodies it and remain, so to speak, on the high road. To some extent, such a situation is possible only for a few individuals, individuals who act and live spiritually in isolation; for the mass of people united for social restructuring, they need their own God, their own symbol, their own ritual. Neither the dubious traditions of the Templars, nor the vague remnants of medieval mysticism and Manichaeism presented a satisfactory system of beliefs and the cult corresponding to it. In this regard, the natural and ever-present allies of all the enemies of Christ's Church and Christian culture came to the aid of Freemasonry - the Jews, who until 1782 were denied access to Masonic lodges, into which they made every effort to penetrate. Comte Mirabeau, returning from Germany, instilled Illuminism into the political aspirations of French Freemasonry. The birthplace of great Christian mystics, overwhelmed by Protestant anarchy in the field of beliefs, Germany has always been a fertile ground for the development of mystical sects and secret societies, often of an immoral nature. Professor Weishaupt is considered the founder of Illuminism in the middle of the 18th century in Germany. His society was closed for discovered immorality. At the same time as Weishaupt, the Spanish Jew Martinez Pascalis, the founder of Martinism, was active in France. Illuminism and Martinism are rooted in the pantheistic teachings of Kabbalah, but had, however, not only a theoretical philosophical character, but also a practical religious one; they were not a doctrine, but a heresy. The passionate political struggle into which French Freemasonry was drawn could not drown out questions of faith after the destruction of the French Church. Martinism and Illuminism made an unsuccessful attempt to introduce a religious element into the negative teachings of the French lodges. The preacher of the new dogmatics was Martinez Pascalis. Only recently have some of his works been made public. His teaching is mainly known from the writings of Saint-Martin, his main student and follower, although this latter was not fully privy to the thoughts of his teacher. Martínez Pascales added to the theoretical instructions worship and rituals that served as a symbol of his dogmatics. He taught that the goal of earthly life is human perfection, achieved through communication with higher spirits who directly contemplate the deity, and with their assistance. Guided by these spirits, every believer can achieve divine adoption and deification. Communication is established through the performance of rituals prescribed by Martinez. According to Saint-Martin, Pascalis preached the salvation of a “fallen being” (Petre pervers). This salvation is the responsibility of the “first man” (the Kabbalistic Adam Kadmon), and every enlightened Illuminati must continue the obligatory work of his forefather. Freemasonry began with religious indifferentism and deism. It should be noted that the first Masonic Rule was printed under a Hebrew title. Then, under the influence of the Jew, the Martinists turned to the teachings of Kabbalah. A sympathetic attitude towards the “fallen being” arises. Dennitsa-Lucifer becomes a champion of freedom, a revolutionary against the King of Heaven, an enemy of despotism, from the one being saved he becomes a savior, a bearer of light, to whom the final victory should belong. His sphere is pure flame. In the fiery atmosphere, Satan rejoices with the hordes of his spirits and his chosen ones. Lucifer is proclaimed to be a god, whom the Masons worship in secret meetings, and often appears among them in a visible form; Sacrifices are made to him, blasphemous and outrageous orgies are performed in his honor. One might think that in our time the most wicked teachings and sacraments of the long-vanished Carpocratists, Ophites and Cainites have been revived in Masonic lodges. The central temple of Satan is the Masonic Temple in Charlestown, but even there the ceremonies of the cult are guarded in strict secrecy, and only Masons of the highest degrees are allowed to attend them. In the same way, the meetings of Masons in the main lodges of Europe and America are kept secret. Masons of the lower degrees quite sincerely deny reports of abominations committed by Luciferians, i.e., the highest degrees of the order. Masons avoid correspondence about their affairs. Lemmy, the head of the Italian lodge, according to Margiotti, is being carried away from Rome to Charleston with the help of evil spirits. Immodesty is punished by death, and the culprits always remain undetected. It is remarkable that the highest degrees of Freemasonry bear Hebrew names, and the liturgical hymns published by Watay are written in the Hebrew language. Every year Charleston receives huge contributions of money from the Freemasons. The financial administration of Freemasonry is concentrated in Berlin, the German-Jewish bankers belong to the Freemasons, the political leadership is concentrated in Rome, in the hands of Lemmy, and the religious leadership in Charleston. Under the rule of the bourgeoisie in France, Freemasonry seizes government power, declares clericalism (Christianity) the enemy of the state and begins a fierce struggle with it. The undoubted influence of Masonic Jewry is manifested in the removal of Christian teaching and cult from public schools. A hundred years ago, the first Freemasons became clear enemies of Christianity, and since neither Catholics nor Protestants have any reason to oppose it, it is clear that only French Jews should be credited with the anti-Christian activities of the local government. The free thinkers (libres - penseurs), the rump of the "philosophers" of the 18th century, and the positivists, who gave and still give the tone to liberal literature on the continent, are, to a greater or lesser extent, consciously nothing more than servants of the primordial hatred of degenerate Jews for the teachings of Christ. Posing themselves as opponents of fanaticism, as selfless fighters of pure humanity, the Masons enjoyed the sympathy of society for a long time; and only governments, better aware of the real character of brotherhood, have sometimes taken strict measures against them. Recently, the eyes of a myopic society have been opened. A number of terrible revelations have emerged. Masons in most cases remain silent with feigned disdain, or try to accuse accusers of clerical fanaticism, or, taking advantage of the accusers’ mistakes in exposing dark, carefully hidden Masonic affairs, directly accuse their enemies of slander, but few writers have so far been included in the number of slanderers, while accusatory literature is growing. The Anglo-Jewish sympathies of the Freemasons in France, so clearly evidenced by the events of recent years in the Dreyfus affair, in France's humiliating relations with England, can serve as proof of the corrupting influence of the Freemasons, as soon as they gain importance in the government of a Christian country. (Extracted in abbreviation from the “Historical Gazette”, 1900, June, pp. 985–998). 23. Participation of the devil in seances. Spiritualism 221 first appeared in the North American United States in 1848. It started like this. In 1846, a certain Wickman, who lived in the village of Gaydesul, in the county of Wagne, heard a knock at the door of his house in the evening. He went to unlock it, but there was no one there. And so on up to three times. The same knocks began to repeat from time to time. Soon, the movement of furniture and the rearrangement of chairs by an invisible force horrified the residents of the house. Wickman left his home, and it was taken over by the Fox family, consisting of a husband, wife and two daughters, Catherine, 14 years old, and Margarita, 12 years old. In December 1847, at night, Fox's daughters, getting ready to go to bed, hear sounds like a hammer hitting a door or the flapping of a whip. They told their mother. The sounds were repeated, and they became familiar with them. But one night, in March 1848, Mrs. Fox decided to ask questions to the wall where the blows were heard: “Who is making this noise”? - No answer. - “Does a living creature produce it?” - Silence. - “Maybe dead?” - one blow. - “Is this an unhappy spirit?” - one blow. - “How old is my eldest daughter?” - Fourteen strikes. - “What about my youngest?” - Twelve strikes. The number of blows exactly corresponded to the age of the girls. Mrs. Fox, frightened, told her husband, who told the neighbors. They immediately ran to the house. They again began to ask the spirit, who announced his name, saying that five years ago he was killed in this very house, and named his murderer. Mrs. Fox ordered an excavation in the cellar, and they dug up the remains of a person. Having moved to Rochester, the Fox family opened sessions here for those wishing to have intercourse with deceased relatives or friends, and made trips to different cities. The success was enormous and aroused many convinced followers of spiritualism, among whom were ministers of the Church and members of the court. One of them, a certain Gaumont, in Saint-Louis, who for a long time did not believe in the supernaturalism of spiritualistic phenomena, finally, at one seance, was forced to admit their reality. “While we were holding our hands on the table,” he says in a letter later published in the Courier des Etats Unis, July 18, 1852, “I felt that the table was rising from the end at which I was sitting. I tried to hold him with all my strength, but he slipped out of my hands and of his own accord was carried six feet away from me. One of those present then said: “Will the spirit deign to put the table where it was?” And the table returned to us, as if someone was carrying it on his head, and it was swaying from side to side. The Fox family began to sing, and the table beat to the beat. Suddenly a transparent hand, like a shadow, appeared in front of my face. I felt fingers on my right church pulling a strand of my hair and forcing me to bow my head. Then a deathly cold hand touched my face. I felt the slight shudder that comes from touching a dead body. Two invisible hands hit me on the shoulders; the chair on which I was sitting was moved along with me... The sofa behind me was bouncing energetically.” Within just six months, the number of “mediums” alone increased to sixty thousand 222 . In 1870, according to the most moderate estimate, there were already 2.5 million spiritualists in the North American United States. In 1886, their number increased there to 10 million, and in the whole world it is believed to be up to 20 million. Spiritualism, as we know, has become widespread in our country - in cities and towns, among the intelligentsia... According to the correspondent of "Moskovskie Vedomosti" in 1886, spiritualistic seances in our capital capital take place "in almost every house" - even special measures were required on the part of the authorities to protect students from the harmful hobby of spiritualism 223. The same can be said about St. Petersburg. Spiritualists have their own literature, their own magazines and newspapers 224, their own catechisms. They have lyceums and their own conferences. Spiritualists first hid behind the guise of Christianity. “We preach,” they said, “a more perfect Christian morality,” and in this sense they commented on the Gospel in a fascinating way. But already in the work of the late leader of the French spiritualists, Allan Cardec, “Le livre des esprits”, among the stream of tempting spiritualist mysteries, the phrase is casually thrown: “There is no original sin and no redemption,” which rejects the basis of Christianity. Instead of redemption - self-improvement, without God, through the transmigration of souls into different bodies, higher and lower, depending on merit. Spiritualism is a renewed Egyptian doctrine of “metempsychosis”, supported by supernatural phenomena, which fascinates many. When the number of spiritualists quickly began to increase, when they felt themselves powerful, then they threw off the guise of Christianity and openly appeared (in America) as its enemies. This was discovered, by the way, at meetings of spiritualists in the North. - Amer. United States already in 1873. Thus, at a conference in Chicago, a certain Giggins, in his speech, accompanied by applause, said the following: “We are called spiritualists - I have a different kind of name for our church, namely the Church of Anti-Christians (applause). Since Christians have ceased to elevate humanity, 225 we must strive for this exaltation to take a different path.” At the same meeting, another speaker, Miss Anna Middlebrook, said: “As I stand here this evening, I am quite prepared to contribute to the destruction of the Christian religion. Why should we, living in the 19th century, look back 18 centuries for doctrines? Can't we learn incomparably more from modern life? If we were able to grow up to modern philosophy, then we could even see the time when the Christian beliefs, dried up like mummies, would be overthrown” 226. In September 1889, spiritualists organized a congress at the World Exhibition in Paris; The purpose of the congress was to found an international union of spiritualists around the world and declare the spiritualist religion “profession de foi”. Spiritualism thus strives to replace the Christian religion, just as materialism strives to return the moral sense innate to man. Spiritualism is a kind of religion that has its preachers, its miracles; but these miracles are a parody of the miracles of Jesus Christ and His saints. The miracles of Christianity are blessings; miracles of spiritualism are supernatural phenomena that cause only amazement. These are tables 227 flying through the air, musical instruments, drums and other objects, the touch of an invisible hand, knocking, the appearance of blue lights, sounds that come from nowhere, produced by spirits, according to the explanation of spiritualists; finally, the appearance of the spirits themselves, clothed in subtle matter, so that they can be seen and even photographed 228. These spirits, according to the explanation of the spiritualists, are the souls of the dead, willingly entering into relations with the living, who call them, answering the questions asked of them. These answers were given first by tapping the table leg several times, according to the place occupied in the alphabet by the required letter, like tapping a telegraph machine 229 . Then this conversation became extremely simplified. The questioner takes a pencil in his hand and, placing it on a sheet of paper, loudly asks the spirit questions in any language - and an invisible force, taking possession of the hand holding the pencil, writes the answers in the same language. Thus, deceased relatives and acquaintances, or various historical figures are called, and sometimes the spirits themselves ask for correspondence, identifying themselves, who they are, where they are from, when they lived, and telling whole stories about themselves. Questions asked to the spirits relate either to objects in the afterlife or to the circumstances of modern life. The answers obtained are different: some are practical, others are empty, depending on what the deceased was like when he lived on earth, as the spiritualists explain. Here are examples of these messages from the afterlife, conveyed by two persons who at one time were enthusiastically engaged in spiritualism, but then abandoned this dangerous activity, having learned something better. A certain spirit, said the deceased 3-a, declares himself a Hungarian who lived in the 16th century, tells a long story about himself and in conclusion says that out of jealousy he killed his bride. - “Where is she?” - they ask. - “She is not with us, she is there... in heaven” 230. - Another spirit said that he was a pastor, lived at the beginning of this century, sharing the rationalistic views of that time on religion; but that he was convinced of the truth of Christianity and was awaiting the Judgment, trusting in the mercy of God. – Many spirits have gathered in the séance room; One of them, in response to the question asked, answered that between them stood evil spirits, on whom they depended, and at a distance stood Angels, whom they did not dare to look at. One spirit called himself Napoleon I, and when asked where he was, he answered that Satan had condemned him to wander in the fields of Lithuania, the site of the battles of 1812. When this spirit was called for a second time for a conversation and asked to forgive him for disturbing him, calling him “Votre Majeste”, the spirit quickly and in large letters wrote: “Non” (No)! – and didn’t want to answer. Other spirits declared that this was a strong spirit, and that Satan himself was afraid of him. Another friend of mine, D.V. P-ta, often talked with me about spiritualism, which he himself had once practiced, telling me his personal experiences, which were so interesting that I immediately wrote them down. Here are the most remarkable of them. During one of the seances, the spirit declared himself to be a Brahmin who had lived for a long time. He wrote something in a completely incomprehensible language, and, at the request of those present, he translated it into Russian, noting that only very great scientists could understand this text, written by him. The text contained several moral aphorisms. This text, but without translation, was later transferred to the orientalists of St. Petersburg University. The language of the text was little understood for them, except for some words and expressions that they translated into Russian, and the translation they made turned out to be identical with the translation of the spirit; the language was, as they believed, ancient Sanskrit. “In another session, the spirit of a woman appeared. She identified herself by name, saying that she was Swiss and was buried in the cemetery and Lausanne. Then, while he was in Lausanne, sitting at the table d'hôte, P-ta hears that one of the ladies present pronounces a surname that seemed familiar to him, and he remembers that the spirit of that Swiss woman called herself by this surname; With surprise, he turns to the lady who pronounced this name, and learns that it was her niece, buried in the Lausanne cemetery. But the most striking thing was the following story from P., in the presence of his wife (who later confirmed its authenticity). In the 50s, our society became acquainted with spiritualism; The higher strata of St. Petersburg also began to take an interest in him. One very high-ranking person ordered to ask about this new phenomenon the opinion of Sturdza, known for his intelligence and learning, who then lived in Odessa and, as was heard, was doing experiments in spiritualism, in order to find out what kind of phenomenon it was. In a reply letter, expressing his opinion about spiritualism, he reported his following remarkable experience. Once during a session he asked the spirit with whom he was corresponding three questions written on a piece of paper, demanding an answer in the name of Christ. And precisely the following three questions: 1) Do you believe in Jesus Christ? 2) Are you afraid of Him? and 3) Do you love Him? – The answers were as follows: to the first question – “I believe”, to the second – “I tremble” 231, and to the third – “I don’t like”. - Who are you? “Satan,” was the answer. This letter was read by D. V. P-ta, who was still involved in spiritualism at that time, and wished to repeat Sturdza’s experiment himself. At one of the next sessions, he placed a rolled-up piece of paper with the same three questions on the table in front of the medium. Some force began to warp the medium’s hand, as if trying to throw off the annoying piece of paper. “Hold your hand tight!” - P-ta cried. “Then the spirit began to express complaints on the sheet lying in front of the medium: “How cruel you are! Why are you torturing me? Take the paper away." When the piece of paper was taken away, the spirit began to express its pleasure: “How easy it is for me now, how good!” Then the piece of paper was put down again, and the previous complaints resumed. P-ta now demanded an answer to his questions. The answers given were the same as Sturdze’s: “I believe,” “I tremble,” “I don’t like.” They ask: “Who are you?” – Answer: “Satan,” and at the same time added (the conversation was in French): “Je suis toujours aupres de vous. Je voudrais vous vaincre, mais il y a QUI vous protege 232 (the word “qui” was written in very large letters). The next day, P-ta, who had hitherto had spiritualistic seances in his own office, decided to quit practicing spiritualism and invited a priest to his house; A prayer service was served with the blessing of water, the rooms, including the office, were sprinkled with holy water. A few hours later, P-ta, entering his office, saw the round table, at which his spiritualistic seances usually took place, all crumpled, crumpled, and distorted (one can assume that a few drops of holy water also fell on the table). I heard this story (in 1886) from the lips of the character himself, and then I wrote it down literally. The wife of the late P-you had a similar experience, as she herself told me. At one time, while living in Paris, for three months she corresponded in the usual way every evening with a spirit who pretended to be one of her deceased acquaintances. Feeling that this was causing her nerves to become more and more upset, she turned for advice to the then rector of the Russian church in Paris, Fr. Vasilyev. He advised her to ask her mysterious interlocutor in the name of Christ who he was. For two or three evenings in a row she did not dare to do this, especially since her spirit poured out in complaints that their conversation would probably soon end. Finally, she made up her mind and asked as Fr. Vasiliev. The spirit wrote back that he was an evil spirit and called himself by name. The above facts are enough to get acquainted with the essence of spiritualism; for another materialist, however, it could be a step towards Christianity, opening up to him the world of spirits; but a reasonable Christian will not engage in it, since the calling of the dead is positively prohibited by Holy Scripture 233. Summoning the shadows of the dead was practiced in ancient times, but not to the extent it is today. Tertullian, for example, testifies that the Roman magicians of his time (2nd century AD) summoned the shadows of the dead with the help of a table, standing around which they formed a chain. Such “mensae divinatoriae” are also mentioned by other Roman writers 234. The above-mentioned prohibition of the Mosaic Law to call the dead shows that this custom existed among the Jews - it has existed for a long time among the Chinese, and the spirit writes its answers with a stick on the sand scattered on the table 235. Apparently, the field of spiritualism should include those strange phenomena about which, since 1886, we have increasingly seen stories in the columns of our newspapers. In one or another residential building - in Warsaw, St. Petersburg, Irkutsk or metropolitan Alexandria (Volyn province), in the village of Vorontsov (Yuryev district), and in 1897 in Munich at night, and sometimes in broad daylight, inexplicable knocks on the wall, on doors, bells are heard, furniture moves by itself, they fly through the air, falling off the shelves or from windows, dishes, flower pots, are ghosts. A crowd of curious people, the police, gather, they invite the clergyman to serve a prayer service - sometimes it quiets down for a while, and then the chaos resumes 236. Inner lies and harm of spiritualism as a religious doctrine. Here, by the way, I should say a few words about the complete failure and harm of spiritualism as a religious doctrine. This must be done especially because in our book “From the Realm of the Mysterious,” with which this book is in close connection, serving as a continuation of it, some facts from spiritualistic writings are given, although we gave them a different explanation, strictly in accordance with the teaching of the Orthodox Church and the science of the soul. Although a grain of barley does not cease to be barley because it is found in a heap of garbage, just as scientific facts contained in spiritualistic works do not cease to be scientific because of it; nevertheless, in order to avoid even the slightest temptation, we consider it advisable to show here all the lies and harm of spiritualism, understood in the sense of a religious system, and not in the sense of scientific studies of phenomena from the field of spiritualism and psychism. We will use the excellent article (published in “Dush. Read” for 1900) about this by M. O. Berzhbolovich, with which we completely agree on this point. As a philosophical doctrine, spiritualism recognizes the coeternity of spirit and matter, the infinity of forms of being in the world visible and invisible to us, but really existing, - it affirms the continuity of development of organic forms in both, as well as the reality of the continuous success of man through an endless series of forms of being, the solidarity of spiritual beings at all stages of their eternal progress, the possibility of objective proof of their communication and interaction, the continuity and omnipresence of the Divine revelations, the law of love, as the law of creativity and life. The most essential aspect of the philosophical doctrine of spiritualism is the doctrine of the nature of spirits, their immortality, the origin and purpose of man, his responsibility for his actions and the possibility of mutual communication between the souls of living and dead people. The most honest development of this teaching is presented in this form. The spiritual world, coeternal with the material, does not remain in its primitive state. The law of progress, eternal development and improvement, reigns irresistibly over both. The process of development in the spiritual world occurs like this: simple and not gifted with vision spirits, either by their own will or by appointment from above, go into matter and are embodied in all bodies of nature. There is nothing dead in the latter: all its kingdoms are spiritualized, and spirits are necessary and closest participants in the formation and development of various forms of being on all planets. This process of development continues for many centuries; one and the same spirit experiences several reincarnations, moving from one object to another. At the same time, each planet inhabited by incarnated spirits undergoes a progressive series of transformations. Incarnating in the human body, the spirit becomes a soul, for which, in addition to the body, it must also put on a thin and invisible shell, or perispirit, with which it remains even after separation from the body. Through life in the body, filled with hardships and sorrows, as well as a long struggle with matter, spirits achieve certain degrees of mental and moral perfection. After separation from the body, the improvement of spirits continues. – Spiritualists describe in detail the seven spheres of spiritual existence. According to the teachings of the American spirit seer and spiritualist Davis, in these spheres there are mountains, plains and rivers, fruits and fields, movable property, industrial enterprises, positions, food and clothing, even our lines of communication. The inhabitants of the lower spiritual spheres, ugly and black, wander through the desert without greenery, spend time in unrest and strife, wander without a specific goal and seek satisfaction for perverted inclinations, and then, repenting, choose their own form of incarnation. Spirits standing at further stages of perfection wage a constant struggle with matter with the goal of complete liberation from it. The inhabitants of the higher spheres lead a blissful life under the best natural conditions of luxurious nature; here there already exist public meetings and friendly gatherings, at which mutual training of spirits takes place. By retaining their “perispirits” and taking on a humanoid form, the spirits of various spheres can enter into communication with people, which can be translated into the realm of methodological phenomena, in an almost mechanical way. In this way, spiritualism hopes to refute materialism and provide clear evidence of the immortality of the soul. It is not difficult to see that the philosophical doctrine of spiritualism is a rather strange mixture of Gnosticism and Buddhism, pantheism and Darwinism - with its evolution transferred to the afterlife. It also contains remnants of deism and rationalism, the latest mysticism and mesmerism. From this mixture a kind of atheistic-materialistic skepticism is formed, which is based on ancient and new superstitions with all ideas long condemned by science. If we consider the philosophical doctrine of spiritualism from the usual scientific point of view, as a product of the natural mind, then in this regard it is impossible to give it any serious significance and place it next to other scientific and philosophical systems. There is no philosophical depth, no originality, no strict consistency, no scientific evidence. It all represents a collection of different opinions and fortune-telling, most of which are not very deep and arbitrary, not based on a solid principle and connected with each other only by an external connection. For the most part, it is a work of dreamy fantasy, full of the most extreme contradictions. Its main provisions: about the nature of spirits, the pre-existence and reincarnation of souls, about progress and stages of development, etc., are mostly expressed dogmatically, and scientific evidence is replaced by simple references to the higher origin of spiritualistic truths, allegedly proclaimed by the spirits of famous thinkers and scientists, or famous historical figures. The truths themselves are not only not confirmed by scientific data, but rather represent a distortion of concepts developed by science. Thus, in spiritualist systems, the concept of the spirit is completely arbitrarily changed by assimilating to it a material shell with all bodily properties, often up to and including the need for food; The concept of freedom of spirit is also distorted, which is made dependent on purely mechanical conditions performed at spiritualistic séances; the various information reported by spiritualists about the life and activities of spirits in the afterlife are the product of wild fantasy. Further, the spiritualist system does not at all achieve the goals it has in mind: it not only does not solve the question of the immortality of the soul through experience, but, on the contrary, it itself presupposes it and is based on it. All the positions of the spiritualists cannot at all serve as evidence of philosophical spiritualism; on the contrary, they can only be admitted by someone who consciously, or out of habit, already stands on the point of view of this spiritualism. Regarding the significance of spiritualistic proofs of the truth of the immortality of the soul, one can say in the words of one critic: “If very insignificant communications from spirits are essential proofs of the continuity of the existence of the human soul, then they must also be proofs that spirits through death become only shadows, very stupid little souls.”237 Equally, with the goal of refuting materialism, spiritualism, he himself falls into crude materialism, namely: in the materialization of summoned spirits, he tries to catch the highest, subtlest matter, inaccessible to the senses, in which not only the essence, but also the self-consciousness of departed souls is preserved, invisible to ordinary vision. Given the presence of such matter and the co-eternity of its spirit, there is no place for the Divine. In themselves, the phenomena of spiritualism not only do not say anything against materialism, but can even be successfully explained by materialism. Anyone who does not think of seeing simple vibrations of material molecules in his own thoughts should not be surprised by all sorts of other products of matter, which apparently determine phenomena that have nothing in common with it 238 . In general, if spiritualism could become a means of combating materialism, then, as Zeber aptly noted, “the medicine here would be worse than the disease itself.” The attitude of spiritualism towards Christianity is downright hostile. Spiritualism expresses an audacious desire, at the direction of the spirits, to discover and purify the true meaning of Christianity, which is supposedly expressed in the sacred books indirectly, figuratively, adapting to the crude, sensual concepts of people contemporary with the advent of Christianity. Although spiritualists recognize Christianity as a revealed religion, however, they see in it only a preparatory step to spiritualism, as a purer and more spiritual religion, and they assimilate to it only a temporary meaning, passing with a change in the intellectual and social position of mankind. The spiritualists' own religious doctrine, often constructed according to the plan of Christian dogma 239, concerns, apparently, all the essential issues of the latter, but at the same time represents not only a distortion of the fundamental truths of religious faith, but also a complete negation of Christianity. Thus, in spiritualist dogma the most basic Christian dogmas are denied, such as: about God as the Creator and Provider of the world, about the trinity of persons in God, about angels and evil spirits, about the fall of man, about the incarnation of the Word of God and the redemption of the human race, about the Church with its Divinely established Sacraments, rituals and institutions, about the future resurrection of the dead and retribution for coffin Instead, a completely arbitrary interpretation of Christian dogmas is introduced. Thus, the doctrine of God as a personal Being is replaced by the doctrine of a higher mind and the fundamental principle of things, and the Trinity refers to three forms of being: God, matter and the spiritual world. The origin of the latter is explained by a process of emanation in the spirit of Gnosticism and pantheism; By the fall of the angels we mean the descent of spirits into matter and their immersion in sensuality. Evil spirits, from the point of view of spiritualism, do not constitute a special class of spirits different from human souls. These are the same souls, but only vicious, not purified. They cannot be considered lost: they, too, will achieve perfection and enter the bosom of the Father. The biblical account of the creation of the world is understood in a figurative sense, as a general representation of the formation of the world. Adam and Eve, according to spiritualist doctrine, are the personifications of the beginning of the bodily life of each spirit, and the legend of Paradise is an image of the first stages of the life of the spirit in bodily form. In the commandment given in Paradise, spiritualist dogmatics sees a prohibition to violate the laws of the Creator - in this - an allegorical image of temptation, in the Fall - the bodily death of people, in original sin - deeds committed at previous stages of incarnation. When original sin is denied, atonement is considered unnecessary, and only the possibility of liberation from sinfulness through a series of reincarnations is allowed. The divinity of the Lord Jesus Christ is denied: He appears to be only a created spirit and a messenger of God, like Buddha, Moses, Elijah, Pythagoras, Empedocles and Apollonius of Tyana. The redemptive significance of the person of Jesus Christ is limited to His example and instruction for a virtuous life. Instead of the future resurrection of the dead, a new incarnation of spirits is recognized, and instead of eternal torment, a gradual purification of spirits through deprivation, suffering and sorrow during incarnation. By the Antichrist we mean the personification of the entire sum of evil, by the resurrection of the dead - new forms of incarnation, by the second coming of the Savior - the transformation of the Earth in mental and moral terms. The existence of hell and evil spirits, as well as the universal Judgment, are denied with particular persistence in spiritualist dogma. Rejecting the very essence of Christianity, spiritualism, apparently, keeps the moral side of the Gospel teaching intact and speaks of love as the fundamental law of life; in essence, he preaches natural morality, moreover, weakened by future impunity. There is no need to say that the religious teaching of spiritualism, as a daring and terrible mockery of everything sacred and saving, as a blasphemous and ungodly teaching, in such a radical form cannot be dangerous for a Christian and deserves not refutation, but condemnation. But it can be dangerous depending on the general techniques that spiritualism allows: the latter acts cunningly and seductively, sometimes adhering in appearance to Christianity, in order to present a supposedly higher understanding of it, instead of the existing figurative one, and speaks in the language of the word of God, cites the texts of the Holy Scripture, compares its miracles with Christian ones 240, takes care of solving higher spiritual issues and the moral improvement of people - then entering into a struggle with materialism and trying to clearly prove the immortality of the soul, then proudly declaring itself the highest and most perfect religion. At the same time, arousing curiosity in some, and a desire for mysticism in others, the spiritualistic doctrine seduces some with zeal for the spiritual good of people, others with future impunity for sins, and others with the promise of higher revelations about the mysterious realm of otherworldly existence. Even very enlightened minds were often seduced by these means. It is necessary, however, to note that the religious doctrine of spiritualism, in comparison with the Christian religion, represents the most serious and dangerous delusion, more terrible than complete unbelief. Its basic principles are decisively rejected by Christianity. The new revelations she offers, after those already given by God, are completely unnecessary, even ungodly, and find their due assessment in the words of St. Apostle Paul: “If we, or an angel from heaven, bring you good news, let him be accursed” (Gal. 1:8). If there is anything sublime in spiritualism, namely in its moral teaching, then it is borrowed from Christianity, and everything else is a collection of pitiful superstitious ideas that return thought to the times of crude paganism. It is not surprising, therefore, that even a thinker so far from true Christian views as Fechner, himself an eyewitness to spiritualist manifestations, finds it impossible to compare the spiritualist religion with the Christian: “Just as a dark room of a spiritualistic séance with absurd sayings of spirits,” he says, “is related to a brightly lit church with a preacher in the pulpit and beautiful, harmonious singing of the choir, so the spiritualistic religion is related to the Christian religion.” Further, Fehker is surprised at the very possibility of comparing the phenomena of the risen Lord with the phenomena of spirits, in view of the complete opposition of both, and noting the inconsistency of spiritualist dogma in many points of its teaching, he proves the immeasurable advantages of believing in the clear and sublime teaching of the Holy Scriptures and the miracles proclaimed there over believing in the encrypted writing of spiritualists and revelations communicated by spirits. The difference between Christian and spiritual miracles, according to Fechner, is the same as between a clear day and a dark night, between a rational, normally animated force and the actions of a madman (Beweis des Glaubens, 1870, pp. 286–288). There is also no need to prove that a believing Christian, using the clear light of Christian teaching, does not have the slightest need for the dim light of occultism. Everything necessary for the good of man and his salvation has already been revealed in the word of God. The very practice of spiritualism, in the presence of Divine revelation, is, as it were, a distrust of this highest source of knowledge, is a treacherous violation of the vow of fidelity to religion and the Church, given upon entering into communion with the Church - is a branch of sorcery, and at the same time a violation of the first commandments of the law of God, prohibiting the service of other gods. Moreover, communication with fallen spirits is in spiritualistic seances, according to the words of Bishop Ignatius. Caucasian, there is a direct departure from God. Invoking the spirits of Christian saints is a gross and impudent blasphemy against Christianity. The desire of the spiritualists to correct and purify the Christian teaching clearly demonstrates that they “are vain in their thoughts, and... as they say, to be wise, foolish” (Rom. 1:21-22). The apostolic saying is fulfilled over them: “God will bring down upon them the work of flattery, because they have believed lies” (2 Thess. 2:11). – In general, it is impossible to remain faithful to Christianity and practice spiritualism at the same time. That is why the ever-memorable Metropolitan. Filaret called spiritualism an “impermissible, ignoble, criminal, pagan” matter (about fortune telling). Not limited to the distortion of religious ideas, spiritualism is accompanied by harmful consequences in the sphere of moral and practical life. By distracting people's attention from the objects and phenomena of real life, turning it to the area of ​​questions and aspirations that go beyond reality, to the fantastic, dark and mysterious world, it leads to an eclipse of the meaning and feelings of life, gives scope for licentiousness and abuse in the actions and mutual relations of people, teaches them to play frivolously with high moral concepts and serious issues of life. Regardless of this, the imaginary revelations of spirits and their bad advice often led to a weakening of morals, to the instability of family life, and to various kinds of crimes. The spiritualists themselves do not hide the fact that their “spirits” can encourage people to commit crimes and mystify those who call them out of empty curiosity. Then, practicing spiritualism, upsetting the nervous system of the participants in the session, debilitates their health, leading to insanity and suicide. As early as 1852, American citizens, in a special petition submitted to the government, complained that the practice of spiritualism was detrimental to the physical condition and had a harmful influence on the moral character of the majority of the American people. Since then, the chronicle of spiritualism has included many tragic cases caused by the mental disorder of its adherents. Nowadays, we also often hear about the disastrous consequences of a reckless passion for spiritualism. Thus, a few months ago in St. Petersburg, one intelligent girl, a convinced spiritualist, at the suggestion of the spirits, cut off her tongue and died in terrible agony, but with the calming knowledge that she had fulfilled the will of the spirits 241. With these and many other facts, the very practice of spiritualism loudly tells us that there are paths to knowledge that are prohibited from above - and those daring who try to lift the mysterious veil are threatened with insanity, illness, and death. – In the field of science, spiritualism not only cannot promise a beneficial effect on the human mind and the development of knowledge, but rather, on the contrary, threatens science with stagnation, as a result of relaxation and darkening of human thought. Based on all that has been said, it must be admitted that spiritualism is a painful phenomenon in the field of modern thought. It equally reflects both extreme skepticism, which has lost faith in God, and extreme naturalism, trying to penetrate the secrets of nature and discover the mysterious forces that govern the life of nature. It leads to a perversion of true religious concepts, because in place of the Living personal God and His wise and good Providence for the world, it posits the actions of unknown and dark forces as the basis of existence. He is also hostile to true natural science, because with his method bordering on superstition, he tries to explain facts that are rightfully included in the field of natural science and through this, in the place of accurate knowledge about nature, he strives to put his own inventions, which have no other basis than crude superstition. (Extracted in abbreviation from the brochure of the Rev. Moscow Spirit. Sem. M. O. Verzhbolovich: “Spiritism before the court of science and Christianity.” M. 1900). 24. Do not cast spells or tell fortunes. The Lord commanded Moses: “Do not tell fortunes or tell fortunes” (Lev.19:26). “Do not turn to those who call the dead, and do not go to magicians, and do not bring yourself to be desecrated by them” (Lev. 19:31). For spells and fortune-telling, the Church prescribes a six-year repentance, with excommunication from Holy Communion. This means that the sin is not small! And yet, how many people there are among us who are guilty of this sin. Some people, frivolity and playfulness, are inclined to resort to fortune-telling, as an innocent, in their opinion, means of having fun and killing time, for which they know no value; For others, dissatisfaction with the present, impatience and distrust of Providence force them to question the unknown future, often with fear and doubt, less often with a firm belief in the possibility, through fortune telling and divination, to find out from fate what it so carefully hides, that is, what awaits them in the near future: happiness or sorrow, is it a wedding dress or a coffin shroud? Let us be the first to say that for a Christian and for a Christian there are many activities both nobler and more innocent than fortune telling; and a reasonable person, who understands his duties and relationships to God and his neighbors, will not want to abuse time frivolously, and will not want to tempt others with bad examples. The latter can be advised with sincere sympathy for their condition: without resorting to unauthorized means to torture the future hidden from us, humbly surrender to the guidance of the all-good and wise Providence, turn with heart and soul to the Heavenly Father and from His goodness expect with faith the direction of our affairs to the best end. The senseless desire to know their future forces them to resort to pathetic, stupid, lawless, and often dangerous means. For what is fortune telling, divination, if not an insane and lawless attempt to penetrate into the secrets that the Lord has hidden from people, and which, of course, cannot be revealed to us by any means? Who are you asking? From whom are you looking to reveal your future? A mirror, tin, wax and other soulless things, you see, cannot tell you anything; listening under locks, under windows, at crossroads, etc. is sheer absurdity; So, what is your fortune-telling, your divination, if not pure madness? There remains only one crafty slanderer and the original murderer - the devil, always ready for such services. Many fortune tellers and sorcerers, indeed, have this in mind in their criminal actions. Otherwise, why is it not allowed to use the sign of the cross or have a cross on oneself during some fortune telling? Apparently, fortunetellers are afraid of using the sign of the cross to destroy the charming power of the devil or to drive him away from themselves and, thus, do nothing, learn nothing. But what will the devil tell you? He does not stand in the truth, he always lies like a lie, by his very fallen nature, and is the father and inventor of all lies, deceit, and deceit (John 8:44). Truth burns, scorches him more than hellish fire; and should we look for anything sensible, truthful, or even somewhat worthwhile from him? And what does he want by misleading you and teaching you to resort to lawless, ungodly actions? - Your death; and be afraid that the Lord God will not allow him to destroy you in the end. And the enemy-devil is looking for only this throughout your life; all his incessant, insidious, demonic activity is concentrated on this. He has no other business, no other concern than to lead a person into sin and destruction. He, this same worst enemy of yours, believe me, teaches and encourages you - through his whispering or through stupid people devoted to him - to resort to fortune telling and divination, to seek out what is forbidden and hidden from us in the depths of God’s destinies and, thus, offend God in the hope that, perhaps, in this insane action of yours he will find an opportunity to plunge you into trouble and even destroy you completely, if God's grace will depart from you for your unfaithfulness and betrayal. It seems to you that sometimes what you see and hear during your sorcery and fortune-telling comes true! It’s no wonder that something happens by chance and suits your desires: the very circumstances often bring events closer to your views and desires, and the enemy takes advantage of this. It’s no wonder that a bride-to-be gets married within a year, old or sick people die, and so on. Let's say more. The enemy knows well who has designs on whom and what, who is especially disposed and striving for what, and accordingly he can easily imagine various faces and objects in the dreams of your imagination. Most often, he throws out something vague, ambiguous to the gullible, just as he gave answers in ancient pagan divinations, and as his servants, gypsies and so-called sorcerers, healers and fortune tellers do; and you yourself help him get out of this confusion, trying with all your might to interpret his nonsense either in your favor, or in a way that suits the circumstances. Listen to how the demon-assistant, or more accurately, the leader of people in criminal fortune-telling, explained St. Andrey the Fool about the tricks of his father, Satan. One day a demon boasted to the blessed one that the time would come when the servants of the underworld would have nothing to do, because people would be more evil than the demons, so that even small children would surpass the old ones in guile; and then, the demon added, I will begin to enjoy, because people on their own will begin to do all my will. St. Andrew asked: “How do you know this? The future is not open to the demon." The demon answered this: “Our father Satan understands, sitting in hell, and magics about everything, and from there he will tell us everything, as our generation knows nothing” (Prol. Oct. 6). Do you see where magic, fortune-telling and divination began, and who is the father and mentor of sorcerers and fortune-tellers? Is it proper for a Christian to deal with, much less learn from, a demon? Is it proper for a baptized person and a believer in the Holy Trinity to give faith to the devil, whom he renounced in baptism and whom, in fairness, he should fear as his worst enemy, according to the word of the Apostle: “Frolic, be vigilant, for your adversary the devil, like a lion, roaring, goes about, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8)? To resort to the spirit of darkness, the enemy of God and the mortal enemy of the human race, to ask for his services, to seek from him some kind of revelation about his future destiny, what is this if not apostasy from God, if not enmity against Him? It is not without reason that God, offended by such apostasy, in righteous anger at insane people, sometimes allows them to perish from their own madness. Was it not for the sake of these abominations - fortune-telling, sorcery, sorcery - that in ancient times the Lord God condemned entire nations to extermination? What troubles befall our lovers of sorcery and fortune-telling, many probably know from true stories or unfortunate events that happened, perhaps, before their eyes. We will also cite several cases for the validity of which we can vouch. One day, five peasant girls, in the absence of their household, began to unravel the mysteries of life on New Year's Day in this way: the one who wanted to know her future (or her betrothed) lay down on benches under the holy icons, in front of which a candle glowed, and folded her hands like a deceased woman; she was covered up to her chest with linen and a mirror was placed on her chest, into which the lying person must look intently until she sees what she wants, or until something appears to her excited imagination. The rest of the girls go underground and, emerging from there alternately and one by one, bow to the lying one, saying the usual village greeting: “forgive and bless!” There is no need for us to know whether the first two girls who withstood this difficult ordeal dreamed of anything and what exactly. The third one fell into place in its turn. One after another, her friends come out of hiding and bow to her with the usual greetings. Thus, everyone crossed one by one, and the fortuneteller just lay there without the slightest movement. It seemed strange to the girls; doubt sank into their souls. The last of those who greeted the lying woman, peering intently into her face, notices with horror that her eyes, fixed on the mirror, are motionless. Calls others; they wake up the lying woman, and there is no voice, no obedience: the unfortunate woman fell asleep in a mortal, undisturbed sleep, until the sound of the Archangel's trumpet, calling the dead to judgment. Such are the consequences of frivolous faith in fortune telling for this unfortunate woman! Another case, even more striking, even more unfortunate, thundered with its unusualness into distant space and, probably, made many lovers of fortune-telling think twice. Two girls, who had an illegal relationship with soldiers and lived together, on one of the Christmas evenings became sad that their kind ones, who were required for service at that time, were not with them, and repeated every minute: “Oh, if they came, what fun we would have!” Inflamed with passion, through the action of demons, they began to guess, looking at the mirror. Suddenly one of them shouts with frenzied joy: “They will, they will!” Around midnight, the unfortunate people hear noise from sled runners, voices under the window, then a knock on the sled doors. One's heart jumped for joy; she runs, opens the door, greets the guests and throws herself into the arms of her lover. The other one was afraid of something, she was scared. It seems to her that the guests smell of a deadening, grave-like cold, so that her blood seems to have frozen. The guests, meanwhile, pester her, and it seems to her that sparks seem to sparkle from her lover’s eyes, and he is ready to devour her with his gaze. In fear, she runs out of the hut, runs into a warm chicken coop, crosses all the corners, walls, doors, windows, and sits down in the corner, neither alive nor dead. In the hut, meanwhile, there was a terrible commotion: knocking, noise, whistling, songs, dancing, such that the whole house was shaking. A terrible night is coming to an end. The guests got ready to go back, went out into the street, whistled, laughed near the chicken coop, called the poor woman a coward who had lost a wonderful night, promised to visit her after, and now leave her alone, because the victorious banner of the Crucified One, inscribed with scorching flames on the walls, does not give them the opportunity to approach her. Night passes. The peasant women have been up for a long time and are surprised that they have not seen their cheerful neighbors for a long time. Around noon, some people decided to visit them, but there were no residents, and the hut was in terrible disarray. They look for them, call them by name, but the poor girl even now does not dare to come out. Finally, they find her and take her out of the chicken coop, unconscious. Another was found underground, stuffed up to half her body into a kettle of leaven, beaten and disfigured to the point that it was difficult to recognize her. The girl, miraculously saved from this demonic feast, came to her senses, told the neighbors how it had happened, and for a long time after that at night she heard the noise of runners, knocking, whistling, etc., and was saved from this demonic obsession only by prayer and the sign of the cross. She gave up her wild life, wandered to holy places, and a few years later entered a monastery. And the soldiers, whose faces on that unhappy night were represented by demons, chastened by the terrible event, corrected themselves and began to live a truly Christian life. What to add to this terrible story? Is it that God allows some fortune-tellers, who for some reason deserve heavenly punishment, to die a sudden and sometimes shameful death so that those who see here the obvious judgment and wrath of God will correct themselves and repent. And that fortune telling contributed to the terrible outcome here is obvious. Without faith in the return of the soldiers, without the fiery expectation of them generated by the mirror, the soldiers of the hellish legion would not have appeared. Moreover, two sinners were the protagonists in this unfortunate adventure, and both, apparently, were in the same dispositions. But God, testing hearts and wombs, found a great difference in them, and allowed one to perish, and allowed the other to be saved by a banner before which all the power of hell trembles. Here is another misfortune from fortune telling. Two girls-sisters, listening under the windows on the night of Holy Easter, with a desire to hear and find out about their future, at the end of the village suddenly imagined a funeral procession, and the elder sister lying in a coffin. The youngest ran home in fright, and the other fell unconscious on the spot; For three months after that she was ill and mentally insane. Now she is an old woman of about 70 years old, and in her long life after this misfortune, with her admonitions she dissuaded many young girls and women from unreasonable attempts to torture an unknown future. Another case. One girl of the merchant class, who dreamed a lot about her merits and refused several suitors of her title, in the hope of marrying an official, poured tin about Christmastide. Two methods seemed unsatisfactory to her; on the third, tin, heated to a high degree, splashed out, disfigured her entire face and deprived her of an eye. Soon her father's condition became upset. The unfortunate woman died in an almshouse. God punished her for her pride and her insane attempt to expose her future fate. But here is an example that proves that the devil clings to every occasion where there is belief in superstitious fortune-telling and riddles. One old man told this: a fishmonger once went to the market very early and, bored with the waiting of buyers, mentally asked the first buyer to decide what the trade would be like for the whole day. When impatience and displeasure, expressed according to Russian custom with large swear words, have increased to a high degree in the merchant, a man of unusual height appears and orders a pound of fish to be weighed out, saying: “Your prayer has reached our king and has been graciously listened to.” The merchant, in his troubles, then paid little attention to these words, and when paying, as is the custom among petty traders, he crossed himself, saying: “Lord, bless!”, and the buyer suddenly disappeared. This old man, until his death, did not cease to command his children and grandchildren, as often as possible, in order to avoid the enemy’s machinations, to make the sign of the cross and call on the name of the Lord, and not to indulge in any superstitious fortune-telling, which is so pleasant to the enemy and with which he can easily lure us and confuse us in his nets and, what good, bring us to trouble and misfortune. It would be possible to give many examples of such misfortunes from superstitious fortune-telling, but we do not cite them on the assumption that where there are fortune-tellers and fortune-tellers, there, of course, there are also accidents from fortune-telling, more or less amazing, known to our readers. And how many sad cases there are from fortune telling, which are not strikingly striking to outsiders, but are just as unpleasant and difficult for those who like to consult fortunetellers and sorcerers in the affairs of their lives! In others, fortune telling arouses seductive hopes. They are waiting for the promised happiness, impatiently preparing for it, but happiness has not come; and, instead of false joyful expectations, boredom and melancholy settle in the soul, coupled with displeasure at oneself and others, and sometimes with shame. Or maybe a different happiness, and not the one indicated by fortune-telling, was really in store for these people, but they neglected it and let it slip from their hands in a deceptive expectation of something better. For some, fortune-telling predicts misfortune, and under the influence of this ominous prediction, he ceases to value family joys and other blessings, begins to lament and grieve in advance, succumbs to gloomy despondency, abandons his studies, his affairs become confused, his health is upset; and it will not be surprising if he brings himself to some great disaster. Therefore, it is rightly advised to everyone, and especially suspicious people, not to resort to fortune telling even for the sake of one joke: they will never bring us to any good 242. 25. Those who resort to conspiracies seek help from Satan. Many people think, and others even argue, that conspiracies are harmless. The conspirators themselves also often confirm that they speak through prayers, and, of course, simple-minded people believe them. But in fact, do our healers and conspirators act by divine power? No, help with conspiracies does not come from God, but from the devil. In this case, prayer is only an external bait - the seduction of the enemy; The conspiratorial healers themselves do not believe in the power of prayer, and if they read it, it is only for show, covering other words (of the conspiracy) with the words of prayer. Any kind of divination and any conspiracy must be feared as if it were a demonic thing. Christians should believe in God, not Satan. Our God is Almighty, even the devil trembles before Him, and therefore in all troubles, illnesses and misfortunes it is necessary to turn to Him through His servants, and in illnesses - to a doctor. According to the word of the Wise One, in illness one should pray to God and give place to the doctor, for the Lord created him too, and they (the doctors) pray to the Lord so that He will help them give the patient relief and healing to continue life. “The Lord created medicines from the earth, and a prudent person does not neglect them.” (Sir.38:9, 12, 14, 4). Such prudent people are those who are being treated, and especially doctors (doctors), who study the benefits and harms for humans from all sorts of herbs, roots, salts and other healing objects of nature created by God. We said that in all cases we should turn to God through His servants, for the servants of God are the servants of the Holy Church, which, for every occasion in life, has laid down special prayers, and through them from the Lord gives special grace, in addition, the Holy Church has many other grace-filled means: the Sacraments of Repentance, Communion and Blessing of Unction, the all-sanctifying Life-giving Cross of the Lord, holy icons, relics of the saints of God, consecrated oil, etc.; and all this is distributed again through the servants of the Church - the priests. The Lord, having called His disciples, gave them power over unclean spirits in order to cast them out and heal every disease and every infirmity. He, sending them to preach, said: “Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons” (Matthew 10:1-8). Having accepted this authority and preaching the Gospel, the apostles in the name of the Lord performed miracles and healed the sick, “he anointed many sick people with oil, and (they) healed the woman” (Mark 6:13). Returning from the sermon, they joyfully said: “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name” (Luke 10:17). After this, the Lord increased their power even more. He said: “Behold, I give you power to tread on snakes and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing will harm you” (Luke 10:19). This power of St. the apostles passes on to all the successors of their Divine grace, the clergy. The Holy Apostle James says: “Is anyone suffering in you? Yes, he prays... If anyone is sick in you, let him call the elders of the Church (priests), and let him pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: and the prayer of faith will save the sick one, and the Lord will raise him up: and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him” (James 5:13-15). See how saving the Sacrament of Holy Unction is: the prayer of faith will save the sick person, his sins will be forgiven! This means that even if the Lord does not raise him up from bodily illness, if he dies, then the prayer of faith will save him, he will not die in soul, his sins will be forgiven. Therefore, the sick should resort to the Sacrament of Anointing, as well as the Sacrament of Holy Communion, which serves to heal the soul and body as often as possible. Holy Communion is the most salutary means if it is received worthily, for, according to the words of the Apostle: “Whoever eats and drinks unworthily eats and drinks to condemn himself, without considering the Body of the Lord. For this reason many are weak and sick, and many die” (1 Cor. 9:29-30). Unworthy Communion is mainly the cause of infirmities, illness and death. And in order to receive communion worthily, one must repent, pray to God, lead a pious life, pleasing the Lord, and not His enemy - the devil. The Lord, through many sorrows, wants to turn us to the path of salvation. In sorrows, one must not run away from the face of God, but appease the Lord. The consequences of the first sin, according to the word of God, were labor, illness and death, therefore repentance, on the contrary, is a sure means of reconciliation with God; it is a relief from the burden of our life in all sorrows and troubles, healing from illnesses and deliverance of the sinner from both physical death and mental death upon transition to eternity. About prayer in general the same St. The Apostle James says: “Pray for one another, that you may be healed: for the prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much (for good)” (James 5:16). So, in the Holy Church and from doctors, believers can find the right means to help in all cases of life, and from priests even against the very power of demons, which therefore tempts us, forcing us to leave the True God and the holy faith and turn to divination. But what good can we expect from the original destroyer of our souls? Oh, Lord, forbid that we should have fellowship with the enemy of salvation! But it is good and saving to have communication with the people of God and His servants, for in their person, by right of succession, we accept and honor the Lord Himself, since He said to His disciples: “Whoever receives you receives Me; and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent Me” (Matthew 10:40). The coming of clergy to the house of the worthy, their greetings and good wishes are blessed and confirmed by the Lord; on the unworthy there is no blessing of God, for the Lord commands the dust to be shaken off the feet of those who did not accept the apostles of Christ and all who came in His name. “Truly I tell you,” He says, “it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that city” (Matthew 10:12–15). A. Stories from the lives of ascetics of piety in the 19th century, testifying to the existence of the spiritual world and its closeness to man. 1. From the life of St. Philaret, Metropolitan of Moscow. Many cases have proven, both during the life of Metropolitan Philaret and after his death, the help that his spiritual power provided to people. The eight-year-old girl was relaxed and could not walk. The Metropolitan was supposed to serve not far from their home, and the sick woman’s mother decided to take her to the service. The girl was carried into the church and sat on a chair, and when the Metropolitan began to bless the people, she was carried in his arms. Having received his blessing, she was able to get back on her feet, left the church with the help of others, and soon became completely stronger. Another peasant girl became mute at the age of 7. She was 20 years old when her relatives brought her to Metropolitan Philaret, who was then in the Gethsemane monastery. The Metropolitan asked the mute woman what her name was. Her mother answered for her: “Marya.” “I’m not asking you,” he noted, and repeated the question again. The mute answered: “Marya.” “Then the Metropolitan ordered her to repeat the Lord’s Prayer after him. The first time she repeated it tightly, the second - very lightly. And from then on she spoke freely. Mrs. B suffered from leg problems and was unable to walk for two years. She wanted to ask Metropolitan Philaret to pray for her and ordered to be taken to the Trinity Metochion. She was carried into the Metropolitan's chambers on sheets. Having heard her request, the Metropolitan said to her: “And you pray with me.” He took the icon and slowly began to bless the sick woman with it. At the same time, she felt strength in her legs and stood up. She walked down the stairs without help, with a firm step, to the amazement of the servants accompanying her. The daughter of a Moscow merchant E. in 1850 suffered from severe rheumatism throughout her body: no doctors helped her; She couldn’t even lie down, but kept sitting. On the night of March 3, the patient’s mother saw in a dream Metropolitan Philaret praying over her daughter. She went to the Trinity Metochion and asked the Metropolitan to pray for her daughter. Three hours later, the patient, to whom her mother told about the Metropolitan’s visit, felt better; for the first time after three weeks, I lay down, fell asleep, and slept for more than half a day. She saw in a dream the metropolitan blessing her, and in the morning she got up, read the morning prayers herself, and soon completely recovered. On October 16, 1849, the Metropolitan healed the 4-year-old daughter of the merchant E., who did not say anything and kept crying. She read him a prayer - “Rejoice, Virgin Mary” - and recovered. One woman, whose husband drank heavily, went to the metropolitan to ask him to pray for her husband, but she was not allowed by the servants. She was then advised to explain her request by approaching the church under his blessing. She did this, and her husband soon stopped drinking completely. The famous writer on the history of the Russian church, Count M.V. Tolstoy, being sick with a serious illness, saw Metropolitan Philaret in a dream. The Metropolitan counted his various sins that he had forgotten, explained the unclear circumstances of his life, and reminded him that he had recently passed through an ancient city without bowing to the saints who rested there: “You did not honor them, but they are praying for us.” Then he added that he would not die from this disease. The count's wife went to the metropolitan and brought from him an icon of the Savior. From that day on, the patient began to recover. And it was from then on that he began to describe the lives of the saints and the places glorified by them - works that brought him much benefit. A Lutheran widow's only son, a university student, fell ill with consumption; doctors declared him hopeless. One friend advised her to go to Filaret, saying that many sick people recover through his prayers. After talking with his mother, the Metropolitan said: “Do not grieve: the Lord is merciful!” - asked the name of the patient and told her: “Let's pray together!” At home, the widow found her son sleeping, then he began to recover, and soon completely recovered. In one noble family, a brother and sister had different opinions about Metropolitan Philaret. Once there was a conversation between them about his insight, and the brother announced to his sister that he would test this insight in practice. Dressed poorly, he went to the Trinity courtyard and told the metropolitan that a misfortune had befallen him: his estate had burned down, and he was in dire straits. Then the Metropolitan brought out a bag of money and handed it to him with the words: “Here’s for your burnt estate.” Returning home, he triumphantly told everything to his sister, who was very upset by this. The next day, news came that on the very day and hour that he was with the Metropolitan, there was a fire on his estate, and for the exact amount that the Metropolitan gave him... Amazed, he immediately went to him and told him everything. This is what happened to the famous trade figure V. A. Medvy. In January 1868, he returned to Russia along the Karakum steppe from Kokand, where he had traveled on trade matters. He was accompanied by one Russian and a Kyrgyz guide. We rode on three camels; On January 15, a terrible storm arose, the frost reached 40°, and the road was skidded. The snowstorm blinded my eyes. The riders and camels were shivering from the cold. They lost not only the road, but also the direction they should have taken, and were lost for more than 12 hours. Finally, the camels stopped and cried pitifully. A terrible melancholy took possession of these people. The guide predicted death. His words were confirmed by the bones and skeletons lying on the sides of the road... Then M-v invited his companions to pray to God for help and surrender to His will... While praying, he remembered Moscow, his homeland, his late parents, Metropolitan Philaret, who was close to them (about whose death he did not yet know, and from whom he received a blessing before leaving). Having prayed fervently, he leaned against the camel and began to forget himself. – And then he saw such a sight. There was a procession, in front of it was Metropolitan Philaret in full vestments, with a cross in his hands. Father M-va leads him by the hand and says to the metropolitan: “Bless, Vladyka, my son Vasily.” - And the Metropolitan crossed him, saying: “God will bless you to continue your journey safely.” The vision ended, M-va’s doze stopped, and suddenly he heard a dog barking. Meanwhile, not a single dog was with them. Everyone heard this barking, and the camels themselves turned in that direction and cheerfully walked towards the barking. Five or more miles away this barking of an invisible dog was heard before the travelers and brought them to the Kyrgyz village. Having refreshed themselves, they asked where the dog was that led them to the house? This question surprised the Kirghiz: there was not a single dog in the entire village... One Moscow bookseller, honoring the memory of Metropolitan Philaret, in 1883 in the evening on the eve of St. Philaret the Merciful (December 1), whose name the Metropolitan bore, got ready to go to the theater. At this time they bring him a portrait of the Metropolitan, which he had long wanted to have. He bought the portrait, and at that time they struck the bell on the nearby bell tower. He asked what holiday tomorrow was, and he was told that it was the day of the Angel of the deceased Metropolitan. He became thoughtful and, remembering that he had once opened his trade on December 1, went to the all-night vigil... A few years later he took over a larger shop. When everything had already been transported, he went to the church to invite a priest for a prayer service; a memorial service was served in the church for Metropolitan Philaret: it was December 1 again. A few days later, when he had already opened a shop for customers, a simple Russian peasant came in and made a “start,” asks Metropolitan Philaret in “Words and Speeches.” “Let the wise men,” this merchant concluded his story, “of this century call everything an accident. But I, a dark man, cannot help but see in this the blessing of the great Metropolitan, and therefore I sacredly honor his memory.” (Extracted in brief from the book: “Russian ascetics of the 19th century.” Appendix to the magazine “Russian Pilgrim”). 2. Cases of clairvoyance from the life of Joseph, Archbishop. Voronezhsky. Some cases confirm that he had the gift of clairvoyance. One Skopino resident came to Voronezh to visit the relics of St. Mitrofan and, venerating them, went to Archbishop Joseph for a blessing. Blessing her, he first of all asked: “Have you visited your sister in Kozlov?” (It turned out that this woman was in a quarrel with her sister). Having received the answer that she had not visited her sister, the archbishop exhorted her to reconcile. Landowner V-a always asked for the blessing of the Eminence on her departure. Her daughter, who was at the Smolny Institute, fell ill in St. Petersburg, and they were in a hurry to go there. Before leaving, she went to see His Eminence Joseph. -Where are you going? - he said. “You yourself are sick, you shouldn’t go.” No matter how much she hesitated, conveying to many her surprise at these words, she decided to go, went to St. Petersburg and returned from there already in a coffin. The Archbishop often gave visitors brochures and books of spiritual content. They noticed that he gave many books that directly corresponded to the spiritual state of these persons. One merchant's trading affairs fell into disarray. In heavy thought, he went to the relics of St. Mitrofan, and then in the church of the cross he met the Right Reverend Joseph and approached him for a blessing. - Blessed be the servant of God John! - said the archbishop, who had never known this man before. With an approved spirit, he left the church, and his affairs soon began to noticeably improve. Leaving the Mitrophan Cathedral for the last time, he said to the novice: “This is the last time you and I are here, Alyosha!” The elder departed to God at the age of 92, on February 19, 1892. He died peacefully and quietly, sitting on the sofa. When the coffin was transferred to the church, many people gathered to say goodbye to him, and many lighted candles burned with zeal around this coffin. (From there). 3. Cases from the life of Fr. Nazarius, abbot of the Valaam monastery. Stories have been preserved about the following two incidents from the life of Fr. Nazariya: During the reign of Catherine II, a naval battle with the Swedes took place near St. Petersburg. The whole city was in fear, the Metropolitan prayed, imprisoned in his cell. At this time Fr. Nazarius urgently demanded a meeting with the Metropolitan and assured him of victory and safety. To confirm his words, he showed on the sea side the souls of the killed warriors ascending to the sky on light clouds. Then the Metropolitan encouraged the Empress. Under Emperor Alexander I, the dignitary K. fell from royal disfavor; his wife begged Fr. Nazariya to pray for her husband. He promised to ask the royal entourage. “I’ve already asked everyone,” answered the disgraced man’s wife. “Not the right ones,” answered Fr. Nazarius and, taking a lot of small money from K., went to distribute it to the poor. Only in the evening he distributed everything, and returned to the worried family with the words: “Well, thank God, all the king’s close associates promised for you.” Then came the news that the matter ended well. Then, answering the question, Fr. explained. Nazarius, who are those close and what King he asked. When the translation from Greek of the great ascetic book “Philokalia” was undertaken, Metropolitan Gabriel ordered the learned translators to consult with the spiritual elders in everything and first of all pointed to Fr. Nazariya. “From experience, they understand spiritual truths better than you,” said the Metropolitan. In 1801 Fr. Nazariy asked for leave to retire. At first, he retired to Valaam in his hermit’s cell, where he had previously retired to engage in prayers and handicrafts. But circumstances forced him to leave Valaam. Choosing a place for desert living, Fr. Nazariy went to the region of the Black Sea Cossacks. On the way, in the Voronezh province, Fr. Nazarius once visited a priest. When the time came to serve the Sunday all-night vigil, the priest announced to the elder that he would never serve, since the church was empty and there was no one to serve for. “The church cannot be empty,” answered the elder, “there is an Angel in it, the guardian of the throne of the Lord.” And then, if the parishioners do not go, then the Angels, the guardians of their souls, will go; for in every glorification of God, the first angels are both co-celebrants and co-glorifiers, and they would fill your church. “If you were to pray for our flock, the Lord would command the Angels to encourage their souls to pray. What answer will you give on the day of the Last Judgment about her destruction, when you do not use any measures for salvation! The priest asked the elder to instruct him, and Fr. Nazarius advised to immediately serve the all-night vigil, which they celebrated together according to rank. The old people came to the church, called some more of their own, so that in total up to 30 people gathered. When leaving the church, the elder explained the need to go to church. A slightly larger crowd gathered for mass. After lunch, people began to gather at the churchyard to have fun. “Let’s go too,” said Fr. Nazarius to the priest, take the Chet-Minea.” Arriving at the churchyard, they sat down, and the priest began to read the life of the daily saint, in between Fr. Nazarius spoke instructions from himself. First the old people came up, then some others. Every day the priest began to serve mass, and the number of parishioners multiplied, Fr. Nazariy never missed an opportunity to talk. Not finding a comfortable place for himself in the land of the Black Sea Cossacks, Fr. Nazariy drove back through the same village, and just arrived there on Sunday, to the good news. There were a lot of people at the church, and the people enthusiastically greeted the elder, whom they had come to love. After mass the priest, pointing to Fr. Nazarius, when not only the church, but also the porches were full of people praying, told those present that this was the fruit of the prayers of Fr. Nazariya. Until the end of his life. Nazarius maintained correspondence with this priest. Returning to Sarov, where he began monasticism, Fr. Nazarius built himself a deserted cell in the forest, near the Sarovka River. When he had enough strength, he walked through the forest at night, reciting the 12 psalms from memory, and returned to his cell by dawn. More than once he met bears who did not touch him, and he was not afraid of them. Many hermits confided their thoughts to him. In the Tambov and Nizhny Novgorod regions, many women's hostels were formed under his leadership. Having the gift of insight, Fr. Nazarius saw human thoughts and sins naked. A doer of mental prayer, the elder wrote about her this way: “Let us pray with the spirit, let us also pray with the mind. Consider the words of the Apostle Paul: “I would rather speak five words with my mind than a thousand with my tongue.” I can’t describe how happy we are that we were deigned to speak these five words. What a joy! Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me, a sinner. Imagine: Lord, Who am I calling? Creator, Creator of everything, Whom all heavenly powers tremble. Collect your mind and heart into one, close your eyes, raise your mental eyes to the Lord. Oh, Sweetest and Dearest Lord, Jesus Christ, Son of God!” After a five-year stay in Sarov, Fr. Nazarius died at the age of 74 on February 23, 1809, and was buried at the altar of the warm church. (From the book “Russian mobility of the 19th century”). 4. From the life of Hieroschemamonk Ambrose, the Elder of Optina. Much has always been said about the foresight of Father Ambrose. He tried to hide this gift of his from people and did not have the habit of predicting. But in the advice he gave, this gift was revealed in all its incomprehensible greatness. There were no secrets for him; he saw everything. A stranger could come to him and remain silent, but he knew his life and its circumstances, his state of mind and why he came here. Father Ambrose questioned his visitors, but to an attentive person, by the way and what questions he asked, it was clear that the priest knew the matter. But sometimes, due to the liveliness of nature, this knowledge was expressed, which always embarrassed the elder. Not long ago, a young man from the bourgeoisie approached him with his arm in a sling and began to complain that he could not cure it. The elder had another monk and several laymen. Before he had time to finish: “Everything hurts, it hurts a lot,” the elder interrupted him: “And it will hurt, why did you offend your mother?” “But at once he became embarrassed and continued: “Are you behaving well, are you a good son? Did you offend me?" Here are examples of how the elder acted. A guy from near the Tikhonova Hermitage (50 versts from Optina) decided to get married because his old mother was weak and there were no other women in the house. He went to Uspenie to see the priest, and he said: “Come to the Intercession.” And the mother at home is angry: “The old man is just confusing - there’s no time to chill out.” At Intercession the priest says: “Wait until Epiphany - then we’ll see what will happen,” and the mother at home scolds even more. Epiphany has arrived, and the guy announces that he cannot tolerate his mother’s scolding. And the priest answered him: “I’m afraid that you won’t listen; and my advice: you don’t need to get married - wait.” The guy left and got married. After the wedding, he died two months later, and his wife was left without any means. The poor bourgeois woman was betrothed by a merchant for her beauty, and the priest said to his mother: “Your groom must be refused.” The mother jumped up: “What are you talking about, father; Yes, we never even dreamed of such a thing - God sent it to an orphan, and you refuse!” And the priest answered: “Refuse this - I have another groom for your daughter, better than this.” - “What better thing do we need: she shouldn’t marry a prince!” - “I have such a great groom that it’s hard to say, refuse the merchant.” The merchant was refused, and the girl suddenly fell ill and died. Then they understood what kind of Groom the priest was talking about. Two sisters come to visit their father. The youngest is a bride, in love, happy, in a joyful mood since childhood; the eldest is quiet, thoughtful, pious. One asks to bless her choice, and the other asks for tonsure. The priest hands the bride a rosary, and says to the eldest: “What a monastery! You’ll get married – but not at home – that’s what!” - and named the province where they had never gone. Both return to St. Petersburg. The bride finds out that her loved one has cheated on her. This made a terrible change in her, because her attachment was deep. She comprehended the vanity of what had previously occupied her, her thoughts turned to God, and soon there was one more nun. Meanwhile, the eldest received a letter from a distant province from a forgotten aunt, a pious woman who lived next door to some monastery. She called her to take a closer look at the life of nuns. But it turned out differently. With this aunt she met a man no longer young, who was very similar in character to her, and married him. One monk close to the priest had a sister married to a landowner who often visited Optina. One day the priest starts a conversation like this: “They say (father really likes to use this “they say” to cover up his insight) - they say that an estate near you is being sold at a profit: buy it.” The landowner was surprised. “It’s for sale, father, and it would be a good buy, but this is just a dream: a big estate, they ask for pure money, even if it’s cheap, but I don’t have money.” “Money,” the priest repeated quietly, “there will be money.” Then they moved on to other conversations. In parting, Father Ambrose said: “Do you hear, buy some property.” The landowner went home on his horses. His uncle lived along the road, a rich but terribly stingy old man, avoided by all his relatives. It so happened that there was nowhere to stay and I had to go to my uncle. During the conversation, the uncle asks: “Why don’t you buy the estate that is for sale near you: a good purchase!” And he answers: “What should I ask, uncle? Where can I get so much money from?” - “And if you find money, do you want me to lend it?” The nephew took it as a joke, but the uncle was not joking. The estate was purchased, and the new owner came to take over. Less than a week has passed, the master is informed that merchants have come to trade timber. They wanted to buy not all of the forest of this estate, but part of it. They started talking about the price. “You and I, master, won’t haggle - we’ll set the price right away,” and they named the price for which the entire estate was purchased. These are not the cases of insight that prove direct knowledge of known events, thoughts and feelings that have not been revealed to anyone. Such insight of the elder was often revealed for individuals at the so-called general blessings. The elder walked around the people awaiting his blessing, looking carefully at everyone, making the sign of the cross and saying a few words to some. Often, turning to everyone, he said something that served as an answer to the innermost thought of someone present. This was a wonderful way for the elder to communicate with the children in what they did not express to him, but what was revealed to him. Father Ambrose knew not only the feelings of those who were in front of him, he knew the mood of those who came for the first time; when they reported to him, he already knew whether need or curiosity had brought him to him - whether he should accept it quickly or resign himself to waiting. Those who were attentive to themselves noticed that the heavier the burden with which they went to the priest, the more affectionate his greeting was, even if it was dark and the expression on the person coming was not visible. Just like the gift of clairvoyance, Father Ambrose also hid the gift of healing. He had the custom of sending people to bathe in the healing well of the Tikhon Hermitage and take away all glory from himself. (From the book “Russian Ascetics of the 19th Century,” part II, pp. 32 – 36). 5. From the life of Seraphim of Sarov. On August 13, 1786, Seraphim was tonsured a monk, and he was given, without his knowledge, a name suitable for him, chosen by the monastery authorities: Seraphim, which means “fiery.” In December 1787 he was ordained hierodeacon. From that day on, for six years he was almost continuously in ministry. I spent the nights of Sundays and holidays in prayer, standing. God gave him strength - he hardly needed rest, forgot about food and left the church with regret. From time to time, during church services, he saw Angels concelebrating and singing with the brethren. He received a particularly significant vision during the liturgy on Holy Thursday, when, after a small exit, he saw the Lord our God Jesus Christ in the form of the Son of Man in glory, shining brighter than the sun and surrounded by the Heavenly Forces. From the western church gates He walked through the air, stopped opposite the pulpit and, raising His hands, blessed the servants and those praying. From the vision of Fr. Seraphim instantly changed his appearance - and could not leave his place or utter words. The hierodeacons led him by the arms into the altar, where he stood motionless for about two hours. On September 12, 1804, while he was chopping wood in the forest, three peasant strangers came to him and brazenly began to demand money. He replied: “I don’t take anything from anyone.” The first one who rushed at him fell, and they were all afraid; and o. Seraphim, although he was very strong even with an ax, remembered the words of the Savior: “Everyone... who takes a knife will die with a knife.” He lowered the ax, crossed his arms on his chest and said: “Do what you need.” They hit him in the head with the butt of an ax - blood gushed from his mouth and ears, and the old man fell dead. The robbers dragged him to the cell, continuing to trample him, tied him with ropes - and, thinking that he was killed, they threw him and rushed into the cell for robbery. But they found only an icon and a few potatoes; fear fell on the villains and they ran away. O. Seraphim, having come to his senses, somehow untied himself, thanked God for his innocent suffering, prayed for forgiveness of the robbers, and by morning he trudged into the monastery, in the most terrible form, tormented, bloodied, with dried blood. The doctors found that his head was broken, his ribs were broken, his chest was trampled, and there were mortal wounds all over his body, and they wondered how he was still alive. When they conferred in Latin on what to do, Fr. Seraphim fell asleep and had a vision. The Most Holy Lady, in glory, with the apostles John the Theologian and Peter, appeared to his bed and said in the direction where the doctors were: “Why are you toiling?” - and to the elder: “This is from My generation!” - words already heard by the elder. Waking up, oh. Seraphim rejected the treatment and, on the same day, feeling the return of his strength, got out of bed. But he spent five months recovering in the monastery, and there he returned to the desert again. When the robbers were caught, Fr. Seraphim announced to both the Sarov abbot and the landowner that if the peasants were punished, he would leave Sarov forever to distant places. At the elder’s prayer, the villains were forgiven, but soon a fire burned their houses; they repented and came to Fr. Seraphim. From that time on, he remained forever completely bent over (he had once been crushed by a tree while cutting wood) and walked, leaning on a hatchet, hoe or stick. O. Seraphim had the gift of clairvoyance to a very strong degree. In this brief description, many cases included in the detailed life of Fr. Seraphim; but it is necessary to point out the elder’s opinion about this insight. After one discovery of insight, and to the surprise of one of his spiritual children, the elder explained: “He came to me, like others, like you; he walked like a servant of God; I, a sinful Seraphim, thought that I was a sinful servant of God - what the Lord commands me, as His servant, I pass on what is useful to the one who requires. I consider the first thought that appears in my soul to be an indication from God and I speak without knowing what is in my interlocutor’s soul, but only believing that this is what God’s will is indicating to me. I don’t have my own will, but what God pleases, that’s what I convey.” Receiving letters, Fr. Seraphim often, without opening them, knew their contents and gave answers: “This is what you say from poor Seraphim.” – After his death, many such unopened letters were found, to which answers were given. To one layman V. o. Seraphim often said that three powers would rise up against Russia and wear her out a lot. But for Orthodoxy, the Lord will have mercy and preserve her. It was he who spoke about the Crimean campaign, as events showed. There have yet been no revelations or apparitions at the tomb of St. Mitrophanius of Voronezh, but Fr. Seraphim congratulated Archbishop Anthony of Voronezh in writing on the opening of St. relics. In the spirit of Fr. Seraphim knew and was in unity with many ascetics whom he had never seen and who lived thousands of miles away from him. When a thought arose in the recluse of the Zadonsk Mother of God Monastery of St. George, whether he should change his place to a more secluded one, and no one except him knew this secret confusion, some wanderer came to him from Fr. Seraphim and said: “Father Seraphim ordered you to say: it’s a shame, after sitting in seclusion for so many years, to be overcome by such enemy thoughts in order to leave your place. Don’t go anywhere: the Most Holy Theotokos orders you to stay here.” The old man said and left. He saw the past and the future equally, in a few words he outlined the future life of a person and said things and gave advice that seemed strange until they turned out to be full of the spirit of insight. His detailed lives preserve many amazing manifestations of this gift. O. Seraphim also had the gift of healing. He had the custom of anointing the sick with oil from the lamp that burned in front of his cell icon of the Mother of God - “Tenderness,” which he called “Joy of All Joys” - and when he was asked why he was doing this, he answered the messenger: “We read in Scripture that the apostles anointed with oil, and many sick people were healed from this. Who should we follow if not the apostles?” - and those anointed with him received healing. And about the “Seraphim” well, the elder said: “I prayed that the water in the well would be healing from diseases.” This water then acquired special properties. It does not deteriorate, even if it has stood in uncapped vessels for many years; at any time of the year, even in cold weather, sick and healthy are washed with it and benefit. One Sarov monk stopped a courtyard man who was chasing an elder and asked: “Why are you chasing him?” “How could I not chase after him,” he answered hastily, “I was blind, but Fr. Seraphim made me see,” and he ran further after the elder. M.V. Sinyagina was sick, she felt terrible melancholy and because of her illness she could not eat the food prescribed by the charter on fasting days. The elder ordered her to drink water at his source. Then, without any coercion, a lot of bile came out of her larynx, and she became healthy. To many, even in wounds, Fr. Seraphim ordered to be doused with water from his source. Everyone received healing from this - and in various diseases. In the early twenties, Mr. Mantorov fell ill with an illness that doctors could not identify and which they could not alleviate. Suffering forced him to leave military service and settle on the Nuce estate in the 40th century. from Sarov. About Fr. Rumors had already spread to Seraphim; rumor reached the sick man, and he was carried in the arms of his people to the elder. The elder asked him three times: “Do you undoubtedly believe in God?” The patient answered three times: “I certainly believe.” The elder anointed the sore spots with oil from the lamp; all the scabs covering the body instantly fell off. Mantorov, healed, left his cell healthy. He lived his entire subsequent life under the elder’s hand, and did a lot for his Diveyevo community. General Ladyzhensky had severe pain in his left arm from a wound received in the Turkish campaign. At the request of his sisters, he had to visit Fr. Seraphim. When he returned, he said that a miracle had happened to him. “While I was conveying Fr. Seraphim’s instructions - he took me by my sore hand and squeezed me so tightly that I only cried out in shame, but now I don’t feel absolutely any pain in my hand.” O. Seraphim spoke for several years about the approaching cholera and, when it came, openly foreshadowing that it would not happen either in Sarov or Diveevo, he healed those who turned to him. So, one peasant, having fallen ill, crawled to the elder, who placed him next to his image, gave him holy water to drink, gave him prosphora and ordered him to go around the monastery and pray in the cathedral. The peasant was healed. The last years of the old man’s life have arrived. He said: “Soon I will not live here; my end is near!” With the same love and care, the elder continued to serve those who came to him. Here is one of the descriptions of the visit to Fr. Seraphim. “We found an old man in the nearby desert, at work: he was breaking out a garden bed with a hoe. When we bowed to the ground before him, he blessed us and, placing his hands on my head, read the troparion to the Dormition: “You preserved your virginity at Christmas.” Then he sat down on the garden bed and ordered us to sit down as well; but we involuntarily knelt before him and listened to his conversation about the future life, about the life of the saints, about the intercession, intercession and care of the Lady Theotokos for us sinners, and about what we need in this life for eternity. This conversation lasted no more than an hour; but I cannot compare such an hour with the entire past of my life. Throughout the conversation, I felt an inexplicable, heavenly sweetness in my heart, God knows how, overflowing there, which cannot be compared with anything on earth. Until then, everything in the spiritual world was completely indifferent to me. O. Seraphim for the first time now made me feel the Almighty Lord God and His inexhaustible mercy and all-perfection.” A young cavalry officer drives past Sarov for repairs. He doubts the teaching of the Church about icons and is afraid of the reproof of the perspicacious elder - and bypasses the desert. But six months later, going on a hike, he, at the request of his father, stops by in Sarov. An elder in a crowd of people makes a sign for him to come up and leads him to his cell. When asked to pray that he survives the battle, the elder blesses him with a copper cross and confesses his sins, telling him out loud, and then instructs him: “We must not submit to the fear that the devil brings to the young men, but we must then be especially alert in spirit and remember that we, although sinners, are all under the grace of our Redeemer, without whose will not a single hair falls from our head. The temptations of the devil are like a cobweb: blow on it and it is destroyed; It’s worth protecting yourself with the sign of the cross, and the enemy’s machinations disappear completely.” Then the elder explains all the listener’s misconceptions about St. icons, blesses the soldiers of the unit he commands and predicts that they will all survive the campaign. When leaving, the officer places three rubles near the elder for candles; and suddenly in my soul I thought, what does the old man need money for? He returns with repentance to Fr. Seraphim, and the elder, before he said a word, says: “During the war with the Gauls, one military leader had to lose his right hand, but this hand gave some hermit three coins for St. church, and through the prayers of the Holy Church the Lord saved her. Understand this well and in future do not repent of your good deeds. Your money will go to the organization of the Diveyevo community, for your health.” Giving him holy water to drink, the elder says: “May the evil spirit that has come upon the servant of God John be destroyed by the grace of God.” Then the elder gives prosphora, holy water and crackers for the journey. Another time, a general comes to the elder and says that, surrounded on all sides by Turkish regiments, left without hope with one of his regiments, he repeated: “Lord, have mercy on Elder Seraphim through the prayers,” ate his crackers and drank holy water - and was saved. And the elder explains to him that the prayer of faith is an invincible victory. Here's about. Seraphim reconnects the dysfunctional lives of separated spouses and children separated for the sake of it. Here the mother, having lost sight of her son, falls at the feet of the old man, and he says: “Wait in Sarov!” Three days later, entering the cell of Fr. Seraphim, she finds in her her son, whom Fr. Seraphim takes her hand and congratulates her. On March 25, 1831, the elder was delighted with a wonderful visit. A witness to this visit was one old woman, Diveeva, to whom Fr. Seraphim ordered her to come to him and said: “We will have a vision of the Mother of God,” he prayed over her and reassured her: “Fear nothing!” There was a noise, like a forest rustling from a strong wind. When it died down, church singing was heard. The door to the cell opened by itself, it became brighter than day, and a fragrance filled the cell. Father Seraphim stood on his knees, raising his hands to the sky and said: “Behold, our Most Glorious, Most Pure Lady, the Most Holy Theotokos, is coming to us!” Two Angels with golden hair walked ahead, holding branches planted with newly bloomed flowers. They took the lead. Following them were: St. John the Baptist and St. John the Theologian, in white clothes shining with purity. Behind them came the Mother of God and twelve virgins. The Queen of Heaven wore a mantle, as it is written on the image of the Sorrowful Mother of God, of indescribable beauty, fastened with stone lined with crosses; Her arms were covered with the epitrachelion placed over the dress, and the mantles were also decorated with crosses. She seemed taller than all the maidens; on Her head a crown shone among the crosses - and her eyes could not stand the light that illuminated the face of the Mother of God. The maidens followed Her in pairs, wearing crowns, and were of different appearances, but all of great beauty. The cell became more spacious, and its top was filled with lights, as if burning candles. It was clearer than noon, the radiance was greater than the daylight, brighter and whiter than the sun. When the nun came to her senses, Fr. Seraphim was no longer on his knees, but on his feet in front of the Most Holy Theotokos, and She spoke to him. The virgins told the nun their names and sufferings for Christ. From the conversation of the Most Pure Lady with Fr. Seraphim the nun heard: “Do not forsake My virgins (of Diveyevo)!” O. Seraphim answered: “Oh, Lady! I collect them, but I cannot manage them myself.” The Queen of Heaven answered: “I will help you with everything. Whoever offends them will be defeated by Me; whoever serves them for the Lord’s sake will be remembered before God.” Then She said to the nun: “These My virgins have loved the One Lord; others left the earthly kingdom and wealth, and for this you see what glory they were awarded. As it was before, so it is now. Only the former martyrs suffered openly, and the current ones secretly, with heartache, and the reward will be the same.” Blessing Fr. Seraphim, the Most Holy Theotokos said: “Soon you will be with us!” The Holy Forerunner and the Theologian blessed him, and the virgins kissed him hand in hand. “In an instant everything became invisible.” This was the twelfth appearance to Elder Seraphim from the Lord God. The old man was 72 years old. Bodily exhaustion increased; the elder could rarely go to the deserted cell, and many lived for a long time in the monastery hotel in order to see each other and enjoy the fragrance of his last conversations. Speaking about the hermitage with one Diveyevo oxbow, Fr. Seraphim was delighted with the ideas of the expected bliss; he stood up and with raised hands looked into the sky and said: “What joy, what delight embraces the soul of the righteous when the Angels gather it and present it before the face of God!” He said to one ascetic: “This, Fr. Timon, this, this wheat given to you everywhere. This one is on good soil, this one is on the sand, this one is on the stones, this one is along the way, this one is in the thorns: everything will vegetate somewhere and grow and bear fruit, although not soon.” O. Seraphim was already finally preparing for death. Often, sitting in the hallway near his coffin, he thought about the afterlife, and his earthly path seemed to him so imperfect that he cried bitterly. The elder sent letters to some people, calling them to him, and instructed others after his death to convey useful advice to them. On Christmas Day itself, Fr. Seraphim talked for a long time with one layman. This was perhaps his last, long conversation. “Do good,” he said, “the way of the Lord is all the same!” The enemy will be with you everywhere. Whoever partakes will be saved everywhere; and whoever does not partake, not by me. - This is what you do: if they reproach you, don’t reproach them; persecuted - be patient; blaspheme - praise; condemn yourself, so God will not condemn; submit your will to the will of the Lord; never flatter; know good and evil in yourself: blessed is the man who knows this. Love your neighbor: your neighbor is your flesh. If you live according to the flesh, you will destroy soul and flesh; and if according to God, then you will save both. For making concessions to the world, many died: if someone does not do good, he sins. We must love everyone and most of all – God...” “Save your subordinates with favors, relief from labor, and not with wounds. Give drink, feed, be fair, the Lord endures; God knows, maybe he will endure for a long time. You do this: if God forgives, forgive you too.” “What the Holy Church has accepted and kissed, everything should be kind to the heart of a Christian. Do not forget holidays: be abstinent, go to church, unless you are weak; pray for everyone: you will do a lot of good; Give candles, wine and oil to church: alms will do you a lot of good. During fasting, do not eat fasting: bread and water are not harmful to anyone. How did people live for 100 years? Man does not live on bread alone. What the Church laid down at the seven Ecumenical Councils, fulfill. Woe to him who adds or subtracts one word from this. What do enemies say about the righteous who healed rotting wounds with one touch? The Lord calls us, but we ourselves do not want to. – Gain humility through silence. God said to Isaiah: “On whom will I look but to him who is meek and silent and trembles at My words.” Throughout this conversation, Fr. Seraphim was very joyful. He spoke extremely hastily; the visitor barely had time to read the questions before he immediately received answers to them. The elder stood leaning on his oak coffin and held a lit wax candle in his hands. On the same day, the elder received communion, had a long conversation with the abbot and asked him for many monks, especially the younger ones. On the side of the altar of the Assumption Cathedral, he measured out a grave for himself. One day at the end of 1832, one monk asked the elder: “Why don’t we have the strict life of the ancient ascetics?” “Because,” answered the elder, “we have no resolve; and the grace and help of God to the faithful and those who seek the Lord with all their hearts is now the same as it was before - and we could live like the ancient fathers: for, according to the word of God, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today, and forever!” These words are the seal of Fr.’s life. Seraphim. The new year of 1833 arrived, falling on a Sunday. O. Seraphim survived the early mass in his dear hospital church, in the name of St. Zosima and Savvaty, walked around all the icons, kissing each one and lighting candles, which he had never done before, and communed. In his cell, the candles he never extinguished were burning, because in response to all warnings he always said: “As long as I am alive, there will be no fire, but my death will be revealed by fire.” After the service, the elder said goodbye to all the praying monks, blessed, kissed and said: “Save yourself, do not lose heart, stay awake, today crowns are being prepared for us!” He also venerated the cross, the icon of the Mother of God, and bowed at the altar of St. throne and went out through the northern doors, as if as a sign that a person enters life by birth and leaves by death. Extreme exhaustion was noticed in him. His neighbor in his cell noticed that three times that day he went out to the place indicated for burial and looked at the ground for a long time, and in the evening he sang Easter songs and prayers of victory in his cell. On the second of January at six o'clock in the morning from the cell of Fr. Seraphim was smoking. It was locked from the inside, and they wouldn’t open it when they knocked. The door had to be ripped off its hinges. In the entryway, a canvas was smoldering from a candle left behind. Everything was quiet in the cell. Father Seraphim in his white robe stood in front of the icon of the Most Pure Virgin of Tenderness, which he called “Joy of All Joys,” in his usual place, in front of a small lectern, on his knees, with his head open, with a copper crucifix on his chest. His hands lay crosswise on the book of prayers, and his head was bowed on his hands. “At first they thought he had fallen asleep. - Father, don’t you see that your book is on fire! - they told him, but he did not answer. The eyes were closed; the face was animated with an expression of prayer and spiritual thought, the body was still warm. All that night, Elder Philaret, who had been tied up in the Glinsk desert of the Kursk province, leaving Matins, pointed to the extraordinary light visible in the sky to the brethren and said: “Behold, this is how the souls of the righteous depart. Now in Sarov the soul of Fr. Seraphim ascends to Heaven." Not a single speech was made over his coffin; Only the word of God sounded and church songs were heard, stronger than any speeches - the songs that he loved so much in his silent and great life. He was lowered into the ground near the Cathedral of the Blessed Virgin, in the name of Her glorious Dormition, in an oak coffin and, according to his will, an enamel image of St. Sergius, sent to him with the relics from the Lavra. He was born in the parish of St. Sergius, equaled him in exploits and went to the grave with his icon. A lot of people gathered and gathered for the funeral service of the elder Fr. Seraphim. But, having lowered the body of the ascetic, so gloriously illuminated during his life by the radiance of the shrine, into the ground, the Russian land did not bury its beloved elder. He remained alive for her. Things about. Seraphim - his copper maternal cross and the large iron one that he wore on his body, his hatchet, stones, the icon “Joy of All Joys,” the Gospel and several crackers are kept in Sarov and Diveyevo, where his name became famous. This is what he said, shortly after the death of Fr. Seraphim, Archbishop Anthony of Voronezh, known for his ascetic life: “We are like penny candles, but he, like a penny candle, always burns before the Lord, both with his past life on earth and with his present boldness before the Holy Trinity.” Many phenomena have already been recorded about Fr. Seraphim, after his blessed death. Here are a few of them. Nizhny Novgorod landowner D.A.A. lost his sight completely in his old age; and his only joy was in reading the holy books. His cousin sent him water from the spring of Fr. Seraphim. He ordered a clean towel to be brought to him, wet it with this water and with the prayer: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, through the prayers of Thy saint Seraphim, heal me,” he applied it to his eyes three times. After the first time he saw as if in a fog, after the second he began to distinguish objects and after the third he could read: he regained his sight. The healed man went to Sarov and began to annually devote part of his income to Diveev, where, after his death, his name was recorded for eternal remembrance. The Russian ascetic of Athos, Hieromonk Seraphim, known under the name of Svyatogorets, in his cell notes conveys the following: “In 1849 I fell ill. My illness was fatal: I did not think that I would remain alive. No means could deliver me. I despaired. Only on the first evening of 1850 did someone suddenly quietly say to me: “Tomorrow is the day of the death of Fr. Seraphim, the Elder of Sarov: serve the funeral liturgy and requiem for him, and he will heal you.” This comforted me greatly. Although I personally did not know Fr. Seraphim, but in 1838, while in Sarov, he developed faith and love for him. So, I asked to serve a liturgy and requiem for him, and immediately my illness passed, and to this day I am healthy by the grace of God.” In July 1856, the only son of the Kostroma vice-governor Borzko, 8 years old, fell ill with stomach cramps; the illness became more complicated, seizures appeared, with melancholy, resolved with foam; doctors helped little, and the parents feared for their son’s life. At this time, S.D. Davydova, who was a ryasophore in a convent (later Kostroma abbess, Mother Maria), gave the child’s mother a book about Fr. Seraphim. The parents read it together. One night the child saw in a dream the Savior in red clothes, in a host of Angels; He said: “You will be healthy if you remember what the elder who will come to you will command you.” Then an old man appeared, called himself Seraphim and said: “If you want to be healthy, take water from a source located in the Sarov Forest and called Seraphim, and for three days, morning and evening, wash your head, chest, arms and legs, and drink it.” The child told the dream to the nanny, and the nanny told his parents, to whom the son repeated all this himself. The next morning he discovered that after his first dream, the Most Holy Virgin appeared to him with Angels and lovingly ordered him to fulfill the words of the elder. On this very day, Mrs. Davydova returned from a trip, and her parents asked to help them get water from the source of Fr. Seraphim. She immediately sent a bottle of this water; When they followed the elder’s instructions, the child completely recovered. One Sarov monk, living an ascetic life, was drawn by the spirit of malice into terrible despondency and despair. At that moment he cried out: “Father Seraphim, help me!” Right there, in his cell, he then saw near the icons the saint of God, who, blessing him, as if alive, said: “My joy, I am always with you. Take courage, do not be discouraged, but fight against the enemy – the devil.” On May 28, 1844, one Penza and another Saransk merchants with their families, Princess and Princess Enikeev and their niece clearly saw Fr. Seraphim at its source; first in the source itself, at half height, and then in one place - sitting on a log house, and in another - hurrying to the monastery. All this was told to the elder’s disciple, Fr. Jasaph, and the next day they all went there together. When Fr. Joasaph slowed down on the way; they ran up to him with the news that Fr. Seraphim is already visible. In the water there was a clear image of him, as he is depicted in portraits, in an epitrachelion, and in his hands was a book and an image. The princess's niece, a 10-year-old child, threw a pebble into the water, at the image. The water began to ripple, and the image became as if alive. The head of the Vlakhersky hermitage, E. A. Tatarinova, testified that Saint Mitrophanios appeared to one unknown patient in Siberia and said: “Why don’t you ask God for help through the Sarov elder, Fr. Seraphim? He is not yet glorified on earth, but he has great boldness with the Lord. You have a piece of the stone on which he prayed; Immerse it in water and drink.” Thus the sick man was healed. One praying mantis walked through the Murom forests. In a remote place she heard terrible screams and moans. She had an image of Fr. Seraphim, she took it out and crossed herself and the place where the screams were coming from. Everything was quiet. She moved on. There was a cart on the road, and with it lay two mutilated people. They said that the robbers wanted to kill them, but suddenly fled. After a while, a police officer arrived and picked up the three of them, and suspected the woman as an accomplice to the robbery. The robbers walked free for a long time and were caught doing something else. Repenting, they also told about the robbery in the Murom forest. When they were preparing to inflict the final blow on their victims, suddenly a gray-haired, bent monk in a crumpled kamilavka, with a wagging finger, in a white robe, ran out of the forest at them, shouting: “Here I am!” And a crowd of people ran after him with stakes. They were shown a picture of Fr. Seraphim, taken from the wanderer, and they recognized him. To the Shatsk merchant Petakovskaya, who knew the elder during his lifetime, in a dream Fr. Seraphim said: “At night, thieves broke down your son’s shop; but I took a broom and began sweeping near the bench, and they left.” In the morning all the locks were found torn out. In 1864, Mrs. Sabaneeva’s son Dmitry fell ill in St. Petersburg, and he was just about to take an exam and go to the mining institute. The mother was in grief and prayed to Fr. Seraphim. At night she saw an old man in a dream, and he told her: “Your son will recover and pass the test of science.” In the infirmary, the mother no longer found her son: he was taking an exam. Having returned successfully and joyfully, he told her that he, too, had seen in a dream his beloved and revered Fr. Seraphim, who told him: “You will recover and pass the test.” According to the testimony of novice Goglachova, “one famous lady” came to Sarov and, seeing the image of Fr. Seraphima burst into tears and told the following about herself. She had an abscess in her throat; the voice disappeared, the water came only in drops. One night she sat in bed, surrounded by pillows; those who served her fell asleep. There was a lamp in the room and a lamp near the icons. Suddenly, an old man unexpectedly entered with his head open, in a white robe, with a copper cross on his chest. He blessed the sick woman and told her: “Simple and kind-hearted!” - and left. At that same moment, the patient loudly exclaimed: “Elder of God, say something else!” This voice woke up her servant, who asked her who she was talking to. Upon recovery, they brought her an image of Fr. Seraphim, and in him she recognized her healer, and in Sarov she was struck by the fact that his attire was the same in which the elder appeared to her. In 1865, in the house of Mrs. Bar... before Christmas, benefits were distributed, according to custom, to the needy. An old man, gray-haired and bent, came in separately and, after praying, said: “Peace and blessings on this house.” The distributor asked him: “Are you looking for alms?” - What do you want? Take it if you need it. - No, I don’t need anything, but just to see your mistress and say two words to her. - The owner is not at home. What to convey - tell us. One of the servants whispered to the other: “What is he doing here - let him go - maybe he’s some kind of tramp.” The old man said: “When the hostess is there, I’ll come in, I’ll come in soon,” and went out. The distributor saw the old man’s bad shoes and repented, some kind of embarrassment attacked her. She ran out onto the porch, but there was no one there for a longer time: he had definitely disappeared. This was hidden from the mistress, and in a dream someone said to a suspicious maid: “You were in vain when you said: you had not a tramp, but a great old man of God.” The next morning, Mrs. Bar... a package arrived in the mail. It turned out to be an image of the revered elder Fr. Seraphim - feeding the bear. Great was the amazement of everyone: when those who spoke with the poor old man recognized him in the image of Fr. Seraphim. (Extracted in abbreviation from the book “Russian Ascetics of the 19th Century,” Part II). 6. From the life of Parthenius, Hieroschemamonk of Kiev-Pechersk. Peter (his worldly name) did not know carnal passions, carnal struggle, or unclean thoughts at all. And the royal path that the ascetic followed led him to great spiritual gifts. After tonsure, on September 20, 1824, into monasticism, with the name Paphnutius, he increased his work. In his cell there was only a crucifix, an icon of the Most Holy Theotokos, a bare wooden bench, a table, a lantern and a wooden cup. At night, in addition to prayers, he copied patristic books. Blessed visions often visited God’s chosen one, strengthening him. During the celebration of the liturgy, he received a wonderful insight in which the mystery of salvation was revealed to him. Before his ordination to the priesthood, he imagined in a dream that an unknown Bishop in the altar of the Great Church was handing him from the throne the Gospel, surrounded by an indescribable radiance, and in response to his answer that he did not dare, the Wife standing at the right hand of the Bishop, in royal attire, said: “Take it, Paphnutius, I will vouch for you.” Soon Father Paphnutius was appointed confessor of the Lavra. The knowledge of fallen, defiled human nature plunged him into great sorrow, crushing him to the point of exhaustion. “Poor, poor people,” he said, “if only they knew what blessings they are exchanging for the stench of sin,” and he attributed this tendency to sin to the enemy of salvation. In 1838 Fr. Paphnutius submitted a petition for acceptance of the schema, and in doubt whether he would be allowed at such an old age (he was 48 years old), was supported by the appearance of Saint Parthenius. Soon, Metropolitan Philaret of Kiev himself clothed him with the schema and named him Parthenius. And with even greater strength the schema-monk devoted himself to prayer, which grew into his heart and acted even in his sleep. He once saw in such a dream his heart engulfed in flames. His prayer rule consisted of reading one evangelist in the morning, at noon and in the evening, singing the entire Psalter daily, morning and evening prayers, an akathist to the Savior, the Mother of God, adoration of the Passion of Christ, the song “Rejoice, Virgin Mary,” which he uttered three hundred times. His zeal for the Mother of God was extraordinary. He had a touching, tender and childlike love for the Most Holy Lady, and this love was poured out in an inspired appeal to Her: “Beloved Daughter of God the Father, Husbandless Emmanuel Mother, crystalline Paraclete Bride, holy-voiced turtledove, white-lily Ark of the Creator, noble nest of the Heavenly Eagle, fireproof candle of the world! The Archangel Gabriel’s voice cries out to You!” About the Annunciation Fr. Parthenius says: “Blessed and blessed be the day of the Annunciation of our Most Holy Lady Theotokos.” Many times he had visions of the Blessed Virgin. One day, having read that the Holy Lady was the first nun, he began to think about it and dozed off. Then he saw a majestic nun surrounded by monks with a staff in her hands. She approached him and said: “Parthenius, I am a nun!” Another time She appeared to him in glory in the hour of sorrow, at his fervent prayer. He spent several years in a cramped cell, the window of which was blocked by an icon of the Most Holy Theotokos, illuminated by a lamp, and said: “What do I need sensual light: the Most Pure One is the light of my eyes and soul.” One day, praying that the Lady would reveal to him what schemata is, he heard a voice: “Dedicate yourself to prayer for the whole world.” Excommunicated from everything earthly, he considered worldly possessions to be sin. The things brought to him were tied into a bundle and taken out onto the road. Countess Anna Orlova once knelt before him and said: “Father, how can I console you? “I won’t regret millions.” “I found something to console you with,” he answered, “what do I need this dung for?” Father Parthenius was embarrassed that he had not experienced persecution, and that therefore his path of sorrows was not full. But Metropolitan Philaret of Kiev reassured him: “What do you need persecution for? You’re persecuting yourself. Who would want to live your life? The greatest joy of the ascetic was the daily celebration of the liturgy in the metropolitan’s home church. Here, during the Cherubim, praying before the throne with raised hands, he once saw the open Heaven, Christ descending on the throne, God the Father blessing Him, the condescension of the Holy Spirit hovering over Him. On November 13, 1843, he saw Chrysostom and the Archangel who came to his aid. One day, while repeating the prayer for a long time: “Jesus, live in me,” I heard a sweet and quiet voice: “He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I am in him.” On the eve of the New Year, spiritually contemplating the infancy of the God-Man, he fell into a subtle sleep and saw two Angels flying from the east with the Baby in their arms, whom they laid in front of the old man. The beauty of the Divine Child was inexpressible, and from the love that shone in His gaze, the heart of the old man flared up. Spring and summer o. Parthenius spent with the metropolitan in the Goloseevskaya desert. There, deep in the forest, was his cell; Retiring into the forest, he followed his rules. The visitors who flocked to the elder distracted him from the desired silence; but when he decided to shut himself up, he had a vision that a terrible beast attacked him, and the spiritual children were driving him away. He explained to himself that he would gain salvation through his spiritual children. He put off the prayers that were not fulfilled during the day until the night, so that often only one hour was left for sleep. The exhausted flesh of the old man seemed like a transparent shell of his soul. Large fiery eyes piercing the heart, concentrated all life. Rarely did an accusatory word fall from his lips, but then he fearlessly denounced the powers that be. The elder lived his last years in a cell near the nearby caves. He spent most of his time in a dark room with a crucifix and an icon of the Mother of God. A church was built for him in the next room. His service filled the worshipers with inexpressible reverence. He joyfully awaited the day of death and, sitting at the coffin he had prepared for himself, talked about how the soul, having left the body, would shine like the sun and would look in surprise at its stinking prison; spoke about faith in the Most Holy Lady Theotokos, whom he called “his undoubted hope, upon returning from an earthly, disastrous, lamentable, boring, sorrowful and painful pilgrimage to the heavenly, beloved, blessed, calm, all-cheerful, unflickering, immortal, endless, eternal and ineffable fatherland.” Before his death, the elder said goodbye to everyone. 1855, early in the morning, on the great feast of the Annunciation, which coincided that year with Good Friday, Fr. Parthenius was found lifeless, sitting as if in deep thought at the door of his church cell. Metropolitan Philaret of Kiev carried his coffin in his arms and buried him in the Goloseevskaya Hermitage, in the Church of the Most Pure Virgin in the name of Her Icon of the Life-Giving Source. (From the book “Russian Ascetics of the 19th Century,” part II, pp. 193–197). 7. From the life of Hieroschemamonk Theophilus. Hieroschemamonk Theophilus was born in the Kyiv province, in the city of Makhnovka, in October 1788, and was one of two twins. At baptism they named him Thomas. The mother began to breastfeed both children at once, but Foma, to her amazement, did not want to take the breast and felt an aversion to all dairy products, so the mother had great difficulty in preparing plant foods for him. This immediately aroused displeasure in her towards the child, and various superstitions still inflamed her, so that soon she simply began to hate her son. Seeing in this baby some inclinations that she did not understand, the mother (her name was Euphrosyne) decided to quietly exterminate him from her husband. She managed to persuade her maid and one early morning she ordered the child to be taken to the river and thrown into the water. This was accomplished, but the power of God protected him. The baby emerged from the water and lay calmly on the surface, then he was washed to the opposite shore, and he was thrown onto land by a wave. Then the maid, stubborn in her intention, crossed the river, picked up the sleeping baby and threw him into the water again, but the waves again carefully took the child, carried him to an island that had formed upstream of the river, and laid him on its sandy outskirts. This amazed the woman so much that she repented. She forded the river, took the baby in her arms in tears, carried him to his mother and there told him about everything she had witnessed. As if mad with hatred, the mother snatched the child from the hands of the maid and rushed with him to the river. Having chosen the place where the mill was, she threw it under the wheel and at that very moment ran away. Then suddenly the millstones, which were in motion, stopped, and an extraordinary noise occurred from the pressure of the water. The miller went out to see what had happened; the wheels, stopped by some force, trembled under the pressure of the water striking them, and infant cries were heard below. The miller looked there and saw a child floating in the whirlpool. He quickly went down there, snatched the child, and the millstones immediately ground. At this time, the maid, who was at the first rescue of the boy in the river and who was watching him, approached the miller and told him everything. The maid and the miller, fearing for the fate of the child, decided to reveal themselves to his father. But the mother continued to insist with bitterness that she would not leave her son alive. The only way to save him was to remove him from the house. His father hired a nurse for him, who began to feed him bread dipped in satiation, and secretly let his father know about his health. Soon the father felt the approach of death and entrusted his son to the care of the miller, who witnessed his rescue in the mill whirlpool. Since the rumor about the strange fate of the boy spread throughout the neighborhood, and there was a lot of attention to it, one wealthy man asked the miller to give him Thomas to raise, promising to adopt him and make him his heir. But the boy was not even three years old when this man died, and his widow, having received all his property, persuaded the local priest to take Thomas into his care. Thomas lived with this priest for up to seven years. The child did not show any inclination to ordinary children's games and thereby incurred beatings and ridicule from his comrades. Then he went screaming and crying into the forest. Two days later, shepherds found him there and told wonderful things about him. The boy loved church services very much. He did not miss a single service and ran to church at the first strike of the bell. Often they found him at the church in front of the locked doors, immersed in prayer, far from everything that surrounded him. Knowing from bitter experience what orphanhood and persecution were, he early began to help the poor out of his own poverty. He deprived himself of what was necessary for this and once, seeing a boy in rags, he took off his shirt and gave it to him, and he himself returned home in only his outer dress. But the teacher severely punished him for this. From the age of seven, the priest began to teach him to read and write, but he soon died. The unfortunate boy mourned him bitterly. However, it was necessary to find shelter somewhere. The churchwarden decided to take the boy to his mother, hoping that time had softened her former hatred. But as soon as the furious woman saw her son (she was stabbing a torch at the time), she threw an ax at him and cut his right shoulder. The elder quickly ran away from this house, taking the child with him. At home, he bandaged his wounds and kept him with him until he was healed. Having found out that Thomas’s uncle, a widowed priest, lived in Kyiv in the Bratsky Monastery, the headman took Thomas to him, handed him over to this monk and told him all the sad and difficult circumstances of his life. This is where Thomas began to live. The Kiev Theological Academy is located at the Bratsky Monastery, and Thomas studied at the school that belonged to it. The mad mother finally relented. She fell ill with an incurable disease and tearfully repented of her actions with her son. She was especially affected by a dream in which she saw herself before the Last Judgment of God, and her son meekly praying for her. And the son had the joy of being at the death of his mother, heard from her a request to forgive her and pray for her, and received a blessing from her. Thomas studied diligently. But science did not satisfy the needs of his soul. He thirsted for that higher spiritual knowledge that is revealed to pure hearts through illumination from God. He built a church for himself above the school, and here, among reading and singing, he lost himself in thoughts about God and in deep, concentrated prayer. The desire for monasticism overwhelmed him, and he firmly decided to become a monk. The uncle did not live long and, having died, left the boy without any means or shelter. It was impossible to continue studying, and Thomas became a novice at the Brotherhood Monastery. Here he was successively assigned to obediences in the bakery, in the kitchen, as a bell-ringer and as a sexton. Deep in prayer, meek, humble and chaste Thomas longed to completely renounce the world and pronounce monastic vows. On December 11, 1821, 33 years old, he was tonsured with the name Theophilus. A year later he was ordained as hierodeacon. Having no property, Theophilus still fulfilled the great commandment of mercy. He took upon himself the labors assigned to others, fulfilled the obediences of the lower brethren, served the pilgrims who came to the monastery, remained two or three days without food in order to give his share to those in need. In 1827, ordained hieromonk, Fr. Theophilus was appointed monastery steward, but he asked to be relieved of this duty and allowed to retire to the caves excavated in the village. Lesniki Rev. Theodosius of Kiev-Pechersk. But he was denied this, and then Theophilus took upon himself the difficult feat of foolishness. In 1834 he was tonsured into the schema, keeping the name Theophilus. Far from the bustle of life, neglecting the rules of everyday life, Theophilus moved away from people and rarely spoke to anyone. Calm, thoughtful, always with downcast eyes, he walked only from his cell to church, without missing a single service. He stopped at the church doors or in the vestibule and stood motionless until the end of the service. There was always a basket, bucket, jug or other utensils near him, which he carried with him everywhere. Sometimes he went down to the Dnieper to get water, and then sometimes he got into a boat and crossed the river, and on the other bank, going into a thicket of bushes, he indulged in prayer. He did not look for a carrier and, choosing some other person’s boat, got into it and rowed it himself. He was aware of this custom and was not disturbed. The elder did not like to be paid attention to, and if anyone approached him for a blessing, he did it hastily and on the move. Noticing that pilgrims were waiting for him, he made a long detour to get around them, especially if they were not commoners. - What do you want from me, stinking one? - he told his fans. – Turn with pure faith to the Most Pure Mother of God and St. saints of Pechersk. They will give you everything you need. And I have nothing. Come on! When one of the educated people entered his cell, Theophilus said: “I am ignorant, simple, ignorant and unlearned; I can’t enter into competition with you, but I don’t want to talk idle talk; What a blessing, you, today’s sages, will perhaps lead me astray.” This is what he said to people who were proud of their imaginary wisdom. But when a simple person came to him, thirsting for useful words, Theophilus accepted him willingly, although he did not lengthen the conversation. He spoke some significant parable or even a sharp reproach that illuminated the visitor’s entire state of mind. Often he would give some thing, insignificant, but containing a hint of the fate ahead of the person. Theophilus, busy with prayer, did not pay any attention to his appearance, incurring reproaches from some for his slovenliness. He wore shabby clothes, all embroidered with white threads; his chest was almost always half-open, his feet had tattered shoes, and sometimes he had a boot on one and a felt boot on the other. The head was sometimes tied with a dirty towel. They noticed that the more unkempt he was dressed, the more restless the inner state of his soul. When Theophilus began his cell prayers, he put on a mantle, and before reading the Gospel and akathists, he put on the stole and phelonion and lit three lamps. Belted around his body with an iron belt with an icon of the Epiphany, which he never took off, he made many bows, and to rest he leaned against the wall or lay down on a narrow bench. Constantly busy with his inner life, he did not care about order in his cell, and when they asked him how he allowed such disorder in himself, he answered: “Let everything around me remind me of the disorder in my soul.” There was nothing in the room except a table, a lectern and a bench. The stove was heated with smoking, uncut logs, and it was so cold in the room that the water froze. But the elder, putting on a sheepskin coat and felt boots, stood for prayer and, completely engulfed in it, did not notice anything else. Theophilus did not take money, and if, after much begging, he agreed to take it, he immediately distributed it to the poor. In order not to remain idle, he knitted wool, knitted stockings and wove canvas, which he gave to icon painters for their work. While working, he recited the Psalter and various prayers by heart. Receiving food from the brotherly meal, he mixed everything together - sweet with bitter, and when they told him how he could do this, he answered: “After all, in life, sweet is mixed with bitter.” But often the elder did not touch the food at all, leaving it all for the poor and wanderers. In general, he kept an excessive fast. At the end of 1844, having become extremely weak in strength, the ascetic began to ask to be transferred to the hospital church of the Kiev Pechersk Lavra. But instead, he was assigned to the Goloseevskaya hermitage, which lies in a charming area in the vicinity of Kyiv. Many, according to rumors about his high life, wanted to see him; and then, in order to avoid worldly glory, he strengthened his foolishness. For this he was sent to the so-called New Apiary. Due to the significant distance, it was very difficult for the elder to come to services every day, and he was transferred nearby, to the Kitaevskaya hermitage, surrounded by high mountains covered with dense forest. The elder went deep into the forest and immersed himself in prayer all day long. Even now they show the stump on which he sometimes spent whole days praying for the forgiveness of the whole world, ignorant of what he was doing, and mourned the corruption of the century. Although outwardly gloomy, meek and kind in heart, he responded to the most cruel insults with a plea for forgiveness and conquered anger with patience. He once expressed a remarkable thought: “We must pray for our enemies. For the most part, they themselves do not see what they are doing. Yes, they are even our benefactors: with their attacks they strengthen our virtues, humble our spirit on earth, and in Heaven weave heavenly crowns for us. The human race becomes exhausted, the ascetics weaken in strength, and they are saved only by being persecuted and causing them grief.” The elder rarely shared his thoughts, only in deep determination about the need for it. “Look,” he said to one of those close to him, “not this wheat among the thorns, but this one on the rich ground; and even here, take a good look at whether he is sowing quinoa, so that tares do not grow up, choking out the sprouts of wheat.” The elder stood in the church somewhat strangely. He usually turned away from people to the wall and never raised his downcast eyes. Also, when he participated in the cathedral service, he stood half-turned from those standing in front of the altar, bowing to the east. One brother asked him about this. “God sees my simplicity,” the elder answered, “I do everything as it should be. But when I delve deeper into the Mystery being performed, I forget about myself and what is around me. During the Divine Liturgy, I see a ray descending in a cross shape from above and overshadowing the servants - but sometimes not everyone; I see dew descending on the Gifts. Then my whole being is indescribably delighted, and everything in me says: “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God of Hosts, fill heaven and earth with Your glory... I do not justify myself, brother, in the way I stand - I speak only the truth. But don’t open it to anyone.” Having spent a short time again in the Goloseevskaya desert, the elder returned to die in Kitaev, and here he often spoke about his impending death. In recent months, Fr. Theophilus spoke more willingly and, asking not to forget the stinking Theophilus in prayers, did not skimp on advice and instructions. “Love,” he repeated, “love each other with holy love and do not hold anger against each other. Don't be tempted by anything. Do not attach your heart to anything earthly. Let's leave all this here. Only good deeds will go with us to the next world. You need to pray more often and mourn your sins, and not only your own, but also your neighbor’s.” There were many stories about the insight of Fr. Theophilus and the power of his prayers for the sick. Exactly a month before his death, the elder stopped eating food altogether, taking only a piece of antidor dipped in water. His legs began to swell from standing for a long time, but he continued to go to church and received communion almost every day. A few days before his death, he asked that the Holy Gifts be brought to his cell on October 28, and reminded him several times, adding that this was the last time, and that he would not bother anyone again. Early in the morning that day he took communion and completely calmed down. Before Vespers, he ordered to light incense with myrrh and light a lamp in front of the icons. Then he himself placed a bench across the threshold of the cell, ordered to light a wax candle and hand over the cross with which he usually blessed those who came to him. Having then blessed his novices, the elder quietly surrendered his soul to God. It was at 3 o'clock in the afternoon on October 28, 1852, on the day of remembrance of the Venerable Martyr Paraskeva, called Friday, especially revered by him. (Extracted in abbreviation from the book: “Russian Ascetics of the 19th Century,” Part II.) 8. From the life of Hieroschemamonk Macarius, the elder of the Optina Hermitage. It was not only souls that this elder healed. By anointing with oil from the lamp that burned in his cell in front of the Vladimir Icon, which he revered, the elder brought great benefit to the sick body, and cases of such healings are not uncommon. Healings of those possessed by demons were especially frequent. The following case deserves great attention: one educated person was subjected to fits of demonic possession, which manifested itself when approaching sacred objects; for a long time his relatives, who did not want to admit the essence of the disease, treated him abroad, with doctors and on the water; there was no benefit. One believing comrade brought him to Optina, and sent him from the hotel to quietly ask the elder. The patient, who had never heard of him, began to worry and said: “Makarii is coming, Macarius is coming!” - and as soon as the elder entered, he rushed at him with a furious cry and strangled him to death. The great ascetic, having recognized the machinations of the enemy, used the most powerful weapon - humility, and quickly offered him another cheek. Scorched by humility, the demon came out of the sufferer, who lay in a daze for a long time at the feet of the elder, and then, not remembering his act, stood up healed (From the book “Russian Ascetics of the 19th Century,” Part II, p. 11). 9. Spiritual gifts of Elder Hilarion Troekurov. Many stories have been preserved about the healings that were performed through the prayers of Father Hilarion. And, on the contrary, those who reviled the elder were often severely punished for their contempt for the righteous man. One St. Petersburg rich man, driving through Troekurovo, was curious to look at Fr. Hilarion. It was 9 o'clock in the morning, the elder made his usual rule and refused the visitor. Offended by the fact that the cell attendant suggested waiting until the end of the prayers, that is, until noon, the rich man became very angry with the elder and left in anger. As soon as he left, the elder called the cell attendant and told him: “God willing, he will return; catch up with him and give him this prosphora.” The cell attendant found the rich man at the church fence, holding onto it with his hands, and asked what he was doing here. “Bring me to the horses,” he said, “something has become dark in my eyes.” The cell attendant brought him to the carriage, and the minute he gave the blind man a prosphora on behalf of Father Hilarion, he regained his sight. He thanked God, repented of his condemnation and visited the elder, to whom he remained attached all his life, and subsequently presented him with a very significant donation. The power of Father Hilarion’s advice was especially clearly expressed over A. M. Grenkov. In 1839, as a teacher at the Lipetsk Theological School, feeling a thirst to leave the world, he went for a blessing to Fr. Hilarion. He told him: “Go straight to Optina.” A. M. Grenkov received monastic education under the direct guidance of the experienced elders Leo and Macarius and himself became the famous elder of Optina Hermitage, later known as Fr. Ambrose; In his cell there was always a picture of Fr. Hilarion. Very, very often, the advice of Father Hilarion protected people in time from the troubles that threatened them. Sometimes he sent advice to someone to quickly confess and partake of the Holy Mysteries, and then it turned out that these people were on the verge of death and, without his warning, would have died without repentance. For non-payment of interest, Mrs. G.'s estate had to go on sale. Despite the confusion, she went to Troekurovo to ask for help and advice in her grief from Fr. Hilarion. The elder, who was fasting at that time, received her, contrary to his custom, and said: “Everything will be fine. Live, God willing, the money will come soon - you’ll pay.” Returning home, she learned that the estate had been assigned to an inventory. After the words of the elder, this end struck her to the point that she doubted his words. But she was immediately informed that the peasants had brought her the amount needed for the contribution, which they had collected among themselves. Soon a letter arrived from the elder, marked the day of her arrival home, the content of which was as follows: “What a lack of faith! Have more confidence in God and believe that not a hair of your head will fall without the will of your Heavenly Father.” Another time, meeting Mrs. A., the elder said to her: “You should still wait at home, otherwise you now have unprecedented dear guests.” It turned out that her brother, whom she had not seen for 10 years, was visiting her. The foresight of the elder, Father Hilarion, is evidenced by undoubted phenomena. And if people, turning to him for advice, went against them, they had to be convinced of the wisdom of his words with serious consequences. One Efremov landowner, Makarenkov, who was preparing to go home from Troekurov in the winter twilight, was advised by the elder to wait until the morning, but he did not listen, said goodbye and went. But before the horses had time to move, the cell attendant came running from the elder and, serving rolls and caviar into the sleigh, said: “Father sent you this - it’s good for dinner today.” Makarenkov accepted the bun with a smile and drove off. But as soon as it got dark, a blizzard arose, the travelers lost their way and got stuck in the snowdrifts. The horses stopped, the situation was difficult. It was only then that the landowner felt how right the elder was, and began to call on him in fervent prayer, which was soon heard. A light appeared in the distance. The travelers followed it and reached the poor settlements. They barely kept warm in the smoking hut, but were saved from death, and Makarenkov ate all the dinner the old man had stored. Mrs. Goldobina bought nutmegs and took them to the old man, selecting the two largest ones for herself. “Put down the nuts and listen to me,” Father Hilarion told her. “One old man sent his disciples to fish. They selected large fish for themselves, and brought small change to the old man. And the elder remarked to them: “The children are here, but where are the mother and father?” Father Hilarion in his youth strongly wanted to go to worship in Jerusalem, but he was unable to do so and worried him. He, already in old age, decided to send his cell attendant Kapiton there and gave him three rubles for the journey, saying: “Go for me - I couldn’t go.” Kapiton replied that with this money you won’t even get to Kyiv. “Don’t be afraid,” Father Hilarion objected, “you’ll also bring me 25 rubles back.” The cell attendant went and was in Jerusalem and brought the elder 25 rubles. In Kyiv, which he reached happily, he met a kind and wealthy man who was looking for a travel companion to Jerusalem. He drove him there and back at his own expense and, when parting, gave him 25 rubles for accompanying him. The last years of the old man’s life approached. About three years before his death, he could no longer go to church, and even less often spoke to visitors. But he didn’t refuse to answer anyone through his cell attendant. From severe fasting, his stomach became almost incapable of taking food, so a meal was prepared for him once a month. Six weeks before his death, he became so weak that he could not get up from the sofa and did not eat anything, not even prosphora; he only swallowed water from the well he had once dug in the Golovinshchinsky Volovy ravine. Due to the elder’s prayers that death would be predicted to him by a visible sign, 6 weeks before his death the big toe on his left foot turned black. Feeling the end is near, Fr. Hilarion hurried the completion of the church in the village of Gubino, which he especially cared about, and thought and prayed a lot about the future opening and organization of the Troekurov community. He consoled the orphaned sisters of the future monastery, saying: “There will be a monastery in this place, like a blooming laurel - my prayerful spirit will dwell forever in this blessed place. During times of grief, illness, or any perplexity, serve a prayer service in front of the Vladimir Icon of the Queen of Heaven with an akathist. I myself prayed before Her icon; then remember me, a sinner, by holding a memorial service.” The elder grew weaker, spoke with signs and saw only his confessor. Three days before his death, he wished for water from the Tyushevsky well (40 ver. from Troekurov), where the miraculous icon of the Mother of God, the Life-Giving Spring, is located. Mrs. Shilovskaya hastened to send a messenger for water. He swallowed three spoons and did not eat anything else. On November 5, 1853, at midnight, in his 90th year, Father Hilarion peacefully reposed. The body stood for five days. The number of people gathered for the funeral was over 10,000 people. All the people testified that all the time the cell of the deceased and the church were filled with an unearthly fragrance spreading from the elder’s tomb. He was buried on November 10 in a simple wooden coffin, which he had knocked together for himself in advance, in a cave he had dug. A wooden chapel was erected over the cave. (“From the book Russian Ascetics of the 19th Century,” Part II, pp. 115–120). 10. From the life of the ascetic Fr. John, priest of the city of Yelets. In his old age, with his spiritual powers fully developed, Fr. John, the gift of clairvoyance was revealed in him. The famous recluse of the Zadonsk Monastery, George, was embarrassed in the monastery church by the fact that many behaved indecently for such a place, talking and laughing. He decided to move to another monastery, but first wanted to consult with some experienced elder and settled on Fr. John. When Georgy came to Yelets, he barely had time to approach Fr. John, as he ran out onto the porch and, although he had never seen or known him, greeted him with these words: “And I, brother, have just served a prayer service with the ringing of the Most Holy Theotokos... She does not order to give instructions to monks, especially those who are embarrassed and want to leave their monastery... Go, brother, to the closet!” - and with these words Fr. John hid in his closet, in which he usually lived. The same thing happened with another Zadonsk monk, who thought, because of the severity of obedience, to move to another monastery. Approaching the house of Fr. John, the monk thought: “Am I going to him too early? After all, he serves late mass slowly, and at the end of mass he serves a prayer service with an akathist to the Mother of God. However, I’ll go and wait.” He didn’t have time to come home from Fr. John, like one who had never seen him, comes out to meet him and says: “I finished my long service, read the akathist, and now I’m sitting at home in peace. And you, brother, are outside the house, not in your place, go back to your monastery and bear your obedience without complaint.” Priest Vukolov came to Fr. John with Oryol Seminary student Herodion Solovyov, who wanted to accept the blessing for marriage. Father John, having received them, led them to the refreshment. When a student wanted to take something meaty, Fr. John said: “No, brother, we don’t need to touch this: we’ll eat the caviar with you.” Soon afterwards Fr. John went to his closet and brought out two staffs - for himself and the priest - the bishop's staff. He handed this rod to the student with the words: - I give you the bishop’s rod. Now go with God. I don’t have time to talk with you anymore,” and he ran into his closet. This student became a monk and subsequently became a bishop. Compiler of the biography of Fr. Ioanna, Yelets archpriest Luka Efremov, tells about himself that five brides were wooed for him, four of them with a large dowry, and one completely without a dowry, a bourgeois daughter. He chose her, but wanted to check his choice through Fr. John. On this very day Fr. John enters his father-in-law’s house and says to the groom: “I rejoice that, with the help of God, you were able to choose a bride for yourself: your choice is good.” And, indeed, he was very happy, the whole city loved his wife, and those four brides turned out to be unfit for life. Sometimes some strangeness was noticed in the actions of Father John, and people who had little understanding considered him to be weak-minded. Probably, with this strangeness the elder tried to avoid human glory, which was difficult for him. What deep meaning there was sometimes in these oddities will be shown by the following example. One day he lay down on a damp place in a square located on the edge of the city. Passers-by condemned him: “It is indecent for a priest to sit on damp ground.” And he answered: “It’s true that the earth is damp and dirty, but I especially love this place and even kiss it. Here a magnificent church will soon be erected, and the most holy Sacrament will be celebrated.” These words spread among the residents, a gathering was opened, greeted with great sympathy, and a magnificent church was built. Father John died peacefully on December 20, 1824; to the last dwelling in the Trinity Monastery he was carried on the shoulders of the priests. The entire city and thousands of surrounding residents followed the coffin. The cries of the poor almost drowned out the singing of the clergy 243. (See the book “Russian Devotees” of the 19th century, part II, pp. 163 – 165. ed. “Russian Pilgrimage”, from which the above facts are extracted in abbreviation). Having read these short, unartificial stories, imbued with an irresistible power of persuasiveness, since they set forth one real truth that involuntarily captivates our hearts, every unprejudiced reader comes to recognize both the existence of the spiritual world and its closeness to the human soul. In fact, is it possible to explain satisfactorily, without the assumption of the existence of the spiritual world, the wondrous and varied gift of insight of the ascetics of piety, their reading of future events, the gift of healing of all sorts of diseases, the gift of casting out demons by the power of the name of our Lord Jesus Christ - those wondrous heavenly visions and visits to the inhabitants of heaven, which many pious ascetics were granted? If such critics as, for example, Lehmann, the author of the widely circulated “History of Superstition and Magic,” who strive at all costs to prove, contrary to common sense, universal belief and the world history of mankind, that there is nothing supernatural, say that these stories about the supernatural are based on the so-called “deficiencies of observation,” on self-deception, on the ignorance or dishonesty of witnesses to the messages, then we will only answer the following: first, the defects of observation must be shown, and the ignorance or dishonesty of the witnesses must be proved, which unbelievers are never able to do; secondly, it is psychologically impossible to allow the assumption that such ascetics of piety, such as, for example, Seraphim of Sarov and others like him, could tell lies; thirdly, if you do not believe their testimony, then with even greater reason you can not believe any chroniclers who wrote down for us the affairs of past days, any scientists on whose testimony a whole series of scientific reports are based, and in general then you can’t trust anyone or anything; then any communication beyond raw, sensory experience will have to be explained as self-deception, hallucination, lack of observation, or bad faith. But, thank God, the sound mind of man quite successfully fights against such insane skepticism, which without sufficient grounds abolishes all knowledge and faith in God and the immortality of the human soul. Only by the action of dark, hostile to man, demonic forces, trying to pluck faith from the hearts of people, “so that, without believing, they would not be saved,” can one explain such persecution of faith in the existence of the spiritual world, which surrounds man on all sides and is so close to his soul. But the omnipotent grace of God, called upon by the humble prayer of man: “Lord! I believe, help my unbelief,” and the direct sensation of the spiritual world by the soul is able to disperse the darkness of doubt and instill in the heart of a person a strong faith in the existence of God, in the spirituality and immortality of the human soul and in the spiritual world in general. Only with this faith can a person correctly understand the meaning and purpose of his life and free himself from the disastrous despair of the gloomy pessimism of our days: only in this faith will he find joy, light, life; outside of it there is sorrow, darkness and death. B. Modern unbelievers are “wise men of this world”, convicted by simple common sense logic. 1. It seems that it is no longer a secret to anyone that liberal-skeptical, negative-materialist, “positive” and rationalistic ideas and views have deeply penetrated in our difficult times into science, literature, and the everyday life of an intelligent-cultural society. Our Russian intelligentsia, blindly imitating the West in everything, is becoming more and more imbued with them, and through them, little by little, they are penetrating among the common people. Scientific discoveries and inventions are rapidly progressing, and Divine faith and morals, in inverse proportion, are clearly falling in all strata of society... Cultural humanity is completely absorbed in purely earthly interests and aspirations, passionately caring only for the greatest conveniences, comfort and pleasures of this short-term earthly life. Meanwhile, with the growth of science and knowledge, but with the decline of religion, the level of happiness of mankind did not increase at all, but rather decreased; for the tears and sufferings of the world do not diminish. Humanity has not improved in purely physical terms either; on the contrary, there are many signs that it is striving for degeneration, both physical and moral. It has not become any better in altruistic terms, because humanity and the manifestation of love for others do not increase in it, but rather decrease. In religion it has always found happiness and the pure joys of life. Religion has fallen - and it is doomed to a state of some kind of groundlessness, dissatisfaction, internal discord, dissatisfaction with life, pessimism, in the style of Schopenhauer or L. Tolstoy... Fans and adherents of Comte’s “positivism”, scientific-materialist theories, liberal-skeptical ideas and rationalistic false wisdom directed against the Divine faith and Christianity, do not seem to notice the amazing fact that in the nature and direction of their views they fall into a strange internal contradiction with themselves, echoing with sharp dissonance. In their blind pride, while denying the Incomprehensible Reason, without the participation of the faith of the heart and without the luminous guidance of the Divinely revealed teaching, they wander in the labyrinth of dissatisfaction, guesswork, extremes, vainly searching for the light of truth... Recognizing as true only what is obtained through pure reason or through scientific-experimental, empirical methods, these new teachers and their followers deny everything that is inaccessible reason and existing means of science. Meanwhile, they themselves should, through experience, come to the conclusion that not everything is true from what is obtained only by the human mind and reason, which tend to fall into gross errors and delusions, eloquent proof of which is, by the way, the same numerous speculative philosophical schools and systems, mutually contradictory, already sufficiently assessed by criticism, as well as scientific-materialist theories and hypotheses, today recognized almost as axioms, and tomorrow rejected as the fruit of an erroneous conclusion. As world history and the history of scientific discoveries prove, even brilliant human minds have often been mistaken. Were even such great and richly gifted minds as alien to mistakes and delusions, such as Aristotle, Plato, Socrates, Seneca, Copernicus, Kant, Darwin and others? After all, the strength and intensity of even the phenomenal human mind, recognized by philosophers as limitless, have certain boundaries, which a mortal being is not given the power to cross. Further, the enlightened human mind, the inquisitive mind, striving to comprehend the incomprehensible, to penetrate into a mysteriously hidden, inaccessible region cannot be unaware of the simple truth that all our feelings, both external and internal, in other words, all the organs of our being with their functions and cognitive abilities, cannot be considered completely perfect and, so to speak, infallible in determining the environment. That is why all our senses, both collectively and individually, are so often mistaken and make mistakes. And if they are really not perfect and are capable of making mistakes, then the organ of thinking cannot be an exception, otherwise such a spiritual feeling as mind, consciousness, will. The whole life of mankind is full of cases of mistakes and delusions of mind. The very abundance of different, often mutually contradictory, philosophical systems, rational and moral teachings, scientific theories, etc., clearly tells us about these misconceptions, as we said above. Moreover, the nature of views, the strength and direction of thinking of each thinking individual is extremely diverse. For example, one finds the starting point of aspirations, the criterion and crown of knowledge in the absolute denial of the spiritual principle in the world, another - in positivism with an admixture of rationalism, a third - in mysticism, a fourth - in pantheism, a fifth - in a newly invented religious or moral system, a sixth - in some strange semi-mysticism with an admixture of other teachings and views (for example, Nietzsche, with the aphorism of his manner in presenting his philosophical views), etc. But all these new “teachers” almost equally push humanity into the abyss of destruction, taking away their faith in the One True God and tearing them away from the Gospel; and meanwhile, instead of faith in God, instead of the revealed teaching, they give nothing to humanity... Or, instead of the Bible, do they want to give the people the poison of their false teachings, the fruits of their inventions, and put themselves and their proud wisdom in place of the Creator of the universe, the King of kings? Oh, unheard of madness! Can anything in the world replace a person’s religion, which they take away from him? Is there anything in the world more valuable than religion?!... Recognizing as true only that which is subject to the perception of our imperfect senses when illuminated by reason, in other words, believing in the reality of the existence only of that which is visible, audible, olfactory, cognizable by taste and tangible with the help of the mind and reason, materialist deniers boldly deny, on the contrary, everything that is not amenable to the perception and cognition of our external senses and that is beyond our reason. Thus, both materialists and positivists and even rationalists have an extremely negative or skeptical attitude towards the supersensible, invisible, mysterious world, hidden from the perception of external senses, to that world that goes beyond the limits of human knowledge... Meanwhile, true science does not at all deny that great and eternal truth that man consists not only of visible, physical nature or substance, not of a harmonious combination of elements of cosmic matter alone, as materialists teach, but also of a special, invisible-mysterious, intangible life-giving principle, which we believers call the soul, created by the Creator in His own image and likeness (Gen. 1:26-27 ). Even many of the materialists call this soul “the basis or cause of the life of the organism”, “the mysterious life-giving principle”, “the source of the life of the body”, etc. It follows that the object of knowledge of external senses is the visible world around us, and the object of knowledge of internal, spiritual feelings, faith of the heart is the invisible world, as far as it is given to man to know it. For even simple logic tells us that if there are objects of knowledge and contemplation for the external feelings and mind of a person, then there must certainly be objects of knowledge for his spiritual feelings. If a person has a higher spiritual principle or substance, then there is certainly a similar principle outside him... Finally, speaking about the infinity of science and the limits of the human mind, modern sages themselves often admit that they still “know very little” and that “much in the world remains an unsolvable mystery” (for example, the famous modern astronomer-popularizer and publicist, K. Flammarion, admits this). Arguing, for example, about some “eternal problems” and “inexplicable world secrets”, at least from the field of the psyche (not to mention elucidating, even if only approximately, the concepts of time and space, etc.), they often themselves admit that the human mind and understanding are powerless to resolve them, at least with the existing state of knowledge and the means of science. When faced with fairly established facts of so-called “mysterious-enigmatic” phenomena, for example, from the field of hypnotism, mediumship, clairvoyance, somnambulism, spiritualism and even electromagnetism, they often become positively stumped by these phenomena, unable to give them a scientific explanation... Having rejected Divine revelation and the true Christian religion, they have lost true consciousness of both the reason and the purpose of human life, for their ideals and interests do not extend beyond earthly, temporary life. Some of them, carried away by the peculiar ideas and views of pantheistic philosophical systems and ancient religious teachings of Asia, for example, Buddhism, directly state that the final limit of life and the starting point of aspirations are found in Buddhist nirvana... Of course, they do not give a reasonable and true explanation of the cause and purpose of existence, and cannot give, as they have completely lost the ground of the revealed teachings and as those who have apostatized from the faith Christ's. We think that the apostates from the Divine faith themselves realize in the depths of their hearts that their lack of faith does not give them even a shadow of that happiness, inner peace and contentment that a person strives for; for neither atheism, nor positivism, nor materialism can give satisfaction to the mind and heart of man. Even one waste of the highest ideals by a person entails dissatisfaction, internal discord, and pessimism. And they lost them... Finally, they themselves (at least part of them) are probably aware and believe that in the human soul there is an innate, instinctive concept of good and evil, the ability to distinguish good from bad, and vice versa; there is a sense of conscience and will in her; the question is, who could give these properties to the human soul? Only the Supreme Reason, Love Itself and the Supreme Perfection - God could invest them. Here is that dark labyrinth of internal contradictions and discord, briefly outlined by us, in which all skeptics, followers and admirers of negative teachings wander, without faith and the light of Divine revelation. 2. According to the positive philosophical system founded in the 18th century. O. Comte, “God, immortality and freedom are nothing more than postulates of reason.” And the basis of his “positive religion” contains the directly atheistic teaching that “instead of God there is humanity, as the one and true great being,” etc. (Poletika, I. Crete, philosophical system. Comte, St. Petersburg, 1873). Some of the followers of Comte’s “positivism” seem to have gone even further than their original teacher... The basis of the teaching of people of natural science with an extreme materialist tendency (for example, Buchner, Moleschott, K. Vogt and many others) generally boils down to the position that “instead of God, the Creator of the universe, there is infinite and eternal matter, unlimited in space and time.” Thus, the materialists, in their daring and insanely bold conclusions, went further than the positivists, for they bolderly deny the invisible, supersensible world on the basis of supposedly natural scientific experiments and great discoveries, and not on the basis of reason alone or speculative philosophy... According to Kant’s hypothesis, continued by Laplace (recently replaced by other hypotheses), the conclusion is drawn that “the universe formed by itself, without a special reason, without an Exemplary Actor-God.” The well-known theory (long ago appreciated) of Charles Darwin contains a more than strange teaching, now rejected by the same naturalist biologists, that, through selection and the struggle for existence, from the lower types of organic life on the globe, plants and animals, higher species were gradually formed, for in the primary di-organism there already existed the embryo of all subsequent generations and species (evolutionism). Thus, according to that theory of the “origin of species” and the physiological theory of “evolutionism,” it is concluded that man descended from the monkey as his closest prototype or ancestor. According to the theories of materialists, “the basis or cause of life in the entire universe is the embryonic, eternal, primary substance (as we said above) and the movement of this substance according to eternal and immutable laws.” Namely, they see the cause and basis of life for everything that exists not in the life-giving spiritual principle, but in the molecular movement of matter, consisting of partial attraction and repulsion of primary, immeasurably small parts or elements of matter, the so-called “atoms” and “molecules”. The philosopher Nietzsche, instead of the Highest and Most Perfect Being of God, preaches about some kind of “superman”... The so-called rationalists in the field of philosophy and theology (Renan, Strauss and their later followers, for example, Pavlus, Prof. Harnack, etc.) follow almost the same path of denial of the Divinity, the supersensible world, miracles, etc., along which both positivists and materialists. Consequently, both of them, and still others, completely agree with each other on the point of denying the spiritual, invisible world; they all equally took up arms against God and the revealed teachings. Thus, the center of gravity, the starting point of all these positive wisdoms, natural scientific hypotheses and theories, as well as rationalistic utopias, is the same, for everyone strives, for rational-scientific purposes, to undermine, destroy and completely destroy the authority of the Holy Scriptures, faith in God and Christianity itself on earth. The complete inconsistency and falsity of the said doctrines, theories and utopias, warring against God and Christianity, is clearly proven by the very fact that many of them, as “built on sand,” are completely collapsing or have already fallen in the eyes of the scientific world, although previously they were considered almost a generally accepted, immutable truth. Their one-sidedness and inconsistency were thus expressed, and will undoubtedly be expressed in the future, by the fragility of their existence... Only the revealed teaching contained in the Bible has survived and will survive entire millennia, despite the machinations of numerous enemies... But all enemies of the revealed teaching and deniers of the existence of God must remain silent before the arguments of even simple common sense and mind, enlightened by the advice of the Divine teaching, before the simple strict logic of the human mind... If they are not convinced of their errors and delusions by the irrefutable evidence of theological sciences, the arguments of the Holy Scriptures, the history of all mankind from the most ancient times and the beliefs in a Supreme Supreme Being of even the most savage peoples of the globe; if they are not told about the existence of God and the afterlife by the greatness, infinity and beauty of the visible world, the strict world harmony of creation and the very infinity of time and space in which countless luminaries - these huge mysterious worlds - move; and if, finally, they cannot be convinced of the truth of many biblical legends by the results of archaeological excavations in the ancient Assyro-Babylonian monarchy of Chaldea, Nineveh, Palestine, Egypt, then they should, at least on the basis of simple sound logic, come to the conclusion that in addition to the visible world there is also an invisible one, for the purpose of the effects certainly has a cause for them, just as the world has a beginning and a cause, and this cause is God is the main cause of all things. Next, they, the wise men of this age, must delve into the following logical conclusions, comparisons, premises and similarities. If there is something obvious in the universe that is not hidden, then, as if in contrast to this obvious, there is also something secret, hidden, supersensible; If the material, the visible exists, then the spiritual, the invisible, also exists. The first is the subject of perception by our external senses, and the second is the subject of internal, spiritual feeling, faith. If your bodily senses have objects of knowledge and perception, then there are the same for your internal senses, as far as this is given to a person, just as in the world there is a whole series of opposite objects, phenomena and actions, for example: good and evil, infinitely small and infinitely great, complete calm and general activity, light and darkness, etc. Being in his right mind, a person will not assert such absurdity or nonsense as, for example, 2X2 is not 4, but 5, or that a triangle has no base, that a circle has no center and the center of a circle, that an effect has no cause, but some thing has a basis; that the watch, for example, went by itself, without winding or spring; that, for example, the wind blows without any reason, etc., etc. ad infinitum. In the same way, a normal and sane person should not admit the thought, much less openly preach, that the universe did not have and does not have a rational cause or foundation, a Supreme Doer, that man does not have a rational and immortal soul, etc. In fact, if every artificial thing certainly has a cause, its creator, the master who arranged it, then even more so such a wonderfully great creation as the universe certainly must to be and is the reason for it - the Almighty Creator. If my being contains a purely spiritual, mysteriously invisible element, a living soul, then the same elements certainly exist outside my “I”, in the universe; for the spiritual element of my “I” cannot be self-existent, self-created in the world and unique in the world, but constitutes only a part of the general creation... If my spiritual “I” exists, then there are others similar to it and higher (Angels); if all of us and those higher than us exist, then there is Someone incomparably Highest and Most Perfect of all of us, of the whole world, the Beginning, the Reason, the Foundation, the Creator of all things. If, in comparison with me, there are beings in the universe (sequentially) lower, higher and higher and more perfect (bodiless Angels), then above all of us, earthly creatures, and above the more perfect ethereal spirits there must be Someone Higher and More Perfect, who created us all and controls us. This Incomprehensible, Eternal, Infinite, All-Filling, Most Perfect, Most Holy, Almighty and Highest Being is God in the Holy Trinity. This is that greatest and incomprehensible to our minds Cause, from which everything came, that Living and Wise, Eternal and Almighty Power, creating and providing for everyone and everything. The inquisitive human mind is not allowed to go further than this; here for him is that impenetrable line and barrier, which none of the mortal creatures has ever crossed and will never cross in their earthly journey. If the world around us is inexpressibly wondrous and beautiful, if it is incomprehensibly wisely structured and amazes our weak mind with a strictly majestic harmony in its general creation and in particulars, in the vast great and small, visible to us only under a microscope; if it is miraculously controlled according to the great and eternal laws by an invisible omnipotent hand, in a wonderfully strict order and harmony, then there certainly exists the Wisest and Greatest Power that created it and provides for it... Look at the sky on a quiet, clear starry night. Doesn’t this inexpressibly beautiful vault of heaven, dotted with an innumerable number of huge worlds, tell you about God and His wondrous greatness and Wisdom? It will amaze you even more if you contemplate it through a telescope... Will not these countless luminaries make your heart tremble: fixed stars, planets, comets, according to unchanging, eternal laws, traveling in their orbits and removed from us at immeasurably terrible distances? Don’t the Divinely inspired words of St. become clear to us then? prophet and psalmist: “The heavens tell the glory of God, but the firmament exalts His handiwork” (Ps. 19:1-2)? But it is not in the great alone that we see God’s wondrous creation: we also see it in the immeasurably small. Look through a microscope and you will see, for example, in a drop of water a whole world of living beings... Do we not see everywhere in the world the certainty of creation and the Wisdom of God? Can this miracle of miracles be created by itself, without a reason, without a Creator? Does anything happen in the world in our time without an external reason, by itself? Can we really call those people normal and mentally healthy who consciously deny the existence of God, the immortality of the soul, etc.? It's hardly possible. Otherwise, how can we explain such a strange contradiction that these people, enlightened by knowledge and familiar with the Bible and with weighty arguments in favor of the existence of God in theological writings, still do not see and do not want to know that great and most perfect truth, which has been revealed to the world since the first times of creation and even more perfectly, “multiple and varied”, was revealed to it in subsequent times by the Lord of the universe Himself, and which, finally, clearly and indisputably attested to by the incarnate Son of God, our Savior, by the exact fulfillment of prophetic predictions and by countless signs revealed to the Christian world by Divine power at various times?... Speaking about the exact fulfillment of prophecies in general, it should be noted that don’t we clearly see the same exact fulfillment of numerous predictions and warnings of the revealed teaching regarding the appearance in the world of false prophets and false teachers who deny the truth and teach unbelief in God (Deut. 12:1; Matt. 24:11–24; Mark 13:22; 2 Pet. 2:1–3; Jude 1:18 ; 1Tim.4:1–2; 2Tim.3:1–7; 4:3–4 etc.)? Yes, the history of the Church and modern reality answer this question in the affirmative. 3. Believers do not need any proof of the existence of God, the existence of the soul, the afterlife, etc.; for they know all this with their believing heart, enlightened by the Divine teaching mind and intact will... At certain moments of life (for example, during fiery, heartfelt prayer), they feel within themselves, as if contemplating with spiritual eyes and touching in a miraculously incomprehensible way the presence of the Lord: they, so to speak, really and clearly experience with all the fibers of their being the action of His omnipotent grace; they feel the breath of the Holy Spirit in themselves and feel His gifts in their hearts... Consequently, we, together with other sincerely believing people, can say directly and without hesitation that we know God, the Creator of the universe, not only by the faith of our hearts, not only are we deeply convinced of His existence, but also feel with our hearts and souls His presence in our inner self, we contemplate Him with our spiritual eye, when we are worthy of it and when we strive for Him with sincere faith, we seek and we call Him. Let not skeptics and infidels say that this is a nervous affect, religious ecstasy, a deception of the senses, as a consequence of extreme excitement of the nervous system; no, we are deeply convinced with our whole being, we feel and with our spiritual eye we contemplate God Himself, or we feel in ourselves the presence of His grace-filled power. The state of so-called affect, simple ecstasy, etc. - we are able to distinguish from the state of our “I”, when it is visited by a higher, unearthly grace, when someone Great and Terrible mysteriously unites with us, bringing our entire being into some kind of unearthly delight and at the same time into an inexplicably sweet awe... Probably, each of the sincerely religious and believing people has experienced this at least once. in life. This state of grace happens to a person, as the great ascetics also narrate, in a state of fiery prayer to God and after worthy consecration of the Holy Sacraments, especially after the Communion of the Life-giving Body and Blood of Christ our God. But, alas, non-believers who have exchanged God and religion for newly invented idols are deprived of this great knowledge of God, inner revelation and the sweetest grace-filled consolation... This is where lies the root cause of their blindness and delusion... Having neglected the true source of wisdom and inner revelation, they wait in vain for the light of this revelation, for the resolution of the problematic mysteries of existence and the universe and, in general, for answers to the insoluble questions of an inquisitive mind - from a purely earthly source, from human wisdom, without the light of God-revealed teaching and religion. They will not find the sought-after point of support either in philosophical treatises and doctrines of the positive school, or in scientific-materialist theories and utopias, or in rationalistic false wisdom that seeks to destroy faith in the Divinity of Jesus Christ and in general in supernatural, Divine power and in the miracles of sacred biblical and evangelical events. Neither Auguste Comte, nor Nietzsche, nor Kant and Laplace, nor Darwin, nor Schopenhauer, nor Hartmann, nor Renan and Strauss, nor Taine, nor Fresnel with Feuerbach, nor Leo Tolstoy with his new faith will replace them with the revealed teaching and the most holy Christian religion... Nothing in the world can replace the Divine Revelation to humanity, attested by the Bible, the truth of the contents of which has been largely verified by science. May the wise men of this age understand that this truth, among other things, is confirmed by the strict simplicity and order of the biblical narrative itself, the deep sincerity and conviction of speech that permeates the entire content of this holy book. and the inspired book. After all, at different times numerous enemies and persecutors fought against her, but they could not and will never be able to defeat her. And in the exquisitely majestic, pompously florid, ingenious and highly stylish philosophical treatises and materialistic works directed - with unheard-of audacity and malice - against God and Christianity (on the initiative of the French “encyclopedists” since the 18th century), “cultured” humanity will not find any calming of worried thoughts, no saving refuge, no solution to the great world mysteries, or even simply peace and mental balance; for they (peace and balance) constitute the property of deeply believing souls who seek light in a bright, and not in a muddy source... In the works of human wisdom, not penetrated and not consistent with the spirit of Holy Scripture, we see only words and words, but human words (and not Divine), acting on us like the sublimely beautiful speech of a learned person - nothing more. It seems to us that it would be unnecessary to prove that the need for religion, the urgent need and, so to speak, thirst to believe in something, to have spiritual communication with someone, to pray to someone, has been the basis of the development of mankind since ancient times and constitutes a natural property of every human soul. The sciences of the human soul and theological sciences consider this to be an undoubted truth. And indeed, this truth could not be more eloquently confirmed, by the way, by the contemporary life of the culturally intelligent strata of Western European, and partly our Russian, society. A significant part of him, extremely indifferent to the true Christian religion, or infected with irreconcilable skepticism, or resolutely rejecting the Christian faith, makes attempts and persistently strives to replace with something the rejected and trampled religion of Christ, in order to thus fill the sharply felt painful emptiness of his inner, spiritual world, in order to drown out the natural cry and thirst of an unsatisfied soul and heart. To this end, some of the intelligentsia greedily rushed into the same mysterious and mysterious area, for example, into spiritualism - an area fundamentally rejected by people of “positive science” - especially when it comes to the supersensible element of the revealed Christian religion; others (for example, in France) rushed into Buddhism with its nirvana, restoring its entire cult and already establishing temples (in Paris); still others seek to resurrect the crude pagan cult of polytheism of the “ancient world” - ancient Greece and Rome; the fourth rushed into the abyss of various rationalistic and mystical sects, heresies and false teachings, ranging from Judaism and the grossest man-worship to a kind of pantheism... There are also those who accepted the disgusting cult of serving Satan... Such is the lot and outcome of people who have abandoned Christianity and are looking for something else instead of the faith of their fathers... Isn’t it clear from here that the need to believe, the need to communicate with by the invisible world put into the soul of every person by his Almighty Creator? 4. In order to show even more clearly the inconsistency, one-sidedness, and sometimes inconsistency of positive-negative views, extreme scientific-materialist theories, as well as materialistic false teachings that reject the miraculous element of the Bible, in order to more clearly show their instability and mutual contradictions and, finally, to prove to their followers and admirers the often complete irresponsibility of the said teachings and theories to many questions from the field of world science and “mysterious” phenomena, - Let us ask them, at the end of our note, a few questions. Let the adherents and admirers of these teachings and theories answer our questions strictly scientifically, accurately and demonstrably. They must give such answers, because many consider themselves “kings of existence,” sages who have comprehended the secrets of existence and unraveled almost all the mysterious forces and phenomena of nature. If they, who deny the existence of the spiritual world, can give us strictly scientific and demonstrative answers, then we will agree to recognize the full validity of their philosophical treatises, scientific doctrines and theories (although we are sure in advance that they cannot give us such answers to all questions). These are our questions, to which we expect completely impartial and accurate answers on a strictly scientific basis. How will they, who reject the existence of God and His omnipotent grace, explain the miraculous incorruption of holy relics for entire centuries and the countless signs of the wisdom of God, which to this day are clearly performed before these relics of holy saints and before miraculous icons, through the prayers of believers? Let them accurately, quite definitely and, so to speak, document and scientifically refute the biblical legend about the creation of the world, the flood, etc., and then prove the validity of such scientific theories as, for example, the theory of geological periods, according to which, by the way, it is concluded that organic life on earth has existed for many tens of thousands and even hundreds of thousands of years, that there has never been a global flood, etc.; or like the notorious theories of atoms with eternal molecular motion of matter, etc. Will they prove them? Will the ether theory be fully proven, according to which it is concluded that the space of the universe is filled with the finest substance - ether, on the number of partial vibrations of which the phenomenon of light, electricity, etc. depends? How can they explain such strange and mysterious phenomena in the field of electricity, when, for example, lightning either burns a person who burns like an armful of straw, or it turns his hands into ashes, leaving his gloves 244 untouched? Why does lightning solder the rings of an iron chain, as in a blacksmith’s crucible, and next to it kills a hunter without even discharging the gun that was in his hands? Why does she melt an earring in a person’s ear without even scorching his skin, strip a person naked without causing the slightest harm, or be content only with destroying, for example, his shoes or hat? How can we explain the fact that the same lightning bolt on a child's chest produces a photograph of a bird's nest snatched from the top of a stricken tree? Or does he gild various hidden things, for example, silver coins in a closed purse, thus performing galvanization through a partition with two compartments, but without harming the owner in the least? Why does lightning drill through glass without any cracks, sometimes make movements in different directions not only in a straight line, but also along curves and broken lines, and returns, like some kind of intelligent force, to the same place from where it entered the house? Why does it in an instant destroy a stone wall about a fathom thick, overturn a hundred-year-old oak tree, etc., without, however, causing any harm to nearby objects? Or does it completely burn one person without harming the others lying, sitting or standing next to him or very close to him? Further, let them answer us the following questions: what is the essence of so-called hypnotism, somnambulism, clairvoyance, telepathy, that is, the mental transmission of a suggestion from one person to another at a distance? How will they explain the already fairly established facts - the appearance of doubles during life? What is split personality and how is it explained? How to explain the appearance of an absent relative or close person in front of one or more people at the time of his death? Or the appearance of shadows of people who have long since died? How and with what exactly can deniers of the supersensible world and skeptics explain facts of this kind: the existence of houses inhabited by mysteriously invisible creatures, which, however, clearly make themselves felt; movement of objects without any touching them; cases of even heavy objects being lifted into the air by an invisible hand, the appearance of a hand in the air; the ringing of a bell, the sounds of a musical instrument, mysterious knocking, etc., etc., produced by an invisible hand? How to explain the “amazing miracles” performed by Indian yogis or fakirs? Can the sages of this world even say anything definite about the “fourth” dimension? Or more precisely define the concept of space and time? Or explain why time is shortened in dreams, and what a dream is? How will they explain “prophetic”, prophetic dreams? Premonition and prediction of the future? Clairvoyance across vast distances? Reading other people's thoughts, like in a book? How will they explain the scientifically proven facts of dictation using table impacts? The materialization of forces and the existence of invisible beings making themselves felt in one way or another? A photograph of these mysterious creatures? How can we explain such mysterious facts as the effect of curses by parents on evil children, spells, etc.? 245. All the mysterious facts and phenomena and “unsolved questions” we have listed, for the most part, have been certified by representatives of science. We borrowed them partly from special scientific journals and articles, especially from the latest essays (translated into Russian) by Camille Flammarion, under the title: “Psychic mysteries and the realm of the unknown” 246, and partly from the works of Butlerov and Aksakov (especially from the book: “Spiritualism and Science”), from a number of articles published in the magazine: “S. - Petersburg" for 1899, "Rebus" for 1897, etc. So, let modern skeptics, materialist deniers and all free-thinking people answer the above questions with scientific evidence, let them answer, and then we will not mind recognizing some validity for their scientific materialist theories, for liberal-negative treatises, for positive and rationalistic views and ideas. We will then believe that the natural scientific conclusions of materialists are obtained from the right source, that the limits of the human mind are truly limitless, and that this reason, thinking and science represent the only means and path to knowledge of the universe, its phenomena and secrets... But, we repeat, we will never wait for such answers to these questions... B. Facts from the field of experimental psychology leading to the undoubted recognition of the soul in man as an independent spiritual entity 247 In addition to what we said about this subject in our book entitled “From the Realm of the Mysterious,” we present the following facts and considerations. The purpose of our research there was to find out whether the soul exists as something independent of the body and whether it survives the destruction of the body? So what! Numerous facts almost all speak in favor of the existence of the soul. There is no doubt that one soul can influence another at a distance and without the mediation of feelings. Many cases of death were notified by telepathic messages, visions (subjective and objective), heard voices, singing, noises, movements (fictitious or real), in a word - through various impressions. There can be no doubt about this. So the soul acts at a distance; mental suggestion is just as certain. Psychic communications between living beings are no less reliably proven by many observed facts. The abundance of recent and modern evidence prevented us from citing examples from antiquity; the examples are also very numerous, many of which seem, by all indications, to be indisputably reliable. Let us recall only the most important ones. Telepathy was an almost commonplace phenomenon in ancient literature. The works of Homer, Euripides, Ovid, Virgil, and Cicero often talk about the manifestations of the dying and dead, the phenomena of invoking spirits, the fulfillment of prophetic dreams, etc. In Plutarch we read the tragic story of the murder of Julius Caesar and the prophetic dream of his wife, Calpurnia, who tried with all her might not to let him into the Senate. The same author often encounters curious omens (suddenly opening windows in Caesar’s bedroom, etc.), similar to the phenomena we have cited. Brutus and Cassius, without a doubt, were courageous people, skeptics, supporters of the Epicurean school. Read from the same Plutarch about the appearance of a ghost to Brutus in his tent - a ghost who appointed him a rendezvous on the plain of Philippi, where he was supposed to find death. If Julius Caesar had been less distrustful of dreams, he might have listened to his wife's request. Emperor Augustus had better luck before the Battle of Philippi. Obeying a dream his friend had, he, sick, left his tent. His camp was captured by the enemy, and his stretcher was cut down by saber blows (Suetonius, “Augustus”). Cicero, in his book on the “Oracles,” talks about the appearance of Tiberius Gracchus to his brother and about the prophetic dream of the traveler in Megara. Valery Maxim speaks of the prophetic dream of King Croesus, who saw that his son Atis was dying from someone’s weapon; No matter how hard he tried to avert all danger from his son, he died while hunting for a boar, killed by his own bodyguard. Pliny the Younger tells in his Letters about a house in Athens that was haunted by spirits, and about a ghost who demanded the burial of his body. Gregory of Tours claims that on the day of the death of St. Martin in Tours (400) St. Ambrose of Milan learned about this death while fainting. It is known that in the 18th century. Alfonso of Liguria similarly foresaw the death of Pope Clement XIV in advance. In 1348, Petrarch saw his beloved Laura appear to him in a dream on the very day she took her last breath, and dedicated a beautiful work to this memory (“The Triumph of Death”). Pope Pius II (Aeneas Silvius) relates in his history of Bohemia that Charles, son of John, King of Bohemia, who later became Emperor Charles IV, was forewarned in a dream of the death of the Dauphin (August 26, 1336). Joan of Arc herself predicted her death. Catherine de Medici was predicted that her three sons would be kings. Agrippa d'Aubigné reports the appearance of Cardinal Lorraine to Catherine de' Medici on the day and hour of his death. Astrologer John Stefler (1472–1530) predicted the time and manner of his death (a heavy object falling on his head). François de Belleforêt, author of “Strange Cases” (1578), says that his father appeared to him in the garden just at the moment of his death, and his son did not even suspect that he was sick. Monluc tells in his Commentaries about a curious dream that showed him, on the eve of this event, the death of King Henry II, pierced by a spear at the tournament in Montgomery (July 30, 1559). The Queen of Navarre, Margaret of Angoulême, while in the Tusson monastery, heard the call of her brother Francis I at the very moment when he was dying in Rambouillet. A vision that appeared in a dream to Francis Bacon predicted the death of his father, which followed between London and Paris (1578). David Fabricius, the German astronomer who discovered the star Mira Ceti, predicted that he would die on May 17, 1617. On this basis, he took every precaution to avert fate, and did not leave his room that day. Finally, at ten o'clock in the evening, he went to get some fresh air: some peasant killed him with a pitchfork. Abbot Saint-Pierre (1653–1703) says that Abbot Bezuel saw quite clearly his comrade, Defentin, who had drowned the day before, and talked with him for a long time. Swedenborg described on July 19, 1759 the details of a fire that occurred at a distance of 200 kilometers from Stockholm. According to Charles Nodier, one young man, Francois Bablé, predicted the execution of Marie Antoinette in Besançon on October 16, 1793, which led everyone to indescribable amazement. Gratien de Semur says in his treatise “On Misconceptions and Prejudice” that one friend of his family, Madame de Sauz, the wife of a wealthy colonist in Saint-Domingue, one day, while playing cards, suddenly exclaimed: “My husband is dead!” - and fell backwards. On the same day, her husband was killed by blacks. We briefly recall the main of these long-known cases, in fact, in order to show that they occurred in earlier times. It is to be hoped that studying them from a scientific point of view will bring them out of the darkness of prejudice and superstition. One can see without the help of the eyes, hear without the help of the ears, and not due to hypersthesia of the senses of sight or hearing, for these observations prove just the opposite, but due to the feeling of the inner, psychological. The inner eyes of the soul can not only see what is happening in the distance, at considerable distances, but also see ahead of what will happen in the future. The future exists predetermined by the causes that should cause it as a consequence. Positive observation proves the existence of a psychic world that is as real as the world cognizable by our physical senses. But from the fact that the soul acts at a distance with the help of its inherent power, have we the right to conclude that it exists as something real and that it is not the result of the functions of the brain? Light - does it really exist? These are all just different manifestations of movements. What we call light is only a sensation produced in our optic nerve by vibrations of the ether, the number of which is from 400 to 756 trillion per second; These waves themselves are colorless. What we call heat is a sensation produced by vibrations, the number of which varies between 350 and 600 trillion. The sun illuminates space at midnight, as at noon. Meanwhile, the space remains black. Its temperature is 270 degrees below zero. What we call sound is a sensation produced on our auditory nerve by waves of air, which are silent in themselves, and whose number is from 32 to 36,000 per second. Does electricity really exist or is it just a method of movement? In the future, science will explain this to us (it is likely that it exists as a real entity. Isn’t ether an electrical substance?). The word "attraction" was used by Newton only to represent the way in which celestial bodies move in space. “Everything happens,” he says, “as if bodies attract each other.” As for the very essence, the very essence of this apparent force, no one knows it. Many scientific terms express only effects, not causes. It may very well be that the same principle applies to the soul. But it is premature to say this. Observations, sensations, impressions, visions, heard sounds, etc. could, perhaps, mean physical actions occurring between one and the other brain. Yes, sure. But in essence, this does not seem to be the case. A young woman, dearly loved by her husband, dies in Moscow. Her father-in-law in Pulkovo, near St. Petersburg, sees her at that very hour walking next to him, and then she disappears. Struck by surprise and horror, he telegraphs his son with a request and immediately learns about the illness and death of the young woman. We are certainly forced to admit that some current was released from the dying woman and touched her father-in-law. This “unknown” could be the movement of the ether, as in light, and appear only as a consequence, product, result; but this effect has a cause, and the cause is in the dying woman herself - this is undoubtedly so. Can the structure of the brain explain this separation? I think no anatomist, no physiologist would dare answer this in the affirmative. An unknown property is felt here, not of a physical organism, but of a thinking being. Let's look at another example. One lady at home hears singing, the voice of a friend who has taken monastic vows, and faints, realizing that it is the voice of the deceased. At the same moment, my friend was actually dying 40 kilometers away. Are we not encountering here too the same phenomenon, a communication between two souls? The wife of a captain who had gone to India saw her husband in front of her one night, with his hands pressed to his chest and an exhausted face. The excitement she felt at this convinced her that he was killed or dangerously wounded. It was November 14th. She is later informed by the War Office that her husband was killed on the 15th. She checks the date, and it turns out that the ministry was wrong: the captain died on the 14th. A six-year-old child stops among the games and screams in fear: “Mom! I saw mom!” At that moment his mother was dying somewhere far from him. All these facts seem to point not to physiological actions from brain to brain, but to the psychic influences of one spirit on another. Without a doubt, it is difficult to distinguish between what belongs to the spirit, the soul, and what belongs to the brain. We can be guided in our judgments and assessments only by the inner instinct that arises in us when considering phenomena. In this way the foundation was laid for all sciences. Isn’t it felt here that the matter concerns the manifestations of a thinking being, and not just physiological, material phenomena or transformations of physical energy? 248 This impression is abundantly confirmed by the manifestation of unknown faculties of the soul, which play a role in dreams and somnambulism. A brother learns of the death of his young sister through a terrible nightmare. One lady dreams of her family friend drowning. A mother dreams of her daughter lying on the road, broken and bloody. One lady in a dream visits her husband on a distant ship; the husband, as if in reality, accepts this visit, and even in front of an outside witness. The magnetized subject sees and describes all the internal organs of his deceased mother, and these data are later confirmed in the best possible way by an autopsy. The judge sees three years in advance the commission of one terrible crime, in all its details. Often someone's death is predicted with great accuracy. The somnambulist exposes the theft and predicts the execution of the culprit. A young girl dreams of her fiancé at the very moment of his death (frequent cases). The psychic action of one spirit on another, relationships at a distance exist in reality - this is as true as the existence of electric and magnetic currents in the atmosphere. All these are still unknown abilities of the soul. This is at least my impression. It seems to me that it would be unreasonable to consider prediction of the future and clairvoyance as a nervous product of the brain. The brain is nothing more than an organ, just like the visual and auditory nerves. The soul, spirit, intellectual being acts and perceives through it, but is not its physical property. Of all these phenomena, divination of the future is perhaps the most remarkable; - in order to admit its possibility, one must assume that the future is precisely predetermined in advance by the reasons that will cause it later. Let us note that one fact of this kind, precisely verified, would be sufficient to prove this position. But we have before our eyes not one fact, but hundreds of facts. This is not the place to discuss the great mystery of free will and fate. Let us only recall the words of Laplace: “Events of the present time have a connection with previous ones, based on the obvious principle that no thing can begin except due to some cause. This axiom applies to the most indifferent actions. The will, no matter how free it is, cannot give birth to them without a specific motive, since if, under the existence of conditions absolutely identical in two positions, this will acted in one and restrained in the other, then its choice would be an effect without a cause: and then it would be, as Leibniz says, a blind case of the Epicureans. To think otherwise would be an illusion of the mind, which, having lost sight of the fleeting reasons in the choice of the will in things of indifference, imagines that it decided of itself and without any motives. Therefore, the present state of the universe must appear to us as the consequence of its previous state and the cause of the subsequent state. Such a mind, which could comprehend all the forces that animate nature and the mutual relations between its beings, if only it were so vast as to subject all these data to analysis, would embrace in one and the same formula all the movements of the greatest bodies in the universe and the smallest atoms: nothing would escape it; and the future, like the past, would be revealed before his eyes. In the perfection achieved by astronomy, the human mind represents a faint hint of such an intellect” 249. If the future is predetermined, what will happen to our freedom? Without a doubt, philosophy will someday reconcile these two apparent contradictions, 250 for we feel within ourselves the power to make a choice and are aware of the usefulness of the efforts made; all the progress of Western peoples is precisely due to conscious intellectual activity, as opposed to the blind fatalism of Eastern peoples. All these phenomena prove, in my opinion, that the soul exists, that it is endowed with abilities still unknown. Thoughts can be transmitted from one spirit to another. It is undoubtedly possible to transmit thoughts, mental suggestions, and psychic currents between souls. Space is not an obstacle, and time is sometimes destroyed too. What mode of energy plays a role in these messages? This cannot yet be determined. Of the observed impressions, many resemble the tricks of lightning and electricity. It is not surprising to assume that this force is much closer to the human body than hitherto thought. However, I repeat, the hour for theories has not yet come. While remaining relatively quite rare and not distinguished by the banality of ordinary things, everyday life, these phenomena are, however, more numerous than hitherto imagined. It seems to me that from the totality of the facts presented the following conclusions follow: 1) The soul exists as something real, independent of the body; 2) She is gifted with properties still unknown to science; 3) She is able to act and feel at a distance without the mediation of feelings; 4) The future is predetermined in advance, due to the reasons that should cause it. The soul is sometimes able to foresee the future. There are many observations on other issues, for example, with regard to doubles of living persons, the etheric or astral body, the phenomena of the dead; but, in my opinion, the four previous points have already been fully proven and verified. The facts we have examined will further lead to the consideration of the phenomena of spiritualism and mediumship, the phenomena of somnambulism, magnetism, hypnotism, to predicting the future in reality, and not in dreams, to the study of premonitions, doubles, the astral body, phenomena and manifestations of the dead, houses visited by spirits, the movements of objects without touching them, witchcraft, magic, etc. 251. Already now we can come to the conclusion that if we exclude superstitions, delusions, illusions, deception, evil jokes, trickery, then there still remain real, undoubted psychic facts worthy of the deep attention of researchers. We have, so to speak, entered into the exploration of a whole world, as ancient as humanity itself, but still new to the experimental scientific method, which is only now beginning to deal with it - and simultaneously in all countries. Let us remind you once again that these are exceptional facts. Psychic phenomena of all orders, having ceased to belong to the morbid area of ​​superstition, still remain rare and exceptional. There is no way to indulge in them, renouncing the spirit of criticism, without which human reason would be a complete delusion. They should be looked at as subjects of study, interesting for self-knowledge. Indeed, we know least of all our own nature. Socrates' rule: “Know yourself!” should always inspire the noblest thoughts. So, let's learn, let's work and hope. The totality of psychic facts shows that we live in the midst of an invisible world, where forces as yet unknown are at work; this is quite consistent with what we know about the limitations of our earthly senses and about natural phenomena. Let us repeat, together with Shakespeare, a thought that goes very well here: “Believe me, Horatio, that there are more miracles on earth and in heaven than our sages dreamed of.” And, returning to astronomical philosophy, let’s say in the words of Lamartine: “Life is a step on the ladder of the worlds; we must cross it to reach the mountain abodes.” Let us conclude our book with the wonderful story “From Behind the Coffin Canopy.” Distinguished by sincerity and simplicity, it is based on the teachings of the Church and deserves our full attention, as it clearly points to the existence of the human soul and the beginnings of the afterlife. This is the story. Maria Grigorievna Milovidova, the wife of the priest of the Vladimir Seminary Church, later Archimandrite Vladimir, was deeply religious and compassionate towards her neighbors. In 1862, the Lord called (this) His good servant to eternal life, to the great sorrow of her husband and her children. “And now, a remarkable circumstance that happened shortly after her death,” says Fr. Archpriest Florinsky. Marya Grigorievna (forty-five years old) died on December 26, 1861, and her body was buried at the Theotokos Seminary Church, near St. altar on the south side. The 30th of January - the day of the three saints - was the day of the Angel of Father Vasily Milovidov. He performed the liturgy. The seminarians were in classes. There were no people in the church, since it was a non-parish church. With the priest performing the liturgy, only the deacon and the psalm-reader performed the work of the singers. After the liturgy, Father Vasily went alone with a censer to his wife’s grave and performed a litya here for the repose of the soul of the newly departed servant of God Mary. When, after the litia, Father Vasily exclaimed: “In the blessed Dormition, grant eternal peace, O Lord, to Thy servant, the newly departed Mary, and create eternal memory for her!” - and then sang with tears: “eternal memory, eternal memory, eternal memory!” - then a slight movement of air occurred around him and the grave, and in this movement Father Vasily heard the voice of the deceased wife, clearly saying: “And you, my friend, I congratulate you on the Angel.” “In trepidation, Father Vasily came from the church to his wife’s relatives, went into the house of her dear aunt - my late mother, the priestly widow Elizaveta Ivanovna Florinskaya, and, inviting her and me to his birthday cake, said to us: “Now, venerable aunt and dear brother N.I., I have seen with my own eyes that the souls of the dead wander for forty days on earth. Who do you think would be the first to greet me on Angel’s Day today?... My deceased, Maria Grigorievna! I then firmly wrote down in my memory this story of my unforgettable mentor, and then already a colleague at the Vladimir Seminary, where I was a professor of theology - in the position of assistant rector from 1851 to 1867. Now, as I submit it for publication, I remember many other similar cases in which the dead spoke to the living from behind the grave canopy. I have no doubt that those who read the lives of the saints are aware of these cases; I will only recall a few. When Saint Spyridon of Trimifuntsky, in response to the request of the friend of his deceased maiden daughter, where his deceased daughter had placed one thing taken from her for keeping, answered: “I don’t know,” he brought that maiden into grief; Out of compassion, he decided to ask the deceased herself, his daughter, about this. He went out with her friend to the grave and, having prayed for the repose of his daughter’s soul with the saints, turned to the deceased over her grave with a question: “Behold, your friend is asking me for the thing you took from her: tell me, where did you put that thing?” A response from the deceased was heard from the grave, indicating the place where the thing was 252. The Holy Orthodox Church immortalized the memory of this miraculous questioning of the dead in her hymns to the saint and wonderworker Spyridon of Trimifunt (see troparion to him on December 12). Rev. John Climacus, in his wonderful book “The Ladder,” in the chapter on the virtue of Christian obedience, reports about St. Akaki obedient, that he answered the question to him, already in the grave, of one great elder: “Are you alive, Akaki?” - answered: “I am alive: for obedience does not die.” But even more striking is the answer that followed - on the first day of Holy Easter - from the tombs of the Pechersk saints, resting in the caves of St. Kiev-Pechersk Lavra of the Dormition, for Easter greetings from the venerable abbot of the monastery, later Bishop Dionysius Balaban. When this holy abbot of the Anthony caves, on the Bright Resurrection of Christ, at the end of Matins and Liturgy, entered the meal of the venerable fathers of Pechersk and, having blessed St. relics, from St. cross and the three-branched Easter candlestick, joyfully proclaimed: “Christ is risen! Reverend Fathers of Pechersk! - like a strong thunder, a clear voice thundered from the holy relics of the saints of Pechersk: “Truly Christ is risen!” The Holy Church recorded this miraculous sign in the canon of the saints of Pechersk, in which, among other troparions of the canon, there is the following troparion: “As you live, O God-bearing One, and after the death of blessed Dionysius, you answered from among the tombs: truly the Lord is risen! Mortified by passions, revive me” (II. 8 can. trop. 3). Oh, Christ God, our Light-Giver and Life-Giver! You proclaimed to the unbelieving Sadducees: There is no God, the God of the dead, but the God of the living: “For unto him live all things.” Glory to Thee, Son of the Living God, our Resurrector and Life-Giver, glory to Thee with the Father and the Holy Spirit, glory to the ages of ages. This story was written by Fr. Archpriest of the Sretenskaya Church in Kyiv N. I. Florinsky and published in “Dush. Thu." for 1900 in the May book, from which we took it in abbreviation. We will end our book with this story. We think that if the reader, all the time while reading the book, was without prejudice to the truths that were set forth in it, he would come to a firm and decisive recognition of the spiritual world in general and found in his heart a bright, joyful mood - the fruit of the Christian faith and hope for an afterlife in the light of bliss with Jesus Christ. In any case, after reading the facts that are presented both in this book and in the one we previously compiled under the title: “From the Realm of the Mysterious,” he cannot, in our opinion, help but say with Shakespeare: “Believe me, Horatio, that there are more miracles on earth and in heaven than our sages dreamed of.” Brief Church Slavonic Dictionary Abiye - immediately, immediately. Abbadon - Heb. "Destroyer"; name of the angel of the abyss. Abraham's bosom, womb - allegorically: Paradise, a place of eternal bliss. The Hagarians are the descendants of Ismail, the son of Hagar, Abraham's concubine, allegorically - nomadic eastern tribes. Agiasma is water blessed according to church rites. The water consecrated on the feast of Epiphany is called the Great Agiasma. Agios – inscription on ancient icons; Greek "saint". Agkira (read “ankira”) – anchor. Lamb - lamb; pure, meek creature; part of the prosphora for the Eucharist taken away at the proskomedia; pl. ch. – “lambs” – sometimes means “Christians”. Hell is the location of the souls of the dead until their liberation by the Lord Jesus Christ; a place of eternal torment for sinners; devil's dwelling. Adamant – diamond; diamond; gem. Adamantine – hard; strong; precious. Adonai – Heb. "My Lord." Aermon - associated with Mount Aermon. Airomancy is air magic, i.e. superstitious fortune telling based on atmospheric phenomena. Akathist - Greek. "non-seated"; a church service during which sitting is prohibited. Acrids are the food of John the Baptist; according to some, a genus of edible locusts or grasshoppers; according to others - some kind of plant. Axios - Greek. "worthy." Alavaster is a stone vessel. Alkati - to starve; to want to eat, to strongly desire something. Alleluia - Heb. “praise God”; "God bless!" Red Alleluia - singing “Hallelujah” in a special touching chant. See Lenten Triodion. Alleluia, alleluia - a verse proclaimed by the reader after reading the Apostle at the liturgy. At this proclamation, “Alleluia” is sung in the choirs. Scarlet, aloe – the sap of an incense tree, used for incense and embalming. Altabas is the best ancient brocade. Amalek was a people who lived between Palestine and Egypt. In church poetry this name is often attached to the devil. The pulpit is the elevated part of the church in front of the royal doors. Ambrose is incorruptible food. Amen – Heb. “so be it”; "true"; "genuinely"; "Yes". A lectern (more correctly, “analogies”) is an elevated table on which church books and icons are placed when reading. Anathema - excommunication from the community of the faithful and submission to the judgment of God; one who has undergone such excommunication. Anathematize - to anathematize. Angelic – outwardly resembling an Angel. Angelic - outwardly resembling an Angel. Angelic - famous, revered in the face of angels; bearing the name of an angel. Angelic – befitting an Angel. Angel-wise - having the wisdom of an Angel. Angelic life, angelic image - the highest degree of monastic perfection; Greek "schima". Anepsy - nephew, relative. Antidor is blessed bread, that is, the remains of the prosphora from which the Lamb was removed at the proskomedia. Antimins - Greek. “in place of the throne”, a consecrated board with the image of Jesus Christ in the tomb and sewn-in St. relics. Only on the antimension can the liturgy be celebrated. Antiphon - Greek. "anti-government"; a chant that should be sung alternately on both choirs. Antichrist - Greek. "the enemy of Christ." Anthology - Greek. "Flower"; The title is “Festive Menaion.” Anfipat - governor, proconsul. Apocalypse - Greek. "revelation". Apollyon - Greek. "Destroyer"; name of the angel of the abyss. Apostle - Greek "messenger". Apostasis is apostasy. Ariel is a forge at the altar of burnt offering in the Temple of Jerusalem. Artos - Greek. leavened bread; it is consecrated with a special prayer on the day of Holy Easter. Archangel is the leader of the Angels, the name of one of the ranks of angels. Bishop - high priest, bishop. Archmagir is the chief cook. Archpastor is the preeminent bishop. Arch-synagogue - head of the synagogue. Archangel - military leader, commander. Architecton – architect, artist-builder; chief builder Architriclinus is the master of the feast. Asmodeus, Azmodeos - “destroyer”, a demonic name. The soaring asp is a flying lizard. Assary is a small copper coin. Asterix is ​​a star placed on the paten during the liturgy. Afarim - spies; spies. Aphedro – anus (Matthew 15:17). If - if; Although; or; whether. Even worse - because; because. Baba is a midwife. Babiti - to help during childbirth. Crimson - dark red fabric; porphyry, purple clothing of high-ranking persons. Balia – witch; sorceress Bath of rebirth - the sacrament of St. Baptism. Fabulous - tell tall tales; lie. A fable is a false and useless teaching. Vigil - wakefulness; long night service. Vigilantly - vigilantly, vigilantly. Vigil - to stay awake; don't sleep. Poor - difficult; intolerable; hard. To go berserk - to rage, to go berserk. The poor man is a cripple; crippled. Poor - sometimes: crippled; cripple. Formless - without form or image. Guiltyless - having no beginning or reason for its existence. One of the Divine definitions. Ageless – baby. Untimely - inopportune; untimely. Voicelessness is muteness; silence. Irregularity is a disaster; misfortune; difficult period in life. Unleavened - unleavened; not sour. Flightless - endlessly; forever; before all time. Motherless - without a mother. Unpaid - not accepting bribes or payments. Merciless - not feeling or showing mercy or pity. The Silent One is a desert dweller; hermit. Silent – ​​sometimes means: safe; calm. Brideless - celibate; virgin. Recklessness is impudence; shamelessness; impudence. Without ceasing - always; continuously. Without stumbling - without any stumbling block, temptation or obstacle. Pathlessness - seduction from the path; corruption. Undefiled - having no defilement or vice. Wordlessness is bestiality; stupidity; madness. The dumb ones are animals, brutes. A moneyless person is a person who works for nothing, for free. Kingless - not having a king over him. Childlessness - lack of children, deprivation of children. To be without participation is to deprive one of one’s due portion; deprive. Dishonest - dishonored. Disorder is disorder; disorder; mixing. To be disorderly is to lead a disorderly life. Innumerability - countless numbers. Good - good; Kind. Blagovest - the sound of a bell, calling Christians to prayer in the church. It differs from “ringing” in that the gospel is announced with one bell, but many are rung. To evangelize - to proclaim good things; preach. Faithful - professing the right faith; Orthodox. The Annunciation is good news. Favor - to treat someone well; take part in someone. Incense - fragrance, good smell. In good time - at a convenient time. A benefactor is a preacher of the word of God. Gracious – filled with Divine grace. Charity is a good, godly deed. To be grateful - to rejoice. Well-skilled - having knowledge of useful things. Blessed - bringing a bountiful harvest. Well-meaning - happened on time. Noble - very beautiful. Splendor - beauty; splendor; rich decoration. Splendid - beautiful; decently. Benevolent – ​​bearing abundant, good fruits. Benevolent - prone to goodness. Gracious - see Benevolence. Benefits - fortress; strength. Philosophy - prudent courage, valor. Beneficial - guiding towards good behavior. Well-dressed - adorned with elegant clothing. Beneficent - repaying good for evil. Prosperity – sweet, tasty food. Compliant – listening with attention; obedient. Compassionate – attentive; easy, well audible. Beneficial - well-arranged; pleasing; necessary. Beneficence – purification; health improvement; clarification. To do good - to cleanse; improve health Blessed – growing well. Blagorozgny – branchy. Blessed-leaved – shady. Blessed – producing abundant shade. Blessed - glorified; praised; exalted. Bless - dedicate to God; to wish well; praise; pray for the sending of God's grace on someone; allow; wish you well. Blessed guilt is a good reason. Prosperity is firmness, strength (in good, against evil). Beneficence is a good deed; mercy; virtue, good deed. Grace is condescension. Benevolent - condescending. Calmness - calm, clear weather. Benevolence is mercy. Praise is overt praise. Blessed – speckled; flowery. To reverence - to revere; to reverently honor someone. Piety is true worship of God. Pious, pious - God-fearing; reverent; worshiper of God. Bliss - to please; glorify. Shine - shine; shine; shine. Blizna – tripe; wrinkle; fold. Shine - sparkle; outpouring of light, brilliance. A whorehouse is an indecent house. A fornicator is a marriage breaker. Fornication is a drinking binge that encourages fornication. Fornication is unfaithfulness to the true God, serving idols (Exodus 34:15; Judgment 8:33). Just as violation of the marriage union is fornication, so in the spiritual sense, violation of the union with God is serving idols, walking in the footsteps of other gods, that is, fornication, especially since some types of idolatry were accompanied by fornication in the proper sense of the word. Keep - keep; take care; observe. Wandering is idle talk; false words; lies. Bo – because; because; for; because. God-speaking - speaking at the suggestion of God or in His Name. Almshouse - according to the action of God. Godly - as befits God. Godly - having Divine beauty, dignity. Divine - Divine-human. God-originating – having its origin in God. Godfather - this name in church books is assigned to David, from whose family Christ was born. Cheerfully - vigilantly; vigilantly. Painful - to endure pain; suffer. Married - deprived of chastity, virginity. Braniti - to prohibit; defend; hinder. Brotherhood - fight; fight. Mortal - taken from the earth; weak; fragile. Breaches - guard; keep. Brozda – bit (part of horse harness). Alarm clock - one of the monks in the monastery, waking up the brethren to pray. Bueslovie - stupid speeches; lies. Bueslovity - to speak stupid speeches. Bui, (buiy) – crazy; crazy; silly. Riot is stupidity; madness; madness. The seed of Babylon is the tribe of the wicked. Vaditi - to make a false denunciation; slander; blame; lure; attract. Vainy – consisting of fronds. Valsamny - fragrant; odorous; aromatic. Var – heat; heat; boiling water. Variti - to precede; preempt; anticipate, warn. Basilisk is a large poisonous snake. Vdavati – to instruct; transmit; trust. Veglas – knowledgeable; skillful. Witchcraft is sorcery; divination; sorcery. Beelzebub – “Lord of the Flies”; chief of evil spirits; one of the names of Satan. Splendor - beauty; splendor; decoration. Velelepota – beauty; splendor; decoration. Wisely - arrogantly. Decree - decree; command; commandment; teaching. Eloquent - verbose; boastful. Velerechiti - talk a lot; brag; be proud. Belial (or Belial) is one of the names of the devil. Veliy – great; strong. The Great is the largest, main bell. Greatly gifted, great-gifted, great-gifted - generously rewarding. To be majestic – to be proud; boast; boast. Velblud, velbud – camel; thick rope. Veno is the groom's payment for the bride. Crown - lay a wreath or crown; honor; vouchsafe Vereya - door; crossbar; post at the gate. Version - throwing; throwing; throwing. Throwing a stone is a distance equal to how far a stone can be thrown. The whole thing is a village, a hamlet. The Ancient of Days is the name of God in Daniel 7:9. Based on this prophetic vision, in the iconographic tradition of the New Testament Church, the image of God the Father is depicted as an old man. Prophetic - addicted to the point of madness to perishable goods. Jump in - play; jump; have fun. To seek - to strive, to seek. Take up - take up; open; come true. Guilt is the reason; accusation; apology. Vinnytsia is a grapevine. Wine drinking - drinking wine. Viseti – to hang; hold on to something. Visson is a precious thin yellowish yarn or clothing made from this fabric. Vitalishche – place of residence; home Vitalnitsa – room; hotel; inn; overnight stay Vitati – to dwell; abide; reside; spend the night. The vagina is a sac; pocket; casket Sovereign - lordly or Lordly. Possessing – possessing; dominant. Authorities is the name of one of the ranks of angels. Hair shirt is clothing made of hard, spiky hair. Vlayatisya - to poke around; hesitate; worry; rush through the waves. Drawn - wander; walk slowly; trudge. In the small - soon; a little later; almost; barely. Outside (udu) – from outside; outside. Suddenly - suddenly; suddenly. The one who has taken in is the one who has caught fire. Vnitie – entry; phenomenon; advent. Heed (behavioral incl. heed, pay attention) - pay attention; hear. Throw it at something; throw it at something; plunge; contribute. Vodruziti - to approve; strengthen. In a hedgehog - so that; for the sake of; For. Lust – to desire strongly. To become enraged - to become frantic. Chosen, climbed - military; brave in battle; victorious. Forbid - hinder; hold. Ring - sing; praise in songs. To lift - to drag up. Restore, cast down - lay down, lay down. The head is a pillow; headboard The exclamation is the final words of the prayer secretly performed by the priest. Exclamation - loud singing or reading; see Exclamation. Look - look; look. To light a fire - to light a fire. Raise - raise; elevate. Elevation – elevation, elevation. Get up - sometimes: hit the road. Vozdvizati – to raise; elevate. Elevation - elevation, exaltation. Air is a cover placed on top of the sacred vessels during the liturgy. Recline - lie down with your elbows; recline. Indignation - confusion; riot. To disturb - to disturb; produce discord. Send down - send from above; reward. Ascend – raise your head. Reappear - take on an image; impersonate; inhabit a visible image; to be depicted again. Age – age (number of years); height. Grow - grow; increase. To contemplate - to shake; shake. Restore – restore; put back in its original place. Volity - to want; want; demand. Wave – wool; fleece; sheepskin. Magus - sage; astrologer; sorcerer; predictor. Scream, scream - shout loudly; cry. To cast a spell - to cast a spell; predict the future. Vorozheya - a wizard; witch; poisoner. Exclamation - choral singing. Stand up - straighten up; get up; unbend. Resurrect - to rise; come to life; come back to life. Resurrection – rising from the dead. Voskrilie - hem; edge of clothing; floors of outerwear. Perceive - feather; inspire (with hope). Inscribe - depict in writing; express. Perk up - jump up; jump; come to life. Vosterzati – to extract; pull out Delight - tear; pluck; weed Pull up - pull up; strengthen; pull up. To explore, to explore - to explore; test; be interested. Delight - catch; catch; illegally seize; kidnap; carry to heights; delight. In vain - in vain; wasted; for nothing; in vain. Voutry, voutry - the next day. Fall - fall; hit; tumble in; be subjected to; fall. Uplift – to elevate; lift; shoot upward like a feather. Stare - soar; take off. Inpersity - to take inside oneself. Straight - straight; against. The red gate is the western church door. Goalkeeper, gatekeeper - guard at the gate. Doctor - medicine; healing. Harm – skin disease. Vresnotu - really; by virtue; decent. Sackcloth is bad, rough clothing; sackcloth; mournful robe. To boil - to boil; foam; get excited; to beat with a key; boil over. Vreyati – to plunge; sweep in; push. All-benevolent - magnificent. Omnipotent - the creator of everything. All-red is the most beautiful. The all-evil is the most insidious, i.e. the devil. Fully armed - fully armed. All-sung - most glorified; praised by everyone or everywhere. A burnt offering is a sacrifice in which the entire victim is burned. The all-institution is a rich treat. An omnivore is one who eats everyone, i.e. hell, or death. Open - along the edge; near; near. Vskaya - why? because of what? for what? Everything is perfect; at all; at all. Secondary - secondary; intensely. To establish - to establish; legitimize. Soaring - tall; proud. Tall – proud; haughty; puffy. To be arrogant - to be highly intelligent; be proud. Gaggrene (read “gangrene”) – gangrene; Antonov fire; Cancer. Fortune telling is a mystery; ambiguity. Gadi (plural) – reptiles. Fortune telling - reproach; dishonor; swearing Gasophilakia - treasury depository in the Temple of Jerusalem. Hanania is a mystery; parable. Gastrimargia - gluttony; gluttony. Gaschi - pants; men's underwear. Gehenna is the valley of Ginnom near Jerusalem, where idolatrous Jews under King Ahaz burned their children in honor of the idol Moloch. Allegorically: a place of future torment, afterlife punishments. Headship - head; start; cause. The headband is a Jewish headband. Verb - to speak; tell. Verb - called; so called. Globa - execution; punishment. A scoundrel is a blasphemer; mockingbird A mockery is a place for horse racing, dancing, masquerades, etc. To mock - to have fun; amuse yourself; enjoy. Gloomy (plural) – jokes; laughter; games. Glyadati - look; look. Gnati – drive; chase; go; to follow someone or something. Pus, pus - a dung heap; wounds. Disdain - to consider vile; despise. Gobzovanie – abundance, contentment. Gobzovati – to abound; to excess; to be rich (see ugobziti). Gobber - living in contentment. Fasting is veneration (for example, fasting). Goveti - to honor; read (for example, a post). Godet - whatever; Nice; suitable. Godina, year - hour; time; it's time. Golot - sleet, ice. Gomola - com; lump; pellet; piece. Gonzati - to run away; flee. The persecutor is the pursuer. More bitter is worse; poorer. Turtle, dove - wild pigeon. Gornets – pot; bowler; brazier Crucible - blacksmith's forge; smelter; a place for smelting or purification by fire. Upper room - upper room; dining room. Gorniy – high; supreme; heavenly. Pea-grazing - grazing; wandering through the mountains; stolen by a wild beast from a mountain pasture. Laryngeal madness is an addiction to delicacies. The worst is the worst; worst. Lordship is one of the ranks of angels. Gostinnik - innkeeper; innkeeper. Gradar - gardener; gardener. Grezn is a bunch of grapes. Hryvnia - necklace; chain worn around the neck. Bunch – cluster of fruits; branch (of grapes). Rust - go; march. Gugnivy - nasal; stutterer; tongue-tied; burry; speaking through the nose. Buzzing is playing the gusli or harp. Gudets - guslist; musician. Further – much further. Dalek – distant; difficult. A promise is a promise; obligation. Dvizati – to move; stir. Double-minded - unsteady in faith. Dvorishche is a small or deserted house. Stupidity - obesity; completeness; corpulence. Deb'r - valley; hollow; ravine; gorge. To become a virgin - to maintain virginity, chastity. Action - action; performance. Delatilishche - merchant's shop; a weapon in someone's hands. Demon worship is the veneration of demons. A demon reader is an idolater. Dennitsa - morning dawn, morning star; fallen angel Daylight - similar to daylight. Power - strength; fortress; power; state. Sovereign - imperious; powerful. To dare - to dare; rely. Insolence is insolent speech. Insolent - insolent; impudent. Daring - brave; shameless; bold. Gum – right; located on the right side. Tithe – tenth part. The Decalogue is the ten commandments of God given through Moses. The brainchild is a baby; child; adolescence Childbearing is the conception of a baby in the womb. Diadima - crown; diadem. Divyachitis - to commit atrocities. Didrachma - Greek. “double drachma”, ancient Greek. silver coin. Dmitisya - to be proud; boast. Day - related to the number of hymns from the Octoechos, and on the days of the singing of the Triodion - from this book. Day and night - for the whole day. Today - today, now; Now. Day - current; today's Valiant, valiant, valiant - strong in goodness; firm in virtue. Kindness is beauty; niceness. Good-klass - see Good-klass. Dobropobedny – glorified by victories. Praiseworthy - deserving of praise; commendable. Satisfy – satisfy. Dovleti - reach; to be sufficient; grab Dogma - Greek. one of the fundamental tenets of faith. Rain - send rain; sprinkle; irrigate Dozde - hitherto; to this day; up to here. Milica - wet nurse; nurse. How long - until what time? how long? Dolniy – lower; earthly (as opposed to “heavenly, upper”). Down, down - below; down. Sub-attractive - pulling down. Dorinosity - to accompany someone as a guard or retinue. Annoyance – doing something objectionable; wickedness; insult. Property – estate; inheritance; power. Drachma - ancient Greek. silver coin. Woodworker - carpenter; carpenter Yeast – yeast; sucks. Druzhina is a society (of comrades, peers). Druchiti - to depress; to languish; run down. Dryaselovati - to be cloudy, gloomy, sad. Dska, dschitsa - board; tablet. Dkhnuti - to die; blow. Eunuch - eunuch; harem watchman; courtier. Egov – his (possessive case of the pronoun “he”). Uniformly - according to; the same. Same - same; equals; more. Is it the same - really still? Uniform – one-type; monotonous. Exapsalms - six psalms. Litany - intense prayer; petition. Oil – olive, wood oil. Olivet - see Olivet. Once again - whenever. Every time, every time - always the same; whenever. Eliko-eliko - after a short time; very soon. As powerfully as possible; as much as strength allows. Hellin - Greek; pagan; proselyte of Judaism. Elma - because; how much. Ependite - outer dress. Epistolia - letter; message. Yesmirnismenny - mixed with myrrh. Thirsty - want to drink; to desire something strongly. Pity - jealousy; zeal. Burnt - one who is burned with fire; sick with fire; sick with fever, fever. Rod - staff; cane; stick. Marriage - marriage; marriage; marriage. Misogynistic – lustful; prodigal; voluptuous. Stiff-necked – insensitive; stubborn. Live - give life; give life; revive The Life Giver is the giver of life. Life-giving is the beginning; reason for life. Animal – living; animated. To devour - to slaughter; make a sacrifice. Amuse - talk; bewitch. Amusement - procrastination; hesitation; expectation. Amuse – hold; slow down. Zabobony - unauthorized service, outrage. Covenant is a union; contract; condition. Enviously - not enough; not enough. For the hedgehog - in order to. Zarezit - look; notice; condemn; reproach. Borrow - borrow; borrow. Slaughter is a sacrifice. Rivet - constipation; lock; valve Slaughter is a sacrifice. A law-writer is a compiler of laws. To lay down a law is to give a law. A shelter is a place for shelter. Zaleschi - to be in ambush; hide. Zamatoreti - to become outdated; become stale; grow old. Frozen - caught in a net. Zane – since; because. Ignition - fire; fire. The chorus is a short verse preceding the stichera (on “Lord, I cried,” laudatory, poetic) or troparia of the canon. Seal - seal; approve; tie; fasten. Stammering is a hostile action. Denial - denial; locking. Prohibit – prohibit; to be sad; mourn. Desolation - desolation; desert. Desolate - come to desolation or desolation, become desolate. Comma, stop - stop; detain; to be seduced. Comma - punctuation; let; stumbling. Zealous - like the dawn. Stagnate - stop on the road; hold; bore; bother. Shutter – lock; constipation; the place of the prayerful feat of some monks who took a vow not to leave their cell. Sharpened - overwhelmed by the wind; wearable; persecuted. Zatuliti – close; hide; cover. Zatune - for free; for no reason. Shut up - close your mouth; shut up. In the morning - before sunrise; in the morning; early; Tomorrow. Morning - tomorrow. Bitching - slap in the face; punch to the face. Zaushati - to block the mouth; prohibit speaking. To choke - to submerge. Conception - beginning; the name of passages of text in the books of the Holy Scriptures of the New Testament. Borrow - borrow; borrow. Stargazer - astronomer. Star magician - fortune telling by the stars; practice astrology. Astronomy - astronomy. Starology - astrology. Astrologism - practice astrology. Carnivore – livestock damaged by a predatory animal. Sounding - whistling; whistle. Zvyatsati - to ring; strum. Zdo – building; wall; roof. Zeleynik is a healer who heals with herbs and spells. Greenery - drinking poison. Herbal – consisting of potion, i.e. grass or other plants. Zelo, greener - very; very much. Green – strong; great. Creator - creator; creator. Winter - winter; cold; bad weather. Cereal is a plant; green; vegetable. Zlatar is a goldsmith. Zlatitsa, zlatitsa is a gold coin. Golden - brightly shiny. Gold plated – minted from gold. Golden-blooded - having a gilded roof. Zlachny – herbal; rich in vegetation and cereals. Evil - evil; cruel; bad. Malicious - full of malice; deceit. Malicious - a villain; ill-wisher; enemy. Malice – depraved or bad character. Malice is a misfortune; misfortune. Malice – rancor. Speak evil - scold; scold; slander; vilify. Malicious - merciless. Malice is evil intent. Malice is a strong and vicious passion. To be malicious - to greatly annoy. Malicious - causing great anxiety, torment. Sinisterism – depraved or evil actions. The ill-dead is someone who has suffered a serious death. To deceive - to plot evil. Malicious - crafty; spiteful; lawless. Evil - evil; bad; waste; thin; cruel. Known - an acquaintance, a close person. Significantly – educationally. Significant – educational; denoting something. Znamati – to designate with a sign; mark; depict; show; manifest. A sign is a sign; sign; phenomenon; miracle. The standard bearer is a miracle worker. Significant - miraculous. Zobati - to fill the goiter; peck; There is; absorb. To face death is to be on your last legs. Zybati - to move; move; sway. Hegemon - leader; boss; ruler. A playground is a place for performance. A game is a funny or obscene performance. Idolatry is violent idolatry. Depend – to live; spend; spend. Illuminate - shine; lick; shed light. Izbodati - to flog; to hit; pierce; pierce; prick out. Izborati – to win; hit. To burden – to ease; disburden; disembark. Worn out - rotten; spoiled. Excess - to remain in excess, excess; abound; free yourself. Excess is contentment; abundance. Eruption is expulsion from the church clergy or defrocking. Izvesiti - to hang; hang out. Lime - announce; announce; certify. It is known - for sure; thoroughly. Izvet - denunciation; notice. Notice - certificate. The convolution of words is eloquence; floridity. Elaborate - tell eloquently. Get naked - take off your clothes; expose yourself. Volition - will; wish. Deign - to allow; want; wish. Pervert - to turn inside out; change; transform. Pervert - throw away; sweep away. Get used to - learn, cognize. Nail - pull out, remove nails. Bending – perishing, disappearing. Bend - die; abyss; get lost. efface – exclude; destroy. From ancient times - from ancient times; from time immemorial. Exhaust yourself - exhaust yourself. Marry - expel; kick out. Izlaziti – to go out; to get off (for example, from a ship). Excess - excessively; even more. Excessive - to the point of excess; more than measure. Izlyatsati – to stretch out; extend. Izmetati – to spew out; throw away; throw away. Treason - replacement; change; ransom Change - replace; change. Change your face - pretend. Washing - washing; cleansing Silence - stop talking; shut up. Wear and tear, wear and tear. Iznitsati – to arise; appear. Wear out - endure; pronounce; produce; to grow; bring. Exhaust - to remove from need. Depict – reveal; appear; open. Isostat - to stay somewhere. Sophisticate – sharpen; sharpen. Destruction - growth; work; generation. Irrigation - throwing away; eruption; exception. Irrigated - erupted; thrown out; driven away. Izrinuti - push; knock over; knock down; destroy. Izrok – saying; condemnation. Dig up - dig up; dig up Fairly - especially; predominantly. Extract - take out; to tear out; pull out; withdraw. Outrage – amazement; delight. Izuvedeti - to understand; to know. To be restrained - to be freed; get freedom. Izumevati – to be perplexed; don't understand. Amazing - exuberant; raging. Be amazed - go crazy; go crazy. Izuti – take off your shoes; take off your shoes. Isolate - to deprive of members; crush members; disfigure. Seize - squander; waste. Iconoratic – iconoclast. Ikos is a lengthy song written in praise of a saint or holiday. Imatisma - outer dress, cloak. Named – treasure; concerning the estate. Possessively - predominantly. Inokovati - to live in a foreign way. Inuda, inde - in another place, in another place. Ipakoi is a hymn set according to the small litany after the polyeleos at Sunday matins. Iparkh - head of the region; mayor; viceroy Irmos is a chant that stands at the beginning of each of the songs of the canon. Herodians are supporters of Herod. Distort - to spoil; castrate. Iskapati – to exude; emit drops; expire. From time immemorial - from the beginning; at the beginning; Always. Original - former from time immemorial; everlasting. Temptation - test; temptation; examination. First - first; from time immemorial. Ispleviti - weed out; pull out; to tear out; pull out; collect. Weave - weave; fold; compose. Confess – confess; openly express your faith. A confessor is a person who has undergone suffering or persecution for the faith of Christ. Fulfillment – ​​completeness; filling; commit. Fulfill - filled; fulfilled. Fulfill - fill; commit. Half - half; in half; part. Correct - straighten; to correct; direct; strengthen. Correction – restoration; right way of life. Eliminate - overthrow; destroy; belittle Isprati, izperiti - trample down; wash. Hyssop is a plant used in bunches for sprinkling. Complaint – expiration; emission of semen; wet dream. Istaevati – melt; disappear. Istornut - tear out; withdraw. Exhaustion – exhaustion; humiliation; condescension. Sober up - sober up. Idol - statue; blockhead; idol. Earnest, earnest - accurate; authentic; true. Torture – pull out; receive; interrogate. Izhishche – place of exit; source; start. The source of water is a stream; flow; river. The starting point of the path is a crossroads; crossroads Fiend is a child; fetus; genus; descendants. Censer - fragrant incense offered to the glory of God; Wed Censer. A censer is a vessel in which incense is placed on burning coals for censing. Exponent – ​​teacher, mentor. Kazati - to instruct; teach. Kaziti – distort; damage. Kamara – tent; tabernacle; upper room; chambers Kandilovzhigatel is a sexton. Kathisma is one of the 20 sections into which the Psalter is divided. Katseya is a censer not on chains, but on a handle. Katsy – what kind; which; which. Kvass – prepared with yeast. Cellar room, cellar room - a room in a monastery for storing things needed by the cellarer. The cellarer is the senior economic position in the monastery. Kidar is the headdress of the Old Testament high priest. Cymbal is a musical instrument. Kinovia is a communal monastery. Kinson - tribute; submit; qualification Kyriopascha is the name of the Easter holiday, which fell on the day of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary on March 25. Klada – deck (instrument of torture). Clever - comrade; fellow. Klepalo is a mallet used in monasteries to call people to prayer. Klepati - to call; knock or hit the rivet. Cage - hut; chambers; pantry; room. The choir is a raised platform in a church on which singers sit. Klobuk is a veil worn by monastics over the kamilavka. Key - suitable; good; happened by the way; useful. Turn up - happen; happen. Bookworm - judge; bailiff Ark – forged box: chest; casket Codrant is a small Roman coin. Goat-crying is unruly shouting at a feast. Intrigues are deceit; cunning. Chariotdriver - driver; pursuer on a chariot. Kolivo is boiled wheat with honey, brought to church for blessing on holidays. Wed. Kutya. Colmi more - even more so; especially. Kolobroditi - walking around; dodge. Kohl - how much; how much; How. Kolkrats - how many times; how often. Combosta is raw cabbage. Kontakion is a short song in honor of a saint or holiday. Konob – cauldron; pot; washbasin A kennel is a small bag worn by superstitious people along with roots or other amulets. A ship is a small ship. Korvan - gift; sacrifice to God. Corvana is a treasury at the Temple of Jerusalem. To feed – to rule; lead. Feeding – board; control. Innkeeper - tavern; tavern Tongue-tied – slow-tongued; stutterer. Inert – slow; indecisive; stubbornly remaining in the same state. Koshnitsa – purse, basket. The Blasphemer is an actress; dancer. Crab - box; box; reliquary; little chest. Edge-line, edge-line - an acrostic, i.e. a poetic work in which the initial letters of each line form a word, phrase or follow the order of the alphabet. Sedition - unrest; CONSPIRACY; riot. Red – beautiful; beautiful; immaculate. Krasovul is a measuring cup in monasteries that holds more than 200 g. Strong - strong; strong. Kreplius - the strongest, the strongest. Cresati – extract; strike a fire; revive Except - outside; from outside; separately; except. Pitch - external; transcendental; remote; deprived. A sprinkler is a brush for sprinkling with blessed water. Ktitor – creator; builder or supplier of a church or monastery; churchwarden. To whom - henceforth; then; more; already; more. Kupa – kippah; pile; heap; heap. Kupel - lake; pond; cage; vessel for performing the Sacrament of Baptism. Kupina (cf. Kupa) - a combination of several homogeneous objects: a bush, a sheaf; thorn bush. Custody - guard; guard; security; Kutya is boiled wheat with honey, brought to church to commemorate departed Christians. Wed. Kolivo. Tabernacle - tent; tent; hut. Kushchnik is a person who makes tents or lives in a hut. Ladiya is a small ship; boat; rook. Incense is a fragrant resin placed in a censer on burning coals for fragrant smoking. Lazaroma - grave clothes; povoy; a shroud in which the Jews wrapped their dead. Lapping – Heb. measure of length. The barker is a scolder; detractor; ambusher. Legion - regiment; crowd; multitude. Lying down - lying down; resting. Lemargy is laryngeal madness, i.e. gourmetism. Lention, lenty – towel. Model-like - decent; according to dignity. Lepota – beauty; grace. Flattering – flattering, false. Flattery is deception; cunning; insidiousness. Summerbush is an annual shoot of a tree that has grown over the course of a year. Lechba – medicine; medicine. False speech is false speech. Liv - noon; south; southwest wind. Lebanon sometimes means the same thing as incense. Rejoicing - crowded singing; dance; dancing. Rejoice - greet through contact with the right cheek. Likostaniya is a vigil for church prayer. Litiya - leaving the church to pray. Liturgisati - to perform the liturgy. Likhva – profit; interest. Covetous - moneylender; money lover. Face - face; view; Human. Masquerade - a masquerade or jester mask. More - more, more than that. Kissing is oral kissing. Lovitva – fishing; hunting; networks; mining; robbery. Hunting is an ambush; trap. Lozhesna – woman’s womb. Womb - sinus; breast; knees. Mooning is the monthly cycle in women. Lysto – shin; caviar; lytka. Flattery is deception; deceit; flattery. Rebellious – prone to rebellion. Lust for power - lust for power. Lovable - one who loves to celebrate. Controversy is the love of competing and arguing. Lust - lust; love of carnal pleasures. Curiosity is reverence; honoring. Honest - worthy of praise and honor. Fierce - fierce; cruel; wicked; painful. Lyadveya - thigh; upper half of leg; crotch. Malakia is the sin of masturbation. Negligence - not caring about something. Mammon - wealth; estate. Mania - a sign with the hand, head, eyes or other kind, containing an order; command; will. Manna is the heavenly bread given to the Israelites in the desert. Manna-receiving – containing manna. Olive - olive; olive tree. Venerable - abundant; fat; deserved. Mother-virgin – simultaneously referring to both mother and virgin. Materolepne - motherly. Mother of Gradov is the capital; capital city Hazy - surrounded or covered with haze. Slow-tongue - tongue-tied; stutterer. Mednitsa is a copper coin. Medovina – boiled honey with hops. Honey-flowing – emanating, pouring out honey. Honey-tongued - sweet-tongued. Interramie - the space between the shoulders. Abomination is filth; vileness; iniquity; wickedness; sometimes an idol. Mesk - half donkey; mule; hinny. Messiah - Heb. anointed Throwing - bowing from the waist. Fur is a leather bag for storing and transporting liquids. Mzhati - squinting your eyes; squint; bad to see. A bribe-giver is someone who pays for work and gives a reward. Bribery - bribery. The sweetness of action is to fall low to the ground; ask to have pity on yourself. Milk - sheepskin; a rough woolen coat made from sheep's wool. Darling - pathetic; regrettable. Passing by - to go, to pass by without stopping. Peaceful is the name of the great litany. Miro is an fragrant liquid or ointment. More peace-giving - giving peace. Myrrh-streamer – exuding miraculous myrrh. World-manifested – revealed, open to the world. Myrsina is the name of a beautiful tree. To be young, to act young - to take on the image of a baby; take on flesh. Foolishness is the immaturity of the mind. Mnas - mine, ancient Greek. silver coin. Think, think - think; assume; seem. Many times, many times - often; many times. Too much wordlessness is ignorance. Abundant - abundant in everything. Many-painful - having endured many labors, feats, troubles, suffering. Versatile - subject to strong temptations and attacks. Mnogobzenny – very plentiful. Multi-class - spicate. Much-turbulent - full of vanity. Versatile - very famous. Diverse - in many forms; various. Multi-cultivated - cultivated many times. Many-eyed - having many eyes. Multiple births - fruitfulness; many children. Many-charming - full of charms and temptations. Many-lighted - joyful; solemn. Tearful - filled with sadness and grief. Plenty of food - abundant in a variety of food. Multi-aggravated - aggravated; multiplied; reinforced. Busy - completely empty, useless. Exuberant – very lenient. Multi-healing – providing many healings. Many-wonderful - exuding many miracles; famous for his miracles. Multilingual – consisting of many tribes. Rumor - talk; murmur; hearing; care; excitement. Molviti – to take care; fuss; worry; grumble. Lightning-resembling lightning. The relics are the incorruptible body of the saint of God. Muzhatitsa is a married woman. Manly-skilled - not having known her husband; not involved in marriage. Murin – Ethiopian; arap; black person; black; spirit of darkness; demon Musiysky, Musikysky - musical. Money-grubbing is greed. Mytnitsa – customs; house or yard for collecting tolls. Myto – duty; collection; tax. Muscle – arm; shoulder; strength. Meat Empty is the last day of eating meat food. Meat-eating, meat-eater - the time when the Charter allows the eating of meat. Nabdevati – to supply; to endow; keep. To inflict – to teach; instigate. Libel - slander; slander; intrigues. Navclear is the owner of the ship. Get used to it - get used to it; get used to. Get ready - walk around without clothes. Nagstvovat - see Nagotovati. To happen - to suddenly comprehend, to happen. Nazdati - build on; strengthen; approve. Nazirati – to take note; observe. To appoint - to appoint; designate; to overshadow with a cross. Most especially - especially; predominantly. Influx - descent; invasion; descent. Punishment - sometimes: teaching. On mala – (in, for) a small time; cheap. Namaschati – to smear; rub. On high temperatures - for a long time; expensive. Naopak - on the contrary; contrary to. Attacked - one who is in misfortune. Confidant - friend, confidant. Nard is a spiked aromatic plant. Named – predetermined; provided; appointed. Narok – a specific or appointed time. Deliberate – special; glorious. Scold - laugh; neglect; disgrace. Death row - condemned to death Urgent - real; current; significant; necessary. In the capital - at such a time; for that price, for that much. The beginning of the evil one is the culprit of evil. Firstfruits - beginning; first fruit Draw - depict. Nayasne - out; open. Unblemished - safe; infallible. Unglamorous - incorruptible. Careless - to be careless; neglect. Neveglas - ignoramus; simpleton; unlearned. The bride-to-be is the one who provides dowries to poor brides. Bride decorate – decorate like a bride. Non-evening - undarkened; light. Innocent – ​​causeless; original. Unrestricted - unhindered. Dismissively - humbly. Negli - really; May be; maybe. Week is the church name for Sunday. Deep-chested - having a wide chest. Subsoil - inside; womb; breast; interior; bay. Unenvious – unspoiled; unscathed; pleased; abundant. Unexpendable – cannot be spent or used to the end. Unstoppable - unstoppable. Inflexible - not subject to decay or time. Ineffable - inexpressible. Non-artificial - one who has not experienced marriage. Inexperienced - not having known her husband. Untested - hidden; secret. Furiously - with bitterness; with rage. Furious - losing one's temper; not in proper condition (cf. Isty). Unsearchable - incomprehensible. Unswitchable – useless; waste. No one - no more; not yet; no longer. Unflattering – not deceptive; unsly. Indisposition is a disease; infirmity; impotence. Immeasurable - immense. Don’t hurt yourself – act boldly. Without hesitation - boldly; boldly. Non-flammable - fireproof. Uncertain - unlimited. Unplowed - unplowed; uncultivated; intact. Unmarked - unalienated. Infertility, infertility - a barren woman. Inappropriate - obscene. Blameless is the title of the 17th kathisma of Psalm 119. Immaculate - immaculate; saint; clean. To be untruthful is to act wickedly. Unchangeable – indispensable; immutable. Immutable - unchangeable; no change. Indispensable – unchangeable. Irresistible – irresistible; invincible. Non-talking is an opinion; forgery; artifice. Nepshchevati - to think; invent; count. Unbroken - indestructible. Undecided - indestructible; untied. Non-sedal - see Akathist. Nesmesne - without mixing. Ageless - eternal; unaltered. Impermanence – impermanence; embarrassment. Undoubted - undoubted; reliable; candid. Non-existent – ​​having no existence. Incorruptibility - indestructibility; eternity; indestructibility. Unfrequented - unworn; impassable. Not cramped - comfortable. Inconvenient - inconvenient; incomprehensible; incomprehensible. Inconvenient - inconvenient; difficult. Unwashed - incorruptible (cf. Myto). Failure is a surprise; carelessness. Below - especially not...; not even...; and not... Not really - isn't it? really? or not? Prostrate - down; face to the ground. Poor - beggarly; humiliated; poor. Newly created - newly built. Newly enlightened - recently baptized. New planting – buds; offspring Noemvriy - see Novemvriy. Night corvid - eagle owl; owl. Nudity - to be forced; to be forced; be achieved with effort. Needy - one who uses effort. Nyrische – ruins; ruin; non-residential place. Enchantment is divination; whispering; sorcery; witchcraft. Charmer - charmer; sorcerer; fortune teller. Obavati – to charm; to charm; to bewitch; to conjure; speak. Obada – slander; slander. Slandered - slandered. Obanaty – twelve. Obapol(s) – on both sides; on both sides. Both - however; however; But. Dress up - spend the night; spend the night. Observe – look; look around Containment – ​​containment; control; embarrassment; sadness; confluence Abdominal - a person who is fluent in both his right and left hands. Blame - to remain without punishment; not knowing one's guilt. To debilitate - to deprive of strength, strength. Infertility - deprive of fruit, success. Immortify - make incorruptible. Obesity - hang on something. Vow, promise - promise. Probetshati - to fall into disrepair; grow old; become unfit; weaken; lament. Promisor - accomplice; comrade. Greed - to inform; slander. Obzorishte is a high tower for observing the area. The inhabitant is a grape gatherer. To hesitate - to hesitate; doubt; to be timid; speak indirectly, by hints. An accusation is a retreat. Oblagati – to please; speak kindly. Blagodatiti - to send down grace. Smell - fill with fragrance. Seduce - lead on the wrong trail; mislead. To be deceived is to fall into error. Region - power; strength; domination. clothe - clothe; to dress; lie around; surround; make a halt; stay; stay. Leaning - insight; bright light. To illuminate - to illuminate; illuminate. Reveal - show someone's true face; show off; find. Socialize - spend the night; spend the night. Adore - idolize; honor as God; to make partakers of Divine grace. Obon floor - on the other side; for. Both - on both sides; on both sides. Delighted - welcomed. Educate – depict; acquire an image. Turn - turn; turn over; move; rotate. Finding is a find; opening. A betrothed is a groom who is engaged to the bride, but has not yet entered into marriage with her. Salting is against the sun. The situation is a siege; trouble; attack. Obyati - to go mad; to deteriorate; weaken. Fucking - to go crazy; become stupid. Ovoudu - on the other hand; from there. Announce - to announce publicly; teach; enlighten. Fiery - carried in whirlwinds of fire. Fiery – flaming; burning; scorching. Get rid of yourself - move away; beware. Ogusteti - thicken; make thick; curdle (about milk). Odebeleti - to get fat; harden. Right hand - right; on the right hand. Decimalize - allocate a tenth part. Hodegetria - Guidebook. Wait - sprinkle; irrigate; send in the form of rain; in large quantities. Harden - become hard; dry up. Bitterness is misfortune; anger. To embitter – to cause misfortune; anger; inflame with anger. Okaiwachi - to recognize as an outcast. Okolyati – to dirty; defile; get dirty. To petrify - to make into stone. Damned - worthy of damnation; unholy; sinner. Damnation is crime; God-fighting; sin. Chained - surrounded by shackles. Feeder - helmsman; ruler. To nourish - to guide; to lead; edit Okoyavlenne - obviously; frankly. To become crusty - to become covered with scabs. Flighted - protected by wings. Tin is any intoxicating drink other than grape wine. Altar – altar, altar. Olyadeneti - overgrown with thorns and weeds. Omets – floors; edges of clothes. Onamo, onudu – there; there. Onde - in another place; there. He is the floor - the opposite bank. Dangerous - cautious; thoroughly; carefully; dangerous. Oplazivny – curious; idle talk; spy Scamming is a trick; idle talk. Stronghold - fence; fence; tyn. Take up arms - prepare for battle. Justification is a commandment; charter; law. Unleavened bread is unleavened bread baked without the use of yeast. Organ – organ, musical instrument. Hosanna is a Jewish prayer exclamation - “salvation (from God).” Oselsky - donkey. Donkey millstone - the upper large millstone in the mill, driven by a donkey. Grin - grin; smile. Offend - to be sad; miss you. Weak - relief; benefit Osmoktati – to suck; lick. Leave – leave; forgive; allow. Ostenity - to enclose with a wall, to protect. To afflict - to infect with leprosy. Implement – ​​implement; give being. Otverzati - to open; open Give - sometimes: forgive. Milked - a breastfeeding baby. To milk - to breastfeed. Tolerate – to become hard (tart); become wooden; harden; go numb. Go on the journey of the whole earth - to die. Revelation - discovery; enlightenment; education. Deposition – rejection; retreat. Discard - renounce; not to recognize; to be rejected; fall away. Marked - rejected; prohibited. Ottelizhe – since; since then. Not at all - absolutely; not at all. From nowhere, from nowhere - from where; Why. From both sides - on both sides. Otonudu – on the other hand. From half - from half; from the middle. Garbage(s) – rubbish; chaff; peel. Cut off - cleanse; pluck Untie - untie; rid. To detach is to separate. Otreyati – throw away; reject. Deny - reject; sweep away. Rebirth - rebirth. The youth is a slave; minister; boy under twelve years old; student; warrior. Otrokovitsa is a girl under twelve years of age. To burp a word - to pronounce it. Ottorgati - to open; push away Otschetevati – to take away; delete. Otschetiti – to lose; destroy. Shayavatisya - to withdraw, to withdraw. Oshyuyu – on the left; on the left hand. Vespers, Vespers - small vespers. Pavoloka – bedspread; case; veil; cover. Destruction - death; pestilence. Pasture - meadow; cornfield; pasture; field; feed for livestock. Paznokti (plural) – hooves; claws; nails. Paki - again; more; again. Rebirth is spiritual renewal. Dirty acts - hitting with hands; hit on the cheek; insult; harm. A dirty trickster is a causer of evil, harm; disease; pain; sting Nasty - nasty; uncleanness; abomination. The chamber is a palace. Those in the chamber are the essence - the government. The Palestra is a place for competition. The scorch is a strong fire. Scorching - burning. Mace - cane; club; stick. Palichnik - lictor; bodyguard; police bailiff Memory malice is vindictiveness. Panfir - panther or lion. Paraecclesiarch – kandilov-burner; sexton. Paraklis - fervent prayer. Parimia is a parable; readings from the Holy Scriptures at Vespers or Royal Hours. Parity - to fly; hang in the air (like steam). Parousia - a solemn procession; the second glorious coming of our Lord Jesus Christ; solemn bishop's service. Flock - grazing; administered by a shepherd. Shepherd - having a shepherd. To graze is to sin (especially against the seventh commandment). The shepherd-chief is the leader over the shepherds. More than nature - supernatural. Pevk, pevg – coniferous tree. The teacher is the childbearing member. Inferno – flammable sulfur, resin; unceasing fire. Penticostarium - the name "Triodion colored". Pentecostia - Pentecost. First - before; first; at the beginning; in advance. The First Supreme One is the first of the supreme ones. First recline - reclining, sitting in the first, places of honor in assemblies. The first fruit is the firstborn animal or the firstborn fruit. The primate is the leading clergyman. Feathered – having feathers. Percy (plural) – chest; front part of the body. Place a finger on your mouth and shut up. Perstny – earthy; made from earth. Finger-created - created from finger. Finger - dust; Earth; dust. Song-singing - to glorify in songs. Pesnosloviti - see Pesnopeti. Pestovati - to nurse; bring up. Variegated – multi-colored; elegant. Pestun – educator; teacher; uncle. Loop crowing - rooster crowing; early morning; time from 12 to 3 am, according to the popular reckoning of time among the Jews. Sadness (sya) - complain, grieve; sadden. To seal - to seal; approve; hide. Walk - walk. Peschishya - take care; have care. Beer - something you can drink. A scribe is a pointed cane for writing on a waxed tablet. Ordained Scripture - an ordained letter given by the bishop to a newly ordained presbyter or deacon. Piscati - play the pipe. Letter - letter; graphic sign; literal meaning. Pistikia – pure; unalloyed. Nourishing – near-lying; raised in bliss. Fed - fattened; plump. Nutritious – containing abundant food; nutritious. Floating – mature; ripe, straw color. Shroud - burial shrouds; cover; canvas; cloak. Tares are weeds; bad grass. Plezhiti - crawl on the belly; grovel. Spitter is a reptile. Captive - braid; chain; necklace; basket; chain; fetter; bonds. Splash - clap your hands; applaud. Plesnitsa – shoes like sandals. Splasher - clapper. Board making - burning bricks. To be fruitful - to bear fruit. The fruit of the mouth is the word; voice. The fruit of the womb is a child; children. Carnal love is caring for the body. Carnally - flesh; bodily. Carnal - carnal; sensual; bodily. Flesh is the body; Human; human infirmity or weakness; passion. Dancer, dancer - dancer; actress. Victoriously - solemnly; victorious. Get sick - grieve; regret. Painted - painted; whitewashed Throw down - throw; knock over. Poviti - to take birth or wrap one in swaddling clothes. Mock – reason; reflect; reflect; think. Move - tremble; move. Motivate – to encourage; encourage. Asceticize - perform feats; work. Podnikati – bend over; bend over. To resemble - to resemble something. Similar - similar in appearance. Undercut - a vessel for collecting squeezed juice. Under the yoke - located under a yoke (for example, a donkey). Subjugular - belonging to the subjugular. Because - because; because; because; how much. Because more - no matter how much. Devour - sacrifice. Disgrace, shame - a crowded spectacle. Pomavati, pomanuti - make signs; express yourself without words. Little by little - soon; a little later. Mats are tablets on the robes of bishops. Pometati – revenge; sweep; throw. Pone - although; at least; because. More – because; because. Diarrhea, reproach - shame; ignominy. Pontus - sea; big lake. Understanding, understanding - a towel. Show off your shine - put on other clothes on top. To creep - to slip; to be seduced; be tempted. A mile is a measure of length equal to a thousand steps or a daily march. To burst out - to rush; pursuit; move. Reproach - accusation; complaint; reproach; reproach. Reschi - to accuse; reproach; condemn. Scolding is dishonor; vilification; inflammation; ulcer. Soon - soon; fluently; without singing (about the service). Afterwards - then; in the end. The last one is the rest; finite; final. Follow-up is the presentation of prayers of only one kind, that is, either changeable or unchangeable. Follow – explore; follow. To obey is to bear witness; give evidence. Salting - sunny style; like the sun; from east to west. Hurry up - help; help. Acolyte - accomplice; assistant. Ordination - ordination. tonsure - tonsure into monasticism. Bowing - bowing the head in sadness; sadness; sadness; lamentation. Encroach - to marry. A panderer is a saint; flatterer; sorcerer; witch. Potvory - sorcery; witchcraft. Stumble - stumble. Requirement - need; necessity; happening. Consumer - damn; cake. Struggling - to hurry; try. An instigator is an instigator. Encourage - encourage; encourage; instruct; teach. To lust – to have lust, lust. Scooped up - tub; wallet; bucket. Right – straight; true; correct; righteous. Idle talk is empty; nonsense talk. Idle, idle - limitless; lazy; empty; unoccupied. Prati - to trample; press. To be exalted - to be exalted; become proud. Previtati - to wander. Exalted eye - arrogance; pride. Transform - change; turn; destroy. Pre-temporal – pre-eternal, existing before the beginning of time. Anticipate - to foretell with joy. Preannounce – start singing; foretell. Predgradie – suburb; stronghold; protection; fence. The forecourt is the front, outer courtyard in an eastern house. To pre-sacrifice is to taste death before others, to sacrifice oneself. Forerunners - run ahead. Offering – altar; that place in the altar where the altar stands and the sacred vessels are kept. The opening psalm is the name of Psalm 103, since it begins Vespers. Anterior - first; powerful; elegant; senior. Pre-spun - see Bagryanitsa, Porphyra. Representation - petition; intercession; earnest prayer. The fore-pillar is a fortification. The primate is the rector. Forerunner, forerunner - walking or running ahead. Provide - to prescribe. Anticipate – meet in advance. Foreshadow - to foresee; know in advance. Presented - prefiguring. Disdainful - proud; haughty. To be abundant is to be content; live in abundance. Preizlikha - strongly; Very; cruel. Advantage - advantage; superiority. Decorated - decorated. The underworld is the lowest. Transcendence - superiority. Defy limits - spoil boundaries; violate boundaries. Adultery is adultery. Wisdom is the highest knowledge; wisdom. Pre-initial - pre-initial; exceeding every beginning. To be upset - to resist; to be rebellious; be stubborn. Overcoated - richly decorated. Over-armed – over-armed; proud. Prepirati – to refute; reflect; beat off; overcome; exhort. Pre-sexuality – half; middle. Half - half; divide in half; go halfway. Gird yourself - gird yourself; prepare for something. Pretentious - controversial; convincing. Simple - unlearned; ignoramus. To argue - to contradict; speak contrary to; contradict. Intersecting – intersecting; cutting. Disobedience is disobedience. To creep is to crawl on the ground. To prosper - to have success. Prestabili - rearrange; move; move into eternity. Thrones are one of the ranks of angels. Transubstantial – pre-eternal; original Pre-existent - supernatural. Pretisya - to argue; compete. Pretiti – prohibit; mourn; be embarrassed. Stumbling is a hindrance; temptation; delay; stop. Praetor - Praetorium, the residence of the representative of Roman power in Jerusalem. Stumbling - see Stumbling. Stop - threaten; frighten. Repression is a threat; fear; prohibition Refuge – refuge; shelter; cover; salvation. Greet - greet. Attract - drag; call; summon. Temporary – temporary; fickle. attach - attach; approach; bring. The chapel is a small church attached to the main church. Attach - to add; increase; bring. Prideyati - to offer; bring. Look at - look graciously; accept; shelter. Spend - spend; spend. Sincerely - exactly the same; equals; exactly the same. Cover - cover; pretext; a made-up reason for hiding something. Purchase - merchants; trade. Prilog – application; desire to do evil; anger; slander. Application – patch; flap. Primetati – to tidy up; give; give in. To scurry around - to crouch; give up; lie at the threshold. Mix in - join in. Bend down - bend down; bend over; crouch; penetrate. Acquiring – benefit; fetus; self-interest. To attack - to attack; hit. Burying is an aspiration. Approaching - running up. To consecrate - to wither; dry up. Squatting is oppression; environment. Squat - to be near something; to plot evil; attack. Ever - incessantly; Always. Ever-animal - always living. Ever-present - eternal; everlasting. Ever-present - always existing. Ever-flowing – inexhaustible. Prisny - native; close. Attachment - patch; appointment; control; supervision Haven - shelter; shelter; pier. Come - come running; run up. A parable is an allegory; mystery. To take communion is to become a participant. Alien – newcomer; alien. Shelter is a receptacle; premises; storage. Probaviti – continue; stretch out. Vegetation - growth; sprout Vegetate - bloom; grow up; grow. To arise - to occur; grow up. Spill your feet - slip; allegorically - to sin. Pronaresh - to predict; intend Penetrate - grow; flourish. Penetration - tribe; genus; stem; sprout Preach - teach; declare; preach. Prophesied – predicted; foreshadowed. Prophetic - spoken by a prophet. To prophesy – to dedicate; ordain. To sag - to be torn. Enlightening – light; enlightening. Enlighten your face - look cheerfully or graciously. Proskomisati - to perform proskomedia. Listening is a parable; proverb; mockery. Simple – standing straight; direct; clean; unmixed. To sag - to be torn; fall apart; crack. To be torn apart - to break through. Counter-look - look straight. Against, directly - against; against. Provedeti – find out in advance; foresee. Pruglo - snare; loop; net. Prudny – uneven; rocky. To spring – to resist (hence – spring); have a fit. Straight - dispute; litigation; mess. Direct – located opposite. Let go - let go; get a divorce. A desert is a secluded, sparsely inhabited place. Desert is a monastery located far from populated areas. Path-creating - saving on the way; pave the way. Fetters are bonds; shackles; chains; fetter. The abyss is a whirlpool; sea. Puchinorodny - sea; born at sea. Pushchenitsa is a woman divorced from her husband. Bird sorcery is a superstition that consists of telling fortunes by the flight of birds or by their entrails. A span, a span, is a measure of length equal to three hands, and each hand is equal to four fingers, and a finger is equal to four sides or grains. Working - submissive; enslaved. Rabbi, rabbi - teacher. Equal to the Angels - like the Angels. Equal to the Apostles - compared to the apostles. Indifferent, indifferent - unanimous; having equal zeal. Equal - worthy of equal honor. Rejoice - rejoice; enjoy. Radoshchi – joy (plural); fun. Rejoice - hello; Goodbye. Razing - burning; ignition. Razboteti - to get fat; swell. Debauchery - excitement; disturbance. Extension – extension; book opening. Lizhezati – to kindle; heat up; melt. Reflect - doubt; think; stay. Allow – untie; release. A weakened person is a paralytic. Reason - mind; cognition; understanding. Understand with your body - feel. Cancer - Heb. fool; empty man. Cancer - tomb; ark with the relics of the holy saint of God. Flatten out - unfold. Spread out - spread out; unfold. Raspuditi - to scare away; disperse; dispel. Scatter – scatter; scatter; squander; live dissolutely. Sawed - sawed through. Arrange - arrange in order. Ratovati - to fight; fight; defend. Caregiver - trustee; amateur Thrifty – caring; worthy of care. Zeal, jealousy - rage; passionate desire; passion. The ribs of the north are the northern slope of Mount Zion. Burdock - burdock; thorny plant. Resnota is reality; true. Decide - say; speak. Reyati – to repel; discard. Riza - clothing; sacred vestment. Sacristy - a room for storing vestments. Sacristan - the head of the sacristy; keeper of church utensils. Ristalishche – stadium; circus. Ristati - to prowl; run. Horn - rock; allegorically: strength; power; protection. Genus – origin; tribe; generation. Rodostama is rose water, which, according to custom, on the Feast of the Exaltation, is used to wash the Honorable and Life-Giving Cross of the Lord during its erection. Born - horny; resembling a horn. A rod is a young branch; escape; offspring. Dew-bearing – dew-bearing; giving dew. Rotitel is an oathbreaker. Rotitisya - to swear; swear. Handwriting - list; letter; written contract; scroll; receipt; obligation. Handle - handful; armful. Rtsem - let's say (behavioral inclination). Ryasno - necklace; pendants. Samvik is a musical instrument. Self-vocal stichera - having its own special chant. Self-hunting - at one's own request. Self-similar is a stichera that has its own special chant. Arbitrariness is disorder; mess. Sbodati – pierce; stab. Lamplight - the beginning of Vespers. Light gilded - superbly decorated. Lightness is luminous beauty. Luminous – illuminating with light. The luminary is the creator of the luminaries. Light-bearer – the bearer of light. Candlelight - to participate in a feast with someone. A meeting is an instruction; order. Ferociousness is the unbridledness of the tongue. Scroll - a package; manuscript wound on a stick. Tying gold - spinning gold threads. Connection is a prisoner; slave. Sanctuary - altar; church. The saint is a bishop; bishop. Sacrilege is the theft of sacred things. Saints - month book (a book containing the names of saints, arranged according to the days of the year); icon of "All Saints". Sacramentalist - initiated into the Divine secrets. Week – seven days, which in modern language are usually called “week”. Weekly - relating to any of the days of the week, except for the Week (Sunday); everyday. Secrats - recently; just now. Sekraty – fresh; new. Semidal – fine wheat flour; grit. Seed - seed; descendants; genus. Scenography is an unclear image. Canopy – shadow; cover over the throne. Sickle Seer is the name of the holy prophet Zechariah. Seryad – monastic handicraft; yarn. Sigklit (read “synclit”) - assembly, senate. Sicarius is a murderer; robber. Sicker is an intoxicating drink not made from grapes. Forces - the name of one of the ranks of angels; sometimes it means: miracles. Synaxarium is an abbreviated summary of the lives of saints or feasts. The Sanhedrin is the supreme court of justice for the Jews. Sinfrog - co-altar, i.e. benches on both sides of the high place for sitting priests serving the bishop. That is to say; exactly. Sirini - (in Is.13:21) - ostriches; sirens. Siry - lonely; lonely; helpless; poor. Sitse - yes; Thus. Calico - like this; such. Defilement - uncleanness; dirt; vice. Skimen – young lion; lion cub. A tent maker is a tent maker. A monastery is a small monastery. Smile - smile, grin. Skovnik – accomplice; accomplice. Rolling - tickling; incitement. Skorotecha - fast walker; messenger. Tablet - board; table. Skudel – clay; that which is made of clay; jug; tiles. Slavnik is a prayer laid down according to the charter after “Glory”. Doxology is glorification. Sweet - fragrant. Sweet voice - harmonious singing. Sweet singing - quiet, touching singing. Slana – icy conditions; freezing; glacier; frozen frost. Slasticity – salty sea water; salt marsh, i.e. dry land soaked in salt; ice Sweet - seducing with carnal pleasures. Glee - play together; have fun. The word position is agreement; conditions. Settle down - come to an agreement; define. Slota – bad weather; bad weather. Hearing is glory; popular rumor. Sloppy, sluky - bent; crouched; hunchbacked Slyatsati – bend; hump. Bring together - bring together; connect edges, boundaries; close. Mix - move; to copulate carnally. Fig is the fruit of the fig tree. Looking is a trade; care; care. To confuse - to confuse; alarm. Provide – save; save. Snedati - to eat; ruin; crush. Take off - converge; going to. Condescension - condescension. Dreaming - getting married; get along. Involuntarily - involuntarily; forcibly; under duress. Sobesity - hang together. Compliance – exact execution; dungeon. With compliance - in a visible way; obviously. Advice - advice; solution; definition. Advisory - reasonable. Sovlachiti - to expose; take off. Conscience - to build together with oneself. To sigh together is to grieve together. Conversate - talk; compete in an argument. Co-educated – raised together with someone. Spy - scout; spy. Spy - look; observe; scout. Fellow citizens - to build; build. Co-doing is a matter; transformation. Creative - creative. Treasure is a hidden place; back room; storage; treasure; jewel; cellar. Treasure - collect treasures. Destruction is destruction. Contrition of the heart is repentance. Solilo – salt shaker; bowl; dish. Host - assembly; multitude. Sopeti - play the pipe. Sopets is a sopel-musician who plays the nozzle and flute (at Jewish funerals). To resist - to quarrel; compete. Co-arrive - increase. Co-existent – ​​co-existing in eternity. To mate - to unite in marriage. Magpie - wheat, wine, incense, candles, etc., brought to the church for 40 days of remembrance of departed Christians. Sucking - lace; rope. Soskany – twisted; twisted Soskutovat - to swaddle; envelop Shoot - hit with an arrow. A vessel storage room is a room for preserving church utensils. Mortal vessels are instruments of death. Teats are sometimes allegorically called water sources. Sotnitsa - hundred; singing “Lord, have mercy” a hundred times during the erection of the Honorable Cross of the Lord. To combine - to enter into an alliance, into marriage. Sochivo – lentils; boiled wheat with honey. Essay – composition; meeting. The speculator is a bodyguard. Spira - squad; company; regiment. Swim - accompany in swimming. Get sick - grieve together; grieve. To fight is to fight together. To obey - to bear witness; confirm. Spostnik – one who fasts together. To suffer - to suffer together. Singing - singing together or at the same time. Extended - long lasting. Spud – vessel; bucket; dry measure; tire; plate. Sleep - to overthrow; knock over Swearing is foul language. Srachitsa - shirt; shirt. Srebrenik is a silver coin. Silver-plated – gilded on silver. Median - partition; partition; block. Mediastinum - septum; middle wall. Sristatisya - flock together; come running. Sryashch is an unpleasant meeting; attack; infection; pestilence; divination; signs. A protégé is a person being prepared for ordination to the clergy. A stage is a measure of length equal to 100–125 steps. A secret person is someone who is involved in the same secret with someone. Stakti – fragrant juice. Stamna – vessel; bucket; jug. Starey - boss; senior. Stater is a silver or gold coin. Article – chapter; subsection. Stegno – upper half of the leg; hip; thigh. Path - path; track. Wall, canopy - shadow; reflection; image. Erase - erase; destroy. The verse to the beginning is the first exclamation of the priest during a public or private divine service. Stychologisati - sing selected verses from the Psalter during worship. Poshyology - reading or singing the Psalter. Stychologisati - see Stychologisati. Stitsatsya - flock; converge. Stolpostena – tower; fortress. Suffering is martyrdom. Guard - guard; security; measure of time for the night. Strange - unusual. Strange - outsider; stranger; passerby; extraordinary. Country is the opposite; against. Passion is suffering; passion; emotional impulse. Stratilates - military leader; voivode. Insurance is a threat; fear; horror. Goad is a spoke; a stick with a thorn for controlling livestock. Strishchi - to cut; trim Stropotny - crooked; winding; obstinate; stubborn; wicked. Erase - erase; crush. Student - well; spring; source. Jelly - cold; cold; freezing. Coldness - constraint; persecution; annoyance. Cold - to bother; bother; crowd Get cold - grieve; sadden. Tie - tie; collect; heal. Compete - argue; bicker. Suguby – double; doubled; increased; reinforced. Sophisticated - sophistic; idle talk. Vanity is emptiness; insignificance; pettiness; meaninglessness. Vanity - vanity; bustle. Sulitsa – spear; dagger; dirk. Adversary - adversary; enemy. Severe – green; fresh; raw. Skhodnik - spy; scout; spy. Sonification - adoption. Mystery - initiated into someone's secrets. Secret eating is secret intemperance from food during Lent. Talent - ancient Greek. weight measure and coin. Tataur – a strap for hanging the tongue from the bell; leather belt worn by monastics. Tatba - theft; theft. Taffeta is a thin silk fabric. Tache - for this purpose; Also; Then. Creature - creation; Creation; work. Stronghold - fortress; citadel; jail. Firmament is the foundation; the visible horizon, taken by the eye to be a solid sphere, the dome of heaven. Name-name - same name; name day; Angel's day Tekton – carpenter; carpenter The same, the same, that’s why; hence; So. Temnik is a leader over ten thousand people. Darkness - obscurantism; lack of enlightenment. Terevinf - oak forest; thicket; forest; a large branched tree with dense foliage. Thorn - thorn; thorny plant. Thorn-bearing - bearing fruit from thorns; allegorically: not having good deeds. Tart – sour; astringent; severe. A bowstring is a tightly stretched rope. Teschiti - to exude; emit. Timenia is a swamp; swamp; Tina. Tympanum - a girl who plays the tympanum. Tyrone is a young warrior, soldier. Title - inscription; label; sign to abbreviate a word. Quietly - calmly; meekly. Smoldering, aphids - rotting; destruction; destruction. To decay - to corrupt; rot; collapse. Tliti – to damage; destroy. Tma – darkness; darkness; ten thousand. Tobolets – bag; knapsack; bag. Interpretation - interpretation; teaching; special opinion. Interpreter - translator; interpreter. Explanatory - explaining; containing explanations. Longing is torment; torture. Torzhische - square; market. Trader - money changer; dealer. A sharpener is a press for squeezing grape juice. Meal - table; eating; dining room, refectory; holy throne Trebe - required; necessary. Trebishche - altar; pagan temple. Blessed – very blessed. Demand – need; need. Demand – need; have a need. Tregubo – threefold; three times. Trekrovnik – third floor. Tresna is a decoration on clothing. Third - three times; for the third time. Far away - twenty-seven. Trisian - shining from three luminaries. Troparion is a short chant expressing the characteristics of a holiday or event in the life of a saint. Reed – reed (used as a writing instrument). Toil - to work; find it difficult. Fat – fat; salo; wealth; satiation. Tune - in vain; for nothing; wasted. Tuneless - wasted in vain. Diligence - diligence; diligence. Try - try; hurry. Vanity - damage; harm; lesion. Thin - empty; useless; unsatisfied. Gravity - heaviness; encumbrance. Traction is work; case; arable land; field. Hard-hearted - insensitive. Ubo – a; same; Here; Although; Why; truly; authentic. Wake up - wake up; wake up. Bonding - placing a crown on the head. Withered - headband. Uglebnuti - to drown; dive; get bogged down. Ugobziti - enrich, bestow. Hijack - run away; slip away; leave. Get ready - get ready. To bite - to bite with teeth. Pleasure is the tendency to please passions. Fertilize - fill; decorate To be satisfied is to be satisfied. Udolie, udol, yudol - valley. Depress – tire; insult. Already a rope; chain; bonds. Reproach is disgrace; dishonor. Dill – warmth, i.e. hot water poured into the holy chalice during the liturgy. Improve - catch; find; get. Anoint - to smear; rub. Unznuti - stick in; stick. Well-fed – fattened animals. Hope is a sure hope. Abolish – destroy; cancel; disappear. Uranity - get up early in the morning. Lesson - lesson; submit; quitrent Usmar – tanner; furrier. Eliminate – deprive; avoid; eliminate. Ustuditi – cool; cool. Usyriti - make it damp, hard, wet. Utvarne - in order; elegant. Utensils – clothing; decoration; decoration. Statement is the basis; support. Soothe - calm down; to console; moderate. Utrenevati - get up early; perform morning prayer. Womb - womb; stomach; heart; soul. Humming – smelling; smell. The institution is a feast; dinner; treat. Generate - enrich; have mercy; regret. Felony - cloak; outerwear; one of the priest's sacred vestments. Vial - bowl; glass with a wide bottom. Incense is an fragrant resin for burning incense. Halvan is an fragrant resin. Halkolivan - Lebanese copper; amber. Haluga - wattle fence; fence; nook. Harataic - written on pregament or papyrus paper. Charter – parchment or papyrus paper; handwritten list. Heret - school, dungeon. Chiton - underwear; shirt. The sly man is an artist; artisan Cunning - rhetoric. Cunning language - see Cunning word. Cunning is art; craft. A cunning, cunning invention - battering and throwing military vehicles. Predatory fornication - violent attraction to fornication. Chlamys - men's outer dress; cloak; mantle. Abyss - waterfall; abyss; abyss; space; lift door. An intercessor is a mediator, a conciliator. The watchful church is a treasury. Church, church - house; premises; place of worship. Vault - a bandage on the forehead or on the hands with the words of the Law. Thin - skillful; skillful. Thinness - tongue-tiedness; stuttering. Art is science; fad; trick. Thinness - poverty; unworthiness. Blasphemy - slander; complaint. Tsevnitsa – flute; pipe Kiss - greet. Chastity is prudence, chastity and bodily purity. Whole - healthy, unharmed. Tselbonosny – medical; healing. Childbearing is the birth of children. Enchantment is poison; poison; sorcery; charm. The enchanter is a poisoner; sorcerer; witch. Enchantment - magic; witchcraft; charm. Part - part; lot; fate. Chayati – hope; wait. Chwan – vessel; damask; mug; flask. Servants - servants; household. Chervlenitsa - see Bagryanytsya. Blueberry - forest fig. Honest – respected; glorified. The tetrarch is the ruler of the fourth part of the country. Chin - order; a complete statement or indication of all prayers. Chiniti – to compose; do. Gluttony - gluttony; gluttony. Pregnancy is the conception and carrying of a baby in the womb. Chreda – order; queue; turn. Loins – lower back; hips; groin. Miracle-working - to create miracles. Slightly, smell - feel; hear; feel. Whisperer – earphone; slanderer. Rosehip is a rosehip flower. Generosity is mercy; generosity; condescension. Goldfinch – mast; milestone; pole. South – heat; name of the south wind; allegorically: misfortune. This is a deplorable vale - this world. Yuzhik (a) – relative; relative. Yuznik – prisoner; prisoner. Youth - heifer; young bull. Yunitsa – heifer; young cow. Foolish - stupid; accepted the spiritual feat of foolishness. Buttock - fig tree. Yadtsa is a gourmet; gourmet; glutton. Language is the people; tribe; organ of speech. Yako – for; How; because; because; When. Like - so that; How; because. Yarem - yoke; cargo; heaviness; service. 1 Kings 22:19–20; Daniel 7:10; Hebrews 1:14. Zechariah 1:9, 13, 14, 19; 2:3–4; 4:1,4,5; 5:5–10. We literally borrow this fact from the book “Innocent, Metropolitan of Moscow and Kolomna according to his writings, letters and stories of contemporaries” by Ivan Barsukov. pp.33–41. Tov.5:4–17; 6:2–13; 9:1–6, 11:2–14. Words 42. Creativity. St. father in Russian translation Volume. 4. page 33. Letters. 230. Creativity. St. father Vasil. Part I. p. 177. Words 42. Vol. 4. page 50. Daniel 10:5–6. The text is based on the translation by Archimandrite. Macaria. Apologetics, Professor Rozhdestvensky, pp. 7–106. Creation John Zl. vol. II, p. 551. “Pam. Dr. Letters." Vol. IV. Adj. to “Pravs, review,” p. 143. St. Irenaeus “Against Heresies”, book. IV. See “Philokalia” vol. I-V. App. To "Right" Review." Page 92–93 Op. O. Ioanna Kronstadsk. Vol. II Accommodation (from Latin accommodatio – adaptation, adjustment) Sep. 7. During the life of Jesus Christ, demons prayed to Him for permission to enter the herd of pigs, and they entered the pigs; Therefore, there is no surprise if St. John could have tied the demon in the washstand so that he would not come out for a while. The demon entered the washstand to seduce the saint. saint, and St. the saint chose the same weapon to shame him. Auguel, de Press, al lit, I. 2, 6, 18. See Moscow. Church :. Led. No. 12, 1899 Most interpreters see here, however, that we are talking about the last times of the world, and attribute these words of Jesus Christ to the activities of the Antichrist and his servants. Ep. Feofan, talk. on Last to Solun., M. 1833, p. 472, immediately. Arch. Philar., Orthodox. dogma Bogosl., Damn. 1864, part 2, p. 467. If against such a view of the “miracles” of the Antichrist they sometimes point to the deception of even the elect by them (Matthew 24, etc.), then the weakness of such an objection is obvious: 1) the effect of these “miracles” on them will not be unconditional, for it is added - “if possible”; 2) the chosen ones, as people, by their limited nature, can always fall into error and be deceived. See about this from M. Makaria. Right Dogma. Theology, vol. II, St. Petersburg. p. 471 and at Feofan Ave., Tolkov. on Last to Solun., p. 472. See, for example, Fr. Archimandrite Amphilochius: “But in general we call miracles events or actions that are inaccessible to our understanding, exceeding our real powers” ​​(and then from this point of view the possibility of the devil performing miracles is allowed). (“M. Ts. V.” No. 12). They will say: - for temptation, which in itself is not evil and is even necessary for a person’s moral success. We answer: 1) it would still turn out that the devil, in his strivings for evil, would receive some, so to speak, assistance from God; 2) is it really possible that in the nature of the evil spirit, which is higher than that of man, there is still not enough strength to tempt a weak person who is prone to sin? Let us remember that God does not allow a person to be tempted more than he can bear... Oratio de incarnatione Verbi, vol. I. pag. 130. Adj. to rights, review. 66 pp. 90–92. Word on death, ep. Ignatius pp. 215–216. Prot. Ioann Sergiev (Kronsht.) vol. II. Just Dialog eum supplem. Tertul, de copona militis, p. II, et Apolog, c. 23, Cyp. ad Demetrian., etc. Minutius, in Octavio, etc. A common technique of demons is to impersonate the soul of a deceased person. This is done on a large scale by evil spirits at spiritualistic séances in order to seduce people through this. Prot. D-ko. The same issue of the local Times contains supporting evidence from a doctor and another witness who certify that they witnessed all the above facts and tried to find some reason for them, but without success. We borrow this story from “The Life of His Eminence Hilarion, Metropolitan of Suzdal, former first builder of the Florishcheva Hermitage.” This monument, from the beginning of the 18th century, was published in its entirety in the “Orthodox Interlocutor”, published at the Kazan Theological Academy. The following extract is found in the March book of this edition of 1868, on pages 69–77. This same case, briefly, was described by I.M. Snegirev in the book: “Moscow. A detailed historical and archaeological description of the city, on pp. 149–150 of Volume I of this edition (1865) in explanation of the Moscow proverb “near the devil on Kulichki”; “on Kulichki, in the White City,” writes Snegirev, “there are several churches in Moscow; one of them, in honor of St. unmercenaries Kura and John, was memorable, by the way, for the almshouse built under it by the first Patriarch of Moscow Job and the spiritual feat of Blessed Hilarion, the builder of the Florishcheva hermitage, later the Metropolitan of Suzdal and Yuryevsky. We place this article here for the purpose of protecting some of our fellow pastors from the dangerous mistake of mistaking the phenomena of hysteria for the phenomena of demonic possession. We know that some pastors, when they see phenomena of hysteria, extremely mysterious and terrible, allow themselves to read prayers of incantation against evil demons over such patients. This can only demean the pastoral ministry at the sickbed. But, of course, we do not deny actual cases of possession, as we said above. Prot. G. D-ko. “Thu.-Min.”, March 23. The detailed teaching about ordeals is set out in our book “From the Realm of the Mysterious,” Part III, Ch. IV, where we ask those who wish to become more familiar with this issue to contact us. Most of the stories posted here about the phenomena occurring in the so-called “restless houses”, judging, firstly, by their nature, aimed at disturbing and causing harm to the inhabitants, and secondly, by the fact that from the church incantatory prayers laid down by the Holy Church for such cases, such phenomena, in the majority, stopped - we attribute them to the action of dark forces, although other authors, for example, Aksakov and others, consider them to be phenomena mediumistic, that is, originating from the influence of souls or living people, or those already dead; Others of these strange phenomena are attributed to the overdeveloped electrical ability of one of the inhabitants of the restless home. To be impartial, we include in the appendix several hypotheses about the cause and origin of such phenomena. A remarkable common feature of phenomena of this kind. Of course, it is unreasonable to believe a demon when he tries to impersonate the soul of a deceased person. This story was reported by M. M. Petrovo-Solovovo, who had long been acquainted with Archpriest K., who always answered in the affirmative to his repeated questions whether he himself saw the movement of objects and the movement of a stick in the air. Then, a year later, when these phenomena were repeated, Captain Zhandak, reporting on the incident, mentioned that phenomena similar to these were discovered in his apartment earlier, back in January 1852, but since this was stated in passing, this statement was not the subject of research in 1853. (See “Case” Doc. No. 4). “Passion” is an evening service on Thursday of Holy Week of Great Lent with the lighting of candles, which, according to legend, are preserved to protect against all unclean things. During the second period of “apparitions,” in the evening, when precautionary measures were being taken in the presence of the bailiff, Korabel’s orderly was injured. He and Afimya washed the dishes and knives, putting it all on the table, where a large pointed grain leather was placed along with forks and skins. When they, bending over the tub, finished washing, Korablev felt a sharp pain in the back of his head and a slight blow to his back. She screams, they both straighten up... Afimya sees that there is blood on Korablev’s neck and begins to scream. They escaped from the master's half; Korablev turned out to have a slight cancer on his neck, near his right ear. There was no one in the kitchen except Korablev and Afimya... In the house they were bruised: some in the arm, some in the thigh, and some in the shoulder blade; only Konstantin Zhandak and Afimya, by a lucky coincidence, were forgotten and not touched at all. Already at the beginning of the article on restless houses, in a note we expressed our personal opinion that many phenomena in restless houses, especially those accompanied by harm to the inhabitants of such a house, are best explained by the assumption of the influence of evil spirits. Prot. G. D-ko. This opinion should be considered only one of the hypotheses for explaining the phenomena in restless houses, but no more. Prot. G. D-ko. Following the hypothesis mentioned at the beginning of the article, we can, for example, assume that the intensity of phenomena depends on the greater or lesser intensity of the emotions of the inducers, depending on the individuality of each of them. As we have just noted, the predominance of auditory sensations over visual sensations is observed in all cases of purely subjective (non-telepathic) hallucinations, both physiological and pathological. But as we will now see, it would be rash to draw the conclusion from this that auditory sensations in restless houses in most cases are caused only by tense anticipation. It goes without saying that explanations of this kind are not applicable to cases of this kind, when the inhabitants of the house fled or followed the steps in order to investigate the matter. This is case No. 132 in the Journal of the S.P.R. 1886, pp. 385-402, mentioned already at the beginning of this article. Hence, perhaps, the belief arose that phenomena of this kind supposedly occur only in old houses. This is decidedly unfair. The individualization of phenomena in troubled houses sometimes takes on a very strange character. In case No. 163, a ghost in the form of a head and shoulders (without a torso) appeared in the house. On one occasion he was seen by two witnesses at the same time (Journal, Dec. 1885). In another case, on the contrary, a torso without a head appeared (Proecel. VIII, 101–106). “Mirvillë – Des Esprits” I. 369 – 374. A similar incident was related by Colonel Ignatiev from Vasilyevsky Island. When a log of firewood flew into his back from the opposite side of the kitchen, he did not feel the pain of the blow, which touched him only lightly. "Sphinx" VII. 233 – 240. Gorres: – “Die Christlich Mystik” III. 361–363. Psychische Studien VIII. 103. Wallas: – “Die Wissenschaftliche Ansicht des Uebernaturlichen” 37. Baxter: – “Gewissheit Gecter” 41. Same: – “Geschichten aus der Geisterweif” 21. 141. Carre de Moutergon: – “La verite des miracles” III. 754. Glanvill: – “Saddueismus Triumphatus” II. 3. Houber: – “Bibcliotheca magica” III. 543 – 551. Remigius: – “Daemonolatria” I. 193. Joller: – “Darstellung selbsterlebter mysticher Erscheinungen.” Psychische Studien. VIII. 103. Remigius: – “Daemonolatria” II. 255 – 268. Francois Perraud: – “ÍAntidemon de Mascon” 45. Perty: – “Die mvstischen Erscheinungen”, II, 115 (“Psych. Ctudien”, VIII, 5). Why not more directly admit the influence of evil forces disturbing living people? "Psychische Studien", VIII, 103. Perty: – “Die mystischen Ersheinungen”, II, 101. Daumer: – “Das Geisterreich”, II, 274. Perty: – “Die Mystischen Ersheinungen”. II, 113. Ibid., II, 114. (“Psychische Studien”), V, 5). Die Gartenlaube, Jahr. 1871, S, 397 Glanvill: - "Sadducisraus Trumphatus", II, 95. Zolner: – “Wissenschaftliche Abhandlungen”, II, 726–729. The Pastor of the Church, we repeat, must be extremely careful in dealing with the so-called demon-possessed, not counting among them either hysterical or somnambulistic cliques, who are cured by hypnotic suggestion and anti-nervous drugs, or clique-pretenders who have chosen cliquery as a means of getting out of the influence of family despotism, and are calmed down by purely pastoral edifications. “Reprimanding” nervous patients for their intoxication means instilling in them the disastrous idea that they are susceptible to a terrible illness, which in fact they do not have. Possession in its proper sense is an extremely rare phenomenon, permitted from above only for particularly important religious purposes; therefore, any mysterious illness of this kind must first be strictly examined by both theologians and competent doctors. See the recently published work by N.V. Kraivsky: “Damage, cliques and the possessed,” Moscow 1900, in which there is a lot of very valuable material for a pastor, although the author’s hypothesis about the non-existence of demons is an anti-biblical idea, unproven, and represents simply the rationalistic passion of the author, who obviously does not give himself the trouble to think about the origin of moral evil in the world and did not take into account the phenomena occurring at spiritualistic seances, where the presence of demons cannot be denied in any case. See "Light" 1890, No. 88. We are placing this article here so that everyone can see what a terrible evil both the pastors of the Church and all true sons of the Church need to fight at the present time. Without knowing evil, it is difficult to fight it; by opening the gate, it is easier to defeat him. Katsch: Ueber die Vorgeschichte der Treiraaurerei – Keller. Die Reformation und die alten Reformparteien. On spiritualism, see our book entitled “From the Realm of the Mysterious,” in chap. 21. See L. Figier; "The history of the miraculous in modern times." Per. II. Goguntsova. 1895, Part I, pp. 188–206. The mass of various facts reported here involuntarily recalls 2 Thessalonians 2:3, 9. See “Orthodox. review" 1836, Dec., M. Their periodicals include: in Conn. States - 11, in Germany about 50, in Spain - 7, in South America - 6, in France - 5, in England and Belgium, in Italy, the Netherlands and Australia 2 each, in Switzerland, Egypt and the East Indies one each. But in terms of the quality of spiritual books, England takes first place. This is “Evenings at home in spiritual sear. ee", "Chronicles of spirit photographies", "Confessions of omedilium", etc. (See "New Time" 1894, January 15). See 2 Peter 2:1–2. Rom.2:24. See “Religious Life in America” - in “Rus. Gazette" 1883, September. The famous English writer Thackeray in the 60s published in one of the London newspapers a description of a spiritualistic session that he attended. “We were sitting,” he said, “at a massive table, when suddenly he rose into the air and began to fly over our heads.” In 1890, K. Petrov’s book “Mediumistic Materializations” appeared in our country, which describes experiments in photographing materialized spirits. At the editorial office of the spiritualistic newspaper "Heavenly City", in New York, a special telegraph apparatus was installed, ending above the roof of the house with a finger pointing to the sky, to receive telegrams from transcendental spirits, dozens of which are placed in each issue of the newspaper. Under the dictation of the spirit, a whole book was written and published from Egyptian life, the time of the pharaohs: “Le Pharaon Mehnephtah”. Oeuvre ditter par L'Esprit L. W. Rochester. 1897. Wed. James 2:19: “And the demons believe and tremble.” “I am always close to you, I would like to defeat you, but there is Someone protecting you.” Wed. 1 Peter 5:8: “Your adversary the devil walks around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.” See Lev.20:6, 27; Deut.18:10–12; Isa.8:19. See book. Khotinsky: “Sorcery” 1866 St. Petersburg. Tertullian - Defense of Christians, trans. St. Athanasius, 1862, p. 116. See book. Georgievsky: “Principles of Chinese Life” 1888 See gas. "Light" 1886, 89 and 94 "News" 1867, No. 68; see brochure N. Astafieva: “On the spirit of the times” - St. Petersburg, 1899, pp. 70–81. The judgment belongs to the critic Les. See 3. and Time. 1886, book. 13, p. 333. We actually find an attempt at a purely materialistic explanation of spiritualistic phenomena in Vithaer’s recently published (1899) book: “To Believe or Not to Believe.” Ed. Pavlenkova. Such, for example, is the doctrine of the Russian spiritualist Boltin, built according to the plan of the dogmatic theology of Metropolitan. Macaria and representing many borrowings from it. – Particularly more detailed presentation and interpretation of the dogmatics of the spiritualists, see. in "The Wanderer" for 1874, vol. 3, art. M. Orlova. Thus, Leipzig professor, astrophysicist Zellner such phenomena as the tearing of the Jerusalem temple curtain at the crucifixion of the Savior, the Resurrection, the Ascension, the Transfiguration of the Lord, the gift of tongues, and many others. etc., identifies with the spiritualistic phenomena that occurred during the sessions. – Brown, Widtych, Owen and other defenders of spiritualism also identified spiritualist miracles with Divine ones and tried to prove the possibility of the appearances of the dead on the basis of the appearances of the risen Lord to the disciples and people. Moscow Ved. 1900, No. 32. On the harmful effects of spiritualism on the physical and mental state of its adherents, see Rights. About. 1881, vol. 2, p. 516, etc. See details. in “Soul Floor. Read." 1860 Here we do not include stories from the life of the greatest modern ascetic of piety and prayer book, Fr. Ioann Sergiev (Prot. Kronshd.); The time has not yet come for this. Here and next. cases we are talking about the so-called. “pranks”, mainly “ball lightning” - or an electric spark that has a spherical shape. In addition to the questions listed above, we would like to propose to the modern sages of this century also such, of a different kind, questions, namely: how do they think to replace the faith in God and the Bible, which contains the revealed teaching of God, that is being taken away from humanity? Can this Divine faith and the Bible be replaced by various philosophical treatises, moral systems, materialistic theories, various utopias and fabrications of the human mind that denies the truths of Divine revelation? Having lost religion and neglected Divine laws, will humanity be happier, more perfect, more moral, more humane, more honest? How can they replace a person’s consolation in grief, which only one religion gives him? If the Christian faith disappears (which is what these false sages strive for), then where will simple people find, instead of the source of Divine faith, a new source from which they need to draw pure spiritual joys, patience in the hardships of life, submission to fate, meekness, brotherly love, strength in the fight against evil, hope for a better future? Will any philosophical teaching, moral treatise or scientific materialist theory really give them all this? After all, “positive religion” or the fruits of work in the laboratory and with a microscope will not improve the lives of humanity... See more in “Perm. Ep. Ved." 1900, No. 8 and 9. "Vestn. foreign Literature", 1899, January-August. We do not completely agree with some of the coverage of these facts, for example, with regard to foreseeing the future. Such recognition is very valuable on the part of C. Flammarion, who cannot yet be classified as a spiritualist. Laplace, “Analytical experiment on probabilities.” Bearing in mind the clairvoyance of the god-like soul of man and Divine Providence (see our book “From the Realm of Mysteries”), we are not forced, together with C. Flammarion, to invoke determinism and shake the doctrine of free will to explain the insight of the future. You can read about all this in our book: “From the Realm of the Mysterious.” After which the great saint called out to the deceased: “Now sleep, child, until the general resurrection!” You might be interested in: