Семь деланий у монаха

The first is silence, that is, a life spent without entertainment, at a distance from all worldly cares, so that the monk, having become above human pleasure, can cleave to God. The second is proportionate fasting, that is, eating low-value food once a day, and then not to the point of satiety. The third is proportionate vigil, that is, using one half of the night for psalmody, sighs and tears. The fourth is psalmody, that is, bodily prayer, consisting of psalms and genuflections. Fifth, spiritual prayer, performed with the mind, removing all extraneous thoughts from oneself. Sixth - reading the lives of the holy fathers and their words; complete removal of hearing from strange teachings and from anything else, in order to overcome passions with the words of the fathers. Seventh - questioning the experienced about every word and undertaking, so that, out of inexperience and self-confidence, having decided and done one thing instead of another, you do not perish when the flesh goes berserk, through demonic slander and from wine; because the enrage of the flesh, that is, lust, occurs not only due to demonic slander, but also from drunkenness. Therefore, everything must be dissolved (combined) in moderation, so that jealousy is not shaken by complete immoderation. In carnal inflammation, not every movement comes from the malice of the demon, but it sometimes happens that with extreme abstinence, movement occurs when dry and hot sighs excite the nature; this is recognized by the most skillful examiners of nature. Therefore, the body must be nourished moderately so that, due to complete immoderation in eating, the ascetic does not suffer violence from the movements of the flesh. The best thing is invincibility. And if you hesitate in life, then mark on yourself a life-giving image - and hostility will be overcome. It is best not to be captivated by passions, that is, not to succumb to the attack of evil thoughts. If anyone is shocked by them, let him immediately imprint himself with the life-giving image of the cross - and the enemy will be overthrown. This is said figuratively and taken from those who are sometimes confused by enemies during war, but immediately bring themselves to safety by giving themselves the appearance of a crowd, that is, by forming a quadrangle and keeping themselves inaccessible to the tricks of the enemies. Extended fasting and satiety with food are reprehensible, because extreme abstinence and filling oneself with food are equally bad. One thing makes the ascetic powerless and completely incapable of activity; and the other, in moderation, excites carnal passions and raises a strong war on the soul. In the most extreme degree of passion, perfect and strict abstinence is best. And by the extreme degree of passion we do not mean sin itself, but a sinful movement, a disposition towards sin and effort, and, as it were, a desire to commit a sin. So, when the desire, apparently, completely takes over, then strict and exact abstinence in everything is saving. When passion is at its height, then let the divine hunger be intensified, but let it be proportionate to the forces of what is consumed by the passion, because such a passion can only be healed by prolonged work. As sin increases, let divine hunger, that is, fasting, increase; However, let there be a proportionality in this with the strength of the sinner, because the strongest sins require longer labor for healing. Laziness without any pretext is a harbinger of deviation into the worse, for the negligence of the will without any previous cause, for example, sometimes a bodily illness or some kind of inconvenience, reveals that the soul strives for the worse. I call laziness in the practice of virtues, which has no pretext or compelling reason, despondency and carelessness. If someone runs away from sin and is diligent in reading the Scriptures, but there is no increase in virtues, then something terrible will follow with him. If someone, having freed himself from sin through God’s love for mankind, diligently studies the words of God, but in such pursuit does not succeed in virtue, then one must be afraid that this person will again be captivated by sin. The newly appointed one, if he is a glutton, will end badly. Whoever at the beginning of a cramped life is enslaved to the belly and gluttony will end up with a bad end. Uncontrollable exits can lead someone living in a monastery to the point of attempting anything, because a monk should not make frequent exits: they most likely lead to falls. Let the one who is elected to the leadership draw knowledge from himself. Whoever wishes to be an abbot, let him first learn the duties of an abbot; that is, whoever ruled himself first is able to rule others. Let him who curbs the games of the flesh and restrains indecent spiritual movements be not removed from the pastoral rank. He who has suppressed in himself indecent bodily and spiritual desires, that is, in the body fornication, gluttony and the like, and in the soul anger, irritability, vanity and similar things, must be a shepherd without restraint. Before the education in literature, let the monk form morals, because a reverent person must teach morals before he can move his tongue to teach those who come. For one can see that many sometimes neglect words, but have respect for morals. The rashness of the tongue offends silence, because the impudence (impudence, playfulness) of the tongue is a violation of silence. Verbalism is reprehensible and unapproachable. Those who talk too much are not only reprehensible, but even disgust those who want to spend time with them and get close to them. Let no question leave the questioner’s tongue unweighted, because the question must be answered in accordance with it, and the answer must be made not without reasoning. He who flaunts his own blackness with his tongue has seen the Divine light; By blackness we mean sin. Therefore, whoever expressed it and defamed it with his tongue, as if having been cleansed and illuminated, was honored with Divine illumination. And whoever, in a foreign place, divulges the secrets of the fall of another, he, as a blasphemer, becomes guilty of theft. Whoever reveals what is announced to someone else is subject to responsibility for evil, as having anticipated God’s decree in the future tense, for then God determines to announce the sins of everyone. Whoever did not keep the sin confessed to him and did not hide it, but gave it to another for shame, is not worthy of the Divine Sacraments. If a person does something illegal and keeps it hidden within himself, then his secretiveness pleases the demon who suggested it more than the deed itself. A monk should not be upset by a reproachful word and become angry as a result. The handles of good deeds grasped in youth nourish old age, because the stock of good deeds done in youth preserves old age. You might be interested in: