ST. GREGORY OF SINAI - On Prayer

Sometimes, and most often, you should sit on a stool, because it is more arduous; but sometimes, for a break, you should sit for a while on a mattress. As you sit be patient and assiduous, in accordance with St. Paul's precept, "Cleave patiently to prayer" (Colossians 4:2). Do not grow discouraged and quickly rise up again because of the strain and effort needed to keep your intellect concentrated on its inner invocation. It is as the prophet says: "The birth-pangs are upon me, like those of a woman in travail" (Isaiah 21:3). You must bend down and gather your intellect into your heart -- provided it has been opened -- and call on the Lord Jesus to help you. Should you feel pain in your shoulders or in your head -- as you often will -- endure it patiently and fervently, seeking the Lord in your heart. For "the kingdom of God is entered forcibly, and those who force themselves take possession of it" (Matthew 11:12). With these words the Lord truly indicated the persistence and labor needed in this task. Patience and endurance in all things involve hardship in both body and soul.

-- Some of the fathers advise us to say the whole prayer, "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy," while others specify that we say it in two parts -- "Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy," and then "Son of God, help me" -- because this is easier, given the immaturity and feebleness of our intellect. For no one on his own account and without the help of the Spirit can mystically invoke the Lord Jesus, for this can be done with purity and in its fullness only with the help of the Holy Spirit (I Corinthians 12:3). Like children who can still speak only falteringly, we are unable by ourselves to articulate the prayer properly. Yet we must not out of laziness frequently change the words of the invocation, but only do this rarely, so as to ensure continuity. Again, some fathers teach that the prayer should be said aloud; others, that it should be said silently with the intellect. On the basis of my personal experience I recommend both ways. For at times the intellect grows listless and cannot repeat the prayer, while at other times the same thing happens to the voice. Thus we should pray both vocally and in the intellect. But when we pray vocally we should speak quietly and calmly and not loudly, so that the voice does not disturb and hinder the intellect's consciousness and concentration. This is always a danger until the intellect grows accustomed to its work, makes progress and receives power from the Spirit to pray firmly and with complete attention. Then there will be no need to pray aloud -- indeed, it will be impossible, for we shall be content to carry out the whole work with the intellect alone.

from The Philokalia: Volume IV, edited and translated by G. E. H. Palmer, Philip Sherrard, and Bishop Kallistos Ware, (London: Faber and Faber, 1995), pp. 275 - 276.

ST. GREGORY OF SINAI - On How to Discover the Energy of the Holy Spirit

 

-- The energy of the Holy Spirit, which we have already mystically received in baptism, is realized in two ways. First, to generalize, this gift is revealed, as St. Mark tells us (e.g., St. Mark the Ascetic in "On Baptism"), through arduous and protracted practice of the commandments: to the degree to which we effectively practice the commandments its radiance is increasingly manifested in us. Secondly, it is manifested to those under guidance through the continuous invocation of the Lord Jesus, repeated with conscious awareness, that is, through mindfulness of god. In the first way, it is revealed more slowly, in the second more rapidly, if one diligently and persistently learns how to dig the ground and locate the gold. Thus if we want to realize and know the truth and not to be led astray, let us seek to possess only the heart-engrafted energy in a way that is totally without shape or form, not trying to contemplate in our imagination what we take to be the figure or similitude of things holy or to see any colors or lights. For in the nature of things the spirit of delusion deceives the intellect through such spurious fantasies, especially at the early stages, in those who are still inexperienced. On the contrary, let our aim be to make the energy of prayer alone active in our hearts, for it brings warmth and joy to the intellect, and sets the heart alight with an ineffable love for God and man. It is on account of this that humility and contrition flow richly from prayer. For prayer in beginners is the unceasing noetic activity of the Holy Spirit. To start with it rises like a fire of joy from the heart; in the end it is like light made fragrant by divine energy.
-- There are several signs that the energy of the Holy Spirit is beginning to be active in those who genuinely aspire for this to happen and are not just putting God to the test -- for, according to the Wisdom of Solomon, "It is found by those who do not put it to the test, and manifests itself to those who do not distrust it" (Wisdom 1:2). In some it appears as awe arising in the heart, in others as a tremulous sense of jubilation, in others as joy mingled with awe, or as tremulousness mingled with joy, and sometimes it manifests itself as tears and awe. For the soul is joyous at God's visitation and mercy, but at the same time is in awe and trepidation at His presence because it is guilty of so many sins. Again, in some the soul at the outset experiences an unutterable sense of contrition and an indescribable pain, like the woman in Scripture who labors to give birth (Revolution 12:2). For the living and active Logos - - that is to say, Jesus -- penetrates, as the apostle says, to the point at which soul separates from body, joints from marrow (Hebrews 4:12), so as to expel by force every trace of passion from both soul and body. In others it is manifest as an unconquerable love and peace, shown towards all, or as a joyousness that the fathers have often called exultation -- a spiritual force and an impulsion of the living heart that is also described as a vibration and sighing of the Spirit who makes wordless intercession for us to God (Romans 8:26). Isaiah has also called the "waves" of God's righteousness (Isaiah 48:18), while the great Ephrem calls it "spurring." The Lord Himself describes it as a "spring of water welling up for eternal life" (John 4:14) -- He refers to the Spirit as water -- a source that leaps up in the heart and erupts through the ebullience of its power.
-- You should know that there are two kinds of exultation or joyousness: the calm variety (called a vibration or sighing or intercession of the Spirit), and the great exultation of the heart -- a leap, bound or jump, the soaring flight of the living heart towards the sphere of the divine. For when the soul has been raised on the wings of divine love by the Holy Spirit and has been freed from the bonds of the passions, it strives to fly to that higher realm even before death, seeking to separate itself from its burden. This is also known as a stirring of the spirit -- that is to say, an eruption or impulsion -- as in the text, "Jesus was stirred in spirit and, deeply moved, He said, 'Where have you laid him?'" (John 11:34). David the Psalmist indicates the difference between the greater and the lesser exultation when he declares that the mountains leap like rams and the little hills like lambs (Psalm 114:6). He is referring of course to those who are perfect and to beginners, for physical mountains and hills, lacking animal life, do not actually leap about.
-- Divine awe has nothing to do with trepidation -- by which I mean, not the tremulousness induced by joy, but the trepidation induced by wrath or chastisement or the feeling of desertion by God. On the contrary, divine awe is accompanied by a tremulous sense of jubilation from the prayer of fire that we offer when filled with awe. This awe is not the fear provoked by wrath or punishment, but it is inspired by wisdom, and is also described as "the beginning of wisdom" (Psalms 111:10). Awe may be divided into three kinds, even though the fathers speak only of two: the awe of beginners, that of the perfect, and that provoked by wrath, which should properly be called trepidation, agitation or contrition.
-- There are several kinds of trembling. That of wrath is one, that of joy is another, and that of the soul's incensive power, when the heart's blood is over-heated, is another, that of old age is another, that of sin or delusion is another, and that of the curse which was laid on the human race because of Cain is another (Genesis 4:11-15). In the early stages of spiritual warfare, however, it sometimes but not always happens that the trembling induced by joy and that induced by sin contend with one another. The first is the tremulous sense of jubilation, when grace refreshes the soul with great joyfulness accompanied by tears; the second is characterized by a disordered fervor, stupor and obduracy that consume the sol, inflame the sexual organs, and impel one to assent through the imagination to erotic physical obscenities.
from The Philokalia: Volume IV, edited and translated by G. E. H. Palmer, Philip Sherrard, and Bishop Kallistos Ware, (London: Faber and Faber, 1995), pp. 259 - 261.

ST.GREGORY OF SINAI - On the Different Kinds of Energy

 ST.GREGORY OF SINAI

In every beginner two forms of energy are at work, each affecting the heart in a distinct way. The first comes from grace, the second from delusion. St. Mark the Ascetic corroborates this when he says that there is a spiritual energy and a satanic energy, and that the beginner cannot distinguish between them. These energies in their turn generate three kinds of fervor, the first prompted by grace, the second by delusion or sin, and the third by an excess of blood. This last relates to what St. Thalassios the Libyan calls the body's temperament, the balance and concord of which can be achieved by appropriate self-control.

ON DIVINE ENERGY

-- The energy of grace is the power of spiritual fire that fills the heart with joy and gladness, warms and purifies the soul, temporarily stills our provocative thoughts, and for a time suspends the body's impulsions. The signs and fruits that testify to its authenticity are tears, contrition, humility, self-control, silence, patience, self-effacement and similar qualities, all of which constitute undeniable evidence of its presence.

ON DELUSION

-- The energy of delusion is the passion for sin, inflaming the soul with thoughts of sensual pleasure and arousing phrenetic desire in the body for intercourse with other bodies. According to St. Diadochos it is entirely amorphous and disordered, inducing a mindless joy, presumption and confusion, accompanied by a mood of ill-defined sterile levity, and fomenting above all the soul's appetitive power with its sensuality. It nourishes itself on pleasure, aided and abetted by the insatiable belly; for through the belly it not only impregnates and enkindles our whole bodily temperament but also acts upon and inflames the soul, drawing it to itself so that little by little the disposition to self-indulgence expels all grace from the person thus possessed.
from The Philokalia: Volume IV, edited and translated by G. E. H. Palmer, Philip Sherrard, and Bishop Kallistos Ware, (London: Faber and Faber, 1995), pp. 261 - 262.

ST. GREGORY OF SINAI - On Delusion and Other Subjects

Be careful, therefore, not to entertain and readily give assent to anything even if it be good, before questioning those with spiritual experience and investigating it thoroughly, so as not to come to any harm. Always be suspicious of it and keep your intellect free from colors, forms and images. For it has often happened that things sent by God to test our free will, to see which way it inclines and to act as a spur to our efforts, have in fact had bad consequences. For when we see something, whether with mind or senses -- even if this thing be from God -- and then readily entertain it without consulting those experienced in such matters, we are easily deceived, or will be in the future, because of our gullibility. A novice should pay close attention solely to the activity of his heart, because this is not led astray. Everything else he must reject until the passions are quietened. For God does not censure those who out of fear of being deluded pay strict attention to themselves, even though this means that they refuse to entertain what He sends them until they have questioned others and made careful enquiry. Indeed, He is more likely to praise their prudence, even though in some cases He is grieved.

-- Yet you should not question everyone. You should go only to one, to someone who has been entrusted with the guidance of others as well, who is radiant alike in his life and in his words, and who although poor makes many rich (II Corinthians 6:10). For people lacking spiritual experience have often done harm to foolish questioners, and for this they will be judged after death. Not everyone is qualified to guide others: only those can do so who have been granted divine discrimination -- what St. Paul calls the "discrimination of spirits" (I Corinthians 12:10) -- enabling them to distinguish between bad and good with the sword of God's teaching (Ephesians 6:17). Everyone possesses his own private knowledge and discrimination, whether inborn, pragmatic or scientific, but not all possess spiritual knowledge and discrimination. That is why Sirach said, "Be at peace with many, but let your counselors be one in a thousand" (Ecclesiastes 6:6). It is hard to find a guide who in all he does, says, or thinks is free from delusion. You can tell that a person is undeluded when his actions and judgment are founded on the testimony of divine Scripture, and when he is humble in whatever he has to give his mind to. No little effort is needed to attain a clear understanding of the truth and to be cleansed from whatever is contrary to grace, for the devil -- especially in the case of beginners -- is liable to present his delusions in the forms of truth, thus giving his deceit a spiritual guise.

-- If some have gone astray and lost their mental balance, this is because they have in arrogance followed their own counsels. For when you seek God in obedience and humility, and with the guidance of a spiritual master, you will never come to any harm, by the grace of Christ who desires all to be saved (I Timothy 2:4). Should temptation arise, its purpose is to test you and to spur you on; and God, who has permitted this testing, will speedily come to your help in whatever way He sees fit. As the Holy Fathers assure us, a person who lives an upright and blameless life, avoiding arrogance and spurning popularity, will come to no harm even if a whole host of demons provoke him with countless temptations. But if you are presumptuous and follow your own counsel you will readily fall victim to delusion. That is why a hesychast must always keep to the royal road. For excess in anything easily leads to conceit, and conceit induces self-delusion. Keep the intellect at rest by gently pressing your lips together when you pray, but do not impede your nasal breathing, as the ignorant do, in case you harm yourself by building up inward pressure.

-- There are three virtues connected with stillness which we must guard scrupulously, examining ourselves every hour to make sure that we possess them, in case through unmindfulness we are robbed of them and wander far away from them. These virtues are self-control, silence and self-reproach, which is the same thing as humility. They are all-embracing and support one another; and from them prayer is born and through them it burgeons.

-- QUESTION: What should we do when the devil transforms himself into an angel of light (II Corinthians 11:14) and tries to seduce us?

ANSWER: You need great discrimination in order to distinguish between good and evil. So do not readily or lightly put your trust in appearances, but weigh things well, and after testing everything carefully cleave to what is good and reject what is evil (I Thessalonians 5:21-22). You must test and discriminate before you give credence to anything. You must also be aware that the effects of grace are self-evident, and that even if the devil does transform himself he cannot produce these effects: he cannot induce you to be gentle, or forbearing, or humble, or joyful, or serene, or stable in your thoughts; he cannot make you hate what is worldly, or cut off sensual indulgence and the working of the passions, as grace does. He produces vanity, haughtiness, cowardice and every kind of evil. Thus you can tell from its effects whether the light shining in your soul is from God or from satan. The lettuce is similar in appearance to the endive, and vinegar to wine; but when you taste them the palate discerns and recognizes the differences between each. In the same way the soul, if it possesses the power of discrimination, can distinguish with its noetic sense between the gifts of the Holy Spirit and the illusions of satan.

from The Philokalia: Volume IV, edited and translated by G. E. H. Palmer, Philip Sherrard, and Bishop Kallistos Ware, (London: Faber and Faber, 1995), pp. 283 - 286.

Saint Gregory Of Sinai - How to Master the Intellect in Prayer

HOW TO MASTER THE INTELLECT IN PRAYER

No one can master the intellect unless he himself is mastered by the Spirit. For the intellect is uncontrollable, not because it is by nature ever-active, but because through our continual remissness it has been given over to distraction and has become used to that. When we violated the commandments of Him who in baptism regenerates us we separated ourselves from God and lost our conscious awareness of Him and our union with Him.
-- Sundered from that union and estranged from God, the intellect is led captive everywhere; and it cannot regain its stability unless it submits to God and is stilled by Him, joyfully uniting with Him through unceasing and diligent prayer and through noetically confessing all our lapses to Him each day. God immediately forgives everything to those who ask forgiveness in a spirit of humility and contrition and who ceaselessly invoke His holy name. As the Psalmist says, "Confess to the Lord and call upon His holy name" (Psalms 105:1).
-- Holding the breath also helps to stabilize the intellect, but only temporarily, for after a little it lapses into distraction again. But when prayer is activated, then it really does keep the intellect in its presence, and it gladdens it and frees it from captivity. But it may sometimes happen that the intellect, rooted in the heart, is praying, yet the mind wanders and gives its attention to other things; for the mind is brought under control only in those who have been made perfect by the Holy Spirit and who have attained a state of total concentration upon Christ Jesus.

HOW TO EXPEL THOUGHTS

-- In the case of a beginner in the art of spiritual warfare, God alone can expel thoughts, for it is only those strong in such warfare who are in a position to wrestle with them and banish them. Yet even they do not achieve this by themselves, but they fight against them with God's assistance, clothed in the armor of His grace.
-- So when thoughts invade you, in place of weapons call on the Lord Jesus frequently and persistently and then they will retreat; for they cannot bear the warmth produced in the heart by prayer and they flee as if scorched by fire. St. John Climacus tells us, "Lash your enemies with the name of Jesus," because God is a fire that cauterizes wickedness (Deuteronomy 4:24 and Hebrews 12:29). The Lord is prompt to help, and will speedily come to the defense of those who wholeheartedly call on Him day and night (Luke 18:7).
-- But if prayer is not yet activated in you, you can put these thoughts to flight in another manner, by imitating Moses (Exodus 17:11-12): rise up, lift hands and eyes to heaven, and God will rout them. Then sit down again and begin to pray resolutely. This is what you should do if you have not yet acquired the power of prayer.
-- Yet even if prayer is activated in you and you are attacked by the more obdurate and grievous of the bodily passions -- namely, listlessness and lust -- you should sometimes rise up and lift your hands for help against them. But you should do this only seldom, and then sit down again, for there is a danger of the enemy deluding you by showing you some illusory form of the truth. For only in those who are pure and perfect does God keep the intellect steadfast and intact wherever it is, whether above or below, or in the heart.

from The Philokalia: Volume IV, edited and translated by G. E. H. Palmer, Philip Sherrard, and Bishop Kallistos Ware, (London: Faber and Faber, 1995), pp. 276 - 278.

ST. GREGORY OF SINAI On How to Partake of Food

HOW TO PARTAKE OF FOOD

 
-- What shall I say about the belly, the queen of the passions? If you can deaden or half-deaden it, do not relent. It has mastered me, beloved, and I worship it as a slave and vassal, this abettor of the demons and dwelling-place of the passions. Through it we fall and through it -- when it is well-disciplined -- we rise again. Through it we have lost both our original divine status and also our second divine status, that which was bestowed on us when after our initial corruption we are renewed in Christ through baptism, and from which we have lapsed once more, separating ourselves from God through out neglect of the commandments, even though in our ignorance we exalt ourselves. We think that we are with God, but it is only by keeping the commandments that we advance, guarding and increasing the grace bestowed upon us.
-- As the fathers have pointed out, bodies vary greatly in their need for food. One person needs little, another much to sustain his physical strength, each according to his capacity and habit. A hesychast, however, should always eat too little, never too much. For when the stomach is heavy the intellect is clouded, and you cannot pray resolutely and with purity. On the contrary, made drowsy by the effects of too much food you are soon induced to sleep; and as you sleep the food produces countless fantasies in your mind. Thus in my opinion if you want to attain salvation and strive for the Lord's sake to lead a life of stillness, you should be satisfied with a pound of bread and three or four cups of water or wine daily, taking at appropriate times a little from whatever victuals happen to be at hand, but never eating to satiety. In this way you will avoid growing conceited, and by thanking God for everything you will show no disdain for the excellent things He has made. This is the counsel of those who are wise in such matters. For those weak in faith and soul, abstinence from specific types of food is most beneficial; St. Paul exhorts them to eat herbs (Romans 14:2), for they do not believe that God will preserve them.
-- What shall I say? You are old, yet have asked for a rule, and an extremely severe one at that. Younger people cannot keep to a strict rule by weight and measure, so how will you keep to it? Because you are ill, you should be entirely free in partaking of food. If you eat too much, repent and try again. Always act like this -- lapsing and recovering again, and always blaming yourself and no one else -- and you will be at peace, wisely converting such lapses into victories, as Scripture says. But do not exceed the limit I set down above, and this will be enough, for no other food strengthens the body as much as bread and water. That is why the prophet disregarded everything else and simply said, "Son of man, by weight you will eat your bread and by measure you will drink water" (Ezekiel 4:16).
-- There are three degrees of eating: self-control, sufficiency and satiety. Self-control is to be hungry after having eaten. Sufficiency is to be neither hungry nor weighed down. Satiety is to be slightly weighed down. To eat again after reaching the point of satiety is to open the door of gluttony, through which unchastity comes in. Attentive to these distinctions, choose what is best for you according to your powers, not overstepping the limits. For according to St. Paul only the perfect can be both hungry and full, and at the same time be strong in all things (Philippians 4:12).


from The Philokalia: Volume IV, edited and translated by G. E. H. Palmer, Philip Sherrard, and Bishop Kallistos Ware, (London: Faber and Faber, 1995), pp. 280 - 281.

Όσιος Γρηγόριος ο Σιναΐτης-ΠΕΡΙ ΤΑΠΕΙΝΩΣΕΩΣ

Όσιος Γρηγόριος ο Σιναΐτης 

Η ταπείνωση είναι η οδός που διανοίγει την θύρα της εσωτερικής ειρήνης της πραότητας. Όμως ας μη νομίσει κανείς ότι εύκολα μπορεί να αποκτήσει αυτή τη χάρη. Η ταπείνωση είναι γέννημα της γνώσεως και η γνώση γέννημα της εμπειρίας. 

Αυτός που γνωρίζει τον εαυτό του, μόνον αυτός, μπορεί να γνωρίσει τα πάντα, επομένως και την ταπείνωση. Αυτός που θα κατανοήσει ότι είναι ένα πλάσμα ευμετάβλητο και ως εκ τούτου υπόκειται σε διακυμάνσεις, προς τα πάνω ή προς τα κάτω, ουδέποτε θα υπερηφανευτεί για κάτι. Η εμπειρία μας διδάσκει την πολύπλευρη όψη των πραγμάτων και κυρίως μας διδάσκει ότι το κάθε τι έχει τη φαινομενική και την ουσιαστική του πλευρά. Όλες οι γραφές περιέχουν ένα εξωτερικό και ένα εσωτερικό νόημα. Το πρώτο αντιστοιχεί στο γράμμα, στην επιφάνεια, το δεύτερο στο πνεύμα, στην ουσία.

"Αλογον γάρ καί σκαιόν τό μη τή δυνάμει τού σκοπού προσέχειν, αλλά τοίς λέξεσι". Διονύσιος Αρεοπαγίτης. Ο Λόγος δεν επιδέχεται καμιά ερμηνεία, είναι δεκτικός μόνον κατανοήσεως κυριολεκτικής και όχι διανοητικής ή ψυχολογικής. Πολλοί διαβάζουν τις γραφές και πολλοί τις ακούνε. Όμως λίγοι είναι εκείνοι που μπορούν να κατανοήσουν το περιεχόμενό τους. Άραγε γιγνώσκεις ά αναγιγνώσκεις; Πράξεις κεφ. 8 .30. Και άλλοτε μεν οι αναγιγνώσκοντες ισχυρίζονται ότι όσα αναφέρονται σ' αυτές είναι αδύνατα ή ακατανόητα ή αντιφατικά και άλλοτε τα όσα ανάγονται στο παρόν τα ανάγουν στο μέλλον και το αντίθετο. Ο άνθρωπος που είναι προσκολλημένος στην ύλη δεν μπορεί να κατανοήσει τις γραφές και το πνευματικό νόημά τους.

"Γιατί πως είναι δυνατόν ποτέ να μάθουν ή να γνωρίσουν ή καν να εννοήσουν εκείνοι που δεν γνώρισαν ποτέ την παρουσία του Πνεύματος; Πως είναι δυνατόν να καταλάβουν αυτά τα μυστήρια εκείνοι που δεν εγνώρισαν ολότελα, καμιά φορά, πως έγινε στον εαυτόν τους η αναγέννησης, η ανάπλασις και η αλλοίωσις;" Συμεών ο Νέος Θεολόγος. Τα ευρισκόμενα σελ. 257.

Ο Θείος Λόγος διδάχθηκε για όλους τους ανθρώπους, τους τότε, τους τωρινούς και τους μελλοντικούς και κλείνει μέσα του την αιωνιότητα. Ο Χριστός σαρκώθηκε, ως Δημιουργικός Λόγος, για να μπορέσει να λυτρώσει τον άνθρωπο από την άγνοια, να τον ελευθερώσει από τα δεσμά του, τα δεσμά της ύλης, "Θαρσείτε νενίκηκα τον κόσμο", δηλαδή νίκησα την ύλη, την έβγαλα από το γράμμα του νόμου, από την επιφάνεια, για να την φέρω εσωτερικά μέσα στον Χριστό, μέσα στην ουσία του Χριστού. Ήλθε ο Χριστός για να μας διδάξει το δρόμο της επιστροφής, να μας προτρέψει να ξεχάσουμε τον παλιό εαυτό μας και να ξαναγεννηθούμε εν πνεύματι και αλήθεια. Μας απήλλαξε από τη Δαμόκλεια σπάθη του παλαιού Νόμου, και μας χάρισε την αγάπη και την ειρήνη Του.

Όμως για να γίνει κάτι τέτοιο, θα συμβάλουμε κι εμείς. Γιατί ούτε χωρίς την άνωθεν βοήθεια μπορεί να γίνει κάτι, ούτε η άνωθεν βοήθεια δίδεται σ' αυτούς που δεν την επιθυμούν. Όλα στη ζωή έχουν την διπλή τους όψη. Πράξη και γνώση, προαίρεση και χάρη, φόβος και ελπίδα, άθλος και έπαθλον. Ούτε τα δεύτερα γίνονται πριν γίνουν τα πρώτα. Παρ όλο που η διδασκαλία του Λόγου δεν μπορεί να διακριθεί σε ουσιώδη και επουσιώδη, γιατί κάθε λόγος, κάθε λέξη, κάθε όνομα και κάθε αριθμός έχει τη δική του, πολλές φορές πολλαπλή έννοια, ωστόσο θα μπορούσε να πει κανείς ότι η καρδιά του Ευαγγελίου κτυπά στην επί του Όρους Ομιλία. Η επί του όρους ομιλία δεν απευθύνεται στον όχλο, γιατί σ' αυτόν ο Κύριος μίλησε με παραβολές, ούτε στους γραμματείς ή στους φαρισαίους, απευθύνεται προς τους μαθητές.

"Όταν ο Ιησούς είδε τα πλήθη ανέβηκε στο όρος, κάθισε και οι μαθητές του ήρθαν κοντά του. Τότε εκείνος άρχισε να τους διδάσκει μ' αυτά τα λόγια: "Μακάριοι όσοι νιώθουν τον εαυτό τους φτωχό μπροστά στο Θεό γιατί δική τους είναι η Βασιλεία του Θεού". "Μακάριοι οι πτωχοί τω πνεύματι ότι αυτών είναι η Βασιλεία των Ουρανών". Ματθαίος κεφ. ε'1-3.

Αυτός είναι ο πρώτος μακαρισμός που μαζί με τους άλλους επτά δίδει τον τύπο του μακαριστού ανθρώπου του ανθρώπου ο οποίος ανέβηκε από το πρώτο σκαλοπάτι που είναι η ταπείνωση μέχρι το τελευταίο που είναι η καθαρότητα της καρδιάς, η καθαρότητα του νου. Aλλά τι σημαίνει πτωχός τω πνεύματι; Δεν σημαίνει φυσικά τον πνευματικά ανάπηρο, τον ιδιώτη ή κάτι τέτοιο, αλλά ούτε και έχει σχέση με τους εν τοις πράγμασι πτωχούς, ταπεινούς και καταφρονεμένους. Πτωχός τω πνεύματι σημαίνει το να γνωρίζει και να κατανοεί ο άνθρωπος ότι οι δυνάμεις οι δικές του, συγκρινόμενες με εκείνες του Ζωωδότου Πατρός του, είναι κάτι απειροελάχιστο, είναι κάτι το πολύ ασήμαντο.

Ο άνθρωπος που αποδίδει τα πάντα στον εαυτό του, που είναι πλούσιος μέσα στην ίδια του την αυτοικανοποίηση και αυτοεκτίμηση, που ακολουθεί την αγάπη μόνο για τον εαυτό του και όχι για τους άλλους, αυτός που ακολουθεί την ματαιοδοξία του και έχει την αίσθηση ότι είναι καλύτερος από τους άλλους, είναι ο πλούσιος τω πνεύματι. Αντίθετα, ο άνθρωπος που αισθάνεται βαθιά μέσα του ότι δεν γνωρίζει τίποτα και ότι δεν είναι τίποτα και ότι δεν αξιζει τίποτα και ταυτόχρονα επιθυμεί να κατανοήσει περισσότερα και να γίνει διαφορετικός, ο άνθρωπος που αντιλαμβάνεται την άγνοιά του, τη μηδαμινότητα του και την ασημαντότητα του νου του και της κατανόησής του, είναι ο πτωχός τω πνεύματι.

Είναι ανοιχτός να δεχθεί, γνωρίζει την άγνοιά του και γι αυτό θέλει και μπορεί να ακούσει και να κατανοήσει το Θείο Λόγο και τις επαγγελίες του. Αλλά όταν είναι γεμάτος από τον εαυτό του, αν είναι κλειστός, όπως είναι οι περισσότεροι άνθρωποι, τι μπορεί να ακούσει, τι μπορεί να καταλάβει; Ακούει συνέχεια τον εαυτό του και τον επιβραβεύει. Ακούει τις φωνές της ματαιοδοξίας του και της ανικανοποίητης αγάπης για τον εαυτό του.

"Δύο άνθρωποι ανέβηκαν στο νάο για να προσευχηθούν. Ο ένας ήταν Φαρισαίος κι ο άλλος τελώνης. Ο Φαρισαίος στάθηκε επιδεικτικά και άρχισε να προσεύχεται . Και ο τελώνης αντίθετα στεκόταν πολύ πίσω και δεν τολμούσε ούτε τα μάτια του να σηκώσει στον ουρανό.." Λουκάς ιη'10-13.

Ο Φαρισαίος στράφηκε προς τον εαυτό του και όχι προς το Θεό και η προσευχή του δεν εισακούστηκε. Αντίθετα ο τελώνης αγνόησε την ασημαντότητα του εαυτού του και στράφηκε προς το Θεό και εισακούστηκε. "Ότι πας ό υψών εαυτόν ταπεινωθήσεται, ό δέ ταπεινών εαυτόν υψωθήσεται".

Όταν ο Κύριος είπε στον πλούσιο νεανία να πουλήσει τα υπάρχοντά του, δεν εννοούσε τα υλικά υπάρχοντα μόνο, αλλά κυρίως εκείνη την πλευρά του ανθρώπου που τον κάνει να πιστεύει ότι είναι καλύτερος από τους άλλους επειδή είναι πιο μορφωμένος νοητικά, κοινωνικά και έχει πολλά υλικά αγαθά. Που νιώθει ότι είναι ιδιαίτερα ικανός, ανεξάρτητος, πλούσιος και ότι μπορεί να αντεπεξέλθει σε οποιαδήποτε δυσκολία, μόνος του. Που νιώθει ικανοποιημένο το εγώ του, με τη ματαιοδοξία του και την ικανοποίηση που αυτή του δίνει. Δεν μπορεί όμως να νομίζει κανείς ότι γίνεται ταπεινός εύκολα.

Η ταπείνωση είναι γέννημα της γνώσης και η γνώση της δοκιμασίας. Αυτός που γνωρίζει τον εαυτό του και μόνο αυτός μπορεί να γνωρίσει τα πάντα.

Εάν κανείς δεν γευθεί ένα πράγμα δεν μπορεί να γνωρίζει τι είναι το πράγμα αυτό, αλλά αυτός που το γεύεται ας γνωρίζει ότι ένα μέρος μόνο αντιλαμβάνεται και η αντίληψη αυτή γίνεται αιτία γνώσεως και ταπεινώσεως. Αυτός που θα γνωρίσει τον εαυτό του ότι δηλαδή είναι ένα κτίσμα του Θεού, ευμετάβλητο, ότι είναι μια ψυχή που έχει ένα σώμα και ότι η ψυχή αυτή είναι αιώνια και το σώμα φθαρτό, αυτός που θα κατανοήσει ότι είναι μια απειροελάχιστη κουκιδίτσα σε ένα απέραντο και απύθμενο σύμπαν, πτυχή της Θείας Δυνάμεως, αυτός και μόνο θα μπορεί να μην υπερηφανεύεται για τίποτα, γιατί θα γνωρίσει ότι ανήκει στον κτίσαντα.

"Oι λέγοντες ή πράτοντες χωρίς ταπείνωση, εοίκασιν έν χειμώνι ή άνευ πηλού οικοδομείν".

Η ταπείνωσις ούτε ταπεινολογίαν έχει ούτε ταπεινολογεί, ουδέ φρονείν, ταπεινά βιάζεται, ουδέ εαυτόν μέμφεται ταπεινούμενος, ταύτα σχήματα εισί ταπεινώσεως.

Δύο εισίν ταπεινώσεις: Το έχειν εαυτόν υπό κάτω πάντων και το επιγράφειν Θεώ κατορθώματα.

 

 Γρηγόριος Σιναίτης. Φιλοκαλία Δ. σελ. 50-51.

St. Gregory of Sinai: Two Forms and Three Sources of Delusion..

 

 Here something must be said about delusion, so far as this is possible; for, because of its deviousness and the number of ways in which it can ensnare us, few recognize it clearly and for most it is almost inscrutable. Delusion manifests itself or, rather, attacks and invades us in two ways - in the form of mental images and fantasies or in the form of diabolic influence - though its sole cause and origin is always arrogance. The first form is the origin of the second and the second is the origin of a third form - mental derangement. The first form, illusory visions, is caused by self-conceit; for this leads us to invest the divine with some illusory shape, thus deceiving us through mental images and fantasies. This deception in its turn produces blasphemy as well as the fear induced by monstrous apparitions, occurring both when awake and when asleep - a state described as the terror and perturbation of the soul. Thus arrogance is followed by delusion, delusion by blasphemy, blasphemy by fear, fear by terror, and terror by a derangement of the natural state of the mind. This is the first form of delusion, that induced by mental images and fantasies. The second form, induced by diabolic influence, is as follows. It has its origin in self-indulgence, which in its turn results from so-called natural desire. Self-indulgence begets licentiousness in all its forms of indescribable impurity. By inflaming man's whole nature and clouding his intelligence as a result of its intercourse with spurious images, licentiousness deranges the intellect, searing it into a state of delirium and impelling its victim to utter false prophecies, interpreting the visions and discourses of certain supposed saints, which he claims arc revealed to him when he is intoxicated and befuddled with passion, his whole character perverted and corrupted by demons. Those ignorant of spiritual matters, beguiled by delusion, call such men 'little souls'. These 'little souls' are to be found sitting near the shrines of saints, by whose spirit they claim to be inspired and tested, and whose purported message they proclaim to others. But in truth they should be called possessed by the demons, deceived and enslaved by delusion, and not prophets foretelling what is to happen now and in the future. For the demon of licentiousness himself darkens and deranges their minds, inflaming them with the fire of spiritual lust, conjuring up before them the illusory appearance of saints, and making them hear conversations and see visions. Sometimes the demons themselves appear to them and convulse them with fear. For having harnessed them to the yoke of Belial, the demon of licentiousness drives them on to practice their deceits, so that he may keep them captive and enslaved until death, when he will consign them to hell.

Delusion arises in us from three principal sources: arrogance, the envy of demons, and the divine will that allows us to be tried and corrected. Arrogance arises from superficiality, demonic envy is provoked by our spiritual progress, and the need for correction is the consequence of our sinful way of life. The delusion arising solely from envy and self-conceit is swiftly healed, especially when we humble ourselves. On the other hand, the delusion allowed by God for our correction, when we are handed over to Satan because of our sinfulness, God often permits to continue until our death, if this is needed to efface our sins. Sometimes God hands over even the guiltless to the torment of demons for the sake of their salvation. One should also know that the demon of self-conceit himself prophesies in those who are not scrupulously attentive to their hearts.

Question: What should we do when the devil transforms himself into an angel of light (cf. 2 Cor. 11:14) and tries to seduce us?

Answer: You need great discrimination in order to distinguish between good and evil. So do not readily or lightly put your trust in appearances, but weigh things well, and after testing everything carefully cleave to what is good and reject what is evil (cf. 1 Thess. 5:21-2). You must test and discriminate before you give credence to anything.

You must also be aware that the effects of grace are self-evident, and that even if the devil does transform himself he cannot produce these effects: he cannot induce you to be gentle, or forbearing, or humble, or joyful, or serene, or stable in your thoughts; he cannot make you hate what is worldly, or cut off sensual indulgence and the working of the passions, as grace does. He produces vanity, haughtiness, cowardice and every kind of evil. Thus you can tell from its effects whether the light shining in your soul is from God or from Satan. The lettuce is similar in appearance to the endive, and vinegar, to wine; but when you taste them the palate discerns and recognizes the differences between each. In the same way the soul, if it possesses the power of discrimination, can distinguish with its noetic sense between the gifts of the Holy Spirit and the illusions of Satan.
Source: "One Hundred and Thirty-Seven Texts", Philokalia, vol. 4.

http://tokandylaki.blogspot.ca/2012/08/st.html