Mystic Treatises (Ascetical Homilies)

Fill them with the force which subdues the resistance of fortresses and of heights that raise themselves against sanctity, lest they be driven away from their proposed aim by the unbearable compulsion of this time in which the struggle in the blood rages. Not always does this severe strife take place in the struggle of chastity. Remittance may occur that a test may be applied. Woe to the weak who is put to the test in this decisive strife. It possesses great strength and maintains its customary force against those who have given themselves wholly, even though it be but once, to defeat, by submitting their deliberations to it. Be on your guard against idleness, my beloved ; intelligible death is hidden in it. Without it it is impossible that the solitary should fall into the hands of those who wish to captivate him. Not that God will judge us on that day on the basis of 210 the Psalms we have recited or whether we have passed in idleness the times of service occasionally; but by our neglecting them, the demons win access.

And when they have found an opportunity to enter and have shut our rooms, they accomplish in us tyrannically things which will necessarily bring their perpetrators under divine judgment in view of the severe punishment allotted for them. So we become enslaved through negligence in small matters which by the prudent are treated in a painstaking way, for the sake of Christ. As it has been said: Whosoever does not subject his will to God, he becomes a slave to his foe. We have, therefore, to consider as walls against those who desire to captivate us, those things which are reputed to be of a humble nature and which are accomplished in the cell, things which by those who maintain the strict institutes of the church have been laid down in prudence in a spirit of revelation, for the preservation of our life, the neglect of which is deemed insignificant by the imprudent, the harm of which, however, they do not consider. The beginning and the middle of their path is untrained freedom, which is the mother of wrongs. To trouble oneself with the care of small things is better than to give opportunity for sin by remissness regarding them. This is freedom at the wrong time; the end of which is grinding slavery.

As long as thy senses are alive to the shock of every accident, thy soul is to be deemed dead. For in that case the flames of sin will never be absent from thy limbs, whatever be thy states, and no peace will be able to settle in thy soul. If any of the solitaries promises in his heart to be watchful in 211 such a state, he does not desire to be conscious of punishment. When a man deceives his companion he deserves the curse, such as is according to the law. When, however, a man deceives himself, he is not deserving those punishments; for while conscious he has made himself unconscious, because it is demanded from him that he shall eradicate the cause from his heart. But this is difficult in his eyes; and, for this reason, while conscious, he desires to be unconscious. O how sweet is the cause of affections. He will cut them oft sometimes and be pleased to drive them away. Often he rejoices on account of their being apeased ; to eradicate their cause he is, however, not able. Therefore we are put to the test, though it be against our will, and are distressed by the affections although we like that their causes be strong in us.

Sins we desire not; their conductors, however, we receive with delight; so secondary reasons become a mighty cause of primary ones. For he who desires the causes of the affections, is subject to them, though not of his will. Who hates his sins, abstains from them. He who confesses his faults, receives forgiveness. There is no abstaining from customary sins without acquiring hate, nor receiving of forgiveness without confession of faults. The latter is accompanied by true humility; the former by grief, through shame rising in the heart. So long as we have not advanced to the point of hating blameworthy things, it is not possible to perceive the foetid odour they spread when perpetrated, nor their stinking 212 smell, bearing them, as we do, in ourselves. So long as thou hast not cast evil away, thou knowest not what shame thou wilt foster nor what chastisement will rise from it. If thou seest in others that with which thou art charged, then thou knowest the shame with which thou art clad. Remove thyself from evil, then thou wilt know. For thou inhalest the foetid odour as a sweet scent, and [considerest] the nakedness of thy shame as a glorious cover.

Blessed is he that has removed himself from darkness and seen himself; so long as he is in it, sight and discernment are impossible. Blessed is he that has come forth from the dizziness of his wine and has seen in others the shamelessness of his drunkenness; then he will understand his own shame. As long as he himself is under the drunkenness of sins, all that he does is beautiful in his eyes. When nature has deviated from its order, it is all alike, to be drunk with wine or with desires; both [states] remove [a man] from what is becoming ; both excite in their bearer, the body, the same heat ; they are different as to their idea, but one in appearance ; and one in madness. There is no equality in their causal ideas; but in their bearers there is no diversity. All rest is followed by vexation ; and all vexation by rest. If all in this world is liable to change, nevertheless man undergoes it in an attitude of opposition, either here or there or at the time of departure. This is especially the case with rest 2 '3 from lasciviousness or vexation which precedes it, in the way of sanctity.

This is administered by God with compassion, so that man has to taste this torment either on his way or at its end ; then he passes away. And on account of the richness of God's compassion He [uses] this as a means of remuneration, like a depositso that the wages of good do not diminish the capital ; but the wages of evil do. As has been said : He who is chastised here, diminishes [his torments in] Hell. Beware of freedom preceding subjection, beware of consolation preceding strife. Beware of knowledge older than the shock of temptations ; beware of it rather than of love preceding the accomplishment of repentance. If all of us are sinners, and none is exalted above their experience, then none among the virtues precedes repentance. Recollect that all delight is secondary to aversion and bitterness. Beware of joy also, to which is not joined variation without cause. Concerning all things provided from above thou wilt find the cause of their variation unattainable to knowledge. Fear that which is reputed to be joined with equality ; it is said to lie besides the way which is trodden. He who knows to steer the ship of the world with prudence, has connected variation with all that belongs to Him. Different from this is likeness.

Distraction of the thoughts is connected with the rest of the limbs ; dejection with immoderate labour •, distraction with dejection. Distraction differs from distraction. The former is ! «4 accompanied by the strife of wantonness; the latter by the inclination to leave the cell and to [inhabit] various places. Moderate labour connected with constancy is priceless ; where it fails, there is exuberant desire; where it prevails, there is room for trouble. Bear the folly of nature prevailing in thy body, o brother, because thou art destined to possess that wisdom which possesses the everlasting crown of government. Be not troubled by the disturbance of the body, [the inheritance] of Adam, which is destined as soon as it is clad with that heavenly image which is the king of peace, to dwell in that delight of which the knowledge would overpower in this world the minds of those who are clad with flesh. Be not troubled on account of the wild variations of nature. For the short duration of the labour caused by them is, to him who endures, as a delightful gift. They are hounds accustomed to the butcher l ) ; a sound from the mouth is sufficient to make them flee.

But if thou shouldst condescend to have connections with them, thou wouldst make them strong lions. Despise mean pleasures, lest thou become subjected to the force of their heat '). A little patience regarding small things repels the danger of the approach of large ones. It is not possible to overcome great evils without a small victory over trifling ones. Recollect the kind of way thou wilt go, o brother ; there is no longer life there sustained by chemicals driving mortality •, nor warmth of temperament exciting the young nature by the allurement of its pleasure. Bear the labour of the struggle into which [HeJ has introduced thee in order to put thee to the r 5 test; then thou wilt take the crown and pass; for after a little time thou wilt have rest from this world. Think of that rest without end, of that life without allurements, of that state of perfect manhood, of that course of life without shocks, of that compulsory force of divine love reigning over nature.

It is not possible to vanquish the bad deliberations that accompany the bodily allurements ; or rather it is hardly possible. They have been called by some a double weapon [directed] against us. There is no rest from them as long as there is satiety of bread, water and sleep, and access to the things that cause emotions by their accidental character. It is better to depart life than to bear shame in it. When we are anxious to fulfill our duties, the influence of the flesh will be extinguished from our limbs. It is not possible to have care for apperceptible things and to correct our personal affections [at the same time). For without affectionate beseechings and constant bending [of the knees] it is not possible to draw [divine] compassion towards Verh. Afcl. Letteik. 192* (Wunsiiick) us ; and thus it is necessary to practise them constantly. Without painstaking in small things it is not possible to escape great evils.

Let there not be hidden to thy knowledge the power that lies in spiritual songs, when we use it with understanding. For it turns the deliberation away from the world. It also drives distraction from the mind, though it is reputed to be useful for children (only]. The unsteady mind profits by it at once. Spiritual allurements arc more valuable against the affections than the force of knowledge. When thou art alone, guard thy heart by them if thou possessest not yet the force to be watchful in thy being, through contemplation which is familiar intercourse with the knowledge of discernment; or — if this is not [sufficient] — by the constant recollection of the departure from the body and by the recollection of things expected and hoped for; this must be accompanied by [the fulfilling of| the duties which cause delight, namely : the withdrawal from things which cause emotions, and the little observances within the cell. If, after long slavery, thou findest that thy harbour is to be reached with freedom, pursue it [in this way]. If thou seest that this is a foolish method, combine it with [the practice of] the law. I'or here it is easy to be rectified.

While with these and such variations thou advanccst with insight, in a ship loaded with the treasures of the cell — a great festival full of the marchandise of the virtuous — then look with subtlety at the unequal children which are born to thee from apperceptive variations. Thou wilt namely see how every spiritual delight is preceded by the pains of the cross ; 217 how the pleasure of sin, however, is born from bodily comfort; [and thou wilt see] why in the harbour of chastity, spiritual love is caused by spiritual contemplation, which heals the mind. There is nothing secondary without a preceding cause, nor a third virtue without a foregoing one. Thou wilt find orowine in the womb of chastity the wings with which the mind ascends unto divine love, in which one may venture to approach the cloud. This insight will give a man a considerable force, so as to mingle watchfulness with his affairs, and incitement unto zealous efforts. Behaviour without eyes will prove idle. For it quickly brings about dejectedness on account of distraction. Pray our Lord that He endow thy behaviour with eyes. Then joy will begin to sprout ; then troubles will become sweet to thee as honey comb ; then thou wilt think thy enclosure a festival chamber.

It is not possible to vanquish the affections without apperceptive virtues, nor fortuitous distraction without intercourse with spiritual knowledge. Our mind is an agile thing •, if it is not bound to an object with discernment, it will not cease to be distracted. And if the antecedents have not been fulfilled, there is no room for such a process. For there is no peace without victory over the enemies. And if peace does not reign, jhow is it possible] to find that which lies beyond peace? Affections are the fence of hidden virtues. If they are not vanquished first by the manifest virtues, it is not possible to see 218 what lies within them. For it is not possible for one standing without a wall, to speak about what is within. It is not possible to see the sun in a cloud, nor the natural virtues of the soul among the trouble of perpetual affections. Pray God that He may give thee to perceive spiritual allurements. If these take hold of thy soul the world will depart from thee and thou from the world. But they cannot be perceived without solitude and emaciation and attentive intercourse with recitation. Without the latter thou must not pray for the former.

If thou prayest for the former without [these virtues], they will change quickly and become of a bodily nature. Who is able to understand, will understand. It has pleased the wise Lord that we should eat this bread with sweat ; not for malignity, but lest we should be attacked by a malady of the stomach and die. Every virtue which is the mother of a second, which is anterior to it, is a viper to the souls of those who find it, it they do not cast it from them quickly.

Now that we have written the above *) about spiritual allurements, it is time to explain [this ideaj. It is a dim power which arises from love in the heart, at first without sensible causes, for it sets in motion the temperament, without personal vision or practical understanding or reasoning. And therefore it is thought to be without cause, because the mind is still vague. 2l< > This is its impression on the untrained. To the perfect the cause is revealed later, in connection with examination of it ; and then the [impression] is still stronger, for delight is moving in the heart. A part of it is reserved in the body by the recipient ; and another part is sent to the psychic forces. For the heart is in the middle between psychic and bodily apperceptions ; to the former it belongs organically, to the latter naturally. And the recipient directs the taste of its action towards both sides. Therefore the world is compelled to depart from it as it itself departs from the things of the world. We must necessarily inquire into the cause [of this phenomenon]. Love is something hot by nature. And when it alights on any one without measure, it renders that soul as it were mad.

Therefore the heart that perceives it, cannot contain and bear it without unusual excessive variations becoming manifest in it. And these signs it publishes in an apperceptive way, openly: at once the face becomes reddy and joyous, the body grows hot ; fear and bashfulness are thrown away and it becomes as it were wanton-, the power of concentration flees; impetuosity and disturbance reign. His own life forthwith is estimated as nothing in comparison with his Friend. Therefore even death, which was more dreadful to him than any thing, is the same to him as pleasure. And with all this, the gaze of the mind is not free from fantastic thoughts on Him. Afar, he speaks with Him as with one who is near. His knowledge inquires into the hidden state of Him who is concealed from siVht. His o 220 gaze is natural and hostile to sensual apperception. In his actions, as in his sight, he is enflamed. He dwells in solitude, and deliberation entertains itself as it were with a partner and is stupefied. This passion has enebriated martyrs and, driven by it, apostles have travelled through the whole earth in trance, the saints have been tormented, have suffered derision and were erring in the wilderness.

Composed, they have become deranged ; wise, they have wilfully become foolish; bashful, they have become wanton with discernment; exempt from affections [they have walked] in the flesh. Constantly demanding, they have become quiet without compulsion. May we be worthy to reach their madness by the compassion of our adorable God. Amen *). If thou considerest thyself as having peace from the assault of the affections, before thou hast entered the town of humility, do not trust this. There is some ambush prepared for thee. Expect, after this peace, great trouble from them. While passing along all the apartments of virtues, thou wilt not find rest 221 from thy tribulations nor relief from thy persecutors, till thy course will have reached the apartment of humility.

THE LIKE Asceticism is the mother of saintliness ; from it is born the taste of the first apperception of the divine mysteries and it is called the first period of spiritual knowledge. That no one deceive himself and become a false prophet. For the impure soul does not ascend to the pure kingdom, neither in the symbolical nor in the common sense, and it cannot mingle with the holy spirits. But when the elements have mingled with their relatives, the distinction of the natural unity being these things through his hand; who was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin (Hebrews 4, 1. On account of the equality of his natural flesh with ours, eternally without mixture, in the unity preserving the properties of the natures, He has made himself worthy of sitting to the right hand. Therefore praise and power and adoration to Him, now and in life without end for ever and ever''. The passage is lacking in the Greek translation and looks like a Nestorian addition. preserved, that miserable (soul) will be preserved for the great future judgment. Keep pure, o brother, the beauties of thy chastity, by tears and fasting and sitting alone by thyself.

When the right course 1 of the natural sphere has been finished and [the soul| has reached that great luminary, which supports the spheres of the stars multitudinous in their personal distinctions, as Paul says in order to prove the future resurrection, and when it has mingled with its rays — I do not mean in the natural sense — then the vehicle of the will shall be bound with the bonds of unconsciousness and the two exuberant fountains will dry up in their basins. And then the priests will leave the sanctuary on 222 account of the cloud of God's majesty T ). At that time the king of Israel will be Solomon, viz. that peace which is born from humility, he will build a house for the Lord and completely provide it with all the sacred vessels. A little trouble for God's sake is more excellent in God's eyes than much service without suffering. Because trouble borne from free will is a manifestation of love. Service in comfort, however, rises from inward satiety. Therefore by troubles, not by service with satiety the saints were tested concerning the love of Christ. Service without labour is the righteousness o[ lay people who wish to be justified on account of what they possess, but do not acquire excellency in their person.

Thou, however, who art victorious, taste the suffering of Christ in thy person, that thou also mayest be deemed worthy of tasting His glory. For if we surfer with Him, we shall also be glorified with Him. The mind cannot be glorified with Jesus, if the body does not suffer for Jesus. He who despises glory will receive glory at the same time. He will be glorified in his body as well as in his soul. The glory of the body is humble subjection before God. The glory of the mind is true contemplation concerning God. Right subjection is twofold; it follows from labour and from disdain ; so that when the body suffers, the heart also suffers with it. If thou doest not know God, it is not possible that His love should be excited in thee. It is not possible for thee to love God, if thou hast not seen God. Thou seest Him as soon as 223 thou knowest Him. Sight is not prior to knowledge. Make me worthy of knowingThcc, my Lord, then I .shall love Thee too. [1 do not desire] that knowledge which arises amidst distractions of the mind, in the training of instruction.

But make me worthy of that knowledge by which the mind, while gazing at Thee, will be glorifying thy nature ; gazing with that gaze which banishes from the mind the apperception of the world. Make me worthy of becoming exalted above arbitrary sight from which come phantastic thoughts, so that I gaze at Thee by the compulsion of the bonds of the cross, the latter half of which is the crucifixion of the mind whose position of freedom is annihilated by the service of the impulses, with that gaze which nature gives not, but is constantly directed towards Thee. Place in me the pure metal of Thy love, so that, following Thee, I become alienated from the world. Move in me the understanding of Thy humility by which Thou hast lived in the world clad with the cover taken from our limbs, that by the constant and never weakening remembrance of it I may accept with delight the humiliation of my nature. Two are the parts of the ascension on the cross. One is the crucifixion of the body. The second is the ascension unto contemplation ; but the former is a matter of freedom; the latter of influence. The mind will not be subjected, if the body is not subjected.

The reign of the mind is the crucifixion of the body. The mind is not subjected unto God, if freedom has not been subjected to reason. It is hard to trust an elevated matter to boyish rank. For woe to thee, (..) town, when thy king is a child -). He who subjects himself, nearly all will be subjected unto him. He who knows himself, the knowledge of all things will 224 be given him. The word ,know thyself means the accomplishment of all knowledge. As all is encompassed in thy being, so in the knowledge of thy being all knowledge is encompassed, and in the subjection of thy being, the subjection of all the world. At the time when humility dominates thy behaviour, thy being will be subjected to thee, and with it everything, because in the heart a divine peace will be born. As this has not yet happened to thee, thou art perpetually persecuted not only by the affections, but also by accidents. Verily, O Lord, if we do not humble ourselves, thou ceasest not to humble us. True humility is the offspring of knowledge ; right knowledge the offspring of temptations.

The disciple says: Which are the bonds captivating the mind [and withholding itj from running after evil things? The teacher says: The constant search after wisdom and desire for the teachings of life. For bonds stronger than these against the unruliness of mind do not exist. The disciple says: Where is the limit of the course of 225 wisdom for those who seek it, and where does the course of teachings end? The teacher says: The way of this course is foreign to any limit, to such an extent that even the holy angels do not reach perfection. The course of wisdom is without end. It ascends to such a height that it mingles with God him that follows it. And even this is a sign of its unlimitedness, that its distinctions are without end; wisdom is God. The disciple: What is the first and principal way leading towards wisdom? The teacher: That a man seeks God with all his might and that he is quick in seeking Him with his whole person, so that he even does not dislike to give up and throw down his life on account of his love. The disciple. To whom is it becoming to be called a man of understanding? The teacher.

He that really understands that there is a limit to his earthly life, is also able to put a limit to his sins. What knowledge or understanding is greater than this, that a man has wisdom to depart this life without harm, while his limbs are are not strained with the odour of desires, nor his soul with the filth of their sweetness? If a man subdues his impulses in order to penetrate into the mysteries of all classes of beings, and is filled with insight into all kinds of knowledge, so to say, yet his soul is defiled by the filth of sin so that he cannot hope on account of the witness of his soul that he shall safely reach the harbour of trust — then there is none more foolish among the creatures than such a man who, though being constantly occupied 226 by his works, is brought by them to the hope of this world only. The disciple. Who is really strong ? The teacher. He that during the temporary troubles by which the glory of his victorious power is hidden, does not long after the comfort by which a shameful life is enveloped and which at all times compels those who find it, to drink the goblet of sighs. The disciple.

Is it harmful to his course towards God, if a man makes a pause is his labour? The teacher. It is not possible for a man to come near to Christ without troubles, nor can his righteousness be preserved unchanged without them. When righteousness already acquired is bereft of labours which served to augment and at the same time to guard it, it resembles a treasure which of a sudden finds itself without guardians, or an athlete who is stripped of his arms while a host of enemies surrounds him ; or a ship that is left in the ocean without the utensils of her equipment ; or a garden rich in fruits from which is cut off the fountain that watered it. The disciple. Who is the illuminated in his impulses? The teacher. He who is able to understand the bitterness hidden in the sweetness of the world and who withholds his mouth from drinking its goblet. Who zealously enquires after the salvation of his life and who does not cease from running, up to the day on which he is freed from the world ; who shuts the gates of his senses, lest the love of the world enter and dwell within him and bereave him of his hidden treasures. The disciple.

What is the world and how can we recog227 nize it and how can it do harm to those who love it? The teacher. The world is a whore and by the desire of its beauty it attracts those who see it so that they love it. And he that during a short time has been entangled in its love is not able to escape from its hands, before it has stripped him even of his life and sends him from its house through death, bereaved of all. But a man recognizes it as soon as he endeavours to leave its darkness. Then he is able to see the many cords of its nets. As long as he is in it, he cannot see its ensnarements. For it is not only its disciples and sons and captives which are within its fortress, but also the renunciators, ascetics and those who have once broken its bonds and were once above it — those also it now gradually begins to entangle in its service, making them litter for its feet. The disciple.

Now that thou hast convinced me of the fact that the world really suffocates those who dwell in it and of how difficult it is to understand its artificial bonds, I beg to learn first, what is the first impulse to the mind's doubt concerning the world, since its bonds are so very sweet and the schemes of its fetters are hidden? The teacher. When the deliberation of the love of his soul awakens in him, this impulse of deliberation begins to make the world hated in his eyes and it throws into him doubt concerning it. 22S The disciple. Whence comes this emotionality which brings about that which appeared always praiseworthy and beautiful, now suddenly appears as ugly, so that he repents his life and his previous knowledge, thinking that he did not think rightly concerning the world ? The teacher.

In the first place it is nature which beakoning to him in silence, awakens in him the critical impulse as to the unstable duration of the world and of the future and of its course ; and as to the ephemere nature of those who enter into it, so that he considers this world as a place of transition for those who enter into it; as also for the many generations before him, the number of which is unlimited. They have entered it as an inn for a night and left it as travellers on a journey over the whole earth, without thinking of return. Some of them kings, some governors, some wise, some honoured. Some of them scribes, some orators, some judges, some commanders of armies. Some of them possessors of riches, some lords of goods.

And now after their death there is neither the order of their degrees, nor the crowns of their government ; nor their dreadful thrones, nor their lordly pleasures, nor the praise of those who honoured them, nor the love of their friends, nor the luxuriant pleasures of their bodies, nor the comely beauty of their grace, nor their proud majestic stature, nor their erudite mind, nor their spirit rich in impulses, nor the rich effusions 229 of the Gihon of their learning which streamed from their mouth and captivated by its grace the heart of the hearers. They have slept in Sheol for long" years as if it were one night. And it is not known how many years they yet have oi this long sleep, nor when the dawn of resurrection will rise for them and awaken them from their slumber. And to consider for what purpose they are left in this state, causes great suffering; and he will think of how many generations are cloistered under this earth, forgotten [now]. And I too will pass as any one of them. Cursed be riches and comfort. And under this deliberation, great confusion will arise in his heart and his spirit will be filled with suffering.

And on account of the severity of suffering he will pour forth tears in great sorrow. Then he will despise the world and bewail his life and lament over his soul with various bitter lamentations. And with sighs he will say to himself: Where wilt thou be, my miserable soul and where wilt thou find thyself after my death? Perhaps even this deliberation will rise in him : Would I had not entered the world of creatures and I had not left the womb ! In this kind of lamentation he will shed sweet tears because of the sorrow of his heart, and moisten his garments with his tears. And forthwith this world will be in his eyes as a prison and its first sweetness will be more bitter than any bitter thing and the love of his life and its desirable beauty will seem the type of hell. Then his mind will turn to scripture which will awake in 230 him faith in the resurrection and the end awaiting all the things of this world, and in the promises given to those who have lived well in the world and the divine judgments threatened against the transgressors of the law and against those who, during their short lifetime have lived in the broad way of sin.

And then, as one who has discovered some light, he throws away the burden of sorrow, and great joy is awakened in him, because he has found a hope, excellent and true. These things and the like, nature is not able to prompt from his inward emotion : they are understood from the words of scripture by faith alone. Man is not able to acquire instruction concerning himself wholly from nature and from the critical impulses which are within him. Concerning the dealings of God in the Past and in the Future we are able to earn this instruction from the scriptures or from spiritual revelation. Then by the rays of faith and scripture the eye of the spirit will be enlightened and the natural critical faculty will radiate and man will be incited to care for his soul. And further he will think of means to make his life free from the world, so that, before departing the body, he will be able to prepare for himself provisions useful for the world to be. The disciple. How can man wholly give up the world? The teacher. By desire of the future good that is recollected, which divine scripture sows in his heart with the sweetness of its words full of hope.

When the things that are thought to be glorious and delightful and in which man is entangled, are not contrasted with the desire of still more excellent things, 231 the spirit is not able to despise its former love. The disciple. But nature is weak and not able to give up suddenly all its former customs and embrace a life of troubles. The teacher. If the greatness of the future life does not cause a mans spirit in the greatness of wisdom to compare it with the miserable shortness of this temporal life, it is not possible for him to take heart to bear troubles in order to begin his course on the way of the new world. Pray, compute in thy mind the number of years of this our place and elevate thyself as much as possible, and compare it with the days of the future world, and say whether that which thou givest is equal to what thou wilt receive. And , considering what thou lea vest and what thou wilt receive in stead of it, say whether thy exchange is an equal one.

Therefore the wise, while he wonders at the greatness of that world and its unlimited life over against the shortness of temporal life, will say : The number of man's days if he lives long, are a hundred years : ) -, this is like filling a bucket from the sea or taking one corn of sand. A thousand years in this world is not as much as one day in the world of the righteous. The disciple. And what shall we do with the body ? As soon as it is surrounded by distress, the desire of the will towards the good is relaxed as well as its former zeal. 232 The teacher. This will usually happen to those the half of whose being has sought God, whereas the other half has remained in the world. This means that their heart is not yet free from earthly things, but they are in doubt, sometimes looking behind, sometimes forward; and I think that the sage admonishes those who approach the way of God in this state of indecision, saying: Do not approach it doublehearted, but approach it as one who sows or as one who reaps.

And our Lord, seeing that among those who wish to renunciate completely, there are some in such a state of mind, that their will is ready but their thoughts are drawn backwards by fear of troubles, on account of their love of the body which they have not yet thrown away — He will take from them this lassitude of mind saying to them briefly : If any man will come after me, let him first deny himself. What is the denial that is spoken of here? It is the denial of the flesh. And one who is destined to suffer crucifixion, he accepts the thought of death, and goes forth, as one who does not think that he has any further share in this life. This is [what is meant by] taking up the cross and following me. The cross denotes the will prepared for any trouble. And declaring why this is so, Me says: Whoever will save his soul in this world, will lose it in the true 233 life. And whoever will lose his individuality here for my sake, will find it there.

This means : he that sets his steps on the way of crucifixion and yet still cares to think of this bodily life, bereaves his soul of the faith for which to suffer he is gone out. Because this thought does not allow him to approach trouble; but, being always with him, allures him gradually and makes him leave the centre of the struggle for blessed life. Such thoughts grow in him till they have overpowered him. But he whose mind has complied with the loss of his self for the sake of finding the love of Me, he will be preserved, without harm, for life everlasting. This is, he who gives up his life for my sake will find it'. This means : make free thy soul as it were from thyself and prepare it for a complete loss of life. If the departure from this life finds thee in this state of mind, I will give thee life everlasting, according to my promise. And if thou perseverest in this life, I will show my promise in thee later as a confirmation of the future goods. Therefore, thou wilt find that immortal life when thou despisest temporal life.

If thou enterest the strife with such a preparation, all that was most sorrowful and difficult, will be contemptible in thy eyes. The preparation of such a will even is not a struggle for his life in his mind, 2 34 even when peril of death threatens him. In short: If a man does not hate his temporal life, because of love of the future life, he cannot bear troubles. The disciple. In what way can a man cut off his former customs and accustom himself to a life o[ privation? The teacher. The body is not to be persuaded to live in need, so long as it is surrounded by things o{ luxury and relaxation. For the sight of [worldly] things, their splendour and existence kindles in it a desire for them. Therefore justly our Saviour has commanded those who follow Him, in the first place to renunciate and to leave the world. First He frees them from the causes of relaxation ; then He commands them to begin work. And our Lord himself, when He began His strife with the Devil, combated him in the dry and desert wilderness. And Paul also commands those who bear the cross of Christ to leave the town.

So we will leave the town with Him, bearing his disdain, which He also suffered without the town. By the abandonment of the world and what belongs to it, man easily forgets his former customs and his trouble will not last a long time. But the coming near to [worldly] things easily relaxes the fervour of the spirit. It is also becoming and very profitable in the strife, that a man's life be ordered with the utmost privation and indigence, free from all things that 235 excite [the desire ofj comfort. When thus the causes leading towards relaxation are removed from man, he will not be tormented by the double strife, the outward and the inward one. Lo, how much easier is the strife if the things a man desires are afar off and not near, alluring the thoughts by their aspect. Thus we see that there is a double strife. When a man's way of life is poor and his wants are small, he will not look with desire at these things even when indigent and he will content his body with little, because even the body is despised and contemptible in his eyes ; and he does not approach unto it because of its beauty and the pleasure it gives, but only in order to sustain nature.

These ways easily lead man to asceticism, without harm and strife and deliberations. It is becoming for a man to refrain from the sight of those and to remain far from those things, against contact with which he can be on his guard only with a great effort. This I do not say in view of things of the belly only, but also in view of those things which by their temptation put to the test the solitary's freedom and the avoiding ofwhich he has promised in his bond with God. So I mean also the sight of a woman's face, the sight of superb things, superb persons and their luxury, splendid persons and their garments, all things belonging to worldliness also speaking and hearing concerning them. For the affections possess a strong power, 236 when [worldly] things are near, to weaken the stragglers and to turn aside their mind. If the sight of beautiful things spurs on the mind to follow their service with zeal, it is well known that also those which are the contrary of beautiful, have the power of captivating the mind.

And if further harm does not happen than that the quiet mind is cast into strife, there is this loss at any rate, that a man by his own will is thrown from peace into perturbation. If one of the saints, an industrious father, thought the sight of a man with a womanlike face a harm for the mind and an injury in the strife, when once he approached one of the convents, who then should neglect other [dangers] ; for this blessed man was not to be persuaded even to enter and prostrate himself there. This wise father deliberated with insight thus: 'if it should come to my memory even only in the night I pass here, that there is here such a thing, this would be a great loss'. And therefore he did not enter the convent. ' I am not afraid, my brethren' [he said]. 'But wherefore useless strife'? This means, that even such recollections hinder the serenity of my service. For all the things which belong to this body and against which a man must guard himself by a great effort, will cause him little strife as long as they are at a distance from him.

Thus even when they are near, so long as a man uses the pleasant things [of this world] with fear, he desires their proximity only because of the use which is in them. 2 37 We see that many roots are buried and hidden under the earth, of which no one has any knowledge as to their existence while it is summer, because of the force of the sun and the strength of heat. But when the raindrops reach them and the influence of the fragrant air, then all of them suddenly begin to show themselves whereever they are buried. Doest thou not 160 a Treatise in questions and answers etc. see, that by the strong heat of asceticism and the rays of the grace of solitude, the affections leave thee in quiet ; but if thou approachest the things [of the world], thou shalt see that all of them are quickened and thrust up their heads from their places, that is : if they smell just a little of the odour of comfort. These things I have said in order to show that no one should have confidence before he dies and departs this life and how helpful in our strife flight and withdrawal from the world are.

Those things which we are ashamed to recollect secretly, we must also fear to meet. And we may not tread clown the heart and despise conscience. For in a lonely place without contact [with the world] we have to examine our body in order to acquire training in endurance. There is also another thing, more important than the rest : namely as often as that which is a cause of strife, is afar from a man, even if he be vexed in mind he will not fear that, vanquished by desire, he might employ it on account of its being near. 238 The disciple. If a man has thrown away all impediments and has entered the arena, what is the beginning of his strife against sin, and where does he start fighting? The teacher. This much is known to every one, that all strife against sin and its desires is to be preceded by the labour of fasting, especially if one is combating inward sin. And the token of hate against sin and its desires, visible in those who are engaged in this invisible strife, is this that they begin with fasting. Afterwards conies standing during the night. He that during his whole life loves the use of fasting, is a friend of chastity.

As at the root of all the boons of the world and of all its evils, is sexual pleasure and the relaxation of sleep which incites to impure cohabitation, so the beginning of the holy way of God and of all virtues, is founded upon fasting and strict punctuality in the service of God, with the crucifixion of the body during the whole night in the strife against the pleasure of sleep. Fasting is a strengthening of all the virtues, the beginning of the struggle, the crown of the Naziraeans, the beauty of virginity and sanctity, the preservation of chastity, the beginning of the way of Christianity, the father of prayer, the fountain of placidity, the teacher of quiet, and the forerunner of all good qualities. As the delight of light belongs to sound eyes, 239 so the desire of prayer follows fasting with discernment. For as soon as a man begins to fast, his mind forthwith will be desirous of intercourse with God. A fasting body cannot endure lying on its bed during the whole night. For fasting naturally excites vigilance unto God ; not only by day, but also during the night. And the empty body of him that fasts does not grow fatigued in the struggle against sleep.

And though his senses are weak, his mind is awake unto God in beseechings. It is better to neglect service for weakness caused by fasting, than on account of indolence caused by food. To dwell at length upon the beauties of fasting is not necessary. Many of the teachers and fathers have spoken about the victories of fasting and the many beautiful things originating in it. And all books inform us concerning the importance of fasting and the victories it has given generation after generation, and concerning the mighty help afforded by it, and the high praise deserved by those who fast. And by experience it is known to every one, that it is the fountain of all good [qualities]. As long as the seals of fasting are on a man's mouth, his mind meditates on the soul's penitence, his heart sends forth prayers and his face is dark with sadness. Evil impulses are afar from him ; neither is gladness seen on his brow at all. For he is an enemy of desires and idle occupations. There has never been seen a man who was fasting with discernment who was subjected to evil desire. For fasting is a storehouse of all virtues.

And he that despises it, makes all virtues totter. 240 As the first commandment imposed upon our nature in the beginning was against the tasting of the food, and in this point the head of our race fell, therefore those who strive for the fear of God begin the building there where the first injury originated, when they begin the task of keeping His commandments. And also our Saviour, when He manifested Himself to the world at the Jordan, began from that point. For when He had been baptised, the spirit led Him into the wilderness, and then He fasted forty days and forty nights. And all those who follow His steps, base the beginning of their struggle upon this action. That weapon was polished by God, who should despise it without being blameworthy? If the lawgiver has fasted, to Verli, Afd. Letterk. 1922 (Wensinokj. ti which guardian of the law is it not necessary to do likewise?

Till then the human race had not known victory, and Satan had never experienced defeat on the part of our nature ; through this weapon, however, he was vanquished for the first time and the first victory was won which set the crown on the head of our nature. — Thus it is that as soon as this weapon appears in the hand of a man, immediately fear falls upon the deliberations of Satan, that head of rebellion, and at once his mind is struck by the recollection of that defeat in the desert and that first defeat he had to suffer. His strength will be broken when he sees the weapon which our commander has placed in our hands. As soon as he sees this weapon worn by any man, he knows that this one is prepared for the strife. What weapon is stronger than this and which gives encoura- !4i gement to the heart in the struggle with evil spirits as hunger for Christ's sake does? To the degree in which a man's body is fatigued and kept down at the time when the hosts of Satan surround him, to the same degree his heart is supported by confidence.

And he that is constantly in this state, will at all times be burning with zeal as it were with fire. Constant fasting is a symptom of zeal and fervour in war. Even that zealot Eliyah took upon him this tribulation when he fought for the divine law. Forty days he restrained his mouth from food, during the long walk through the desert. Fasting reminds those who practise it of the spiritual commandments; for it was a mediator in the ancient law and by the grace of our Lord Jesus we have received it. But what more shall I say concerning its merits which are known to every one? He that despises fasting, will also be weak and without vigour in the other good works, because he lacks the weapon by means of which the godlike athletes have been victorious. And he that from the beginning shows in himself a sign of relaxation, gives his adversary a chance of victory and enters battle in a state of deprivation. And it is certain that he will leave it, without the victory, because he has bereaved himself of the force which divine zeal had stirred in him. Thus he begins strife in a state of cold in stead of in a state of heat.

For his limbs are not clad with the flame of hunger, namely of fasting during which the mind endures the strokes of all hard and unexpected events motionless. It is said concerning many of the holy martyrs that, when 242 they were informed by a spiritual revelation or by one of their friends, regarding the day on which they would receive the crown, they did not taste anything the preceding night, nor did they take any food. But from the eve till morn they would stand in prayer, awake, praising God in songs and glorifications and hymns and spiritual melodies, being joyful and exalting and expecting that moment as people destined to enter a bridal house. They expected, while in a state of fasting, to receive the blow of the sword and to be crowned with the crown of the confessorship. And we too have to keep this state of preparation perpetually, o my brethren, expecting invisible martyrdom and the winning of the crown of holiness, [being on our guard] lest in any of our limbs a sign of unbelief be given to our enemies.

Thus our outward senses and our inward impulses being clad with all the weapons of God , we shall receive this crown deserving it and so we shall go in unto His glory with the holy martyrs, striking our enemies with amazement. For without labour nobody wins the crown, as the teacher, the great Diodorus ] ) says. For it is well known that it would be most unworthy that merchants may not bring home riches without labour and dangerous storms, and that yet the righteous should expect the remuneration of the crown, without injury and labour for the sake of righteousness. 243 The disciple. Many are those who perform these labours, yet do not perceive rest as to the affections, nor peace as to the deliberations. The teacher. The affections hidden in the soul, o my brother, cannot be apeased by the works o( solitaries which are performed with the body alone, nor do these hinder the deliberations from being constantly stirred by the senses. These labours guard man against being vanquished by desires and against harm caused by the demons. But they do not give peace and rest unto the soul too.

Labours cause apathy and mortify our limbs on the earth and give rest on the part of deliberations, only if they are combined with solitude, when also the outward senses rest from turbulance and have become addicted during some time, to the service of wisdom. Until a man refrains from meeting his fellow-man and until he checks l) One of the London Mss. has: Basil his limbs from mingling with many things, and concentrates his self, — he will not be acquainted with his affections. For solitude, the blessed Basilius, the shining torch of the whole world, says — is the beginning of the purification of the soul. For when the outward senses have rest from outward turbulence, then the mind will return from distraction unto its place and the heart will be stirred to examine the inner impulses of the soul ■ and if it perseveres well it will reach in its course even the purification of the soul. T he disciple. Is it not possible for the soul, if it be strong, to be purified while having connections with the outward world? The teacher. If a tree is watered every day, when will 244 its roots become dried up? A vessel whose contents increase daily, when will it be empty?

If purity be nothing else than to forget the dealings belonging to non-freedom and to have peace from their recollection, and if a man, either personally and practically, or through others, renews in his soul by the medium of the senses this recollection, viz. the knowledge of evil things, when shall he be purified from them ? Or when shall he be liberated from the strife with outward things, so that it will be possible to see inward things and gain peace? When the heart is defiled every day, when can it be purified from filth ? Perhaps it cannot even dominate practice, not to speak of purifying the root. For it stands in the centre of the camp and every day its ears are struck by the rumour of battles, how then can it venture to proclaim peace to itself? But if it be far from these, then it will be able to grant peace to the inward things gradually. Before the stream from above has been shut off, the nether waters will not dry up. But when a man has found solitude, the soul is able to expel the affections and to test its own wisdom.

Then the inward man will be stirred unto spiritual service and day by da) 1 he will perceive the hidden wisdom moving in his soul. The disciple. What are the true marks and the undubitable signs that from a man's labour the hidden fruits are beginning to show themselves in the soul? The teacher. When he is deemed worthy of the gift of 245 tears, flowing abundantly and without compulsion. Tears are to the mind the sure distinction between the bodily and the spiritual state, between the state of apperception and that of purity. As long as one has not yet received this gift, the labour of his service is still in the outward man, and this to such an extent that he does not even perceive anything of the hidden service of the spiritual man. When he begins to leave the bodiliness of this world and moves in that territory which lies beyond this visible nature, then at once he will reach the grace of tears. And from the first apartment of that hidden behaviour these tears will begin and they will conduct him to the complete love of God. When he has reached this point, tears will be so copious that he drinks them with his food and his drink, so constant and abundant are they.

This is a true token of the mind's leaving this world and its apperceiving the spiritual world. And the more the mind approaches unto this world, the more these tears will diminish. And when the mind is wholly in the worldly things, it will also be completely without tears, and this is the sign of its being enveloped by the affections. Some tears cause a burning heat, others render fat. All tears which flow for grief and distress of heart caused bysins, make the body lean and burning with heat. And often when these tears are shed, one will even feel that his marrow is injured. Man will necessarily enter this order of tears first. 246 Then by them the gate leading to the second order will be opened for him, an order which is by far superior, because it contains the sign of the receiving of mercy. What is this? Those tears which have their origin in insight, make the body fat ; they flow spontaneously and compulsion has no share in them. They also anoint the body and the aspect of the face is changed. For a joyful heart renders the body beautiful. These tears moisten the whole face when the mind lives in solitude.

The body acquires by them as it were some sustenance and joy is diffused over the face. Whosoever has experienced these two varying states, will understand. The disciple. What is the resurrection of the soul, namely if ye be risen with Christ? 1 ) The teacher. This is what is said by the apostle in another place : For God who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts "). Resurrection he calls leaving the old state, which in the likeness of Hell hindered him from seeing the light of the Gospel rise, so to say, which is the breath of life in the hope of the resurrection by which the dawn of divine wisdom rises in the heart, so that he now is a new man in whom is nothing of this world. As it has been said : A new heart also will I give you ; and a new spirit will I put within you. Then in truth Christ is imprinted on them, by the spirit of wisdom and revelation, in knowledge concerning Him. The disciple. What is, in short terms, the power of the practice of solitude ? 247 The teacher. It mortifies the outward senses and quickens the inward impulses. Intercourse, however, works in the inverse way. The disciple.

What is the cause of the visions and revelations granted unto some? To others however, who have laboured more than the former, such things are not granted. The teacher. The causes of revelations and visions are many, not one. The first cause of revelations and visions is God's will to give a token of His mercy ; in this case God provided men with them in order to help them. Some take place on account of divine providence. These are the common cases. The rest take place in order to strengthen and to encourage the weak, and to console and instruct them. [An instance of those revelations which take place by] providence are the angels which were seen at the side of the grave, and those which at the Assumption appeared unto the Apostles who were both distressed and stupefied and in confusion on account of the Lord's departure from them. And at once two angels appeared who stood by them in white apparel, and those which appeared in the prison and in any place where [the apostles] fell into the hands of men. Unto single persons and unto the other saints after them they appeared, and even to this day.

For these three classes of men such visitations are usually provided : for those who are simple and irreproachable above measure ; or for holy and perfect persons ■, or for those who on account of fervent zeal have fled from 248 the world •, abandoning it entirely in despair and retiring from any part inhabited by men, following God, naked, without hope or help from anything visible, assailed by the fear of desolation or surrounded by the peril of death from hunger or illness or any evil whatever and near to dejection. That such consolations happen to some people, whereas others who are their superiors in works remain without anything of that kind, is in the first place founded on purity or non-purity of the heart, I mean. A second cause is certainly this, that as long as a man receives consolation from his fellow-man or from any of these visible things, such [heavenly] consolations do not happen to him, safe only by providential decree and this bears a common character. But our discourse is for solitaries. A witness to this is one of the saints who has announced that there came a voice unto him saying : Enough of consolation from and intercourse with men !

Another witness : ) to this is he who led a solitary life in reclusion, and often tasted from consolations granted bygrace, and divine care often became visible to him in manifest apperception ; but when he came near the inhabited world and , sought these things as usual, he did not find them. He besought God that the truth concerning this matter might become 249 known to him, saying : Perhaps, my Lord, grace has been withdrawn from me on account of my episcopal rank? It was said to him : No. But then, there was the desert, there were no men, but God provided for thee. Now, there is the inhabited world and men provide for thee. — So we say that it is impossible for a man to share in visible as well as in spiritual consolation. The disciple. Are vision and revelation one, or are they different in fact as they are different in names? The teacher. There is a difference between vision and revelation. The name of revelation covers the two, because it denotes the revealing of a thing that hitherto was hidden and now becomes manifest in any way. But not all that is revelation is at the same time vision.

But what is vision is also called revelation, because it is a hidden thing which is revealed. But not all that comes to be revealed and known, is vision. Revelation is usually connected with what is intelligible and tasted with the intellect. Vision, however, always happens in similitudes-, as those things which were ministered unto the ancients, be it in the depth of sleep, or in the state of waking ; sometimes clearly, at other times dimly, while he to whom the vision was given often did not know whether he saw awake or in sleep. Even after he had regained consciousness, he did not know whether the thing had in reality happened to him, or as in a dream. Sometimes a voice of help was heard; 250 sometimes a symbolical representation was seen ; sometimes there was a clear apparition, face to face, and sight and speech, questions and intercourse ; and those holy hosts appeared to those who were worthy. It is clear that in the desert and the wilderness and in lonely places and in places of retreat from the world, such things happen ; where man decidedly needs them, because he has no help from any side. Revelation of those things which are apperceived intellectually, is received through purity.

And the latter only belongs to the initiated and perfect. The disciple. When any one has reached purity of heart, what is the token thereof? And when shall he know himself whether his heart has come to purity? The teacher. When he sees all men in a good light, without any one appearing to him unclean or defiled. Such a man has really reached purity. If this were not true, how could it be possible to fulfill the word of the Apostle : When a man possesses all excellence, he reckons every one superior to himself in heart and truth. But when he has reached the point mentioned, he whose eyes are pure, does not see evil. The disciple. What is purity and where is its limit? The teacher. I think that purity is oblivion of those kinds of knowledge which do not belong to nature, those namely which nature has found in the world. Its limit consists therein that we are freed from that knowledge to such a degree that we reach the original simplicity and integrity of nature in the 251 way of a child, apart from small exceptions only. The disciple. It is possible for a man to reach this order? The teacher. Ay.

One of the Fathers was come so far, that he repeatedly asked his pupil whether he had eaten bread or not. And one of the saints who was then an old ascetic, had become so pure and simple and had reached such a perfection and serenity, that he was nearly as a babe , having forgotten all wordly things. And perhaps many will not believe us what we say (for it is a real wonder) that even at the oblation of the Eucharist he could not observe [the fast] so as to receive the Eucharist ; he did not even know whether he had observed [the fast] or not, till his disciples kept watch on him in his cell and brought him to the sanctuary, as a little boy. So very serene and pure was this blessed man. And being thus in worldly things, in his soul he was perfect with God. The disciple. Which meditation and occupation should a man have in his reclusion and solitude, lest his intellect should be found to be occupied with accidental deliberations? The teacher. Thou askest what shall be the meditation of him that is dead to the world in his cell.

Should a man who is zealous and whose soul is awake, need to ask what his work should be in his solitude? What is the meditation of the solitary in his cell but weeping? Should he be able to turn his gaze from weeping towards a different deliberation ? Which 252 meditation would be more profitable? For his dwellingplace, lonely like the grave and deprived of all worldly pleasures, teaches him that his service consists in weeping. And even his name turns him into this direction ; for he is called abila , which means: bitter in heart. All the righteous have departed this world with weeping. If the saints would weep and their mouths at all times were filled with their tears and they thus departed this world, who should not weep then ? The consolation of the recluse is born from weeping. If those who were victorious have shed tears in this world, how then should he that is covered with wounds dare to abstain from weeping? If before the housefather his beloved is laid dead, should he need instruction concerning the thought which should move him to tears? Thy soul which is dead in sins is laid before thee, thy soul which is of greater value to thee than the whole world.

If we come to solitude, we can also get accustomed to weeping. Therefore we should steadily beseech our Lord to give us this. If w r e receive this gift, excellent above any other, through weeping we shall reach purity. And when we have reached it, it will not be taken from us again, to the day on which we shall depart the world. Blessed therefore are the pure in heart who at all times enjoy this delight of tears and through it constantly see our Lord. While tears are in their eyes, they are deemed worthy 253 of seeing His revelation at the height of prayer ; for they even know of no prayer without tears. And this is what has been said by our Lord : Blessed are they that mourn : for they shall be comforted *). For by mournfulness a man reaches purity of soul. When therefore our Saviour says : Blessed are they that mourn : for they shall be comforted, He does not explain what comfort is.

When the solitary is deemed worthy on account of his mournfulness to pass beyond this place of affections and to reach the plain of purity of soul, where he will find a consolation that will not leave those who have found it — then it is clear that the consolation which at the completion of mournfulness is received through purity, is promised by our Lord to the mournful. For if any one weeps constantly, the affections will not approach his heart; for weeping lies beyond affectibility. If tears are able to efface from the mind of him that mourns and weeps for but a short time, the recollection of the affections, what shall we say about him who has imposed upon himself a definite service during day and night? Who knows the profits of weeping, save those who have given themselves to it? All the saints desire this [means of J introduction; and by weeping, a gate is opened before them through which they enter that place of consolation, in which the footsteps of God's love are impressed by revelations. The disciple.

But because man is not able to adhere to this " practice, on account of the body's weak nature , it is necessary for him to have some other thing serving to capti2 54 vate his mind, lest the affections should assail him through the idleness of the intellect. The teacher. The affections are not able to assail the soul and to trouble the solitary whose heart is cut off from the world by dwelling lonely in the complete solitude of the desert, separated from all the sounds and voices of the commotion of mankind — unless he neglect his duties, especially that of being occupied with the scriptures and the profitable deliberations with which he is occupied, by the excellent understanding of which paltry thoughts are driven away from him and his mind is not able to free itself from them, but [in this state] he gazes upon the whole world, because of the great delight of that occupation by which the intellect is completely satisfied in that extreme loneliness of the desert.

So he looses consciousness of himself and forgets his nature and he becomes as one who is mad without any recollection of the world •, especially when he thinks of God's greatness, the glory of His nature and His wondrous works and when he recollects how high his own despicable being has been elevated. To think about Him and to dare foster such thoughts for the sake of delight and to get drunk at all times by ecstatic impulses as in the life after resurrection, are things greatly promoted by solitude, because the intellect has the opportunity of being with itself, in the peace that has its origin in solitude. At the same time it will adapt its recollections to the aim of its course, and it will direct itself towards the glory of the world to be, the hope preserved for the righteous, life in spiritual emotion 255 wholly originating in God. This is the new way of life, without recollection and without emotion concerning anything in this world. And when he is satisfied with these things his contemplation turns from them towards the things of this world in which he is still abiding, saying with amazement : O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge and unsearchable mind of God !

How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out T ). Since He has prepared a different world which is so amazing, into which He shall introduce all rational beings and keep them without variance in life without end. What then is the reason why He has made this world first, which He has made large and has provided with a great many species, and has made a place of a multitude of affections? And He has set us first in this world and implanted in our nature a strong love of its own life; then He expels us from it, gradually, by death and prescribes to us a long interval in a state without sensual apperception, like stones and wood, a state during which He destroys our image and pours out our mettle and mixes it up with the earth. And He permits our building to be demolished and ruined, till it has lost all likeness with [its previous] composition. Then, at the time appointed by His wisdom, working according to His free will, He resurrects us in a different likeness which He knows and introduces us into that new order; and not only us, but also the holy angels, who do not need the use of this world 256 on account of their amazing nature.

For all of them are nearly perfect, awaiting the resurrection and the elevation of our fallen state, when the human race shall rise from the dust, and its fallen state be quickened unto new life. For on account of us they are hindered from entering', till once the gate of that new world will be opened, which they expect. For even the class o{ the angels sighs with us in that it sees us loaded with the weight of the body while it hopes and expects the revelation of the children of God, so that it itself may be freed from slavery that perishes, in the freedom of the glory of the children of God. F'irst he will free this whole [world] from its state so that it is reduced to nothing, analogous to the first state of the body. Then he will elevate himself intellectually beyond the beginnings of the creation of the world, when there was no creation nor anything, no heaven, no earth, no angels, nor any of the created things. Then of a sudden he will bring all things into existence, his will being sufficient to effect that all is before him in a state of perfection. Then he will descend in his mind and visit all God's creatures.

And in his high and wondrous works the wisdom of his creating power will show itself. His power subdues all minds, the amazing and powerful strength of his creating force brings into existence out of nothing a creation with innumerable different kinds. Then he will think of how He again will destroy this, so that perishes the wondrous order, the ornament of kinds, the 257 prescribed course of the creatures, the times and occasions, the harmony of night and day, the useful seasons of the year, the embellished earth, the different kinds sprouting from it ; the fine buildings of the cities and the beautiful palaces in them ; the continual course of mankind, nature submitted and tormented from man's entering it until he leaves it. And how suddenly this wonderful order will be destroyed and how a new world will begin in which no recollection whatever of the first creation will occur to any man's mind, in which there will be a different mode of life, different deliberations and different thoughts. Then human nature will no longer recollect this world nor the former way of life in it.

For the cTaze of their mind will be captivated by the sight of that [new] order, and it will not be able to turn in its memory towards the races of flesh and blood ; for as soon as this world is destroyed, the new one will begin. O mother that suddenly has been forgotten by the sons which she has borne and educated and instructed — and in the twinkling of an eye they are gathered unto another bosom, and have become real sons of the barren one that which has never borne. Rejoice, o barren, thou that didst not bear, at the sons which the earth has borne to thee. And the mind thinks in amazement, of how a new world will take the place of this, and of when its beginning will be ; and of how long these bodies will lie in that state, body and dust mingled together; and what like that mode of life will be; and in what likeness this nature will rise and in what way it will come to the second creation. By such thoughts rest will spread over the mind. And the 25s apperception of its bodily state will vanish ; and it will remain a long time in silence, wondering at the incomprehensible deeds of God.

At that moment the solitary will kneel down and render thanks with many tears to God who is wise in His works, and whose deeds are incomprehensible, as are also the secrets of His exalted mind, concerning what He has done and what He will do. What heart of stone would not become unconscious under such impulses, struck with silence and stupor, and turned away from the emotions of senses and impulses ? Blessed is he who has been deemed worthy of these things. Blessed is he who has thought of this, day and night. Blessed is he who has been occupied with these things during his whole life. To every man this thought is useful, but especially to him that lives in solitude. And it is becoming that these recollections should always be with him. These indications a man should take to mind and, having finished prayer, he should think of them and meditate upon them. When he is occupied with these thoughts, there will be no room for foreign recollections in his spirit, which could hinder him from the constant recollection of God. And if at first he does not perceive the profitable influence of these things, on account of his being distracted, he should not be dejected.

When the husbandman casts seed on the earth, it is not posmind thinks" etc. is the direct continuation of the present one. i 74 A treatise in questions and answers etc. sible that he should see the oars at the same time. Dejection and despondency are connected with sowing. It is sweet to the peasant to eat of his bread ; but his sweat is still sweater. 259 This thought, in solitude, will pour endless delight into the heart and will quickly draw the mind towards unspeakable ecstasy. Blessed is he to whom this fountain has been opened and who drinks from it at all hours of the clay and the night. The disciple. What is the acme of all the labours of asceticism, which a man, when he has reached it, recognises as the summit of his course ? The teacher. When he is deemed worthy of constant prayer. When he has reached this, he has touched the end of all virtues and forthwith he has a spiritual dwelling-place. If a man has not received in truth the gift of the Comforter, it is not possible for him to accomplish constant prayer in quiet. When the spirit takes its dwelling-place in a man he does not cease to pray, because the spirit will constantly pray in him x ).

Then, neither when he sleeps, nor when he is awake, will prayer be cut off from his soul ; but when he eats and when he drinks, when he lies down or when he does any work, even when he is immersed in sleep, the perfumes of prayer will breathe in his soul spontaneously. And henceforth he will not possess prayer at limited times, but always ; and when he has outward rest, even then prayer is ministered unto him secretly. For the silence of the serene is prayer, says a man clad with Christ. For their deliberations are divine impulses. The motions of the pure mind are quiet voices with which they secretly chant psalms to the Invisible One. 260 The disciple. What is spiritual prayer, and how are we made worthy of it? The teacher. It is the psychic impulses which partake of the influence of the Holy Spirit, on account of veracious purity. One man in ten thousand is found worthy of this. It is a symbol of the future way of existence, for nature is elevated and exempt from all the impulses from the recollection of things in this world.

It does not pray, but the soul perceives the spiritual things of the world beyond (which is somethinggreater than the mind of man); the understanding of these is kindled by spiritual force. — It is inner sight, and I) This is apparently the meaning of the sentence, which in the original is not quite clear. not the impulse and the beseeching of prayer. It has its starting point in prayer. Because such men have reached the summit of purity and because at all times their inner emotions are stirring i n prayer — as I have said before — the Spirit, whenever it looks at them, will find them in prayer; and from there it will conduct them by contemplation, which is interpreted spiritual sight. They do not want prolonged prayer nor the defined order of frequent service. Tor the recollection of God alone will be sufficient for them, and at once they will be governed by love, as if captives. But because of this state they are not absolutely negligent, but attribute honour to prayer by standing on their feet at fixed times; but they do not practise continual prayer. Tor we see that the holy Antonius, when standing on his feet 261 in the prayer of the ninth hour, perceived that his mind was taken up.

And another saint found himself in ecstasy for four days, while he stood in prayer with outspread hands. And, on examination, it will be seen in the stories of many others that they were found in the well known attitude of prayer, when granted this gift. A man is deemed worthy of this, when he puts off outward and inward sin, by observing the commandments of our Lord, which are anterior to this state. If one will practise these in his own degree, it is inevitably necessary for him to forsake all human things. This means: he shall put off the body and be outside it, so to speak ; not its nature, but the use of it. There is nobody who has practised these things in the sense of the lawgiver, and with whom sin has persevered to dwell. Therefore our Lord has promised in the Gospel, that He shall make His dwelling-place the man who observes these things. The disciple. And what is the perfection of all spiritual fruits ? The teacher. This is when man is deemed worthy of the complete love of God. The disciple. And how can he that has reached this point, acquire certainty? The teacher.

Every time when the thought of God is stirred in his spirit, the heart will become hot with love at once, the eyes will shed multitudinous tears; for love is accustomed to shed tears at the recollection of the beloved. He that is iii this state will never be found destitute of tears, be* 262 cause he is never without abundant recollection of God, so that even during sleep he speaks with Him. Love is accustomed to practise these things and this is the accomplishment of man in this life. The disciple. He that after many labours and fatigues and victories fought and won, is assailed by the thought of haughtiness that is based upon the beauty of his excellence, when he recalls the many labours he has borne — how can he restrain his thoughts and regain watchfulness so as not to give way? The teacher.

When he knows that he falls from God as a withered leaf falls from the tree, then he will also know his own strength and recognise whether he has acquired these. virtues by his strength and whether he could have withstood all the struggles face-to-face if Czod had withdrawn from him His help and had left him alone in his strife with Satan without being accompanied by that force that usually accompanies the victorious combatants in their struocdes. y or here their strength, or better their weakness, comes to light. So that it is God's care for man which at all times guards and strengthens him and through which he overcomes all classes of men, be it in the struggle of chastity , or in the sufferings of martyrdom or in the other hardships while he suffers for the sake of divine things. This is well known and no doubt concerning it is possible. For how else could nature vanquish this mighty force of never resting allurements which have their seat in man's members 263 and torment him and yet he does withstand them?

How is it that others which love and long after the same purity, arc not able to reach it, though they strive after it, nay daily they are cast back, tormented and sad and weeping over themselves, whereas thou bearest easily the difficulties of nature, which are so hard, and yet thou art not oppressed by them? Or how were it possible that another should endure in his sensitive flesh the cutting iron and the combs in all his members without being vanquished by suffering under all kinds of tortures, whereas else he could not endure a little thorn inserted under his nail? But these totally diverse tortures he bears without suffering in the natural way. How should this be possible unless some force, apart from that of nature, were sent to him and from another direction and unless this force restrained and mitigated the force of the tortures? There is nothing that withholds us from mentioning here a story that is really amazing to one who hears it. Because we have pointed to God's care for man which makes him victorious in all battles for the sake of excellence, it would not be becoming to omit this story.

Socrates, in his work on the history of the church, when mentioning the Roman emperors, relates in a succinct way the evil which the members of the church had to suffer under Julianus ; then passing on to par264 ticulars he tells a story of that which happened in the city of Antioch. A certain adolescent, Theodore by name, was brought by the heathens before Sallustius, to whom the jurisdiction in these matters had been entrusted. He gave him up to suffering and torture, commanding that his whole body should be combed. Then he set him free from torture, thinking: that he was dead. But God was the saviour of that blessed man, who lived for a long time after his testimony. For Rufinus, who has written about ecclesiastical things in Greek, says that a long time after he had conversation with this blessed Theodore. He asked him whether he had felt the pain keenly when being tortured. The latter answered that he had been conscious of pain to a very trifling extent only. For a young man had been standing near him, wiping off the sweat of the struggle and strengthening his soul and making the time of the struggle of the tortures a delight to him.

O, for God's compassion, how near is His bounty to those who begin the warfare for His sake in order to bear sufferings for Him gladly. Do not injure God's bounty to thee, o man. If it is manifest, that thou art not the victor but that thou art as an instrument and that the Lord wins the victory for thee whereas thou obtainest the name of victor as a present, what then hinders thee from beseeching at all times the same power, that thou mayest always obtain the same victory as a z6 5 witness? Hast thou not heard, o man, from of old and from the beginnings of time, how many champions have fallen from the height of their victories because they have injured grace? On the same subject. The gifts of God unto the human race being many and various, there is also a difference in their smallness or greatness in relation to those who receive them. Vcrh. AfJ. Lcltcrk. 1922 (Wonsinck). 17$ a Treatise In questions and answers ETC. Though all of them are wonderful and glorious, one is more than the other in glory and honour. One degree is higher than the previous one, according to the word of scripture.

And further, that a man be elected to practise good works and a steady behaviour, this is one of the principal gifts of Christ. But many forget this grace, namely those whom God has distinguished above others so that they belong to the receivers of His gifts, even to the degree that they are elected to the service of the Lord •, then, in contrast to the gratitude which was always on their lips, they turn aside to presumption and become haughty in mind. And though they have been made worthy to serve God with pure behaviour and spiritual labours, yet they do not deem themselves receivers of grace but as those who deserve this through God, forgetting that they have been elected from the rest of mankind unto familiarity with Him and knowledge of His mysteries. Nor do they tremble in their whole soul when they think of how their comrades, who fostered the same thoughts, were suddenly de266 prived of that strength with which they had been entrusted, and of how in the twinkling of an eye they lost the great honour they had possessed and declined quickly unto lasciviousness and turned towards the base behaviour of the irrational animals.

And because they know not the strength of their soul, nor perpetually recollect Him that made them worthy of the great boon of serving Him and of abiding in the honour of His kingdom and that made them comrades of the spiritual beings and brought them near unto the behaviour of the angels, He rejects them from their service. Thus He shows to them by the sudden variations of their behaviour, that it was not by their own [strength] that they adhered to a steady behaviour under all the assaults of nature and the demons and the other impediments, but that this strength was a gift from Him. What other men cannot even endure to listen to, on account of its difficulty, this they have endured a long time without being vanquished, because the strength that accompanied them was able to help them under all circumstances and to guard them at all times. Accordingly, since they have forgotten this, the word has been fulfilled in them. Namely as they have not willed concerning themselves that they should know God, viz. their Lord who has made the service of the spiritual beings descend to earth, God has delivered them up to vain knowledge and so they have received in person the retribution which their forgetfulness had deserved. The disciple.

Is it possible that a man should so to speak daringly leave the dwellingplaces of men suddenly and 267 go naked into the uninhabited desert and the terrible wilderness in beautiful zeal and that he should die there from hunger or from the absence of shelter or the like? The teacher. He that has prepared a dwellingplace for the beasts before He created them and who provides their wants, will not neglect those who fear them, especially when they follow Him simply, without forethought. He whose will accords with God in all things will never, for fear of bodily evils and dangers, consent to adhere to a filthy behaviour and to endure a life of humiliation because he fears troubles.

But he will count it an exquisite and delicious thing to become estranged to the whole world in purity of behaviour, and to lead a life of deprivation among hills and mountains and to wander in the haunts of beasts and not to lead a life of filth, in bodily comfort, delivering up his soul so that it be for ever destitute of a pious and pure behaviour unto God, to whom belongeth the glory and the honour and who preserves us in His goodness and sanctifies us by His spirit to the honour of His name, that we may praise Him worthily all the days of our life, Amen. For one of the saints says: The body becomes a comrade of sin ; for it is afraid of troubles, thinking it may receive an injury and have to give up its life. For the spirit of God oppresses the body so that it dies ; it is well known that it cannot vanquish sin unless it die. Who desires that our Lord should dwell in him, will oppress his body and minister unto his Lord those spiritual fruits which the apostle describes ; and he will guard his soul against the works of the flesh which 268 Paul describes.

For the body that is mingled with sin takes pleasure in the works of the flesh. And the spirit of God takes pleasure in its own fruits. When the body is weak by fasting and mortification, the soul is spiritually strong through prayer. When the body is vehemently oppressed by solitude and penury and its life is near its term, it will beseech thee: Leave me a while to behave with moderation. Now I give directions because i So a -Treatise in questions and answers etc. I know by experience that evils are of this nature. And when thou releasest the body somewhat from oppression, giving it some comfort by sparing it so that it can take breath again, then it will whisper to thee quietly again and again : Let us leave even the wilderness. For its allurements are very strong ; fit says] : from now onward we shall be able to behave well, even in the neighbourhood of the inhabited world. For we have been put to the test in many things and we shall be able to continue this [behaviour] even there.

Put me to the test and if I do not comply with thy will, we can begin anew for the desert lies before us. — But do not believe [the body] even if it beseeches and promises greatly, for it will not keep its promises. When thou hast granted it some of its wishes, it will drive thee on towards greater concessions from which thou canst not retract thy steps. When thou art dejected on account of thy being filled with troubles, say to thyself: Doest thou desire this filth and this sordid life? And if the body says to thee : It is a great sin that thou killest thyself, — say to it : I kill myself because I cannot live purely. I will die now and not further see my soul's essential die away from God. It is 269 better for me to die now for the sake of purity than to live a shameful life in the world. This death 1 willingly choose on account of my sins. I kill myself because I have sinned before God and will not further rouse His anger.

What to me is life afar from God? I will bear these evils and through them I will not be a stranger to heavenly hope. Why have I been created in the world, if I simply enter and leave it? And what should God profit by my life in the world, if I lived badly in it? On the contrary, I would but rouse His anger.

Our enemy Satan has also other methods, when he cunningly proposes to attack those who engage themselves in this strife. His way of warfare varies according to their character and in relation to their personal tendencies. As to those whom he sees to be of a weak will and of feeble thought he combates them vehemently from the beginning by submitting them to heavy and terrible temptations, in order to make them taste the nature of his evil from the very beginning of the way. In this way he intends to instill into them a horror of the first battle so that this way shall appear to them difficult to walk. And if the beginning is very 270 difficult, who could endure to the end, facing all the battles which are ranged in the middle? Thus they will not again venture to withstand him or to look for other help, on account of their being totally occupied with the thought of his attacks. And when he has pressed them a little vehemently they take to flight. Or better: God lets him oppress them, without helping them in any way because they have engaged in the battle of the Lord, with a cold heart and hesitatingly.

Cursed is everyone who performs the work of the Lord without diligence, retaining his hand from bloodshed. But also : His help is near those who fear Him ] ) ; and He commands that we should not meet the foe with a cold and fearful heart. Begin to destroy him and to wage war with him and I will begin to put the dread of thee and the fear of thee upon the nations that are under the whole heaven. If thou doest not voluntarily die to the senses for the sake of the love of God, thou wilt die intellectually away from God, against thy will. That which belongs to thy lot thou shalt not refuse to take upon thee willingly, though it is connected with temporary suffering ; afterwards thou shalt enter the glory of God. If thou perishest bodily in the strife of the Lord, the Lord will even crown thee ; and to thy thriumphant limbs He will attribute the honour of the martyrs.

So, as I have ,said above, if they have not girded themselves up from the beginning and strengthened themselves and vowed themselves to death, then they will appear to be inferior in all battles, especially because God overlooks their relaxation in that they trie to accomplish the work of the Lord in 271 a frivolous and tentative way. And even Satan knows them from the beginning, examining what their thoughts are : pusillanimous, loving themselves, even sparing their body. So he persecutes them like a hurrycane, because he does not find in them the intelligible power which he usually finds in the triumphant. As a man's will tends towards God, for whose sake he loves labours, so God will send him His help and show him Mis care. For it is not possible for Satan to approach unto anyone or to bring forward his temptations, except by permission of the godhead ; or else that his will has become relaxed and he has given himself to impure thoughts and to distraction ; or because doubt has taken hold of him. Concerning such persons Satan does not ask [permission] to try them as in the case of those who are perfect and great •, as to the latter he knows that they are not given over into his hand.

For he knows that it is not possible that the power of God's care be withdrawn from them. Fxcept because of one of the causes mentioned. This is one way in which the foe makes war. As to those whose will he sees to be vigorous and who reckon death as nothing and who have begun with keen zeal giving themselves over to every temptation and to death, and who trample upon life and the world and the body with its temptations — thees 272 he does not meet at the outset, nor does he usually show himself to them. But he withdraws himself and gives way to them. He neither encounters them with his principal force nor does he enter into battle with them. For he knows that the beginning of battles is usually hot and the antagonist is zealous and zealous champions are seldom vanquished. This method he follows, not because he is afraid of them, but of that divine power which sets them ablaze through the forces working in them till they begin to emit it through their own will in full confidence.

But he leaves them for some time till their zeal is abating and their attention is withdrawn from the exercise of the weapon for which they had trained themselves and with which they had armed their mind, viz. different divine words and profitable and strengthening recollections ; and thus awaits the time of negligence. And when the first thoughts have abated somewhat, how often will they find within themselves occasions of defeat on account of allurements that have their origin in the mind. They dig a ditch in themselves through the distraction of thoughts that arise in their mind through tediousness, through which a chill overpowers them. It is not spontaneous when Satan acts thus, delaying the time of battle ; for neither when he spares them nor when he withdraws himself from them, does he account them nothing. But I think that a certain power surrounds those who are blazing with fervour unto God and who have begun in a youthful way, without forethought, confiding in Him on account 273 of their faith, without knowing however against whom they have to fight. Therefore he conceals his evil nature from them, approaching not near. For his nature is checked by the guardian which he sees with them continually.

Now if they do not cast away the causes of profit : beseeching, labours and humbleness, the helper will never withdraw Himself from them. The love of comfort is a cause of [God's] withdrawal. But if they adhere to these [works] sedulously, they will never be destitute of help and the foe will not be allowed to approach them. And if [God] witdraws himself from time to time, this is for the sake of training. For while the holy force governs and accompanies them, they do not fear seducers; the mind is full of courage and therefore it despises them. But He trains them as a man who teaches swimming to a little boy ; as soon as he begins to sink, the teacher lifts him up, for the boy swims upon the hands of his teacher. And when the courage of the boy begins to diminish, from fear that he will be drowned, the man who supports him with his hands, cries : be not afraid, I support thee.

Or, as a mother who teaches her little child to walk, places him at a distance from her and calls him; but when the boy will go to his mother on those little tottering feet of his, they tremble on account of their weakness. 1 hen when the boy is about to fall, the mother will run and take him 274 in her arms. So God's grace will bear up and train the children of man, namely those who trust themselves clearly and simply to the hands of Him that created them and who with their whole heart turn from the world and follow Him. And thou, O man, who hast begun to follow God, recollect perpetually during thy whole struggle the beginning and that first zeal at the outset' of the way and the fervent thoughts with which thou didst leave thy former life and range thyself in the order of battle. And examine thyself every day [in order to state] whether the fervour of thy soul has abated in comparison with the zeal with which thou wert blazing. Or whether thou lackest any weapon with which thou wert girded at the beginning of thy struggle. And elevate constantly thy voice in the camp and encourage those of the right hand with familiar thoughts.

And show the opposite party that thou art awake. And if thou meetest impetuosity in the beginning-, because the temptator will frighten thee, do not then relax. Perhaps this will be profitable to thee. It is not without reason that thy saviour permits anything unto thee but only when He has foreseen it and ordered it to thy profit. Show thou no relaxation from the beginning • for if thou shouldst show relaxation here, thou wouldst not be able to withstand what follows : hunger, sickness, fearful sights and so on. Do not turn into its opposite the intention of Him that commands thee to fight, which serves to thy profit, lest 275 thy foe find thee as he hopes to find thee. But cry unto God unceasingly and weep before His grace and weary thyself out with beseeching, till He sends thee a helper. And if thou once seest the saviour who is with thee, thou wilt no more be vanquished by thy foe who is standing before thee. Thus far these two kinds of strife. Another way in which Satan makes war against those who are girded.

When after all this Satan is still opposed by a man without being able to overpower him in battle, or rather his helper, for whose sake man resists him, and who helps and strengthens him to such an extent that he who is compact flesh and body vanquishes him that is spiritual and unbodily — when Satan sees all the help which that man receives from God so that his outward senses are not vanquished by sights and sounds nor his thoughts weakened by excitations and allurements, nay he even despises the blows they give him, then he seeks for a means to separate that man from the angel that helps him, or rather he purposes to blind the mind of him that is helped so that he is left without support. So he stirs that man's thoughts of presumption namely those of [imaginary! strength, so that he thinks his mind the cause of all this vigour and of the glorious wealth which he possesses in his soul. His preservation from all these obstacles, sad, un276 speakable, and bloodthirsty, he sometimes ascribes to accident, sometimes to their being weak. I do not mention other things the bare recollection of which makes the soul shiver on account of their blasphemous nature.

It also happens that he advances his betrayal insidiously under the appearance of divine revelations. During sleep he imparts information and in the state of waking he assumes the likeness of an angel of light. And all this [is of such a nature] that, should a man surrender to it even to a small extent, he will become its victim. But if a man be wise and keep his thoughts under control, or rather if God helps him and he fixes the gaze of his heart on heaven in order to turn away from incantators, then the foe plans another kind of war. This is the only one left to him now ; and because it has some affinity to nature he expects the more that man will be entangled in it. What is it? He contrives in all manner of ways to set man in contact with those things through which he usually becomes guilty on account of his nature. The mind of the warrior namely becomes blinded by sight of and contact with [worldly] things, and it is easily vanquished in battle when it is near them, especially when they are ranged before his eyes. The clever one knows this cunning thoroughly on account of his experience with many valiant champions who were van277 quished through it.

Therefore he prepares this means cunningly. And when it is not of a nature to be practised because of the [warrior's] utter solitude and his dwelling far from things that cause [sin], then he contrives to bring it near him through phantasy. So he shows him fallacious images in the habit of reality, in order that by these visions he be rendered desirous and incited to conceive impure thoughts and become guilty and to alienate Him that helps him. For Satan knows that the solitary's victory and defeat, his treasure and his help and all that belongs to him, depends upon deliberation, and that, if deliberation be moved from its place, one short moment is able to throw him down from the nest of life on to the earth, if his will be pointed in this direction for even a moment only. Thus it has happened to many of the saints that he showed them the image of a beautiful woman. Those who dwelt at a distance of one or two or even ten parasangs from the inhabited world he did indeed contrive to bring in contact with a woman.

But to those, to whom he could not do this on account of their distant dwellingplace being too far oft", he showed the images of womanly beauty by appearing to them, now in splendid dress and finery and in a seducing aspect, now even in the form of a naked woman. Some of the solitaries he overpowered by these means and the like, some by real seduction, some by things of the imagination which brought about their fall l ) through the relaxation of their deliberations; so they fell down into the abyss of despondency and turned unto the world, cutting themselves off from heavenly hope. Others however who were steadfast and illuminated by grace, 2 /S have vanquished him and his fantastic representations and trampled upon bodily pleasures ; and they have been found to be elected by the love of God. Often also he represents to them images of gold and precious things as treasures that were hidden somewhere. It even happens that he shows them these things in reality, expecting that by one of these various [artifices] it will be possible to impede some one of the solitaries so as to bar his course through his being" entangled m one of the snares of his nets.

Lead me not, o Lord, into these temptations ; for even the strong and the elect scarcely pass this gate victorious. The seducer is allowed to make war upon the saints in all these ways of temptation, in order that the love of God which is in them may be proved under these circumstances; namely, whether they are friends of God and whether they adhere to His love because [worldly] things are at a distance, far off and absent ; or whether they love God really, so as to make war on and to despise these things even when present, without being vanquished and without giving up their love of God through the allurements of those temptations. This does not happen that they may be known to God through these [temptations], but to the Devil, who is very desirous of recognizing them, if possible. As he also said concerning Job, asking God about him : Doth Job fear God for nought ? If then a little negligence creeps in, the temptator approaches with authority in accordance with the power he has over them.

Then the unjust appears in the desire which these things excite in him. 279 And through these things those are proved who are strong in their love of Him, those who despise all these things, which in their eyes are counted as nothing in comparison with the love of God. In this they are humble, ascribing merits only to Him who strengthens all and who is the cause of their victory and into His hands they entrust the battle. For Thou art the powerful, and the battle is Thine. Fight, o Lord, and be victorious on our behalf. Then they are tested by these things as gold in the furnace. But those who are untrustworthy are recognized there through those trials, and thrown out as refuse. They give way to their foe and have to leave the battle, defeated through the relaxation of their mind, or perhaps through their haughtiness which has made them unworthy of that strong power which is always ready to help the saints. For never to be defeated is the power of Him that helps us, the omnipotent, the almighty, the victorious at all times whenever Pie descends into the body of mortals to fight for them. But it is manifest that those who are defeated, are defeated without Him.

They are those whose will is stripped of Him because of their injustrice, who are not worthy of that power which is the support of the victorious. They also perceive at the time of battle that they lack the usual strength, which they found in themselves in all hot and difficult battles. How do they perceive this? They see in themselves that their defeat gives them comfort and that the hardships of strife are 280 difficult for them to bear, hardships under which at all times they were wonted to win a clear victory. And the emotions of zeal which at such times used to stir nature vigorously and which were strengthened by a fiery heat — they do not find them in themselves. Now those who are shaken from their foundation are terrified not only by these and the like struggles, but even by the sound of the leaves of the trees L ), and give way and renounce and turn their back under light trouble, for hunger or slight illness. The true and elect, however, do not even satisfy their hunger with herbs and vegetables. But, feeding upon drugs and dry stubble, even then they are not to be persuaded to open their mouth for food, before the fixed time.

Lying on the earth, with an emaciated body and eyes blinded on account of bodily weakness , their soul near their mouth through tribulation, even then they do not give way so as to be vanquished and give up their firm will. I ; or it is more delightful for them to be troubled for the sake of love, with labours for excellency, than to possess temporal life and all its comforts. So, when adversities approach them, they rejoice; for they know that these will lead them to perfection. And not only have they no doubt of the love of Christ in spite of the bodily tortures they have to suffer, but it would be delightful 281 even to bear for His sake loss of life ; even then they would not separate themselves from Him.