III. Set- mill- Hfi, p .'Jll,

114. Kiulrr I'l'iiil.i "llif liiiMiiii" ik»lj'iii fill "iliiiin" ikcifiKi)
J17
JOHN CLIMACUS
Dammed waters run back upstream. The soul constricted by dangers often returns to God and is saved by repentance.
A wearer of perfume is detected, whether he wishes it or not, by the aromas around him. A carrier of God's Spirit is detected in his speech and in his lowliness,"'
Winds stir the deep and temper stirs the mind more than any- thing else.
What the eye has not seen and what has only been heard of does not greatly stir desire. So ignorance is therefore a great help to the chaste.
Thieves do not pounce where royal armor is stored. Spiritual thieves do not readily pounce on the man who has united his heart with prayer.
Fire does not give birth to snow, and those seeking honor here will not come to enjoy it in heaven.
One spark has often set fire to a great forest, and it has been found that one good deed can wipe away a multitude of sins (cf. James 3:5, 5:20).
It is impossible to destroy wild beasts without arms. It is impossi- ble to achieve freedom from anger without humility.
Just as by nature we cannot exist without food, we cannot afford to slip into carelessness even for an instant at any time up to the mo- ment of death.
Like the sun's ray passing through a crack and lighting up the house, showing up even the finest dust, the fear of the Lord on enter- ing the heart of a man shows up all his sins.
Crabs are easy to catch, for sometimes they walk forward and sometimes backward. In the same way, the soul that tries laughter now, grief then, high living some other time, cannot make progress.
The sleepy are easily robbed and those living close to the world are easily despoiled of their virtue.
When a man fights a lion, it is fatal to glance away for even a mo- ment. So too with the man fighting against his body, who yields for the merest instant.
It is dangerous to climb a rotten ladder, and in the same way all honor, glory, and power pose a danger to humility.
A man eager for salvation thinks of death and the judgment in
1 l.v HTM adds a sentence: "As the sun makes gold glitter, so virtue m.ikes iiiiitii- test the marl who possesse.s it."
2.5K
THE LADDER OF DIVINE ASCEN I
the same way that a starving man thinks of bread.
Tears can wash away sins as water washes away something writ- ten. And as some, lacking water, use other means to wipe off what is written, souls lacking tears beat and scour away their sins with grief, groans, and deep sorrow.
A dung heap breeds worms in abundance. Piles of food breed an abundance of lapses, evil thoughts, and dreams.
A man whose legs are bound cannot walk freely. Those who hoard treasures cannot climb to heaven.
A new wound can easily be cured, but the very opposite is true of souls with long-standing wounds. If they are healed at all, it is only with the greatest difficulty.
A dead man cannot walk. A man in despair cannot be saved.
A man who asserts that he has the true faith and yet continues to sin is like a man without eyes. And the man who has no faith but who does good is like someone who draws water and then pours it into a barrel with holes.
A ship with a good navigator comes safely to port, God willing. A soul with a good shepherd climbs easily' heavenward, even if it has earlier done much wrong.
A man, no matter how prudent, may easily go astray on a road if he has no guide. The man who takes the road of monastic life under his own direction may easily be lost, even if he has all the wisdom of the world.
If anyone is weak in body and if he has suffered grievous falls, let him turn onto the path of humility, taking on himself what is typical of that way, for there is no other road to salvation.
Just as someone in the grip of a long illness cannot return to in- stant health, it is not possible to overcome passions — not even one of them — in a quick moment.
Keep track of the exact condition of each passion and of each vir- tue, and you will know exactly how you are making progress.
Those who take mud in exchange for gold are suffering a loss. So too with those who hold forth on things spiritual for the sake of mate- rial advantage.
Many have been speedily forgiven their sins. But no one li;i.s rap- idly acquired dispassioii, for this requires much time and Innginjt,"* and (lod.
I ](i- K^iilcr )t\\c\ "lirltor'* (/>mn»m) ut dd tillcrri^ilivr tn "lori)(iii)(" {p»tlmil\
JH9
JOHN CLIMACUS
We should find out which animals and which birds seek to harm us at the time of sowing, at the time when the shoots are green, and at the time of harvest, and we should arrange our traps accordingly,
A man in a fever ought not to commit suicide. And right up to the moment of death we should never despair.
It would be quite wrong for a man to go straight from burying his father to his own wedding, and it would be quite wrong for those in mourning for their sins to look for honor, rest, or glory in this life from men.
Citizens live in one sort of place, convicts in another. So too there ought to be a difference in status between those who mourn their sins and those who are innocent.
A king ordains that a soldier badly wounded in his presence in battle should not be dismissed but, in fact, promoted. In the same way, the King of heaven gives a crown to the monk who has endured many perils from demons.
Perception is a property of the soul. Sin is a battering of this property. Perception brings about the end or the lessening of evil, and it is a product of conscience. Conscience is the word and censure that come from our guardian angel, and we have it from the time of baptism. And it is for this reason that the unbaptized do not feel very much bitterness of soul for their evil deeds.
The lessening of evil yields abstinence from evil, and such absti- nence is the starting point of repentance. The beginning of repen- tance is the beginning of salvation, and the beginning of salvation is a good intention, which, in turn, is the begetter of labors. The begin- ning of labors is virtue and the begiriing of virtue is a flowering, and the flowering of virtue is the beginning of activity.
The offspring of virtue is perseverance. The fruit and offspring of perseverance is habit, and the child of habit is character.
Good character begets fear, and fear begets observance of the commandments, by which I mean those of heaven and earth. To keep the commandments is to show love, and the starting point of love is an abundance of humility, which in turn is the daughter of dispas- sion. To have dispassion is to have the fullness of love, by which I mean the complete indwelling of God in those who, through dispas- sion, are pure of heart for they shall see God (Matt, .^:8). To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen.
260
Step 27
ON STILLNESS
We are like purchased slaves, like servants under contract to the unholy passions. And because this is so, we know a little of their de- ceits, ways, impositions and wiles. We know of their evil despotism in our wretched souls. But there are others who fully understand the tricks of these spirits, and they do so because of the working of the Holy Spirit and because of the freedom they themselves have man- aged to achieve. We in our sickness can only imagine the sort of relief that would come with good heahh; but they, being healthy, can un- derstand and talk about the weakness that goes hand in hand with sickness.
Now this is why, being weak and infirm, I hesitate to hold forth to you in this discourse on the haven of solitude. I know only too well that at the table of good fellowship there is always some dog waiting to grab a piece of bread, a soul in other words, to run off with it in its mouth and to devour it at leisure. Therefore I want nothing said by me to give room to that dog, to give a chance to those on the lookout for such an opportunity. I do not think it right to talk about peace to tho.se brave followers of our King, those warriors who are in the midsi of battle. I will merely say that crowns of peace and calm are ready for tho.se who do nol weaken in the fight.
Still, the sub|cct .should be mentioned so as not to offend anyone. I shall thercCorr, wilh your |>crmis.sion, speak briefly about stillness
Stillness of the body if. llir luctirate knowledge and niiuiuyeim-iH
lh\
JOHN CLIMACUS
of one's feelings and perceprions. Stillness of soul is the accurate knowledge of one's thoughts and is an unassailable mind.
Brave and determined thinking is a friend of stillness. It is al- ways on the watch at the doors of the heart, killing or driving off in- vading notions. What I mean by this will be well understood by the man who practices stillness in the deep places of the heart, while the novice will have no experience or knowledge of it.
A shrewd hesychast requires no words. He is enlightened by deeds rather than by words.
The -Start of stillness is the rejection of all noisiness as something that will trouble the depths of the soul. The final point is when one has no longer a fear of noisy disturbance, when one is immune to it. He who when he goes out does not go out in his intellect^ '^ is gentle and wholly a house of love, rarely moved to speech and never to an- ger. 7 he opposite to all this is manifest.
Strange as it may seem, the hesychast is a man who fights to keep his incorporeal self shut up in the house of the body.
The cat keeps hold of the mouse. The thought of the hesychast keeps hold of his spiritual mouse. Do not mock the analogy. Indeed, if you do, it shows you still do not understand the meaning of stillness.
A solitary is not the same as a monk living with another monk. A solitary has to be very much on guard, and his mind has to be alert. The second kind of monk often helps his brother, but an angel helps the solitary.
The powers of heaven join in living and worship with the man who practices stillness in his soul. I shall not say anything to you about the opposite situation.
The profundities of dogma are great and the mind of the solitary leaps over them not without danger. '^^
It is risky to swim in one's clothes. A slave of passion should not dabble in theology.
The cell of a hesychast is the body that surrounds him, and with- in him is the dwelling place of knowledge.
When a man sick with a passion in his soul attempts the solitary life, he resembles a man jumping from a ship into the sea and imagin- ing that he will reach shore safely on a plank.
117. I.e., who maintains inner solitude when he goe."; out of his hermitiigf.
118. Or: "capers among them not without danger." El'I'M transiatos: "leii|is ovor them safely."
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THE LADDER OF DIVINE ASCEN I
A solitary life is suitable for someone who is fighting his clay, provided the time is right and provided he has a spiritual director. The fact is that you need the strength of an angel if you are to live a solitary life. Here, of course, I am talking of those who live a real life of solitude in soul and body.
When a hesychast gets lazy, he starts telling lies. He hints at oth- ers to get him out of his solitude, and when he leaves his cell he puts the blame on devils. What he does not know is that he has turned into his own devil.
I have known hesychasts whose flaming urge for God was limit- less. They generated fire by fire, love by love, desire by desire.
A hesychast is like an angel on earth. With the paper of love and the letters of zeal, he has freed his prayer from sloth and carelessness. Openly he cries out: "O God, my heart is ready" (Ps. 56:8). He says, "I sleep, but my heart is awake" (Song of Songs 5:2).
Close the door of your cell to your body, the door of your tongue to talk, and the gate within to evil spirits. The endurance of the sailor is tried by the noonday sun or when he is becalmed, and the endur- ance of the solitary is tested by his lack of necessary supplies. The one jumps into the water and swims when he is impatient, the other goes in search of a crowd when he is discouraged.
Do not be afraid of loud nonsense. The spirit of mourning is nei- ther afraid of it nor upset by it.
Those with a mind accustomed to true prayer talk directly to the Lord, as if to the ear of the emperor. Those praying aloud fall down in front of the Lord as if before the entire senate. Those who live in the world make their pleas to the emperor in the midst of bustling crowds. Now if you have learned the technique of prayer systemati- cally, you will certainly grasp what I am saying.
Sit in a high place and keep watch if you can, and you will see the thieves come, and you will discover how they come, when and from where, how many and what kind they are as they steal your clusters of grapes.
When the watchman gets tired, he stands up and he prays. And then, sitting down once more, he bravely carries on with his task.
A man knew about all ihcsc things from experience and unntcd lo descril>c ihcni in close detail. Hut he was afraid. I Ic liid not wisli ta discourage those already cngagcti in this or by his words to NCiirf off those on (iu: ])oini of cnil)arkiiif{ on this way.
A man w ho bc){ins l(t lidk Niiblly and with ktiowl('d({r rtlHUil mill*
J6I
JOHN CLIMACUS
ness stirs up the demons against himself, for there is no one else who can so hold up their evil work to contempt.
He who has achieved stillness has arrived at the very center of the mysteries, but he would never have reached these depths if he had not first seen and heard the sound of the waves and of the evil spirits, if he had not even been splashed by those waters. Paul confirms this. If he had not been caught up into Paradise as into stillness, he would never have heard the unspeakable words (cf. 2 Cor. 12:4). The ear of the solitary will hear wonders from God. Hence the words of the all- wise Job: "Will not my ear receive amazing things from Him?" (Job 4:12).
The solitary runs away from everyone, but does so without ha- tred, just as another runs toward the crowd, even if without enthusi- asm. The solitary does not wish to be cut off from the divine sweetness.
Go now. At once. Give away everything you have. ("Sell what you own." That needs time.) Give to the poor monks so that their prayers may be with you in your solitude. Take up your cross, carry- ing it in obedience, and endure strongly the burden of your thwarted will. And then, "Come, follow me" (Matt. 19:21). Come to union with most blessed stillness and I will teach you the workings and the be- havior of the spiritual powers. They never grow tired of their ever- lasting praise of their Maker, nor does he who has entered into the heaven of stillness cease to praise his Creator. Spirits have no thought for what is material, and those who have become immaterial in a ma- terial body will pay no attention to food, for the former know noth- ing of it and the latter need no promise of it; the former are unconcerned about money and chattels and the latter are heedless of the malice of evil spirits. In those dwelling above, there is no yearn- ing for the visible creation, while those on earth below have no long- ing for what can be sensed, because the former never cease to make progress in love and the latter will never cease to imitate them. The former know well the value of their progress; the latter understand their own love and longing for the ascent to heaven. The former will desist only when they rise to the realm of the Seraphim; the latter will grow tired only when they come at last to be angels. Blessed is he who hopes; thrice blessed is he who lives to see the promise of being an angel.
2«S4
THE LADDER OF DIVINE ASCENT
The Differences between the Various Kinds of Stillness
As everyone knows, there are differences of concept ;tiu! :iiin in each of the sciences. There are defects in all, because of some t;nhirc of zeal or strength. Hence some enter this harbor, this sea, or nuked the abyss of solitary life because they cannot control their tongues or because of some previous habit of the flesh. Others do so because they have a bad temper, which they cannot restrain in company, or be- cause they arrogantly think it better to sail on their own rather than under the guidance of someone else. Others do so because if they live amid material things they cannot do without them. Some think that a life of solitude will enhance their zeal, and some wish to punish them- selves in secret for their faults. Some think of the glory a solitary life will earn them. And there are some — may the Son of Man find them on earth when He comes back — who undertake this holy way of life because of a delight in, a thirst for the love and sweetness of God, and they achieve a union of this kind only after they have shed all despon- dency. For to link despondency to the loving of God is rather like committing adultery. ,
I have put together a ladder of ascent, though my meager knowl- edge makes me something of a second-rate architect. Still, let each one take note of the step on which he is standing. Is it on the step of self- will, of fame, of a loose tongue, of hot temper? Or of possessiveness? Is it on the step of atonement for sin, of greater zeal, of loving fire added to fire? "The last shall be first and the first last" (Matt. 19:30). The first seven are the work of the world's week, and some are good while others are not. But the eighth clearly bears the mark of the age to come.
O solitary monk, watch out for the hour of the wild beasts, be- cause if you do not, then you will be unable to get ready the appropri- ate traps. If you have managed to shake off despondency, this task will be superfluous, but if it still plagues you, I do not know how you can endure the life alone.
Why is it that there were not as many lights among the holy fa- thers at Tabennisi as at Scetis?"^ Cope with that question if you can. I cannot say why. Or rather, I do not wish to.
1 I';. ■l';ilifntiisi III r|i|U'r r.^vjH WiiN tlic silc iif St l>;uhomiii>.' iiiM rini|(i«»l«'ry, It! (■hiirin.'UTislii- tiMiiin-s V.VVI- ii .sirii'l ininniLiiiily lilf urnlc-i :iii .ilsl"ii unli ini>«li Ullii
idi
JOHN CLIMACUS
Some work to reduce the passions. Others sing psalms and spend most of their time in prayer. Some turn to the depths of contempla- tion. But whatever the situation is, let it be investigated in accordance with the ladder and accepted in the Lord.
There are some idle souls in the monasteries. Giving way to whatever feeds that idleness, they come to an utterly bad end. Others by living in community strip themselves of idleness. This often oc- curs not only with the careless but with the zealous too.
The same may be said regarding the solitary life, for it has re- ceived many experienced monks but has rejected them because of their self-direction and proved them to be lovers of pleasure. It has accepted others and made them zealous and fervent by fear and con- cern for the burden of their judgment.
The man who is foul-tempered and conceited, hypocritical and a nurse of grievances, ought never to enter the life of solitude, for fear he should gain nothing but the loss of his sanity. Someone free of these faults will know what is best. Or perhaps, I think, not even he.
The following are the signs, the stages, and the proofs of practic- ing stillness in the right way— a calm mind, a purified disposition, rapture in the Lord, the remembrance of everlasting torments, the imminence of death, an insatiable urge for prayer, constant watchful- ness, the death of lust, no sense of attachment, death of worldMness, an end to gluttony, a foundation for theology, '^o a ^q\\ ^f discern- ment, a truce accompanied by tears, an end to talkativeness, and many other such things alien to most men.
The following are signs of stillness practiced wrongly — poverty of spiritual treasures, anger on the increase, a growth of resentment, love diminished, a surge of vanity. And I will say nothing about all that follows from these.
Our chapter has now reached the point at which we must deal with those living in obedience, especially as this step is directed for the most part towards them.
With regard to those who lawfully, chastely, and in pure fashion
worship in common. Sceti.s (the Wadi Natrun) in Lower Egypt was a center for h ages, where stillnes.s could be practiced by solitaries or small groups of nionlis, SoiJis was sometimes used as a general name to include Nitria as well, some forty miles lo the north. Many of the famou.s Fathers whose sayings are recorded in the great cdIIccmoiis of the Apophthegmata came from Scetis or \itrla.
120. Theology here means the direct experience of d'od.
2 Mi
THE LADDER OV DIVINK ASCKN t
are wedded to this orderly and admirable way of olialicniT, ih^ri* #r» manifestations—validated by the divinely inspiretl I'urlifrii UMil brought to perfection in their own time— manifL-siatinns iiriiiiii|(rt nied by daily increase and progress. There is an advLUuc in Imiu Iiii mility. There is lessening of bad temper, which must idler nil diminish as the gall is depleted. Darkness is scattered and love up proached. There is an estrangement from passions, an escape from hatred. Lust, under ceaseless criticism, diminishes; despondciuy 's unknown; and zeal grows. There is compassionate love and a banish- ment of pride. This is what everyone must seek, though few will he completely successful. A well without water does not deserve its name, and hence the obvious conclusion for those with understand- ing.
A young wife who strays from her marriage defiles her body. A soul unfaithful to his vow defiles his spirit. The former is denounced, hated, beaten, and, most pitiable of all, thrown out.'^i For the latter there is pollution, forgetfulness of death, an insatiable belly, eyes out of control, vainglory at work, a longing for sleep, a calloused heart, insensitivity, a storing up of bad thoughts, an increase of consent, captivity of heart, spiritual upheaval, disobedience, argumentative- ness, attachment to things, unbelief, doubt, talkativeness, and— most serious this — free and easy relationships. Most wretched of all is a heart without compunction, which, in the careless, is succeeded by insensitivity, the mother of devils and of lapses.
Of the eight evil spirits, five attack the solitary and three assail those living in obedience.'^^
A monk practicing stillness and struggling against despondency is often harmed, for the time to be given to prayer and contemplation is wasted in the tricks and wrestlings needed to fight his problem.
I was once sitting in my cell having become slack. Indeed I was thinking of leaving it. But some visitors came, and when they began to praise me for leading the life of a hesychast, my slackness gave wiiy
121. The ancieiil discipline of the Church allowed separalinn lr..m .in imUMhK.I
spouse. Indeed a pricM was rfc|uircd lo divorce hl.s wife if she cm e.l mhlllery.
'I'hcre was no (piesiion. however, of remarriage.
122. Scholion H lll.'llCI iiletitifici. ihe five as despoiid.rn'v, vaiiiKliirv, |irli1». «••
jectir.n'and ant;er, and ihe ihiee rfs itlim..i,v, lust, .ntd .n.niM- !■ liMtlliv .lltttirrnl
subdivision, cf, noic 'H, p li'>
2«7
JOHN CLIMACUS
to vainglorious thoughts and f was amazed by the manner in which this three-horned demon stood up against all the others.
The spirit of despondency is your companion. Watch him every hour. Note his stirrings and his movements, his inclinations and his changes of face. Note their character and the direction they take. Someone with the gift of calm from the Holy Spirit well understands what I have in view.
The first task of stillness is disengagement from every affair good and bad, since concern with the former leads on to the latter. Second is urgent prayer. Third is inviolable activity of the heart. And just as you have to know the alphabet if you are to read books, so if you have missed out on the first task, you cannot enter upon the other two.
I myself was occupied with the second of these tasks and entered the intermediate stage. A light came to me as I was thirsting and I asked there what the Lord was before He took visible form. The angel could not tell me because he was not permitted to do so. So I asked him: "In what state is He now?" and the answer was that He was in the state appropriate to Him, though not to us. "What is the nature of the standing or sitting at the right hand of the Father?" I asked. "Such mysteries cannot be taken in by the human ear," he replied. Then I pleaded with him right then to bring me where my heart was longing to go, but he said that the time was not yet ripe, since the fire of incorruption was not yet mighty enough within me. And whether, during all this, I was in the body or out of it, I cannot rightly say (of. 2 Cor. 12:2).
It is very hard to shake off the sleep of midday, particularly in summer time. Then — and perhaps only then — is manual work to be permitted.
The demon of despondency, as I have discovered, opens the way for the demon of lust. It greatly weakens the body and causes that sleep which brings about pollutions in those practicing stillness. Fight hard against these demons and they in turn will furiously at- tack you. They will try to force you to desist from your labors, which, they will tell you, are of no value. But there is no better proof of the failure of the demons than the violence with which they attack us.
When you come out in public, be sure to protect what you have accumulated. When the cage doors are opened, the birds fly out. And if that happens, then there is no point in continuing with stillness.
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THE LADDER OF DIVINF. ASCIN 1
A small hair disturbs the eye. A minor concern mtcrlfirn with stillness, for, after all, stillness means the expulsion of ilioiichii iiiul the rejection of even reasonable cares.
He who has truly attained stillness ignores the flesh. (Jod dnrn not make false promises.
The man who wishes to offer a pure mind to God but who is troubled by cares is like a man who expects to walk quickly even though his legs are tied together.
There are not many outstanding experts in worldly philosophy. But I would claim that rarer still are those who are truly expert in the philosophy of stillness.
A man without experience of God ought not to undertake the solitary life. He leaves himself open to many hazards. Stillness chokes the inexperienced. Never having tasted the sweetness of God, such people waste time in being set upon, robbed, made despondent, dis- tracted.
A man who has experienced the value of prayer avoids crowds like a wild donkey. After all, it is prayer that makes him resemble the donkey and makes him shun everybody.
A man who is gripped by passions and lives in the desert listens to their prattle. I was taught this by that blessed elder, George Arsi- laites,!^^ whom your reverence'^'* knows. He was once the director of my useless soul and the guide who brought me to stillness. "I have observed," he said, "that the demons of vainglory and concupiscence usually attack us in the morning. In the middle of the day, the attack comes from the demons of despondency, gloom, and anger; and it comes in the evening from the dung-loving demons of the miserable stomach."
It is better to live poor and obedient than to be a solitary who has no control over his thoughts.
"Fhe man who has entered on stillness for a good reason but who fails to see how it benefits him daily is either practicing it in the wrong way or is being robbed of it by self-esteem.
Stillness is worshipping God unceasingly and waiting on Him.
12.!, A .splriiiial iii:im
lives, 55 V and 12.
124. I.LV, John, Alihnl
369
JOHN CLIMACUS
Let the remembrance of Jesus ^^^ be present with your every breath. Then indeed you will appreciate the value of stillness.
Self-will is the ruin of the monk living in obedience. But ruin for the solitary is the interruption of prayer.
If you rejoice because visitors have come to your cell, you should realize that you are taking a holiday not just from despondency but from God. So the model for your prayer should be the widow wronged by her adversary (cf. Luke 18:1-8), and for your stillness that great and angelic hermit Arsenius.i^^ In your solitude think of this marvelous hesychast and remember how he used to send away those who came to visit him, lest he be deprived of the better part.
I am aware of the fact that demons often persuade foolish foot- loose people to go around visiting right-living hermits. i^? The de- mons do this to create some hindrance, if they can, even through these. So watch out for such people and do not worry about offending them by your devout behavior. Indeed, offensiveness of this kind may stop their footloose career. But be careful. Do not make the mistake of offending a soul who in his thirst has come to draw water from you. Discretion is necessary in everything.
The life of stillness, especially when practiced by solitaries, must be guided by conscience and common sense. If you run the race as it should be run, if every enterprise, utterance, thought, step, move-
125. The remembrance of Jesus is usually the context in which the Jesus Prayer is practiced. Here it seems to be equivalent to the Prayer it.self (cf. note .51 and the Pref- ace, p- 4S).
126. Arsenius was a Roman of senatorial rank who had held office in the imperial palace. He was mistakenly thought by hagiographic sources to have been the tutor of the Emperor Theodosius' sons Arcadius and Honorius. Toward the end of the fourth century he left Rome and retired to a hermitage in Scetis, where he lived until its dev- astation by barbarian nomads in 434, He was at Canopus near Alexandria for a time, where he was frequently consulted by Archbishop Theophiius (d. 412). After the devas- tation of Scetis he lived at T'roe, between Cairo and Helouan. He was famous for his austerity and avoidance of visitors. The alphabetical collection of The Sayings of the De- sert Fathers assigns forty-four sayings or maxims to him, with a further two under R attributed to a monk of Rome. For a full list of references see DHGE iv, cols. 745-7.
127. From the late fourth century onward visitors came to the Egyptian desert in large numbers to see for themselves how the monks lived, Some were serious inquirers like Basil, Rufinus, Jerome and Palladius. Others were mere tourists. On the irrii;iiiou caused by some visitors see, for example, The Sayings of the Desert Fathers, Arsenius 2K, and The Lives of the Desert Fathers I, 19-24.
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THE LADDER OF DIVINK ASCI-.N I
ment, is done according to the Lord, then the Lord's wnik In ihill** with spiritual perception as if He were there Him.self. Hiii if ii jiri'mii is somehow robbed, then he is not yet living in acconlaiUT with virtue.
"With the harp I will expound what 1 have to say" (i's. 4H;^) und what I wish. And it will be in accordance with my imperfect itul^ ment. And in my prayer I will offer up my will, and from God I will draw assurance.
Faith is the wing of prayer, and without it my prayer will return to my bosom. Faith is the unshaken stance of the soul and is unmoved by any adversity. The believing man is not one who thinks that God can do all things, but one who trusts that he will obtain everything. Faith is the agent of things unhoped for, as the thief proved (cf. Luke 25:42-3). The mother of faith is hard work and an upright heart; the one builds up belief, the other makes it endure. Faith is the mother of the hesychast, for after all, how can he practice stillness if he does not believe?
A man chained in prison is fearful of his judge, and the monk in his cell is fearful of God. But the court holds less terror for the one than the judgment seat of God for the other. My good friend, you have to be very much afraid if you are to practice stillness, and noth- ing else is quite so effective in scattering despondency. The prisoner is always on the watch for the judge to come to the jail, and the true worker is ever on the watch for the coming of death. A weight of sor- row bears down on the one, while for the other there is a fountain of tears.
Take hold of the walking stick of patience, and the dogs will soon stop their impudent harassment. Patience is a labor that does not crush the soul. It never wavers under interruptions, good or bad. The patient monk is a faultless worker who has turned his faults into vic- tories. Patience sets a boundary to the daily onslaught of suffering. It makes no excuses and ignores the self. The worker needs patience more than food, since the one brings him a crown while the other brings destruction. The patient man has died before his death, his ci'jl being his tomb. Patience comes from hope and mourning, and itntri-(l to lack those is to be a slave to despondency,
I he warrior of ("hrisi knows how to attack some cnriiii«N Nl tt distance and sonic at close (pinrlers. Sometimes the lif^hl ruriin M crown and sometimes the iiti\\tllingiirss to fight has |iioiliu'
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ter. Hard and fast rules cannot be laid down for such matters, since we all have differences of character and disposition.
Keep a special watch for the one spirit that unfailingly attacks you whether you stand, walk, sit, stir, get up, pray, or sleep.
Some who preside over the race of stillness always keep before them the words: "I see the Lord before me continually" (Ps. 15:8). But all the loaves of heavenly bread do not have the same appearance. Others therefore keep to the words: "In your patience possess your souls" (Luke 21:19). Others: "Watch and pray" (Matt. 26:41). Others: "Prepare your works for your death" (Prov. 24:27). Others: "I was humbled and He saved me" (Ps. 114:6). Others: "The sufferings of the present time are not to be compared with the glories of the future" (Rom. 8:18). Others constantly ponder the words: "Lest he snatch you away and there be no one to deliver you" (Ps. 49:22). All race, but only one receives the prize without effort.
Someone who has made progress is at work not only when awake but also when he is asleep. Some, therefore, even in sleep show their contempt for the demons who approach them, and urge chastity on the wanton women of their imaginings. On the other hand, do not be on the lookout for these visitations, preparing for them in advance, because the condition of stillness is essentially simple and free.
Anyone planning to construct a tower and cell of stillness will first begin the job by sitting down to count the cost. He will feel his way by prayer. He will ponder whether he has within himself what it takes to complete the task, and he will be careful not to lay the foun- dations and then prove a joke to his enemies and a hindrance to others who labor (cf. Luke 14:28-30).
Pay careful attention to whatever sweetness there may be in your soul, in case it has been concocted by cruel and crafty physicians.
You should spend most of the night in prayer and only what is left of it in psalmody. And during the day prepare yourself as best you can.
Light and recollection come to the mind by way of reading the Scriptures. The words are those of the Holy Spirit, and they provide guidance to the readers. Let your reading be a preliminary to action, since you are a doer (cf. James 1:22). Put the words into practice, and then further reading will be unnecessary. Try to be enlightened by the words of salvation through your labors and not from books. And until you have acquired spiritual power, do not read works that have
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various levels of meaing'^^ since, being obscure, they may bring dark- ness over the weak.
A single cup is sufficient to reveal the flavor of a wine, and a sin- gle word from a hesychast can reveal to those with taste his whole in- ner condition and activity.
Let the soul's eye be ever on the watch for conceit, since nothing else can produce such havoc.
Once outside your cell, watch your tongue, for the fruits of many labors can be scattered in a moment.
Stay away from what does not concern you, for curiosity can de- file stillness as nothing else can.
When people visit you, offer them what they need for body and spirit. If they happen to be wiser than we are, then let our own si- lence reveal our wisdom. If they are brothers who share with us the same type of life, we should open the door of speech to them in prop- er measure. Best of all, however, is to deem everyone our superior.
I would have liked to forbid novices to engage in any toil during times of vigil in common. But I demurred because of the monk who all night carried sand in his cloak.i^^
Doctrine tells of the holy, uncreated, and adorable Trinity. And there is a contrast here with what is said about the providential incar- nation of One of the Persons of the hymned Trinity. What is plural in the Trinity is single in Him. What there is single is plural here. ^3° Similarly, some practices are appropriate for the way of stillness, and others for those living in obedience.
The divine Apostle said: "Who has known the mind of the Lord?" (Rom. 1 1:34). I will say:"Who has known the mind of the man who is a hesychast in body and spirit?"
Wealth and numerous subjects constitute the power of a king. Abundance of prayer constitutes the power of the hesychast.
12«. I.e., works i>f an iillegorieal nature, for which spiritual discernim-m is tn*f sary in order u> penelrate !o ilic true meaning.
\19. riic yoimn l';iclioiiiiii,s wu.s thus trained liy hi.s abha, Palanupii, Iti sUv iiwilkf during vigil.s (th(»ii(fh in tan ihcy i-iirricil the sand in baskets): I'ai-tioninis, i iin I'lima, ) 6; Kijswi'Vile, I'ltiiv I'liirum, )>. I I f ,
I ii>. In the rnnily there itr I'erson but two rialnreH.
27J
Step 28
ON PRAYER
Prayer is by nature a dialog and a union of man with God. Its effect is to hold the world together. It achieves a reconciliation with God,
Prayer is the mother and daughter of tears. It is an expiation of sin, a bridge across temptation, a bulwark against affliction. It wipes out conflict, is the work of angels, and is the nourishment of all bodi- less beings. Prayer is future gladness, action without end, wellspring of virtues, source of grace, hidden progress, food of the soul, enlight- enment of the mind, an axe against despair, hope demonstrated, sor- row done away with. It is wealth for monks, treasure of hermits, anger diminished. It is a mirror of progress, a demonstration of suc- cess, evidence of one's condition, the future revealed, a sign of glory. For the man who really prays it is the court, the judgment hall, the tribunal of the Lord — and this prior to the judgment that is to come.
Let us arise and pay heed to what that holy queen of the virtues cries out to us in a loud voice, saying: " 'Come to me, all of you who labor and are weighed down, and I will give you rest. 1 ake upon yourselves my yoke, and you will find rest for your souls' (.Matt: 11:28-29), and a balm for the blows that fall on you. 'For my yoke is easy' (ibid. 30) and is a remedy for great sins."
Those of us wishing to stand before our King and God and to speak with Him should not rush into this without some preparation, lest it should happen that — seeing us from afar without arms and
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THE LADDER OF DIVINE ASCKN F
without the dress appropriate to those who appear before ttu- King- He should command His servants and His slaves to lay hold of us, lo drive us out of His sight, to tear up our petitions and to throw tlu-tn in our faces.
When you set out to appear before the Lord, let the garment of your soul be woven throughout with the thread of wrongs no longer remembered. Otherwise, prayer will be useless to you,
Pray in all simplicity. The publican and the prodigal son were reconciled to God by a single utterance.
The attitude of prayer is the same for all, but there are many kinds of prayer and many different prayers. Some talk and deal with God as with a friend and master, lifting their praises and their re- quests to Him not for themselves but for others. Some look for great- er spiritual treasures and glory and for greater assurance in their prayers. Some beg to be freed entirely from their adversary. Some look for rank and others for relief from all their debts. Some seek free- dom from gaol or for charges against them to be dropped.
But heartfelt thanksgiving should have first place in our book of prayer. Next should be confession and genuine contrition of soul. After that should come our request to the universal King. This meth- od of prayer is best, as one of the brothers was told by an angel of the Lord.
If you ever found yourself having to appear before a human judge, you may use that as an example of how to conduct yourself in prayer. Perhaps you have never stood before a judge nor witnessed a cross-examination. In that case, take your cue from the way patients appeal to surgeons prior to an operation or a cautery.
In your prayers there is no need for high-flown words, for it is the simple and unsophisticated babblings of children that have more often won the heart of the Father in heaven.
Try not to talk excessively in your prayer, in case your mind is distracted by the search for words. One word from the publican suf- ficed to placate God, and a single utterance saved the thief. lalkativc prayer frequently distracts the mind and deludes it, whereas bre- vity'-^' makes for concentration.
If it happens that, as you pray, some word evokes dclijjln or f«»
HI, (;k moniiliifim, \x ilmrl |iiiiyi.TH (j) vnrlcd I'limcm. Mri- llic l'li viii (l'^72), i-o], nil.
37!
JOHN CLIMACUS
morse within you, linger over it; for at that moment our guardian an- gel is praying with us.
However pure you may be, do not be forward in your dealings with God. Approach Him rather in all humihty, and you will be giv- en still more boldness. And even if you have climbed the whole lad- der of the virtues, pray still for the forgiveness of sins. Heed Paul's cry regarding sinners "of whom 1 am the first" (1 Tim. 1:15).
Oil and salt are the condiments of food; chastity and tears give flight to prayer.
If you are clothed in gentleness and in freedom from anger, you will find it no trouble to free your mind from captivity.
Until we have acquired true prayer, we are like those who intro- duce children to walking.
Make the effort to raise up, or rather, to enclose your mind with- in the words of your prayer; and if, like a child, it gets tired and fal- ters, raise it up again. The mind, after all, is naturally unstable, but the God Who can do everything can also give it firm endurance. Per- severe in this, therefore, and do not grow weary; and He Who sets a boundary to the sea of the mind will come to you too during your prayer and will say, "Thus far you shall come, and no farther" (Job 38:11). Spirit cannot be bound, but where He is found everything yields to the Creator of spirit.
If you have ever seen the Sun, you will be able to converse with Him in an appropriate way. But if you have not, then how can you truly talk to Him?
The beginning of prayer is the expulsion of distractions from the very start by a single thought;'^^ the middle stage is the concentra- tion on what is being said or thought; its conclusion is rapture in the Lord.
Prayer brings one sort of joy to those living in community, and another to those praying in stillness. Elation is sometimes characteris- tic of the former, but humility is always to be found in the latter.
If you are careful to train your mind never to wander, it will stay by you even at mealtimes. But if you allow it to stray freely, then you will never have it beside you. "I would prefer to speak five words with my understanding" (1 Cor. 14:19) and so on, says the mighty practitioner of great and high prayer. But prayer of this sort is for- eign to infant souls, and so because of our imperfection we need
132. Gk monologistos, which may mean "by a repeated short prayer."
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THE LADDER OF DIVINE ASCEN I
quantity as well as quality in the words of our prayer, the former making a way for the latter, in accordance with the saying about giv- ing prayer to him who prays resolutely, albeit impurely and labori- ously (cf. 1 Kings [1 Sam.] 2:9).
There is a difference between the tarnish of prayer, it disappear- ance, the robbery of it, and its defilement. Prayer is tarnished when we stand before God, our minds seething with irrelevancies. It disap- pears when we are led off into useless cares. It is robbed when our thoughts stray without our realization of the fact. And it is defiled when we are in any way under attack.
If we happen not to be alone at the time of prayer, let us form within ourselves the demeanor of someone who prays. But if the ser- vants of praise are not sharing our company, we may openly put on the appearance of those at prayer. For among the weak, the mind of- ten conforms to the body.
Total contrition is necessary for everyone, but particularly for those who have come to the King to obtain forgiveness of their sins. While we are still in prison, let us listen to him who told Peter to put on the garment of obedience, to shed his own wishes, and, having been stripped of them, to come close to the Lord in prayer, seeking only His will (cf. Acts 12:8). Then you will receive the God Who takes the helm of your soul and pilots you safely.
Rise from love of the world and love of pleasure. Put care aside, strip your mind, refuse your body. Prayer, after all, is a turning away from the world, visible and invisible. What have I in heaven? Noth- ing. What have I longed for on earth besides You? Nothing except simply to cling always to You in undistracted prayer. Wealth pleases some, glory others, possessions others, but what I want is to cling to God and to put the hopes of my dispassion in Him (cf. Ps. 72:25, 28).
Faith gives wings to prayer, and without it no one can fly up- ward to heaven.
Those of us who are swept by passion must ceaselessly pray to the Lord, for all the passionate have advanced from passion to dispas- sion.
Even if the judge has no fear of God, yet because a soul widowed from God by sin and by a fall disturbs Him, He will take revenge on the body, the soul's adversary, and on the spirits who dccliirc wur on her (cf. Luke 18:1-7).
Our good Redeemer, by .tpccdily granting whai is uNkni, drttwi to His love those who arc ^rutcrul. But He kccp.s iiii|{riticliil miiilii
J77
JOHN CLIMACUS
praying a long time before Him, hungering and thirsting for what they want, since a badly trained dog rushes off as soon as it is given bread and leaves the giver behind.
After a long spell of prayer, do not say that nothing has been gained, for you have already achieved something. For, after all, what higher good is there than to cling to the Lord and to persevere in un- ceasing union with Him?
A convicted man does not fear his sentence as much as a zealous man the time of prayer. So if he is shrewd and sensible, he will re- member this and will therefore be able to avoid reproach, anger, anxi- ety, concerns, affliction, satiety, temptation, and distractions.
Get ready for your set time of prayer by unceasing prayer in your soul. In this way, you will soon make progress. I have observed that those who were outstanding in obedience and who tried as far as possible to keep in mind the thought of God were in full control of their minds and wept copiously as soon as they stood in prayer, for holy obedience had prepared them for this.
One can be held back and distracted by the singing of psalms in a congregation. This does not happen when one is a solitary. However, despondency can assail the latter, while in the former situation the brethren can give help by their zeal.
War reveals the love of a soldier for his king, and the time and practice of prayer show up a monk's love for God. So your prayer shows where you stand. Indeed, theologians say that prayer is a monk's mirror.
Someone who is occupied with some task and continues with it at the hour of prayer is being fooled by the demons, for these thieves aim to steal one hour after another from us.
Do not refuse a request to pray for the soul of another, even when you yourself lack the gift of prayer. For often the very faith of the person making the request will evoke the saving contrition of the one who is to offer the prayer.
Do not become conceited when you have prayed for others and have been heard, for it is their faith which has been active and effica- cious.
A child is examined each day without fail regarding what he has learned from his teacher. And it is reasonable to ask that there be a reckoning of each prayer we have undertaken, in order that we may have an idea of the power we have received from God. You should set- to this. And when you have prayed soberly, you will soon have lo
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THE LADDER OF DIVINE ASCEN I
cope with bouts of ill temper, something our enemies aim for.
Every virtuous act we do — and this is particularly true of prayer — should be done with great sensitivity. A soul prays with sen- sitivity when it has overcome anger.
Whatever is obtained as a result of long and persistent prayer will remain.
When a man has found the Lord, he no longer has to use words when he is praying, for the Spirit Himself ^vill intercede for him with groans that cannot be uttered (cf. Rom. 8:26).
Do not form sensory images during prayer, for distraction will certainly follow.
The confident expectation of gaining that for which one is beg- ging will show up during prayer. Confidence is doubt absent. Confi- dence is proof of the uncertain.
If prayer is a matter of concern to you, then show yourself to be merciful. Monks will receive a hundredfold if they are merciful, and they will receive everything else in the life to come.
When fire comes to dwell in the heart it resurrects prayer; and after prayer has been revived and taken up into heaven, a descent of fire takes place into the upper chamber of the soul.
Some claim that prayer is better than the remembrance of death. But for my part, my praise goes out to the two natures in one per- son. '^^
When a good horse is mounted, it warms up and quickens its pace. The singing of psalms is the pace and a determined mind is the horse. It scents the battle from afar, is ready for it, and dominates the scene.
It would be very wrong to snatch water from the mouth of a thirsty person. Worse, however, is the case of a soul that is praying with compunction and is snatched away from its task before it has completed its longed-for prayer.
Do not stop praying as long as, by God's grace, the fire and the water have not been exhausted, ^^"^ for it may happen that never again in your whole life will you have such a chance to ask for the forgive- ness for your sins.
A man with ;i taste for prayer may defile his mind with our cure
I iiiillv iiM t
I.H, Ic , il^ lixi^ •>'• trrviii' iiml li'iiii I'CiDiiln
27y
JOHN CLIMACUS
less word, and then at prayer he will not get what he wants in the way he used to.
To keep a regular watch over the heart is one thing; to guard the heart by means of the mind is another for the mind is the ruler and high priest offering spiritual sacrifices to Christ, When heaven's holy fire lays hold of the former, it burns them because they still lack puri- fication. This is what one of those endowed with the title of Theolo- gian tells us.'-''^ But as for the latter, it enlightens them in proportion to the perfection they have achieved. It is one and the same fire that is called that which consumes (cf. Heb. 12:29) and that which illumi- nates (cf. John 1:9). Hence the reason why some emerge from prayer as from a blazing furnace and as though having been relieved of all material defilements. Others come forth as if they were resplendent with light and clothed in a garment of joy and of humility. But as for those who emerge without having experienced either of these effects, I would say that they have prayed in a bodily, not to say a Jewish, manner, and not spiritually.
A body changes in its activity as a result of contact with another body. How therefore could there be no change in someone who with innocent hands has touched the Body of God?'^^
We may note that our all-good King, like some earthly monarch, sometimes distributes His gifts to His soldiers Himself, sometimes through a friend or a slave, and sometimes in a hidden way. But cer- tainly it will be in accordance with the garment of humility worn by each of us.
A man stands before an earthly monarch. But he turns his face away and talks to the enemies of the king, and the king will be of- fended. In the same way, the Lord will be offended by someone who at prayer time turns away toward unclean thoughts. So if the dog keeps coming, drive him off with a stick and never give in to him, however much he may persist.
Ask with tears, seek with obedience, knock with patience. For .so it goes that he "who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened" (Matt. 7:8).
In your prayers be careful not to beg too much on behalf of the
135. St. Gregory of Na/.ianzus: cf. Or. 21, 2 (PG 35. 1084D).
136. I.e., how are we not transformed by receiving the Body of Chri.si in 1 Inly Communion-
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THE LADDER OF DIVINE ASCENT
opposite sex, for the enemy may come at you from the unprotectcti side.''"
Do not insist on confessing your carnal acts in detail, since you might become a traitor to yourself.
The hour of prayer is no time for thinking over necessities, nor even spiritual tasks, because you may lose the better part (cf. Luke 10:42).
Hold on to the staff of prayer and you will not fall. And even a fall will not be fatal, since prayer is a devout coercion of God (cf. Luke 18:5).
The value of prayer can be guessed from the way the demons at- tack us during services in church, and its fruit may be inferred from the victory over the enemy. "By this I know You are on my side be- cause the enemy will not come to gloat over me" (Ps. 40:12) in the hour of battle. "I cried out with all my heart," said the psalmist (Ps. 118:145). He is referring to body, soul, and spirit, and where the last two are gathered, God is in the midst of them (cf. Matt. 18:20).
We are not all the same, either in bo/Iy or soul. Some profit from singing the psalms quickly, others from doing so slowly, the one fighting distraction, the others coping with ignorance.
If you are always in dialog with the King in regard to your ene- mies, take heart whenever they attack you. A long struggle will not be necessary for you, for they will soon give up of their own accord. These unholy beings are afraid that you may earn a crown as a result of your battle against them through prayer, and besides, when scourged by prayer they will run away as though from a fire.
Always be brave, and God will teach you your prayer.
You cannot learn to see just because someone tells you to do so. For that, you require your own natural power of sight. In the same \vay, you cannot discover from the teaching of others the beauty of prayer. Prayer has its own special teacher in God, who "teaches man knowledge" (Ps. 93:10). He grants the prayer of him who prays. And He blesses the years of the just.
H7. 1. 1-., from ihc suU- o1 llir Hrii|Miii l])raycr) rather ihiiii (iipiii tdi" ■iIiIp n) \\w
shit-Id lascesis).
3(11
Step 29
ON DISPASSION
So here we are, stuck in the deepest pit of ignorance, in the dark passions of the body, in death's shadow, and still we have the temerity to hold forth on the subject of heaven on earth!
Stars adorn the skies and dispassion has the virtues to make it beautiful. By dispassion I mean a heaven of the mind within the heart, which regards the artifice of demons as a contemptible joke. A man is truly dispassionate — and is known to be such — when he has cleansed his flesh of all corruption; when he has lifted his mind above everything created, and has made it master of all the senses; when he keeps hi.s soul continually in the presence of the Lord and reaches out beyond the borderline of strength to Him. And there are some who would claim that dispassion is resurrection of the soul prior to that of the body, while others would insist that it is a perfect knowledge of God, a knowledge second only to that of the angels.
Dispassion is an uncompleted perfection of the perfect. I have been told this by someone who has tasted it. Its effect is to sanctify the mind and to detach it from material things, and it does so in such a way that, after entering this heavenly harbor, a man, for most of his earthly life, is enraptured, like someone already in heaven, and he is lifted up to the contemplation of God. Someone with an experience of this says, finely, somewhere that "God's mighty ones of the earth have become greatly exalted" (Ps. 46:10); and such a man, as wc hap-
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THE LADDER OF DIVINE ASCEN'l
pen to know, was that Egyptian^^^ who joined others in lengthy prayer and held out his hands without ever resting them.
One man is dispassionate, another is more dispassionate than ihc dispassionate.'-'''' The one will loathe evil while the other will have the blessing of an inexhaustible store of virtues. Purity is also said to be dispassion, and this is right, for it is a foretaste of the general res- urrection and of the incorruption of the corruptible. A dispassionate man was he who said that he had the mind of the Lord (cf 1 Cor. 2:16), and the same is true of the Egyptian'*" who asserted that he was no longer afraid of the Lord. Similar too was the man who prayed that his passions might return to him.'''^' Has anyone been granted so much dispassion prior to the coming glory as that Syrian?'*^ David, the most glorious of the prophets, says to the Lord: "Spare me so that I may recover my strength" (Ps. 38:14); but the athlete of God''*-' cries: "Spare me from the waves of Your grace."
A dispassionate soul is immersed in virtues as a passionate being is in pleasure.
If the height of gluttony is that you force yourself to eat even when you are not hungry, then the height of temperance in a hungry man is that he restrains even the justifiable urges of nature. If the height of lechery is that one raves even over animals and over inani- mate things, then the height of purity is to look on everyone in the same way that one would regard inanimate objects. If the ultimate stage of cupidity is to gather without ever being satisfied, the ultimate stage of poverty is the willingness to dispense with one's own body. If the final point of despondency is to have no patience even when liv- ing in total peace, the final point of patience is to consider oneself to be at rest even in the midst of affliction. If to be furious even in soli- tude is talked of as a sea of wrath, then calmness, whether your slan- derer be present or not, will be a sea of long-suffering. If the high
138. Abba Tithoes: The Sayings of the Desert Fathers, Tithoes 1 .
!39. The man who is dispassionate, says scholion 3 (I1J3B), i.s unnttachcd (n things; the man who is more than dispassionate is unattached even to the rfnicinliriiiH'c of thing,s.
14(1. Si. AtiKinv ihi-(;rcat: The Sayings of ihe Desert Fathers, Aniony tlu-Cii'cal M,
141. Si. John Kolovos (ihr Dwarf): !he Sayings of the Desert iathers, |i>liii ilir Dm ntf
142. Si. Kfilwiiiin the Synun
143. St. KphriiiiM thr Synmi
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JOHN CLIMACUS
point of vainglory is for a person to put on airs even when no one is present to praise him, the sure proof of its absence is that you keep your thoughts under control when someone is praising you to your face. If it is a sign of perdition, that is pride, to be arrogant even vi'hen poorly dressed, then surely amid high doings and great success lowly thoughts betoken saving humility. If complete enslavement to passion is indicated by the fact that one quickly submits to whatever the de- mons have sown in us, I take it then that a mark of holy dispassion is to be able to say unambiguously; "I did not recognize the evil one as he slipped away from me" (Ps, 100:4), nor did I know the time of his coming, the reasons for it, nor how he went. I am completely un- aware of such matters because I am and will ever be wholly united with God.
The man deemed worthy to be of this sort during his lifetime has God always within him, to guide him in all he has to say or do or think. The will of the Lord becomes for him a sort of inner voice through illumination. All human teaching is beneath him. " 'When shall I come to appear before the face of God?' " he says (Ps. 41:3). "I can no longer endure the force of love. I long for the undying beauty that You gave me before this clay."
What more has to be said? The dispassionate man no longer lives himself, but it is Christ Who lives in him (cf. Gal. 2:20). This is what we are told by the man who fought the good fight, completed the course, and stayed with the faith (cf. 2 Tim. 4:7).
Just as a royal crown is not made up of one stone, so dispassion is incomplete if we neglect even one of the most ordinary virtues.
Think of dispassion as a kind of celestial palace, a palace of the King of heaven. Think of the numerous mansions (cf. John 14:2) as so many dwelling places within this city. Think of the forgiveness of sins as being the fortifying wall of this Jerusalem. O my brothers, we should run to enter the bridal chamber of this palace, and if some bur- den of past habits or the passage of time should impede us, what a di- saster for us! Let us at least take up residence in one of the mansions near the bridal chamber. But if we begin to falter or weaken, we ought to ensure that at least we are inside the walls, since the man who does not get there before the end, who does not climb that wall, must camp out in the desert.'** This is the reason for the prayer of the man who said: "By my God I will climb a wall" (Ps. 17:30). An-
144. HTM adds: "of fiends and passions.'
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THE LADDER OF DIVINE ASCEN I
other, as if in the person of God Himself, says: "Is it not your sins that separate you and Me?" (Isa. 59:2).
Friends, let us break through this wall of separation (cf. Eph. 2:14), this wall that in our disobedience we built to our own harrri. Let us look there for the forgiveness of our sins, since there is no one in hell who can pardon us. Brothers, let us commit ourselves to this, for our names are on the lists of the devout. There must be no talk of "a lapse," "there is no time," or "a burden." To everyone who has re- ceived the Lord in baptism,'*^ "He has given the power to become children of God" (John 1:12). " 'Be still and know that I am God' (Ps. 45:11) and am Dispassion," He says. To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen.
Blessed dispassion raises the poor mind from earth to heaven, raises the beggar from the dunghill of passion. And love, all praise to it, makes him sit with princes, that is with holy angels, and with the princes of God's people (cf. Ps. 112:7-8).
I4.i, Liu-rally: "m il>'- ''■iil> ')'' FfKiMirTotlon," n .'inindnrH jiiitriitlc nvnunvm fur t*«(t
211
Step 30
ON FAITH, HOPE, AND LOVE
And now at last, after all that has been said, there remains that triad, faith, hope, and love, binding and securing the union of all. "But the greatest of these is love" (1 Cor. 13:13), since that is the very name of God Himself (cf. 1 John 4:8). To me they appear, one as a ray, one as light, and one as a disk,'*^ and all as a single radiance and a single splendor. The first can make and create all things, the mercy of God encircles the second and keeps it from confusion, while the third never falls, never halts on its way, never gives respite to the man wounded by its blessed rapture.
The man who wants to talk about love is undertaking to speak about God. But it is risky to talk about God and could even be dan- gerous for the unwary. Angels know how to speak about love, but even they do so only in proportion to the light within them.
"God is love" (1 John 4:16). But someone eager to define this is blindly striving to measure the sand in the ocean.
Love, by its nature, is a resemblance to God, insofar as this is hu- manly possible. In its activity it is inebriation of the soul. Its distinc- tive character is to be a fountain of faith, an abyss of patience, a sea of humility.
Love is the banishment of every sort of contrariness, for love thinks no evil.
14Ci. A comniiin image among the Feathers to express tin' iiiiilv oC ilu- IViniiy.
286
THE LADDER OF DIVINE ASCENT
Love, dispassion, and adoption are distinguished by name, and name only. Light, fire, and flame join to fashion one activity. So too with love, dispassion, and adoption.
Fear shows up if ever love departs, for the man with no fear is either filled with love or is dead in spirit.
There is nothing wrong about offering human analogies for longing, fear, concern, zeal, service, and love of God. Lucky the man who loves and longs for God as a smitten lover does for his beloved. Lucky the man whose fear of God is in no way less than the fear of the accused in front of a judge. Lucky the man who is caught up with the zeal of loyal slaves toward their owner. Lucky the man who is as passionately concerned with the virtues as a jealous husband watch- ing over his wife. Lucky the man who prays before God like a court- ier before the king. Lucky the man who strives without end to please the Lord as others try to please men.
Not even a mother clings to her nursing child as a son of love clings to the Lord at all times.
Someone truly in love keeps before his mind's eye the face of the beloved and embraces it there tenderly. Even during sleep the long- ing continues unappeased, and he murmurs to his beloved. That is how it is for the body. And that is how it is for the spirit. A man wounded by love had this to say about himself — and it really amazes me — "I sleep (because nature commands this) but my heart is awake (because of the abundance of my love)" (Song of Songs 5:2). You should take note, my brother, that the stag,''*^ which is the soul, de- stroys reptiles and then, inflamed by love, as if struck by an arrow, '^^ it longs and grows faint for the love of God (cf. Ps. 41:1).
The impact of hunger is not always obvious, but thirst has a defi- nite and clear effect. It reveals to all the presence of a fever. Hence someone who yearns for God has this to say: "My soul is thirsty for God, for the mighty and living God" (cf. Ps. 41:3).
If the sight of the one we love clearly makes us change complete- ly, so that we turn cheerful, glad, and carefree, what will the face of the Lord Himself not do as He comes to dwell, invisibly, in a pun- soul?
When fear arises from the deeper reaches of the soul, ii ilcNiroyN
H7. Sec [lolf KC, ]. .'.'(!
14H. Or: "venom"
387
JOHN CLIMACUS
and devours impurity. "Nait down my flesh with fear of You" {Ps. 118:120). So it is said.
Holy love has a way of consuming some. This is what is meant by the one who said, "You have ravished our hearts, ravished them" (Song of Songs 4:9). And it makes others bright and overjoyed, In this regard it has been said: "My heart was full of trust and I was helped, and my flesh has revived" (Ps. 27:7). For when the heart is cheerful, the face beams (cf. Prov. 15:13), and a man flooded'*' with the love of God reveals in his body, as if in a mirror, the splendor of his soul, a glory like that of Moses when he came face to face with God (cf. Exod. 34:29-35).
Men who have attained this angelic state often forget to eat, and I really think they do not even miss their food. No wonder, since an opposite desire drives out the very wish to eat, and indeed I suspect that the bodies of these incorruptible men are immune to sickness, for their bodies have been sanctified and rendered incorruptible by the flame of chastity which has put out the flame. i^° My belief is that they accept without any pleasure the food set out in front of them, for just as subterranean waters nourish the roots of a plant, the fires of heaven are there to sustain their souls.
The growth of fear is the starting point of love, and total purity is the foundation for theology.'^'
When a man's senses are perfectly united to God, then what God has said is somehow mysteriously clarified. But where there is no union of this kind, then it is extremely difficult to speak about God.
The consubstantiaP^^ Word brings purity to completion, and His presence destroys death, and when death is done away with, the disciple of sacred knowledge is illuminated. The Word of the Lord, being from the Lord, remains eternally pure.
The man who does not know God speaks about Him only in probabilities.
Purity makes of a disciple someone who can speak of God, and he can move on to a knowledge of the Trinity.
He who loves the Lord has first loved his brother, for the latter is proof of the former. Someone who loves his neighbor will never tol-
149. Literally: "somewhat commingled."
150. I.e., of the passions.
151. The knowledge of God from experience rather than from study. 1.52. Or; "the indwelling Word" (cnousios).
288
THE LADDER OF DIVINE ASCEN T
erate slanderers and will run from them as though from a fire. And the man who claims to love the Lord but is angry with his neighbor is like someone who dreams he is running.
Hope is the power behind love. Hope is what causes us to look forward to the reward of love. Hope is an abundance of hidden trea- sure. It is the abundant assurance of the riches in store for us. It is a rest from labor, a doorway of love. It lifts despair and is the image of what is not yet present. When hope fails, so does love. Struggles are bound by it, labors depend on it, and mercy lies all around it. The hopeful monk slays despondency, kills it with his sword. Hope comes from the experience of the Lord's gifts, and someone with no such ex- perience must be ever in doubt. Hope is destroyed by anger, for hope does not disappoint and the angry man has no grace.
Love grants prophecy, miracles. It is an abyss of illumination, a fountain of fire, bubbling up to inflame the thirsty soul. It is the con- dition of angels, and the progress of eternity.
Most beautiful of all the virtues, tell us where you feed your flock, where you take your noonday rest (of. Song of Songs 1:7). En- lighten us, end our thirst, lead us, show us the way, since we long to soar up to you. You rule everything, and now you have enraptured my soul. I am unable to hold in your flame, and therefore I will go forward praising you. "You rule the power of the sea, you make gen- tle (and deaden) the surge of its waves. You make humble the proud thought as a wounded man. With your powerful arm you have scat- tered your enemies" (cf. Ps. 88:9-10), and you have made your lovers invincible.
I long to know how Jacob saw you fixed above the ladder (cf. Gen. 28:12). That climb, how was it? Tell me, for I long to know. What is the mode, what is the law joining together those steps that the lover has set as an ascent in his heart? (cf. Ps. 83:6). I thirst to know the number of those steps, and the time required to climb them. He who discovered Your struggle and Your vision has spoken to us of the guides. But he would not — perhaps he could not — tell us any more.
This empress,'''-' as if coming from heaven, spoke thus iti tny soul's hearing: "My love, you will never be able to knt>w how bcauti-
15-1. I.e., love. HIM iiiliK "ih I iliiiit I iiii).;lii properly ■^■w Kiinj" I* f> (ioiH
2K9
ful 1 am unless you get away from the grossness of the flesh. So let this ladder teach you the spiritual union of the virtues. And I am there on the summit, for as the great man said, a man who knew me well: 'Remaining now are faith, hope, and love, these three. But love is the greatest of them all' (1 Cor. 13:13)."
2')0
A BRIEF SUMMARY AND EXHORTATION
Ascend, my brothers, ascend eagerly.. Let your hearts' resolve be to climb. Listen to the voice of the one who says: "Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of our God" (Isa. 2:3), Who makes our feet to be like the feet of the deer, "Who sets us on the high places, that we may be triumphant on His road" (Hab. 3:I9).i5'*
Run, I beg you, run with him who said, "Let us hurry until we all arrive at the unity of faith and of the knowledge of God, at mature manhood, at the measure of the stature of Christ's fullness" (Eph. 4:13). Baptized in the thirtieth year of His earthly age, Christ attained the thirtieth step on the spiritual ladder, for God indeed is love, and to Him be praise, dominion, power. In Him is the cause, past, pres- ent, and future, of all that is good forever and ever. Amen.
154. iikiijii. 11 TM rnids "with Mn voti((" (w/r) ■[he ic\iiii rciTiHin nl lUli 1 IM It oJi but SinmtiiMi.s, k'liiii pniiiu, liin ih/h
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