476. A brother asked Abbâ Poemen, saying, “What is the repentance of sins?” And he said unto him, “The repentance of sins consisteth in a man not committing the sin again from the moment wherein he repenteth of it; and on account of this the righteous were called ‘spotless,’ and because they had forsaken [their] sins, and had cleansed themselves from them.”
477. And another brother also asked him, saying, “Shew me a word whereby I may live”; and the old man said unto him, “The first thing of all which the fathers have given us [to do] is to mourn.”
478. Abbâ Poemen used to say, “The passions are four heads”; and a brother said unto him, “What are they?” The old man said unto him, “Worldly grief which cometh about many things, the love of money, vainglory, and fornication; and it is meet that we should be on the watch against these before all other passions.”
479. He said also, “If a monk hateth two things he is able to free himself from the world, and these are,” said he, “the gratifications of the body, and vainglory.”
480. The same old man also said, “Wrath is a natural thing in man, it is his nature, but it must be used to cut off evil passions. Hunger is natural in a man, but it must be employed [in satisfying] the want of the body, and not [to gratify] the feeling of eager lust [to eat], even as the blessed David said, ‘With him whose eye is lofty and whose heart is greedy I have not eaten’ (Psalm ci, 5; cxxxi, 1). Sleep too is natural in man, but [it must not be indulged] to satiety.”
481. A brother asked Abbâ Poemen, saying, “Tell me, why it is that when I offer repentance to a brother who is wroth with me I do not see him pleased with me?” The old man said unto him, “Tell me truly: when thou offerest to him repentance hast thou not the opinion that thou art not doing it because thou hast sinned against him, but because of the commandment?” And the brother said unto him, “It is even thus.” The old man said unto him, “Because of this God doth not permit him to be pleased with thee, and because thou dost not offer repentance to him in fulfilment of thine own desire, but as if thou hadst not sinned against him, but he had sinned against thee.”
482. They used to say that when the disciples of Abbâ Agathon were building a cell he remained with them for a period of four months, and when they had finished it, on the first Sabbath on which they dwelt in it, the old man saw in it something which did not afford him profit, and he said unto his disciples, “Arise, let us go away from here.” And when they heard [this], they were greatly troubled, and they answered and said unto him, “If thou hadst this thought to depart, why have we done all this work and built the cell? Moreover, men will be offended with us, and will say, ‘They have left this place because they can abide nowhere.’” Now when the old man saw that their souls were grieved, he said unto them, “If some men be offended at us, there are others who will be edified by us, and they will say, ‘These blessed men departed for God’s sake, and they considered nothing [else].’ However, let him that wisheth to come with me come, for I shall certainly depart.” Then they threw themselves on the ground, and entreated him to let them go with him.
483. Abbâ Agathon also used to say, “The monk’s cloak is a sign of the absence of wickedness”; and he also said, “God asketh from those who begin the service of the works of the fear of God nothing except that they shall order their bodies by obedience to the commandments against the passions of the lusts.”
484. Abbâ Agathon also said, “He who removeth from before his eyes accusations, and disgrace (or insult), and loss (or belittlement) is able to live.”
485. A brother said unto Abbâ Agathon, “Father, I had the order to dwell in a certain place, and I have war there, and I want to depart; I would fulfil the command, but I am afraid of the war.” The old man said unto him, “If it were Agathon, he would keep the command, and overcome the war.”
486. The same old man also said, “If the inner man be watchful he will be able to guard the outer man also; but if he be not, let us guard the tongue by every means in our power.”
487. The old man Benjamin was asked by a brother, “Of what consisteth the life of a monk?” And he answered and said, “A mouth of truth, a holy body, and a pure heart.”
488. They used to say concerning a certain old man that, on account of the great humility which he possessed, God gave him the gift of becoming a seer of visions, and he could see beforehand when anyone was coming to him, and it was revealed to him concerning it; now the old man was sorry and did not wish for this thing, and he made supplication unto God that it might be taken away from him. And he went to an old Rabbâ, and entreated him, saying, “My brother, labour for me, so that this gift may be removed from me”; then each of them sat down in his cell and made entreaty unto God concerning this matter, and a voice was heard by that old man, saying, “Behold, I remove the gift from thee, but whensoever thou wishest it is thine.” And he went straightway to the old Rabbâ and shewed him what had been said unto him, and when he heard [it] he gave thanks unto God.
489. The fathers once asked Abbâ Sylvanus, saying, “What work of ascetic excellence hast thou performed that thou didst receive the wisdom which thou dost possess, and the gift with which is endowed thy face?” And the old man answered and said unto them with great humility, “[I received these things] because I never left in my heart a thought which could provoke God to wrath.” And they used to say that the face of the old man Sylvanus shone so brightly, even as did the face of Moses, with the glorious splendour which he had received from God, that no man was able to look upon it with his eyes wide open.
490. Zeno, the disciple of Abbâ Sylvanus, said on a certain occasion, “Dwell not in a place which is famous, and abide not with a man who hath a great name for ascetic excellence.”
491. One of the brethren asked an old Rabbâ, saying, “Abbâ, what shall I do? For whensoever I see the face of a woman the war of fornication is stirred up against me.” And the old man answered and said, “My son, guard thine eyes against looking on a woman, and behold, henceforth thou wilt have no fear.” The brother said unto him, “Behold, how very often doth a man meet women by chance, without expecting to do so!” The old man said unto him, “As far as it is possible for thee to do so keep thy watch carefully, both within and without; and as concerning that which happeneth by chance, and a man meeting women without thinking about it, [in that case] passion will have no power to bestir itself. But take good heed to thyself that such a thing doth not happen unto thee of thine own will, for it is this which the Holy Book condemneth, saying, ‘Every man who looketh upon a woman to lust after her hath already committed adultery with her in his heart.’ For if when thou art not thinking about them thou meetest women, and the passion stirreth itself up against thee, lift up thy mind immediately to God, and He will help thee.” Then wishing especially to strengthen that brother, he answered and said unto him, “Behold, my son, know thou that thou hast been with me for two years, and that I have not as yet seen what manner of face thou hast, whether it be good, or whether it be bad, and it was this [fact] which urged me to tell thee to guard thine eyes from the sight of women.” And afterwards he made a prayer over him, and sent him away to depart to the coenobium, for that brother used to dwell in the church.
492. They used to say about one of the old men that when the church was dismissed, he fled straightway and departed to his cell, and [they said] that he had a devil, but the holy man was [only] fulfilling the work of God.
493. An old man used to say, “Without prayer thou shouldst do nothing, and afterwards thou wilt not be sorry.”
494. A brother asked an old man, saying, “If I am in a clean place, and the time for service hath arrived am I to return?” The old man said unto him, “Who, when he remembereth riches, will return to poverty?”
495. The old man Theodotus used to say, “Constant hunger maketh monks to be emaciated and driveth them mad.”
496. Abbâ Daniel used to say, “Constant vigil especially drieth up and maketh the body to diminish.”
497. Abbâ Ammon asked Abbâ Sisoes, saying, “When I read in the Book my mind wisheth to arrange the words so that there may be an answer to [my] question.” The old man said unto him, “This is unnecessary, for only purity of heart [is required].” From this it ariseth that a man should speak without overmuch care.
498. Abba Theonâ used to say, “Because we put ourselves out of the sight of God we are led captive by the passions of the body.”
499. Abbâ Poemen used to say, “Temptations are a sure sign whereby a monk may be known.”
500. Abbâ Agathon once fell sick, and another of the old men with him, and as they both were lying in the cell a brother read the Book of Genesis to them; and when he came to the place where Jacob said unto his sons, “Joseph is not, and Simeon is not, and ye would take Benjamin away that ye may bring down my grey hairs with sorrow to Sheol,” the old man answered and said, “Were not the ten other sons sufficient for thee, O Jacob?” And Abbâ Agathon said, “Hold thy peace, old man, if God holdeth a man to be innocent, who shall condemn him?”
501. One of the fathers came to Abbâ Theodore of Pîrmê, and said unto him, “O father, behold, brother So-and-So hath gone back to the world.” And the old man said unto him, “Dost thou marvel at this? Wonder not at this, but be surprised when thou hearest that a man hath been able to flee wholly from the world.”
502. If a man thinketh filthy thoughts, doth he himself become defiled? Some of the old men said, “Yes, he is defiled,” and others said, “He is not defiled, for if he doth it is impossible for simple folk like ourselves to live at all; but [the truth] is that a man must not carry his filthy thoughts into deeds.”
503. A certain brother went to a strenuous and tried old man, and asked him about this matter, and the old man said unto him, “Every man is required [to do] according to his ability.” Then a brother entreated the old man, saying, “For our Lord’s sake explain these words to me.” The old man said unto him, “Behold, supposing that some very desirable thing were placed here, and that two brethren came in, one being of great stature and the other of little stature. If now the mind of him that was of full strength were to say, ‘I wish to possess that thing,’ and he did not carry his soul’s desire into effect, but straightway cut it short, the man would not be defiled; if then the man of lesser strength were to desire the thing, being incited thereto by his thoughts, and he took it not, he also would not be defiled. But, if he desiring it were to take it, he would be defiled.”
504. The old man said, “If thou seest a young man going up to heaven of his own will, lay hold upon his leg, and sweep him away therefrom; for thus will a man help him.”
505. The same old man used to say, “If thou criest unto God in prayer with a pure heart thy prayer shall not return unto thee fruitless.”
506. The same old man used to say, “As two words cannot be uttered [at the same time] by one voice, and be recognized and understood, so is it with the mixed prayer which is uttered by a man before God.”
507. He also said, “If thou seest the wings of ravens stretched out in flight, even so is the foolish prayer of the mind which is lifted up.”
508. He also said, “If thou art earnest in asking God for things, but wilt not pay back as far as thou art able, thou must hear the words, ‘Thou shalt ask and shalt not receive, because thou didst accept a loan and didst not pay it back.’”
509. He also said, “The words of the mouth of him that prayeth purely before God are a fetter wherewith he shall be able [to bind] the devils beneath his feet like a sparrow; and, as prisoners tremble before him that is their master, even so will they quake at the words of his prayer.”
510. He also said, “As the rain when it falleth upon the earth taketh the place of a key in the lock thereof, and openeth [it] and bringeth forth to sight the growth of the seeds and roots which are in it, so are the soul and the mind of him that receiveth and tasteth the heavenly droppings, for by the words of his lips shall be made known unto man his hidden conduct before God, I mean to say, that when a man’s request and entreaty about everything are made within the words of his pure prayer, he openeth the door of the treasury of the Trinity, Who is the Lord of treasures, and bringeth out therefrom the treasures which are hidden for those who are worthy of them.”
511. Concerning Abbâ Anthony they used to say:—There was a man with an unclean spirit which sought to cast him into the water, and the monks who were with Abbâ Anthony came and entreated him to pray over the man who was thus troubled, but he excused himself [from doing so]. And when the demoniac had remained with him for a long time, he smote the blessed man on his cheek, whereupon the old man made ready the other cheek; and having done this that evil spirit took to flight.
512. A brother asked Abbâ Muthues, saying, “What shall I do? for my tongue vexeth me. Whensoever I sit among the brethren I am unable to restrain myself, but I condemn them in every good work, and treat them with contempt. What shall I do, then?” The old man answered and said unto him, “If thou art not able to restrain thyself, get thee away, and stay by thyself, for this is a disease. Now, he who sitteth among the brethren must not possess four corners, but he must be altogether round, so that he may move smoothly in respect of every man.” And the old man said unto him also, “I myself do not dwell alone as an example of spiritual excellence, but as an emblem of feebleness, for mighty men are those who are among the brethren.”
513. When the brethren were talking to an old man about the thoughts they said unto him, “Our hearts are hard, and we do not fear God; what are we to do so that we may come to fear God?” The old man said unto them, “I think that if a man will lay hold in his heart upon that which rebuketh him, it will bring to him the fear of God.” And they said unto him, “What is the rebuke?” The old man said unto him, “In every act a man should rebuke his soul, and say unto it, ‘Remember that thou hast to go forth to meet God.’ And let him say also, ‘What do I seek with man?’ I think that if a man remain in these things the fear of God will come to him.”
514. Abbâ Timothy said unto a certain brother, “How art thou?” The brother said unto him, “I destroy my days, O father.” And the old man said unto him, “My son, my days also are destroyed, and I give thanks.”
515. An old man used to say, “The Shunammite woman received Elisha because she had no human promise with man; and they spoke of the Shunammite woman [as] a person of the soul, and of Elijah [as] a person of the Spirit of God; when the soul maketh itself remote from commotion and trouble, the Spirit of God abideth on it, and then it is able to bring forth, though hitherto it hath been barren.”
516. Abbâ Ammon used to say, “I said unto Abbâ Poemen, ‘If I go to my neighbour’s cell, or he cometh to mine concerning any matter whatsoever, are we two to be ashamed to speak, lest some alien subject of discourse appear between us?’ The old man said unto him, ‘Thou wilt do well, for youth hath need of care and watchfulness.’ And I said unto him, ‘What do the old men do?’ And he said unto me, ‘The old men have been skilled, and have had experience, and they have arrived at the measure for speech, for in them there is nothing alien which they can speak with the mouth.’ And I said unto him, ‘And supposing that I have the necessity to talk with a neighbour, wouldst thou that I should speak with the words of the Scriptures, or with the words of the old men?’ And he said unto me, ‘If thou art not able to hold thy peace it is better for thee to use the speech of the old men rather than that of the Scriptures, for there is danger in a man employing the speech of the Scriptures.’”