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will move the mind to contemplation, nor does it send up pure prayer; for sadness is an impediment to every good thing. A bond on the feet is an impediment to running, and sadness is an impediment to contemplation. A captive of barbarians is bound by iron, and a captive of passions is bound by sadness. Sadness does not prevail when the other passions are not present, just as a bond does not, when those who bind are not present. The one bound by sadness has been conquered by passions, and he carries the bond as proof of his defeat. For sadness consists in the failure of carnal desire; and desire is yoked to every passion. The one who has conquered desire has conquered the passions, and the one who has conquered the passions will not be overcome by sadness. The continent man is not saddened at the failure to get foods, nor the temperate man for failing in intemperate folly, nor the one free from anger for falling short of vengeance, nor the humble-minded for being deprived of human honor, nor the one free from avarice for having fallen into loss, for they have powerfully turned away from the desire for these things; for just as the armored79.1157 man does not receive a dart, so the passionless man is not wounded by sadness.

CHAPTER 12. For a soldier a shield, and for a city a wall is security; but for a monk, passionlessness

is more secure than both; for a dart borne with a whizzing sound has often pierced a shield, and a multitude of warriors has torn down a wall, but sadness will not prevail against passionlessness. The one who masters passions, has mastered sadness, but being overcome by pleasure, he will not escape its bonds. The one who is continually sad, and pretends to be passionless, is like one who is sick and feigns health; for as the sick person is revealed by his color, so the one with passions is exposed by sadness. The one who loves the world will be saddened much, but the one who despises the things in it will rejoice always. The avaricious man who suffers loss will be bitterly saddened, but the one who despises money will be without sadness. The lover of glory will be saddened when dishonor comes upon him, but the humble-minded will receive it as a companion. A furnace has purified worthless silver, and godly sorrow a heart in sins; continuous smelting reduces lead, and worldly sorrow diminishes the mind. Darkness dims the working of the eyes, and sadness dulls the contemplative mind; the sun's light does not penetrate the depth of the water, and the contemplation of light does not illuminate a sorrowful heart; the rising of the sun is pleasant to all men, but even with this a sorrowful soul is displeased. Jaundice takes away the sense of taste, and sadness takes away the soul's perception. But the one who despises the pleasures of the world will not be troubled by thoughts of sadness.

CHAPTER 13. Concerning acedia. Acedia is a listlessness of the soul, and a listlessness of the soul not

having its natural state, does not stand nobly against temptations. For what nourishment is to a healthy body, this a temptation is to a noble soul. The north wind nourishes produce, and temptations confirm the endurance of a soul. A waterless cloud is driven by the wind, and a mind not having endurance, by the spirit of acedia. Spring dew increases the fruit of the field, and a spiritual word exalts the state of the soul. The current of acedia drives a monk from his house, but the one who has endurance is at rest always. The one afflicted with acedia puts forth visits to the sick as an excuse, but he fulfills his own purpose. The monk with acedia is quick to service, and he considers his own fulfillment a commandment; a slight breeze bent a feeble plant, and a fantasy of travel has attracted the one with acedia. The force of winds did not shake a well-planted tree, and acedia79.1160 did not bend a well-supported soul. A wandering monk, a dry twig of the desert, has been quiet for a little while, and again is borne along unwillingly. A plant that is moved about does not bear fruit, and a wandering monk will not produce the fruit of virtue. The one who is sick does not

5

κινήσει τὸν νοῦν εἰς θεωρίαν, οὐδὲ προσευχὴν καθαρὰν ἀναπέμπει· παντὸς γὰρ καλοῦ ἐμπόδιόν ἐστι λύπη. ∆εσμὸς ποδῶν ἐμπόδιόν ἐστι δρόμου, καὶ λύπη ἐμπόδιον θεωρίας. Αἰχμάλωτος ἀπὸ βαρβάρων δέδεται σιδήρων, καὶ αἰχμάλωτος ἀπὸ παθῶν δέδεται λύπη. Οὐκ ἰσχύει λύπη μὴ παρόντων τῶν ἄλλων παθῶν, ὡς οὔτε δεσμὸς, μὴ παρόντων τῶν δεσμούντων. Ὁ δεδεμένος λύπῃ νενίκηται ὑπὸ παθῶν, καὶ τὸν δεσμὸν ἐπιφέρεται τῆς ἥττης τὸν ἔλεγχον. Λύπη γὰρ συνίσταται ἐπὶ ἀποτυχίᾳ ὀρέξεως σαρκικῆς· ὄρεξις δὲ παντὶ πάθει συνέζευκται. Ὁ νικήσας ὄρεξιν, ἐνίκησε πάθη, ὁ δὲ νικήσας πάθη, οὐ κρατηθήσεται ὑπὸ λύπης. Ἐγκρατὴς οὐ λυπεῖται ἐπὶ ἀποτυχίᾳ βρωμάτων, οὔτε σώφρων διαμαρτὼν ἀφροσύνης ἀκολάστου, οὐδὲ ἀόργητος, ἀποπεσὼν ἀμύνης, οὐδὲ ταπεινόφρων, στερηθεὶς ἀνθρωπίνης τιμῆς, οὐδὲ ἀφιλάργυρος, ζημίᾳ περιπεσὼν, ἐξέκλιναν γὰρ τὴν τούτων ὄρεξιν δυνατῶς· ὥσπερ γὰρ ὁ τεθωρα79.1157 κισμένος οὐ δέχεται βέλος, οὕτως ὁ ἀπαθὴς οὐ τιτρώσκεται ἀπὸ λύπης.

ΚΕΦΑΛ. ΙΒʹ. Θυρεὸς στρατιώτῃ, καὶ πόλει τεῖχός ἐστιν ἀσφάλεια· ἀπάθεια δὲ

μοναχῷ ἀσφαλεστέρα ἀμφοτέρων· θυρεὸν μὲν γὰρ διέδυ βέλος ῥοίζῳ φερόμενον πολλάκις, καὶ τεῖχος κατέσκαψε πλῆθος πολεμιστῶν, ἀπαθείας δὲ οὐ κατισχύσει λύπη. Ὁ κρατῶν παθῶν, ἐκράτησε λύπης, ἡττώμενος δὲ ἡδονῆς, οὐκ ἐκφεύξεται τοὺς ταύτης δεσμούς. Ὁ λυπούμενος συνεχῶς, καὶ προσποιούμενος ἀπάθειαν, ὅμοιός ἐστι νοσοῦντι, καὶ ὑγείαν ὑποκρινομένῳ· ὡς γὰρ ὁ νοσῶν δηλοῦται ἀπὸ τοῦ χρώματος, οὕτως ὁ ἐμπαθὴς ἐλέγχεται ἀπὸ λύπης. Ὁ ἀγαπῶν τὸν κόσμον, λυπηθήσεται πολλὰ, καταφρονῶν δὲ τῶν ἐν αὐτῷ, εὐφρανθήσεται διὰ παντός. Φιλάργυρος ζημιωθεὶς λυπηθήσεται πικρῶς, ὁ δὲ καταφρονῶν χρημάτων, ἄλυπος ἔσται. Φιλόδοξος λυπηθήσεται, ἐπελθούσης ἀτιμίας, ὁ δὲ ταπεινόφρων ταύτην ὡς σύντροφον δέξεται. Χωνευτήριον ἐκάθηρεν ἀργύριον ἀδόκιμον, καὶ λύπη κατὰ Θεὸν καρδίαν ἐν ἁμαρτίαις· χώνευσις συνεχὴς μειοῖ μόλιβδον, καὶ λύπη κοσμικὴ ἐλαττοῖ διάνοιαν. Ὀφθαλμῶν ἐνέργειαν ἀμαυροῖ γνόφος, καὶ νοῦν θεωρητικὸν ἀμβλύνει λύπη· βυθὸν ὕδατος οὐ διαβαίνει ἡλιακὸν φέγγος, καὶ καρδίαν κατάλυπον οὐ καταυγάζει θεωρία φωτός· ἡδὺ πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις ἀνατολὴ ἠλίου, δυσαρεστεῖται δὲ καὶ τούτῳ λυπουμένη ψυχή. Αἴσθησιν γεύσεως ἀφαιρεῖται ἴκτερος, καὶ ψυχῆς αἴσθησιν ἀφαιρεῖται λύπη. Ὁ δὲ καταφρονῶν τῶν ἡδονῶν τοῦ κόσμου οὐκ ὀχληθήσεται ὑπὸ λογισμῶν λύπης.

ΚΕΦΑΛ. ΙΓʹ. Περὶ ἀκηδίας. Ἀκηδία ἐστὶν ἀτονία ψυχῆς, ἀτονία δὲ ψυχῆς οὐκ

ἔχουσα τὸ κατὰ φύσιν, οὐδὲ πρὸς πειρασμοὺς ἵσταται γενναίως. Ὅπερ γάρ ἐστι τροφὴ εὐεκτοῦντι σώματι, τοῦτό ἐστι πειρασμὸς γενναίᾳ ψυχῇ. Βορέας ἄνεμος τρέφει γεννήματα, καὶ πειρασμοὶ βεβαιοῦσι καρτερίαν ψυχῆς. Νεφέλη ἄνυδρος διώκεται ὑπὸ ἀνέμου, καὶ νοῦς ὑπομονὴν μὴ ἔχων, ὑπὸ πνεύματος ἀκηδίας. ∆ρόσος ἐαρινὴ αὔξει καρπὸν ἀγροῦ, καὶ λόγος πνευματικὸς ὑψοῖ κατάστασιν ψυχῆς. Ῥεῦμα ἀκηδίας ἐξελαύνει μοναχὸν ἐκ τῆς οἰκίας αὐτοῦ, ὁ δὲ ἔχων ὑπομονὴν ἡσυχάζει διαπαντός. Ἀσθενούντων ἐπισκέψεις προβάλλεται ὁ ἀκηδιαστὴς, πληροφορεῖ δὲ τὸν ἴδιον σκοπόν. Ἀκηδιαστὴς μοναχὸς, πρὸς διακονίαν ὀξὺς, καὶ ἐντολὴν λογίζεται τὴν ἑαυτοῦ πληροφορίαν· φυτὸν ἀδρανὲς ἔκλινεν αὖρα λεπτὴ, καὶ φαντασία ἀποδημίας εἵλκυσεν ἀκηδιαστήν. ∆ένδρον καλῶς πεπηγὸς οὐκ ἔσεισε βία πνευμάτων, καὶ ἀκη79.1160 δία οὐκ ἔκαμψεν ἐρηρεισμένην ψυχήν. Κυκλευτὴς μοναχὸς, φρύγανον ἐρημίας, ὀλίγον ἡσύχασε, καὶ πάλιν φέρεται μὴ βουλόμενος. Φυτὸν μεταφερόμενον οὐ καρποφορεῖ, καὶ μοναχὸς κυκλευτὴς οὐ ποιήσει καρπὸν ἀρετῆς. Ὁ ἀσθενῶν οὐκ