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68. He who fears God does not fear the assaults of demons, nor their weak attacks, nor even the threats of wicked men} for being entirely like a flame or a burning fire, going about by night and day in inaccessible and lightless places, he puts the demons to flight, they fleeing him more than he them, lest they be set on fire by the flame-like ray of divine fire sent forth from him.

69. Whoever walks in the fear of God, he, living in the midst of wicked men, is not afraid, having his fear within and bearing the unconquerable weapon of faith, with which he is strong and able to see all things, even those things that seem difficult and impossible to the many} but like some giant in the midst of apes or a roaring lion living in the midst of dogs and foxes, he is confident in the Lord and with his steadfast spirit he strikes them with terror and terrifies their minds, bringing to bear the word in wisdom like a rod of iron.

70. Do not be surprised if, being overcome by cowardice, you fear and tremble at everything} for you are still imperfect and weak and like a child you fear bugbears} for cowardice is a childish and ridiculous passion of a vainglorious soul. Therefore, do not be willing to speak words or make objections to this demon} for with the soul trembling and shaken, words will not help} but leaving these, (402) with all your strength humble your thought and you will quickly know cowardice has vanished.

71. Someone once seized by acedia, had his mind become listless and dark and his soul enervated, so that from this compunction little by little left his heart and the flame of the Spirit in him was extinguished and the whole house of his body was filled with smoke} but indeed also a numbness of his limbs came over him, from sluggishness he was carried away into excessive sleep, so that of necessity he even neglected his usual rule of prayer. But resisting these things through self-control and vigil, when he conquered sleep, his heart was quickly hardened from conceit, and as compunction departed, cowardice crept into him. But when he again perceived it was in him, he went out of his cell at an untimely hour and going away to a gloomy and dark place, and standing in it and raising his hands to heaven and making the sign of the cross on himself, and raising the eye of the soul to God, when he had humbled his thought a little, immediately the demon of cowardice departed from him for a little while. But his mightier one, the terrible enemy of vainglory, was secretly stealing this one's thought, wishing to drag him down and hand him over again to the demon of cowardice} which thing understanding, he marveled and warmly besought God to deliver his soul from such snares of the devil.

72. Great and, I think, difficult for all to understand is the complicity and evil and method of these demons. For I have known the demon of cowardice coming together and conspiring with that of acedia, and the one helping and assisting the other, and the first one creating fear in the soul with hardness, but the other one darkness and paralysis, and furthermore working callousness of both soul and mind and despair. But acedia is a test for those who struggle, becoming for them an occasion of humility.

73. (403) Against those who have advanced in prayer or even who are diligent in prayer the demon of acedia is especially accustomed to war for the most part. For no other of the other demons has power against such men, whether by a providential permission it has power against them, or it has gained its power against us from the imbalances of the body, as indeed I am more persuaded. But what is said is of this sort} having eaten much and my stomach being weighed down and having slept to satiety, the passion took control of my mind and I was defeated} then again having practiced self-control beyond measure, I made my mind dark and sluggish and again I fell into the same passion. It is

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ξη΄. Ὁ φοβούμενος τόν Θεόν δαιμόνων ὁρμάς οὐ φοβεῖται οὐδέ τάς ἀσθενεῖς ἐφόδους αὐτῶν ἀλλ᾿ οὐδέ ἀνθρώπων πονηρῶν ἀπειλάς} ὥσπερ δέ τις φλόξ ἤ φλέγον πῦρ ὅλος ὤν, ἐν ἀδύτοις τόποις καί ἀφεγγέσι νυκτός καί ἡμέρας περιϊών, φυγαδεύει τούς δαίμονας, φεύγοντας μᾶλλον αὐτόν, ἤπερ αὐτούς ἐκεῖνος, μή ἐμπρησθῆναι ὑπό τῆς ἐκπεμπομένης ἐξ αὐτοῦ φλογοειδοῦς ἐκτῖνος τοῦ θείου πυρός.

ξθ'. Ὅς τῷ φόβῳ τοῦ Θεοῦ στοιχεῖ, οὗτος μέσον ἀνδρῶν ἀναστρεφόμενος πονηρῶν οὐ φοβεῖται, τόν φόβον αὐτοῦ ἔνδοθεν ἔχων καί φέρων τό ἀκαταμάχητον ὅπλον τῆς πίστεως, μεθ᾿ ἧς ἰσχύει καί δύναται πάντα ὁρᾶν, καί αὐτά τά δοκοῦντα τοῖς πολλοῖς δυσχερῆ καί ἀδύνατα} ἀλλ᾿ ὥσπερ τις γίγας ἐν μέσῳ πιθήκων ἤ λέων βρυχώμενος ἐν μέσῳ κυνῶν καί ἀλωπέκων διάγων, πεποιθών ἐστιν ἐπί Κύριον καί τῷ στερρῷ τοῦ φρονήματος καταπλήττει αὐτούς καί ἐκδειματοῖ τάς φρένας αὐτῶν, ὡς ῥάβδον σιδηρᾶν τόν ἐν σοφίᾳ λόγον ἐπιφερόμενος.

ο'. Μή θαυμάσῃς, ἐάν ὑπό δειλίας κυρευόμενος πάντα φοβούμενος τρέμῃς} ἔτι γάρ ἀτελής εἶ καί ἀνίσχυρος καί ὥσπερ νήπιον τά μορμολύκεια δέδοικας} ἡ γάρ δειλία πάθος ἐστί νηπιῶδες καί καταγέλαστον κενοδόξου ψυχῆς. Πρός τοῦτον οὖν τόν δαίμονα μή θέλε λόγους λέγειν ἤ ἀντιρρήσεις ποιεῖσθαι} τῆς γάρ ψυχῆς τρεμούσης καί κλονουμένης, οὐκ ὠφελήσουσι λόγοι} ἀφείς δέ τούτους, (402) ὅση σοι δύναμις τόν λογισμόν σου ταπείνωσον καί θᾶττον γνώσεις ἠφανισμένην δειλίαν.

οα'. Ὑπό ἀκηδίας ποτέ τις κατασχεθείς, χαῦνον τόν νοῦν καί σκοτεινόν ἔσχε καί ἔκλυτον αὐτοῦ τήν ψυχήν, ὡς μικρόν ἐκ τούτου τό πένθος ἐκλεῖψαι ἀπό τῆς καρδίας αὐτοῦ καί τήν φλόγα ἐν αὐτῷ σβεσθῆναι τοῦ Πνεύματος καί πάντα τόν οἶκον τοῦ σώματος αὐτοῦ πλησθῆναι καπνοῦ} οὐ μήν ἀλλά γάρ καί νάρκωσις μελῶν ἐν αὐτῷ γενομένη, ἐξ ὀκνηρίας εἰς ὕπνον ἄμετρον κατεφέρετο, ὡς ἐξ ἀνάγκης ἐλλείπειν αὐτῷ καί τήν συνήθη ἀκολουθίαν. Πρός ταῦτα δέ δι᾿ ἐγκρατείας ἀνθιστάμενος καί ἀγρυπνίας, ὡς τόν ὕπνον ἐνίκησε, θᾶττον ἡ καρδία αὐτοῦ ἐξ οἰήσεως ἐσκληρύνετο, καί πένθους ἐκλείποντος, ἡ δειλία αὐτῷ ὑπεισήρχετο. Ὡς δέ πάλιν ᾔσθετο ταύτην οὖσαν ἐν αὐτῷ, ἀωρί τῆς κέλλης αὐτοῦ ἔξω ἐγένετο καί εἰς ζοφώδη τόπον καί σκοτεινόν ἀπελθών, στάς τε ἐν αὐτῷ καί τάς χεῖρας εἰς οὐρανούς ἀνατείνας καί τό σημεῖον τοῦ σταυροῦ ἐν ἑαυτῷ ἐκτυπώσας, ὄμμα τε ψυχῆς πρός Θεόν ἀνατείνας, ὡς μικρόν ἐταπείνωσε τόν λογισμόν, εὐθύς ὁ τῆς διελίας ἐξ αὐτοῦ δαίμων ἀπέστη μικρόν. Ὁ δέ κραταιότερος αὐτοῦ, ὁ δεινός τῆς κενοδοξίας ἐχθρός, ὑπέκλεπτε τούτου τόν λογισμόν, κατασπάσαι βουλόμενος αὐτόν καί αὖθις τῷ τῆς δειλίας δαίμονι παραδοῦναι} ὅπερ κατανοήσας, τεθαύμακε καί τόν Θεόν ἐδυσώπει θερμῶς ῥύσασθαι τήν ψυχήν αὐτοῦ ἐκ τῶν τοιούτων παγίδων τοῦ διαβόλου.

οβ'. Πολλή καί πᾶσιν, οἶμαι, δυσνόητος ἡ τούτων συμπλοκή καί κακία καί μέθοδος τῶν δαιμόνων ὑπάρχει. Ἔγνων γάρ τόν τῆς δειλίας δαίμονα τῷ τῆς ἀκηδίας συνερχόμενον καί συγκροτοῦντα, καί τοῦτον ἐκείνῳ βοηθοῦντα καί συναιρόμενον, καί τόν μέν πρῶτον φόβον ἐν τῇ ψυχῇ μετά σκληρότητος ἐμποιοῦντα, τόν ἕτερον δέ σκότωσιν καί πάρεσιν, ἔτι τε πώρωσιν ψυχῆς τε καί νοός καί ἀπόγνωσιν ἐργαζόμενον. ∆οκίμιον δέ τοῖς ἀγωνιζομένοις ἡ ἀκηδία, πρόξενος αὐτοῖς ταπεινώσεως γινομένη.

ογ'. (403) Τοῖς προκόψασιν ἐν εὐχῇ ἤ καί ἐπιμελουμένοις εὐχῆς ὁ τῆς ἀκηδίας μάλιστα δαίμων ὡς ἐπί τό πλεῖστον πολεμεῖν εἴωθεν. Οὐδείς γάρ ἕτερος τῶν ἄλλων δαιμόνων κατά τῶν τοιούτων ἰσχύει, εἴτε κατά οἰκονομικήν παραχώρησιν τούτου κατ᾿ αὐτῶν ἰσχύσαντος, εἴτε καί ἐκ τῶν τοῦ σώματος ἀνωμαλιῶν τήν καθ᾿ ἡμῶν λαβόντος ἰσχύν, ὥς γε πείθομαι μᾶλλον. Τό δέ λεγόμενόν ἐστι τοιοῦτον} πολλά φαγών καί τόν στόμαχον βαρηθείς καί εἰς κόρον ὑπνώσας, ἐκυρίευσε τοῦ νοός μου τό πάθος καί ἡττήθην} εἶτα πάλιν ὑπέρ τό μέτρον ἐγκρατευσάμενος, τόν νοῦν μου σκοτεινόν καί δυσκίνητον εἰργασάμην καί αὖθις εἰς τό αὐτό περιέπεσα πάθος. Ἔστι