The mouth of the chaste speaks good things, delights his companion, and gladdens his hearers. He whose speech is ordered and chaste, and whose heart is pure, is a son of the inheritance of Christ; but he whose speech is anxious and turbid with anger, is a second devil. The mouth of the pure in soul speaks every hour against his Creator, and he who hears him rejoices and imitates him. The mouth of the fool overflows with bitterness, kills his companion, and intoxicates those who listen to him. How fitting is that title which Solomon gave him, when he called him a pig! O Lord, save me from meeting him.
Whoever has mercy on a man, the door of the Lord is open to his petitions at every hour. He who is self-sufficient, with a piece of bread purchases himself the kingdom; but he who divides his wealth without self-discipline, his work is in vain. He who speaks many words and raises his voice is deficient in his judgment. He who softens his words and schemes to harm is a second devil. He who makes peace between the hostile, will be called a son of God; but he who provokes and troubles, and conveys evil words from one to another, is a messenger of Satan, and this one will be destroyed by fire.
He who rejoices in the good deeds of all men, good deeds from the Lord will be poured out upon him; he who is grieved by the good condition of others, there is no more evil after that, and his breaking will be swift. He who repents of his sins, and does not return to them again, even if they are more ugly and loathsome than the sins of the Sodomites, and shows for them pain of heart, remorse and tears, and in a word, all evils are cut off from him, he is immediately born of the Holy Spirit, and is one of the special beloved of God, and in exchange he receives purity freed from the shame of criminals, and virginity is restored to him that has never been defiled, and he is called a divine seed that has never sinned, and it is accepted in his heart as a pledge of the firmness of his hope, and fatherly mercy gives him confidence and trust and a complete forgetfulness of sin from his heart as if it had never been.
O overflowing mercy, how abundant are you, who have given to us who are dead in sins a holy womb, which is repentance, giving birth to new children from freedom, pure from impurity, enlightened from darkness. Who does not marvel at your mercy, O our Lord? Who does not acknowledge your grace? Who came to birth to give birth to us from the womb of repentance in your likeness, like Mary your mother. Praise be to you, Father of all, who gave us a new mother in the new birth, even though in our childhood we were defiled by every stench, yet she enlightens and purifies, improves, and covers under her wings like a nurse those who were born of her, so that they may come to you beloved and dear, to be gods and kings, sons of your lordship.
And if you, my brother, say: “How can repentance renew a man who has been defiled and corrupted by sin?” I say to you: “Remember his first formation, and from what he came, I mean from something vile and disgusting in the narrow and dark belly. And just as the grace of our God combined the putrid matter in the dark belly, completing his formation, and brought him out into the light of this world, so he who corrupted his purity after baptism by the action of Satan, and was defiled with all the unclean wounds of sin, by being born from the gloomy and dark womb of repentance, comes out into the light of the world of the spirit, the mystery of which he received in holy baptism.”
“Just as that foul semen, if it is cast into a wide, bright land, and does not enter the narrow, dark womb, is useless and does not resemble the One who gave birth to it, so he who is foul in sin, if he does not enter the narrow, dark womb (i.e. repentance), is useless and does not resemble the One who gave birth to him in holy baptism. And just as Adam, the carnal, from Eve, has children born to him in his likeness for his carnal world, so Christ, the Father of the spiritual world, from baptism and repentance, has children born to him in his likeness for the spiritual world, as the head of their life calls out to them, saying: Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
“How shall we find it, if it be near? O our Father, show it to us.” “It is at the gentle and narrow gate, and whoever endures its dark difficulty and comes out of it, immediately finds the kingdom of light and enjoys it, and that gate is the entrance to life, for in whatever country it is within you, and this gate of it is repentance. Repentance restores the life of baptism for forgiveness, and as the vile semen in the dark belly acquires the likeness of Adam’s hypostasis, so the man who is ugly in sin, if he enters the boiling furnace of repentance, is made manifest and purified and acquires by renewing grace the likeness of the beauty of Christ, the ray of the Father.”
“Repentance is the mother of life, and blessed is he who is born of it, for he shall not die. And just as Christ calls his own to repentance, so Satan turns people away from hearing this call, and with cleverness and amusement covers their hearts.”
“Repentance is an antidote to the deadly pains of sin, and a great torment to the devil, its opposite. It saves and releases those who were taken captive by his wickedness, and his labors which he labored for many years, repentance loses in one hour, and slaves who willingly submitted their freedom to him, it restores them to their inheritance, and torments those who deceived them. The thorny seed which was sown in our land, and was carefully cultivated for many years, in one day it burns up, and purifies our land, that it may yield the fruits of the seed of Christ’s husbandman, thirty, sixty, and a hundred. The fortresses he built long ago, to imprison his captives, who were taken captive in darkness, with a little moon shining in them, are demolished, and light shines in the faces of those sitting in darkness, and their bonds are severed, and their sorrows are replaced by joy, and their tears by gladness, but their bond, he is tied with the chains of darkness, and delivered by their hands to torment. All his cultivation is spoiled, and all the pains he inflicted on those who were not his servants are made good and healed, and all his slain rise, and all his traps are broken, and all his snares are cut off, and the way is prepared before his lovers, so that they may walk without stumbling in the way of Christ, its Giver.
“It (repentance) makes adulterers virgins, as the luminous one who has rusted is revealed. From the brothel to the wilderness it draws to the work of angels, and the luminous ones who despised it it leaves, and they descend to the lowest hell. It enters the chambers of harlots, and draws adulterers, and gives birth to them from its bosom as virgins for Christ. It restores the unbelievers to the apostleship, and the apostles who stripped it of their clothing put on darkness. It is the garment of the high, and to those who wear it it dresses the glory of Jesus as a robe. It draws from the streets into the kingdom, and brings in from among the hedges to the wedding. It preserves the luminous from evil, and makes the blind see. It uproots the tree whose fruit is the poison of death, and the tree of life is planted in our paradise. She carries in her palm the sweetness of grace, and those who stink with uncleanness, if they receive her, she will be made good. She stands at the door of the heavenly Bridegroom, and everyone who passes by her meets her face with his hand, and they place the wedding crown, and everyone who humbles himself before her, she makes him recline in the chamber, and in her hand they place the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and everyone who loves her and adores her she makes faithful.
“She is the mother of light, and to all who were born of her, she gave them wings of fire, and with the spiritual ones they fly to the heights, and all whose feathers were plucked by the hunters, and who hid under her embrace for a few days, took from her flying, fiery feathers, better and lighter than the first.”
It is the epic of heavenly medicine, and whoever puts it on his face is cured immediately, it does not stopMusa Do not make pains more difficult with cauterization. With mercy you mix your medicines, and with gentleness you mend brokenness. The poison of death, amusement and riot, these are in the hands of the devil, but repentance is the antidote of life in the hand of God. And everyone who has previously drunk from the cup of the murderer, comes forward and drinks from the cup of the Giver of life to all, and lives without end. She visits the dead, and everyone who has been swallowed by death, and approaches her embrace, she splits death open and brings it out from its womb. She sees the blind every day weeping at her door, and she attracts them and shows them the light of joy. She sees the slain whom the devil has killed, and she summons them to raise them up in an advanced resurrection. She is the treasury of the sons of our Savior, and in it are kept all the riches of their deeds. She is a sea to wash away all the unclean, and a furnace whose boiling purges away all that is covered with rust. She is a fire that burns the tares, and waters that nourish holy crops. She is a paradise that makes the chosen ones good, and destroys and demolishes all the transgressors. She is a land that nurtures the children of light, and purifies with her hand that which is defiled. She is a generative of the embryos of the children of the Most High, and a nurturer of the followers of Christ. She is a fortress that preserves all that is within it, and a mighty one that restores all that has been taken captive. She is a temple for the pure nations, and from her they take what is holy for their holiness. She is a home and refuge for the wretched, and makes them heirs of the kingdom. She is a treasury for all treasures, and everyone who knocks at her door takes from her what he needs. She is a mother whose bosom has not dried up, and everyone who was barren and approached her took from her beloved children. She is a gate standing at the door of the Creator, and everyone who is obliged to judge and approaches her asking, she enters and absolves him. In her hand is the subject of the water sprinkler, and the attainment of the rain. Whoever enters and seeks refuge with her, she opens and quenches his thirst. She stands at the door of God, and all the good things that come from Him, she attracts to her special ones. She is the intercessor of the captives, so if they come forward and ask her, she stands to protect them and apologizes for them.
“Who does not love you, O Repentance, bearer of all the beatitudes, except the devil, because you have taken his riches and wasted his treasures, and made him poor and tormented by his earnings, and empty of the inheritance which he unjustly took away? He is the one who truly hates you, because you are always opposed to him. No one has fallen into his hands, and you have caught up with him and become a prey for his food; no one has called upon you while he was in his teeth, but you have broken his teeth and delivered him. No one has swallowed him and cried out to you, but you have split open his belly and brought him out; no one has bound him, but you have quickly cut off his chains and set him free; no one has caught him while you were far away and called upon you, but you have quickly caught up with him and delivered him. For this reason, he hates you, because you have hated him most of all; he hates you because you are always against him. He hates you because he hates your giver, and you are also against him, just as your friend is against him.”
“There is no one who has held fast to your hope and descended into hell, nor has there been anyone who has ascended to heaven without you. Who sees God without you? Who has held fast to your hope and fallen into the hand of Satan? Who has been purified and you have not washed him? Who has come to your purgatory and been found unclean? Who has watered his crops with your rain and has not reaped the fruits of joy? Who has come to your medicine and has not been far from all infirmities? Who has dyed his face with your drops every hour and has not seen God in his heart? Who has not tasted your drink and whose heart has not seen the fountain of darkness? Who has attained his requests and you have not raised his status? Who has taken you as an intercessor and you have not opened before him the doors of God’s treasures? There is no one who has taken you with him in battle but you have delivered his enemies under his spear. He who wears it against his opponents will be defeated by those who hate him.
“You saved David from sin, and you stood up against the blasphemous Ahab. The judgment came upon the people of Nineveh to destroy them, but you were mighty and rose up and saved them. Blessed are you, O Mother of forgiveness, whom the Father, full of mercy, gave us. He will not be angry with you if you ask Him, because He gave you to be an intercessor for sinners. He will not close His door if you ask Him. He has given you the keys of the kingdom.”
“The kingdom is at hand, repent, for here is the ring that the heirs of the kingdom will take with them. Repent, for the kingdom is at hand. The old generation that did not drink your drink was choked by the wrath of the flood. Sodom, which would not receive you, was burned by the heavenly fire. Pharaoh, who cast you out, was tormented in the choking waves.”
“It restores the labors that the devil has wasted, and gives heavenly gifts. It is she who renews the virginity that has been soiled, and preserves unblemished that which has not yet been corrupted. Christ came and saved us, and with his voice he called us saying: Repent, for the kingdom is at hand. To him be glory forever. Amen.”
AndHe said Also: “He who guards his tongue, his treasure will never be taken away from him. The mouth of the silent interprets the secrets of God, and he who speaks quickly, distances himself from his Creator. He who despises and despises himself, is controlled by God, and he who considers himself wise, the wisdom of the Creator rises from him. The poor man who is poor in worldly goods becomes rich in God, and the friend of the rich is humbled by what is the Lord’s. He who is accustomed to playful talk, amusing his body and soul, is an adulterer, and he who finds solace in it is a sinner. Love that separates children is a shameful adultery before the Lord, and there is no healing for its brokenness. A young man who befriends a young man, let those who are free weep over them. Sheikh “He who loves the company of children, know that his pains are more unclean than unclean children; and though he speaks to them wonders, yet his heart is drowned in mire. My brother, if you live for the world, you will become alive for the world. One for one, for two are not like the only-begotten Word, to whom be glory forever. Amen.”
AndHe said Also, from what he heard from the elders, that one of them He said He said to him: “On many days it seems to me that the use of food is an excess and a waste, because the love of my Lord fulfills my need and makes me forget to care for it.”
as He said Also: “The love of Christ has alienated me from people and humanity.”
AndHe said Another: “In my service and prayer I do not know fatigue, because there is no movement of my own desire, but I remain listening to the Spirit dwelling within me and I take pleasure, and this is what is meant by what It was saidThe spirit prays for us.
AndHe said Another Sheikh: “If your tongue is abundant in its movements, then the pure movements have been extinguished from your heart. But if your tongue is silent, and your heart is seething with pure movements, then blessed are you, because its movement with the spirit raises you to the tranquility of life. Silence your tongue so that your heart may be silent, and silence your heart so that the spirit may speak in it.”
AndHe said Another: “Ignorant is he who has nothing of the world in his memory, except the inheritance he receives, I mean only the grave,” as He said Also: “If you were born in Christ, so is your brother. Therefore, do not love yourself more than your brother in anything.”
AndHe said Also: “If your lust is worldly, then this is also like that of dogs and pigs, I mean the lust of the belly and marriage. But if your lust is for God, then this is the lust of angels.”
like that He said“It is a devilish passion for the monk who keeps a large amount of food, because he stores up what he does not need. But the righteous casts his cares upon the Lord, and without care he scatters, for that reason the Lord’s hand is open before him and is full, so he takes and gives in simplicity and without thought. He who keeps something extra to comfort the needy is truly wise. For that reason, when his hand is empty, you will find it filled every hour, for if he gives, he may take again. He who comforts another in his distress has someone to give him the comfort of life.”
as He said Also: “Humility is a land that bears virtues. If it lacks virtues, then it has perished in perfection.”
then He said Also: “Just as a poor man’s donkey, because he does not find enough food to satisfy himself with, becomes thin and weak, and his desire for sexual intercourse is extinguished, and if his owner rides him, he walks with him humiliated and easily led because of the baseness of his mount, so the monk who suppresses his body with lack of food and base clothing, worldly desire is extinguished from his body, and his soul is humbled without boasting.”
“There is no cure for the pain of the proud, because the more he exalts his thoughts, the more the knowledge of God rises above his soul, and into the depths of darkness he descends.”