The prayer of the perfect is the complete liberation of the spirit from all that is sinful, when it draws near to God in ineffable supplications. God sees the readiness of hearts, open like a written book, and without words communicates His will. Thus the holy Apostle Paul was lifted up to the third heaven and did not know whether he was in the body or out of the body (cf. 2 Cor. 12. 2)».

In St. John of the Ladder we find the following words about prayer: "Prayer by its nature is the union of the soul with God. Its actions and fruits are as follows: purification of the soul, gathering of inner strength, adoption as sons of God, tears, forgiveness of sins; a bridge that leads us away from temptations; a wall that protects from sorrows, calms the battle. Prayer is an angelic activity, a meal of spiritual beings, the joy of eternity, a spiritual activity, a treasure of grace, spiritual progress, spiritual nourishment, relief, the expulsion of faint-heartedness, the foundation of our confidence, the consolation in sorrow, the wealth of monks, the treasure of hermits, the revelation of the future, proof

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Divine mercy. If you say a lot of words in prayer, then the spirit is scattered in various ways. But the prayer itself is lost. If you say a little or even one word in prayer, then the spirit remains collected."

St. Peale gives us rather an external description of our attitude to prayer. In the "Ladder" of St. John of the Ladder we already find the first generalizations But to those who are familiar with the hymns of St. Symeon the New Theologian (f circa 1036), all the fullness and beauty of the Heavenly Kingdom and the burning of hearts devoted to God are revealed. In St. Simeon, the mystical prayer of the ancient Church< reaches its highest peak. At the same time, it ends the great patristic era that developed and established the concepts of 7tp&? IG and Vesorih.

The Mysticism of the Eastern Church and the Eldership 1

In the Divine noise of the hymn of St. Symeon the New Theologian, ancient Christian asceticism and mysticism are united and intertwined with each other by such amazing melodies that often they cannot even be distinguished. The fullness of religious experiences finds expression here. Simeon's views, full of grace, are the most beautiful flowers of the centuries-long development of the ascetic-mystical life of the Eastern Church. In these colors, the richness of the kingdom of mystical colors is especially vividly manifested. And this kingdom was mastered in their humility by representatives of the two main trends of ancient asceticism, this "philosophy of the spirit," as the 11th of Sinai put it.

In ancient Christian mysticism we see two currents that become more and more evident over time. These two currents were in asceticism from the > beginnings: the first was morally, spiritually uplifting, and the second was intellectual. Macarius of Egypt is a representative of the first trend, Gregory of Nyssa and Evagrius of Pontus belong to the second, and Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite belongs to the later ones. The main provisions of these trends are almost the same for different representatives of them.

The goal of the Christian life is deification (vesoagd). The first step of the ascent to God is purification from passions and temptations. Only after attaining complete impassibility, when a person completely renounces this vain world, does he ascend to the highest level. His spiritual eyes are opened, he unites with God, he attains deification, which is the highest goal of asceticism.

The mysticism of Macarius develops a spiritual feeling. It does not escape from earthly purification through the deepest experiences of the heart in meekness and prayer to <>love and reverence for God. I awaken the experiences of the highest love! in the soul there is a feeling of extraordinary happiness and elevates the flesh above all earthly things

Mental mysticism is associated with the spirit (vo€g) and with the in-depth consideration of concepts. Through the reworking of the foundations, it leads to a philosophical understanding of everything; this comprehension was expressed in the writings of Clement Alexus of Aidria and thus entered patriotic literature. It gives a scheme of the passions, as has already been said, a scheme of the eight main sins, originally given by Evagrius. The struggle against them raises a person to the knowledge of

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First of all, through the healing of the negative aspects of the spirit, which consist in the lack of understanding of the Divine. Not the soul, but the spirit is that part of human nature which, after the mortification of all earthly things, comes to a blissful state through the mysterious contemplation of the Divine. Knowledge (vesor'kh) is the main content of the mystical life. It is achieved through inner composure and prayer. Inner concentration consists in constantly keeping one's thoughts on Perfection. In this state, man dominates all the movements of his spirit. Such concentration gives complete inner solitude, separation from everything earthly. The ascetic, who stands at the beginning of the ascetic path, also needs external loneliness, a complete break with the world. To do this, you need to live in the desert or in a monastery. Self-discipline means turning one's spirit on oneself, renouncing the world and immersing oneself in silence.

Already among the contemporaries of St. Macarius we find the "silent," who were later called "hesychasts."