Bishop Theophan (the Recluse):
Note: The word ''mental'' refers to noetic, from nous that is the psychosomatic center of the human that receives the revelation from God.
"Performing mental prayer to the Lord Savior consists of the following: become mentally and attentively present in your heart, and, having established the conviction that the Lord is near and attentive, cry out to Him tenderly: Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner. And do this unceasingly—in church, at home, on the road, at work, at table, and in bed—in a word, from the moment you open your eyes until the moment you close them . "
What is mental prayer? It is the constant turning of the mind to the Lord in the heart, or the constant standing before the Lord, with or without appeals to Him, with only feelings of devotion and a contrite prostration before Him in the heart. To develop skill in this self-compulsive labor, experienced prayer warriors have chosen one prayer to the Lord and Savior and established rules for its performance, so that with its help they can develop their own personal prayer. It is simple: stand with your mind in your heart before the Lord and pray to Him: Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner! This is how to do it at home before prayer, during intervals of prayer, and at the end, as well as in church, and throughout the day, so that every moment of the day is filled with prayer .
“The more the Jesus Prayer penetrates into the heart, the more the heart warms and the more self-moving the prayer becomes, so that the fire of spiritual life is kindled, and its burning becomes incessant, at the same time as the Jesus Prayer occupies the whole heart and becomes incessantly moving . ”
“The main thing is to stand before the Lord with your mind in your heart and stand before Him constantly, day and night, until the end of your life. Apply a little effort, with unrelenting zeal. There will be suspicion of the one advising you (the mentor), disfavor toward the work of prayer itself, blasphemy against it, exhaustion, a desire to quit, precisely because it is too difficult. Dangerous! Do not listen! Stick to your work. The enemy, above all, instills blasphemy against this prayer (the mental Jesus prayer). For then an invisible fire scorches him and drives him away; it has no access to the person in whose heart the Jesus prayer is implanted. The sweetest Name of the Lord, constantly resounding and speaking in the heart, even without your knowledge, will smite the enemy. For it happens that the soul, through carelessness and foolishness, forgets and becomes lost in dreams, but, coming to its senses and returning to itself, finds that the same thing is being sung in the heart: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner .”
“Nowadays, people are using the Jesus Prayer in all sorts of ways. How many catchphrases have they come up with! But they completely forget the essence of the matter. That’s why some stop at just words, repeating: Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, but without any thought or feeling. I call them whisperers, or whisperers. Others stop breathing through their nostrils and snort. These are snifflers. Some have also appeared who, as if unable to stop their inner movement, begin to cry out: Jesus. Jesus. Jesus. Jesus. These are hysterical. But the essence of this prayer is simple: stand with your mind in your heart before the face of the Lord and cry out: “Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me,” or simply: “Lord, have mercy. Merciful Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner,” or some other words. “Power is not in words, but in thoughts and feelings . ”
"It's not the words that matter, but the short prayer. This was not the only one in use. St. Cassian writes that in Egypt they used this prayer: "O God, come to my aid, O Lord, hasten to help me." Elsewhere, other prayers were in use, such as: "My hope is the Father, my refuge is the Son, my protection is the Holy Spirit." Also: "I, as a man, have sinned, but You, as a compassionate God , have mercy on me, seeing the weakness of my soul." Among these is the Jesus Prayer. But later, the Jesus Prayer was given preference . "
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From “The Invisible Warfare” by the blessed memory of the elder Nicodemus the Areopagite:
"The first thing you must do is to repeat the Jesus Prayer as often as possible, until you become accustomed to repeating it constantly. Do it this way : "
"1) Include the Jesus Prayer in your prayer rule. Say this prayer several times at the beginning of your prayers and several times afterward. If you are diligent, also after each prayer included in your prayers . "
"2) Determine for yourself the number of times to repeat this prayer, and on what occasion, or ask your spiritual father. Just don't set too many at first, and then, as you become more delighted with this prayer, add little by little. If the desire to repeat the prescribed number arises, do not deny yourself this; don't make it a constant rule, but only on this occasion. And no matter how many times your heart demands such repetitions, do not refuse . "
"3) Do not rush to repeat one prayer after another, but pronounce them with measured duration, as one usually does before a person of importance when asking him for something. However, do not worry about the words alone, but rather about keeping your mind in your heart and standing before the Lord, as if present, with a full awareness of His greatness, grace, and truth . "
"4) If you have the freedom, then between one prayer and another, make it your custom to stand as you usually do for prayer and offer this prayer to the Lord several times. But if you don't have such freedom, then internally insert this prayer everywhere between your actions and even between your speeches . "
"5) While reciting this prayer, whether during the prayer rule or apart from it, and assuming the prayerful posture for it, bow ten times from the waist, then to the ground—until you finish. You've probably heard or read that the Holy Fathers, in their rules on prayer, recommend numerous bows. One of them said: 'Prayer is insufficient if one does not exhaust one's body with bows.' If you resolve to imitate this to the best of your ability, you will sooner see the fruit of your labor in mastering the Jesus Prayer . "
8) You will find many warnings in the Holy Fathers. The reasons for all of them are provided by experiences of improper actions. To avoid these errors, have an advisor—a spiritual father or a companion—a like-minded brother, and confide in them everything that happens during your work. Always act with the utmost simplicity, with great humility and without taking credit for success. Know that true success occurs within, unnoticed, without being obvious, just as the body grows. Therefore, when you hear within you, "Ah, here it is!"—know that this is the enemy's cry, presenting to you something apparent instead of real. This is the beginning of self-delusion. Suppress this voice immediately; otherwise, it will hum within you like a trumpet, feeding your conceit .
"9) Do not set a time limit for success in this prayer. Just resolve to work and work. Months and years will pass before the first signs of success appear . "
One of the Athonite fathers said of himself that it took two years of labor for his heart to warm up; for another, it took eight months. For everyone, this happens according to their strength and zeal for the task.
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Bishop Ignatius (Brianchaninov) . On the Jesus Prayer (conversation between the Elder and his disciple):
Disciple : Can all the brothers in the monastery practice the Jesus Prayer?
Elder : Not only is it possible, but it is also necessary. At monastic tonsure, when the newly tonsured is given the rosary, called the spiritual sword, he is commanded to pray the Jesus Prayer day and night without ceasing. Consequently, practicing the Jesus Prayer is a monastic vow. Fulfilling this vow is an obligation that cannot be renounced.
Student : Could the trend of modern monasticism, in which the practice of the Jesus Prayer is very rare, serve as an excuse and justification for me if I do not practice it?
Elder : Duty remains duty, and obligation remains obligation, even if the number of those who fail to fulfill it has increased. A vow is pronounced by all. Neither the multitude of those who break a vow nor the custom of breaking it legitimizes the violation. Few is the flock to whom the Heavenly Father has deigned to give the Kingdom. The narrow path always has few travelers, but the broad one has many.
In the last times, the narrow path will be abandoned by almost everyone, and almost everyone will take the broad path. This does not mean that the broad path will lose its power to lead to destruction, or that the narrow path will become superfluous, unnecessary for salvation. Anyone who desires salvation must absolutely adhere to the narrow path, specifically bequeathed by the Savior.
Disciple : Why do you call the exercise of the Jesus Prayer a narrow path?
Elder : How can it not be a narrow path? A narrow path in the truest sense of the word! He who desires... must protect himself both externally and internally with the most prudent, the most cautious behavior: our fallen nature is ready to betray us at any time, to betray us; fallen spirits with particular fury and cunning slander the practice of the Jesus Prayer. Often, from an apparently insignificant [cause] of carelessness, from negligence and presumption that has gone unnoticed, an important consequence arises that has an impact on the life, on the eternal fate of the ascetic: "And if the Lord had not helped me, my soul would have dwelt in Hades... My foot is moved; Your mercy, O Lord, has helped me" ( Ps. 94:17-18 ).
The foundation for practicing the Jesus Prayer is prudent and cautious behavior. First, one must avoid effeminacy and carnal pleasures in all their forms. One must be content with moderate food and sleep, proportionate to one's strength and health, so that food and sleep provide the body with the necessary reinforcement, without causing indecent movements that come from excess, or exhaustion that comes from lack. Clothing, housing, and all material possessions in general should be modest, in imitation of Christ, in imitation of His Apostles, in following their spirit, in communion with their spirit. The holy Apostles and their true disciples made no sacrifices to vanity and vanity; according to the customs of the world, they did not enter into any communion with the spirit of the world. The correct, gracious action of the Jesus Prayer can spring forth only from the Spirit of Christ: it grows and flourishes solely on this soil. Sight, hearing, and the other senses must be strictly guarded, lest enemies break into the soul through them, as through a gate. The mouth and tongue must be restrained, as if bound by silence: idle talk, verbosity, especially mockery, gossip, and slander are the worst enemies of prayer. One must refrain from accepting brethren into one's cell or visiting theirs. One must remain patiently in one's cell, as in a coffin with one's own dead body, with one's soul—tormented, slain by sin—praying to the Lord Jesus for mercy...
Oh, how rightly the Fathers call the practice of the Jesus Prayer both the narrow path, self-denial, and renunciation of the world. These virtues belong to all attentive and reverent prayer, but especially to the Jesus Prayer, which lacks the variety of form and the multiplicity of thought that characterize psalmody and other prayers.
Student : What words does the Jesus Prayer consist of?
Elder : It consists of the following words: Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner. Some elders divide the prayer for beginners into two halves and command them to say, "Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me," from morning until about lunchtime, and after lunch, "Son of God, have mercy on me." This is an ancient tradition. But it is better to accustom oneself, if possible, to saying the entire prayer. The division is permitted out of consideration for the weakness of the weak and beginners.
Disciple : What is the power of the Jesus Prayer?
Elder : In the Divine name of the God-man, our Lord and God, Jesus Christ. The Apostles, as we see from the Book of Acts and the Gospel, performed great miracles in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ: they healed ailments incurable by human means, raised the dead, commanded demons, and cast them out of those possessed.
Disciple : Some claim that practicing the Jesus Prayer will always, or almost always, lead to delusion, and they strongly forbid practicing this prayer.
Elder : In entertaining such a thought and in forbidding oneself lies a terrible blasphemy, a regrettable delusion. Our Lord Jesus Christ is the only source of our salvation, the only means of our salvation; His human name has borrowed from His divinity His unlimited, all-holy power to save us. How then can this power, which acts for salvation, this sole power that grants salvation, be perverted and act for destruction? This is utterly illogical! This is a woeful, blasphemous, and soul-destroying absurdity!
Those who have adopted this way of thinking are truly in demonic delusion, deceived by the falsely named mind that emanated from Satan. Satan has cunningly risen against the all-holy and magnificent name of our Lord Jesus Christ, exploiting human blindness and ignorance as his weapon, and slandering the name, "That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven and things on earth and things under the earth" ( Philippians 2:9-10 ).
Disciple : What are the true fruits of the Jesus Prayer by which a beginner could know that he is praying correctly?
Elder : The primary fruits of prayer are attentiveness and compunction. These fruits appear above all others from any prayer performed correctly, but especially from the Jesus Prayer, the practice of which is superior to psalmody and other prayers. From attentiveness comes compunction, and from compunction, attentiveness is intensified. They intensify, giving birth to each other; they give depth to prayer, gradually enlivening the heart; they give it purity, eliminating distraction and daydreaming. Like true prayer, so too are attentiveness and compunction gifts from God. Just as we demonstrate our desire to acquire prayer by forcing ourselves to it, so we demonstrate our desire to acquire attentiveness and compunction by forcing ourselves to them. Furthermore, the fruit of prayer is a gradually expanding vision of one's sins and one's own sinfulness, which intensifies compunction and turns to lamentation. Lamentation is the name given to an overwhelming compunction, combined with the pain of a contrite and humble heart, acting from the depths of the heart and encompassing the soul. Then comes the sensation of God's presence, a vivid remembrance of death, and the fear of judgment and condemnation. All these fruits of prayer are accompanied by lamentation and, in due course, are overshadowed by a subtle, holy, spiritual sensation of the fear of God. The fear of God cannot be compared to any sensation of the flesh, or even of the soul. The fear of God is an entirely new sensation. The fear of God is the work of the Holy Spirit. From the inspiration of this wondrous action, passions begin to melt away, and the mind and heart are drawn to the continuous exercise of prayer. After some progress comes a feeling of silence, humility, love for God and neighbors without distinction between good and evil, patience in sorrows as allowances and healings from God, which our sinfulness necessarily requires... I will not speak about the further fruits and consequences of prayer in the most holy name of the Lord Jesus: let blessed experience teach them to both me and others... These consequences and fruits are described in detail in the Philokalia.
Student : My heart longs to hear: say something more.
Elder : It is very helpful for those practicing prayer to have fairly large icons of the Savior and the Mother of God in their cell. At times, one can turn to the icons during prayer, as if addressing the Lord and the Mother of God themselves present there. The feeling of God's presence in the cell can become habitual. With such a constant feeling, we will abide in the cell with the fear of God, as if constantly under God's gaze. It is as if we are always in the presence of God, because He is omnipresent—always under God's gaze, because He sees everything and everywhere.
Glory to the all-merciful Lord, who sees our sinfulness and transgressions, patiently awaits our repentance, and has given us not only permission, but also the commandment to beg Him for mercy.
Amen.
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