The Vigilant

Φωνὴ τοῦ ἀδελφιδοῦ μου κρούει ἐπὶ τὴν θύραν... Ἓν καὶ τοῦτο τῶν μεγάλων παραγγελμάτων ἐστὶ τοῦ Kυρίου, δι’ ὧν ἡ διάνοια τῶν μαθητευομένων τῷ λόγῳ καθάπερ τινὰ χοῦν ἅπαν τὸ ὑλῶδες τῆς φύσεως ἀφ’ ἑαυτῆς ἐκτινάξασα πρὸς τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν τῶν ὑπερκειμένων ἐπαίρεται, Tοῦτο δέ ἐστι, τὸ δεῖν κρείττους εἶναι τοῦ ὕπνου τοὺς πρὸς τὴν ἄνω ζωὴν ἀναβλέποντας καὶ διὰ παντὸς ἐγρηγορέναι τῇ διανοίᾳ οἷον ἀπατεῶνά τινα τῶν ψυχῶν καὶ τῆς ἀληθείας ἐπίβουλον τὸν νυσταγμὸν τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν ἀπελαύνοντας. Ἐκεῖνον λέγω τὸν νυσταγμὸν καὶ τὸν ὕπνον, δι’ ὧν πλάσσεται τοῖς ἐμβαθύνουσι τῇ τοῦ βίου ἀπάτῃ τὰ ὀνειρώδη ταῦτα φαντάσματα· αἱ ἀρχαί, οἱ πλοῦτοι, αἱ δυναστεῖαι, ὁ τῦφος, ἡ διὰ τῶν ἡδονῶν γοητεία, τὸ φιλόδοξόν τε καὶ ἀπολαυστικὸν καὶ φιλότιμον καὶ πάντα ὅσα κατὰ τὸν βίον τοῦτον τοῖς ἀνεπισκέπτοις διά τινος φαντασίας μάτην σπουδάζεται, ἃ τῇ παροδικῇ τοῦ χρόνου συμπαραρρέοντα φύσει ἐν τῷ δοκεῖν ἔχει τὸ εἶναι οὔτε ὄντα ὅπερ νομίζεται οὔτε ἐν αὐτῷ τῷ νομίζεσθαι πρὸς τὸ διηνεκὲς παραμένοντα ἀλλ’ ὁμοῦ γίνεσθαί τε δοκοῦντα καὶ ἀπολλύμενα κυμάτων δίκην τῶν ἐγκορυφουμένων τοῖς ὕδασιν, ἃ πρὸς καιρὸν τῇ κινήσει τῶν ἀνέμων συνδιογκούμενα ἀβέβαιον εἰς διαμονὴν ἔχει τὸν ὄγκον· ἐν βραχεῖ γὰρ τῇ ῥοπῇ συναναστάντα τοῦ πνεύματος πάλιν ἐν ὁμαλῷ τὴν τῆς θαλάσσης ἐπιφάνειαν δείκνυσι συγκατασταλέντα τῷ πνεύματι. Ὡς ἂν οὖν ἔξω τῶν τοιούτων γένοιτο φαντασμάτων ἡμῖν ἡ διάνοια, τὸν βαρὺν τοῦτον ὕπνον ἀποσείεσθαι τῶν τῆς ψυχῆς ὀμμάτων διακελεύεται, ἵνα μὴ τῇ περὶ τὸ ἀνύπαρκτον σπουδῇ τῶν ὑφεστώτων τε καὶ ὡς ἀληθῶς ὄντων ἀπολισθήσωμεν. Διὰ τοῦτο καὶ ὑποτίθεται ἡμῖν ἐπίνοιαν τῆς ἐγρηγόρσεως λέγων Ἔστωσαν ὑμῶν αἱ ὀσφύες περιεζωσμέναι καὶ οἱ λύχνοι καιόμενοι· τοῖς τε γὰρ ὀφθαλμοῖς τὸ φῶς ἐμφαινόμενον ἀποσοβεῖ τῶν ὀμμάτων τὸν ὕπνον καὶ ἡ ὀσφῦς διεσφιγμένη διὰ τῆς ζώνης ἀπαράδεκτον τοῦ ὕπνου παρασκευάζει τὸ σῶμα οὐ προσιεμένης τὴν ἐκ τοῦ ὕπνου ἄνεσιν τῆς τῶν πόνων αἰσθήσεως. Σαφῆ δὲ πάντως ἐστὶ τὰ διὰ τῶν αἰνιγμάτων δηλούμενα, ὅτι ὁ τῇ σωφροσύνῃ διεζωσμένος ἐν φωτὶ ζῇ τοῦ καθαροῦ συνειδότος τῷ λύχνῳ τῆς παρρησίας τὸν βίον περιαυγάζοντος, δι’ ὧν τῆς ἀληθείας προφαινομένης ἄϋπνός τε καὶ ἀνεξαπάτητος ἡ ψυχὴ διαμένει οὐδενὶ τῶν ἀπατηλῶν τούτων ὀνείρων ἐμματαιάζουσα. Eἰ δὲ τοῦτο κατορθωθείη κατὰ τὴν τοῦ λόγου ὑφήγησιν, ἀγγελικός τις ἡμᾶς διαδέξεται βίος· τούτοις γὰρ ἡμᾶς ὁμοιοῖ τὸ θεῖον παράγγελμα, δι’ ὧν φησιν ὅτι Καὶ ὑμεῖς ὅμοιοι ἀνθρώποις προσδεχομένοις τὸν κύριον ἑαυτῶν, πότε ἀναλύσει ἐκ τῶν γάμων, ἵνα ἐλθόντος καὶ κρούσαντος εὐθέως ἀνοίξωσιν αὐτῷ· ἐκεῖνοι γάρ εἰσιν οἱ προσδεχόμενοι τοῦ κυρίου τὴν ἐκ τῶν γάμων ἐπάνοδον καὶ ταῖς ἐπουρανίαις πύλαις ἐγρηγορότι τῷ ὀφθαλμῳ προσκαθήμενοι, ἵνα πάλιν εἰσέλθῃ δι’ αὐτῶν ἀναλύσας ἐκ τῶν γάμων ὁ βασιλεὺς τῆς δόξης εἰς τὴν ὑπερουράνιον ἐκείνην μακαριότητα. Ὅθεν κατὰ τὴν ψαλμῳδίαν ὡς ἐκ παστάδος ὁ νυμφίος ἐκπορευθεὶς ἡρμόσατο ἑαυτῷτὴν παρθένον, ἡμᾶς, διὰ τῆς μυστικῆς ἀναγεννήσεως, τὴν τοῖς εἰδώλοις ἐκπορνευθεῖσαν, εἰς ἀφθαρσίαν παρθενικὴν ἀναστοιχειώσας τὴν φύσιν. Tῶν οὖν γάμων ἤδη τετελεσμένων καὶ νυμφευθείσης ὑπὸ τοῦ λόγου τῆς ἐκκλησίας, καθώς φησιν ὁ Ἰωάννης ὅτι Ὁ ἔχων τὴν νύμφην νυμφίος ἐστί, καὶ εἰς τὸν τῶν μυστηρίων θάλαμον αὐτῆς παραδεχθείσης ἀνέμενον οἱ ἄγγελοι τὴν ἐπάνοδον τοῦ βασιλέως τῆς δόξης ἐπὶ τὴν κατὰ φύσιν μακαριότητα. Tούτοις οὖν εἶπε δεῖν ὁμοιοῦσθαι κατὰ τὸν ἡμέτερον βίον, ἵνα καθάπερ ἐκεῖνοι πόρρω κακίας καὶ ἀπάτης πολιτευόμενοι πρὸς ὑποδοχήν εἰσιν εὐτρεπεῖς τῆς δεσποτικῆς παρουσίας, οὕτω καὶ ἡμεῖς τοῖς προθύροις τῶν καταγωγίων ἡμῶν προσαγρυπνοῦντες ἑτοίμους πρὸς ὑπακοὴν ἑαυτοὺς ποιήσωμεν, ὅταν ἐπιστὰς κρούῃ τὴν θύραν· Μακάριοι γάρ, φησίν, οἱ δοῦλοι ἐκεῖνοι, οὓς ἐλθὼν ὁ Kύριος εὑρήσει ποιοῦντας οὕτως. Ἐπεὶ οὖν μακάριόν ἐστι τὸ ὑπακούειν τῷ κρούοντι, τούτου χάριν ἡ διὰ παντὸς πρὸς τὴν μακαριότητα βλέπουσα αἰσθάνεται τοῦ παρεστῶτος τῇ θύρᾳ, ἡ καλῶς τοῖς ἰδίοις θησαυροῖς ἐπαγρυπνοῦσα ψυχή, καί φησιν Φωνὴ τοῦ ἀδελφιδοῦ μου κρούει ἐπὶ τὴν θύραν. Ἅγιος Γρηγόριος Νύσσης, Ἐξηγησις Του Αἰσματος Των Ἀσμάτων Ὁμιλία ΙΑ´ Source: Migne PG 44.993d-997b

The voice of my beloved knocks at the door... 1 One of the greatest of the Lord’s admonitions, by which the mind of the disciples of the Word shakes off the materiality of their nature like so much dust and is lifted up to the desire for things transcendent, is that those who look toward the life on high must be stronger than sleep and so always watchful in the mind, driving off the drowsiness of the eyes as if it were some deluder of souls or plotter against the truth. I speak of the drowsiness and sleep by which is fashioned dream visions for those who are sunk deeply in life’s deceits: high offices, riches, seats of power, conceitedness, the sorcery of pleasures, lust for fame and luxury and honour, and all those things which are eagerly and vainly and ignorantly sought in this life because of some fantasy, which things, falling away as time passes, have their nature in appearance only, and are not what they are thought to be, nor do they continue to be so valued, but rather as soon as they come to be they perish, just as the way waves raise up their peaks on the waters, which being gathered up together for a moment by the movement of the winds, yet in their instability are unable to endure in their substance, for raised up for an instant by a gust of air, so they drop down along with the air and allow the flat surface of the sea to be seen again. Thus, then, so that our mind may be free of such illusions, He exhorts that this heavy sleep be shaken from the eyes of the soul, lest a zeal for that which is unreal make us slip away from things which truly are. That is why He counsels the notion of vigilance for us when He says, 'Let your loins be girded and your lamps burning,' 2 for light shining in the eyes wards sleep from them, and loins tightly bound make the body disinclined to sleep, since preparation for laborious exertion does not bring the relaxation required for sleep. At any rate, it is apparent what is meant by these mysteries: that the one who is bound about with prudence lives by the light of a purified conscience, with life lit up all around by the lamp of candour, by which, the truth shining forth, the soul remains untouched by sleep and does not idle in the deceptions of those dreams. And if this is accomplished under the leadership of the Word, an angelic life is bestowed on us, for the Divine command likens us to angels when He says: 'And be like those waiting to receive their Lord, when he comes away from the marriage feast, so that when he comes and knocks they may open to him without delay.' 3 For it is the angels who wait for the return of their Lord from the marriage feast and sit at the heavenly gates with vigilant eyes, so that again when the King of Glory comes back from the marriage feast, He may enter with them into that supernal blessedness. Whence as one of the Psalms says, the Bridegroom coming out, as from the bridal chamber, 4 espoused the maiden, ourselves, in spiritual rebirth, even though she had been prostituted to idols, and restored her nature to virginal incorruptibility. Now since the marriage rites have been completed and the Church has been taken by the Word as His bride, just as John says: 'He who has the bride is the bridegroom,' 5 and the bride has been taken into the inner chamber of the mysteries, the angels are awaiting the return of the King of Glory to the blessedness that is His by nature. He says, then, that we in our living are to become like them, so that just like them, existing far from evil and error, we are prepared to greet their master at His coming, and sitting awake by the outer doors of our lodgings, we have been made ready to hear when He has arrived and knocks at the door. For He says, 'Blessed are those servants whom their Lord finds doing this when He comes.' 6 Since, then, it is a blessed thing to hearken to the one who knocks, because of this, the soul which is always looking for blessedness, perceives the one standing at the door, she who rightly watching over her treasures says, 'The voice of my beloved knocks at the door.' Saint Gregory of Nyssa, Commentary on The Song of Songs, from Homily 11 1 Song 5.2 2 Lk 12.35 3 Lk 12.36 4 Ps 18.6 5 Jn 3.29 6 Lk 12.43