Письмо 95
The Folly of Anger
Anger is a destructive force that robs the soul of its peace and serves only to condemn the one who harbors it.
Your anger toward N. N. It's a bad thing — and that means progress!1 For you can say what needs saying even without heat.2 If you judge things clearly, there's nothing in the world worth getting angry over. What is more precious than the soul and its peace? But getting angry takes that peace away. In this, a person becomes their own accuser.3
The Root of Judgment
Anger stems from a lack of self-attention and a prideful desire to judge others, which can be cured by true self-knowledge and the remembrance of death.
He only fuels it further himself, amplifying the other person's wrongs in his own soul. It all stems from not paying attention to yourself; that's why it erupts. Deep in the heart lies the belief that one has the right to judge and punish others for their sins, rather than oneself. That's the essence of it. .4 .5 If a person saw himself as a sinner, with a real sense of all that sin brings, he wouldn't get angry. It's good that you've shifted from anger to the thought of death.
Abiding in the Grave
The practice of keeping one's mind fixed on death serves as a powerful anchor for humility and a constant call to seek the Lord's mercy.
That's the point. And don't let your mind wander from the grave. Stand there and plead with the Lord for mercy.
Read the original Russian
Ваше серчание на N. N. плохой означает прогресс! Ведь и без сердца можно сказать дело. Прямо судя, вещи на свете нет, за которую следовало бы сердиться. Что дороже души и покоя ея? А серчание отнимает сей покой. Тут себе наветником бывает человек.
И сам еще раздувает, увеличивая в душе неправды другаго. Все от того, что внимания нет к себе: вот и прорвется. В сердце глубоко лежит присвоение себе прав судить и наказывать за грехи других, вместо себя. Тут все. . . Когда бы себя грешником видел человек, с чувством всех последствий греха, не стал бы серчать. Хорошо, что от гнева вы перешли к мысли о смерти.
Это дело. И не выходите мыслию из гроба. Стойте там и умоляйте Господа о помиловании.
Notes
- 1 ↩плохой means 'bad'; progress! is likely pastoral: admitting the anger (a bad thing) is itself a sign of spiritual progress. If the source is corrupt or meant something else, review.
- 2 ↩без сердца: literally 'without the heart'; in context of серчание (getting angry, from сердце), rendered as without heat/passion rather than without sincerity.
- 3 ↩наветник: one who brings a charge or denunciation; here, by getting angry a person turns informer/accuser against his own peace and good.
- 4 ↩Source sentence is only a bare period ('.'); no recoverable lexical content.
- 5 ↩Source sentence is only a bare period ('.'); no recoverable lexical content.
Letters on the Christian Life companion
Rule yourself daily, not just on retreat
Chosen Portion turns the mirror into a daily practice — a short reading and examining question each morning before you lead anyone.
Chosen Portion makes the mirror daily: the ruler-formation questions this collection preserves become a two-minute morning examination in the app.
- A daily formation reading drawn from centuries of counsel to those in authority
- One pointed examination question a day — two minutes, before the meetings start
- Track your practice over weeks and watch the examined life become a habit