St. Nicephorus the Hesychast

Saint Nicephorus the Hesychast (c.1250-1280)

Nikephoros the Monk, also called Nikephoros the Hesychast, was a 13th-century monk and spiritual writer of the Eastern Orthodox Church. 

Author, poet and professor of English, Scott Cairns has put into verse some of Nikephoros' writings.

Reunion

You know already that the breath

moves in and out in order to infuse

the heart with the air it craves;

as I have said, then, recollect

your mind, and draw it  -- and yes,

I am speaking of your mind –

as if you drew it in

through your very nostrils.

Attend to its descent, as it finds

the path to reach the heart. Drive it then,

and force it downward with the very

air you breathe to enter with a rush into

that famished, pulsing chamber.

When it arrives, you will taste

the joy that follows. You’ll have nothing

to regret. Just as a man who has been far

from home a long time cannot restrain

his delight at seeing his wife and children –

just so, the spirit overflows with joy

and with unspeakable delight when it is

once more united with the soul.

New Knowledge

Thereafter, you must see to it

that so long as your spirit bides

--that is, at home in the heart—

you must not stay silent nor idle,

you must not take this treasure lightly.

Have no other occupation, no other

meditation than the cry

of Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God,

have mercy on me!

Under no condition acquiesce

to rest, but fix your heart solely

on this elevating work.

This prayer will draw you every day

more deeply into love, more fully

into love with and in desire for your God.

Scott Cairns, Endless Life poems of the mystics