478. Abbâ Poemen used to say, “The passions are four heads”; and a brother said unto him, “What are they?” The old man said unto him, “Worldly grief which cometh about many things, the love of money, vainglory, and fornication; and it is meet that we should be on the watch against these before all other passions.”
479. He said also, “If a monk hateth two things he is able to free himself from the world, and these are,” said he, “the gratifications of the body, and vainglory.”
480. The same old man also said, “Wrath is a natural thing in man, it is his nature, but it must be used to cut off evil passions. Hunger is natural in a man, but it must be employed [in satisfying] the want of the body, and not [to gratify] the feeling of eager lust [to eat], even as the blessed David said, ‘With him whose eye is lofty and whose heart is greedy I have not eaten’ (Psalm 101:5; 131:1). Sleep too is natural in man, but [it must not be indulged] to satiety.”
481. A brother asked Abbâ Poemen, saying, “Tell me, why it is that when I offer repentance to a brother who is wroth with me I do not see him pleased with me?” The old man said unto him, “Tell me truly: when thou offerest to him repentance hast thou not the opinion that thou art not doing it because thou hast sinned against him, but because of the commandment?” And the brother said unto him, “It is even thus.” The old man said unto him, “Because of this God doth not permit him to be pleased with thee, and because thou dost not offer repentance to him in fulfilment of thine own desire, but as if thou hadst not sinned against him, but he had sinned against thee.”
482. They used to say that when the disciples of Abbâ Agathon were building a cell he remained with them for a period of four months, and when they had finished it, on the first Sabbath on which they dwelt in it, the old man saw in it something which did not afford him profit, and he said unto his disciples, “Arise, let us go away from here.” And when they heard [this], they were greatly troubled, and they answered and said unto him, “If thou hadst this thought to depart, why have we done all this work and built the cell? Moreover, men will be offended with us, and will say, ‘They have left this place because they can abide nowhere.’ ” Now when the old man saw that their souls were grieved, he said unto them, “If some men be offended at us, there are others who will be edified by us, and they will say, ‘These blessed men departed for God’s sake, and they considered nothing [else].’ However, let him that wisheth to come with me come, for I
