Archimandrite Seraphim (Alexiev)
1) The first and most reliable way to cope with demons is the acquisition of humility.
Saint Anthony the Great saw once all the snares of the evil one disseminated on earth. Sighing, he said: "Who can avoid them?" – and he heard a voice that said to him: "[wisdom of] humility!"
Indeed, nothing else could upset so much the plans of the devil as humility. The evil one sends visions in order to inflate one’s pride, while humility disposes of any devilish phenomenon and puts an end to it. He who has reached the [wisdom of] humility has become invulnerable to demons.
The devil appeared to a monk transformed into an angel of light, and said to him: "I am archangel Gabriel. I was sent to you." The monk said: "See that you are not sent to someone else because I am unworthy to see angels." The devil, scalded by the monk's humility, immediately disappeared.
And those misguided modern clerics boasting with their visions can be saved from the devil's captivity – if they humble themselves.
2) The second way is to meet every vision in full mistrust.
A virtuous old man lived in utter silence in his cottage and was often disturbed by demons. They came to him when awake but he met them with contempt. Then the devil resorted to contrivance. He appeared to the hermit in light and said: "I am Christ!" The old man closed his eyes expressing mistrust. The devil repeated: "I am Christ. Why did you close your eyes?" And the old man answered: "I desire to see Christ not here but in the future life." The devil disappeared. The old man – thanks to his prudent mistrust guarded himself from the tempter's wiles. And so today's Christians – who are scammed by devilish visions, can also be saved if they show distrust in their visions.
But some will object: what if the visions are from God and we reject them, will we not offend with this the Holy Spirit Who gives them?
To these we shall answer: if we – having taken the road of religious sanity – really reject genuine, gracious visions, God will not be angry with us, because He knows that it is not from stubborn unbelief that we do not trust our visions, but from prudent dread lest we become victims of demons' deceit.
If prudent rejection of vision occurring to sinners were a sin, then the most responsible ones for such a "sin" would be the Holy Fathers of our Orthodox Church. Because it is they exactly who – protecting us from aberrations after sickly mysticism, quite definitely advise us: "If indeed an angel appeared to you, do not accept him credulously, but humble yourself and say: I live in sins. I am unworthy to see angels."
That same advice is also given by St. Gregory of Sinai: "Accept it in no way if you see something with your sensual eyes or with your mind outside or inside you, were it even in the image of Christ or of an angel or of some saint, or if you are shown light... Be careful and alert! Do not indulge in trusting such things, do not voice sympathy and consent, and do not be quick to believe the vision quickly, even if it is true and good! Grow cold and foreign to him, constantly guarding your mind to not build itself any image... He who has seen something in his mind or with his senses, even if it is from God and hastened to accept it, easily falls into the deceit or at least reveals one's inclination and ability to believe the fraud as one who accepts the phenomena quick and frivolously... God is not angry at him who guards oneself with utter attention – and fearing a fraud, does not accept what has been sent by God until one discusses it with great attention. To the contrary, He praises him for one's prudence..."
3) The third way is to purify one's heart from sins.
The Devil can easily slip – without being noticed – into a soul fouled by iniquities the same as the wolf can imperceptibly get close to the sheep pen on a misty winter day. But when the soul is purified of sins, the appearance of the devil can easily be noticed.
Circumcision [sin purification] is best done in the sacrament of repentance and confession, done before a cleric. At the confession a man should open up one's soul, take out on display all hidden thoughts and dark secrets, appear in all one's carefully concealed hitherto spiritual ugliness, feel spiritually stripped in order for one's spiritual father to see one as one is! What [great] self-abasement the confession is, what self-exposing!; but how salvational it is!
Where in sincere confession one has shown to one's priest all the abominations of one's heart, then one alone will [be able to] answer oneself whether one is worthy to see angels. Then one shall be so [much] humbled that one would never even think to see visions with one's profane eyes!
4) The fourth way is the more frequent receiving of communion with the Body and Blood of Christ, the more frequent drinking of holy water and sprinkling with it, making of the sign of the cross and reading the prayer: "Let God arise, and let His enemies be scattered!" A Holy Father asked the demons that appeared to him: "What are you most scared of?" Forced in God's name to respond, they admitted against their will: "Of what you call Communion."
How strongly the sign of the cross is in our fight against demons is seen from the following words of St. Anthony the Great: "They (the demons) are timid and fear exceptionally much the sign of the cross as through the cross the Savior has deprived them of their powers and has given them to disgrace."
