St. Ignatius Brianchaninov gives the following definition of prelest: it is “wounding of human nature with falsehood”
deception – (English)
plani – (Greek)
prelest – (Russian)
Prelest is a Russian word that means a state of mind where someone imagines they are something they are not. The concept of prelest should not be confused with somatic mental illness of any kind; prelest is rather a spiritual illness, an illness of the soul in its personal relation to God, an illness that originates from vainglory, pride, and demonic suggestion and that is to be cured by humility and Holy Sacraments and under the guidance of the spiritual father. There are countless stories of monks, and other religious’ peoples, attacking their own families because “God told them to.” The demonic spirits that attack us daily have the power to persuade and manipulate our very own thoughts. The deepest thoughts we thought to be ours, could be those of demons, working fervently to destroy what the Lord has built up, within us.
In our faith, the relationship we have with Jesus is meant to be one that is based out of faith and understanding. The euphoric type relationship that we see on social media, and in other forms of media, gives a false depiction on how the holy spirit works through us. As I stated before, this spiritual affliction can be fought off by the teachings of our Holy Father. The persistent and conscience choice to partake in the Holy Sacraments.
