Ieromonk Ghelasie Gheorghe: "HESYCHASM, Seeing through the LIGHT of GRACE" (translation from Romanian by Alice Butnar)

I am trying to regard
Thy FACE just for a moment...
Yet in this DIVINE RADIANCE,
My Creation Eyes
Can no longer see...

LORD, Thou dost keep telling me:
“My LOVE
Is in the SHOWING of My FACE.

Do not close your Eyes,
Try looking at Me,
The JOY of LOVE is
In the LOOKING of the Eyes.

If you only knew what JOY there is
In the FACE of the One you see,
You would keep your eyes open for ever.”

But LORD, I cannot look at Thee,
Thy RADIANCE is blinding me...
Lay Your GRACE
Between Thee and me,
GRACE ITSELF is so RADIANT,
That I fall at Thy feet,
And only from time to time
Can I lift my Eyes,
And almost blinded by LIGHT
I lower my Eyes again,
With the DIVINE LONGING for Thee,
That makes me again and again
Dare look at Thee...

Created Nature is “melting away”
When FACING the UNCREATED,
And only through GRACE may be
Regarded that which is BEYOND Creation.

Published in the volume "Hesychasm", Platytera Publishing House, Bucharest, 2007, pp. 110-111. Translation from Romanian: Alice Butnar.

Copyright: Platytera Publishing House.

The Romanian (Original) Version can be found here.
The German Version can be found here.