Dorotheus (Gazsky) (died in the 6th century) - born in Antioch, received a good education. Having entered the monastery, he became a student of the elders Barsanuphius the Great and John the Prophet. He was a hermit, and a circle of disciples formed around him, for whom he founded a monastery. His main work, “Soulful Teachings,” a recording of instructions to monks, is one of the central works of ascetic literature, which absorbed the previous tradition. The “Teachings,” written in simple and unsophisticated language, are a kind of ascetic “alphabet” that solves the main issues of spiritual life and monastic achievement. In Rus', the book of spiritually beneficial teachings of Abba Dorotheus was the most widespread by the number of copies, along with the “Ladder” of St. John and the works of St. Ephraim the Syrian.

“How to Grow Spiritually” is a brief summary of the teachings of St. Abba Dorotheus. It will be useful not only to monks and those who want to take the monastic path, but also to everyone who wants to live piously and grow spiritually.