Ascending Mount Sinai

The following song, if we are to believe père Placide, is commonly used in vacation camps of the young Orthodox in Greece:

I have left Pharaoh,
The slavery in Egypt,
Following Moses,
To ascend Mt. Sinai.

To climb Mt. Sinai,
Oh, how I desire
To arrive at the Holy Summit
While saying the prayer.

The ascent is very hard;
Lord, give patience,
Firmness, strength, and power
To acquire the prayer.

To say the prayer,
One must reject
And chase from one's thought
All the things of this world.

At the outset, say the prayer
Vocally, with labor,
And later, with time,
It will descend to your heart.

Fix your attention well
On the words of the prayer.
If not, you will get lost
In a world of imagination.

The clever one is irritated,
Aggravated by the prayer;
Therefore, do not be afraid
When he wages war on you.

The words of the prayer
Carry savory fruits;
They are sweeter than honey.
You cannot imagine this,

And do not ask me
How the prayer works.
I would not be able to explain it;
It is a divine mystery.

When you see the prayer
Acting inside of you,
Keep it carefully,
In great humility.

Reverend Elder,
My spiritual Moses,
Give your benediction
That I may acquire the prayer.

The Virgin Mother of God,
The mystic hegumen,
Blesses all the monks
And gives them the prayer.

Oh, how much I desire
To ascend Sinai,
To arrive at the Holy Summit,
Saying the prayer.