Geronda, how is the heart cleansed?

- Geronda, how is the heart cleansed?
- Humility, gentleness, sacrifice, disinterestedness, confession of thoughts, exploit, prayers, and most importantly, the Jesus Prayer - this is what purifies the heart. The Jesus Prayer frees the heart from all rubbish.
- Geronda, can the heart be cleansed by the Jesus Prayer alone?
- No. It is impossible to be cleansed by the Jesus Prayer alone. At the same time, there must be humility and proper deed.
If you pray but neglect humility and feat, then your prayer is a vain labor. And vice versa: if you observe the rest, but do not care about prayer, then you too are working in vain. And strive, and pray, asking for God's help, and so gradually the heart will be cleansed. Feat and prayer should go hand in hand.
From the sixth volume of the Words of St. Paisios the Athonite "On Prayer"