“Happy is he whom Truth teacheth by itself, not by figures and words that pass, but as it is in itself.... It is a great folly for us to neglect things profitable and necessary and willingly to busy ourselves about those which are curious and hurtful.... He to whom the Eternal Word speaketh is set at liberty from a multitude of opinions.... O Truth, my God, make me one with Thee in everlasting love. I am wearied with often reading and hearing many things; in Thee is all that I will or desire. Let all teachers hold their peace; let all creatures be silent in Thy sight; speak Thou alone to me.” In passing, we may compare this prayer and the whole mystic rapture and personal heart-cries of the _Imitation_ with Aurelius’ idea of a perfect prayer: “A prayer of the Athenians: Rain, rain, O dear Zeus, down on the ploughed fields of the Athenians and on the plains. In truth we ought not to pray at all or we ought to pray in this simple and noble fashion.” This simplicity was a great advance on the hypocrisy and verbiage which often marked Roman prayers and provided matter for satire to Horace and Juvenal; but, after all, it does not present us with any very lofty ideal. So, too, when he speaks of the objects which we ought to pray for: “Why dost thou not ask that the gods may give thee the faculty of not fearing any of the things thou fearest, or of not desiring any of the things thou desirest, or not being pained at anything rather than pray that any of these things should not happen or happen? One man prays thus: How shall I not lose my little son? Do thou pray thus: How shall I not be afraid to lose him. In fine, turn thy prayers this way, and see what comes.” All this does Aurelius credit, but it is far from the outpouring of the soul to God, which is the essence of the Christian book.