No matter how much a person tries to find ways to be happy (money, fame, pleasures, etc.), they will achieve nothing, since true happiness leads to goodness, and goodness is God Himself and whatever He defines and commands.

Therefore, the reading of Know Thyself serves as a valuable aid in a time when being a Christian for many is a custom without demands or merely a matter of taste. A reminder that the kingdom of God is not for those who sleep and indulge, but the violent take it by force (Clement of Alexandria).

Saint Nektarios is not interested in writing a literary work; he knows that good teachings are of no use if they do not help you change your life or at least its direction.

[Excerpt from the text on the back cover of the edition]