After his operation, Elder Paisios had his heart set on returning to Mt. Athos. His attempts to do so, however, were hindered by his failing health. His last days were full of suffering, but also of the joy of the martyrs. On July 11, 1994, he received [[Holy Communion]] for the last time. The next day, Elder Paisios gave his soul into God's keeping. He was buried, according to his wishes, at the Monastery of St. John the Theologian in Souroti. Elder Paisios, perhaps more than any other contemporary elder, has captured the minds and hearts of the Greek people. Many books of his counsels have been published , and the monastery at Souroti has undertaken a great work, organizing the Elder's writings and counsels into impressive volumes befitting his memory. Thousands of pilgrims visit his tomb each year.
==Quotes==
'''Asceticism''': "The soft life makes people useless. Without toil and struggle sanctification won't come." -- in ''Precious Vessels of the Holy Spirit'', p.139
'''Ecclesiology''': "Unfortunately, in our days, there are many people who upset the mother Church. Of these, those that are educated have understood dogma with their minds and not with the spirit of the [[Holy Fathers]]. At the same time, those who are unlettered have grabbed hold of [[dogma]] with their teeth, which is why they grind their teeth when they speak about ecclesiastical topics. In this way, greater harm is caused by those in the Church than by those who battle it from without." -- in ''Precious Vessels of the Holy Spirit'', p.131
'''Education''': "One word of a humble and (spiritually) experienced man that is painfully born from the depths of his heart has greater worth than a bunch of clever sayings of an external man that come out quickly from his educated mouth. His words don't speak truth to the souls of men, for they are fleshly words and not the flames of the fire of [[Pentecost]]." -- in ''Precious Vessels of the Holy Spirit'', p.134
'''Fleeing the world''': "The monk flees far from the world, not because he detests the world, but because he loves the world and in this way he is better able to help the world through his prayer, in things that don't happen humanly but only through divine intervention. In this way God saves the world." -- in ''Precious Vessels of the Holy Spirit'', p.132
'''Missions''': "That which is asked of every Orthodox person is to instill a 'good uneasiness' into the heterodox, that they might understand that they are in delusion. This is so they will not falsely calm their conscience and thus be deprived in this life of the rich blessings of Orthodoxy and in the life to come of the even greater and eternal blessings of God." -- in ''Precious Vessels of the Holy Spirit'', p.131-2
'''Prayer''': "If you want to grab God's attention so He'll hear you during prayer, turn the dial to humility, for God always works in this frequency, then humbly ask for His mercy." -- in ''Precious Vessels of the Holy Spirit'', p.137
'''Renouncing the world''': "The monk is helped greatly when the monastery is far from the world, far from archeological sites and worldly noises. Even monasteries that are great sites of pilgrimage lose sight of their true goal, for many times from being a monastery they end up as a business." -- in ''Precious Vessels of the Holy Spirit'', p.132-3