is it then more important than the holy bible?

Disclaimer: The paragraph extracted here has been taken from a book titled "The way of a Pilgrim". The extracted paragraph mentioned herein could be studied independently and hence I have it extracted. I have given it a title "Is it then more important than the Holy Bible?" since that just sums it up all well. I found the thought mentioned in the extract as a good axiom.

Background of the book: The main character (philosopher) of the book is an anonymous Russian peasant who calls himself a "Pilgrim". The Pilgrim wanders from place to place in search for the wisdom that would teach him to pray ceaselessly…

In his quest for getting an explanation on ceaseless prayer the Pilgrim found himself being approached by an old man who looked like a member of some religious community. The Pilgrim came to know that the guy was a monk who had a hermitage nearby. The elderly invited him to the hermitage for food and lodging. The Pilgrim had no inclination to stop and said that he was looking for some spiritual direction and not for food and shelter. To this the elderly replied that he knew of some spiritual elders who could give the kind of spiritual nourishment as was required by the pilgrim.

The Pilgrim said to the elderly that a year ago while he was at a Liturgy he heard the following admonition from the Apostle Paul: 'Pray Constantly'. Not being able to understand this he began a quest for knowing how to pray continuously. He said he has heard many sermons but not found a satisfactory explanation. The Pilgrim and the elderly hit into a conversation. The talks between them made the Pilgrim feel that the elderly could be able to teach him ceaseless prayer. So the pilgrim hurried and asked elderly to teach him learn and practice ceaseless prayer.

The elderly asked him to visit his cell and said of giving him a book of the holy fathers that would help him learn about prayer. The book was called "Philokalia". The Pilgrim followed the elderly to his cell. The book was compiled by twenty-five Holy fathers and contains detail instructions about ceaseless prayer. The elderly also went on to mention that the contents of the book are of such a depth and usefulness that it is considered to be the primary teacher of contemplative life. It leads one to salvation without labor and sweat. To this the Pilgrim asked "Is it then more important than the Holy Bible?"

To this the elderly replied, "No, it is neither more important nor holier than Bible, but it contains clear exposition of the ideas that are mysteriously presented in the Bible and are not easy for our finite mind to understand. I will give you an illustration. The sun -- a great, shining and magnificent light -- cannot be contemplated and looked at directly with the naked eye. An artificial glass, a million times smaller and dimmer than the sun, is needed to look at the great king of lights to be enraptured by its fiery rays. In a similar way the Holy Bible is a shining light and the Philokalia is the necessary glass. "