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having emptied, and may interrupt the thanksgiving in patience, and so then may they widen the snares with great confidence, and from the appropriate places.

CHAPTER 3. For this reason, let him who is beginning to lay hold of virtue, also calculate the

war coming against it, so that, appearing untrained, he may not be dragged down as unprepared. For praiseworthy is the courage of virtue even when there is peace, but exceedingly praiseworthy is its prowess, when war has come upon it. For this is virtue, not only through what it accomplishes, but also through the terrible things by which it is warred against; impassible is he who through many wars has conquered suffering, but impassioned is he who says he possesses a virtue that is not fought against. For opposite the battle-line of the virtuous strategy of labors, the wickedness of the adversaries is also drawn up in battle-line. A heart having no war is deprived of being in virtue. For Virtue is called a practical name from its noble deeds. Virtue does not seek praises from men, for it does not delight in honor, the mother of evils. The beginning of honor, at any rate, is pleasing men, but its end is pride. For he who demands honors, exalts himself, and such a one does not know how to bear contempt. The desire for honor is a fantasy, for he who loves it also imagines it as an inheritance. Let the labor of the virtues be your honor, and the praise according to your will be a dishonor; he who is destroying the passions of the flesh, let him not seek glory from the flesh, but seek the better, and glory shall be yours. He who wishes to be honored envies the one who is more highly esteemed. And for this one who has been defeated by excessive honors he heaps up hatred with jealousy, he wishes no one to be preferred to himself, and he snatches the first places, lest he appear inferior; he does not bear to honor the esteemed one when he is absent, but even in his labors he mocks his groveling glory. Insolence is a most sharp slaughter to the lover of glory, and from this he by no means escapes wrath.

CHAPTER 4. Such a one, serves a barbarian mistress and many masters

he has been sold, to arrogance, and envy, and jealousy and to the aforementioned bands of spirits; but he who smites the spirit of honor with humility, will destroy the whole legion of demons. He who through humility presents himself as a servant to all, will be conformed to the one who humbled himself, and took the form 79.1100 of a servant. If you measure yourself with the smallest measure, you will not measure yourself against a companion, and he who uncovers the weakness of his soul with lamentations, will not think highly of the things he has labored for himself. Demons bring worthlessness and insolence upon the humble of mind, so that, not bearing the contempt, they may flee from humility. But he who through humility nobly bears dishonors is thrust up rather by them to the height of philosophy. David, being insulted, did not speak against it, but even restrained the vengeance of Abishai. And you, when insulted, do not insult in return, but also rightly calm the one who would avenge you; bear insolence, your own progress, and with your lips shut the door of anger. You shall not answer at all to those who threaten you, so that with silence you may put to sleep the smoking lips. Then you will pain threateners and insulters when you place bridles on your jaws. For you, being silent, will not be consumed by the insolence, but he is much more bitten by your silence, whenever you bear with long-suffering the boldness of an insulter. Shake off the praise of men from within, so that you may cast out the ostentatious thought before it. And especially in quiet, watch for self-satisfaction, lest ever, having magnified yourself above the one who was bold, you despise him. One of the brothers was insulted by a pious man, and having endured the injustice he went away being divided between both joy and grief; on the one hand, because being wronged he was insulted and was not disturbed in return, on the other hand, because the pious man was deceived and having deceived, rejoiced. But understand for me also that the deceiver experienced two things: on the one hand, in that he caused disturbance, he surely rejoiced, on the other hand, in that he was not disturbed in return, he was rather grieved.

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κενώσαντες, καὶ τῆς ἐν τῇ ὑπομονῇ εὐχαριστίας διακόψωσιν, καὶ οὕτω λοιπὸν τὰς πάγας μετὰ πολλῆς ἀδείας, καὶ ἐκ τῶν προσηκόντων εὐρύνωσι.

ΚΕΦΑΛ. Γʹ. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ὁ ἀρχόμενος ἀρετῆς ἐφάπτεσθαι, ψηφιζέτω καὶ τὸν κατ'

αὐτῆς ἐπιόντα πόλεμον, ἵνα μὴ ἀγύμναστος ὀφθεὶς ὡς ἀνέτοιμος κατασπασθῇ. Ἐπαινετὴ μὲν γὰρ τῆς ἀρετῆς ἡ ἀνδρεία καὶ εἰρήνης οὔσης, ὑπερεπαινετὴ δὲ ἡ ταύτης ἀνδραγαθία, καὶ πολέμου ἐπιστάντος· τοῦτο γὰρ ἡ ἀρετὴ, οὐ δι' ὧν ἐργάζεται μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ δι' ὧν πολεμεῖται δεινῶν, ἀπαθὴς ὁ διὰ πλείστων πολέμων τὸ πάσχειν νικήσας, ἐμπαθὴς δὲ ὁ ἀρετὴν λέγων ἀπολέμητον κεκτῆσθαι· κατὰ τὴν παράταξιν γὰρ τῆς ἐναρέτου τῶν πόνων στρατηγίας, ἀντιπαρατάττεται καὶ ἡ τῶν ἐναντίων κακία· ἀφῄρηται τὸ εἶναι ἐν ἀρετῇ καρδία πόλεμον οὐκ ἔχουσα. Ἀρετὴ γὰρ ἐκ τῶν ἀριστείων πρακτικὸν ὄνομα κέκληται. Ἀρετὴ τὰς παρ' ἀνθρώπων εὐφημίας οὐ ζητεῖ, οὐ γὰρ τέρπεται τιμῇ, τῇ μητρὶ τῶν κακῶν. Ἀρχὴ γοῦν τιμῆς ἀνθρωπαρέσκεια, τὸ δὲ τέλος ταύτης, ὑπερηφανία. Ὁ γὰρ τιμὰς ἀπαιτῶν, ὑψοῖ ἑαυτὸν, καὶ ἐξουδένωσιν φέρειν ὁ τοιοῦτος οὐκ οἶδε· τιμῆς ὄρεξις φαντασία, ὁ γὰρ αὐτῆς ἐρῶν καὶ κλῆρον φαντάζεται. Ἔστω σοι τιμὴ ὁ πόνος τῶν ἀρετῶν, καὶ ἀτιμία ὁ κατὰ θέλησιν ἔπαινος, δόξαν ἀπὸ σαρκὸς μὴ ζήτει ὁ τὰ σαρκὸς πάθη καταλύων, τὸ δὲ κρεῖττον ἐπιζήτει, καὶ ἔσται σοι δόξα, ὁ τιμᾶσθαι θέλων τῷ παρευδοκιμοῦντι φθονεῖ. Καὶ τούτῳ τὸ μῖσος τῷ ζήλῳ σωρεύει ὁ ταῖς ἄγαν τιμαῖς ἡττηθεὶς, ἑαυτοῦ προτιμᾶσθαι οὐδένα θέλει, ἁρπάζει δὲ τὰ πρωτεῖα, μήπως ἥττων φανῇ, οὐ βαστάζει ἀπόντα τὸν εὐδοκιμοῦντα τιμᾷν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐν τοῖς αὐτοῦ πόνοις κομωδεῖ τὴν χαμαίζηλον δόξαν, ἡ ὕβρις τῷ φιλοδόξῳ ὀξυτάτη σφαγὴ, καὶ μῆνιν ἐκ ταύτης οὐ πάντως ἐκφεύγει.

ΚΕΦΑΛ. ∆ʹ. Ὁ τοιοῦτος, βαρβάρῳ δεσποίνῃ δουλεύει καὶ πολλοῖς δεσπόταις

μετεπράθη, ἐπάρσει, καὶ φθόνῳ, καὶ ζήλῳ καὶ ταῖς προῤῥηθείσαις τῶν πνευμάτων λογάσιν, ὁ δὲ τῆς τιμῆς τὸ πνεῦμα ταπεινώσει ῥάσσων, τὸν λεγεῶνα τῶν δαιμόνων ὅλον καθαιρήσει, ὁ τῇ ταπεινώσει δοῦλον ἑαυτὸν πᾶσι παρέχων, ἀφωμοιωμένος ἔσται τῷ ταπεινώσαντι ἑαυτὸν, καὶ μορφὴν 79.1100 δούλου λαβόντι. Ἐὰν μετρῇς τῷ ἐλαχίστῳ μέτρῳ σεαυτὸν, οὐκ ἀντιμετρήσῃς σεαυτὸν ἑταίρῳ, καὶ ὁ τῆς ψυχῆς τὴν ἀσθένειαν θρήνοις ἐκκαλύπτων, οὐ μέγα ἐπὶ τοῖς ἐφ' ἑαυτοῦ πονουμένοις φρονήσει. ∆αίμονες εὐτέλειαν, καὶ ὕβριν τοῖς ταπεινοφρονοῦσιν ἐπάγουσιν, ἵνα τὴν ἐξουδένωσιν οὐ φέροντες, τὴν ταπεινοφροσύνην φύγωσιν, ὁ δὲ διὰ ταπεινώσεως τὰς ἀτιμίας γενναίως φέρων εἰς φιλοσοφίας ὕψος δι' ἐκείνων μᾶλλον ἀνωθεῖται. Ὁ ∆αβὶδ ὑβριζόμενος οὐκ ἀντέλεγεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν Ἀβεσσᾶ ἐκδικίαν κατέστελλε. Καὶ σὺ ὑβριζόμενος μὴ ἀνθύβριζε, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸν ἐκδικοῦντά σε ὀρθῶς καταπράϋνε· ὕβριν φέρε, τὴν σὴν προκοπὴν, καὶ χείλεσι σύγκλειε τοῦ θυμοῦ τὴν θύραν· ἀποκριθήσῃ τοῖς ἀπειλοῦσιν οὐδ' ὅλως, ἵνα τῇ σιγῇ κοιμίσῃς τὰ καπνίζοντα χείλη, ἀπειλοῦντας τότε καὶ ὑβριστὰς ὀδυνήσεις ὅταν χαλινοὺς σαῖς σιαγόσι ἐπιθήσῃς. Σὺ μὲν γὰρ σιγῶν, οὐ βρωθήσῃ τῇ ὕβρει, ὁ δὲ πολὺ μᾶλλον δάκνεται ὑπὸ τῆς σῆς σιωπῆς, ἐπὰν ὑβριστοῦ θάρσος μακροθύμως ὑπενέγκῃς· τὸν τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἔπαινον ἐκ τῶν ἐντὸς ἀποσείου, ἵνα τὸν φιλενδείκτην λογισμὸν πρὸ αὐτοῦ ἐκτινάξῃς. Ἐπιτήρει δὲ καὶ τὸ αὐτάρεσκον μάλιστα καθ' ἡσυχίαν, μή ποτέ σε μεγαλύναν ὑπὲρ τὸν θρασυθέντα ἐξουδενώσῃς ἐκεῖνον. Τὶς τῶν ἀδελφῶν ὕβρισται παρὰ εὐλαβοῦς, καὶ ἀδικίαν ὑπομείνας ἀπῄει χαρᾷ τε μεριζόμενος, καὶ λύπῃ, τὸ μὲν ὅτι ἀδικούμενος ὑβρίσθη καὶ οὐκ ἀντεταράχθη, τὸ δὲ ὅτι ὁ εὐλαβὴς ἠπατήθη καὶ ἀπατήσας ἐχάρη. Νόει δέ μοι καὶ τὸν ἀπατεῶνα τὰ δύο πεπονθέναι ἐφ' ᾧ μὲν ἐτάραξε πάντως χαρέντα, ἐφ' ᾧ οὐκ ἀντεταράχθη, μᾶλλον λυπηθέντα.