you turn back the savage cloud for its own destruction; for the battle was not simple and singular, but being mixed together it burst forth into many-branched and many-twisted origins. For Slav with Hun, and Scythian with the Bulgar, and again the Mede agreeing with the Scythian, though having divisions of tongues and places, and being both separate and joined from afar, stirred up one battle against us, and they deemed their own unbelief to be a well-founded faith against us; Therefore, on the one side Scylla, the nurse of Scythians, roared, boiling fiercely, and on the other, from Persia, Charybdis echoed greatly; and in the middle of these, not a wanderer as of old, was that counsellor of deceits; But you, steering a steady course and stretching the white sails of your thoughts, sailed along with the world-leading vessel; and these things, in response to the sea's assault, indeed show the divine stratagems.

But since, then, just as the myths of old invent the Earth-born, the falsely sown, the bottom of the earth brought forth barbarians, and multitudes came to the walls of the Gate of Philoxenus, which were estimated to be gathering eight myriarchies, and there was trumpet and arrows and swords, fire and tortoises and flying stones, and the engines and constructions of makeshift towers; and salvation was incredible to all, as great as the hope you yourself held among us, which secured our fortune on the sphere. And I, wishing to conceal these things for you—for I was not unaware that you wish even now to be unnoticed—was about to be silent; but my mind blushed to steal this away, seeing so many witnesses. Therefore, endure it; for it is reasonably difficult to conceal a common suspicion and escape notice; for you had, you had the like-minded Virgin who foretold to you the future of your aim; having her as your customary fellow-shield-bearer, you strategized from an immaterial heart against the rival instruments of the contests. For you had as a bow the hope of God, running sharper than the speed of lightning, and faith as towers, and your tears as arrows, and the Spirit as fire; and you made tortoises by bending the knee and bowing your neck; and sending forth your groans in reply as stones, you turned back the stone-throwers of the barbarians; and these things indeed, a little later, had a more manifest conclusion against the enemies. Yet the most keen nature did not overlook that the lord, though absent, was present in the toils, but was as near in his concerns as he was distant in place; for he had already for three years' circuit been warring against lawless Persia, giving his mind to impossible strains, whom neither winter with its scorching heat persuaded to grant a rest to his struggles, nor again did longing for his mother unnerve him to grant a small extension of time, nor did the inborn love for so many children restrain him, nor the body's struggle, which demanded to find relief from its toils, but being unceasingly in the midst of barbarians, like a rose entangled in thorns, and while before he was waging the Persian war for us, again for us he waged a spiritual war; and being hard-pressed by the assaults on both fronts, letting go of the nearby struggle, he took up the one far away. From there he secretly kindled us with a stream of letters, like fire compelling idle material to be kindled into flame, frequently commanding that the secure foundations against the wall be prepared, as was necessary, and to build open-air projections for the towers, and to make fences and to set fixed stakes against them, and to weave a new wall, and to make entanglements, and swift-running engines and constructions for archers and for stones; and to prepare the armed transport ships, which he had not neglected to assemble long before. For not wishing to see the face of battle, he of necessity had the battle ready, and he sent ahead a multitude of troops and neglected his own safety, considering the only safe salvation to be if the common good were found to be saved; and he exchanged almost all of his own concerns for concerns on our behalf, as if he thought it a spiritual danger, if he did not suffer every danger for our sake. Thus commanding and writing each thing, he foretold events in word, and though not present, he depicted the course of the battle, arranging, commanding,

ἠγριωμένον νέφος εἰς τὴν κατ' αὐτοῦ συντριβὴν ὑποστρέφεις· οὐκ ἦν γὰρ ἁπλῆ καὶ μονήρης ἡ μάχη, ἀλλ' εἰς πολυσχιδεῖς τε καὶ πολυπλόκους ἀρχὰς ἀπεσκίρτησε συμπεφυρμένη. Σλάβος γὰρ Οὕννῳ καὶ Σκύθης τῷ Βουλγάρῳ αὖθίς τε Μῆδος συμφρονήσας τῷ Σκύθῃ γλωττῶν ἔχοντες καὶ τόπων μερίσματα καὶ χωρὶς ὄντες καὶ μακρὰν συνημμένοι μίαν καθ' ἡμῶν ἀντεκίνησαν μάχην καὶ τὴν ἑαυτῶν ἠξίουν ἀπιστίαν ἔχειν καθ' ἡμῶν πίστιν ἠκριβωμένην· ἔνθεν μὲν οὖν ἔβραζεν ἡ Σκυθοτρόφος Σκύλλα σφοδρῶς ζέσασα, τῆς δὲ Περσίδος ἐκεῖθεν ἡ Χάρυβδις ἀντήχει μέγα· μέσος δὲ τούτων, οὐ πλανήτης ὡς πάλαι, ὁ τῶν δόλων ἐκεῖνος ἦν βουληφόρος· ἀλλ' αὐτὸς ἕλκων ἀπλανῆ τὴν ὀρθίαν καὶ λευκὰ τείνων τῶν λογισμῶν ἱστία τῇ κοσμαγωγῷ συνδιέπλεις ὁλκάδι· καὶ ταῦτα μὲν δὴ πρὸς τὰ τῆς θαλαττίας ὁρμῆς τὰ θεῖα δεικνύει τεχνάσματα.

ἐπεὶ δὲ λοιπόν, ὥσπερ οἱ μῦθοι πάλαι τοὺς Γηγενεῖς πλάττουσι τοὺς ψευδοσπόρους, τῆς γῆς ὁ πυθμὴν βαρβάρους ἀνέπλασε, καὶ πρὸς τὰ τείχη τῆς Φιλοξένου πύλης πλήθη προσῆλθεν, ὥσπερ ἦν εἰκασμένα ὀκτὼ συναθροίζοντα μυριαρχίας, παρῆν δὲ σάλπιγξ καὶ βέλη καὶ φάσγανα, πῦρ καὶ χελῶναι καὶ διᾴττοντες λίθοι νόθων τε πύργων μηχαναὶ καὶ συνθέσεις· καὶ πᾶσιν ἦν ἄπιστος ἡ σωτηρία, ὅσην παρ' ἡμῖν αὐτὸς εἶχες ἐλπίδα σφίγγουσαν ἡμῶν τὴν ἐπὶ σφαίρας τύχην. ἐγὼ δὲ ταῦτα συγκαλύψαι σοι θέλων οὐκ ἠγνόουν γὰρ ὡς λαθεῖν καὶ νῦν θέλεις σιγᾶν ἔμελλον· ἀλλ' ὁ νοῦς ἠρυθρία κλέψαι τοσούτους εἰσορῶν συνειδότας. οὐκοῦν ἀνάσχου· δυσχερὲς γὰρ εἰκότως κοινὴν καλύψαι καὶ λαθεῖν ὑποψίαν· εἶχες γάρ, εἶχες συμφρονοῦσαν Παρθένον ἥ σοι τὸ μέλλον τοῦ σκοποῦ προϊστόρει· ταύτην συνασπίζουσαν ἐξ ἔθους ἔχων ἀντεστρατήγεις ἐξ ἀΰλου καρδίας τοῖς ἀντιτέχνοις τῶν ἀγώνων ὀργάνοις. τόξον γὰρ εἶχες τοῦ Θεοῦ τὴν ἐλπίδα τομώτερον τρέχουσαν ἀστραπῆς τάχους, πύργους δὲ πίστιν καὶ βέλη τὰ δάκρυα καὶ πῦρ τὸ Πνεῦμα· καὶ χελώνας εἰργάσω γόνυ προκλίνας καὶ καθεὶς τὸν αὐχένα· καὶ τοὺς στεναγμοὺς ἀντιπέμπων ὡς λίθους τοὺς πετροπομποὺς ἔστρεφες τῶν βαρβάρων· καὶ ταῦτα μὲν δὴ μικρὸν ὕστερον πάλιν εἶχεν κατ' ἐχθρῶν ἐμφανέστερον πέρας. οὐ μὴν παρεῖδεν ἡ τομωτάτη φύσις ἀπὼν παρεῖναι τοῖς πόνοις ὁ δεσπότης, ἀλλ' εἰς τοσοῦτον ἐγγὺς ἦν τῶν φροντίδων ὅσον μεταξὺ τῶν τόπων ἀφίστατο· ἤδη γὰρ εἶχε τρεῖς ἐτῶν περιδρόμους καταστρατηγῶν τῆς ἀθέσμου Περσίδος ἐκδούς τε τὸν νοῦν εἰς ἀμηχάνους τόνους, ὃν οὔτε χειμὼν καυστικὴν ἔχων ζέσιν ἔπεισε δοῦναι τοῖς ἀγῶσιν ἀργίαν οὐδ' αὖ γε μητρὸς ἐξενεύρωσεν πόθος μικρὰν παρασχεῖν τοῦ χρόνου προθεσμίαν, οὐδ' ἀντανεῖλεν αὐτὸν ἔμφυτος βία τέκνων τοσούτων, οὐδὲ σώματος μάχη κουφισμὸν εὑρεῖν ἀξιοῦσα τῶν πόνων, ἀλλ' ὢν ἀπαύστως ἐν μέσῳ τῶν βαρβάρων, ὡς εἰς ἀκάνθας ἐμπεπλεγμένον ῥόδον, καὶ πρὶν δι' ἡμᾶς Περσικὴν κινῶν μάχην πάλιν δι' ἡμᾶς ψυχικὴν εἶχεν μάχην· καὶ ταῖς ἐπ' ἄμφω προσβολαῖς ἐσφιγμένος, ἀφεὶς τὸν ἐγγύς, εἶχε τὸν μακρὰν πόνον. ἐντεῦθεν ἡμᾶς τῇ φορᾷ τῶν γραμμάτων ὑπεξανῆπτεν, οἷα πῦρ ἀναγκάσαν ἀργοῦσαν ὕλην ἐκπυροῦσθαι πρὸς φλόγα, πυκνῶς κελεύων ἀσφαλεῖς μὲν τὰς βάσεις τὰς πρὸς τὸ τεῖχος εὐτρεπίζειν, ὡς ἔδει, κτίζειν δὲ πύργων ἐκφορὰς ὑπαιθρίους φραγμούς τε ποιεῖν καὶ πεπηγμένους πάλους προσαντιβάλλειν καὶ πλέκειν τεῖχος νέον πλοκάς τε ποιεῖν τοξοτῶν τε καὶ λίθων ταχυδρομούσας μηχανὰς καὶ συνθέσεις· καὶ τὰς ἐνόπλους εὐτρεπίζειν ὁλκάδας, ἃς καὶ πρὸ πολλοῦ συγκροτῶν οὐκ ἠμέλει. τὸ γὰρ πρόσωπον μὴ θέλων ἰδεῖν μάχης ἕτοιμον εἶχεν ἐξ ἀνάγκης τὴν μάχην, στρατοῦ τε πλῆθος ἐξαπέστειλε φθάσας καὶ τῆς καθ' αὑτὸν ἀσφαλείας ἠμέλει, μόνην νομίζων ἀσφαλῆ σωτηρίαν εἴπερ τὸ κοινὸν εὑρεθῇ σεσωσμένον· σχεδόν τε πάσας τὰς ἑαυτοῦ φροντίδας εἰς τὰς δι' ἡμᾶς ἀντανῄρει φροντίδας, κίνδυνον ὥσπερ ψυχικὸν δοκῶν ἔχειν εἰ μὴ δι' ἡμᾶς πάντα κίνδυνον πάθοι. οὕτως ἕκαστα καὶ κελεύων καὶ γράφων προϊστόρει μὲν τῷ λόγῳ τὰ πράγματα, ἐζωγράφει δὲ μὴ παρὼν τὰ τῆς μάχης, τάττων, στρατηγῶν,