6

What appeared was one thing, what he encountered turned out to be grievous for him. Wherefore also, gazing intently at the little prostitute, as one cheated of his hope, he was led away *; but she, seeing him gazing intently at her, also watched him carefully, observing him. And the wise man said to her: Tell me, woman, why do you gaze intently at me for a short while. And she, I do so consistently and fittingly; for from you, the man, I have been taken, but you, do not watch me, but rather the earth from which you were taken. The wise man, hearing this unexpectedly, confessed that he had been greatly benefited; and he greatly glorified the incomprehensible power of God, who grants the things of hope even through those beyond hope. And setting out from there for Caesarea in Cappadocia, guided by the Holy Spirit, he saw the great Basil, the mouth of the Church, the golden nightingale of dogmas; whom the elder, having seen, began to honor with many praises. For with the discerning eye of the soul, he saw a brightly-shining dove perched upon his right shoulder, supplying him with words of teaching, and him conveying them to the people. And he, being initiated by the holy dove teaching him, was aware of his visit, and recognized that he was Ephrem the Syrian. And indeed both were deemed worthy of a timely spiritual concert; thus the vexation proved not to be a loss for Ephrem.

The natural integrity of his life showed him how to flee from harmful things; teaching him both foresight for what is better, and watchfulness against what is worse, and to admit those thoughts, the approved and pure ones, and more profitable for the choice of the good, as many as especially hinder the need for teaching. For the talent of the word had been given lavishly by Christ to the divine elder, which he was obligated above all other things to deposit on the tables of the hearts of the many. And he himself appears to say this about himself, that having just passed the tender age of childhood, he saw mystically how a very fruitful vine grew up by his tongue, growing so large as to fill 46.836 the earth, and every bird of the sky coming was filled with food from it. And that this vine, in being pruned and in welcoming every winged creature, became richer in clusters of grapes. And another of the very discerning men of that time also testified to this about him; saying that he saw a multitude of angels, coming down from heaven, carrying a scroll in their hands, written on both the outside and the inside. And that divine array that appeared said to itself: Who then ought to be entrusted with this scroll? To which some, answering, preferred this man, and others that man, and others another, those whom that time held as chosen ones; Then after the testing, all said: "Truly these are saints and servants of God; however, they are not able to be entrusted with this scroll." And when they had mentioned many of the saints of that time, they were not pleased with them; finally, having agreed, they said. No one is able to be entrusted with this scroll, except Ephrem. And indeed it is said that he who was seeing this saw the divine angels handing over the scroll to Ephrem; That the one who was initiated into the vision, having arisen during the night, arrived at the Church, and heard Ephrem teaching with lavish speech and seasoned with grace; and that he, judging the vision that had been seen, both glorified God and was amazed at the rich gift of the word given to the saint.

For so great was the abundance of wisdom that had been granted to him, that the channels of his words were ever-flowing; but slow for the manifestation of his thoughts, not from the sluggishness of his tongue, but from the density of his conceptions; so that his tongue was able to be equal in speed to the conceptions of others, but less so to his own contemplations. Wherefore the great elder himself, entreating God for a restraint on the uncontrollable gift of chosen words, is said to have spoken thus: Hold back, O

6

ἕτερον ἦν τὸ φανὲν, θλιβερὸν αὐτῷ ἀπ έβη τὸ συναντῆσαν. ∆ιὸ καὶ προσατενίσας τῷ πορνι δίῳ, ὡς τῆς ἐλπίδος ψευσθεὶς ἀπήγετο *· ἡ δὲ τοῦτον θεωμένη προσατενίζοντα ταύτῃ, καὶ αὐτὴ ἐπιμελῶς αὐτὸν βλέπουσα κατεσκόπει. Τῇ δὲ ὁ σοφός· Λέγε μοι, γύναι, τίνος χάριν μικρὸν ἀπατενίζεις μοι. Ἡ δὲ, Ἀκολούθως ἐγὼ καὶ πρεπόντως· ἐκ σοῦ γὰρ λέ λημμαι τοῦ ἀνδρὸς, σὺ δὲ μή με κατασκόπει, τὴν γῆν δὲ μᾶλλον, ἐξ ἧς ἐλήφθης. Τοῦτο παρὰ προσδοκίαν ὁ σοφὸς ἐπακούσας, μεγάλως μὲν ὡμολόγει ὠφεληθῆ ναι· τοῦ Θεοῦ δὲ τὴν ἀκατάληπτον ὑπερεδόξασε δύνα μιν, ὃς τὰ τῆς ἐλπίδος καὶ διὰ τῶν παρ' ἐλπίδα χα ρίζεται. ∆ύσας τε ἐκεῖθεν ἐπὶ τὴν τῆς Καππαδοκίας Και σάρειαν, ὑπὸ τοῦ Πνεύματος τοῦ ἁγίου ὁδηγηθεὶς, τὸν μέγαν κατεῖδεν Βασίλειον, τὸ στόμα τῆς Ἐκκλη σίας, τὴν τῶν δογμάτων χρυσῆν ἀηδόνα· ὃν θεασά μενος ὁ πρεσβύτης, πολλαῖς καταγεραίρειν ἤρξατο εὐφημίαις. ∆ιορατικῷ γὰρ τῆς ψυχῆς ὄμματι, περι στερὰν ἀγλαοφανῆ ἐφεζομένην πρὸς τὸν δεξιὸν τού του ἔβλεπεν ὦμον, λόγους αὐτῷ διδασκαλίας χορηγοῦ σαν, κἀκεῖνον τούτους διαπορθμεύοντα τῷ λαῷ. Ὃς ὑπὸ τῆς διδασκούσῃς αὐτῷ σεπτῆς μυηθεὶς περι στερᾶς, τῆς τε ἐπιδημίας ᾔσθετο, καὶ Ἐφραῒμ αὐτὸν εἶναι τὸν Σύρον ἐπέγνωκε. Καὶ δὴ πνευματικῆς ἐπι καίρου ἄμφω συναυλίας ἠξίωνται· οὕτως οὐκ ἐπι ζήμιος τῷ Ἐφραῒμ ὁ σκυλμὸς ἐχρημάτισεν.

Ἡ δὲ τοῦ βίου φυσικὴ ἀκεραιότης, τῶν ἐπιβλαβῶν τὴν φυγὴν αὐτῷ παρεδείκνυε· τό τε τοῦ κρείττους προορατικὸν, καὶ τὸ τοῦ χείρους φυλακτικὸν ἐκδιδά σκουσα, ἐκείνους τε τῶν λογισμῶν προσίεσθαι, τοὺς ἐγκρίτους καὶ καθαροὺς, καὶ πρὸς αἵρεσιν λυσιτελε στέρους καλοῦ, ὅσοι μάλιστα πρὸς τὴν τῆς διδασκαλίας ἐμποδίζουσι χρείαν. ∆αψιλῶς γὰρ δέδοτο παρὰ Χρι στοῦ τῷ θείῳ πρεσβύτῃ τὸ τοῦ λόγου τάλαντον, ὃ καταβάλλειν ἐν ταῖς τῶν πολλῶν τῆς καρδίας τραπέ ζαις πρὸ πάντων αὐτῷ τῶν ἄλλων ἐπωφείλετο. Καὶ τοῦτο μὲν αὐτὸς περὶ ἑαυτοῦ φαίνεται λέγων, ὅτιπερ ἄρτι τῆς παιδικῆς ἡλικίας τὸ ἁπαλὸν ὑπερβὰς, τεθέα ται μυστικῶς πρὸς τῇ γλώσσῃ ὡς ἀνῆλθεν αὐτοῦ λίαν εὔκαρπος ἄμπελος, αὐξηθεῖσα τοσοῦτον, ὅσον πλη 46.836 ρῶσαι τὴν γῆν, πᾶν δὲ πετεινὸν τοῦ οὐρανοῦ ἐρχόμε νον ἐξ αὐτῆς ἐμπίμπλασθαι τροφῆς. Αὐτὴν δὲ τὴν ἄμπελον ἐν τῷ ἀποκείρεσθαι, καὶ πᾶν πτηνὸν δεξιοῦ σθαι, μᾶλλον πλουτεῖν τῶν βοτρύων. Τοῦτο δὲ καὶ ἄλλος περὶ αὐτοῦ τῶν πάνυ διορατικῶν τότε προσ εμαρτύρησεν· ἰδέσθαι λέγων ἀγγέλων πληθὺν, κατ ιοῦσαν ἐξ οὐρανοῦ, τόμον ἐπὶ χεῖρας βαστάζουσαν, ἔξωθέν τε καὶ ἔσωθεν ἐγγεγραμμένον. Ἔλεγε δὲ ἡ φανεῖσα θεία ἐκείνη πρὸς ἑαυτὴν παράταξις. Τίς ἄρα ὀφείλει τόνδε τὸν τόμον ἐγχειρισθῆναι; Ἐξ ὧν ἀποκριθέντες, οἱ μὲν τόνδε προέκριναν, οἱ δὲ τὸν, καὶ ἄλλοι ἕτερον, οὓς ὁ χρόνος ἐκεῖνος εἶχε λογάδας· Εἶτα μετὰ τὴν δοκιμὴν πάντας εἰπεῖν· «Ἀληθῶς ἅγιοι οὗτοι καὶ δοῦλοι Θεοῦ· πλὴν οὐ δύνανται τόνδε τὸν τόμον ἐγχειρισθῆναι.» Ὡς δὲ πολλοὺς τῶν τότε ἁγίων ἐπι μνησθέντες, ἐν αὐτοῖς οὐκ εὐδόκησαν· τέλος, συμφω νήσαντες εἶπον. Οὐδεὶς δύναται τοῦτον ἐγχειρισθῆναι τὸν τόμον, εἰ μὴ Ἐφραΐμ. Καὶ δὴ καὶ τοῦτο θεάσα σθαι ὁ βλέπων ἐκεῖνος λέγεται τοὺς θείους ἀγγέλους ἐπιδιδόντας τὸν τόμον τῷ Ἐφραΐμ· Ἀναστάντα ἐν νυχαλίᾳ εἰς Ἐκκλησίαν ἀφικέσθαι τὸν μυσταγωγη θέντα τὴν ὅρασιν, ἀκοῦσαι διδάσκοντος τοῦ Ἐφραῒμ ἐν λόγῳ δαψιλεῖ καὶ χάριτι ἠρτυμένῳ· τὴν δὲ ὁρα θεῖσαν ὀπτασίαν ἐκεῖνον ἐπικρίνοντα, δοξάσαι τε τὸν Θεὸν, καὶ τὴν δοθεῖσαν τῷ ἁγίῳ ἐκπλαγῆναι πλουσίαν τοῦ λόγου δωρεάν.

Τοσοῦτον γὰρ τὸ περιὸν αὐτῷ τῆς σοφίας κεχάριστο, ὡς ἀεννάους μὲν εἶναι τοὺς τῶν λόγων ὀχετούς· βραδεῖς δὲ πρὸς τὴν τῶν νοημάτων φανέρωσιν, οὐ τῇ τῆς γλώττης ναρκότητι, ἀλλὰ τῇ τῶν ἐνθυμημάτων πυκνότητι· ὥστε τὴν γλῶσσαν ἶσον μὲν δύνασθαι τῷ τάχει τῶν παρ' ἄλλοις ἐνθυμημά των, ἧττον δὲ τῶν οἰκείων θεωρημάτων. ∆ιὸ καὶ αὐ τὸς περὶ ἑαυτοῦ ὁ μέγας πρεσβύτης Θεὸν ἐξαιτούμε νος, ἐπὶ τῇ ἀνοχῇ τῆς ἀκατασχέτου τῶν λογάδων δω ρεᾶς τοιαῦτα λέγεται φάναι· Ἄνες, ὦ