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27 But a certain man named Julianus, who was one of Ardaburius's men, did not cease troubling Ardaburius, saying: Permit me, and having gone up I will bring him down from the pillar and I will fill him fehlt eine Zeile and when he rushed at him and placed a ladder against the pillar, Julianus went up, expecting to bring him down. and having gone up to the third rung, the ladder came away from the pillar and was suspended from the ground by about four cubits, and it hung in the air. and all were amazed at the sight that was happening; and Ardaburius, being vexed, drew his bow, wanting to shoot him, and immediately his hand grew numb and he was not able to release the arrow. Not only was his hand seized but he also suffered from gout in his feet until his death.]

28 The blessed one, therefore, stood on various pillars for forty-seven years and after all these things sought him out; and it was the day of Preparation; and he was enclosed in prayer, and as was his custom, he spent the whole Preparation and the Sabbath and the Lord's day, and he did not look up, as was his custom, to bless those who had bent their knees. And when they saw this, they went up to him and saw his face, and it was shining like the sun. And although it was his custom to speak to me, he answered me nothing. And I said to myself that he had fallen asleep; and again I was mistrustful and I was afraid to approach him and having dared, I say to him: My lord, why do you not speak to me and complete your prayer? The world is waiting to be blessed, behold, it is three days. And standing again for one hour, I say to him: You answer me nothing, my lord. And stretching out my hand, I touched his beard, and when I saw that his body was softer, I knew that he had died; and putting my face in my hands I wept bitterly and stooping down I kissed his mouth and his eyes and his beard, and pulling aside his cloak I kissed his feet, and taking his hand I placed it on my eyes. And in his whole body and on his clothes there was a scent of myrrh, so that I rejoiced from that sweet smell. And standing for about half an hour I attended to his precious relic, and behold his body was shaken together with the pillar, and I heard a voice saying: Amen, amen, amen, and from fear I said: Bless me, Lord, and remember me in your good repose.

29 And I went down and did not reveal the mystery to anyone, so that there would be no disturbance, but through a faithful man I signified it to Martyrius the bishop of Antioch and to the general Ardaburius. And on the next day the bishop of Antioch comes with six other bishops; and Ardaburius also comes with six hundred men, so that the villagers, having gathered together, might not seize his precious relic; for so they were planning. And curtains were placed around his pillar. And three bishops go up and kiss his garments, saying three psalms, and they brought up a leaden coffin and placed his holy relic in it and bring it down by means of pulleys and then everyone knew that the holy Symeon had died, so that even all the Saracens gathered with arms and camels, they too wanting to seize the relic. And a confusion of the crowd occurred so that the mountain could not be seen from the multitude and the smoke of the incense and the candles and lamps being burned, of which there was no number. The voices of the wailing of men and women and children went far off and the whole mountain was shaken by the cry of the birds that had gathered and circled the enclosure of the saint. When therefore they brought him down, they placed him on the small marble altar which he had in front of his pillar, it being already the fourth day since he died. And thus his holy relic was laid out as if he had fallen asleep an hour before. And all the bishops gave him the kiss of peace; but his face

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27 Ἰουλιανὸς δέ τις ἄνθρωπος ὑπάρχων Ἀρδαβουρίου οὐκ ἐπαύσατο ἐνοχλῶν Ἀρδαβουρίῳ λέγειν· Ἐπίτρεψόν μοι καὶ ἀνελθὼν καταφέρω αὐτὸν ἐκ τοῦ κίονος καὶ πληρῶ αὐτὸν fehlt eine Zeile καὶ ὁρμήσαντος πρὸς αὐτὸν καὶ θήσαντος σκάλαν εἰς τὸν κίονα ἀνῆλθεν Ἰουλιανὸς ὁ προσδοκῶν αὐτὸν καταγαγεῖν. καὶ ἀνελθὼν ἕως τρίτου βασμίδος ἀπέστη ἡ σκάλα ἀπὸ τοῦ κίονος καὶ ἐκρεμάσθη ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς ὡς ἀπὸ πηχῶν τεσσάρων, καὶ ἐκρέμετο εἰς τὸν ἀέρα. καὶ πάντες ἐθαύμαζον ἐπὶ τῇ θέᾳ τῇ γινομένῃ· καὶ διαπονηθεὶς Ἀρδαβούριος ἔτεινεν τὸ τόξον αὐτοῦ βουλόμενος αὐτὸν τοξεῦσαι καὶ εὐθέως ἐνάρ κησεν αὐτοῦ ἡ χεὶρ καὶ οὐκ ἴσχυσεν ἀπολῦσαι τὴν σαγίταν. οὐ μόνον δὲ ἐχειράγρησεν ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐποδάλγησεν ἕως τῆς τε λευτῆς αὐτοῦ.]

28 Ἔστη οὖν ὁ μακάριος ἐν διαφόροις κίοσιν ἔτη τεσσα ράκοντα καὶ ἑπτὰ καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα πάντα ἐπεζήτησεν αὐτόν· καὶ ἦν ἡμέρα παρασκευή· καὶ ἦν κεκλεισμένος εἰς εὐχὴν καὶ ὡς ἔθος εἶχεν, ἐποίησεν ὅλην τὴν παρασκευὴν καὶ τῷ σαββάτῳ καὶ τῇ κυριακῇ καὶ οὐκ ἀνένευσεν, ὡς ἔθος εἶχεν, εὐλογεῖν τοὺς κεκλικότας τὰ γόνατα. καὶ ὡς εἶδον τοῦτο, ἀνῆλθον πρὸς αὐτὸν καὶ εἶδον τὸ πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ καὶ ἦν ἐξαστράπτον ὡς ὁ ἥλιος. καὶ καθὼς εἶχεν ἔθος τοῦ λαλεῖν μοι, οὐδέν μοι ἀπ εκρίνατο. κἀγὼ ἔλεγον ἐν ἑαυτῷ, ὅτι ἀνεπάη· καὶ πάλιν ἠπί στουν καὶ ἐφοβούμην ἐγγίσαι αὐτῷ καὶ τολμήσας λέγω αὐτῷ· Κύριέ μου, διὰ τί μοι οὐ λαλεῖς καὶ τελεῖς τὴν εὐχήν σου; ὁ κόσμος ἐκδέχεται, ἵνα εὐλογηθῇ, ἰδοὺ τρεῖς ἡμέραι. καὶ στὰς πάλιν ὥραν μίαν λέγω αὐτῷ· Οὐδέν μοι ἀποκρίνῃ, κύριέ μου. καὶ ἐκτείνας μου τὴν χεῖρα ἡψάμην τοῦ πώγωνος αὐτοῦ καὶ ὡς εἶδον, ὅτι μαλθακώτερον ἦν τὸ σῶμα αὐτοῦ, ἔγνων, ὅτι ἐτελεύτησεν· καὶ θεὶς τὸ πρόσωπόν μου ἐν ταῖς χερσίν μου ἔκλαυσα πικρῶς καὶ κύψας ἐφίλησα αὐτοῦ τὸ στόμα καὶ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς καὶ τὸν πώγωνα καὶ παρεπάρας αὐτοῦ τὸ ἱμάτιον ἐφίλησα τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ καὶ κρατήσας τὴν χεῖρα αὐτοῦ ἔθηκα ἐπὶ τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς μου. καὶ ἐν ὅλῳ τῷ σώματί μου καὶ ἐν τοῖς ἱματίοις αὐτοῦ ἦν ὀσμὴ μύρου, ὥστε εὐφραν θῆναι ἀπὸ τῆς εὐωδίας ἐκείνης. καὶ στὰς ὡς ἡμιώριον προσ έσχον τῷ τιμίῳ αὐτοῦ λειψάνῳ καὶ ἰδοὺ ἐσείσθη τὸ σῶμα αὐτοῦ ἅμα τῷ στύλῳ καὶ ἤκουσα φωνῆς λεγούσης· Ἀμὴν ἀμὴν ἀμήν, καὶ ἐκ τοῦ φόβου εἶπον· Εὐλόγησόν με, κύριε, καὶ μνήσθητί μου ἐν τῇ καλῇ σου ἀναπαύσει.

29 Καὶ κατῆλθον καὶ οὐκ ἐφανέρωσά τινι τὸ μυστήριον, ἵνα μὴ θόρυβος γένηται, ἀλλὰ διὰ πιστοῦ ἀνδρὸς ἐσήμανα τῷ ἐπισκόπῳ Ἀντιοχείας Μαρτυρίῳ καὶ τῷ στρατηλάτῃ Ἀρδα-βουρίῳ. καὶ τῇ ἑξῆς ἡμέρᾳ ἔρχεται ὁ ἐπίσκοπος Ἀντιοχείας μετὰ καὶ ἄλλων ἓξ ἐπισκόπων· ἔρχεται δὲ καὶ ὁ Ἀρδαβούριος μετὰ ἑξακοσίων ὀνομάτων, ἵνα μὴ συναχθέντων τῶν χωρίων ἁρπάσωσι τὸ τίμιον αὐτοῦ λείψανον· οὕτως γὰρ καὶ ἐσκέ πτοντο. ἐγένοντο δὲ κορτῖναι κύκλῳ τοῦ στύλου αὐτοῦ. καὶ ἀνέρχονται τρεῖς ἐπίσκοποι καὶ φιλοῦσι τὰ ἱμάτια αὐτοῦ εἰπόν τες τρεῖς ψαλμοὺς καὶ ἀνήνεγκαν γλωσσόκομον μολύβδινον καὶ ἔθηκαν τὸ ἅγιον αὐτοῦ λείψανον καὶ καταφέρουσιν αὐτὸ διὰ μαγγάνων καὶ τότε ἔγνωσαν πάντες, ὅτι ἐτελεύτησεν ὁ ἅγιος Συμεών, ὥστε καὶ τοὺς Σαρακηνοὺς πάντας συναχθῆναι ἐν ὅπλοις μετὰ καμήλων βουλομένων καὶ αὐτῶν ἁρπάσαι τὸ λείψανον. καὶ γίνεται σύγχυσις τοῦ ὄχλου ὥστε μὴ φαίνεσθαι τὸ ὄρος ἐκ τοῦ πλήθους καὶ τοῦ καπνοῦ τῶν θυμιαμάτων καὶ τῶν κηρῶν καὶ λαμπάδων τῶν καιομένων, ὧν οὐκ ἦν ἀριθμός. Αἱ δὲ φωναὶ τοῦ κλαυθμοῦ τῶν ἀνδρῶν καὶ γυναι κῶν καὶ παιδίων ἀπῄει ἕως μακρὰν καὶ ὅλον τὸ ὄρος ἐσαλεύετο ἀπὸ τῆς κραυγῆς τῶν πετεινῶν τῶν συναχθέντων καὶ κυκλω σάντων τὴν μάνδραν τοῦ ἁγίου. Ὡς οὖν κατήγαγον αὐτόν, ἔθηκαν αὐτὸν ἐπὶ τὸ ἀλτάριον τὸ μαρμάρινον, ὃ εἶχεν ἔμπροσ θεν τοῦ στύλου αὐτοῦ τετάρτην ἤδη ἔχων ἡμέραν τελευτήσας. καὶ οὕτως ἥπλωσεν τὸ ἅγιον αὐτοῦ λείψανον ὡς πρὸ ὥρας μιᾶς ἀναπαείς. καὶ πάντες οἱ ἐπίσκοποι ἔδωκαν αὐτῷ τὴν ἀγάπην· τὸ δὲ πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ