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unspeakable and entirely inexhaustible, ever overflowing to the lips of my soul and gushing forth in the spring of my heart, a garment flashing like lightning and burning up the demons, a cleansing through incorruptible and holy tears washing me, which Your presence grants to those to whom You come. I thank You, You have become for me a light that never sets and a sun that does not go down, having nowhere to hide, who fills the universe with Your glory. For You were never hidden from anyone, but we are always hiding from You, not wanting to come to You. For where could You hide, who nowhere has a place for Your rest? Or why, You who never turn away from anyone, nor are ashamed of any of them? Now therefore, dwell, Master, in me and take up Your abode and remain without interval, inseparably until the end in me Your servant, O Good One, so that I too may be found at my exodus and after my exodus in You, O Good One, and reign with You, the God over all! Remain, Master, and do not leave me alone, so that my enemies, when they come, who are always seeking to devour my soul, and find You remaining in me, may flee completely and not have strength against me, seeing You, the stronger than all, seated within in the house of my humble soul. (35) Yes, Master, as You remembered me when I was in the world and, while I was ignorant, You Yourself chose me and separated me from the world and placed me before the face of Your glory, so also now preserve me who stand within, forever and immovably in my dwelling with You, so that by seeing you continually, I who am dead may live, and having You, I who am poor may always be rich, and I will be richer than all kings, and eating and drinking You and hour by hour being clothed in unspeakable things may I be, and I will be delighting in good things, because You are every good thing and all glory and all delight, and to You is due glory, to the Holy and Consubstantial and Life-giving Trinity, in Father and Son and Holy Spirit, revered and known and worshipped and adored by all, now and ever and unto the ages of ages, amen.

1.

Concerning the divine radiance and illumination of the Holy Spirit; and that God is the one place, in whom all the Saints have their rest after their fate; and that he who falls away from God will not have rest in another place in the life to come. (37) What is this awesome mystery, which is being performed in me? Speech is in no way strong enough to express, nor my wretched hand to write for the praise and glory of Him who is beyond praise, of Him who is beyond speech. 5 For if the things now being performed in me, the prodigal, are unutterable, unspeakable, how does He, the provider and maker of such things, tell me, need praise from us or to receive glory? For He who is glorified will not be glorified, 10 just as the sun seen by us in the world will not be brightened or partake of light; it gives light, it is not given light; it shines, it does not receive light. For it has what it received from the beginning, from the creator. If then God, the creator of all, having made the sun, 15 has made it self-sufficient, to shine an abundant radiance and in no way to need more from another,

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ἀνεκλάλητος καί εἰς ἅπαν ἀδάπανος, ἀενάως ὑπερεκχεομένη τοῖς τῆς ἐμῆς ψυχῆς χείλεσι καί ὑπερεκβλύζουσα ἐν τῇ πηγῇ τῆς καρδίας μου, ἔνδυμα ἀπαστράπτον καί καταφλέγον τούς δαίμονας, κάθαρσις διά ἀφθάρτων καί ἁγίων δακρύων ἐκπλύνουσά με, ὧν ἡ σή παρουσία, πρός οὕς παραγίνῃ, χαρίζεται. Εὐχαριστῶ σοι, τό φῶς ἀνέσπερόν μοι γεγένησαι καί ἥλιος ἄδυτος, ποῦ κρυβῆναι μή ἔχων ὁ πληρῶν τῆς σῆς δόξης τά σύμπαντα. Οὐδέποτε γάρ ἀπεκρύβης ἀπό τινος, ἀλλ᾿ ἡμεῖς ἀεί κρυπτόμεθα ἀπό σοῦ, ἐλθεῖν πρός σέ μή βουλόμενοι. Ποῦ γάρ καί κρυβήσῃ ὁ μηδαμοῦ ἔχων τόπον τῆς σῆς καταπαύσεως; Ἤ διά τί, ὁ μήποτε ἀποστρεφόμενος τῶν πάντων τινά, μήτε τινά αὐτῶν ἐντρεπόμενος; Νῦν οῦν ἐνσκήνωσον, ∆έσποτα, ἐν ἐμοί καί κατοίκησον καί μεῖνον ἀδιαστάτως, ἀχωρίστως μέχρι τέλους ἐν ἐμοί τῷ δούλῳ σου, ἀγαθέ, ἵνα κἀγώ εὑρεθῶ ἐν τῇ ἐξόδῳ μου καί μετά τήν ἔξοδον ἐν σοί, ἀγαθέ, καί συμβασιλεύσω σοι, τῷ ἐπί πάντων Θεῷ! Μεῖνον, ∆έσποτα, καί μή ἐάσῃς με μόνον, ἵνα ἐρχόμενοι οἱ ἐχθροί μου, οἱ ζητοῦντες ἀεί τοῦ καταπιεῖν τήν ψυχήν μου καί εὑρίσκοντές σε μένοντα ἐν ἐμοί, φεύξωνται παντελῶς καί μή ἰσχύσωσι κατ᾿ ἐμοῦ, βλέποντές σε, τόν ἰσχυρότερον πάντων, ἔνδοθεν καθήμενον ἐν τῇ οἰκίᾳ τῆς ταπεινῆς μου ψυχῆς. (35) Ναί, ∆έσποτα, ὡς ἐμνήσθης μου, ὅτε ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ ἐτύγχανον καί ἀγνοοῦντός μου αὐτός ἐξελέξω με καί ἀπό τοῦ κόσμου ἐχώρισας καί πρό προσώπου τῆς δόξης σου ἔστησας, οὕτω καί νῦν ἔνδον ἱστάμενόν με εἰς ἀεί καί ἀμετακίνητον ἐν τῇ ἐμοί οἰκήσει σου διαφύλαξον, ἵνα μή βλέπων σε διηνεκῶς ὁ νεκρός ἐγώ ζῶ, καί ἔχων σε ὁ πένης ἀεί πλουτῶ, καί βασιλέων πάντων ἔσομαι πλουσιώτερος, καί ἐσθίων καί πίνων σε καθ᾿ ὥραν ἐπενδυόμενος ἐν ἀνεκλαλήτοις ὦ καί ἔσομαι ἐντρυφῶν ἀγαθοῖς, ὅτι σύ ὑπάρχεις πᾶν ἀγαθόν καί πᾶσα δόξα καί πᾶσα τρυφή καί σοί πρέπει ἡ δόξα, τῇ Ἁγίᾳ καί Ὁμοουσίῳ καί Ζωοποιῷ Τριάδι, τῇ ἐν Πατρί καί Υἱῷ καί Ἁγίῳ Πνεύματι σεβομένῃ τε καί γνωριζομένῃ καί προσκυνουμένῃ καί λατρευομένῃ ὑπό πάντων νῦν καί ἀεί καί εἰς τούς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων, ἀμήν.

Α'.

Περί θείας ἐλλάμψεως καί φωτισμοῦ Πνεύματος Ἁγίου˙ καί ὅτι εἷς τόπος ὁ Θεός, ἐν ᾧ μετά πότμον τήν ἀνάπαυσιν πάντες οἱ Ἅγιοι ἔχουσι˙ καί ὅτι ὁ τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐκπίπτων ἐν ἑτέρῳ τόπῳ οὐχ ἕξει τήν ἀνάπαυσιν ἐν τῇ μελλούσῃ ζωῇ. (37) Τί τό φρικτόν μυστήριον, ὅ ἐν ἐμοί τελεῖται; Λόγος ἐκφράζειν οὐδαμῶς ἰσχύει, οὐδέ γράφειν ἡ χείρ μου ἡ ταλαίπωρος εἰς ἔπαινον καί δόξαν τοῦ ὄντος ὑπέρ ἔπαινον, τοῦ ὄντος ὑπέρ λόγον. 5 Εἰ γάρ τά νῦν τελούμενα ἐν ἐμοί τῷ ἀσώτῳ ἄρρητα, ἀνεκλάλητα πέλουσι, πῶς ἐκεῖνος, ὁ τῶν τοιούτων παροχεύς καί ποιητής, εἰπέ μοι, ἔπαινον χρῄζει παρ᾿ ἡμῶν ἤ δόξαν προσλαβέσθαι; Οὐδέ γάρ δοξασθήσεται ὁ ὤν δεδοξασμένος, 10 ὡς οὐδέ λαμπρυνθήσεται ἤ φωτός μεταλάβοι ὁ παρ᾿ ἡμῶν βλεπόμενος ἥλιος ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ˙ φωτίζει, οὐ φωτίζεται˙ φαίνει, φῶς οὐ λαμβάνει. Ἔχει γάρ, ὅπερ ἔλαβεν, ἐξ ἀρχῆς, ἐκ τοῦ κτίστου. Εἰ οὖν ποιήσας ἥλιον Θεός ὁ πάντων κτίστης 15 ἀνενδεῆ πεποίηκεν, ἄφθονον σέλας φαίνειν καί μηδαμῶς παρά τινος ἄλλου πλείονος χρῄζειν,