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we will know clearly. But you now add for me also the punishment, and not only those who are ashamed and covering their faces and bowing down, but also those who are being dragged on the road to the fire and pulled toward the very instruments of torture and handed over to the severe powers, and suffering these things at the time when all who have done good and been deemed worthy of eternal life are being crowned and proclaimed and are standing beside the royal throne. And these things, indeed, on that day; but what word will present to us the things that follow, I mean the pleasure, the joy of the fellowship with Christ? For a soul, having returned to its proper nobility and being able henceforth with boldness to see its own Master, it is not possible to say how much pleasure it enjoys, how great the gain, rejoicing not only in the good things at hand but also in being persuaded henceforth that these good things will in no way end. It is not possible, then, to represent all that gladness in word nor to comprehend it with the mind; but dimly, and as one might show great things through small ones, I will try to make it clear. Let us examine, if you please, those who in the present life enjoy the good things of the world, I mean wealth and power and glory, how, exulting in their desire, they do not even think they are on the earth, and this while enjoying neither acknowledged good things, nor things that remain with them, but things that fly away faster than a dream; and if they ever should stand for a short time and until the present life, they think themselves happy while these things are unable to go out with them any further. If these things lift those who have them to such great joy, what do you think becomes of those souls, those called to the countless good things in the heavens, things that are fixed and stand firm forever? For not only this, but also in quantity and in quality they are so much better than the present things, that they have "never entered into the heart of man." For now, just as a child in a womb, so we live in this world, constrained and unable to perceive the splendor and the freedom of the age to come; but when the time of labor pains arrives and the present life gives birth on the day of judgment to all the people it has received; the miscarried go from darkness to darkness, and from affliction to a harsher affliction, but those that are perfectly formed and have preserved the features of the royal image will be presented to the king, and will undertake that ministry with which angels and archangels serve the God of all. Do not, therefore, completely efface these features for us, O friend, but quickly recover and reshape them for the better. For God has confined bodily beauty within the limits of nature, but the beauty of the soul is freed from that necessity and servitude, since it is much better than physical comeliness, and it rests entirely with us and with the inclination of God. For our Master, being a lover of mankind, has especially honored our race in this also, by entrusting the lesser things, which contribute nothing great to us but are indifferent to how they turn out, to the necessity of nature, but making us the creators of the things that are truly beautiful. For if He had made us masters of bodily beauty as well, we would both have received a superfluous care and would have occupied all our time in things that are of no benefit, and would have greatly neglected the soul. For where now, when we do not have this power, we do and force all things and adorn ourselves with sketches, since we cannot do so in reality, and with colors and dyes and arrangements of hair and wrappings of garments and turns of the eyes and many other contrivances we sophisticate such beauties, what leisure would we have assigned to the soul and to serious matters, if we were able to change it to real comeliness? For perhaps we would have had no other task in life if this were our task. But we would have spent all our time embellishing the slave-girl with countless adornments, while its mistress of all

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εἰσόμεθα σαφῶς. Σὺ δέ μοι προστίθει νῦν καὶ τὴν κόλασιν, καὶ μὴ μόνον αἰσχυνομένους μηδὲ ἐγκαλυπτομένους καὶ κάτω νεύοντας, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν ἐπὶ τὸ πῦρ ἑλκομένους ὁδὸν καὶ πρὸς αὐτὰ συρομένους τὰ βασανιστήρια καὶ ταῖς ἀποτόμοις παραδιδομένους δυνάμεσιν, καὶ ταῦτα πάσχοντας κατὰ τὸν καιρὸν καθ' ὃν στεφανοῦνται καὶ ἀνακηρύττονται καὶ τῷ θρόνῳ παρίστανται τῷ βασιλικῷ πάντες οἱ τὰ ἀγαθὰ πράξαντες καὶ ἀξιωθέντες τῆς αἰωνίου ζωῆς. Καὶ ταῦτα μὲν ἐν ἐκείνῃ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ· τὰ δὲ ἑξῆς τίς ἡμῖν παραστήσει λόγος, τῆς μετὰ τοῦ Χριστοῦ λέγω συνουσίας τὴν ἡδονήν, τὴν χαράν; ψυχὴ γὰρ εἰς τὴν οἰκείαν εὐγένειαν ἐπανελθοῦσα καὶ μετὰ παρρησίας λοιπὸν δυνηθεῖσα τὸν ἑαυτῆς ∆εσπότην ὁρᾶν, οὐκ ἔστιν εἰπεῖν ὅσην καρποῦται τὴν ἡδονήν, ὅσον τὸ κέρδος, οὐ τοῖς ἐν χερσὶ μόνον χαίρουσα ἀγαθοῖς ἀλλὰ καὶ τῷ πεπεῖσθαι λοιπὸν ὅτι οὐδαμῶς ταῦτα τελευτήσει τὰ καλά. Πᾶσαν μὲν οὖν τὴν εὐφρασίαν ἐκείνην οὔτε λόγῳ παραστῆσαι ἔστιν οὔτε νῷ διαλαβεῖν· ἀμυδρῶς δὲ καὶ ὡς ἄν τις διὰ μικρῶν μεγάλα δεικνύῃ, πειράσομαι ποιῆσαι φανεράν. Ἐξετάσωμεν, εἰ δοκεῖ, τοὺς ἐν τῷ παρόντι βίῳ τῶν τοῦ κόσμου καλῶν ἀπολαύοντας, πλούτου λέγω καὶ δυναστείας καὶ δόξης, πῶς ὑπὸ τῆς ἐπιθυμίας γαυρούμενοι, οὐδὲ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς εἶναι νομίζουσιν, καὶ ταῦτα οὔτε ὁμολογουμένων ἀπολαύοντες καλῶν, οὔτε παραμενόντων αὐτοῖς, ἀλλ' ἀφιπταμένων ὀνείρου ταχύτερον· εἰ δέ ποτε καὶ σταίη μικρὸν καὶ μέχρι τῆς παρούσης ζωῆς, ὡς ἐννοοῦσιν εὐδαιμονεῖν περαιτέρω δὲ οὐκ ἰσχυόντων συνεξελθεῖν. Εἰ δὲ ταῦτα εἰς τοσαύτην αἴρει τοὺς ἔχοντας χαράν, τί οἴει γίνεσθαι ἐκείνας τὰς ψυχάς, τὰς καλουμένας ἐπὶ τὰ μυρία ἀγαθὰ τὰ ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς, τὰ πεπηγότα καὶ ἑστῶτα βεβαίως διὰ παντός; Οὐδὲ γὰρ τοῦτο μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῇ ποσότητι καὶ τῇ ποιότητι τοσούτῳ κρείττω τῶν παρόντων ἐστίν, ὡς «μηδὲ ἐπὶ καρδίαν ἀνθρώπου ἀναβῆναί ποτε». Νῦν μὲν γὰρ καθάπερ ἐν μήτρᾳ παιδίον, οὕτως ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ τούτῳ διάγομεν στενοχωρούμενοι καὶ τοῦ μέλλοντος αἰῶνος καὶ τὴν λαμπρότητα καὶ τὴν ἐλευθέριαν οὐ δυνάμενοι συνιδεῖν· ὅταν δὲ ὁ καιρὸς ἐπιστῇ τῶν ὠδίνων καὶ ἀποτέκῃ κατὰ τὴν τῆς κρίσεως ἡμέραν οὓς ὑπεδέξατο πάντας ἀνθρώπους ὁ βίος ὁ παρών· τὰ μὲν ἐξαμβλωθέντα ἀπὸ σκότους εἰς σκότος ἔρχεται, καὶ ἀπὸ θλίψεως εἰς θλῖψιν χαλεπωτέραν, τὰ δὲ ἄρτια ἀπηρτισμένα καὶ τῆς βασιλικῆς εἰκόνος τοὺς χαρακτῆρας διαφυλάξαντα παραστήσονται τῷ βασιλεῖ, καὶ τὴν λειτουργίαν ἀναδέξονται ἐκείνην, ἣν ἄγγελοι καὶ ἀρχάγγελοι τῷ πάντων διακονοῦνται θεῷ. Μὴ τοίνυν εἰς τέλος τούτους ἡμῖν ἀφανίσῃς τοὺς χαρακτῆρας, ὦ φίλος, ἀλλὰ ταχέως αὐτοὺς ἀνακτησάμενος ἐπὶ τὸ βέλτιον διατύπωσον. Τὸ μὲν γὰρ κάλλος τὸ σωματικὸν εἴσω τῶν τῆς φύσεως ὅρων συνέκλεισεν ὁ θεὸς, ἡ δὲ τῆς ψυχῆς ὥρα τῆς μὲν ἐκεῖθεν ἀνάγκης καὶ δουλείας ἀπήλλακται, ἅτε δὴ πολλῷ βελτίων οὖσα τῆς σωματικῆς εὐμορφίας, ἐφ' ἡμῖν δὲ ἅπασα κεῖται καὶ τῇ ῥοπῇ τοῦ θεοῦ. Φιλάνθρωπος γὰρ ὢν ὁ ∆εσπότης ἡμῶν καὶ ἐν τούτῳ μάλιστα τὸ ἡμέτερον ἐτίμησεν γένος, τὰ μὲν ἐλάττονα καὶ εἰς οὐδὲν μέγα συντελοῦντα ἡμῖν ἀλλ' ὅπως ἂν συμπέσῃ ἀδιάφορα ὄντα, τῇ τῆς φύσεως ἐπιτρέψας ἀνάγκῃ, τῶν δὲ ὄντως καλῶν ἡμᾶς ποιήσας εἶναι δημιουργούς. Εἰ μὲν γὰρ καὶ τοῦ σωματικοῦ κάλλους ἡμᾶς ἐποίησεν εἶναι κυρίους, καὶ φροντίδα ἂν περιττὴν ἐδεξάμεθα καὶ ἐν τοῖς οὐδὲν ὠφελοῦσιν τὸν ἅπαντα ἂν ἀπησχολήσαμεν χρόνον καὶ τῆς ψυχῆς σφόδρα ἂν ἠμελήσαμεν. Ὅπου γὰρ νῦν οὐκ οὔσης ἡμῖν τῆς ἐξουσίας ταύτης ἅπαντα πράττομεν καὶ βιαζόμεθα καὶ σκιαγραφίαις καλλύνομεν ἑαυτούς, ἐπειδὴ τῇ ἀληθείᾳ μὴ δυνάμεθα, καὶ χρώμασι καὶ βαφαῖς καὶ συνθέσεσι τριχῶν καὶ ἱματίων περιβολαῖς καὶ στροφαῖς ὀφθαλμῶν καὶ πολλοῖς ἑτέροις μηχανήμασι τὰ τοιαῦτα σοφιζόμεθα κάλλη, τίνα ἂν τῇ ψυχῇ καὶ τοῖς σπουδαίοις σχολὴν ἀπενείμαμεν, εἰ πρὸς τὴν ὄντως αὐτὸ εὐμορφίαν μεταθεῖναι εἴχομεν. Τάχα γὰρ οὐδ' ἂν ἐγένετο ἡμῖν ἔργον ἕτερόν τι ἐν τῷ βίῳ εἰ τοῦτο ἔργον ἡμέτερον ἦν. Ἀλλὰ πάντα τὸν χρόνον ἂν ἀνηλώσαμεν, τὴν μὲν δουλίαν καλλωπίζοντες μυρίοις καλλωπισμοῖς, τὴν δὲ ταύτης κυρίαν παντὸς