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the principles and the wondrous and great mystery of the divine providence revealed in the Law and the Prophets, receiving for each of these, for the sake of good discipleship in them, from God through the holy powers conversing with it intellectually in its mind, the peace-bestowing indications with the strengthening and preserving charm of the divine and ardent desire for God, through the delight of the divine canticles mystically and intellectually sung to it.

Again, from these passing over and being gathered to the one and only summit which comprehends these principles in a unified way, I mean the holy Gospel, in which all the principles both of providence and of beings pre-exist in a unified manner according to a single, comprehensive power. After which it is again permitted for the God-loving with the fearless eyes of the mind to see by divine perception the Word and God Himself coming to it from heaven, as the descent of the high priest from the hierarchical throne signifies, and perfectly distinguishing from it, in the manner of catechumens, those who are still imagining the logismoi of sense and what is divisible according to it.

And thence again, having gone outside of sensible things, as the closing of the doors of the holy Church of God suggests we should understand, leading it to the immaterial and simple and unchangeable and godlike knowledge of intelligible things, which is signified by the entrance of the ineffable mysteries, a knowledge free of every 14__132 form and figure, according to which, gathering its own powers to itself, it comes to the Word Himself, having united the ineffable principles and modes of salvation concerning it through the spiritual kiss, teaching it to confess thankfully through the Symbol of Faith.

Upon these things, again, leading it, as one that has now at last according to its capacity by a simple and indivisible knowledge through discipleship comprehended the principles of both sensible and intelligible things, to the knowledge of manifest theology after the passage through all things, and granting it a intellection equal to the angels as far as possible for it, and teaching it with soberness this much: to know one God, one essence, three hypostases; a Monad of essence in three hypostases and a Triad of hypostases of one essence, a Monad in Triad and a Triad in Monad; not one and another, nor one beside another, nor one through another, nor one in another, nor one from another; but the same in itself, and according to itself, for itself, to itself the same, both monad and triad, having its union without confusion and its distinction without division and without separation; a monad according to the principle of essence, that is, the principle of being, but not by composition or combination or any kind of confusion, and a triad according to the principle of how it exists and subsists, but not by division or alienation or any kind of separation. For the monad is not divided among the hypostases, nor is it present in them relationally and observed in them, nor are the hypostases composed into a monad or fulfill it by combination, but it is the same to itself, yet in different ways. For the holy 14__134 Triad of hypostases is an unconfused Monad in its essence and in the simple principle according to it, and the holy Monad is a Triad in its hypostases and in its mode of existence. The same whole, this and that, is understood differently, according to one principle and another, as has been said; one and only, indivisible and unconfused, and simple and undiminished and unchangeable divinity; a monad being whole according to essence, and the same whole a triad in its hypostases, and one ray of a triply-radiant light shining in a single form.

Whereupon also the soul, having received with like honor as the holy angels the manifest and attainable principles concerning the Godhead for creation, and having learned to unceasingly hymn in harmony with them the one Godhead in a Trinitarian way, to that which is by grace through likeness

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λόγους καὶ τὸ θαυμαστὸν καὶ μέγα τῆς ἐν νόμῳ καὶ προφήταις δηλουμένης θείας προνοίας μυστήριον, καθ᾽ ἕκαστόν τε δεξαμένην ὑπὲρ τῆς ἐν τούτοις καλῆς μαθητείας θεόθεν διὰ τῶν ἁγίων δυνάμεων νοερῶς κατὰ διάνοιαν αὐτῇ διαλεγομένων τὰς εἰρηνοδώρους σημειώσεις μετὰ τῆς ῥωστικῆς καὶ συντηρητικῆς θέλξεως τῆς θείας καὶ διαπύρου κατὰ Θεὸν ἐφέσεως, διὰ τῆς μυστικῶς ὑπᾳδομένης αὐτῇ νοητῶς τῶν θείων ᾀσμάτων ἡδονῆς.

Πάλιν ἐκ τούτων μεταβαίνουσαν καὶ συναγομένην ἐπὶ τὴν μίαν καὶ μόνην καὶ ἑνιαίως τούτους συλλαμβάνουσαν τοὺς λόγους κορυφήν, λέγω δὲ τὸ ἅγιον Εὐαγγέλιον, ἐν ᾧ πάντες τῆς τε προνοίας καὶ τῶν ὄντων οἱ λόγοι κατὰ μίαν περιοχῆς δύναμιν ἑνοειδῶς προϋφεστήκασι. Μεθ᾽ ὃ κατ᾽ αἴσθησιν θείαν αὐτὸν ὁρᾷν ἔνεστι πάλιν θεμιτὸν τοῖς φιλοθέοις ἀταρβήτοις νοὸς ὄμμασι παραγινόμενον οὐρανόθεν αὐτῇ τὸν Λόγον καὶ Θεόν, ὡς ἡ τοῦ ἀρχιερέως ἀπὸ τοῦ θρόνου τοῦ ἱερατικοῦ σημαίνει κατάβασις, καὶ τέλειον αὐτῆς διακρίνοντα κατηχουμένων δίκην τοὺς ἔτι τὴν αἴσθησιν καὶ τὸ κατ᾽ αὐτὴν μεριστὸν φαντασιουμένους λογισμούς.

Κἀντεῦθεν πάλιν ἔξω γενομένην τῶν αἰσθητῶν, ὡς ἡ τῶν θυρῶν τῆς ἁγίας τοῦ Θεοῦ Ἐκκλησίας νοεῖν ὑποτίθεται κλεῖσις, ἐπὶ τὴν δηλουμένην διὰ τῆς εἰσόδου τῶν ἀρρήτων μυστηρίων ἄϋλον καὶ ἁπλῆν καὶ ἀναλλοίωτον καὶ θεοειδῆ καὶ παντὸς 14__132 ἐλευθέραν εἴδους καὶ σχήματος ἐπιστήμην τῶν νοητῶν ἄγοντα, καθ᾽ ἣν συναγάγουσαν πρὸς μὲν ἑαυτῆς τὰς οἰκείας δυνάμεις, πρὸς δὲ τὸν Λόγον ἑαυτὴν καταντᾷ, διὰ τοῦ νοεροῦ ἀσπασμοῦ ἑνώσασαν τοὺς περὶ ἑαυτὴν ἀρρήτους τῆς σωτηρίας καὶ λόγους καὶ τρόπους, διὰ τοῦ Συμβόλου τῆς πίστεως εὐχαρίστως ὁμολογεῖν ἐκδιδάσκοντα.

Ἐπὶ τούτοις δὲ πάλιν, ὡς ἤδη λοιπὸν κατὰ δύναμιν ἁπλῆν καὶ ἀδιαίρετον διὰ μαθητείας γνώσει περιλαβοῦσαν τούς τε τῶν αἰσθητῶν καὶ τῶν νοητῶν λόγους, ἐπὶ τὴν γνῶσιν τῆς ἐκφανοῦς αὐτὴν ἄγοντα θεολογίας μετὰ τὴν πάντων διάβασιν καὶ τὴν ἴσην τοῖς ἀγγέλοις κατὰ τὸ ἐφικτὸν αὐτῇ παρεχόμενον νόησιν καὶ τοσοῦτον διδάσκοντα σωφρόνως αὐτήν, ὅσον εἰδέναι Θεὸν ἕνα, μίαν οὐσίαν, ὑποστάσεις τρεῖς· μονάδα οὐσίας τρισυπόστατον καὶ τριάδα ὑποστάσεων ὁμοούσιον, μονάδα ἐν τριάδι καὶ τριάδα ἐν μονάδι· οὐκ ἄλλην καὶ ἄλλην, οὐδ᾽ ἄλλην παρ᾽ ἄλλην, οὐδὲ δι᾽ ἄλλης ἄλλην, οὐ δ᾽ ἄλλην ἐν ἄλλῃ, οὐδὲ ἐξ ἄλλης ἄλλην· ἀλλὰ τὴν αὐτὴν ἐν ἑαυτῇ, καὶ καθ᾽ ἑαυτὴν ἐφ᾽ ἑαυτήν, ἑαυτῇ ταὐτὴν καὶ μονάδα καὶ τριάδα ἀσύγχυτόν τε καὶ ἀσυγχύτως τὴν ἕνωσιν ἔχουσαν καὶ τὴν διάκρισιν ἀδιαίρετόν τε καὶ ἀμέριστον· μονάδα μὲν κατὰ τὸν τῆς οὐσίας, ἤτοι τὸν τοῦ εἶναι λόγον, ἀλλ᾽ οὐ κατὰ σύνθεσιν ἢ συναίρεσιν ἢ τὴν οἱανοῦν σύγχυσιν, τριάδα δὲ κατὰ τὸν τοῦ πῶς ὑπάρχειν καὶ ὑφεστάναι λόγον, ἀλλ᾽ οὐ κατὰ διαίρεσιν ἢ ἀλλοτρίωσιν ἢ τὸν οἱονοῦν μερισμόν. Οὐ γὰρ μεμέρισται ταῖς ὑποστάσεσιν ἡ μονάς, οὐδὲ σχετικῶς ἔνεστι καὶ ἐπιθεωρεῖται αὐταῖς, οὐδὲ συντέθεινται εἰς μονάδα αἱ ὑποστάσεις ἢ συναιρέσει αὐτὴν ἐκπληροῦσιν, ἀλλὰ τὴν αὐτὴν ἑαυτῇ ταὐτόν, ἄλλως μέντοι καὶ ἄλλως. Μονὰς γάρ ἐστι ἀσύγχυτος τῇ οὐσίᾳ καὶ τῷ κατ᾽ αὐτὴν ἀπλῷ λόγῳ ἡ 14__134 ἁγία Τριὰς τῶν ὑποστάσεων, καὶ τριάς ἐστι ταῖς ὑποστάσεσι καὶ τῷ τρόπῳ τῆς ὑπάρξεως ἡ ἁγία Μονάς. Τὴν αὐτὴν ὅλην τοῦτο κἀκεῖνο διαφόρως, κατ᾽ ἄλλον καὶ ἄλλον, ὡς εἴρηται, λόγον νοουμένην· μίαν καὶ μόνην, ἀδιαίρετόν τε καὶ ἀσύγχυτον, καὶ ἁπλῆν καὶ ἀμείωτον καὶ ἀπαράλλακτον θεότητα· μονάδα κατὰ τὴν οὐσίαν ὅλην ὑπάρχουσαν, καὶ ὅλην τριάδα τὴν αὐτὴν ταῖς ὑποστάσεσι, καὶ μίαν ἑνὸς τρισσοφαοῦς ἀκτῖνα φωτὸς μονοειδῶς ἐπιλάμπουσαν.

Ἐφ᾽ ᾧ καὶ τὴν ψυχήν, ὁμοτίμως τοῖς ἁγίοις ἀγγέλοις τοὺς ἐκφανεῖς καὶ ἐφικτοὺς τῇ κτίσει περὶ θεότητος δεξαμένην λόγους καὶ συμφώνως αὐτοῖς ἀσιγήτως ἀνυμνεῖν μαθοῦσαν τριαδικῶς τὴν μίαν θεότητα, ἐπὶ τὴν κατὰ χάριν δι᾽ ὁμοιότητος