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thought, and the growing desire, consider that what is admired is earth, that what inflames is ashes, and the soul will cease its raging; uncover the skin of her face, and then you will see all the worthlessness of her beauty; do not stop at the surface, but pass further within with your thought, and you will find nothing else but bones and nerves and veins. But are these things not enough? Consider her being changed, growing old, falling ill, eyes sinking, and cheeks hollowing, all that flower fading away; consider what you admire, and be ashamed of your judgment. You admire clay and ashes, and dust and embers inflame you. I do not say these things to accuse nature; far from it; not to disparage, nor to cast into worthlessness, but preparing remedies for the sick. For this reason God made it so, so lowly, that He might both display His own power, and His care for us, by the lowliness of its nature leading to humility, and suppressing all our desire, but showing His own wisdom, how even in clay He is able to create so much beauty. So that when I belittle the substance, then I reveal the art of the Creator. For just as we admire a sculptor more, not when he shows us a beautiful statue made of gold, but when from underlying material of clay he works a finished and precise image, so too we are astounded by and glorify the 56.186 master-craftsman God, because in ash and clay He has placed in our bodies an indescribable beauty and a display of some ineffable wisdom. And He has done this not only in our body, but also in all creation. For in many places having brought forth lowly substances, He both placed a clear demonstration of His own art, and mixed in a certain proof of the substances' weakness; so that through the art and the beauty you might admire the Creator, but through the weakness and the lowliness of the nature and the substance you might not worship the things that have been made. The sun shines brightly, and illuminates the whole inhabited world; but when night comes, it fails. For what, it says, is brighter than the sun? But even this fails; not only at night, but also in the day. And for this reason the sun has often failed even in the day, so that you might admire the Creator for His art, but not worship the created thing for its weakness. Do you see this heaven, how great a body it is? how beautiful? how resplendent, and better than our bodies in its appearance? But it is lifeless. Have you seen both the display of the art, and the proof of the weakness? do you see the fortifications lying on either side for you? For so that you might not condemn the Creator as weak, He made things beautiful; but so that you might not worship the created things as gods, He made them in part weak. Remember these things continually. For this reason we interpret the Scriptures, not that you may only learn the Scriptures, but that you may also correct your morals. For if this does not happen, we read in vain, we explain in vain. For just as an athlete entering a wrestling school, being anointed and enjoying the hands of the trainer, if when the contest has come he refutes that art, he has been brought into the wrestling school in vain; so if you, coming here and learning all the wrestling-holds and grips against the devil, when the time of the contests has come are tripped up, either by seeing a beautiful face, or being lifted up to madness, or being overcome by some other wicked thought, you have entered here in vain. Remember therefore the words, not those against our nature, but those against unrestrained desire. The things spoken are not an accusation of nature, but of desire. By this suppress anger, thus calm desire, thus pull down madness. And all the earth was of one lip, and one voice for all. Behold the matter still being sought. The discourse is not about this, but that all men

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λογισμὸν, καὶ τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν αὔξουσαν, ἐννόησον ὅτι γῆ τὸ θαυμαζόμενον, ὅτι σποδὸς τὸ ἐκκαῖον, καὶ παύσεται λυττῶσα ἡ ψυχή· ἀνακάλυψον αὐτῆς τὸ δέρμα τῆς ὄψεως, καὶ τότε πᾶσαν αὐτὴν ὄψει τῆς εὐμορφίας τὴν εὐτέλειαν· μὴ στῇς μέχρι τῆς ἐπιφανείας, ἀλλ' ἐνδοτέρω διάβηθι τῷ λογισμῷ, καὶ οὐδὲν ἕτερον εὑρήσεις, ἀλλ' ἢ ὀστᾶ καὶ νεῦρα καὶ φλέβας. Ἀλλ' οὐκ ἀρκεῖ ταῦτα; Λόγισαί μου ταύτην ἀλλοιουμένην, γηράσκουσαν, ἀῤῥωστοῦσαν, ὑφιζάνοντας ὀφθαλμοὺς, καὶ κοιλαινομένας παρειὰς, ἅπαν καταῤῥέον τὸ ἄνθος ἐκεῖνο· ἐννόησον τί θαυμάζεις, καὶ αἰσχύνθητί σου τὴν κρίσιν. Πηλὸν θαυμάζεις καὶ σποδὸν, καὶ κόνις σε ἐκκαίει καὶ τέφρα. Οὐ κατηγορῶν τῆς φύσεως ταῦτα λέγω· μὴ γένοιτο· οὐ κακίζων, οὐδὲ εἰς εὐτέλειαν ἐμβάλλων, ἀλλὰ φάρμακα τοῖς νοσοῦσι κατασκευάζων. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ὁ Θεὸς τοιαύτην αὐτὴν ἐποίησεν, οὕτως εὐτελῆ, ἵνα καὶ τὴν οἰκείαν δύναμιν ἐπιδείξηται, καὶ τὴν κηδεμονίαν τὴν περὶ ἡμᾶς, τῇ τῆς φύσεως μὲν εὐτελείᾳ πρὸς ταπεινοφροσύνην ἐνάγων, καὶ πᾶσαν τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν ἡμῶν καταστέλλων, τὴν δὲ σοφίαν δεικνὺς τὴν ἑαυτοῦ, ὡς καὶ ἐν πηλῷ τοσοῦτον ἰσχύων ἐξασκῆσαι κάλλος. Ὥστε ὅταν ἐξευτελίσω τὴν οὐσίαν, τότε ἐκκαλύπτω τὴν τέχνην τοῦ ∆ημιουργοῦ. Ὥσπερ γὰρ ἀνδριαντοποιὸν τότε μᾶλλον θαυμάζομεν, οὐχ ὅταν ἐκ χρυσίου καλὸν ἡμῖν δείξῃ τὸν ἀνδριάντα, ἀλλ' ὅταν ἐκ πηλοῦ τῆς ὕλης ὑποκειμένης ἀπηρτισμένην καὶ ἀκριβῆ τὴν εἰκόνα ἐργάζηται οὕτω καὶ τὸν 56.186 ἀριστοτέχνην Θεὸν ἐκπληττόμεθα καὶ δοξάζομεν, ὅτι ἐν σποδῷ καὶ πηλῷ κάλλος ἀμήχανον καὶ σοφίας ἀῤῥήτου τινὸς ἐπίδειξιν τοῖς σώμασιν ἡμῶν ἐναπέθετο. Καὶ τοῦτο οὐκ ἐν τῷ σώματι μόνον τῷ ἡμετέρῳ, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐν πάσῃ τῇ κτίσει ἐποίησεν. Εὐτελεῖς γὰρ πολλαχοῦ παραγαγὼν τὰς οὐσίας, καὶ τῆς οἰκείας τέχνης δεῖγμα σαφὲς ἐγκατέθηκε, καὶ τῆς τῶν οὐσιῶν ἀσθενείας ἔλεγχόν τινα ἐγκατέμιξεν· ἵνα διὰ μὲν τὴν τέχνην καὶ τὸ κάλλος θαυμάζῃς τὸν ∆ημιουργὸν, διὰ δὲ τὴν ἀσθένειαν καὶ τὴν εὐτέλειαν τῆς φύσεως καὶ τῆς οὐσίας μὴ προσκυνήσῃς τὰ γενόμενα. Φαιδρὸς ὁ ἥλιος λάμπων, καὶ πᾶσαν καταυγάζει τὴν οἰκουμένην· ἀλλ' ἐλθούσης τῆς νυκτὸς ἐκλείπει. Τί γὰρ, φησὶ, φωτεινότερον ἡλίου; Ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῦτο ἐκλείπει· οὐκ ἐν νυκτὶ δὲ μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐν ἡμέρᾳ. Καὶ διὰ τοῦτο πολλάκις καὶ ἐν ἡμέρᾳ ἥλιος ἐξέλιπεν, ἵνα θαυμάζῃς μὲν διὰ τὴν τέχνην τὸν ∆ημιουργὸν, μὴ προσκυνήσῃς δὲ διὰ τὴν ἀσθένειαν τὸ γενόμενον. Ὁρᾷς τὸν οὐρανὸν τοῦτον, ἡλίκον ἐστὶ σῶμα; πῶς καλόν; πῶς ἀποστίλβον, καὶ τῶν ἡμετέρων βέλτιον σωμάτων κατὰ τὴν ἐπιφάνειαν; Ἀλλ' ἄψυχόν ἐστιν. Εἶδες καὶ τῆς τέχνης τὴν ἐπίδειξιν, καὶ τῆς ἀσθενείας τὸν ἔλεγχον; ὁρᾷς ἑκατέρωθέν σοι τὰ ὀχυρώματα κείμενα; Ἵνα γὰρ μὴ καταγινώσκῃς τοῦ ∆ημιουργοῦ ὡς ἀσθενοῦς, καλὰ ἐποίησεν· ἵνα δὲ μὴ προσκυνῇς τὰ γενόμενα ὡς θεοὺς, ἀσθενῆ ταῦτα ἐκ μέρους εἰργάσατο. Ταῦτα μέμνησθε διηνεκῶς. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο Γραφὰς ἑρμηνεύομεν, οὐχ ἵνα Γραφὰς μάθητε μόνον, ἀλλ' ἵνα καὶ τὰ ἤθη διορθώσητε. Ἂν γὰρ τοῦτο μὴ γένηται, περιττῶς ἀναγινώσκομεν, περιττῶς ἐξηγούμεθα. Ὥσπερ γὰρ ἀθλητὴς εἰς παλαίστραν εἰσιὼν ἀλειφόμενος καὶ ἀπολαύων τῶν χειρῶν τοῦ παιδοτρίβου, ἂν τοῦ ἀγῶνος παραγενομένου ἐλέγξῃ ἐκείνην τὴν τέχνην, περιττῶς εἰσήχθη εἰς τὴν παλαίστραν· οὕτως ἂν ἐνταῦθα παραγινόμενοι, καὶ μανθάνοντες τὰ παλαίσματα πάντα καὶ τὰς λαβὰς τοῦ διαβόλου, τοῦ καιροῦ τῶν ἀγώνων ἐλθόντος ὑποσκελισθῆτε, ἢ εὔμορφον ὄψιν ἰδόντες, ἢ πρὸς ἀπόνοιαν ἐπαρθέντες, ἢ ἑτέρῳ τινὶ πονηρῷ χειρωθέντες λογισμῷ, μάτην ἐνταῦθα εἰσήλθετε. Μέμνησθε τοίνυν τῶν λόγων, οὐ τῶν κατὰ τῆς φύσεως τῆς ἡμετέρας, ἀλλὰ τῶν κατὰ τῆς ἐπιθυμίας τῆς ἀκολάστου. Οὐ φύσεως ἔγκλημα τὰ εἰρημένα, ἀλλὰ ἐπιθυμίας τὰ λεγόμενα. Ταύτῃ καταστέλλετε θυμὸν, οὕτω πραΰνατε ἐπιθυμίαν, οὕτω κατασπᾶτε ἀπόνοιαν. Καὶ ἦν πᾶσα ἡ γῆ χεῖλος ἓν, καὶ φωνὴ μία πᾶσιν. Ἰδοὺ τὸ ζητούμενον ἔτι. Οὐ περὶ ταύτης ὁ λόγος, ἀλλ' ὅτι πάντες οἱ ἄνθρωποι