Life of Antony

 He was content with what he found, and sought nothing more. After the death of his parents, he was left alone with one very young sister and he was a

 he signified love for one another and thus filled, he would return to his own place of the hermitage then he himself, gathering to himself the thing

 I undertook to tickle the young, and I have been called the spirit of fornication. How many who wished to be chaste have I deceived! How many who were

 to learn of the ascetic from the life of the great Elijah, as in a mirror his own life always. Thus, then, having strengthened himself, Antony departe

 he forgot the contest of Antony, but came to his aid. So, looking up, he saw the roof as if opening, and a certain ray of light coming down to him. An

 that these were at work, and they themselves, being afraid, called for Antony. But he listened more to these than he cared for those. And coming near

 the Scriptures are sufficient for teaching but it is good for us to exhort one another in the faith, and to anoint one another with words. And you, t

 In this the Lord is also a helper, as it is written: To everyone who chooses the good, God works with him for the good. And so that we may not be negl

 in the air about us, and they are not far from us and there is a great difference among them. And concerning their nature and their difference would

 enemy: Having pursued I will overtake and again by another: I will take the whole world in my hand, as a nest, and I will take it up as abandoned egg

 God said to the sinner: Why do you declare my 26.884 statutes, and take up my covenant in your mouth? For they do all things, and they speak, and make

 worlds from which they ought rather to be despised as weak. For the true angel, sent by the Lord against the Assyrians, had no need of crowds, nor of

 they themselves lied. So also concerning the river's water they sometimes babble for having seen many rains occurring in the parts of Ethiopia, and k

 God so granting. For the vision of the saints is not troubled. For he will not strive, nor cry out, neither shall any man hear their voice. But it hap

 is of our virtue and life but to cast out demons, this grace is of the Savior who gave it. Whence to those who boast not in virtue, but in signs, and

 long-nosed. Then as I was saying Why then are you here? he said Why do the monks, and all other Christians, blame me in vain? Why do they curse me e

 was cast out, and the conceit of others was stopped and all were persuaded to despise the demonic plotting, marveling at the grace given to Antony by

 zeal for he himself also prayed to be martyred, as I said before. He therefore seemed to be grieving, because he had not been martyred but the Lord

 and a few neglected palm trees. Antony, therefore, as if moved by God, loved the place for this was what he who had spoken to him by the banks of the

 you are hesitating, but depart 26.920 for I am a servant of Christ. As Antony said these things, they fled, as if pursued by the whip of his word. Th

 examine, and test yourselves. Therefore, let each one take account to himself day by day of his actions by day and by night and, if he has sinned, le

 and for them to enter, this indeed he did not permit, but said: Go, and you will find her, if she has not died, healed. For this is not my achievement

 Amoun had fallen asleep at the hour in which his old man saw his soul being carried up. And indeed both these and those marveled at the purity of Anto

 to hinder so that he might not pass through. But when his guides fought against them, they demanded an account, whether he was not subject to them. So

 he conversed for their benefit but he yielded to him in the matter of prayer, not being ashamed to learn himself. For he often inquired, and 26.940 a

 believing they were being helped. Indeed, so many became 26.944 Christians in those few days, as many as one might see become in a year. Then, when so

 that Christ was made manifest as a man whereas you, separating the soul from heaven, claim that it has wandered and fallen from the vault of the heav

 we understand by faith, this you attempt to construct through words and often you are not even able to express what we understand so that the operat

 but faith working through love for Christ which if you also should have, you will no longer seek proofs through words but you will consider faith in

 Arians act irrationally like beasts. And when he saw this vision, he exhorted those with him, saying: Do not be disheartened, children for just as th

 coming upon you Therefore cease persecuting Christians, lest at any time the wrath should seize you for it is already about to come upon you. But Ba

 we shall see one another again in this life. It is time for me at last to depart for I am nearly one hundred and five years old. So when they heard t

 Remember me as a father. Do not let anyone take my body to Egypt, lest they place it in their houses for it was for this reason that I went into the

 those who are hiding themselves, and are striving to withdraw, He makes manifest and renowned everywhere on account of both their own virtue and the b

you are hesitating, but depart; 26.920 for I am a servant of Christ. As Antony said these things, they fled, as if pursued by the whip of his word. Then after a few days, as he was working (for he made it a practice also to labor), someone stood at the door and pulled the palm-branch of his work; for he was weaving baskets, and these he would give to those who came in, in exchange for the things brought to him. And rising up, he saw a beast, like a man down to the thighs, but having legs and feet like a donkey. And Antony only sealed himself and said: I am a servant of Christ; if you were sent against me, behold, I am here. But the beast with its demons fled so quickly, that from the speed it fell and died. And the death of the beast was the fall of the demons. For they were zealous to do everything, that they might bring him down from the desert, and they were not able. And having been asked once by the monks to come down to them, and after a time to visit both them and their places, he journeyed with the monks who met him; and a camel carried their loaves and water. For all that desert is waterless, and there is no drinkable water at all, except only on that mountain from which they drew water, on which is also his monastery. When the water therefore failed on the way, and the heat was most severe, they were all in danger. For having gone around the places, and not finding water, they could no longer even walk about, but lay on the ground, and let the camel go, despairing of themselves. But the old man, seeing all in danger, was very grieved and groaned, and going a little way from them, and 26.921 bending his knees, and stretching out his hands, he prayed; and immediately the Lord made water come forth, where he stood praying; and so they all drank, and revived; and filling their skins, they sought the camel, and found it; for it happened that the rope had been wrapped around a certain stone, and so was held fast. Therefore, having led it and given it drink, they placed the skins upon it and journeyed on unharmed. And when he came to the outer monasteries, all greeted him, looking upon him as a father. And he, as if bringing provisions from the mountain, refreshed them with his words, and imparted to them what was profitable. And again there was joy in the mountains, and zeal for progress, and encouragement through their faith in one another. Therefore he also rejoiced, seeing both the eagerness of the monks, and his sister, who had grown old in virginity, and was herself a leader of other virgins. After some days, therefore, he went again into the mountain; and then from that time many came to him, and others who were suffering dared to enter. Now to all the monks who came to him, he continually had this charge: to believe in the Lord, and to love Him, and to keep themselves from filthy thoughts and fleshly pleasures, and, as it is written in the Proverbs, not to be deceived by the fullness of the belly; to flee vainglory, and to pray continually, to sing psalms before sleep and after sleep, to commit to memory the precepts in the Scriptures, and to remember the deeds of the saints, so that the soul, being reminded of the commandments, might be shaped by their zeal. And especially he advised to meditate continually on the saying of the Apostle: Let not the sun go down on your wrath; and to consider this to have been said in common about every commandment, so that not 26.924 only on our wrath, but not even on any other sin of ours the sun might go down; for it is good and necessary, that neither the sun for the day's evil, nor the moon for the night's sin, or any thought at all, should condemn us. In order, therefore, that this may be preserved for us, it is good to hear the Apostle and keep it; for he says: Yourselves

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μέλλετε, ἀλλ' ἀναχω 26.920 ρεῖτε· Χριστοῦ γὰρ δοῦλός εἰμι. Ταῦτα τοῦ Ἀντωνίου λέγοντος, ἔφυγον ἐκεῖναι, ὡς ὑπὸ μάστιγος τοῦ λόγου, διωκόμεναι. Εἶτα μεθ' ἡμέρας ὀλίγας, ὡς εἰργάζετο (ἔμελε γὰρ αὐτῷ καὶ κοπιᾷν), ἐπιστάς τις τῇ θύρᾳ, εἷλκε τὴν σειρὰν τοῦ ἔργου· σπυρίδας γὰρ ἔῤῥαπτε, καὶ ταύτας τοῖς εἰσερχομένοις ἀντὶ τῶν κομιζομένων αὐ τῷ ἐδίδου. Ἀναστὰς δὲ, εἶδε θηρίον, ἀνθρώπῳ μὲν ἐοι κὸς ἕως τῶν μηρῶν, τὰ δὲ σκέλη καὶ τοὺς πόδας ὁμοίους ἔχον ὄνῳ. Καὶ ὁ μὲν Ἀντώνιος μόνον ἑαυτὸν ἐσφράγισε, καὶ εἶπε· Χριστοῦ δοῦλός εἰμι· εἰ ἀπ εστάλης κατ' ἐμοῦ, ἰδοὺ πάρειμι. Τὸ δὲ θηρίον σὺν τοῖς ἑαυτοῦ δαίμοσιν οὕτως ἔφυγεν, ὡς ὑπὸ τῆς ὀξύτητος πεσεῖν καὶ ἀποθανεῖν. Ὁ δὲ τοῦ θηρίου θάνατος πτῶ μα τῶν δαιμόνων ἦν. Πάντα γὰρ ἐσπούδαζον ποιεῖν, ἵνα καταγάγωσιν αὐτὸν ἐκ τῆς ἐρήμου, καὶ οὐκ ἴσχυ σαν. Ἀξιωθεὶς δέ ποτε παρὰ τῶν μοναχῶν κατελ θεῖν πρὸς αὐτοὺς, καὶ ἐπισκέψασθαι διὰ χρόνου αὐ τούς τε καὶ τοὺς τόπους, ὥδευσε σὺν τοῖς μοναχοῖς τοῖς ἀπαντήσασι· κάμηλος δὲ ἐβάσταζε αὐτοῖς τοὺς ἄρτους καὶ τὸ ὕδωρ. Ἄνυδρος γὰρ ἡ ἔρημός ἐστιν ἐκείνη πᾶσα, καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν ὕδωρ πότιμον ὅλως, εἰ μὴ ἐν ἐκείνῳ τῷ ὄρει μόνῳ, ὅθεν καὶ ὑδρεύσαντο, ἐν ᾧ καὶ τὸ μοναστήριόν ἐστιν αὐτοῦ. Λείψαντος τοί νυν τοῦ ὕδατος ἐν τῇ ὁδῷ, καὶ καύματος ὄντος σφο δροτάτου, πάντες ἔμελλον κινδυνεύειν. Περιελθόντες γὰρ τοὺς τόπους, καὶ μὴ εὑρόντες ὕδωρ, οὐδὲ περι πατεῖν ἐδύναντο λοιπὸν, ἀλλὰ κατέκειντο χαμαὶ, τήν τε κάμηλον ἀφῆκαν ἀπελθεῖν, ἀπογνόντες ἑαυτῶν. Ὁ δὲ γέρων, ὁρῶν πάντας κινδυνεύοντας, πάνυ λυπη θεὶς καὶ στενάξας, ὀλίγον ἀπ' αὐτῶν ἀπελθὼν, καὶ 26.921 κλίνας τὰ γόνατα, καὶ τὰς χεῖρας ἐκτείνας, προσηύ χετο· καὶ εὐθὺς ἐποίησεν ὁ Κύριος ὕδωρ ἐξελθεῖν, ἔνθα προσευχόμενος εἱστήκει· καὶ οὕτως πιόντες οἱ πάντες, ἀνέπνευσαν· καὶ τοὺς ἀσκοὺς πλήσαντες, ἐζήτησαν τὴν κάμηλον, καὶ εὗρον· συνέβη γὰρ τὸ σχοινίον εἴς τινα λίθον περιειληθῆναι, καὶ οὕτω κα τασχεθῆναι. Ἀγαγόντες τοίνυν καὶ ποτίσαντες, ἐπέθη καν ἐπ' αὐτὴν τοὺς ἀσκοὺς καὶ διώδευσαν ἀβλα βεῖς. Ὡς δὲ ἦλθεν εἰς τὰ ἔξω μοναστήρια, πάντες ὡς πατέρα βλέποντες κατησπάζοντο. Καὶ αὐτὸς δὲ, ὥσπερ ἐφόδια φέρων ἀπὸ τοῦ ὄρους, ἐξένιζεν αὐτοὺς τοῖς λό γοις, καὶ μετεδίδου τῆς ὠφελίας. Πάλιν τε ἦν χαρὰ ἐν τοῖς ὄρεσι, καὶ ζῆλος προκοπῆς, καὶ παράκλησις διὰ τῆς ἐν ἀλλήλοις πίστεως. Ἔχαιρεν οὖν καὶ αὐτὸς, βλέπων τήν τε τῶν μοναχῶν προθυμίαν, καὶ τὴν ἀδελφὴν γηράσασαν ἐν παρθενίᾳ, καθηγουμένην τε καὶ αὐτὴν ἄλλων παρθένων. Μεθ' ἡμέρας τοίνυν εἰσῆλθε πάλιν εἰς τὸ ὄρος· καὶ τότε λοιπὸν πολλοὶ πρὸς αὐτὸν εἰσήρχοντο· καὶ ἄλλοι πάσχοντες ἐτόλμησαν εἰσελθεῖν· Πρὸς μὲν οὖν πάντας τοὺς εἰσερχομένους πρὸς αὐτὸν μοναχοὺς, τοῦτο συνεχῶς εἶχε τὸ παράγγελμα, πιστεύειν εἰς τὸν Κύριον, καὶ ἀγαπᾷν αὐτὸν, φυλάττειν τε ἑαυτοὺς ἀπὸ ῥυπαρῶν λογισμῶν καὶ σαρκικῶν ἡδονῶν, καὶ, ὡς ἐν ταῖς Παροιμίαις γέγραπται, μὴ ἀπατᾶσθαι χορτασίᾳ κοιλίας· φεύγειν τε κενοδοξίαν, καὶ εὔχεσθαι συν εχῶς, ψάλλειν τε πρὸ ὕπνου καὶ μεθ' ὕπνον, καὶ ἀπο στηθίζειν τὰ ἐν ταῖς Γραφαῖς παραγγέλματα, καὶ μνημονεύειν τῶν πράξεων τῶν ἁγίων, πρὸς τὸ τῷ ζή λῳ τούτων ῥυθμίζεσθαι τὴν ψυχὴν ὑπομιμνησκομέ νην ἐκ τῶν ἐντολῶν. Μάλιστα δὲ συνεβούλευε τὸ τοῦ Ἀποστόλου ῥητὸν συνεχῶς μελετᾷν· Ὁ ἥλιος μὴ ἐπιδυέτω ἐπὶ τῷ παροργισμῷ ὑμῶν· καὶ τοῦτο κοι νῶς περὶ πάσης ἐντολῆς εἰρῆσθαι νομίζειν, ἵνα μὴ 26.924 ἐπὶ μόνῳ παροργισμῷ, ἀλλὰ μηδὲ ἐπὶ ἄλλῃ ἁμαρτίᾳ ἡμῶν ὁ ἥλιος ἐπιδύνῃ· καλὸν γὰρ καὶ ἀναγκαῖον, μήτε τὸν ἥλιον περὶ ἡμερινῆς κακίας, μήτε τὴν σελήνην περὶ νυκτερινῆς ἁμαρτίας, ἢ ὅλως ἐνθυμήσεως, κα ταγινώσκειν ἡμῶν. Ἵν' οὖν τοῦτο ἡμῖν περισώζηται, καλὸν ἀκοῦσαι τοῦ Ἀποστόλου καὶ φυλάξαι· φησὶ γάρ· Ἑαυτοὺς

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