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But all the others, O, what terrible ignorance, are darker even than the demons. But O Lord and Creator of all things, who made me a mortal creature from the earth and honored me with immortal grace and have granted me to live and to speak and to move and to glorify you, the Master of all, you yourself, Master, grant to me, the wretched one, both to fall down before you and to ask what is profitable. For I do not know how I was brought forth into the world and what things are here, which they suppose to be; what my vision is, O my God, and what the things seen are, I am not able to say, how we all, as men, have become vain and do not have a right judgment of existing things. I certainly came yesterday and tomorrow I depart, and I seem to be immortal here. I confess to all that you are God, but I deny you by my deeds each day; I am taught that you are the maker of all things, but without you I strive to have all things. You reign over things above and things below, and I alone do not shudder to oppose you; grant to the helpless one, grant to me, the all-wretched one, to cast away all wickedness of soul, which pride, which vain conceit crush and shatter together, alas! Grant humility, grant a helping hand and cleanse the filth of my soul (54) and provide for me tears of repentance, tears of longing, tears of salvation, tears that cleanse the gloom of my mind and make me bright from above, I who wish to see you, the light of the world, the light of my eyes, of me, the wretched one, and having a heart full of the evils of this life from many afflictions and the envy of the playwrights of my exile or, rather to say, of my benefactors, of my masters, of my true friends, to whom in return for evils grant good things, my Christ, the eternal things, both rich and divine, which you have prepared for ages of ages for those who long for you and love you fervently.

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οἱ δ᾿ ἄλλοι πάντες, ὤ τῆς δεινῆς ἀγνοίας, σκοτεινότεροί εἰσι καί τῶν δαιμόνων. Ἀλλ᾿ ὦ Κύριε καί Κτίστα τῶν ἁπάντων, ὅς ἐποίησας ζῷον θνητόν ἐκ γῆς με καί ἐτίμησας χάριτι ἀθανάτῳ καί ζῆν δέδωκας καί λαλεῖν καί κινεῖσθαι καί δοξάζειν σέ, τόν ∆εσπότην τῶν ὅλων, αὐτός, ∆έσποτα, δός μοι τῷ ταλαιπώρῳ καί προσπίπτειν σοι καί αἰτεῖν τό συμφέρον. Ἀγνοῶ καί γάρ, πῶς παρήχθην ἐν κόσμῳ καί τί τά τῇδε, ἅ νομίζουσιν εἶναι˙ τίς ἡ ὅρασις ἡ ἐμή, ὦ Θεέ μου, τί δέ τά ὁρώμενα, εἰπεῖν οὐκ ἔχω, πῶς ἐματαιώθημεν ἄνθρωποι πάντες καί κρίσιν ὀρθήν οὐκ ἔχομεν τῶν ὄντων. Χθές ἦλθον πάντως καί αὔριον ὑπάγω καί εἶναι δοκῶ ἀθάνατος ἐνταῦθα. Ἔχειν σε Θεόν ὁμολογῶ τοῖς πᾶσιν, ἀρνοῦμαι δέ σε τοῖς ἔργοις καθ᾿ ἑκάστην˙ διδάσκομαί σε ποιητήν εἶναι πάντων, ἄνευ δέ σοῦ βιάζομαι πάντα ἔχειν. Σύ βασιλεύεις τῶν ἄνω καί τῶν κάτω κἀγώ μόνος σοι ἀντιπίπτειν οὐ φρίσσω˙ δός τῷ ἀπόρῳ, δός μοι τῷ παναθλίῳ πᾶσαν ἀπορρίψασθαι ψυχῆς κακίαν, ἥν φυσίωσις, ἥν ἔπαρσις ματαία συνθλῶσιν ἅμα καί συντρίβουσιν, οἴμοι! ∆ός ταπείνωσιν, δός χεῖρα βοηθείας καί καθάρισον τόν ῥύπον τῆς ψυχῆς μου (54) καί παράσχου μοι δάκρυα μετανοίας, δάκρυα πόθου, δάκρυα σωτηρίας, δάκρυα καθαίροντα ζόφον νοός μου καί λαμπρόν με ἄνωθεν ἀποτελοῦντα, τόν ὁρᾶν σε θέλοντα, τό φῶς τοῦ κόσμου, τό φῶς τῶν ἐμῶν ὀφθαλμῶν, τοῦ ἀθλίου, καί καρδίαν γέμουσαν κακῶν τοῦ βίου ἔχοντος πολλῶν ἐκ θλίψεων καί φθόνου τῶν δραματουργῶν τῆς ἐμῆς ἐξορίας ἤ, μᾶλλον εἰπεῖν, τῶν ἐμῶν εὐεργετῶν, τῶν δεσποτῶν μου, τῶν ἐμῶν ὄντως φίλων, οἶς ἀντί κακῶν δός ἀγαθά, Χριστέ μου, τά αἰώνια, τά καί πλούσια καί θεῖα, ἅ ἡτοίμασας εἰς αἰῶνας αἰώνων τοῖς σέ ποθοῦσι καί φιλοῦσιν ἐκθύμως.