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the imposition of virtues, fills up the soul that has become a ravine, and humbles the agitated dominion of evil spirits.

2.54 (νδ΄) The rough places (that is, the visitations of involuntary temptations) will be into smooth ways, when especially the mind, rejoicing and being glad, takes pleasure in weaknesses and afflictions and necessities, through involuntary labors, taking away the whole dominion of voluntary passions. For He has called the rough places, the occurrences of involuntary temptations, which are transformed into smooth ways through patience according to thanksgiving.

2.55 (νε΄) He who longs for the true life, knowing that all labor, whether voluntary or involuntary, becomes the death of pleasure, the mother of death, will receive all the rough visitations of involuntary 1241 temptations, rejoicing with gladness; through patience, making the afflictions easy and smooth ways, and which unerringly escort him to the prize of the upward call, as he piously runs the divine race in them. For pleasure is the mother of death; and labor is the death of pleasure; both that which is chosen, and that which is contrary to choice.

2.56 (νστ΄) Everyone, therefore, who has dissolved through self-control the much-coiling and complex 15∆_104 pleasure, and which is in many ways intertwined with all sensible things, has made the crooked things straight; and he who has trodden upon the difficult and rough visitation of labors through patience, has made the rough places into smooth ways. Whence, as a prize for virtue and for the toils on its behalf, having competed well and lawfully, and having conquered pleasure by the desire for virtue, and having trodden upon pain by the love of knowledge, and through both having nobly endured the divine contests, he will see, according to what is written, the salvation of God.

2.57 (νζ΄) He who loves virtue, voluntarily quenches the furnace of pleasures; but he whose mind has been formed by the knowledge of the truth, is not held back by involuntary labors, from the perpetual motion that bears him according to his longing for God.

2.58 (νη΄) He who has straightened the crooked things of the voluntary passions, that is, the movements of pleasure, through self-control, and has smoothed the rough places, the misfortunes of involuntary temptations, that is, the ways of pain, through patience, and has established them into smooth ways; such a one will rightly see the salvation of God, having become pure in heart; in which, through the virtues and the pious contemplations, he sees God at the completion of the contests, according to that which says, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God;" having received in exchange for the labors for virtue, the grace of dispassion, than which nothing more reveals God to those who possess it.

2.59 (νθ΄) Scripture calls cisterns the hearts that are receptive of the heavenly gifts of holy knowledge, being quarried by the firm word of the commandments, and casting off like calluses, both the love of pleasure towards the passions, and the relation of nature towards sensible things 15∆_106, and being filled with the knowledge that is borne from above, which is both cleansing of the passions, and life-giving and, as it were, nourishing of the virtues in spirit.

1244 2.60 (ξ΄) The Lord quarries cisterns in the desert; I mean, in the world, and in the nature of men; digging out the hearts of the worthy, and cleansing them of material weight and mindset, and making them spacious for the reception of the divine rains of wisdom and knowledge, so that they may water the flocks of Christ, I mean those who, on account of the infancy of their soul, are in need of moral teaching.

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ἀρετῶν ἐπιβολή, τήν φαραγγωθεῖσαν ψυχήν ἀναπληροῖ, καί τήν ὀρινομένην τῶν πονηρῶν πνευμάτων ταπεινοῖ δυναστείαν.

2.54 (νδ΄) Αἱ τραχεῖαι (τουτέστιν, αἱ τῶν ἀκουσίων πειρασμῶν ἐπιφοραί) ἔσονται εἰς ὁδούς λείας, ὅταν μάλιστα χαίρων καί εὐφραινόμενος ὁ νοῦς, ἐν ἀσθενείαις εὐδοκῇ καί θλίψεσι καί ἀνάγκαις, διά τῶν ἀκουσίων πόνων, τήν ὅλη τῶν ἑκουσίων παθῶν ἀφαιρούμενος δυναστείαν. Τραχείας γάρ κέκλικε, τάς τῶν ἀκουσίων πειρασμῶν συμβάσεις, εἰς ὁδούς λείας διά τῆς κατά τῆς εὐχαριστίαν ὑπομονῆς μεταπιπτούσας.

2.55 (νε΄) Ὁ τῆς ἀληθινῆς ἐφιέμενος ζωῆς, γνούς ὅτι πᾶς πόνος, εἴτε ἑκούσιος, εἴτε ἀκούσιος, τῆς τοῦ θανάτου μητρός ἡδονῆς γίνεται θάνατος, πάσας τάς τραχείας τῶν ἀκουσίων 1241 πειρασμῶν ἐπιφοράς δέξεται μετ᾿ εὐφροσύνης χαίρων· διά τῆς ὑπομονῆς, ὁδούς εὐμαρεῖς τε καί λείας, τάς θλίψεις ποιούμενος, καί πρός τό βραβεῖον τῆς ἄνω κλήσεως ἀπλανῶς παραπεμπούσας αὐτόν, εὐσεβῶς ἐν αὐταῖς τόν θεῖον δρόμον ποιούμενον. Καί γάρ, τοῦ μέν θανάτου μήτηρ ἐστίν ἡ ἡδονή· τῆς ἡδονῆς δέ θάνατός ἐστιν, ὁ πόνος· ὅ τε προαιρετικός, καί ὁ παρά προαίρεσιν.

2.56 (νστ΄) Πᾶς τοιγαροῦν ὁ τήν πολυέλικτόν τε καί πολύπλοκον 15∆_104 ἡδονήν, καί πᾶσιν ὁμοῦ τοῖς αἰσθητοῖς πολυτρόπως συμπεπλεγμένην τῇ ἐγκρατείᾳ διαλύσας, τά σκολιά εἰς εὐθείας ἐποίησε· καί ὁ τήν δύσβατον καί τραχεῖαν τῶν πόνων ἐπιφοράν δι᾿ ὑπομονῆς πατήσας, τάς τραχείας ἐποίησεν εἰς ὁδούς λείας. Ὅθεν ὥσπερ ἔπαθλον ἀρετῆς καί τῶν ὑπέρ αὐτῆς καμάτων, οἷα καλῶς τε καί νομίμως ἀθλήσας, καί τήν ἡδονήν νικήσας, τῷ πόθῳ τῆς ἀρετῆς, καί τήν ὀδύνην πατήσας τῷ τῆς γνώσεως ἔρωτι, καί δι᾿ ἀμφοτέρων γενναίως τούς θείους διενέγκας ἀγῶνας, Ὄψεται, κατά τό γεγραμμένον, τό σωτήριον τοῦ Θεοῦ.

2.57 (νζ΄) Ὁ τήν ἀρετήν ἀγαπῶν, τήν τῶν ἡδονῶν ἑκουσίως ἀπομαραίνει κάμινον· ὁ δέ τῇ γνώσει τῆς ἀληθείας πεποιωμένος τόν νοῦν, ἀκουσίοις οὐκ ἐπέχεται πόνοις, τῆς κατά τήν ἔφεσιν πρός τόν Θεόν φερούσης ἀεικινησίας.

2.58 (νη΄) Ὁ τά σκολιά τῶν ἑκουσίων παθῶν, ἤγουν τῆς ἡδονῆς τά κινήματα διά τῆς ἐγκρατείας εὐθύνας, καί τά τραχείας, τῶν ἀκουσίων πειρασμῶν συμφοράς, ἤγουν τούς τρόπους τῆς ὀδύνης διά τῆς ὑπομονῆς ὁμαλίσας, καί εἰς ὁδούς λείας καταστήσας· ὁ τοιοῦτος εἰκότως ὄψεται τό σωτήριον τοῦ Θεοῦ, καθαρός τῇ καρδίᾳ γενόμενος· καθ᾿ ἥν διά τῶν ἀρετῶν καί τῶν εὐσεβῶν θεωρημάτων, ὁρᾷ τόν Θεόν ἐπί τέλει τῶν ἄθλων, κατά τό, Μακάριοι οἱ καθαροί τῇ καρδίᾳ, ὅτι αὐτοί τόν Θεόν ὄψονται· τῶν ὑπέρ ἀρετῆς πόνων, τῆς ἀπαθείας τήν χάριν ἀντιλαβών, ἧς οὐδέν πλέον τόν Θεόν ἐμφανίζει τοῖς ἔχουσι.

2.59 (νθ΄) Λάκκους καλεῖ ἡ Γραφή, τάς δεκτικάς τῶν οὐρανίων χαρισμάτων τῆς ἁγίας γνώσεως καρδίας, λατομουμένας τῷ στερῷ λόγῳ τῶν ἐντολῶν, καί ἀποβαλλομένας καθάπερ πωρώματα, τήν τε πρός τά πάθη φιληδονίαν, καί τήν πρός τά αἰσθητά 15∆_106 τῆς φύσεως σχέσιν, καί πληρουμένας τῆς ἄνωθεν φερομένης ῥυπτικῆς τε τῶν παθῶν, καί ζωοποιητικῆς καί οἷον θρεπτικῆς τῶν ἀρετῶν ἐν πνεύματι, γνώσεως.

1244 2.60 (ξ΄) Λάκκους λατομεῖ ὁ Κύριος ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ· λέγω δέ τῷ κόσμῳ, καί τῇ φύσει τῶν ἀνθρώπων· τάς τῶν ἀξίων καρδίας ἐκχοΐζων, καί ἀποκαθαίρων τοῦ ὑλικοῦ βάρους τε καί φρονήματος, καί ποιῶν εὑρυχώρους πρός ὑποδοχήν τῶν θείων τῆς σοφίας καί τῆς γνώσεως ὑετῶν, ἵνα ποτίζουσι τά κτήνη τοῦ Χριστοῦ, τούς δεομένους λέγω διά ψυχῆς νηπιότητα, τῆς ἠθικῆς διδασκαλίας.