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the mind is made strong, and Paul testifies, urging some to advance in virtue, saying: That you may become according to the image of the creator, although they were already so according to the principle of their being. What he says, therefore, is something like this, that every human being, inasmuch as he is a creation of God, being receptive of reason, exists according to the image, being capable, as we said, of the image and suitably disposed for participation in it; but if he should acquire this in actuality, just as the human being created from the beginning, he already has the "according to the image" working within himself. And let what is said be clear by way of an example. The human being is rational; and this essential aptitude exists also in the infant, but the rational faculty is not yet active; therefore the infant also has this potentiality; at any rate, when reason is fulfilled, it demonstrates these things, if it inclines toward education. So also the "according to the image," as long as it is not buried, bears the dignity of the first creation, but when wickedness and depravity are heaped upon it, it must receive the broom according to what is said in the gospel, which is the word of repentance, so that, having cleared away the overlying mist, we may reve[al] the impressions of the image. And the text, "and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over the cattle and over all the earth [and] over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth" according to [the] former narrative, would indicate 60 the ruling power of the human being over the animals subjected to him. For one might wonder how he hunts with certain snares and nets those things that are far beyond his strength, and are wild and naturally harmful, and in addition exceedingly large; but this would not happen so, if he did not have dominion over them from God. For sometimes even by a mere child or otherwise a weak human being, numerous herds of various animals are driven, which clearly shows that some divine power is in the rational animal, by which these are subjected to it. But dominion is nothing other than lawful supervision. At any rate, none of the others rules over its own kind; and if ever the so-called bellwether sheep leads a flock in terms of going before it, it does this not by reason, like the human shepherds, but by nature. But man was made in the image and likeness of God, in order to rule the aforementioned things. But since, according to another thought, we say that the mind of the human being is the human being, commanded to become in the image and likeness of God, we suitably understand it to rule those beasts concerning [which] the saint, sending up a prayer, says: "Do not deliver to the beas[ts] the soul that confesses to you", which would be the hostile ac[tiv]ities, outside of which he prays for the confessing soul to be, or evil thoughts suggested by them. Again it is said to Job: "Behold, beasts beside you eat grass like oxen", not that the literal beasts beside Job had changed their nature, but that the untamed nature of the opposing powers was tamed, having no strength against the greatness of the saint's virtue. And it is possible to find in Script[ure] many animals interpreted mystically. For there are also certain people symbolically called fish, whom the kingdom of the [hea]vens, cast into the sea, draws. For from every kind, that is, fr[om] every character of men and nation, the preaching of the word leads. Therefore he rules also these 61 fish. And there are also spiritual birds, some blamed, and others praised; "The young of vultures," it says, "flying on high," and concerning the one who speaks evil of father or mother it is said: "Let the ravens from the valleys pluck it out, and let the young eagles devour it," which would not be literal history, since it is possible in every place to find someone speaking evil of their parents, while ravens are not found everywhere; but it is clear that one held by this error is in a certain way subdued and devoured by dark powers, which happen to be lowly, accustomed to dwelling in valleys. And in the case of the others the lover of beauty will find also

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ἔρρωται ἡ διάνοια, καὶ Παῦλος μαρτυρεῖ προτρεπόμενός τινας προκόπτειν κατ' ἀρετὴν λέγων· Ἵνα γίνησθε κατ' εἰκόνα τοῦ κτίσαντος, καίτοι ἤδη ὄντας οὕτω κατὰ τὸν λόγον τῆς οὐσιώσεως. Ὃ λέγει οὖν τοιοῦτόν ἐστιν, ὅτι πᾶς ἄνθρωπος, ᾗ μὲν δημιούργημα Θεοῦ ἐστιν, δεκτικὸς λόγου τυγχάνων, κατ' εἰκόνα ὑπάρχει, χωρητικὸς ὤν, ὡς εἴπομεν, τῆς εἰκόνος καὶ ἐπιτηδείως ἔχων πρὸς μετουσίαν αὐτῆς, εἰ δὲ κατ' ἐνέργειαν τοῦτο προσλάβοι, ὥσπερ ὁ ἐξ ἀρχῆς δημιουργηθεὶς ἄνθρωπος, ἔχει ἤδη ἐν ἑαυτῷ ἐνεργοῦν τὸ κατ' εἰκόνα. Καὶ ἔστω ἐπὶ παρα- δείγματος σαφὲς τὸ λεγόμενον. Ὁ ἄνθρωπος λογικός ἐστιν· καὶ αὕτη ἡ οὐσιώδης ἐπιτηδειότης ὑπάρχει καὶ τῷ βρέφει, τὸ δὲ λογικὸν οὔ· ἔχει οὖν καὶ τὸ βρέφος ταύτην τὴν δύναμιν· συμπληρωθέντος γοῦν τοῦ λόγου ἐπιδείκνυται ταῦτα, ἐὰν πρὸς παίδευσιν ῥέψῃ. Οὕτω καὶ τὸ κατ' εἰκόνα, ἕως μὲν οὐκ ἐπιχώννυται, φέρει τῆς πρώτης δημιουργίας τὴν ἀξίαν, ἐπὰν δὲ προσχωσθῇ κακία καὶ μοχθηρία, δεῖ δέξασθαι τὸ σάρον κατὰ τὰ ἐν εὐαγγελίῳ εἰρημένα, ὅπερ ἐστὶν ὁ τῆς μετανοίας λόγος, ἵν' ἀναπτύ- ξαντες τὴν ἐπικειμένην ἀχλὺν τοὺς τύπους τῆς εἰκόνος φανερώσωμ[εν]. Τὸ δὲ "6καὶ ἀρχέτωσαν τῶν ἰχθύων τῆς θαλάσσης καὶ τῶν πετεινῶν τοῦ οὐρανοῦ καὶ τῶν κτηνῶν καὶ πάσης τῆς γῆς [κα]ὶ πάντων τῶν ἑρπετῶν τῶν ἑρπόντων ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς"6 κατὰ [τὴν] προτέραν διήγησιν ἐμφαίνοι ἂν 60 τὸ ἀρχικὸν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου κατὰ τῶν ὑποτεταγμένων αὐτῷ ζῴων. Θαυμάσαι γὰρ ἄν τις πῶς τὰ πάνυ ὑπὲρ τὴν δύναμιν αὐτοῦ τυγχάνοντα καὶ ἄγρια ἅμα καὶ βλάπτειν πεφυκότα καὶ προσέτι ὑπερμεγέθη πάγαις τισὶν καὶ δικτύοις ἀγρεύει· οὐκ ἂν δὲ τοῦτο οὕτως ἐγίνετο, εἰ μὴ ἀρχὴν κατ' αὐτῶν εἶχεν θεόθεν. Ἔσθ' ὅτε γὰρ καὶ ὑπὸ κομιδῇ παιδίου ἢ ἄλλως ἀνθρώπου ἀσθενοῦς ἀγέλαι πολυπληθεῖς διαφόρων ζῴων ἐλαύνονται, ὅπερ σαφῶς ἐπιδείκνυσιν θείαν τινὰ δύναμιν ἐνεῖναι τῷ λογικῷ ζῴῳ, καθ' ἣν αὐτῷ ταῦτα ὑποτέτακται. Ἀρχὴ δὲ οὐδὲν ἕτερόν ἐστι ἢ νόμιμος ἐπι- στασία. Οὐδὲν γοῦν τῶν ἄλλων ἄρχει τοῦ ὁμογενοῦς· κἄν ποτε δὲ ὁ καλούμενος κτίλος πρόβατον ἐξάρχῃ ἀγέλης κατὰ τὸ προηγεῖσθαι, οὐ λογισμῷ κατὰ τοῦς ποιμένας ἀνθρώπους, φύσει δὲ τοῦτο δρᾷ. Γέγονεν δὲ ἄνθρωπος κατ' εἰκόνα καὶ ὁμοίωσιν Θεοῦ, ἵνα ἄρχῃ τῶν εἰρημένων. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ καὶ κατ' ἄλλην διάνοιαν τὸν νοῦν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου λέγομεν εἶναι ἄνθρωπον, κατ' εἰκόνα καὶ ὁμοίωσιν Θεοῦ προσταχθέντα γενέσθαι, καταλλήλως λαμβάνομεν αὐτὸν ἄρχειν θηρίων ἐκείνων περὶ [ὧν] εὐχὴν ἀναπέμπων φησὶν ὁ ἅγιος· "6Μὴ παραδῷς τοῖς θηρίο[ις] ψυχὴν ἐξομο- λογουμένην σοι"6, ἅπερ εἶεν αἱ ἀντικείμεναι ἐ[νέρ]γειαι, ὧν ἔξω γενέσθαι τὴν ἐξομολογουμένην ψυχὴν εὔχεται, ἢ λογισμοὶ πονηροὶ παρ' αὐτῶν ὑποβαλλόμενοι. Πάλιν τῷ Ἰὼβ λέγεται· "6Ἰδοὺ θηρία παρὰ σοὶ χόρτον ἴσα βουσὶν ἐσθίει"6, οὐχ ὅτι τὰ κατὰ τὸ πρόχειρον θηρία παρὰ τῷ Ἰὼβ ἐξήλλακται τὴν φύσιν, ἀλλ' ὅτι τὸ ἀτίθασον τῶν ἐναντίων δυνάμεων ἐξημεροῦτο μὴ σθένον πρὸς τὸ μέγεθος τῆς ἀρετῆς τοῦ ἁγίου. Καὶ πολλὰ ἔστιν εὑρεῖν ἐν τῇ γραφ[ῇ] ζῷα μυστικῶς ἀναγόμενα. Καὶ γὰρ ἰχθύες εἰσὶν συμβο- λικῶς καλούμενοί τινες ἐν ἀνθρώποις, οὓς ἑλκεῖ ἡ βληθεῖσα βασιλεία τῶ[ν οὐρα]νῶν εἰς τὴν θάλασσαν. Ἀπὸ γὰρ παντὸς γένους, τοῦτ' ἔστιν ἀ[πὸ] παντὸς ἤθους ἀνθρώπων καὶ ἔθνους ἄγει τὸ κήρυγμα τοῦ λόγου. Ἄρχει οὖν καὶ τῶν 61 ἰχθύων τούτων. Καὶ πετεινὰ δέ εἰσιν νοητά, τὰ μὲν ψεγόμενα, τὰ δὲ ἐπαινούμενα· "6Νεοσσοί"6 φησιν "6γυπῶν τὰ ὑψηλὰ πέτοντα"6, καὶ περὶ τοῦ καταλαλοῦντος πατρὸς ἢ μητρὸς εἴρηται· "6Ἐκκόψαισαν αὐτὸν κόρακες ἐκ τῶν φαράγγων καὶ καταφάγοισαν αὐτὸν νεοσσοὶ ἀετῶν"6, ἅπερ ἐπὶ ἱστορίας οὐκ ἂν εἴη, ἐπὶ παντὸς τόπου δυνατοῦ ὄντος εὑρίσκεσθαι κακολογοῦντα τοὺς γονεῖς, κοράκων πανταχόσε μὴ εὑρισκομένων· ἀλλὰ δῆλον ὡς τούτῳ τῷ σφάλματι ἐνεχόμενος ὑπὸ σκοτίων ἐνεργειῶν τρόπον τινὰ δαμάζεται καὶ κατεσθίεται, αἵτινες ταπειναὶ τυγχάνουσιν, φάραγξιν ἐνδιατρίβειν εἰωθυῖαι. Καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν ἄλλων ὁ φιλόκαλος εὑρήσει καὶ