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he might be united there (p. 160) with God and might attain to supernatural and ineffable visions, being filled with a light higher than all immaterial knowledge, not as a spectator of sacred sensible symbols, nor as an expert in the diversity of holy scripture, but as one beautified by the beauty-making and archetypal beauty and illumined by the splendor of God. For in the same way also the highest orders of the super-cosmic minds, in a manner analogous to themselves, according to the heaven-revealer and interpreter of their Hierarchy, are filled, being initiated not only with first-given knowledge and science, but also with the first light, by the highest triadic initiator of sacred rites, and they become partakers and spectators not only of the triadic glory, but also of the light-manifestation of Jesus, which was also revealed to the disciples on Tabor. For being deemed worthy of this vision, they are initiated, since He is Himself a deifying light, as they truly approach Him and come to be in first participation of His deifying lights. For which reason also Macarius, who bears the name, calls this light the food of the heavenly ones. And another of the theologians says, "this, being immaterially feasted upon by the entire intelligible order of the super-cosmic beings, is posited as a most clear proof of the Word's love for humanity toward us." So then also the great Paul, about to encounter in Him the invisible and heavenly visions, was snatched up and became super-celestial, not as if the mind needed to ascend locally above the heavens, even if the rapture indicates some other mystery, known only to those who have experienced it, about which it is not necessary now to speak, what we have heard from the experienced fathers, lest we also put these things forward for malicious use. And that there is an intelligible illumination seen by those purified in heart, completely other than knowledge, which is also productive of it, we will show most easily from these very things that have been said to those who are not persuaded.

(p. 162) For they say, as you yourself said, that the illuminations in the old law are symbolic. Those, therefore, show this very thing, that there is a sacred illumination of which they themselves have become a symbol. And that most of those were symbols of this we have also learned from Saint Nilus who says, "when the mind, having stripped off the old man, puts on the one from grace, then it will see its own state during the time of prayer, resembling sapphire or a heavenly color, which Scripture also calls the place of God, seen by the elders under Mount Sinai." Likewise also we hear Saint Isaac saying: "during the time of prayer the graced mind sees its own purity, similar to the heavenly hue, which was named the place of God by the senate of Israel, when it appeared to them on the mountain." Do you see how those things are symbols of what is now being performed in pure hearts? But John, golden in both tongue and thought, clarifying that apostolic saying, "God who said, 'Let light shine out of darkness,' is the one who has shone in our hearts," "shows," he says, "with addition the glory of Moses flashing in us; for just as upon the face of Moses, so He has shone into our hearts," and going on further, "in the beginning," he says, "of creation He spoke, and there was light; but now He did not speak, but He Himself became light for us. If, then, the light at the beginning of creation or that on the face of Moses were a moderate knowledge, the effulgence in our hearts would also be a higher knowledge, as having received an addition. But since that was not knowledge, but a splendor appearing on the face, the effulgence in you is also not knowledge but a splendor of the soul, appearing to the purified mind. That one, therefore, being subject to sensible eyes, it is necessary to call sensible, (p. 164) just as this one is intelligible, being subject to intelligible eyes and operating within us.

But not even that was simply sensible, even if it appeared on the prophetic face, if indeed the glory of the light of the face of Moses is now in the soul,

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ἑνωθείη τῷ (σελ. 160) Θεῷ ἐκεῖ καί τῶν ὑπερφυῶν καί ἀπορρήτων ἐπιτυγχάνοι θεαμάτων, πάσης ἀΰλου γνώσεως ὑψηλοτέρου φωτός ἀναπιμπλάμενος, οὐχ ὡς αἰσθητῶν συμβόλων ἱερῶν θεωρός, οὐδ᾿ ὡς ἱερογραφικῆς ποικιλίας ἐπιγνώμων, ἀλλ᾿ ὡς τῷ καλοποιῷ καί ἀρχικῷ καλλωπιζόμενος κάλλει καί τῇ τοῦ Θεοῦ λαμπρυνόμενος λαμπρότητι. Τόν αὐτόν γάρ τρόπον καί αἱ ἀνωτάτω τάξεις τῶν ὑπερκοσμίων νόων ἀναλόγως ἑαυταῖς, κατά τόν οὐρανοφάντορα καί ὑποφήτην τῆς κατ᾿ αὐτάς Ἱεραρχίας, οὐ μόνον πρωτοδότου γνώσεως καίἐπικστήμης, ἀλλά καί πρώτου φωτός, πρός τῆς ἀνωτάτω τριαδικῆς τελεταρχίας ἱεραρχούμεναι πληροῦνται καί οὐχί τῆς τριαδικῆς μόνης δόξης μέτοχοι γίνονται καί θεωροί, ἀλλά καί τῆς Ἰησοῦ φωτοφανείας, ἤ καί τοῖς μαθηταῖς ἐν Θαβώρ ἀπεκαλύφθη. Μυοῦνται γάρ τῆς θεωρίας κατηξιωμέναι ταύτης, θεωργόν φῶς ὄντα καί αὐτόν, ὡς ἀληθῶς αὐτῷ πλησιάζουσαι καί τῶν θεουργικῶν αὐτοῦ φώτων ἐν πρώτῃ μετουσίᾳ γινόμεναι. ∆ιό καί ὁ φερώνυμος Μακάριος βρῶμα τῶν ἐπουρανίων τουτί καλεῖ τό φῶς. Ἕτερος δέ τις τῶν θεολόγων, «τοῦτο», φησί, «πᾶσα τῶν ὑπερκοσμίων ἡ νοητή διακόσμησις ἀΰλως ἑστιωμένη τεκμήριον ἐναργέστατον τίθεται τῆς περί ἡμᾶς τοῦ λόγου φιλανθρωπίας». Ταῦτ᾿ ἄρα καί ὁ μέγας Παῦλος, τοῖς ἀοράτοις καί ἐπουρανίοις ἐν αὐτῷ θεάμασι μέλλων ἐντυγχάνειν, ἁρπαγείς γέγονεν ὑπερουράνιος, οὐχ ὡς τοπικῶς ὑπεραναβῆναι δεομένου τοῦ νοῦ τούς οὐρανούς, εἰ καί μυστήριον ἄλλο τι ἡ ἁρπαγή δηλοῖ, μόνοις τοῖς παθοῦσιν ἐγνωσμένον, περί οὗ νῦν λέγειν οὐκ ἐπάναγκες, ἅ παρά τῶν πεπειραμένων πατέρων ἐσμέν ἀκηκοότες, μή καί ταῦτα προθώμεθα πρός κακουργίαν. Ὡς δ᾿ ἔστι φωτισμός νοερός τοῖς κεκαθαρμένοις τήν καρδίαν ἐνορώμενος, ἄλλος παντάπασι παρά τήν γνῶσιν, ὅς καί παρεκτικός ἐστιν αὐτῆς καί ἀπ᾿ αὐτῶν τῶν εἰρημένων τοῖς μή πειθομένοις εὐχερέστατά γε δείξομεν.

(σελ. 162) Φασί γάρ, ὡς αὐτός εἶπες, συμβολικούς εἶναι τούς ἐν τῷ πάλαι νόμῳ φωτισμούς. Ἐκεῖνοι τοίνυν τοῦτ᾿ αὐτό δεικνύουσιν ὡς ἔστιν ἱερός φωτισμός οὗ γεγόνασιν αὐτοί σύμβολον. Ὅτι δέ τούτου ἦσαν οἱ πλείους ἐκείνων σύμβολα καί παρά τοῦ ἁγίου μεμαθήκαμεν Νείλου λέγοντος, «ὅταν ὁ νοῦς, τόν παλαιόν ἄνθρωπος ἀποδυσάμενος, τόν ἐκ τῆς χάριτος ἐπενδύσηται, τότε καί τήν ἑαυτοῦ κατάστασιν ὄψεται κατά τόν καιρόν τῆς προσευχῆς σαπφείρῳ ἤ οὐρανίῳ χρώματι παρεμφερῆ, ἥντινα καί τόπον Θεοῦ ἡ Γραφή ὀνομάζει, ὑπό τῶν πρεσβυτέρων ὀφθέντα ὑπό τό ὄρος Σινᾶ». Ὡσαύτως δέ καί τοῦ ἁγίου Ἰσαάκ ἀκούομεν λέγοντος˙ «κατά τόν καιρόν τῆς προσευχῆς ὁρᾶν τήν ἑαυτοῦ καθαρότητα τόν κεχαριτωμένον νοῦν, ὁμοίαν τῇ ἐπουρανίῳ χροιᾷ, ἥτις Θεοῦ ὑπό τῆς γερουσίας τοῦ Ἰσραήλ ὠνόμασται τόπος, ἡνίκα ὤφθη αὐτοῖς ἐν τῷ ὄρει». Βλέπεις πῶς τῶν ἐν ταῖς καθαραῖς καρδίαις ἀρτίως τελουμένων ἐκεῖνα σύμβολα; Ἰωάννης δέ ὁ χρυσοῦς καί τήν γλῶτταν καί τήν διάνοιαν, τό ἀποστολικόν ἐκεῖνο διευκρινῶν, «ὁ Θεός ὁ εἰπών ἐκ σκότους φῶς λάμψαι, ὅς ἔλαμψεν ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις ἡμῶν», «δείνυσι», φησί, «μετά προσθήκης τήν Μωσέως δόξαν ἐν ἡμῖν ἀστράπτουσαν˙ καθάπερ γάρ εἰς τό πρόσωπον Μωσέως, οὕτως εἰς τάς ἡμετέρας καρδίας ἔλαμψε», καί παρακατιών, «ἐν ἀρχῇ μέν», φησί, «τῆς κτίσεως εἶπε, καί ἐγένετο φῶς˙ νῦν δέ οὐκ εἶπεν, ἀλλ᾿ αὐτός ἡμῖν γέγονεν φῶς. Εἰ μέν οὖν τό φῶς ἐν ἀρχῇ τῆς κτίσεως ἤ τό ἐν τῷ προσώπῳ Μωσέως γνῶσις ἦν μετρί καί ἡ ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις ἡμῶν ἔλλαμψις γνῶσις ἄν ἦν ὑψηλοτέρα, ὡς προσθήκην δεξαμένη. Ἐπεί δ᾿ἐκείνη οὐ γνῶσις ἦν, ἀλλά λαμπρότης ἐπιφαινομένη τῷ προσώπῳ καί ἡ ἐν ὑμῖν ἔλλαμψις οὐ γνῶσις ἀλλά λαμπρότης ἐστί ψυχῆς, ἐπιφαινομένη τῷ κεκαθαρμένῳ νῷ. Ἐκείνην μέν οὖν αἰσθητοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς ὑποκειμένην αἰσθητήν ἀνάγκη λέγειν, (σελ. 164) καθάπερ ταύτην νοητήν, νοητοῖς ὑποκειμένην ὄμμασι καί ἐντός ἡμῶν ἐνεργουμένην.

Ἀλλ᾿ οὐδ᾿ ἐκείνη αἰσθητή ἁπλῶς ὑπῆρχεν, εἰ καί τῷ προφητικῷ ἐπεφαίνετο προσώπῳ, εἴπερ τήν δόξαν τοῦ φωτός τοῦ προσώπου Μωϋσέως νῦν ἐν τῇ ψυχῇ,