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of those who have journeyed through life, a certain trace of a comprehensive conception is signified by the knowledge of the thing that is beyond knowledge. But being of such a nature, He Who is beyond all nature, is both seen and apprehended in another way, He Who is both invisible and uncircumscribed. And many are the ways of such an understanding. For it is possible also through the wisdom which is apparent in the universe, to see conjecturally the one who has made all things in wisdom. Just as also in the case of human creations the maker of the work at hand is seen in a certain way by the mind, having deposited his art in the work. But it is not the nature of the craftsman that is seen, but only the technical knowledge which the artisan deposited in his creation. So too when we look at the order in creation, we form in our minds a concept not of the substance, but of the wisdom of the one who has wisely made all things. And if we consider the cause of our life, that not out of necessity, but from a good purpose He came to create man, again also through this way we say that we have beheld God, having conceived of His goodness, not of His substance; so also all other things, which lead our concept 44.1269 to the better and higher, such things we name an understanding of God, with each of the lofty thoughts bringing God into our sight. For power and purity, and immutability, and being unmixed with the opposite, and all such things impress upon our souls the imagination of some divine and lofty concept. Therefore it is shown through what has been said, how the Lord also speaks truly, having promised that God will be seen by those who have a pure heart; and Paul does not lie, declaring through his own words that no one has either seen God, nor is able to see Him. For He Who is invisible by nature, becomes visible by His energies, being seen in certain things that are around Him. But the meaning of the beatitude does not look to this alone, that from some energy one is able to reason what the one acting is like; for this might perhaps also happen to the wise of this age, through the harmony of the world, the understanding of the transcendent wisdom and power. But something else, it seems to me, the sublimity of the beatitude suggests as counsel to those who are able to receive it, to see what is desired; and the thought that has occurred to me will be clarified by examples. A good thing in human life is health of body; but blessed is not only knowing the principle of health, but to live in health. For if someone, while delivering praises of health, should choose sickening and unwholesome food; what benefit has he reaped from the praises of health while being worn out by sicknesses? So then let us understand the present saying, that the Lord says it is not blessed to know something about God, but to have God in oneself. For blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. For it does not seem to me that He sets God as some face-to-face spectacle before the one who has purified the eye of his soul; but perhaps this is what the sublimity of the saying suggests to us, which the Word also more plainly presents to others, saying that the kingdom of God is within you; so that we may be taught that he who has purified his heart from all created things and from passionate disposition, in his own beauty beholds the image of the divine nature. And it seems to me that through the few things which He said, the Word contains such counsel: that, O men, as many as have some desire for the vision of the truly good, whenever you hear that the divine majesty is exalted above the heavens, and its glory is ineffable, and the beauty unspeakable, and the nature incomprehensible; do not fall into despair of not being able to behold what you long for. For that which is comprehensible to you, the measure of the understanding 44.1272 of God, is in you. Thus He Who formed you has at once implanted such a good thing in your nature. For God has impressed upon your constitution the imitations of the goods of His own nature, as on some wax, prefiguring them with the form of a carving. But wickedness upon the godlike character

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προωδευκότων τὸν βίον ἴχνος τι καταληπτικῆς ἐπινοίας σημαινο μένου τῇ γνώσει τοῦ ὑπὲρ γνῶσιν πράγματος. Τοιοῦ τος δὲ ὢν κατὰ τὴν φύσιν ὁ ὑπὲρ πᾶσαν φύσιν, ἄλλῳ λόγῳ καὶ ὁρᾶται καὶ καταλαμβάνεται ὁ ἀόρατός τε καὶ ἀπερίγραπτος. Πολλοὶ δὲ οἱ τῆς τοιαύτης κατα νοήσεως τρόποι. Ἔστι γὰρ καὶ διὰ τῆς ἐμφαινομέ νης τῷ παντὶ σοφίας, τὸν ἐν σοφίᾳ πάντα πεποιη κότα στοχαστικῶς ἰδεῖν. Καθάπερ καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν ἀνθρωπίνων δημιουργημάτων ὁρᾶται τρόπον τινὰ τῇ διανοίᾳ ὁ δημιουργὸς τοῦ προκειμένου κατασκευάσμα τος, τὴν τέχνην τῷ ἔργῳ ἐναποθέμενος. Ὁρᾶται δὲ οὐχ ἡ φύσις τοῦ τεχνητεύσαντος, ἀλλὰ μόνον ἡ τεχνικὴ ἐπιστήμη, ἣν ὁ τεχνίτης τῇ κατασκευῇ ἐν απέθετο. Οὕτω καὶ πρὸς τὸν ἐν τῇ κτίσει βλέποντες κόσμον, ἔννοιαν οὐ τῆς οὐσίας, ἀλλὰ τῆς σοφίας τοῦ κατὰ πάντα σοφῶς πεποιηκότος ἀνατυπούμεθα. Κἂν τῆς ἡμετέρας ζωῆς τὴν αἰτίαν λογισώμεθα, ὅτι οὐκ ἐξ ἀνάγκης, ἀλλ' ἐξ ἀγαθῆς προαιρέσεως ἦλθεν εἰς τὸ κτίσαι τὸν ἄνθρωπον, πάλιν καὶ διὰ τούτου τοῦ τρόπου καθεωρακέναι λέγομεν τὸν Θεὸν, τῆς ἀγαθότητος οὐ τῆς οὐσίας ἐν περινοίᾳ γενόμενοι· οὕτω καὶ τὰ ἄλλα πάντα, ὅσα πρὸς τὸ κρεῖττόν τε καὶ ὑψηλότερον ἀνάγει τὴν ἔν 44.1269 νοιαν, Θεοῦ κατανόησιν τὰ τοιαῦτα κατονομά ζομεν, ἑκάστου τῶν ὑψηλῶν νοημάτων τὸν Θεὸν ἡμῖν εἰς ὄψιν ἄγοντος. Ἡ γὰρ δύναμις καὶ ἡ καθαρότης, καὶ τὸ ὡσαύτως ἔχειν, καὶ τὸ ἀμιγὲς τοῦ ἐναντίου, καὶ πάντα τὰ τοιαῦτα θείας τινὸς καὶ ὑψηλῆς ἐννοίας ἐντυποῖ ταῖς ψυχαῖς τὴν φαντασίαν. Οὐκοῦν δείκνυται διὰ τῶν εἰρημένων, πῶς καὶ ὁ Κύριος ἀληθεύει, ὀφθήσεσθαι τὸν Θεὸν τοῖς καρδίαν ἔχουσι καθαρὰν ἐπαγγειλάμενος· καὶ ὁ Παῦλος οὐ ψεύδεται, μήτε ἑωρακέναι τινὰ τὸν Θεὸν, μήτ' ἰδεῖν δύνασθαι διὰ τῶν οἰκείων λόγων ἀποφηνάμενος. Ὁ γὰρ τῇ φύσει ἀόρατος, ὁρατὸς ταῖς ἐνεργείαις γίνε, ἔν τισι τοῖς περὶ αὐτὸν καθορώμενος. Ἀλλ' οὐ πρὸς τοῦτο βλέπει μόνον τοῦ μακαρισμοῦ ἡ διάνοια, τὸ ἔκ τινος ἐνεργείας τὸν ἐνεργοῦντα δύνασθαι τοιοῦτον ἀναλογίσασθαι· γένοιτο γὰρ ἂν ἴσως καὶ τοῖς τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου σοφοῖς, διὰ τῆς τοῦ κόσμου εὐαρμοστίας ἡ τῆς ὑπερκειμένης σοφίας τε καὶ δυνάμεως κατανόησις. Ἀλλ' ἕτερόν μοι δοκεῖ ἡ τοῦ μακαρισμοῦ μεγαλοφυΐα τοῖς δυναμένοις δέξασθαι κατιδεῖν τὸ ποθούμενον, τὴν συμβουλὴν ὑφηγεῖσθαι· τὸ δέ μοι παραστὰν νόημα δι' ὑποδειγμάτων σαφηνισθήσεται. Ἀγαθόν τι κατὰ τὸν ἀνθρώπινόν ἐστι βίον, ὑγίεια τοῦ σώματος· ἀλλὰ μακάριον οὐ τὸ εἰδέναι μόνον τῆς ὑγιείας τὸν λόγον, ἀλλὰ τὸ ἐν ὑγιείᾳ ζῇν. Εἰ γάρ τις ἐγκώμια διεξιὼν τῆς ὑγιείας τὴν νοσώδη καὶ κακόχυμον αἱροῖτο τρο φήν· τί τῶν ἐγκωμίων τῆς ὑγιείας ἀπώνατο ταῖς ἀῤ ῥωστίαις ἐπιτριβόμενος; Οὕτω τοίνυν νοήσωμεν καὶ τὸν προκείμενον λόγον, ὅτι οὐ τὸ γνῶναί τι περὶ Θεοῦ μακάριον ὁ Κύριος εἶναί φησιν· ἀλλὰ τὸ ἐν ἑαυτῷ σχεῖν τὸν Θεόν. Μακάριοι γὰρ οἱ καθαροὶ τῇ καρ δίᾳ, ὅτι αὐτοὶ τὸν Θεὸν ὄψονται. Οὐ γάρ μοι δοκεῖ ὡς ἀντιπρόσωπόν τι θέαμα τὸν Θεὸν προτιθέναι τῷ κεκαθαρμένῳ τὸν τῆς ψυχῆς ὀφθαλμόν· ἀλλὰ τοῦτο τάχα ἡ τοῦ ῥητοῦ μεγαλοφυΐα ἡμῖν ὑποτίθεται, ὃ καὶ πρὸς ἑτέρους ὁ λόγος γυμνότερον παρίστησιν, ἐντὸς ὑμῶν εἶναι τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ Θεοῦ εἰπών· ἵνα διδαχ θῶμεν, ὅτι ὁ πάσης τῆς κτίσεως καὶ ἐμπαθοῦς δια θέσεως τὴν ἑαυτοῦ καρδίαν ἀποκαθήρας, ἐν τῷ ἰδίῳ κάλλει τῆς θείας φύσεως καθορᾷ τὴν εἰκόνα. Καί μοι δοκεῖ δι' ὀλίγων ὧν εἶπεν, τοιαύτην συμβουλὴν περι έχειν ὁ Λόγος· ὅτι, Ὦ ἄνθρωποι, ὅσοις ἐστί τις ἐπι θυμία τῆς τοῦ ὄντως ἀγαθοῦ θεωρίας, ἐπειδὰν ἀκού σητε ὑπὲρ τοὺς οὐρανοὺς ἐπῆρθαι τὴν θείαν μεγαλο πρέπειαν, καὶ τὴν δόξαν αὐτῆς ἀνερμήνευτον εἶναι, καὶ τὸ κάλλος ἄφραστον, καὶ τὴν φύσιν ἀχώρητον· μὴ ἐκπίπτετε εἰς ἀνελπιστίαν τοῦ μὴ δύνασθαι κατ ιδεῖν τὸ ποθούμενον. Τὸ γάρ σοι χωρητὸν, τῆς τοῦ 44.1272 Θεοῦ κατανοήσεως μέτρον ἐν σοί ἐστιν. Οὕτω τοῦ πλάσαντός σε τὸ τοιοῦτον ἀγαθὸν εὐθὺς τῇ φύσει κα τουσιώσαντος. Τῶν γὰρ τῆς ἰδίας φύσεως ἀγαθῶν ὁ Θεὸς ἐνετύπωσε τῇ σῇ κατασκευῇ τὰ μιμήματα, οἷόν τινα κηρὸν σχήματι γλυφῆς προτυπώσας. Ἀλλ' ἡ κα κία τῷ θεοειδεῖ χαρακτῆρι