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poured around it has made the good useless to you, hidden beneath shameful veils. If, therefore, you should wash away again through a diligent life the filth plastered upon your heart, the godlike beauty will shine forth for you. Just as is accustomed to happen with iron, when it is stripped of its rust by a whetstone, what was a little while ago black, gleaming with certain rays from itself toward the sun, it gives off flashes of light; so also the inner man, whom the Lord calls the heart, whenever he scrapes off the rust-like filth that has bloomed upon his form through wicked decay, will again take up the likeness to the archetype, and will be good. For that which is like the good is altogether good. Therefore, he who sees himself, sees in himself that which is desired; and thus the pure in heart becomes blessed, because in looking at his own purity, he sees the archetype in the image. For just as those who see the sun in a mirror, even if they do not gaze intently at the sky itself, see the sun no less in the gleam of the mirror than those who look at the circle of the sun itself; so, he says, you also, even if you are too weak to perceive the light, if you run back to the grace of the image that was prepared for you from the beginning, you have in yourselves what you seek. For purity, impassibility, and alienation from all evil is divinity. If, therefore, these things are in you, God is certainly in you. When, therefore, your thought is unmixed with any wickedness, and free from passion, and separated from every stain, you are blessed for your keen-sightedness, because having been cleansed you have perceived what is unseen by the uncleansed, and with the material mist removed from the eyes of the soul, in the clear sky of your heart you see from afar the blessed vision. And what is this? Purity, holiness, simplicity, all such light-like reflections of the divine nature, through which God is seen. But that these things are so, we do not doubt from what has been said. Yet for us the argument still looks at the original difficulty with the same perplexity. For just as one who has come to be in heaven is in participation of the heavenly wonders; but the way of ascent is impossible, of which things none of the agreed upon points brings us any profit; so from the cleansing of the heart, becoming blessed is not doubted; but how one might cleanse it of its pollutions seems to be directly equal to the ascent to heaven. What then is Jacob's ladder? What fiery chariot will be found, in the likeness of that which raised up the prophet Elijah to heaven, by which our heart, 44.1273 being lifted up to the wonders above, will shake off this earthly weight? For if anyone should reflect upon the necessary passions of the soul, he will think the departure of the conjoined evils to be difficult and impossible. For us, generation begins immediately from passion, and growth proceeds through passion, and life ends in passion, and evil has somehow been mixed with our nature, through those who from the beginning received passion, who through disobedience brought in the disease. And just as through the succession of those born in each species, the nature of the animals continues, so that what is born according to the principle of nature is the same as that from which it was born; so from a man a man is born, from a passionate being a passionate being, from a sinner such a one. Therefore sin in a way co-exists with those who are born, being both born with and growing with them, and ending together with the limit of life. But that virtue is hard for us to attain, being achieved with difficulty by countless sweats and toils, by zeal and labor, we have been taught in many places by the divine Scripture, having heard that the way of the kingdom is afflicted and proceeds through a narrow path, and that the way through wickedness is broad and downhill and swift, leading life to destruction. Yet Scripture has not at all defined the high life as impossible, which has set forth the wonders of so many men in the sacred books. But since the thought in the promise of seeing God is twofold; on the one hand, of knowing the [nature] of the universe

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περιχυθεῖσα ἄχρηστον ἐποίησέ σοι τὸ ἀγαθὸν ὑποκεκρυμμένον τοῖς αἰσχροῖς προκαλύμμασιν. Εἰ οὖν ἀποκλύσειας πάλιν δι' ἐπι μελείας βίου τὸν ἐπιπλασθέντα τῇ καρδίᾳ σου ῥύπον, ἀναλάμψει σοι τὸ θεοειδὲς κάλλος. Ὥσπερ ἐπὶ τοῦ σιδήρου γίνεσθαι πέφυκεν, ὅταν δι' ἀκόνης τοῦ ἰοῦ γυμνωθῇ, ὁ πρὸ ὀλίγου μέλας, αὐγάς τινας ἐφ' ἑαυτοῦ πρὸς τὸν ἥλιον στίλβων καὶ λαμπηδόνας ἐκδίδωσιν· οὕτως καὶ ὁ ἔνδον ἄνθρωπος, ὃν καρδίαν ὀνομάζει ὁ Κύριος, ἐπειδὰν ἀποξύσηται τὸν ἰώδη ῥύπον τὸν διὰ τοῦ πονηροῦ εὐρῶτος ἐπανθήσαντα τῇ μορφῇ, πάλιν ἀναλήψεται τὴν πρὸς τὸ ἀρχέτυπον ὁμοιότητα, καὶ ἀγαθὸς ἔσται. Τὸ γὰρ ἀγαθῷ ὅμοιον, ἀγαθὸν πάντως. Οὐκοῦν ὁ ἑαυτὸν βλέπων, ἐν ἑαυτῷ τὸ ποθούμενον βλέπει· καὶ οὕτω γίνεται μακάριος ὁ καθαρὸς τῇ καρδίᾳ, ὅτι πρὸς τὴν ἰδίαν καθαρότητα βλέπων, ἐν τῇ εἰκόνι καθορᾷ τὸ ἀρχέτυπον. Ὥσπερ γὰρ οἱ ἐν κατόπτρῳ ὁρῶντες τὸν ἥλιον, κἂν μὴ πρὸς αὐτὸν τὸν οὐρανὸν ἀποβλέψωσιν ἀτενὲς, οὐδὲν ἔλαττον ὁρῶσι τὸν ἥλιον ἐν τῇ τοῦ κατόπτρου αὐγῇ, τῶν πρὸς αὐτὸν ἀποβλεπόντων τοῦ ἡλίου τὸν κύκλον· οὕτω, φησὶ, καὶ ὑμεῖς, κἂν ἀτονῆτε πρὸς κατανόησιν φωτὸς, ἐὰν ἐπὶ τὴν ἐξ ἀρχῆς ἐγκατασκευασθεῖσαν ὑμῖν χάριν τῆς εἰκόνος ἐπαναδράμητε, ἐν ἑαυτοῖς τὸ ζητούμενον ἔχετε. Καθαρότης γὰρ, ἀπάθεια, καὶ κακοῦ παντὸς ἀλλοτρίωσις ἡ θεότης ἐστίν. Εἰ οὖν ταῦτα ἐν σοί ἐστι, Θεὸς πάντως ἐν σοί ἐστιν. Ὅταν οὖν ἀμιγὴς πάσης κακίας, καὶ πάθους ἐλεύθερος, καὶ παντὸς κεχωρι σμένος μολύσματος, ὁ ἐν σοὶ λογισμὸς ᾖ, μακάριος εἶ τῆς ὀξυωπίας, ὅτι τὸ τοῖς μὴ καθαρθεῖσιν ἀθέατον, ἐκκαθαρθεὶς κατενόησας, καὶ τῆς ὑλικῆς ἀχλύος τῶν τῆς ψυχῆς ὀμμάτων ἀφαιρεθείσης, ἐν καθαρᾷ τῇ τῆς καρδίας αἰθρίᾳ τηλαυγῶς βλέπεις τὸ μακάριον θέαμα. Τοῦτο δέ ἐστι τί; Καθαρότης, ὁ ἁγιασμὸς, ἡ ἁπλότης, πάντα τὰ τοιαῦτα τὰ φωτοειδῆ τῆς θείας φύσεως ἀπαυγάσματα, δι' ὧν ὁ Θεὸς ὁρᾶται. Ἀλλὰ τὸ μὲν ταῦτα οὕτως ἔχειν ἐκ τῶν εἰρημένων οὐκ ἀμφιβάλλομεν. Ἔτι δὲ ἡμῖν ὁ λόγος τὸ ἐξ ἀρχῆς ἀπορηθὲν ἐπὶ τῆς αὐτῆς ἀμηχανίας βλέπει. Ὡς γὰρ ὁ ἐν οὐρανῷ γενόμενος, ἐν μετουσίᾳ τῶν οὐρανίων θαυμάτων ἐστίν· ὁ δὲ τῆς ἀνόδου τρόπος ἀμήχανος, ὧν οὐδὲν ἡμῖν τῶν διωμολογημένων κέρδος ποιεῖ· οὕτως ἐκ τοῦ καθαρθῆναι τὴν καρδίαν, τὸ μακάριον γενέσθαι οὐκ ἀμφιβάλλεται· τὸ δ' ὅπως ἄν τις αὐτὴν τῶν μολυνθέντων ἀποκαθάρειεν, ἴσον ἀντικρὺς εἶναι δοκεῖ τῆς ἐπὶ τὸν οὐρανὸν ἀναβάσεως. Ποία τοίνυν κλίμαξ τοῦ Ἰακώβ; ποῖον εὑρεθήσεται πύρινον ἅρμα καθ' ὁμοιότητα τοῦ τὸν προφήτην Ἠλίαν πρὸς οὐρα νὸν ἀνυψώσαντος, ᾧ πρὸς τὰ ἄνω θαύματα ἡ καρδία 44.1273 ἡμῶν ἐπαρθεῖσα, τὸ γήϊνον τοῦτο βάρος ἀποτινάξεται; Εἰ γάρ τις ἐν περινοίᾳ γένοιτο τῶν ἀναγκαίων τῆς ψυχῆς παθημάτων, ἄπορον οἰήσεται καὶ ἀμήχανον τὴν τῶν συνεζευγμένων κακῶν ἀναχώρησιν. Εὐθὺς ἐκ πά θους ἡμῖν ἡ γένεσις ἄρχεται, καὶ διὰ πάθους ἡ αὔξησις πρόεισιν, καὶ εἰς τὸ πάθος ἡ ζωὴ καταλήγει, καὶ ἀνα κέκραταί πως τὸ κακὸν πρὸς τὴν φύσιν, διὰ τῶν ἐξ ἀρχῆς παραδεξαμένων τὸ πάθος, τῶν διὰ τῆς παρα κοῆς εἰσοικισαμένων τὴν νόσον. Ὥσπερ δὲ τῇ δια δοχῇ τῶν ἐπιγινομένων καθ' ἕκαστον εἶδος, τῶν ζώων ἡ φύσις συνδιεξέρχεται, ὡς ταὐτὸν εἶναι τὸ γενόμε νον κατὰ τὸν τῆς φύσεως λόγον, τοῦ ἐξ οὗ γέγονεν· οὕτως ἐξ ἀνθρώπου ἅνθρωπος γίνεται, ἐξ ἐμπαθοῦς ἐμπαθὴς, ἐξ ἁμαρτωλοῦ τοιοῦτος. Οὐκοῦν συνυφίστα τρόπον τινὰ τοῖς γινομένοις ἡ ἁμαρτία, συναπο τικτομένη τε καὶ συναύξουσα, καὶ τῷ τῆς ζωῆς ὅρῳ συγκαταλήγουσα. Ἀλλὰ δυσεπίτευκτον ἡμῖν εἶναι τὴν ἀρετὴν, μυρίοις ἱδρῶσι καὶ πόνοις, σπουδῇ καὶ καμάτῳ μόγις κατορθουμένην, πολλαχῆ παρὰ τῆς θείας Γραφῆς ἐδιδάχθημεν, τεθλιμμένην καὶ διὰ στε νοῦ προϊοῦσαν τὴν ὁδὸν τῆς βασιλείας ἀκούσαντες, πλατεῖάν τε καὶ κατάντη καὶ ἐπίδρομον, τὴν διὰ κα κίας τὸν βίον ἐπὶ τὴν ἀπώλειαν ἀπάγουσαν. Οὐ μὴν καθόλου ἀμήχανον τὴν ὑψηλὴν ζωὴν, ἡ Γραφὴ διωρί σατο, ἡ τοσούτων ἀνδρῶν ἐν ταῖς ἱεραῖς βίβλοις ἐκ θεμένη τὰ θαύματα. Ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ διπλῆς οὔσης τῆς διανοίας ἐν τῇ τοῦ ἰδεῖν τὸν Θεὸν ἐπαγγελίᾳ· μιᾶς μὲν τοῦ γνῶναι τὴν τοῦ παντὸς