28

The definitions: Definitions are the interpretative accounts of the substance of each of the things, and of the genus, and of the difference, and declaring what it is.

Exemplary principle: The exemplary cause, or principle, is that towards which what comes to be comes to be; and this is either the idea, which is a self-subsistent, eternal thought of the eternal God, or an eternal paradigm present in nature, towards which the things that come to be come to be; for the ideas and the paradigms are incorporeal; but the final cause, or 14S_130 principle is, that for the sake of which what comes to be is perfected, or the final cause is, that which is inseparable from the effect, or that from which, being pre-existent within, what comes to be comes to be, as the matter of all things; but God produced this also; but the efficient cause is that which is separate from the effect, as God, and every [agent] by whom what comes to be comes to be.

And all non-beings: Understand thus how non-beings are in the Good; since the privations are in him super-essentially; for I would not call privation substance, for instance, without beginning, incorruptible, immortal, and as many such things as there are; for God is not these things, since he is also before these things; for from him it was known what these things are, and indeed, we do not know what God is not, or how he is ineffable and incomprehensible; for these things are not his beginning, but from him. He, therefore, is also the cause of nothingness, all things being posterior to him, according to the cause of being and not-being; for his nothingness is privation; for he possesses being by being none of the things that are, and he is not-being by being and being above being, all things as creator, and being nothing, as having surpassed, or rather, also having ascended above and being super-essential. Read also in the previous folio my marginal note concerning non-being.

And the inferior of the superior: I also made a similar marginal note above in the first chapter, that the subordinate things are always turned toward the things set over them, as being contained and provided for by them; and in fellowship, things of the same rank [are turned toward] those of the same order, and simply all things love each other and themselves. But God also loves all things, in order to make all things good.

For he the good-working: He says wonderfully that good love, pre-existing in the Good, did not remain barren, but begot for us the good love, through which we long for the beautiful and good; 14S_132 for the Divine is active and generative according to what was said, "My Father is working until now, and I am working." But note from this a divine motion; for the good-working love moved the Divine to providence, to our constitution, so that it might be active in its motion, and not remain barren; from this you will also understand 'the monad having been moved', and the things that follow, spoken by Gregory the Theologian in the first [oration] concerning the Son.

A generative excess: That is, he brought forth creation, so that concerning it the things of the loving motion might be displayed.

§ 11. And let no one think of us: Note that one must not say unseemly names concerning God, unless they are also borne in divine Scripture, as he now also says concerning love, and that one should not pay attention to words, but to the power of the purpose; for he will expound them divinely.

Through other equivalent [words]: That also through equivalent words we are not hindered from uttering the words. Note how he says motherland and fatherland are the same.

It is necessary to know: Why we use syllables and words; consider the reading; what he wants to say is this: When we move the spoken word, this concerning some one of the perceptible things, then we need words and syllables and letters and writings for the declaration of what is spoken. But if the soul by itself is moved toward the intelligible things through right activities, the senses along with the perceptible things are superfluous; for it imagines high things; but when it becomes godlike, advancing by small upward stretches, and through

28

Οἱ ὅροι: Ὅροι εἰσίν οἱ ἑρμηνευτικοί λόγοι τῆς οὐσίας ἑκάστου τῶν πραγμάτων, καί τοῦ γένους, καί τῆς διαφορᾶς, καί τό τί ἐστι δηλοῦντες.

Ἀρχή παραδειγματική: Παραδειγματικόν αἴτιον, ἤτοι ἀρχή ἐστιν τοῦ πρός ὅ γίνεται τό γινόμενον· τοῦτο δέ ἐστιν ἤ ἰδέα, ἥτις ἐστί νόησις αὐτοτελής, ἀϊδιος τοῦ ἀϊδίου Θεοῦ, ἤ παράδειγμα αἰώνιον ἐνεστώς τῇ φύσει, πρός ὅ γίνεται τά γινόμενα· ἀσώματοι γάρ αἱ ἰδέαι καί τά παραδείγματα· τελικόν δέ αἴτιον, ἤτοι 14S_130 ἀρχή ἐστιν, τό οὗ ἔνεκα τό γινόμενον τελειοῦται, ἤ τελικόν αἴτιόν ἐστιν, ὅ ἀχώριστόν ἐστι τοῦ ἀποτελέσματος, ἤ ἐξ οὗ ἐνυπάρχοντος γίνεται τό γινόμενον, ὡς ἡ τῶν ὅλων ὕλη· ὁ δέ Θεός καί ταύτην παρήγαγε· ποιητικόν δέ αἴτιόν ἐστι τό κεχωρισμένον τοῦ ἀποτελέσματος, ὡς ὁ Θεός, καί πᾶς ὑφ' οὗ γίνεται τό γινόμενον.

Καί πάντα τά οὐκ ὄντα: Πῶς τά μή ὄντα ἐν τῷ ἀγαθῷ οὕτω νόησον· ἐπειδή αἱ στερήσεις ἐν αὐτῷ εἰσιν ὑπερουσίως· οὔτε γάρ ἄν εἴπομι οὐσίαν τήν στέρησιν, οἷον ἄναρχος, ἄφθαρτος, ἀθάνατος καί ὅσα τοιαῦτά ἐστι· καί γάρ οὐκ ἔστι ταῦτα ὁ Θεός, ἐπεί καί πρό τούτων ἐστίν· ἐξ αὐτοῦ γάρ ἐγνώσθῃ, τί ἐστι ταῦτα καί γοῦν οὐδέ τί οὐκ ἔστιν ὁ Θεός, γινώσκομεν, ἤ πῶς ἄρρητος καί ἀκατάληπτος· οὐ γάρ ταῦτα ἀρχή αὐτοῦ, ἀλλ' ἐξ αὐτοῦ. Αὐτός οὖν καί τοῦ μηδενός αἴτιος, πάντων αὐτοῦ ὑστέρων ὄντων, κατά τήν τοῦ εἶναι καί μή εἶναι αἰτίαν· καί γάρ αὐτοῦ τό μηδέν στέρησίς ἐστιν· ἔχει γάρ τό εἶναι διά τό μηδέν εἶναι τῶν ὄντων, καί μή ὤν ἐστι διά τό εἶναι καί ὑπερ εἶναι, πάντα ὡς ποητής, καί μηδέν ὤν, ὡς ὑπερβεβηκώς, μᾶλλον δέ καί ὑπεραναβεβηκώς καί ὑπερούσιος ὤν. Ἀνάγνωθι καί ἐν τῷ προτέρῳ φύλλῳ τήν ἐμήν παραγραφήν περί τοῦ μή ὄντος.

Καί τά ἥττω τῶν κρειττόνων: Παρέγραψα καί ἄνω τό ὅμοιον ἐν τῷ πρώτῳ κεφαλαίῳ, ὅτι ἀεί τά ὑποβεβηκότα ἐπέστραπται πρός τά ὑπερκείμενα, ὡς ὑπ' ἐκείνων περιεχόμενα καί προνοούμενα· κοινωνικῶς δέ τά ὁμόστοιχα τῶν ὁμοταγῶν, καί ἁπλῶς πάντα ἀλλήλων καί αὑτῶν ἐρᾷ. Ἀλλά καί ὁ Θεός πάντων ἐρᾷ, ἵνα τά πάντα ἀγαθά ποήσῃ.

Αὐτός γάρ ὁ ἀγαθοεργός: Θαυμαστῶς λέγει, ὅτι ἀγαθός ἔρως, ἐν τῷ ἀγαθῷ προϋπάρχων, οὐκ ἔμεινεν ἄγονος, ἀλλ' ἔτεκεν ἡμῖν τόν ἀγαθόν ἔρωτα, δι' ὅν τοῦ καλοῦ καί ἀγαθοῦ ἐφιέμεθα· 14S_132 πρακτικόν γάρ καί γεννητικόν τό Θεῖον κατά τό εἰρημένον, «ὁ Πατήρ μου ἕως ἄρτι ἐργάζεται, κἀγώ ἐργάζομαι». Σημείωσαι δέ ἐντεῦθεν κίνησιν θείαν· ὁ γάρ ἀγαθοεργός ἔρως ἐκίνησε τό Θεῖον εἰς πρόνοιαν, εἰς σύστασιν ἡμῶν, ἵνα καί πρακτικόν ἦ κονούμενον, καί μή μείνῃ ἄγονον· ἐκ τούτου νοήσεις καί τό 'μονάδος μέν κινηθείσης', καί τά ἑξῆς εἰρημένα τῷ Θεολόγῳ Γρηγορίῳ ἐν τῷ πρώτῳ περί Υἱοῦ.

Γεννητικήν ὑπερβολήν: Τουτέστι τήν κτίσιν παρήγαγεν, ὥστε περί αὐτήν τά τῆς ἀγαπητῆς ἐπιδείκνυσθαι κινήσεως.

§ 11. Καί μή τις ἡμᾶς οἰέσθω: Σημείωσαι, ὅτι οὐ δεῖ τά ἀπεμφαίνοντα ὀνόματα λέγειν περί Θεοῦ, εἰ μή γε καί ἐν θείᾳ ἐμφέροιντο Γραφῇ, ὡς καί νῦν περί ἔρωτός φησι, καί ὅτι οὐ χρή προσέχειν λέξεσιν, ἀλλά τῇ δυνάμει τοῦ σκοποῦ· θείως γάρ αὐτά διέξεισι.

∆ι' ἑτέρων ὁμοδυνάμων: Ὅτι καί διά τῶν ἰσοδυνάμων οὐ κωλυόμεθα ἐκφωνεῖν τάς λέξεις. Σημείωσαι ὡς μητρίδα καί πατρίδα ταὐτό φησιν.

∆έον εἰδέναι: ∆ιά τί συλλαβαῖς καί λέξεσι χρώμεθα· σκόπει τήν ἀνάγνωσιν· ὅ θέλει εἰπεῖν, τοῦτό ἐστιν· Ἡνίκα τόν προφορικόν λόγον κινοῦμεν, τοῦτον περί τινος τῶν αἰσθητῶν, τότε λέξεων καί συλλαβῶν καί στοιχείων καί γραφῶν δεόμεθα πρός δήλωσιν τοῦ λαλουμένου εἰ δέ ἀφ' ἑαυτῆς ἡ ψυχή πρός τά νοητά κινεῖται διά τῶν ὀρθῶν ἐνεργειῶν, περιτταί μετά τῶν αἰσθητῶν αἱ αἰσθήσεις· ὑψηλά γάρ φαντάζεται· ὅταν δέ θεοειδής γένηται, προκόπτουσα ταῖς κατά μικρόν ἀνατάσεσι, καί δι'