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redeeming us also from terrible tax-collectors, who stir up a bitter accounting for us in the air, and who seek cruelly to subdue us. This is the grateful and good friend, who bears in memory even our small good deed and repays it all to us with interest. χιῃ Then again Joasaph said, May it be well with you from the Lord God, O wisest of men. for you have gladdened my soul with your fitting and excellent words. Therefore, sketch for me yet another image of the vanity of the world, and how one might pass through it in peace and safety. And taking up the discourse, Barlaam said, Hear also a parable of this very problem. I have learned of a certain great city, whose citizens had from of old such a custom, to seize some foreign and unknown man, one who knew nothing at all of the laws and traditions of the city, and to establish him as king for themselves, enjoying all authority and following his own 200 wishes without hindrance, until the completion of a year's time. Then, suddenly, while he was in complete carelessness, both living luxuriously and spending lavishly without fear, and thinking that the kingdom would be his forever, rising up against him, and taking away his royal robe, and having paraded him naked through the whole city, they sent him into exile to a certain large and distant island, where, having no abundance of either food or clothing, he was terribly afflicted with hunger and nakedness, the luxury and gladness given to him beyond hope having been changed again into grief beyond all hope and expectation. Therefore, according to the subsequent custom of those citizens, a certain man was chosen for the kingdom, having his mind adorned with great intelligence, who, not being immediately carried away by the prosperity that suddenly befell him, nor emulating the carelessness of those who had reigned before and been miserably cast out, had a soul full of care and anxiety as to how he might arrange his affairs well. And having inquired accurately through frequent consideration, he learned through a most wise counselor the custom of the citizens, and the place of the perpetual exile; and he was taught unerringly how he must make himself safe. Therefore when he learned these things, and that he must in a very short time reach that island, and must again leave this acquired and foreign kingdom to foreigners, opening his treasures, of which he had for the time being relaxed and unhindered use, and taking a multitude of riches, both a very great mass of gold and 202 silver and precious stones, entrusting it to most faithful servants, he sent it ahead to that island to which he was about to be led away. And when the appointed year was completed, the citizens, rising up in sedition, delivered him over naked to exile, as also those before him. The other foolish and temporary kings, therefore, suffered terribly from hunger; but he, having stored up that wealth beforehand, living with perpetual prosperity and having inexpensive luxury, and having completely shaken off the fear of the disorderly and wicked citizens, blessed himself for his most wise counsel. Understand the city, then, to be this vain and deceitful world, and the citizens to be the principalities and powers of the demons, the world-rulers of the darkness of this age, who entice us with the smoothness of pleasure, and suggest that we think of corruptible and perishable things as if they were incorruptible, as if the enjoyment of them co-existed with us eternally and immortally. And so when we have been deceived and have taken no counsel concerning those permanent and eternal things, nor stored up anything for ourselves for the life beyond, the sudden destruction of death comes upon us. then, indeed then, the wicked and bitter citizens of darkness, having received us naked of the things from here, as ones who spent all their time on them, lead us away into a dark and gloomy land, into a land of darkness

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λυτρούμενος καὶ δεινῶν φορολόγων, τῶν λογοθέσιον ἡμῖν πικρὸν ἐν τῷ ἀέρι κινούντων, καὶ χειρώσασθαι πικρῶς ζητούντων. οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ εὐγνώμων φίλος καὶ ἀγαθός, ὁ καὶ τὴν μικρὰν ἡμῶν εὐπραγίαν ἐπὶ μνήμης φέρων καὶ σὺν τόκῳ ἡμῖν πᾶσαν ἀποδιδούς. χιῃ Αὖθις οὖν ὁ Ἰωάσαφ, Εὖ σοι γένοιτο παρὰ Κυρίου τοῦ Θεοῦ, ὦ σοφώτατε τῶν ἀνθρώπων. εὔφρανας γάρ μου τὴν ψυχὴν τοῖς καταλλήλοις σου καὶ ἀρίστοις ῥήμασι. τοιγαροῦν ἀνατύπωσόν μοι καὶ ἔτι εἰκόνα τῆς ματαιότητος τοῦ κόσμου, καὶ πῶς ἄν τις ἐν εἰρήνῃ καὶ ἀσφαλείᾳ τοῦτον διέλθοι. Ἀναλαβὼν δὲ τὸν λόγον ὁ Βαρλαὰμ ἔφη, Ἄκουσον καὶ τούτου δὴ τοῦ προβλήματος ὁμοίωσιν. πόλιν τινὰ μεμάθηκα μεγάλην, ἧς οἱ πολῖται τοιαύτην ἐσχήκεσαν ἔκπαλαι συνήθειαν, τὸ ἐπιλαμβάνεσθαι ξένου τινὸς καὶ ἀγνώστου ἀνδρός, μηδὲν τῶν νόμων τῆς πόλεως καὶ παραδόσεων ὅλως ἐπισταμένου, καὶ τοῦτον βασιλέα καθιστᾶν ἑαυτοῖς, πάσης ἀπολαύοντα ἐξουσίας καὶ τῶν 200 αὐτοῦ θελημάτων ἀκωλύτως ἐχόμενον, ἄχρι συμπληρώσεως ἐνιαυσιαίου χρόνου. εἶτ', ἐξαίφνης ἐν πάσῃ αὐτοῦ τυγχάνοντος ἀμεριμνίᾳ, τρυφῶντός τε καὶ σπαταλῶντος ἀδεῶς, καὶ συνδιαιωνίζειν αὐτῷ τὴν βασιλείαν εἰσαεὶ δοκοῦντος, ἐπεγειρόμενοι κατ' αὐτοῦ, καὶ τὴν βασιλικὴν ἀφελόμενοι στολήν, γυμνόν τε ἀνὰ πᾶσαν θριαμβεύσαντες τὴν πόλιν, ἐξόριστον ἔπεμπον εἰς μακρὰν ἀπῳκισμένην καὶ μεγάλην τινὰ νῆσον, ἐν ᾗ, μήτε διατροφῆς εὐπορῶν μήτε ἐνδυμάτων, ἐν λιμῷ καὶ γυμνότητι δεινῶς κατετρύχετο, τῆς παρ' ἐλπίδα δοθείσης αὐτῷ τρυφῆς καὶ θυμηδίας εἰς λύπην αὖθις καὶ παρ' ἐλπίδα πᾶσαν καὶ προσδοκίαν μεταμειφθείσης. κατὰ τὸ παρακολουθῆσαν τοίνυν ἔθος τῶν πολιτῶν ἐκείνων, προεχειρίσθη τις ἀνὴρ εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν συνέσει πολλῇ τὸν λογισμὸν κατάκομον ἔχων, ὃς αὐτίκα μὴ συναρπασθεὶς τῇ ἐξαίφνης αὐτῷ προσπεσούσῃ εὐθηνίᾳ, μηδὲ τῶν προβεβασιλευκότων καὶ ἀθλίως ἐκβληθέντων τὴν ἀμεριμνίαν ζηλώσας, ἐμμέριμνον εἶχε καὶ ἐναγώνιον τὴν ψυχὴν πῶς ἂν τὰ κατ' αὐτὸν εὖ διάθοιτο. τῇ συχνῇ δὲ μελέτῃ ἀκριβωσάμενος, ἔγνω διά τινος σοφωτάτου συμβούλου τὴν συνήθειαν τῶν πολιτῶν, καὶ τὸν τόπον τῆς διηνεκοῦς ἐξορίας· ὅπως τε χρὴ ἑαυτὸν ἀσφαλίσασθαι ἀπλανῶς ἐδιδάχθη. ταῦτ' οὖν ὡς ἔγνω, καὶ ὅτι δεῖ αὐτὸν ὅσον οὔπω ἐκείνην καταλαμβάνειν τὴν νῆσον, τὴν δ' ἐπίκτητον ταύτην καὶ ἀλλοτρίαν βασιλείαν ἀλλοτρίοις αὖθις καταλιμπάνειν, ἀνοίξας τοὺς θησαυροὺς αὐτοῦ ὧνπερ τέως ἀνειμένην εἶχε καὶ ἀκώλυτον τὴν χρῆσιν, καὶ λαβὼν χρημάτων πλῆθος, χρυσοῦ τε καὶ 202 ἀργύρου καὶ λίθων τιμίων ἁδρότατον ὄγκον, πιστοτάτοις παραδοὺς οἰκέταις, εἰς ἐκείνην προέπεμψεν, εἰς ἣν ἔμελλεν ἀπάγεσθαι, νῆσον. συντελεσθέντος δὲ τοῦ ἐμπροθέσμου ἐνιαυτοῦ, στασιάσαντες οἱ πολῖται γυμνὸν αὐτόν, ὡς καὶ τοὺς πρὸ αὐτοῦ, τῇ ἐξορίᾳ παρέπεμψαν. οἱ μὲν οὖν λοιποὶ ἀνόητοι καὶ πρόσκαιροι βασιλεῖς δεινῶς ἐλίμωττον· ὁ δέ, τὸν πλοῦτον προαποθέμενος ἐκεῖνον, εὐθηνίᾳ διηνεκεῖ συζῶν καὶ τρυφὴν ἀδάπανον ἔχων, φόβον τε παντάπασιν ἀποσεισάμενος τῶν ἀτάκτων καὶ πονηρῶν πολιτῶν, τῆς σοφωτάτης ἑαυτὸν ἐμακάριζεν εὐβουλίας. Πόλιν οὖν νόει μοι τὸν μάταιον τοῦτον καὶ ἀπατεῶνα κόσμον, πολίτας δὲ τὰς ἀρχὰς καὶ τὰς ἐξουσίας τῶν δαιμόνων, τοὺς κοσμοκράτορας τοῦ σκότους τοῦ αἰῶνος τούτου, τοὺς δελεάζοντας ἡμᾶς τῷ λείῳ τῆς ἡδονῆς, καὶ ὡς περὶ ἀφθάρτων ὑποτιθεμένους διανοεῖσθαι τῶν φθαρτῶν καὶ ἐπικήρων, ὡς ἅτε συνδιαιωνιζούσης ἡμῖν καὶ ἀθάνατα τῆς τούτων συνυπαρχούσης ἀπολαύσεως. οὕτως οὖν ἀπατηθέντων ἡμῶν καὶ μηδεμίαν περὶ τῶν μονίμων ἐκείνων καὶ αἰωνίων βουλευσαμένων, μήτε τι ταμιευσαμένων ἑαυτοῖς εἰς τὸν ἐκεῖθεν βίον, αἰφνίδιος ἡμῖν ἐφίσταται ὄλεθρος ὁ τοῦ θανάτου. τότε δὴ τότε γυμνοὺς ἡμᾶς τῶν ἐντεῦθεν οἱ πονηροὶ καὶ πικροὶ δεξάμενοι πολῖται τοῦ σκότους, ὡς ἐκείνοις τὸν ἅπαντα προσαναλώσαντας χρόνον, ἀπάγουσιν εἰς γῆν σκοτεινὴν καὶ γνοφεράν, εἰς γῆν σκότους