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And by the glory of mighty wealth being dissolved. 1363 But others in turn take delight in marketplaces and groves, and in baths, and in breathing great airs in the cities, being escorted by auspicious words and the clamor of followers, and haughty from on high on their chariots. For mortals have many delights in a life of many divisions; but their gladness is mixed with evils. But I am dead to the world, and on the earth I draw but a little breath; I flee cities and men. Communing with wild beasts and cliffs, alone and apart from others I inhabit a dismal cleft and a raft; wearing a single tunic, unshod, homeless, living on hope alone, and I am an outrage to all mortals. My bed is a pallet of straw, my blankets are a rough sackcloth, and dust on the ground moistened with tears. 1364 Many groan under iron bonds; and others, I learn, have ashes for food; and for some, their drink is mixed with painful tears; others are pelted by winter snows, for forty nights and days, standing like trees, removed from the heart of the world, and having only God in their minds; another bound his lips, and put a bridle on his tongue. Not a total bridle, however, but he released it for hymns alone, like a living lyre struck by the Spirit. And someone dedicated his own head to Christ, keeping, for the sake of a holy vow, his hair uncut. And another fixed his eyes, and put doors on his ears, lest anything send the sting of death inward unawares. 1365 Such are the remedies from me for the hostile flesh, and now old age is a defense for my passions. But many unforeseen squalls toss me about unwillingly, afflicted with grievous pains. But he is persuaded neither by words, nor is he tamed by toils, nor is the chilling one bent by time; but he ever hastens against life with blind eyes, and, like a legion, he longs for the cliffs. And if somewhere he should yield even a little to the fears of God, or to labors, or to the oracles from God, like a plant drawn up by the hands of a gardener, he is bent back again to his former evil. O wretched race of mortals, born for death! How then, being devoured by evils, we take pleasure in our madness. Neither honoring the reason, which within us at birth 1366 God placed, bestowing the seed of life; nor trembling at the law, which once in letters of stone, Christ, foreshadowing the truth, the Lord engraved on tablets, and lastly in our hearts, by the radiance of the holy Spirit; and devising things contrary to the sufferings of Christ, by which he drew me from grievous sufferings, taking on flesh, and being fixed to a cross, and fixing the dark sin of creation, and the power of Belial, so that born again and leaping from the tomb, with the great Christ we might have glory above. Many indeed are the gifts of God to all mortals, gifts which are greater than our tongue can tell. For even when taming me, reckless one, with blows, He draws me toward life, and devises friendly things. 1367 For with a benevolent mind he governs all things for mortals, even if he holds the depth of his wisdom hidden, and a great darkness of our generation and of God stands in between, which few pass through with sharpest eyes, translucent from life, and pure, grasping pure wisdom. But Christ granting a special boast to me, first to my mother who prayed from the bottom of her heart He gave a gift, and from my parents he received a gift, since they had nothing better than a child among all their possessions; and then he sent a divine love for a temperate life through nocturnal visions. But come, now listen, O God-minded ones; but you who are profane in your souls, put doors on your ears. I was a tender child, yet not quite a child, at the age when the mind 1368 receives the impression of the image of good and evil things, not yet having form with solid thoughts, but first being stamped by the characters of others. But my parents were impressing my mind not with evil colors, but with the good teachings of virtue. For indeed they were admirable to all mortals, having one mind in piety, equal alike in grey hair and in glorious characters, of human life, blessed, strong, surpassing the measures. He once stood far from the great fold, of which he now holds great power, not a sheep, then the most excellent of sheep, and from the sheep a Shepherd, but now a father, and a pastor of pastors. 1369 Not indeed going at dawn to a fruitful threshing-floor, but having hidden much his former self in toil.

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Καὶ πλούτου κρατεροῦ κύδεϊ λυομένῳ. 1363 Ἄλλοι δ' αὖτ' ἀγοραῖς τε καὶ ἄλσεσιν, ἠδὲ λοετροῖς Τέρπονται, καὶ πνεῖν ἐν πολίεσσι μέγα, Εὐφήμοις τε λόγοισι καὶ ἑσπομένων ὀρυγμαδῶν Πεμπόμενοι, σοβαροί θ' ὑψόθεν ἐκ σανίδων. Πολλαὶ γὰρ θνητοῖσι πολυσχιδέος βιότοιο Τέρψιες· ἐν δὲ κακοῖς κέκραται εὐφροσύνη. Αὐτὰρ ἐγὼ τέθνηκα βίῳ, βαιὸν δ' ἐπὶ γαίης Ἆσθμα φέρω· φεύγω δ' ἄστεα καὶ μέροπας. Θήρεσι καὶ σκοπέλοισιν ὁμιλῶν, οἶος ἀπ' ἄλλων Ναιετάω λυπρὴν ῥωγάδα καὶ σχέδιον· Οἰοχίτων, ἀπέδιλος, ἀνέστιος, ἐλπίδι μούνῃ Ζώων, καὶ λώβη πᾶσι πέλω χθονίοις. Εὐνή μοι στιβάς ἐστι, τὰ ῥήγεα σάκκος ἐρυμνὸς, Καὶ κόνις ἐν δαπέδῳ δάκρυσι δευομένη. 1364 Πολλοὶ μὲν στενάχουσι σιδηρείοις ὑπὸ δεσμοῖς· Ἄλλους δ' αὖ τέφρην πυνθάνομ' εἶδαρ ἔχειν· Τοὺς δὲ ποτὸν δακρύοισι μεμιγμένον ἀλγινόεσσιν· Ἄλλους χειμερίαις βαλλομένους νιφάσι, Νύκτας τεσσαράκοντα καὶ ἤματα, δένδρεσιν ἶσα Ἑστάμεναι, κραδίῃ γῆς ἀπανισταμένους, Καὶ Θεὸν οἷον ἔχοντας ἐνὶ φρεσίν· ἄλλος ἔδησε Χείλεα, καὶ γλώσσῃ θῆκε χαλινὰ φέρων. Οὐ μὴν πάντα χαλινὰ, ὕμνοις δ' ἀνέηκε μόνοισιν, Ἔμπνοον ὡς κιθάρην πνεύματι κρουομένην. Καὶ Χριστῷ κεφαλήν τις ἑὴν ἀνέθηκε, φυλάσσων, Εὐχῆς εὐαγέος εἵνεκ', ἀκερσεκόμην. Ὄμματα δ' ἄλλος ἔπηξε, καὶ οὔασι θῆκε θύρετρα, Μή τι λάθῃ πέμψας κέντρον ἔσω θανάτου. 1365 Τοῖα μὲν ἐξ ἐμέθεν χοῒ φάρμακα δυσμενέοντι, Ἤδη καὶ πολιὴ ἄλκαρ ἐμῶν παθέων. Πολλαὶ δ' οὐκ ἐθέλοντα καταιγίδες ἀπροτίοπτοι Στρωφῶσιν, χαλεποῖς ἄλγεσι τειρόμενον. Αὐτὰρ ὁ οὔτε λόγοις ἐπιπείθεται, οὔτε μόγοισι ∆άμναται, οὔτε χρόνῳ κάμπτεται ὀκρυόεις· Ἀλλ' αἰεὶ ζωῆς κατεναντίον ὄμμασι τυφλοῖς Σπεύδει, καὶ κρημνοὺς, ὡς λεγεὼν, ποθέει. Εἰ δέ τί που καὶ βαιὸν ὑποείξειε Θεοῖο ∆είμασιν, ἠὲ πόνοις, ἢ Θεόθεν λογίοις, Ὥστε φυτὸν παλάμῃσι μεθελκόμενον κομέοντος, Γυροῦται προτέρην ἔμπαλιν ἐς κακίην. Ὦ μέλεοι, θανάτοιο βροτῶν γένος! Ὥς ῥα κακοῖσι ∆απτόμενοι, μανίῃ τερπόμεθ' ἡμετέρῃ. Οὔτε λόγον τίοντες, ὃν ἔνδοθι γινομένοισι 1366 Θῆκε Θεὸς, ζωῆς σπέρμα χαριζόμενος· Οὔτε νόμον τρομένοντες, ὃν ἔν ποτε λαϊνέῃσι Γράμματι ἀτρεκίην Χριστὸς ὑποσκιάων Πλαξὶν ἄναξ ἐχάραξε, καὶ ὕστατον ἐν κραδίῃσιν Ἡμετέραις, αἴγλῃ Πνεύματος εὐαγέος· Καὶ Χριστοῦ παθέεσσιν ἐναντία μητιόωντες, Οἷσίν μ' ἐκ παθέων εἵλκυσεν ἀργαλέων, Σάρκα λαβὼν, σταυρῷ τε παγεὶς, πήξας τε μέλαιναν Πλάσματος ἀμπλακίην, καὶ Βελίαο κράτος, Ὄφρα παλιγγενέες τε καὶ ἐκ τύμβοιο θορόντες, Χριστῷ σὺν μεγάλῳ κῦδος ἔχωμεν ἄνω. Πολλὰ μὲν δὴ πᾶσιν ἐπιχθονίοισι Θεοῖο ∆ῶρα, τὰ καὶ γλώσσης κρείττονα ἡμετέρης. Καὶ γάρ με πληγῇσιν ἀτασθαλέοντα δαμάζων, Ἕλκει πρὸς ζωὴν, καὶ φίλα μητιόων. 1367 Πάντα γὰρ εὐμενέοντι νόῳ μερόπεσσι κυβερνᾷ, Εἰ καὶ κρυπτὸν ἑῆς βένθος ἔχει σοφίης, Καὶ πολὺς ἡμετέρης γενεῆς ζόφος ἠδὲ Θεοῖο Ἵσταται ἐν μεσάτῳ, ὃν περόωσ' ὀλίγοι Ὄμμασιν ὀξυτάτοισι διαυγέες ἐκ βιότοιο, Καὶ καθαροὶ καθαρῆς ἁπτόμενοι σοφίης. Αὐτὰρ ἐμοὶ Χριστὸς περιώσιον εὖχος ὀπάζων, Πρῶτα μὲν εὐξαμένῃ νειόθεν ἐκ κραδίης Μητέρι δῶρον ἔδωκε, καὶ ἐκ τοκέων ὑπέδεκτο ∆ῶρον, ἐπεὶ τέκνου φέρτερον οὐδὲν ἔχον Ἐν πᾶσι κτεάτεσσιν· ἔπειτα δὲ θεῖον ἔρωτα Φάσμασιν ἐννυχίοις σώφρονος ἧκε βίου. Εἰ δ' ἄγε, νῦν ἀΐοιτε, θεόφρονες· οἱ δὲ βέβηλοι Ψυχὰς, ὑμετέροις οὔασι θέσθε θύρας. Παῖς μὲν ἔην ἁπαλὸς, πάϊς οὐ μάλα, ἡνίκα δὲ φρὴν 1368 Ἐσθλῶν ἠδὲ κακῶν εἰκόνος ἐγγράφεται, Οὔπω μὲν στερεοῖσι νοήμασιν εἶδος ἔχουσα, Ἤθεσι δ' ἀλλοτρίοις πρῶτα χαρασσομένη. Αὐτὰρ ἐμοὶ τοκέες νόον ἔγραφον οὔτι κακοῖσι Χρώμασι, τῆς δ' ἀρετῆς ἐσθλὰ διδασκομένῳ. Καὶ γὰρ δὴ πάντεσσιν ἐπιχθονίοισιν ἀγητοὶ Ἔσκον, ἐπ' εὐσεβίῃ θυμὸν ἔχοντες ἕνα, Ἶσον ὁμοῦ πολιῇ τε καὶ ἤθεσι κυδαλίμοισιν, Ἀνδρομέης ζωῆς, ὄλβιοι, εὐσθενέες, Μέτρα παρατροχάοντες. Ὁ μέν ποτε τηλόθι μάνδρης Ἑστηὼς μεγάλης, ἧς μέγα νῦν κρατέει Οὐκ ὄϊς, εἶτ' ὀΐων προφερέστατος, ἐξ ὀΐων τε Ποιμὴν, νῦν δὲ πατὴρ, καὶ νομέων νομέας. 1369 Οὔτι μὲν ἐς πολύκαρπον ἀλωὴν ὄρθριος ἐλθὼν, Πουλὺ δ' ἀποκρύψας τοὺς προτέρους καμάτῳ.