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having been roused and rekindled, she herself eagerly urged and sent forth her son to the ruling city, and like a mother she admonished and exhorted him both to have the fear of God continually in his soul, and to consider always that the eye of 223 providence watches over his every action and his every thought, and to strive for nothing unworthy of such oversight, but with fitting deportment to display his own virtues and in no way to disgrace his ancestral nobility. 9 Setting out, therefore, from Macedonian Thrace, he journeyed towards this, the ruling city of all, wishing to attach himself to one of the powerful and distinguished men and to assign and establish himself in his service and servitude. And having traversed the distance in between, and having arrived at the Golden Gates of the queen of cities, and having entered through them as the day was already declining, he approached the nearby monastery of the holy martyr Diomedes, and being weary from the journey, he carelessly threw himself down somewhere before the gatehouse on the steps there and rested. And indeed, at about the first watch of the night, the martyr Diomedes appeared in a dream to the abbot of the monastery, ordering him to go out to the gatehouse of the monastery and call Basil by name, and whosoever should answer him when he called, to bring this man into the monastery and deem him worthy of care, giving him food and shelter and clothing and every possible need and service; for he happened to be anointed king by God, and he was destined to be for the rebuilding and growth of the present monastery. But as the abbot considered what he had seen to be merely a fantasy and an empty figment of his mind, he took no account 224 of it, but again gave himself over to sleep; a second time he saw and heard the same things. But as he was still sluggish and sleepy, as it seemed, and did not stir, a third time he saw the martyr, no longer exhorting him gently and cheerfully but threatening him vehemently and seemingly trying to bring on scourges, if he did not quickly attend to what was said. Then, indeed, having barely come to his senses as it were and having shaken from his eyes the sleep that is neighbor to death, he went to the gatehouse, and according to the martyr's command, he called by name, "Basil." And he immediately answered, "Here I am, lord; what do you command your servant?" And having brought him inside the monastery, and seeing him dirty and squalid and bearing much sun on his face, he deemed him worthy of the necessary care and service and shared with him every kindness. Then, having advised him to keep the mystery to himself and speak of it to no one on account of the danger, he revealed to him the martyr's prophecy and made sure he would remember it after its fulfillment. But since he, as the matter was beyond him, did not seem to accept it, but rather asked through him to be settled and given in service to one of the more illustrious men, the abbot eagerly devoted himself to this. And since the kinsman of the emperor Michael and of Bardas the Caesar, whom they called by the diminutive Theophilitzes, bearing the surname "the one being 225 educated," had a customary relationship with such a monastery and often happened to visit there in a friendly way, to this man the abbot introduced Basil; for this Theophilitzes happened to be somewhat proud in spirit and not lacking in haughtiness, but was zealous to have about him noble, handsome, and young men, who were distinguished especially for their manliness and bodily strength, and to take great pride and boast in these things; whom one could immediately see adorned with silken garments and distinguished by their other attire. Basil, the newly-arrived young man, being enrolled among these, and seeming to excel the rest by far in both physical might and spiritual courage, Theophilos made him his protostrator, and day by day even more

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ἀναπτερωθεῖσα καὶ ζωπυρήσασα, προ- θύμως αὐτὴ παρώρμα καὶ ἐξέπεμπε τὸν υἱὸν πρὸς τὴν βασιλεύ- ουσαν, καὶ οια μήτηρ ἐνουθέτει καὶ παρεκάλει τόν τε θεῖον φόβον διηνεκῶς εχειν ἐν τῇ ψυχῇ, καὶ νομίζειν ἀεὶ τὸν τῆς προνοίας 223 ὀφθαλμὸν πᾶσαν πρᾶξιν αὐτοῦ καὶ πᾶν νόημα ἐφορᾶν καὶ μηδὲν ἀνάξιον τῆς τοιαύτης ἐφορείας σπουδάζειν, ἀλλὰ τῷ προσήκοντι καταστήματι τὰς οἰκείας ἀρετὰς ἐπιδείξασθαι καὶ ἐν μηδενὶ τὴν προγονικὴν καταισχῦναι εὐγένειαν. 9 Αρας ουν ἐκ Μακεδονίας τῆς Θρᾴκης πρὸς τὴν αρχου- σαν ταύτην τῶν πόλεων πασῶν ἐπορεύετο, τῶν δυνατῶν τινὶ καὶ περιφανῶν προσμῖξαι βουλόμενος καὶ εἰς θεραπείαν καὶ δουλείαν αὐτοῦ ἑαυτὸν ἀποτάξαι καὶ καταστῆσαι. καὶ τὸ μεταξὺ διανύσας διάστημα, καὶ κατὰ τὰς χρυσᾶς πύλας τῆς βασιλίδος γενόμενος, καὶ δι' αὐτῶν ηδη καταφερομένης τῆς ἡμέρας εἰσελθών, πλησίον τυγχάνοντι τῷ τοῦ ἁγίου μάρτυρος ∆ιομήδους προσπελάζει μονα- στηρίῳ, καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς ὁδοιπορίας κατάκοπος ων αὐτοῦ που πρὸ τοῦ πυλῶνος ἐν τοῖς ἐκεῖσε βάθροις ἀτημελῶς ουτως ἐπιρρίψας ἑαυτὸν ἀνεπαύετο. καὶ δὴ περὶ πρώτην τυχὸν φυλακὴν νυκτὸς οναρ τῷ τῆς μονῆς καθηγουμένῳ ὁ μάρτυς ∆ιομήδης ἐφίσταται, κελεύων ἐπὶ τὸν πυλῶνα τῆς μονῆς ἐξελθεῖν καὶ ἐξ ὀνόματος καλέ- σαι Βασίλειον, καὶ ος αν αὐτῷ ὑπακούσῃ καλοῦντι, τοῦτον εἰσα- γαγεῖν εἰς τὸ μοναστήριον καὶ ἐπιμελείας ἀξιῶσαι, τροφῆς τε καὶ σκέπης καὶ ἐνδυμάτων καὶ πάσης μεταδόντα τῆς ἐνδεχομένης χρείας καὶ θεραπείας· κεχρισμένον γὰρ εἰς βασιλέα τυγχάνειν παρὰ θεοῦ, καὶ αὐτὸν μέλλειν εἰς ἀνοικοδομὴν καὶ αυξησιν τῆς παρούσης γενέσθαι μονῆς. ὡς δὲ φαντασίαν αλλως καὶ κενὸν διανοίας ἀνάπλασμα δόξας τὸ ὁραθὲν ὁ ἡγούμενος ἐν οὐδενὶ λόγῳ 224 εθετο, ἀλλὰ πάλιν ἑαυτὸν τῷ υπνῳ ἐκδέδωκεν, ἐκ δευτέρου βλέ- πει καὶ ἀκούει τὰ ομοια. ὡς δὲ καὶ ετι νωθὴς καὶ ὑπνώδης, ὡς εοικεν, ων οὐκ ἀνέφερεν, ἐκ τρίτου βλέπει τὸν μάρτυρα, οὐκέτι πράως καὶ ἱλαρῶς παρακελευόμενον ἀλλὰ σφοδρῶς ἀπειλοῦντα καὶ μάστιγας τῷ δοκεῖν ἐπιφέρειν πειρώμενον, εἰ μὴ θᾶττον ὑπηρετή- σει πρὸς τὰ λεγόμενα. τότε δ' ουν μόλις οἱονεὶ ἀνανήψας καὶ τὸν γείτονα θανάτου υπνον τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν ἀποτιναξάμενος τῷ πυλῶνι ἐφίσταται, καὶ κατὰ τὸ τοῦ μάρτυρος πρόσταγμα ἐξ ὀνό- ματος ἐκάλει Βασίλειε. ὁ δὲ εὐθὺς ἀπεκρίνατο "ἰδοὺ ἐγώ, κύ- ριε· τί προστάσσεις τῷ δούλῳ σου;" εισω δὲ αὐτὸν τῆς μονῆς ποιησάμενος, καὶ ἰδὼν ῥυπῶντά τε καὶ αὐχμῶντα καὶ πολὺν ἐπὶ τοῦ προσώπου τὸν ηλιον φέροντα, τῆς δεούσης ἐπιμελείας καὶ θε- ραπείας ἠξίωσεν καὶ πάσης φιλανθρωπίας μετέδωκεν. ειτα τὸ μυστήριον παρ' ἑαυτῷ φυλάττειν καὶ πρὸς μηδένα ἐκλαλῆσαι διὰ τὸ κινδυνῶδες εἰσηγησάμενος, τὴν τοῦ μάρτυρος αὐτῷ ἐφανέρωσε πρόρρησιν καὶ πρὸς τὸ μεμνῆσθαι μετὰ τὴν εκβασιν ἠσφαλίσατο. τοῦ δέ, ὡς ὑπὲρ αὐτὸν οντος τοῦ πράγματος, μηδὲ παραδέχεσθαι δόξαντος, ἀλλὰ μᾶλλον δι' αὐτοῦ ἀξιοῦντος εἰσοικισθῆναι καὶ πρὸς δουλείαν δοθῆναι τῶν ἐμφανεστέρων τινί, προθύμως ἑαυτὸν εἰς τοῦτο ἐπέδωκεν ὁ ἡγούμενος. καὶ ἐπεὶ συνήθως ειχε πρὸς τὴν τοιαύτην μονὴν καὶ πολλάκις ἐτύγχανεν ἐκεῖσε φιλίως φοιτῶν ὁ τοῦ βασιλέως Μιχαὴλ καὶ Βάρδα τοῦ Καίσαρος συγγενής, ον ὑποκοριζόμενοι Θεοφιλίτζην ἐκάλουν, ἐπώνυμον φέροντα τὸν Παι- 225 δευόμενον, τούτῳ συνέστησε τὸν Βασίλειον ὁ ἡγούμενος· ἐτύγ- χανε γάρ πως τὸ Θεοφιλίδιον τοῦτο γαῦρον ον τῷ φρονήματι καὶ μεγαλοφροσύνης οὐκ ἀφεστώς, ἀλλὰ εἰς σπουδὴν εχον γενναίους ανδρας καὶ εὐειδεῖς καὶ εὐήλικας καὶ ἐπ' ἀνδρίᾳ μάλιστα καὶ ῥώμῃ σώματος διαφέροντας κεκτῆσθαι περὶ αὐτὸν καὶ ἐπὶ τούτοις μέγα φρονεῖν καὶ σεμνύνεσθαι· ους εὐθὺς ην ὁρᾶν σηρικαῖς τε κοσμου- μένους ἐσθῆσι καὶ τῇ αλλῃ καταστολῇ διαπρέποντας. τούτοις καταλεγέντα τὸν νέηλυν νεανίαν Βασίλειον, καὶ κατὰ πολὺ προέ- χειν δόξαντα τῶν λοιπῶν κατά τε σωματικὴν ἀλκὴν καὶ ψυχικὴν ἀνδρίαν, πρωτοστράτορα αὑτοῦ πεποίηκεν ὁ Θεόφιλος, καὶ ἡμέ- ραν ἐξ ἡμέρας ἐπὶ πλέον