86

For if, while striving and struggling to show that the duality of the principle is not a great error, and then, not wanting for things according to his desire, he were to raise his anger against us and, feigning that his kinsmen speak against us, were to attempt to contradict our arguments, and were to terribly revile our demonstration with long speeches and excessively exalt himself as having discovered and declared the supra-demonstrative according to Aristotle with respect to God, which has not yet even today been made manifest, if his argument went only this far, it would not have been deemed worthy of a defense from us; but now, I know not what has come over him, he both (p. 440) secretly maligns the God-bearing Fathers and records those in the tradition of Socrates and Plato as divinities and enlightened ones, putting forward certain sayings of theirs, through which they are witnessed to be such. This, then, more than anything, did not permit me to fetter my tongue in silence and to betray our common protectors and to bring back in those long ago cast out as profane; but since it was necessary to speak in opposition, it was fitting first to resolve the consequences and the charges concerning the demonstration and before these things to show that we in no way offended the one who slanderously attacked us, and in addition to these things, to now again openly refute the things in his arguments that are least in accord with the precision of piety; for it is not better to be silent about such things for the sake of friendship or fear.

But also the arguments of the Latins have been cleverly fitted into his words, in his playing their part, it being one of the most necessary things to refute them; for in this way my previous arguments against them are shown to be superior to the one who attempts to be abusive; for we did not expect that the Latins themselves would bear what came from us in silence, but we expected them to speak in opposition, yet their arguments are easily overturned, such as the one who has just now played their part, to whom indeed we are grateful, for whatever they were going to say, we have now taken the opportunity in this to overturn. How then each point has been worked out, the discourse will teach you.

Let it be set forth not for all, unless also his work is (for being directed against him, although necessarily; but believe that this vexes me not a little), but nevertheless for those who are friends, and especially for those who are sufficiently able to judge thoughts, that the discourse would not be at all blameworthy, and perhaps not even for the one to whom it is addressed; for these stumbling blocks are almost common to those who are excessively ambitious concerning arguments; it is necessary, however, for correction (p. 442) that those who have put down their ambition concerning these things should always contribute something. Therefore, entrust the writing to all those who are able to judge these things; for it is a clear refutation of a manifold error and a common purification, if one must say, or a safeguard, for those who are still ambitiously engaged in arguments, as irrational opinion from arguments attaches itself to the soul, and for those who have stripped themselves for the better zeal of the word through quietude, it is an exhortation and a bulwark and an example of the deceptive entrance of the one who always attempts to deceive. And in addition to this, it also sufficiently points out in few words whence the unerring might arise and nearly in brief tears down the Hellenic and satanic pomps, refutes the demonstration according to the Greeks and the useless 'supra-demonstrative' according to it, and uncovers the heavy and deep darkness of the intellectual illuminations according to them.

I. AGAINST BARLAAM (p. 444)

CONCERNING TWO PRINCIPLES OR AGAINST THE HELLENIC PERSPECTIVE

86

Εἰ μέν γάρ ἐφιέμενός τε καί ἀγωνιζόμενος μή μέγα δεῖξαι ὄν ἁμάρτημα τήν τῆς ἀρχῆς διπλόην, εἶτ᾿ οὐκ ἔχων τῶν κατ᾿ ἐπιθυμίαν ἀπορεῖν, καθ᾿ ἡμῶν ἐγείροι τόν θυμόν καί τούς ὁμογενεῖς ὑποκρινόμενος ἀντιλέγειν τοῖς ἡμετέροις ἐγχειροίη καί τήν καθ᾿ ἡμᾶς ἀπόδειξιν δεινῶς καί διά μακρῶν κακίζοι λόγων καί ἑαυτόν ἐξαίροι λίαν, ὡς ἐξευρόμενον καί ἐξειπόντα τό κατ᾿ Ἀριστοτέλην ὑπέρ ἀπόδειξιν ἐπί Θεοῦ, μηδέπω καί τήμερον ἐκπεφασμένον, εἰ μέχρι τούτων ἐξέβαινεν αὐτῷ ὁ λόγος, οὐκ ἄν ἠξιώθη παρ᾿ ἡμῶν ἀπολογίας˙ νῦν δ᾿ οὐκ οἶδ᾿ ὅ,τι παθών, τούς τε (σελ. 440) θεοφόρους πατέρας λεληθότως διασύρει καί τούς κατά Σωκράτην τε καί Πλάτωνα θεότας καί πεφωτισμένους ἀναγράφει, προβαλλόμενος καί ρητά ἅττα τούτων, δι᾿ ὧν οὗτοι τοιοῦτοι μαρτυροῦνται. Τοῦτο τοίνυν πάντων μᾶλλον οὐκ ἀφῆκέ με πεδῆσαι τήν γλῶτταν σιωπῇ καί καταπροδοῦναι τούς κοινούς προστάτας καί ἀντεισοικίσασθαι τούς ἐκ παλαιοῦ ἐκβεβλημένους ὡς βεβηλωμένους˙ ἐπεί δ᾿ ἐπῆν ἀντειπεῖν ἀνάγκη, προαπολύσασθαι τῶν ἀκολούθων ἦν καί τά δι᾿ ἀπόδειξιν ἐγκλήματα καί πρό τούτων δεῖξαι ὡς οὐδέν προσεκρούσαμεν τῷ συκαοφαντικῶς ἐπιθεμένῳ, πρός δέ τούτοις καί τά νῦν αὖθις ἐν τοῖς ἐκείνου λόγοις ἥκιστα συμβαίνοντα τῇ τῆς εὐσεβείας ἀκριβείᾳ πεπαρρησιασμένως ἐπελέγξαι˙ φιλίας γάρ ἤ δέους ἕνεκα τά τοιαῦτα σιωπᾶν οὐκ ἄμεινον.

Ἀλλά καί τά Λατίνων ἐν τῷ ὑποκρινομένῳ τἀκείνων ἀνελεῖν τῶν ἀναγκαιοτάτων ὄν εὐφυῶς ἐνήρμοσται τοῖς λόγοις˙ οὕτω γάρ καί τἀμά πρός ἐκείνους πρότερα διαδείκνυται ἀνώτερα τοῦ ἐπηρεάζειν ἐγχειροῦντος˙ οὐδέ γάρ τούς Λατίνους αὐτούς ἠλπίκαμεν τά παρ᾿ ἡμῶν οἴσειν σιωπῇ, ἀλλά προσδόκιμοι μέν ἡμῖν ἦσαν ἀντιλέξοντες, εὐπερίτρεπτα δ᾿ ὅμως, οἵα καί ὁ τούτους ὑποκρινόμενος αὐτός ἀρτίως, ᾧ δή καί χάριν ἴσμεν, ἅ δή ποτ᾿ ἔμελλον ἐκεῖνοι λέξειν, ἀφορμήν ἐν τούτῳ σχόντες ἀνατρέψαι νῦν. Ὡς μέν οὖν ἕκαστα ἐξείργασται, ὁ λόγος σε διδάξει.

Προκείσθω δέ μή πᾶσιν, εἰ μή καί τἀκείνου (κατ᾿ ἐκείνου γάρ φερόμενος, εἰ καί ἀναγκαίως˙ ἀλλά πίστευσον ὡς οὐ μετρίως παρά τοῦτο μ᾿ ἀνιᾷ), τοῖς φιλοῦσι δ᾿ ὅμως, καί μάλισθ᾿ ὅσοι κρίνειν διανοίας ἱκανῶς γε ἔχουσιν, ὡς οὐκ ἄν ὁ λόγος πάνυ τοι μεμπτέος εἴη, τάχα δέ οὐδέ πρός ὅν ἐστι˙ κοινά γάρ σχεδόν ταῦτα τοῖς περί λόγους ἄγαν φιλοτιμουμένοις τά προσκόμματα˙ δεῖ μέντοι πρός ἐπανόρθωσιν (σελ. 442) ἀεί συμβάλλεσθαί τι τούς τήν περί αὐτῶν φιλοτιμίαν καταλύσαντας. Τοῖς οὖν ταῦτα κρίνειν ἱκανοῖς πᾶσι πίστευσον τό σύγγραμμα˙ πολυειδοῦς γάρ πλάνης ἔλεγχός ἐστι σαφής καί κοινή τις εἰ χρή λέγειν ἀνακάθαρσις ἤ προφυλακή, τοῖς μέν ἔτι περί λόγους φιλοτίμως διατρίβουσι τῆς ἐκ λόγων παραλόγου δόξης προσγινομένης τῇ ψυχῇ, τοῖς δέ πρός τήν τοῦ λόγου κρείττω σπουδήν δι᾿ ἡσυχίας ἀποδυσαμένοις προτροπή τε καί ὀχύρωμα καί δεῖγμα τῆς ἀπατηλῆς εἰσόδου τοῦ πλανᾶν ἀεί ἐπιχειροῦντος. Πρός δέ τούτῳ, καί ὅθεν ἄν ἐγγένοιτο τό ἁπλανές δι᾿ ὀλίγων διαρκῶς ἐνδείκνυται καί μικροῦ διά βραχέων τούς ἑλληνικούς καί σατανικούς ὄγκους κατασπᾷ, τήν τε καθ᾿ Ἕλληνας ἀπόδειξιν καί τό κατ᾿ αὐτήν ὑπέρ ἀπόδειξιν ἠχρειωμένον ἐξελέγχει καί ἀνακαλύπτει τό βαρύ καί βαθύ σκότος τῶν νοερῶν κατ᾿ εἰκείνους φωτισμῶν.

Α' ΠΡΟΣ ΒΑΡΛΑΑΜ (σελ. 444)

ΠΕΡΙ ∆ΥΟ ΑΡΧΩΝ Η ΚΑΘ᾿ ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΗΣ ΕΠΟΨΙΑΣ