98

the same when we feel pleasure and when we have within us the confused and mixed motion of all the others, but do we recognize their dominion in turn, whenever one of these prevails while the others are quiet? 2.1.111 And what at all is this composition and this disposition and this spaciousness in us with many empty places, so that to each its own place is assigned, as if hindered by some intervening partitions from mixing with its neighbor? And this very thing, whether anger or fear or the rest of the things mentioned subsist in substance, or happen to be certain unsubstantial motions, what is 2.1.112 the reason that has interpreted it? For if they subsist, not one soul, as has been said, but some combination of souls is contained in us, each of these being separated into its own peculiar and circumscribed soul. But if one must think these things to be some unsubstantial motion, how does the non-existent overcome and rule us, enslaving us as if by a tyranny, whichever of these should happen to prevail? 2.1.113 And if the soul is something intelligible, how is the multipartite and composite observed in the intelligible, since such a concept is observed particularly in these corporeal qualities? And the augmentative power of the soul, and the appetitive and nutritive and alterative, and that all things of the body are nourished, but that sensation does not extend through all, but that some of the things in us, equally with inanimate things, are deprived of sensation, of bones and cartilages and nails and hairs, 2.1.114 both being nourished and not perceiving? Therefore, who is he that has understood the incomplete activity of the soul in these things, tell me? 2.1.115 And why do I speak about the soul? But not even of the flesh itself has that which has received the corporeal qualities been captured up to now by any clear comprehension. For if someone by reason resolves the phenomenon into the things of which it is composed, and having stripped it of its qualities, strives to understand the subject 2.1.116 in itself, what will be left for contemplation, I do not see. For when you take away from the body color, shape, resistance, weight, magnitude, position in space, motion, both its passive and active disposition, its relation to something, none of which is in itself a body, but all are about the body, what then will be left, which receives the definition of body, we can neither perceive through ourselves nor have we learned from 2.1.117 Scripture. But he who is ignorant of himself, how could he know anything beyond himself? And he who has become accustomed to ignorance about himself, is he not clearly taught by this very thing not to be astonished at any of the hidden things without? For this reason also the elements of the world we know by sensation only so much, as to receive from each what is useful for our life, but the account of their substance 2.1.118 we have neither learned, nor do we consider it a loss not to know. For why should I be curious about the nature of fire, how it is produced by friction, how it is kindled, how, seizing upon the adjacent matter, it does not depart before it has devoured and consumed the substrate, how the spark lies hidden in the stone, how iron, being cold to the touch, begets flame, how pieces of wood, when rubbed against each other, give forth fire, how water reflecting in the sun makes a flame; leaving aside being curious about and examining the cause of its upward motion and its ever-moving power and all such things, we have considered only what is useful from it for our own life, knowing that he who receives the benefit without curiosity has nothing less than the one who is curious. 2.1.119 For this reason Scripture has omitted to chatter about the substance of created things, as being superfluous and useless. And it seems to me that John, the son of thunder, who with the loud voice of his doctrines surpassed the preceding proclamations, understanding this, said at the end of the evangelical history that there are many things that were done by the Lord, "Which," he says, "if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written," not meaning in every case these miracles 2.1.120 concerning healings; for the history has left none of these unmentioned, even if it has not made mention by name of all those who were healed. for when it says that the dead are raised, the blind receive their sight, the deaf hear, the lame walk, and again, to heal every infirmity, through these it left unrecorded none of the miracles, having included the particular cases in the general concepts. But perhaps the evangelist says that with the depth of his knowledge, that the majesty of the Son of God must be known not only from the miracles 2.1.121 wrought through the flesh; for these are small things when examined in relation to the rest of his great work. But you, look up to heaven, see the beauties in it, carry your thought to the breadth of the earth, to the depths of the water, having taken the whole world into your thought and the supracelestial

98

ταὐτὸν καὶ ἡδόμενοι καὶ τῶν ἄλλων πάν των συγκεχυμένην καὶ ἀναμεμιγμένην ἔνδον τὴν κίνησιν ἔχοντες, ἀλλ' ἀνὰ μέρος αὐτῶν τὴν δυναστείαν ἐπιγινώσκο μεν, ὅταν ἐπικρατήσῃ τι τούτων ἡσυχαζόντων τῶν ἄλλων; 2.1.111 τίς δὲ ὅλως καὶ ἡ σύνθεσις καὶ ἡ διάθεσις αὕτη καὶ ἡ πολύκενος ἐν ἡμῖν εὐρυχωρία, ὥστε ἑκάστῳ τὴν ἰδίαν χώραν ἀποταχθῆναι οἷόν τισι μέσοις διατειχίσμασι κωλυο μένῳ πρὸς τὴν ἐπιμιξίαν τοῦ γείτονος; αὐτὸ δὲ τοῦτο, εἰ κατ' οὐσίαν ὑφέστηκεν ὁ θυμὸς ἢ ὁ φόβος ἢ καὶ τὰ λοιπὰ τῶν εἰρημένων ἤ τινες ἀνυπόστατοι κινήσεις τυγχάνουσι, τίς 2.1.112 ὁ διερμηνεύσας λόγος; εἰ μὲν γὰρ ὑφεστήκασιν, οὐ μία ψυχή, καθὼς εἴρηται, ἀλλά τι συγκρότημα ψυχῶν ἐν ἡμῖν περιείληπται, ἑκάστου τούτων εἰς ἰδιάζουσαν καὶ περιγε γραμμένην ψυχὴν ἀποκεκριμένου. εἰ δέ τινα κίνησιν ἀνυ πόστατον οἴεσθαι χρὴ ταῦτα εἶναι, πῶς κατακρατεῖ καὶ δυναστεύει ἡμῶν τὸ ἀνύπαρκτον καθάπερ ἐκ τυραννίδος ἡμᾶς δουλωσάμενον, ὅτιπερ ἂν τούτων κατακρατῆσαν τύχῃ; 2.1.113 καὶ εἰ νοητόν τί ἐστιν ἡ ψυχή, πῶς ἐν τῷ νοητῷ θεωρεῖται τὸ πολυμερές τε καὶ σύνθετον, ἰδίως τῆς τοιαύτης ἐννοίας παρὰ τὰς σωματικὰς ταύτας ποιότητας θεωρουμένης; ἡ δὲ αὐξητικὴ δύναμις τῆς ψυχῆς ἥ τε ὀρεκτικὴ καὶ θρε πτικὴ καὶ ἀλλοιωτικὴ καὶ τὸ πάντα μὲν τὰ τοῦ σώματος τρέφεσθαι, μὴ διὰ πάντων δὲ διήκειν τὴν αἴσθησιν, ἀλλ' ἐπίσης τοῖς ἀψύχοις ἔνια τῶν ἐν ἡμῖν ἀμοιρεῖν τῆς αἰσθή σεως, ὀστέων καὶ χόνδρων ὀνύχων τε καὶ τριχῶν καὶ τρε 2.1.114 φομένων καὶ οὐκ αἰσθανομένων; τὴν οὖν ἡμιτελῆ τῆς ψυχῆς ἐπὶ τούτων ἐνέργειαν τίς ὁ κατανοήσας, εἰπέ μοι; 2.1.115 Καὶ τί περὶ τῆς ψυχῆς λέγω; ἀλλ' οὐδὲ τῆς σαρκὸς αὐτῆς τὸ τὰς σωματικὰς ἀναδεδεγμένον ποιότητας ἐναργεῖ τινι καταλήψει μέχρι τοῦ δεῦρο τεθήραται. ἐὰν γάρ τις τῷ λόγῳ τὸ φαινόμενον εἰς τὰ ἐξ ὧν σύγκειται διαλύσῃ καὶ ψιλώσας τῶν ποιοτήτων ἐφ' ἑαυτοῦ κατανοῆσαι φιλονικήσῃ τὸ ὑπο 2.1.116 κείμενον, τί καταλειφθήσεται τῇ θεωρίᾳ, οὐ συνορῶ. ὅταν γὰρ ἀφέλῃς τοῦ σώματος τὸ χρῶμα, τὸ σχῆμα, τὴν ἀντιτυπίαν, τὸ βάρος, τὴν πηλικότητα, τὴν ἐπὶ τόπου θέσιν, τὴν κίνησιν, τὴν παθητικήν τε καὶ ἐνεργητικὴν διάθεσιν, τὸ πρός τί πως ἔχειν, ὧν ἕκαστον οὐδὲν ἐφ' ἑαυτοῦ σῶμά ἐστι, περὶ δὲ τὸ σῶμα τὰ πάντα, τί λοιπὸν ἔσται, ὃ τὸν τοῦ σώματος δέχεται λόγον, οὔτε δι' ἑαυτῶν συνιδεῖν ἔχομεν οὔτε παρὰ 2.1.117 τῆς γραφῆς μεμαθήκαμεν. ὁ δ' ἑαυτὸν ἀγνοῶν πῶς ἄν τι τῶν ὑπὲρ ἑαυτὸν ἐπιγνοίη; καὶ ὁ τῇ περὶ ἑαυτοῦ ἀγνοίᾳ προειθισμένος ἆρ' οὐχὶ φανερῶς δι' αὐτοῦ τούτου διδά σκεται πρὸς μηδὲν τῶν ἔξωθεν ἀποκεκρυμμένων ξενίζεσθαι; διὰ τοῦτο καὶ τὰ τοῦ κόσμου στοιχεῖα τῇ μὲν αἰσθήσει τοσοῦτον γινώσκομεν, ὅσον τὸ ἀφ' ἑκάστου χρήσιμον πρὸς τὴν ζωὴν ἡμῶν δέχεσθαι, τὸν δὲ τῆς οὐσίας αὐτῶν λόγον 2.1.118 οὔτε ἐμάθομεν οὔτε τὸ μὴ εἰδέναι ζημίαν ποιούμεθα. τί γάρ μοι πολυπραγμονεῖν τοῦ πυρὸς τὴν φύσιν, πῶς ἐκτρί βεται, πῶς ἐξάπτεται, πῶς τῆς παρακειμένης δρασσόμενον ὕλης οὐ πρότερον ἀποχωρεῖ πρὶν διαφαγεῖν καὶ ἐξαναλῶσαι τὸ ὑποκείμενον, πῶς λανθάνει ὁ σπινθὴρ τῷ λίθῳ ἐγκεί μενος, πῶς ψυχρὸς ὢν τοῖς ἁπτομένοις ὁ σίδηρος ἀπογεννᾷ τὴν φλόγα, πῶς τριβόμενα πρὸς ἑαυτὰ τὰ ξύλα πῦρ ἀνα δίδωσι, πῶς ἀπαυγάζον ἐν ἡλίῳ τὸ ὕδωρ φλόγα ποιεῖ, τῆς τε ἐπὶ τὸ ἄνω φορᾶς τὴν αἰτίαν καὶ τὴν ἀεικίνητον δύναμιν καὶ πάντα τὰ τοιαῦτα παρέντες πολυπραγμονεῖν τε καὶ ἐξετάζειν μόνον τὸ ἀπ' αὐτοῦ χρήσιμον εἰς τὸν βίον ἑαυτῶν ἐνοήσαμεν, εἰδότες ὅτι οὐδὲν ἔλαττον ἔχει τοῦ πολυπραγμο νοῦντος ὁ ἀπραγμόνως τὴν ὠφέλειαν δεχόμενος. 2.1.119 ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ὡς περιττόν τε καὶ ἀνωφελὲς τὸ περὶ τῆς οὐσίας τῶν γεγονότων ἀδολεσχεῖν ἡ γραφὴ παρῆκε. καί μοι δοκεῖ ὁ τῆς βροντῆς υἱὸς Ἰωάννης ὁ τῇ μεγαλοφωνίᾳ τῶν κατ' αὐτὸν δογμάτων ὑπερηχήσας τὰ προλαβόντα κη ρύγματα τοῦτο νοήσας ἐπὶ τέλει τῆς εὐαγγελικῆς ἱστορίας εἰπεῖν ὅτι πολλά ἐστι τὰ ὑπὸ τοῦ κυρίου γεγενημένα Ἅτινα, φησίν, ἐὰν γράφηται καθ' ἕν, οὐδὲ αὐτὸν οἶμαι τὸν κόσμον χωρῆσαι τὰ γραφόμενα βιβλία, οὐ πάντως ταῦτα λέγων τὰ 2.1.120 κατὰ τὰς ἰάσεις θαύματα· τούτων γὰρ οὐδὲν ἀφῆκεν ἀμνη μόνευτον ἡ ἱστορία, εἰ καὶ μὴ ἐπ' ὀνόματος πάντων τῶν τεθεραπευμένων τὴν μνήμην πεποίηται· ὅταν γὰρ λέγῃ νεκροὺς ἐγείρεσθαι, τυφλοὺς ἀναβλέπειν, κωφοὺς ἀκούειν, χωλοὺς περιπατεῖν, καὶ πάλιν ἰᾶσθαι πᾶσαν μαλακίαν, οὐδὲν διὰ τούτων ἀνιστόρητον τῶν θαυμάτων ἀπέλιπε, ταῖς καθολικαῖς ἐννοίαις ἐμπεριλαβὼν τὰ καθ' ἕκαστον· ἀλλ' ἐκεῖνο τάχα τῷ βάθει τῆς γνώσεως ὁ εὐαγγελιστὴς λέγει, ὅτι τὸ μεγαλεῖον τοῦ υἱοῦ τοῦ θεοῦ οὐκ ἐκ τῶν διὰ σαρκὸς 2.1.121 θαυματοποιηθέντων μόνον γινώσκειν χρή· μικρὰ γὰρ ταῦτα ὡς πρὸς τὴν λοιπὴν μεγαλουργίαν ἐξεταζόμενα. σὺ δὲ ἀνάβλεψον εἰς τὸν οὐρανόν, ἰδὲ τὰ ἐν αὐτῷ κάλλη, μετέ νεγκε τὴν διάνοιαν ἐπὶ τὸ πλάτος τῆς γῆς, ἐπὶ τὰ βάθη τοῦ ὕδατος, πάντα τὸν κόσμον τῇ διανοίᾳ λαβὼν καὶ τὴν ὑπερκόσμιον