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but if you withdraw yourself a little, little by little the passion subsides; so also you, withdraw a little, yield a little, and the little will become a great distance. Only begin the good work. Do you have a spare house? Sell it, and give to those in need, not reckoning that you are alienating it from yourself, but rather that you are making it your own. Consider not the expense, but the income; not that you are deprived of it here, but that you become its master there. Thus also you will be able to recount the wonders of God always. For the psalm says this from the beginning. For the lover of money cannot dwell much on this; for he is always concerned with interest, transactions, contracts, purchases, wills, prices of fields, prices of houses, profits, retail trading, and he does not cease recounting and caring for these things. For where a man's treasure is, there his heart is also. He speaks of these things, he is anxious about these things; and just as servants are anxious about their masters' affairs, so also this man is anxious about his Master's affairs: what did he order? what has been accomplished? what has not yet been accomplished, but is to be? For this reason, I advise that, having been freed from that siege, you occupy yourself with these narratives, recounting the wonders of God that happen 55.123 each day, those private and those public, those for all and those for each individual. For life is full of these narratives; and wherever you might begin, you will see the introduction gushing forth more brightly, whether from the heaven, or from the earth, or from the air, or from the irrational animals, or from seeds, or from plants; if you wish to recount the ancient gifts, or those before the law, or those in the law, or those in grace, or those after the departure from here, or those in death itself, you will find ten thousand seas of these narratives. Of how great folly would it not be, then, when we have so many things to recount, through which both pleasure and profit and benefit for the soul arise, to sully our reasoning in the mire, recounting things concerning greed and plunder? 2. And if you wish, leaving aside the things above, let us discourse about the earth, its size, its position, its use, its nature, its continual birth-pangs, its varied and diverse produce, the seeds, the herbs, the plants, the flowers, the meadows, the gardens. From these things again let us examine in our discourse the form of each tree, its position, its height, its fragrance, its fruit, its season, its service, considering all other things, of the earth itself the fruitful, the unfruitful; for nothing of it is useless. For one part has brought forth iron, another copper, another gold, another silver; another spices, another medicines both varied and of every kind. What could one say of the need for waters, the drinkable, the salty, the use of mountains, the mines of varied marbles, the springs in them, the trees suitable for roofs and building? All these are the fruit of the wilderness; it also nourishes all animals and beasts. What could one say of the lakes, the springs, the rivers? For just as women who have given birth, pouring forth a spring of milk, provide nourishment for their offspring; so indeed also the earth, extending rivers and springs like breasts to gardens and parks, provides much irrigation. But in the case of women, the child must come to the nipple; here, however, she herself extends her breasts everywhere, bringing them down from on high. The wilderness also has another use. For it is more suitable for the health of the body, providing purer air to breathe, and for surveying the whole inhabited world from on high, and for philosophizing in the solitude, and for taking a little breath from the cares of life. What could one say of the songbirds, the way of life of the captured animals? The wilderness also has another use. For it has often served as walls for countries, having mountains stretched up to a height, and

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δὲ μικρὸν ἑαυτὸν ἀποστήσῃ, κατὰ μικρὸν ὑποῤῥέει τὸ πάθος· οὕτω καὶ σὺ μικρὸν ἀπόστηθι, ὀλίγον ἔνδος, καὶ τὸ μικρὸν ἔσται πολὺ διάστημα. Μόνον ἄρξαι τοῦ κατορθώματος. Ἔχεις οἰκίαν περιττήν; Ἀπόδου, καὶ δὸς τοῖς δεομένοις, μὴ ἐκεῖνο λογιζόμενος, ὅτι ἀλλοτριοῖς σου αὐτὴν, ἀλλ' ὅτι μᾶλλον οἰκειοῖς. Μὴ τὸ ἀνάλωμα, ἀλλὰ τὴν πρόσοδον σκόπει· μὴ ὅτι ἀποστερῇ αὐτῆς ἐνταῦθα, ἀλλ' ὅτι κύριος αὐτῆς ἐκεῖ γίνῃ. Οὕτω καὶ διηγεῖσθαι τὰ θαυμάσια τοῦ Θεοῦ δυνήσῃ διὰ παντός. Τοῦτο γὰρ ἐξ ἀρχῆς ὁ ψαλμὸς λέγει. Ὡς ὅγε φιλοχρήματος οὐ σφόδρα τούτῳ ἐνδιατρίβειν δύναται· διὰ παντὸς γὰρ τόκους μεριμνᾷ, συναλλάγματα, συγγραφὰς, ὤνια, διαθήκας, τιμὰς ἀγρῶν, τιμὰς οἴκων, κέρδη, καπηλείας, καὶ διηγούμενος καὶ φροντίζων οὐ παύεται. Ὅπου δὲ ὁ θησαυρὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου, ἐκεῖ καὶ ἡ καρδία αὐτοῦ. Ταῦτα φθέγγεται, ταῦτα μεριμνᾷ· καὶ καθάπερ οἱ οἰκέται τὰ τῶν δεσποτῶν μεριμνῶσιν, οὕτω καὶ οὗτος τὰ τοῦ ∆εσπότου μεριμνᾷ· τί ἐπέταξε; τί ἤνυσται; τί οὐδέπω ἤνυσται, μέλλει δέ; ∆ιὰ δὴ τοῦτο παραινῶ, τῆς πολιορκίας ἐκείνης ἀπαλλαγέντα τούτοις ἐνδιατρίβειν τοῖς διηγήμασι, τὰ 55.123 καθ' ἑκάστην ἡμέραν γινόμενα θαυμάσια τοῦ Θεοῦ διηγούμενον, τὰ ἰδίᾳ καὶ τὰ κοινῇ, τὰ εἰς πάντας καὶ τὰ εἰς ἕνα ἕκαστον. Γέμει γὰρ τὰ ἐν τῷ βίῳ τούτων τῶν διηγημάτων· καὶ ὅθεν ἂν ἄρξῃ, λαμπρότερον ὄψει τὸ προοίμιον ἀναβρύον, ἄν τε ἀπὸ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ, ἄν τε ἀπὸ τῆς γῆς, ἄν τε ἀπὸ τοῦ ἀέρος, ἄν τε ἀπὸ τῶν ἀλόγων, ἂν ἀπὸ σπερμάτων, ἂν ἀπὸ φυτῶν· ἂν τὰς παλαιὰς θέλῃς διηγήσασθαι δωρεὰς, ἂν τὰς πρὸ τοῦ νόμου, ἂν τὰς ἐν τῷ νόμῳ, ἂν τὰ ἐν τῇ χάριτι, ἂν τὰ μετὰ τὴν ἐντεῦθεν ἀποδημίαν, ἂν τὰ ἐν αὐτῷ τῷ θανάτῳ, μυρία εὕρῃς πελάγη ταῦτα διηγημάτων. Πόσης οὖν οὐκ ἂν εἴη ἀνοίας, τοσαῦτα ἔχοντας διηγεῖσθαι, δι' ὧν καὶ ἡδονὴ καὶ κέρδος καὶ ὠφέλεια τῆς ψυχῆς ἐγγίνεται, τῷ βορβόρῳ τὸν λογισμὸν ἀναφύρειν, περὶ πλεονεξίας καὶ ἁρπαγῆς διηγούμενον; βʹ. Καὶ εἰ βούλει, τὰ ἄνω ἀφέντες, περὶ τῆς γῆς διαλεχθῶμεν, τοῦ μεγέθους αὐτῆς, τῆς θέσεως, τῆς χρήσεως, τῆς φύσεως, τῶν ὠδίνων τῶν διηνεκῶν, τῶν γεννημάτων τῶν ἐξ αὐτῆς τῶν ποικίλων καὶ διαφόρων, τῶν σπερμάτων, τῶν βοτανῶν, τῶν φυτῶν, τῶν ἀνθέων, τῶν λειμώνων, τῶν παραδείσων. Ἀπὸ τούτων πάλιν τέμωμεν τῷ λόγῳ ἑκάστου δένδρου τὸ σχῆμα, τὴν θέσιν, τὸ ὕψος, τὴν εὐωδίαν, τὸν καρπὸν, τὸν καιρὸν, τὴν διακονίαν, τὰ ἄλλα πάντα ἀναλογιζόμενοι, αὐτῆς τῆς γῆς τὴν κάρπιμον, τὴν ἄκαρπον· οὐδὲν γὰρ αὐτῆς ἄχρηστον. Καὶ γὰρ ἡ μὲν σίδηρον, ἡ δὲ χαλκὸν, ἡ δὲ χρυσίον, ἡ δὲ ἄργυρον ἤνεγκεν· ἡ δὲ ἀρώματα, ἡ δὲ φάρμακα καὶ ποικίλα καὶ παντοδαπά. Τί ἄν τις εἴποι τῶν ὑδάτων τὴν χρείαν, τῶν ποτίμων, τῶν ἁλμυρῶν, τῶν ὀρῶν τὴν χρῆσιν, τῶν ποικίλων μαρμάρων τὰ μέταλλα, τὰς πηγὰς τὰς ἐν αὐτοῖς, τὰ δένδρα τὰ πρὸς ὀρόφους ἐπιτήδεια καὶ οἰκοδομήν; Ταῦτα πάντα τῆς ἐρήμου καρπός· αὕτη καὶ ζῶα καὶ θηρία πάντα τρέφει. Τί ἄν τις εἴποι τὰς λίμνας, τὰς πηγὰς, τοὺς ποταμούς; Καθάπερ γὰρ αἱ τεκοῦσαι γυναῖκες, πηγὴν γάλακτος προχέουσαι, τοῖς ἐκγόνοις παρέχουσι τροφήν· οὕτω δὴ καὶ ἡ γῆ, κήποις καὶ παραδείσοις ὥσπερ μαστοὺς ἐκτείνουσα τοὺς ποταμοὺς καὶ τὰς πηγὰς, πολλὴν παρέχει τὴν ἀρδείαν. Ἀλλ' ἐπὶ μὲν τῶν γυναικῶν, τὸ παιδίον δεῖ πρὸς τὴν θηλὴν ἐλθεῖν· ἐνταῦθα δὲ αὐτὴ τοὺς μαστοὺς ἐκτείνει πανταχοῦ ἀπὸ ὑψηλοῦ καταφέρουσα. Ἔχει καὶ ἑτέραν χρῆσιν ἡ ἔρημος. Καὶ γὰρ πρὸς τὴν τοῦ σώματος ὑγίειαν ἐπιτηδειοτέρα, καθαρώτερον παρέχουσα ἀναπνεῖν τὸν ἀέρα, καὶ τὴν οἰκουμένην ἀφ' ὑψηλοῦ πᾶσαν περισκοπεῖν, καὶ τῇ ἐρημίᾳ ἐμφιλοσοφεῖν, καὶ τῶν ἐν τῷ βίῳ φροντίδων ὀλίγον ἀναπνεῖν. Τί ἄν τις εἴποι τοὺς ὄρνιθας τοὺς ᾠδικοὺς, τῶν ἁλωσίμων ζώων τὴν διαγωγήν; Ἔχει καὶ ἑτέραν χρείαν ἡ ἔρημος. Πολλάκις γὰρ ἀντὶ τειχῶν ταῖς χώραις γέγονε, πρὸς ὕψος ἔχουσα ἀνατεταμένα ὄρη, καὶ