105

He has said "Freely you have received, freely give," but remote and monstrous and deep mysteries which are acquired by lovers of lies with much labor. For who would not spend all his possessions, so that he might learn that from the tears of the Enthymesis of the suffering Aeon seas and springs and rivers and every watery substance have received their origin, and from her laughter the light, and from her astonishment and perplexity the corporeal elements of the world? But I myself also wish to contribute something to their fruit-bearing. For since I see that some waters are sweet, such as springs and rivers and rains and such things, but those in the seas are salty, I conjecture that not all were projected from her tears, because a tear is salty in quality. It is clear then that the salty waters are those from the tears. And it is likely that she, being in much agony and perplexity, also sweated. From this, then, according to their hypothesis, one must suppose that springs and rivers and whatever other sweet waters exist have had their origin from her sweat. For it is improbable, since the quality of tears is one, for some waters to come forth from them salty, and others sweet. But this is more probable, that some are from tears, and others from sweat. And since there are also some hot and pungent waters in the world, you ought to consider what she did and from what part she sent these forth. For such fruits fit their hypothesis. They say, therefore, that their Mother, having passed through every passion and with difficulty having raised herself up, turned to supplication of the light that had left her, that is, of Christ 1.412; who, having ascended into the Pleroma, he himself, it is likely, was reluctant to descend a second time, but sent forth the Paraclete to her, that is, the Savior, the Father having bestowed on him all power and delivered everything under his authority, and the Aeons likewise, so that "in him all things might be created, things visible and invisible, thrones, divinities, lordships." And he is sent forth to her with the angels of his own age. And they say that Achamoth, being in awe of him, first put on a veil out of modesty, but afterwards, seeing him with all his fruit-bearing, ran to him, having received power from his appearance. And that he formed her with a formation according to knowledge and effected a healing of her passions, separating them from her, but not neglecting them—for it was not possible for them to be destroyed like those of the former, because they were already habitual and powerful—but having set them apart, he mixed and solidified them and changed them from incorporeal passion into incorporeal matter; and then thus he instilled in them an aptitude and nature, so that they came into compounds and bodies, to become two substances, the vile one from the passions, and the passible one from the conversion; and for this reason they assert that the Savior was a Demiurge in effect. And they teach that Achamoth, having been freed from passion, and having conceived with joy at the sight of the lights with him, that is, of the angels with him, and having become impassioned for them, brought forth fruits after their image, a spiritual conception having been made in the likeness of the attendants of the Savior. 18. Therefore, these three things now underlying, according to them—that from passion, which was matter; that from conversion, which was psychic; and that 1.413 which she bore, that is, the spiritual—she thus turned to the formation of them. But the spiritual, she was not able to form, because it was consubstantial with her. But she turned to the formation of the psychic substance that came from her conversion and put forth the teachings from the Savior. And they say that first she formed out of the psychic substance the Father and King of all, both of those consubstantial with him, that is, the psychic, which indeed they call "on the right," and of those from passion and matter, which indeed "on the left"

105

εἴρηκε «δωρεὰν ἐλάβετε, δωρεὰν δότε», ἀλλὰ ἀνακεχωρηκότα καὶ τερατώδη καὶ βαθέα μυστήρια μετὰ πολλοῦ καμάτου περιγινόμενα τοῖς φιλοψευδέσι. τίς γὰρ οὐκ ἂν ἐκδαπανήσειε πάντα τὰ ὑπάρχοντα αὐτοῦ, ἵνα μάθῃ ὅτι ἀπὸ τῶν δακρύων τῆς Ἐνθυμήσεως τοῦ πεπονθότος Αἰῶνος θάλασσαι καὶ πηγαὶ καὶ ποταμοὶ καὶ πᾶσα ἔνυδρος οὐσία τὴν γένεσιν εἴληφεν, ἐκ δὲ τοῦ γέλωτος αὐτῆς τὸ φῶς καὶ ἐκ τῆς ἐκπλήξεως καὶ ἀμηχανίας τὰ σωματικὰ τοῦ κόσμου στοιχεῖα; Βούλομαι δὲ καὶ αὐτὸς συνεισενεγκεῖν τι τῇ καρποφορίᾳ αὐτῶν. ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ὁρῶ τὰ μὲν γλυκέα ὕδατα ὄντα, οἷον πηγὰς καὶ ποταμοὺς καὶ ὄμβρους καὶ τὰ τοιαῦτα, τὰ δὲ ἐν ταῖς θαλάσσαις ἁλμυρά, ἐπινοῶ μὴ πάντα ἀπὸ τῶν δακρύων αὐτῆς προβεβλῆσθαι, διότι τὸ δάκρυον ἁλμυρὸν τῇ ποιότητι ὑπάρχει. φανερὸν οὖν ὅτι τὰ ἁλμυρὰ ὕδατα ταῦτά ἐστι τὰ ἀπὸ τῶν δακρύων. εἰκὸς δὲ αὐτὴν ἐν ἀγωνίᾳ πολλῇ καὶ ἀμηχανίᾳ γεγονυῖαν καὶ ἱδρωκέναι. ἐντεῦθεν δὴ κατὰ τὴν ὑπόθεσιν αὐτῶν ὑπολαμβάνειν δεῖ, πηγὰς καὶ ποταμοὺς καὶ εἴ τινα ἄλλα ὕδατα γλυκέα ὑπάρχει τὴν γένεσιν μὴ ἐσχηκέναι ἀπὸ τῶν ἱδρώτων αὐτῆς. ἀπίθανον γάρ, μιᾶς ποιότητος οὔσης τῶν δακρύων, τὰ μὲν ἁλμυρά, τὰ δὲ γλυκέα ὕδατα ἐξ αὐτῶν προελθεῖν. τοῦτο δὲ πιθανώτερον, τὰ μὲν εἶναι ἀπὸ τῶν δακρύων, τὰ δὲ ἀπὸ τῶν ἱδρώτων. ἐπειδὴ δὲ καὶ θερμὰ καὶ δριμέα τινὰ ὕδατά ἐστιν ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ, νοεῖν ὀφείλεις τί ποιήσασα καὶ ἐκ ποίου μορίου προήκατο ταῦτα. ἁρμόζουσι γὰρ τοιοῦτοι καρποὶ τῇ ὑποθέσει αὐτῶν. ∆ιοδεύσασαν οὖν πᾶν πάθος τὴν Μητέρα αὐτῶν καὶ μόγις ὑπερκύψασαν ἐπὶ ἱκεσίαν τραπῆναι τοῦ καταλιπόντος αὐτὴν φωτὸς τουτέστιν τοῦ Χριστοῦ 1.412 λέγουσιν· ὃς ἀνελθὼν εἰς τὸ Πλήρωμα αὐτὸς μὲν εἰκὸς ὅτι ὤκνησεν ἐκ δευτέρου κατελθεῖν, τὸν Παράκλητον δὲ ἐξέπεμψεν πρὸς αὐτὴν τουτέστι τὸν Σωτῆρα, ἐνδόντος αὐτῷ πᾶσαν τὴν δύναμιν τοῦ Πατρὸς καὶ πᾶν ὑπ' ἐξουσίαν παραδόντος καὶ τῶν Αἰώνων δὲ ὁμοίως, ὅπως «ἐν αὐτῷ τὰ πάντα κτισθῇ, τὰ ὁρατὰ καὶ τὰ ἀόρατα, θρόνοι θεότητες κυριότητες». ἐκπέμπεται δὲ πρὸς αὐτὴν μετὰ τῶν ἡλικιωτῶν αὐτοῦ τῶν ἀγγέλων. τὴν δὲ Ἀχαμὼθ ἐντραπεῖσαν αὐτὸν λέγουσιν πρῶτον μὲν κάλυμμα ἐπιθέσθαι δι' αἰδῶ, μετέπειτα δὲ ἰδοῦσαν αὐτὸν σὺν ὅλῃ τῇ καρποφορίᾳ αὐτοῦ προσδραμεῖν αὐτῷ, δύναμιν λαβοῦσαν ἐκ τῆς ἐπιφανείας αὐτοῦ. κἀκεῖνον μορφῶσαι αὐτὴν μόρφωσιν τὴν κατὰ γνῶσιν καὶ ἴασιν τῶν παθῶν ποιήσασθαι αὐτῆς, χωρίσαντα αὐτὰ αὐτῆς, μὴ ἀμελήσαντα δὲ αὐτῶν οὐ γὰρ ἦν δυνατὸν ἀφανισθῆναι αὐτὰ ὡς τὰ τῆς προτέρας, διὰ τὸ ἑκτικὰ ἤδη καὶ δυνατὰ εἶναι, ἀλλ' ἀποκρίναντα χωρίσει συγχέαι καὶ πῆξαι καὶ ἐξ ἀσωμάτου πάθους εἰς ἀσώματον τὴν ὕλην μεταβαλεῖν αὐτά· εἶθ' οὕτως ἐπιτηδειότητα καὶ φύσιν ἐμπεποιηκέναι αὐτοῖς, ὥστε εἰς συγκρίματα καὶ σώματα ἐλθεῖν, πρὸς τὸ γενέσθαι δύο οὐσίας, τὴν φαύλην ἐκ τῶν παθῶν, τήν τε τῆς ἐπιστροφῆς ἐμπαθῆ· καὶ διὰ τοῦτο δυνάμει τὸν Σωτῆρα δεδημιουργηκέναι φάσκουσι. τὴν δὲ Ἀχαμὼθ ἐκτὸς τοῦ πάθους γενομένην, καὶ συλλαβοῦσαν τῇ χαρᾷ τῶν σὺν αὐτῷ φώτων τὴν θεωρίαν τουτέστιν τῶν ἀγγέλων τῶν μετ' αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐγκισσήσασαν αὐτοὺς κεκυηκέναι καρποὺς κατὰ τὴν εἰκόνα αὐτῶν διδάσκουσι, κύημα πνευματικὸν καθ' ὁμοίωσιν γεγονὸς τῶν δορυφόρων τοῦ Σωτῆρος. 18. Τριῶν οὖν ἤδη τούτων ὑποκειμένων κατ' αὐτούς, τοῦ μὲν ἐκ τοῦ πάθους, ὃ ἦν ὕλη· τοῦ δὲ ἐκ τῆς ἐπιστροφῆς, ὃ ἦν τὸ ψυχικόν· τοῦ δὲ ὃ 1.413 ἀπεκύησεν, τουτέστιν τὸ πνευματικόν, οὕτως ἐτράπη ἐπὶ τὴν μόρφωσιν αὐτῶν. ἀλλὰ τὸ μὲν πνευματικὸν μὴ δεδυνῆσθαι αὐτὴν μορφῶσαι, ἐπειδὴ ὁμοούσιον ὑπῆρχεν αὐτῇ. τετράφθαι δὲ ἐπὶ τὴν μόρφωσιν τῆς γενομένης ἐκ τῆς ἐπιστροφῆς αὐτῆς ψυχικῆς οὐσίας προβαλεῖν τε τὰ παρὰ τοῦ Σωτῆρος μαθήματα. καὶ πρῶτον μὲν μεμορφωκέναι αὐτὴν ἐκ τῆς ψυχικῆς οὐσίας λέγουσι τὸν Πατέρα καὶ βασιλέα πάντων, τῶν τε ὁμοουσίων αὐτῷ τουτέστιν τῶν ψυχικῶν, ἃ δὴ δεξιὰ καλοῦσι, καὶ τῶν ἐκ τοῦ πάθους καὶ τῆς ὕλης, ἃ δὴ ἀριστερὰ