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or a love of vainglory or some other desire for some pleasure or passion should overturn the lamp, that is, the intention of my soul, or should lick up the oil, I mean that of the virtues, or otherwise my mind, being the wick, as I said, and having in itself the divine light shining greatly, should devour this with wicked thoughts or even cast it all away from within into the oil, that is, in remembering the deeds of his virtues, and falling from this into conceit he should be blinded, and should my lamp from these things or perhaps from some other, happen to be extinguished, where then is the fire or what becomes of it, tell me, does it remain in the lamp (241) or is it separated from the lamp? O ignorance, O madness! How is it possible for the lamp to be lit without the fire, or for the fire to remain in the lamp without the substance? The fire always desires and wishes to seize hold of the substance, but it is in every way our task to prepare it and to readily offer ourselves as lamps adorned with oil and all kinds of virtues, and to put forward the wick of the mind directly, so that it may touch the fire and be lit little by little, and thus it remains with those who have acquired it. For otherwise - let no one be deceived - it is not seen, it is not held, it is not contained at all. For it is, as I have said, outside of all created things,

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ἤ φιλοδοξίας ἔρως ἤ ἄλλη τις ἐπιθυμία ἡδονῆς τινος ἤ πάθους καί τόν λύχνον καταστρέψῃ ἤγουν πρόθεσιν ψυχῆς μου, ἤ τό ἔλαιον ἐκλείξῃ, τό τῶν ἀρετῶν σοι λέγω, ἤ ἄλλως θρυαλλίδα ὄντα μου τόν νοῦν, ὡς εἶπον, καί ἐν ἑαυτῷ τό θεῖον ἔχοντα φῶς λάμπον μέγα, καταφάγῃ πονηραῖς ἐννοίαις τοῦτο ἤ καί ὅλον ἀπορρίψῃ ἔνδοθεν ἐν τῷ ἐλαίῳ ἤγουν ἐν τῷ ἐνθυμεῖσθαι ἀρετῶν αὐτοῦ τάς πράξεις καί εἰς οἴησιν ἐντεῦθεν ἐμπεσών ἐκτυφλωθείη, καί τόν λύχνον μου ἐκ τούτων ἤ τυχόν τινος ἐξ ἄλλου, εἰ συμβῇ ἀποσβεσθῆναι, ποῦ τό πῦρ ὑπάρχειν τότε ἤ τί γίνεσθαι εἴπῃς μοι, παραμένειν ἐν τῷ λύχνῳ (241) ἤ χωρίζεσθαι τοῦ λύχνου; Ὤ ἀγνοίας, ὤ μανίας! Πῶς ἐνδέχεται τόν λύχνον δίχα τοῦ πυρός ἐξάπτειν, ἤ τό πῦρ τῆς ὕλης ἄνευ παραμένειν ἐν τῷ λύχνῳ; Πάντοτε τό πῦρ τῆς ὕλης δράσσεσθαι ποθεῖ καί θέλει, ἀλλ᾿ ἡμῶν ὑπάρχει πάντως τό προευτρεπίσαι ταύτην καί παρέξαι εὐπροθύμως ἑαυτούς ἡμᾶς ὡς λύχνους ἐν ἐλαίῳ καί παντοίαις ἀρεταῖς κεκοσμημένους, τοῦ νοός δέ θρυαλλίδα εὐθυβόλως προβαλέσθαι, ἵνα τῷ πυρί προσψαύσῃ καί κατά μικρόν ἀνάψῃ, οὕτω τε συμπαραμένῃ τοῖς αὐτό προσκτησαμένοις. Ἄλλως γάρ - μηδείς πλανάσθω - οὐχ ὁρᾶται, οὐ κρατεῖται, οὐ συνέχεται κἄν ὅλως. Ἔστι γάρ, καθάπερ εἶπον, ἔξω τῶν κτισμάτων πάντων,