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of this alone. Yes, he says; but that this passion is evil, is surely clear to everyone; but how we might escape it, this we must say. Chiefly, if you persuade yourself well that this disease is grievous, you will have taken the best beginning of correction; since even the sick man will quickly seek out the physician, if he learns this before all else, that he is sick. But if you also seek another way of escape from here, look to God continually, and be content with the glory from Him. And if you see the passion tickling you and stirring you up to tell your fellow servants your achievements, considering again that after speaking there is no profit, quench the absurd desire, and say to your soul: Behold, for so long you have been in labor to tell of your achievements, and you did not endure to restrain them in silence, but you brought them forth to all; what then have you gained from this? Nothing gained, but the utmost loss, and the emptying out of all that was gathered with much labor. And after this, consider that too, that the vote and the judgment of the many is corrupt, and not only corrupt, but that it also quickly fades. For even if they admire you for an hour, when the time has passed, they have forgotten everything and have snatched away the crown given to you by God, and they were not able to preserve for you the one from themselves. And yet, even if this one remained, it were of much wretchedness to exchange that one for this; but when this one also flows away, what defense shall we have, betraying the one that remains for the one that does not, losing so many good things for the praise of a few? And yet, even if those who praise were many, they too would be worthy of being called wretched, and then more so, when those who do this are more numerous. But if you marvel at what has been said, hear Christ decreeing these things: 'For woe to you,' He says, 'when all men speak well of you.' And very rightly. For if for each art we must seek its craftsmen as judges, how can you entrust the testing of virtue to the many, and not before all to Him who knows best of all, and is able to assemble and to crown? Let us therefore inscribe this saying on walls and doors and in our mind, and let us continually say to ourselves: 'Woe to us, when all men speak well of us.' For even they who say it, afterwards slander one as vainglorious and ambitious 60.570 and a lover of praise from them. But not so God; but when He sees you loving the glory that comes from Him, then He will especially praise you and admire you and proclaim you. But man is not so; but having taken you as a slave instead of a free man, and having often gratified you with a mere word, a false praise, he has snatched from you a true reward, and has subjected you more than a slave bought with silver. For masters have them obeying after commands, but you are a slave even without commands. For you do not wait to hear something from them, but if you only know by what means you will gratify them, you do everything even without their commanding it. Of how great a Gehenna then would we not be worthy, pleasing the wicked, and serving them before they command, but when God urges and exhorts us every day, not even then listening? And yet, if you love glory and praise, flee the praise of men, and then you will attain glory; turn away from eulogies, and then you will enjoy countless praises both from God and from men. For we are accustomed to glorify no one so much as the one who disdains glory, nor to praise and admire as the one who despises being admired and praised; and if we do, how much more the God of all. And when He glorifies and praises you, who could be more blessed than you? For as great as the distance is between glory and dishonor, so great is the difference of the glory from above compared to human glory; or rather, it is much greater and infinite. For if even when compared to nothing this human glory is shameful and ugly, when we contrast it with the other, consider how great its shame will appear. For just as a prostituting woman standing on the roof gives her whole self away, so also do the slaves of vainglory; or rather, these are even more shameful than her.

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μόνης. Ναὶ, φησίν· ἀλλ' ὅτι μὲν κακὸν τουτὶ τὸ πάθος, παντί που δῆλόν ἐστι· πῶς δ' ἂν αὐτὸ διαφύγοιμεν, τοῦτο εἰπεῖν χρή. Μάλιστα μὲν, ἂν πείσῃς σαυτὸν καλῶς, ὅτι χαλεπὸν τουτὶ τὸ νόσημα, ἀρχὴν λήψῃ διορθώσεως ἀρίστην· ἐπεὶ καὶ ὁ νοσῶν ταχέως ἐπιζητήσει τὸν ἰατρὸν, ἂν τοῦτο μάθῃ πρὸ τῶν ἄλλων, ὅτι νοσεῖ. Εἰ δὲ καὶ ἑτέραν ἐπιζητεῖς ὁδὸν τῆς ἐντεῦθεν φυγῆς, ὅρα πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν διηνεκῶς, καὶ ἀρκοῦ τῇ παρ' αὐτοῦ δόξῃ. Κἂν ἴδῃς τὸ πάθος γαργαλίζον σε καὶ διεγεῖρον εἰπεῖν τοῖς συνδούλοις τὰ κατωρθωμένα σοι, λογισάμενος πάλιν, ὅτι μετὰ τὸ εἰπεῖν οὐδὲν γίνεται κέρδος, σβέσον τὴν ἄτοπον ἐπιθυμίαν, καὶ πρὸς τὴν ψυχήν σου εἰπέ· Ἰδοὺ τοσοῦτον ὠδῖνες χρόνον εἰπεῖν σου τὰ κατορθώματα, καὶ οὐκ ἐκαρτέρησας σιγῇ κατασχεῖν, ἀλλ' εἰς πάντας ἐξήνεγκας· τί οὖν σοι πλέον γέγονεν ἐντεῦθεν; Πλέον μὲν οὐδὲν, ζημία δὲ ἐσχάτη, καὶ τὸ κενῶσαι ἅπαντα τὰ μετὰ πολλοῦ συλλεγέντα πόνου. Μετὰ δὲ τοῦτο κἀκεῖνο ἐννόησον, ὅτι διεφθαρμένη τῶν πολλῶν ἡ ψῆφος καὶ ἡ κρίσις ἐστὶ, καὶ οὐ διεφθαρμένη μόνον, ἀλλ' ὅτι καὶ ταχέως μαραίνεται. Κἂν γὰρ πρὸς ὥραν θαυμάσωσι, τοῦ καιροῦ παρελθόντος, πάντων εἰσὶν ἐπιλελησμένοι καὶ τὸν παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ σοι δεδομένον στέφανον ἥρπασαν, καὶ τὸν παρ' ἑαυτῶν οὐκ ἴσχυσάν σοι διατηρῆσαι. Καίτοι καὶ εἰ οὗτος ἔμενε, πολλῆς ἀθλιότητος ἦν ἐκείνου τοῦτον ἀλλάξασθαι· ὅταν δὲ καὶ οὗτος διαῤῥέῃ, ποίαν ἕξομεν ἀπολογίαν, ὑπὲρ τοῦ μὴ μένοντος τὸν μένοντα προδιδόντες, ὑπὲρ τῆς τῶν ὀλίγων εὐφημίας τοσαῦτα ἀπολλύντες ἀγαθά; Καίτοι εἰ καὶ πολλοὶ οἱ ἐπαινοῦντες εἶεν, καὶ οὗτοι τοῦ ταλανίζεσθαι ἄξιοι, καὶ τότε μᾶλλον, ὅταν πλείους οἱ τοῦτο ποιοῦντες ὦσιν. Εἰ δὲ θαυμάζεις τὸ εἰρημένον, ἄκουσον τοῦ Χριστοῦ ταῦτα ψηφιζομένου· Οὐαὶ γὰρ ὑμῖν, φησὶν, ὅταν καλῶς ὑμᾶς εἴπωσι πάντες οἱ ἄνθρωποι. Καὶ μάλα εἰκότως. Εἰ γὰρ ἑκάστης τέχνης τοὺς δημιουργοὺς δεῖ ζητεῖν κριτὰς, πῶς τῆς ἀρετῆς τὴν δοκιμασίαν τοῖς πολλοῖς ἐπιτρέπεις, ἀλλ' οὐχὶ πρὸ πάντων ἐκείνῳ τῷ μάλιστα πάντων εἰδότι, καὶ συγκροτῆσαι καὶ στεφανῶσαι δυναμένῳ; Τοῦτο τοίνυν τὸ ῥῆμα ἐγγράψωμεν καὶ τοίχοις καὶ θύραις καὶ διανοίᾳ, καὶ συνεχῶς λέγωμεν πρὸς ἑαυτούς· Οὐαὶ ἡμῖν, ὅταν καλῶς εἴπωσιν ἡμᾶς πάντες οἱ ἄνθρωποι. Καὶ γὰρ καὶ αὐτοὶ οἱ λέγοντες, ὕστερον διαβάλλουσιν ὡς κενόδοξον καὶ φι 60.570 λότιμον καὶ ἐρῶντα τῆς παρ' αὐτῶν εὐφημίας. Ἀλλ' οὐχ ὁ Θεὸς οὕτως, ἀλλ' ὅταν ἴδῃ σε ἐρῶντα τῆς παρ' αὐτοῦ δόξης, τότε σε μάλιστα ἐπαινέσεται καὶ θαυμάσεται καὶ ἀνακηρύξει. Ὁ δὲ ἄνθρωπος οὐχ οὕτως, ἀλλὰ λαβών σε δοῦλον ἀντ' ἐλευθέρου, καὶ διὰ ψιλοῦ ῥήματος πολλάκις σοι χαρισάμενος ἔπαινον ψευδῆ. ἥρπασεν ἀπὸ σοῦ μισθὸν ἀληθῆ, καὶ ἀργυρωνήτου μᾶλλον ὑπέταξεν. Ἐκείνους μὲν γὰρ μετὰ τὰ ἐπιτάγματα ἔχουσιν ὑπακούοντας οἱ δεσπόται, σὺ δὲ καὶ χωρὶς ἐπιταγμάτων δουλεύεις. Οὐδὲ γὰρ ἀναμένεις ἀκοῦσαί τι παρ' αὐτῶν, ἀλλ' ἂν γνῷς μόνον δι' ὧν αὐτοῖς χαριῇ, οὐδὲ ἐπιταττόντων αὐτῶν πάντα ποιεῖς. Πόσης οὖν οὐκ ἂν εἴημεν ἄξιοι γεέννης τοὺς μὲν μοχθηροὺς τέρποντες, καὶ πρὶν ἐπιτάξουσι θεραπεύοντες, τοῦ δὲ Θεοῦ καθ' ἑκάστην ἡμέραν ἐγκελευομένου καὶ παραινοῦντος, μηδὲ οὕτως ἀκούοντες; Καίτοι γε εἰ δόξης καὶ ἐπαίνων ἐρᾷς, φεῦγε τὸν παρ' ἀνθρώπων ἔπαινον, καὶ τότε ἐπιτεύξῃ δόξης· ἀποστράφηθι τὰς εὐφημίας, καὶ τότε μυρίων ἀπολαύσεις τῶν ἐπαίνων καὶ παρὰ Θεῷ, καὶ παρ' ἀνθρώποις. Οὐδένα γὰρ οὕτω δοξάζειν εἰώθαμεν ὡς τὸν ὑπερορῶντα δόξης, οὐδὲ ἐπαινεῖν καὶ θαυμάζειν ὡς τὸν καταφρονοῦντα τοῦ θαυμάζεσθαι καὶ ἐπαινεῖσθαι· εἰ δὲ ἡμεῖς, πολλῷ μᾶλλον ὁ τῶν ὅλων Θεός. Ὅταν δὲ ἐκεῖνός σε δοξάζῃ καὶ ἐπαινῇ, τίς σου μακαριστότερος γένοιτ' ἄν; Καὶ γὰρ ὅσον δόξης καὶ ἀτιμίας τὸ μέσον, τοσοῦτον τῆς ἄνωθεν δόξης πρὸς τὴν ἀνθρωπίνην τὸ διάφορον· μᾶλλον δὲ πολλῷ πλέον καὶ ἄπειρον. Εἰ γὰρ καὶ μηδενὶ παραβαλλομένη αὕτη αἰσχρά τίς ἐστι καὶ δυσειδὴς, ὅταν καὶ πρὸς ἑτέραν αὐτὴν ἀντεξετάζωμεν, ἐννόησον ὅσον φανεῖται τὸ αἶσχος. Καθάπερ γὰρ ἑταιριζομένη γυνὴ καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ στέγους ἑστῶσα πᾶσαν ἑαυτὴν ἐκδίδωσιν, οὕτω καὶ οἱ κενοδοξίας δοῦλοι· μᾶλλον δὲ καὶ ἐκείνης αἰσχίους οὗτοι.