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He who is able to understand and perceive that naked, having been brought forth from non-being, he entered into the world, this man will know the one who made him and will fear and love him alone and will serve him with his whole soul and will in no way prefer any of his visible things, but knowing in all fullness that he is a stranger to all earthly things, and I might say even to those in heaven, he gives over the whole intention of his soul to the service of him who made him. For if he is a stranger to the things from which he was formed and among which he lives, how much more to those from which he is far removed in nature and in substance and in way of life. And he who has recognized himself to be a stranger to earthly things and knows that he entered naked into this theater and is about to depart from it naked again, how will he not mourn? How will he not weep, not only for himself, but also for all men who are of the same race and subject to the same passions as he? But he who loves and fears God alone, how will he rejoice bodily, or celebrate bodily according to the custom of men, in a manner so ignorant and unreasoning, (366) when the Lord Himself always says to such men: "The world will rejoice, but you will be sorrowful; but take heart, I have overcome the world. For I will rise up in you, the inferior world having been swallowed up by the life which is awarded to all by my Spirit; and seeing me, your heart will rejoice, and no one takes your joy from you." How then can he who sees the heavenly Master come to be in desire of any earthly thing, or think anything that is not pleasing to God? And how can he who knows himself with full assurance to be a stranger, naked and poor, even if he possesses all things, to speak apostolically, be adorned, or be lifted up for what he does, or think highly of himself for a multitude of waxes and lamps and for perfumes and ointments, or a gathering of people, or a bountiful and lavish table, and boast in the pomp of friends and the presence of glorious men of the earth? In no way, then. For he knows that all these things and all these people are present today and passing away tomorrow, appearing present today and after a little while disappearing. For such a man, who knows how to celebrate well, does not have his mind or his senses at all on what is happening—for this is for those who imagine nothing beyond what is seen—but as if present in the rites being performed, he sees with a wise mind the things to come and in them his heart rejoices, and he seems to be wholly in those things and with the multitude of the people, or the assembly of friends, who are celebrating in heaven. Yet he always considers what comes after a little while: that the lights will be extinguished, and the people will depart, each to his own, and he alone will be left in darkness. Do not, then, count up for me the times and months and seasons, (367) nor say to me, "Behold, I have celebrated the birth of Christ, the Presentation, the Theophany, the Resurrection, the Ascension, the descent of the Spirit." Do not tell me these things nor count up all the feasts, but neither reckon them sufficient for the salvation of your soul nor consider the feast to consist in splendid garments and proud horses and costly ointments, and waxes and lamps and a multitude of people. For these things do not make the feast splendid, nor is this a true feast, but symbols of a feast. For what is the benefit to me, beloved, not to mention lighting many waxes and lamps in the temple and in the church of the faithful, but if I were able to acquire such things as the sun shining from heaven, and instead of many lamps to fix the stars to the roof of the mind and make it a new heaven and a strange thing upon the earth, and in addition to these, to exult in their light, to be marveled at and praised by those who have gathered, and then after a little while, when all of them have been extinguished, I myself will be left in darkness? And if today I should perfume myself and those who have gathered with ointments, but tomorrow from

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Ὁ συνιέναι καί συνιδεῖν δυνηθείς ὅτι γυμνός ἐκ τοῦ μή ὄντος παραχθείς εἰς τόν κόσμον εἰσῆλθεν, οὗτος τόν ποιήσαντα αὐτόν ἐπιγνώσεται καί μόνον αὐτόν φοβηθήσεται καί ἀγαπήσει καί αὐτῷ δουλεύσει ἐξ ὅλης ψυχῆς καί οὐδέν οὐδαμῶς, προτιμήσει τῶν ὁρωμένων αὐτοῦ, ἀλλά ξένον πάντων τῶν ἐπιγείων, εἰπεῖν δέ καί αὐτῶν τῶν ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ, ἑαυτόν εἶναι ἐν πάσῃ πληροφορίᾳ εἰδώς, ὅλην αὐτοῦ τήν πρόθεσιν τῆς ψυχῆς εἰς τήν θεραπείαν τοῦ πεποιηκότος αὐτόν ἐκδίδωσιν. Εἰ γάρ ἐξ ὧν ἐπλάσθη καί ἐν οἷς διάγει ξένος ἐστί, πολλῷ μᾶλλον ἐκείνων ὧν κατά πολύ ἀφέστηκε καί τῇ φύσει καί τῇ οὐσίᾳ καί τῇ διαγωγῇ. Ὁ δέ γε ξένον ἑαυτόν ὄντα τῶν ἐπιγείων ἐπεγνωκώς καί εἰδώς ὅτι γυμνός ἐν τῷ θεάτρῳ τούτῳ εἰσῆλθε καί γυμνός πάλιν ἐξέρχεσθαι τούτου μέλλει, πῶς οὐχί πενθήσει; Πῶς δέ οὐ κλαύσει οὐχ ἑαυτόν μόνον, ἀλλά καί πάντας τούς ὁμογενεῖς καί ὁμοιοπαθεῖς αὐτῷ ἀνθρώπους; Ὁ δέ καί τόν Θεόν μόνον ἀγαπῶν καί φοβούμενος, πῶς σωματικῶς εὐφρανθήσεται, ἤ σωματικῶς κατά τήν τῶν ἀνθρώπων συνήθειαν οὕτω πως ἀγνώστως ἑορτάσει καί ἀλογίστως, (366) αὐτοῦ τοῦ Κυρίου πρός τούς τοιούτους ἀεί λεγοντος· «Ὁ κόσμος χαρήσεται, ὑμεῖς δέ λυπηθήσεσθε· ἀλλά θαρσεῖτε, ἐγώ νενίκηκα τόν κόσμον. Ἀναστήσομαι γάρ ἐν ὑμῖν, καταποθέντος τοῦ χείρονος κόσμου ὑπό τῆς ζωῆς τῆς βραβευομένης πᾶσιν ἐκ τοῦ ἐμοῦ Πνεύματος· καί ἰδόντες με, χαρήσεται ὑμῶν ἡ καρδία καί τήν χαράν ὑμῶν οὐδείς αἴρει ἀφ᾿ ὑμῶν». Πῶς οὖν ὁ τόν οὐράνιον βλέπων ∆εσπότην ἐπιγείου τινός ἐν ἐπιθυμίᾳ γένηται πράγματος, ἤ ἐννοήσει τι ὅ μή ἀρέσκει Θεῷ; Πῶς δέ ὁ καί ξένον ἑαυτόν εἰδώς ἐν πληροφορίᾳ γυμνόν τε καί πένητα, εἰ καί τά πάντα κατέχει, ἀποστολικῶς εἰπεῖν, ἐγκαλλωπισθήσεται, ἤ ἐφ᾿ οἷς ἄρα ποιεῖ ἐπαρθήσεται, ἤ ἐπί πλήθει κηρῶν καί λύχνων μεγάλα φρονήσει καί ἐπί ἀρώμασι καί μύροις, ἤ συνάξει λαοῦ, ἤ εὐθηνούσῃ τραπέζῃ καί πολυτελεῖ, καί φίλων παριφανείᾳ καί παρουσίᾳ ἐνδόξων ἀνδρῶν τῶν ἐπί τῆς γῆς ἐγκαυχήσεται; Οὐδαμῶς οὖν. Οἶδε γάρ ταῦτα πάντα καίπάντας ὁμοῦ τήν σήμερον ὄντας καί παρερχομένους τήν αὔριον, σήμερον τά παρόντα φαινόμενα καί μετ᾿ ὀλίγον ἀφανιζόμενα. Οὐδέ γάρ ἔχει πρός τά γινόμενα ὁ τοιοῦτος καί τό ἑορτάζειν καλῶς ἐπιστάμενος ἤ τόν νοῦν ἑαυτοῦ ἤ τήν αἴσθησιν ὅλως - τοῦτο γάρ τῶν μηδέν πλέον τῶν ὁρωμένων φανταζομένων ἐστίν , ἀλλ᾿ ὡς ἐνεστῶτα ἐν τοῖς τελουμένοις ὁρᾷ σοφῷ τῷ νοΐ τά μέλλοντα καί ἐπ᾿ αὐτοῖς τήν καρδίαν εὐφραίνεται καί δοκεῖ ὅλον ἐν ἐκεῖνοις ἑαυτόν εἶναι καί μετά τῶν ἑορταζόντων εἰς οὐρανούς τό πλῆθος τοῦ λαοῦ, ἤ τήν τῶν φίλων συνέλευσιν, ἀλλά τό μετ᾿ ὀλίγον ἀεί ἐννοεῖ, ὅτι δή τά μέν σβεσθήσονται, οἱ δέ ἀπελεύσονται ἕκαστος εἰς τά ἴδια καί μόνος αὐτός ἐν ἐν σκότει καταλειφθήσεται. Μή δή οὖν μοι χρόνους καί μῆνας καί καιρῶν περιόδους (367) ἀρίθμει, μηδέ λέγε μοι «Ἰδού ἑώρτασα τήν Χριστοῦ γέννησιν, τήν Ὑπαπαντήν, τά Θεοφάνια, τήν Ἀνάστασιν, τήν Ἀνάληψιν, τήν τοῦ Πνεύματος κάθοδον». Μή ταῦτά μοι λέγει μηδέ πάσας ἀρίθμει τάς ἑορτάς, ἀλλά μηδέ ἀρκεῖν σοι ταύτας λογίζου πρός σωτηρίαν ψυχῆς μηδέ ἐν λαμπροῖς ἱματίοις καί ἀγερώχοις ἵπποις καί μύροις πολυτίμοις, κηροῖς τε καί λύχνοις καί πλήθει λαοῦ, τήν ἑορτήν σοι νόμιζε εἶναι. Ταῦτα γάρ λαμπράν τήν ἑορτήν οὐ ποιεῖ οὐδέ ἀληθής ἑορτή ἐστι τοῦτο, ἀλλά σύμβολα ἑορτῆς. Τί γάρ μοι ὄφελος, ἀγαπητέ, μή εἴπω κηρούς καί λύχνους ἀνάψαι πολλούς ἐν τῷ ναῷ καί τῇ τῶν πιστῶν ἐκκλησίᾳ, ἀλλ᾿ ἐάν τοιούτους αὐτούς κτήσασθαι δυνηθῶ, οἷον τόν ἀπ᾿ οὐρανοῦ λάμποντα ἥλιον, καί ἀντί λύχνων πολλῶν τούς ἀστέρας προσπῆξαι τῷ ὀρόφῳ τοῦ νοῦ καί ποιῆσαι αὐτόν καινόν οὐρανόν καί πρᾶγμα ξένον ἐπί τῆς γῆς, καί ἔτι πρός τούτοις, ἐν τῷ τούτων ἀγαλλιασθῆναι φωτί, θαυμαστωθῆναί τε παρά τῶν συνεληλυθότων καί ἐπαινεθῆναι, εἶτα μετ᾿ ὀλίγον, πάντων ἀποσβεσθέντων αὐτῶν, αὐτός ἐγώ ἐν σκότει καταλειφθήσομαι; Εἰ δέ καί σήμερον μέν μύροις ἐμαυτόν τε καί τούς συνεληλυθότας εὐωδιάσαιμι, αὔριον δέ ἐκ