167

the tyrannical laws of the spirit of the divine [laws] within me; which nourishes many, truly, shameless and savage wolves; which is truly a setting and came to be on account of sin, truly so called; upon which has come, as good and loving-kind, the good shepherd, God who shepherds Israel, and the Word of God; who sits upon the Cherubim, having clearly paid attention, and having seen our danger; and on this account having revealed himself, and having roused his own dominion, and having come in the flesh to save the lost, and to kill the wicked beasts nourished in it; and to make it a land of peace, and a pasture of rational sheep, led up to God through practice; whose law I have not yet passed unharmed through spiritual contemplation, like Israel passed Mount Seir; nor have I passed through its desires with dispassion, through gnostic practice, as those descending from Jacob [passed] their brethren the sons of Esau, who dwell in Arabah through Moses, but I still dwell in Arabah according to the sons of Esau, the west I mean, that is, the flesh; after the present life, on account of the pleasures of the flesh, expecting no other. Which every true Israel and seer of God does not deign even to sojourn in, hastening to depart from the flesh through the virtues, and desiring to be at home with the Lord through knowledge; who is mystically and truly both being and named the true land of promise of ineffable goods, flowing with milk and honey. For the Lord is nourishing to those who are infants in him, and gladdening to those who are mature in him, as he nourishes with virtues through practice, as with milk, those who fear him, and sweetens with mystical knowledge, as with honey through spiritual contemplation, those who love him.

Therefore, do not cease shepherding me, the one captured by beasts, with compassionate words of truth, honored Father, (445) and do not stop redeeming me from the passions in the flesh along with the spirits of wickedness that stir them up, as these evils devour and consume my inner man; and call me to yourself, and let me dwell under your wings. if indeed all fear of perceptible Barbarians, on account of whom I, as a lover of life, crossed such expanses of sea, is truly absent; concerning which I especially beseech your most holy selves, after the welcome news of your all-radiant health in God, to declare more accurately; and to show me by letter the whole situation prevailing there at present, as it is. For being weak in reasoning and very unsound, and scarcely able to be sober even to a small degree in peace, and to gather my mind scattered over many things from cowardice, I wish to make the voyage with security; as I am imperfect in thought, and unable to delve into the principles of the providence that wisely directs all things; lest somehow in what happens I should make my reason shrink through ignorance, and through weakness yield in the contests of endurance, and be deprived of the crowns resulting from them, having become a deserter in the trial of what is needful. Through this letter as if present I greet your most holy selves, and all those with you; asking to be commended to Christ the God and Savior of all through your holy and acceptable prayers.

9. The same to Thalassius the presbyter and hegumen.

Three things, they say well, exist, which move man; or rather, towards which man is moved by will and judgment according to choice:

God, and nature, and the world. And each of these, when it draws, displaces the other two, changing the one who is drawn toward itself;

167

τῶν θείων ἐν τοῖς κατ᾿ ἐμέ τυραννικήν νόμων τοῦ πνεύματος· τήν πολλούς, ὡς ἀληθῶς, ἀναιδεῖς τε καί ἀνημέρους λύκους ἐκτρέφουσαν· τήν ὄντως δύσιν καί γενομένην διά τήν ἁμαρτίαν, ἀληθῶς λεγομένην· ἧς ἐπιβέβηκεν, ὡς ἀγαθός καί φιλάνθρωπος, ὁ ποιμήν ὁ καλός, ὁ ποιμαίνων τόν Ἰσραήλ Θεός, καί Θεοῦ Λόγος· ὁ καθήμενος ἐπί τῶν Χερουβίμ, προσεσχηκώς δηλονότι, καί τόν κίνδυνον ἡμῶν θεασάμενος· καί διά τοῦτο ἐμφανίσας ἑαυτόν, καί τήν οἰκείαν ἐξεγείρας δυναστείαν, καί ἐλθών ἐν σαρκί σῶσαι τούς ἀπολομένους, καί τούς ἐντρεφομένους αὐτῇ πονηρούς ἀποκτεῖναι θῆρας· καί ποιῆσαι αὐτήν χώραν εἰρήνης, καί λογικῶν προβάτων νομήν, διά πράξεως πρός Θεόν ἀναγομένων· ἧς ἐγώ τέως οὔπω τόν νόμον παρῆλθον ἀβλαβῶς διά θεωρίας πνευματικῆς, καθάπερ ὁ Ἰσραήλ τό ὄρος Σιείρ· οὐδέ τάς αὐτῆς ἀπαθῶς διῆλθον ἐπιθυμίας, διά πράξεως γνωστικῆς, ὥσπερ τούς ἀδελφούς αὐτῶν τούς υἱούς Ἡσαῦ, τούς κατοικοῦντας ἐν Ἄραβα διά Μωσέως, οἱ ἐξ Ἰακώβ τό γένος κατάγοντες ἀλλ᾿ ἔτι κατοικῶ τήν Ἄραβα κατά τούς υἱούς Ἡσαῦ, τάς δυσμάς λέγω δέ τήν σάρκα· μετά τήν παροῦσαν ζωήν, διά τάς σαρκός ἡδονάς, ἑτέραν μή ἐκδεχόμενος. Ἥν οὐδέ παροικῆσαι πᾶς ἀληθινός Ἰσραήλ καί ὁρῶν Θεόν καταδέχεται, τῆς σαρκός ἐκδημῆσαι διά τῶν ἀρετῶν ἐπειγόμενος, καί ἐνδημῆσαι πρός τόν Κύριον διά τῆς γνώσεως ἐφιέμενος· τόν ὄντως γῆν ἐπαγγελίας ἀῤῥήτων ἀγαθῶν μυστικῶς καί ὄντα καί ὠνομασμένον, τήν ῥέουσαιν γάλα καί μέλι. Θρεπτικός γάρ τῶν κατ᾿ αὐτόν νηπιαζόντων, καί εὐφραντικός ὑπάρχει τῶν κατ᾿ αὐτόν ἀνδριζομένων ὁ Κύριος, ὡς ἀρεταῖς ἐκτρέφων διά πράξεως, καθάπερ γάλακτι, τούς φοβουμένους αὐτόν, καί γνώσεσι καταγλυκαίνων μυστικαῖς, καθάπερ μέλιτι διά θεωρίας πνευματικῆς, τούς ἀγαπῶντας αὐτόν.

Τοιγαροῦν, μή διαλίπῃς ποιμαίνων με συμπαθῶς ἀληθείας λόγοις τόν θηριάλωτον, τίμιε Πάτερ, (445) καί τῶν ἐν σαρκί παθῶν μετά τῶν ἀνακινούντων αὐτά πνευμάτων τῆς πονηρίας, μή παύσῃ λυτρούμενος, τῶν κακῶν κατεσθιόντων καί δαπανώντων μου τόν ἐντός ἄνθρωπον· καί κάλεσον πρός ἑαυτόν, καί ὑπό τάς σάς κατασκήνωσον πτέρυγας. εἴπερ ἀληθῶς ἄπεστι, πᾶς φόβος Βαρβάρων αἰσθητῶν, δι᾿ οὕς τοσαῦτα διαστήματα θαλάσσης, ὡς φιλόζωος, ἦλθον· περί οὗ μάλιστα παρακαλῶ τούς ἁγιωτάτους ὑμᾶς, μετά τήν εὐκταίαν σημείωσιν τῆς κατά Θεόν παμφαοῦς ὑμῶν ῥώσεως, ἀκριβέστερον δηλῶσαι· καί πᾶσαν τήν κρατοῦσαν ἐπί τοῦ παρόντος αὐτόθι κατάστασιν, ὡς ἔστι, παραδεῖξαί μοι διά γραμμάτων. Ἀσθενής γάρ ὤν τόν λογισμόν καί πάνυ σαθρός, καί μόλις κἄν ἐν εἰρῄνη νήφειν μικρομερῶς δυνάμενος, καί περί πολλά σκεδαννύμενον ἐκ δειλίας συνάγειν τόν νοῦν, θέλω σύν ἀσφαλείᾳ ποιήσασθαι τόν πλοῦν· ὡς ἀτελής τήν διάνοιαν, καί τοῖς λόγοις τῆς σοφῶς τό πᾶν διεξαγούσης προνοίας ἐμβατεύειν οὐχ οἷός τε ὤν· μή πως ἐν τοῖς συμβαίνουσιν ἐξ ἀγνοίας ὀκλάσας τόν λογισμόν, καί τοῖς τῆς ὑπομονῆς ἐξ ἀσθενείας ἐνδούς ἀγῶσι, τούς ἐξ αὐτῶν ζημιωθῶ στεφάνους, ὡς λειποτάκτης ἐν τῇ πείρᾳ τῶν δεόντων γενόμενος. ∆ιά τοῦ γράμματος ὡς παρών ἀσπάζομαι τούς ἁγιωτάτους ὑμᾶς, καί πάντας τούς σύν ὑμῖν· αἰτῶν διά τῶν ἁγίων καί εὐπροσδέκτων ὑμῶν εὐχῶν, Χριστῷ τῷ Θεῷ καί Σωτῆρι τῶν ὅλων παρατεθῆναι.

Θ´. Τοῦ αὐτοῦ πρός Θαλλάσιον πρεσβύτερον καί ἡγούμενον. Τρία, καλῶς φασιν, ὑπάρχουσι, τά τόν ἄνθρωπον ἄγοντα· μᾶλλον δέ πρό ἅ βουλήσει

τε καί γνώμῃ κατά προαίρεσιν κινεῖται ὁ ἄνθρωπος· Θεός, καί φύσις, καί κόσμος. Καί τούτων ἕκαστον ἕλκον, τῶν ἄλλων δύο ἐξίστησι, πρός ἑαυτό ἀλλοιοῦν τόν ἀγόμενον·