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with tears you see Him Whom no one has ever seen, and with your soul being bitten by love for Him, you perform a lament mingled with tears} then remember me and pray for me, the humble one, as one who has attained union with God and unashamed boldness before Him.

Other chapters on Gnosis and Theology by the same author, 25 in number. 1. Neither is repentance fitting for one who theologizes, nor theology for one who repents}

for as far as the east is from the west, so much higher is theology than repentance. For just as a man who lives in sickness and infirmity, or as a poor man dressed in rags crying out for alms, so is he who is in a state of repentance and in truth performs the works of repentance known to be; but he who theologizes is like one who frequents the royal courts in the splendor of a most kingly robe, and is an intimate of the king, both speaking to him always and, on the hour, being clearly instructed by him in his commands and will.

2. The increase of the knowledge of God becomes the cause and agent of ignorance of all other things, and not only that, but even of God Himself; and the abundance of His illumination is complete inability to see, and the perfect perception beyond perception is insensibility to all things outside of it. For how can that be perception which is ignorant of what sort, of what kind, where, what, and how are the things in which it is, and is completely unable to learn or to understand them? And are not those things rather beyond perception, while the mind, in the perception of its own weakness, is found to be without perception of the things beyond perception? "For what eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and has not entered into the heart of man," how shall they be submitted to perception?

3. The Lord Who bestows on us things beyond perception gives us (414) another perception through His Spirit, so that of His gifts and graces beyond perception we may, in a manner surpassing nature, clearly and purely perceive through all the senses.

4. Everyone who is insensible to the one is insensible to all, just as he who has perception of the one is in perception of all and is outside the perception of all. He is in the perception of all and is not comprehended by their perception.

5. He who is deaf to the Word is deaf to every voice, just as he who hears the Word hears all things; this man, being deaf to every voice, hears all things and nothing, except only those who speak their words in the Word, and not even them, but only the Word speaking soundlessly in the voice.

6. He who hears and sees and perceives in this way knows the power of the things being said. But he who does not know is clearly one who does not possess the faculties of the soul sharpened and healthy; and being in this state, he has not yet known that he was created to be an overseer of the visible creation and an initiate of the intelligible, but, being in honor, he did not understand, and was likened to the senseless and beast-of-burden animals, and having been likened, he remains so, not having turned back, not having been called back, or raised to his first dignity according to the free gift of the economy of our Master and Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

7. While you are below, do not investigate the things above; but before you are above, do not be overly concerned with the things below, lest by slipping you fall from both, or rather, be left behind with the things below.

8. Just as one who from extreme poverty has been raised to wealth by the king, and has been clothed by him in a conspicuous dignity and a robe (415) and before his face

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δακρύων ὁρᾷς ὅν οὐδείς ἑώρακε πώποτε, καί δακνομένης σου τῆς ψυχῆς τῷ ἐκείνου ἔρωτι, θρῆνον ἀποτελεῖς τοῖς δάκρυσι σύμμικτον} τότε μνήσθητί μου καί ὑπερεύχου τοῦ ταπεινοῦ ὡς μετά Θεοῦ συνάφειαν ἐσχηκώς καί παρρησίαν πρός αὐτόν ἀκαταίσχυντον.

Τοῦ αὐτοῦ ἕτερα κεφάλαια γνωστικά τε καί θεολογικά κε'. α'. Οὔτε τῷ θεολογοῦντι ἁρμόζει μετάνοια οὔτε τῷ μετανοοῦντι θεολογία}

καθόσον γάρ ἀπέχουσιν ἀνατολαί ἀπό δυσμῶν, κατά τοσοῦτον ὑψηλοτέρα ἡ θεολογία τῆς μετανοίας ἐστίν. Ὥσπερ γάρ ἄνθρωπος ὁ ἐν νόσοις καί ἀσθενείαις διάγων ἤ ὡς ῥακοδυτῶν πένης καί κράζων ἐλεημοσύνην, οὕτως ὁ ἐν μετανοίᾳ ὤν καί τά τῆς μετανοίας ἔργα ἐν ἀληθείᾳ ποιῶν χρηματίζει} ὁ δέ γε θεολογῶν ὅμοιός ἐστι τῷ ἐν ταῖς βασιλείοις αὐλαῖς ἀναστρεφομένῳ ἐν λαμπρότητι βασιλικωτάτης στολῆς καί οἰκείῳ ὄντι τῷ βασιλεῖ λαλοῦντί τε αὐτῷ ἀεί καί ἐξ αὐτοῦ καθ᾿ ὥραν ἐνηχουμένῳ τρανῶς τά ἐκείνου προστάγματα καί θελήματα.

β'. Ἡ προσθήκη τῆς γνώσεως τοῦ Θεοῦ ἀγνωσίας τῶν ἄλλων ἁπάντων αἰτία καί πρόξενος γίνεται, οὐ μήν ἀλλά καί αὐτοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ, καί τό πολύ τῆς ἐλλάμψεως αὐτοῦ παντελής ἀβλεψία, καί ἡ ὑπέρ αἴσθησιν ὑπερτελής αἴσθησις πάντων τῶν ἔξω ταύτης ὄντων ἀναισθησία. Ἡ γάρ ὁποῖα καί ποταπά καί ποῦ καί τίνα καί πῶς τά ἐν οἷς ἐστιν ἀγνοοῦσα καί καταμαθεῖν ἤ κατανοῆσαι ὅλως ταῦτα μή ἐξισχύουσα πῶς αἴσθησις ἔσται; Καί οὐχί μᾶλλον ὑπέρ αἴσθησιν μέν ἐκεῖνα, ὁ δέ νοῦς ἐν αἰσθήσει τῆς ἑαυτοῦ ἀσθενείας ἀναίσθητος πρός τά ὑπέρ αἴσθησιν εὑρεθῇ; «Ἅ γάρ ὀφθαλμός οὐκ εἶδε καί οὖς οὐκ ἤκουσε καί ἐπί καρδίαν ἀνθρώπου οὐκ ἀνέβη», πῶς αἰσθήσει ὑποβληθήσονται;

γ'. Ὁ τά ὑπέρ αἴσθησιν ἡμῖν χαριζόμενος Κύριος δίδωσιν ἡμῖν (414) ἄλλην διά τοῦ Πνεύματος αὐτοῦ, ὅπως τῶν ὑπέρ αἴσθησιν αὐτοῦ δωρεῶν καί χαρισμάτων ὑπερφυῶς διά πασῶν τῶν αἰσθήσεων τρανῶς καί καθαρῶς αἰσθανώμεθα.

δ'. Πᾶς ὁ ἀναίσθητος πρός τό ἕν πρός πάντα ἀναίσθητός ἐστιν, ὡς καί ὁ αἴσθησιν ἔχων πρός τό ἕν ἐν αἰσθήσει πάντων ἐστί καί τῆς αἰσθήσεως πάντων ἐκτός ἐστιν. Ἐν τῇ αἰσθήσει πάντων ἐστί καί ὑπό τῆς αἰσθήσεως αὐτῶν οὐ καταλαμβάνεται.

ε'. Ὁ κωφός πρός τόν λόγον κωφός πρός πᾶσαν φωνήν ἐστιν, ὡς καί ὁ ἀκούων τοῦ λόγου πάντων ἀκούει} οὗτος κωφεύων ἐστί πρός πᾶσαν φωνήν, πάντων ἀκούει καί οὐδενός, εἰ μή τῶν ἐν λόγῳ μόνων τούς λόγους ποιουμένων, καί οὐδέ αὐτῶν, ἀλλά τοῦ λόγου μόνου τοῦ ἐν τῇ φωνῇ ἀφώνως φθεγγομένου.

στ'. Ὁ ἀκούων οὕτως καί βλέπων καί αἰσθανόμενος οἶδε τῶν λεγομένων τήν δύναμιν. Ὁ δέ μή εἰδώς πρόδηλός ἐστιν ὅτι οὐδέ τά αἰσθητήρια τῆς ψυχῆς τετρανωμένα καί ὑγιῆ ἐπιφέρεται} οὕτως δέ ἔχων οὔπω ἔγνω ὅτι ἐπόπτης ἐκτίσθη τῆς ὁρωμένης κτίσεως καί μύστης τῆς νοουμένης, ἀλλ᾿ ἐν τιμῇ ὤν, παρασυνεβλήθη καί ὡμοιώθη τοῖς ἀνοήτοις καί ἀχθοφόροις κτήνεσι καί ὁμοιωθείς μένει τοιοῦτος ἔτι μή ἐπαναστραφείς, μή ἐπανακληθείς, ἤ ἐπί τό πρῶτον ἀξίωμα ἀναχθείς κατά τήν δωρεάν τῆς οἰκονομίας τοῦ ∆εσπότου καί Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ τοῦ Υἱοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ.

ζ'. Κάτω ὤν μή ἐρεύνα τά ἄνω} πρό δέ τοῦ γενέσθαι σε ἄνω, μή πολυπραγμονήσῃς τά κάτω, ἵνα μή ὀλισθήσας ἀμφοτέρων ἐκπέσῃς, μᾶλλον δέ συναπολειφθῇς τοῖς κάτω.

η'. Καθάπερ ὁ ἀπό πτωχείας ἐσχάτης ὑπό τοῦ βασιλέως εἰς πλοῦτον ἀνενεχθείς, καί περιφανές ἀξίωμα στολήν τε (415) παρ᾿ αὐτοῦ ἐνδυθείς καί πρό προσώπου αὐτοῦ