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58. If for this reason the Son of God and God came down upon the earth, so that through Himself He might reconcile us, who were known to be enemies, to His own Father, and might unite us, who are known, to Himself through His Holy and consubstantial Spirit, he who falls away from this grace, what other will he obtain? Certainly he has neither been reconciled to Him nor has he received union with Him through the participation of the Spirit.

59. (439) "If a man takes fire in his bosom," says the Wise One, "will his garments not be burned?" But I say: who, having received the uncontainable and heavenly fire in his heart, will not be set on fire and be illumined and himself flash forth the rays of the Godhead according to the proportion of his purification and of his participation in the fire? For participation corresponds to purification, and purification follows upon participation. And when this has happened, the man becomes wholly God by grace.

60. He who has partaken of the Holy Spirit is freed from passionate desires and pleasures, but is not separated from the natural bodily needs. And as one freed from the bonds of passionate appetite and united to the immortal glory and sweetness, he unceasingly strives to be above and to live with God and not even for a moment to be separated from the contemplation of Him and from insatiate delight. But as one bound in the body and in corruption, he is dragged down and drawn away by it and is turned back to earthly things, then he receives so much grief over this, as I think a sinner's soul has when it is separated from the body.

61. Just as for the lover of the body and of life, for the lover of pleasure and of the world, separation from such things is death, so for the lover of purity and the lover of God, for the lover of the immaterial and the lover of virtue, the small departure of the mind from such things is truly death. For if one who sees this sensible light, should for a short time close his eyes or have them covered by another, he is vexed and grieved and cannot bear it at all, especially if he was seeing certain necessary and extraordinary things; how much more one who is enlightened in the Holy Spirit and sees those good things, in reality and intellectually, waking and sleeping, which eye has not seen and ear has not heard and have not entered into the heart of man, (440) which things angels desire to look into, if he is torn away from the contemplation of such things by someone, will he be grieved and afflicted? For this seems to him death and, reasonably, an alienation from eternal life.

62. Man being twofold, having his composition from soul and body, a world similar to him has also come to be, visible and invisible, the works and the cares of the works having been suitably appointed for each of these, clearly. Hence, then, concerning visions and dreams, I have supposed this to be true: for in whatever the soul is occupied or engaged while awake, in these things also during sleep it either acts vainly or philosophizes. For if it cares for human affairs, acting vainly it is occupied with dreams; or if it meditates on divine and heavenly things, it is engaged in visions and sights, philosophizing according to what was said by the Prophet, "and their young men shall see visions," not being deceived, but gazing upon truths and being confirmed by revelations.

63. Whenever the desiderative part of the soul is stirred up concerning passions and unions and luxuries and enjoyments of life, the soul likewise sees such dreams. But if its irascible part is enraged against its fellow men, it dreams of the attacks of beasts and the wars of serpents and battles, wrangling as if in court with those with whom it disagrees. But if its rational part is lifted up by arrogance and pride, it imagines winged seizures into the air and seats on high thrones and leadership of a people, proceeding and being escorted on chariots.

64. The visions of those alone are true, which it is not right to call dreams but sights and visions, whose mind has become simple from the advent of the Spirit and

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νη'. Εἰ διά τοῦτο ἐπί τῆς γῆς ὁ Υἱός τοῦ Θεοῦ καί Θεός κατῆλθεν ἵνα δι᾿ ἑαυτοῦ καταλλάξῃ γνωστῶς ἡμᾶς ἐχθρούς ὄντας τῷ ἰδίῳ Πατρί καί συνάψῃ γνωστῶς ἡμᾶς ἑαυτῷ διά τοῦ τοῦ Ἁγίου καί ὁμοουσίου αὐτοῦ Πνεύματος, ὁ ταύτης ἐκπίπτων τῆς χάριτος ἄλλης ποίας τεύξεται; Πάντως οὐδέ κατηλλάγῃ αὐτῷ οὐδέ τήν μετ᾿ αὐτοῦ ἕνωσιν διά τῆς μετουσίας τοῦ Πνεύματος ἔσχηκεν.

νθ'. (439) «Εἰσαγάγῃ τις πῦρ ἐν κόλπῳ», φησίν ὁ Σοφός, «τά δέ ἱμάτια οὐ κατακαύσει;» Ἐγώ δέ φημί˙ τίς τό ἄστεκτον καί οὐράνιον πῦρ ἐν καρδίᾳ δεξάμενος, οὐ πυρωθήσεται καί λαμπρυνθήσεται καί τάς τῆς θεότητος αὐγάσει καί αὐτός ἀστραπάς κατά ἀναλογίαν τῆς καθάρσεως καί τῆς μετοχῆς τοῦ πυρός˙ ἡ γάρ μετοχή τῇ καθάρσει, τῇ δέ μεθέξει συνέπεται κάθαρσις˙ τούτου δέ γενομένου, Θεός ὅλος κατά χάριν ὁ ἄνθρωπος γίνεται.

ξ'. Τῶν μέν ἐμπαθῶν ἐπιθυμιῶν καί ἡδονῶν ὁ μετασχών τοῦ Ἁγίου Πνεύματος ἀπαλλάττεται, τῶν δέ τῆς φύσεως σωματικῶν ἀναγκῶν οὐ χωρίζεται. Καί ὡς μέν ἐλευθερωθείς τῶν δεσμῶν τῆς ἐμπαθοῦς ὀρέξεως καί συναφθείς τῇ ἀθανάτῳ δόξῃ τε καί γλυκύτητι, ἀδιαλείπτως ἄνω τε βιάζεται εἶναι καί σύν Θεῷ διάγειν καί μηδέ πρός βραχύ τῆς ἐκείνου θεωρίας καί ἀκορέστου τρυφῆς ἀφίστασθαι˙ ὡς δέ τῷ σώματι καί τῇ φθορᾷ ἐμπεδούμενος, ὑπ᾿ αὐτοῦ κατασπᾶται καί σύρεται καί πρός τά γήϊνα ἐπιστρέφεται, τοσαύτην ὑπέρ τούτου τηνικαῦτα τήν λύπην δέχεται, ὅσην οἶμαι ἁμαρτωλοῦ ψυχήν ἔχειν χωριζομένην ἀπό τοῦ σώματος.

ξα'. Ὥσπερ τῷ φιλοσωμάτῳ καί φιλοζώῳ, τῷ φιληδόνῳ καί φιλοκόσμῳ, ὁ χωρισμός τῶν τοιούτων θάνατός ἐστιν, οὕτως τῷ φιλάγνῳ καί φιλοθέῳ, τῷ φιλαΰλῳ καί φιλαρέτῳ, θάνατος τῷ ὄντι ἡ ἐκ τῶν τοιούτων μικρά τῆς διανοίας διάστασις. Εἰ γάρ ὁ τόν αἰσθήτον τοῦτο φῶς ὁρῶν, ἐάν πρός μικρόν μύσῃ τούς ὀσθαλμούς ἤ κατακαλυφθῇ τούτους ὑφ᾿ ἑτέρου, ἄχθεται καί λυπεῖται καί φέρειν ὄλως τοῦτο οὐ δύναται, καί μάλιστα ἐάν ἀναγκαῖά τινα καί παράδοξα ἦν ὁρῶν˙ πόσῳ μᾶλλον ὁ ἐν Ἁγίῳ φωτιζόμενος Πνεύματι καί τά ἀγαθά ἐκεῖνα ὁρῶν, ὕπαρ καί νοερῶς, γρηγορῶν καί καθεύδων, ἅ ὀφθαλμός οὐκ εἶδε καί οὖς οὐκ ἤκουσε καί ἐπί καρδίαν ἀνθρώπου οὐκ ἀνέβη, (440) εἰς ἅ παρακύψαι καί ἄγγελοι ἐπιθυμοῦσιν, ἐάν ἀποσπασθῇ ἐκ τῆς τῶν τοιούτων θεωρίας ὑπό τινος, λυπηθήσεται καί θλιβήσεται; Θάνατος γάρ αὐτῷ δοκεῖ τοῦτο καί ἀλλοτρίωσις εἰκότως τῆς αἰωνίου ζωῆς.

ξβ'. ∆ιπλοῦς ὤν ὁ ἄνθρωπος, ἐκ ψυχῆς καί σώματος τήν σύστασιν ἔχων, καί κόσμος αὐτῷ παρόμοιος γέγονεν ὁρατός καί ἀόρατος, ἑκάστῳ δηλονότι τούτων τά ἔργα καί αἱ φροντίδες τῶν ἔργων ἁρμοδίως ἀφορισθεῖσαι.Ἔνθεν τοι καί περί ὄψεων καί ὀνειράτων τοῦτο ἀληθές εἶναι ὑπέλαβον˙ ἐν οἷς γάρ ἡ ψυχή ἐνασχολεῖται γρηγοροῦσα ἤ ἐμβατεύει, ἐν τούτοις καί κατά τούς ὕπνους ἤ ἐμματαιάζει ἤ ἐμφιλοσοφεῖ˙ εἴτε γάρ περί ἀνθρωπίνων φροντίζει πραγμάτων ἐμματαιάζουσα ὀνείροις ἐνασχολεῖται εἴτε περί θείων καί οὐρανίων ἐμμελετῶσα ὄψεσιν ἐμβατεύει καί ὁράσεσι, κατά τό ὑπό τοῦ Προφήτου λεγόμενον, ἐμφιλοσοφεῖ, «καί οἱ νεανίσκοι αὐτῶν ὁράσεις ὄψονται», οὐκ ἐξαπατωμένη, ἀλλ᾿ ἀληθείαις ἐνατενίζουσα καί ἀποκαλύψεσι πιστουμένη.

ξγ'. Ὁπηνίκα τό ἐπιθυμητικόν μέρος τῆς ψυχῆς περί πάθη καί μίξεις καί τρυφάς καί ἀπολαύσεις ἐρεθίζεται τοῦ βίου, τοιαῦτα ὡσαύτως βλέπει καί τά ἐνύπνια ἡ ψυχή˙ εἰ δέ τό θυμικόν αὐτῆς κατά τῶν ὁμοφύλων ἐκθηριοῦται, θηρίων ἐφόδους καί ἑρπετῶν πολέμους καί μάχας ὀνειροπολεῖ, διαπληκτιζομένη ὡς ἐπί δικαστηρίων μεθ᾿ ὧν διαφέρεται˙ εἰ δέ τό λογιστικόν αὐτῆς ἐπαίρεται ταῖς ἀλαζονείαις καί ὑπερηφανείαις, ἁρπαγάς εἰς ἀέρα πτεροφυεῖς καί θρόνων ὑψηλῶν καθέδρας καί ἡγεμονίας λαοῦ ἐπί ἁρμάτων προερχομένη καί προπεμπομένη φαντάζεται.

ξδ'. Μόνων ἐκείνων εἰσίν ἀληθῆ τά ὁράματα, ἅ οὐδέ χρή καλεῖν ἐνύπνια ἀλλ᾿ ὁράσεις καί ὀπτασίας, ὧν ὁ νοῦς ἁπλοῦς ἐγένετο ἐξ ἐπιδημίας τοῦ Πνεύματος καί