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47.

A clear vision concerning the intelligible paradise; and concerning the tree of life within it. (345)

Blessed are you, O Lord, blessed are you, O Only One, blessed are you, O compassionate One, supremely blessed, who has given into my heart the light of your commandments and planted within me the tree of your life and shown me to be another paradise amidst visible things, an intelligible one in sensible things, and an intelligible one in sensation. For you have united to my soul your other Divine Spirit, which you have also caused to dwell in my innermost parts: this truly is the only tree of life, which, in whatever earth or soul of man it is planted and takes root in the heart, it immediately shows that soul to be a most brilliant paradise, adorned with all beautiful plants and trees and various fruits, embellished with flowers and fragrant lilies. These are humility and joy and peace, gentleness and compassion, mourning, showers of tears and a strange delight in them, the splendor of your grace shining upon all things in the paradise. You are a mixing bowl pouring forth for me the streams of your life, and you provide abundantly the words of divine knowledge. But when you do not will it, but speak against these things, (346) I become mindless, senseless like a stone. A trumpet without breath will never sound; so too am I without you as if soulless. Without a soul it is impossible for the body to do anything; so too the soul without your Spirit is not able to move and keep your commandments, O Savior, nor is it able to see you or stand before you, nor to praise your glory with understanding, O my God. For this reason, then, I cry to you and for this reason I shout: O you who are above with the Father and are with us, not as some reckon, by energy alone, nor as many suppose, by will alone, nor by your power alone, but also by your essence, if indeed one may dare to speak or think of essence concerning you, O immortal, O alone transcendent in essence! For if you are truly altogether ineffable,

231

ΜΖ'.

Περί νοητοῦ παραδείσου τηλαυγῆς θεωρία˙ καί περί τοῦ ἐν αὐτῷ ξύλου ζωῆς. (345)

Εὐλογητός εἶ, Κύριε, εὐλογητός εἶ, μόνε, εὐλογητός εἶ, εὔσπλαγχνε, ὑπερευλογημένε, ὁ δούς ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ μου τό φῶς τῶν ἐντολῶν σου καί ἐμφυτεύσας ἐν ἐμοί τό τῆς ζωῆς σου ξύλον καί δείξας με παράδεισον ἄλλον ἐν ὁρωμένοις, ἐν αἰσθητοῖς μέν νοητόν, νοητόν δ᾿ ἐν αἰσθήσει. Συνήνωσας γάρ τῇ ψυχῇ ἄλλον Πνεῦμά σου Θεῖον, ὅπερ καί ἐνεσκήνωσας ἐν τοῖς ἐμοῖς ἐγκάτοις˙ τοῦτο τό ξύλον τῆς ζωῆς ὄντως ὑπάρχει μόνον, τοῦτο, ἐν ᾗπερ φυτευθῇ γῇ εἴτ᾿ οὖν ψυχῇ ἀνθρώπου καί ἐν καρδίᾳ ῥιζωθῇ, παράδεισον δεικνύει ταύτην εὐθύς λαμπρότατον, πᾶσι κεκοσμημένον φυτοῖς ὡραίοις δένδροις τε καί καρποῖς διαφόροις, πεποικιλμένον ἄνθεσι καί μυριπνόοις κρίνοις. Ταῦτα δ᾿ εἰσί ταπείνωσις καί χαρά καί εἰρήνη, πρᾳότης καί συμπάθεια, πένθος, ὄμβροι δακρύων καί ξένη τέρψις ἐν αὐτοῖς, αἴγλη τῆς χάριτός σου ἅπασιν ἐπιλάμπουσα τοῖς ἐν τῷ παραδείσῳ. Σύ εἶ κρατήρ προχέων μοι ζωῆς τά νάματά σου, καί λόγους θείας γνώσεως ἀφθόνως ἐμπαρέχεις. Ἐπάν δέ σύ μή βουληθῇς, ἀλλ᾿ ἀντιλέγεις ταῦτα, (346) ἄνους ἐγώ, ἀναίσθητος ὥσπερ λίθος τυγχάνω. Ἡ σάλπιγξ ἄνευ πνεύματος οὐδέποτε ἠχήσει˙ οὕτω κἀγώ σου ἄνευθεν ὡς ἄψυχος ὑπάρχω. ∆ίχα ψυχῆς ἀδύνατον ἐνεργεῖν τι τό σῶμα˙ οὕτως οὐ δύνατι ψυχή δίχα τοῦ Πνεύματός σου κινεῖσθαι καί τάς ἐντολάς τάς σάς, Σῶτερ, φυλάττειν, οὐδέ ὁρᾶν σε δύναται οὐδέ παρίστασθαί σοι, οὐδέ ὑμνεῖν τήν δόξαν σου συνετῶς, ὦ Θεέ μου. ∆ιά τοῦτο οὖν σοι βοῶ καί διά τοῦτο κράζω˙ Ὀ ἄνω ὤν σύν τῷ Πατρί καί μεθ᾿ ἡμῶν τυγχάνων οὐχ᾿ ὥς τινες λογίζονται, τῇ ἐνεργείᾳ μόνῃ, οὐδ᾿ ὡς νομίζουσι πολλοί, τῷ θελήματι μόνῳ, οὐδέ δυνάμει μόνῃ σου, ἀλλά καί τῇ οὐσίᾳ, εἴπερ οὐσίαν ἐπί σοί τολμητέον τοῦ λέγειν ἤ ἐννοεῖν, ἀθάνατε, ὑπερούσιε μόνε! Εἰ γάρ ὑπάρχεις ἀληθῶς ἀνερμήνευτος ὅλως,