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life of all and light of all who have loved you and by you, lover of mankind, are greatly loved. Rank me with them, Master, and make me a sharer and co-heir of your divine glory; for to you is due glory, to the Father with the co-unoriginate Son, and the Divine Spirit, for ever and ever, amen.

48.

That the dishonor for the sake of God’s commandment is glory and honor for every person who is insulted and suffers evil on account of God’s commandment; and a dialogue with one’s own soul, teaching the inexhaustible wealth of the Spirit. (348)

Grant me the perception, Christ, which you once bestowed, cover me with it, Savior, hide me completely within it and do not allow the perception of the world to approach me, nor to enter from within, nor to wound me at all, your humble servant, whom you alone have pitied. For suddenly rushing upon my good solicitude, the worldly perception at once created evil desires in my wretched soul; for it points to glory, it reminds of wealth, and it urges to draw near to the kings of the earth, saying that this is great happiness. From these thoughts, therefore, just as a wineskin is puffed up by the wind and a fire is kindled into a flame, so that soul, being puffed up, swells and is intensely strained with desire for glory, and wealth, and the ease of those who are dragged down, it longs to be glorified with the glorified, and to appear illustrious with the illustrious, and to acquire wealth with those who acquire wealth, she whom you yourself glorified with your ineffable light, she whom you yourself adorned with your unspeakable glory, she to whom you yourself showed your divine splendor. (349) The perception, having taken her mind captive, points out kings, reminds of glory, and points out the wealth of the present life, and makes her swell with desire for these things by thought alone. O darkness, O callousness, O vain thoughts,

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πάντων ζωή καί πάντων φῶς τῶν σέ ἀγαπησάντων καί παρά σοῦ, φιλάνθρωπε, λίαν ἀγαπωμένων. Οἷς με συντάξαις, ∆έσποτα, καί δόξης σου τῆς θείας ἀποτελέσαις κοινωνόν τε καί συγκληρονόμον˙ σοί γάρ ἡ δόξα, τῷ Πατρί σύν Υἱῷ συνανάρχῳ, καί Θείῳ πρέπει Πνεύματι εἰς αἰῶνας αἰώνων, ἀμήν.

ΜΗ'.

Ὅτι δόξα καί τιμή ἐστι παντί ἀνθρώπῳ ὑβριζομένῳ καί πάσχοντι κακῶς διά Θεοῦ ἐντολήν ἡ ὑπέρ αὐτῆς τῆς ἐντολῆς τοῦ Θεοῦ ἀτιμία˙ καί διάλογος πρός τήν ἰδίαν ψυχήν, διδάσκων τόν ἀκένωτον πλοῦτον τοῦ Πνεύματος. (348)

∆ός μοι τήν αἴσθησιν, Χριστέ, ἥν ἅπαξ ἐδωρήσω, σκέπασον ταύτῃ με, Σωτήρ, κρύψον ἐντός με ὅλον καί μή ἐάσῃς αἴσθησιν ἐγγίζειν μοι τοῦ κόσμου, μή ἔνδοθεν εἰσέρχεσθαι, μή ὅλως με τριτρώσκειν, τόν δοῦλόν σου τόν ταπεινόν, ὅν ἠλέησας μόνος. Τῇ γάρ μερίμνῃ τῇ καλῇ αἴφνης ἐπεισπεσοῦσα ἡ αἴσθησις ἡ κοσμική κακάς ἐπιθυμίας εὐθέως ἐνεποίησε ψυχῇ μου τῇ ἀθλίᾳ˙ δόξαν γάρ ὑποδείκνυσι, πλούτου ὑπομιμνῄσκει, τοῖς βασιλεῦσί τε τῆς γῆς ἐγγίζειν ἐποτρύνει ὡς εὐτυχίαν λέγουσα εἶναι τοῦτο μεγάλην. Ἐκ τούτων οὖν τῶν λογισμῶν, ὥσπερ ὑπό ἀνέμου ἀσκός ὀγκοῦται καί τό πῦρ ἀνάπτεται εἰς φλόγα, οὕτως ἐκείνη ἡ ψυχή φυσωμένη ὀγκοῦται καί διατείνεται σφοδρῶς ἐπιθυμίᾳ δόξης, πλούτου τε καί ἀνέσεως τῶν κάτω συρομένων, ἐφίεται δοξάζεσθαι σύν τοῖς δοξασμένοις, περιφανής τε φαίνεσθαι σύν τοῖς περιφανέσι καί πλοῦτον κτᾶσθαι σύν αὐτοῖς τοῖς τόν πλοῦτον κτωμένοις, ἥνπερ ἐδόξασας αὐτός φωτί σου τῷ ἀρρήτῳ, ἥνπερ αὐτός ἐστόλισας δόξῃ σου τῇ ἀφράστῳ, ἥνπερ αὐτός παρέδειξας λαμπρότητά σου θείαν. (349) Ἡ αἴσθησις αἰχμάλωτον τόν νοῦν αὐτῆς λαβοῦσα ὑποδεικνύει βασιλεῖς, ὑπομιμνῄσκει δόξης καί πλοῦτον ὑποδείκνυσι τόν τοῦ παρόντος βίου, ὀργᾶν πρός ταῦτά τε ποιεῖ τῇ ἐνθυμήσει μόνῃ. Ὤ σκότους, ὤ πωρώσεως, ὤ λογισμῶν ματαίων,