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let it not be believed that he is venerated in his icon. Thus, therefore, O man of God, is the truth, and thus has it been decreed by apostles and prophets and God-bearing fathers, if not in these very words, yet at least through the true re-examination of what was said by them; for as certain seeds have all the dogmatic powers been put forth in the understanding of the divine oracles, and against the heresies that spring up from time to time, the pious doctrines are brought forth in opposition, being cultivated from there by the Spirit's impulse and plucking out the tares of impiety. Believing thus yourself, be strong in the Lord, venerating Christ, venerating also his icon, the Theotokos and her icon, the saints and their icons; since in the icons the archetypes have been venerated, and the honor of the icon passes to the archetype, as Basil the Great says. 464 {1To Marianus the spatharius}1 Your piety draws us to write, since it finds benefit, it says (and I do not think so, since our word is as useless as our life), but as being moved by love; for love, says the apostle, thinks no evil. Nevertheless, whichever way it may be, I yield and obey our beloved, the good man, the all-praised ruler, the nursling of piety, the charge of orthodoxy, the man of God, the friend of monks. Many are your praises, most beautiful your excellent deeds. But see, my lord, how you walk (for this the apostle proclaims), not as unwise, but as wise, not as a lover of the flesh, but as a lover of God, not as immortal, but as mindful of your departure, the common debt, the insuperable boundary; for there is no one, it says, who will live and not see death. What then are the characteristics of each, you might say? I will explain to you, friend: of the first, there are dances, jests, games, shameful words, drunken bouts, gluttony, high-mindedness, empty puffings-up, endless adornments, loves of riches, and the more numerous and heavier things I omit out of respect for your authority; and indeed those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God, the apostle has declared. Come, let me show you the strengths of the other: poverty of spirit, tears of compunction, meekness, peace, mercy, contemplation of the mind towards God, freedom from the love of money, hatred of the world, self-sufficiency, self-control; according to the power of each one's ability, to love above spouse, above children, above parents, above brothers, above all, simply, the Lord who made us, who for each one of us gave himself over to death. These and things like these are the marks also of the true Christian; for do not suppose, my lord, that what has been said applies to a monk, but not also all things equally to a layman (even if in a monk they are more intense), except for celibacy and poverty, for which a man of the world is not condemned. Yet even here there are times for self-control and laws of self-sufficiency; for, it says, having food and clothing, with these we shall be content, but those who desire to be rich fall into the inescapable pit. And again: so that those who have wives should be as though they had none. Behold, my lord, you have constrained me to announce to you the ordinance of God. Let us both hasten to be saved; the past time of our life is sufficient for us to have worked out the will of the flesh. Now, says the apostle, is the acceptable time, now is the day of salvation. Behold, the good God awaits our fruit until our last breath; lest he say, "Cut it down, why does it even make the ground useless?" lest he shut the door on us and there be no more opening; lest the devil take us for his portion, to be punished with him for eternity; lest we be suddenly snatched away. How many times have we given pledges that, if we were delivered from this weakness or this danger or this affliction, we would live well, we would serve God genuinely, and yet again we have forgotten our agreements? How long will he endure? Until when will he permit it? It is altogether necessary a little later to depart from here. Let us not then be found unprepared in good works,

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μὴ πιστεύηται ἐν τῇ εἰκόνι αὐτοῦ προσκυνούμενος. Οὕτως οὖν, ὦ ἄνθρωπε τοῦ θεοῦ, ἡ ἀλήθεια καὶ οὕτως δεδογμάτισται παρά τε ἀποστόλων καὶ προφητῶν καὶ θεοφόρων πατέρων, κἂν οὐκ αὐταῖς λέξεσιν, ἀλλά γε διὰ τῆς ἀληθοῦς τῶν ὑπ' αὐτῶν λελεγμένων ἀναθεωρήσεως· οἷα γάρ τινα σπέρματα προβέβληνται πᾶσαι αἱ δογματικαὶ δυνάμεις ἐν ταῖς τῶν θείων λογίων νοήσεσιν, ταῖς δὲ κατὰ καιρὸν ἀναφυομέναις αἱρέσεσιν ἀντεπεξάγεται τὰ εὐσεβῶς δογματιζόμενα, ἐκεῖθεν πνευματοκινήτως γεωργούμενα καὶ τὰ τῆς ἀσεβείας ζιζάνια ἐκτίλλοντα. οὕτως καὶ αὐτὸς πιστεύων ἔρρωσο ἐν Κυρίῳ, προσκυνῶν τὸν Χριστόν, προσκυνῶν καὶ τὴν εἰκόνα αὐτοῦ, τὴν Θεοτόκον καὶ τὴν εἰκόνα αὐτῆς, τοὺς ἁγίους καὶ τὰς εἰκόνας αὐτῶν· ἐπειδὴ ἐν ταῖς εἰκόσι τὰ πρωτότυπα προσκεκύνηνται καὶ ἡ τῆς εἰκόνος τιμὴ ἐπὶ τὸ πρωτότυπον ἀναβαίνει, ὥς φησιν ὁ Μέγας Βασίλειος. 464 {1Μαριανῷ σπαθαρίῳ}1 Ἕλκει ἡμᾶς ἡ εὐσέβειά σου πρὸς τὸ γράφειν, ὡς ὄφελος, φησίν, εὑρίσκουσα (καὶ οὐ δοκῶ, ἐπείπερ ἡμῶν σὺν τῷ βίῳ καὶ ὁ λόγος ἄχρηστος), ἀλλ' ὡς ἀγάπῃ φερομένη· ἡ ἀγάπη γάρ, φησὶν ὁ ἀπόστολος, τὸ κακὸν οὐ λογίζεται. πλήν, ὁποτέρως ἂν ἔχοι, εἴκω καὶ πείθομαι τῷ ἡμετέρῳ ἐραστῆ, τῷ ἀγαθῷ ἀνδρί, τῷ πανευφήμῳ ἄρχοντι, τῷ τροφίμῳ τῆς εὐσεβείας, τῷ θρέμματι τῆς ὀρθοδοξίας, τῷ ἀνθρώπῳ τοῦ θεοῦ, τῷ φιλητῇ τῶν μοναστῶν. πολλά σου τὰ ἐγκώμια, κάλλιστα τὰ ἀριστεύματα. ἀλλὰ βλέποις, ὁ δεσπότης μου, πῶς περιπατεῖς (τοῦτο γὰρ βοᾷ ὁ ἀπόστολος), μὴ ὡς ἄσοφος, ἀλλ' ὡς σοφός, μὴ ὡς φιλόσαρκος, ἀλλ' ὡς φιλόθεος, μὴ ὡς ἀθάνατος, ἀλλ' ὡς ἐμμέριμνος ἐξόδου, τὸ κοινὸν χρέος, τὸ ἀνυπέρβατον ὁροθέσιον· οὐκ ἔστι γάρ, φησίν, ὃς ζήσεται καὶ οὐκ ὄψεται θάνατον. τίνα οὖν ἀμφοτέρων τὰ ἰδιώματα, εἴποις ἄν; ἐγώ σοι διεξίημι, φίλε· τοῦ μὲν πρώτου χορεύματα, γελοιάσματα, παίγνια, αἰσχρολογήματα, οἰνοφλυγίαι, γαστριμαργίαι, μετεωρισμοί, διάκενα φυσήματα, καλλωπίσματα ἀλλεπάλληλα, φιλοπλουτίας ἔρωτες, καὶ τὰ πλείω καὶ βαρύτερα αἰδοῖ τῆς ἐξουσίας σου ἀφίημι· καί γε οἱ τὰ τοιαῦτα πράσσοντες βασιλείαν θεοῦ οὐ κληρονομήσουσιν, ἀπέφηνεν ὁ ἀπόστολος. δεῦρό σοι καὶ τοῦ ἑτέρου ὑποδείξαιμι τὰ κράτη· πτωχεία πνεύματος, κατανύξεως δάκρυα, πραότης, εἰρήνη, ἐλεημοσύνη, νοῦ πρὸς θεὸν θεωρία, ἀφιλαργυρία, μισοκοσμία, αὐτάρκεια, ἐγκράτεια· κατὰ δύναμιν τῆς ἐφ' ἑκάστῳ δυνάμεως ὑπὲρ ὁμόζυγον, ὑπὲρ τέκνα, ὑπὲρ γονεῖς, ὑπὲρ ἀδελφούς, ὑπὲρ ἅπαντας ἁπλῶς ἀγαπᾶν τὸν ποιήσαντα ἡμᾶς Κύριον, τὸν ὑπὲρ ἑνὸς ἑκάστου ἐκδεδωκότα ἑαυτὸν εἰς θάνατον. Ταῦτα καὶ τὰ τούτοις ὅμοια καὶ τοῦ ἀληθινοῦ χριστιανοῦ· μὴ γάρ τοι νομίσῃς, δέσποτα, ἐπὶ μονάζοντος τὰ λεχθέντα, ἀλλ' οὐχὶ καὶ ἐπὶ λαϊκοῦ τὰ πάντα ἐφίσης (κἂν ἐν τῷ μονάζοντι ἐπιτεταμένως), πλὴν ἀγαμίας καὶ ἀκτημοσύνης, ἐν οἷς ὁ κοσμικὸς οὐ κατακέκριται. ὅμως κἀνταῦθα ἐγκρατείας καιροὶ καὶ αὐταρκείας θεσμοί· ἔχοντες γάρ, φησί, διατροφὰς καὶ σκεπάσματα, τούτοις ἀρκεσθησόμεθα, οἱ δὲ βουλόμενοι πλουτεῖν ἐμπίπτουσιν εἰς τὸ ἄφυκτον βάραθρον. καὶ πάλιν· ἵνα καὶ οἱ ἔχοντες γυναῖκας ὡς μὴ ἔχοντες ὦσιν. ἰδού, δέσποτά μου, ἠνάγκασάς με τὸ δικαίωμα τοῦ θεοῦ ἀναγγεῖλαί σοι. σπεύσωμεν ἀμφότεροι σωθῆναι· ἀρκετὸς ἡμῖν ὁ παρεληλυθὼς χρόνος τοῦ βίου τὸ θέλημα τῆς σαρκὸς κατεργάσασθαι. νῦν, φησὶν ὁ ἀπόστολος, καιρὸς εὐπρόσδεκτος, νῦν ἡμέρα σωτηρίας. ἰδοὺ ὁ ἀγαθὸς θεὸς ἐκδέχεται ἕως ἐσχάτης ἀναπνοῆς τὸν καρπὸν ἡμῶν· μὴ εἴποι, ἔκκοψον αὐτόν, ἱνατί καὶ τὴν γῆν καταργεῖ; μὴ κλείσῃ καθ' ἡμῶν καὶ οὐκέτι ἄνοιξις· μὴ λάβοι ἡμᾶς ὁ διάβολος εἰς μέρος αὐτοῦ, συγκολαζομένους αἰώνια· μὴ ἀνάρπαστοι ἄφνω γενοίμεθα. ποσάκις ἐγγυὰς ἐδώκαμεν ὡς, εἰ τῆς ἀσθενείας ἢ τοῦδε τοῦ κινδύνου ἢ τῆσδε τῆς θλίψεως ῥυσθῶμεν, εὖ βιώσομεν, θεῷ γνησίως δουλεύσομεν, καὶ πάλιν ἐπελαθόμεθα τῶν συνθηκῶν; ἕως πότε ἀνέξεται; ἕως τίνος ἐάσει; ἀνάγκη πάντως μικρὸν ὕστερον ἐξελθεῖν τῶν ἐνθένδε. μὴ τοίνυν εὑρεθῶμεν ἀπαρασκεύαστοι τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἔργων,