485

From the 63rd Aporia, To the most divine king of Achrida. For the Holy Spirit, just as it is by nature according to essence of God the Father,

so too does it exist by nature according to essence of the Son, as proceeding essentially from the Father through the begotten Son in an ineffable way. It is not possible, therefore, to conceive of a cut or division in any way, such that either the Father could be conceived without the Son, or the Son without the Spirit, but there is in these a certain ineffable and incomprehensible union and division, with neither the difference of the hypostases rending the continuity of the natures [natural things], nor the conjunction according to essence confounding the particularity of the properties; and there is in these. . . a conjoined distinction, and a distinguished conjunction. And a certain faint example will be set forth for understanding; or rather a shadow of the truth, the multi-colored rainbow. For the rays of all the colors in it both appear distinct, by being far-shining, and seem to be united, because the boundaries of the mixtures, which distinguish the differences of the colors, escape our sight; so that it is impossible to discover up to what point the fire-like or the emerald-gleaming or the green-shining radiance [radiances] stands, and at what point another begins; the Word, I think, teaching us also through creation, not to be strangely affected by the arguments concerning the doctrines, whenever, falling into what is difficult to contemplate, we become dizzy in assenting to what is said. For just as in the case of things that appear to the eyes experience is stronger than reason, so too in the case of doctrines that transcend, let faith be stronger than comprehension through reasonings.

485

Ἐκ τῶν ξγ΄. ἀπόρων, Πρός τόν θειότατον βασιλέα τόν Ἀχριδήν. Τό γάρ Πνεῦμα τό ἅγιον, ὥσπερ φύσει κατ᾿ οὐσίαν ἐστί τοῦ Θεοῦ καί Πατρός,

οὕτως καί τοῦ Υἱοῦ φύσει κατ᾿ οὐσίαν ὑπάρχει, ὡς ἐκ τοῦ Πατρός οὐσιωδῶς δι᾿ υἱοῦ τοῦ γεννηθέντος ἀφράστως ἐκπορευόμενον. Οὐκ ἔστιν οὖν ἐπινοῆσαι τομήν ἤ διαίρεσιν κατ᾿ οὐδένα τρόπον, ὡς ἤ τόν Πατέρα χωρίς τοῦ Υἱοῦ ἐπινοηθῆναι, ἤ τόν Υἱόν χωρίς τοῦ Πνεύματος, ἀλλ᾿ ἔστι τις ἄῤῤητος καί ἀκατανόητος ἐν τούτοις καί ἕνωσις καί διαίρεσις, οὔτε τῆς τῶν ὑποστάσεων διαφορᾶς τό συνεχές τῶν φύσεων [φυσικῶν] διασπώσης, οὔτε τῆς κατά τήν οὐσίαν συναφείας τό ἴδιον τῶν γνωρισμάτων ἀναχεούσης· καί ἔστιν ἐπί τούτων. . . διάκρισις συνημμένη, καί διακεκριμένη συνάφεια. Προκείσεται δέ καί τι πρός ἐπίγνωσιν ἀμυδράν ὑπόδειγμα· μᾶλλον δέ σκιά τῆς ἀληθείας, ἡ πολύχρονος ἴρις. Πάντων γάρ τῶν ἐν ταύτῃ χρωμάτων αἱ αὐγαί, καί διακεκριμέναι φαίνονται, τῷ τηλαυγεῖς εἶναι, καί συνηνῶσθαι δοκοῦσι, τῷ λανθάνειν τάς ὄψεις ἡμῶν τούς ὄρους τῶν μίξεων, τούς διακρίνοντας τάς τῶν χροῶν ἑτερότητας· ὡς ἀμήχανον ἐξευρεῖν, μέχρι τίνος ἕστηκε τό πυραυγές ἤ σμαραγδίζον ταῖς αἴγλαις, ἤ χλοάζον ταῖς λαμπηδόσι [τάς λαμπηδόνας], καί ἐπί τίνος ἄρχεται· παιδεύοντος, οἶμαι, τοῦ, λόγου καί διά τῆς κτίσεως ἡμᾶς, μή καινοπαθεῖν τοῖς περί τῶν δογμάτων λόγοις, ὅταν εἰς τό δυσθεώρητον ἐμπεσόντες, πρός τήν συγκατάθεσιν τῶν λεγομένων ἰλιγγιάσωμεν. Ὡς γάρ ἐπί τῶν τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς φαινομένων κρείττων λόγου ἡ πεῖρα, οὕτως καί ἐπί τῶν ὑπεραναβεβηκότων δογμάτων κρείττων ἡ πίστις ἔστω τῆς διά τῶν λογισμῶν καταλήψεως.