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of man not being torn apart by contrary and mutually destructive qualities in the constitution of the body, but possessing it in the same way without flux and efflux, and happening to be free from the continuous alteration in either of these directions according to the predominance of the qualities, as indeed one not lacking immortality by grace, and not having the corruption that now scourges him with its own goads, but clearly another constitution of the body befitting him, held together by unconflicting and simple qualities. According to which the first man was naked, not as being without flesh and without a body, but as not having the denser constitution that makes the flesh mortal and resistant. According to this great teacher, he both lived artlessly, not dissipating the natural well-being once essentially given to him, and was in no need of covering, both because of his inherent impassibility, not suspecting shame, and because he was not subject to cold and heat, for which reasons especially the practice of covering with both houses and clothes has been devised for men.

Another contemplation concerning him. Or perhaps also the teacher demonstrates the things that were then concerning him

from the things now observed concerning man, by the removal of the things that are now concerning him. For man is now moved, either concerning irrational imaginings of passions out of deceit for the sake of love of pleasure, or concerning principles of arts out of circumstance for the sake of need, or concerning natural principles from the law of nature for the sake of learning, none of which, in the beginning, reasonably drew man by necessity, who had become above all things. For thus it was fitting for him from the beginning to be, not distracted at all by anything under him, or around him, or according to him, and in need of only one thing for perfection, unrestrained movement toward Him who is above him, I mean God, according to the whole power of love. For being impassible by grace, he did not admit the deceit of the imagination of passions through pleasure; and being without need, he was free from the circumstantial necessity of arts for the sake of need; and being wise, he stood above the contemplation of nature because of his knowledge. Therefore the first man had nothing set before him between God and himself for perception, and hindering the kinship that was to be born of his self-chosen movement toward God through love, and for this reason he was called "naked in his simplicity" by the teacher, as being above all investigation according to nature, and "by an artless life," as being pure of all life that is in need of arts, and "without any covering or screen," as being free from the impassioned entanglement of the senses with sensible things, into which he was justly brought later, having suffered privation, (1356) and having freely chosen to become empty of all things instead of being full, having become beneath those things above which he had naturally been made.

Another contemplation concerning him. Or perhaps "naked," as the teacher says, of the varied contemplation and

knowledge, and "by an artless life," being outside the manifold methodology concerning practice and virtue, possessing in his state the undefiled principles of the virtues, and "without any covering or screen," not previously needing the thought based on the senses of phenomena for the understanding of divine things, having only the simple projection of the uniform and simple and comprehensive virtue and knowledge of things after God, of the

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ἀνθρώπου ἐναντίαις καί φθαρτικαῖς ἀλλήλων κατά τήν κρᾶσιν τοῦ σώματος μή διελκομένου ποιότησιν, ἀλλ᾿ ὡσαύτως ἔχοντος δίχα ῥοῆς καί ἀποῤῥοῆς, καί τῆς ἐφ᾿ ἐκάτερα τούτων κατά τήν ποιοτήτων ἐπικράτειαν συνεχοῦς ἀλλοιώσεως ἐλευθέρου τυγχάνοντος, οἷα δή τῆς κατά χάριν ἀθανασίας οὐκ ἀμοιροῦντος, καί τήν νῦν μαστιγοῦσαν αὐτόν τοῖς ἑαυτῆς κέντροις φθοράν οὐκ ἔχοντος, ἀλλ᾿ ἑτέραν δηλονότι πρέπουσαν αὐτῷ κρᾶσιν τοῦ σώματος, ἀμάχοις καί ἁπλαῖς ποιότησι συνεχομένην. Καθ᾿ ἥν γυμνός ἦν ὁ πρῶτος ἄνθρωπος, οὐχ ὡς ἄσαρκος καί ἀσώματος, ἀλλ᾿ ὡς τήν παχυτέραν τήν σάρκα ποιοῦσαν καί θνητήν καί ἀντίτυπον κρᾶσιν οὐκ ἔχων. Κατά τοῦτον τόν μέγαν διδάσκαλον ἀτέχνως τε ἔζη μή διαπνεόμενος τήν ἅπαξ οὐσιωδῶς δοθεῖσαν αὐτῷ φυσικήν εὐεξίαν, καί περιβολῆς ὑπῆρχεν ἀπροσδεής, διά τε τήν ἑνοῦσαν ἀπάθειαν αἰσχύνην μή ὑφορώμενος καί τό μή κρυμοῖς καί θάλπεσιν αὐτόν ὑποκεῖσθαι, δι᾿ ἅ μάλιστα τῆς τε τῶν οἴκων καί τῶν ἐσθημάτων περιβολῆς ὁ τρόπος τοῖς ἀνθρώποις ἐπινενόηται.

Ἄλλη περί αὐτοῦ θεωρία. Ἤ μήποτε καί ἐκ τῶν νῦν περί τόν ἄνθρωπον θεωρουμένων τά τότε περί αὐτόν

ὄντα ιτῆ περιαιρέσει τῶν νῦν περί αὐτόν ὄντων παραδείκνυσιν ὁ διδάσκαλος. Κινεῖται γάρ νῦν ὁ ἄνθρωπος, ἤ περί φαντασίας ἀλόγους παθῶν ἐξ ἀπάτης διά φιληδονίαν, ἤ περί λόγους τεχνῶν ἐκ περιστάσεως διά τήν χρείαν, ἤ περί φυσικούς λόγους ἐκ τοῦ νόμου τῆς φύσεως διά μάθησιν, ὧν οὐδέν κατ᾿ ἀρχήν εἰκότως ἀξ ἀνάγκης εἵλκε τόν ἄνθρωπον, ὑπεράνω πάντων γενόμενον. Οὕτω γάρ ἔπρεπεν εἶναι τόν ἀπ᾿ ἀρχῆς, μηδενί τό σύνολον περισπώμενον, τῶν ὑπ᾿ αὐτόν, ἤ περί αὐτόν, ἤ κατ᾿ αὐτόν, καί πρός τελείωσιν ἑνός μόνου προσδεόμενον, τῆς πρός τόν ὑπέρ αὐτόν, φημί δέ τόν Θεόν, καθ᾿ ὅλην τήν ἀγαπητικήν δύναμιν ἀσχέτου κινήσεως. Ἀπαθής γάρ χάριτι ὤν ἀπάτην παθῶν φαντασίας δι᾿ ἡδονῆς οὐ προσίετο· καί ἀπροσδεής ὑπάρχων τῆς περί τέχνας περιστατικῆς ἀνάγκης διά τήν χρείαν ἐλεύθερος ἦν· καί σοφός ὤν τῆς περί τήν φύσιν θεωρίας ὑπεράνω καθειστήκει διά τήν γνῶσιν. Οὐδέν οὖν εἶχεν ὁ πρῶτος ἄνθρωπος μεταξύ Θεοῦ καί αὐτοῦ προβεβλημένον πρός εἴδησιν, καί κωλύον αὐτοῦ τήν δι᾿ ἀγάπης αὐθαίρετον κατά τήν πρός Θεόν κίνησιν γενησομένην συγγένειαν, καί διά τοῦτο "γυμνός τῇ ἁπλότητι" προσηγορεύθη τῷ διδασκάλῳ, ὡς ὑπεράνω πάσης τῆς κατά φύσιν ὑπάρχων ζητήσεως, καί "ζωῇ τῇ ἀτέχνῳ," ὡς πάσης τεχνῶν ἐνδεοῦς καθαρεύων ζωῆς, καί "δίχα παντός ἐπικαλύμματος καί προβλήματος," οἷα τῆς πρός τά αἰσθητά τῶν αἰσθήσεων ἐμπαθοῦς συμπλοκῆς τυγχάνων ἐλεύθερος, εἴς ὑπήχθη δικαίως ὕστερον, ἐλλείψας τήν ἔλλειψιν, (1356) καί τοῦ πλήρης εἶναι τό κενός πάντων γενέσθαι αὐθαιρέτως ἑλόμενος, κάτω γενόμενος ὧν ὑπεράνω φυσικῶς ὑπῆρχε γεγενημένος.

Ἄλλη περί αὐτοῦ θεωρία. Ἤ μήποτε "γυμνός," ὥς φησιν ὁ διδάσκαλος, τῆς περί φύσιν ποικίλης θεωρίας καί

γνώσεως, καί "ζωῇ τῇ ἀτέχνῳ," τῆς περί πρᾶξιν καί ἀρετήν πολυτρόπου μεθοδείας ὑπάρχων ἐκτός, κατά τήν ἕξιν ἔχων τούς τῶν ἀρετῶν ἀμολύντους λόγους, καί "δίχα παντός ἐπικαλύμματος καί προβλήματος," τῆς ἐπ᾿ αἰσθήσεσι τῶν φαινομένων διανοίας πρός κατανόησιν τῶν θείων, προηγουμένως οὐ χρῄζων, μόνην τήν ἁπλῆν τῆς ἑνοειδοῦς καί ἁπλῆς καί συνεκτικῆς τῶν μετά Θεόν ἀρετῆς τε καί γνώσεως ἔχων προβολήν, τῆς