ΓΡΗΓΟΡΙΟΥ ΕΠΙΣΚΟΠΟΥ ΝΥΣΣΗΣ ΕΠΙΣΤΟΛΗ ΕΙΣ ΤΟΝ ΒΙΟΝ ΤΗΣ ΟΣΙΑΣ ΜΑΚΡΙΝΗΣ Τὸ μὲν εἶδος τοῦ βιβλίου ὅσον ἐν τῷ τῆς προγραφῆς τύπῳ ἐπιστολὴ εἶναι δοκεῖ, τὸ δὲ

 Μακρίνα ἦν ὄνομα τῇ παρθένῳ, εὐδόκιμος δέ τις πάλαι κατὰ τὸ γένος ἦν ἡ Μακρίνα, μήτηρ τοῦ πατρὸς ἡμῶν γεγενημένη, ταῖς ὑπὲρ Χριστοῦ ὁμολογίαις τῷ καιρ

 Καὶ ἐπειδὴ παρῆν ὁ καιρός, καθ' ὃν ἔδει λυθῆναι τὴν ὠδῖνα τῷ τόκῳ, εἰς ὕπνον καταπεσοῦσα φέρειν ἐδόκει διὰ χειρὸς τὸ ἔτι ὑπὸ τῶν σπλάγχνων περιεχόμενο

 Τρέφεται τοίνυν τὸ παιδίον, οὔσης μὲν αὐτῷ καὶ τιθηνοῦ ἰδίας, τὰ δὲ πολλὰ τῆς μητρὸς ἐν ταῖς χερσὶ ταῖς ἰδίαις τιθηνουμένης. Ὑπερβᾶσα δὲ τὴν τῶν νηπίω

 Τούτοις συναυξανομένη καὶ τοῖς τοιούτοις ἐπιτηδεύμασι καὶ τὴν χεῖρα πρὸς τὴν ἐριουργίαν διαφερόντως ἀσκήσασα πρόεισιν εἰς δωδέκατον ἔτος, ἐν ᾧ μάλιστα

 Ὁ δὲ φθόνος ἐπικόπτει τὰς χρηστοτέρας ἐλπίδας ἀναρπάσας αὐτὸν ἐκ τῆς ζωῆς ἐν ἐλεεινῇ τῇ νεότητι.Οὐκ ἠγνόει δὲ τὰ τῷ πατρὶ δεδογμένα ἡ κόρη: ἀλλ' ἐπειδ

 Τοῖς τοιούτοις λόγοις ἀπωθουμένη τοὺς παραπείθειν ἐπιχειροῦντας ἓν ἐδοκίμασεν ἑαυτῇ τῆς ἀγαθῆς κρίσεως φυλακτήριον, τὸ μηδέποτε τῆς ἰδίας μητρὸς μηδὲ

 Καὶ ἐπειδὴ τὸ κατὰ τὰς ἀδελφὰς πρὸς τὸ δοκοῦν ἑκάστῃ μετ' εὐσχημοσύνης ἡ μήτηρ ᾠκονομήσατο, ἐπάνεισιν ἐν τούτῳ τῶν παιδευτηρίων πολλῷ χρόνῳ προασκηθεὶ

 Ἦν τῶν τεσσάρων ἀδελφῶν ὁ δεύτερος μετὰ τὸν μέγαν Βασίλειον, Ναυκράτιος ὄνομα αὐτῷ, φύσεως εὐκληρίᾳ καὶ σώματος κάλλει καὶ ῥώμῃ καὶ τάχει καὶ τῇ πρὸς

 Εἶτα βαρύ τι καὶ τραγικὸν πάθος ἐξ ἐπιβουλῆς, οἶμαι, τοῦ ἀντικειμένου τῇ μητρὶ συνηνέχθη, ὃ παντὶ τῷ γένει πρὸς συμφοράν τε καὶ πένθος ἐπήρκεσεν. Αἰφν

 Ἐν τούτῳ διεφάνη τῆς μεγάλης Μακρίνης ἡ ἀρετή, ὅπως τῷ πάθει τὸν λογισμὸν ἀντιστήσασα ἑαυτήν τε ἄπτωτον διεφύλαξε καὶ τῆς μητρικῆς ἀσθενείας ἔρεισμα γ

 Ἐπεὶ οὖν ἐπαύσατο τῇ μητρὶ ἥ τε τῆς παιδοτροφίας φροντὶς καὶ ἡ τῆς παιδεύσεώς τε καὶ καταστάσεως τῶν τέκνων μέριμνα καὶ αἱ πλείους τῆς ὑλωδεστέρας ζωῆ

 Ἦν δὲ αὐτῇ ὁ μάλιστα πρὸς τὸν μέγαν τοῦτον τοῦ βίου σκοπὸν ὑπηρετῶν ἀδελφός τις ὁμογάστριος, Πέτρος ὄνομα αὐτῷ, ἐφ' ᾧ ἔληξαν τῆς μητρὸς ἡμῶν αἱ ὠδῖνες

 Ἐν τούτῳ εἰς γῆρας λιπαρὸν προελθοῦσα ἡ μήτηρ πρὸς τὸν θεὸν μετανίστατο, ἐν ταῖς ἀμφοτέρων τῶν τέκνων χερσὶ τὸν βίον ἑαυτῆς ἀναπαύσασα. Ἧς ἄξιον τὴν τ

 Ἐν τούτῳ ὁ πολὺς ἐν ἁγίοις Βασίλειος τῆς μεγάλης Καισαρέων ἐκκλησίας ἀνεδείχθη προστάτης: ὃς ἐπὶ τὸν κλῆρον τῆς ἐν τῷ πρεσβυτερίῳ ἱερωσύνης τὸν ἀδελφὸ

 Ἔνατος ἦν μετὰ τὸ πάθος τοῦτο μὴν ἢ μικρὸν ὑπὲρ τοῦτο καὶ σύνοδος ἐπισκόπων κατὰ τὴν Ἀντιόχου πόλιν ἠθροίζετο, ἧς καὶ ἡμεῖς μετέσχομεν. Καὶ ἐπειδὴ πάλ

 Ὡς δὲ κατ' αὐτὸν ἐγενόμην τὸν τόπον καὶ προκατήγγειλε τῇ ἀδελφότητι τὴν παρουσίαν ἡ φήμη, τό τε σύνταγμα τῶν ἀνδρῶν ἅπαν ἐκ τοῦ ἀνδρῶνος πρὸς ἡμᾶς προ

 Ἐπεὶ δὲ συνεπεράνθη ὁ λόγος: «Ὥρα σοι, φησίν, ἀδελφέ, πολλῷ τῷ κόπῳ τῆς ὁδοιπορίας πεπονηκότι βραχύ τι διαναπαῦσαι τὸ σῶμα.» Κἀμοὶ μεγάλη μὲν καὶ ἀληθ

 Ἐπεὶ δὲ πάλιν ἐν ὀφθαλμοῖς ἦμεν αὐτῆς, οὐ γὰρ εἴα τὴν εὔσχολον ὥραν ἐφ' ἑαυτῶν διάγειν, ἀναλαβοῦσα τῶν ἐκ νεότητος αὐτῇ βεβιωμένων τὴν μνήμην καθάπερ

 Ὡς δὲ ἡμέρα ἐγένετο, ἐμοὶ μὲν πρόδηλον ἐκ τῶν ὁρωμένων ἦν, ὅτι ἔσχατος αὐτῇ τῆς κατὰ σάρκα ζωῆς ὅρος ἡ ἐνεστῶσα ἡμέρα ἦν, πᾶσαν τὴν ἐγκειμένην τῇ φύσε

 Καὶ τῆς μὲν ἡμέρας ἤδη παρῳχήκει τὸ πλέον καὶ ὁ ἥλιος πρὸς δυσμὰς ἐπεκλίνετο. Τῇ δὲ οὐκ ἐνεδίδου ἡ προθυμία, ἀλλ' ὅσον τῇ ἐξόδῳ προσήγγιζεν, ὡς πλέον

 Ὡς δὲ ἦν τὸ λοιπὸν ἄπνους τε καὶ ἀκίνητος, μνησθεὶς τῶν ἐντολῶν, ἃς εὐθὺς παρὰ τὴν πρώτην συντυχίαν πεποίητο εἰποῦσα βούλεσθαι τὰς ἐμὰς τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς

 Ἐμοὶ δὲ διχόθεν ἐγίνετο πάρετος ἡ ψυχὴ καὶ οἷς τὸ φαινόμενον ἔβλεπον καὶ οἷς τὴν ἀκοὴν διὰ τῆς γοερᾶς τῶν παρθένων οἰμωγῆς περιηχούμην. Τέως μὲν γὰρ ἐ

 Ταῦτ' ἔλεγον μείζονι τῇ φωνῇ, ὡς ἂν τὸν ἦχον τῶν θρήνων ὑπερηχήσαιμι. Εἶτα μεταστῆναι παρεκάλεσα μικρὸν ἐπὶ τὸν σύνεγγυς οἶκον, καταλειφθῆναι δέ τινας

 Ἐπεὶ δὲ τοῦτο ἐδέδοκτο καὶ ἔδει περισταλῆναι ταῖς ὀθόναις τὸ ἱερὸν σῶμα ἐκεῖνο, διελομένοι τὴν σπουδὴν ἄλλος ἄλλο τι περὶ αὐτὴν ἐπονοῦμεν. Καὶ ἐγὼ μὲν

 Ὡς δὲ ἡμεῖς ἐν τούτοις ἦμεν καὶ αἱ ψαλμῳδίαι τῶν παρθένων τοῖς θρήνοις καταμιχθεῖσαι περιήχουν τὸν τόπον, οὐκ οἶδ' ὅπως ἐν κύκλῳ πανταχόθεν ἀθρόως τῆς

 Ἐπειδὴ οὖν ἐντὸς τῶν θυρῶν τοῦ οἴκου κατέστημεν, ἀποθέμενοι τὴν κλίνην τὰ πρῶτα εἰς προσευχὴν ἐτρεπόμεθα: ἡ δὲ εὐχὴ θρήνων γίνεται ἀφορμὴ τῷ λαῷ. Τῆς

 Καὶ ἐπειδὴ τὸ πρέπον ἡ προσευχὴ πέρας ἔλαβε, φόβος μέ τις τῆς θείας ἐντολῆς εἰσέρχεται τῆς κωλυούσης πατρὸς ἢ μητρὸς ἀνακαλύπτειν ἀσχημοσύνην. Καὶ πῶς

 Ἐπεὶ δὲ πάντα ἡμῖν τὰ ἐν τῇ κηδείᾳ νενομισμένα πεπλήρωτο καὶ ἔδει τῆς ἐπανόδου γενέσθαι, ἐπιπεσὼν τῷ τάφῳ καὶ τὴν κόνιν ἀσπασάμενος εἰχόμην πάλιν τῆς

 «Ἐγένετό τις ἡμῖν ἐπιθυμία ποτὲ τῇ τε γαμετῇ καὶ ἐμοὶ καταλαβεῖν κατὰ σπουδὴν τὸ τῆς ἀρετῆς φροντιστήριον: οὕτω γὰρ οἶμαι χρῆναι, φησί, τὸν χῶρον ἐκεῖ

 Ὅσα δὲ καὶ ἄλλα τοιαῦτα παρὰ τῶν συνεζηκότων αὐτῇ καὶ δι' ἀκριβείας τὰ κατ' αὐτὴν ἐπισταμένων ἠκούσαμεν, οὐκ ἀσφαλὲς οἶμαι προσθεῖναι τῷ διηγήματι. Οἱ

MOTHER AND DAUGHTER MAKE FURTHER PROGRESS IN THE ASCETIC LIFE

When the cares of bringing up a family and the anxieties of their education and settling in life had come to an end, and the property----a frequent cause of worldliness---- had been for the most part divided among the children, then, as I said above, the life of the virgin became her mother's guide and led her on to this philosophic and spiritual [970C] manner of life. And weaning her from all accustomed luxuries, Macrina drew her on to adopt her own standard of humility. She induced her to live on a footing of equality with the staff of maids, so as to share with them in the same food, the same kind of bed, and in all the necessaries of life, without any regard to differences of rank. Such was the manner of their life, so great the height of their philosophy, and so holy their conduct day and night, as to make verbal description inadequate. For just as souls freed from the body by death are saved from the cares of this life, so was their life far removed from all earthly follies and ordered with a view of imitating the angelic life. For no anger or [970D] jealousy, no hatred or pride, was observed in their midst, nor anything else of this nature, since they had cast away all vain desires for honour and glory, all vanity, arrogance and the like. Continence was their luxury, and obscurity their glory. Poverty, and the casting away of all material superfluities like dust from their bodies, was their wealth. In fact, of all the things after which men eagerly pursue in this life, there were none with which they could not easily dispense. 5 Nothing was left but the care of divine things and the unceasing round of prayer and endless hymnody, co-extensive with time itself, practised by night and day. So that to them this meant work, and work so called was rest. What human words could make you [972A] realise such a life as this, a life on the borderline between human and spiritual nature? For that nature should be free from human weaknesses is more than can be expected from mankind. But these women fell short of the angelic and immaterial nature only in so far as they appeared in bodily form, and were contained within a human frame, and were dependent upon the organs of sense. Perhaps some might even dare to say that the difference was not to their disadvantage. Since living in the body and yet after the likeness of the immaterial beings, they were not bowed down by the weight of the body, but their life was exalted to the skies and [972B] they walked on high in company with the powers of heaven.

The period covered by this mode of life was no short one, and with the lapse of time their successes increased, as their philosophy continually grew purer with the discovery of new blessings.

Ἐπεὶ οὖν ἐπαύσατο τῇ μητρὶ ἥ τε τῆς παιδοτροφίας φροντὶς καὶ ἡ τῆς παιδεύσεώς τε καὶ καταστάσεως τῶν τέκνων μέριμνα καὶ αἱ πλείους τῆς ὑλωδεστέρας ζωῆς ἀφορμαὶ εἰς τὰ τέκνα κατεμερίσθησαν, τότε, καθὼς προείρηται, γίνεται σύμβουλος τῆς μητρὸς ἡ τῆς παρθένου ζωὴ πρὸς τὴν ἐμφιλόσοφον ταύτην καὶ ἄϋλον τοῦ βίου διαγωγὴν καὶ ἀποστήσασα τῶν ἐν συνηθείᾳ πάντων πρὸς τὸ ἴδιον τῆς ταπεινοφροσύνης μέτρον κατήγαγεν, ὁμότιμον αὐτὴν γενέσθαι τῷ πληρώματι τῶν παρθένων παρασκευάσασα, ὡς καὶ τραπέζης μιᾶς καὶ κοίτης καὶ πάντων τῶν πρὸς τὴν ζωὴν κατὰ τὸ ἴσον συμμετέχειν αὐταῖς, πάσης τῆς κατὰ τὴν ἀξίαν διαφορᾶς ὑφαιρεθείσης αὐτῶν τῆς ζωῆς. Καὶ τοιαύτη τις ἦν ἡ τοῦ βίου τάξις καὶ τοσοῦτον τὸ ὕψος τῆς φιλοσοφίας καὶ ἡ σεμνὴ τῆς ζωῆς πολιτεία ἐν τῇ καθ' ἡμέραν τε καὶ νύκτα διαγωγῇ, ὡς ὑπερβαίνειν τὴν ἐκ τῶν λόγων ὑπογραφήν. Καθάπερ γὰρ αἱ διὰ θανάτου τῶν σωμάτων ἐκλυθεῖσαι ψυχαὶ καὶ τῶν κατὰ τὸν βίον τοῦτον μεριμνῶν συνεκλύονται, οὕτως κεχώριστο αὐτῶν ἡ ζωὴ καὶ ἀπῴκιστο πάσης βιωτικῆς ματαιότητος καὶ πρὸς μίμησιν τῆς τῶν ἀγγέλων διαγωγῆς ἐρρυθμίζετο. Ἐν οἷς γὰρ οὐ θυμός, οὐ φθόνος, οὐ μῖσος, οὐχ ὑπεροψία, οὐκ ἄλλο τι τῶν τοιούτων ἐνεωρᾶτο, ἥ τε τῶν ματαίων ἐπιθυμία, τιμῆς τε καὶ δόξης καὶ τύφου καὶ ὑπερηφανίας καὶ πάντων τῶν τοιούτων, ἐκβέβλητο: τρυφὴ δὲ ἦν ἡ ἐγκράτεια καὶ δόξα τὸ μὴ γινώσκεσθαι, πλοῦτος δὲ ἡ ἀκτημοσύνη καὶ τὸ πᾶσαν τὴν ὑλικὴν περιουσίαν οἷόν τινα κόνιν τῶν σωμάτων ἀποτινάξασθαι, ἔργον δὲ τῶν μὲν κατὰ τὴν ζωὴν ταύτην σπουδαζομένων οὐδέν, ὅτι μὴ πάρεργον, μόνη δὲ ἡ τῶν θείων μελέτη καὶ τὸ τῆς προσευχῆς ἀδιάλειπτον καὶ ἡ ἄπαυστος ὑμνῳδία, κατὰ τὸ ἴσον παντὶ συμπαρατεινομένη τῷ χρόνῳ διὰ νυκτὸς καὶ ἡμέρας πάσης, ὥστε αὐταῖς καὶ ἔργον εἶναι τοῦτο καὶ ἔργου ἀνάπαυσιν. Τὴν τοίνυν τοιαύτην διαγωγὴν τίς ἂν ὑπ' ὄψιν ἀγάγοι λόγος ἀνθρώπινος, παρ' οἷς μεθόριος ἦν ἡ ζωὴ τῆς τε ἀνθρωπίνης καὶ τῆς ἀσωμάτου φύσεως; Τὸ μὲν γὰρ ἐλευθερωθῆναι τῶν ἀνθρωπίνων παθημάτων τὴν φύσιν κρεῖττον ἢ κατὰ ἄνθρωπον ἦν, τὸ δὲ ἐν σώματι φαίνεσθαι καὶ σχήματι περιειλῆφθαι καὶ τοῖς αἰσθητικοῖς ὀργάνοις συζῆν ἐν τούτῳ τῆς ἀγγελικῆς τε καὶ ἀσωμάτου φύσεως τὸ ἔλαττον εἶχον. Τάχα δ' ἄν τις τολμήσας εἴποι μηδὲ πρὸς τὸ καταδεέστερον τὴν παραλλαγὴν εἶναι, ὅτι σαρκὶ συζῶσαι καθ' ὁμοιότητα τῶν ἀσωμάτων δυνάμεων οὐκ ἐβαροῦντο τῷ ἐφολκίῳ τοῦ σώματος, ἀλλ' ἀνωφερής τε καὶ μετέωρος ἦν αὐτῶν ἡ ζωὴ ταῖς οὐρανίαις συμμετεωροποροῦσα δυνάμεσι. Χρόνος ἦν τῆς τοιαύτης διαγωγῆς οὐκ ὀλίγος καὶ συνηύξετο τῷ χρόνῳ τὰ κατορθώματα, ἀεὶ πρὸς τὸ καθαρώτερον ταῖς τῶν ἐφευρισκομένων ἀγαθῶν προσθήκαις τῆς φιλοσοφίας ἐπιδιδούσης.