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De oratione (sub nomine Nili Ancyrani)

OF THE SAME AUTHOR, A DISCOURSE ON PRAYER, DIVIDED INTO 153 CHAPTERS.

PREFACE. While I was burning with the flame of the unclean passions, you have, as usual, restored me by the touch of your God-loving letters, comforting my weary mind in its extremities, and having blessedly imitated the great guide and teacher; and it is not surprising; for the distinguished things have always been your portion, as also of the blessed Jacob. For having served well for the sake of Rachel, and having received Leah, you seek also the desired one, having, I suppose, fulfilled the seven years for her as well. But I would not deny, that having toiled all night, I have caught nothing, but yet at your word having let down the net, I have caught a multitude of fish, not of great ones, I think, but nevertheless one hundred and fifty-three, and these I have sent in the basket of love through the chapters of equal number, having fulfilled your command; but I admire you, and I greatly emulate your excellent purpose in loving the chapters on prayer. For you do not simply love these which are in hand, and which have their being on paper through ink, but those established in the mind through love and the remembrance of wrongs no more. But since all things are twofold, one against one, according to the wise Jesus, receive it according to the letter and the spirit; and understand, that in every way the mind precedes the letter; for if this does not exist, there will be no letter either. Therefore the way of prayer is also twofold, the one practical, the other contemplative, so also of a number, the one aspect is a ready quantity, the other is its signified quality; therefore, having divided the discourse on prayer into one hundred fifty-three, we have sent to you an evangelical ration of fish, so that you might find the delight of a symbolic number and a triangular and hexagonal figure, indicating at once the pious knowledge of the Trinity, and at the same time the description of this ordered world. But the number one hundred is in itself a square, but the fifty-three is triangular and spherical; for the twenty-eight is triangular. And spherical is the twenty-five; for five times five chapters. Therefore you have the square figure, not only through the tetrad of the virtues, but also the wise knowledge of this age resembling the twenty-fifth, on account of the 79.1168 spherical nature of times. For week upon week, and month upon month moves, and from year to year time revolves and season upon season, as we see in the motion of the sun, and moon, of spring, and of the things that follow. But the triangular, would signify to you the knowledge of the Holy Trinity. Otherwise; if through the multitude of numbers you take the one hundred and third, it being triangular, it is fitting to understand the practical, the natural, the theological, or also of faith, hope, and love, gold, silver, precious stones. But such is the number, but may you not despise the humility of the chapters, as one who knows both how to be full and how to be in need, yea, and as one who remembers Him who did not cast away the widow's two mites, but even accepted them as more than the wealth of many others; therefore knowing it as a fruit of goodwill and of love, you will keep it, permitting your true brothers to pray on behalf of the one who is sick, so that he may be made well, and having taken up his own pallet, may henceforth walk, by the grace of Christ our true God, to whom be the glory unto the ages of ages. Amen.

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De oratione (sub nomine Nili Ancyrani)

ΤΟΥ ΑΥΤΟΥ ΠΕΡΙ ΠΡΟΣΕΥΧΗΣ ΛΟΓΟΣ ΕΙΣ ΡΝΓʹ ΚΕΦΑΛΑΙΑ ∆ΙΕΙΛΗΜΜΕΝΟΣ.

ΠΡΟΟΙΜΙΟΝ. Πυρέττοντά με τῷ φλογμῷ τῶν ἀκαθάρτων παθῶν, συνήθως ἀνεκτήσω, τῇ

τῶν θεοφιλῶν σου γραμμάτων ἐπαφῇ, τὸν κάμνοντά μου νοῦν ἐν τοῖς ἐσχάτοις παραμυθησάμενος, καὶ τὸν μέγαν μιμησάμενος καθηγητὴν, καὶ διδάσκαλον μακαρίως· καὶ οὐ θαυμαστόν· σὴ γὰρ ἀεὶ μερὶς γέγονε τὰ ἐπίσημα, ὡς καὶ τοῦ εὐλογημένου Ἰακώβ· καλῶς γὰρ δουλεύσας τῆς Ῥαχὴλ χάριν, καὶ λαβὼν τὴν Λείαν, ζητεῖς καὶ τὴν ποθουμένην, ὡς καὶ ταύτης δήπου πληρώσας τὰ ἕβδομα. Ἐγὼ δὲ οὐκ ἀρνηθείην, ὡς ὅλην τὴν νύκτα κοπιάσας, πεπίακα οὐδὲν, πλὴν ἀλλ' ἐπὶ τῷ σῷ λόγῳ χαλάσας τὸ δίκτυον, ἤγρευσα ἰχθύων πληθὺν, οὐκ οἶμαι μὲν μεγάλων, ἑκατὸν δὲ ὅμως καὶ πεντήκοντα τριῶν, καὶ τούτους ἀπέστειλα ἐν τῇ σπυρίδι τῆς ἀγάπης διὰ τῶν ἰσαρίθμων κεφαλαίων, τὴν πρόσταξίν σου πεπληρωκώς· θαυμάζω δέ σε, καὶ λίαν ζηλῶ τῆς ἀρίστης προθέσεως τῶν περὶ προσευχῆς ἐρῶντα κεφαλαίων. Οὐ γὰρ ἁπλῶς τούτων ἐρᾷς τῶν ὑπὸ χειρῶν, καὶ ἐν χάρτῃ διὰ μέλανος τὸ εἶναι ἐχόντων, ἀλλὰ τῶν ἐν νῷ ἱδρυμένων δι' ἀγάπης, καὶ ἀμνησικακίας. Ἀλλ' ἐπεὶ πάντα δισσὰ, ἓν κατ' ἔναντι τοῦ ἑνὸς, κατὰ τὸν σοφὸν Ἰησοῦν, δέχου πρὸς τῷ γράμματι καὶ τῷ πνεύματι· καὶ σύνες, ὡς πάντως τοῦ γράμματος νοῦς προηγεῖται· οὐκ ὄντος γὰρ τούτου, οὐδὲ γράμμα ἔσται. Οὐκοῦν καὶ προσευχῆς διττὸς ὁ τρόπος, ὁ μέν τις πρακτικὸς, ὁ δὲ θεωρητικὸς, οὕτω καὶ ἀριθμοῦ, τὸ μὲν πρόχειρός ἐστι ποσότης, τὸ δὲ σημαινόμενον ποιότης· εἰς ἑκατὸν οὖν πεντήκοντα τριῶν τὸν περὶ προσευχῆς λόγον διειληφότες, εὐαγγελικὸν ὀψώνιόν σοι πεπόμφαμεν, ἵνα εὕρῃς συμβολικοῦ ἀριθμοῦ τερπνότητα καὶ σχῆμα τρίγωνον, καὶ ἑξάγωνον, ὁμοῦ μὲν εὐσεβῆ γνῶσιν Τριάδος, ὁμοῦ δὲ καὶ τῆσδε τῆς διακοσμήσεως τὴν περιγραφὴν ὑποφαῖνον. Ἀλλ' ὁ ἑκατὸν ἀριθμὸς καθ' ἑαυτὸν τετράγωνός ἐστιν, ὁ δὲ πεντήκοντα τρὶς, τρίγωνος, καὶ σφαιρικός· ὁ γὰρ εἰκοστὸς ὄγδοος μὲν τρίγωνος. Σφαιρικὸς δὲ ὁ εἰκοστὸς πέμπτος· πεντάκις γὰρ πέντε κεφάλαια. Οὐκοῦν ἔχεις τὸ τετράγωνον σχῆμα, οὐ μόνον διὰ τῆς τετρακτύος τῶν ἀρετῶν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῦδε τοῦ αἰῶνος τὴν ἔνσοφον γνῶσιν τῷ εἰκοστῷ πέμπτῳ ἐοικυῖαν, διὰ τὸ 79.1168 σφαιρικὸν τῶν χρόνων. Ἑβδομὰς γὰρ ἐπὶ ἑβδομάδα, καὶ μὴν ἐπὶ μῆνα κινεῖται, καὶ ἐξ ἐνιαυτοῦ εἰς ἐνιαυτὸν ὁ χρόνος κυλινδεῖται καὶ καιρὸς ἐπὶ καιρὸν, ὡς ἐπὶ κινήσεως ἡλίου, καὶ σελήνης, ἔαρος, καὶ τῶν ἑξῆς ὁρῶμεν. Τὸ δὲ τρίγωνον, σημαίνει ἄν σοι τὴν τῆς ἁγίας Τριάδος γνῶσιν. Ἄλλως· εἰ δὲ διὰ τῆς πληθύος τῶν ἀριθμῶν κομίζῃ τὸν ἑκατοστὸν τρίτον τρίγωνον ὄντα, νοεῖν προσήκει πρακτικὴν, φυσικὴν, θεολογικὴν, ἢ καὶ πίστεως, ἐλπίδος, καὶ ἀγάπης, χρυσὸν, ἄργυρον, λίθους τιμίου. Ἀλλ' ὁ μὲν ἀριθμὸς τοιοῦτος, τῶν δὲ κεφαλαίων τὸ ταπεινὸν οὐ περιυβρίσειας, ὡς εἰδὼς καὶ χορτάζεσθαι, καὶ ὑστερεῖσθαι, ναὶ μὴν καὶ ὡς μεμνημένος τοῦ τὰ δύο τῆς χήρας λεπτὰ μὴ ἀποβεβληκότος, ἀλλὰ καὶ ὑπὲρ πλοῦτον πολλῶν ἑτέρων ἀποδεξαμένου· οὐκοῦν εὐνοίας, καὶ ἀγάπης καρπὸν εἰδὼς, φυλάξεις σοῖς γνησίοις ἀδελφοῖς ἐπιτρέπων προσεύχεσθαι ὑπὲρ τοῦ ἀῤῥωστοῦντος, ὅπως ὑγιαίνῃ, καὶ ἑαυτοῦ τὸν κράββατον ἄρας, λοιπὸν πατήσῃ, χάριτι Χριστοῦ τοῦ ἀληθινοῦ Θεοῦ ἡμῶν, ᾧ ἡ δόξα εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. Ἀμήν.