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Carmina de se ipso

BOOK 2. HISTORICAL POEMS. SECTION 1. CONCERNING HIMSELF.

I. Concerning the things about himself. O Christ, Lord, who once with the pure, upraised, cross-shaped hands of Moses your servant on the mountain, did turn aside the destructive might of Amalek; who also, with hands outstretched in the pit under Daniel, bound the terrible jaws of lions and the dreadful points of their claws; 970 through whom also Jonah, praying and stretching out his hands in the entrails, leaped forth from the great sea monster; and in the Assyrian flame a dewy cloud covered the three courageous youths, when they spread out their hands; You who once, walking on foot over the whole raging sea, calmed the waves and the fury of the winds, so that you might 971 rescue your disciples from the sea, agitated by the gales; and again for many you loosed their souls and limbs from diseases, as God, and being made a mortal, you mingled with mortals; of which things the one you were from above, the other you revealed to us at the last, so that you might make me a god, since you yourself were made a mortal; Thus, blessed One, come also to me, a gracious God, as I call; Come, a gracious God, bearing a hand, so that you may save me, distressed in war, and by beasts, and in flame, and by winds, and raising my eye to heaven alone. For indeed beasts and the wild surge of the sea, and mournful strife, and the rush of burning fire, all these are the evil, destructive men of life, who especially hate those who love God, 972 neither trembling at the justice that will meet them later, nor caring for mortals, as many as hate a sinner. Keep me from them, O Christ, and guard me carefully, holding me around with your wings, and cast far away the baneful cares of your servant, O Lord, and let not heavy anxieties shake my mind, which this world and the ruler of the world stirs up for wretched mortals, devouring, like rust on iron, the godlike form within, and making the better portion, which is congenital, earthy, so that the soul may not draw upward the dust weighing upon the earth; but the dust may cast the winged soul to the ground, ill-fated, having become flesh in muddy works. For there are two gates of hateful death for mortals. 973 And some indeed produce a murky spring of evil within their minds, for whom wicked deeds are always a care, and the body, and insolent satiety, and baneful counsels; who, urging themselves to every transgression, take pleasure in sin, embracing their own doom; But others, seeing God with the pure eyes of the mind, and hating the hubris born of the shameless world, live far from a wretched life in shadowy flesh, and they tread the earth with lighter feet, following the calling God, and light in spirit, initiates of the hidden life of Christ the Lord, so that when it is illuminated later, they may shine forth. But even so they are pierced by the evil thorns of life, 974 by constraining need, and outside the mad, evil-working demon has devised countless goads of doom, for wretched mortals; and often hiding baneful destruction under a noble form, when warring against them he retreats. For he weaves such a plague for men, as the bronze under a bait, when it brings death to fish, which, desiring life, have drawn unforeseen destruction into their entrails, gaping for their own doom. So also the crafty one, since I knew him to be darkness, having put on a beautiful appearance, came upon me like light, if somehow, while desiring virtue, I might approach evil, with my rather light mind being stolen away to destruction. But marriage, the stream of life, did not bind me, which is the greatest 975 bond that matter has cast upon men, the beginning of burden; Nor did the beautiful threads of the Chinese captivate me, nor did I admire a rich table, feeding a gaping belly, the wicked mother of lewdness; nor did I love to dwell in great and splendid houses; Nor did I warm my heart with the tender strains of the Muse; Nor did the soft, womanly scent of perfumes run through me. But for others, again, gold and silver, who loving to sit upon countless possessions

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Carmina de se ipso

ΒΙΒΛΟΣ Βʹ. ΕΠΗ ΙΣΤΟΡΙΚΑ. ΤΟΜΗ Αʹ. ΠΕΡΙ ΕΑΥΤΟΥ.

Αʹ. Περὶ τῶν καθ' ἑαυτόν. Χριστὲ ἄναξ, ὃς ἁγναῖς ποτ' ἀειρομέναις παλάμῃσι Σταυροτύποις Μωσῆος ἐπ' οὔρεϊ σοῦ θεράποντος, Ἔκλινας Ἀμαλὴκ ὀλοὸν σθένος· ὅς τε ταθείσαις Χείρεσιν ἐν βόθρῳ ∆ανιὴλ ὕπο, δεινὰ λεόντων Χάσματα, καὶ φρικτὰς ὀνύχων ἐπέδησας ἀκωκάς· 970 Ὃν διὰ καὶ μεγάλου ἀπὸ κήτεος ἔκθορ' Ἰωνᾶς Εὐξάμενος, καὶ χεῖρας ἐνὶ σπλάγχνοισι τανύσσας· Ἐν φλογὶ δ' Ἀσσυρίῃ δροσερὸν νέφος ἀμφεκάλυψε Θαρσαλέους τρεῖς παῖδας, ἐπεὶ χέρας ἐξεπέτασσαν· Ὅς ποθ' ὅλην ζείουσαν ὑπεὶρ ἅλα πεζὸς ὁδεύσας, Κύματα καὶ ἀνέμων μένος ηὔνασας, ὥς κε μαθητὰς 971 Ἐκ πελάγους ἐρύσειας ὀρινομένους ὑπ' ἀήταις· Πολλοῖς δ' αὖ ψυχάς τε καὶ ἅψεα λύσαο νούσων, Οἷα Θεὸς, κρανθεὶς δὲ βροτὸς, θνητοῖσιν ἐμίχθης· Ὧν τὸ μὲν ἦες ἄνωθε, τὸ δ' ὕστατον ἄμμι φαάνθης, Ὥς με θεὸν τελέσειας, ἐπεὶ βροτὸς αὐτὸς ἐτύχθης· Ὧδε μάκαρ καὶ ἐμοὶ Θεὸς ἴλαος ἐλθὲ καλεῦντι· Ἔλθ' ἐπὶ χεῖρα φέρων Θεὸς ἵλαος, ὥς με σαώσῃς Ἐν πολέμῳ, καὶ θηρσὶ, καὶ ἐν φλογὶ, καὶ ἀνέμοισι Τειρόμενον, καὶ μοῦνον ἐς οὐρανὸν ὄμμα φέροντα. Καὶ γὰρ δὴ θῆρές τε καὶ ἄγριον οἶδμα θαλάσσης, Καὶ δῆρις στονόεσσα, καὶ αἰθομένου πυρὸς ὁρμὴ, Πάντα κακοὶ τελέθουσι βίου δηλήμονες ἄνδρες, Οἵ ῥα Θεὸν φιλέοντας ἁπεχθαίρουσι μάλιστα, 972 Οὔτε δίκην τρομέοντες ἐσύστερον ἀντιόωσαν, Οὔτε βροτῶν ἀλέγοντες, ὅσοι στυγέουσιν ἀλιτρόν. Τῶν μ' ἀποέργαθε, Χριστὲ, καὶ ἐνδυκέως με φύλαττε Ἀμφὶς ἔχων πτερύγεσσι τεαῖς, καὶ κήδεα λυγρὰ Σεῖο, Ἄναξ, θεράποντος ἑκὰς βάλε, μηδὲ βαρεῖαι Μέρμηραι δονέοιεν ἐμὸν νόον, ἃς ὅδε κόσμος, Καὶ κόσμου μεδέων δειλοῖς μερόπεσσιν ἐγείρει, ∆άπτων, οἷα σίδηρον ἰὸς, θεοειδέα μορφὴν Ἔνδοθι, συμφυέα τε τιθεὶς χθονὶ κρείσσονα μοίρην, Ὡς μὴ χοῦν ἐρύσειεν ἄνω βρίθοντ' ἐπὶ γαῖαν Ψυχή· χοῦς δὲ βάλοι ψυχὴν πτερόεσσαν ἔραζε ∆ύσμορον, ἰλυόεσσιν ἐν ἔργμασι σαρκωθεῖσαν. ∆οιαὶ γάρ τε πύλαι θνητοῖς στυγεροῦ θανάτοιο. 973 Καί ῥ' οἱ μὲν κακίης θολερὴν φρεσὶν ἔνδοθι πηγὴν Τίκτουσιν, τοῖς αἰὲν ἀτάσθαλα ἔργα μέμηλε, Καὶ δέμας, ὑβριστής τε κόρος, καὶ μήδεα λυγρά· Οἵ σφεας ὀτρύνοντες ὑπερβασίην ἐς ἅπασαν, Τέρποντ' ἀμπλακίῃ, σφέτερον μόρον ἀμφαγαπῶντες· Οἱ δὲ Θεὸν καθαρῇσι νόου λεύσσοντες ὀπωπαῖς, Καὶ κόσμου στυγέοντες ἀναιδέος ἔκγονον ὕβριν, Λυπροῦ ἑκὰς ζῶσιν βιότου σκιοειδέϊ σαρκὶ, Καὶ γαῖαν πατέουσιν ἐλαφροτέροισι πόδεσσιν, Ἑσπόμενοι καλέοντι Θεῷ, καὶ πνεύματι κοῦφοι, Μύσται κρυπτομένης ζωῆς Χριστοῖο ἄνακτος, Ὥς κεν λαμπομένης ποτ' ἐς ὕστερον ἀστράψωσιν. Ἀλλὰ καὶ ὡς βιότοιο κακαῖς πείρονται ἀκάνθαις 974 Χρειοῖ ἀναγκαίῃ, καὶ ἔκτοθι μυρία δαίμων Λυσσήεις κακοεργὸς ἐμήσατο κέντρα μόροιο, Ἆ μελέοις θνητοῖσι· καὶ εἴδεϊ πολλάκι κεύθων Ἐσθλῷ λυγρὸν ὄλεθρον, ὅτ' ἀντίβια πτολεμίζων Χάζηται. Τοῖον γὰρ ἐπ' ἀνδράσι λοιγὸν ὑφαίνει, Οἷον ὑπ' εἴδατι χαλκὸς, ὅτ' ἰχθύσι κῆρα φέρῃσιν, Οἳ ζωὴν ποθέοντες, ἐνὶ σπλάγχνοισιν ὄλεθρον Εἴρυσαν ἀπροϊδῆ, σφέτερον μόρον ἀμφιχανόντες. Ὣς καὶ ἐμοὶ δολόμητις, ἐπεὶ ζόφον ὄντα μιν ἔγνων, Ἑσσάμενος χρόα καλὸν, ἐπήλυθε φωτὶ ἐοικὼς, Αἴκεν πως ἀρετὴν ποθέων, κακίῃ πελάσαιμι, Κλεπτομένου πρὸς ὄλεθρον ἐλαφροτέροιο νόοιο. Οὔ με γάμος δ' ἐπέδησε, βίου ῥόος, ὅν τε μέγιστον 975 ∆εσμὸν ἐπ' ἀνθρώποις ὕλη βάλεν, ἄχθεος ἀρχήν· Οὐδ' εἷλεν σηρῶν καλὰ νήματα, οὐδὲ τράπεζαν Ἠγάσθην λιπαρὴν, πολυχανδέα γαστέρα βόσκων, Μαχλοσύνης μήτειραν ἀτάσθαλον· οὐδὲ δόμοισι Ναίειν ἐν μεγάλοισι καὶ αἰγλήεσσι φίλησα· Οὐ μούσης ἀταλοῖς ἐνὶ κρούμασι θυμὸν ἰάνθην· Οὐδὲ μύρων μαλακή με διέδραμε θῆλυς ἀϋτμή. Ἄλλων δ' αὖ χρυσός τε καὶ ἄργυρος, οἳ φιλέοντες Νηρίθμοις κτεάτεσσιν ἐφεζόμενοι