Conversations on Six Days

“In the beginning God created heaven and earth.” (Genesis 1.1). For anyone who wants to talk about the composition of the world, a decent start is to first talk about the beginning of the structure of visible things. For he must convey the story of the creation of heaven and earth, which did not happen by itself, as some imagined, but had a cause in God. What rumor would be worthy of the greatness of what is being told? With what preparation should the soul begin to hear such objects? She must be pure from carnal passions, not clouded by worldly worries, hardworking, searching, delving into everything from which it is possible to obtain a concept of God worthy of God. But before we examine the accuracy of the sayings and consider the polysemantic nature of these few words, let’s imagine who is talking to us? Through this, even if due to the weakness of our understanding, we did not penetrate into the depths of the narrator’s heart, however, having paid attention to the reliability of the speaker, we ourselves will come to the necessity of agreeing to what was said. So, the one who compiled this narrative is Moses - the Moses about whom it is testified that “he was not pleasing to God” (Acts 7.20), while still an infant, whom Pharaoh’s daughter adopted and raised like a king, assigning wise Egyptian mentors to teach him. Who, having hated the pride of dominance and turned to the humiliated state of his fellow tribesmen, “would rather suffer with the people of God than have the temporary sweetness of sin” (Heb. 11.25); who, having received from nature itself a love of truth, even before he was entrusted with the leadership of the people, out of natural disgust from evil, turns out to be even ready to death to persecute the evil; who, having been expelled by the benefited, and joyfully leaving the Egyptian rebellions, retired to Ethiopia, there, in complete freedom from other activities, for forty years, he practiced speculation about existing things; who, being already seventy years old, saw God as a man can see, or better yet, as no man has seen, according to God’s own testimony: “If the prophet of the Lord be among you, I will be known to him in a vision, and I will speak to him in a dream. Not as My servant Moses is faithful in all My house: I will speak to him mouth to mouth in reality, and not by divination” (Numbers 12.6–8). This one, who, like the Angels, was worthy of the sight of God, tells us something of what he heard from God. Let us listen to the messages of truth, which were spoken “not in the wisdom of men, ... but in those taught by the Spirit” (1 Cor 2.4, 13), and their goal is not the praise of those who hear, but the salvation of those who are taught. “In the beginning God created heaven and earth.” The amazingness of the thought binds me to the word. What to talk about first? Where to start the interpretation? Should we expose the vanity of the pagans? Or magnify the truth of our teaching? The Greek sages talked a lot about nature, and not a single one of their teachings remained firm and unshakable, because subsequent teachings always overthrew the previous ones. Therefore, we have no need to denounce their teachings; they themselves are sufficient for each other to cause their own overthrow. For those who did not know God did not admit that the origin of all things depends on a rational cause, and in accordance with this fundamental ignorance they concluded about other things. Therefore, some resorted to material principles, and attributed the cause of all things to the elements of the world, while others imagined that the nature of visible things consists of atoms and indivisible bodies, gravity and wellness, because birth and destruction occur when indivisible bodies either come together or separate, and in bodies that exist longer than others, the reason for their long stay lies in the strongest cohesion of atoms. Those who write this truly weave a web of cobwebs, and suggest so many small and weak principles of heaven, earth and sea. They did not know how to say: “In the beginning God created heaven and earth.” Therefore, the atheism that had taken hold of them instilled in them the false idea that everything was without control and structure, and was set in motion as if by chance. So that we would not be subjected to the same thing, the one who describes the universe directly, in the first words, enlightened our understanding with the name of God, saying: “In the beginning God created.” What a wonderful order! First he mentioned the “beginning” so that others would not consider the world to be without beginning, and then he added: “create” - to show that what was created is the smallest part of the Creator’s power. Just as a potter, who made thousands of vessels with the same skill, did not exhaust either his skill or his strength, so the Creator of this universe, having a creative power not sufficient for the world alone, but infinitely more excellent, brought all the greatness of the visible into existence with one wave of his will. And if the world has a beginning and is created, then we ask ourselves: who gave it the beginning, and who is its Creator? It is better to say, so that you, seeking this through human reasoning, do not somehow deviate from the truth, Moses preceded his teaching with his teaching, instead of a seal and barrier to our souls, imposing the venerable name of God when he said: “In the beginning God created.” This blessed Nature, this inexhaustible Goodness, this Kindness dear and much desired for every being endowed with reason, this Beginning of beings, this Source of life, this spiritual Light, this unapproachable Wisdom - this is Who “created heaven and earth in the beginning!” Therefore, man, do not imagine the visible as beginningless, and from the fact that bodies moving in the sky describe circles, and in a circle our sense cannot notice a beginning at first glance, do not conclude that the nature of rotating bodies is beginningless. Yes, and this circle, that is, an outline described on a plane by one line, we should not assume to be without beginning because it runs away from our senses, and we cannot find where it began and where it ended. On the contrary, although this escapes our senses, in reality, whoever described a circle from the center and at a certain distance, no doubt started it from somewhere. So, when you see that bodies describing circles return to their previous position, by the uniformity and continuity of their movement, do not hold yourself in that false thought that the world is beginningless and endless. “For the form of this world passes away” (1 Cor 7.31), and: “heaven and earth pass away” (Matt 24.35). A foreshadowing of the dogmas about the end and change of the world is what is now briefly given to us in the very beginnings of the inspired teaching “in the beginning God created.” What began with time, by all necessity, will end in time. If the beginning is temporary, then do not doubt the end. But to what end do geometry, arithmetic methods, studies of thicknesses and the notorious astronomy lead - this multi-disciplinary vanity, if those who studied these sciences came to the conclusion that this visible world is co-eternal with the Creator of all God, and if that which is limited and has a material body, they elevated it to the same glory with the incomprehensible and invisible nature, not being able to understand that where they are subject to damage and alterations of the part, then the whole must also undergo the same modifications as its own parts? But they were so “fussy in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened, declaring themselves to be wise fools” (Rom. 1.21–22), that some argued that heaven existed from eternity together with God, while others said that it is God, the beginningless and endless, the cause of good order in the parts of the universe. And without a doubt, the excess of worldly wisdom will one day bring for them an increase in heavy condemnation for the fact that, delving into empty objects with such caution, they were arbitrarily blind in understanding the truth. But they, who measured the distance of the stars, described the stars, always visible and northern, as well as the stars located near the southern pole, and visible to those living there, but unknown to us, divided the northern latitude and the zodiacal circle into thousands of parts, accurately observed the return of the stars, their positions, declinations and general movement to their former places, as well as the time at which each of the planets completes its period - they did not find one of all ways to understand God, the Creator of the universe and the righteous Judge, rewarding everyone worthily according to their deeds, and how to accommodate in the mind the thought of death arising from the concept of judgment, because the world needs to change if the state of souls passes into another kind of life. For just as present life has qualities akin to this world, so the future existence of our souls will receive a lot characteristic of its state. But they are so unwilling to listen to these truths that they even greet us with loud laughter, who herald the end of this world and eternal rebirth. Since the beginning naturally preceded that from the beginning, the one who talks about things that came into being in time necessarily introduced this expression to everything: “in the beginning create.” There was something, most likely, before this world, but this, although comprehensible to our understanding, was not introduced into the narrative, as inappropriate for the powers of the newly taught and infants by reason. Even earlier than the existence of the world, there was a certain state befitting the supermundane forces, transcending time, eternal, ever-continuing. In it, the Creator and Creator of all things created creations - mental light, befitting the bliss of those who love the Lord, rational and invisible natures and all the decoration of intelligible creatures that surpass our understanding, so that it is impossible to invent names for them. They fill with themselves the essence of the invisible world, as Paul teaches us, saying: “For by Him all things were created, whether visible, whether invisible, whether thrones, whether dominions, whether principalities, whether powers” ​​(Col. 1.16), and the angelic armies, and the archangelic rulers. And when it became necessary to add this world to the existing one - mainly a school and a place of formation of human souls, and then in general a place of residence for everything that is subject to birth and destruction, then a succession of time akin to the world and the animals and plants found in it was produced, always hastening and flowing, and never interrupting its flow. Isn’t time such that in it the past has passed, the future has not yet arrived, and the present eludes the senses before it is known? And such is the nature of what is in this world. It either necessarily increases or decreases, and clearly has nothing solid and permanent. Therefore, it was fitting for the bodies of animals and plants, which are necessarily connected, as it were, to some stream, and are carried away by movement leading to birth or destruction, to be contained in the nature of time, which received properties akin to changeable things. For this reason, he who wisely explains to us the existence of the world, while discussing the world, very opportunely added: “in the beginning you created,” that is, in this beginning, in the beginning of time. For, of course, not as evidence that the world, in its primordial nature, precedes everything created, it calls it what happened in the beginning, but speaks of the beginning of the origin of these visible and sense-perceivable things after the invisible and intuited. The first movement is also called the beginning, for example: “the beginning of the path of goodness is to do righteousness” (Proverbs 16.6), because first of all, righteous deeds move us towards a blissful life. But the beginning is also called the thing from which a thing begins, while there are other things in it, for example: in a house there is a foundation and in a ship there is an underwater part. In this sense it is said: “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Proverbs 1.7), because fear of God is, as it were, the basis and support of perfection. Art is called the beginning of artificial works, for example: the wisdom of Bezaleel was the beginning of the decoration of the Tabernacle. And the beginning of moral actions is often the useful end of what has been done, for example: the beginning of alms is the acquisition of God’s favor, and the beginning of any virtuous action is the end that awaits us according to the promises. Since the beginning is taken in so many meanings, then see if it is possible to attach all the signs to this word in the present case. For you can find out from what time the structure of this world began, if, going backwards from the present, you take the trouble to find the first day of the existence of the world. In this case, you will find where the first movement began in time. Then you will find that, as if by some foundations and supports, heaven and earth were laid before everything else, and then that there is some kind of artistic Mind that controlled the decoration of visible things, as the very word “beginning” shows you. You will also find that this world was invented not in vain and not without a purpose, but for some useful end, representing a wide use for beings, if indeed it is a school of rational souls, in which the knowledge of God is taught to them and through the visible and sensible the mind is guided to the contemplation of the invisible, as the Apostle says, that “from the creation of the world that which is invisible to Him has been conceived by the visible essence” (Rom. 1:20). Or, perhaps, since the action of creation is instantaneous and not subject to time, it is said: “in the beginning create,” because the beginning is something not consisting of parts and not extended. Just as the beginning of a path is not yet a path, and the beginning of a house is not yet a house, so the beginning of time is not yet time, and not even the smallest part of time. If any lover of debate says that the beginning of time is time, then let him know that this is to divide the beginning into parts, and these parts are: the beginning, the middle and the end. But coming up with a start is quite funny. And whoever divides the beginning into two will make two beginnings from one, or better yet, many and an infinite number of beginnings, because each separated part will have to be constantly cut into new parts. So, so that we understand together that the world was created by the will of God not in time, it is said: “in the beginning you created it.” In meaning of this, the ancient interpreters 1, expressing the thought more clearly, said: in short (εν κεφαλαιω) God created, that is, suddenly and instantly. Hitherto, in order to say not much out of many things, we have been talking about the beginning. But among the arts, some are called creative (ποιητικαι), others consist either in action (πρακτικαι) or in speculation (θεωορητικαι). The end of the arts that consist in speculation is the very action of the mind, and the end of the arts that consist in action is the very movement of the body, after the cessation of which there is nothing left and nothing left for the audience: just as dancing or playing the flute does not contribute anything to the work, but this action is limited only by itself. But in the creative arts, even after the action ceases, the matter is visible: such are the arts of house-building, carpentry, blacksmithing, weaving and the like. Although the artist is not on his face, these arts themselves sufficiently demonstrate the artistic mind, and you can be surprised at the house builder, the blacksmith, the weaver, looking at his work. Therefore, the wise Moses, wanting to show that the world is a work of art, subject to contemplation by everyone, so that through it the wisdom of its Creator is known, did not use any other word about the world, but said: “in the beginning created.” He didn’t do it, he didn’t produce it, but he created it. And since many of those who imagined that the world exists with God from eternity agreed not that it was created by God, but that it was realized by itself, being, as it were, a shade of God’s power, and therefore, although they recognized God as the cause of the world, but as an involuntary cause, just as a body is the cause of a shadow, and a shining thing is the cause of radiance, the prophet, correcting this false thought, used the words with particular precision, saying: “In the beginning God created.” God was not just this for the world - not only the cause of existence, but as good - he created useful things, as wise - the most beautiful, as powerful - the greatest. The Prophet showed you in God almost an artist who, having approached the essence of the universe, adapts its parts one to another, and produces a corresponding, consonant and harmonious whole. “In the beginning God created heaven and earth.” He designated the essence of the universe by two extremes, attributing seniority in existence to heaven, and saying about earth that it occupies second place in essence. Without a doubt, if there is anything in between heaven and earth, then it was created along with these boundaries. Why, although it is not said about the elements: fire, water and air, but with your own understanding you comprehend, firstly, that everything is in everything. And in the earth you will find water, air, and fire. Fire jumps out of stones, and from iron, which itself originates from the earth, when struck, an inexhaustible fire usually shines. And it is worthy of wonder how the fire that exists in bodies hides in them harmlessly, but, being called out, becomes destructive of the bodies that previously stored it within themselves. Well diggers prove that there is also a watery nature in the earth. And the vapors that come out of the earth, moist and warmed by the sun, testify to the airy nature that is in it. Secondly, if by nature the sky occupies the upper place, and the earth constitutes the very bottom, why the light tends to the sky, and the heavy usually tends to the earth, while the top and the bottom are opposite to each other, then he who mentioned heaven and earth, which by their very nature are the most distant from each other, of course, thereby simultaneously designated everything that fills the middle between them. Therefore, do not look for a narrative about each element, but in what is said, also imply what is silent. “In the beginning God created heaven and earth.” An investigation into the essence of every being, either subject to our speculation or subject to our senses, will introduce into the interpretation the most lengthy and complex discussions, and in considering this task it will be necessary to spend more words than how much can be said about any of the other questions. Moreover, it would not serve the edification of the Church to dwell on such a subject. But regarding the essence of the sky, what was said enough for us by Isaiah, who in simple words gave us a sufficient understanding of its nature, saying: “He who established the sky like smoke” (Is. 51:6), that is, for the composition of the sky He realized a subtle nature, not hard, not rough. And about the outline of the sky, enough is said for us by the same prophet in his praise to God: “Who made the sky like a kamara” (Is. 40:22). Let us prescribe the same rule for ourselves regarding the earth: not to be curious about its essence, what it is, not to waste time on speculation, exploring what is most important, not to search for some kind of nature that is devoid of qualities, and taken in itself without quality, but firmly remember that all the properties seen in the earth, being the completion of the essence, are included in the concept of being. If you try to distract each of the qualities found in it with your mind from the earth, you will come to nothing. For if you take away the blackness, coldness, heaviness, thickness, qualities of the earth that affect the taste, or others that are seen in it, then nothing will remain as the subject. Therefore, I advise you, leaving all this, not to search for what the earth is founded on. For with such a search, thought will come into a whirl because reason will not find any undoubted limit. If you say that the air is placed under the breadth of the earth, then you will come into difficulty as to how a soft nature, containing a lot of emptiness, resists such gravity, being compressed by it, and does not spread out in all directions, escaping from under oppression, and constantly overflowing onto the top of the oppressive. Again, if you assume that the water is underground, then even in this case you will have to ask, why is it that something heavy and dense is not immersed in water, but why the weakest nature supports a nature that is so much heavier than it? Moreover, it will be necessary to find support for the water itself, and again ask with bewilderment: on what solid or stubborn does its lower layer lie? If you assume that another body, which is heavier than the earth, prevents it from going down, then you will have to judge that it also needs some kind of supporting body that does not allow it to fall down. If you can come up with some kind of lining for it, then our mind will again require support for this lining. And in this way we will go to infinity, inventing new ones again for the reasons we constantly find. And the further we stretch our minds, the more we will be forced to introduce a supporting force that could collectively resist everything lying on it. Therefore, set limits to your thoughts, so that because of curiosity, trying to explore the incomprehensible, you are not touched by the word of Job, so that his question cannot apply to you: “on what pillars” 2 “establish its essence” (Job 38:6)? But if you sometimes hear in the psalms: “I established its pillars” (Ps. 74:4), then understand that the strength that supports the earth is called pillars. For the words: “he founded them on the seas” (Ps. 23:2), what do they mean if not that the watery nature is spread everywhere around the earth? How can water, being flowing and usually falling down a slope, remain hanging and not flowing anywhere? But you don’t reason that the earth, hanging on itself, presents the same or even greater difficulty to the mind, while it is by nature heavier. But whether we agree that the earth hangs on itself, or say that it rests on the water, in both cases it is necessary not to deviate from pious understanding and recognize that everything in its entirety is supported by the power of the Creator. And therefore, both to ourselves and to those asking us: on what does this huge and uncontrollable load of the earth rest? - one must answer: “in the hand of God are the ends of the earth” (Ps. 94:4). This thought is the safest for us and the most useful for those listening. Some naturalists ingeniously prove that the earth remains motionless for the following reasons: since it has taken a middle place in the world, and has an equal distance from the edges in all directions, then, due to the lack of a reason to deviate somewhere preferentially, it necessarily remains in its position, and the equality surrounding it from everywhere makes it completely impossible for it to move towards anything. The middle place was given to the earth not by lot or by chance, but this is the natural and necessary position of the earth. For, they reason, just as the celestial body retained the extreme place above, so all the weights that we suppose falling from above must rush from everywhere to the middle. And where the parts strive, the whole will obviously gather there. If stones, trees and all earth particles tend to the bottom, then this same position will be characteristic and proper for the whole earth. And if something light rushes away from the middle, then, obviously, its movement will be towards the top. Therefore, the desire for the bottom is a desire characteristic of heavy substances, and the word: bottom means the middle. So, do not be surprised that the earth does not fall anywhere, occupying its natural place - the middle. For, of all necessity, it must remain in its place, or, having accepted an unnatural movement, leave its inherent foundation. But if anything in what has been said so far seems plausible to you, then turn in amazement to God’s wisdom, which arranged it this way. For amazement at great objects does not diminish when the way in which something extraordinary happened is discovered. And if it is not open, then let the simplicity of faith be stronger than evidence from the mind. We can say the same about heaven, that is, that worldly sages offered long-winded discussions about the nature of heaven. Some said that it is composed of four elements, as tangible, visible and containing in itself - earth, because it is persistent, - fire, because it is visible, - other elements, because it is a mixture. And others, rejecting this opinion as implausible, introduced some kind of fifth bodily nature into the composition of the sky, inventing it arbitrarily and on their own 3. They have some kind of etheric body, which, as they say, is neither fire, nor air, nor earth, nor water, nor any of the simple substances in general, because simple substances are characterized by rectilinear motion, since the light tends upward, and the heavy - downward, and this body does not move either up or down, but rotates in a circle, while rectilinear movement is generally very different from circular rotation. But in bodies whose natural movements are different, of necessity, as they reason, the essences must also be different. It is also impossible for us to assume that the sky is composed of simple bodies or so-called elements, because something composed of various bodies cannot have uniform and free movement, since each simple body contained in a complex one has by nature its own tendency. For this reason, complex bodies, firstly, are difficult to maintain in continuous motion, because one movement cannot be proportionate and harmonious with all opposing movements. On the contrary, the movement characteristic of a light body is hostile to the movement characteristic of the heaviest body. For when we move upward, the earthly parts burden us, and when we rush downward, the fiery parts suffer violence in us, contrary to their nature, being carried downward. The tendency of the elements in opposite directions is the cause of disintegration. The forced and unnatural, being kept for a short time, and then violently and with difficulty, soon decomposes into its component parts, because each of the parts included in the composition returns to its own place. For this reason, they say, because of the necessity of the conclusions drawn, those who, for the origin of the sky and celestial stars, assumed a fifth corporeal nature, had to reject previous opinions and formulate their own assumption. And another, inventive in subtlety, rebelling against these conclusions, will upset and refute them, and introduce his own opinion. And if we now undertake to talk about such assumptions, we ourselves will fall into the same idle talk as their inventors. But we, leaving them to overthrow each other, ourselves, without touching on discussions about the essence, and believing Moses that “God created the heavens and the earth,” will glorify the best Artist, who wisely and skillfully created the world, and from the beauty of the visible we will understand the One who surpasses all in beauty. From the greatness of these sensible and limited bodies, let us make an intimation about the Infinite, who surpasses all greatness, and by the multitude of His power surpasses all understanding. Although we do not know the nature of creation, the one thing that is collectively subject to our senses is so amazing that the most active mind turns out to be insufficient to properly explain the smallest part of the world, and to give due praise to the Creator, to Whom be glory, honor and dominion forever and ever, amen. Conversation 2. About the fact that “the earth is invisible and unsettled” Having stopped at a few words in the morning, we found in them such an intimate depth of thoughts that we become completely hopeless about what follows. For if the entrance to the Holy Place is like this, and the vestibule of the church is so dignified and majestic, and such an abundance of beauty illuminates our eyes and minds, then what is the Holy of Holies like? And who is worthy to boldly enter the sanctuary? Or who will open his eyes to the mysterious? And the vision of these mysteries is inaccessible, and the sign of what is contained by the mind is completely inexplicable. However, since the Righteous Judge has assigned important rewards for the mere intention to fulfill what is due, we will not be lazy about doing research. For, although we will not comprehend the dignity of objects, nevertheless, if with the help of the Spirit we do not deviate from the intention of Scripture, then we ourselves, of course, will not be considered unfit for anything, and with the assistance of grace we will do something for the edification of the Church of God. It is said: “The earth was invisible and unsettled” (Gen. 1.2). Why, when both, heaven and earth, were created equally, is heaven brought to perfection, but the earth is still imperfect and has not received its full formation? Or in general, what does the unsettled nature of the earth mean? And for what reason was she invisible? The perfect structure of the earth means the abundance of its products, the vegetation of all kinds of plants, the appearance of tall trees, both fruitful and infertile, the good color and aroma of flowers, and all that was soon to, by God's command, appear on the earth, to decorate the land that gave birth to all this. And since none of this had yet happened, Scripture rightly called the earth unsettled. But we can say the same about the sky. And it did not yet have a complete formation, did not receive its characteristic decoration, because it was not illuminated by the moon and the sun, and was not crowned with a host of stars. All this has not yet happened, and therefore you will not sin against the truth if you call heaven unsettled. The earth was called invisible for two reasons, either because there was not yet a spectator of the earth - man, or because it sank in the depths, and from the water spilling on its surface could not be visible. For the waters had not yet been united into their “gatherings,” which God, who united them, later called “seas.” And what is invisible? Just as that which cannot be seen with carnal eyes, as our thoughts are, so also that which is by nature visible, but is hidden due to the obstruction of the body superimposed on it, like iron in the depths. In this sense, as I think, the land covered with water is now called invisible. Moreover, since light had not yet been created, it is not surprising that the earth, due to the unlit air above it, lies in darkness, and in this regard is called invisible in Scripture. But those who counterfeit the truth, who have not trained their minds to follow Scripture, but on the contrary, at their own discretion, transform the meaning of what is written, say that these words mean matter. For matter, they reason, is by its nature invisible and unstructured, because taken in itself it is without quality, has no form or shape. And having taken it, the Artist, in His wisdom, formed and put it in order, and thus made visible things out of it. So, if matter is not created, then, firstly, it is equal to God, as being awarded the same advantages. But what could be more wicked than this? Unqualified, without form, extreme ugliness, uneducated vileness (I use these teachers’ own expressions) to be given equal preference with the all-wise, all-powerful and most beautiful Creator and Maker of all things! Secondly, if matter is so capacious that it can accept into itself everything known to God, then through this they equate the essence of matter in some way with the unsearchable power of God, as soon as matter is sufficient to measure the entire mind of God. And if matter is small for God’s action, then even in this case their teaching will turn into absurd blasphemy, because by the insufficiency of matter they will force God to remain inactive and not complete His works. But they were misled by the poverty of human nature. Since with us each art works on one substance separately, for example: blacksmithing on iron, carpentry on trees, since in these arts some are matter, some are form, and others are produced according to form, and the substance is taken from outside, the form is adjusted by art, and the work is something made up of both, from form and from matter, then they reason in the same way about God’s creation, that form is given to the world the wisdom of the Creator of all things, and the Creator had the substance from the outside, and a folded world arose, which has matter and essence from another beginning, and received its outline and image from God. As a result of this, they deny that the great God has full power in the organization of all things, and they represent Him as if he participated in the collaboration and only contributed a small share of Himself to the existence of creatures. Thus, due to the baseness of their thinking, they cannot reach with their gaze the height of truth, because here the arts are later than the substances, having been brought into our life at the demand of necessity. First there was wool, then the art of weaving was born to make up for the lack of nature. There was also wood, but the art of construction, taking and processing this substance for every need that presented itself, showed us the benefits of trees, providing sailors with an oar, farmers with a winnowing shovel, and warriors with a spear shaft. But God, before anything that is visible now existed, having put in his mind and moved to bring into being what did not exist, he simultaneously conceived what the world should be like, and produced matter corresponding to the form of the world. For heaven He separated a nature suitable for heaven, and into the form of the earth He put an essence peculiar to the earth and necessary for it. He gave fire, water, air and the forms that he wanted, and brought them into essence, as the mental representation of each of the created things required. And He united the whole world, consisting of heterogeneous parts, by some indissoluble union of love into one communion and one harmony, so that the parts, by their position very distant from one another, seem united through sympathy. Therefore, let those who, in the weakness of their own reasoning, measure a power incomprehensible to understanding and completely inexpressible in human language, cease their fabulous constructions! “God create heaven and earth,” not half of each, but the whole heaven and the whole earth, the very essence taken together with form, because He is not the inventor of only images, but the Creator of the very nature of beings. Otherwise, let us answer how the active power of God and the passive nature of matter met each other, how did matter, which provides matter without an image, and God, who has the knowledge of images without matter, meet in such a way that what is lacking in one is given to the other, the Creator is given something to show art over, and matter is given something to put aside its ugliness and lack of form? But enough about this. Let's return to what was said at the beginning. “The earth is invisible and unsettled.” He who said: “In the beginning God created heaven and earth,” kept silent about many things: about water, about air, about fire, and about the modifications that occurred from them. Although all this, as serving to replenish the world, obviously existed as a whole, history did not touch upon it in order to accustom our mind to independent activity, and to give it the opportunity to draw conclusions about other things based on the few data. Therefore, when it is not said about the water that God created it, but it is said that the earth was invisible, judge for yourself: what kind of veil was it covered and was not visible to sight? Fire could not cover it, because fire is luminous, and what it joins imparts visibility rather than darkness. Also, it was not the air that was then the cover of the earth, because the nature of the air is subtle and transparent, it takes into itself all the images of visible things and transmits them to the eyes of those who see. So it remains for us to imagine that water rose on the earth's surface until the still wet essence was separated into a special place. And because of this, the earth was not only invisible, but also unsettled, because excess moisture even now is an obstacle to the fertility of the earth. So there is one reason for both invisibility and disorder, if only by the structure of the earth we mean its inherent and natural decoration - the harvest, waving in the valleys, green meadows dotted with various flowers, flowering hills and mountain peaks shaded by forests. All this has not happened yet. The earth, according to the power invested in it by the Creator, although it was ready to give birth to all this, nevertheless waited for a decent time in order, according to God’s command, to bring into being its offspring. But it is said: “and darkness is on the top of the abyss” (Gen. 1:2). Again a new pretext for fables, new grounds for wicked constructions for those who distort words according to their own conjectures! For they do not explain, as usual, that darkness is some unlit air, or a place shadowed due to the blocking of light by the body, or, in general, a place deprived of light for whatever reason, but they interpret that darkness is an evil force, or better yet, evil itself, which has its own beginning, opposite and counteracting God’s goodness. If “God is light” (1 John 1.5), then the force opposing Him, they say, in accordance with this thought, will obviously be darkness - darkness that has its existence not from anyone else, but original evil, darkness, something hostile to souls, something producing death, opposition to virtue. And in the very words of the prophet, according to their false understanding, it is shown that this darkness existed and was not created by God. And on this assumption what evil and godless teachings have been built! What “heavy oxen” (Acts 20.29), scattering God’s flock, rushed upon souls, starting from this short word 4! Isn't this where the Marcions come from? Isn't Valentina from here? Is this not where the vile heresy of the Manichaeans comes from, which, if anyone calls rottenness in the churches, will not err in the decency of the name? Why, man, do you run away from the truth, inventing cases of destruction for yourself? The word is simple and easy to understand for everyone; It is said: “the earth is invisible.” What is the reason for this? The one where the earth had an open abyss above it. What kind of concept is an abyss? This is a lot of water in which it is impossible to reach the lower limit. But we know that many bodies are often visible through thin and transparent water. Why did not any part of the earth appear in the waters? Because the air spilled over the water was not yet light, but dark. For a ray of sunlight passing through water often reveals small stones in the depths. But in the dead of night no one will in any way see anyone under water. Therefore, the words: “the earth is invisible,” is explained by the addition that an abyss lay on it, and the abyss was dark. So, the abyss is not a multitude of opposing forces, as some imagined, and darkness is not some kind of primordial and crafty force opposed to good. For two forces, equal in opposition to each other, will certainly be destructive for each other, and being in constant warfare with each other, they will constantly have and cause each other cases of enmity. And if one of the opposing forces exceeds the other in power, then it becomes completely destructive of the force being overcome. Therefore, if they say that the resistance of evil to good is equivalent, then they introduce incessant warfare and incessant destruction, since each partly overcomes and is overcome. And if good is superior in strength, then for what reason is the nature of evil not completely destroyed? And if it’s impossible to say something... I’m amazed how they don’t run away from themselves, being carried away into such evil blasphemies! But it is also ungodly to say that evil has its beginning from God, because the opposite does not come from the opposite. Life does not give birth to death, darkness is not the beginning of light, illness is not the creator of health. On the contrary, although during a change of state there are transitions from the opposite to the opposite, yet in births each thing that is born does not come from the opposite, but from the homogeneous. So they ask: if evil is not something uncreated, and not created by God, then where does it have its nature? And that evil exists, none of those involved in life will deny this. What can we say to this? The fact that evil is not a living and animate entity, but a state of the soul that is opposite to virtue and occurs in the careless through a falling away from good. Therefore, do not look for evil from the outside, do not imagine that there is some kind of original evil nature, but let everyone recognize himself as the culprit of his own evil nature. Everything that happens always happens to us partly by nature, for example, old age and infirmity, partly by chance, for example, unexpected encounters with something often sorrowful or joyful, occurring from extraneous causes, such as: for someone who digs a well - the discovery of treasure, or for someone going to the market - an encounter with a mad dog; tell the truth or lie, have a meek and moderate disposition or a proud and arrogant one. Therefore, do not look outside for the beginning of something over which you yourself are master, but know that evil, taken in the proper sense, received its beginning in arbitrary falls. And if it were not arbitrary, and did not depend on us, then just as the laws would not threaten offenders with such fear, so the punishments imposed on criminals in courts based on their guilt would then be inevitable. Let this be said about evil, taken in its proper sense. But illness, poverty, disgrace, death and other human sorrows should not be included among the evils, because the opposite of them is not considered by us to be the greatest blessings, and these sorrows are partly by nature, and partly they turn out to be beneficial for many. So, in the present case, having silenced all figurative and conjectural interpretation, let us present the concept of darkness simply, without subtleties, following the intention of Scripture. Reason asks: was darkness created along with the world, and is it more original than light, and therefore is the worst actually older? – We answer that this darkness is not something independent, but a modification in the air produced by the deprivation of light. What kind of light suddenly found a place in the world deprived, so that there was darkness on top of the water? We believe that if there was anything before the creation of this sensory and perishable world, then it was obviously in the light. For the angelic ranks, all the heavenly armies, in general, whatever named and unnamed intelligent natures and ministering spirits exist, did not live in darkness, but in the light and in all spiritual joy they had a decent place for themselves. And no one will argue against this, especially the one who, among the promised blessings, expects the heavenly light, about which Solomon says: “there is always light for the righteous” (Proverbs 13.9), and the Apostle: “giving thanks to God the Father, who has called us to partake of the inheritance of the saints in the light” (Col 1.12). For if the condemned are sent into outer darkness, then those who have done deeds worthy of favor obviously have peace in the worldly light. Therefore, when, by God's command, the sky suddenly spread out around what was contained within its own surface, and it became a continuous body sufficient to separate the internal from the external, then, of necessity, the sky itself made the place it contained unilluminated, cutting off the rays coming from the outside. For for a shadow to be at one time the light, the body and the unlit place. Thus, the darkness in the world came from the shadow of the celestial body. You will understand what I have said from an obvious example, if on a clear afternoon you place a tent over yourself made of dense and impenetrable fabric, and you enclose yourself in the instant darkness that forms. Suppose this darkness to be the same, that is, not something previously realized, but a consequence of other things. Of this darkness, of course, it is said that it rose above the abyss, because the extreme limits of the air usually touch the surfaces of bodies, but then water was poured over all the bodies, which is why it is necessarily said that darkness is at the top of the abyss. “And the Spirit of God,” says Moses, “was carried on the top of the waters” (Gen. 1:2). Or this spirit means the spilling of air, and you understand that the Writer enumerates the parts of the world, that is, that God created heaven, earth, water, air, and, moreover, the air was already spilled and flowing. Or, what is closer to the truth and approved before us, the Holy Spirit is called the Spirit of God, because, as has been noted, He is primarily and exclusively worthy of such mention in Scripture, and no other spirit is called God’s except the Holy One, who completes the Divine and Blessed Trinity with Himself. And you, having made such an understanding, will derive great benefit from it. How is He “carrying about on top of the water”? I will tell you not my opinion, but the opinion of one Syrian, who was as far from worldly wisdom as he was close to the knowledge of the true. So he said that the Syrian language is more expressive and, due to its affinity with Hebrew, comes somewhat closer to the meaning of Scripture. The meaning of this saying is as follows. The word “carried”, as he says, in the translation was used instead of the word “warmed” and “revived” the watery nature, in the likeness of a bird that incubates eggs and imparts some kind of life-giving force to the heated one. This idea, they say, is signified by this word in the present place. The spirit was carried, that is, it prepared the aquatic nature for the birth of living creatures. Thus from this the question proposed by others is sufficiently explained: did the Holy Spirit remain without action in the work of creation? “And God said: Let there be light” (Genesis 1.3). The first word of God created the nature of light, dispersed darkness, dispelled despondency, cheered up the world, and suddenly gave everything an attractive and pleasant appearance. The sky, hitherto covered with darkness, appeared, its beauty was revealed to the extent that even now the eyes bear witness to it. The air was illuminated, or better to say, in its entire volume it dissolved the entire amount of light, everywhere, to its very limits, spreading the rapid transmission of rays, for upward it extended to the very ether and sky, and in the latitude all parts of the world, northern and southern, eastern and western, illuminated in a quick instant of time. This is the nature of air, it is thin and transparent, and therefore the light passing through it does not need any temporal extension. Just as it transfers our vision out of time to visible objects, so it receives tides of light to all its limits instantly, in comparison with which it is impossible to mentally imagine the shortest moment of time. And the ether became more pleasant in the light, the waters became lighter, not only receiving rays, but also emitting them from themselves through the reflection of light, because the water cast reflections in all directions. By God's word everything has been changed into the most pleasant and honest form. Just as those who pour oil into the depths produce shine in that place, so the Creator of all things, having spoken His word, instantly put the grace of light into the world. "Let there be light." And the command became a deed, a nature took place, nothing more pleasant for pleasure could be imagined by the human mind. When we attribute voice, speech and command to God, then by God’s word we do not mean the sound emitted by the verbal organs, and the air brought into concussion through the tongue, but, for greater clarity for students, we want to depict the very wave of the will in the form of a command. “And God saw the light as good” (Gen. 1.4). Can we say anything sufficient in praise of the light when it first has the testimony of the Creator about itself: “as good”? And in our affairs, the mind leaves judgment to the eyes, when it cannot say anything with the same force with which the feeling first testifies. But if the beauty of the body consists in the mutual proportionality of the parts and in external good color, then how does the concept of beauty maintain its place in light, which by nature is simple and homogeneous? Is it because proportionality is attributed to light, not in relation to its own parts, but in relation to its non-painful and pleasant effect on vision? Likewise, gold is beautiful, although it is attractive to the eye and pleasant not because of the proportionality of its parts, but because of its good color. And the evening star is more beautiful than all the stars, not because the parts of which it consists are proportionate, but because its rays fall on the eyes without producing any painful sensation and with pleasure. Moreover, God now pronounces a judgment on beauty, no doubt not having in mind the pleasure of sight, but providing for the benefit of light in the future, because the eyes have not yet judged the beauty of light. “And God separate between the light and the dark” (Gen. 1.4), that is, God made their nature incompatible and completely opposite, because he removed them from each other and separated them by a great environment. “And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night” (Genesis 1.5). Now, after the creation of the sun, day is the illumination of the air by the sun, which shines in the hemisphere lying above the earth, and night is the covering of the earth with shadow when the sun is hidden. But then, not according to the solar movement, but because that primeval light, to a degree determined by God, either spread out, then contracted again, day occurred and night followed. “And there was evening, and there was morning, one day” (Gen. 1.5). Evening is the common limit of day and night, and similarly morning is the contiguity of night and day. Therefore, in order to attribute the seniority of existence to the day, Moses first named the end of the day, and then the end of the night, since night follows day. For the state in the world that preceded the creation of light was not night, but darkness, and what became different from day was called night, and this name was given after day. So, “there was evening, and there was morning.” The Prophet understands the continuation of day and night, but did not name day and night, but gave a name only to the most excellent. You will find the same custom throughout Scripture; when measuring time, days are counted, and not nights and days together. “The days of our years,” says the psalmist (Ps 89:10). And Jacob also says: “The days of my life are small and evil” (Gen. 47.9). And it is also said: “All the days of my life” (Ps 22.6). Thus, what is now betrayed in the form of history serves as a law for what follows. “And there was evening, and there was morning, one day.” Why is it called not the first, but the only one? Although it would be more fitting for someone who intends to talk about the second, third, and fourth days to call the first day from which the subsequent ones begin, he nevertheless called it one. Or it determines the measure of day and night, and combines it into one daily time, because twenty-four hours fill the continuation of one day, if by day we mean night. Why, although at the turns of the sun it happens that day and night surpass each other, the continuation of day and night is always limited to one specific time. And Moses seemed to say this: the measure of twenty-four hours is the continuation of one day, or the return of the sky from one sign to the same sign again takes place in one day. Why is it that every time evening and morning come in the world from the solar revolution, this period does not take place at a longer time, but over the course of one day. Or the main reason for this is hidden in a mysterious sign, namely, that God, having arranged the nature of time, laid down the continuation of days by the measure and signs of it, and measuring time by a week, commands that the week, calculating the movement of time, always revolve on itself, and also the week is filled with one day, returning to itself seven times. And the image of a circle is such that it begins with itself, and ends in itself. Of course, the century also has the distinctive property that it returns to itself and does not end anywhere. Therefore, Moses called the head of time not the first, but a single day, so that this day, by its very name, would have an affinity with the age. And he, as revealing in himself a sign of loneliness (?sameness) and incommunicability with anything else, is properly and properly called one. Although the Scripture presents to us many centuries, often saying: “age of ages” and “ages of ages,” it does not list either the first, second, or third age, so that from this we might be more clear about the differences of states and various things, rather than the limitations, endings, and succession of ages. For it is said: “The day of the Lord is great and bright” (Joel 2.11). And again: “Seek ye the day of the Lord, for this is darkness and not light” (Am 5.18) - darkness, obviously, is for those worthy of darkness. For according to our teaching, that non-evening, without succession and never-ending day is also known, which the psalmist calls “swept” (Ps. 6.1), because it is outside this seven-day time. Therefore, whether you call it a day or an age, you express the same concept, whether you say that it is a day, or that this is a state, it is always one, and not many, whether you call it century, it will be unique, and not multiple. Therefore, Moses, in order to raise the thought to the future life, called this image of the century one, this firstfruits of days, this contemporary day, the holy day of the Lord, glorified by the resurrection of the Lord. That is why he says: “There was evening, and there was morning, one day.” But reasoning about one evening, caught in the present evening, here puts an end to our word. The Father of true Light, who adorned the day with heavenly light, who enlightened the night with the brilliance of fire, who prepared the rest of the future age in spiritual and unceasing light, may he enlighten your hearts in the knowledge of the truth, and may he keep your life stumbling-free, granting you “as in the days, to walk wisely” (Rom. 13.13), so that you may shine like the sun in the light of the saints, in my praise, in the day of Christ, to whom be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. The works of the first day, it is better to say (let us not take away from it the natural advantage that it received from the Creator, being specially produced and not included in the same category with other days), the works of one day, precisely what was done on it, the word depicted yesterday, and having given an interpretation to the listeners, constituted both morning food and evening joy for souls, and now moves on to the miracles of the second day. I say this, attributing this not to the power of the interpreter, but to the grace of Scripture, because it is naturally pleasing, attractive and desirable to every heart that prefers the true to the plausible. So the psalmist, very expressively depicting the sweetness of truth, says: “If Your words are sweeter to my throat than honey to my mouth” (Ps 119.103). Why, having yesterday delighted your souls as much as possible with conversation about the words of God, we gathered again today - the next day, to survey the miracles of the works of the second day. But it is not hidden from me that among us there are many artisans who, engaged in handicraft arts, hardly earn their living through daily work, and they cut off my word so as not to be distracted from work for long. What will I tell them? The fact that part of the time given in return to God is not lost, but is rewarded by Him with great gain. For all those circumstances that contribute to the work, the Lord will prosper those who prefer the spiritual, giving in their affairs both the strength of the body, and the zeal of the soul, and the convenience of selling work, and success in their whole life. But even if in this life the fruits of our labors did not correspond to our hopes, at least for the next century there is a good treasure - the teaching of the Spirit. Therefore, put away all worldly cares from your heart, and now gather yourself entirely within yourself. For there is little benefit if you are here with your body, but your heart is occupied with earthly treasure. “And God said: Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters: and let there be a parting in the midst of water and water” (Gen. 1.6). And yesterday we already heard the words of God: “let there be light,” and now we hear: “let there be firmament.” But in the present case, they apparently contain something more, because the word was not limited to a simple command, but also determined the reason why the establishment of the firmament was required. It is said: “Yes... he separates in the midst of water and water.” Having stopped at the first, we ask: how does God speak? Is it the same as we do, that is, first the image of objects is born in thought, then, after imagining them, choosing the meanings characteristic and corresponding to each object, He expounds, and then, transferring what is thought to the production of verbal organs, thus, through the concussion of the air, necessary for the articulate movement of the voice, He makes His secret thought clear? And doesn’t it seem like a fable to say that God needs so many roundabouts to reveal His thoughts? Or would it be more pious to say that God’s will and the first aspiration of mental movement is already God’s word? Scripture depicts God in many words to show that He not only willed the existence of creation, but also brought it into existence through a certain Helper. As it said at the beginning, it could have expressed itself in the same way about everything, saying: “In the beginning God created heaven and earth,” then it could have said: “Create light,” and then: “Create the firmament.” But now, representing God as commanding and speaking, by his very silence he points to the one to whom God commands and with whom he speaks, not being stingy in communicating knowledge to us, but inflaming our desire by sketching out some traces and indications of the Ineffable. For what is acquired with difficulty is joyfully received and carefully observed. And where acquisition is convenient, possession is not important. Therefore, Scripture, as if in a roundabout way, gradually brings us closer to the thought of the Only Begotten. But for the incorporeal nature, even in this case there was no need for a word pronounced through the voice, because the very thoughts could be transmitted to the Co-operator. For what need is there of a word for those who can communicate their wills to each other mentally? Voice for hearing, and hearing because of voice. And where there is no air, no tongue, no ear, no winding passage that would carry sounds to sympathy in the head, there is no need for speech, but the most, as another would say, heartfelt thoughts of the will are transmitted. Therefore, as noted, in order to arouse our mind to research about the Person to Whom the words are spoken, this image of discourse is wisely and skillfully used. Secondly, we must investigate whether this firmament, which itself is called heaven, is something different from the sky created in the beginning, and whether there are really two heavens? Those who speculate about heaven would rather lose their tongues than admit this to be true. For they assume that there is one heaven, and that there is no nature from which a second, third, and so on, heaven could arise, because the entire essence of the celestial body, as they think, is spent on composing one heaven. And the rotating body, they say, is one and only limited, but if it is used for the first heaven, then nothing remains for the origin of the second and third heavens. This is how those imagine who, besides the Creator, introduce uncreated matter, and having composed the first fable, are carried away to the subsequent lie. But we ask the Greek sages not to laugh at us until they finish their disputes among themselves. For among them there are those who say that there are countless heavens and worlds. But when they expose the improbability of the last opinion, using the strongest arguments, and with geometric inevitability prove that by nature it is impossible for there to be another heaven except one, then we will especially laugh at their drawing wisdom and learned idle talk. If only they, seeing that both one bubble and many bubbles arise from the same cause, nevertheless doubt regarding many heavens whether there is enough creative power to bring them into existence. For we think that the strength and majesty of heaven is not much superior to this moisture, in the form of an empty ball inflated in the springs, if attention is paid to the superiority of God's power. Their concept of the impossible is so funny! And we are so far from the idea of ​​​​not believing the second heaven that we seek the third heaven, which blessed Paul was honored to see (2 Cor 12.2). The psalm, calling “the heavens of heavens” (Ps 148.4), gave me the idea of ​​a greater number of heavens. And this is no more strange than those seven circles in which, as everyone almost agrees, seven stars revolve, and which, as they say, are adjusted to each other in the likeness of cades, nested one inside the other, and moving opposite to the universe, due to the ether they dissect, they emit some kind of euphonious and harmonious voice that surpasses all the pleasantness of sweet singing. Then, when those who say this are asked for sensory confirmation, what do they answer? The fact that we, due to the initial habit of this sound, and having listened to it from the first moment of being, have lost the sensation from long-term exercise in listening, like people whose ears are constantly struck by the knocking in the forges. To expose the cunning and rottenness of such reasoning, when this is clearly shown to everyone by their own ears, is not the job of a person who knows how to save time and assumes that listeners are reasonable people. But leaving external teachings external, let us return to church teaching. Some have said before us that this is not the creation of the second heaven, but a complete account of the first heaven, because there the creation of heaven and earth is described in general, but here Scripture tells us how both heaven and earth came into being in the final way. But we say that since another name and a special purpose for the second heaven have been given to us, it is different from what was created in the beginning, has a denser nature and serves in the universe for a special use. “And God said, let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters: and let there be a parting in the midst of the waters and the waters. And God made the firmament, and God separated between the waters that were under the firmament, and between the waters that were above the firmament” (Gen. 1.6, 7). Before we touch upon the meaning of what is written, let us try to resolve the objection that others make. For they ask us: if the “body” of the firmament is spherical, as vision shows, and water is flowing and rolls down from hills, then how was it possible for water to establish itself on the curved circumference of the firmament? How shall we respond to this? – It is especially true that if we see a thing with a circular concavity on the inside, there is no need to conclude that its outer surface is also made spherical, all turned on a machine and smoothly finished. Sometimes we see stone ceilings in baths and the construction of cave-like buildings, which, when viewed from the inside, appear in a semicircle, and on top of the structure they often have a flat surface. Therefore, for the sake of such reasons, they themselves should not make things difficult, and we should not be made difficult, as if we cannot keep the water above. Now it should be said what nature the firmament has, and why it was commanded to occupy the middle between the waters. The name firmament (στερέωμα) in Scripture is usually given to that which has excellent strength, for example, when it is said: “The Lord is my foundation (ςтερεωμα) and my refuge” (Ps. 17.3), and: “I have established (εςερεωσα) the pillars her" (Ps 74.4), and: "praise Him in the affirmation (εν ςερεωματι) of His power" (Ps 150.1). And the external writers call solid (το ςερεον) a body, as if dense and filled, in contrast to a geometric body. A geometric body is one that consists of some dimensions, that is, in breadth, depth 6 and height, while a solid body also has perseverance beyond dimensions. But in Scripture, what is usually strong and unyielding is called firmament. Thus, this word is often used about thickened air, for example, when it is said: “establish the thunder” (Am 4.13). the eruption that produces a thunderous crack is what Scripture calls the affirmation of thunder. Therefore, we think that even now this word is used about some solid substance sufficient to hold water, which conveniently rolls and spills. But on the basis that, according to the generally accepted opinion, the solid seems to have originated from water, one should not yet consider it to be similar or hardened to water or to such a substance that receives its origin through the straining of moisture, such as, for example, a crystal stone, which, as they say, turns from water due to its extreme hardening, or mica, which forms between metals, and this is such a transparent stone, having predominantly its characteristic and clearest shine, that if found in its purest form, not worn out by any rottenness and not filled with cracks inside, then the transparency is almost like air. Therefore, we do not liken the firmament to anything like that. For, of course, it is natural for a childish and simple mind to have such concepts about heavenly things. And also, although everything is in everything, fire in the earth, air in the water, and the other elements one in the other, so that of the elements that fall under the senses, not one is in a pure state and not in communication with something or an average, go the opposite, however, we do not dare to assert that the firmament consists either of one simple substance, or of a mixture of simple substances, for we are taught by Scripture not to give ourselves the freedom to imagine with our minds anything other than what is permitted. But let us not leave the following without remark. After God commanded: “Let there be a firmament,” it is said not simply: “And there was a firmament,” but: “And God made the firmament,” and also: “God separate.” Let the deaf hear and the blind see! And who is deaf except the one who does not hear, when the Spirit cries so loudly? And who is blind except one who does not see such clear evidence about the Only Begotten? “Let there be a firmament” - this is the broadcast of the original Guilt! “God create the firmament” is a testimony to the creative and constructive Power! But let us turn our attention to continuing the interpretation. It is said: “Let there be a parting in the midst of water and water.” The spill of the waters was limitless, as they probably washed the earth from all sides and rose above it, so that, apparently, they were out of proportion to the other elements. That is why it was said above that the abyss surrounded the earth from everywhere. We will show the reason for such a lot of water later. Meanwhile, of course, none of you, although he worked a lot with his mind and penetrated well into everything that concerns this perishable and flowing nature, no one, I say, attacks this idea, as if we, contrary to reason, assume something impossible and fictitious, and will not require us to research about what the watery nature was established on. On what basis do they say that the earth, which is heavier than water, hangs in the middle and is removed from the edges, on the same basis we must, without a doubt, agree that this immense amount of water, due to its natural tendency downward, and due to equal gravity in all directions, was kept near the earth. Thus, the watery nature in immeasurable abundance was poured around the earth, not in proportion to it, but many times exceeding it, for this is how the great Artist foresaw the future from the beginning, and in his first orders he took into account the subsequent need. What need was there for water to be abundant in such excess? The universe needs a fiery essence, not only for the improvement of earthly things, but also for the replenishment of the universe. The whole would not be complete if there was a lack of the most important and beneficial of all elements. But fire and water are opposite to each other and are destructive to each other, namely: fire for water when it overcomes it with strength, and water for fire when it surpasses it in multitude. But it was necessary that there should be no rebellion between them, and the complete impoverishment of one or the other of them should not lead to the destruction of the universe. Therefore, the Steward of the universe prepared the moist nature to such an extent that, gradually destroyed by the power of fire, it would remain throughout the entire time that the world was destined to last. And He who arranged everything by weight and measure (for according to the word of Job: “The drops of rain are numbered to Him” (Job 36.27) knew how long to determine the existence of the world, and how much food needed to be prepared for the fire. This is the reason for the excess of water during creation! As for the need for fire in the world, there is no person so unfamiliar with the needs of life that he would demand reason about this teaching. Not only do all the arts that serve to support our life require fiery assistance (I mean: weaving, tanning, construction and agriculture), but even the growth of trees, and the ripening of fruits, and the birth of terrestrial and aquatic animals, and also everything that serves to feed them, either would not have taken place in the beginning, or over time could not have continued, if there were no warmth. Therefore, just as it was necessary to create heat for the formation and stay of everything that is born, so was the abundance of moisture necessary, due to its constant and inevitable destruction by fire. Look at all creatures and you will see that the power of warmth dominates everything that is born and destroyed. For this reason, the abundance of water that is spilled over the earth is raised above what you can see, and is also scattered throughout all the depths of the earth. This is the reason for the inexhaustibility of springs, the accumulation of water in wells, the flow of rivers that do not dry up, and those formed during rains, due to the maintained humidity in many and various storage facilities. From the east 7, from the winter turns, the Indus River flows; this, as the descriptors of the earth's circumferences say, is the largest flow of all river waters. From the middle east flow the Bactrus, Choaspes and Araxes, from which the separated Tanais flows into Lake Maeotia. In addition to these, the Phasis, flowing from the Caucasus Mountains, and many other rivers from the northern countries flow into the Euxine Pontus. And from the summer west, from under the mountain of the Pyrenees, Tartis and Ister emerge, from which the first flows into the sea behind the Pillars, and the Ister, flowing through Europe, flows into Pontus. And why list other rivers generated by the Riphean Mountains, which lie beyond the inner neck of Scythia? Among them is the Rodan and many other rivers, even navigable, which all, having washed the countries of the western Galatians, Celts and the neighboring barbarians, flow into the western sea. Other rivers have flowed since noon from the upper countries through Ethiopia, and some enter our sea, while others flow into a sea unknown to sailors. These are: Egon, Nisis, the so-called Khremetis, and moreover the Nile, which does not even resemble a river when, like the sea, it floods Egypt. Thus, the entire part of the earth we inhabit is surrounded by water, surrounded by vast seas, and irrigated by thousands of never-drying rivers, according to the ineffable wisdom of the One who arranged it so that the nature that resists fire would be indestructible. But the time will come when everything will be dried up by fire, as Isaiah says, turning his speech to the God of all: “Say to the deep: You will be desolate, and I will dry up your rivers” (Isaiah 44.27). Therefore, having rejected foolish wisdom, accept with us the teaching of truth, although not learned in word, but infallible in knowledge. Therefore, “let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let there be a parting in the midst of the waters and the waters.” It is said what the name firmament means in Scripture, namely: it is not a stubborn, solid nature, having heaviness and resistance, that it calls the firmament (in this case, in a more proper sense, this name would belong to the earth); on the contrary, since everything that lies above is by nature subtle, rare and elusive to the senses, then in comparison with this most subtle and elusive to the senses, it is called the firmament. And imagine some place in which moisture is separated, and fine, filtered moisture is passed upward, and coarse and earthy moisture is deposited downward, so that, with the gradual destruction of moisture, the same beneficial dissolution is preserved from beginning to end. But you do not believe in the abundance of water, and do not pay attention to the abundance of heat, which even in small quantities has the power to destroy a lot of moisture. For it attracts moisture that is subject to its action, as can be seen in the horn that sucks up blood, but it destroys the attracted moisture, like fire in a lamp, which immediately burns the combustible substance sucked through the lamp when it changes. Who doubts about the ether that it is not fiery and not in a heated state? If the Creator had not restrained it by a necessary law, what would have prevented it, by igniting and burning everything that approaches, and suddenly destroying all the moisture that exists in creatures? Therefore, so that the ether, which heats everything, does not embrace everything, there is aerial water, and it is formed through the moistening of mountainous places with rising vapors, such as rivers, springs, swamps, lakes and all seas. We see that this sun, in the summer, in the shortest possible time, often makes a wet and swampy country dry and completely moistureless. Where is this water? Let the experts in everything show us. Doesn’t everyone know that it is absorbed, crushed by the warmth of the sun? But they say that the sun does not even have warmth. So they have their word ready for anything. And look at what argument they rely on to reach the point of obviousness. They say: since the sun is white in color, and not red or yellow, then for this very reason, by its nature, it is not fiery, but its warmth comes from rapid circulation. What do they think they can get from this? – Prove that the sun does not destroy moisture. And I, although what was said is unfair, do not reject it because it serves to confirm my word. For it was said that a lot of waters are needed because they are destroyed by heat. But there is no difference - whether to be warm by nature, or to become red-hot due to some modification, in order to produce the same changes in the same substances. If trees brought into mutual friction kindle a fire and give off a flame, or if they catch fire from a kindled flame, in both cases the end is equal and similar. But we see that the great wisdom of the Ruler of the universe moves the sun from one place to another, so that it, while always remaining in one place, does not upset the order with excess heat. On the contrary, during the winter turn, it leads the sun to the southern part of the sky, then moves it to the equinoctial signs, and from there, during the summer turn, it leads to the north, so that through the gradual passage of the sun, prosperity is observed on the earth's circumference. And let them judge whether those who say that the sea does not come from the rivers because of the decline caused by the sun, and that, moreover, it remains salty and bitter due to the absorption by heat of everything that is fine and drinkable, are not contradicting themselves, which is again produced for the most part through the separation of moisture by the sun, which, stealing the light, leaves the coarse and earthy, like some mud and sediment, which is why the water in the sea receives bitter, salty and a burning taste. And those who assert this about the sea, having changed their minds, say that no decrease in moisture is caused by the sun. “And God called the firmament the sky” (Gen. 1.8). Although this name actually befits another, the firmament, in its likeness, accepts the same name. We note that sky (ουρανος) is often called visible (ορωμενον) space - due to the density and continuity of the air, which is clearly visible to our eyes, and, as visible, receives the name sky, for example, when it is said: “birds of the sky” (Ps 8.9), and also: “flying on the firmament heavenly" (Gen. 1.20). Similar to this expression: “they ascend to heaven” (Ps 106.26). And Moses, blessing the tribe of Joseph, gives blessings “from the beauties of heaven and the dew, from the solar revolutions and the descent of menstruation, and from the top of the mountains and eternal hills” (Deut. 33.13–15), because, with the improvement of all this, the circumference of the earth is pleasing. But even in the curses on Israel it is said: “The sky above your head will be copper” (Deut. 28.23). What does this mean? Complete dryness and depletion of air waters, which impart fertility to the earth. Therefore, when it is said that dew or rain is brought from heaven, then we imagine in our minds those waters that are destined to occupy the mountainous region. For if the evaporation has collected in the heights, and the air blown by the winds has thickened, then as soon as the moisture previously scattered throughout the cloud in vapor and in thin particles comes closer to each other, drops immediately form, drawn down by the weight of the united particles, and this is the origin of rain. When the moisture, crushed by the swiftness of the winds, turns into foam, then cooled to the extreme in its entire volume, freezes, then when the cloud dissolves, snow falls down. And in general, in the same way you can consider all the moist nature that is in the air above our heads. But no one compares the simplicity and unpreparedness of spiritual teaching with the inquisitiveness of those who philosophize about heaven. As much as beauty in chaste wives is preferable to beauty in fornication, so much is the difference between our teachings and external teachings. For outsiders introduce strained plausibility into the teaching, but here the truth is offered, naked from all fabrications of the mind. And should we work to expose their lies? Isn’t it enough to compare their own books with each other and remain spectators of their struggle in complete peace? For in number no less, and in dignity no less, and in terms of verbosity much more superior, are the defenders of the opposite doctrine, who claim that the universe burns up and is again revived from the seed principles that remain after burning out. From here they produce countless destructions and renovations. - So, deviating from the truth in one direction or another, and here and there they find themselves new paths to error! But we need to say one word about the divided waters to those church interpreters who, under the guise of application and sublime thoughts, resorted to allegories, arguing that waters in a figurative sense mean spiritual and incorporeal forces, and that above the firmament there are perfect forces, and below, in places above the earth, filled with the coarsest substance, evil forces persist 8 . Therefore, they reason, the waters, “which are above the heavens” (Ps. 148.4), praise God, that is, the good forces, according to the purity of the ruler in them, are worthy of giving due praise to the Creator. And the waters that are below the heavens are evil spirits, falling from their natural height into the depths of damage, and they, being restless and rebellious, agitated by storms of passions, are called the sea, due to their adaptability and inconstancy of movements of the will. Rejecting such teachings as the interpretation of dreams and fables of old women, by water we will understand water, and the division made by the firmament will be accepted in accordance with the reason stated above. Although waters, “which are above the heavens,” are sometimes included in the common praise of all the Lords, yet on this basis we do not recognize them as having a rational nature. For the “heavens” are inanimate when they “tell the glory of God,” and the “firmament” is not an animal endowed with sense when they “declare the creation of His hand” (Ps. 18.2). If someone says that the sky means contemplative forces, and the firmament means active forces that bring about fulfillment, which is proper, then we accept this as a witty word, but we do not completely agree that it is true. Otherwise, “dew, and cold, and cold, and heat,” which Daniel (Dan 3.64–72) commands to praise the Creator of all things, will be intelligent and invisible natures. On the contrary, even in these creations by people who have intelligence, the contemplatively comprehended law serves as a supplement to the praise of the Creator, for not only the water, which is higher than the heavens, as being awarded preeminent honor for the excellence of its perfections, brings praise to God, but it is said: “Praise Him, even those from the earth: the serpent and all the deeps” (Ps 149.7). Therefore, the abyss, which allegorically interpreters ranked as the worst part, is not recognized by the psalmist as worthy of rejection, but is included in the general face of creation, and it, according to the laws embedded in it, harmoniously lifts up hymns to the Creator. “And God saw that it was good” (Gen. 1.8). What God creates is not pleasing to God’s eyes, and God’s approval of beauty is not the same as it is with us. For Him, what is beautiful is what is accomplished according to the law of art and is directed to a beneficial end. Therefore, He who assumed a clear purpose for what was being created approved of what was being created in parts, in accordance with His artistic laws, since it served to achieve the end. When the hand lies by itself, and the eye separately, and each member of the statue is placed separately, then they will not seem beautiful to everyone. And if everything is put in its place, then the beauty of proportionality, often at first glance, is seen even by the ignorant. But the artist, even before adding, knows the beauty of each part, and praises it separately, raising his thought to the end. God is now portrayed as such an artist, approving each of his individual works. But He will give due praise to the whole world taken together when it is completed. With this, let our talk about the second day cease, so that hardworking listeners will have time to examine what they have heard and retain what is useful in their memory, and through careful reflection, as if through some digestion, to prepare for the removal from themselves of those who serve for the benefit, and so that those who earn food through labor will have the leisure to finish their cares in the remaining free time and with a soul clean from worries come to the evening feast of the word. May God, who created great things and arranged for these unimportant things to be said, give you an understanding of His truth in everything, so that from the visible you may know the invisible, from the greatness and beauty of creatures you gather the appropriate understanding of Him who created us. “For His invisible being from the creation of the world was understood by the minds of created things, and His everlasting power and Godhead” (Rom. 1.20). May he give us in the earth, and in the air, and in the sky, and in the water, and in the night, and in the day, and in everything visible, to collect clear reminders of the Benefactor. For we will not leave any time for sins, we will not give way to the enemy in our hearts, if through constant remembrance we instill in ourselves God, to Whom is all glory and worship, now and always, and forever and ever, amen. Conversation 4. “About the meeting of waters” There are cities in which the inhabitants, from late morning until the evening, saturate their eyes with all kinds of performances of miracles, and no matter how much they listen to some immodest and indecent songs, from which a lot of shamelessness necessarily arises in their souls, yet they cannot get enough of them. Even many consider such people happy, because they, having left trading in the markets or practicing the arts necessary for life, spend their designated time of life in idleness and amusements, not knowing that disgrace, abundant in immodest spectacles, for those present at it serves as a general and public school of debauchery, and that the most harmonious sounds of pipes and fornicating songs, having been imprinted in the souls of listeners, encourage everyone to nothing other than disorderly behavior, in order to imitate the rattling of those playing the harp or pipe. And passionate hunters of the horse lists even in their sleep compete about horses, re-harness chariots, change charioteers, and in general, even in their sleepy dreams, do not leave the daytime madness. So, are we, whom the Lord, the great Wonderworker and Artist, has now called to show us His works, will we be burdened with contemplation or will we be lazy to listen to the words of the Spirit? Shall we not, on the contrary, surround this great and full of diversity Artistic church of God’s creation, and, each with our thoughts reaching back to ancient times, shall we consider the decoration of the universe? - The sky, according to the word of the prophet, is placed “like a kamar” (Isaiah 40.22), the earth, with its immeasurable size and heaviness, affirmed on itself, the air, diffuse, soft and naturally moist, delivering to breathing creatures the food that is akin to them and always present, in its softness inferior to moving bodies and easily cut by them (so that there is no obstacle from it to those who push through it, and it is always convenient moves and flows back to the bodies that cut it), and the nature of water, both nutritious and prepared for other needs, as well as its correct collection in certain places - you will see all this from what we recently read. “And God said: Let the waters that are under heaven be gathered together into one assembly, and let the dry land appear: and so it was, and the waters that are under heaven were gathered together into one assembly, and the dry land appeared. And God called the dry land the earth; and the gathering of the waters was called the sea” (Gen. 1.9, 10). How many difficulties you presented to me in previous conversations, demanding a reason why the earth was invisible, when in every body there is naturally color, and every color is perceptible to sight! And perhaps what was said seemed unsatisfactory to you, that the earth is called invisible not by nature, but in relation to us, due to the blockage of water, which then covered the entire earth. Now listen to how Scripture explains itself. “Let the waters gather together, ... and let the dry land appear.” The curtains are removed to reveal the earth, hitherto invisible. But perhaps someone else will ask about the following in addition to this. Why, firstly, does Scripture attribute what belongs to water by nature, that is, the power to strive down the slope, to the command of the Creator? For the water, as long as it stands on level ground, is motionless, because it has nowhere to flow, and as soon as it encounters any slope, upon the immediate rush of the front part, the one directly connected to it takes its place, and the next one after it takes its place, and thus the previous part incessantly runs away, while the next one drives it away. And this desire happens the faster, the greater the weight of the water falling down, and the larger the depression into which the flow flows. If this is the property of water, it is in vain that the command was given to it to gather “into one congregation.” For the water itself, by its natural downward tendency, inevitably had to flow to where the largest depression was, and not before stopping, as when comparing the surface. For nothing is as flat as the surface of water. And secondly, they say: why were the waters commanded to gather together into one, when we see many seas, and, moreover, separated from one another by a very large space? To the first of these questions we answer that you became especially aware of the movements of water after the command of the Lord. Now it spreads everywhere, is unstable, by nature tends to sloping and concave places, but what power it had before, rather than as a result of this command, such a desire to move occurred in it, you yourself do not know and could not hear from any eyewitness. Consider that the word of God creates nature itself, and the command given then to the creature determined the order of creation for the subsequent time. Day and night were created once, but from then until now they have not ceased to alternately follow each other and divide time into equal parts. "Let the waters gather together." The watery nature is commanded to flow, and according to this behavior, constantly hastening, it never gets tired. I say this, meaning the flowing part of the waters. For some waters flow by themselves, for example, springs and rivers, while others are collected in one place and do not flow. Now I have a word about moving waters. “Let the waters be gathered together... into one congregation.” Didn't the thought ever occur to you, standing by a spring giving abundant water, to ask: who drives this water from the bowels of the earth? who makes her hurry forward? What are the repositories from which it comes out? What kind of place is she rushing to? Why don’t the storage facilities run low and the drainage area not fill up? - All this depends on the first word of God. They gave water the power to flow. Whenever you talk about the waters, remember this first verb: “Let the waters be gathered together.” They had to flow in order to take their proper place, and then, having reached certain places, remain in their position and not go further. Therefore, as Ecclesiastes says, “all the people go to the sea, and the sea cannot be filled” (Eccl. 1.7). For if the waters flow, then this is by God’s command, and if the sea is contained within its boundaries, then this is a consequence of the first law. “Let the waters be gathered together... into one congregation.” So that the flowing water, pouring out from the places that received it, constantly moving further and further and filling one place after another, does not gradually drown the entire solid earth, it was commanded to gather into one congregation. Therefore, the sea, often driven into fury by the winds and raising the waves to very great heights, as soon as it touches the shores, retreats back, exhausting its swiftness into one foam. “Will you not fear me, says the Lord, who made the sand the limit of the sea” (Jer 5.22)? Sand, which is weakest of all, curbs the unbearable violence of the sea. For what would prevent the Red Sea from flooding all of Egypt, which in comparison is a depression, and connecting with the sea adjacent to Egypt, if it were not bound by the command of the Creator? And that Egypt is lower than the Red Sea, this was the very fact of those who wanted to connect these seas with each other - the Egyptian and Indian, on which the Red Sea is located. For this reason, both the Egyptian Sesostris, who first started the business, and Darius Mead, who wanted to finish it, abandoned their undertaking. I said this in order to understand for us the power of the command: “let the waters be gathered... into one congregation”: that is, after this gathering there should not be another, but in the first gathering what was gathered will remain. Then He who commanded the waters to gather “into one congregation” showed you that there were many waters, divided into many places. For even the depressions in the mountains, dug by deep ravines, contained a collection of waters. And also many sloping plains, not inferior in space to the greatest seas, countless valleys and dells, all sorts of depressions were formed, which were all then filled with water, suddenly lowered by Divine command, as soon as the water rushed from everywhere into one congregation. And no one should say that if the water was higher than the earth, then, of necessity, all the depressions that now contained the sea were already filled with water. And consequently, there was nowhere for the waters to gather, after the water had previously occupied these depressions. To this end, let us say that at the same time that the water had to be separated into one composition, the containers were also prepared. For there was not yet a sea beyond Hades, as well as that great and terrible for swimmers that washes the British Isle and the western Iberians, but then, by the command of God, a vast container was built, and a lot of water flowed into it. And to the objection that the teaching about our world creation contradicts experience (for, apparently, all the water flowed into more than one collection of waters), one can say a lot, and this in itself is known to everyone. Yes, it’s hardly funny to argue with those who make such objections. Will they really point out to us the waters of the swamp and the water that collects from the rains, and will they think that they have thereby refuted our teaching? But the Creator called the greatest and most complete gathering of waters one collection. For wells also become man-made collections of water, when dispersed moisture flows into a depression in the earth. Therefore, the word “gathering” does not mean any confluence of waters, but the predominant and greatest one, in which the whole element is gathered. For just as fire was fragmented into small parts for local needs, and was collectively poured into the ether, and just as air was divided into small parts, and collectively occupied the entire above-ground space, so it should be understood about water. Although there are separate small collections of waters, there is only one collection that separates the whole element from other elements. For the lakes that are in the northern countries, on the borders of Greece, in Macedonia, Bithynia and Palestine, of course, are collections, but now we have a word about a collection of all the largest and equal in size to the earth. No one argues that there is a lot of water in these lakes, but no one, however, would call them seas in the true sense, despite the fact that some, like the great sea, contain a lot of salt and earthen particles, such as Lake Asphalt in Judea, and Lake Sirbonovo between Egypt and Palestine, extending into the Arabian desert. These are lakes, and there is only one sea, as those who traveled around the earth tell. Although some believe that the Hyrcanian and Caspian seas are contained within special boundaries, if the land descriptions of the narrators are at all worthy of attention, then these seas also have communications with each other, and all together flow into the great sea, just as they say about the Red Sea that it connects with the sea lying behind Hades 10. But they will say: why did God call the collection of waters seas? - Because, although the waters flowed into one congregation, the Lord called the gatherings of waters, that is, bays that have a special appearance, being enclosed by the surrounding earth, seas. There is the North Sea, the South Sea, the East Sea, and also the West Sea. The seas are also given proper names: Euxine Pontus, Propontis, Hellespont; seas: Aegean, Ionian, Sardinian, also Sicilian and Tyrrhenian. And the names of the seas are countless, so now listing them in detail would be long and indecent. That is why God called the collection of waters seas. But although the connection of speech has already led us to this, let us return to the beginning. “And God said: let the waters be gathered... into one gathering, and let the dry land appear.” He did not say: “Let the earth appear,” so as not to show it as yet unsettled, dirty, mixed with water, which has not received its characteristic image and proper strength, but at the same time, so that we would not attribute the reason for the drying of the earth to the sun, the Creator caused the dryness of the earth before the creation of the sun. Consider the meaning of what is written: not only the excess water flowed from the earth, but even the water mixed with the earth in the depths came out of it, obeying the immutable command of the Lord. “And so be it.” This increase sufficiently shows that the word of the Creator has come true. But in many copies it is added: “and the waters under heaven were gathered into their own congregations, and the dry land appeared” - which words were not conveyed by other interpreters, and, it seems, they are not read in the Hebrews either. For, indeed, according to the evidence that “it was like this,” it is unnecessary to talk about the same thing again. Why are these words marked with lines in correct lists, and such a line serves as a sign of exclusion. “And God called the dry land, the earth; and the gathering of waters called the sea." Why, as it is said above: “let the waters... be gathered together into one, and let the dry land appear,” and not it is written: “and let the earth appear,” so here again: “let the dry land appear, and God will call the dry land, the earth”? - Because land is a property that serves, as it were, as a distinctive sign of the nature of an object, and earth is the bare name of this object. Just as rationality is a property of man, and the word man means the very animal in which this property is found, so dryness is a property of the earth, and a predominant property. So, what actually contains dryness is called earth, just as that to which the ability to neigh actually belongs is called horse. And this does not take place only in the earth, but each of the other elements has its own and exclusive quality, by which it differs from the other elements, and is known in itself what it is. Water has its own quality of coldness, air has humidity, fire has warmth. However, earth, water, air, and fire, only as the first elements of complex things, appear to the mind with named qualities, and when they are compared in the body and are subject to the senses, then they already have associated qualities, and nothing visible and subject to the senses is in a detached sense, alone, or simple, or pure. On the contrary, earth is dry and cold, water is wet and cold, air is warm and moist, and fire is warm and dry. Thus, as a result of the conjugate quality, there occurs in the elements the ability to mix each with each, for each element, as a result of the common quality, dissolves with the element adjacent to it, and as a result of communication in the related, unites with the opposite. For example, earth, being dry and cold, is united with water by the affinity of coldness, and through water it is united with air, because water, placed in the middle between earth and air, with each of its qualities, as if by laying on two hands, comes into contact with one and the other of the elements adjacent to it - coldness with the earth, and humidity with the air. Again, through its mediation, air becomes a reconciler of the hostile natures of water and fire, entering into unity through moisture with water, and through heat with fire. And fire, being warm and dry by nature, unites with the air through warmth, and through dryness it again enters into communication with the earth. And in this way a circle and a harmonious face are formed, due to the mutual consent and correspondence of all the elements. Why is the name of the elements given to them very appropriately 11. I said this to present the reason why God called the earth dry land, and did not call the dry land earth. Namely, dryness is something not later given to the earth, but from the very beginning replenishing its essence. And what serves as the same cause of being is by nature more primary and preferable to what comes after. Therefore, signs are rightly invented, borrowed from the pre-existent and ancient. “And God saw that it was good.” Scripture does not show that some pleasant view of the sea was revealed to God. For the Creator does not look at the beauty of creatures with his eyes, but with ineffable wisdom he contemplates what is happening. It is true that the spectacle of a white sea is delightful when constant silence reigns on it; it is also delightful when its ridge, swayed by quiet winds, appears to the audience in a purple or azure color, when it does not hit the adjacent land hard, but seems to kiss it in a peaceful embrace. However, one should not think that, according to Scripture, the sea seems beautiful and pleasant to God in the same sense. On the contrary, in Scripture beauty is defined in relation to the universe. Firstly, sea water serves as the source of all earthly moisture. For it is scattered in inconspicuous wells, as is proved by the loose places and caves in the solid earth into which flowing sea water penetrates. And when it is locked in crooked and not straight passages, then, driven by the spirit that moves it, it strives out, breaking through the surface, and becomes drinkable, losing its bitterness through straining. When, during the transition, it borrows the quality of heat from metals, then for the same reason, which lies in the driving spirit, it often becomes boiling, even fiery, which can be seen on many islands and in many coastal countries. And if we compare the small with the great, sometimes in the middle of the continent some places adjacent to river waters suffer almost the same thing. Why did I say this? Moreover, the whole earth has many passages in itself, and water flows through it through inconspicuous wells from the beginnings of the sea. So the sea is beautiful before God, because the moisture from it flows through the depths of the earth. It is also beautiful because it serves as a receiver of rivers, receives streams from everywhere, and does not protrude beyond its boundaries. It is also wonderful because it serves as the beginning and source of air waters when it is heated by the rays of the sun, and deposits from itself, through evaporation, thin particles of water, which, being attracted to the mountainous space and then cooled, as having risen further than where the rays reflected by the earth's surface extend, with increasing cold, also from the shadow of clouds, become rain and fatten the earth. And, of course, no one will doubt this if you imagine cauldrons placed on fire, which, being filled with moisture, often become empty, because everything cooked in them has resolved into steam. You can also see how sailors boil the very sea water, and collecting the vapors with sponges, if necessary, satisfy some of their needs. But the sea is beautiful before God in another respect, because it borders the islands, and serves them together as decoration and fencing, and also because it brings into communication the most distant parts of the solid land, delivering unhindered communication to seafarers, through which it supplies us with information about the unknown, enriches merchants, conveniently satisfies our vital needs, provides an opportunity for those in abundance to sell their excess, and for those in need reward your shortcomings. But how can I examine in all detail the beauty of the sea in which it appeared to the eyes of the Creator? If the sea is beautiful and worthy of praise before God, then isn’t it much more beautiful to gather such a Church in which, like a wave hitting the shore, the collective voice of husbands, wives and babies is sent to God in our prayers to Him? Deep silence keeps it unshakable, because the evil spirits were not able to disturb it with heretical teachings. Be worthy of the blessing of the Lord by observing, as much as possible, this decency in the most noble manner, in Christ Jesus our Lord, to whom be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. Conversation 5. “About the vegetation of the earth” “And God said: Let the earth bring forth the old grass, sowing seed according to its kind, and a fruitful tree, producing fruit according to its kind, having its seed in it” (Gen. 1.11). After the earth, having laid aside the burden of water, calmed down, it was very appropriately given the command to grow first grass, then trees, which, as we see, is still happening today. For the verb at that time and this first command became, as it were, a natural law and remained in the earth for subsequent times, giving it the power to give birth and bear fruit. “Let the earth sprout.” In the origin of plants, the first is the appearance of a sprout, then, when the sprouts rise somewhat, the “former” 12 appears, and then, increasing, it becomes grass, with the gradual development of the plant and its approach to perfection, that is, to insemination. For greening and ripening are the same in everyone. “Let the earth sprout former herbs.” The earth itself must produce vegetation, without the need for any outside assistance. Since some think that the cause of what grows from the earth is the sun, which, by the attraction of heat, brings to the surface of the earth the power hidden in the depths, the earth is decorated before the sun, so that those who are mistaken will stop worshiping the sun and admit that it gives the cause of life. Therefore, if they are convinced that the whole earth was decorated before the creation of the sun, then they will reduce the immeasurable surprise towards it, judging that it was later in existence than grass and greenery. But when food was prepared for the livestock, were we really the only ones unworthy of any industry? On the contrary, He who prepared food for oxen and horses especially prepares wealth and pleasure for you. For He who feeds your livestock increases your supply of life. Moreover, the very production of seeds is what else but a reserve for your food? Moreover, many herbs and potions themselves serve as food for people. It is said: “let the earth sprout the former grass, sowing seed according to its kind.” Therefore, although another kind of the former is useful to others, their benefit returns to us, and we are given the use of the seeds. Therefore, the meaning of what was said is this: “let the earth sprout the former herbs, and the seed that sows according to its kind.” For in this way it will be possible to restore the order of speech, in which the composition of words now seems discordant. And then the necessary consistency in what nature produces will be observed. For first is the sprout, then the greenness, then the growth of the grass, then the completion of what is raised through the seed. They will say: “How does Scripture represent that everything that grows from the earth is seeded, when neither reed, nor bentgrass, nor mint, nor saffron, nor garlic, nor butom, nor other countless genera of plants, apparently produce seed”? To this we answer that many of the earth’s plants in their lower parts and roots have the power of a seed. For example, a reed, after one year of growth, sends out a certain shoot from the root, and for the future it takes the place of the seed. Countless other plants do the same, which, being scattered throughout the earth, contain the power to continue their species in their roots. So, what is most certain is that in every plant there is either a seed, or some seed power is hidden. And this is what the word means: “according to kind.” For the shoot of a reed does not produce an olive, but on the contrary, from a reed there comes another reed, and from the seeds sown, something similar to them grows. And thus, what came out of the earth at the first creation is preserved to this day, through the preservation of the race by succession. “Let the earth sprout.” Imagine that, by a small saying and by such a brief command, the cold and barren earth suddenly approaches the time of birth, is moved towards fertility, and, as if throwing off sad and sorrowful clothes, is clothed in a bright robe, rejoices in its decoration, and gives birth to thousands of genera of plants. I would like to more firmly root in you wonder towards creation, so that no matter where you are, and no matter what type of plant you encounter, you will always renew in yourself a clear memory of the Creator. Therefore, firstly, when you see green and color on the grass, bring to mind human nature, recalling the image of the wise Isaiah: “all flesh is like hay, and all the glory of man is like the flower of grass” (Isaiah 40.6). The brevity of life, the short duration of the joys and joys of human well-being found in the Prophet the most decent analogy. Today it blooms physically, is fattened by pleasures, has a fresh good color in accordance with its blooming age, is cheerful, cheeky, unstoppable in its striving, but in the morning it is the most pitiful, either withered by time, or weakened by illness. Another attracts attention to himself with an abundance of wealth, around him there are many flatterers, an accompaniment of feigned friends who catch his favor, many relatives who wear a mask, a numerous swarm of servants, now taking care of his food, now fulfilling his other needs, whom he drags along with him, leaving the house and returning home, and thereby arouses the envy of those he meets. Add to wealth any civil power or honors from kings, or government of the people, or command over the army, a herald who loudly cries out before him, staff-bearers who here and there instill great fear in their subordinates, beatings, description of property, taking into custody, prisons, which all increase unbearable fear in their subordinates. And what after this? One night, or a fever, or a pain in the side, or pneumonia, snatching this man from among people, removes him from his disgrace, and the place of his action suddenly becomes deserted, and this glory turns out to be nothing like a dream. That is why the Prophet compared human glory to the weakest flower. “Let the earth sprout the former herbs, sowing seed according to their kind and likeness.” And now the order of vegetation testifies to the primitive decree. For every green thing and grass is preceded by the appearance of a sprout. Whether something comes from a root from an underground shoot, such as saffron and bentgrass, it must first sprout and come out, whether something grows from a seed, and in this case it must first be a sprout, then greenery, then green grass, and then fruit, already growing on a dry and white stem. “Let the earth sprout former herbs.” When a seed falls into the ground, which has proportionate moisture and warmth, then it swells, becomes multi-welled, and embraced by the nearby earth, attracts to itself what is characteristic and akin to it. The thinnest particles of the earth, sticking to the wells and entering them, expand the volume of the seed, which is why it puts down roots and goes up, giving rise to stems according to the number of roots. And with the constant warming of the sprout, the moisture attracted by the roots by the attraction of heat extracts from the ground as much nutrition as it needs and shares it with the stem, skin, grain sheaths, the grains themselves and the ears. Thus, with gradual growth, each plant comes to its characteristic measure, whether it be of the grain family, or legumes, or vegetables, or growing shrubs. One piece of grass or one blade of grass is enough to occupy your whole thought with consideration of the art with which it is produced, as for example, a stalk of wheat is girded with knees so that they, like bundles, comfortably support the weight of the ears when full of fruits bend to the ground. Therefore, the stalk of oats is completely empty, since its top is not encumbered with anything, and nature protected the stalk of wheat with such bundles, enclosed the grain in the vagina so that it could not be stolen by birds, and with long spines, like needles, prevented harm from small animals. What should I say? And what should we keep silent about? In the rich treasuries of creation, it is difficult to find what is preferable to others, and if we leave something unattended, the damage will be unbearable. “Let the earth sprout former herbs.” Together with the nutritious, the harmful also grew, along with wheat and hemlock, and together with other nutritious plants - hellebore, wrestler, mandrogora and poppy juice. So what? Will we really refuse to give thanks for what is useful, and begin to blame the Creator for what is destructive to our lives? Should we not consider that not everything was created for our womb? On the contrary, what is prescribed for our food is at our fingertips and is known to everyone. So, every created thing in the whole creation fulfills some special law of its own. Since ox blood is poison for you, was it really necessary either not to create this animal, or to create the ox bloodless, although we need its strength for so many needs in life? But the reason living within you is enough for you to protect yourself from harmful things. If sheep and goats know how to avoid what is harmful to their lives, distinguishing what is harmful through one sense, then tell me, is it really difficult for you to avoid what is poisonous for you, who has both reason and medical science, indicating what is beneficial, and the experience of your predecessors, inspiring you to avoid what is harmful? But even from this nothing was created in vain or without benefit. For it either serves as food for some animal, or with the help of medical science it is discovered to be suitable for ourselves, serving to alleviate some ailments. Starlings feed on hemlock, and due to the structure of their body they do not suffer harm from poison, having thin holes in their hearts, they seem to digest what they absorb before the cooling it produces affects the main members. Hellebore serves as food for quails, and by their constitution they remain unharmed. But these same plants are sometimes useful to us. Doctors use mandrograss to induce sleep, and use opium to soothe severe pain in the body. And some used hemlock to pacify the rage of lust, and hellebore eradicated many long-standing diseases. Therefore, what you thought to blame the Creator for, the same thing turned into an incentive for you to be more grateful. “Let the earth sprout former herbs.” How much food does Scripture mean by this, which are naturally ready for us, either in roots, or in greens, or already in fruits! How much more food is added by our labor and agriculture! God commanded the earth not to suddenly produce seed and fruit, but to first give sprouts and greenery, and then finish with the seed, so that the first command would serve nature as a lesson for maintaining order in the future. They say: how does the earth bring forth seeds according to their kind, and yet often, having sowed wheat, we collect black grains of wheat 13? But this is not a change of another kind, but, as it were, an illness and disease of the seed. Here the wheat has not ceased to be wheat, but has turned black from being burned, as can be seen from the name itself. Tanned from excessive cold, it took on a different color and taste. But they say that again, if it has suitable soil and well-dissolved air, it will return to its original form. Therefore, you will not find anything in plants that would happen contrary to this command. And the so-called cockle and all other foreign seeds, which are only mixed with those used for food and are usually called tares in Scripture, do not occur through a change in the wheat, but have their own origin, and constitute their own special genus. They portray themselves as those who distort the teaching of the Lord, have not studied the Scriptures as they should and are damaged by the teaching of the evil one, but join the healthy body of the Church in order to quietly communicate their damage to those who are not infected. But the Lord likens the perfection of those who believe in Him to the growth of seeds, saying: “As (ever) a man sows a seed into the ground, and sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed vegetates and grows, as he does not know. For from itself, the earth first produces grass, then grain, and also makes wheat into grain” (Mk 4.26–28). “Let the earth sprout the former.” And the earth, observing the laws of the Creator, starting with a sprout, in a short moment of time went through all types of growth, and immediately brought vegetation to perfection. The meadows were filled with abundant grass, the fertile plains, rising from the harvest, retained the semblance of a wavering sea in the swaying of the ears. Every kind of greenery and every kind of vegetable, everything that grows as a bush and that bears legumes, appeared then in abundance on the earth. For nothing stopped the growth then, the inexperience of farmers, the lack of solubility in the air and any other reason did not harm the one that withered. Condemnation has not yet hindered the fertility of the earth; all this was before sin, for which we were condemned to eat bread in the sweat of our brow. But it is said: “And the fruitful tree that produces fruit, whose seed is in it, according to its kind and likeness on the earth.” At this word, the bushes thickened, all the trees, usually reaching extreme heights, ran out of the ground - spruces, cedars, cypresses, and pine trees. All the small trees suddenly became branchy and dense; The plants used for crowns appeared - roses, myrtles and laurels. None of this existed on earth before, and everything came into being in one instant of time, with a property belonging to each, most clearly distinguished from foreign plants, and recognizable by the characteristic characteristic of each. But the rose was then without thorns, later thorns were added to the beauty of the color, so that not far from the pleasantness of pleasure we would have ready sorrow, remembering sin, for which the earth was condemned to grow for us “thorns and thistles” (Gen. 3.18). But they will say: “The earth is commanded to produce a fruitful tree, producing fruit on the earth, which has its seed in it”; and yet we see that many trees have neither fruits nor seeds.” What to answer to this? The fact that the plants mentioned here are predominantly those that are preferable by nature, and moreover, upon careful examination it will turn out that all plants have either a seed or something equivalent to a seed. For sedges, willows, elms, poplars and other similar trees, apparently, do not clearly bear fruit, but a careful examiner will find that each of them has a seed. For the grain lying under the leaf, which those who know how to give everything their names call μισχος 14, has the power of a seed. Trees, which usually grow from branches, send out numerous roots from them. Or maybe the root shoots also have significance as a seed, through the removal of which gardeners propagate the species. But firstly, as it has been said, those trees are worthy of mention that especially support our life, and which, by supplying man with their fruits, were supposed to prepare him with abundant food. Such are the grapes that produce wine, which should “rejoice the heart of man.” Such is the olive tree, which bears fruit that can “anoint the face with oil” (Ps. 103.15). How much of what nature produced flowed together with such haste! The root of the vine, green and large branches spreading in circles on the ground, the embryo, the curling of the vine, green berries, ripe grapes! One glance is enough for you, and an intelligent glance at the vine will inspire you with what nature reminds you of. For you remember, of course, the likeness of the Lord, who calls Himself a “vine” and the Father a “worker,” but calls each of us a “rod,” through faith planted in the Church, and encourages us to bear many fruits, so that we are not consigned to the fire after being condemned for uselessness (John 15:1-6). And He does not cease everywhere to liken human souls to grapevines. For it is said: “There were grapes for the beloved in a rose, in a fat place.” And: “We planted a vine and fenced it in with a fence” (Isaiah 5.1, 2). Obviously, by grapes he means human souls, for whom he built a fence - a stronghold of the commandments and protection from the Angels. For “the Angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him” (Ps 33.8). Then, as it were, he made a trench around us, “placing in the Church the apostles first, the prophets second, the teachers third” (1 Cor 12.28). Having raised our thoughts to heights by the examples of ancient and blessed men, he did not leave them cast down and worthy of trampling. He also wants us, as if with some curls, to be intertwined with the nearest embrace of love and rest in them, and, always striving for the heavenly, like curling vine branches, we try to become equal to the peaks of the highest. He also demands that we endure being dug in. And the soul digs itself in by putting aside worldly worries, which are a burden for our hearts. Therefore, having put aside carnal love and attachment to wealth, and recognizing the addiction to the local disastrous glory as despicable and ridiculous, he seemed to have dug in and renewed his strength, throwing off the vain burden of earthly wisdom. One should not, according to the word of the parable, grow into branches 15, that is, live for show, and seek praise for appearance, but one must be fruitful, providing the true Farmer with a demonstration of deeds. And you be “like an olive tree fruitful in the house of God” (Ps 51:10), never losing hope, but always having within you a blooming salvation acquired through faith. For in this way you will imitate the evergreen greenness of this plant, and compete with its prolific fertility, giving abundant alms at all times. But let's return to the consideration of Artistic orders. How many genera of fertile plants arose then, suitable for creating blood, for building ships, for burning! And here again, in each tree, the structure of its parts is varied, and it is also difficult to find the property of each tree, and to discern the mutual differences between trees of different types. Why do some of them take root deep into the earth, while others spread along the earth's surface, some grow straight and have one trunk, others are low and from the very root are divided into many shoots? Why do trees that have long branches and spread far in the air have deep roots and extend around a large space, as if nature had laid foundations commensurate with the weight of the upper parts? How many differences there are in tree bark! Some trees have smooth bark, others have wrinkled bark, some have a single layer, while others have multi-layers. And what’s surprising is that in plants you will find signs similar to human youth and old age. For on young and healthy trees the bark is tightly wrapped around it, but on old trees it wrinkles and hardens. Some trees, having been cut, vegetate again, others, having been cut, as if it were death for them, remain without succession. And some even noticed that cut down and burned pines turned into oaks. It is also known that in some trees a natural defect is corrected by the care of farmers. For example, sour pomegranates and bitter almonds, when the trunk at the root is turned and a fat wedge of pear is inserted into the very middle of the core, changes their bitter juice to pleasant. Therefore, let none of those who spend their lives in sin despair of themselves, knowing that just as agriculture changes the quality of plants, so the soul’s care for virtue can prevail over all sorts of ailments. There is so much variation in the fruiting of fertile plants that it is impossible to describe it in words. For not only are the fruits of different trees different, but there are many differences even in the same type of tree. A different distinctive feature of the fruit sometimes appears on a male plant, and another on a female plant, as this is distinguished by gardeners, who even divide date trees into two sexes, male and female. And you can see that sometimes a plant, as they call it, female, lowers its branches, as if excited by lust, and desires a man’s embrace, but those who follow the plants throw something similar to male seeds onto the branches, which they call ψηνες 16, and in this case the trees seem to feel pleasure, straighten their branches again, and their many-leaved tops return to their former appearance. The same thing is said about fig trees. Therefore, wild fig trees are planted together with garden ones, while others heal the weakness of garden fig trees, which bear tasty fruits, by tying unripe figs to them, and supporting this fruit, which has already begun to melt and crumble. What does this mystery of nature give you to understand? That we must often borrow from people who are alien to the faith an incentive to demonstrate good deeds. If you see that someone living in paganism, or rejected from the Church by some perverse heresy, is chaste in life and strives for moral decency in everything else, then all the more intensify your efforts to become like a fruitful fig tree, which gathers strength from the wild fig trees close to it, stops melting, and more carefully nourishes its fruit. There are so many differences in the manner of birth of fruits, to say the least of many things! But who will describe the variety of fruits themselves, their appearance, color, properties of juices, and the benefits of each? Why do some ripen naked in the sun, while others come to fullness covered in shells? Why is it that those whose fruit is tender have rough foliage, like a fig tree, and those whose fruits are closed, have light foliage, like a hazel tree? Because the former, due to their weakness, need more help, and the latter, a denser shell would be harmed by the shadow of the leaves. What cuts are there on the grape leaves so that the bunch is protected from the harmful effects of the air, and, due to the rarity of the leaves, receives the sun's rays in abundance! Nothing is without a reason, and nothing is by chance, some kind of unspoken wisdom is visible everywhere. What word will be enough for this? How does the human mind examine everything in detail in order to discern properties, clearly distinguish mutual differences, and present hidden causes without lack? The same water, attracted by the root, feeds the root itself in a different way, the bark of the trunk differently, the wood differently, and again the core in it differently. The same thing is made by the leaf, and is divided into branches and branches, and brings growth to the fruits; from the same reason comes the juice in the plant, and the moisture flowing out of it. What is the difference between all this, no word can explain. There is a different kind of moisture flowing from the mastic tree, and a different kind of juice from the balsam tree, and some backgammon in Egypt and Libya exude a different kind of juice. They also say that amber is the juice of plants, hardened into stone. And this opinion is confirmed by blades of grass and small animals found in amber, which, being captured when the juice was still soft, remain in it. And in general, anyone who has not experienced the differences between juices in relation to their quality will not find a word to explain their actions. How is it that wine is made from the same moisture in grapes and oil in olives? And it is surprising not only how the moisture in the grapes became sweet, but in the olive fat, but also that in sweet fruits the difference in qualities is incalculable. For there is another sweetness in the grape, and another in the apple, the fig tree, and the date tree. And I want you to think about this question: why is it that the same water is sometimes soft to the senses when, being in certain plants, it becomes sweet, and then hard to the taste when, having passed through other plants, it is oxidized; and again turning into extreme bitterness, the sensation is unbearable when it is in wormwood and scammonea 17; and in acorns, or in the fruit, the tree turns into a pungent and astringent quality; in turpentine plants and nuts does the property change into a tender and oily quality? And is it necessary to talk about something little-known, when in the same fig tree the water turns into opposite qualities? The same moisture is very bitter in tree sap, and very sweet in the fruit itself, and in grapes; it has the most astringent taste in the branches, and the most pleasant in the berries. But how many differences there are in colors! You can see in the meadows that the same water is blush in one flower, crimson in another, blue in this, and white in this. And again, there is even more variety in smells than there is in colors. But I see that my word, from an insatiable desire to survey everything, exceeds the limit, and if I do not put bonds on it and bring it to the necessary law of creation, then I will not have enough day to depict before you the great wisdom hidden in the most unimportant things. “Let the earth sprout a fruitful tree, producing fruit on the earth.” And immediately the tops of the mountains were overshadowed with curls, gardens were established, and the banks of the rivers were decorated with thousands of genera of plants, and some prepared to decorate the human meal, while others offered both leaves and fruits for food to the cattle. But they also provide us with medicinal benefits in their juices, moisture, twigs, bark, and fruits. And in a word, what long-term experience revealed to us, collecting useful things from particular cases, suddenly brought into being the all-encompassing Providence of the Creator, having foreseen it from the beginning. And you, when you see garden or wild plants, vegetating in water or on land, bearing flowers or colorless ones, recognizing the great in small things, constantly deepen your surprise and grow in love for the Creator. Think about how He created some plants always green, and others bare, and always green - sometimes changing leaves, sometimes not losing leaves. For both the olive and the pine change their leaves, although this change occurs imperceptibly, so that, apparently, they are never stripped of their greenery. But the date tree does not lose leaves, and until the end retains the same leaves that it received from the first vegetation. Then take into account why myrika is like a water-land plant, is considered one of those growing in water and is grown in desert places. Therefore, Jeremiah (Jeremiah 17.6) rightly likens to such a plant morals that are crafty and prone to good and bad. “Let the earth sprout.” This brief command immediately became a great nature and artistic word, producing countless properties of plants faster than our thoughts. The same command, still operating in the earth, encourages it, at the end of each year, to reveal its power, which it has for the production of herbs, seeds and trees. Just as the kubar, according to the force of the first blow given to it, makes subsequent revolutions when it describes circles, keeping the center unshakable in itself, so the sequential order of nature, having received its beginning with the first command, extends throughout all subsequent time until it reaches the general end of the universe. Let us all hasten to him, bearing fruit in good deeds and being filled with them, so that “the plants in the house of the Lord, in the courts of our God, may flourish” (Ps 91:14) in Christ Jesus our Lord, to whom be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. Conversation 6. “On the creation of the heavenly bodies” He who looks at those who struggle must himself exert some strength. Anyone can see this from the spectacular regulations, which require that those sitting in the arena sit with their heads open. And this, it seems to me, is so that everyone not only becomes a spectator of those who struggle, but to some extent also becomes an ascetic himself. In the same way, a connoisseur of great and supernatural spectacles and a listener of truly higher and ineffable wisdom, coming here, must already have in himself some desire to contemplate what is offered, and, to the best of his ability, participate with me in the feat, being not so much a judge as an associate, so as not to deprive us of the opportunity to reveal the truth, and so that my mistake does not become a common harm to those listening. Why am I saying this? Moreover, since we are supposed to examine the composition of the world and consider the universe not according to the principles of worldly wisdom, but as God taught this to His servant, who spoke to him in reality, “and not by fortune telling” (Num. 12.8), it is absolutely necessary that lovers of great spectacles have a mind not untrained to understand what is offered to us. So, if you have ever, in the middle of a clear night, looking at the indescribable beauty of the stars, have formed an idea about the Artist of all sorts, Who is this who has dotted the sky with these colors, and why in the visible world there is more necessary than pleasant. And again, if during the day you studied wondrous miracles with a sober mind, then you came here as a ready listener, worthy of making up for this honest and blissful disgrace. Get started! Just as in cities they take people by the hand and lead them everywhere who have never been there, so I will introduce you to the hidden wonders of this great city. And in this city, in which our ancient fatherland is, and from which we were expelled by the murderer-demon, who enslaved man with his baits, - in this city you will see the first existence of man and the death that soon befell us, which was generated by sin - this original fruit of the chief of evil - the demon. Here you will come to know yourself, earthly by nature, but the work of God’s hands, much inferior to the dumb in strength, but placed as a ruler over dumb and inanimate creatures, diminished in what nature has provided, but by the superiority of reason capable of ascending to heaven itself. If we study this, then we will know ourselves, we will know God, we will worship the Creator, we will work for the Master, we will glorify the Father, we will love our Nourisher, we will honor our Benefactor, we will not cease to worship the Beginning of our life, both present and future, - the One who, with the wealth already given, confirms the promised benefits, and after we know the present, makes for us the expected undoubtedly. For if this is what is temporal, then what is eternal? And if the visible is so beautiful, then what is the invisible? If the greatness of the sky exceeds the measure of human understanding, then what mind will be able to explore the nature of the Ever-Bearing One? If this sun, subject to destruction, is so beautiful, so great, so fast in its movement and makes dignified revolutions, has a size commensurate with the universe, and does not stand out from its relationship to the whole, but by the beauty of its nature constitutes, as it were, a bright eye that adorns the creature, and if vision is not saturated with it, then what is the beauty of the Sun of Truth? If not seeing this sun is a great loss for the blind, then what loss is it for the sinner to be deprived of the true Light? “And God said: Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to illuminate the earth, and to separate the day and the night” (Gen. 1.14). Everything was preceded by heaven and earth, after them light was created, night and day were distinguished, then again the firmament and the appearance of dry land, then water was united into a constant and definite collection, the earth was filled with its own creations, growing countless kinds of herbs and being enriched with plants of all kinds. But the sun and moon did not yet exist, so that those who did not know God would not call the sun the chief and father of light, and would not consider him the creator of earthly growths. Therefore, the fourth day came, and then “God said: let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens.” As soon as you hear about the Speaker, immediately add to your thoughts the Hearer: “God says: let there be lights. And God made two lights" (Genesis 1.16). Who said and Who did? Do you not understand in this the duality of Persons? Everywhere with the story, this dogma of Theology is mysteriously all the same. The need for which the luminaries were created is also indicated. It is said: “to illuminate the earth.” If the creation of light preceded, then why is it said that the sun was now also created to “illuminate?” Firstly, let the uniqueness of your speech not arouse even the slightest laughter in you if we do not follow your legibility in words and do not try to ensure the harmony of their composition. We do not have word sculptors, and everywhere we prefer not the euphony of utterances, but the clarity of names. So look, didn’t Moses express what he wanted with the word “illuminate”? For he said: “to illuminate,” instead of: to be light. But this in no way contradicts what has already been said about light. Then the very nature of light was produced, and now this solar body is being prepared to serve as a chariot for that primeval light. One is fire, and another is a lamp; one has the power to give out light, and the other is designed to give light to those who need it. So now a chariot, that is, a luminary, is built for this purest, clear and immaterial light. Just as the Apostle speaks of some “luminaries of the world” (Phil. 2.15), but others are the true Light of the world, through whose communion the saints became luminaries for souls guided by them and freed from the darkness of ignorance, so the Creator of all has now kindled this sun in the world, filling it with this most radiant light. And let it not seem incredible to anyone that it is asserted that one thing is the splendor of light, and another is the body in which the light is located. Firstly, this can be seen from the fact that everything complex is divided in the same way into the containing essence and the quality given to it. Therefore, just as by nature one is whiteness, and another is a whitened body, so those now mentioned 18, being different in nature, are united by the power of the Creator. And don't say that you can't separate them from each other. I do not claim that it is possible for me or for you to separate the light from the solar body, but I am only saying that what appears to us as separate in thoughts can in reality itself be separated by the Creator of their nature. It is not possible for you to separate the scorching power of fire from luminosity, but God, wanting to draw the attention of His servant with a wonderful vision, put fire into the bush, in which only luminosity acted, and the power to burn remained at rest. So the Psalmist testifies, saying: “the voice of the Lord cutting off the flame of fire” (Ps 28.7). From this and about reward for the deeds of our lives, some teaching secretly teaches us that the nature of fire will be divided, and the light will be given to the enjoyment of the righteous, and the torment of burning will be assigned to those punished. And then we can find evidence of what is being studied in the modifications of the moon. For when she departs and decreases, then it is not her body that is completely destroyed, but she presents to us the phenomena of decrease and increase by the fact that she lays aside and again receives the light that envelops her. And that the very body of the moon is not destroyed during its departure, visible evidence serves as clear evidence of this. For in the air that is clear and free from any fog, even when the moon has the appearance of the thinnest crescent, you can, by looking closely, see its dark and unilluminated part, described by the same arc that outlines the whole moon during the full moon, so that a complete circle is clearly seen if vision brings together the illuminated part and that which is darkened and dark. And do not imagine to me that the light of the moon is borrowed, because it decreases as it approaches the sun and increases again as it moves away from it. It is not this that is subject to our investigation in the present case, but the fact that another is the body of the moon, and another is the illuminating one. Imagine something similar about the sun, except that, having once received the light and having it dissolved in itself, it does not put off the light. But the moon, constantly, as it were, stripped of light and again clothed in it, confirms with itself what has been said about the sun. These luminaries were commanded to “separate between day and night.” And above, “God separate between the light and between you,” but then He brought their nature into opposition, so that they would not mix with each other, and the light would not have any communication with darkness. For what is a shadow during the day, (one must imagine) at night constitutes the nature of darkness. If every shadow from bodies illuminated by some ray falls from the side opposite to the light, and in the morning it extends to the west, in the evening it inclines to the east, and at noon it is northern, then the night recedes in the direction opposite to the rays, being by its nature nothing more than an earthly shadow. Just as during the day a shadow is inseparable from the blocking ray, so night usually occurs when the air near the earth is shadowed. And this means what is said: “God separate between the light and the darkness,” for darkness flees the intrusions of light, as a result of that natural impulse to alienate each other, which was put into them at the first creation. And now God commanded the sun to measure the day, and made the moon, when it is in its full circle, the leader of the night. For then the luminaries are almost diametrically opposed to each other, because during full moons, just as with the rising of the sun the moon passes into the invisible part of the sky, so again, at sunset, it mostly rises in the east. If, with other types of the moon, its light does not appear together with the night, then this does not apply here. At least the moon, when it is full, begins the night, surpassing the stars with its light and illuminating the earth, and also, along with the sun, determines the measures of time. “And let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and for years” (Gen. 1.14). For human life, the guidance of the luminaries is necessary. And if someone does not look for too much in their signs, then with long-term observation he will find useful signs. Much can be learned about the abundance of rain, much about drought, and about the movement of the winds, whether local or universal, strong or light. The Lord gave us one of the instructions of the sun, saying: “winter” will be, “the sky is blackening and shaking” (Matthew 16.3). When the sun rises through the fog, then its rays darken, and it appears fiery and bloody in color, because the density of the air produces such an image in the eyes. But the condensed and settled air, which the sun’s rays did not disperse, obviously could not be overcome by them due to the excess of earthly vapors, and due to the abundance of moisture it will cause bad weather in those countries where it gathers. Likewise, when the moon seems moist, or when the sun is surrounded by so-called crowns, this serves as a sign of either a lot of airy water or the movement of strong winds. Or when the so-called side suns go along with the sun, they are a sign of some air changes. And also rainbow-colored pillars that appear on the clouds in an upright position indicate rain or severe storms, or generally a large upheaval in the air. And in the waxing or waning of the moon, those who practiced this noticed many signs, namely, that along with its modifications, the air surrounding the earth necessarily changes. If the three-day moon is thin and clear, then it foretells constant clear weather, and if it appears with thick horns and reddish, then it threatens either an abundance of water from the clouds, or a strong south wind. Who doesn’t know how much usefulness is delivered by such instructions? A swimmer, anticipating dangers from the winds, can keep his boat in the pier. The traveler, expecting a change by the darkness of the air, can avoid harm in advance. And farmers who are engaged in sowing and tending plants, hence conclude that every task is timely. The Lord predicted that even signs of the destruction of the universe would appear in the sun, moon and stars. The sun will turn to blood, and “the moon will not give its light” (Matthew 24.29). These are the signs of the end of the universe! But those who transgress the boundaries turn the words of Moses into a defense of the science of birthdays, and say that our life depends on the movement of celestial bodies, and on this basis the Chaldeans made indications from the stars of what should happen to us. And this simple expression of Scripture: “let them be for signs,” at their own discretion, they mean not about the states of the air, and not about the changes of the annual seasons, but about the lots of life. Because what do they say? The confluence of certain moving stars with the stars located in the zodiac, when they come together to form a certain figure, produces certain births, and a different arrangement of stars produces the opposite lot of life. It is perhaps not useless to discuss this, starting, for the sake of clarity, a little higher. But I will not say anything of my own, but will use my own words to expose them, in order to provide some healing to those infected with such an illness and to warn others against falling into such delusions. The inventors of this science of birthdays, noticing that in long periods of time many figures elude them, confined the measures of time to the narrowest possible limits, because in the smallest and shortest time, and as the Apostle expresses it, “soon, in the twinkling of an eye” (1 Cor 15.52), there is the greatest difference between birth and birth. And the one born at this point in time will be the owner of cities, the prince of nations, will begin to abound in wealth and rule, and the one born at another moment of time will be a beggar and a beggar, and for the sake of daily food will begin to walk from door to door. Therefore, having divided the so-called zodiacal circle into twelve parts, since the sun passes this twelfth part of the so-called fixed sphere in thirty days, they divided every twelfth part into thirty parts. Then, dividing each such part into six to ten parts, each of the sixtieth parts was again cut into sixty. So, assuming that for those born there are known positions of the sky, let's see if they can maintain such accuracy in the division of time. As soon as the baby is born, the grandmother begins to consider whether the baby is male or female, and then waits for a cry, which would serve as a sign of life in the newborn. How many sixties will flow during this time! So she announced to Chaldea about the newborn. How many small parts should be put into the grandmother’s retelling, especially if it happens that the person noticing the hour was standing outside the women’s section in the house? For anyone who wants to look at a horoscope must accurately describe the hour, whether it be daytime or nighttime. How many sixtieth beats will still flow at this time? The one looking at the horoscope needs to find out about the stars not only in which of the twelfth parts they are, but also in which part of the twelfth part and in which sixtieth part of those into which, according to what has been said, each of the first parts is divided, or, to get to the point, in which sixtieth part of those into which the first sixtieth are divided. And such a fractional and elusive calculation of time, they say, must be done for each of the planets in order to find what position they had in the consideration of the fixed stars and what figure the stars taken together made of themselves at the moment of the birth of the baby. Therefore, if it is not possible to accurately determine time, and the replacement of one shortest fraction with another makes everything fallible, then those who work on this untenable science and delve into themselves with open mouths, as if they can find out what will happen to them, are ridiculous. What are the conclusions? They say: this one will have curly hair and blue eyes, because he was born in the hour of Aries, and this is the appearance of this animal. But he will also be a man of great spirit, because Aries has the sovereign in him, and is also generous and industrial, because this animal puts off the wave without grief, and comfortably puts on a new one, according to the action of nature. And the one born in Taurus, they say, will be patient in labor and servile, because the Taurus wears a yoke. Born in Scorpio, he is a hunter of fights, in the likeness of this animal. The one born in Libra is truthful, because of the faithfulness of our scales. What could be funnier than this? Aries, from which you take the time of a person’s birth, is one of the twelfth parts of the sky in which the sun, located, touches the signs of spring. And also Libra and Taurus are the twelfth parts of the so-called zodiac circle. How then, when you say that there are the main reasons for human life, do you give human morals distinctive characteristics taken from the cattle born among us? One born in Aries is generous, not because that part of the sky produces such a disposition, but because such is the property of the sheep. Why do you frighten us with the certainty of the stars, and try to convince us with the bleating of sheep? If heaven has such properties of morals, having borrowed them from animals, then it itself is subject to extraneous principles, as having causes dependent on animals. But if it is funny to say this way, then it is much more ridiculous to try to give credibility to a teaching from things that have nothing in common. But such tricks of theirs are like cobwebs, in which if a mosquito or a fly, or something equally powerless, gets stuck, it remains bound, but if another strong animal approaches them, it conveniently frees itself, and the weak web breaks and destroys. But they do not stop at this alone, but attribute to the celestial bodies the reason for that in which the will of each of us has power, that is, the reason for the disposition towards virtue or vice. On the one hand, it is ridiculous to dispute them, but on the other, since many are infected with this error, perhaps necessity requires not leaving this in silence. So, first of all, let us ask them: do not the figures of the stars change a thousand times every day? For the so-called planets are constantly moving, and some converge more quickly with each other, while others make slower revolutions, often appearing at the same hour and in sight of one another and are hidden from each other. And at the moment of birth, as they say, it has very great power to be in the sight of a beneficent or a malefic star. And often, out of ignorance of the smallest part, not finding the time at which the star showed itself to be beneficial, they described it as being among the unfavorable. For I am forced to use their own words. But in these words, of course, there is much that is unreasonable, and much more that is wicked. For the evil stars transfer the cause of their evilness to their Creator. If evil is natural to them, then the Creator is the creator of evil. And if they become evil at will, then, firstly, they are living beings, gifted with arbitrariness, indulging in spontaneous and free aspirations. To assert this about inanimate things is the height of madness. Then how much it is incongruous with reason that evil and good should be given to each not according to their worth, but that the star should be beneficial because it is located in such and such a place. and so that it becomes evil, because it is seen under such and such a star, and again immediately forgets its malignancy if it deviates somewhat from a well-known figure! And that's enough about this. If at every moment of time the relative position of the stars changes from one type to another, and given the countless number of such changes, more than once a day outlines are drawn up showing the birth of kings, then why are not kings born every day? Or why do they inherit the kingdom from their fathers? For, of course, not every king carefully considers the birth of his son with the royal outline of the stars? And what kind of person has the power in this? How did Uzziah beget Jotham, Jotham Ahaz, and Ahaz Hezekiah? And not one of them happened to be born in the hour of slavery? Moreover, if the principles of vicious and virtuous actions do not depend on us, but are necessary due to birth, then it is in vain that there are legislators who determine what we should do and what we should avoid, and in vain there are judges who reward virtue and punish vice. Neither the thief nor the murderer is guilty of a crime; even if he wanted to, it was impossible for him to restrain his hands, because necessity inevitably prompted him to such actions. And those who work on the arts are the most deceived. On the contrary, the farmer will reap abundant fruits without throwing seeds into the ground or sharpening his scythe, and the merchant will become rich, whether he wants it or not, because fate will collect heaps of money for him. The great hopes of Christians will turn into nothing among us, because neither righteousness will be honored, nor sin will be condemned, since people do nothing of their own free will. For where necessity and fate reign, there is no place for reward according to merit, which is the advantage of justice. Enough has been said to those who hold this error. For you do not need more arguments, being sound in yourself, and time does not allow you to expand beyond measure with them. Let us return to the subsequent words of Scripture. It is said: “Let them be in signs, and in times, and in days, and in years.” We talk about signs, and by times, as we believe, we mean changes in the annual seasons: winter, spring, summer and autumn, which return in our country in an indispensable order, due to the established movement of the luminaries. For winter occurs when the sun slows down in the southern parts, and in our places it produces a long night darkness, which causes the air surrounding the earth to cool, and all the moist vapors that collect around us become the cause of rain, cold and heavy snow. When the sun, having returned again from the midday regions, reaches the middle, so that it divides the time between night and day equally, then the more it slows down over any place on earth, the more goodness it produces in everyone. And spring comes, the cause of vegetation in all plants, bringing revival to most of the trees, and through the succession of those born, supporting the birth of all animals living on land and water. From here the sun, moving to the very north towards the summer turns, produces the longest days for us, and because it acts on the air for the longest time, as it inflames the very air above our heads, it also dries out the earth, thereby helping the seeds to ripen and causing the tree fruits to come to ripeness. Then the sun itself scorches the most, and makes the shadows short at midday, because it shines on our countries from above. For those days are the longest, on which there are the shortest shadows, and again, those days are the shortest, on which we have the longest shadows. And this happens among us, who are called “single-shaded” and inhabit the northern part of the earth. For among those who live at noon, there are those who have no shadow at all for two days during the whole year. The sun, shining above their heads, illuminates equally from all sides, so that even in the depths of the wells, the water is illuminated through narrow holes. This is why they are called “shadowless.” And those living further in countries rich in aromas have shadows alternately in one direction or the other. For they, alone in the universe we inhabit, cast a shadow to the south at midday, which is why some call them “round-sided.” Still, this happens when the sun moves to the northern part. And from this we can conclude what kind of heating occurs in the air from a sunbeam, and what phenomena are produced by this. The autumn season that is approaching here weakens the excessive heat, and gradually reducing the warmth through the mediocrity of dissolution, it harmlessly leads us into winter, while the sun moves from the northern countries to the southern ones again. These rotations of annual times, following the movements of the sun, control our lives. But “let them be,” it is said, “even in days,” not in order to produce days, but to rule over the days. For there were day and night before the creation of the luminaries. The Psalm also shows us this, saying: He set “the sun in the region of the day, the moon and stars in the region of the night” (Ps 135.8–9). How does the sun have power over the day? It carries light within itself, and as soon as it rises above our horizon, dispelling the darkness, it brings us day. Therefore, it will not be wrong who gives such a definition to the day: it is air illuminated by the sun, or: a day is a measure of time during which the sun remains in the hemisphere above the earth. But the sun and moon are commanded to remain “even in summer.” The moon, having completed its course twelve times, completes the year, except in cases in which an additional month is often needed to accurately coincide with the annual times. This is how the Jews and the most ancient Greeks measured the year in the Old Testament. A solar year is the return of the sun, due to its own movement, from a certain sign to the same sign. “And God made two great lights” (Gen. 1.16). The word “great” sometimes has a detached meaning, for example, great sky, great earth, great sea, and in many cases it is used in comparison with another. For example, a great horse and a great ox, for such things receive evidence of their size not from the excessive enormity of the body, but from comparison with something similar. Therefore, in what sense do we take the great here? Is it the same as in which we call an ant, or anything else that is small by nature, great, testifying to its superiority in comparison with what is homogeneous? Or let us now take the great in such a way that the magnitude turns out to be in the own structure of the luminaries? I guess the latter. These luminaries are great not because they are larger than the smaller stars, but because they have a volume sufficient for the rays pouring out from them to illuminate the sky and air, and suddenly spread over the entire earth and sea. In whatever part of the sky they are, whether they rise and set, or occupy the middle of the sky, they appear equal to people everywhere, and this serves as clear proof of their excessive size, in comparison with which the breadth of the earth means nothing and cannot make them appear larger or smaller. For we see objects that are far away somewhat smaller, and the closer we get to them, the greater we find their size. But in thinking about the sun, no one is closer or further, but on the contrary, to the inhabitants of all parts of the earth it appears to be at an equal distance. The proof of this is that both the Indians and the British see him as equal. For for those living in the east it does not decrease in size as it sets, and for those living in the west it does not appear smaller as it ascends, and, being in the middle of the sky, it does not change its appearance for one or the other. Do not be deceived by appearances, and from the fact that the sun appears to be about the size of a cubit, do not conclude that this is its actual size. For at large distances the size of visible objects is usually reduced, because the power of vision turns out to be insufficient to run through the separating space, but is, as it were, absorbed by the environment, and only a small part of it is attached to visible objects. Therefore, our vision, having become small, makes us consider visible objects small, transferring our own shortcomings onto them. And if the sight is deceived, then his judgment is incorrect. Remember your own mistakes, and you will have confirmation within yourself of what was said. If you have ever looked from the top of a high mountain onto a vast and low plain; What did pairs of harnessed oxen look like to you? What were the farmers themselves like? Didn't they look like ants to you? And if from a tower facing the great sea you looked along the surface of the sea, how great did you consider the largest islands? And what did one of the heavy ships with white sails sailing on the azure sea seem to you like? Didn't he seem smaller than any pigeon to you? Therefore, as I said, vision absorbed by air, having become weak, is insufficient to accurately represent visible objects. Likewise, the greatest of the mountains, cut by deep chasms, are recognized by vision everywhere as convex and smooth, because it is attracted to only prominent places, and due to its weakness cannot penetrate into the depressions located between them. Therefore, vision does not preserve the outlines of bodies as they really are, but on the contrary, it considers quadrangular towers to be round. Thus, from everything it is clear that vision at very large distances receives an idea of ​​bodies that is not perfect, but united. And consequently, the heavenly body, according to the testimony of Scripture, is “great,” and infinitely greater than it appears. But the following can also serve as a clear indication of the solar magnitude. Although there are countless stars in the sky, their combined light is not enough to dispel the gloom of the night. But one sun, appearing on the horizon or even just expected, does not have time to become completely above the earth, when the darkness has already disappeared, and the stars are darkened by it, and the air, hitherto condensed and compressed near the earth, liquefies and becomes fluid. From this there are morning winds, and dew moistens the earth in clear weather. But with such a size of the earth, how could the sun illuminate all of it in one instant of time if it had not sent its rays from the great circle? From this learn the wisdom of the Artist, Who gave the sun warmth commensurate with such a distance. The heat of the sun is such that it does not burn the earth with excess and does not leave it cold and barren due to lack of heat. And about the moon imagine something similar to what was said about the sun. And her body is large and the brightest after the sun. However, its size does not always remain visible, but, on the contrary, is sometimes complete in the form of a circle, sometimes not reaching a full circle and reduced, showing the remainder of one or another of its parts. For the moon with one part of it is darkened when it grows, and the other part is closed during its decline. And the all-wise Creator had some secret reason for this varied change in the types of the moon. Perhaps He wanted to give us a clear example of our nature, that nothing human is permanent, but some things come from nothingness to perfection, and others, having reached their maturity and grown to their greatest measure, through gradual decreases are depleted and lost, and, decreasing, are destroyed. Therefore, looking at the moon, we can get to know ourselves and, having formed the concept of the imminent vicissitudes of everything human, do not think highly about the prosperity of life, do not admire our power, do not exalt ourselves with unfaithful wealth, despise the flesh, which is characterized by changeability, but have concern for the soul, whose good is unshakable. If the moon grieves you, losing its light as it gradually decreases, then let the soul grieve you even more, which has acquired virtue and through negligence turns its kindness into nothing, never remains in the same disposition, but due to the unfoundedness of its thoughts, constantly turns back and forth and changes. For indeed, as has been said, “a fool, like the moon, changes” (Sir 27.11). But I think that lunar changes have no small influence on the structure of animals and other earthly works. For the state of bodies is different when the moon wanes, and different when it increases. Either with the loss of the moon they become thin and skinny, then with the waxing of the moon and its approach to the fullness of the body, they become plump again, because the moon in an inconspicuous way imparts to them some kind of moisture, dissolved with warmth and penetrating into the interior. This is proven by those who sleep in the moonlight, and whose head voids are filled with excess moisture, as well as the meat of recently killed animals, which soon deteriorate when the moon's rays fall on them, and also the brains of animals, the moisture of sea animals and the cores of trees. But the moon could not change all this along with its change, if, according to the testimony of Scripture, there was not something special and superior in power in it. But changes in the air are also consistent with the changes of the moon, as evidenced by the storms that often occur during the new moon after calm and clear weather in our country due to the movement and mutual collision of clouds, as well as the reverse currents of the Euripus, the ebb and flow of the so-called ocean, which, according to the coastal inhabitants, exactly follows the time of the lunar circulation. For the Euripes, with other types of the moon, flow in one direction or the other, and during birth they do not remain at rest for a minute, but are in agitation and incessant fluctuation, until the moon, having become visible again, introduces some consistency in the reverse currents. And the western sea is subject to ebbs and flows, then decreasing, then rising again, as if the moon with its inhalations distracts it back, and again with its exhalations drives it to its characteristic height. I said this as proof of the magnitude of the luminaries and to confirm that in the inspired words there is nothing said in vain, even down to a single word, although our word touched almost nothing important. For much can be found about the magnitudes and distances of the sun and moon by inference, if one does not superficially consider their actions and powers. And we must sincerely admit our weakness, so that no one begins to measure the greatest creatures with our words, but, on the contrary, from the little we have said, he himself draws a conclusion about how much we have omitted and how important it is. Therefore, measure the moon not with your eye, but with your intellect, which is much more accurate than the eyes in discovering the truth. Some funny fables spread everywhere - the ravings of drunken old women, as if the moon, moved from its base by some kind of sorcery, was brought down to the earth. How will the incantations of sorcerers move the one that the Most High Himself founded? And where will it fit, brought down from the sky? Do you want to borrow evidence of its magnitude from small signs? The cities that are the most distant from one another in the universe still receive moonlight on their pillars facing the east. But if the moon were not directly opposite to everything, then, without a doubt, it would sanctify the narrow streets lying on the same straight line with it, and would cast inclined rays running obliquely into the streets emerging from its latitude. This can be seen in the lamps lit in houses. When many people stand near the lamp, the shadow of the one standing on the same straight line lies straight, and the other shadows deviate in one direction or another. Therefore, if the lunar body were not huge and of excellent size, it would not be equally opposed to everyone. For when the moon rises in equinoctial places, it is seen equally by those living in the cold zone under the circle of the Ursa and by the inhabitants of the hot zone, which extends to midday. It faces all of them directly with its breadth, and thereby gives the clearest evidence of its size. Who else will argue that her body is very large, suddenly equal to so many objects and at such great distances? And this is enough about the size of the sun and moon. But He who gave us the understanding to learn the great wisdom of the Artist from the smallest creatures, may He give us the strength from the great creatures to acquire even greater concepts about the Creator, although in comparison with the Creator both the sun and the moon are no more than an ant and a midge. For from them it is impossible to borrow such speculation that would be worthy of the greatness of the God of all, but they can only lead us to some small and unclear ideas, just like each of the smallest animals or the former. Let us be content with what has been said and give thanks: I am the One who gave me this small ministry of the word, and you are the One who nourishes me with spiritual food. Even now He has fed you with the worthlessness of my speech, as if it were some kind of barley bread, and may He always feed you, according to the measure of faith, giving you the “revelation of the Spirit” (1 Cor 12.7), in Christ Jesus our Lord, to whom be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. Conversation 7. “About reptiles” “And God said: Let the waters of the creeping things take away the souls of the living, according to their kind, and the birds that fly in the firmament of the heavens,” according to their kind (Gen. 1.20). After the creation of the luminaries, the waters are also filled with animals, so that this area too will be decorated. The earth had already received decoration in its characteristic plants, and the sky also had its flowers - the stars, and, like two eyes, a pair of great luminaries adorned it; it remained to give the waters a decent decoration. The decree went out, and immediately rivers produce, and lakes give birth to their own and natural species, and the sea spawns all kinds of floating animals. Wherever there is water, in swamps and muddy places, it does not remain inactive and does not participate in the reproduction of creatures. For there is no doubt that toads, midges and mosquitoes boiled out of the water. What is visible now serves as proof of the past. Thus, all water hastened to fulfill the command of the Creator, the active and self-propelled life of creatures, the species of which are even innumerable, was immediately revealed by the great and ineffable power of God, because by the command of God the waters were given the ability to give birth to life. “Let the waters of the vipers destroy the souls of the living.” Now for the first time an animal is created that is animated and endowed with feeling. For plants and trees, although life is attributed to them, as having nutritional and vegetative power, are not yet animals or animate creatures. For this reason, “let the waters destroy the vipers.” Everything that floats, whether it floats on the surface of the waters or dissects the depths of the waters, belongs to the nature of reptiles, because it drags its body along the water. Although some of the aquatic animals have legs and can walk (especially many of the aquatic animals, such as seals, crocodiles, hippos, toads and crayfish), they are more likely to swim. Therefore, “let the waters destroy the creeping things.” What breed is omitted in these few words? What is not included in this building command? Do not viviparous animals, such as seals, dolphins, gnusi and similar so-called cartilaginous fish, be included? Are spawning fish included, which are almost all species of fish, hard-scaled and soft-scaled, with and without feathers? The voice of the command is brief, or better said, it is not a voice, but only a wave and aspiration of the will, but the thought contained in the command is as comprehensive as there are differences and similarities in fish, describing all of them in detail is the same as counting the waves of the sea or trying to measure the water in the sea with the palm of your hand. “Let the waters destroy the vipers.” Among them are sea and coastal whales, those living in the depths, those living on rocks, swimming in herds and alone, whales, huge and small fish. From the same power, from the same command, both great and small receive existence. “Let the waters come out.” This shows you that swimming animals have a natural affinity with water, why fish, not separated from water for long, die, because they do not have the breath to draw this air into themselves. But what air is for terrestrial animals, water is for the floating species. The reason for this is obvious. We have a lung, filled with voids and holes, and a mammary abdomen, which, through the expansion of the chest, taking in air, ventilates and cools the internal heat, and in them, the expansion and contraction of the gills, which receive and release water, takes the place of breathing. Fish have their own purpose, their own nature, their own food, their own unique life. Therefore, none of the floating animals can become tame and generally tolerate the touch of a human hand. “Let the waters of creeping things destroy the souls of the living according to their kind.” Now he commands the firstfruits of each breed to come into being, and, as it were, some seeds of nature, and the multitude of living creatures is hidden in the subsequent succession, when they need to grow and multiply. Another genus includes the so-called craniodermals, for example: shells, combs, sea snails, spindles, and thousands of different oysters. Another genus besides this is made up of the so-called soft-skulls: crabs, crayfish, and the like. To another genus beyond this belong the so-called slugs, which have soft and spongy flesh: polyps, cuttlefish, and the like. And between these again there are countless differences, for dragons, moray eels, eels, which are found in muddy rivers and lakes, due to the similarity of their nature, are closer to poisonous reptiles than to fish. There is another kind of spawners, and another of viviparous ones. Loaches and woodlice, and in general so-called cartilaginous animals, give birth to living children. They are viviparous: most of the whales, dolphins and seals, about which they say that they take their newborn children, frightened by something, again into the womb, and hide them there. “Let the waters bring forth... according to their kind.” One genus is made up of whales, and another is made up of small fish. And again, among fish there are countless differences, distinguished by genera. They have their own names, and their food is different, and their appearance, size, and qualities of flesh - everything is divided among themselves, has very great differences and belongs to different species. Who of those who observed the properties of fish is able to list us the differences in species? Although they say about themselves that in great herds of fish they can even determine the number, yet who of those who have grown old on the seashores and shores can tell us the detailed history of all the fish? Other breeds are known to the fishermen of the Indian Sea, others to the fishing industrialists of the Gulf of Egypt, others to the islanders, others to the Maurusians 19 . But everything, both small and great, was equally produced by this first command, by this ineffable power. There are many dissimilarities in the lifestyle, many differences in the disposition of each breed. Most fish do not incubate eggs like birds, do not build nests, and do not feed their children with difficulty, but the water, having received the spawned eggs, produces an animal from it. And in each breed, the method of reproduction is unchanged and occurs without mixing with other nature. It is impossible for fish to reproduce in the same way as hinnies reproduce on land, or for copulations to occur in the same way as some birds that produce mixed breeds from themselves. There are no fish armed with half teeth, like our ox and sheep. For none of them has chewing, with the exception of Scar, about which this is told. But all fish are equipped with very frequent and sharp teeth so that the food does not spread during prolonged chewing, for if it were not quickly crushed and transferred to the belly, then during the grinding itself it could be carried away by water. The food for different fish is determined differently, according to the type of each. Some feed on silt, others on shoots, others are content with herbs growing in the water, but the majority devour each other, and the smaller of them serves as food for the larger. Sometimes it happens that the one who has mastered the lesser of herself becomes the prey of the other, and both pass into the same womb of the latter? What else are we doing as humans, oppressing the lower? How is it different from this last fish, who, due to his insatiable love of wealth, hides the powerless in the all-consuming depths of his covetousness? He took possession of the beggar's property, and you, having seized it yourself, made it part of your acquisition. You turned out to be more unjust than the unjust and more covetous than the covetous. Be careful that you don’t suffer the same end as the fish – a hook, a top or a net. Without a doubt, we, having committed many untruths, will not escape the final punishment. Having already noticed a lot of cunning and cunning in a weak animal, I wish you to avoid imitating those who do evil. Crayfish is greedy for oyster meat, but it is difficult for him to catch this prey, which has a shell of its skull. For nature itself has protected the tender flesh of the oyster with an indestructible bulwark, which is why it is called skull-skinned. And since two concave shells, tightly fitted to one another, completely cover the oyster, the crayfish mites, of necessity, remain inactive. What is he doing? As soon as he sees that an oyster is warming itself with pleasure in a windless place and opens the halves of its skull to the sun's rays, discreetly throwing a stone into them, it prevents it from closing and takes possession of its prey, replacing the lack of strength with invention. Such malice in animals that are not gifted with reason or speech! And I want you, who imitate the ability and dexterity of crayfish to obtain food, to refrain from harming your neighbors. Such is the one who comes to his brother with deceit, contributes to the misfortunes of his neighbor, and delights in the misfortunes of others. Avoid imitating reprehensible people, be content with your own. Poverty with true self-satisfaction is preferable for the chaste to any pleasure. I cannot keep silent about the cunning and thievery of the polyp, which every time takes on the color of a stone, to which it easily sticks, which is why many fish, swimming without fear, approach the polyp, just like a stone, and become ready prey for the cunning one. Such are the dispositions of those who please every prevailing power, each time conform to the circumstances, do not always adhere to the same intention, conveniently do one thing or another, respect chastity with the chaste, are incontinent with the intemperate, and change their dispositions to please everyone. It is not easy to evade such people and save yourself from the harm they cause, because the deceit they conceive is deeply hidden under the guise of friendship. The Lord calls people of this nature ravenous wolves, who appear in sheep's clothing (Matthew 7.15). Run at all quirky and multi-personal dispositions, strive for truth, sincerity and simplicity. The snake is variegated, and that is why it is condemned to grovel. The righteous is not wicked, neither is Jacob (Gen. 25.27). Therefore, “the Lord brings like-minded people into the house” (Ps 67.7). “This sea is great and vast: there are vermin there, of which there is no number, the smallest animals with the great ones” (Ps 103.25). However, they have a wise and well-ordered order. We should not judge fish; they have something worthy of imitation. How is it that each breed of fish, having received a country convenient for itself, does not invade other breeds, but lives within its own boundaries? Not a single land surveyor assigned them dwellings; they are not fenced with walls, not separated by boundaries, but undoubtedly, each breed was given something useful. One bay feeds these types of fish, and the other feeds others. The abundance of fish found here are rare in other places. The mountain raising sharp peaks does not divide, the river does not cross, but there is some law of nature that equally and truthfully, in accordance with the needs of each breed, distributes their places of residence. But we are not like that. How can this be seen? From the fact that “do not change the eternal limit that your fathers set” (Proverbs 22.28). We cut up the land, “let us join house to house and village to village, and take from our neighbor what we have” (Isaiah 5.8). Whales know the location assigned to them by nature; they have occupied a sea that lies outside inhabited countries, has no islands, behind which there is no longer any solid land, why is it not navigable, neither curiosity nor any need prompts swimmers to enter it. Having occupied this sea, the whales, whose size, as the samovids say, are like the greatest mountains, remain within their own boundaries, without harming either the islands or coastal cities. Thus, each breed settles in its assigned parts of the sea, as if in cities or villages, or ancient ancestral homelands. And there are also migrating fish. They, as if having gathered at a general meeting for resettlement, all set off under one banner, for, as soon as the time of childbirth determined for them comes, rising from different bays, and prompted by the general law of nature, they hasten to the northern sea. During this ascent you will see fish, united as if in one stream, flowing through the Propontis into the Euxine Pontus. Who is driving them? What royal command, what decrees, nailed on the square, announce the coming date? Who are their guides? Do you see how God’s order replaces everything and reaches the smallest creatures! The fish does not contradict God’s law, and we humans do not follow saving instructions. Do not despise fish because they are completely dumb and unreasonable, but be afraid lest you become more unreasonable than fish through resistance to the Creator’s decree. Listen to what the fish are almost telling you with their actions: “we are going on this long journey to procreate.” They do not have a mind of their own, but there is a natural law, firmly based in them, and showing them what to do. “Let’s go,” they say, “to the northern sea.” The water in it is sweeter than in other seas, because the sun does not stand over it for long and does not extract from it with its rays everything that is drinkable. And the inhabitants of the seas also love sweets, which is why they often swim into rivers and strive away from the sea. Therefore, Pontus is preferred by them to other gulfs, as favorable for the birth and raising of children. But as soon as what they want is sufficiently fulfilled, they return home again in the whole crowd. And what is the reason for this? Let us listen to the voiceless. “The North Sea,” they say, “is not deep, and being open to strong winds, it has few shores and shelters, which is why the winds conveniently agitate it to the very bottom, so that the deep sand interferes with the waves. Moreover, in winter it is sometimes cold, as if it were filled with many large rivers.” Therefore, the fish, having enjoyed it to a certain extent during the summer, by winter again hasten to the warmth of the depths and to the countries lying under the sun and, avoiding the rage of the northern winds, take refuge in bays that are less stormy. I saw this and marveled at God’s wisdom in everything. If foolish creatures are shrewd and skillful in taking care of their own salvation, and if the fish knows what to choose and what to run from, what will we say, distinguished by reason, instructed by the law, prompted by promises, wise by the Spirit, and yet managing our affairs more foolishly than fish? For they know how to think a little about the future, but we, having rejected hope for the future, are ruining our lives in bestial voluptuousness. A fish changes so many seas to find some kind of comfort, what can you say, spending your life in idleness? Idleness is the beginning of evil deeds. Let no one excuse himself by ignorance. We have a natural mind embedded in us, which teaches us to appropriate what is good and remove what is harmful from ourselves. I will not stop presenting marine life as an example, because they are subject to our consideration. I heard from one seaside resident that the sea urchin, an animal, of course, small and despicable, often lets swimmers know about silence and storm. When he anticipates disturbance from the winds, having climbed onto some significant stone, on it, as if on an anchor, he endures the storm with firmness, because the weight of the stone prevents him from being carried away by the waves. And as soon as the sailors notice this sign, they know that they must expect strong movement of the winds. No astrologer, no Chaldean, who predicts disturbances in the air by the rise of the stars, taught this to the hedgehog, but the Lord of the sea and winds left clear traces of His great wisdom in the small animal. God leaves nothing without providence and care. This watchful Eye watches over everything, It is inherent in everything, arranging the salvation of every creature. If God did not exclude the hedgehog from His supervision, then how could He not supervise your life? “Husbands, love your wives” (Eph 5.25), although you were strangers to each other when you entered into marriage! May this knot of nature, this yoke, imposed with blessing, be a unity for you who were distant! The echidna, the fiercest of reptiles, meets a moray eel for marriage and, whistling to announce its approach, calls it from the depths for a conjugal embrace. And she obeys and enters into union with the poisonous viper. What is this speech leading to? Moreover, even if the cohabitant is harsh and has a wild disposition, the spouse must endure this and under no circumstances agree to dissolve the union. Is he rowdy? But husband. Is he a drunk? But connected by nature. Is he rude and bratty? But yours is already a member and even the most precious of members. May the husband also listen to the instruction appropriate to him! The echidna, respecting marriage, first spews out its poison; will you, out of respect for the union, not put aside cruelty and inhumanity? But the example of the viper, perhaps, will serve us in another way, because the union of the viper with the moray eel is a kind of adultery in nature. Let those who encroach on someone else's marriage bed come to their senses. What reptile are they like? I have one goal - to turn everything into the edification of the Church. May the passions of the intemperate be tamed - curbed by examples taken from land and sea! Here I am forced to put an end to the word by bodily weakness and evening time, although for lovers of listening I could add many more amazing things about the works of the sea, about the sea itself: how water hardens into salt, how a valuable stone, coral in the sea becomes grass, and when taken out into the air, it receives the hardness of a stone, from where nature has put precious beads into the least valuable animal - the oyster. What the royal treasuries covet is scattered on the seashores, along the shores, near wild stones and lies in the shells of oysters. From what do sea feathers 20 produce a golden wave, the color of which no dyer has ever been able to imitate? What is it from that snails give porphyry to kings, which even wildflowers have surpassed in good color? “Let the waters come out.” And what of the necessary things has not been produced by them? What valuable thing is not given to life? One was created to serve man, and the other so that he could contemplate the wonders of creation, while the other is scary for us, in order to admonish our negligence. “God make great whales” (Gen. 1.21). They are called great not because they are larger than squilla and mena 21, but because the enormity of their bodies is equal to the greatest mountains, and sometimes they seem like islands if they float to the surface of the water. And with such a size, they are not found near the coast or on the seashores, but live in the so-called Atlantic Sea. These are the animals created for our fear and horror. But if you hear that the smallest small fish stops the greatest ships, when the wind is favorable, rushing with full sails, and that for a long time it keeps the ship motionless, as if they had taken root in the middle of the sea, then in this small fish do you not have the same proof of the power of the Creator? For not only Swords, Saws, Sharks, Valens and Hammers of fish are terrible, but no less terrible are the sting of a sawtail fish, even a dead one, and a lumpfish, because they bring quick and inevitable death. Thus, the Creator wants to accustom you to vigilance, so that you, in hope of God, avoid the harm they cause. But, having escaped from the depths, we will resort to solid ground. For the wonders of the universe, one after another, overwhelming us with themselves, as if like waves, in frequent and continuous influxes, kept your word submerged in the waters. Although for me it will be surprising if our thought does not meet even greater miracles on solid ground and, following the example of Jonah, does not run again to the sea. But it seems to me that my word, carried away by thousands of miracles, forgot proportionality, and suffered the same fate as those sailing on the sea, who, not having indispensable signs to measure their movement, often do not know how far they have sailed. The same thing, it seems to me, happened to us, while the word flowed around creation, we did not feel the multitude of what we said. But although this honest assembly has a desire to listen, and the story of the miracles of the Masters is pleasant for the ears of slaves, nevertheless, having here introduced the word into the pier, we will wait for the day to retell the rest. Let us all rise, give thanks for what has been said and pray for the fulfillment of what remains. Let the subject of table conversation during your meal be both what the word touched on in the morning and what it expounded in the evening; in thoughts of this, caught in sleep and, resting, may you enjoy the joy of the day, so that you can say about yourself: “I sleep, but my heart watches” (Song 5.2), learning day and night in the law of the Lord, to whom be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. “And God said, Let the earth bring forth every living creature of every kind, four-footed creatures, and creeping things, and wild beasts of the earth, according to their kind: and so it came to pass” (Gen. 1.24). The order came out in order, and the earth received its characteristic decoration. It says there: “let the waters destroy the living souls”, here: “let the earth destroy the living soul.” Is the earth animate? And the superstitious Manichaeans are right, who put their souls into the earth? When he said: “Let him bring forth”, it does not mean that the earth will wear out what was already in it, but, having given the command, he gave the earth the power of lime. For when the earth heard: “Let the former herb and fruitful tree sprout,” it did not bring forth any herb hidden in it, nor did it let out palm trees, or oak, or cypress, hidden somewhere below in its depths, on its surface, but God’s word creates the nature of creatures. “Let the earth sprout,” let it not give up what it has, but let it acquire what it does not have, since God grants the power to act. So it is now: “let the earth bring forth the soul,” not the one that is already in it, but the one that was given to it by God through this very command. Moreover, the teaching of the Manichaeans naturally turns against them. For if the earth has exhausted the soul, then it has left itself already deprived of a soul. But the abomination of their teaching is self-evident. Why, however, are the waters commanded to take away “the reptiles of living souls,” and the earth – “the living soul?” Because, as we reason, the nature of swimmers apparently participates in a less perfect life, by their very living in rough water. And their hearing is difficult, and they see dullly, because they look through the water, they have no memory, no idea, no concept of habit. Therefore, the word seems to show that in aquatic animals, carnal life controls mental movements; and in animals living on land, since life in them is more perfect, all dominion is entrusted to the soul. In most quadrupeds, the senses are more clear, the ideas of the present are sophisticated, and the memory of the past is detailed. Therefore, it seems that in the waters animate bodies were created (for the reptiles of the living souls were brought out of the water), but in those living on land the soul was commanded to come into being, ruling the body, so that those living on the earth would participate somewhat more in the vital force. For although animals living on land are dumb, yet each of them expresses many of their mental states with its natural voice, for it reveals joy, and sorrow, and knowledge of the familiar, and lack of food, and separation from those grazing together, and many other states with sound. Aquatic animals are not only voiceless, but can neither be tamed nor trained, and are inaccessible to any communication in life with people. “The ox knows the one who has acquired money, and the donkey knows his master’s manger” (Isaiah 1.3), but a fish cannot know the one who feeds it. The donkey knows a familiar voice, knows the road along which he has walked many times, and sometimes acts as a guide to a person who has lost his way; they say that none of the animals living on land has the same hearing acuity as this animal. Which sea animal could imitate the camel's memory, anger, and duration of anger? A camel, if it has been hit for a long time, harbors anger for a long time, and as soon as an opportunity arises, it takes revenge for the insult. Hear the hard-hearted, trying to root in themselves the memory of malice as a virtue. Who are you like when you keep grief at your neighbor, like a spark hidden in the ashes, until, having received an excuse, you inflame your anger like a flame? “Let the earth destroy the living soul.” Why does the earth plague the living soul? So that you know the difference between the soul of cattle and the soul of man. You will soon learn how the human soul is created, but now listen about the soul of the dumb. Since, according to Scripture, “the life of every animal is its blood” (Lev 17.11), and condensed blood usually turns into flesh, and decayed flesh decomposes into the earth, then, in all fairness, the soul of animals is something earthly. So “let the earth destroy the living soul.” Consider the connection of the soul with blood, blood with flesh, flesh with earth, and again, in the reverse order, move from earth to flesh, from flesh to blood, from blood to soul, and you will find that the soul of cattle is earth. Do not think that it is older than their bodily composition, and that it remains after the destruction of the body. Avoid the nonsense of gloomy philosophers who are not ashamed to consider their soul and the soul of a dog to be homogeneous with each other, and to say about themselves that they were once wives, and trees, and sea fish. And although I will not say whether they were once fish, I am nevertheless ready to assert with all my effort that when they wrote this, they were more senseless than fish. “Let the earth destroy the living soul.” Why, given the abundant flow of words, I was silent for quite some time, many may be surprised. But the most attentive of the listeners, of course, is not unaware of the reason why the speech was interrupted. How can this be seen? From the fact that they, looking at each other and giving each other signs, attracted my attention and brought to my mind what I had omitted. For a whole race of creatures, and not unimportant ones at that, hid from us, and our word almost spread further, leaving it completely unexplored. “Let the waters of the creeping things destroy the souls of the living according to their kind, and the birds that fly on the earth, on the firmament of the sky” (Gen. 1.20). We talked about swimming as long as the evening time allowed, and today we moved on to the study of those living on land, but we have forgotten the birds that occupy the middle between both. Therefore, following the example of forgetful travelers, who, having not captured anything important, although they have already traveled a lot, return again along the same road, and in this traveling work suffer a worthy punishment for their negligence, therefore, I say, following the example, it seems necessary for us to go back the same way. For what we have omitted should not be despised, but, as it seems, constitutes the third part of living creatures, since there are three kinds of animals: living on land, flying and aquatic. It is said: “Let the waters of the creeping things take away the souls of the living according to their kind, and the birds that fly across the earth and through the firmament of the sky according to their kind.” Why did he produce birds from the waters? Because those who fly and those who swim have a certain affinity. Just as fish cut through the water, moving forward through the movement of their feathers, and through the inversion of their tail, giving themselves either turning or straight directions, so in birds one can see that they similarly swim through the air on their wings. Therefore, since both have the same property - to swim, their origin from the waters gives them one certain affinity, with the exception that there is not a single bird without legs, because the earth provides food for all, and all of them, of necessity, need the assistance of legs. And although birds of prey are given the points of their claws for catching, nevertheless, for others, both in obtaining food and in other needs of life, feet provide a necessary service. A few birds have weak legs and are unable to walk or catch prey with their feet, such as swallows, which can neither walk nor catch with their feet, and the so-called Turks 22, which are designated as food for what floats in the air. However, for a swallow, flying close to the ground serves instead of legs. And birds have countless varieties of species. If anyone begins to describe them in the same way as we partially touched upon the consideration of fish, he will find that although they all have one name - bird, yet there are many differences in them in size, appearance, and color, and also in the type of life, in occupations and customs, there is so much diversity between them that it is impossible to describe. Some have already tried to compose their own nomenclature, so that, by the hitherto unused and new name, as by a mark, it would be possible to recognize the properties of each breed. And some birds were called split-feathered, like eagles, others leather-feathered, like pipistrelle bats, some plethora-feathered, like wasps, others stiff-feathered, like beetles, and all those that are born in some kind of bags and shells, and when their elytra are torn, they begin to fly freely. But for us, a sufficient sign to distinguish the properties of breeds is the general benefit and the division into clean and unclean used in Scripture. So, there is a different breed of carnivorous birds and a different structure, suitable for the way they feed - sharp claws, a curved beak, a fast flight so that the prey can be easily caught, and the torn one serves as food for the hunter. The structure of birds that feed on seeds is different, and the structure of those that eat everything that comes their way is different. And there are again quite a lot of differences between them. Some are found in herds, excluding birds of prey; these have no sociability, except for communication between spouses. But thousands of others love social life, for example, pigeons, cranes, starlings and jackdaws. Again, among these, some have anarchy and, as it were, freedom, while others do not refuse to obey the leader, like cranes. And they also have another difference, according to which some are sedentary and native, while others are accustomed to fly far away and mostly move with the approach of winter. Many of the birds, being raised by humans, become tame and docile, with the exception of the weak ones, who, due to excessive fear and timidity, do not tolerate being often disturbed by touching with a hand. And some of the birds love to live with people and in the same dwellings with us, others live on the mountains and love deserts. The quality of the voice in each bird also makes a very big difference. Some of the birds are talkative and talkative, while others are silent, some sing pleasantly in different voices, others have no musicality in their voices at all and cannot sing. Some are imitative, either by nature having the gift of imitating, or having acquired it through exercise, while others produce monotonous and unchanging sounds. The rooster is proud, the peacock is a lover of beauty, pigeons and domestic chickens are lustful and indulge in lust at all times, the partridge is crafty and jealous, cunningly helping the fishermen to catch their prey. There are also thousands, as we said, of differences in occupation and type of life. Some of the dumb lead a civil life, since it is characteristic of citizenship that the actions of all tend to one common end, as can be seen in the case of bees. For they have a common home, a common flight, and all have the same occupation; and, most importantly, they take on every task under the orders of the king and the official; they do not dare to fly out into the fields until they see the king initiating the flight. And their king is not elected by majority vote (for the recklessness of the people often appointed the worst as leader), does not receive power by lot (for the unreasonable chance of the lot often entrusts power to the last one), is not elevated to the kingdom by family succession (for such, from luxury and affection, are most often ignorant and not accustomed to any virtue), but by nature he has primacy over everyone, and surpasses them in size, appearance and meekness of disposition. This king also has a sting, but he does not use it for revenge. These are, as it were, the unwritten laws of nature, so that those who have achieved the highest power should be slow in punishment. However, if any of the bees do not follow the example of the king, they soon repent of their recklessness, because they die, struck by the sting. Let Christians hear this, who have the commandment “to repay evil for evil to no one, ... but to overcome evil with good” (Rom. 12.17, 21). Imitate the special property of the bee, which, without harming anyone or spoiling the fruit of others, makes honeycombs. For, obviously, she collects wax from flowers, and honey, this moisture scattered in the flowers in the form of dew, sucks it out with her mouth and lets it into the cavities of the honeycomb cups. Why is honey at first liquid, then, thickening over time, reaches its characteristic viscosity and sweetness? Excellent and decent praises are written to the bee in Proverbs, where it is called wise and active, for with such diligence it collects food: “with such labor,” says the Proverb, “they use peace and forgiveness for health” (Proverbs 6.8) with such wisdom it arranges vaginas for honey! Having stretched the wax into a thin skin, the bee builds from it frequent and continuously united depressions, so that the continuity of mutual connection between the smallest parts serves as a support for the whole. Each well adjoins the other, separating from it, and together connecting with it, by a thin partition. Then these caves are built one above the other in two or three rows, because the bee is afraid to make one complete depression, so that the liquid does not push out with its weight. Look how the inventions of geometry are applied to the work of the wise bee. All honeycomb caves are hexagonal and equilateral, and do not lie in a straight line one above the other, so that the bottoms, falling above the voids, cannot break, but the corners of the lower hexagons serve as the basis and support for the upper ones, so that they can safely lift the weight on themselves, and the moisture is contained in each void separately. How can I describe to you in detail all the properties of birds regarding the type of life? Just as, for example, cranes take turns keeping night watch, and some sleep, while others, walking around, provide them with perfect safety during sleep. Then, when the term of the guard is completed, the guard, crying out, turns to sleep, and another replaces him, and partially rewards for the security that he himself enjoyed. You will see the same order in their flight. First one, then the other serves as a guide, and after flying ahead for a certain period of time, he flies back, and transfers the right of leadership along the way to the other, who follows him. And the affairs of busels are not far from reasonable conscience. They all arrive in our countries at the same time, and they all fly away, as it were, under the same banner. They are surrounded and accompanied by our crows, who, it seems to me, give them some help against the hostile birds. The proof of this is, firstly, the fact that around this time not a single crow is visible at all, and secondly, the fact that the crows returning with wounds bear clear signs of their asceticism and warfare. Who decreed their laws of hospitality? Who threatened them with accusations for leaving the military formation, so that not a single crow remains at home during the escort? Let the inhospitable hear this, who lock their doors, and even in winter and at night do not want to accept strangers under their roof. And the caring of the busels for the aged is sufficient to make our children, if only they want to heed this, to be loving. For, of course, there is no person so poor in prudence that he does not consider himself ashamed to be lower in virtue than dumb birds. Busels, having circled around their father, whose feathers have faded from old age, warm him with their wings, and abundantly supplying him with food, even in flying they provide strong assistance, slightly supporting him on both sides with their wings. And this is so well known to everyone that some, instead of: repay for good deeds, say: remove the bus. Let no one complain about his poverty, and even if there is nothing left in his house, let him not despair of his life, looking at the intricacy of the swallow. When she builds a nest, she carries twigs in her mouth, but cannot grab dirt with her feet, therefore, having soaked the edges of the feathers in water and coated them with fine dust, through this method she averts the lack of dirt, and little by little, like glue, sticking together the twigs with mud, she feeds the chicks in her nest. And if someone gouges out their eyes, the swallow by nature has some kind of healing art, and through it restores health to the children’s eyes. Learn from this, because of poverty, not to take up bad deeds and in the most severe suffering not to lose hope and not to sit in idleness and inaction, but to resort to God, who, having given so much to a swallow, will give all the more to the one who cries out to Him with all his heart. There is a sea bird - the kingfisher. She has the custom of building a nest near the very shores, laying eggs on the sand and sitting in the nest in the middle of winter, when frequent and strong winds cause the sea to splash onto the land. But suddenly the winds fall silent, and the sea wave does not move, while the kingfisher sits on its eggs for seven days, for in so many days it hatches its chicks. Since they also need food, the generous God gave this smallest animal another seven days to raise its chicks. All sailors know this, which is why they call these days kingfisher days 23 . All this is legitimized by God’s providence for the dumb, as a teaching to you, so that you ask Him for what you need for salvation. What miracles will not be performed for you, created in the image of God, when God holds back the great and terrible sea for such a small bird, commanding it to be quiet in the middle of winter itself? They say about the turtledove that, being separated from her husband, she no longer tolerates communication with another, but spends a celibate life, in memory of her former spouse, refusing a new union. Hear, wives, how honest widowhood is, and the dumb prefer polygamy to indecency! In raising children, the eagle is the most unfair of all. Having hatched two chicks, one of them, pushing away with the blows of his wings, he throws to the ground, but accepts and assimilates only the other, rejecting the one he gave birth to due to the difficulty of food. However, the rejected one, as they say, is not allowed to die by the bone-breaking eagle, but takes him and raises him along with his chicks. These are those parents who, under the pretext of poverty, throw away babies or do not observe equality in the division of inheritance for their children. For justice demands that, just as they give each one existence equally, they equally provide them with equal means of life. Do not imitate the cruelty of birds gifted with crooked claws, which, as soon as they see that their chicks already dare to fly, begin to beat and push them with their wings, throw them out of the nest and no longer have any care for them. The love of children of the crow is commendable, which follows children already flying, delivers food to them and feeds them for a very long time. Many breeds of birds do not need to communicate with males to conceive, but in others, unfertilized eggs are infertile. They say about kites 24 that they mostly give birth to children without mutual communication and for all that they are very long-lived, for their life often continues even up to a hundred years. And take this incident from the history of birds as a note, so that when you see those scoffing at our sacrament, as if it is impossible and incompatible with nature to give birth to a Virgin, preserving her virginity undefiled, you can bring to yourself the thought that “He who deigns to save those who believe by the violence of preaching” (1 Cor 1.21), to assure us of miracles, has previously shown us many cases in nature itself. “Let the waters of the creeping things destroy the souls of the living, and the birds that fly on the earth, on the firmament of heaven.” Birds are commanded to fly on the earth, because the earth provides food for everyone, but also on the firmament of heaven, because, as we previously noted, sky (υρανος), from the word ορασθαι (to be visible), is the name given here to air. But this air, located above our head, is also called the firmament, because, in comparison with the etheric body, it is somewhat denser and more condensed from rising vapors. So here before you is a decorated sky, an earth clothed in decoration, a sea abounding in its characteristic creations, the air filled with birds flying in it! Everything that by God’s command has been brought from non-existence into existence, even that which the word has not touched now, avoiding further delay on this subject and not wanting to seem to have transgressed the measure, all this, hard worker, having realized in your mind and having studied the wisdom of God in everything, never cease to be amazed and glorify the Creator in every creature! And in the darkness of the night you have breeds of birds that seek food at night, and in the light of day there are other breeds that fly during the day. For bats, owls and eagle owls are among the birds that feed at night. Why, if sometimes you have no sleep, it is enough for you to dwell on these birds and examine the properties found in them in order to arouse yourself to praise the Creator. How vigilant is the nightingale when it sits on its eggs, and does not stop singing all night long! Just as the pipistrelle is both a four-legged animal and a bird; how he, one of the birds, has teeth and gives birth to living children like four-legged animals, but floats through the air, supported not by wings, but by some kind of skin membrane! What mutual love there is in these creatures by nature! Bats, like a chain, intertwine with each other and hold on to one another, which is not easy to do among us humans, because the separate and particular for many of us is preferable to the general and collective. How much are those who practice vain wisdom like the eyes of an owl! And the owl’s vision at night is sharp, but becomes darkened as soon as the sun shines, and their understanding is very sophisticated for empty speculation, but is darkened towards the knowledge of the true light. And during the day it is much more convenient for you to collect exciting surprise to the Creator from everywhere. How a poultry wakes you up for work, exclaiming in a shrill voice, announces the approaching sun from afar, rises early with travelers, and leads farmers to the harvest! How vigilant is the breed of geese, how sensitively they hear what is inconspicuous to others! The geese saved the once royal city, letting them know about the enemies who, with the help of secret underground mines, were ready to take the Roman fortress. In what breed of bird does nature not reveal any special miracle peculiar to it? Who foretells the death of people to the kites when they take up arms against each other? For you will see that countless herds of kites follow the troops and, from the preparation of weapons, conclude the consequences. And this is not far from human conclusions. How can I describe to you the terrible hordes of locusts, which, suddenly rising under one banner and encamping across the breadth of the country, do not first touch the fruits, but when God’s command is given to them? How does the Seleucid 25 pursue the locust - is it a cure for ulcers, a bird gifted with an unlimited ability to devour, because the man-loving God gave it an insatiable nature as a benefit to people? What is the method of singing in grasshoppers? How do they sing louder than usual at noon, through the attraction of air produced by the expansion of the chest, which makes the sound? But it seems that my word, depicting everything wonderful about the birds, lags behind more than how much I would lag behind if I tried to follow their speed on my feet. When you see so-called insects among birds, for example, bees and wasps (and they are called insects because of some visible notches on them everywhere), notice that they do not have breathing or lungs, but they take in air with their whole body. Why, having soaked in oil, they die from the closing of the bodily wells, but soon doused with vinegar come to life again, because the passages for air open. Our God did not create anything either in excess of what was needed or insufficient in anything necessary. Looking again at animals that love water, you will find in them a different structure, undivided feet, like those of a crow, and not curved, like those of carnivorous birds, but wide and webbed, so that it is convenient to swim through the water and the webbed feet, like oars, push the moisture apart. When you notice how a swan, lowering its neck into the depths, gets food for itself from the bottom, and here you will discover the wisdom of the Creator, Who gave the swan a neck longer than its legs, so that it, launching it like a fishing rod, would get itself food hidden in the depths. The words of Scripture, read simply, consist of several short syllables: “let the waters sweep away the birds that fly on the earth, on the firmament of the sky.” But let us also examine the meaning contained in the words, and then the great miracle of the Creator’s wisdom will be revealed. How many differences He foresaw in the birds! How he distinguished the same breed from each other! How he provided each bird with distinctive properties! A day will not be enough for me to tell you the wonders of the air. The land calls us and wants to show us animals, reptiles and cattle, having in its readiness as much worth attention as plants, and the species of swimming creatures, and all birds. “Let the earth destroy every living creature, every kind of living creature, and every kind of creeping thing.” What say you who do not believe Paul about the change at the resurrection, when you see that many of the airy animals change their appearance? This is how they talk about the Indian cuckold worm, which first turns into a pupa, then over time becomes a mulberry butterfly, but even in this form it does not remain, but is winged with soft and wide petals. Therefore, when you women sit and spin the product of these worms, that is, the threads that the sires provide you, 26 to prepare luxurious clothes, bringing to mind the transformation of this animal, form a clear idea of ​​​​the resurrection and do not doubt the change that Paul proclaims to everyone. But I feel that the word exceeds the measure, when I look at the multitude of what I have said, I see that I have exceeded the measure. But again, when I pay attention to the variety of wisdom revealed in creatures, it seems to me that I have not yet begun my conversation. Besides, it’s not useless to keep you longer. For what would any of you do before evening? The founders of the feasts are not rushing you, no treats await you, and therefore, if you wish, let us use bodily fasting to amuse our souls. You have often served the flesh, giving it pleasure, now remain in service to the soul. “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the petitions of your heart” (Ps 36.4). If you are rich-loving, here is spiritual wealth for you: “the destinies of the Lord are true, they are justified together: they are desirable more than gold, and much is worth to stone” (Ps 19:10, 11). If you are a lover of pleasures and pleasures, here are the words of God for a person with a sound spiritual sense, “sweeter than honey and honeycomb” (Ps 18:11). If I allow you to go and dissolve the meeting, others will go and play in the grain. There are oaths, stubborn arguments and the torment of selfishness. There stands a demon, using bones with dots to inflame fury, transfers the same money to both sides, lifts one with victory and plunges the other into despondency, then, on the contrary, makes the latter proud and covers the first with shame. What is the use of fasting with the body when the soul is filled with thousands of evils? And whoever, although he does not play for grain, nevertheless spends his time in idleness, what will he not say that is empty? What absurdities will he not hear? Idleness without the fear of God teaches vice to those who do not know how to use time. So, in what I have said, there may be something useful, and if not, then at least the benefit that, spending time here, you do not sin, and therefore to keep you longer means to take you away from sins for a longer time. For a grateful judge, what has been said is enough if he pays attention not to the richness of creation, but to the weakness of our strength and to the fact that this is enough to amuse those gathered. The earth treated us with its plants, the sea with fish, the air with birds. And the land is ready to offer us something equivalent to this. But here we will put an end to the morning treat, so that excessive satiety does not dull our taste for evening pleasure. May He who has fulfilled all things with His creation and left us in everything clear memorials of His miracles fill your hearts with all spiritual joy in Christ Jesus our Lord, to whom be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. Conversation 9. “About the animals of the earth” How did you find your morning verbal meal? And it occurred to me to liken my conversation to the zeal of some poor host, who wants to be known as a rich host, but does not have expensive dishes and annoys the guests by generously bringing his poor supply to the table, so that his cordiality turns for him into a reproach for ignorance of decency. Likewise, my word is somewhat similar, unless you say otherwise about it. However, whatever it is, you should not despise it. For Elisha was not accused by his contemporaries for the bad treat, despite the fact that he offered his friends “divia potions” 27 (2 Kings 4.39). I know the rules of allegory, although I did not invent them myself, but found them in the writings of others. According to these rules, others, taking what is written not in the generally accepted sense, call water not water, but some other substance, give meaning to plants and fish at their own discretion, even explain the existence of reptiles and animals in accordance with their concepts, just as dream interpreters give interpretations to what they see in sleepy dreams in accordance with their own intentions. And when I hear about grass, I mean grass, also plant, fish, beast and livestock, everything by which it is named, I take it for that. “For I am not ashamed of the gospel” (Rom 1.16). And since those who wrote about peace speculated a lot about the shape of the earth, whether it is a ball, or a cylinder, or like a circle, equally turned on all sides, or like a tray with a depression in the middle (for those who wrote about peace resorted to all these assumptions, and each of them refuted the assumption of the other), then I still do not agree to recognize our story about peacemaking as worthy of less respect, because the only reason is that the servant of God Moses did not talked about figures, did not say that the circumference of the earth has one hundred and eighty thousand stadia, did not measure how far the earth's shadow extends in the air when the sun goes underground, and how this shadow, falling on the moon, produces eclipses. If he kept silent about things that did not concern us, as if they were useless, then are these words of the Spirit really less important than foolish wisdom? Shall I not even more glorify the One who did not burden our minds with empty objects, but arranged it so that everything was written for the edification and perfection of our souls? This, it seems to me, was not understood by those who, out of their own understanding, set out to give some importance to Scripture through some kind of guidance and adaptation. But this means setting yourself up to be wiser than the words of the Spirit and, under the guise of interpretation, introducing your own thoughts. Therefore let us understand it as it is written. “Let the earth destroy the living soul,” and cattle, and beasts, and creeping things. Imagine the word of God flowing through all creation, once begun, still active and ready to act until the end, until the world ends. Just as a ball, set in motion by someone and encountering a slope, by its structure and the convenience of the place, tends to the bottom, and does not stop first, unless the plane takes it upon itself, so the nature of creatures, moved by one command, evenly passes through both the being born and the decaying creature, preserving the sequence of genera through likening, until it reaches the very end; for she makes the horse the successor to the horse, the lion to the lion, the eagle to the eagle, and each animal, preserved in successive successions, continues until the end of the universe. No amount of time damages or destroys properties in animals. On the contrary, their nature, as recently created, flows along with time. “Let the earth destroy the living soul.” This commandment was observed in the land, and it never ceases to serve the Creator. One is produced through the succession of what existed before, the other even now is viviparous from the earth itself. For not only does it produce grasshoppers in rainy times, and thousands of other species of birds that fly through the air, most of which, due to their smallness, do not even have a name, but it also produces mice and toads. Near Egyptian Thebes, when it rains a lot in the heat, the whole country is suddenly filled with field mice. We see that acne forms in no other way than from mud. They do not reproduce from eggs or in any other way, but they derive their origin from the earth. “Let the earth destroy the soul.” Cattle are earthly animals and droop to the ground, but man is a heavenly planting, distinguished as much by the type of bodily composition as by the dignity of the soul. What type of quadrupeds do they have? Their head is tilted to the ground, looking at the belly and by all means seeking something pleasant for the belly. Your head is raised to the sky, your eyes look at grief. Therefore, although you sometimes dishonor yourself with carnal passions, working with the belly and the lower belly, “being like foolish cattle and becoming like them” (Ps. 49.13), yet another concern is appropriate for you - “seek the things on high, where Christ is” (Col. 3.1), with your thoughts to be higher than earthly things. And whatever form you are given, so dispose of your life. “Have your life in heaven” (Phil 3:20). Your true fatherland is Jerusalem above; your citizens and countrymen are “the firstborn, written in heaven” (Heb. 12.23). “Let the earth destroy the living soul.” So, the soul of the dumb, hidden in it, did not appear from the earth, but came along with the command. But the soul of the dumb is one, because there is only one distinguishing feature - dumbness. But each animal has different properties. The ox is steadfast, the donkey is lazy, the horse is hot in lust of the other sex, the wolf does not become tame, the fox is crafty, the deer is fearful, the ant is hardworking, the dog is grateful and mindful in friendship. For at one time each animal was created and given a special natural property. Leo is born with rage, a tendency to live alone, and unsociability with animals of this kind. He, as the king of the dumb, due to his natural contempt, does not tolerate equals. He does not allow cooked food to reach him in the evening, and does not return to the remains of his prey. Nature gave him such vocal organs that many animals, surpassing him in speed, are often caught by his roar alone. The leopard is impetuous and quick in its attacks. He has been given a body capable of this, which, with flexibility and lightness, manages to follow the movements of his soul. The nature of the bear is clumsy, and its character is peculiar, cunning, and deeply secretive. He is clothed in the same body, heavy, dense, without any composition, truly befitting a cold beast living in a den. If we touch in a word the care that these dumb ones have about their lives, without learning by nature, then either we ourselves will be moved to preserve ourselves and to provide for the salvation of souls, or we will condemn ourselves even more when we find that even in imitation and dumb we remain behind. The she-bear, when the deepest wounds are inflicted on her, often heals herself, using all means to plug the ulcers with grass - mullein 28, which has the property of drying. You can see that the fox also heals itself with pine resin. A turtle, having eaten viper flesh, avoids harm from the poison by using oregano instead of an antidote. And the snake cures sore eyes by eating Voloshsky dill. But does not foreknowledge of air changes cloud even rational knowledge? Before the onset of winter, the sheep greedily attacks the food, as if gorging itself for a time of future scarcity. The oxen, locked up for a long time during the winter, with the approach of spring, having already recognized the change by a natural feeling, begin to look towards where the exit from the barns is, and everyone, as if at a given sign, changes their position. Some of the hardworking observers have noticed that a hedgehog living on land makes two vents in its hole, and if the north wind blows, it lays an vent from the north, and again, when the south wind begins to blow, it moves to the northern vent. What is shown to us humans through this? Not only that the care of the Creator of us extends to everything, but also that the dumb have some sense of the future, which is why we should not cleave to the present life, but have every care for the future age. Won't you take care of yourself, man? Even in the present century, can you not prepare what is needed for peace in the future, looking at the example of the ant? In the summer he collects food for the winter, and does not spend time in idleness because the winter sorrows have not yet set in, but, on the contrary, with some kind of inexorable diligence, he strains himself to work until he puts a sufficient amount of food into his treasuries. And he does this not with negligence, but takes wise care to ensure that there is enough food for as long as possible. He cuts each grain in half with his tongs so that it does not sprout and become unfit for his consumption. He also dries the grains when he notices that they are damp, and does not scatter them at all times, but when he senses that the air will be in a windy state for a long time. It’s true that you won’t see rain pouring from the clouds all the time when the ants’ reserves are scattered. What word will be enough for this? What kind of hearing can accommodate this? Will there be enough time to describe and tell all the wonders of the Artist? Let us also say with the prophet: “How great are Thy works, O Lord, that Thou hast done all things with wisdom” (Ps 103.24). Therefore, it is not enough for our excuse that we are not taught what is useful from books, when we can choose what serves our benefit not by an unlearned law of nature. Do you know what good you should do to your neighbor? The same thing you want from someone else. Do you know what evil is? Something that you yourself would not agree to tolerate from another. It was not any art of cutting roots, not the experienced exploration of herbs that opened the knowledge of useful things to the dumb. On the contrary, every animal naturally seeks out what is salutary for it and has some incomprehensible affinity with what is in accordance with its nature. And in us there are natural virtues, with which the soul has an affinity not by human teaching, but by nature itself. No science teaches us to hate illness, but we ourselves have an aversion to everything that causes us grief, and in the soul there is some kind of deviation from evil acquired not by teaching. All evil is a mental illness, and virtue corresponds to health. Well, some have defined health as the improvement of natural activities. Whoever says the same about the well-being of the soul will not sin against decency. Therefore, the soul, even without learning, desires what is characteristic of it and in accordance with its nature. For this reason, chastity is praiseworthy for everyone, justice is commendable, courage is amazing, and prudence is desirable. These virtues are more characteristic of the soul than health of the body. Children, love your fathers, parents, “do not provoke the children to anger” (Eph 6.4). Isn't that what nature says? What Paul advises is not new, but strengthens the bonds of nature. If a lioness loves those born to her, and a wolf enters into battle for her wolf cubs, what will a man say, both breaking the commandment and distorting nature, when either the son does not respect the old age of the father, or the father, having entered into a second marriage, forgets his previous children? Among the dumb, mutual love between children and parents is irresistible, because God, who created them, rewarded their lack of reason with an excess of feelings. Why does a lamb, jumping out of a barn, among a thousand sheep, know the very color and voice of its mother, rush to her, looking for its own sources of milk? And although he encounters skinny maternal breasts, he is content with them, passing by many breasts laden with milk. And the mother of a thousand lambs recognizes her own. They all have the same voice, the same color, and the same smell, as far as it seems to our sense of smell, but they have some kind of feeling that is much sharper than our idea, and by which it is easy for everyone to recognize their own. The puppy does not yet have teeth, but with its mouth it already protects itself from irritants. The calf does not yet have horns, but he already knows where his weapons will grow. All this serves as proof that every animal does not study what is natural to him, and that there is nothing disordered and indefinite in creatures; but, on the contrary, everyone bears traces of Creative wisdom, and each shows in itself that it is equipped with what is necessary to protect its own well-being. The dog is not gifted with reason, but has a feeling almost equivalent to reason. What the worldly sages have barely invented, having spent most of their lives studying this - I mean the intricacy of conclusions - the dog turns out to be taught by nature. For, looking for an animal trail, when he finds that it has divided into many branches, he runs around the deviations leading here and there, and by what he does, he almost pronounces the following conclusion: either the animal turned here, or here, or in this direction. But since he did not go either here or here, he can only run in this direction. And thus, through the denial of the false, he finds the true. Do they do more than this who, sitting decorously over a board and writing in the dust, deny two of three sentences and find the truth in the rest? And will not the remembrance of mercy in this animal shame anyone who is ungrateful for good deeds? They say that many dogs, when their masters were killed in an empty place, died over them. And some, soon after committing the murder, served as guides to the detectives of the murderers and achieved that the villains were put to death. What will those say who not only do not love the Lord who created and nourishes them, but also have among their friends those who speak untruths against God, partake of the same meal with them, and while eating the food themselves endure blasphemy against the Nourisher? But let's return to the consideration of creatures. Animals that are easily caught are more prolific. Therefore, hares and wild goats give birth to many children, and wild sheep give birth to twins, so that the race exterminated by carnivorous animals does not become impoverished. On the contrary, animals that devour others give birth to children little by little. Therefore, a lioness is hardly the mother of even one lion. For a lion cub, as they say, first tears its mother’s womb with the sharp claws, and then comes out into the light. And the vipers are born, gnawing the womb of the woman giving birth, and thereby giving her a decent reward. Thus, not a single creature is left without Providence, and not a single one is deprived of proper care. If you begin to examine the very members of animals, you will find that the Creator did not add a single thing that was superfluous and did not take away anything that was necessary. He gave sharp teeth to carnivorous animals, because they needed such teeth due to the nature of their food. And those whom he half armed with teeth, he supplied with many and various vaginas for food. Since they cannot chew the food sufficiently the first time, he gave them the opportunity to regurgitate what they had absorbed, so that the crushed food could be absorbed by the eater through chewing gum. The stomach, pre-womb, mesh and womb were not given in vain to the animals that have them, but each of these tools serves a necessary need. A camel has a neck that is equal to its legs and reaches the grass on which the camel feeds. The neck is short and protrudes into the shoulders of the bear, lion, tiger and other animals of the same kind, because they do not feed on grass, and they, as carnivores and content with catching animals, do not need to bend down to the ground. What does an elephant have a trunk for? This great animal, and even the greatest of all living on land, as created to terrify everyone it met, had to be tall and have a huge body. If he had been given a large neck commensurate with his legs, it would have been difficult to carry it, because, from excessive weight, it would always bend to the ground. And now the elephant’s head is connected to the ridge by not many cervical vertebrae, but it has a trunk, which compensates for the lack of a neck, with which the elephant gets food and draws drink. And his legs are without joints and, like connected pillars, support the weight of his body. And if they were replaced with tender and weak muscles, then the elephant would often have dislocations in the joints, which would be insufficient to support the weight when the elephant kneels or stands. But now the short supracalcaneal bone is placed under the elephant’s leg, and there are no joints in either the popliteal or the knee, because the instability of the joints would not withstand the excessively huge and swaying body with which the elephant is surrounded. Therefore, this nose was needed, descending to the feet. Don’t you see in battles how elephants, like some kind of animated towers, march in front of the ranks, or, like fleshy hills, in an unstoppable desire they break through the close-knit shields of the enemies? And if the lower parts of elephants were not proportionate, this animal would not last long. Now, as some say, the elephant lives for three hundred years or more. That's why his legs are solid and without joints. And food, as we said, is lifted up from the ground by the trunk, which is flexible by nature, compresses and unclenches, like a snake. So true is the word that in created things one cannot find anything either superfluous or insufficient. However, God created this huge animal too submissive to man. When we teach it, it understands, and when we beat it, it endures. And by this God clearly teaches us that He has subjected everything to us, because we were created in the image of the Creator. But it is not in the great animals alone that one can discern unsearchable wisdom. On the contrary, even in the smallest ones you can easily collect no less number of miracles. Just as I am no more surprised at the high peaks of the mountains, which, due to their proximity to the clouds through the incessant blowing of the winds, retain a constant cold, than at the low-lying valleys, which not only escape the cruelty of the mountain winds, but also always retain warm air, so in the structure of animals I am no more amazed at the elephant for its size than at the mouse, because it is terrible for the elephant, or at the thinnest sting of the scorpion, which the Artist made empty, like a pipe, so that poison could flow through it into the wounded. And no one blames the Creator for creating animals that are poisonous, destructive and hostile to our life. Otherwise, someone will begin to blame the nurturer for putting the mobility of youth in order with blows and whips and curbing insolence. Animals are also made a proof of faith. Do you believe the Lord who said: “tread on the asp and the basilisk, and cross the lion and the serpent?” (Ps 91:13)? And by faith you have the power to trample on snakes and scorpions. Don’t you know that the viper that touched Paul while he was gathering brushwood did him no harm, because the saint was found full of faith (Acts 28.3–6)? And if you do not have faith, then fear not the beast, but your own, more than unbelief, through which you have made yourself susceptible to destruction from everything. But for a long time I have felt that you are asking me about the creation of man, and it seems that I can almost hear the cry of the listeners: we are working to study the nature of what belongs to us, but do not know ourselves. So it is necessary to talk about this, reflecting away the slowness that has held us back until now. For in fact, it seems the most difficult thing to know oneself. Not only the eye, which examines the external, cannot be used to examine itself, but our very mind, which shrewdly discerns the faults of others, is slow in recognizing its own shortcomings. Therefore, even now our word, which described the alien with such insight, is weak and slow to explore its own, although it is not heaven and earth that leads to the knowledge of God, but rather our own structure, if one prudently examines himself, as the prophet says: “Your understanding was amazed at me” (Ps 138.6), that is, having examined myself, I recognized the superiority of Your wisdom. “And God said, Let us make man” (Gen. 1.26). Where is the Jew, who, when above, as if through certain windows, the light of Theology shone, and the second Person, although it was shown mysteriously, but did not appear clearly, rebelled against the truth and argued that God talks with Himself? He says: God Himself said, He Himself created. “Let there be light, and let there be light.” And then it was easy to discover inconsistency in the words of the Jew. For what blacksmith, or carpenter, or shoemaker, sitting alone with the tools of his craft, when no one shares his labor, will say to himself: let’s make a knife, or put together a plow, or sew a shoe? On the contrary, will he not silently complete the work required of him? It is truly strange idle talk to assert that someone sits and orders himself, supervises himself, compels himself imperiously and urgently. But those who are not afraid to slander the Lord himself, what cannot they say, having a tongue trained in lies? However, the present speech completely blocks their lips. “And God said: Let us create man.” Tell me: is there really one Face now? It is not written: let there be man, but let us create man. Until the disciple appeared, the preaching of Theology was hidden in the depths. But when the creation of man was already expected, faith was revealed, and the dogma of truth was revealed more clearly. “Let us create man.” Do you hear, Christ-fighter, the speech is addressed to the Participant in the universe, to the One who “created the ages, who bears all things with His power” (Heb. 1.2–3)! But the Jew does not receive the word of piety in silence. And just as the most man-hating beasts, when imprisoned in cages, gnaw on pricks, and although they show the ferocity and indomitability of their nature, they cannot bring their rage to fruition, so the race hostile to the truth - the Jews, being constrained, say: there are many persons to whom God's word came. For He says to the Angels standing before Him: “Let us make man.” A Jewish fiction, only Jewish frivolity is characteristic of fables! In order not to accept one, thousands are brought in, and rejecting the Son, the dignity of counsel is attributed to servants, slaves like us are made masters of our creation. The perfected person is elevated to angelic dignity. But what creature can be equal to the Creator? Consider the following words: “in our image.” What do you say to this? Do not God and the angels have the same image? The Son and the Father, of all necessity, have the same image, if only we understand the image in a divine way, that is, consisting not in a bodily outline, but in a Divine property. Listen, you too, who belong to the new circumcision, and who in Christianity undertake to defend Judaism. To whom does he say: “in our image”? Who else but “the radiance of glory and the image of His hypostasis” (Heb. 1.3), “Who is the image of the invisible God” (Col. 1.15)? So, he speaks to His own Image, the living Image, which says: “I and the Father are one” (John 10.30), and: “he who has seen Me has seen the Father” (John 14.9). He says to him: “Let us make man in our image.” And where there is only one image, can there be dissimilarity? “And God created man” (Gen. 1.27). No - they did. Here Moses escaped the plurality of persons. By first admonishing the Jew, and by the last excluding paganism, he safely returned to unity, so that you, together with the Father, would understand the Son and avoid the danger of polytheism. Create him in the image of God. Again he introduces the face of the Helper. For he did not say: in His own image, but in the image of God. In what way does man have the image of God and how does he participate in the likeness? This, God willing, will be discussed in the following conversations. Now let’s just say: if there is only one image, where did you get the idea to be so unbearably wicked and say that the Son is not like the Father? What ingratitude! You yourself have become a partaker of the likeness and you do not attribute this likeness to the Benefactor! You consider what is given to you by grace to be your own and belong forever, but you do not allow the Son to have the likeness that naturally belongs to Him with the One who gave birth! However, the evening, which has long since brought the sun to the west, prescribes silence for us! Therefore, we will rest the word here, being satisfied with what was said. For now we have touched on the word, how much this was needed to arouse your jealousy, and we will offer the most complete study of this subject, with the assistance of the Spirit, in the following conversations. Go with joy, you Christ-loving church, and instead of expensive supplies, instead of various seasonings, decorate your honest meals with the recollection of what has been said! Let the Anomean be ashamed, let the Jew be put to shame, let the pious rejoice in the dogmas of truth; may the Lord be glorified! To him be glory and power forever and ever. Amen! Conversation 10. St. Basil of Caesarea's first conversation about the creation of man “in the image...” 29 1. I am starting to pay off my old debt in full; I delayed repaying it not out of malice, but because of bodily weakness. This duty is extremely necessary and important for your enlightenment. It would be unfair, having received information about animals, about those who swim, graze, fly, about the sky and what pertains to it, about the earth and what is on it, at the same time not to be enlightened - through the inspired Scriptures - in the question of our origin. Just as our eyes look into the outer world and do not see themselves unless they encounter something smooth and hard, when the gaze reflected there, as if at low tide, allows us to see what is at the bottom, so our mind cannot contemplate itself unless it turns to Scripture. The light reflected there encourages each of us to self-knowledge. If our mind is undeveloped, if we do not think about the structure of our being, then we do not know who we are and why we exist. We treat ourselves with the greatest disdain, having no idea of ​​what is accessible to knowledge, not knowing the smallest thing that is contained within us. 2. Many works have been written with great diligence about our body, the human body. If you become interested in medicine, you will discover how much it says about the action of what is within us; how many hidden pathways in our body she discovered during anatomical experiments! She revealed invisible ducts, the coordination of body organs in the process of breathing, respiratory tracts, blood vessels, the length of inspiration, a source of heat near the heart, continuous respiratory movement in the pericardial region. Thousands of studies in this area have led to a science that none of us are versed in, since no attention has been paid to this area, and no one knows what he, a person, is himself. We tend to study the sky more carefully than we study ourselves. Do not neglect the miracle contained within you. You are convinced of your insignificance, but further reasoning will reveal your greatness. That is why the wise David, who perfectly knows how to know himself, said: “It is wonderful to know You through me” (Ps 139.6). Miraculously, I have come to know You. How, through me? It is wonderful to know You through me. Knowing all my complexity and the wisdom with which my body is structured, and through this tiny creature I comprehended the great Creator. 3. “Let us make man in our image and likeness” (Gen. 1.26). Earlier, by the way, it was indicated, and quite thoroughly, what these words were and to whom they were addressed. The Church gives them an explanation; moreover, it has faith, which is stronger than the explanation. "Let's create a man." It is from this moment that you begin to know yourself. Such words were not addressed to any of the creatures. Light appeared, and the command was simple, God said: “Let there be light!” The sky arose, but without will. The luminaries began to exist, but there was no prescription regarding them. The seas and endless oceans were brought into existence by command. By order, different types of fish appeared. It’s the same with animals, wild and tame, swimming and flying: he said - and they were born. But then there was neither man nor the will of man. He did not say, as about the others: “Let there be man!” Realize your dignity. He did not proclaim your appearance as an order, but expressed God’s thoughts about how a worthy being would appear in life. “Let’s create!” The wise man reflects, the Creator ponders. Does He ignore art? Does He not strive with all care to make His beloved creation perfect, complete and beautiful? Does He want to show you that you are perfect in the eyes of God? 4. You learned that there are two persons: the Speaker and the One to whom the word is addressed. Why didn’t He say: “I will create,” but “Let us create man”? So that you know the highest power; so that, recognizing the Father, you do not reject the Son; that you may know that the Father created through the Son, and the Son created at the command of the Father; so that you glorify the Father in the Son and the Son in the Holy Spirit. Thus, you were born as a common creation to become a common worshiper of One and Another, not making divisions in worship, but treating the Divine as one. Pay attention to the external course of history and to the deep internal meaning of Theology. “And God created man. “We’ll create it!” And it is not said: “And they created,” so that you would not have reason to fall into polytheism. If the person were multiple in composition, then people would have reason to make for themselves many gods. Now the expression “let us create” is used so that you may know the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. “God created man” so that you recognize (understand) the unity of the Divine, not the unity of the Hypostases, but the unity in power, so that you glorify the one God, without making distinctions in worship and without falling into polytheism. After all, it is not said “the gods created man,” but “God created.” A special Hypostasis of the Father, a special Hypostasis of the Son, a special Hypostasis of the Holy Spirit. Why not three Gods? Because there is one Divinity. Whatever Divinity I behold in the Father is the same in the Son, and whatever Divinity I behold in the Holy Spirit is the same in the Son. Therefore, the image (μορφη) is one in both, and the power emanating from the Father remains the same in the Son. Because of this, our worship and also our glorification are the same. The foreshadowing of our creation is true Theology. 5. “Let us make man in our image and likeness.” We are created in the image of God. How exactly in the image of God? Let us cleanse our rough heart, uneducated perception, and discard ignorant ideas about God. If we are created in the image of God, as has been said, then our structure (συμμορφος) is the same. God has eyes and ears, a head, hands, a buttock - after all, Scripture says that God is seated - and also legs on which He walks. Isn't that what God is like? But remove obscene inventions (ideas) from your heart. Throw away thoughts that do not correspond to the greatness of God. God has no outline (ασχηματιστος), He is simple (απλους). Don't fantasize about His structure; do not diminish in the Jewish manner the One who is great; do not enclose God in your bodily ideas; do not limit Him to the measure of your mind. He is unlimited in His power. Think about something great, add to it something greater than what you thought about, and to this something even greater, and make sure that in your reasoning (philosophizing) you will never achieve that which is infinite. Do not try to imagine His external outlines (αχημα) - God is known in power, His nature is simple, His greatness is immeasurable. He is present everywhere and is abundant over everything; He is intangible, invisible. He is that which eludes the perception of your mind; It is not limited in size, does not have (literally: “not covered”) external outlines, is not proportionate to any force, is not bound by time, is not confined to any boundaries. What is applicable to us cannot be applied to God. 6. In what sense does Scripture say that we are created in the image of God? Let us examine what concerns God, and we will learn what concerns us, namely, that we do not have the image of God, if we understand it in a bodily sense. External outlines exist (only) of a body subject to death. The immortal cannot be contained in the mortal, and the mortal cannot be the image of the immortal. The body grows, shrinks, ages, changes; it is one in youth, another in old age; one in good health, the other in illness; one in fear, the other in joy; one is in abundance, the other is in need; one in peace, the other in battle. The complexion of a person who is awake and a person sleeping is different: in the first, a bright blush appears due to a surge of warmth to the surface, in the second, the warmth goes inward, which is why the body color of those sleeping is pale. How can the changing be similar to the unchanging? Will that which always remains the same become like that which is never stable? The corporeal runs away from us like something fluid - before you see it, it slips away; instead of one it turns out to be another. "In Our Image". Still nature current image? A formed image of the formless? How do we know what “in the image” means? From what the Lord Himself said. If I say anything from myself, do not accept it; if I speak as a messenger of the Lord, accept it. “Let us make man in our image and likeness, and let him rule over the fish.” Body or mind? What is the basis of power: in the soul or in the flesh? Our flesh is weaker than that of many animals. What comparison can there be in the flesh between a man and a camel, a man and a bull, a man and some wild animal? Human flesh is more vulnerable than animal flesh. However, what is the basis of power? In the superiority of reason. To the extent that (a person) is inferior in bodily strength, he is superior in the structure of his mind. How does a person move huge weights? Using the mind or physical strength? 7. “Let us make man in our image.” About the inner man it is said: “Let us make man.” However, you will say: “Why does He not tell us about the mind?” He said that man is (created) in the image of God. The mind is a person. Listen to what the apostle says: “Even if our outer man is decaying, our inner man is being renewed day by day.” How? I distinguish between two people: one who appears, and the other who hides under what appears, i.e. invisible; This is an internal person. So, there is an inner man in us, and we are in a sense double and, to tell the truth, we are an inner being. “I” is said about the inner man. What is outside (me) is not personally “I”, but it is “mine”. The hand is not “I”, but “I” is the rational principle of the soul. The hand is part of a person. Therefore, the body is (as it were) a human instrument, an instrument of the soul; the word “man” denotes the soul as such. “Let us create man in our image,” that is, we will give him superiority in intelligence. 8. "And let him reign." It is not said: “Let us create man in Our image, and let them (people) show their passion, desire, sorrow.” It is not the passions that are contained in the image of God, but reason, the ruler of the passions. "And let them have dominion over the fish." As soon as you were created, you were already created to be a ruler. “And let them rule...” Having received power from the emperor for one year, as man from man, mortal from mortal, having received (it) from the poor, what kind of power of the soul does a person acquire? You have received from God (power), which is not written on tablets or sheets destined to be eaten by worms, but nature itself carries within itself the Divine word: “Let them rule,” - and this is all about human power. “Let them have dominion over the fish, over the beasts of the earth, over the birds of the air, over the livestock, over the creeping things that creep on the earth.” He did not say: “Let us create man in our image and likeness, and let them (people) eat from every fruit tree that has fruit on it.” In second place should be placed those related to the body, in first place - those related to the soul. The main thing that is destined for you is the power of power. You are a man, a being who rules. Why are you enslaved by passions? Why do you neglect your dignity and become a slave to sin? Why are you turning yourself into the property of the devil? You are called to be the ruler of creation, but you throw away the nobility of your nature. “Is the slave called?” (1 Cor 7.21) Why does the slavery of the body upset you? Why don’t you appreciate the power given to you by God, the fact that you have reason, the ruler of passions? When you see that your master (mind) is a slave to pleasure, and you yourself are a slave to your body, then know that you are a slave only in name, and he (mind) has (then) purely nominal power, but in fact is in pure slavery. You see how he drags out his existence with a harlot; Are you not the master of passion, and not the slave of the pleasures you have rejected? Therefore, “Let us make man, and let them rule” (means): where the power of power is, there is the image of God. 9 . "Let them have dominion over the fish." First of all, we have been given power over those living in another sphere. He did not say: “Let them have dominion over domestic animals,” but “over fish”: after all, water is their element. Power over fish is given to us first of all. And how do we dominate the fish? You probably noticed, when you appeared near a pond, how your shadow threw everything into confusion. Isn’t it the case that the head of a family, when the house is in disorder, brings calm with his sudden appearance, and the mere presence of the ruler puts everything in order? How does a sea creature change its behavior when one person appears (το σχημα)? She no longer indulges in careless play, does not dare to swim to the surface of the sea or pond. When a dolphin sees a person somewhere nearby, being the most royal of sea animals, it experiences fear. This is how man is given power over floating creatures. Don't you see that your mind comprehends everything and overcomes everything; so why don't you rule over the sea creatures? I have observed human ingenuity; I saw how they make a device out of hooks and put bait on them that matches the size of the creatures that will swallow it. Then waterskins inflated with air are tied to the upper ends of the ropes, to the other ends of which are hooks, and left to float on the surface of the sea. Sea monsters pounce on the bait and swallow the hooks hidden in it, and then drag the waterskins into the abyss. Since by their nature wineskins tend to rise, they (the monsters) float to the surface again. Being impaled on their own food, they jump up and down in a frenzy; Thus they plow through the abyss, sailing through endless waters, undertaking great labor in vain: in the end they fall prey to the said hook. Tamed by pain, exhausted by hunger and finally exhausted, they drag themselves behind wineskins and become the prey of fishermen. The small get the great, the powerless get the huge. Because man, thanks to the superiority of reason, has gained the opportunity to rule: like runaway slaves, he brings the rebellious to obedience. He subdues those who cannot be won by meekness by coercion. Thus, man everywhere can exercise his power, given to him by God Himself. Therefore, the swordfish, the hammerfish, the whale, the sawfish, the sea cow and all the sea monsters with terrible names came under the control of man. 10. “Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and the beasts of the earth.” Have you not seen a fierce and roaring lion, whose very name is unbearable, whose roar makes the earth tremble? Who has the stamina to withstand his onslaught? No animal relies on its superior strength to withstand the attack of a lion, yet you see how it is confined in a tight cage. Who concluded it? Who invented a small prison for a big beast? Who prudently left a narrow distance between the wooden rods, as an outlet, so that the animal would not suffocate from its own breath, have a free flow of air, and at the same time ensure safety? Who else if not a man? He makes fun of the most dangerous animals. Doesn't a man play with panthers by displaying a cardboard dummy of a man, and when the panther tears at the cardboard, doesn't the man hiding underneath laugh at the stupidity of the beast? Doesn't man rule over everything thanks to his superiority? What can I tell you about those who fly? Of course, a person does not rise into the air, but he (as it were) flies along with birds thanks to the power of the mind. Nothing limits his mind, he explores what is in the depths of the sea, hunts for what is on earth, catches what is in the sky. Have you ever seen a bird, sitting on the tip of a branch, mock people, relying on the speed of its wings? In the same way, you can watch how a child amuses himself: he places one reed on another, lubricates the tip with resin, hides it all in the leaves and branches, and directs his gaze upward; barely touching the reed, the bird ends up in his hands. And he carries away such an aeronaut, a creature that flies, carried by ether, having caught it with a small amount of resin. Man is below, his hand is also below, but thought rushes upward, and thanks to art, everything is accessible to man. He sets nets for the feathered tribe; he takes a bow and shoots at what flies; With the help of baits he captures ferocious animals. Have you never seen an eagle swoop down on its prey and then become entangled in a net on the ground? This is how the inhabitant of the heights descends to the ground, attracted by the bait invented by man. God has subjected everything to human hand; in completing His creation, He did not deprive man of the right of dominion. Do not say: “How superior are those who fly in the air to me!” Thanks to your intelligence, they too are subject to your power. “And let them have dominion... over... the creeping things that creep on the earth.” Do you see what it means to be created in the image of God? 11. “And God created man” (Gen. 1:27). So what is a person? Let us draw a conclusion based on what we have learned and heard. We have no need to borrow alien definitions and add something vain to the discussion about truth. Man is a rational creation of God, created in the image of his Creator. If anything is missing in this reasoning, then let those who have spent (effort) in comprehending transitory wisdom engage in research. Man is created in the image of God. 12. And God blessed the man and said: “Grow, multiply and fill the earth” (Gen. 1:28). The blessing to the fish was the same: “And God said: Let the water bring forth living things that creep, ... and it was so” (Gen. 1:20). And then God said, “Grow, multiply and fill the earth.” So what's more? Of course, this blessing covers what you have in common (with creatures) and what remains as your own. You grow, like other living beings, and, being small at first, gradually increasing in height, you reach its fullness. The same thing (happens) with horses, dogs, eagles, swans and with everyone you name: being tiny at the beginning of pregnancy, they gradually increase in height and reach its limit; then growth declines and they become smaller. It is in this (we have with them) a natural community that (God) has endowed us with. 13. “Grow”, i.e. gain height (τρεφεσθε). Born small, grow big and reach your utmost height. After all, if we grow in the first seven years and grow in the second, this does not mean at all that we must change in the same way every seven years throughout our entire lives. The first seven years covers childhood. The boundary of childhood is clear: this is the change of teeth. Some fell out, others grew in return. Adolescence is the second seven years, stretching until the age of 14: first a child, then a teenager. Next, counting from 14 years, a young man, then a husband. These are the limits of growth. So, “grow.” You may reach a hundred years of age, but growth will not continue from the first year to the hundredth. However, this wisely spoken word contains providence about our dispensation. "Grow up!" But until when? There is no measure of growth. Simultaneously with the formation of the fetus in the womb, the principles of growth are also embedded in it. Each age after that no longer carries something new. In the mother's womb, the embryos receive all the elements necessary for growth. The teeth fell out - and we learned that growth had reached a certain limit. A father measures his three-year-old child, knowing that his height will double by the end of this period. After all, he will be twice as tall as he was at 3 years old. This period of growth will end and its growth will double again. This is the dimension of human nature until the end of its development, before the transition from the first seven years to the second. At this time, (bodily) warmth increases, the figure becomes slimmer, softness disappears, and the limbs become stronger. People are at the beginning of strong youth, but have not yet reached its fullness. Their body is not yet completely strong and is not adapted to hard work. At this time, a person has lightness and mobility. In the third seven years it reaches its maximum growth; the body is still elongated. After the third seven years, when nature, tired of growing upward, comes to its senses, the body begins to increase in breadth, and what has been stretched upward, as if receiving support from the sides, becomes thicker, and all parts of the body become strong. This is what nature does according to its disposition (ακολουθια). This happened from the very beginning by the will of the Lord, and what was once laid at the foundation permeates the entire creation to the very end. 14. "Grow and multiply." “Grow” so that creation is not limited to any one condition. “Multiply,” because creation is directed not at one person, but at many people. "And fill the earth." “Fill” does not simply mean “populate,” for we would live in cramped conditions, since the land that constitutes the limits of our habitation has such (limited) dimensions; but (meaning) fill with your power, which He gave us for dominion over the earth. "Fill the earth"; Of course, not scorched, uncultivated, frozen, impassable land. Of course, this is not the kind of land that people are forced to fill, but He made it so that we fill it as rulers and fill it according to a (certain) plan. But by exploring the expanses of scorched and uninhabited land, the extent of the northern country, which due to excessive cold is uncultivable and useless, are we not thereby filling the earth? Having chosen for ourselves what is useful, are we not discarding what is useless to people in life? Therefore (the expression) “fill the earth” has made us rulers. And it is not at all the case that since we do not benefit from the whole (earth), it means that we do not rule over the whole (earth). Having bought bread, are you not the owner of all this bread, even if some of it is edible and some is not suitable for food? Don't you throw away stones because they are of no use? And if something else unsuitable is mixed into the food, then won’t you take away the chaff, won’t you remove the chaff, won’t you take away what is suitable in its quality for supporting life? It’s the same with the land: one, the best, is considered favorable for settlement, the other is considered suitable for cultivation, the rest is set aside for feeding four-legged animals. Tell me, can I arrange (everything) according to my desire, since by the gift of the Lord who created me I was born a ruler? “And fill, and have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and the beasts of the earth.” This is the blessing, this is the legislation, this is the dignity given to us by God. 15. “And God created man; in the image of God created him." Have you not noticed that this testimony is incomplete? 30 “Let us create man in Our image and likeness.” This expression of will contains two elements: “in the image” and “in the likeness.” But creation contains only one element. Having decided one thing, did the Lord change His plan? Didn’t repentance arise in Him during the creation? Doesn’t this reveal the weakness of the Creator, since He plans one thing, but does another? - Or is this nonsense? Perhaps it is the same as: “Let us create man in the image and in the likeness”; after all, here He said “in the image”, but did not say “in the likeness.” Whatever explanation we choose, our interpretation of what is written would be incorrect. If we are talking about the same thing, then it would not be worth repeating the same thing twice. To claim that Scripture contains empty words is dangerous blasphemy. And in fact (Scripture) never says (anything) empty. So, it is undeniable that man was created in the image and likeness. Why is it not said: “And God created man in the image of God and in the likeness.” So, the Creator is powerless? - Unholy thought! Well, did the Organizer repent? The reasoning is even more wicked! Or did He speak at first and then change His mind? - No! Scripture doesn't say this; The Creator is not powerless and the decision was not empty. So what's the point of remaining silent? 16. “Let us make man in our image and likeness.” We have one as a result of creation, and we acquire the other by our own will. At the original creation we are given the gift of being born in the image of God; By our own will we acquire existence in the likeness of God. What depends on our will, we dispose of in full force; We get it for ourselves thanks to our energy. If the Lord, when creating us, had not predeterminedly said: “Let us create” and “in the likeness,” if we had not been given the opportunity to become “in the likeness,” then by our own strength we would not have acquired the likeness of God. But the fact of the matter is that He created us capable of becoming like God. Having endowed us with the ability to become like God, He left us to ourselves to be workers in becoming like God, so that we would receive a reward for (this) work, so that we would not be inert things, like portraits created by the hand of an artist, so that the fruits of our likeness would not bring praise to someone else. In fact, when you see a portrait that exactly represents the model, you are not praising the portrait, but admiring the artist. So, so that the admiration would apply to me and not to someone else, He left me to take care of achieving the likeness of God. After all, “in the image” I have the existence of a rational being, but “in the likeness” I become, becoming a Christian. 17. “Be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect” (Matthew 5:48) Do you understand now what the Lord’s gift to us (of being) in the likeness consists of? “For He makes His sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.” If you become an enemy of evil, forget past grievances and enmity, if you love your brothers and sympathize with them, then you will become like God. If you forgive your enemy with all your heart, you will become like God. If you treat a brother who has sinned against you, the same way God treats you, a sinner, you become like God with your compassion for your neighbor. Thus, you possess what is “in the image”, being a rational being, but you become “in the likeness” by acquiring goodness. “Put on mercy and goodness, that you may put on Christ.” By the deeds with which you clothe yourself with mercy, you clothe yourself with Christ and, thanks to your closeness to Him, you become close to God. Thus, history (of creation) is the education of human life. “Let us make man in our image.” Let him, from the moment of creation, possess that which is “in the image,” and let him (himself) become that which is “in the likeness.” God gave him the strength to do this. If He created you “in his likeness,” then what would be your merit? Why are you crowned? If the Creator gave you everything, how would the Kingdom of Heaven be revealed to you? And so one thing was given to you, and the other was left unfinished, so that you could improve and become worthy of the reward that comes from God. – How do we achieve what is “in the likeness”? – What is Christianity? – This is likening to God to the extent that this is possible for human nature. If by the grace of God you have decided to be a Christian, hurry to become like God, put on Christ. But how will you be clothed without being marked with a seal? How will you be clothed without being baptized? Without wearing incorruptible clothing? Or are you denying the likeness of God? If I told you: “Come on, become like the king,” would you not consider me a benefactor? Now, when I invite you to become like God, will you really run away from the word that adores you, will you really close your ears so as not to hear saving words? 18. “And God created man in His own image.” “A person,” says the wife, “but what does this have to do with me? The husband was created,” she continues, “after all, God did not say: “She who is a man,” but by the definition “man” He showed that we are talking about a male being. - Far from it! So that no one through ignorance thinks that the definition of “man” denotes only the male sex, (Scripture) adds: “male and female he created them.” A wife, along with her husband, has the honor of being created in the image of God. The nature of both is equal, their virtues are equal, their rewards are equal, and their retribution is equal. Let (the woman) not say: “I am powerless.” Powerlessness is inherent in the flesh, but strength is in the soul. Since the image of God is, of course, equally revered in them, let the virtues of both of them and the manifestation of good deeds be equally honoured. There is no excuse for anyone who pleads bodily weakness. But is the body really that weak? On the contrary, with compassion it shows endurance in hardships, cheerfulness in insomnia. How can male nature compete with female nature, which spends its life in deprivation? How can a man imitate a woman’s endurance during fasting, her persistence in prayer, the abundance of her tears, and her diligence in good deeds? I myself saw how a woman secretly committed theft for good purposes: without her husband’s knowledge, she performed good deeds for the sake of her husband, for the good of the house, for the sake of the happiness of the children. Without informing her husband, she gave alms, spending money for his benefit in secret from him. But she did this in front of the One who sees the secret, and did not disclose her good deed. A virtuous woman possesses what is “in the image.” Don't pay attention to the outer man: it is only an appearance. The soul is, as it were, under the cover of a weak body. It's all about the soul, and the soul is equally honest; The only difference is the cover. And so you became like God with your kindness, patience, obedience, love for your brother and neighbors; you hate evil and suppress sinful passions in order to acquire the right to rule. 19. "And let them have dominion over the fish." It has been given to you to rule over fish devoid of reason; thereby you have become the ruler of blind passion. “And let them have dominion over the wild beasts.” You have dominion over every wild beast. But why, you say, are there wild animals inside me? Yes, and, moreover, myriads, a great multitude of wild beasts, are in you. And don’t take what was said as an insult! Anger is a wild beast when it screams in your heart. Isn't he more wild than any dog? Isn’t the cunning hidden in the insidious soul more ferocious than a cave bear? Isn't hypocrisy a wild beast? Isn't it a scorpion that stings with insults? Isn’t someone who is secretly preparing to take revenge more dangerous than a poisonous snake? Isn't ambition a ravenous wolf? What kind of wild beast is there in us! Isn’t a womanizer a lustful horse? “They,” says (Scripture), “are lustful horses, each of them neighs at his neighbor’s wife” (Jer. 5:8). It doesn’t say “talks to his wife,” but “laughs.” Scripture equates him, because of the passion to which he is devoted, with the nature of irrational beings. So, there are many animals in us. In fact, are you the ruler of wild animals if you rule over those that are outside, but are not able to curb those that are inside? You can subdue a lion with your mind, not paying attention to his roar, but at the same time you grind your teeth, make inarticulate sounds, and all your inner anger is ready to burst out at once. What could be more terrible than a person who cannot remain himself within himself, since he is subject to passion, since anger has driven away reason and taken possession of the soul? You were nevertheless created as a ruler, a ruler over passions, a ruler over wild animals, a ruler over reptiles, a ruler over birds. Do not be too high in your mind, do not be unstable and frivolous in your judgments. You are destined to rule over the birds. It’s absurd if you’re outside catching birds, but you yourself are frivolous and unstable. Do not be proud, do not be arrogant, do not think about what exceeds human nature; do not become inflated with praise, do not be arrogant, do not consider yourself something great. Otherwise, you will become like a restless bird, which, due to its mobile nature, rushes here and there. Master your thoughts to become the master of all beings. Thus, the power granted to us over living beings prepares us for power over ourselves. It is unacceptable for someone who is commanded at home to command nations, or for someone who is subordinate to a hetaera in private life to stand at the head of the state in public life. It should be that the one who perfectly arranges everything in his personal life and establishes order in his home should receive the right to rule over the rest (people). If disorder and confusion reign in your house, then the people under your control will turn to you with the saying: “Physician, heal yourself.” Therefore, first of all, let’s heal ourselves! No one will blame anyone who fails to catch a lion. On the contrary, everyone will laugh at those who do not know how to curb their anger. Therefore, one who does not control his own passions incurs condemnation, while one who could not overcome wild animals has clearly not yet done anything worthy of condemnation. 20. The Lord, who took care of the compilation of the Holy Scriptures, who allowed our small and weak voice to converse with you until now, who showed you, with the help of our weak reasoning, great treasures in these few reflections of truth, may this Lord grant to you all great things in small things, perfection of knowledge in a few shoots; May He give us the full reward for our desire to work, and may He give you the perfect fruit of enjoying the Word of God, for with Him is glory and power forever and ever. Amen. Conversation 11. Second conversation about the man Saint Basil the Great, Archbishop of Caesarea 31 1. The wise Solomon, wise “not by the convincing speeches of human wisdom,” but by the teachings of the Holy Spirit, glorifying man in the parable that was just read to us, exclaimed: “Man is a great creature, and a compassionate man is worthy of honor.” I vainly examined the concepts of man that had formed in my mind, as well as those learned from Scripture. I reasoned something like this: how can a man be great, a mortal being, subject to thousands of passions, enduring from birth to old age an innumerable multitude of evils, the one about whom it is said: “Lord, what is man that You remember him?” But if the Psalmist treats man with disdain as a being of little value, then the parable glorifies man as something great. 2. What brought me out of my predicament was reading the history of human creation. After all, we just heard that “God took dust from the earth” and “created man.” From these words I understood that man is both nothing and something great. If you look only at his nature, then he is nothing and is not worthy of anything; and if you pay attention to the honor that he received, then the man is something great. What kind of honor is this? “God said: let there be light, and there was light.” Compare the origin of man and the origin of light. Then He said: “Let there be a firmament.” And now the huge sky, created according to the word of God, spread over us. The stars, the sun, the moon - everything that we see with our own eyes and that we perceive in an unattainable height - all this came into existence according to the word of God. The sea, and the land, and everything that adorns them, various breeds of animals, various types of plants - all this was born according to the word. What about the person? It is not said: “Let there be man,” as it was said: “Let there be the firmament.” But you see something more in a person. The creation of man rises above everything: above the light, above the sky, above the stars, “The Lord God has taken.” He deigned to sculpt our body with his own hand. He did not give an order to the angel about this, and it was not the earth itself that spewed us out like grasshoppers, and God did not order the forces serving him to do this or that. But with his own – skillful – hand he took the land. If you look at what was taken, what will the person turn out to be? If you think about the One who created, then how great man appears! So, on the one hand, he is insignificant as matter, on the other hand, he is great in terms of the honor given to him. 3. "And God took it." But how can this be? After all, earlier we read: “And God created man,” but now we are talking again about the creation of man! History, as if we know nothing about man, says: “And God took dust from the earth and God molded man.” Some said that the word "fashioned" (επλασεν) refers to the body, and the word "created" (εποιησεν) refers to the soul. Perhaps this interpretation is not without truth. In fact, when it is said: “And God created man in the image of God he created him,” the word “created” is used. When we are told about the bodily essence (υποστασεως), the word “fashioned” is used. This difference between creation and molding is pointed out by the Psalmist when he says, “Thy hands have formed me and fashioned me.” He created the inner man, sculpted the outer man. After all, modeling deals with clay, and creation deals with what is in the likeness. Therefore the flesh is molded, but the soul is created. 4. And so, having expressed itself differently about the essence (υποστασεως) of the soul, Scripture now tells us about the formation of the body. Take this as your first argument. What is the other argument? First it is spoken about in general, and then it is conveyed how it happened. It was said above what God created, but here it is said how He created. After all, if it were simply said that God created, you would think that He created man in the same way as cattle, like wild animals, like plants, like grass. And so, so that you do not classify yourself as a wild animal, the Divine Word reports on the special art that God showed in creating you: “God took dust from the earth.” It says there what God created, here it says how He created it. He took dust from the ground and sculpted it with his own hands. Remember how you were created. Think about the workshop of this nature. The hand that took you is the hand of God. And what is fashioned by God must not be desecrated by vice, must not be perverted by sin; don't fall out of God's hand! You are a vessel created by God, descended from God; glorify the Creator. After all, you did not appear for the sake of anything else, but only in order to become an instrument worthy of the glory of God. And this whole world for you is like some kind of written book, telling about the glory of God, proclaiming to you the secret and invisible greatness of God, to you who have the mind to know the truth. So, remember carefully what has been said. 5. “And God blessed them, and said, Increase and multiply, and fill the earth.” There are two types of growth: one - of the body, the other - of the soul. The growth of the soul is the ascent through knowledge to perfection, and the growth of the body is the development from small to normal height. In fact, “grow” is said to dumb animals in the sense of bodily development, in the sense of improving their nature. When we are told to “grow,” it means the inner man and his growth in God. Such was Paul, striving forward, consigning to oblivion (achievement) in the past. This is the improvement of the worldview, the strengthening of piety, the striving for the better, so that we always adhere to true being, to the oblivion of what has been achieved, in order to strive for what is lacking for piety. Isaac did the same, about whom the Scripture contains the following testimony: “And the man was magnified and became very great” (Gen. 26.13). For he did not retreat (from his path) and did not stop, having achieved little success, but constantly moved forward with large steps, ascending through the deeds of virtue: with a quick step he passed through abstinence, achieved justice, and from it rose to courage. This is how, by moving purposefully, the righteous reaches the highest point of goodness. So, “grow” by growing according to God and improving according to the inner man. “Multiply”: this (addressed) to the Church. Let there not be theology for one, but let the Gospel of salvation be preached throughout the whole earth. "Multiply!" Who does this apply to? To those who were born according to the Gospel. "Fill the earth." Fill the flesh given to us for service with good deeds. Let the eye be filled with contemplation of what is proper. Let the hand be filled with good deeds, let the feet be ready to visit the weak, let them go where they should 32. Let all our members in their entirety be fully occupied with the works commanded to us. This is what it means to “fill the earth.” Thus, these words also apply to the dumb, but they acquire a special meaning for us, who have the image that we have been honored with. For they grow physically, but we grow spiritually; and some fill the earth with their multitude, and we fill the earth associated with us with good deeds, that is, (carry out) bodily service. 6. “Behold, I have given you every tree that has fruit in it, it will be for you to eat.” Let the Church leave nothing neglected: everything is law. (God) did not say: “I have given you fish for food, I have given you cattle, reptiles, and four-legged animals.” (Scripture) says that this is not why He created them. But the first legislation allowed the eating of the fruits: after all, we were still considered worthy of heaven. What does the secret hidden here mean to you? Fruits for you and for wild animals and birds, says (Scripture), as well as greens and herbs: “for you to eat, for the birds of the air and for all the wild animals on earth.” However, we see that many of the animals do not eat fruits. In fact, what kind of fruit does a panther take for food? What fruit can you feed a lion? But still, these (creatures) ate some kind of fruits intended by the law of nature. When man deviated (from the law) and went beyond the limits assigned to him, God after the flood, knowing the immoderation of people, allowed them to eat everything: “Eat all this like green herbs.” With this permission, other living beings received an unhindered choice in food. So, from that time on, the lion devours meat, the kites wait for carrion. But in those days when animals were born, kites had not yet looked for (this) on the ground. After all, nothing that received its purpose and existence from God has yet died, and the kites could not get enough of it. And there was no discord in nature, for it was in full bloom; hunters have not yet killed (animals), because people have not yet had such an activity (like hunting). And the animals did not torment anyone, because they were not carnivorous. It is the custom of kites to feed on corpses: at that time there were neither corpses nor the smell of corpses, and the food of kites was different. But everyone lived like swans and fed in the meadows. We often see dogs eating grass as medicine, and it's not because it's their natural food; unreasonable creatures, driven by natural instinct, go towards what is useful to them. From this draw the conclusion that in those days carnivorous animals acted in the same way; they considered grass their food and did not attack each other. 7. As the first creation was, so must the subsequent restoration be. A person returns to his previous state, rejecting vice, this busy life, the slavery of the soul to everyday worries; having rejected all this, he again turns to heavenly life, freed from slavery to carnal passions, to a free life in close proximity to God, to an angelic life. We said this not because we want to refuse the food that God gives us, but because we praised the past, what life was like, to what extent it was free from (all) need, how little people needed for their life, and how whimsical our way of life leads to sinfulness. Once deprived of genuine heavenly pleasures, we began to invent counterfeit food for ourselves. And since we no longer see the tree of life and do not admire its beauty with an exalted soul, then for our delight we have been given cooks and bakers, all kinds of cookies, aromatic substances and other similar things that console us in our exile from there. Thus, patients, exhausted by a serious illness, cannot participate in ordinary pleasures and receive reinforcement from doctors in the form of aromatic and other similar remedies; Since they have lost the pleasure of more solid food, doctors who indulge their senses invent remedies for the sick that suit their weaknesses. Therefore, now, since we strive to imitate the life of paradise, we should avoid excessive enjoyment of food and adhere, as far as possible, to a certain way of life: use the products of the earth, seeds and hard fruits to support life, and discard everything in addition as unnecessary. And although the Creator has not made this unacceptable, it is still not to be preferred, even if pleasure is achieved for the body. 8. “And God rested from all his work on the seventh day.” Let experts in the science of numbers and those who have studied this kind of subjects and consider knowledge in this area to be something important, say that the number “six” is akin to the creation of the world in its fertility, since it gives birth to many numerical combinations and is perfect in its parts. As for the theories about the six expounded by mathematicians in school discussions, let those who have leisure talk about this separately. Let them also say about seven that there is a certain sterility in this number, because the number “seven” does not give birth to anything from itself and is not itself born from another. To avoid becoming too engrossed in this vast subject, I will say a little about it and move on to what is easier to understand. Let those knowledgeable in these matters know that the treasure of this knowledge lies within us. That's why this is where the seeds of mathematics are, if mathematics is something important. Since this science is generated by the wisdom of the world or is itself the wisdom of the world, we do not intend to boast that we ourselves have borrowed something from significant works. And in order to show these people that what they are researching with such great zeal is despicable in our eyes, we will pass over the study of these issues in silence; besides, theorizing on this matter will not be understandable to everyone. But the Church does not exist to listen to abstract reasoning, but to seek solutions to problems of housebuilding. 9 . So, the seventh day, that is, Saturday, was a particularly revered day. The seventh was held in high esteem by the Jews; the feasts of tabernacles, trumpets and propitiation fell on it. They revered the seventh year, called the year of remission of debts. During the era when they owned the Promised Land, they were allowed to cultivate the land for six years, but in the seventh year they had to be content with what grew naturally. The Jew was a slave for six years, and in the seventh year he was freed from slavery. In the seventieth year their captivity ended. However, let's return to our subject. Seven times, as (Scripture) says, the righteous will fall and rise. So gradually the number seven comes into our everyday life. Enoch, the seventh from creation, did not see death: this is the secret of the Church. Being the seventh after Abraham, Moses received the law, which was a change of life, the fall of iniquity, 33 the introduction of justice, the descent of God, order in the world, the legislation of what should be done. In the seventy-seventh generation from Adam Christ appeared. 10. Peter knew the hidden meaning of seven. “How many times must I forgive my brother who sins against me? Up to seven times? Peter did not know the secret enough; he had not yet known her, since he was only a student. “Up to seven times?” The Teacher did not neglect the seven either; as for the student, he said what he knew. The Lord was incomparably superior to him. “How many times must I forgive my brother who sins against me?” Why didn’t he (Peter) ask: “Isn’t it up to six times?”, “Isn’t it up to eight times?”, but asked: “Is it up to seven times?” Why did the Lord not answer: “up to a hundred hundred,” but multiply the number seven? Neither Peter used another number in his question, nor did the Lord go beyond the canon of “seven.” Peter noted that this tradition is ancient, that the seven signifies a certain remission of sins, the final rest, the sign of which is the Sabbath, the seventh day after the beginning of creation. Peter reached seven times, the Lord reached seventy times. Sins are punished seven times. Isn’t it said: “Whoever kills Cain will be avenged seven times”? And here we are talking about seven, and, say, not eight. Why? Be patient a little and you will discover the secret. The first offense is punishable seven times. The second sin was murder committed by Lamech. “If Cain is avenged sevenfold, then Lamech is avenged seventy times seven.” If for Peter the sevenfold remission goes back to the punishment of Cain, then the condescension from the Lord to forgive (sins) up to seven times seventy times corresponds to the condemnation of Lamech seventy times seven. No matter how great the sin, so is the mercy. Where the sin is small, the remission is small, for to whom little is left, loves little. “Where sin abounded, grace abounded all the more.” What, however, is the secret? The eighth day is the time of judgment when the sinner will be punished seven times, and the one who has committed a serious crime - seventy times seven. The righteous is rewarded seven times, and the super-righteous is rewarded seventy times seven. Now, due to God’s love for mankind, we comprehend the future by fortune, but then, during the coming, the truth will appear bright and transparent: it will show who is worthy of what. So, the Lord grants us sinners sevenfold remission of sins, taking pity on us for the sake of our confession and repentance. That is why, knowing this terrible day and the opportunity given to sinners to pay off their debts, let us, through repentance, offer in advance retribution corresponding to the debt, the misdeeds committed, and destroy our sins in order to avoid then (on the day of judgment) the oppressive abundance of debts. So, let's say that now is the seventh day before that eighth day of reckoning (for the sins) of this age. 11. “And God rested from His works.” On this day there is no more work, no weddings, no trade deals in the world; no rural work is being done, but the whole earth is in a stupor, the creature is in confusion, everyone is in the sweat of their brow. Even the righteous will be anxious about what lot will fall to them. Even Abraham will then experience fear, not because he too may be condemned to Gehenna, but in anticipation of the determination of which rank of righteous he will be placed in: first, second or third: the Lord descends from heaven, and the heavens themselves open up, all power is revealed, all creation trembles. Who is free from fear? Even the angels (in awe)! Although they are not present to give an answer to God, the glorious appearance inspires awe in everyone. Do you not hear what Isaiah says: “If You were to rend the heavens, the mountains would shake before You.” On that day the seas will freeze, creation will cease, nature will freeze. Any appeal to words is meaningless in the face of the One who comes from heaven. Then the righteous will be caught up, and the clouds will serve as a chariot for the righteous; then angels will accompany the righteous, then the righteous will ascend from earth to heaven, like the stars. Sinners, in chains, under the burden of their sins, will fall into the underworld with their guilty conscience. That seventh day is typified by this seventh day: “And God rested from all His work.” On this day there should no longer be room for excessive worldly worries. Youthful passions have subsided, there is no desire for marriage, there is no desire to have children, there is no worry about gold, you, a money lover, have forgotten about your purse; you, landowner, have forgotten about land holdings; you, ambitious man, have forgotten about fame. All this flew out of my thoughts. The soul is before Him Who inspires fear; she (is embraced) by the anticipation of threatening horrors. Fear drives out all passionate thoughts that have settled in our souls. Where the fear of God is present, all stains of passion disappear from our thoughts. This is the seventh day - the imprint of that seventh day. 12. “God took dust from the earth and God molded man.” The creation of the world was not completed. The narrative is not interrupted by the insertion of a story about what concerns us, but it is said: “God created man and rested from all His works.” And when He surrendered to rest, (Scripture) informs us of exactly how God created: “God took dust from the earth.” When you hear the word “dust,” learn to be fearless. Don't judge a person by his appearance. Why are you so proud? When thoughts like a wormhole come to you and confuse your heart, be filled with memories of creation, of how you were created: “God took dust from the earth and God molded man.” When can you forget about yourself? You then forget about yourself when you tear yourself away from the earth, and if you are never separated from the earth, but have grown together with the earth, then you walk on the earth, rest on the earth, judge on the earth. Whatever you do on earth, great or small, you are always accompanied by a reminder of your insignificance. Are you proud and hot-tempered? Where does your anger come from? From lack of respect? Can't you bear to hear about your humble origins? Do you immediately feel angry? Are you trying to express yourself worse than what you heard? Lower your gaze and your anger will cease. Look at the earth and think: he said that I, who came from the earth, am of low birth. He said less significant compared to what I am; After all, he did not say that I am from the earth, but he said that I am from man. How much more worthy is a man who has a soul than the ground that is trodden down! I look at the earth as an ancient mother, therefore to be born of a slave is not a shame, but an honor, since I was born with a soul. The one who thought to insult me, without knowing it, rather honored me than insulted me. I, for my part, have an understanding of my nature, I know who I am and where I came from. Thus, the memory that we came from the earth never allows our anger to awaken. May the earth, eternally existing and reminding of itself, be a companion to the mind! 13. Whenever you run, driven by passion, you run on the ground. Remember how you came (into the world); if you realize that you will turn to earth, then the madness of your passion will cease. “You are earth and to earth you will return.” Remember that these members, in which the blood now pulsates, will soon no longer exist, just as the present carnal passion will no longer exist, for the members will disintegrate and turn to earth. Remember (your) nature - and all desire for vice will cease. May this remembrance be a warning to us from all sin. “God fashioned man, dust from the earth.” A beautiful detraction, and the remembrance of this is in accordance with nature. If (Scripture) said: “God molded man, taking (something) from the sky,” then when would we look at it (the sky) to remember (our) nature? The reminder of our unworthiness lies beneath our hands and feet. Bend down to the earth and understand that you are created from what is akin to the earth and what is base in you. What is more pathetic in the world than us? What can humiliate us more than ourselves? Have you seen any proud man, dressed in colorful clothes, with a sparkling ring on his hand, with a precious stone - the object of his pride, dressed in silk fabrics, having servants, growing long and, moreover, red hair, walking importantly and decorously, wearing golden necklaces, sitting on a silver throne, majestic in manners, arrogant, arrogantly speaking in front of a crowd of servants and flatterers whom he drags with him everywhere? Have you not seen him at a sumptuous meal, during the greetings that are lavished on him by everyone in public places: some rising from their benches, others walking towards him, others accompanying him, and others taking on the role of guardians of order? When you see how these rulers speak, before whom a herald walks with a loud cry; when you see how they intimidate one, torture another, confiscate property from one, put another to death, do not be afraid of what you see, in (such) events, do not be afraid of the one who caused them; Let your imagination not deprive you of your reason. Remember that God fashioned man, dust from the earth. If this is not so, be afraid; if this person is dust from the earth, despise him. 14. “And God fashioned man.” The expression “fashioned” does not at all reveal to us the process of God’s action in relation to man. “God sculpted.” Has He not fashioned it as one molds from clay, or as one casts from copper? But the sculpting of the statue and the casting of plaster reproduce only the outer side. You have probably noticed that every statue expresses characteristic features. The warrior statue expresses courage; the bronze figure, which is given the shape of a woman, conveys femininity; or the statue expresses something else, insofar as art is capable of reproducing characteristic traits of character through imitation. The molding done by God is completely different. He sculpted man, and His creative power, starting from within, arranged all the internal organs in strict order. If I had enough free time to explain to you the structure of man, you would, by your own example, comprehend the Divine wisdom (manifested) in you, for man is truly a microcosm (small world), and those who called him by this name did the right thing. How many studies have been devoted to this issue! The works of doctors on physiology, the manuals compiled by gymnastics teachers, which talk about the relationship of body parts, their symmetry and the distribution of muscles - all this testifies to the sculpting of a person. Where will I find words that could accurately convey how much is contained in just one expression: “He sculpted”? As for what is publicly available, you know that yourself, even if I don’t say anything about it. 15. God created man standing upright. He gave you an upright position as an advantage over other living beings. – Because He intended to give you an exceptional ability. All other living beings are cattle, their bodily structure corresponds to what they were born for. Cattle were born to graze, so their head is tilted down, and their gaze is turned to the stomach and what is under the stomach, since the limit of happiness for cattle is the filling of the stomach and pleasure. Man does not look at his stomach, his head is at the top and is set straight in order to look at the height related to man. His eyes are not lowered to the ground. So don’t act contrary to nature. Fix your gaze not on earthly things, but on heavenly things, where Christ is. “If you have been raised with Christ,” says Scripture, “then seek the things that are above, where Christ is.” This is how you were sculpted. This very modeling teaches you the purpose for which you were born. You were born to look up to God, and not to crawl on the ground; not to enjoy the pleasures of beasts, but to prepare ourselves for the Kingdom of Heaven. That is why “a wise man has eyes on his head,” as the wise Ecclesiastes says. Who doesn't have eyes on their head? “On the head” - this is in order to contemplate the things above. On the contrary, whoever contemplates not what is above, but what is earthly, his gaze is directed to the earth. 16. The eyes are round in shape. The head is on the shoulders, but is not hidden in them, so as not to be lowered; it rests on a worthy elevation - on the neck. At the top there is a head, at the top there are two looking eyes. Wouldn't one eye be enough for me? But two eyes can replace each other, so that if one is damaged, the other can come to the rescue. In addition, vision in one eye is poor; on the contrary, the (visual) imprint formed from two sources becomes more distinct. Gazes directed forward slide along the walls of the nose, and when they go beyond them, they join together. Like a stream of water, two views emerge from two sources (vision), one from one, the other from another, but soon, merging, they unite. The look, which has become unified, is naturally stronger. What is the evidence that the view becomes unified? Don't you notice that old people don't see what's nearby? Since the double gaze is weak, it does not see what is close. And where the views merge together, a kind of visual flood occurs, in which the perception of sensory things becomes more distinct. How many protectors are there around the eyes? There is a shell inside (χιτων), but it is not enough: after all, it could not be dense. If it were dense, it would interfere with vision. It had to be transparent and light. In any case, one shell is transparent, the other is thin; one is crystal-shaped, the other is horn-shaped; the outer one is thicker, the inner one is thinner, so as not to interfere with the passage (view). And the third is crystal-shaped, so as to capture the image and be transparent. The eyelid serves as protection; it is a cover and veil, a kind of dwelling and refuge. A hand can also block (the eyes). But while waiting for it to rise, the eye may lose sight. The eyelid is located very close to the eye, located above it. As soon as it senses danger, it immediately protects the eye like a curtain. That is why the pupil, which is under a protective cover, is always difficult to touch. Of all our organs, only the eye, hiding under the cover of the eyelid, wants to remain inaccessible. He is surrounded by eyelashes. For what? So that the closure of the upper and lower eyelids is accomplished more accurately, because the eyelashes, like laces, cross each other. In addition, they drive away small insects and prevent dust from settling on the pupil, which for various reasons can cause vision loss. This is a kind of guard placed around us like eyelashes. This protection is pleasant in appearance and brings benefits. The eyebrow hanging over the eye is a kind of elevation for directing the gaze in a straight line. What is the proof of this? When you want to look into the distance and, bending your hand, put it to your eyebrows, why are you doing this? So that the gaze directed upward does not accidentally scatter, but with the help of the attached hand receives the desired direction and rushes forward, and so that the vision corrected in this way is more accurate and sharp. Thanks to the application of the hand, the gaze is directed along the desired path. Eyebrows at the same time guide the gaze and do not allow the sweat that appears during hard work to drip (onto the eyes) and interfere with vision. This is why eyebrows serve as a kind of protective wall. What kind of winegrower can so successfully position his vineyard, fencing it with a rampart so that no one else can climb in, and so that this place is inaccessible to the surrounding water streams, as the Lord did by building a fence of eyebrows? How carefully He drew their contours for our benefit, distributing them on both sides of the nose, emanating from a single joint, so that the sweat would flow down the edges (of the face) and would not cause inconvenience to the farmer, and so that it would not be necessary to lift the hand from the vineyard to wipe the sweat; while the sweat flows down its own channels, for the Creator from the very beginning provided channels for the downward drainage, the eye can carry out its purpose without hindrance. 17. If we only wanted to talk about the skill with which God has arranged everything in us, we would not have enough for a full day. But from just one example given, you can get an idea of ​​the whole. Let us go with prayers on the necessary journey, which we hastily undertook, in order to return to you healthy and unharmed and to repay to you the remaining debt by the grace of the Lord who arranged everything for us, who created us by His mercy, for to Him be glory forever and ever. Amen. Abstract to the X and XI Conversations Saint Basil of Caesarea on the creation of man (10 and 11 conversations on the Sixth Day). Abstract to conversations published in Russian Two sermons-conversations by St. Basil the Great, Bishop of Caesarea, “On the Creation of Man” are published in Russian for the first time. However, they do not represent a completely new discovery. The patristic tradition knew and carefully passed them on from century to century in numerous manuscripts. There was no certainty regarding the authorship of these conversations: some publishers attributed them to Basil the Great, others to his brother, Saint Gregory of Nyssa. Ultimately, the authorship began to be attributed to the latter on the basis of a comment by St. Gregory of Nyssa, who, in the preface to his work “On the Structure of Man,” says that in the “Six Days” of his brother Basil “there is a lack of discussion about man,” and at the same time makes it clear that he himself intends to fill this gap. In fact, Saint Basil the Great ends the ninth conversation of his Shestodnev, which until now was considered the last, with the words: “What is the fact of man’s likeness to God? This is what, God willing, we will talk about in our next conversations.” Soon after this he died (January 1, 379), and his Six Days, consisting of nine sermons, continued to be distributed in the same volume. On this basis, and also thanks to the remark of Gregory of Nyssa, some of the later publishers formed the conviction that the great champion of Orthodox doctrine never managed to fulfill his promise. French scientists, patrollers Alexis Smets and Michel van Esbroeck, have been involved in establishing the authorship of these works for several years. They comprehensively examined the surviving thirty-three most ancient manuscripts (X-XIV centuries), found traces of these works in the patristic literary tradition and irrefutably proved that their true author was Saint Basil the Great, Bishop of Caesarea. The authors of the study, A. Smets and M. van Esbroek, consider the reason for the separate existence of the first nine conversations entitled “The Six Days” and the two subsequent “On the Creation of Man” to be the author’s illness, which St. Basil refers to at the beginning of the 10th conversation: “I am beginning to pay off an old debt in full; I delayed its return not out of malice, but because of bodily weakness.” It is natural to assume, the researchers say, that when the last two conversations appeared, the first ones had already been published as a separate collection. Did Saint Gregory of Nyssa know about the existence of these two sermons of his brother? Researchers answer this question in the affirmative. So why is he keeping them quiet? French patrolologists see the reason for this in the historical situation of the 70s - 80s of the 4th century, in the acute ideological struggle between the defenders of Orthodoxy led by Basil the Great, and after his death - Gregory of Nyssa and the champions of the Arian heresy, led by the Arian rhetorician Eunomius. For tactical reasons, during these events, Saint Gregory of Nyssa found it necessary to come up with his own treatise on the same topic. However, these two works of St. Basil the Great did not perish. Undoubted evidence of his authorship has also been preserved: in a number of manuscripts, the most ancient and least subject to arbitrary stylistic and doctrinal retouching, these two sermons are reproduced with the indication of the authorship of St. Basil the Great and usually follow numbers 10 and 11 immediately after the “Six Days”, or appear as an independent work. His authorship is supported by references to these works in various forms by Procopius of Gaza (VI century), in Loci communes (authorship is controversial; Maximus the Confessor, d. 662; John of Damascus, d. about 749: Anthony Melissa, 11th century), by Patriarch Nicephorus of Constantinople (d. 829). These works are fully reproduced under the name of St. Basil, although with appropriate doctrinal erasures, in the Anthology of the Iconoclastic Council of 815. In a number of ancient manuscripts, after the title to these two works, there is a short commentary on the attitude of the publisher to the question of authorship. Here is one of them: “You need to know that these two conversations are questioned by some: do they belong to Basil the Great? If we believe the late Theodore the Studite and his evidence, then we must admit that they really belong to this famous Father. Be that as it may, they must be preserved and revered, because the grace of the Holy Spirit operates in all saints.” The belonging of the nine conversations of the “Sex Day” of two sermons to the pen of one author is also convincingly proven by the unity of style, composition of these works, methods of addressing the audience, etc., which is masterfully analyzed in the study of A. Smets and M. van Ebroek. The pathological study of A. Smets and van Esbroeck, published in the series "Christian Sources" (No. 160, Paris, 1970) eliminated any doubts regarding their affiliation with St. Basil the Great. In the edition taken for this translation (ZhMP, No. 1, pp. 29–30, and No. 3, p. 33), each conversation is preceded by an outline written in Greek, and the publishers’ subtitles to the chapters of each conversation are in French. Here is their Russian translation: Introduction. On the need to know oneself (1). Miracle of the body (2). “Let us make man” (Gen. 1.26). “Let us create”: divine reflection (3). “Let Us Create”: An Expression of Trinitarian Theology (4). “In Our image” (Gen. 1.26). There should be no crude ideas about God (5). Man is in the image thanks to reason (6–7). “Let them rule” (Genesis 1.26). Granting power (8). Superiority over animals (9–10). “And God created man” (Gen. 1.27). “And God blessed them, and God said to them, “Grow and multiply” (Gen. 1.28). Human; its increase and reproduction (11–14). “In the image of God he created him” (Gen. 1.27). Image and likeness (15–16). Similarity through Christianity (17). “Male and female he created them” (Gen. 1.27). Woman is also in the image of God (18). “And let them rule” (Gen. 1.26). Moral Conclusions (19). 1. In previous conversations, the Holy Father promised to teach us what it means to be “man in the image” and how he participates in the likeness. After a pause, he remembers his promise and says: “I am beginning to pay off the old debt in full.” 2. In a previous conversation he showed that the Father said to the Son: “Let Us make man in Our image.” 3. About the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, whose glory is one. 4. What does “in the image of God” mean? 5. God is known not by external form, but by power. 6. Our being “in the image” does not depend on the form of the body, but the corruptible owes its form to the incorruptible. 7. Comparison, regarding the body, of man with a camel and wild animals. 8. We have been given the power of dominion. 9 . Dominion over the sea animals was given to us first of all. 10. Dolphins and their obedience. 11. Human ingenuity. 13. Panthers that people play with. 17. Like the growth of other animals, man begins small and reaches full growth. 19. Dividing the land into three parts: one for residence, the other for agriculture, and the third for pastures for four-legged animals. 20. Being in the image and likeness. We possess the first by virtue of creation, the second we acquire through the effort of will. 21. How we become in our likeness. 22. Woman: she also has being in the image, just like man. 23. How do we become like God? 24. A refutation of those who claim that there are no wild animals in us. 25. How to rule over the passions and wild beasts that are within us. Introduction. The insignificance and greatness of man. “And the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground” (Gen. 2.7). Creation and sculpting (3–4). “And the Lord blessed them: Be fruitful and multiply” (Gen. 1.28). Growth and reproduction (5). “Behold, I have given you every tree that bears fruit” (Gen. 1.29).” Plant paradise (6–7). “And the Lord rested on the seventh day” (Genesis 2.2). Rejection of pagan theories about the week (8). Week in Scripture (9). Week and remission of sins (10). The seventh day and the last coming (11). “And the Lord took from the dust of the ground” (Gen. 2.7). The earthly essence of man (12–13). “And the Lord God created man” (Genesis 2.7). Divine modeling is not like the work of a sculptor (14). Structure of the human body (15). Miracle of the eye (16). 1. Comparison between the origin of man and the origin of light. 2. For irrational beings, the word “grow” was said in the sense of bodily improvement, but for us - in relation to the inner man. 3. Even carnivores once ate the fruits of the earth. 4. Kites usually feed on corpses. 5. Doctors treating the sick, in accordance with the heavenly regime, prohibit rich food and cure the disease with the help of fruits and grains. 6. About mathematics and those who indulge in sciences of this kind. 7. The seventh day, that is, Saturday. 8. The eighth day is the day of the Lord or the day of Judgment. 9 . The day of the next century and what will happen on this day. 10. Earthly affairs will be abandoned on that day. 11. Remembering that we are born from dust curbs anger. 12. About the proud and vain. 13. The structure of irrational creatures and the structure of man. 14. The eye and its inner membranes. 15. Eyelids and protectors (eyes). 17. Eyebrow fence, comparison with a vineyard. St. Basil probably meant here the translation of Aquila, according to which it reads: In the original, as in the Seventy: οι κρικοι actually - rings; Aquila and Theodotion have αι βασεις foundations, which is closer to the Hebrew original. The previous opinion belongs to Plato, and the last to Aristotle. Duceus advises reading here: the external from the internal, in agreement with Theodoret, who in question 6 on the book of Genesis borrows this entire passage from St. Basil. The following information about rivers was taken by St. Basil for the most part from Aristotle (see Αριςοτελυς Μετεωρολογικα, lib. 1, p. XIII). Jerome, in letter 61, attributes this opinion to Origen. Aristotle, in his Meteorology book. 1, ch. 14, says that Sesostris was the first of the ancients to attempt to unite these seas, but found that the sea was higher than the earth. This later forced Darius to stop working. Here, of course, is the connection of the Indian or Southern Ocean with the Atlantic Ocean, which in the time of St. Basil, due to the obscurity of the southern African countries, had not yet been clearly proven, but was subject to guesswork. Μελανα πειρον; This is wheat, native to Sicily itself, but also degenerating from ordinary wheat, and is harmless when consumed. In Hezechius we read the following explanation of this word: Μισχος: this is what they call something that is attached to a plant, either a fruit or a leaf. Μισχος, grain on a leaf. Here St. Basil probably has in mind a passage from Hosea the prophet (Hosea 10.1), which, according to the translation of Symmachus, reads: αμπελος υλημανουσα Ισραηλ, the many-branched vine Israel. Fruitful dust on a male tree, which some ancient naturalists represented in the form of worms or midges, which probably led them to their observation of fig trees. For the insect known as the gall moth, nesting on these trees and becoming covered with dust from the stamens, transfers this dust to the female flowers and fertilizes them. From the genus of bindweed (convolvulus): it produces a pungent and milky juice from the root, which has a strong laxative property, like jalappa root. This is the name given to the shells in which the enclosed animals release silk. In the original, drepans, which Pliny classifies as legless birds, and according to Eustathius’ translation, are merois. Or alcyonic. These are 7 days before the winter solstice, and the same number of days after it. St. Basil probably means here the Egyptian raven, which in Egypt was a symbol of the Mother Goddess, and in general the feminine principle of Nature. The Egyptians thought about this breed of raven that there was no male gender in it. See Hora Apollo. Lib. I. cap. II. Amm. Marc. XVII. 4, 11. Galen testifies to how the Sedeucids pursue and exterminate locusts, de locis affectis lib. 6.cap. 3. Eustathius translates margas (dive). Salmasius notes that the name Syrah (σιρες) may belong to both silkworms and the people from whom silk originally became known, namely the Chinese. Λαχανα αγρια. With these words St. Basil translates the Hebrew word Αριοθ left untranslated by the Seventy. This is the name of the annual herb, also known by the name: royal scepter. This work of St. Basil the Great (329–379) was preserved in ancient Greek copies and represents the completion of his “Six Days.” Until now, it was attributed to his brother, Saint Gregory of Nyssa. This Conversation 1 is in the original text published in , t. 160. Papis, 1970, p. 166–220. such an inscription: Περι της του ανθρωπου γενεσεως λογος Α᾿εις το κατ᾿εικοωα. Translation made from this edition. There is also an isagogical study by Alexis Smits (pp. 13–157), who is more inclined to translate the title of this Discourse - “The Descent of Man.” those. This testimony does not say something. – Ed. The second conversation has the inscription: Του αυτου εις τον ανθροπον. Option: they will be quick to fulfill their duty Option: liberation from sin You might be interested in: