49. Man alone, of those that are on the earth, is not to be persuaded to take up his residence in the caves that are in the deserts, or in the heights. He accordingly builds cities with walls, and adorns (these) with streets, palaces, mansions, and other edifices.
50. Man alone, of those that are on the earth, considers not of (his) provision after the unchangeable manner and |43 usages of the irrational animals. For these, destitute (as they are) of knowledge, avail themselves of the aid of nature alone, and receive their provision from the stem, unprepared by agriculture, and uncleansed from the weed. He however, by his knowledge cleanses (this); thus too does he pulverize, fully season, and make it well to pass the fire. Of the wheat also he will, whenever he pleases, make bread. He is moreover, careful so to provide, that a healthy provision of food may be secured. And every profitable commodity, either of the vine, the olive, or of the fruit tree of every flavour, does he appropriate; and these does he alone apply to the sanative uses of the body.
51. This (being) alone, of those that are on the earth, has, by means of rule and reason, discovered that mode of life which is regular and orderly:----has become a leader of armies; has engaged in the public conflicts, and in the subsidiary arts: and these very many (things), pertaining to doctrine, has he, by his rational superiority, put forth.
52. This (being) alone, of those that are on the earth, preserving (in himself) the model of excellence, has determined the measure, the weights, the extents, and several sorts, of justice. He too, distinguishes,----governing (all) by reason,----the things which should, and should not, be done: and (hence) he knows, how to give to every one, as it shall be right. The fishes however, the birds, and the animals, will devour one another: because no law (prevails) among them. But to men has (God) given justice, which is their supreme excellence, as says one of the poets , (and) according to my opinion, extremely well. |44
53. This (being) alone, of those that are on the earth, evincing within himself the image of THE WORD OF GOD, erects on high a house of judgment; and, acting after the manner of God's just Judge , duly determines (the award) of life and of death; apportioning life to some, and assigning death to others.
54. This (being) alone, of those that are on the earth, will confide his life to the small section of a tree . He has also discovered the science of ship-building. He too will guide the ship on the back of the sea; will commit his person to the depths of the humid element, and beat back the death that stands at his side. He (alone) looks up to the heavens, and to that Governour of all, who binds together all distances, as to the safety of those who navigate (the seas).
55. Man alone, of those that are on the earth, has discovered the doctrines of astronomy: has, while moving below in the body, and clothed with the weight of mortality, ascended up in his mind on high; and, making the circuit of the sun, the moon, and the stars, foretells what shall come to pass, as he also does the eclipses of the moon, the vicissitudes of the seasons, and the changes of times. |45
56. Man alone, of those that are on the earth, is viewed (as) the assistant of nature; has discovered the means of healing; and has, by his understanding, applied (to this) the powers of roots, and of drugs, with their combination and mixture by weight and due proportion. He too has become skilful in the healing of infirm bodies, and the helps of the life of man.
57. This (being) alone, of those that are on the earth, not having arrived at the manner of life of the graminivorous (animals), has well applied (himself) to (the requirements of his own) nature. In the winter season he accordingly casts the seed into the earth; and, applying the sweat of his labour to agriculture, is repaid in the autumn with the fruits consequent upon his toil.
58. This (being) alone, of those that are on the earth, collects together, by (his) rational knowledge, the doctrines relating to all (things); the science and composition of music, as well as (that of) investigation by discussion. He also proceeds on to the manner of life, and to the fame attendant on philosophy; and (thus) he hastens forward the love of that superiority, which is vested within him: availing himself, not of the bodily sense, but of the faculty of knowledge, and of the stimulating power of reason.
59. Man alone, of those that are on the earth, bears about him, by means of his memory, the histories of things done in former times; converses with those who are (now) no more, as with those who are at hand: examines the opinions of the wise who have existed at any period; and from these, rather than from those who are his contemporaries, does he receive profit. And (thus) by the faculty of reason,----cognate with that of thought,----does he exist with those who have long ceased to be.
60. This (being) alone, of those that are on the earth, duly regulates the voice of the chant, by the divisions |46 of the chord. He also has divided the primary letters (of the alphabet) by the grammatical art, and has discovered the powers and province of reason. He too, has determined the combination of verbs and of nouns, as well as the precepts of rhetoric and grammar. All these moreover, does he bring together, preserve in his memory, and bring forward, as stores filled with every sort of treasure. In one mind too, does he comprehend both the events and histories of former times; and these will he bring forth whenever he pleases, as a river from an unfailing source, and inundate (therewith) the hearing of all present.
61. Man alone, of those that are on the earth, is, in his works, like unto God who is over all. Any thing which he pleases will he form into animals; even this inanimate matter will he change into the form, figure, and fashion, of every sort of creature. By means of this instructive nature, (and) the reasoning faculty, will he set about emulating (even) the Maker of all things; and man will make man, at one time in stone; at another, in wood; at another, in flowers of (many) colours; as well as in the forms that are impervious to change: and (indeed) every sort of animal and of plant, will he, by the same means, imitate: shewing forth fully, by his works, the power (vested within him) of the image of God.
62. This (being) alone, of those that are on the earth, will imitate on the earth whereon he walks, the celestial sphere, and will engrave on the matter of brass the likeness of the very heavens, and on this will he impress a copy of the stars, both wandering and fixed. He will also appoint, by the modeller's art, the limits both of times and of seasons; and will surround the exterior (of his sphere) with the images of (various) animals. By the abundance of (his) knowledge moreover, and the means of (many) observations, will he imitate the heavenly sphere; and,----like God,----will allow the heavens whose revolutions |47 are above the earth, and with the universal whole,---- and whose revolving is an unceasing miracle,----to revolve with the things that are on the earth, (in) the similitude which is of earthly material. The angel of the seasons too, will shout (as it were) with a loud voice, and all, at once and in a moment, are in motion; the doors, too, at the coming in of the seasons , throw themselves open (as it were) of their own accord, and the inanimate images of the birds, placed round about it (the sphere), speak out in chirpings . The moon also which is on the earth, runs its course with that in the heavens; and the (mere) brass of itself, changes its fashions, after the manner of the moon; shewing itself now dichotomized, now on the wane, and now in its full light. Thus the images of the seasons follow the analogy of those in nature, and the human-made world contends with (that of) the workmanship of THE WORD OF GOD!
63. Man alone, of those that are on the earth, can, by means of words not to be uttered, of prayers acceptable to God, and by virtue of the fear of God, (evinced) both in word and life, drive far away the invisible nature of concealed demons . But further, when he had even departed |48 from the right way, he could effect all this by a power, such as would, by songs and incantations, subject the kind of these which flies in the air; and, again, would seize, by means of force, and the appetencies restrictive of nature, those unembodied powers which fly over any part of the earth, just as they would the flying sparrows. He would lead on, or bind, (these), whenever he chose: and, sitting upon the images of fabricated gods, would shew by these his doings, that his own power was far superior to that of the fabricated deity of such.
64. Man alone shews of what kind the superiority of (his) intellectual and incorporeal being is, and establishes (the fact) that (this) his power is impervious either to subjugation or deterioration by calamity. For, he will prepare his body for the fire, the sword, the fierce beasts, (and) the depths of the sea; and he will approach every species of torment. He knows too, this his nature, that it is perishable and fleeting, transient and dissoluble. But that which resides within, is unyielding; and, that this is different from that which perishes, he proved who cried |49 out, "Bruise, bruise the form ; but me thou wilt not bruise." And again another, proclaiming with freedom of speech: " Burn or roast the body, and be satisfied with me when thou hast drunk my blackened blood; but, before the stars descend to the earth, and the earth ascends to the heavens, I will present to thee no one conciliating perturbed expression." One of the friends of God moreover, when suffering evils, put forth these words: " What shall separate me from the love of God? (shall) tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or hunger, |50 or nakedness, or cold, or the sword ?" I myself too have seen, in these times, some whose eyes were digged out; others, who were deprived of their legs by the cautery; and others who were crucified; their whole bodies hastening to dissolution, and their mortal nature subject to rebuke; while the conscious mind residing within them, attached to God, was immoveable, impervious to subjection, and unyielding to these hardships; clearly proving to those of sound minds, that their faculty of excellence was a thing altogether different from that which was perishable.
65. This alone, of the animals that are on the earth, partaking of the divine inbreathing , is worthy of the favour of the Deity. He too, will hold converse with the Angels of God, and will apprehend the foreknowledge of things to come to pass; at one time, by means of dreams; at another, when so invested by the power of God with the Spirit, that he will even enounce the prophecy of things future; and, by the manifestation of deeds such as these, he will confirm (the fact of) his fellowship with Deity.
66. This (animal) alone recognizes in every thing, something greater and more excellent than any that is visible;----Him who is invisible to the eyes, and imperceptible to the touch, as well as to every faculty of bodily sense; but is visible to the mind and understanding alone. Him does he, by His (special) teaching, and the learning of which his nature is capable, confess; and Him does he call God: to Him also does he render praise; and shews, by means of this (his) knowledge, his relationship with the Deity.
67. This (being) alone has arisen (to be) the spectator of the great works of THE WORD OF GOD, and is |51 fitted to worship his Father----Him (I say) who is higher than the heavens,----with the praises which are proper for the Deity; and to be assimilated to the company of the Angels in heaven. Because to him alone, of the animals that are on the earth, has this superiority been assigned. By means of this he recognizes, from the mind of his nature, Him who is the cause of every good; and is enjoined to render, as the return due to a Father, the praises of thanksgiving and blessing which are becoming.
68. The testimonies to all these things, does that word of the doctrine and erudition which is divine, confirm: (viz.) that of this undying nature, and equal of the citizens that are in heaven, is this (being) alone of those that are on the earth; this intelligent and rational essence (I say) which is in man: and, that he is the dear child of THE DIVINE WORD, the common Saviour of all; and that in his nature, he agrees both as to image and form with (this) his Father.
69. For if this rational animal,----this, who has become partaker in all this superiority; this, which alone of those that are on the earth, is in the image of God; this Brother of the divine hosts, and of the Angels, which are in heaven,----had been duly led by his nature, and had from ancient time adhered to the divine law; he would indeed have been freed from this earthly and corruptible (mode of) life, and would have continued in his conversation on earth, as in a state of migration. Had he first (of all) studied divine things (only), he would indeed have effected his departure hence to those things which belonged to him; and would have been registered (as) among those that were perfect, apart from this his state of defect, and of infantine constitution. Thus therefore has man, of necessity, put on a corruptible and dissoluble body, (and this) through the mercy of his Father, that calamity may not be his permanent lot, and that he may not be tied interminably to corruption. Soon therefore, shall this corruptible be |52 dissolved, and shall receive a participation with those who are incorruptible. For, just as that which is conceived in the womb, puts on the clothing of its locality; and the infant to be born, when the period of its destined months has arrived, casts this off, and accordingly comes forth into the light, inhales the purer air, and henceforward is considered as of the nature of man; so also is this perfectible species, (as) believed to be among men, (and as) opposed to the (still) superior one,----a mere infant, and as yet a foetus (only) conceived on earth,---- clothed in this corruptible skin; which, by the mercy of the great gift of God, it is necessary it should cast off, in order that it should not be for ever harassed with these defective things, but should, in due time, go forth into the light, and pass on to the life, which is impervious to corruption. On this account, well have the companies of the wise, the attached to God, pressed (as) they have been by a participation in these corruptible bodies, desired their change for the better, and followed after their equals, the children of their city which is above, even as he was (circumstanced) who said in the divine word, "Wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver me from this body of death? " And again, " Even if we live in the body, still we labour not in the flesh." He adduces his reason too, and says, " For our labour (of culture) is in heaven ; and we draw near to the city of the living God which is in heaven, and to the assembly of myriads of angels, and to the church of the firstborn who are written in heaven .'' ---- These are the words of a notable man, and of (all) those who love God.
70. If however, many are so foolish as to be attached to the lusts that are here, that they are to the present time but infants in intellect; What has this to do with right reason? For, that which is conceived in the womb, exults in this its usual locality, fears its departure from it, and lest it should be extracted from internal |53 darkness, and weeps when it comes forth to the light. Still even these, did but those things which happen to their natural birth duly take place with them, would come forth from darkness to light, well and elegantly born. Thus would they, at the due time and season, be brought forth, (each) receive the natural air and breath, and bear about him the healthy vigour of man. Thus would (each) be delighted with the provisions of the breast, and of infancy; then be placed under the hands of a nurse, and be delivered over to instructors, teachers, and doctors, until he came forth a man complete. Thus too would he pass a virtuous and honourable life, great in wealth, in the abundance of possessions, in power, rule, and the other stages (of distinction), in the increase of (all) those things which result from a happy birth; of those which multiply by means of instruction, and of those other innumerable things, which conduce to the experience of a happy life.
71. But, if any unnatural contortion should happen to that which is conceived in the womb, so that it affect such an one at his coming forth in birth; What need can there be for my saying, that the infant was distorted within (the womb)? and refused to come forth to the light? and that it must suffer,----by the iron instruments prepared for parturition, which shall violently and painfully be placed upon it,----the revulsion which is also unnatural? Nor would it be worthy even of the one birth,----even of the life of man,----or of the things belonging to this: but, on the contrary, that it should go forth from darkness to darkness, and not only be deprived of the life of man, but also of the name.
72. As are these things, so is he who passes the life which is human on earth, differing in nothing from the irrational and ignorant infant, or, from that |54 which is yet, but a foetus in the womb. Nor can he be compared with those bodies which are without, the Angels and Divine spirits. He is even (as) an ignorant child; and, because of the excess of his childishness, he exults in the clothing of the body which is about him; loves the womb his (place of concealment), and knows not the locality which surrounds him, where murder, darkness, and (all) the other species of mishap, feed, as it were, in the pastures of wickedness. One of the ancients says,----when shewing that the air, which is on the earth, is humid and unclear,----that " it consists of many compounds, (resulting) from the innumerable vapours which (arise) from the earth ." One would think too that (man were such), although as an infant good. Nevertheless, if he pass the present life as it is becoming to his nature, and evince accordingly the conduct which is suitable to its law, " that he think not beyond the measure of his stature," nor spurn the nature which has borne him as a mother; nor again, remain ignorant of his Father, but recognize his Father who is in heaven, the common Saviour of all, and render to him the service of thanksgiving, because he has made him to partake in the things which are good;----be brought up in the instruction of righteousness, and previously study in his conversation which is on the earth, the life of heaven; well shall such an one, when he shall depart this mortal life, and shall put off the body, have the Angels of God for his obstetricators;----when he is to be born to the life to come, then shall both the good Powers receive him as the nurse, and the Divine assemblies teach him; that WORD OF GOD too, that teacher of the conversation which is in heaven, shall lead him on, as a dear child, to the completion of every thing that is good, and shall instruct him in the doctrine of the kingdom of heaven. And, when He shall have made him complete and wise, He shall give him up to His Father, the King of all: and shall clothe him, both in body and soul which are (now) incorruptible, with a vesture of light exceeding description. |55 So that henceforth, he shall be even for the common advantage of all. Such is the last state of such an one.---- But he who exults against the course of his nature, participates in the perversion which is not good, and despises the earth, the mother that bore him; and again, impiously recognizes not THE WORD OF GOD, the common Saviour of all, but subscribes to a multitude of fathers who have no existence, instead of that one who is; and calls those gods which never had any being, instead of that one who alone is true; and again, wholly plunges in pursuit of the things of this moist, humid and corruptible being, into the filthy and lawless lusts; and this not as the infant, involuntarily; but willingly, and of his free counsel, chooses to himself these vices, and so acts; his latter state shall clearly be but the counterpart of that pointed out by the example (above given). For no happy countenance, or smiling of good Angels, shall greet him; nor, when he goes forth into light, shall the Divine Powers receive him as fosterfathers. On the contrary, endeavouring in his extreme state to escape egress, and to hide himself within, in the concealment of the body and members:----when the dissolution of the body draws near, and he would assume the perversion which is out of nature;----(then) shall those who are appointed to this, forcibly attach themselves to him, and drag him forth. Then too, after his departure hence,----his miserable soul being reduced to sighing and lamentation,----shall he not have the light and life which is good, for his receptacle; but, on the contrary, darkness and the place of corruption. The judgment of God moreover, shall consign him (thus) impure and unclean, as filthy and abominable to the purification and punishment which is by fire: because he would not be instructed by THE WORD (or Reason), nor |56 adhere to the Divine law, when it was in his power to do so.
73. He therefore, who, in the example (above) was, as an infant conceived in the womb, in every thing so defective, and in every respect so destitute of power, that hitherto he could make no use either of the thoughts of his soul, or the senses of his body;----that mind, indeed, which is hitherto but (as) an infant in man;----may well be said, by way as it were, of experimental comparison with those incorporeal and Divine rational (beings) that are in heaven, to be altogether a child. Even, if (such) were the wisest of men, or even more perfect than those that are on the earth; still he would, when compared in himself, with his (future) perfect state, be nothing better than an infant. For, what his state of excellence shall be when he arrives at manhood, it will be easy thus to shew:---- For if, when hitherto (as) an infant, and confined within this unyielding wall of earthly and corruptible being, he bears about him such a faculty of excellence, that he knows, not only the things that are on earth, and fabricates them by art, but also anticipates the life which is in heaven, |57 and becomes like to God himself; makes too, whenever he pleases, likenesses of the things in the heavens, and of those on the earth; ---- can do all these things, just as those which have already been recounted :----these (I say), when immersed (as he is) in all this refuse of the body and blood; What then, ought we to suppose he will do, when he shall have proceeded to the perfect measure of man's estate, and shall have been liberated from these injurious bonds of corruption?----these humid and wasting properties of the body? and is made a partaker of the life which is incorruptible, and of a body which is impervious to death? For, if this seed alone of the reasoning faculty be thus all-able and powerful on earth, when as yet it is incapable of rendering the full return (of fruit), but has even been cast forth into the moist locality of the refuse of a corruptible body; it shall henceforth be able (fully) to know, of what sort the return of perfect fruit of this seed shall be as (sown) in the soul, when it shall have been made to partake of an adequate culture; shall have been removed hence, and have been planted in a superior locality, in land good and fertile; where that heavenly WORD, that Sower of all things, and Planter of every good thing, shall receive (back) his own seed, and shall, in the pastures of incorporeal and unembodied souls, as in the Paradise of them who love God, Himself water his own plant, shall nourish it to perfection, and make it arrive at the increase of goods innumerable.