Irene

ON ST. IRENE, ABBESS AND VIRGIN,

AT CONSTANTINOPLE IN CHRYSOBALANTON.

IN THE NINTH OR TENTH CENTURY.

PRELIMINARY COMMENTARY.

Her cult from the Greek Calendars; the place of her life.

Irene, abbess and virgin, at Constantinople (St.)

J. P.

§ I. Her cult from the Greek Fasti; the place of her life.

As the Acts of this holy woman, to be illustrated by us, commemorate concerning her things many in number and wholly singular in kind, so among all other authors whom we have been permitted to consult, we could find absolutely nothing at all handed down to memory concerning her deeds, the cult of the holy woman from the Greek tablets; not even so much as her name marked anywhere, so far as we know, outside her Life; if you except two Synaxaria, namely those of Sirmond and of Chifflet, several times cited by us, in which her yearly memory is expressly announced on this 28th day of July: in the one indeed thus: τῆς ὁσίας Εἰρήνης, τῆς Καππαδοκίσσης, κειμένης δὲ ἐν τῇ μονῇ τοῦ Χρυσοβαλάντου. That is: Of holy Irene the Cappadocian, who lies in the monastery of Chrysobalanton. But in the other it is reported in these words: Τῆς ὁσίας μητρὸς ἡμῶν Εἰρήνης, τῆς ἐκ Καππαδοκῶν ὁρμωμένης, κειμένης δὲ ἐν τῇ μονῇ τῶν Χρυσοβαλάνου. That is: Of our holy mother Irene, who is sprung from Cappadocia; but lies in the monastery of nuns of Chrysobalanon.

[2] And these indeed are the things which, outside the Life which we give, her illustrious deeds by the Greek historians we could obtain concerning our holy woman, so surely conducive to proving her public cult, that, had those been lacking, the wholly unknown writer of her Life would by his own testimony alone by no means have made for us sufficient credit concerning that same cult; and accordingly we should not have thought it lawful for us to give the holy woman any other place than among the Passed-over. But these things, which pertain to her cult, being thus established, it was with less scruple that we appended to her, in the title prefixed to this Commentary, the dignity of virgin, though here resting on the sole authority of the writer of the Life; who in the same place, no. 91, ascribes to the holy woman the unfading flower of virginity. And indeed he depicts her here and there in the context of the Life with characters so rare and honorific, that, if we believe him, she made for herself a great and memorable name at Constantinople; so excellent and illustrious are the things which he narrates concerning her; but we refer the reader thither, content to have here assigned a few things out of many concerning the cult and public veneration of the holy woman, which he has from no. 89, both concerning the most frequent and tumultuous concourse to the body of the deceased, the fragrance of the body, and the new sepulcher, and concerning the miracles wrought at it: so that it is a wonder that a holy woman so great and celebrated is not found in more sacred tablets, or at least in the great printed Menaea of the Greeks.

[3] For that in the Greek historians we find nothing concerning her ought less to strike us: for their purpose is wont, by an ordinary law, to be occupied about public persons, they are passed over, or unknown. and their deeds, especially those which pertain to carrying on the thread of the narration, the order of the times, the series of emperors, leaders, victories, tragic matters, unexpected events, and the rest of that kind, which have been done on the open and public theater of the world: but our holy woman, giving herself to herself and to God in the monastic and private life, although according to our biographer held in the highest honor by the emperor of Constantinople, since she lay hidden in the monastery of Chrysobalanton, what wonder is it, if we have known the historians to have made no mention of her; whose Life conduced nothing greatly to the purpose of profane history? What of this, that she lived by far the greatest part of her life enclosed in the said monastery, and thus perhaps never came to the notice of the historians? However it be, since the holy woman cannot be illustrated from any other source, it remains that we undertake to explain some of the things which our writer has handed down to memory.

[4] The situation of Chrysobalanton, The monastery just mentioned, according to the testimony of the writer of the Life, no. 9, was situated in a beautiful tract of the city of Constantinople, and had a temperate air, and was also placed far from the din of forensic and other tumults; inasmuch as at that time it had been converted into a splendid women's quarters. And in no. 15 the sacred edifice of the monastery bore the name of Gabriel. But from no. 75 we have that it was near the Cistern of Aspar. Now there was at Constantinople both a Cistern and a House of Aspar; of the latter Du Cange treats in his Christian Constantinople, book 2, p. 168; but of the former in the same work, book 1, p. 97. The delineation of the city of Constantinople expanded in the second table, which is in Banduri before volume 2 of the Eastern Empire, exhibits the monastery of Chrysobalanton in the second part of the city, toward the gate of Polyandrium and the gate of Romanus, between the monastery of Chora and the church of St. George.

[5] the etymology It was treated of this place among us on July 27, on the occasion of St. Panteleemon the martyr, as also of the etymology of the place: as may be seen on the said day, p. 398, no. 8. It is therefore χρυσός, gold, and βαλάντιον, purse, little bag; whence Χρυσοβάλαντον. The same Banduri, in volume 2, p. 657, commenting on this passage of the Anonymous author, observes that Codinus writes Χρυσοβάλανδον; and there says Lambeck, that according to Codinus's etymology, this place seems to have been named Χρυσοβάλανδον corruptly by the common people, whereas anciently it was called Χρυσοβαλάντιον; but in another royal codex is read Χρυσοβάλανον.

[6] So Banduri; who soon adds: But of this place Χρυσοβάλαντον or Χρυσοβάλανδον no one, so far as I know, of the Byzantine historians, and the formation of the word. except the Writers of the Origins of Constantinople, makes mention: whence, where that place stood, is not clear from any other source than from our Anonymous, he says, who describes the monuments of this part of the city situated on the Ceratine gulf, or those nearest to these. But since the formation of the word Χρυσοβαλάντου is established both from that Anonymous and from the context of our Life, we plainly judge that it is to be retained before the other, and that for Χρυσοβαλάνου, which was in the second announcement, which we produced above, one should write Χρυσοβαλάντου. And indeed it could very easily have happened that both there, and in the royal codex just cited, the letter τ was either worn away through antiquity, or omitted through the drowsiness of the copyists. Now some things must be premised concerning the age of the holy woman.

§ II. Her age, the chronological arrangement of her life, the Acts.

That she flourished in the ninth century of Christ, various chronological marks indicate, which you have interspersed in the Life. The holy woman flourished in the 9th century; In no. 5 occurs the empress Theodora, whose deeds we gathered from various sources on February 11, who is there said to have died in the year of Christ 867. In nos. 6 and 7 of the same Life it is reported that the holy woman met St. Joannicius, an anchorite of most celebrated name, and a most keen champion of the orthodox faith against the Iconoclasts in the same ninth century (concerning whom Baronius may be consulted in various places of the Ecclesiastical Annals, volume 9; and Pagi in the Critical historical-chronological work), who died, according to them, in the year 846, and is to be illustrated by us on November 4, and is inscribed in the Roman Martyrology. If you go on with our Life, you will find there, from no. 21, Methodius, patriarch of Constantinople, who consecrated the holy woman a deaconess and set her over the monastery of Chrysobalanton. Of him we treated on June 14, marking the year of his death as 847, which Baronius too gives him against Pagi, as one who contends that St. Joannicius survived him. In no. 39 in the same Life is the emperor Michael; in no. 40 Bardas; in no. 67 Ignatius, patriarch of Constantinople. That Michael, son of the emperor Theophilus and of the empress Theodora, was killed in the year 867. But Bardas, brother of that same Theodora, was slain by the command of the emperor Michael in 866. St. Ignatius, successor of St. Methodius, is created patriarch in the year 846 according to Pagi at the year 847, no. 19; but he died in the year 877 according to the same author, at the year 878, no. 11: concerning whom, on October 23, with the Roman Martyrology, God favoring, it will afterward have to be treated.

[8] And these things indeed thus premised chronologically will pave an easier way to determining more closely and more individually the age of our holy woman, concerning certain of whose chief deeds and to arranging, in so far at least as it can be done by way of a chronological system, the chronological arrangement of the Life, comprising certain chief heads of the matters occurring in the course of

her life. And so that which is said there in nos. 5 and 6, where it is set forth that, while the empress Theodora sought a wife for her son Michael, our Irene, one out of all, was chosen and summoned to Constantinople, we easily understand—according to our biographer, on whose credit alone all these things stand or fall, to say it once for all—did not happen before the year 842; since according to him they happened, from no. 5, after the institution, by her exertion, of the feast of Orthodoxy, from no. 2; which was begun in the year 842, as it is in Baronius and Pagi. Let us therefore suppose that in that same year Irene was summoned to Constantinople, in the 16th year of her age, and accordingly that she was born about the year of Christ 826. In that same year 842, on the journey which she was directing to Constantinople, she turned aside to St. Joannicius, to which pertain those things which the biographer recounts from no. 6. But in the year of Christ 846, in her 20th year, she was ordained deaconess by St. Methodius, and promoted to the government of the monastery of Chrysobalanton, an age doubtless too premature for this, the holiness of her life supplying the deficiency, as may be believed.

[10] Her predictions concerning the death of the Caesar Bardas and of the emperor Michael fell in the year of Christ 866, the chronological arrangement is ordered: the day of her death. in the 40th year of her age: for since, from what has been said, the one was killed here in the year 867, but the other in the year 866, and not much time can be interposed between the prediction of the matters and their event, according to our writer, no. 40: for "a little time after," he says, "all things happened according to the holy woman's prediction: for the Caesar was killed in the camp, but the emperor Michael," etc. She lived contemporaneously also with the aforesaid St. Ignatius, from no. 67; whom she also very long survived, if the things are true which the author narrates in no. 91, where he thus speaks: The time of her life is said to have been extended even to a hundred years, save three; and accordingly, according to this our chronological hypothesis, up to about the year of Christ 921, her death, as is clear from no. 86, being marked on the day after the holy great-martyr Panteleemon: who, since he is celebrated on July 27 (see the annotations to chapter 9 of the Life, letter c), the holy woman died on the 28th of the same month, on which also she is above announced by the Synaxaria.

[11] Certain things in the chronological arrangement are noted as to be struck out, And these things indeed, bound to their own years by a chronological system, in so far as they are reported by our author, we have endeavored to arrange: but among them the history of the frustrated nuptials of our holy woman with Michael deserves to be weighed a little more attentively, which is to us a mere episode, cohering so ill with the persons and times that it can by no means be combined with these. Symeon Logotheta in his Annals, among the things which he narrates concerning Theophilus, no. 17, has thus: In the tenth year of the emperor Theophilus, there is born to him a son of Theodora, on whom he bestowed the name of Michael: and accordingly, because in the years of Christ 838 and 839 the tenth year of Theophilus was running, inasmuch as he undertook his father's empire in the month of October, in the eighth Indiction, according to the continuator of Constantine Porphyrogenitus, and with Cedrenus consenting, that is, in the year of Christ 829: it is now a consequence that the year of Michael's birth fell in the year of Christ 838 or 839; which consonates abundantly with Nicetas, an author of those times, beyond all exception, when in the Life of St. Ignatius, patriarch of Constantinople, in Labbe, volume 8 of the Councils, he says:

[12] as fabulous. Theophilus dies, and the whole empire devolves upon Theodora … Michael his son being still quite tender (νήπιος κομιδῇ, "an utter infant"). It consonates likewise with the continuator of Porphyrogenitus, who in the Life of that same Michael says that he, three years old, succeeded his father Theophilus; namely in the year 842. Go now, and combine so small an age of the boy Michael with the frustrated nuptials of Irene, and then her prefecture in Chrysobalanton under St. Methodius: in relating which with so great a parade of words the author runs on. Since these things are so, I would prefer to anticipate the birth of the holy woman by about 24 years, so that she could have been born about the year 800; whereby it comes about that she was not promoted by St. Methodius to the government of Chrysobalanton until she was more than forty years old: although these things are said from mere conjectures, to which I am compelled to have recourse, because I am destitute of suitable documents from elsewhere. Concerning the history of St. Joannicius, of which the author treats in chapter 1, what is to be thought is plain enough from what has been said; unless perhaps on another occasion it happened: but on this matter I have nothing further to say. Now concerning the author of our Life.

[13] The author of the Life Who he was, or at what time, with what credit and authority he wrote, wholly escapes us; no indication being left us from those things which he wrote, whence knowledge of him could in any way be reached. It were indeed to be wished that he had done otherwise; for since he alone recounts things so wonderful, and untouched by other authors, so far as we know, from the greater or lesser authority of the writer it could be established by an equitable judgment of what merit and worth are the things which he writes. He recounts, I say, very wonderful things, which, other supports for their confirmation being lacking, we give on his sole credit. For the rest, he so adapted his narration to places, persons, and times, that he can be convicted, as he has already been convicted, of having somewhere thrust in things openly false and palpably disparate. But how greatly very many Greek biographers are wont to labor in this or in a similar kind is better known than that it needs to be proved, and has been indicated in six hundred places in this our work from the Greek Acts, which they have left us with a Greek rather than a historical credit.

[14] But that our author of the Life was not contemporary with St. Irene, but lived long after her, he was not contemporary with the holy woman. is proved both by those words in no. 52, "even to the present day"; and by others in no. 40, where he writes that the scepters were extended to Basil the Macedonian, emperor, even to the fourth or fifth generation. The Life

ὅσοι τῆς ὁμοίας ἦσαν ἀσεβείας ὑπέρμαχοι καὶ προστάται, συναπογραφῆναι δὲ καὶ τὸ τοῦ ὁμόφρονος ὄνομα Θεοφίλου, σφραγισθῆναί τε τὸν τόμον, καὶ τῷ ἁγίῳ τοῦτον ἐναποτεθῆναι θυσιαστηρίῳ· ὃ δὴ καὶ γέγονε. That is: ...as many as were champions and patrons of the same impiety, and that the name of the like-minded Theophilus should also be enrolled together with them, and that the volume should be sealed and laid up upon the holy altar; which indeed also was done.

[5] Τῶν ἱλαστηρίων δὲ τελειουμένων ἡμερῶν, ἀνοίξαντες τῇ ὑστεραίᾳ τὸν τόμον (ὦ τοῦ πλήθους τῶν οἰκτιρμῶν σου, Χριστὲ βασιλεῦ, καὶ τῆς ἀφάτου φιλανθρωπίας) εὑρίσκουσιν μόνον, τῶν ἄλλων ἀπηλειμμένων ἐκ τοῦ καταλόγου τῶν αἱρετικῶν, τὸ τοῦ Θεοφίλου ὄνομα. Καὶ ἐπληρώθη κᾀνταῦθα ἡ λέγουσα τοῦ ἀποστόλου νομοθεσία· Τί γὰρ εἶδες, γύναι, εἰ τὸν ἄνδρα σώσεις; Ὄντως ὁ θεὸς ἐνδοξαζόμενος ἐν βουλαῖς τῶν ἁγίων. Ἐπεὶ οὖν ἅπαντα κατὰ γνώμην καλῶς συνῆλθε τῇ βασιλίδι, καὶ ὡς αὐτῇ θελητὸν (τοῖς γὰρ ἀγαπῶσι τὸν θεὸν πάντα συνεργεῖ εἰς τὸ ἀγαθὸν) ἔδοξεν αὐτῇ καὶ τῷ υἱῷ Μιχαὴλ, ὃν δὴ τῆς βασιλείας εἶχε κληρονόμον, γυναῖκα τῶν ἐπιφανῶν ἀγάγεσθαι καὶ περιβλέπτων, γένους μὲν εὐσεβοῦς, καὶ τῇ ὀρθοδόξῃ σεμνυνομένου πίστει, ἀρετῆς δὲ διαφέρουσαν κάλλει, καὶ ψυχῆς εὐγενείᾳ καὶ σώματος ὥρᾳ διαπρεπῆ, καὶ τὰς καθ᾽ ἑαυτὴν νικῶσαν παρθένους. Καὶ γράμματα περὶ τοῦτο κατὰ πᾶσαν ἐπέμπετο γῆν, ὅση τῇ Ῥωμαίων ὑποτελὴς ἐτύγχανε βασιλείᾳ. That is: But when the days of propitiation were completed, opening the volume on the next day (O the multitude of your compassions, Christ the King, and your unspeakable benignity!) they find only the name of Theophilus, the names of the other heretics having been blotted out from the catalogue. And there too was fulfilled the ordinance of the Apostle which says: For how do you know, O woman, whether you shall save your husband? Truly God is glorified in the counsels of the saints. Since therefore all things had come together well according to the empress's wish, and as was pleasing to her (for to those who love God all things work together unto good), it seemed good to her and to her son Michael, whom she had as heir of the empire, to bring to him a wife from among the illustrious and notable, of a family indeed pious and honored for the orthodox faith, but excelling in the beauty of virtue, and distinguished by nobility of soul and by the bloom of body, and surpassing the virgins of her own time. And letters concerning this were sent throughout all the land which was subject and tributary to the empire of the Romans.

[6] Ἄλλων οὖν ἀλλαχόθεν, ὅσοι παρθένους ἔτρεφον, τοιαύτας ἑτοιμαζόντων, καὶ πρὸς τὴν βασιλίδα πόλιν παραπεμπόντων αὐτὰς, καὶ οἱ τῆς θαυμασίας Εἰρήνης πατέρες (ἧς ὁ λόγος ἀπ᾽ ἀρχῆς τοὺς τρόπους βούλεται διηγήσασθαι) ὥσπερ ἀρετῆς ὥρᾳ ταύτην, οὕτω δὴ καὶ σώματος κάλλει διαβεβοημένην, ἐκ τῆς Καππαδοκῶν, ὅθεν ὥρμητο, πολυτελῶς εὖ μάλα καὶ κοσμίως εὐτρεπίσαντες, πρὸς τὴν Κωνσταντινούπολιν ἀποστέλλουσι, σὺν αὐτῇ δὲ καὶ τὴν ἀδελφὴν, ἥτις ὕστερον καὶ τῷ πρὸς μητρὸς θείῳ τοῦ βασιλέως Μιχαὴλ τῷ καίσαρι Βάρδᾳ πρὸς γάμου κοινωνίαν ἐχρημάτισεν· ἀνδρὶ τὰ ἄλλα μὲν οὐδενὸς ἀξίῳ, φθόνῳ δὲ δι᾽ ὅλου τηκομένῳ, καὶ ἁρπαγαῖς χαίροντι καὶ φόνοις. Ὡς οὖν τὴν ὁδὸν ἤνυον οἱ τὰς παρθένους ἄγοντες, ἔδει δὲ τούτους διὰ τῆς Μυσίας περὶ τοὺς πρόποδας διέρχεσθαι τοῦ ὄρους τοῦ Ὀλύμπου. Ἀκούσασα ἡ σεμνοτάτη παρθένος Εἰρήνη τὰ κατὰ τὸν μέγαν Ἰωαννίκιον, καὶ ὅτι μετὰ τῶν ἄλλων αὐτοῦ πλεονεκτημάτων, οὐδ᾽ ὁρατός ἐστιν ἀεὶ πᾶσι τοῖς ἐθέλουσιν, ἀλλ᾽ οἷς ἂν ὡς ἀξίαν οἰκονομία θειοτέρα ἐμφανισθείη· μεῖζον τοῦ ἔργου τὸ πάρεργον ἡγησαμένη, τί μὲν οὐκ ἔλεγε, τί δὲ οὐκ ἐποίει; πείσασα τοὺς ἄγοντας ὥστε παρ᾽ αὐτὸν ἀνεληλυθέναι, καὶ εἴγε δοίη κύριος, φησι, καὶ ὄψεως αὐτοῦ τυχεῖν, καὶ ὁμιλίας, καὶ εὐχῶν ἐκείνων τῶν ἀνυσιμωτάτων ἀξιωθῆναι. Πείθοντας τοίνυν μόλις καὶ ταύτην ἄγουσιν πρὸς τὸν ὅσιον. That is: While others, therefore, who reared virgins, were preparing such from various places, and sending them to the imperial city, the parents also of the wonderful Irene (whose character the discourse wishes to recount from the beginning), having arrayed her—renowned as much for the bloom of virtue as for the beauty of body—very sumptuously and becomingly, out of the region of the Cappadocians, whence she sprang, send her to Constantinople, and with her also her sister, who afterward fell to the maternal uncle of the emperor Michael, the Caesar Bardas, in the fellowship of marriage; a man for the rest of no worth, but wasting away wholly with envy, and wont to live by plunder and murders. Now as those who were conducting the virgins accomplished their journey, they had to pass through Mysia along the foot of Mount Olympus. And the most venerable virgin Irene, having heard the things concerning the great Joannicius, and that, among his other advantages, he is not always visible to all who wish, but to those to whom a more divine dispensation should show him as worthy—Irene, I say, esteeming the by-work more than the work itself, what did she not say, what did she not do, until she persuaded the guides to go up to him; and, "if the Lord grant it," she said, "may we enjoy the sight of him and his converse, and be counted worthy of those most efficacious prayers." Being at length scarcely persuaded, they lead her too to the holy man.

[7] Ἀλλ᾽ ἐκεῖνος ὡς εἶδεν αὐτὴν πόῤῥωθεν ἐρχομένην, καὶ τῷ διορατικῷ τῆς ψυχῆς χαρίσματι προθεωρήσας εἰς οἷον ἄρα καταντήσει τέλος αὐτῆς τὰ τοῦ βίου, μήπω πλησίον γενομένην, φησὶ πρὸς αὐτήν· Καλῶς ἦλθες ἡ δούλη τοῦ θεοῦ Εἰρήνη· σπεῦδε, τέκνον, πρὸς τὴν βασιλεύουσαν χαίρουσα σπεῦδε. Χρείαν γάρ σου ἔχει ἡ μονὴ τοῦ Χρυσοβαλάντου, ὅπως ποιμένῃς τὰς ἐν αὐτῇ παρθένους. Ἡ δὲ ὡς ἤκουσεν τὸ ἑαυτῆς ὄνομα, ἔκθαμβος ὅλη γενομένη, τῷ ἐδάφει προέῤῥιψεν ἑαυτὴν πρὸ τῶν ἐκείνου ποδῶν, εὐχὴν προσδεχομένη καὶ τὴν παρ᾽ αὐτοῦ εὐλογίαν. Καὶ τῶν μὲν ἄλλων ῥημάτων οὐ τοσοῦτον ἐμέλησεν αὐτῇ. Τί γὰρ ἐμοὶ, ἔλεγε, καὶ τῷ Χρυσοβαλάντῳ; Μόνη δὲ τοῦ ὀνόματος ἡ κλῆσις εἰς ἔκπληξιν αὐτὴν ἦγε, λογιζομένην ὅπως, ἣν οὐδέποτε ἐθεάσατο καὶ περὶ ἧς οὐκ ἠκόει, ὀνομαστὶ προσηγόρευσε. Ἀναστήσας οὖν αὐτὴν ὁ ὅσιος, καὶ λόγοις πνευματικοῖς στηρίξας, εὐχαῖς δὲ καὶ εὐλογίαις ἐφοδιάσας, ἀπέλυσεν ἐν εἰρήνῃ, πληρῶσαι τὴν προκειμένην ὁδόν. That is: But he, when he saw her coming from afar, and with the discerning gift of the soul foresaw to what end the affairs of her life would come, said to her while she had not yet drawn near: Welcome, handmaid of God Irene: hasten, child, rejoicing, hasten to the imperial city. For the monastery of Chrysobalanton has need of you, that you may shepherd the virgins who are in it. And she, when she heard her own name, becoming wholly astonished, cast herself upon the ground before his feet, awaiting a prayer and his blessing. And of the other words she did not care so much. ("For what have I," she said, "to do with Chrysobalanton?") But the mere calling of her name struck her with astonishment, as she considered how he had addressed by her proper name one whom he had never seen, and of whom he had heard nothing. So the holy man, having raised her up, and strengthened her with spiritual words, and furnished her with the provision of prayers and blessings, dismissed her in peace, to complete the journey set before her.

[8] Ἐπεὶ δὲ καὶ τὴν πόλιν κατέλαβον, ἐξίασιν πρὸς αὐτὴν ὅσοι τε κατοίκησιν εἶχον ἐν αὐτῇ, τῶν συγγενῶν, καὶ ὅσοις ἦν περί τινων αὐτοῖς ἀναγκαίων ἐπιδημία, τῆς συγκλήτου καὶ βουλῆς ὄντες, καὶ προεδρίας, καὶ μεγάλα παρὰ βασιλεῦσι δυνάμενοι· οἵ τε τῶν πατρικίων ἔχοντες τιμὰς, (οὓς ὀνομαστοὺς ἐκάλουν γουβερίους) πλούτῳ καὶ δόξῃ περιβλέπτους, καὶ ἀρετῇ περιβοήτους, ἅμα μὲν ὀφθαλμοῖς ἰδεῖν ἱμειρόμενοι, ἣν πρὸ πολλοῦ θεάσασθαι ἐπεθύμουν, ἅμα δὲ καὶ τιμῶντες αὐτὴν, ὡς εἰκὸς, βασιλεῖ μνηστευομένην. Πλὴν ἀλλ᾽ ἔδει πάντως νικῆσαι τῶν ἀγαθῶν ψυχῶν ἐραστὴν, τὸν βασιλέα τῶν βασιλευόντων, ὃς τὰ μὴ ὄντα ὡς ὄντα καλεῖ, καὶ τὰ μήπω γεγονότα ὡς ἤδη γενόμενα ἀφορίζει. Ἔφθασε γὰρ τῷ βασιλεῖ συναφθῆναι γυνὴ, τοῦ θεοῦ ταῦτα σοφῶς πάντως οἰκονομοῦντος, ἵνα τὴν ἑαυτοῦ παρθένον Εἰρήνην εἰς τὸν οἰκεῖον ἀγάγηται θάλαμον. Ὅπερ ὡς ἧκεν εἰς τὰ ὦτα τῇ θαυμασίᾳ Εἰρήνῃ, χαρᾶς ἔπλησε τὴν ψυχὴν, καὶ τῷ θεῷ μεγάλας ἐκείνη τὰς χάριτας ὡμολόγει. That is: But when they had reached the city, there went out to meet her all who had a dwelling in it, of her kinsmen, and all to whom there was a sojourn there on account of certain necessary matters, being of the senate and the council, and of the presidency, and having great power with the emperors; and those who held the honors of the patricians (whom by name they called "gouberii"), conspicuous for wealth and glory, and renowned for virtue, at once longing to see with their eyes her whom long before they had desired to behold, and at the same time honoring her, as was fitting, as one betrothed to the emperor. Yet the Lover of good souls, the King of kings, who calls the things that are not as though they were, and determines the things not yet done as though already done, had wholly to prevail. For a woman had beforehand been joined to the emperor, God wisely ordering all this, that He might lead His own virgin Irene into His own bridal chamber. Which, when it came to the ears of the wonderful Irene, filled her soul with joy, and she confessed great thanks to God.

[9] Πολλῶν οὖν ἐν τοῖς μεγιστᾶσι καὶ πρὸς τοῖς τῆς πόλεως, διά τε τὸ κάλλος, διά τε τὴν τοῦ γένους περιφάνειαν πρὸς γάμον αὐτὴν ἑλκόντων, οὐδὲ ψιλῇ παραδέξασθαι ἀκοῇ τοῦτο ἠνείχετο, ἀλλ᾽ ὅλῃ ψυχῇ καὶ προθυμίᾳ τῷ Χριστῷ νυμφευθῆναι, καὶ τούτῳ μόνῳ διαπαντὸς ἀρέσκειν ἐπόθησε. Πάντων τοίνυν ὑπεριδοῦσα τῶν βιωτικῶν, καὶ τῶν γηΐνων ἀποσεισαμένη τὸν πόθον, ἑκάστης ἡμέρας διεσκοπεῖτο καὶ διηρεύνα τόπον κατοικίας, ἐν ᾧ τὸν ἡσύχιον καὶ θεάρεστον μετελεύσεται βίον, πάσης ταραχῆς καὶ θορύβου ἀπηλλαγμένον. Πολλὴν δὲ περὶ τούτου τὴν ἔρευναν ἀνὰ πᾶσαν ποιουμένη τὴν πόλιν, μόλις ποτὲ εἰς ἀνάμνησιν ἦλθε τῶν προῤῥηθέντων αὐτῇ παρὰ τοῦ μεγάλου Ἰωαννικίου· καὶ παραυτίκα τῶν ἄλλων ἀφεμένη, πέμπει διὰ σπουδῆς τοὺς τὴν μονὴν ἀναζητήσοντας Χρυσοβαλάντου· μαθοῦσα δὲ ὡς ἐν καλῷ εἴη διακειμένη τῆς πόλεως μέρει, εὐκρατῶς μὲν ἀέρος ἔχουσα, ἀγορῶν τε πόῤῥω καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ὀχλήσεων ᾠκισμένη, ἄρτι δὲ σεμνεῖον εἰς γυναικεῖον μεταμειφθεῖσα. That is: When therefore many among the magnates and the chief men of the city drew her toward marriage, both on account of her beauty and on account of the splendor of her family, she could not endure to receive this even with a bare hearing, but with her whole soul and eagerness she longed to be wedded to Christ, and to please Him alone continually in all her life. Despising therefore all the things of this life, and having shaken off the desire of earthly things, each day she looked about and searched out a place of habitation, in which she might lead the quiet and God-pleasing life, freed from all disturbance and tumult. And making much search about this throughout the whole city, at length she came to the remembrance of the things foretold to her by the great Joannicius; and at once, letting go of the rest, she sends in haste those who should seek out the monastery of Chrysobalanton; and she learned that it was situated in a beautiful part of the city, having a temperate air, and settled far from the markets and other disturbances, and lately changed from a religious house into one for women.

[10] Ἡ γὰρ τῶν εἰκονομάχων τυραννὶς τὸ ἱερὸν σχῆμα τῶν μοναζόντων διὰ τὸ μέλαν ὡς ἄγος τι τῆς πόλεως ἀπελαύνουσα, πολλὰ τῶν μοναστηρίων ἔρημα τῶν ἐνοικούντων καταλέλοιπε, μοναχῶν ἄλλων ἀλλαχοῦ διεσκεδασμένων, καὶ τῶν μὲν τῷ μήκει τοῦ χρόνου τὴν παροῦσαν ζωὴν μετηλλαχότων, τῶν δὲ καὶ μακρυνόντων, φυγαδευόντων, τὴν ἐπάνοδον ἀπηγορευκότων. Ὡς οὖν ἤκουσε ταῦτα, ἔχαιρέ τε λίαν, καὶ πάντα προθύμως τὰ προσιόντα περιδέραιά τε καὶ κόσμια, καὶ ὅσα ἄλλα παρὰ τῆς βασιλίδος φιλοτίμως ὑποδεχθεῖσα, ὡς βασιλικὰς ἐκτήσατο δωρεὰς, τὰ μὲν πένησι καὶ ταῖς ἑαυτῆς θεραπαινίσι διένειμε, τὰ δὲ πρὸς τὴν μονὴν φέρουσα θεῷ ἀνέθετο. Καὶ οὕτως κείρεται μὲν τὴν κόμην, συναποκείρεται δὲ αὐτῇ καὶ πᾶν εἴ τι κοσμικὸν καὶ πρόσγειον φρόνημα. Μετ᾽ ἀμφιέννυται δὲ καὶ τὰ τῶν ἐνδυμάτων τρίχινα περιβαλλομένη ῥάκια, τρύχειν οἷα δὲ θέλουσα τὸ ἁπαλὸν ἐκεῖνο σῶμα καὶ τρυφερὸν, ἵν᾽ ὅσον ἐκεῖνο φθείρεται, τοσοῦτο τὴν ψυχὴν ἀνακαινιζομένην ἔχει καὶ ἀναθάλλουσαν, καὶ θεῷ προσεγγίζουσαν. That is: For the tyranny of the Iconoclasts, driving out the sacred habit of the monks—because of its black color—as though some pollution of the city, had left many of the monasteries deserted of their inhabitants, the monks being scattered here and there, some of them by the length of time having exchanged the present life for death, others being driven far off and put to flight and forbidden to return. When therefore she heard these things, she rejoiced greatly, and readily, all the necklaces and ornaments and whatever else that had come to her, having received them munificently from the empress, as imperial gifts she possessed, part she distributed to the poor and to her own handmaids, and part, carrying to the monastery, she offered to God. And thus her hair is shorn, and together with it is shorn away all worldly and earthbound thinking, if any there was. Thereafter she is clothed, putting on garments of haircloth rags, wishing indeed to wear down that tender and delicate body; that, the more it was worn away, so much the more she might have her soul renewed and flourishing anew, and drawing near to God.

Now, the persecution stirred up against the venerators of the image of Christ had ceased, and the frantic fury of madness which had seized the Iconoclasts, The Iconomachy ceasing after the death of the emperor Theophilus, the Deity resisting the proud, had been subdued, cast down, given over to curses and expelled and brought to ruin; and much of it had failed like smoke—that zeal of theirs, but not according to prudence—when, Theophilus ^a, the lover of gold and enemy of Christ, being snatched from life, and at the same time this impiety being crushed, together with the end of his life—like the tail of a dragon scattering destruction—an end also was set to this perverse dogma. For she who was indeed his wife, but who was faithful to God, the empress Theodora ^b, being made a partaker of the kingdom, not of the impiety, straightway from the beginning brought forth the piety which she had conceived through the fear of God, complete in all its parts, and spread abroad the perfect honor of the undefiled images and a veneration not suspected, free and public; and the Church of God with its splendor again attained the restoration of the images, acceptable to the heavenly ones, in walls, in panels, in every material, figured in bronze, silver, and gold, and exposed to veneration.

[2] She indeed was later in time than the most blessed empress Irene ^c (who transmitted to posterity the same piety which she had received from her ancestors, the cult of images is restored by Theodora, his wife: the seventh and great synod ^d being convoked to the metropolis of Nicaea, and all the audacity of the Iconoclasts in gainsaying being repressed, by the consent of many holy fathers who had assembled there; who expressly set forth those points of the orthodox opinion and confession by which the mouth of those speaking iniquity was stopped): she, I say, was later in time indeed, not in faith, in alacrity and zeal. For if anything of that impiety had remained among the perverse, by the fathers again gathered by her—who bore in their bodies the stigmata of Christ, received on account of His image—she abolished it, and delivered it to perpetual silence. Then, with most wise providence, confirming the piety and the laudable solemnity, extended to every past age, she instituted ^e that supplication ^g which is performed by us on the first Sunday ^f of the week of fasts, thronged with a concourse of men, which under the name of Orthodoxy is known even to this present day.

[3] And indeed we assemble at the great temple, celebrating the restoration of the holy images, by whose work the annual eucharistic supplication is instituted. and giving thanks to God every year for the complete extirpation of the Iconoclasts. For not for a little, but for a great and excessive time the impiety against the images prevailed; and first indeed for a full fifty-seven ^h years; but afterward again for another thirty ⁱ, kindled by the blasts of the malignant spirit, it exercised its tyranny. And great indeed was the need of thanksgiving toward that Lord who is slow to anger and swift to mercy; who does all things and transmutes them opportunely, and as He Himself knows in the depth of His wisdom and disposition. Yet see the excellent virtue of the woman who loved God. For she did not look to her own advantage alone; nor, that she might attain eternal life by faith and by great service toward the orthodox faith, did she love this glory intent only on her own affairs; but unless she should deliver her husband from the eternal sentence which awaits the impious, she did not think that she willed her own salvation.

[4] [The fathers being convoked, she appoints prayers for the salvation of her husband:] And indeed what does she do? After she had convoked to this all the holy fathers, especially those who, having fought for the honor of the holy images, still carried about their scars and wounds, the empress, in no wise terrified, fell at their feet, watering her cheeks with tears, and imploring their compassion, humbly besought that they should offer prayers and supplications to the Lord, to whom it is proper to have mercy and to spare, that He might spare the wretched soul of her husband, and, by their intervention forgiving him this great iniquity, the good God might free him from perpetual torment. And indeed, this supplication being performed for not a few days in vigils, prayers, and tears, it seemed good to the holy fathers that the names of the other heretics, who were champions and presidents of the same impiety, should be noted in writing, and that at the same time should be inscribed the name of Theophilus,

their supporter, and that the volume should be secured with a seal, and laid upon the sacred altar. Which also was done.

[5] And so, the days of propitiation being past, opening the volume on the next day (O the multitude of your compassions, [which she understands to be saved by a notable miracle: she seeks a bride for her son Michael.] Christ the King, and your ineffable benignity!) they find only the name of Theophilus, the name of the other heretics having been erased from the tablets ^k. And there was fulfilled that saying of the Apostle: For how do you know, O woman, whether you shall save your husband? Truly God is glorified in the counsels of the Saints. After all things therefore had turned out according to the empress's mind (for to those who love God all things work together unto good), it pleased her to summon for her son Michael, whom she had as heir of the empire, an illustrious and notable wife, and of a family adorned with piety and orthodox faith; but excelling in the beauty of virtue, and comely in nobility of soul and form of body; by which she should surpass also the other virgins of her time. And for this cause letters were sent into every land which was tributary to the Roman [*] empire.

[6] And so, while others who reared virgins prepared them from elsewhere, and sent them to the imperial city, the parents also of the wonderful Irene (whose character the discourse desires to review from the beginning) send to Constantinople this daughter, memorable as much for the grace of virtue as for the beauty of body, from the region of the Cappadocians, from which she drew her origin, adorned very sumptuously and elegantly, together with her sister, [Irene, chosen for this, journeying to Constantinople, turns aside to St. Joannicius,] who afterward fell as wife to the maternal uncle of the emperor Michael, the Caesar ^m Bardas, later ⁿ; a man indeed for the rest of no worth, but wasting away wholly with envy, and wont to live by plunder and robberies. Now that those who conducted the virgins might complete their journey, they had to cross Mysia at the foot of Mount Olympus. And so the most adorned virgin Irene, hearing what fame had spread abroad concerning the great Joannicius ^o; and that, besides his other gifts, he would not always be visible to all who wished it, but only to those to whom the more benign favor of God should exhibit this dignity; Irene, I say, making more of the by-work, or the accessory of the journey, than of the journey itself; what did she leave unsaid, what undone, to persuade the guides that they should turn aside to him; and, "if indeed," she said, "the Lord grant it, may we enjoy the sight of him, and his converse, and be made worthy of those most efficacious prayers." Scarcely at length persuaded, they lead her to the holy man.

[7] But he, when he saw her coming from afar, and by the charism of perceiving the secrets of the soul foresaw who by a prophetic spirit foretells to her the monastic life, to what end the matters of her life would come, thus addresses her, while she had not yet drawn near: Welcome, handmaid of God, Irene: hasten, daughter, rejoicing hasten to the imperial city: for the monastery of Chrysobalanton [p] has need of you, that you may pasture the virgins who are in it. But she, when she heard her own name, seized wholly with astonishment, cast herself on the ground at his feet, awaiting a prayer from him and his blessing. Nor indeed did she care so much about the other words. (For what, she said, have I to do with Chrysobalanton?) But the mere addressing of her name struck her with astonishment, as she thought how he had addressed by her proper name one whom he had never seen, and of whom he had heard nothing. And so the holy man, after he had raised her up, and confirmed her with spiritual discourses, dismissed her in peace, furnished with the provision of prayers and blessings, that she might complete what was left of the journey.

[8] But when they came to the city, there went out to meet her those who had a dwelling in it, of her kinsmen, [being thus honorably conducted to Constantinople, but frustrated of the imperial nuptials,] and those between whom and some of them there intervened a bond of kinship, who were enrolled in the senate, council, and magistracy; and they had great authority with the emperors; and who, having attained the honors of the patricians (they called them "gouberii" [q]), conspicuous for riches and glory, and memorable for virtue, both desired to see with their eyes her whom they had long before desired to behold, and also honored her, as was fitting, as one betrothed [r] to the emperor. But indeed the Lover of good souls, the King of kings, had wholly to bear off the palm; who calls the things that are not as though they were, and destroys the things not yet done as though already done. For a woman [s] anticipated [t] her marriage with the emperor, God ordering these things altogether wisely, that He might lead His own virgin Irene into His own bridal chamber. Which, when it had come to the ears of the admirable Irene, filled her mind with joy, and she rendered great thanks to God.

[9] And so, when many among the magnates and chief men of the city, both on account of her beauty and on account of the splendor of her family, she rejects the marriages of others, and mindful of the words of Joannicius, sought her in marriage, she would not lend even a slight ear to that matter; but with all the powers of her mind she desired to be betrothed to Christ, and to please Him alone in all her life. Despising therefore all the things of this life, and having plucked out the desire of earthly things, daily she considered and investigated a place of habitation, in which she might pass a tranquil life, pleasing to God, and free from all crowd and tumult. And so, having diligently searched the whole city concerning this matter, at length scarcely at some time there came to her memory the things which had been foretold to her by the great Joannicius. Without delay, sending others, she orders those to go with haste who should seek out the monastery of Chrysobalanton. And she understood that it was situated in a beautiful tract of the city, and had a temperate air, and was placed far from the din of forensic and other tumults, inasmuch as at that time it had been converted into a splendid women's quarters.

[10] she embraces the monastic institute. For the tyranny of the Iconoclasts, driving out the sacred habit of the monks—marked with a black pebble (of censure)—no otherwise than as some abomination from the city, left many monasteries deserted of their inhabitants, the monks being scattered some one way, some another: and these indeed by length of time exchanged the present life for death; but those, whom they drove and put to flight far off among the nations, refused to return. When therefore Irene heard these things, she rejoiced greatly, and all the necklaces and ornaments that were at hand, and whatever else (for the empress had received her honorably) she possessed as imperial gifts, part indeed she distributed to the poor and to her own handmaids, but part, carrying to the monastery, she offered to God. And thus her hair is shorn, and together with her is shorn all worldly and earthly prudence, if there was any. Besides this, she puts on garments, and is clothed with a hairy patchwork cloak, wishing indeed to macerate that tender and delicate body; that the more it was worn down, the more the soul might be renewed, and flourish again, and draw near to God.

ANNOTATIONS.

CHAPTER II.

Various and wonderful virtues; the arts of the demon; the prefecture of the monastery.

[11] Ἦν οὖν ἰδεῖν τὴν μετὰ χαρᾶς τὸν ἐθελούσιον τοῦ Χριστοῦ ζυγὸν ὑπελθοῦσαν Εἰρήνην, πρὸς πᾶσαν κατὰ θεὸν ὑπακοὴν οὐ μόνον ἐπιτήδειαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ διαπαντὸς ἕτοιμον, ὡς ἐπ᾽ αὐτῇ πληροῦσθαι τὸ χρηστὸν εἶναι τὸν ζυγὸν, καὶ τὸ φορτίον ἐλαφρὸν τοῦ Χριστοῦ τοῖς εὐχαρίστως ἕλκουσιν. Ἀντιλογίαν μὲν γὰρ ὅλως οὐκ εἶδε παρὰ πᾶσιν ἁπλῶς τοῖς ἐπιταττομένοις αὐτῇ· ὄκνος ἀπῆν, ἐγρήγορσις ἀειθαλὴς παρ᾽ αὐτῇ. Κατάνυξις δὲ ἦν ἀδιάλειπτος καὶ ἀγαλλίασις τοσαύτη πνευματικὴ, ὥστε καὶ τὸ πρόσωπον θάλλον ἔχουσαν, ἀεὶ τὴν τῆς καρδίας εὐφροσύνην ἐμφαίνειν, κατὰ τὸ λόγιον. Εἶχε μὲν οὖν καὶ τὴν καθηγουμένην, ἐπιστημόνως αὐτὴν πρὸς τὰ κάλλιστα διεγείρουσάν τε καὶ διερεθίζουσαν. Εἶχε δὲ καὶ τὴν τοῦ θεοῦ χάριν μυστικῶς ἐπισκιάζουσαν, καὶ τὰ συμφέροντα διδάσκουσαν. Χωρὶς γὰρ ἐμοῦ, φησιν ὁ Κύριος, οὐ δύνασθε ποιεῖν οὐδέν. Καὶ ὁ μένων ἐν ἐμοὶ, κᾀγὼ ἐν αὐτῷ, οὗτος φέρει καρπὸν πολύν. Καὶ μέντοι καὶ ἤνεγκε, ὡς γῆ καλή τε καὶ πίων τὸν θεῖον δεξαμένη, καὶ κεκαθαρισμένη πάσης ὑλικῆς προπαθείας καὶ σχέσεως. That is: It was to be seen how Irene, having with joy submitted to the voluntary yoke of Christ, was not only fitted for every obedience according to God, but also ever ready, so that in her was fulfilled that the yoke is good, and the burden of Christ light, to those who draw it with thanksgiving. For she showed no contradiction at all in absolutely all the things enjoined upon her; sloth was absent, an ever-flourishing wakefulness was with her. There was in her unceasing compunction and so great a spiritual exultation, that, having a flourishing countenance, she ever displayed the gladness of her heart, according to the saying. She had indeed also the abbess, skillfully rousing and inciting her to the fairest things. And she had also the grace of God mystically overshadowing her, and teaching her the things that are profitable. For without me, says the Lord, you can do nothing. And he who abides in me, and I in him, this one bears much fruit. And indeed she bore it, like good and rich ground that had received the divine seed, and was cleansed of all material predisposition and attachment.

[12] Ψυχὴ γὰρ τὸν θεὸν ἀγαπῶσα, σώματι κεχρημένη παρθενικῷ, ταχέως εὑρίσκει τὴν θείαν χάριν ἐφιπταμένην, καὶ πάντα γενομένην αὐτῇ. Τὸ δὲ πρὸς τὴν ἀδελφότητα μέτριον αὐτῆς, καὶ ταπεινὸν, θαῦμα ἦν οὐ μόνον τῇ προεστώσῃ, ἀλλὰ καὶ πᾶσι τοῖς ἀκούουσιν. Ἑώρα γὰρ πάσας τὰς ἀδελφὰς ὡς βασιλίδας θεραπαινὶς, καὶ τὰς ἐσχάτας τούτων ὑπηρεσίας ἑκάστῃ προσφέρουσα. Οὕτω δὲ προσέκειτο ταῖς θείαις γραφαῖς, καὶ οὕτως ἐνησχολεῖτο τοῖς τῶν πατρῶν βίοις, πᾶν εἴ τι καλὸν καὶ πρόσφορον ἐρανίζουσα, ὡς στόμα δοκεῖν τῶν θεοπνεύστων εἶναι ῥημάτων. Καί ποτε τοῦ μακαρίου Ἀρσενίου ἐντυχοῦσα, καὶ τὴν ἐκείνου στάσιν κατανοήσασα, ὅπως ἐκτεταμένας ἔχων τὰς χεῖρας εἱστήκει μὲν πρὸς ἀνατολὰς, περὶ δυσμὰς ἀρχόμενος ἡλίου· κατέληγε δὲ τῆς στάσεως, ὅτε τὰς αὐτοῦ κατέλαμψεν ἀνατείλας ὄψεις ὁ ἥλιος· εἰς ἔρωτα τῆς ἴσης τῷ γενναίῳ περὶ τὴν ἀγγελικὴν μᾶλλον ἢ ἀνθρωπίνην ἐλθοῦσα τῷ θεῷ παράστασιν, κοινοῦται τοῦτο καὶ τῇ προεστώσῃ. That is: For a soul that loves God, using a virgin body, quickly finds the divine grace flying to it, and becoming all things to it. And her moderation and humility toward the sisterhood was a wonder not only to the superior, but also to all who heard. For as a handmaid she looked upon all the sisters as empresses, offering to each the lowest of services. And so she applied herself to the divine Scriptures, and so occupied herself with the Lives of the fathers, gathering up whatever was good and fitting, that she seemed to be a mouth of the God-inspired words. And once, having encountered the blessed Arsenius, and having marked his manner of standing—how, with his hands stretched out, he stood toward the east, beginning about the setting of the sun, and ceased from his standing when the risen sun shone upon his face—coming into a longing for a standing before God equal to that noble man's, angelic rather than human, she communicates this also to the superior.

[13] Ἡ δὲ πρῶτα μὲν ὤκνει κατανεῦσαι, τὸ πολὺ τοῦ πράγματος προαποροῦσα. Ὡς δὲ ταύτην εἶχε δυσωποῦσαν ἐπὶ πλέον, καὶ συνεργοὺς πρὸς τὴν ἐγχείρησιν τὰς παρ᾽ αὐτῆς ἐπιζητοῦσαν εὐχὰς, τῷ μετρίῳ τοῦ φρονήματος θαῤῥήσασα τῆς Εἰρήνης, καὶ μηδ᾽ ἀθεεὶ τὴν προθυμίαν ταύτης εἶναι λογισαμένη, κατένευσέ τε καὶ ἐπέτρεψεν. Ἡ δὲ καθάπερ εἰς ἀνάκλισίν τινα, καὶ τοῦ σώματος ἀνάπαυσιν, οὕτως ἐπὶ τὴν στάσιν ἔδραμε χαίρουσα· καὶ ταῦτα μὴ πλέον τοῦ ἐνιαυτοῦ τὸν ἀσκητικὸν ἀγῶνα μετερχομένη. Ἀρξαμένη γοῦν τῆς στάσεως κατ᾽ ὀλίγον, ἐν ὀλίγῳ, τῆς θείας αὐτῇ συνεφαπτομένης χάριτος ἄνωθεν, παρὰ τοσοῦτον εἰς κατόρθωσιν ἦλθε τοῦ πράγματος, ὡς ὅλας μὲν νύκτας, ὅλας δὲ ἡμέρας τῇ στάσει τὰς χεῖρας αὐτὴν ἐκτείνουσαν πρὸς οὐρανὸν, μετὰ πάσης προθυμίας ἐγκαρτερεῖν. Πολλάκις μὲν γὰρ ἀρχομένη τῆς στάσεως τοῦ ἡλίου πρὸς δυσμὰς ὄντος, μέχρι τῆς ἐπιούσης [οὐκ] ἔληγεν ἑσπέρας. Πολλάκις δὲ τοῦ ἡλίου ἀνατέλλοντος, τὴν ἐπιοῦσαν ἵστατο πάλιν ἀνατολὴν προσδεχομένη. Καὶ ἦν θαῦμα τῇ προεστώσῃ ταῦτα, ἣν μόνην συνίστορα τῶν πραττομένων ἐποιεῖτο μετὰ τὸν ἐν κρυπτῷ βλέποντα θεόν. Ἥτις ἡνίκα τὴν Εἰρήνην μειδιῶντι προσώπῳ, καὶ ὑποπλέῳ πρὸς αὐτὴν ἐρυθήματος ἐρχομένην ἑώρα, βλέμματί τε γαληνῷ καὶ κάτω νεύοντι, καὶ λαλιᾷ πρᾳείᾳ προσφθεγγομένην· ἐκ τῶν τοιούτων σημείων καὶ τὸ τῆς στάσεως ἐτεκμηριοῦτο μέτρον. That is: But she at first hesitated to consent, being beforehand at a loss because of the greatness of the matter. But when she had Irene entreating her the more, and seeking her prayers as helpers for the undertaking, taking courage from the moderation of Irene's mind, and reckoning that this eagerness of hers was not without God, she consented and gave permission. And she, as though to some reclining and rest of the body, so ran rejoicing to the standing; and this while pursuing the ascetic contest for not more than a year. Having begun the standing little by little, in a short while, the divine grace laying hold of her from above, she came so far to the accomplishment of the matter, that whole nights and whole days she endured in the standing, stretching out her hands to heaven with all eagerness. For often, beginning the standing when the sun was setting, she did [not] cease until the following evening. And often, when the sun was rising, she stood again awaiting the next sunrise. And these things were a wonder to the superior, whom alone she made her fellow-witness of what was done, after God who sees in secret. And she, when she saw Irene coming to her with a smiling face and suffused with a blush, with a calm and downcast look, and addressing her with gentle speech; from such signs she inferred also the measure of the standing.

[14] Ἐπὶ τρισὶν οὖν ἔτεσιν οὕτως ἔχουσαν περὶ τοὺς ἀσκητικοὺς ἀγῶνας βλέπων ὁ πονηρὸς ἤσχαλλεν, ἡνιᾶτο, ἐδυσφόρει· οὐδὲ γὰρ εἶχεν, ὅπως αὐτὴν ταῖς οἰκείαις πάγαις ἁλώσιμον θήσεται· ὅ τι μηδὲ τῶν ὅσα καθ᾽ ἡμῶν πολεμῶν λαμβάνει, παρ᾽ αὐτῆς εἶχε λαβεῖν. Χρημάτων μὲν γὰρ καὶ τρυφῆς καὶ δόξης παρὰ τοσοῦτον ἀπέσχετο, ὡς μηδὲν πλέον ἔχειν τοῦ ἑνὸς χιτωνίου καὶ τριβωνίου, καὶ βραχυτάτοις κεχρῆσθαι πρὸς τὸ μόνον ἀποζῇν ἄρτῳ καὶ ὕδατι, ποτὲ δὲ καὶ λαχάνοις λίαν ὀλίγοις, καὶ τοῦτο πρὸς ἑσπέραν. Δόξης δὲ οὕτως καταπεφρόνηκεν, ὡς μηδ᾽ αὐτὰ τῶν τῆς μονῆς προαυλίων αἰσχύνεσθαι περικαθαίρειν ῥυπάσματα. Ὅμως τῷ ἰδίῳ καὶ συνήθει φθόνῳ χρώμενος λογισμοὺς ὑποβάλλειν ἤρξατο, τῆς προτέρας δόξης καὶ τῆς τοῦ γένους περιφανείας ἀναμιμνήσκων, τοῦ πλούτου τε καὶ τῆς τῶν ἰδίων ἀφθονίας, εἶτα καὶ πρὸς τὸ τῆς ἡδονῆς ὕπουλον καὶ μαλακὸν ὑποχαλᾷν. Ἡ δὲ τῷ κεκαθαρμένῳ τῆς διανοίας ὄμματι, τῆς ἐπιβουλῆς εἶναι ταῦτα τοῦ πονηροῦ μὴ ἀγνοήσασα, παραυτίκα πάντας τοὺς τοιούτους διαλογισμοὺς ἀνακαλύπτει τῇ ὁδηγῷ καὶ καθηγουμένῃ, καὶ διὰ τῆς ἐξαγορεύσεως ἀπαλλαγὴν εὑροῦσα τῆς ἐπηρείας, τῶν προτέρων ὁμοίως ἀγώνων εἴχετο. That is: The evil one therefore, seeing her thus engaged for three years in the ascetic contests, was vexed, grieved, and took it ill; for he had no way to make her taken in his own snares; because he could take from her none of those things which, warring against us, he lays hold of. For she abstained so far from money and luxury and glory, that she had nothing more than the one little tunic and worn cloak, and used the very least, only to keep alive, of bread and water, and sometimes of very few vegetables, and that toward evening. And glory she so despised, that she was not even ashamed to clean out the very filth of the forecourts of the monastery. Nevertheless, using his own accustomed envy, he began to suggest thoughts, reminding her of her former glory and the splendor of her family, and of her wealth and the abundance of her own possessions, and then also to slacken her toward the treacherous and soft enticement of pleasure. But she, with the purified eye of her mind, not ignorant that these were of the evil one's plotting, at once discloses all such reasonings to her guide and superior, and, through the confession finding deliverance from the assault, held likewise to her former contests.

[15] Μιᾷ δέ ποτε τῶν νυκτῶν τὰς συνήθεις πρὸς τὸν θεὸν ποιουμένης προσευχὰς, ὁ τῶν ψυχῶν ἀντίπαλος, εἰς μέλανα καὶ δυσειδῆ σχηματισθεὶς ἄνδρα, παραστὰς ἐκ διαστήματος ὕβρισέ τε θρασέως, καὶ ἠπείλει, γοητείας καὶ περιεργῶν ἐργάτιν ὀνομάζων αὐτὴν, καὶ σοβαρευόμενος ἐκφοβεῖν ἐπειρᾶτο. Καὶ τέλος, Ἐμοί, φησιν, ἀντιτάσσῃ; μικρὸν ἀνάμεινον, καὶ γνώσῃ πάντως, ὅς τις ἐγὼ, καὶ ἥ τις ἐμὴ δύναμις. Ἔτι δὲ καὶ ἄλλα προσειπεῖν ἐθέλων, ὡς εἶδεν αὐτὴν τὴν δεξιὰν προτείνουσαν τὸ τοῦ σταυροῦ χαράξαι κατ᾽ αὐτοῦ σημεῖον, φυγὰς ᾤχετο. Καὶ τῇ ἑξῆς σφοδρότεροι μᾶλλον ἢ πρότερον ἐπιτίθενται ταύτῃ λογισμοὶ, δεινῶς αὐτὴν ἐκταράττοντες καὶ θορυβοῦντες, καὶ εἰς ἀμηχανίαν ἐμβάλλοντες. Ὅμως ἐπειδὴ συνεχῶς τῇ ἀναγνώσει τῶν θείων προσεῖχε γραφῶν, ἐκείνου μνημονεύουσα τοῦ τῶν πατρῶν ῥήματος, ὡς οὐδεὶς ἀνθρώπων ἱκανὸς ἀντιστρατεύσασθαι τῷ πονηρῷ, ἐὰν μὴ τῇ σκέπῃ τοῦ κυρίου καὶ θεοῦ τῶν δυνάμεων προσπεφευγὼς, ἐκεῖθεν ἀπὸ τῆς ἐν αὐτῷ πίστεως τὸν ἐχθρὸν κατατοξεύσῃ καὶ καταβάλῃ, πρὸς τὸν θεὸν καταφεύγει, μεσίτας προβαλλομένη τὴν πανάμωμον μητέρα τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ κυρίου Ι. Χ., τὸν ἀρχιστράτηγον κυρίου τῶν δυνάμεων Μιχαὴλ, τὸν παρεστηκότα ἐνώπιον τοῦ θεοῦ Γαβριὴλ, οὗ καὶ τὸ τῆς μονῆς ἐπώνυμόν ἐστιν εὐκτήριον, καὶ πάσας τὰς οὐρανίους δυνάμεις, πάντας τε τοὺς ἁγίους ἐπικαλουμένη, τοιαύτην συνετίθει τὴν εὐχήν· That is: But on one of the nights, while she was making her accustomed prayers to God, the adversary of souls, fashioned into a black and misshapen man, standing at a distance, insulted her boldly, and threatened, calling her a worker of sorcery and of curious arts, and haughtily tried to frighten her. And at last, "Do you," he says, "set yourself against me? Wait a little, and you shall fully know who I am, and what my power is." And wishing to say yet other things, when he saw her stretching out her right hand to mark against him the sign of the Cross, he fled away. And on the next day thoughts more violent than before assail her, terribly disturbing and troubling her, and casting her into perplexity. Nevertheless, since she continually attended to the reading of the divine Scriptures, remembering that saying of the fathers, that no man is able to war against the evil one, unless, having fled to the shelter of the Lord and God of hosts, he thence, from the faith that is in Him, shoot down and cast down the enemy, she flees to God, putting forward as mediators the all-immaculate Mother of God and Lord Jesus Christ, the archangel-general of the Lord of hosts Michael, Gabriel who stands before God—after whom also the oratory of the monastery is named—and calling upon all the heavenly powers and all the saints, she composed such a prayer:

[16] Παναγία Τριὰς, παντοδύναμε καὶ μεγαλοδύναμε, τῇ μεσιτείᾳ τῆς θεοτόκου, τῇ πρεσβείᾳ τοῦ ἀρχιστρατηγοῦ Μιχαὴλ, καὶ τοῦ εὐαγγέλου Γαβριὴλ, καὶ πασῶν τῶν οὐρανίων δυνάμεων, καὶ πάντων τῶν ἁγίων, βοήθησον τῇ δούλῃ σου, καὶ ἐπίβλεψον ἐπ᾽ ἐμὲ, καὶ ἐλέησόν με, καὶ ἐξελοῦ με τῆς ἐπιβουλῆς τοῦ ἀντικειμένου. Καί ποτε μὲν ἐκτείνουσα τὰς χεῖρας εἰς οὐρανὸν, ποτὲ δὲ τῇ γῇ καταβάλλουσα ἑαυτὴν, ὅλας νύκτας καὶ ὅλας ἡμέρας δάκρυσι τὸ ἔδαφος πλύνουσα, τῆς δεήσεως οὐκ ἀφίστατο, μέχρις οὗ θείαν ἄνωθεν ἐπισκιάσασαν αὐτῆς ἔλλαμψιν τῇ ψυχῇ, καὶ τοὺς πονηροὺς διώκουσαν ᾔσθετο λογισμούς. Οὕτως οὖν ἐφ᾽ ἱκανὸν τῇ προσευχῇ καὶ τῇ δεήσει προσκαρτεροῦσαν ὁρῶν, ὁ ἐφορῶν τὰ ταπεινὰ, κύριος, καὶ τὴν πίστιν ἡμῶν, καὶ τὸν πρὸς αὐτὸν δοκιμάζων πόθον, πλουσίαν αὐτῇ καταπέμψας τὴν χάριν τοῦ πνεύματος, ἀπρόσιτον μὲν τοῦ λοιποῦ πάσαις ταῖς τοῦ πονηροῦ κατειργάσατο προσβολαῖς, φοβερὰν καὶ τοῖς δαίμοσιν, καὶ μηκέτι μὲν ζῶσαν αὐτὴν, ζῶντα δὲ τὸν Χριστὸν ἔχουσαν ἐν ἑαυτῇ, ὅλην τὴν ὅλην ἔνθεον, ὅλην πεφωτισμένην, μᾶλλον μὲν οὖν καὶ φωτιστικὴν, ψυχὰς πολλῶν δυνατὴν ὁδηγεῖν πρὸς That is: All-holy Trinity, all-powerful and mighty in power, by the mediation of the Mother of God, by the intercession of the archangel-general Michael, and of the evangel Gabriel, and of all the heavenly powers, and of all the saints, help your handmaid, and look upon me, and have mercy on me, and deliver me from the plotting of the adversary. And now stretching out her hands to heaven, now casting herself upon the ground, whole nights and whole days washing the floor with tears, she did not desist from her supplication, until she perceived a divine illumination from above overshadowing her soul, and driving away the evil thoughts. Seeing her thus persevering for a long time in prayer and supplication, the Lord who looks upon the lowly, and tests our faith and our longing toward Him, sending down upon her the rich grace of the Spirit, rendered her thenceforth inaccessible to all the assaults of the evil one, terrible even to the demons, and no longer living herself, but having Christ living in her, her whole soul wholly divine, wholly enlightened, or rather also enlightening, able to guide the souls of many toward

[17] Ὅθεν καὶ ὁ πολὺς ἦν ὁ περὶ αὐτῆς λόγος ἔν τε τοῖς συγγενέσιν, ἔν τε συγκλητικαῖς γυναιξὶ, καὶ παρθένοις πρὸς αὐτὴν φοιτώσαις, καὶ τὰ σωτήρια διδασκομέναις, ὡς πολλὰς αὐτῶν κοσμικῆς μὲν καταφρονῆσαι ματαιότητος, μεταμεῖψαι δὲ τὸν βίον πρὸς τὸ θεάρεστον ὑπὸ συμβούλῳ ταύτῃ καὶ ὁδηγῷ ταττομένας. Ἐπεὶ δὲ καὶ τὰς τοῦ μακαρίου Ἰωαννικίου γεγενημένας πρὸς αὐτὴν προῤῥήσεις μήτε διαπεσεῖν ἔδει, καὶ τελείας That is: Whence also there was much talk concerning her, both among her kinsfolk, and among the women of the senatorial order, and the virgins who resorted to her and were taught the things of salvation, so that many of them despised worldly vanity, and changed their life toward what is pleasing to God, placing themselves under her as counselor and guide. And since the predictions made to her by the blessed Joannicius had neither to fall to the ground, and that they might reach a perfect

ἀπηρτίσθαι, ἤγγιζεν ἤδη καὶ τὸ τέλος τῆς ζωῆς τῇ καθηγουμένῃ τῆς μονῆς. Πασῶν οὖν τῶν πνευματικῶν αὐτῇ θυγατέρων τὴν ὀρφανίαν ὀλοφυρομένων, ὁ τῆς Εἰρήνης θρῆνος πολλῷ τῶν ἄλλων ὑπερήρετο γυναικῶν· ὅτι μηδ᾽ ἑτέρᾳ τοσαύτῃ τούτων, ὅση ταύτῃ καρδίας ὑπῆν συντριβὴ, καὶ ταπείνωσις· ἐξ ὧν τὸ τῆς ἀγάπης ἐξαίρετον πηγάζει, καὶ τῶν δακρύων ἡ εἰλικρινεστάτη ῥοὴ διὰ τὴν ἀγαθὴν συνείδησιν. Περικυκλοῦσαι δὲ τὴν κλίνην, ἐν ᾗ κατέκειτο τὰ τελευταῖα πνέουσα, αἱ μὲν τὰς χεῖρας αὐτῆς, αἱ δὲ τοὺς πόδας, καὶ ἄλλαι ἄλλο τοῦ σώματος μέρος περιέψων, περιεπτύσσοντο, καὶ δάκρυσιν ἔβρεχον. Ἦν μὲν γὰρ καὶ πάσης ἔμπλεως ἀρετῆς ἡ καθηγεμών. Ἡ πρᾳότης δὲ αὐτῇ τὸ ἐπίσημον. That is: ...completion, the end of life was now drawing near also for the superior of the monastery. While therefore all her spiritual daughters bewailed their orphanhood, the lament of Irene far surpassed that of the other women; because in no other of them was there so great a contrition of heart and humility as in her; from which the excellence of love springs, and the most sincere flow of tears through a good conscience. And surrounding the bed on which she lay breathing her last, some tending her hands, others her feet, and others another part of the body, embraced her and bathed her with tears. For the superior was full of every virtue. And meekness was her distinguishing mark.

[18] Μόλις δέ ποτε τὴν ζωὴν αὐτῆς ἀπεγνωκυῖαι, ἠρέμα πως ἠρώτων θρηνῳδοῦσαι· Ποῦ τοίνυν ἡμᾶς καταλιμπάνεις λέγουσαι; ποῦ ποτε τοιαύτης ἡμεῖς μετά σε τύχοιμεν προστάτιδος, καὶ μητρὸς κηδεμονικώτερον περὶ ἡμᾶς διατεθειμένης, οὕτως ἀγαθῆς, οὕτως πραείας, οὕτως ἑκάστης ἡμῶν τὰ βάρεα βασταζούσης, καὶ τὸν νόμον ἐν ἡμῖν ἀναπληρούσης τοῦ Χριστοῦ; Ὡς δὲ ἐπὶ πολὺ κλαίουσαι τοιαῦτα πρὸς αὐτὴν ἔλεγον, καὶ τὴν ἔξοδον, εἰ οἷόν τε ἦν, κωλύσαι φιλονεικοῦσαι, ἤκουσαν φωνῆς παρ᾽ αὐτῆς ἰσχνῆς καὶ λίαν ἀμυδρᾶς, καὶ ταῖς ὀξύτερον ἀκροωμέναις ἐνωτισθείσης. Καὶ, Ἵνα τί μου, φησι, τὴν ψυχὴν συνταράσσετε ὀλολύζουσαι; ἔχετε, τέκνα, ἔχετε τὴν καλῶς ὑμᾶς ποιμανοῦσαν· πιστεύσατε τὸ τοσοῦτον ὑπὲρ ὑμᾶς τῇ ἀρετῇ οὖσαν, ὅσον ἐγὼ τῷ γήρῳ ὑπὲρ ὑμᾶς, καὶ τὸ πνεῦμα τοῦ θεοῦ ἀναπέπαυται ἐπ᾽ αὐτῇ. Καὶ εἰ ἐμοὶ πείθησθε, μὴ ἂν πρὸς ἑτέραν ἀποβλέψαι, τὴν ἀδελφὴν ἡμῶν Εἰρήνην λέγω, φωτὸς τὴν θυγατέρα, τὴν ἀμνάδα τοῦ Ἰησοῦ, τὸ ταμιεῖον τῶν χαρισμάτων τοῦ παρακλήτου· καὶ ταῦτα εἰποῦσα, καὶ δόξα τῷ ἐλέει σου, κύριε, τελευταῖον φθεγξαμένη, χερσὶν ἁγίων ἀγγέλων τὸ πνεῦμα παρέδωκεν. That is: At length, having despaired of her life, they gently asked, lamenting: Where then do you leave us? they said; where, after you, shall we ever find such a patroness, and one disposed toward us more tenderly than a mother, so good, so meek, so bearing the burdens of each of us, and fulfilling in us the law of Christ? And when for a long time, weeping, they said such things to her, and strove, if it were possible, to hinder her departure, they heard from her a voice thin and very faint, and audible to those who listened more sharply. And, "Why," she says, "do you trouble my soul with your wailing? You have, children, you have her who will shepherd you well: believe that she is as far above you in virtue as I am above you in age, and the Spirit of God has rested upon her. And if you obey me, look to no other, I mean our sister Irene, the daughter of light, the ewe-lamb of Jesus, the storehouse of the gifts of the Paraclete." And having said these things, and having uttered last of all, "Glory to your mercy, O Lord," she gave up her spirit into the hands of holy angels.

[19] Πάντα οὖν ἐπ᾽ αὐτῇ κατὰ νόμον ταφῆς ἐπιτελέσασαι, καὶ μεθ᾽ ἑτέρων ἱερῶν κηδεύσασαι ταύτην σωμάτων, ἐπὶ φροντίδα τῆς μελλούσης αὐτῶν ἐστράφησαν προΐστασθαι. Συναθροισθεῖσαι τοίνυν ἐν τῷ τοῦ ἀρχαγγέλου Γαβριὴλ ναῷ, ὃν εὐκτήριον ὄντα τῆς μονῆς ὁ λόγος ἐδήλωσεν οἶκον, πᾶσαι μὲν ἀπέβλεψαν κοινῇ γνώμῃ πρὸς τὴν ἀξιάγαστον Εἰρήνην. Οὐδὲν δὲ παράπαν πρὸς αὐτὴν εἰρήκασι περὶ τούτου, μὴ καὶ λάθῃ ταύτας ὑφορωμένη διαφυγοῦσα τῆς μονῆς. Ἤδεισαν γὰρ αὐτῆς τὸ μέτριον τοῦ φρονήματος, καὶ ὡς οὐκ ἂν κατεδέξαιτο τὴν προστασίαν, μὴ τῆς ἄνωθεν προνοίας καὶ ἄκουσαν εἰς τοῦτο κατεχούσης αὐτήν. Ἐν τῷ ναῷ δὲ προσευξάμεναι, ὁδοῦ τῆς πρὸς τὸν πατριάρχην εἴχοντο φερούσης, ὡς ἂν δι᾽ αὐτοῦ τὴν ἀξίαν θεόθεν λάβωσιν ὁδηγόν. Ἦν δὲ τοὺς οἴακας ὁ πανάριστος διακυβερνῶν Μεθόδιος τῆς Κωνσταντίνου, ὁ ὁμολογητὴς, ὃς πολλὰ μὲν ὑπὸ τῶν εἰκονομάχων ὑπέμεινε, βασιλέων ὑπερμαχούντων τῆς ἀσεβείας, καὶ προπολεμούντων κατὰ τῆς εὐσεβείας. Πολλοῖς δὲ στίγμασι καὶ κινδύνοις κεκοσμημένος τοῖς ὑπὲρ τῆς προσκυνήσεως τῶν ἀχράντων εἰκόνων, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο μὴ μόνον τῆς αἱρέσεως καταλύτης, καὶ τῆς ὀρθοδοξίας πρόμαχος ἱκανὸς, ἀλλὰ καὶ θαυμάτων αὐτουργὸς, καὶ πνεύματος ἀνάμεστος ἁγίου, καὶ διορατικῶς τὰ τῷ θεῷ δοκοῦντα καλῶς στοχαζόμενος. That is: Having therefore performed over her all things according to the law of burial, and having buried her with the other sacred bodies, they turned to the care of her who was to preside over them. Assembling therefore in the church of the archangel Gabriel, which the discourse indicated to be the oratory-house of the monastery, all with common consent looked to the most admirable Irene. But they said nothing at all to her about this, lest, suspecting them, she should escape from the monastery unnoticed. For they knew the moderation of her mind, and that she would not accept the presidency, unless the providence from above should hold her to this even unwilling. And having prayed in the church, they took the road leading to the patriarch, that through him they might receive from God a worthy guide. And the all-excellent Methodius of Constantinople, the confessor, was steering the helm, who endured many things from the Iconoclasts, the emperors fighting for impiety and warring against piety. Adorned with many marks (of wounds) and dangers for the veneration of the undefiled images, and on this account not only a destroyer of the heresy and a sufficient champion of orthodoxy, but also himself a worker of miracles, and full of the Holy Spirit, and discerningly conjecturing well the things that seemed good to God.

[20] Ὡς οὖν ἥπτοντο τῆς ὁδοῦ, προφασιζομένη προφάσεις οὐκ ἤθελεν Εἰρήνη ταύταις ἕπεσθαι. Μόλις οὖν αὐτὴν πείσασαι συνοδοιπορεῖν, τὸ πατριαρχεῖον κατέλαβον· ὑπομνηθέντος οὖν, ὡς ἔθος, τοῦ μεγάλου Μεθοδίου, εἰσίασιν αἱ ἀδελφαὶ πᾶσαι ἅμα πρὸς αὐτὸν, καὶ τὴν συνήθη λαβοῦσαι μετάνοιαν, ἔκειντο τὴν εὐλογίαν ἀναμένουσαι. Εὐλογήσας δὲ καὶ ἀναστῆναι ταύτας ἐγκελευσάμενος ἠρώτα μαθεῖν τὴν προκριθεῖσαν ὑπ᾽ αὐτῶν εἰς προστασίαν αὐτῶν. Αἱ δὲ μηδεμία ἐξ ἡμῶν ἔφασαν, τό γε νῦν ἔχον, ὦδε δέσποτα, ἐξελέχθη παρ᾽ ἡμῶν· τὸ πᾶν δὲ τῷ θεῷ, καὶ τῷ ἐνοικοῦντί σοι πνεύματι τοῦ θεοῦ ἀναθέμεναι, πρὸς τὴν σὴν ἥκομεν ἁγιότητα. Ὁ δὲ θεοφόρος ἐκεῖνος ἀνὴρ, Οἶδά φησι τὴν σεμνοτάτην Εἰρήνην αἱρεῖσθαι πᾶσαι καλῶς τε φρονοῦσαι καὶ θεαρέστως, καὶ χάρις τῷ θεῷ, ὅτι οὐκ ἀπέκρυψε τὰ κατ᾽ αὐτὴν ἀπ᾽ ἐμοῦ. Ταῦτα δὲ ὡς ἤκουσαν, ἐκπλήξει καὶ φόβῳ συνεχόμεναι, οὐδὲν ἀποκρίνασθαι εἶχον, μόνον δὲ πρὸς τῶν ποδῶν αὐτῷ καταβαλοῦσαι ἑαυτὰς, Ὄντως ὁ θεὸς ἔν σοί ἐστι, εἶπεν, καὶ ὑπ᾽ αὐτοῦ ὡδηγήθης, ἅγιε, τοῦ θεοῦ. That is: As therefore they took the road, Irene, making excuses, did not wish to follow them. Scarcely then, having persuaded her to journey with them, they reached the patriarchate; and the great Methodius being informed, as is customary, all the sisters go in together to him, and having made the accustomed obeisance, they lay awaiting the blessing. And having blessed them and bidden them rise, he asked to learn the one preferred by them for their presidency. And they said: None from among us, at least for the present, O master, has here been chosen by us; but having committed the whole to God and to the Spirit of God dwelling in you, we have come to your holiness. And that God-bearing man said: I know that you all, thinking rightly and in a manner pleasing to God, choose the most venerable Irene; and thanks be to God, that He has not hidden from me the things concerning her. And when they heard these things, seized with astonishment and fear, they had nothing to answer, but only casting themselves at his feet, said: Truly God is in you, and by Him you have been guided, O holy one of God.

[21] Εὐθὺς οὖν μηδὲν μελλήσας ὁ πατριάρχης, ἐξαναστὰς τοῦ θρόνου, καὶ θυμιατήριον αἰτήσας, βαλών τε θυμίαμα, καὶ τὸν θεὸν εὐλογήσας, ὑμνῳδίας τε προσφόρου πρῶτος ἀρξάμενος, διάκονον τῆς μεγάλης ἐκκλησίας πρῶτον χειροτονεῖ τὴν Εἰρήνην (ᾔδει γὰρ τῷ ἐν αὐτῷ πνεύματι καὶ τὴν αὐτῆς καθαρότητα) καὶ μετὰ τοῦτο καὶ τὴν τῆς ἡγεμονείας ἐπιτίθησι σφραγίδα· καὶ πολλὰ μὲν περὶ προστασίας εἰπὼν πρὸς αὐτὴν, πλείονα δὲ ταῖς ἄλλαις περί τε πίστεως καὶ ὑπακοῆς, καὶ τῶν ἐκεῖθεν ὑπομνήσας κολαστηρίων, καὶ αὖθις τῶν ἀγαθῶν, ἃ τοῖς εὖ ἢ κακῶς τὸν βίον ἐνταῦθα διανύουσιν ἀναμένει, τὴν ὁμόνοιάν τε ταύταις καὶ τὴν ἀγάπην ἐπευξάμενος, ἀπέλυσεν αὐτὰς ἐν εἰρήνῃ. That is: Straightway therefore the patriarch, delaying nothing, rising from his throne, and asking for a censer, and putting on incense, and blessing God, and being the first to begin a fitting hymn, first ordains Irene deaconess of the great church (for by the Spirit that was in him he knew also her purity), and after this he places upon her also the seal of the leadership; and having said much to her concerning the presidency, and more to the others concerning faith and obedience, and having reminded them of the punishments there, and again of the good things which await those who pass their life here well or ill, praying for concord and love among them, he dismissed them in peace.

And so it was to be seen how Irene, with joy undertaking the voluntary yoke of Christ, was not only accommodated to every obedience which is according to God, She excels in various virtues; but even prepared in a perpetual series; so that in her was fulfilled that the yoke is good, and the burden of Christ is light to those who draw it gratefully. For she knew absolutely no contradiction in all the things which were simply commanded her: sloth was absent: vigilance ever flourished in her: compunction was continual, and spiritual exultation so great, that, bearing a joyfully-blooming countenance, she ever displayed the gladness of her heart, as is in the proverb. She had also a superior, who skillfully roused and formed her to the best things. Likewise she had the grace of God, mystically overshadowing her, and teaching the things which were to her advantage. For without me, says the Lord, you can do nothing. And, he who abides in me, and I in him, this one bears much fruit. And indeed she bore it, who, like good and rich earth, received the divine seed, and was purged from all concretion and adhesion of earthly dregs.

[12] For a soul which loves God, and possesses a virgin body, quickly finds the grace of God flying to it, and made all things to it. to which she resolves to superadd the standing of St. Arsenius; The measure of mutual charity which she held, and her humility, carried into admiration not only the superior, but also all who heard her. For as a handmaid she looked up to all the sisters as queens, and rendered to each of them the vilest services. So did she lean upon the divine Scriptures, and so was she free for the Lives of the fathers, selecting whatever in them was beautiful, whatever useful, that she seemed to be a mouth of the divinely inspired words. And when once she had come upon the deeds of blessed Arsenius ^a, and had understood his standing ^b; how, having his hands extended, he would stand until the rising of the sun, when he had begun at the setting of the sun; and would desist from the standing when the rising sun had illuminated his face; kindled with love to be like that noble man, and to present herself before God by an angelic rather than a human faculty; she communicates the matter with the superior.

[13] which, her superior consenting, she asks, obtains, and performs with fruit. First indeed she hesitates to consent, being in suspense of mind on account of the greatness of the matter. But when she saw her insisting longer, and requiring from her prayers as helpers for the execution of her purpose, relying on the moderate prudence of Irene, and judging that her fervor was not without the divine Deity, she consented and permitted it. But she, as though to some reclining and rest of the body, so ran rejoicing to the standing. And for not more than one year she ran through this spiritual contest. Having begun the standing gradually, in a little time, the divine grace helping her from on high, she came to so great a perfection of the matter, that she persisted whole nights, whole days in the standing, with hands extended to heaven, with great alacrity. For often, having begun the standing when the sun was verging to its setting, she did not cease until the evening of the next day. Often likewise, the sun having risen, she stood again awaiting the rising of the next day. And these things indeed were a miracle to the superior; whom alone she made conscious of the things that were done, after God, who sees in secret. She, when she saw Irene coming to her with a gently smiling face, and suffused with a blush, and conversing with a cheerful and modestly downcast aspect, and with a placid discourse; from such signs she gathered also the measure of the standing.

[14] The devil, wearied of her austere life, For three years therefore the devil, seeing her thus disposed toward the spiritual combats, grieved, was tormented, and could not bear it. For he had nothing by which to ensnare her in his snares: because he could take none of the arms, which fighting against us he takes up, against her. For she abstained so far from riches, delights, and glory, that she had nothing more than a single garment and a little cloak, and used the most sparing things for the mere sustenance of life, bread and water; sometimes also very few herbs, and that until evening. And glory she so despised, that she did not even blush to clean out the very filth of the monastery's vestibules. Nevertheless the devil, using his own and accustomed envy, began to suggest thoughts, recalling to her memory her former glory and the splendor of her family, as also the abundance of riches and household goods; then also to relax her toward hidden and soft pleasure. But she, with purged eye of mind, not ignorant that these were of the diabolical art, at once reveals all thoughts of this kind to her guide and forewarner of the way, and, through that disclosure freed from the vexation, she clung likewise to her former exercises.

[15] On a certain night, while she poured out her accustomed prayers to God, assails the holy woman by various arts: the adversary of souls, under the appearance of a black and horrible man, standing from ambush, boldly attacked her with insults, and vexed her, calling her a worker of incantation and follies, and with raised eyebrow tried to terrify her. And at last, "Do you," he says, "resist me? Wait a little, and you will well know who I am, and what my power is." And while he wished to utter other things, when he saw that she stretched out her right hand to form the cross, at its sign he took himself off in flight. But on the next day thoughts more vehement than before were sent into her, which gravely disturbed her, and reduced her to such a state that she knew not whither to turn herself. But since she assiduously attended to the reading of the divine Scriptures, recalling to memory that saying of the holy fathers, that no man suffices to resist the devil, unless he has fled to the help of the Lord and God of hosts, by whose power, relying on faith in Him, he may vanquish and prostrate the enemy; she flees to God, employing as mediators the undefiled Mother of God, and of our Lord Jesus Christ; Michael, the prince of the heavenly army, standing before Him,

Gabriel who stands before God, whose name the sacred edifice of the monastery bore, and invoking all the heavenly powers and all the saints, she framed such a prayer:

[16] Most holy Trinity, who art mighty in great things, and canst do all things; by the intervention of the God-bearer, and by the intercession of Michael, but she is freed by prayers. prince of the heavenly army, and of the good messenger Gabriel, and of all the heavenly powers, and of all the saints, help your handmaid, and look upon me, and have mercy on me, and snatch me from the snares of the enemy. And now indeed stretching her hands to heaven, now prostrating herself on the ground, whole nights and whole days she washed the floor with tears, and did not cease from prayer; until she felt a divine illumination from heaven, which both overshadowed her soul and expelled the wicked thoughts. Seeing her thus abundantly persevering in prayer and supplication, the Lord who looks upon the lowly, and who tests our faith and desire of Him, sent into her the copious grace of the Spirit, and rendered her inaccessible to all the attempts of the devil, and terrible to the demons (as one who now lived not herself, but who had the living Christ in her), wholly divine, wholly breathed upon by the divine Deity, wholly illumined, nay rather endowed with the faculty of illuminating others; who could lead the souls of many into the way to the light of truth, and bring forth, like the mouth of God, the precious from the vile ^c.

[17] Whence there was frequent talk of her among her kinsfolk, among the senatorial women and virgins, who kept coming to her, She profits many toward a better life: and while, as prefect of the monastery and were taught salutary things; so that many of them despised worldly folly, and changed their life according to God's good pleasure, obeying her counsel and guidance. But since the predictions of blessed Joannicius, which had been made to her, ought not to fail, but to be accurately fulfilled, the end of life was now approaching for the superior of the monastery. And so, while all her spiritual daughters mourned their bereavement, far above the other women Irene bore this death grievously and painfully; because in none other of them was the heart so contrite and humbled as in her: from which flows the excellence of love, and the most sincere stream of tears through a good conscience. Gathered therefore around the bed, on which lay she who was breathing her last breath; these wiped her hands, those her feet, and others another part of the body, embraced them, and watered them with tears. For the superior was full of every virtue; and especially conspicuous for meekness.

[18] she lay dying, she urges them to choose Irene in her place: Scarcely had they despaired of her life, when they modestly asked, lamenting: Where, they say, do you leave us? Where after you shall we ever obtain such a superior, affected toward us with a care even more than maternal; so good, so meek, so bearing the burdens of each of us, and fulfilling the law of Christ in us? After they had said these things to her with much weeping, and had striven, if it might be, to hinder her death, they heard uttered by her a thin and very slight voice, perceived by the ears of those who heard more sharply. And, Why, she says, do you trouble my soul with wailing? You have, daughters, you have her who will rightly pasture you, and who, believe it, will be as much more excellent than you in virtue, as I precede you in age: and the Spirit of God has rested upon her, and if you obey me, look to no other: I mean our sister Irene, daughter of light, lamb of Jesus, storehouse of the graces of the Paraclete. When she had said these things, and had pronounced last of all, Glory to your mercy, O Lord, she gave up her spirit into the hands of holy angels.

[19] All things therefore being performed toward her according to the law of burial, who, though unwilling, and her body being laid among the other sacred bodies; they turned their care to her who was to preside over them. Gathered therefore in the temple of the archangel Gabriel, which we said to be the edifice of the monastery consecrated to prayer, with common consent they all cast their eyes upon the admirable Irene. But they said nothing at all to her about this matter, suspecting lest she should secretly flee from the monastery. For they feared, from her modesty, by which she thought humbly of herself; and lest she should refuse to accept the prefecture; unless heavenly providence should compel her, even unwilling, to this. Having prayed in the temple, they set themselves on the road which leads to the patriarch, that through him, God consenting, they might receive a worthy superior. Now Methodius ^d, most conspicuous for virtue, was managing the helm of the city of Constantinople; a confessor, who endured many things from the Iconoclasts, the emperors defending impiety and assailing piety. Having therefore passed through many marks (of wounds) and dangers honorably for the cult of the undefiled images, and for that cause he stood forth not only as an overthrower of heresy, and a powerful champion of sound doctrine, but also a worker of miracles, and full of the Holy Spirit, he clearly attained the things which were pleasing to God.

[20] And now they had reached the road; when Irene, making excuses, did not wish to follow them. St. Methodius, patriarch of Constantinople, wonderfully striving for this, When they had scarcely persuaded her to accompany them, they came to the dwelling of the patriarch. The great Methodius being first informed, as is the custom, all the sisters together approach him, and having made the accustomed deep inclination of the body ^e, they fell prostrate, awaiting while he should bless them. After he had blessed them, and had bidden them rise, he asked, that he might understand, whom above the rest they had chosen for themselves for the prefecture. But they said: None of us, O Lord, as the matter now stands, has been chosen by us: but committing all this to God, and to the Spirit of God who dwells in you, we have come to your holiness. Then that divine man said: I know that you all, thinking rightly and according to God's good pleasure, choose the most excellent Irene; and thanks be to God, that He has not hidden from me the things which pertain to her. On hearing these things, seized with astonishment and fear, they had nothing to answer; but this only, casting themselves at his feet, they said: Truly God is in you, and by Him, O holy man, you have been directed by God.

[21] Soon therefore, the patriarch delaying nothing, rose from his throne, sought a censer, burned incense, blessed God, and creating her deaconess of the great church, she is set over the monastery. and being the first to begin a fitting hymnody, first ordains ^g Irene deaconess ^f of the great church: (for by the spirit which was in him he had seen her purity), and after these things he superadded the seal of the prefecture. And speaking indeed much with her concerning the prefecture, but more with the others concerning faith and obedience; and making them mindful of the torments of the other life, as also of the good things which await those who order their life here well or ill; and praying for concord and love among them, he dismissed them in peace.

ANNOTATIONS.

CHAPTER III.

She gives various instructions and incitements to virtue to herself and to her own; she receives insight into secret things.

[22] Ἡ μέν τοι τὴν προστασίαν τῆς μονῆς ἄρτι τοῦ Χρυσοβαλάντου κατὰ θείαν πρόνοιαν ἀναδεξαμένη Εἰρήνη, εἰς νοῦν λαμβάνουσα τὰ προῤῥηθέντα πάλαι αὐτῇ παρὰ τοῦ μεγάλου Ἰωαννικίου, καὶ τὰ κατὰ τὴν ἀπόῤῥητον τοῦ θεοῦ οἰκονομηθέντα σοφίαν κατανοοῦσα, παρ᾽ ὅλην τὴν ὁδὸν οὐκ ἔληγε τῶν δακρύων, τὰ μεγαλεῖα τοῦ θεοῦ ἐκπληττομένη, καὶ πρὸς τὸ τῆς ταπεινώσεως πολλῷ πλέον νῦν καταβαίνουσα βάθος, καὶ ἀναξίαν ἑαυτὴν καὶ τῆς γῆς ὑπολαμβάνουσα, τῆς θείας χάριτος, ὡς εἰκὸς, δι᾽ ἐπιθέσεως τῶν χειρῶν τοῦ θεοφόρου Μεθοδίου ἐπικαθαπτούσης αὐτῆς τῇ ψυχῇ, καὶ πρὸς τὴν ἄκραν συνδιατιθείσης αὐτὴν μετριοφροσύνην. Ὅπερ θαυμάζουσαι αἱ ἀδελφαὶ μὴ οὕτω λυπεῖσθαι παρεκάλουν αὐτὴν, καὶ ἀδημονεῖν περὶ τῆς ἡμετέρας λέγουσαι προστασίας. Πᾶσαι γὰρ ἡμεῖς πρὸς πᾶσαν ὑπακοὴν ἰδού σοι ἑτοίμως ἔχομεν (ἀγνοοῦσαι πάντως, ἅπερ ἐκείνη κατὰ νοῦν ἐλογίζετο) καὶ οὐδὲν ἔσται πρόσκομμα παρ᾽ ἡμῶν, ῥᾴδια πάντα τῆς ἡμετέρας ὑπακοῆς θεοῦ διομαλιζούσης σοι ῥοπῇ. That is: Now Irene, having just received the presidency of the monastery of Chrysobalanton according to divine providence, taking into mind the things long ago foretold to her by the great Joannicius, and considering the things dispensed by the ineffable wisdom of God, throughout the whole way did not cease from tears, astonished at the mighty works of God, and now descending much more into the depth of humility, and supposing herself unworthy even of the earth—the divine grace, as was fitting, through the imposition of the hands of the God-bearing Methodius laying hold upon her soul, and disposing her toward the utmost humility of mind. And the sisters, wondering at this, entreated her not to grieve so, nor to be distressed concerning our presidency, saying: For we all, behold, are ready for you unto every obedience (being wholly ignorant of what she was reckoning in her mind), and there will be no stumbling-block from us, all things being made smooth for our obedience by the inclination of God toward you.

[23] Ἐπεὶ δὲ καὶ τὸ μοναστήριον κατέλαβον, τάς τε συνήθεις εὐχαριστίας ἀπέδωκαν τῷ κηδεμόνι θεῷ, καὶ σιτίων κοινῇ μετέλαβον τραπέζῃ· τὸ ταῖς προεστώσαις ἀφωρισμένον παραλαβοῦσα ἀτελλίον , κλείσασα τὴν θύραν προσηύχετο τῷ βλέποντι ἐν τῷ κρυπτῷ συναντιλήψεσθαι αὐτῇ, τὸν θεὸν ἱκετεύουσα τῆς τῶν ἀδελφῶν προστασίας, καὶ δάκρυσι τὸ ἔδαφος καταῤῥαίνουσα, πολλὴν ᾐτεῖτο καὶ μεγάλην ἐξ ὕψους αὐτῇ καταπεμφθῆναι τὴν συνεργίαν. Σὺ γὰρ εἶ, λέγουσα, ὁ ποιμὴν ὁ καλὸς, σὺ εἶπας τοῖς μαθηταῖς· Εἷς ὑμῶν ἐστι καθηγητὴς ὁ Χριστός. Σὺ εἶ ἡ θύρα τῶν προβάτων, ὁ εἰσάγων αὐτὰ εἰς τὴν σωτηρίαν τὴν αἰώνιον. Σὺ εἶ καὶ ὁ κύριος καὶ ὁ διδάσκαλος· καὶ εἰ σὺ εἶ ὁ ὁδηγὸς ἡμῶν, ἀντιλαβοῦ τῆς δούλης σου, καὶ τοῦ μικροῦ τούτου ποιμνίου σου, καὶ διατήρησον ἡμᾶς ἀπὸ τῆς ἁρπαγῆς τοῦ νοητοῦ καὶ δολίου λύκου. Οἶδας γὰρ τὴν ἀσθένειαν ἡμῶν, καὶ ὡς οὐδὲν ἡμεῖς ἀνύειν ὅλως δυνάμεθα, μὴ τῆς παρά σου βοηθείας ἡμῖν χορηγουμένης. That is: But when they had reached the monastery, and had rendered the accustomed thanksgivings to God their guardian, and had partaken of food at a common table; she, having taken the cell [] set apart for the superiors, and having closed the door, prayed to Him who sees in secret that He would help her, beseeching God concerning the presidency over the sisters, and sprinkling the floor with tears, she asked that great and abundant assistance be sent down to her from on high. For you are, she said, the good shepherd; you said to the disciples: One is your teacher, the Christ. You are the door of the sheep, who lead them into eternal salvation. You are both the Lord and the teacher; and if you are our guide, take up the cause of your handmaid, and of this your little flock, and preserve us from the seizure of the spiritual and crafty wolf. For you know our weakness, and that we can accomplish nothing at all, unless the help from you be supplied to us.

[24] Ἐπὶ πολὺ δὲ προσευξαμένη, καὶ μετρίως ἄνεσιν λαβοῦσα, ἤρξατο πρὸς ἑαυτὴν τοιαῦτα διαλέγεσθαι. Ἆράγε, ταπεινὴ Εἰρήνη, ἐπιγινώσκεις τὸ φορτίον, ὅπερ σου Χριστὸς ἐπὶ τῶν ὤμων ἐπέθετο; ψυχὰς ἐνεπιστεύθης, ὑπὲρ ὧν θεὸς καὶ ἄνθρωπος ἐγένετο, καὶ τὸ αἷμα ἐξέχεε, καὶ, ὡς ἤκουσας, οὐδὲ ὁ That is: And having prayed for a long time, and having taken moderate relief, she began to converse thus with herself. Do you then, lowly Irene, recognize the burden which Christ has laid upon your shoulders? Souls have been entrusted to you, for whom God became also man, and shed His blood, and, as you have heard, not even the

κόσμος ἅπας μιᾶς ψυχῆς ἀντάξιος. Οὐδὲ ἐκεῖνο πάλιν ἀγνοεῖς, ὅτι, ἐὰν ὑπὲρ ἀργοῦ λόγου λόγον ἕκαστος δώσει ἐν ἡμέρᾳ κρίσεως, ὑπὲρ ψυχῆς ἀπολλυμένης οἷα πείσεται, ὁ τὴν φροντίδα ταύτης ἀναδεδεμένος, εἰ μὴ τὰ παρ᾽ ἑαυτοῦ ποιήσει πρὸς τὴν αὐτῆς σωτηρίαν. Ἐπαγρυπνεῖν δεῖ πάντως περισσοτέρως ἐν εὐχαῖς, καρτερεῖν ἐν νηστείαις, τὰ ἀσθενήματα τῶν ἀδελφῶν σου βαστάζειν, καὶ πάντα φέρειν γενναίως καὶ πρᾴως. Πρόσεχε δὲ ἑαυτῇ, μή ποτε τὸ σὸν ἐλάττωμα, τό σε λανθάνον, ἀφορμή τινι τῶν ἀδελφῶν γένηται, καὶ πληρωθῇ ἐπί σοι τὸ λέγον ῥῆμα τοῦ Χριστοῦ· Ὅτι τυφλὸς τυφλὸν ἐὰν ὁδηγῇ, ἀμφότεροι πεσοῦνται εἰς βόθυνον. Ἀλλὰ τὰ μὲν πρὸς ἑαυτὴν τοιαῦτα, οἷς δὴ καὶ δήσασα τὴν ψυχὴν, ἐπὶ πολλῷ πλείονα διήγειρε τὴν ἄσκησιν, ἀγγελικὴν διόλου βίωσιν ἑλομένη καὶ πολιτείαν, νηστείας μὲν ἀνύουσα πολυημέρους, στάσεις παννύχους, γονάτων ὑπὲρ ἀριθμὸν τελοῦσα κλίσεις· χαμευνία ξηρὰ, καὶ μὴ μᾶλλον ἀνέσεως ὅσον κακὰ παθεῖν ἀφορμῆς κεχρημένη. That is: ...the whole world is worth one soul. Nor again are you ignorant of this, that if each shall give account for an idle word on the day of judgment, what things he who has taken up the care of a perishing soul will suffer for it, unless he does what is in his own power toward its salvation. One must by all means watch the more abundantly in prayers, persevere in fastings, bear the infirmities of your sisters, and endure all things nobly and gently. And take heed to yourself, lest ever your own fault, hidden from you, become an occasion to any of the sisters, and there be fulfilled upon you the saying of Christ: That if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into a pit. But such were the things she said to herself, by which, having bound her soul, she roused herself to a much greater asceticism, choosing throughout an angelic manner of life and conduct, performing fasts of many days, all-night standings, accomplishing genuflections beyond number; a dry bed on the ground, and using it not so much for rest as for an occasion of suffering hardship.

[25] Καὶ διὰ τῶν τοιούτων τὴν εὔνοιαν σπεύσασα τοῦ θεοῦ ἐπισπᾶσθαι, καὶ τὴν παρ᾽ αὐτοῦ χορηγουμένην σύνεσιν, διδάσκουσαν ἔχειν καὶ πρὸς πᾶσαν μυστικῶς καὶ ὁδηγοῦσαν τὴν ἀλήθειαν· οἷα δὲ καὶ πρὸς τὰς ἀδελφὰς ἃ ἐδίδασκε ἡ σοφωτάτη. Οἶδα μέν, φησιν, ὦ τίμια θεῷ ἀναθήματα, μηδαμῶς εὔλογον τὴν ἐμὴν οὐθένειαν εἰς διδασκάλου τάξιν ὑμῶν προσκαθῆσθαι, καὶ διδάσκειν ὑμᾶς, ἃς ἐγὼ πέπεισμαι διδακτὰς εἶναι θεοῦ. Ἀλλ᾽ ἐπειδὴ τὰ θεοῦ κρίματα πάντως ἀνεξερεύνητα, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ἡ πολύτροπος αὐτοῦ σοφία εἰς τοῦτό μου τὴν ταπείνωσιν ἤγαγεν, ἀξιῶ μὴ προσέχειν ὡς διδασκάλῳ, ἀλλ᾽ ὡς συμβούλῳ καὶ ἀδελφῇ διὰ τὴν ἐπικειμένην μοι ἀνάγκην· οὐαὶ γάρ μοί ἐστι κατὰ τὸν θεῖον ἀπόστολον, ἐὰν μὴ τὰ συμφέροντα ὑμῖν συμβουλεύσαιμι. Καὶ ἀνέχεσθε τῶν ῥημάτων τῆς ἐμῆς ταπεινώσεως δι᾽ ἀγάπην ὑμῖν προσφερομένων. Καὶ γὰρ ἐὰν τὸν βίον τοῦτον τὸν ἀσκητικὸν, ὃν ὑπήλθομεν ἑκουσίως, μὴ κατὰ τοὺς αὐτῷ κειμένους μετέλθωμεν νόμους, οὐδὲν ἡμῖν ὄφελος, οὐδὲ αὐτῆς τῆς πίστεως. Χωρὶς γὰρ ἔργων ἡ πίστις νεκρά· ἠκούσαμεν γὰρ βασιλείαν οὐρανῶν ζωὴν ἀΐδιον, καὶ ἀτελεύτητον τρυφὴν ἀκηράτων αἰωνίων ἀγαθῶν. That is: And having by such things hastened to draw to herself the good will of God, and the understanding supplied by Him—having it to teach her and to guide her mystically toward all truth: consider now the sort of things the most wise woman taught also to the sisters. I know, she says, O offerings precious to God, that it is in no way reasonable that my nothingness should sit in the rank of a teacher over you, and teach you, whom I am persuaded to be taught of God. But since the judgments of God are wholly unsearchable, and on this account His manifold wisdom has brought me to this humiliation, I beg you to attend to me not as to a teacher, but as to a counselor and sister, because of the necessity laid upon me; for woe is me, according to the divine Apostle, if I do not counsel you the things that are profitable. And bear with the words of my humility, offered to you out of love. For if we do not go through this ascetic life, which we have voluntarily undertaken, according to the laws laid down for it, there is no profit to us, nor of faith itself. For without works faith is dead: for we have heard of the kingdom of heaven, eternal life, and the endless enjoyment of pure everlasting goods.

[26] Ἐπιστεύσαμεν τῷ εὐαγγελισαμένῳ καὶ ὑποσχομένῳ Ἰησοῦ τῷ θεῷ καὶ κυρίῳ ἡμῶν, εἰς ὃν καὶ πεπιστεύκαμεν, καὶ πιστεύσασαι τοῖς ἐπηγγελμένοις τοσούτοις ἀγαθοῖς, ἀφήκαμεν τὰ τοῦ κόσμου τερπνὰ ὡς πρόσκαιρα, καὶ μικράν τινα καὶ ταύτην ἠχρειωμένην ἔχοντα τὴν ἀπόλαυσιν, οὐ μόνον δὲ οὐχ ἱστάμενα, ἀλλὰ καὶ πρὸς τὸ τυχεῖν τῶν οὐρανίων οὐ μικρὸν ἡμῖν εὑρισκόμενα κώλυμα. Εἴπερ οὖν μετὰ ταῦτα τούτων ἐκπεσούμεθα, ἐλεεινότεραι τάχα πάντων ἀνθρώπων ἐσμέν· ἀποτευξόμεθα δὲ, καὶ μάτην ἡμῖν ὅλος οὗτος ὁ κόπος ἔσται, ἐὰν μὴ κατὰ τοὺς νόμους τοῦ Χριστοῦ πολιτευσώμεθα· εἶπε γὰρ ὁ κύριος· Οὐδεὶς δύναται δυσὶ κυρίοις δουλεύειν· ἢ γὰρ τὸν ἕνα μισήσει, καὶ τὸν ἕτερον ἀγαπήσει· ἢ τοῦ ἑνὸς ἀνθέξεται, καὶ τοῦ ἑτέρου καταφρονήσει. Μία γὰρ οὖσα ἡ ψυχὴ, εἰς δύο μερισθῆναι οὐ δύναται· μηδ᾽ αὐτὴ ἐν ταυτῷ καὶ τρυφᾷν, καὶ ἐγκρατεύεσθαι, καὶ πτωχείαν χρημάτων ἔχειν, καὶ πλουτεῖν χρήμασι, καὶ ταπείνωσιν τοῦ κυρίου μετιέναι, καὶ τὴν κενὴν τῶν ἀνθρώπων θερίζειν δόξαν. That is: We have believed in Jesus, who preached and promised, our God and Lord, in whom also we have believed, and, having believed in so many promised goods, we have left the delights of the world as temporary, and having but a small and debased enjoyment, and not only not enduring, but even found to be no small hindrance to us toward attaining the heavenly things. If therefore after these things we shall fall away from them, we are perhaps more pitiable than all men; and we shall fail, and all this labor of ours will be in vain, unless we conduct ourselves according to the laws of Christ; for the Lord said: No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will cleave to the one and despise the other. For the soul, being one, cannot be divided into two; nor can it at the same time both live in luxury and practice self-control, and have poverty of money and be rich in money, and pursue the humility of the Lord and reap the empty glory of men.

[27] Ἡμεῖς οὖν ἀφήκαμεν πάντα, καὶ ἠκολουθήσαμεν αὐτῷ. Ἐὰν μὴ καὶ ἡ ψυχὴ ἡμῶν, καὶ πάντα τὰ ἐντὸς ἡμῶν ἀκολουθῇ· οὐδὲν ἡμῖν ὄφελος ἡ σωματικὴ μόνον ἀκολούθησις, ἀλλὰ δέον ἡμᾶς πᾶσαν ἀπὸ τῆς ψυχῆς διῶξαι βιοτικὴν ἐπιθυμίαν καὶ προσπάθειαν, ἵνα μὴ τὰ ἔξω φαινόμεναι τὸν κόσμον φυγοῦσαι, τὰ ἔνδον μέσον ὦμεν τοῦ κόσμου, ἐφιέμεναι τιμᾶσθαι ὑπὸ τῶν ἀνθρώπων, ἱματίοις ἀνθοβαφέσι καὶ πολυτίμοις κοσμεῖσθαι, καὶ χαίρειν στρωμναῖς ὑψηλαῖς τε καὶ μαλακαῖς καὶ πολυτελέσιν ἀνακλίνεσθαι, πολυφαγίας καὶ οἰνοποσίας ἀμέτροις βαρύνεσθαι, καὶ ἀδικεῖν τὴν ψυχήν· ἀδικία γάρ ἐστι πᾶν τὸ ὑπὲρ τὴν χρείαν, καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις κατὰ κόσμον πράγμασι ἐντρυφᾷν, οἷς καθάπαξ ἀπεταξάμεθα ἐνώπιον τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ τῶν ἁγίων ἀγγέλων. Ἀλλὰ δεῖ τροφὰς ἡμεῖς ἐχούσας καὶ σκεπάσματα, τούτοις ἀρκεῖσθαι, καθὼς γέγραπται· Τὸ δὲ ἔργον ἡμῶν καὶ τὸ ἀγώνισμα τὸ μέγα ἐκεῖνο ἂν εἴη, τὸ τὰς ἀρετὰς ἐκείνας κτήσασθαι, αἱ σώσουσιν ἡμᾶς, τὴν ἀγνείαν καὶ τὸν ἁγιασμὸν, οὗ χωρὶς οὐδεὶς ὄψεται τὸν κύριον, That is: We therefore have left all things, and have followed Him. Unless our soul also, and all that is within us, follow, the bodily following alone is of no profit to us; but we must drive away from the soul every worldly desire and attachment, lest, appearing outwardly to have fled the world, within we be in the midst of the world, longing to be honored by men, to be adorned with flower-dyed and costly garments, and to rejoice to recline on high and soft and sumptuous couches, to be weighed down with immoderate gluttony and wine-drinking, and to wrong the soul; for everything beyond need is a wrong, and to luxuriate in the other things of the world, which we once for all renounced before God and the holy angels. But we, having food and covering, must be content with these, as it is written: And our work and that great contest would be this—to acquire those virtues which will save us, chastity and sanctification, without which no one shall see the Lord,

[28] ἀλλ᾽ ἀκούσει· Ἀρθήτω ὁ ἀσεβὴς, ἵνα μὴ ἴδῃ τὴν δόξαν κυρίου· τὴν ταπεινοφροσύνην· ὅτι πᾶς ὁ ὑψῶν ἑαυτὸν, ταπεινωθήσεται· τὴν διηνεκῆ κατάνυξιν· ὅτι Μακάριοι οἱ πτωχοὶ τῷ πνεύματι, ὅτι αὐτῶν ἐστι ἡ βασιλεία τῶν οὐρανῶν. Τῶν γὰρ ἐπεγνωκότων τὴν οἰκείαν ἀσθένειάν ἐστιν, οὐ τῶν πλουτούντων ἐν ὑπερηφανίᾳ, καὶ οἰήσει τῆς τοῦ νοὸς αὐτῶν ματαιότητος. Καὶ τὴν ἀοργησίαν, ὅτι πᾶς ὁ ὀργιζόμενος τῷ ἀδελφῷ εἰκῆ, ἔνοχός ἐστι τῇ κρίσει· εἰκῆ δέ ἐστι πᾶν, τὸ μὴ διὰ θεὸν γενόμενον. Εἰ μὴ γὰρ περισσεύσει, φησὶν, ἡ δικαιοσύνη ἡμῶν πλεῖον τῶν γραμματέων καὶ φαρισαίων, οὐ δυνησόμεθα εἰσελθεῖν εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν. Τὰ δὲ περιττεύοντα τῆς ἐκείνων δικαιοσύνης ταῦτά ἐστιν, οὐδὲ γὰρ ἐκεῖνοι τοιαῦτα ἀπῃτοῦντο· ὑπὲρ φύσιν γὰρ καὶ ἡ ἀγνεία, ὑπὲρ φύσιν καὶ τὸ ἀόργητον· ἀφ᾽ οὗ δὲ ὁ ὑπὲρ φύσιν παρεγένετο θεὸς ὢν καὶ ἄνθρωπος, καὶ τὰ ὑπὲρ φύσιν ταῦτα τοῖς πιστεύουσιν εἰς αὐτὸν ἐδωρήσατο. Δωρεῖται δὲ τοῖς αἰτοῦσι μόνοις, καὶ τούτοις μὴ ἐν δισταγμῷ καρδίας. Ἀνὴρ γὰρ δίψυχος ἀκατάστατος ἐν πάσαις ταῖς ὁδοῖς αὐτοῦ. Καὶ ἐπειδὴ οὐ τῶν ἐφ᾽ ἡμῖν ἐστιν ἡ τούτων κτῆσις, διὰ τοῦτο καὶ τὸν κόσμον ὡρίσθημεν μισῆσαι καὶ τὰ ἐν κόσμῳ, ἵν᾽ ἐν πρώτοις τέως μὴ ἔχωμεν ἔχθραν πρὸς τὸν θεὸν, ὅτι ἡ ἀγάπη τοῦ κόσμου ἔχθρα εἰς Χριστόν ἐστιν, ἀλλὰ τὴν αὐτοῦ μᾶλλον ἀγάπησιν καὶ φιλανθρωπίαν ἀπολάβωμεν. That is: but shall hear: Let the impious be taken away, that he may not see the glory of the Lord; we must acquire humility of mind, because everyone who exalts himself shall be humbled; continual compunction, because Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. For it belongs to those who have recognized their own weakness, not to those who are rich in pride and in the conceit of the vanity of their mind. And freedom from anger, because everyone who is angry with his brother without cause is liable to the judgment; and without cause is everything that is not done for God's sake. For unless, He says, our righteousness shall abound more than that of the scribes and Pharisees, we shall not be able to enter into the kingdom of heaven. And the things that exceed their righteousness are these; for not even they were required such things: for chastity is above nature, and freedom from anger is above nature; but since He who is above nature came, being God and man, He bestowed these things above nature also upon those who believe in Him. And He bestows them on those alone who ask, and on these not with a doubting of heart. For a double-minded man is unstable in all his ways. And since the acquisition of these things is not in our own power, on this account we have been appointed to hate the world and the things in the world, that first of all, for the present, we may not have enmity toward God, because the love of the world is enmity toward Christ, but that we may rather receive His love and benignity.

[29] Δεύτερον δὲ νηστεύωμεν, ἀγρυπνῶμεν, προσευχώμεθα, τοῖς πένησι τὰ ὑπάρχοντα σκορπίζωμεν, δάκρυσι τὸν κύριον δυσωπῶμεν, ὅπως ἐπιβλέψῃ ἐπὶ τὴν ταπείνωσιν ἡμῶν, καὶ ταύτας ἡμῖν χαρίσηται τὰς ἀρετάς. Καὶ γὰρ ἁγνισθεῖσα ψυχὴ θεὸν καθορᾷ, καθορωμένη ὑπ᾽ αὐτοῦ· καὶ κατοικητήριον τῆς θείας ἀγαθότητος γίνεται· Μακάριοι γάρ, φησιν, οἱ καθαροὶ, ὅτι αὐτοὶ τὸν θεὸν ὄψονται· μὴ ἀγνοοῦσα δὲ, ὅθεν ἔχει τὴν ἀγνείαν, οὐ καυχᾶται, ὡς μὴ λαβοῦσα, ἀλλὰ ταπεινοφρονεῖ, ὡς λαβοῦσα, καί ἐστιν ἀεὶ κατανενυγμένη, καὶ πλήρης πίστεως καὶ ἐλεημοσυνῶν. Ἐλεηθεῖσα γὰρ ὑπὸ θεοῦ, πάντας ἐλεεῖ, καὶ πᾶσι φιλανθρώπως συμπαθεῖ, καὶ οὕτω κάθηται ἐν ἀοργησίᾳ κληρονόμος καὶ τῶν ἐπιγείων, καὶ τῶν οὐρανίων, ὡς μηδὲν ἔχουσα καὶ πάντα κατέχουσα. Τῆς δὲ αὐτῆς ψυχῆς ἄγγελοι τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ φύλακές εἰσι καὶ διάκονοι, αἰδούμενοι καὶ τιμῶντες αὐτὴν, καὶ περιέποντες. Διὸ παρακαλῶ πάσας ὑμᾶς, καὶ τῶν ἰχνῶν ὑμῶν ὑφάπτομαι, μὴ ἀποκάμωμεν αἰτοῦσαι τὸν κύριον, ἕως ἂν ἡμᾶς ἀξιώσῃ τῶν δωρεῶν αὐτοῦ τούτων τῶν ἐπουρανίων καὶ τελείων, καὶ πήξῃ ταύτας ἐν ταῖς ψυχαῖς ἡμῶν, ὡς ἡμεῖς οὐκ οἴδαμεν ἀναφαιρέτους, οὐχ ἕνεκεν ἡμῶν τῶν δικαιοσυνῶν, ἀλλ᾽ ἕνεκεν τοῦ ὀνόματος αὐτοῦ, ἕνεκεν τοῦ ἐλέους αὐτοῦ. That is: And secondly, let us fast, keep vigil, pray, scatter our possessions to the poor, entreat the Lord with tears, that He may look upon our humiliation, and bestow on us these virtues. For a soul that has been purified beholds God, being beheld by Him; and becomes a dwelling-place of the divine goodness; for Blessed, He says, are the pure, for they shall see God; and, not being ignorant whence she has her chastity, she does not boast, as though she had not received it, but is humble-minded, as having received it, and is ever contrite, and full of faith and almsdeeds. For having received mercy from God, she has mercy on all, and compassionately sympathizes with all, and thus sits in freedom from anger, an heir both of things earthly and of things heavenly, as having nothing and possessing all things. And of that same soul the angels of God are both guardians and ministers, reverencing and honoring her, and attending upon her. Wherefore I beseech you all, and I clasp your footsteps: let us not grow weary in asking the Lord, until He count us worthy of these His heavenly and perfect gifts, and fix them in our souls, so as to be, as far as we know, inalienable—not for the sake of our righteousnesses, but for the sake of His name, for the sake of His mercy.

[30] Ταῦτα καὶ τὰ τοιαῦτα ἡ πάνσοφος Εἰρήνη σπλάγχνοις μητρικοῖς οὐ διέλιπε τὰ πνευματικὰ ἑαυτῆς διδάσκουσα τέκνα· καὶ μέν τοι καὶ τὸν σπόρον εἰς ἀγαθὴν βάλλουσα γῆν καὶ βλαστάνοντα, καὶ αὐξάνοντα, καὶ καρποφοροῦντα βλέπουσα, ἔχαιρε, καὶ τῷ θεῷ τὰς εὐχαριστίας ἀπεδίδου. Ἦλθε οὖν ἐπὶ λογισμὸν αὐτῇ ποτε παράδοξόν τι καὶ φοβερὸν, καὶ τῆς πρὸς θεὸν αὐτῆς πίστεως τεκμήριον εὐαγές· ἔλεγε γὰρ ἐν ἑαυτῇ· Εἴ μοι διορατικῶς εἰδέναι κύριος ἔδωκε τὰ κρυφῇ παρὰ τῶν ἐμῶν ἀδελφῶν γενόμενα, τὰς μὲν ἐπηνώρθουν σφαλλομένας, τὰς δὲ προκοπτούσας, τρέχειν ἂν συνώθουν τὸν δρόμον τῆς ἀρετῆς εὐτονώτερον. Καὶ ταῦτα λογισαμένη, πρὸς τὴν αἴτησιν ὅλην ἑαυτὴν ἀδιστάκτως ἔδωκε, δάκρυσι πολλοῖς καὶ κλίσεσι γονάτων πολλὴν τῷ θεῷ περὶ τούτων τὴν ἱκεσίαν προσάγουσα· οὐ γὰρ ἠγνόει τὸ τοῦ χαρίσματος μέγεθος, τάξιν ἐπέχον δευτέραν τῶν εἰς οἰκοδομὴν τῆς ἐκκλησίας μέτρῳ πίστεως ὑπὸ τοῦ πνεύματος διανενεμημένων, κατά φησιν ὁ ἀπόστολος· Καὶ οὓς μὲν ἔθετο ὁ θεὸς ἐν τῇ ἐκκλησίᾳ πρῶτον ἀποστόλους, δεύτερον προφήτας· ἔνθεν τοι καὶ ταχέως ὑπήκουσεν αὐτῆς ὁ λέγων· Ἔτι λαλοῦντός σου ἐρῶ, ἰδοὺ πάρειμι. That is: These things and such things the all-wise Irene ceased not, with maternal affection, to teach her spiritual children; and indeed, casting the seed into good ground, and seeing it sprouting, and growing, and bearing fruit, she rejoiced, and rendered thanks to God. There came therefore once into her mind a certain extraordinary and awesome thought, and a holy proof of her faith toward God; for she said within herself: If the Lord had given me to know with discernment the things done secretly by my sisters, I would correct those who erred, and would urge those who were advancing to run the course of virtue more vigorously. And having reasoned these things, she gave herself wholly and without hesitation to the request, offering to God concerning these things much supplication with many tears and genuflections; for she was not ignorant of the greatness of the gift, which holds the second rank among those distributed by the Spirit for the building up of the church according to the measure of faith, as the Apostle says: And whom God has set in the church, first apostles, second prophets; whence indeed He who says, "While you are yet speaking I will say, Behold, I am here," quickly hearkened to her.

[31] Ἐφάνη γὰρ οὐρανόθεν ἄγγελος θεοῦ στολὴν ἐνδεδυμένος λευκὴν, καὶ τὸ εἶδος ἐξαστράπτων, καὶ κατὰ πρόσωπον αὐτῇ παραστὰς χαρᾶς ἐπλήρου ταύτην ὁπόσης ἂν εἴποις, καὶ οὐ μόνον τῷ παραδόξῳ τοῦ σχήματος οὐ κατέπληξεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ προσηνῶς αὐτῇ διελέγετο, καί φησι· Χαίροις τοῦ θεοῦ πιστοτάτη θεράπαινα· ἰδού σοι κατὰ τὴν αἴτησιν ἀπέστειλέ με κύριος εἰς διακονίαν, διὰ τοὺς μέλλοντας κληρονομεῖν σωτηρίαν διά σου. Ἔσομαι δὲ μετά σου διαπαντὸς, τὰ κρυφῇ γινόμενα καθ᾽ ἡμέραν σαφῶς ὑποδεικνύων σοι. Καὶ ταῦτα εἰπὼν ἐκεῖνος μὲν ἀπέστη τῶν ὄψεων αὐτῆς. Αὐτὴ δὲ εἰς τὸ ἔδαφος ἑαυτὴν ὑφαπλώσασα, καὶ κολληθῆναι τούτῳ βιαζομένη, τὴν εὐχαριστίαν οὕτως ἀνέπεμπε τῷ θεῷ, καὶ τῷ ἀπ᾽ ἐκείνης οὐ διέλιπεν ὁ ἄγγελος τοῦ θεοῦ ὀπτανόμενος αὐτῇ, καὶ δῆλα καθιστῶν οὐ τὰ ταῖς ἀδελφαῖς μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ πᾶσι πραττόμενα καὶ λανθάνοντα. That is: For there appeared from heaven an angel of God clothed in a white robe, and flashing in appearance, and standing before her face he filled her with joy however great you might tell, and not only did he not astound her by the extraordinariness of his form, but he also conversed gently with her, and says: Hail, most faithful handmaid of God: behold, according to your request the Lord has sent me to you for ministry, for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation through you. And I will be with you continually, clearly pointing out to you the things done secretly each day. And having said these things, he departed from her sight. But she, spreading herself out upon the floor, and striving to cleave to it, sent up thanksgiving thus to God; and from that time the angel of God did not cease appearing to her, and making manifest not only the things done by the sisters, but by all men, both the deeds and the hidden things.

After Irene had now received the prefecture of the monastery of Chrysobalanton according to the providence of God, recalling to memory what had once been foretold to her by the great Joannicius, [As prefect of Chrysobalanton, mindful of the prophecy of Joannicius, she is filled with compunction:] and considering the things that had been ordained according to the ineffable wisdom of God, throughout the whole way she did not refrain from tears, astounded at the mighty works of God, and now descending much more into the depth of humility, and reckoning herself unworthy even of the earth itself; the divine grace, as is fitting, through the imposition of the hands ^a of the divine Methodius, pricking her soul, and disposing her to a sublime modesty. Wondering at this, the sisters begged her not to grieve so; and, they said, do not bear it so grievously that you preside over us. For behold, we are all ready for every obedience: (being wholly ignorant of what she was pondering in her mind) and there will be no stumbling-block in us; our obedience, by the nod of God, smoothing all things easy for you.

[23] After they had returned to the monastery, they rendered the accustomed thanksgivings to God their guardian, she implores divine help: and were refreshed at the common table of food; but she, when she had taken the cell assigned to the superiors, the door being shut, prayed to Him who sees in secret, that He would bring her help; beseeching God that He would prosper the presidency over the sisters, and watering the floor with tears, she asked that much and great helping power be sent down to her from on high. For you, she said, are truly the good shepherd: you said to the disciples: One is your master, Christ. You are the door of the sheep, who lead them to eternal salvation. You

are both the Lord and the teacher. And if indeed you are our leader, come to the aid of your handmaid, and of this your little flock; and preserve us from the seizure of the spiritual and crafty wolf. For you know our weakness; and that we can accomplish nothing at all, unless help be afforded to us by you.

[24] She considers the gravity of the burden laid upon her. Prayers having been poured out long enough, and a little rest interposed, she began to converse thus with herself: Do you, poor little Irene, recognize the burden which Christ has placed upon your shoulders? Souls have been entrusted to you, for whom God became man, and shed His blood: and, as you have heard, not even the whole world is equal in value to one soul. Nor are you ignorant of this, that if each shall render account for an idle word on the day of judgment, what things he will suffer for a soul that has perished, who is bound by the tie of caring for it, if he does not, to the best of his powers, apply himself to its salvation. One must by all means watch the more earnestly in prayers, persevere in fastings, bear the infirmities of the sisters, and endure all things nobly and gently. And take heed to yourself, lest ever your own weakness, which is hidden from you, afford to any of the sisters an occasion of falling, and there be fulfilled in you the saying of Christ: That if the blind lead the blind, both fall into a pit. And these things she said to herself; by which, binding her soul, she roused herself to a much greater exercise, taking up an altogether angelic life and conduct, performing fasts for many days, standings through whole nights; accomplishing genuflections beyond number: she lay on the hard ground; and sought an occasion not so much of relaxing that, as of suffering hardship.

[25] And by these things she strove to merit the good will of God, and the understanding which is given by Him, By various instructions which teaches one mystically to attend, and leads to all truth. Of which kind are those things which the most wise Irene taught the sisters. I know indeed, she says, O pledges precious to God, that my worthlessness is by no means so eloquent that I should preside over you as a mistress, or teach you, whom I am confident to be taught of God. But since the judgments of God are utterly inscrutable, and for that cause His manifold wisdom has brought my littleness to this; I beg you, do not listen to me as to a mistress, but as to a counselor and sister, on account of the necessity laid upon me. For woe is me, according to the divine Apostle, unless I give you profitable counsels. And bear with the words of my littleness, which lead you to love: for if we do not pass this ascetic life, which we willingly undertook, according to the laws laid down for it, it will profit us nothing, nor will faith itself: for without works faith is dead: for we have heard that the kingdom of heaven is eternal life, and the infinite delights of incorruptible goods.

[26] and incitements We have believed in Jesus, who announces and promises, our God and Lord; in whom we have believed, and, believing in the so great goods which have been announced, we have dismissed the pleasures of this world as fleeting, having but a small and useless enjoyment of them, and not only not lasting, but which we find to be no small hindrance to attaining the heavenly things. If therefore afterward we should fall away from these, we are surely more unhappy than all men: we shall wander from the mark, and all that labor will be in vain for us, if we do not lead a life conformable to the laws of Christ. For the Lord said: No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one, and love the other: or he will accept the one, and despise the other: for the soul, since it is one, cannot be divided in two ways: and accordingly it cannot at once pursue delights, and restrain itself; be in want of riches, and abound in riches; admit the humiliation of the Lord, and hunt after the empty glory of men.

[27] We therefore have left all things, and have followed Him. the sisters committed to her But if our soul also, and all that is within us, have not followed; it will profit us nothing that we have followed Him with the body alone; but it is necessary that we expel from the soul every desire toward the things of this life, and affection; lest, we who outwardly seem to flee the world, inwardly dwell in the midst of the world, desiring to be honored by men, to be adorned with garments floridly dyed and precious; rejoicing to recline on lofty, soft, and splendid couches; to be weighed down with immoderate food and drink, and to wrong the soul by injury (for whatever exceeds need is a wrong) and to abound immoderately in the other things of this world, to which we once sent word of renunciation before God and the holy angels. But we ought to be content with the food which we have, and with coverings, as it is written. But let our work, and our great contest, be this: to possess those virtues which save us; purity and sanctification; without which no one shall see the Lord, but shall hear: Let the impious be taken away, that he may not see the glory of the Lord; the pursuit of humility; because Everyone who exalts himself shall be humbled; assiduous compunction; because Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

[28] For it belongs to those who recognize their own weakness, she stimulates them not indeed to those who are rich in elation of mind, and in the esteem of their foolish mind; and she teaches gentleness; because everyone who is angry with his brother rashly, this one is liable to the judgment; and everything is done rashly which is not done for God's sake. For unless, He says, our righteousness abounds more than that of the scribes and Pharisees, we shall not be able to enter into the kingdom of heaven. And these indeed are the things which abound above their righteousness; for they were not required to do such things: for purity is above nature: gentleness is above nature. But since He who is above nature, who was God and man, came, He gave these things too, which are above nature, to those who believe in Him. But He gives them only to those who ask, and to those indeed who ask without hesitation of heart. For a man double in mind is inconstant in all his ways. And because the possession of those things is not in our power; therefore we have resolved to hate the world, and the things which are in the world, that first of all we may not have enmity against God: (for the love of the world is enmity toward Christ) but rather receive His love and benignity.

[29] Secondly, let us fast, keep vigil, pray, scatter our goods to the poor, to the exercise of virtues. appease the Lord with tears, that He may look upon our humiliation; and bestow on us these virtues. For a purified soul sees God, and is seen by Him, and becomes a dwelling-place of the divine goodness: for Blessed, He says, are the pure, for they shall see God. And while she is not ignorant whence she has her purity, she does not boast, as though she had not received it, but humbles herself, as one who has received it; and is ever contrite, and full of faith and of mercies. For having obtained mercy from God, she has mercy on all, and benignly sympathizes with all; and thus sits in meekness, heir at once of earthly and of heavenly things, as having nothing, and possessing all things. And of this soul the angels of God are both guardians and ministers, revering, honoring, and protecting her. Therefore I exhort you all, and I embrace your footsteps, let us not grow weary of asking the Lord, until He count us worthy of those His heavenly and perfect gifts, and glue them to our minds (which, as we know, are not so stable that they cannot be taken away) not for the sake of our righteousnesses, but for the sake of His name, for the sake of His mercy.

[30] She asks of God the insight into secret things, These things and the like, the most wise Irene, drawn from maternal bowels, did not omit to teach her spiritual daughters. And indeed, because she saw the seed which she had cast into good ground sprouting, growing, and bringing forth fruit, she rejoiced, and gave thanks to God. There came therefore once into her mind a certain wonderful and terrible thing; and a sincere proof of her faith in God. For she said within herself: If the Lord would give me the insight into secret things ^b, that I might know those things which are done secretly by my sisters; I could correct those who fail, and impel those who advance to run a more strenuous course of virtue. And pondering these things in her mind, she gave herself wholly to prayer without hesitation, supplicating God about these matters with many tears and genuflections: for she was not ignorant of the greatness of the gift, which holds the second rank of those which are distributed by the Spirit for the building up of the Church according to the measure of faith, as the Apostle says: And some indeed God has set in the Church, first Apostles; secondly prophets. Whence He soon heard her, who says: While you are yet speaking, I will say, Behold, I am present.

[31] and obtains it by the ministry of an appearing angel. For an angel appeared to her from heaven, clothed in a white robe, and shining in appearance; and standing before her sight, filled her with joy as great as you could tell; nor did he strike her merely by his unusual appearance, but conversed gently with her, in these words: Rejoice, most faithful handmaid of God: behold, according to your petition, the Lord has sent me down to you for ministry, on account of those who will inherit salvation through you. And I will be always with you; and I will manifest to you clearly, day by day, the things which are done in secret. And having said these things, he vanished from her eyes. But she, stretching herself on the ground, and striving to glue herself there, thus gave thanks to God. And the angel of God who had appeared to her did not leave her, manifesting not only those things which were done by the sisters, but also those which were done by all, and were hidden.

ANNOTATIONS.

CHAPTER IV.

Zeal in advancing one's neighbor in virtue; the vexations of the demon; the spirit of prophecy.

[32] Μετὰ γοῦν τὰς ὀρθρινὰς δοξολογίας, ἐπεὶ καὶ πάννυχος ἦν ἡ στάσις, αὐτὴ καταμόνας μικράν τινα τῷ σώματι τὴν ἄνεσιν διδοῦσα, καὶ ὕπνον μεταλαμβάνουσα (οὕτω γὰρ εἴθιστο) εἰς τὸ τοῦ ναοῦ εἰσῄει διακονικὸν, καὶ τῶν ἀδελφῶν ὀνομαστὶ πρὸς ἑαυτὴν ἑκάστην καλοῦσα, καὶ ταύτην παρακαθισαμένη ὁμαλῶς πως ὑπῃνίττετο τὰ ἄδηλα καὶ κρύφια, καὶ τῶν τῆς ψυχῆς κινημάτων αὐτῆς καὶ διανοημάτων εὐφυῶς καθήπτετο That is: After the morning doxologies therefore, since the standing had lasted all night, she, apart by herself, giving a little rest to her body, and taking sleep (for so she was accustomed), entered the diaconicon of the church, and calling each of the sisters to herself by name, and seating her beside her, in some even manner she hinted at the unseen and hidden things, and skillfully touched upon the movements of her soul and her thoughts,

νύττουσα τὸ συνειδὸς, καὶ εἰς ὁμολογίαν τῶν σφαλμάτων καὶ μετάνοιαν ἐρεθίζουσα, καὶ παντελοῦς λαμβάνουσα τῶν τοιούτων διορθώσεως ὑπόσχεσιν. Ὅπερ ἐξίστασθαι ἑαυτῶν ἐποίει τὰς ἀδελφὰς· καὶ οὐκ ἔτι ταύτῃ προσεῖχον ὡς πρότερον, ἀλλ᾽ ὑπὲρ ἄνθρωπον εἶναι τὴν Εἰρήνην καὶ ὡμολόγουν, καὶ ἀνεκήρυττον, καὶ φήμη τις περὶ αὐτῆς μεγάλη τὰς ἁπάντων ἐντεῦθεν διέθεε ἀκοὰς, καὶ πᾶσα πρὸς αὐτὴν ἡ πόλις συνέτρεχε, πρόσωπον αὐτῆς ἐπιποθοῦντες ἰδεῖν τὸ τίμιον, καὶ λόγου αὐτῆς ἀκοῦσαι, καὶ εὐχῶν ἀπολαύσασθαι. Πᾶσι δὲ τοῖς προσερχομένοις, τὸν τῆς ἀγάπης νόμον ἀποπληροῦσα, τὰ κατὰ ψυχὴν περιπαθῶς εἰς φανερὸν αὐτοῖς ἦγεν ἐν ταῖς ὁμιλίαις, καὶ πρὸς μετάνοιαν καὶ τὴν τοῦ θεοῦ ἐπιστροφὴν ἐνῆγεν ἐνταλμάτων, τὴν τοῦ βίου ματαιότητα διεξιοῦσα, καὶ τὸ τῆς δίκης ἄφυκτον, καὶ τῆς γεέννης τὸν φόβον, καὶ τῶν ἀγαθῶν τὴν ἀπόλαυσιν. That is: ...pricking the conscience, and provoking them to the confession of their faults and to repentance, and receiving a promise of complete correction of such things. Which made the sisters beside themselves; and they no longer attended to her as before, but confessed and proclaimed that Irene was more than human, and a certain great fame concerning her ran thence through the ears of all, and the whole city ran together to her, longing to see her venerable face, and to hear her word, and to enjoy her prayers. And to all who came, fulfilling the law of love, she brought to light for them with feeling the things pertaining to the soul in her conversations, and led them to repentance and to the turning to God's commandments, recounting the vanity of life, and the inescapability of judgment, and the fear of gehenna, and the enjoyment of good things.

[33] Εἰ μὴ γὰρ ἐνταῦθα, λέγουσα, διὰ μετανοίας τῶν σφαλμάτων τὴν ἄφεσιν εὕρωμεν, καὶ τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν ἡμῶν ἐκκαθαρθῶμεν, ὥσπερ οὐκ ἔστι μετὰ τὴν ἔξοδον ὁμολόγησις καὶ μετάνοια, οὕτως οὐδὲ τῆς ἀποκειμένης τοῖς ἁμαρτάνουσι κολάσεως καὶ τιμωρίας ἀποφυγή. Παρήγγειλε δὲ μάλιστα πάντων ἀκαθαρσίας ἀπέχεσθαι καὶ πλεονεξίας καὶ τρυφῆς (τούτοις γάρ, φησιν, ὁ πονηρὸς τοὺς ἐν βίῳ κλονουμένους ὡς ἄρκυσιν ἰσχυροῖς εὐκόλως καταζωγρεῖ) ἐλεημοσύνης δὲ καὶ σωφροσύνης, καὶ ἐγκρατείας κατὰ τὸ δυνατὸν ἐπιμελεῖσθαι, καὶ ἀεὶ μετανοεῖν ἐπὶ τοῖς συμβαίνουσι παραπτώμασι· πολλὰ γὰρ καθ᾽ ἑκάστην ἡμῖν τὰ προσκόμματα· δεῖ δὲ καὶ τὴν γλῶσσαν παιδεύειν, μὴ πρὸς ὕβρεις καὶ λοιδορίας εἶναι πρόχειρον· Ὃς γὰρ ἐὰν εἴπῃ τῷ ἀδελφῷ αὐτοῦ μωρὲ, ἔνοχος ἔσται τῷ πυρὶ τῆς γεέννης, ὡς ἠκούσαμεν, καὶ ἐν ᾧ κρίματι κρίνομεν, κριθησόμεθα. Εὔκολος γὰρ ἡ διὰ γλώσσης ἁμαρτία καὶ [οὐ] χαλεπὴ, ἐπειδὴ τὸ μὲν ἄλλως ἁμαρτάνειν οὐχ ἕτοιμον· τὸ δὲ διὰ γλώσσης ἁμαρτάνειν, πρόχειρον. That is: For unless here, she said, through repentance of our faults we find remission, and are cleansed of our sins—just as after death there is no confession and repentance, so neither is there escape from the punishment and torment laid up for sinners. And she charged them above all to abstain from impurity and covetousness and luxury (for by these, she says, the evil one easily takes captive, as with strong nets, those who are shaken in this life), but to take care, as far as possible, for almsgiving and chastity and self-control, and ever to repent of the offenses that occur; for many are our stumblings each day; and one must also discipline the tongue, that it be not ready for insults and revilings; for whoever shall say to his brother, Fool, shall be liable to the fire of gehenna, as we have heard, and with what judgment we judge, we shall be judged. For sin by the tongue is easy and [not] hard, since to sin otherwise is not ready at hand; but to sin by the tongue is easy.

[34] Τοὺς δὲ ὄρκους φεύγειν τελέως, καὶ μὴ διασύρειν τὸ τοῦ θεοῦ ὄνομα πανταχοῦ, καὶ περιττῶν ἕως καὶ οὐδαμινῶν προφάσεων, ὅπερ φρίττουσι καὶ ἄγγελοι ὀνομάζοντες, καταφρόνησις γὰρ τοῦτο τοῦ θεοῦ. Πῦρ ἡμᾶς δοκιμάσαι, περιμεῖναι καὶ διακρῖναι τὸν δίκαιον καὶ τὸν ἀσεβῆ σεβασθῶμεν, καὶ φοβηθῶμεν τὸν θεὸν, καὶ τὴν ἑαυτῶν μὴ περιφρονῶμεν σωτηρίαν, διὰ τοῦτο γὰρ ἐκ τοῦ μὴ ὄντος εἰς τὸ εἶναι ἡμᾶς παρήγαγεν, ἵνα μερὶς καὶ κλῆρος τοῦ θεοῦ γενώμεθα, καὶ μὴ τοῦ διαβόλου μερὶς, ᾧ τὸ πῦρ τὸ αἰώνιον ἡτοίμασται, ὥστε σὺν ἐκείνῳ κληθῆναι εἰς τὴν ἀνύποιστον ἐκείνην καὶ ἄσβεστον εἰς αἰῶνας τηγανίζεσθαι φλόγα· τὸ μὲν γὰρ ἁμαρτάνειν τῆς φυσικῆς ἡμῶν ἀσθενείας ἴδιον, τὸ ἐλεεῖν δὲ καὶ συγχωρεῖν, τῆς τοῦ θεοῦ φιλανθρωπίας ἔργον, ἀλλὰ τοῖς ἐπισταμένοις τὴν ἑαυτῶν ἄγαν οὐθένειαν τοῦτο, οἱ καὶ ὁμολογοῦσιν ταύτην ἐνώπιον αὐτοῦ, καὶ μετὰ δακρύων αἰτοῦσι τῶν ἐπταισμένων τὴν ἄφεσιν. That is: And to flee oaths utterly, and not to drag about the name of God everywhere, even on superfluous and worthless pretexts—at which even the angels shudder when they name it, for this is a contempt of God. Let us reverence the fire that will test us, wait, and distinguish the righteous and the impious, and let us fear God, and not despise our own salvation, for on this account He brought us from non-being into being, that we might become the portion and inheritance of God, and not the portion of the devil, for whom the eternal fire is prepared, so as to be called with him into that intolerable and unquenchable flame, to be fried for ages; for to sin is proper to our natural weakness, but to have mercy and to pardon is the work of the benignity of God—yet He grants this to those who know their own utter nothingness, who also confess it before Him, and with tears ask forgiveness of their trespasses.

[35] τούτοις οὖν καὶ τοῖς τοιούτοις πολλοὶ τῶν προσιόντων, καὶ συγκλητικῶν, καὶ τῶν ἄλλως ἐχόντων κατὰ τὸν βίον, διδασκόμενοι καὶ νουθετούμενοι, καὶ γυναικῶν δὲ καὶ παρθένων, τῶν περιφανείᾳ γένους σεμνυνομένων, προσεῖχον ἑαυτοῖς καὶ τὴν ἀπάγουσαν εἰς ζωὴν μετὰ πάσης προθυμίας ἐπορεύοντο πορείαν, διὰ στόματος φέροντες πανταχοῦ τὴν Εἰρήνην καὶ θαυμάζοντες. Αὐτὴ δὲ οὔτε τῆς πρὸς θεὸν ἔληγεν εὐχαριστίας, οὔτε τῆς παννύχου στάσεως ἐνεδίδου. Καὶ δήποτε περὶ δυσμὰς ἡλίου ταύτης ἀρξαμένης, καὶ τὰς ὁσίας ἐπαράσης χεῖρας, ὡς ἔθος, εἰς οὐρανὸν, περί που τὸ μεσονύκτιον φάλαγξ δαιμονίων ἄθροον ἐπιστᾶσα φωναῖς ἀσήμοις καὶ τεταραγμένῃ βοῇ τὴν ἀκίνητον αὐτῆς διασαλεῦσαι στάσιν ἐπειρῶντο· Τούτων δὲ πονηρότερον ἓν οἷα καὶ αὐθαδέστερον, πλησίον αὐτῆς γενόμενον, ἐῴκει ταύτῃ νυκτερίζειν, καὶ τὰ μιμῶν φθέγγεσθαι ειρκυκυ, ξυλίνην καὶ ξυλίνοις τοῖς ποσὶ βασταζομένην λέγων, καὶ ἄλλα τὰ φλυαρῶν, καὶ μεταβαλλόμενος αὖθις ὠδύρετο· Ἕως πότε τὴν γενεὰν ἡμῶν, φάσκων, θλίβεις; Ἕως πότε ταῖς μακραῖς σου μαστίζεις ἡμᾶς προσευχαῖς; Ἕως πότε καίεις ἡμᾶς; Ἕως πότε σου ἀνεξόμεθα πλήρεις ἡμεῖς ἀνίας τῆς παρά σου. That is: By these things therefore and the like, many of those who came—both senators and those otherwise situated in life—being taught and admonished, and also women and virgins distinguished by the splendor of their family, gave heed to themselves and journeyed with all eagerness on the way that leads to life, everywhere bearing Irene on their lips and admiring her. But she neither ceased from her thanksgiving to God, nor gave up her all-night standing. And once, when she had begun this about the setting of the sun, and had lifted up her holy hands, as was her custom, to heaven, about midnight a dense phalanx of demons, standing by, tried with meaningless voices and confused clamor to shake her immovable standing; and one of these, more wicked and more insolent, coming near her, seemed to keep night-vigil with her, and to utter in imitation "eirkyky," calling her wooden and carried on wooden feet, and babbling other things, and, changing again, wailed: How long, he said, do you afflict our race? How long do you scourge us with your long prayers? How long do you burn us? How long shall we bear you, we who are full of the anguish that comes from you?

[36] Εἶτα σὺν ἐκείνῳ ἐδόκουν καὶ τὰ λοιπὰ κατατρύχεσθαι· καὶ τὰς παρειὰς ἐτύπτοντο, θρῆνον πολὺν ἐξέχαινον ἐπὶ μεγάλῃ τούτοις τῇ συμφορᾷ, ὡς δὲ μηδὲν ἤνυον πρὸς τὸ σπουδαζόμενον αὐτοῖς. Ἐκείνη δὲ ὥσπερ ἁρπαγεῖσα εἰς οὐρανὸν, ὅλην εἶχεν ἐκεῖ πρὸς θεὸν τὴν διάνοιαν, ἀκλόνητος τὸ παράπαν καὶ ἀπτόητος ἱσταμένη. Τὴν χεῖρα τὸ δαιμόνιον ἁπλῶσαν, καὶ πυρσὸν, ἀπὸ τῆς θρυαλλίδος ἐπιμῦξαν καθῆκε περὶ τὸν τράχηλον τῆς Ὁσίας. Ὁ δὲ καθάπερ τι σιρὶ πίσιν ἀνάψας ὅλον μὲν τὸ κουκούλιον σὺν τῷ ἐπωμίῳ καὶ τῷ χιτωνίσκῳ λάβρως κατακαίων ἥψατο καὶ τῶν σαρκῶν· καὶ διεπορεύετο καταφλέγων τοὺς ὤμους, τὸ στῆθος, τὴν ῥάχιν, τοὺς νεφρούς, τοὺς λαγόνας, καὶ μικροῦ δεῖν, ὅλον ἂν περιῆλθε τὸ σῶμα τὸ πῦρ ἐπινεμόμενον, εἰ μή τις τῶν ἀδελφῶν ταῖς νυκτεριναῖς εὐχαῖς ἐγρηγορυῖα, καὶ τῆς κνίσσης τῶν σαρκῶν ὀσφραινομένη, καὶ ποῦ ποτε τῆς μονῆς τὸ καιόμενόν ἐστιν, ἐξίει θροηθεῖσα τῆς κέλλης, καὶ ῥινηλατοῦσα ἑπομένη τῇ δυσωδίᾳ μέχρι τοῦ τῆς προεστώσης ἔστησε τοὺς πόδας κελλίου. Παρακύψασα δὲ τοῦτο κάπνου καὶ κνίσσης πεπληρωμένον ἰδοῦσα, τῆς θύρας ἐκστροφὴν μόγις ποιησαμένη, εἰσῆλθε μὲν, εὗρε δὲ θέαμα φρικτὸν, ὅλην μὲν τὴν Εἰρήνην ἐμπεπρησμένην, ἀκίνητον δὲ καὶ ἀῤῥεπῆ καὶ ἀήττητον ἑστηκυῖαν, καὶ μηδαμῶς τῆς τοσαύτης ἐπιστρεφομένην πυρκαϊᾶς. That is: Then along with him the rest also seemed to be worn out; and they beat their cheeks, and gaped forth a great lament over their great calamity, since they accomplished nothing toward what they were striving for. But she, as though caught up into heaven, held her whole mind there toward God, standing altogether unshaken and undaunted. The demon, stretching out his hand, and having snuffed a torch from the wick, let it down about the neck of the holy woman. And it, like something kindled with pitch [], fiercely burning the whole cowl together with the shoulder-piece and the little tunic, laid hold also of the flesh; and it passed on, scorching the shoulders, the breast, the spine, the kidneys, the flanks, and it wanted little but that the fire, feeding on it, would have gone round the whole body, had not one of the sisters, keeping awake at her nocturnal prayers, and smelling the reek of the flesh, and wondering where in the monastery the burning was, gone out, alarmed, from her cell, and, tracking by scent, following the stench, set her feet as far as the cell of the superior. And peering in, and seeing it filled with smoke and reek, having with difficulty forced the door, she entered indeed, but found a dreadful sight—Irene wholly ablaze, but standing immovable and unswerving and unconquered, and in no way heeding so great a conflagration.

[37] Ἐπεὶ δὲ πρὸς μόνον σπεύδουσα τὸ κατασβέσθαι τὴν φλόγα, καὶ τοῦ πυρὸς ἐξελέσθαι τὴν διδάσκαλον, ἤρξατό τε κλονεῖν αὐτὴν καὶ συσσείειν. Σβεννῦσα τὸ πῦρ, καὶ καταστέλλουσα τὴν φλόγα, τὰς χεῖρας, ὄψέ ποτε τῆς ἐκστάσεως ἐκείνη κατενεγκοῦσα· Ἵνα τί τοῦτο πεποίηκας, τέκνον μου, ἀπεκρίνατο; τί με τοσούτων ἀπεστέρησας τῇ εὐνοίᾳ σου ταύτῃ τῶν ἀκαίρων τῶν ἀγαθῶν; οὐ δέον ἡμᾶς φρονεῖν τὰ τῶν ἀνθρώπων, ἀλλὰ τὰ τοῦ θεοῦ· ἰδοὺ γὰρ πρὸ τῶν ἐμῶν ὀφθαλμῶν ἄγγελος ὡρᾶτο θεοῦ, πλέκων μοι στέφανον ἐξ ἀνθέων, ὧν ὀφθαλμὸς οὐκ οἶδε, καὶ οὖς οὐκ ἤκουσε· καὶ ἤδη τὴν χεῖρα διατεινομένην εἶχε τῇ ἐμῇ τοῦτον ἐπιθῆναι κεφαλῇ· σοῦ δὲ τῆς προμηθείας ἕνεκεν ἄπεισί με λιπὼν, ἔχων τὸν στέφανον μεθ᾽ ἑαυτοῦ. Τί οὖν μοι, τέκνον, ἀγνωμοσύνης χείρονα τὴν εὐγνωμοσύνην ἀπέδωκας; Μισῶ δωρεὰν προξενοῦσάν μοι ζημίαν. Ὡς οὖν ταῦτα ἤκουσε ἡ μαθήτρια, δάκρυα στάζουσα τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν, ἤρξατο τὰ προσφύσαντα ταῖς σαρξὶ τῆς Ὁσίας ῥάκια ζέοντα ἔτι, τοῖς δακτύλοις ἐκεῖθεν ἀνασπᾶν, καὶ ἰδοὺ ξένη τις ἐκ τούτων ἀνεπέμπετο εὐωδία, μύρου παντὸς καὶ ἀρωμάτων πολυτίμων ἀσυγκρίτως εὐωδεστέρα, ἥτις ὅλην ἐπλήρωσε τὴν μονὴν ἐφ᾽ ἱκανὰς ἡμέρας, καὶ τοὺς παροδεύοντας ἐπευφραίνεσθαι διαρκοῦσα. That is: But since she the sister, hastening only to quench the flame and to snatch the teacher from the fire, began to shake her and jostle her; quenching the fire, and repressing the flame, she Irene at length brought down her hands from her ecstasy, and answered: Why have you done this, my child? Why have you deprived me by this good will of yours of so many, though untimely, goods? We ought not to mind the things of men, but the things of God; for behold, before my eyes an angel of God was seen, weaving me a crown of flowers which eye has not known, and ear has not heard; and he already had his hand stretched out to place it on my head; but for the sake of your solicitude he departs, leaving me, having the crown with him. Why then, child, have you rendered me a gratitude worse than ingratitude? I hate a gift that procures me loss. When therefore the disciple heard these things, dripping tears from her eyes, she began to pull off with her fingers the rags, still hot, which had clung to the flesh of the holy woman, and behold, a certain strange fragrance was sent up from them, incomparably sweeter than every myrrh and precious spices, which filled the whole monastery for many days, and sufficed to gladden those who passed by.

[38] Ἐπεὶ δὲ οὐκ ἦν ἕτερον ἱμάτιον τῇ Ὁσίᾳ, εἰ μὴ τοῦτο μόνον, ὅπερ ταῖς τιμίαις σαρξὶν ὁ φλὸξ συγκατέφλεξε, πορευθεῖσα ἤνεγκεν ἡ ἐπαινετὴ μαθήτρια ἱμάτιον ἑαυτῆς, καὶ τὴν πνευματικὴν ἐνέδυσε μητέρα. Ἦν γὰρ καὶ τοῦτο μέρος τῶν αὐτῆς κατορθωμάτων, τὸ μὴ δεύτερον κεκτῆσθαι χιτῶνα, ἀλλ᾽ ἅπαξ τοῦ ἐνιαυτοῦ κατὰ τὴν ἁγίαν καὶ μεγάλην πέμπτην τοῦ πάσχα τὸν φορούμενον παρ᾽ ὅλον ἐνιαυτὸν ἀπαμφιέννυσθαι, καὶ αὖθις καινὸν ἐνδιδύσκεσθαι, τὸ μέν τοι παλαιὸν ἱμάτιον πενομένῃ δίδοσθαι γυναικί. Μετὰ γοῦν ἡμέρας ὀλίγας τῷ τῶν ψυχῶν καὶ σωμάτων ἰατρῷ τὰς πυρακτωθείσας ἰατρευθεῖσα σάρκας, αὐτὴ μὲν εἴχετο τῶν ὁμοίων. Τὸ δὲ τῆς προφητείας χάρισμα ἐπὶ πλέον ηὔξανεν αὐτῇ, καὶ ηὔγαζε, καὶ τὰ πόῤῥω προβλέπειν ἐδίδου. Κυρίλλου γάρ ποτε πρὸς αὐτὴν τοῦ εὐνούχου παραγενομένου, ὃς οἰκειότατός τε ἦν καὶ εὐνούστατος τῇ ταύτης ἀδελφῇ θεράπων, γυναῖκα δὲ ταύτην ὑστάτην ὁ λόγος ἀνωτέρω τοῦ καίσαρος ἐδήλωσε Βάρδα, κατ᾽ ἰδίαν τοῦτον ἀπολαβοῦσα, μηνύει δι᾽ αὐτοῦ τῇ ἀδελφῇ ταῦτα εἰποῦσα· Πρόσεχε καὶ φρόντισον τὰ περὶ σεαυτῆς· ὁ γὰρ καίσαρ, φησὶν, ὁ σὸς μὲν ἀνὴρ, ἐμὸς δὲ γαμβρὸς συγχωρήσει θεοῦ καὶ κρίμασιν, ὡς οἶδεν ἐκεῖνος, ἀνεφίκτοις, ἐπιβουλὴν ὑποστήσεται, ὅσον οὔπω καὶ τεθνήξεται παρὰ τοῦ ἐπιβουλευσαμένου. That is: But since the holy woman had no other garment except this one only, which the flame had burned up together with her precious flesh, the praiseworthy disciple went and brought her own garment, and clothed her spiritual mother. For this too was part of her achievements, not to possess a second tunic, but once a year, on the holy and great Thursday of Pascha, to put off the one worn through the whole year, and again to put on a new one, but to give the old garment to a poor woman. So after a few days, her scorched flesh being healed by the Physician of souls and bodies, she herself held to her like practices. But the gift of prophecy increased in her the more, and shone forth, and gave her to foresee things far off. For when once Cyril the eunuch came to her—who was a most intimate and most well-disposed servant to her sister (this woman the discourse indicated above to have been the last wife of the Caesar Bardas)—taking him apart privately, she made known to her sister through him these things, saying: Take heed and be concerned about your own affairs; for the Caesar, she says, your husband, but my brother-in-law, by the permission and judgments of God—inscrutable, as He knows—will undergo a plot, and will very soon be put to death by the one who plotted against him.

[39] Μετ᾽ ὀλίγον δὲ καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ ἀνεψιὸς βασιλεὺς Μιχαὴλ ὡσαύτως πείσεται διὰ τὰς ἀνοσίους αὐτοῦ καὶ ἀθεμίτους πράξεις· δαπαίζων γὰρ τὰ θεῖα, διαπαιχθήσεται. Ἀλλὰ σκεπτέον σοι, μήτε θήσειν ἔκφορα ταῦτα μηδενὶ, μήτε τῷ μέλλοντι κατασχεῖν τὰ τῆς βασιλείας σκῆπτρα τῶν σῶν τινι συγγενῶν ἀντιβῆναι, μὴ διακωλῦσαι· εἰ γὰρ καὶ φόνων αἴτιος ὁ ἀνὴρ, ἀλλὰ θεοσεβέσι καὶ βασιλικοῖς κατακεκόσμηται προτερήμασι· καὶ διὰ τοῦτο καὶ θεὸς εὐδοκεῖ ἐπ᾽ αὐτῷ, καὶ οὐκ ὠφελήσει ἐχθρὸς ἐν αὐτῷ. Ἀλλ᾽ ἐκείνη τὰς προῤῥήσεις τῆς ἀδελφῆς πιστὰς εἰδυῖα καὶ ἀναμφιλέκτους, τῷ φίλτρῳ νικηθεῖσα τοῦ ἀνδρὸς, ἀνακαλύπτει τούτῳ πάντα τὰ μηνυθέντα. Ὁ δὲ σοβαρός τε ὢν καὶ ἀπονοίας ἀνάμεστος, ὡς ἀσύνετος οὐ συνῆκε πρὸς θεὸν καταφυγεῖν, καὶ τῆς ἄνωθεν τυχὼν ἀντιλήψεως παραδραμεῖν τὸν προσκείμενον κίνδυνον καθώς πού φησιν Ἱερεμίας· Ὅτι ἐὰν ἐπιστρέψῃ ἀπὸ τῶν κακῶν αὐτοῦ, μετανοήσω κᾀγὼ ἀπὸ τῶν κακῶν, ὧν ἐλογισάμην ποιῆσαι αὐτῷ· ἀλλ᾽ ἐνέκειτο μόνον, τὸ ὄνομα ζητῶν τοῦ τὴν βασιλείαν διαδεξομένου μαθεῖν. That is: And after a little, her cousin the emperor Michael himself likewise will suffer, on account of his unholy and lawless deeds; for mocking divine things, he will be mocked. But you must take care neither to make these things known to anyone, nor to oppose him who is to seize the scepters of the empire, one of your kinsmen, nor to hinder him; for even if the man is guilty of murders, yet he is adorned with pious and royal excellences; and on this account God too is well pleased with him, and no enemy shall prevail against him. But she, knowing the predictions of her sister to be faithful and beyond dispute, overcome by love of her husband, discloses to him all that had been made known. But he, being haughty and full of madness, like a senseless man did not understand to flee to God, and, obtaining help from above, to escape the danger that lay before him, as Jeremiah somewhere says: That if he turn from his evils, I too will repent of the evils which I purposed to do to him; but he insisted only on this, seeking to learn the name of the one who would succeed to the empire.

[40] Οὐκ εἶχε δὲ τὸν ἀπαγγέλλοντα· τίς γὰρ ἱκανὸς ἃ θεὸς ὁ ἅγιος βεβούλευται, διασκεδάσαι; ἀλλὰ καὶ πολλάκις καὶ διαφόρους πρὸς τὴν ὁσίαν ἀπεσταλκὼς περὶ τοῦτο πευσόμενος, εἰς μάτην φαίνετο κοπιῶν, ἕως μετὰ βραχὺ κατὰ τὴν αὐτῆς ἐξέβη πάντα πρόῤῥησιν. Ὁ μὲν γὰρ καίσαρ ἀνῃρέθη παρὰ τῷ στρατοπέδῳ· βασιλεὺς δὲ Μιχαὴλ καὶ αὐτὸς εἰσελθὼν, καὶ ἐν τῷ παλατίῳ τοῦ ἁγίου Μάμαντος μετὰ τὴν ἱπποδρομίαν, ἡνίοχος γὰρ ἦν κεκραιπαληκὼς ἐξ οἴνου κατὰ κόρον οὗ συνεχῶς ἀπήλαυε, κρεουργηθεὶς ἀπέῤῥηξε τὴν ζωὴν, Βασιλείου τοῦ ἐκ Μακεδονίας τὴν βασιλείαν μετ᾽ αὐτὸν κατασχόντος, ᾧ τὰ σκῆπτρα ἐπὶ τετάρτην ἢ καὶ πέμπτην ἐξετάθη γενεάν. Ἀλλὰ ταῦτα μὲν ὅσον εἰς ἀπόδειξιν οὗπερ ἠξίωτο τοῦ προφητικοῦ χαρίσματος. That is: But he had no one to tell him; for who is able to scatter what the holy God has determined? But though he sent many and various persons to the holy woman to inquire about this, he appeared to labor in vain, until after a little all came to pass according to her prediction. For the Caesar was slain at the camp; and the emperor Michael himself too, having entered, and in the palace of St. Mamas after the horse-race—for he was a charioteer, besotted with the wine of which he drank his fill continually—was butchered and broke off his life, Basil the Macedonian holding the empire after him, to whom the scepters were extended to the fourth or even fifth generation. But these things are said only so far as to prove the prophetic gift with which she had been favored.

[32] After the morning Office therefore, since the standing had lasted all night, she gave apart a little rest to her body: The sisters subject to her, and having taken sleep (for so she was accustomed), she entered the diaconicon ^a of the church, and calling each of the sisters to herself by name, and sitting beside her, explained the hidden and abstruse things, and fittingly pricked the conscience of the movements of their soul and of their thoughts, and provoked them to the confession of their lapses and to repentance, and received a promise of their complete amendment. Which thing threw the sisters into astonishment: nor did they now listen to her as before; but confessed and proclaimed that Irene was superior to a human being: and a certain great fame concerning her thenceforth spread through the ears of all; and the whole city ran together to her, desiring to see her venerable face, to hear her discourses, and to enjoy her prayers. To all who came, fulfilling the law of love, she manifested with feeling the things which pertained to the soul

with singular feeling in her conversations, and led them to repentance and also to the observance of God's commandments, reviewing the vanity of life, the inevitable rigor of justice, the fear of gehenna, and the enjoyment of good things.

[33] For if we do not here, she said, find remission of our lapses through repentance, and external persons coming to her and be purged of our sins; just as after the departure from life there is no confession and repentance; so there is no escape from the punishment and torment which await sinners. And she especially recommended, of all things, that they abstain from impurity, avarice, and delights (for by these, she said, the malignant spirit easily catches, as with strong nets, those who are agitated in this life), but that they give attention to mercy and temperance and abstinence, as much as they could; and that they always do penance for the faults which occur: for we transgress in many things each day. One must also curb the tongue, that it be not ready for injuries and contumelies: for Whoever shall say to his brother, Fool, shall be liable to the fire of gehenna, as we have heard: and With what judgment we judge, we shall be judged. For the sin which is done by the tongue is easy, and [not] difficult: since to sin otherwise is not ready at hand; but to sin with the tongue is prone.

[34] Finally she exhorted them to flee oaths, not to profane the name of God anywhere, she promotes the virtues and the flight from vices; even for superfluous and unimportant pretexts (which, when the angels themselves name it, they tremble) for in this indeed is a contempt of God. Let us reverence the fire which will test us, wait, and discern the just and the impious, and let us fear God; and not despise our own salvation: for on this account He led us out from that which does not exist, to that which exists, that we might become the portion and inheritance of God, and not the portion of the devil (for whom the eternal fire is prepared), whereby it comes about that we be called with him to that intolerable and inextinguishable flame, to be scorched forever. For to sin is proper to our natural weakness; but to have mercy, and to spare, is the work of divine benignity; to those, at least, who know this their great worthlessness; who confess it before Him, and with tears ask remission of their sins.

[35] By these things therefore and by many of this kind, those who came to Irene, She is vexed by the devil. from the senatorial order, or from another manner of life, being taught and admonished; likewise many women and virgins, conspicuous for the splendor of their family, gave heed to themselves, and ran with all alacrity the way which leads to life; everywhere proclaiming and admiring Irene. But she neither ceased from the giving of thanks to God, nor remitted anything of her nightlong standing. After she had begun this at the setting of the sun, and had lifted up her holy hands, as she was wont, to heaven, about the middle of the night a dense phalanx of demons, which stood by, tried with obscure voices and confused clamor to disturb her immovable standing. One of these, more malignant and more arrogant, coming nearer to her, appeared to keep the nocturnal vigils together with her, and to make a din after the manner of apes, "eirkyky," ^b saying that she was wooden and was carried about on wooden feet, and blurting out other trifles. And, the scene being changed again, he mourned: How long, he said, do you afflict our race? How long do you scourge us with your long prayers? How long do you burn us? How long shall we endure you, full of the grief which we suffer from you?

[36] After this, together with him the remaining demons seemed to be afflicted; and is all but burned; they beat their cheeks: they emitted much lamentation over their great misery; because they had advanced nothing in that which they had aimed at with the utmost zeal. But she, as though caught up into heaven, held her whole mind there toward God, standing altogether imperturbable and undaunted. The devil, extending his hand, and putting out a little torch from the lamp, sent it into the neck of the holy woman. And it, like fire which kindles pitch, voraciously burning the whole cowl with the shoulder-piece and garment, seized also the very flesh: and it proceeded, scorching the shoulders, breast, spine of the back, kidneys, flanks; so that it wanted little but that the fire, feeding on it, would pervade the whole body; had not one of the sisters, keeping watch in nocturnal prayers, and smelling the reek of the flesh, and seeking in what place of the monastery the conflagration was, gone out troubled from her cell, and, following the stench by tracking, advanced as far as the cell of the superior. After she looked in, and saw it full of smoke and reek, having with difficulty at last forced the doors, she indeed entered; but found (a horrible spectacle!) Irene wholly ablaze; but unmoved, steadfast, unconquered, standing; and in no way heeding such a fire.

[37] But since she hastened only to this, that she might extinguish the flame, and take the mistress from the fire, but is freed from the fire by a certain sister, she began to shake and jostle her. The fire being extinguished and the flame repressed, and her hands, after a long ecstasy of mind, being lifted up, she Irene said: Why have you done this, my daughter? Why have you deprived me, by this your good will, of these goods so untimely? We ought not to be wise in the things which are of men, but which are of God. For behold, before my eyes an angel of God was seen, weaving me a crown of flowers, which eye has not seen, nor ear heard; and he already had his hand extended, to place it on my head: but on account of your care he departs, deserting me, and carries the crown away with him. Why then, daughter, have you rendered me a gratitude worse than ingratitude? I hate a gift that brings me loss. On hearing these things, the disciple, pouring tears from her eyes, began to draw off with her fingers the rags which clung to the flesh of the holy woman, and were still burning. And, behold, a certain new sweetness of odor was emitted from them, incomparably more fragrant than every unguent and precious spices; which filled the whole monastery for sufficient days, and was enough to delight those passing by.

[38] But since the holy woman had no garment except that one only, which the flame had burned together with her venerable flesh; and her burned members are afterward restored. By the gift of prophecy the praiseworthy disciple went, and brought her own garment, and clothed her spiritual mother with it. For this was one part of her duties of virtue, not to possess a second garment; but once a year, and that on the holy and great ^c Thursday of Pascha, to put off the one which she had worn through the whole year, and to put on a new one again; but to give the worn-out one to a poor woman. And so after a few days, her burned flesh being restored by the Physician of souls and bodies, she herself held the like manner of acting. But the grace of prophecy greatly increased in her, shone, and gave her to foresee things that were remote. For when once Cyril the eunuch had come to her, who was a most intimate and most benevolent servant to her sister (this woman the discourse set forth above to have been the last wife of the Caesar Bardas), she took him aside, and through him signifies these things to her sister, saying: Take heed, and see to your affairs: for the Caesar, she says, your husband, but my kinsman ^d, by the permission of God, and by judgments which He Himself knows to be inscrutable, will undergo a plot; and a little after is about to meet death by the one who has contrived the plot.

[39] A little after, her sister's son also, the emperor Michael, will suffer in the same way on account of his impious and nefarious deeds. she foretells certain things unknown to men. For he who mocks divine things shall be mocked. But you must take care that you make not these things known to anyone; nor hinder him who is to seize the scepters of the empire from resisting any of your kinsmen. For even though that man will be the cause of murders; yet he is adorned with religious and imperial prerogatives: and therefore God is well pleased in him, and the enemy shall not prevail in him. But she, knowing the predictions of her sister to be faithful and by no means doubtful, overcome by love of her husband, reveals to him all that she had signified to her. But he, arrogant and full of madness, like a fool, did not understand to flee to God, that, having obtained heavenly protection, he might escape the danger which was imminent: (as Jeremiah somewhere says: For if he be converted from all his evils; I too will repent of the evils which I purposed to do to him:) but he applied himself to this only, that he sought to find out the name of the one who was to receive the empire.

[40] Nor indeed had he anyone to announce this to him (for who is sufficient to scatter the counsels which the holy God has established?) she predicts. but though he often sent various persons to the holy woman, inquiring about this matter, he appeared to labor in vain; until a little time after, all things happened according to her prediction. For the Caesar was slain ^e in the camp. And the emperor Michael himself, following him, in the palace of St. Mamas after the horse-race (for he was a charioteer, driven mad ^g by the wine ^f with which he continually gorged himself), was butchered and broke off his life ^h, Basil ⁱ the Macedonian holding the empire after him; to whom the scepters were extended to the fourth or fifth generation ^k. And these things indeed are such as prove the grace of prophecy with which she was adorned.

ANNOTATIONS.

CHAPTER V.

A disciple of the holy woman is wondrously freed from sorceries.

[41] Γυνὴ δέ τις τῶν εὐγεγονότων ἐκ Καππαδοκίας καὶ αὐτὴ τὸ γένος ἕλκουσα προσῄει τῇ θαυμασιωτάτῃ γυναικῶν Εἰρήνῃ, τὴν κόμην τῆς κεφαλῆς κειραμένη, καὶ τοῦ καταλόγου τῶν ὑπ᾽ αὐτὴν μία γενομένη μοναζουσῶν. Ὁ δὲ τοῖς ἀγαθοῖς ἀεὶ βασκαίνων διαφερόντως πονηρὸς, σφοδρῶς ὑποδὺς τὸν ταύτης κατὰ χώραν μνηστῆρα, λίαν ὑπέκαιε τοῦτον, καὶ κατέτηκε τῷ τῆς μνηστευθείσης ἔρωτι, ὃν ἐκείνη καταλιποῦσα καὶ πάντα καταφρονήσασα διὰ τὸ πρὸς τὸν κύριον φίλτρον, τῇ προστασίᾳ τῆς ὁμοχώρου προσπέφευγεν Εἰρήνης. [Οὐκ] ἀγνοῶν δὲ ὁ ταλαίπωρος ὡς ἐκ τῆς ἑαυτοῦ φύσεως ὁ τοῦ λοιποῦ πρὸς ἐκείνην διακενὴς ἔρως· ἐμάνθανε γὰρ ἤδη ταύτην τὸν χρηστὸν ὑπελθοῦσαν τοῦ Χριστοῦ ζυγόν· Ἀλλὰ τῆς τοῦ διαβόλου ἔργον ἐπηρείας· ἠνιᾶτο, ἐδυσφόρει, ἔπασχεν ὅσα τοὺς τοιούτους πάσχειν εἰκός. Καὶ τέλος μαγῷ τινι προσδραμὼν, εὗρεν αὐτὸν ὡς ὑπηρέτην τοῦ σατανᾶ δοκιμώτατον, πάντα ποιήσειν τὰ κατὰ θέλησιν αὐτῷ καὶ πληρώσειν ἐπαγγελλόμενον. Καὶ ταῦτα μὲν ἐκεῖνος ἐπὶ τῆς Καππαδοκῶν ἐργαζόμενος ἦν. That is: And a certain woman, herself also drawing her descent from the nobles of Cappadocia, came to Irene, most worthy of admiration among women, having shorn the hair of her head, and became one of the number of those who under her professed the monastic life. But the evil one, who ever envies good things in a special way, vehemently entering into her suitor who lived in that region, greatly inflamed him, and made him waste away with love of his betrothed, whom she, having forsaken and despised all things for the love toward the Lord, had fled to the direction of Irene, her fellow-countrywoman. And the wretch was [not] ignorant that henceforth his love toward her was, of its own nature, in vain; for he already learned that she had taken up the kindly yoke of Christ. But it was the work of the devil's malice: he grieved, took it ill, suffered whatever such men are likely to suffer. And at last, running to a certain magician, he found him a most approved servant of Satan, promising to do and fulfill all things according to his will. And these things that man was doing in Cappadocia.

[42] Τὴν κόρην δὲ ζέσις καρδίας ἐπιπεσοῦσα, παρ᾽ ἐλπίδα καὶ ὅλην ἐκφρενῆ μανικῷ τῷ πρὸς τόν ποτε μνηστῆρα ταύτης ἔρωτι θήσασα. Οὐδὲ κατεκτὴν εἶναι συνεχώρει τῇ βίᾳ, πηδῶσαν, βοῶσαν, στένουσαν, κλαίουσαν, μεγάλῃ φωνῇ τοῦ ἐκείνου ὄνομα ἀνακαλουμένην, καὶ εἰ μὴ τοῦτον δώῃ τις αὐτῇ τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς ἰδεῖν, καὶ τῆς αὐτοῦ κατὰ κόρον ὄψεως ἐπαπολαῦσαι καὶ κοινωνίας, διαβεβαιοῦσαν ὅρκοις φρικώδεσι ἑαυτὴν ἀπαγχονίσαι· εἶτα καὶ πρὸς τὸν πυλῶνα ἀναθέουσαν ἦν αὐτὴν ὁρᾶν, καὶ τὴν ἔξοδον ἐπισπεύδουσαν, καὶ ταύτην ἀσήμαις κραυγαῖς καὶ σχήμασιν ἀναιδέσι ἐπιτάττουσαν τῇ θυρωρῷ. Ὡς οὖν εἰς ἀκοὰς ἦκε ταῦτα τῇ μακαρίᾳ Εἰρήνῃ, τὰς ὄψεις αὐτῆς ἀμφοτέραις τύψασα χερσὶν, οἴ μοι τῇ ἀθλίᾳ, εἶπεν, ὅτι ῥαθυμίᾳ τῶν ποιμένων οἱ λύκοι τὰ πρόβατα διαρπάζουσιν· ἀλλ᾽ οὐ χαιρήσεις ἐπὶ τοῦτο πονηρὲ, οὐδ᾽ οὐ μὴ καταπιεῖς τὴν ἀμνάδα τοῦ Χριστοῦ· κατὰ τῆς σεαυτοῦ δὲ καὶ τοῦτο κεφαλῆς ἐκ τοῦ κυρίου μου Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ περιτρέψει δύναμις. That is: But a heat of heart fell upon the girl, and, beyond hope, made her wholly out of her mind with a frantic love toward her former suitor. Nor did she allow herself to be restrained by force, leaping, shouting, groaning, weeping, calling out with a loud voice his name, and confirming with dreadful oaths that, unless someone gave her to see him with her eyes, and to enjoy the sight of him to satiety and his company, she would hang herself; then too she was to be seen running to the gate, and hastening her exit, and commanding the doorkeeper with inarticulate cries and shameless gestures. When therefore these things came to the ears of the blessed Irene, striking her face with both hands, she said: Woe is me, wretched, that by the negligence of the shepherds the wolves snatch the sheep; but you shall not rejoice over this, evil one, nor shall you devour the lamb of Christ; but this too the power from my Lord Jesus Christ will turn upon your own head.

[43] Καὶ κατὰ τὸ σύνηθες ἐν τῷ διακονικῷ γενομένη, πρὸς ἑαυτὴν μὲν τὰς ἀδελφὰς συνήγαγε. Πολλὰ δὲ πρὸς νουθεσίαν αὐταῖς διαλεξαμένη, καὶ τὴν τοῦ διαβόλου καθ᾽ ἡμῶν ἐκ τοῦ κατὰ τὴν πάσχουσαν παραδείγματος διασαφήσασα δύναμιν, καὶ ὡς χρεὼν ἡμᾶς, φησιν, ἀγρυπνεῖν ἐν παντὶ καιρῷ, ὅτι ὁ ἀντίδικος ἡμῶν ὁ διάβολος, ὡς λέων ὠρυόμενος περιπατεῖ, ζητῶν τίνα καταπίῃ, καὶ ὅτι διὰ τοῦτο τῆς ἀγέλης αὐτὸν ἔξω περιέναι τε καὶ ὠρύεσθαι θεὸς ἀφῆκεν, ἵνα τῷ τούτου φόβῳ συνάγηται πᾶς τις ὑπὸ τὴν σκέπην τοῦ ἀγαθοῦ ποιμένος Χριστοῦ, καὶ ὡς ἐν ἀσφαλεῖ τυγχάνων φρουρίῳ διαγελᾷ τοὺς αὐτῷ βρυχηθμούς· παρήγγειλε τὸ καθ᾽ ὅλου μήτε ἄρτου μήτε οἴνου δι᾽ ὅλης ὁμοῦ τῆς ἑβδομάδος ταύτης ἀπογεύσασθαι, μόναις δὲ τὸ πρὸς ἑσπέραν ὁπώραις τὴν τοῦ σώματος ἀνέχειν ταλαιπωρίαν, καὶ γονυκλισίας πρὸς τὸν θεὸν ὑπὲρ τῆς ἀδελφῆς ἑκάστην αὐτῶν διὰ τῆς ἡμέρας χιλίας ποιεῖσθαι τὸν ἀριθμόν. Ἀκούσατε γάρ, φησι, τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν εἰπόντος· Ὅτι τοῦτο τὸ γένος οὐκ ἐκπορεύεται, εἰ μὴ ἐν προσευχῇ καὶ νηστείᾳ· καὶ μήτις ὑμῶν ὑπολαβέτω τὸν ὑπὲρ τῆς ἀδελφῆς κόπον μηδὲν πρὸς οἰκείαν συντελῆ ὠφέλειαν· τοῦτο γάρ ἐστι τὸ μέγα κέρδος, ἐν τούτῳ κρέμαται ἡ τοῦ χριστιανικοῦ τάγματος πολιτεία. Ἐν τούτῳ γνώσονταί, φησιν ὁ κύριος, πάντες, ὅτι ἐμοὶ μαθηταί ἐστε, ἐὰν ἀγαπᾶτε ἀλλήλους, καθὼς ἐγὼ ἠγάπησα ὑμᾶς· μείζονα ταύτης ἀγάπην οὐδεὶς ἔχει, ἵνα τις θῇ τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ ὑπὲρ τῶν φίλων αὐτοῦ. That is: And, according to custom, being in the diaconicon, she gathered the sisters to herself. And having discoursed much to them for their admonition, and having explained the power of the devil against us from the example of the suffering woman, and how, she said, we must watch at all times, because our adversary the devil walks about as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour; and that on this account God has permitted him to go about outside the flock and to roar, that by fear of him everyone may be gathered under the shelter of the good shepherd Christ, and, being as it were in a safe fortress, may laugh at his roarings; she charged them altogether to taste neither bread nor wine through the whole of that entire week, but to sustain the body's hardship with fruits only, toward evening, and that each of them should make a thousand genuflections a day to God for the sister. For hear, she says, our Lord who said: That this kind does not go out, except in prayer and fasting; and let none of you suppose that the labor undertaken for the sister contributes nothing to her own advantage: for this is the great gain, on this hangs the polity of the Christian order. By this, says the Lord, shall all know that you are my disciples, if you love one another, as I have loved you; greater love than this has no one, than that one lay down his life for his friends.

[44] Καὶ συνταξαμένη ταῖς ἀδελφαῖς, βαλοῦσά τε ταύταις μετάνοιαν ἀντιβαλούσαις, πρὸς τὸν οἰκεῖον ἑκάστην παρέπεμψε κελλίον. Τῆς ἐκτενοῦς δὲ ταύτης θερμῆς ἐπιτελουμένης προσευχῆς ὑπὸ πάσης τῆς ἀδελφότητος, καὶ πασῶν τούτων τὰς δεήσεις τῆς κεκαθαρμένης διανοίας τῆς ἐν πνεύματι καὶ ἀληθείᾳ, προσκυνούσης τὸν θεὸν Εἰρήνης εὐθυβόλως, καὶ ἀπαραποδίστως πρὸς τὸν εὔσπλαγχνον ἀναφερούσης, τρίτη μὲν ἤδη παρῆλθεν ἡμέρα· περὶ δὲ τὰς ἀλεκτρυόνων ᾠδὰς τῆς τετάρτης ἐπιούσης, ἐν ὅσῳ μὲν εἱστήκει πρεσβεύουσα, καὶ τὰς χεῖρας εἰς ὕψος τεταμένας ἡ ὁσία ἔχουσα, τὸν μέγαν ὁρᾷ Βασίλειον πρὸ τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν αὐτῆς ἐφεστηκότα, τοιοῦτον, οἷον αἱ εἰκόνες γράφουσι, λέγοντα πρὸς αὐτήν· Ἱνατί οὕτω κατονειδίζεις ἡμᾶς, Εἰρήνη, καταδεχομένους οἷα δὴ τὰ μιαρὰ καὶ ἀθέμιτα παρὰ τῇ κοινῇ γινόμενα πατρίδι; Τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν ἡ μήτηρ, ἰδοὺ, πρωΐας αὔριον ἐν Βλαχέρναις παραγίνεται. Σὺ δὲ λαβοῦσα μεθ᾽ ἑαυτῆς τὴν κακῶς πάσχουσάν σου μαθήτριαν, ἐκεῖ τὸ τάχος εὑρέθητι, καὶ πάντως τεύξεται τῆς ἰάσεως. Καὶ ταῦτα μὲν ἐκεῖνος εἰπὼν, ἀφανὴς ἦν. That is: And, having taken leave of the sisters, and made an obeisance to them as they made obeisance in return, she sent each to her own cell. And while this earnest and fervent prayer was being performed by the whole sisterhood, and Irene was offering the petitions of all these, of a purified mind, in spirit and in truth, worshiping God directly and unhindered to the compassionate One, the third day had now passed; and about the cock-crow of the fourth following day, while the holy woman stood interceding, and holding her hands stretched on high, she sees the great Basil standing before her eyes, such as the icons depict him, saying to her: Why do you thus reproach us, Irene, who allow such foul and unlawful things as are done in our common fatherland? Behold, the Mother of our Lord comes tomorrow morning to Blachernae. Take with you your disciple who suffers badly, and be found there quickly, and she will certainly obtain healing. And having said these things, he vanished.

[45] Ἡ δὲ συνῆκεν εὐθὺς, ἅπερ πρὸς τὴν εἰκόνα τοῦ μεγάλου Βασιλείου βλέπουσα, πρὸ τῆς ἑσπέρας διελέγετο, τοιαῦτα γὰρ τὰ παρ᾽ αὐτῆς ἐτύγχανε μετὰ δακρύων εἰρημένα, καὶ βοηθὸν ἐπεκαλέσατο, καὶ ῥύστην τῆς κακῶς ἐχούσης γυναικός· καὶ δὴ παραλαβοῦσα ταύτην κατὰ τὰ προστεταγμένα, καὶ δύο προκρίτων τῶν ἀδελφῶν, τὰς Βλαχέρνας κατέλαβε, καὶ παρ᾽ ὅλην οὐ διέλιπε τὴν ἡμέραν δυσωποῦσα τὴν θεοτόκον, καὶ δάκρυσι τὸ ἅγιον τοῦ ναοῦ διαβρέχουσα δάπεδον. Ἑσπέρας δὲ καταλαβούσης, ἄχρι μεσονυκτίου τὴν ἱκεσίαν ἅμα ταῖς ἀδελφαῖς παρέτεινε, περὶ δὲ τὸ μεσονύκτιον ἅτε δὴ κεκοπιακυῖαι, καθεσθεῖσαι μικρὸν ὕπνωσαν· ἐδόκει δὲ τὴν ὁσίαν Εἰρήνην ὁρᾶν πρόοδόν τινα φοβερὰν καὶ πολυάνθρωπον, ἑτοιμαζομένην, καὶ τὸ μὲν ἔδαφος καθαιρόμενον, οἷα ἀκριβῶς καταῤῥαινόμενον καὶ παντοίοις αὖθις ἄνθεσιν ἡδυπνόοις, καί τινας χρυσοφοροῦντας θυμιᾷν, καὶ τὸν ἀέρα κατευωδιάζειν, ἀπιόντας καὶ ὑποστρέφοντας, καὶ ὡς ταῦτα βλέπουσαν περιδεῆ γινομένην καὶ πυθομένην, τί ποτ᾽ ἂν εἴη τοῦτο τὸ γινόμενον, ἀκοῦσαι παρά τινος πρὸς αὐτὴν ἀποκριναμένου. That is: And she at once understood [him] to whom, looking at the icon of the great Basil, she had spoken before evening (for such were the things said by her with tears), and had invoked as helper and deliverer of the woman who was ill; and so, taking her according to what had been commanded, and two chosen ones of the sisters, she reached Blachernae, and through the whole day she did not cease entreating the Mother of God, and wetting the holy floor of the church with tears. And when evening came, she prolonged the supplication together with the sisters until midnight; but about midnight, as being wearied, they sat down and slept a little; and the holy Irene seemed to see a certain awesome and thronged procession being prepared, and the floor being cleansed, as if carefully sprinkled and again strewn with all kinds of sweet-smelling flowers, and some clothed in gold burning incense, and perfuming the air, going away and returning; and, as she beheld these things, becoming frightened and inquiring what this that was happening might be, she heard someone answering her.

[46] Σὺ δὲ τίς εἶ, τοῦτο ἀγνοοῦσα ὅλον, ὡς ἡ μήτηρ τοῦ θεοῦ πάρεστιν ὧδε, καὶ τὴν ἀπὸ τοῦ μεγάλου ναοῦ πρὸς τὸν τῆς ἁγίας ἔδοξεν αὐτῇ σοροῦ διάβασιν ποιήσασθαι, ἧς τὸ κλέος πολὺ μᾶλλον ἐν οὐρανῷ ἢ ἐπὶ γῆς. Ἔσο τοίνυν ἑτοίμως· ἴσως ἀξιωθήσῃ ταύτην καὶ ἰδεῖν καὶ προσκυνῆσαι· καὶ τοῦτο λαλοῦντος, αὐτίκα τοὺς προοδεύοντας τεθεᾶσθαι λαμπροὺς καὶ φωτοειδεῖς, στιχηδὸν προπορευομένους, κατεσταλμένους ἐν φόβῳ τινὶ καὶ μεγάλῳ σεβάσματι, καὶ τὴν μητέρα τοῦ κυρίου, μετὰ πλήθους πολλῶν παρεπομένων, ὡς ἥλιος ἀστραπτόντων, τὸ μέν τοι πρόσωπον αὐτῆς διὰ τὴν ἄστεκτον μὴ καθορᾶσθαι δυνατὸν εἶναι φωτοχυσίαν· περιέναι τε τοὺς ἐν ἀσθενείᾳ κατακειμένους ἐπισκεπτομένην, ἕως ἦλθεν καὶ ἐπ᾽ αὐτὴν τὴν τῆς Εἰρήνης μαθήτριαν· τήνδε τὴν ὁσίαν πρὸς τοὺς πόδας τῆς δεσποίνης καταπεσεῖν περιδεῆ καὶ περίτρομον, ἀκοῦσαι δὲ κειμένην φωνῆς τῆς πανάγνου Βασίλειον καλούσης καὶ Ἰωάννην· φάναι τε πρὸς αὐτοὺς, τίνος χάριν καταλιποῦσα τὸ ποίμνιον αὐτῆς ἐνταῦθα πάρεστιν ἡ Εἰρήνη. That is: But who are you, wholly ignorant of this, that the Mother of God is present here, and it has seemed good to her to make the passage from the great church to the shrine of the holy Coffin, whose glory is much greater in heaven than on earth? Be therefore ready; perhaps you will be counted worthy both to see and to venerate her; and while he was saying this, at once she beheld those going before, bright and luminous, advancing in a row, composed in a certain fear and great reverence, and the Mother of the Lord, with a great multitude following, flashing like the sun; but her face, on account of the unbearable outpouring of light, could not be beheld; and she went about visiting those who lay in sickness, until she came also to Irene's disciple herself; and the holy woman Irene fell down at the feet of the Lady, frightened and trembling, and, lying there, heard the voice of the all-pure One calling Basil and John; and saying to them, for what reason Irene, having left her flock, was present here.

[47] Καὶ τούτων θάτερον τὸν Βασίλειον κατὰ μέρος ἅπαντα καταλέξαι, ὅσα τε πάθοι ἡ κατὰ πνεῦμα θεοῦ θυγάτηρ αὐτῆς, ὅσα τε τούτου καταβοῶσα διετέλεσεν, ἀνεχομένου κατὰ τὴν τῆς πατρίδος γῆν γόητας ἀναστρεφομένους· καὶ ὡς διὰ ταῦτα καταπεφευγέναι, φησὶ, πρὸς τὴν πάντα σου ἰσχύουσαν τῆς ἡμῶν δεσποίνης αὐτὴν ἐξουσίαν· καὶ πάλιν ἀκοῦσαι λεγούσης· Τὴν Ἀναστασίαν μοι καλέσατε· καὶ παραστῆναι δύο γυναῖκας αὐτίκα, ὧν τὴν μίαν, σχῆμα περικειμένην μοναχικὸν, τὴν Ῥωμαίαν ᾤετο λέγεσθαι· πρὸς δὲ τὴν ἑτέραν ἐπιστραφεῖσα, περὶ τοῦ πάθους τῆς μαθητευομένης τῇ Εἰρήνῃ γυναικός φησι μετ᾽ ἐπιμελείας ἐξετάσαι ἐπείχθητι, συνεργὸν εὑροῦσα καὶ τὸν ἱερὸν Βασίλειον, καὶ τὸ περὶ τῶν τοιούτων ὡς λαβοῦσα χάρισμα, παρὰ τοῦ υἱοῦ μου καὶ θεοῦ καὶ θεραπείας ἀξίωσον· ἔδοξαν οὖν ἥ τε Ἀναστασία, ὅτε Βασίλειος ἅμα προσκυνήσαντες, τὴν ἐπὶ Καππαδοκίαν τραπέσθαι σπουδῇ· καὶ τούτων οἰχομένων φωνὴν ἀκουσθῆναι παρά τινος πρὸς τὴν Εἰρήνην λέγουσαν· Ἄπελθε εἰς τὸ μοναστήριόν σου, καὶ ἰασθήσεται ἐκεῖ· καὶ τῷ τῆς τοιαύτης ἤχῳ φωνῆς ἔξυπνον γεγονέναι. That is: And one of these, Basil, recounted all in detail—both what her daughter according to the spirit of God suffered, and how she Irene continued crying out against him, because he tolerated magicians going about in the land of the fatherland; and how, on this account, she says, she had fled to the all-powerful authority of our Lady; and again she Irene heard the Lady saying: Call Anastasia to me; and two women at once stood by, of whom the one, wearing the monastic habit, she thought was called the Roman; and turning to the other, she says concerning the affliction of the woman who was Irene's disciple: Make haste to examine it with care, having found the holy Basil also as helper, and, as you have received the gift concerning such matters, obtain from my Son and God also a healing. So both Anastasia and Basil, when they had worshiped together, seemed to hasten toward Cappadocia; and when they had departed, a voice was heard from someone saying to Irene: Depart to your monastery, and she will be healed there; and at the sound of such a voice she awoke.

[48] Διυπνισθεῖσα δὲ καὶ τὰ ὁραθέντα ἀναδιαλεγομένη, θαυμάζουσα, κατηφιῶσα διετέλει· ἀφυπνισθεῖσα δὲ καὶ τὰς ἑτέρας, διηγήσατο ταύταις ἅπαντα, καὶ δοῦσα δόξαν τῇ θεομήτορι. Ὡς ἀψευδέσι τοῖς ὁράμασι πιστεύσασαι πρὸς τὸ μοναστήριον ὑπέστρεψαν· ἦν δὲ παρασκευὴ ἡμέρα· περὶ δὲ τὰς ἡλίου δυσμὰς, καὶ ταῖς λοιπαῖς ἀδελφαῖς, τὸ τῆς μονῆς εὐκτήριον οἶκον εἰσιοῦσα, τὰς συνήθεις εὐχὰς πληρῶσαι, διηγήσατο τὸ ὅραμα. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ πάσας εἶχε μὴ διαπιστούσας, ἀλλ᾽ ἐκπληττομένας τὰ μεγαλεῖα τοῦ θεοῦ, τὰς χεῖρας εἰς οὐρανὸν πάσαις αἴρειν διεκελεύσατο, καὶ τὸ κύριε ἐλέησον ἐξ ὅλης βοᾶν τῆς καρδίας· προκειμένης αὐτῶν τῆς πασχούσης καὶ μηδὲν σεμνὸν τῇ παραφορᾷ τῶν φρενῶν καὶ λεγούσης καὶ ποιούσης· ἀλλὰ Τίς λαλήσει τὰς δυναστείας τοῦ κυρίου, ἀκουστὰς ποιήσει πάσας τὰς αἰνέσεις αὐτοῦ; Ὡς γὰρ ἐπὶ πολὺ ταύταις ἡ δέησις παρετείνετο, καὶ δάκρυσιν τούτων τοῦ ναοῦ κατεῤῥαίνετο ἔδαφος, ὡράθησαν ἐπὶ τοῦ ἀέρος ἱπτάμενοι ἥ τε καλλίμαρτυς Ἀναστασία, καὶ ὁ μέγας Βασίλειος, καὶ φωνή τις τούτων ἠκούετο πρὸς τὴν Εἰρήνην λέγουσα· Ἅπλωσον τὸν κόλπον σου, καὶ δέξαι ταῦτα, καὶ μηκέτι ἡμᾶς ὀνείδιζε. That is: And having awoken and going back over the things seen, she continued wondering and downcast; and having awakened the others also, she recounted all to them, and gave glory to the Mother of God. Believing the visions as unerring, they returned to the monastery; and it was the day of Parasceve (Friday); and about the setting of the sun, with the rest of the sisters, entering the oratory-house of the monastery to fulfill the accustomed prayers, she recounted the vision. And since she had them all not disbelieving, but astonished at the mighty works of God, she bade them all raise their hands to heaven, and to cry "Lord, have mercy" from the whole heart; while the suffering woman lay before them, saying and doing nothing seemly, in the derangement of her mind; but—Who shall tell the powers of the Lord, shall make heard all His praises? For as the supplication was prolonged by them for a long time, and the floor of the church was sprinkled with their tears, there were seen flying in the air both the fair-martyr Anastasia and the great Basil, and a voice of theirs was heard saying to Irene: Spread out your bosom, and receive these things, and reproach us no more.

[49] Ὑφαπλώσασα δὲ δέχεται καταφερόμενον ἐκ τοῦ ἀέρος ἀπόδεσμον ὡσεὶ λιτρῶν βαρὺν τριῶν· συνδραμοῦσαι δὲ πᾶσαι αἱ ἀδελφαὶ τῷ παραδόξῳ τοῦ πράγματος ἐξιστάμεναι, τύπτουσαι τὰ στήθη τὴν θεοτόκον ἐδόξαζον. Ἀνάψασαι δὲ κηροὺς ἤρξαντο ἀλύειν τὸν ἀπόδεσμον· ὁ δὲ εἶχεν ἔνδον παντοδαπὰς ἐνειλημμένας περιεργίας, καὶ εἴδωλα μολύβδου κατασκευασμένα δύο, τὸ μὲν τοῦ μνηστῆρος, τὸ δὲ ἕτερον τῆς κακῶς ἐχούσης ἐοικότα μοναχῆς, καὶ ἄλλά τινα τῆς πονηρίας σοφίσματα, περιπλοκὴν πρὸς ἄλληλα ποιούμενα, καὶ θριξὶ καὶ μίτοις καταδεδεσμένα, καὶ τὸ τοῦ δημιουργοῦ τῆς κακίας ὄνομα καὶ δαιμόνων ὑπασπιστῶν αὐτοῦ κλήσεις ἐγγεγραμμένας. Καὶ διετέλεσαν οὕτω τὸ λοιπὸν τῆς νυκτὸς, τὸν ἀπόδεσμον διαλύουσαι, καὶ τῇ Μητρὶ τοῦ θεοῦ εὐχαριστοῦσαι. Προΐας δὲ ἤδη γενομένης, κηροὺς καὶ θυμιάματα, καὶ τὰ περίεργα ταῦτα ταῖς συνούσαις ἐν Βλαχέρναις That is: And having spread it out, she receives a bundle being brought down from the air, heavy as of three pounds; and all the sisters, running together, astounded at the extraordinary nature of the thing, beating their breasts, glorified the Mother of God. And having lighted tapers, they began to loosen the bundle; and it had within it all kinds of implicated sorceries, and two idols made of lead, the one resembling the suitor, the other the sick nun, and certain other devices of wickedness, making an entwining with one another, and bound with hairs and threads, and with the name of the artificer of the wickedness and the appellations of the demons his shield-bearers inscribed. And thus they passed the rest of the night, undoing the bundle, and giving thanks to the Mother of God. And when morning had now come, the tapers and incense, and these sorceries, to those who were with her at Blachernae

αὐτὴ δυσὶ μοναζούσαις ἐγχειρίσασα. That is: ...she herself entrusted to two nuns.

[50] Παραδοῦσα δὲ ταύταις καὶ τὴν κακῶς ἔχουσαν πρὸς τὸν ναὸν ἀπέστειλεν τῆς μεγαλομάρτυρος Ἀναστασίας· καὶ προσφορὰν καὶ ἔλαιον ἐπιδοῦσα παρήγγειλε τὸ μὲν ἔλαιον ταῖς ἐπὶ τοῦ τάφου τῆς μάρτυρος λυχνίαις ἐπιβαλεῖν, τὴν προσφορὰν δὲ τῷ θεῷ διὰ τοῦ ἱερέως προκομισθῆναι εἰς εὐχαριστίαν, καὶ τοὺς κηροὺς ἀνάψαι ἐν τῷ ναῷ. Πορευθεῖσαι δὲ, καὶ πάντα καταδιωρισμένα τελέσασαι, τῷ τὴν τοῦ ναοῦ πρόνοιαν ἐπιτετραμμένῳ καὶ τῷ κλήρῳ τὰ τοῦ θαύματος καθὼς παρηκολούθηκε διηγοῦντο. Δοξασάντων δὲ πάντων τῶν ἀκουσάντων τὸν θεὸν, λαβὼν ὁ τοῦ ναοῦ προεστὼς τὰς γυναῖκας, κάτεισαν εἰς τὸν τῆς μάρτυρος τάφον· εὐχαριστήσας τε σὺν αὐταῖς, καὶ χρίσας ἐλαίῳ τὴν πάσχουσαν ἐκ τῶν λυχνιῶν, ἀνῆλθεν αὖθις εἰς τὸν ναὸν, καὶ τούτῳ κομισθῆναι ἐκκεκαυμένους αἰτήσας ἄνθρακας, ἤρξατο κατακαίειν τὰ γοητεύματα· καὶ ἦν ἰδεῖν θαῦμα τῷ θαύματι παρεπόμενον· καθόσον γὰρ ἕκαστον τῶν γοητευμάτων τὸ πῦρ ἐδαπάνα, κατὰ τοσοῦτον καὶ ἡ γυνὴ τῶν ἀφανῶν λυομένη δεσμῶν πρὸς ἔμφρονα τὴν κατάστασιν μετεβάλλετο, εὐχαριστοῦσα καὶ δοξάζουσα τὸν ῥυόμενον. Ἐπεὶ δὲ πάντα κατατεφρωθέντα ἤδη πρὸς τὸ μὴ ὂν ἐχώρουν, κραυγαὶ τῶν ἀνθράκων ἐξηχοῦντο, χοιρείων ὥσπερ εἰ φωνῆς ὅτ᾽ ἄν τις ἀκούοι πολλῶν σφαττομένων· ὅπερ τοὺς παρευρεθέντας πάντας εἰς φόβον τε μέγαν ἐνῆκε, καὶ τοῦ ναοῦ φεύγειν παρεσκεύασε, μεγάλην εἶναι τῆς μάρτυρος τὴν ἰσχὺν ἀνακράζοντας. Αἱ μέν τοι σταλεῖσαι παρὰ τῆς ὁσίας Εἰρήνης ἅμα τῇ τεθεραπευμένῃ, πρὸς αὐτὴν ἐπανελθοῦσαι, καὶ τὰ παρηκολουθηκότα ταῦτα θαυμάσια τῶν λοιπῶν ἀδελφῶν εἰς ἐπήκοον ἐπαγγέλλουσαι, πρὸς περισσοτέραν ταύτας εὐχαριστίαν προθυμοτέρας διετίθεσαν, καὶ τῆς ἐπαύριον μεγάλην ἑορτὴν τῆς ἀδελφῆς ἑώρταζον ἀπολύτρωσιν. That is: And having handed over to them the sick woman also, she sent her to the church of the great-martyr Anastasia; and giving an offering and oil, she charged that the oil be put into the lamps at the tomb of the martyr, but that the offering be presented to God through the priest as a thanksgiving, and that the tapers be lighted in the church. And they, having gone and completed all that was appointed, related to the one entrusted with the care of the church and to the clergy the things of the miracle as they had happened. And when all who heard had glorified God, the superior of the church, taking the women, went down to the tomb of the martyr; and having given thanks with them, and anointed the suffering woman with oil from the lamps, he went up again into the church, and, having asked burning coals to be brought to him, began to burn the sorceries; and it was to be seen a wonder following upon the wonder: for in proportion as the fire consumed each of the sorceries, so much also the woman, being loosed from the unseen bonds, was changed to a sane condition, giving thanks and glorifying her deliverer. And when all, reduced to ash, now passed into non-being, cries resounded from the coals, as if the voice of many swine when one hears them being slaughtered; which cast all who were present into great fear, and made them flee from the church, crying out that great was the might of the martyr. But those who had been sent by the holy Irene, together with the healed woman, returning to her, and announcing in the hearing of the rest of the sisters these wonders that had followed, disposed them to a greater and more eager thanksgiving, and on the morrow they kept a great feast of the sister's deliverance.

[41] A certain woman, herself also drawing her descent from the nobles of Cappadocia, came to Irene, most worthy of admiration among women; A certain woman, for the sake of the monastic life, forsakes her suitor, having shorn the hair of her head, and being made one of the number of those who under her professed the monastic life. But the malignant spirit, who in various ways ever envies good things, vehemently entering into the suitor who dwelt in her region, greatly inflamed him, and made him waste away with love of his betrothed; whom she, having forsaken, and having despised all things for the love of the Lord, had fled to the discipline of Irene, her countrywoman. Nor indeed was the unhappy man ignorant that his love toward her would henceforth be in vain, as the matter then stood: for he understood that she had already undertaken the kindly yoke of Christ. But (O work of diabolical wickedness!) he was tormented, took it ill; he suffered whatever such men are wont to suffer. Finally, running to a certain magician, he found him a most approved minister of Satan, promising that he would do and fulfill all things according to his mind. And these things indeed that man kept doing in Cappadocia.

[42] But a fervor of heart invaded the girl, and, made wholly captive in mind by a frenzied love toward her sometime suitor, drove her to desperation. but by magic arts is reduced to madness: Nor did she allow herself to be restrained by force, leaping, crying out, groaning, weeping, redoubling his name with a loud voice; and confirming with horrid oaths that, unless someone gave her to see him with her eyes, and to enjoy his sight to satiety, and his company, she would hang herself. Then one might see her running to the doors, and hastening her exit; and commanding the doorkeeper with disordered vociferations and immodest gestures. After these things came to the ears of the blessed Irene, striking her face with both hands, Woe is me, wretched! she said; because by the negligence of the shepherds the wolves tear the sheep. But you shall not rejoice over this, malignant spirit; nor shall you devour the lamb of Christ: but this very thing, the power which is given by my Lord Jesus Christ, will turn upon your head.

[43] And when, according to custom, she had entered the diaconicon, she called the sisters to her; for whom, while St. Irene and, many things being brought forward for their instruction, and the power of the devil against us being set forth from the example of that suffering woman, How necessary it is, she said, that we watch at all times, because our adversary the devil goes about as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour; and because God has permitted him to go about and roar outside the flock, that by fear of him everyone may be gathered under the covering of the good shepherd Christ, and, being as it were in a safe fortress, may deride his roarings. She commanded that they should altogether taste neither bread nor wine through that whole week together, but should sustain the body's misery with fruits only, at evening; and that each of them should make a thousand genuflections a day to God for the sister. For you have heard, she said, our Lord saying: That this kind does not go out, except in prayer and fasting. And let none of you think that the labor undertaken for the sister contributes nothing to her own advantage: for this is great gain; on this depends the governance of the Christian order. By this, says the Lord, all shall know that you are my disciples, if you love one another, as I have loved you: greater love than this has no one, than that one lay down his life for his friends.

[44] When she had commanded these things to the sisters, deep reverence being made on both sides, she dismissed each to her own cell. performs various good works; she sees St. Basil, But when this long and fervid prayer had been performed by all the sisters, and Irene was offering the petitions of all these, poured forth with a purified mind in spirit and in truth to Him who is merciful; and she herself at the same time fittingly and without intermission worshiping God, the third day had now passed; and at the cock-crow of the fourth following day, when she was free for prayer, and the holy woman had her hands stretched upward, she sees the great Basil ^a standing before her eyes, such as the images paint him, and saying to her: Why do you thus reproach us, Irene, we who have suffered those abominable and nefarious things which are done in the fatherland which we have in common ^b? The Mother of our Lord, behold, will be present tomorrow morning at Blachernae ^c. Do you, taking with you your disciple who is ill-affected, present yourself there at once, and she will altogether obtain health. Having said these things, he disappeared.

[45] But she soon understood him with whom, her eyes turned to the image of the great Basil, she had held converse before evening (for such things had been said by her with tears), who directs her to Blachernae: and had invoked as helper and liberator of the woman who was ill: and taking her, according to the commands, together with two of the chief sisters, she came to Blachernae; and left no part of the day in which she did not supplicate the Mother of God, and drench the holy pavement of the temple with tears. After evening had come, she prolonged the supplications together with the sisters until midnight. But about the middle of the night, being wearied, sitting down they slept a little. And holy Irene seemed to see a certain awesome series of persons in procession, furnished and prepared with many men; and the pavement cleansed, and also carefully strewn with all kinds of fragrant flowers; some clothed in gold burning incense, and refreshing the air with a good odor; and also going away and returning; and that she, while she saw these things, was seized with fear, and asked what this was that had been done; and heard from someone who answered her:

[46] Who are you, who are wholly ignorant that the Mother of God is present here, and that it has seemed good to her to make a passage from the great temple to this, which is that of the holy Coffin ^d, whose glory is much greater in heaven than on earth? where appears the heavenly retinue with the Mother of God; Be therefore ready; and you will equally obtain the honor of seeing and of adoring her. And while he said this, she seemed at once to behold those who went before, lucid and splendid, proceeding in order, restrained by a certain fear and great reverence, and the Mother of the Lord with a throng of many who followed, and glittered like the sun: her face was not to be beheld on account of the intolerable flashing of light: but she went about, to visit those who lay in sickness: until she came to Irene's disciple herself: and the holy woman fell at the feet of the Lady, fearing and trembling; and while she lay there, heard the voice of the most pure Virgin, calling Basil and John; and saying to them, for what reason Irene, having left her flock, was present there.

[47] But one of these, Basil, recounted singly all the things which her daughter according to the spirit of God was suffering; [and it is foretold that she is to be healed by the endeavor of Irene, as also of St. Basil and St. Anastasia.] and that the holy woman had complained of him, as one who tolerated magicians going about the land of the fatherland: and that on this account, as she said, she had fled to her, who is powerful for all things, to the protection of our Lady: and that she heard again that she said: Call Anastasia ^e to me: and at once two women stood by; of whom the one, clothed in the monastic habit, she thought was called the Roman ^f: but turning to the other, Make haste, she says, to inquire with diligence into the evil which the woman who was Irene's disciple suffered, having obtained as helper the holy Basil himself; and, since you have received grace concerning such things, ask a remedy from my Son and God. And so both Anastasia and Basil, when they had adored together, seemed to hasten into Cappadocia: and as they departed, the voice of someone was heard, who said to Irene: Depart to your monastery, and she will be healed there; and at the sound of such a voice she awoke from sleep.

[48] The sleep therefore being shaken off, revolving with herself the things seen, and wondering, she was somewhat sad. Which, in what manner it came to pass, But after she had roused the others from sleep, she narrated all to them, and gave glory to the Mother of God. Thus, believing the visions as unfeigned, they returned to the monastery. (Now it was the day of Parasceve.) But at the setting of the sun, with the rest of the sisters, having entered the sacred edifice of the monastery, to fulfill the accustomed prayers, she narrated the vision. And when she had made all believe, astonished at the mighty works of God, she commanded them all to lift their hands to heaven, and to cry "Lord, have mercy" from the whole heart, while she who suffered lay prostrate before them, and said or did nothing to the purpose on account of the disturbance of her mind: (although O! Who shall tell the powers of the Lord, shall make heard all His praises?) for while the prayer was drawn out at length by them, and the pavement of the temple was watered with their tears, there were seen flying in the air the fair martyr Anastasia, and the great Basil, and a certain voice of theirs was heard, saying to Irene: Unfold your bosom, and take these: and reproach us no more.

[49] When she had unfolded it, she receives a bundle brought down from the air, heavy as of three pounds. recounting the wondrous circumstances of this event And all the sisters run together, astounded at the unexpected event of the thing, and, beating their breasts, glorified the Mother of God. And, tapers being lighted, they began to loosen

the bundle. It contained within all kinds of implicated impostures, and two idols made of lead (this one bore the likeness of the suitor, but the other of the nun who was ill) and certain other devices of malice, some implicated with others, and bound together with hairs and threads, and inscribed also with the name of the fabricator of the malice, and with the appellations of the demons defending him. And thus they passed what was left of the night, undoing the bundle, and rendering thanks to the Mother of God. And the sun now risen, she committed the tapers, incense, and those sorceries to two nuns, who were to be present together at Blachernae. She also handed over to them the woman who was ill, and sent her to the temple of the great-martyr Anastasia: and adding an oblation and oil, she ordered the oil to be put into the lamps at the tomb of the Martyr; but the oblation to be offered to God through the priest in thanksgiving, and the tapers to be lighted in the temple.

[50] After they had departed, and had performed all things which were prescribed, the author of the Life sets forth. they set forth to the prefect of the temple and to the clergy the series of the miracle, as it had been done. And when all who had heard had glorified God; the superior of the temple together with the women went down to the tomb of the Martyr: and, thanks being given to God together with them, and the suffering sister being anointed with the oil of the lamps, he returned again to the temple: and asked that lighted coals be brought there, and began to burn the sorceries. And one might see one miracle following after another. For as much as the fire consumed each of the sorceries, so much the woman, loosed from the hidden bonds, was restored to a sound state of mind, giving thanks, and praising Him who had freed her. After all had now been reduced to ash so that nothing was left, cries resounded from the coals, as if one hears the voice of many swine while they are slaughtered. Which thing struck all who were present with fear, and compelled them to flee from the temple, exclaiming that great was the power of the Martyr. But those who had been sent by St. Irene, together with her who had been restored to her former health, when they had returned to her, and had announced to the ears of the rest of the sisters the wonders which had happened, rendered them more eager for a fuller thanksgiving, and on the next day they celebrated a great feast for the sister's liberation.

ANNOTATIONS.

CHAPTER VI.

The gift of tears; a demoniac freed; long-lasting standings of prayer.

[51] Κατάνυξις μὲν οὖν καὶ πάσας ἐντεῦθεν συνεῖχε τὰς ἀδελφὰς, καὶ συνετήρει πρὸς τὸν θεὸν καὶ φόβον καὶ πόθον συνδέουσα· πολὺ δὲ τούτων τὴν ὁσίαν προέχουσαν, καὶ πλείονα περικεχυμένην αὐτῇ καθορᾶν ἦν· ἐπεὶ καὶ τὴν τῆς ψυχῆς προκοπὴν ἐν τῇ προκοπῇ τῆς ταπεινώσεως καταλαβόντες ὡρίσαντο, καὶ τὴν ἐπίγνωσιν τῆς θεοσεβείας ἐν ἐπιγνώσει ταπεινώσεως οἱ πατέρες καὶ πρᾳότητος· ὅθεν καὶ τὸ δάκρυον ὥσπερ τινὸς ἐκ πηγῆς, τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν αὐτῆς ῥεῖθρον ἔβλυσεν ἀένναον, καὶ μάλιστα κατὰ τὸν καιρὸν τῆς θείας ἱερουργίας, ὁπηνίκα τὸν ἐπιφανέντα θεὸν προσάγων ἦν ὁ ἱερεὺς τῇ ἱερᾷ τεθυμένον τραπέζῃ· ἐννοουμένη γὰρ ὅπως ὁ ἀόρατος, ὁ ἀναφὴς καὶ ἀπερίληπτος ἢ ἀκατάληπτος, οὐ μόνον σάρκα θνητὴν καὶ φθαρτὴν ὑπὲρ τῆς ἡμετέρας κατεδέξατο σωτηρίας ἐνδύσασθαι, ἀλλὰ καὶ σφαγιασθῆναι, καὶ νεκρὸς πρόεισιν εἰς τροφὴν ἡμῖν καὶ πόσιν τὸ ἄχραντον σῶμα καὶ τὸ τίμιον αἷμα, ὃ ἐξέχεε προτιθέμενος, ἵνα τῷ ἀλήπτῳ διὰ τῶν ληπτῶν, καὶ τῶν ψαυστῶν τῷ ἀναφεῖ, καὶ τῶν ὁρατῶν τῷ ἀοράτῳ τὸ ἡμέτερον ἀνακρασθῇ φύραμα, καὶ τῇ πρὸς αὐτὸν ἑνώσει, δίκην πυρὸς, πρὸς τὴν τῆς θεότητος μεταστοιχειωθῇ δόξαν τε καὶ λαμπρότητα, καὶ τὴν αἰώνιον ζήσῃ ζωὴν τὴν ἀκήρατον· ἐπὶ πρόσωπον πίπτουσα διάβροχον ὅλον ἐποίει τὸ παρακείμενον ἔδαφος. That is: Compunction, then, held all the sisters here, and preserved them, binding them together toward God both in fear and in longing; but one might see that the holy woman far surpassed these, and had more of it poured out upon her; since the fathers laid it down that the advancement of the soul consists in the advancement of humility, and the knowledge of piety in the knowledge of humility and meekness; whence also the tear, as from some spring, gushed forth an ever-flowing stream from her eyes, and especially at the time of the divine liturgy, when the priest was presenting the God who had appeared, sacrificed upon the sacred table; for considering how the Invisible, the Intangible, and the Incomprehensible or Uncontainable, not only deigned for our salvation to clothe Himself in mortal and corruptible flesh, but also to be sacrificed, and, dead, comes forth for our food and drink—the undefiled body and the precious blood which He shed, being set forth—that by the tangible the Intangible, and by things touchable the Untouchable, and by things visible the Invisible, our lump might be commingled with Him, and by the union with Him, after the manner of fire, might be transformed to the glory and splendor of the divinity, and might live the eternal, incorruptible life; falling on her face she made the pavement lying before her all drenched.

[52] Αἰδουμένη καὶ μᾶλλον ἐπὶ τοῦτο· κακοῦργος εἴπερ ἄν τις κλέπτων ἤ τι τῶν ἀτόπων ἐργαζόμενος, τοῖς ἱματίοις ἑαυτῆς ἀνιμωμένη τὴν ὑγρότητα διανίστατο, ὡς δὲ τοῦτο ποιεῖν οὐκ ἦν εὐχερὲς αὐτῇ διηνεκῶς, τί μηχανᾶται; λιθοξόον λάθρα μεταπεμψαμένη, λάκκον ὀρύξαι τούτῳ μικρὸν ὑπέδειξε παρὰ τὸν ἀφωρισμένον αὐτῇ τόπον, ἐν ᾧ τοὺς θείους ὕμνους συνῇδεν ἑστῶσα ταῖς ἀδελφαῖς, καὶ συμμέτρῳ τοῦτον ὀμφαλίδι καλύψαι, καὶ τὸ μετὰ τοῦτον κατὰ τὸν καιρὸν τῆς ἱερουργίας ἐτίθει μὲν ἑαυτῆς τὸ πρόσωπον κατὰ γῆς ἐπὶ τοῦ λιμνίσκου, βραχίοσι δὲ τοῦτον τοῖς ἀμφοτέροις περιτειχίζουσα, δακρυῤῥοοῦσα οὐκ ἀνίστατο, μέχρις ἂν ὑπερβλύσας κατάφορον αὐτὴν ἔμελλε ποιεῖν, ᾗ τοῦ λανθάνειν οὐχ ἥκιστα ἔμελε, καὶ διέμεινεν ἕως τῆς σήμερον ἄλαλόν τι διηγούμενος. That is: And being ashamed rather at this—as if someone were a malefactor, stealing or working something out of place—she would rise, wiping up the wetness with her own garments; but since it was not easy for her to do this continually, what does she contrive? Secretly sending for a stonecutter, she showed him to dig a small pit beside the place set apart for her, in which she used to sing the divine hymns standing with the sisters, and to cover it with a fitting little boss; and after this, at the time of the liturgy, she would place her face down to the ground upon the little basin, and, walling it round with both arms, weeping she would not rise, until, overflowing, it was about to make her drenched—she who cared not least about escaping notice; and it has remained until today, telling a certain mute story.

[53] Ὅσην δὲ καὶ κατὰ δαιμόνων αὐτῇ τὴν ἐξουσίαν ὁ πατεῖν ἐπὶ πᾶσαν τὴν δύναμιν τοῦ ἐχθροῦ τοῖς μαθηταῖς δωρησάμενος, παρέσχετο, τὸ παρὸν ἱκανὸν παραστήσασθαι. Λύπην γὰρ αὖθις ἑτέραν ὁ πονηρὸς ἐπενεγκεῖν πονηρευόμενος τῇ ὁσίᾳ, τὸν μισθωτὸν τῆς μονῆς ἀμπελῶνα καλλιεργοῦντα, κείμενον κατὰ ταύτης ἐχόμενα, νέον τε ὄντα καὶ δυσκάθεκτον ταῖς ὁρμαῖς· Νικόλαος δὲ ἦν ὄνομα αὐτῷ· πρὸς ἔρωτα τῶν ἐν τῇ μονῇ κεκίνηκεν ἀσκουμένων, καὶ δὴ νενικημένος ἤδη καὶ τῆς μυσαρᾶς ὅλος γενόμενος ἐπιθυμίας, νύκτας ὅλας κύκλῳ τῆς μονῆς περιιὼν, ὅθεν ἂν ἔνδον αὐτῆς γένοιτο, καὶ τῇ ποθουμένῃ καθευδήσῃ, λίαν ἐπιμελεστάτην ἐποιεῖτο σπουδήν. Καὶ ἐπειδὴ τὸ παράπαν οὐκ εἴα τοῦτον ἠρεμεῖν ὁ τῆς κακίας εὑρετὴς, μιᾷ τῶν νυκτῶν σκοτόμαιναν αὐτοῦ τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν καταχέας, εἰσιέναι μὲν διὰ τοῦ πυλῶνος τῆς μονῆς ἔπεισε νομίζειν, καὶ τοῦ κελλίου τῆς ἐρωμένης ἐντὸς γενόμενον ἐπὶ τοῦ ταύτης ἀνακεκλίσθαι κλινιδίου, περιπλακῆναί τε, καὶ τὰ καταθύμια ποιεῖν. That is: But how great authority also against demons He gave her—He who granted to His disciples to tread upon all the power of the enemy—the present narrative is enough to set forth. For the evil one, again plotting to bring another grief upon the holy woman, moved to lust the hired man of the monastery who cultivated the vineyard lying adjacent to it, who was young and hard to restrain in his impulses; and Nicholas was his name; he moved him to lust for those who practiced asceticism in the monastery; and indeed, being now overcome and become wholly a slave of the foul desire, going round the monastery whole nights, seeking whence he might get inside it, and might sleep with the one he desired, he made very careful effort. And since the inventor of evil did not allow him at all to rest, on one of the nights, having poured darkness over his eyes, he persuaded him to think that he entered through the gate of the monastery, and, being within the cell of his beloved, that he reclined upon her little bed, and embraced her, and did the things of his heart's desire.

[54] Ἐν ὅσῳ δὲ ταῦτα πληροῦν ᾤετο, εἰς γήν τε κατεῤῥάγη, καὶ κυλιόμενος ἐπὶ τοῦ χοὸς, ἀφρὸν τοῦ στόματος ἀπέπτυε, καὶ τὰ τῶν δαιμονιζομένων ἔπασχεν ἅπαντα. Συνηγμένων οὖν ἐπὶ τούτῳ τῶν γειτονούντων οἷα δὴ ταῖς τούτου θορυβηθέντων κραυγαῖς, γενομένης δὲ καὶ πρωΐας, καὶ τοῦ τῆς μονῆς διανοιγέντος πυλῶνος, τὸ συμβὰν ἡ θυρωρὸς ὀφθαλμοῖς ἰδοῦσα περιπατῶς ἀπηγγέλλει τῇ ὁσίᾳ. Ἡ δὲ ἀκούσασα τὸ κακὸν, ὅθεν ἂν ἔφυ τῷ τῆς διανοίας θεοφεγγεῖ διηρεύνα βλέμματι, καὶ τὴν αἰτίαν ἐπιγνοῦσα, δακρύσασα τῆς καθέδρας ἀνέθορε, καὶ τὰς χεῖρας ὑψοῦ διάρασά φησιν· Εὐλογητὸς κύριος, ὃς οὐκ ἔδωκεν ἡμᾶς εἰς θήραν τοῖς ὀδοῦσι τοῦ πονηροῦ· ἀποστέλλει γοῦν αὐτίκα τοῦτον εἰς τὴν τῆς μεγαλομάρτυρος Ἀναστασίας ναόν· ἔνθα δὴ καὶ παρὰ τῶν τοῖς τοιούτοις διακονουμένων, ἀλύσεσι καὶ πέδαις καταδεσμευθεὶς συνείχετο καρτερεῖν τὴν ἴασιν· ὡς δὲ πολλαὶ μὲν ἡμέραι διῆλθον, καὶ τῆς ἰάσεως οὐκ ἐτύγχανε, ἠθύμει ἐπὶ τοῦτο ἡ μακαρία Εἰρήνη, καὶ τῇ μάρτυρί πως ἦν ἐνοχλοῦσα. Ἐκείνη δὲ πρὸς αὐτὴν ὄναρ ἐπιφανεῖσά, φησι. That is: And while he thought he was accomplishing these things, he was dashed to the ground, and rolling in the dust, foamed at the mouth, and suffered all the things of those possessed by demons. And when, at this, the neighbors had gathered, as being disturbed by his cries, and when morning had come, and the gate of the monastery had been opened, the doorkeeper, seeing with her eyes what had happened, in walking announced it to the holy woman. And she, hearing the evil, searched out with the God-illumined gaze of her mind whence it had arisen, and, recognizing the cause, weeping she leaped up from her seat, and, lifting up her hands on high, says: Blessed be the Lord, who has not given us as prey to the teeth of the evil one; and so she straightway sends him to the church of the great-martyr Anastasia; where indeed, by those who ministered to such persons, he was bound with chains and fetters and kept, to await the healing; but when many days had passed, and he obtained not the healing, the blessed Irene was disheartened at this, and was, as it were, importuning the martyr. And she, appearing to her in a dream, says:

[55] Παράγουσα πάντως ἡμᾶς ἆρα τὸν δαιμονῶντα παρέπεμψας ἡμῖν ἀδελφὴ φιλτάτη; ἀλλ᾽ ἴσθι, τῆς θεραπείας οὐκ ἄλλως, εἰ μὴ διά σου τεύξεται· οὐδὲ γὰρ ἀγνοοῦμεν τὴν παρά σοι τοῦ θεοῦ τεθησαυρισμένην ἰσχύν. Καταλαβούσης δὲ τῆς ἡμέρας ἀδημονοῦσα καὶ περίλυπος διῆγε, τὴν θαυματουργίαν ἀναβιωμένη· ὅθεν καὶ μεταστείλασθαι τοῦτον ἀποκναίουσα ἦν. Μανθάνουσα δὲ πάλιν τὴν πιέζουσαν αὐτὸν ἀνάγκην, πέμψασα δεδεμένον ἤγαγε ταῖς ἀλύσεσι, καὶ προσέταξεν ἀποδεθῆναι τῶν τοῦ ναοῦ κιόνων ἑνὶ τῆς μονῆς. Διεσκοπεῖτο δὲ ἐν ἑαυτῇ πῶς ἂν διαλάθοι τοῦτον ἰασαμένη· εἰ γὰρ ταχινὴ τούτου γένηται, φησι, θεραπεία, γνώσονται πάντες καὶ, οὐκέτι τὰ καθ᾽ ἡμᾶς ἀνενόχλητα ἔσεται διὰ τὴν ἴασιν· δέον ἡμᾶς μέσως μετελθεῖν, ἵν᾽ οὕτω τάς τε τῶν ἀνθρώπων ὀχλήσεις ἀποκρουσώμεθα, καὶ τῷ πάσχοντι θεὸς παράσχοι τὴν λύτρωσιν. Εἴρξατο γοῦν καθημερινὰς ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ ποιεῖσθαι μετὰ τῶν ἀδελφῶν δεήσεις, ἵν᾽ ἐκ τοῦ κατ᾽ ὀλίγον λάθοι τοῦτον ἰασαμένη· καὶ δήποτε τῆς ἱερᾶς ἐπιτελουμένης μυσταγωγίας, ἐν τῷ τὰ ἅγια πρὸς τὴν ἱερὰν διαβιβάζεσθαι τράπεζαν, ἄφνω σκιρτήσας ἐκεῖνος, καὶ τὴν ἀπὸ τοῦ τραχήλου καὶ τῶν χειρῶν κατέχουσαν αὐτὸν, διαῤῥήξας ἅλυσιν, ὥρμησε βρύχων κατὰ τοῦ ἱερέως, καὶ τοῦτον χανῶς διαμασήσασθαι τοῖς ὀδοῦσιν, εἰς φόβον καὶ ἀγωνίαν ἐνέβαλε. That is: Are you truly sending us the demoniac, thinking to lead us on, my dearest sister? But know that he will obtain the healing not otherwise than through you; for we are not ignorant of the strength of God stored up in you. And when day came, she passed it distressed and very sorrowful, going over the miracle again; whence she was worn out with sending for him. And learning again the necessity that pressed him, having sent, she brought him bound with the chains, and ordered him to be tied to one of the columns of the church of the monastery. And she considered within herself how she might heal him without being noticed; for if his healing should be swift, she says, all will know, and our affairs will no longer be undisturbed on account of the healing; we must go about it by a middle way, that thus we may both ward off the importunities of men, and God may grant deliverance to the sufferer. So she began to make daily supplications for him with the sisters, that by little and little she might heal him unnoticed; and once, while the sacred liturgy was being performed, at the moment when the holy things were being carried to the sacred table, that man, suddenly leaping, and having burst the chain that held him from his neck and hands, rushed roaring against the priest, and, gaping to chew him to pieces with his teeth, cast [all] into fear and anguish.

[56] Ἀνθορμήσασα δὲ τὸ τάχος ἡ ὁσία, ἐπετίμησέ τε τούτῳ ἐμβριμωμένη, καὶ μηκέτι προβῆναι κελεύσασα, ἀκίνητον ἔστησε καὶ ὑπότρομον· μικρὸν δὲ τοῦ τρόμου ἀνεθεὶς, ὦ τῆς ἀκαταλήπτου σου, Χριστὲ, δυνάμεως· βιάζων ἦν ἑαυτὸν σφόδρα μεταστῆναι, καὶ οὐκ ἠδύνατο, σύραις ἀφανέσι, καὶ πολλῷ τῶν αἰσθητῶν ἁλύσεων ἰσχυροτέραις, τῷ προστάγματι τῆς ὁσίας κεκρατημένος· τελειωθείσης δὲ τῆς λειτουργίας μόνη τῷ ναῷ ἐναπομείνασα, ἔῤῥιψεν ἑαυτὴν εἰς τὸ ἔδαφος, καὶ μετὰ δακρύων ἐπὶ πολὺ τοῦ θεοῦ δεηθεῖσα, ἀνέστη μὲν τῆς προσευχῆς, ἔστη δὲ πρὸς ἐξέτασιν τοῦ μυσαροῦ πνεύματος, καί φησιν· Ἐν τῷ ὀνόματι τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ι. Χ. σοι λέγω τῷ πονηρῷ καὶ ἀκαθάρτῳ πνεύματι, εἶπέ μοι τὴν αἰτίαν, δι᾽ ἣν ἐτόλμησας εἰσελθεῖν εἰς τὸ τοῦ θεοῦ πλάσμα, καὶ εἴ τίς σε ἀπέσταλκε· καὶ τὰ μὲν πρῶτα τὴν μετάστασιν ἐβιάζετο καὶ τὴν ὁσίαν ὕβρισεν, ὡς τῶν δεσμῶν That is: But the holy woman, quickly starting up in response, rebuked him with a stern voice, and, commanding him to go no further, set him immovable and trembling; and, released a little from the trembling—O your incomprehensible power, O Christ!—he was forcing himself hard to move, and could not, held by unseen cords, far stronger than the perceptible chains, by the command of the holy woman; and, the liturgy being completed, remaining alone in the church, she cast herself upon the pavement, and, having prayed to God at length with tears, she rose from her prayer, and stood to interrogate the foul spirit, and says: In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, I say to you, evil and unclean spirit, tell me the cause for which you dared to enter into the creature of God, and whether anyone sent you; and at first he strove to depart, and insulted the holy woman, as if freed from the bonds

ἠμύνετο πρόξενον, νυκτοφάγον καὶ ξυλόποδα, καὶ κόρον οὐκ ἔχουσαν στάσεως, σιδηροκάρδιον, καὶ λίθους δαμάζουσαν, καὶ τοιαῦτα λέγων ληρωδήματα. That is: ...he warded [her] off with insults, calling her the procurer of his bonds, a night-eater and wooden-footed, and one having no satiety of standing, iron-hearted, and one that tames stones, and saying such nonsense.

[57] Ὡς δὲ τῶν κατεχόντων οὐκ ἀνεῖτο δεσμῶν, ὡμολόγει καὶ ἄκων ἅπαντα· καὶ εἰ μή μέ, φησιν, κύκλῳ σου παρεμβαλὼν ἐμάστιζεν ἄγγελος, οὐδὲ ἀποκρίσεώς σε ἠξίωσα ἄν· λέγω σοι δὲ καὶ ὅτι πολὺν ἤδη χρόνον ἀποστερήσας ἑαυτὸν διετέλεσε καὶ τῆς συνάξεως καὶ τῆς κοινωνίας. Ὡς δὲ καὶ μιᾶς ἠράσθη διακαῶς τῶν σου μαθητριῶν, ἀνηγγέλη ταῦτα τῷ ἄρχοντι, καὶ ἀπεστάλην πληρῶσαι τούτῳ τὴν ἔφεσιν· ἐπεὶ δέ σε εὕρισκον, ἐμποδών μοι γενομένην κατανοήσας αὐτὸν, παντός με κενὸν τοῦ κωλύοντος, εἰσῆλθον καὶ ἐνῴκησα. Σὺ δὲ τίνος ἕνεκεν ἀδικεῖς με, διώκουσα ἐκ τοῦ οἴκου μου; Τίς οὖν ἐστιν ἐκεῖνος, ὃν ἔφης, ἄρχων, ἤρετο ἡ ὁσία. Τάχα, ὡς ἔοικεν, ἐμπαίζεις μοι ἀπεκρίνατο, ἃ μὴ ἀγνοοῦσα ἐρωτῶσά με. Τίς οὐκ ἤκουσεν ἤ τίς οὐκ οἶδεν, οἷος ἐκεῖνος, καὶ τὰς μεγάλας ἀριστείας αὐτοῦ τίς ἀγνοεῖ; Ὁ τὸν Ἀδὰμ τῇ σοφιστικῇ ἐπινοίᾳ καὶ μεγαλοφροσύνῃ τοῦ παραδείσου ἐκβαλὼν, καὶ φθαρτὸν αὐτίκα τὸν πρῶτον καὶ θνητὸν ἀναδείξας. Τί οὖν οὐ μέγα σοι τοῦτο δοκεῖ; That is: But since he was not loosed from the bonds that held him, he confessed all even against his will: and, unless, he says, an angel encamping round about you were scourging me, I would not have deigned to answer you at all. But I tell you also that for a long time now he Nicholas has continued depriving himself both of the assembly and of the communion. And when he burned ardently with love for one of your disciples, these things were announced to the prince chief demon, and I was sent to fulfill his desire for him; but when I found you, perceiving that you were a hindrance to me, and finding him empty of all that hinders me, I entered and dwelt in him. But you, for what reason do you wrong me, driving me from my house? Who then, asked the holy woman, is that prince of whom you spoke? Perhaps, as it seems, he answered, you mock me, asking me things of which you are not ignorant. Who has not heard, or who does not know, what sort of one he is, and who is ignorant of his great feats? He who by sophistic device and pride cast Adam out of paradise, and at once showed the first man to be corruptible and mortal. Does this then not seem great to you?

[58] Καὶ μετὰ τοῦτο τὰς ἀλληλοφονίας, τὰς εἰδωλολατρείας, τὸ γλυκὺ δέλεαρ τῆς ἡδονῆς, τὴν παρατροπὴν τῆς συνουσίας τίς ὁ κατεσκευακὼς πλὴν ἐκείνου, ἀλλὰ τοὺς φόνους τῶν προφητῶν, καὶ τῶν ἄλλων πάντων περὶ πολλοῦ ποιουμένων τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ θεοῦ, καὶ τὰς αἱρέσεις, καὶ τὰ σχίσματα τίς ἤρτησε, τίς τετέλεκεν; Αὐτὸν δὲ τὸ νῦν τις ἀνεσκολόπισεν, ἀλλ᾽ ἔλαθεν ἡμᾶς, καὶ παρεσφάλημεν σφάλμα μεῖζον πάντων σφαλμάτων· εἰ μὴ γὰρ ἐκεῖνος ἀνηρέθη, οὐκ ἄν με σὺ τοιαῦτα νυνὶ δεσμά με περιβαλοῦσα δίεπαιζες, ὡς ἀνδράποδον ἐτάζουσα· τοῦ τηλικούτου γὰρ καὶ τοσούτου τῇ ἰσχύι δεθέντος, περιφρονούμεθα καὶ διαγελώμεθα παρ᾽ ὑμῶν· ὃς εἴγε ἦν ἀπολελυμένος, τίς ἡμῶν δύναιτο τῇ δυνάμει ἀντιστῆναι; Τί δέ ἐστί, φησιν ἡ Ἁγία, τὸ ταῦτα ὑμῖν ἐμποιοῦν τὴν ἀδυναμίαν; Ἡ τοῦ θεοῦ δύναμις, εἶπε· μόνοις γὰρ ὑμῖν κατηλλάγη θεός· ἡμεῖς δὲ τούτῳ ἐχθροί· ὁ γὰρ Ἰησοῦς κᾂν ἄνθρωπός ἐστιν, ἀλλ᾽ αὐτός ἐστι πάντα ποιήσας θεός· ἀφ᾽ οὗ δὲ τοῦτον ἀναιρεθῆναι πεπείκαμεν τοὺς ἀνελόντας Ἰουδαίους, τοῖς ἐκ τοῦ αἵματος αὐτοῦ χρισομένοις οὐ τολμῶμεν προσεγγίσαι· τίς γὰρ ἀντιστῆναι τῷ δημιουργῷ αὐτοῦ δύναται; That is: And after this, mutual slaughters, idolatries, the sweet bait of pleasure, the perversion of intercourse—who has contrived them except him? Nay, the murders of the prophets, and of all the others who greatly esteemed the name of God, and the heresies and the schisms, who has framed, who has brought to completion? But now someone has impaled him; and it escaped our notice, and we have blundered a blunder greater than all blunders: for if he had not been slain, you would not now, having cast such bonds upon me, be mocking me, examining me as a slave; for that so great one, of such strength, being bound, we are despised and laughed at by you; who, if he were loosed, which of us could resist his power? And what is it, says the holy woman, that produces this impotence in you? The power of God, he said; for to you alone has God been reconciled; but we are His enemies: for Jesus, though He is man, yet is Himself God who made all things; and from the time we persuaded the Jews, who slew Him, to slay Him, we do not dare to approach those who are anointed with His blood: for who can resist his own Creator?

[59] Ἀρετοὶ δὲ καθῆσθαι οὐ δυνάμεθα, οὐδὲν γὰρ ἀργὸν, ὧν ὁ θεὸς ἐποίησε· καλὸν δὲ ποιῆσαι οὐκ ἔχοντες, ἅτε δὴ τῆς τοῦ ἀγαθοῦ παντελῶς ἔρημοι μετουσίας, πονούμεθα, ἀσχολούμεθα καὶ σπουδάζομεν περὶ ταῦτα τὰ τρία· ἢ τοὺς καταλλαγέντας ἀφιστᾷν τοῦ θεοῦ, ἢ τοὺς ἀφισταμένους σκεύη ποιεῖσθαι πάλιν ἡμέτερα, ἢ τοὺς πάντας κενοὺς ἀπὸ τῆς κοινωνίας τοῦ ἀγαθοῦ εἰς οἴκους ἑαυτῶν, ὡς ὁρᾷς, ἰδιοποιεῖσθαι. Καὶ ποῖον ὑμῖν ἐκ τούτου κέρδος, ἤρετο πάλιν ἡ Ὁσία, ἢ τίς ὠφέλεια; Καὶ μικρόν σοι τοῦτο φαίνεται, τὸ πολλούς, φησιν, ἔχειν κοινωνοὺς νῦν μὲν τῆς ἐκπτώσεως, μετὰ ταῦτα δὲ καὶ τῶν μελλουσῶν κολάσεων; That is: But quiet we cannot rest: for nothing of the things which God made is idle. But since to do good is not in our power, being utterly destitute of the participation of the good, we put labor, effort, and zeal in these three things: either to separate from God those who are joined to God; or to make our own vessels again those who are already separated; or to make, as you see, our own houses of all those who are empty of the participation of the good. And what gain from this, the holy woman asked again, or what advantage to you? And does it seem a small thing to you, he says, to have many now as partners of the fall, and afterward also of the torments to come?

[60] Ἐφ᾽ ᾧπερ ἀλγήσασα τὴν ψυχὴν καὶ περίδακρυς γινομένη, ἐπετίμησέ τε σφοδρότερον ἡ Ὁσία, καὶ ἐξελθεῖν ἀπὸ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου, καὶ πόῤῥω γενέσθαι τῶν ὁρίων αὐτῆς προσέταξε· σπαράξαν δὲ καὶ καταράξαν τοῦτον εἰς γῆν, ἐξῆλθεν ἀπ᾽ αὐτοῦ· δοῦσα δὲ χεῖρα κειμένῳ ἀνέστησέ τε αὐτὸν, καὶ τὸ τοῦ σταυροῦ σημεῖον τῷ μετώπῳ ποιήσασα τούτου, ἐκάθισε, καὶ νουθεσίαις αὐτὸν ἐπεστήριζε, καὶ παρήγγειλε τῆς ἀπλήστου βρώσεως καὶ τῆς κατὰ κόρον οἰνοποσίας ἀπέχεσθαι, τῆς ἐκκλησίας προσεδρεύειν, διηνεκῶς προσεύχεσθαι, καὶ οὕτως ἐκκλίνειν τὰς ἐνέδρας τοῦ διαβόλου· καὶ τοῖς ἐρωτῶσί σέ, φησι, τίς ὁ ἰασάμενος; ὁ θεὸς, ἀποκρίνεσθαι ταῖς πρεσβείαις τῶν ἀρχιστρατηγῶν Μιχαὴλ καὶ Γαβριήλ. Καὶ οὕτως ἀπέλυσεν αὐτὸν εὐχαριστοῦντα καὶ δοξάζοντα τὸν θεόν. Ὥσπερ δὲ τὴν εὐχαριστίαν ἀδιαλείπτως ὑπὲρ πάντων προσῆγε τῷ θεῷ, οὕτω δὴ καὶ ὑπὲρ τούτου ταύτην ἐπλήρου. That is: At which the holy woman, grieved in soul and becoming full of tears, rebuked him more vehemently, and ordered him to go out from the man, and to get far from her boundaries; and, having convulsed and dashed him to the ground, it went out from him; and giving her hand to him as he lay, she raised him up, and, having made the sign of the Cross on his forehead, she seated him, and confirmed him with admonitions, and charged him to abstain from insatiable eating and from drinking wine to satiety, to attend the church, to pray continually, and thus to avoid the ambushes of the devil; and to those who ask you, she says, Who healed you?, to answer: God, by the intercessions of the archangel-generals Michael and Gabriel. And thus she dismissed him giving thanks and glorifying God. And as she unceasingly offered thanksgiving to God for all, so also she fulfilled it for this man.

[61] Τῆς συνήθους στάσεως ἐχομένη, καὶ πρὸς ταύτην ἀεὶ σχετικῶς διακειμένη· νίπτουσα γὰρ τὰς χεῖρας καὶ τὸ πρόσωπον, ἐκμάττουσα δὲ καθαρωτάτῳ ἐκμαγείῳ, ἐπεὶ καὶ λεκάνην ὕδατος τῷ ἑαυτῆς διὰ τοῦτο κειμένην εἶχε κοιτῶνι, οὕτω τοὺς βραχίονας εἰς οὐρανὸν ἐκτείνουσα τῆς προσευχῆς ἀπήρχετο, καὶ παρέτεινε τὴν στάσιν ποτὲ μὲν πανημέριον, ποτὲ δὲ παννύχιον, ἢ καὶ νυχθημερεύουσαν πολλάκις δὲ δισημερεύουσαν, καὶ τὴν τρίτην πληροῦσαν. Ἔστι δὲ ὅτε καὶ δι᾽ ὅλης τῆς ἑβδομάδος ἵστατο μή τινι τῶν ὑποστηριζόντων ἐρειδομένη. Διὸ καὶ τὰς χεῖρας ἡνίκα κατενεγκεῖν ἔδει, οὐκ εἶχε τοὺς βραχίονας ὑφ᾽ ἑαυτῆς συστεῖλαι, τῶν ἀξόνων καὶ τῶν ὤμων τῇ βίᾳ τῆς ἀναστάσεως πρὸς τὴν φυσικὴν ἀνθισταμένων κλίσιν. Προσφωροῦσα δὲ τῶν ἀδελφῶν ταῖς ἰδιοτέραις βοηθείας ἐτύγχανε· καὶ ἦν ἀκούειν τοὺς ἁρμοὺς φοβερόν τινα κρότον ἐκφέροντας. That is: Holding to her accustomed standing, and ever disposed toward it with attachment; for washing her hands and face, and wiping them with a most clean towel—since for this purpose she kept a basin of water lying in her bedroom—thus stretching her arms to heaven she would set out upon prayer, and prolong the standing sometimes for a whole day, sometimes for a whole night, or continuing a day and a night, and often for two days, and completing the third. And there are times when she stood through a whole week, supported by none of those who would prop her up. Wherefore, when she had to bring down her hands, she could not of herself draw in her arms, the axle-joints and the shoulders resisting, by the force of the raising, the natural inclination. But applying to the more intimate of the sisters, she obtained help; and one might hear the joints giving forth a certain fearsome crack.

[51] Compunction, then, held all the sisters here, and preserved them, binding together fear toward God and desire. The gift of tears. But one might discern that the holy woman far excelled these, and had it more copiously poured out upon her: (for the fathers receive and determine the advancement of the soul from the advancement of humility, and the knowledge of piety from the knowledge of humility and meekness) whence a tear, as from some spring, gushed forth, a perennial stream of her eyes; but especially at the time of the divine sacrifice, when the priest offered on the altar ^a God, who had appeared, immolated. For considering how He who cannot be seen, touched, comprehended, or circumscribed, not only did not refuse for our salvation to put on mortal and corruptible flesh, but also to be sacrificed; and that He who died comes forth, to set before us for food and drink His immaculate body and precious blood, which He shed; that He who cannot be grasped, by the things which can be grasped; He who cannot be touched, by the things which can be touched; and He who cannot be seen, by the things which can be seen, our mass might be tempered, and by intimate conjunction with Him, after the manner of fire, might be transformed to the glory and brightness of the divinity, and might live an eternal and incorruptible life; falling on her face, Irene made all the pavement that was beneath her flowing with moisture.

[52] Being affected by no mean shame in this matter (no otherwise than some malignant person who steals, or does certain absurd things), she tries to conceal it by a new device. she strove to wipe up the moisture with her garments. And because it was not convenient for her to do this continually, what does she contrive? She secretly sent for a stonecutter, whom she ordered to dig a small pit beside the place assigned to her, in which she was wont to sing the divine hymns with the sisters, and to cover it with a fitting boss. And behind this, at the time of the divine sacrifice, she would bring her face down to the earth, toward the little pit; and, encircling it with both arms, she did not cease to pour out tears; until, overflowing, it was about to reveal her, whose care to escape notice was not least. And thus it has remained until this present day ^b, silently recording something.

[53] But how great power against demons He gave her, who gave to His disciples the grace of treading upon all the power of the enemy, let it suffice to have brought forward the present deed. A certain lustful man, For the malignant spirit, again maliciously striving to bring another grief upon the holy woman, inflamed him who as a hired man cultivated the monastery's vineyard, situated in a place near the same monastery, a young man in age and unbridled in lust (Nicholas was his name), to love of those who there professed the monastic life. And now overcome, and full of impure desire, he went round the circuit of the monastery whole nights; and he gave most diligent effort that an entrance within should lie open for him, and that he might lie with her whom he was dying for. And since the inventor of malice did not at all let him rest, on a certain night, pouring darkness over his eyes, he persuaded him to hold it as fixed that he entered through the gate of the monastery, and, after he had entered the little cell of his beloved, reclined on her little bed, embraced her, and fulfilled his lust.

[54] While he was planning to accomplish these things, he was dashed to the ground; and rolling in the mud, he spat foam from his mouth, and suffered all things which those suffer who are vexed by a demon. possessed by a demon, is sent to the temple of St. Anastasia, And so, when the neighbors had assembled about this matter, being disturbed by his outcries; and when day had now dawned, and the gate of the monastery was open; the doorkeeper, seeing the deed with her eyes, straightway announced it to the holy woman. Who, when she had heard the evil, explored with the gaze of her mind, illumined by God, whence it had happened: and the cause being discovered, she wept, leaped up from her seat, and, with her hands lifted up, Blessed, she said, be the Lord, who has not given us as a prey to the teeth of the enemy. And so she soon sends him to the temple of the great martyr Anastasia: where he was held bound with chains and fetters by those who serve such men, that he might recover his health. And when many days had now passed, and he did not obtain his health; therefore the blessed Irene was tormented in mind, and importunately entreated the Martyr. But she, appearing in sleep, thus addresses her:

[55] Are you perhaps deceiving us altogether, in transmitting the demoniac to us, dearest sister? who, appearing to St. Irene, foretells that he is to be healed by her. But know: he will not otherwise obtain the cure, except through you: for we are not ignorant that the treasure of divine power is stored up in you. When the sun rose, Irene was anxious and sad in mind; forced, indeed, to the miracle. Whence she deferred taking care that he be sent back; but when she again perceived the trouble which tormented him; she sent that he be brought back bound with fetters, and ordered him to be attached to the columns of the church in the monastery. But she considered with herself in what manner she might escape notice, if she healed him. For if, she says, his cure be sudden, all will know it, nor will our house be without disturbance on account of the healing. It is needful that we go by a middle way, that we may thus ward off the crowds of men, and God may grant deliverance to the sufferer. And so she began to make daily prayers for him with the sisters, that thereby she might for a little escape notice, after she had healed him. When once the sacred celebration of the mysteries had begun, and meanwhile when the holy Eucharist ^c was being transmitted to the sacred table; suddenly he, leaping up, the chain which bound his neck and hands being broken, rushed roaring upon the priest; and, lest with gaping jaws he should devour him with his teeth, he cast him into extreme fear and straits.

[56] Without delay, the holy woman rushed in her turn; she rebuked, sternly threatened; Irene curbs the frenzy of the same demoniac, and forces the demon to confess, and, commanding him never to advance, set him immovable and trembling. And the trembling being a little relaxed (O your incomprehensible power, O Christ!), he brought no small force upon himself, to move from the place; but he could not; held by bonds which do not fall under the senses, but which than the bonds that fall under the senses

are far stronger, held indeed by the command of the holy woman. And when the sacrifice was completed, she remained alone in the temple, cast herself on the ground, and, having long prayed to God with tears, rose from prayer, and instituted an examination of the impure spirit; and In the name, she said, of our Lord Jesus Christ, I say to you, malignant and impure spirit; tell me the cause for which you dared to enter the creature of God; and whether anyone sent you. And at first indeed he made force, to depart, and assailed the holy woman with insults; because she was defending the one who had procured the bonds for himself; because he ate by night, because he was wooden-footed, because he had no measure of standing; because she was iron-hearted and tamed stones. These and such-like trifles he said.

[57] But since he was not loosed from the bonds that bound him, he confessed all even against his will: why he had possessed this man; and, unless, he says, an angel, interposing himself round about you, were scourging me, I would not indeed have deigned you an answer. But I tell you that he Nicholas has now passed much time, depriving himself of the assembly held in church and of communion. But when he burned with love toward one of your disciples; these things were reported to the prince: and I was sent to make him obtain his wish. But after I found you, and understood that you were a hindrance to me, I entered and inhabited him, though anyone in vain hindered me. But you, for what reason do you torture me, expelling me from my house? Who then, asked the holy woman, is that prince whom you spoke of? Soon he answered: You mock me, as it seems, asking me things which you are not ignorant of. Who has not heard, or who does not know, what sort of one he is; or who is ignorant of the great endowments in which he excels? He is the one who, with subtle cunning and greatness of mind, cast Adam out of paradise, and soon proved the first man to be one who would be subject to corruption and mortality. Does this then not seem great to you?

[58] Besides this, mutual slaughters, idolatries, the sweet allurements of pleasure, the transgressions of intercourse—who has effected them except him? openly he also confesses that his powers are restricted, Nay, the murders of the prophets, and of all the others who greatly esteemed the name of God, the heresies and schisms, who has framed, who has brought to an end? But now someone has fixed him to a stake; and it deceived us; and we have fallen with a fall the greatest of all falls. For if he had not been taken away, you would not now be mocking me, such bonds being cast upon me, examining me as a slave; for, such and so great a one being bound by force, we are despised and derided by you; who, if he were loosed, who could resist our power? And what is it, said the holy woman, that affects you with such impotence? To whom he: The power of God: for to you alone is God appeased; but we are His enemies: for Jesus, however much He is man, is yet God, who made all things; and from the time that we persuaded the Jews to kill Him, who killed Him; we do not dare to approach those who are anointed with His blood: for who can resist his own Creator?

[59] But quiet we cannot rest: for nothing of the things which God made is idle. and blurts out certain other things; But since to do good is not placed within us, being utterly destitute of participation in the good, we put labor, effort, and zeal in these three things: either to separate from God those who are joined to God; or to make again our own vessels those who are already separated; or to make, as you see, our own houses of all those who are empty of participation in the good. And what gain to you from that, said the holy woman again, or what advantage? Then he, Does it seem a small thing to you, he says, to have many now as partners of calamity, and afterward also of the torments to come?

[60] At which, grieving in mind, and indulging in tears, the holy woman rebuked him more vehemently; and at last is expelled by the holy woman: and ordered him to go out from the man, and to be far out from her boundaries. And after it had torn him and dashed him to the ground, it went out from him. But she stretched out her hand to him as he lay, raised him up, and, the sign of the cross being formed on his forehead, sat down, confirmed him with admonitions, and charged him to abstain from immoderate food, and from a more liberal drinking of wine than is enough, to attend the church frequently, to pray assiduously, and thus to avoid the ambushes of the devil; and to those who ask, she says, Who healed you?, to answer: God, through the intercessions of Michael and Gabriel, princes of the heavenly army. And thus she dismissed him giving thanks, and rendering praises to God. And as she unceasingly rendered thanks for all things to God, so also she fulfilled them in this matter.

[61] She clung to her accustomed standing, and always sedulously applied herself to it: whose long-lasting standings of prayer are set forth. for while she washed her hands and face, and wiped them with a most clean towel (for she kept ready for this cause a basin of water in her chamber), thus extending her arms to heaven she would begin her prayer; and she continued the standing now for a whole day, now for a whole night, nay, even through a night and a day; but more often she completed two or three days. It also happened that she stood for a whole week, supported by no one propping her up. Therefore, when she had to lower her hands, she could not of herself draw in her arms, the vertebrae ^d and shoulders resisting, on account of the violence of the prolonged raising, the natural inclination proper to them. But calling upon some of the more familiar sisters, she obtained help. And one might hear that the joints gave forth a certain terrifying crack.

ANNOTATIONS.

CHAPTER VII.

Prayers honored by miracles; apples sent from heaven; an angelic vision.

[62] Παρ᾽ ὅλην δὲ τὴν πρὸ τοῦ πάσχα τεσσαρακοσθήμερον νηστείαν οὔτ᾽ ἄρτου, οὔθ᾽ ἑτέρου τινὸς ὄψου μετελάμβανε πρὸς βρῶσιν, πλὴν μόνου μέλιτι μεμιγμένου σπέρματος κανάβεως, καὶ ὀλίγων ὁπωρῶν, καὶ τούτων ἅπαξ τῆς ἑβδομάδος· ἔνεστι δὲ καὶ πλειόνων ἡμερῶν καὶ ὕδατος βραχυτάτου· ἐξ ὧν δέρμα μόνον τοῖς ὀστέοις προσπεφυκὸς τὸ πανάγνιον ἐκείνης καθωρᾶτο σῶμα. Κᾂν ταῖς ἑορταῖς δὲ ταῖς δεσποτικαῖς ἄϋπνος διετέλει καταμόνας ψάλλουσα· πολλάκις δὲ καὶ πρὸς τὸ τοῦ ναοῦ προαύλιον περὶ μέσας ἐξιοῦσα νύκτας, ὄμματα καὶ χεῖρας πρὸς θεὸν αἴρουσα, τὰς προσευχὰς ἐποιεῖτο, τὸν κύκλον τῶν ἀστέρων, καὶ τὸ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ κάλλος ὁρῶσα καὶ μέγεθος, καὶ τροπουμένη, καὶ χαίρουσα, καὶ τὸν ἐκτείνοντα μεγαλύνουσα. Καί ποτε κατὰ θείαν πάντων οἰκονομίαν, ἵνα μὴ τὸ θαῦμα κρυπτόμενον μείνῃ, προκύψασαν τῶν ἀδελφῶν μίαν οὕτω συμβὰν τῆς ἰδίας κέλλης ἰδεῖν αὐτὴν τὰς χεῖρας μὲν ἄνω πρὸς οὐρανὸν ἐκτεταμένας ἔχουσαν, κρεμαμένην δὲ τῆς γῆς ὡσεὶ πήχεις δύο, καὶ προσευχομένην ἀέριον· εἶτα κύψασαν τῷ θεῷ τὴν προσκύνησιν ἀπονέμουσαν, τὰς ἐπὶ θάτερα μέρη τοῦ προαυλίου δύο κυπαρίσσους ἑστακυίας, εὐμεγέθεις καὶ τοῦ ἀέρος οὐκ ὀλίγον ἀναβεβηκυίας μέρος, ἠρέμα πως συσσειομένας, ὑποκυπτούσας τε καὶ σὺν αὐτῇ τὰς κεφαλὰς μέχρι γῆς τιθείσας, καὶ τὴν ταύτης ἔγερσιν προσδεχομένας, That is: But throughout the whole forty-day fast before Pascha she partook for food neither of bread nor of any other viand, except only of hemp-seed mixed with honey, and a few fruits, and these once a week; and it is possible she went even more days, and with the very least water; from which her all-pure body was seen to be only skin clinging to the bones. And on the feasts of the Lord she continued sleepless, singing psalms apart; and often, going out to the forecourt of the church about midnight, lifting her eyes and hands to God, she made her prayers, gazing at the circle of the stars and the beauty and greatness of heaven, and turning about, and rejoicing, and magnifying Him who stretched it out. And once, by the divine dispensation of all things, that the miracle might not remain hidden, it so happened that one of the sisters, peering out from her own cell, saw her holding her hands stretched up to heaven, but suspended from the earth about two cubits, and praying aloft; then, bowing, rendering worship to God, she saw the two cypresses standing on the other sides of the forecourt, tall and risen up no small part into the air, gently as it were shaken, and stooping down and, together with her, setting their heads down to the earth, and awaiting her rising,

[63] Ἀλλὰ καὶ τῆς ὁσίας ἐγηγερμένης, μὴ πρότερον ἀνατεῖναι τὰς ἑαυτῶν τὰ δένδρα κεφαλὰς, ἕως ἐλθοῦσαν ἐφ᾽ ἑκατέρων τούτων κορυφὴν τὸ τοῦ σταυροῦ σημεῖον ἐπιβαλεῖν, καὶ οὕτω οἱονεὶ εὐλογισθέντα πρὸς τὴν ἰδίαν αὖθις καταστῆναι στάσιν. Ἐφ᾽ ᾧ τὴν τῆς θέας ἐπιτυχοῦσαν, φόβῳ καὶ ἀγωνίᾳ συσχεθεῖσαν, διαλογισμοῖς τεταράχθαι, μὴ καὶ φάντασμα ᾖ τὰ βλεπόμενα. Τριῶν γὰρ ἢ καὶ πλειῶν διελθεῖν ὡρῶν διάστημα τούτων ὑπονόει γινομένων· ὅμως πιστωθῆναι θέλουσα, τὸ τῆς ὁσίας κατασκοπῆσαι κελλίον ἔδραμεν, καὶ μὴ εὑροῦσα ταύτην, ὑπέστρεψε, καταλαβοῦσα τὴν εἴσοδον ἄρτι ποιουμένην ἐκ τοῦ προαυλίου. Ἀλλὰ τότε μὲν ἔδεισε τὸ μυστήριον ἀποκαλύψαι. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ μετ᾽ οὐ πολὺ ταῖς κορυφαῖς τουτωνὶ τῶν κυπαρισσῶν ἀπῃωρημένα σηρικῶν ἐξυφασμάτων ἐγχειρίδια ὁρῶντο, θαυμασίαν οἵαν τὴν τέρψιν τοῖς ὁρῶσι παρέχοντα, ἅπερ ἐκείνη πάντως ταῖς πανάγνοις χερσὶν αὐτῆς προσέδησεν, ὡς πολλάκις καὶ ὡσαύτως ὑποκεκλιμένας ἔχουσα τὰς τούτων κεφαλὰς, ἑτέρα τε τὴν ἑτέραν διηρώτων αἱ ἀδελφαί· Τίς ὁ ταῦτα, λέγουσαι, προσδήσας, καὶ τὸ δυσανάβατον ὕψος ἀναβεβηκέναι δυνηθείς; That is: But even when the holy woman had risen, the trees did not lift up their own heads before she, coming upon the top of each of these, placed the sign of the Cross, and thus, as it were blessed, they were restored again to their own standing. At which she who had obtained the sight, seized with fear and anguish, was troubled with reasonings, lest the things seen be also a phantom. For she supposed that an interval of three or even more hours had passed while these things were happening; nevertheless, wishing to be assured, she ran to inspect the cell of the holy woman, and, not finding her, returned, coming upon her just then making her entrance from the forecourt. But then she feared to reveal the mystery. But since not long after there were seen hanging from the tops of these cypresses little hand-cloths of silken woven fabric, affording a wondrous delight to those who saw, which she Irene had doubtless fastened with her all-pure hands, inasmuch as she often likewise had their heads inclined; the sisters asked one another: Who, they said, has fastened these, and has been able to ascend the hard-to-climb height?

[64] Εἶτα δὲ καὶ τὴν ὁσίαν αὐτὴν, ὡς ἂν ἀγνοοῦσαι, μετὰ θαύματος ταῦτα δακτύλοις δεικνῦσαι ἐπηρώτων. Ἡ μὲν τοιαύτην ἐδίδου τὴν ἀπόκρισιν· Ἱερά τις, φησι, τὰ δένδρα ταῦτα, τέκνα μου, νομίσας, εἰς θεοῦ τιμὴν ἀνήρτησε τὰ ὑφάσματα. Ἡ δὲ τοῦ θαύματος αὐτόπτις γενομένη, προφάσεως ἐντεῦθεν λαβομένη, πάντα κατὰ μέρος, ὅσα τεθέαται, ταῖς ἀδελφαῖς διηγήσατο. Ἀκούσασαι δὲ ταῦτα, φόβου καὶ χαρᾶς πλησθεῖσαι τὰς ψυχὰς, δάκρυά τε τῶν ὀμμάτων ἀπέσταζον, καὶ αὐτῇ διεμέμφοντο, ὅτου χάριν μὴ καὶ ταύτας διύπνισε, καὶ κοινωνοὺς τῶν φοβερῶν ἐκάλεσε γενέσθαι θεαμάτων, καὶ μάλιστα ὅτι καὶ τριῶν ὡρῶν παρεληλυθέναι διεβεβαιοῦτο καιρόν. Ἐν τοσούτῳ δὲ διαδοθὲν ἤδη τὸ μυστήριον ταῖς ἀκοαῖς τῶν ἀδελφῶν γνοῦσα, τὴν κατατυχοῦσαν ἡ ὁσία τοῖς τοιούτοις θαυμασίοις ἰδίᾳ καλέσασα, δριμύτερόν τε πρὸς αὐτὴν ἐνιδοῦσά φησιν· Ἆραγε καὶ σφάλλουσαν εἴπερ κατεῖδες ὡς ἄνθρωπον, οὕτως ἂν ταχέως τὸ ἡμέτερον ἐθριάμβευσας τραῦμα; Ἡ δὲ ὅπως οὐ διέλαθεν ἐκπλαγεῖσα, τοῖς ποσὶν εὐθέως προσπεσοῦσα τῆς ὁσίας ἔμφοβος καὶ ἔντρομος ᾔτει τὴν συγχώρησιν· παραυτίκα δὲ καὶ τυχοῦσα, παραγγελίαν ἐδέξατο, μὴ ἂν ἄλλό τί ποτε τοιοῦτον ἐκκαλύψαι πρός τινα τὸ παράπαν. Ὡσαύτως καὶ τὰς ἄλλας συναγαγοῦσα, πάσαις ἐνετείλατο μηδὲν περὶ αὐτῆς μέγα λέγειν μηδαμῶς, ἕως ἄν μέ, φησι, κύριος τοῦ παρόντος μεταστήσῃ βίου. Πολλὰ γὰρ καὶ ἄλλα δι᾽ αὐτῆς θεὸς ἐπετέλει θαυμάσια, καὶ πάντα σιωπῇ καλύπτεσθαι τό γε νῦν ἔχον ἐβούλετο. That is: And then they questioned the holy woman herself, as though not knowing, showing these things with their fingers in wonder. She gave such an answer: Some priest, she says, my children, thinking these trees sacred, hung up the cloths in honor of God. But she who had been an eyewitness of the miracle, taking occasion from this, related to the sisters in detail all that she had seen. And having heard these things, their souls filled with fear and joy, they dripped tears from their eyes, and reproached her, for what reason she had not awakened them too, and called them to become partakers of the fearful sights, and especially because she affirmed that a time of three hours had passed. Meanwhile, learning that the mystery had now been spread abroad to the ears of the sisters, the holy woman, calling apart the one who had come upon such wonders, and looking at her more sharply, says: Did you then, if indeed you had seen me erring as a human being, so quickly have triumphed over our wound? And she, astonished at how she had not escaped notice, at once falling at the feet of the holy woman, fearful and trembling, asked pardon; and, obtaining it at once, she received a charge never at all to reveal any other such thing to anyone. Likewise, gathering the others also, she commanded them all by no means to say anything great about her, until, she says, the Lord shall remove me from the present life. For God accomplished many other wonders through her, and He willed all to be covered in silence for the present.

[65] Ποτὲ γὰρ τὴν τοῦ μεγάλου Βασιλείου μνήμην ἑορτάσασαν, μετὰ τὴν θείαν λειτουργίαν ὑπέμνησεν ὁ ἱερεὺς, ὡς εἴη τῆς γῆς ποθεν μῦς ἀνιὼν, καὶ τὴν τοῦ θυσιαστηρίου τράπεζαν περιερχόμενος, καὶ δεῖ τῷ μυσαρῷ κώλυμα γενέσθαι τοῦ μηκέτι μολύνειν τὸν τόπον τὸν ἅγιον. Γενομένη δὲ περίλυπος, ἐφ᾽ ὅσον μὲν ὅτε ἱερεὺς αἵ τε πᾶσαι ἀδελφαὶ, ὁ μὲν ἰδίᾳ, αἱ δὲ κοινῇ τῆς ἑορτῆς χάριν αὐτάρκη τὴν That is: For once, when she had celebrated the memory of the great Basil, after the divine liturgy the priest reminded her that a mouse was somehow coming up out of the ground, and going round the table of the altar, and that a hindrance must be made for the foul creature, that it defile the holy place no more. And becoming very sorrowful—while the priest and all the sisters, he privately, they in common, for the feast's sake, were making a sufficient

ἑστίασιν ἐποιοῦντο, τοῦ κοιτῶνος αὐτῆς ἔνδον ἐκείνη καὶ περὶ τούτου τῷ θεῷ ἐντυγχάνουσα ἦν· ἐν ᾧ δὲ τὴν εὐχαριστίαν ἑστιαθέντες ἤδη τῷ θεῷ προσέφερον ἅμα, τὴν τῆς ἐκκλησίας ἐπιμελουμένην καλέσασα, λέγει πρὸς αὐτήν· Ἄπελθε, καὶ τὸν πρὸ τῆς εἰσόδου τοῦ θυσιαστηρίου νενεκρωμένον κείμενον μῦν ἀραμένη ἔξω που ῥίψον ἐπὶ τῆς κοπρίας. Ἐν τοσούτῳ δὲ συνεισῄει καὶ ὁ ἱερεὺς προσευξόμενος, καὶ νεκρὸν ἐκεῖνον αὐτὸν ὄντα τὸν μῦν θεασάμενος, ἐκπλαγεὶς ἐπὶ τῷ τῆς Ἁγίας προστάγματι, ἐξῄει βοῶν· Ὡς θαυμαστὸς ὁ θεὸς ἐν τοῖς ἁγίοις αὐτοῦ. That is: banquet, she within her bedroom was interceding with God about this also; and while, having feasted, they were now together offering thanksgiving to God, calling the woman in charge of the church, she says to her: Go, and, taking up the mouse lying dead before the entrance of the altar, throw it out somewhere upon the dung-heap. And meanwhile the priest also came in to pray, and, seeing that mouse to be dead, astonished at the holy woman's command, went out crying: How wonderful is God in His saints.

[66] Κατὰ γοῦν ἐκείνην τὴν νύκτα περί που τετάρτην φυλακὴν τῆς νυκτὸς φωνή τις ἀοράτως ἐγένετο, τῇ ὁσίᾳ λέγουσα· τὸν τὰς ὀπώρας σοι κομίζοντα σήμερον ναύκληρον ὑπόδεξαι χαίρουσα, καὶ φάγεσαι, καὶ ἀγαλλιάσεται ἡ ψυχή σου. Μετὰ γοῦν τὴν ὀρθρίνην δοξολογίαν δυσὶ τῶν ἀδελφῶν προσκαρτερεῖν τῷ τῆς μονῆς προσέταξε πυλῶνι, καὶ τῷ πρώτως καταλαβόντι, ὅστις ἂν καὶ εἴη, τῆς εἰσόδου παραχωρῆσαι προθύμως. Ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτή, φησι, μικρὸν ὅσον ἔξειμι πρὸς ὑμᾶς. Καὶ ἰδοὺ ἀπιούσης, εἴσεισι καὶ ὁ προσδεδοκημένος, καὶ συνήντησαν ἀλλήλοις. Ταύτην δὲ εἶναι τὴν προεστῶσαν μαθὼν, βαλεῖν ὥρμησε μετάνοιαν· καὶ προέλαβε τοῦτον ἐκείνη· καὶ ἀναστάντες πρὸς τὴν ἐκκλησίαν ἐβάδιζον. Εἰσελθόντες δὲ καὶ προσευξάμενοι ἐκαθέσθησαν· καὶ πρὸς αὐτὸν ἡ ὁσία· Πόθεν σοῦ, φησι, πρὸς τὴν ἡμετέραν ἡ ἀγάπη ταπείνωσιν ἥκει; Καὶ ὃς ἀπεκρίνατο· Θαλασσοπόρος εἰμὶ, κυρία μου, τῆς νήσου Πάτμου καλουμένης οἰκήτωρ· ὡς δὲ τὴν ἐνταῦθα διὰ τοῦ πλοὸς εἰσέλευσιν ἐποιοῦμεν, γενόμενοί τε περὶ τὸ τῆς καθ᾽ ἡμᾶς νήσου ἀοίκητον μέρος, εἶδον ὡραιότατον γέροντα καὶ θεοειδῆ, ἀναμένειν ἡμᾶς καὶ λέγοντα. Ἐπεὶ δὲ τὸ πλοῖον ἡ τοῦ πνεύματος [οὐκ] εἴα στῆναι φορὰ, ἄλλωστε δὲ καὶ τούτου που κρημνώδους ὄντος ἐν ᾧ ταῦτα ἑστὼς ἐπέταττεν, οὐκ εἴχομεν ὅπως τὸ παρ᾽ αὐτοῦ πληρῶσαι προσταττόμενον. Εἰδὼς δὲ καὶ αὐτὸς τὸ παρ᾽ ἡμῖν ἀδύνατον, γεγωνοτέρᾳ φωνῇ στῆναι τὸ πλοῖον ἐπετίμησε. That is: On that night, then, about the fourth watch of the night, a voice came invisibly, saying to the holy woman: Receive with joy the shipmaster who brings you the fruits today, and you shall eat, and your soul shall exult. So after the morning doxology she ordered two of the sisters to wait at the gate of the monastery, and readily to yield entrance to the first who should arrive, whoever he might be. But I too, she says, will go out to you for a little while. And behold, as she went out, the one expected comes in, and they met one another. And having learned that she was the superior, he made haste to make an obeisance; but she anticipated him; and, rising, they walked to the church. And having entered and prayed, they sat down; and the holy woman says to him: Whence comes your love to our lowliness? And he answered: I am a seafarer, my lady, an inhabitant of the island called Patmos; and as we were making our entrance here by ship, and had come near the uninhabited part of our island, I saw a most beautiful old man, godlike in appearance, awaiting us and speaking. But since the current of the wind did [not] allow the ship to stop, and moreover the place where he stood commanding these things was somewhat precipitous, we had no way to fulfill what was commanded by him. But he too, knowing our impossibility, with a louder voice rebuked the ship to stop.

[67] Καὶ εὐθέως ἔστη, μὴ προβαίνειν ὅλως δυνάμενον· ἐφ᾽ ᾧ καὶ δέους πλήρεις γενόμενοι, πρὸς αὐτὸν ἠτενίζομεν· καὶ ἰδοὺ πεσσεύων κατὰ τῶν κυμάτων ἤγγισεν ἡμῖν. Ἐκβαλὼν δὲ τρία μῆλα ἐκ τοῦ κόλπου, εἰς χεῖράς μοι ἔδωκεν εἰπών· Διασωθεὶς εἰς τὴν βασιλίδα πόλιν διακόμισον τῷ πατριάρχῃ Ἰγνατίῳ, καὶ ἐρεῖς πρὸς αὐτόν· Ταῦτά σοι ἀπέστειλεν ὁ μὲν ὤν. Εἶτα πάλιν βαλὼν τὴν χεῖρα ἐξήνεγκεν ἕτερα τρία παραπλήσια, φήσας· καὶ ταῦτα παράσχε Εἰρήνῃ τῇ ἡγουμένῃ τῆς μονῆς τοῦ χρυσοβαλάντου. Καὶ εἰπὲ αὐτῇ· φάγε ἀφ᾽ ὧν ἡ καλή σου ψυχὴ ἐπεθύμησεν· ἄρτι γὰρ ἥκω κομίζων ὑμῖν ἐκ τοῦ παραδείσου τοιαῦτα. Εὐλογήσας δὲ τὸν θεὸν, ἀπέλυσεν ἡμῶν καὶ τὸ πλοῖον ἐν εὐχαῖς. Καὶ νῦν πληρώσας τῷ πατριάρχῃ τὸ ὀφειλόμενον, ἦλθον καὶ πρὸς τὴν σὴν ἁγιότητα, τὸ προσταχθέν μοι τελειῶν. Ταῦτα ἀκούσασα ἡ ὁσία, καὶ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς δακρύων ὑποπλησθεῖσα, τῷ θεῷ καὶ τῷ ἠγαπημένῳ αὐτοῦ μαθητῇ πολλὴν ἀπεδίδου τὴν εὐχαριστίαν. Ἐκβαλὼν οὖν ὁ ναύκληρος τὰ τρία μῆλα ὑφάσματι κεκαλυμμένα ἐντίμῳ, καὶ νήματι χρυσέῳ περικυλισμένῳ, δέδωκεν εἰς τὰς χεῖρας αὐτῆς· ὧν τὸ κάλλος, καὶ τὸ μέγεθος, καὶ τὴν εὐωδίαν τί χρὴ καὶ λέγειν; ἐκεῖθεν γὰρ εἷλκον τὸ γένος, ὅθεν ἡ φύσις ἡμῶν ἐξώρισται, καὶ ἃ φθαρτὸς γενόμενος οὐκ οἶδεν ὀφθαλμός. Ἀλλ᾽ ὁ μὲν πολλῆς παρ᾽ αὐτῆς τιμῆς καὶ δεξιώσεως ἀξιωθεὶς, συνταξάμενος αὐτῇ ἀνεχώρησεν. That is: And immediately it stood still, wholly unable to go forward; at which, being full of dread, we gazed at him; and behold, walking as on a checkerboard over the waves, he drew near to us. And drawing three apples from his bosom, he gave them into my hands, saying: When you have come safe to the imperial city, convey them to the patriarch Ignatius, and you shall say to him: These He-Who-Is has sent you. Then again, putting in his hand, he drew out three others like them, saying: And give these to Irene, the abbess of the monastery of Chrysobalanton. And say to her: Eat of that which your good soul has desired; for I have just come, bringing you such things from paradise. And having blessed God, he dismissed us and the ship in prayers. And now, having fulfilled what was due to the patriarch, I have come also to your holiness, accomplishing what was commanded me. Hearing these things, the holy woman, her eyes filled with tears, rendered much thanksgiving to God and to His beloved disciple. So the shipmaster, drawing forth the three apples, covered with a precious cloth and wrapped round with golden thread, gave them into her hands; whose beauty, and greatness, and fragrance, why need I even tell? For they drew their kind from that place whence our nature has been exiled, and such as, having become corruptible, the eye has not known. But he, deemed worthy of much honor and welcome from her, having taken leave of her, departed.

[68] Ἐκείνη δὲ ὅλην ἡμερῶν ἑβδομάδα νηστεύσασα, ὁλόκληρον τὸ ἓν οἰκείαν ἐδωδὴν ἐποιήσατο, καὶ διήρκεσεν εἰς ὅλας ἡμέρας τεσσαράκοντα ἐν τῇ τῆς βρώσεως ἰσχύι τοῦ μήλου, μήτε τροφῆς ἑτέρας μήτε πόσεως δεηθεῖσα τὸ σύνολον, μᾶλλον μὲν οὖν καὶ πάσης θυμηδίας ἐμπιπλῶσα τὰς τῶν ἀδελφῶν τῇ τοῦ στόματος αὐτῆς ὀσφρήσεις εὐωδίᾳ. Τοιαύτη γὰρ ἦν ἀναδιδομένη καὶ τοσαύτη, ὡς νομίζειν θυμιαμάτων τινῶν καὶ μύρων πολυτίμων συνθέσεις γίνεσθαι, καὶ κατασκευὰς καθημένας ἐν τῇ μονῇ, καὶ τὸν ἀέρα καταχρώννυσθαι τοῖς ἡδυπνόοις ὀσμαῖς. Μετὰ ταῦτα δὲ τῆς τοῦ θείου πάσχα μεγάλης καταλαβούσης ἑβδομάδος, καὶ τῆς ἁγίας πέμπτης ἡμέρας ἐφεστηκυίας, προσέταξε πάσαις ταῖς ἀδελφαῖς μεταλαβεῖν κατὰ τὴν ἑσπέραν τῶν ἁγιασμάτων, καθ᾽ ἣν δηλαδὴ τοῖς μαθηταῖς συνεστιαθεὶς καὶ τῆς ψυχοτρόφου παρέδωκεν τὸν τύπον ὁ κύριος τραπέζης, καὶ κατατεμοῦσα μετὰ τὴν μετάληψιν τὸ ἕτερον μῆλον διένειμεν αὐταῖς οὐκ εἰδυίαις τί ἄρα καὶ εἴη τὸ ἐσθιόμενον, τοῦτο δὲ μόνον, ἐν ἑστιάσει γενόμεναι, τινος ὑπὲρ φύσιν χαρᾶς καὶ εὐφροσύνης ἐξεπλήθοντο. Τὸ δὲ ἄλλο φυλακτήριον ἑαυτῇ διετήρησε συνεχῶς ὀσφραινομένη, καὶ τῆς ἐντεῦθεν ἀγαλλιάσεως μὴ λειπομένη. That is: And she, having fasted a whole week of days, made the one apple entirely her own food, and held out for whole forty days by the strength of the food of the apple, needing neither other food nor drink at all; nay rather, she filled the sense of smell of the sisters with all delight by the fragrance of her mouth. For such and so great was the fragrance given forth, that one might think that compositions of certain kinds of incense and precious perfumes were being made, and preparations set up in the monastery, and the air being tinged with the sweet-smelling odors. And after this, when the great week of the divine Pascha had come, and the holy Thursday was at hand, she ordered all the sisters to partake, in the evening, of the sanctified elements—on which day namely the Lord, having feasted with the disciples, delivered the type of the soul-nourishing table—and, cutting up the other apple after the communion, she distributed it to them, they not knowing what it might be that was eaten; but this only—being at the feast, they were filled with a certain joy and gladness above nature. But the third apple she kept for herself as an amulet, continually smelling it, and not lacking the exultation that came from it.

[69] Καὶ τῇ νυκτὶ ἐκείνῃ καθ᾽ ἣν καὶ τὰ ἄχραντα πάθη τοῦ λυτρωτοῦ καὶ κυρίου Ἰησοῦ παρὰ πᾶσι πιστοῖς ὑμνολογεῖται, πολλῶν ἑώρα λευχειμονούντων πληθὺν ὡς ἐν ἐκστάσει γεγονυῖα, περικυκλούντων τὰς ἀδελφὰς ᾄδουσας, οἳ καὶ κιθάρας χερσὶν κατέχοντες, ὕμνους τινὰς μελωδεῖν ἀνεκλαλήτους ἐδόκουν τῷ Χριστῷ ἐναρμονίαν, νεανίας ὄντας πάντας καὶ φωτοειδεῖς, εἶτα καὶ φιάλας φέροντας μύρων τῇ τοῦ θυσιαστηρίου ταύτας ἀποκενοῦν τραπέζῃ, καὶ ἡ εὐωδία ἀσύγκριτος καὶ τὸ πᾶν πληροῦσα· καὶ μετὰ μικρὸν ἄνδρά τινα λευχείμονα, καὶ τοῦτον ὡραῖον, εὐμεγέθη, λάμποντα τὸ πρόσωπον, ὡς ὁ ἥλιος· ᾧ καὶ πολλὴν προσῆγον τὴν τιμὴν, καὶ μετ᾽ εὐλαβείας τὴν ὑπάντησιν ἐποιοῦντο· καὶ αὐτὸς σινδόνα τούτοις πανευπρεπῆ καὶ οἷον βασιλικὴν παρέσχετο, τὰ κενωθέντα μύρα τῇ ἱερᾷ τραπέζῃ λίαν ἀκριβέστατά τε κατακαλύψαι καὶ ἀσφαλέστατα· τοῦτον δὲ τὸν τῷ θυσιαστηρίῳ προσκαρτεροῦντα τεθεαμένον ἄγγελον ἐν κατηφείᾳ μεγάλῃ πρὸς τὸν τοσοῦτον ἀνακεκραγέναι βοῇ· Ἕως πότε κύριε; That is: And on that night, on which the undefiled sufferings of the Redeemer and Lord Jesus are hymned by all the faithful, she saw, as if in ecstasy, a multitude of many clothed in white, encircling the sisters as they sang, who also, holding harps in their hands, seemed to make melody of certain unspeakable hymns in harmony to Christ, being all young men and luminous; then also bearing bowls of perfumes, and emptying these upon the table of the altar, and the fragrance incomparable and filling the whole place; and after a little, a certain man clothed in white, and he beautiful, of great stature, his face shining like the sun; to whom they offered much honor, and with reverence made their meeting; and he furnished them with a most comely and as it were royal linen cloth, to cover the perfumes poured out upon the sacred table most exactly and most securely; and this one—the angel whom she had beheld attending the altar—in great dejection cried out to the great Lord with a shout: How long, O Lord?

[70] Καὶ φωνὴν αὐτῷ γενέσθαι λέγουσαν· Ἕως ἂν ἥξῃ ὁ δεύτερος Σολομὼν, καὶ τὰ ἄνω τοῖς κάτω, καὶ τὰ κάτω τοῖς ἄνω γένηται συμμιγῆ, τότε καὶ ὁ κύριος ὑψωθήσεται ἐν τῷδε τῷ τόπῳ, καὶ τὸ τῆς αὐτοῦ θεραπαίνης μεγαλυνθήσεται μνημόσυνον· καὶ εὐθὺς ὑποφωνήσασαν τῶν λευχειμόνων τὴν πληθύν· Δόξα ἐν ὑψίστοις θεῷ, πρὸς οὐρανοὺς ἀναπτῆναι. Ταῦτα δὲ μεθ᾽ ἡμέρας στρέφουσα κατὰ νοῦν ἡ ὁσία, τοῦτο συνιέναι νενόμικε, τὸ μήτε ταύτην δοξασθήσεσθαι πρός γε τὸ παρὸν, μήτε τὴν μονὴν αὐτὴν καὶ μεταστάσης αὐτῆς, ἕως ἂν αἱ μαθητευθεῖσαι ταύτῃ τῷ βίῳ περιῶσιν. Ἦν γὰρ, ὡς ἔλεγε, τοῦτο τὸν θεὸν αἰτησαμένη πρὸ ὀλίγου, τὴν τῶν ἀνθρώπων πάντως ἐκκλίνουσα τιμὴν, καὶ τὴν παρὰ θεοῦ ζητοῦσα μόνην· τοῦτο δὲ αὐτὸ καὶ ταῖς ἀδελφαῖς ὑπετίθει, φεύγειν ἀεὶ τὰς ἐξ ἀνθρώπων διδάσκουσα τιμάς. Οὐδὲ γὰρ δυνατόν, φησι, τὴν μὴ τὰς τοιαύτας ἀποστρεφομένην ψυχὴν, τὴν δόξαν ἰδεῖν ποτε τοῦ θεοῦ. Εὔξασθαι δέ τις αὐτὴν ὑπὲρ τῆς τοῦ σώματος ὑγείας αἰτήσασα γνώμης ἁπλότητι, τῶν ἀδελφῶν συγκαλεσαμένη καὶ πάσας, εἶπε· Πιστεύσατέ μοι, τέκνα, παῤῥησίας εἴ τινος ἔτυχον πρὸς θεὸν, τοῦτο πρὸ τῶν ἄλλων ὑμῖν ἀνῃτησα, τὸ μηδεμίαν ἡμέραν ἐν ὑγείᾳ σωματικῇ παρ᾽ ὅλον τὸν τῆς ζωῆς ὑμῶν χρόνον μηδεμίας ὑμῶν διατελέσαι. Οἶδα γὰρ ἀκριβῶς, οἶδα, ὅτι τοῦ σώματος κάμνοντος, πολλή τις ὠφέλεια προσγίνεται τῇ ψυχῇ, καὶ μάλιστα τοῖς χάριν διὰ τοῦτο τῷ κηδεμόνι τῶν ἡμετέρων ψυχῶν ὁμολογοῦσι θεῷ. That is: And a voice came to him, saying: Until the second Solomon shall come, and the things above be mingled with the things below, and the things below with the things above, then also the Lord will be exalted in this place, and the memorial of His handmaid will be magnified; and immediately the multitude of those clothed in white, responding, "Glory to God in the highest," flew up to the heavens. And the holy woman, turning these things over in her mind afterward, thought she understood this: that neither she should be glorified for the present, nor the monastery itself, even after her death, until those who had been taught this manner of life by her should have passed away. For she had, as she said, a little before asked this of God, wholly declining the honor of men, and seeking only that which is from God; and this very thing she also enjoined upon the sisters, teaching them ever to flee the honors that come from men. For it is not possible, she says, that a soul which does not turn away from such things should ever see the glory of God. And when a certain one, in simplicity of intention, had asked her to pray for the health of her body, calling together the sisters, all of them, she said: Believe me, children, if I had obtained any freedom of speech with God, this before other things I would have asked for you: that not one of you should pass a single day in bodily health throughout the whole time of your life. For I know exactly, I know, that when the body is afflicted, some great advantage accrues to the soul, and especially to those who for this cause give thanks to God the guardian of our souls.

Throughout the whole forty-day fast which is before Pascha, she used for food neither bread nor any other kind of viand, Fasts, vigils, and nocturnal prayers except only hemp-seed mixed with honey, and a few fruits; and these indeed once a week; to which, through several days, was added the very least water. And hence it came about that her most chaste body seemed to be only skin clinging to the bones. And she passed the feast-days of the Lord without sleep, singing apart. Often, too, going out to the vestibule of the temple about the middle of the night, lifting her eyes and hands to God, she made her prayers; contemplating the circle of the stars, and the beauty and greatness of heaven, and turning herself about, and rejoicing, and magnifying Him who stretched it out. Once it happened, according to the divine dispensation in all things, that the miracle should not remain hidden, that, while one of the sisters looked out from her cell, she saw her holding her hands stretched up to heaven, but suspended from the earth about two cubits, and praying in the air; she saw likewise that, while she adored God with body prostrate, two cypresses, which stood on the opposite parts of the vestibule, and were so large that they rose to no small part of the air, were gently shaken at times, and lowered themselves, and together with her lowered their heads even to the earth, waiting until she should rise;

[63] And that, when the holy woman had risen, the trees did not first lift up their heads, honored by a notable miracle; until she, coming, had signed with the cross the top of each of these trees, and thus, the blessing being received, they were brought back again into their own state; and that meanwhile that sister, to whom this spectacle had fallen, seized with fear and anxiety, began to be troubled with thoughts, lest those things which she had seen were a phantom: for she suspected this, an interval of three or more hours having elapsed after these things had happened: but at the same time, wishing to be made more certain of the matter, she ran to inspect the holy woman's cell; and, not finding the holy woman, she returned, and found that she had just then entered from the vestibule. And then indeed she feared to reveal the secret. But since not long after there were seen hanging aloft from the tops of those cypresses little hand-cloths of silken textures ^a, affording certainly a wondrous delight to those who beheld, which she had woven with her own most chaste hands, inasmuch as she had often had the heads of those trees inclined; the sisters asked one another: Who, they said, has woven these, and has been able to ascend the height difficult of ascent?

[64] Then they questioned even the holy woman herself, ignorant indeed of the matter, which the holy woman extenuates, and takes care to involve in silence. showing these things with their fingers together with wonder. But she gave this answer: Someone, she said, my daughters, thinking those trees sacred, applied the textures to them in honor of God. But she who had beheld the miracle with her eyes, taking occasion thence, narrated to the sisters singly all things, whatever had been seen. When they had heard these things, their minds were filled with fear and joy, and they moistened their eyes with tears, and reproached her, for what cause she had not roused them too from sleep, and had not called them, that they might have been made partakers of the terrible spectacles, especially because she affirmed that the matter had lasted for a time of three hours. Meanwhile, after the holy woman had learned that the secret was thus now divulged to the ears of the sisters, and had called apart her who had been present at those wonders, looking at her with a stern countenance, she thus says: Is it that, because you saw me deceiving others, as a human being, you have so quickly triumphed on account of my weakness? But she, astonished at how she had not escaped notice, at once fell down at

the feet of the holy woman, and, fearing and trembling, asked pardon; which having soon obtained, she received a charge never to reveal any such thing at all to anyone. Likewise she gathered the others, and commanded all that they should never say anything great about her, until, she said, the Lord shall have removed me from the present life. For God wrought many other wonders through her, and He willed all to be wrapped in silence in this life.

[65] For when at one time she was celebrating the memory of the great Basil, She kills a mouse by prayers: after the divine sacrifice the priest warned her that a mouse had come out somewhere from the ground, and had passed over the table of the altar; and that a hindrance ought to be made for the impure animal, that it might no longer defile the sacred place; she indeed was grieved, and at the time when the priest and all the sisters—he indeed privately, but they in community on account of the feast-day—were feasting sumptuously, she within her chamber was commending the matter to God. But when, the meal being finished, they were now giving thanks together to God, calling the prefect of the church to her, she thus addresses her: Go, and, seizing the mouse which lies killed before the entrance of the altar, throw it out somewhere into the dung-heap. Meanwhile the priest also, entering to pray, and seeing that very mouse to be dead, and astonished at the holy woman's command, went out crying: How wonderful is God in His saints!

[66] During that night, then, about the fourth watch of the night, a certain voice, no one being seen, was heard, she receives from a shipmaster three apples, saying to the holy woman: Receive with joy the shipmaster who will bring you fruits today. You shall eat, and your soul shall exult. So after the morning office she ordered two sisters to keep watch at the vestibule of the monastery, and to admit courteously him who should first enter, whoever indeed he might be. But I, she says, will return to you at once. And, behold, as she went away, there arrived he who was expected: and they met one another. But hearing that she was the superior of the monastery, he began to make a deep inclination of his body; but she anticipated him. And when they had risen, they betook themselves to the church: which having entered, and having prayed there, they sat down. Then the holy woman, Whence, she says, comes your charity to our lowliness? To whom he answered: I am a traveler of the sea, my lady, an inhabitant of the island which is called Patmos: and when, sailing, we were directing our course this way, and had now arrived at the uninhabited part of our island, we saw a most beautiful old man, bearing something divine about him, and saying that we should wait. But since the impulse of the blowing wind did not allow the ship to stop, and moreover that place on which he stood, who commanded these things, rose up on high, we could not fulfill his commands. Nor, moreover, being himself not ignorant that these could not be fulfilled by us, with a stronger voice he ordered the ship to stop.

[67] And soon it stood still, nor could it advance at all. which St. John the Evangelist had given, Wherefore, seized with fear, with fixed gaze we beheld him. And, behold, sporting over the waves, he drew near to us. And drawing three apples from his bosom, he handed them into my hands, saying: When safe, carry them to Constantinople to Ignatius the patriarch ^b: and you shall say to him: These He-Who-Is has sent you ^c. Then again, putting in his hand, he brought forth three others like them, saying: And give these to Irene, abbess of the monastery of Chrysobalanton. And say to her: Eat of these, which your beautiful soul has desired: for I come now, bringing you these from paradise. And when he had blessed God, he dismissed our ship, accompanying it with prayers. And now, the debt to the patriarch being discharged, I have come also to your holiness, executing what was commanded me. On hearing these things, the holy woman, her eyes suffused with tears, gave great thanks to God and to His beloved disciple. So the shipmaster, drawing out the three apples, covered with a precious veil, and wrapped round with golden thread, gave them into her hands: of which what need is there to tell the beauty, greatness, and fragrance? For they drew their origin from there whence our nature was banished; and such as the eye, subject to mortal corruption, has not seen. But after he had been received with much honor and kindly humanity, and had likewise discharged his office toward her, he departed.

[68] But she, having drawn out her fast through a whole week of days, used one whole apple for her nourishment; having a power of wondrous virtue and fragrance: and for whole forty days she persevered in the strength of eating the apple; nor did she need any other nourishment or drink at all: nay rather, she poured out every delight upon the minds of the sisters by the fragrance of her mouth: for such was that which was diffused, and so great, that they thought compositions of certain incenses and unguents of great price were being made, and preparations of them held in the monastery, and the air imbued with a sweet-smelling fragrance. After this, the great week of the divine Pascha approaching, and the holy Thursday at hand, she ordered all the sisters to take the blessed breads ^d at evening, on which namely the Lord, feasting with the disciples, delivered the form of the table which nourishes the soul. And when after the taking she had cut up the other apple, she divided it to them, they not knowing what it was, that in eating they were pervaded with a certain joy surpassing nature and with hilarity. But the other she kept for her own remedy, assiduously smelling it, and she was not deprived of the exultation which came from it.

[69] But on that night, on which the undefiled Passion of the Redeemer and Lord Jesus is celebrated by all the faithful, she is refreshed by a heavenly vision and address; she saw, as if caught into ecstasy, a throng of many clothed in white garments; who, singing, circled around the sisters; and, holding harps in their hands, seemed to sing to Christ the melody of certain ineffable hymns, complete in all the measures of harmony. They were all young men, and shining with light. Afterward, the bowls of unguents which they carried, they emptied upon the table of the altar; and the fragrance was incomparable, and filled all: and a little after there appeared a certain man clothed in white garments, and he indeed beautiful and tall; who shone in face, like the sun (they also paid him much honor), and reverently he came forth to meet them. This man furnished them a most bright, and as it were royal, linen cloth, to cover most diligently and most safely the unguents which were poured out upon the sacred table. But this angel, who constantly attended the altar, was seen, with lowered countenance, to cry out to Him with a loud voice: How long, O Lord?

[70] And a voice was made to him, saying: Until the second Solomon shall come, taking thence an occasion of humbling herself. and the things which are above be mingled with those which are below, and the things which are below with those which are above; then also the Lord will be exalted in this place, and the memory of His Handmaid will be extolled. And soon, when the throng clothed in white garments had cried out: Glory to God in the highest, it flew back to the heavens. But she, when it had dawned, after the holy woman had turned it over in her mind, thought she had understood that neither she should be honored in the present time, nor the monastery itself even then, when she should migrate from life, so long as the nurslings of her discipline should survive her. For this, as she said, she had asked of God a little before, wholly declining the honor of men, and seeking only that which is from God. This same thing she had also set forth to the sisters, teaching them ever to flee human honors. For it cannot be, she said, that a soul which does not turn away from them should ever see the glory of God. When a certain one of them, in simplicity of mind, had asked her to pray for the health of her body, all the sisters being called together, she said: Believe me, daughters, if I had any power of obtaining favor with God, this before other things I would ask for you, that none of you should pass a single day in bodily health throughout the whole time of your life. For I know exceedingly well, I know, that when the body labors, great advantage accrues to the soul; and especially to those who for that thing give thanks to God, the healer of our souls.

ANNOTATIONS.

CHAPTER VIII.

A kinsman of the holy woman is wondrously freed from an unjust death.

[71] Ἓν ἔτι τῶν ἐκείνης θαυμασιῶν προστεθείσθω τῇ διηγήσει, τῆς πρὸς θεὸν αὐτῆς ἐγγύτητός, καὶ παῤῥησίας, μαρτύριον ἐνεργές. Φθόνῳ τινὲς κινούμενοι· οἷα πολλὰ τοῖς ἐπτοημένοις περὶ τὰ παρόντα, ποιεῖν ὁ πονηρὸς ὑποτίθησι· διαβάλλουσι πρὸς βασιλέα τὸν ἐγγύθεν τῇ ὁσίᾳ, καὶ φιλουμένως αὐτῇ συγγενῆ τῇ τῶν ἰλλουστρίων ἀξίᾳ τετιμημένον, καὶ τῇ λοιπῇ κατὰ κόσμον λαμπρὸν περιφανείᾳ. Τὸ τῆς διαβολῆς οὐ μικρόν. Τὰ γὰρ τῶν ἐπιβούλων πάντά, φασι, καὶ μελετῶν ἐστι, κατὰ τοῦ σοῦ καὶ κατασκευάζων κράτους. Ὁ δὲ μηδ᾽ ἐρωτήσεως κᾂν γοῦν ψιλῆς περὶ τοσούτου καὶ τοιούτου πράγματος ἀνασχόμενος, συλληφθῆναι τὸν ἄνδρα προστάξας, ἔν τινι τοῦ παλατίου ζοφώδει κατέκλεισε φυλακῇ, μηδὲ τὴν αἰτίαν εἰδότα τῆς τοῦ βασιλέως ὀργῆς. Ἐπεὶ δὲ οἱ τῷ ἀνδρὶ προσήκοντες διαψιθυριζόμενόν πως περὶ τὰ βασίλεια ἀκηκόεσαν τῷ τῆς θαλάσσης ἐναποῤῥιφῆναι τοῦτον βυθῷ διασκοπεῖσθαι τὸν βασιλέα, καὶ τοῦτο οὐδ᾽ ἐν ἡμέρᾳ, ἀλλ᾽ ἐν νυκτὶ, ὡς ἂν μηδὲ ταφῆς αὐτοῦ τύχοι τὸ σῶμα, That is: Let yet one more of her wonders be added to the narrative, an effective testimony of her nearness to God and her freedom of speech. Certain men, moved by envy—such as the evil one suggests to those alarmed about present things to do in abundance—slander to the emperor the kinsman near to the holy woman, and dear to her as a relative, honored with the dignity of the illustres, and illustrious in the rest of the world's splendor. The slander was no small one. For, they say, everything of the plotters and their designs is against your power and contriving against it. And he, not even enduring so much as a bare inquiry concerning so great and such a matter, having ordered the man to be seized, shut him up in a certain dark prison of the palace, not even knowing the cause of the emperor's wrath. But when the kinsmen of the man had heard it whispered somehow about the palace that the emperor was considering that he be cast into the depth of the sea, and this not in the day, but in the night, so that his body might not even obtain burial,

[72] Μηδενὶ τῶν οἰκείων τοῦ τρόπου τῆς τούτου γνωσθείσης ἀπωλείας, πάντων ἀπογνόντες, πρὸς θεὸν ἔχουσαν τὴν παῤῥησίαν καταφεύγουσιν Εἰρήνην, δάκρυα τὸ ἀνυσιμώτατον κενοῦντες τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν, καὶ βοηθῆσαι ταῖς εὐπροσδέκτοις εὐχαῖς τῷ συγγενεῖ ἀδίκως κινδυνεύοντι παρακαλοῦντες αὐτήν. Ἡ δὲ καὶ τί γὰρ ἂν ἐποίησε; πρὸς ταῦτα ψυχὴ τὴν τοῦ θεοῦ φιλανθρωπίαν ἐξησκημένη, καὶ τῶν ἐκείνου τῆς ἀγάπης νόμον καλῶς ἀποπληροῦν ἐπισταμένη, σφόδρα περίλυπος γενομένη, στενάξασά τε βαρὺ καὶ δακρύσασα, τούτοις μὲν ἀπιέναι προσέταξεν οἴκαδε, καὶ μὴ ἀθυμεῖν. Ἀλλ᾽ ἐλπίσωμέν, φησιν, ἐπὶ κύριον· αὐτὸς ποιήσει. Δεύτερα δὲ τ᾽ ἄλλα τῶν ἐν χερσὶν ἡγησαμένη, κλείσασα τὴν θύραν ἱκέτευε τὸν θεὸν ἐντενῶς. Καὶ ταῦτα μὲν ἐκείνη. Ὁ βασιλεὺς δὲ περί που τὸ μεσονύκτιον ὕπαρ οὐκ ὄναρ ὁρᾷν ἐδόκει τὴν ὁσίαν Εἰρήνην παραστᾶσαν αὐτῷ, καὶ τοιαῦτα λέγουσαν· βασιλεῦ, ἀναστὰς αὐτίκα τῆς φυλακῆς ἀπόλυσον, ὃν κατείρξας ἀδίκως. Οὐδὲν γάρ σοι τῶν κατ᾽ αὐτοῦ λαλουμένων ἀληθές· ψεῦδος δὲ ταῦτα καὶ συκοφαντία. Εἰ δ᾽ οὐκ, That is: None of his household knowing the manner of his destruction, having despaired of all things, they flee to Irene, who has freedom of speech with God, pouring the most efficacious tears from their eyes, and beseeching her to help by her acceptable prayers their kinsman unjustly in danger. And she—for what indeed could she do?—a soul trained in the benignity of God, and knowing how to fulfill well His law of love, becoming exceedingly sorrowful, and having groaned heavily and wept, ordered them to go away home, and not to despond. But let us hope, she says, in the Lord; He Himself will act. And deeming the other things in her hands secondary, having shut the door, she earnestly supplicated God. And so much for her. But the emperor, about midnight, seemed to see—waking, not dreaming—the holy Irene standing by him, and saying such things: Emperor, rising at once, release from prison the man whom you have unjustly shut up. For nothing of the things spoken against him is true; but these are a lie and a slander. But if you do not,

ἀλλ᾽ αὐτὸν ἐκεῖνον κατὰ σοῦ κινήσασα τὸν βασιλέα τῶν οὐρανῶν, καὶ πόλεμον ἐγερῶ σοι καὶ σφαγὴν, ὥς τέ σου καὶ τὰς σάρκας βορὰν προκεῖσθαι τοῖς θηρίοις τῆς γῆς καὶ τοῖς πετεινοῖς τοῦ οὐρανοῦ. That is: but I, moving against you that very King of heaven, will raise war and slaughter against you, so that your flesh too shall be set forth as food for the beasts of the earth and the birds of heaven.

[73] Τὸν δὲ ταραχθῆναι καὶ θυμῷ ζέσαντα πρὸς αὐτὴν ἀντειπεῖν· Τίς καὶ πόθεν εἶ σὺ, τοιαῦτα ἐμοὶ προπετῶς ἀπειλεῖν ἀποτολμῶσα; τις δέ σοι καὶ τῆς εἰσόδου ὁ παραχωρήσας ἐν ὥρᾳ τοιαύτῃ; Καὶ ἀποκριθῆναι τούτῳ· Ἐγὼ ἡ Εἰρήνη τῆς τοῦ Χρυσοβαλάντου μονῆς ἡγουμένη· καὶ τοῦτο οὐχ ἅπαξ, ἀλλὰ καὶ τρίτον εἰποῦσαν, νύξασαν ἐπὶ τῷ τελευταίῳ τὴν τούτου πλευρὰν ἀναχωρῆσαι. Ἀλλὰ τίς μὴ θαυμάσει τοῦ θεοῦ τὰ τεράστια; ὡς γὰρ ἐκεῖνος τὴν πλευρὰν ὀδυνηθεὶς τεθορυβημένον ἀφυπνίσθη, εἶδεν αὐτὴν πρὸ τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν αὐτοῦ βαδίζουσαν, ἀπιοῦσαν, καὶ πρὸς τῇ θύρᾳ γενομένην ἤδη, τοῦ κοιτῶνος ἐξιοῦσαν· καὶ κράζειν ἤρξατο, ὥστε πᾶσιν αὐτῷ τοῖς σώματος φυλακεῦσιν οὐκ ὀλίγον γενέσθαι τὸν τάραχον, πτοηθεῖσι μήτι καὶ πάθοι τῶν ἀδοκήτων ὁ βασιλεύς. Ἤρετο γοῦν τῶν οἰκειοτάτων τὸν πρώτιστον, ὃν δὴ καλοῦσι παρακοιμώμενον· Οὐχ ἑώρακας τὴν τοῦ κοιτῶνος ἐξελθοῦσαν νυνὶ μοναχήν; ὁ δὲ ἀχανὴς εἱστήκει, μὴ καὶ παραφρονῆσαι τὸν βασιλέα ὑποτοπάζων· ὅμως ἀπεκρίνατο, μηδὲν τοιοῦτον μήτε θεάσασθαι μήτε γενέσθαι. That is: And he, being troubled, and boiling with anger, replied to her: Who and whence are you, who dare thus rashly to threaten me such things? And who has yielded you entrance at such an hour? And she answered him: I am Irene, abbess of the monastery of Chrysobalanton; and this she said not once, but even a third time; and, having pricked his side at the last, she withdrew. But who will not marvel at the prodigies of God? For as he, pained in his side, awoke in a tumult, he saw her walking before his eyes, departing, and, having now come to the door, going out of the bedchamber; and he began to cry out, so that no small tumult arose in all the guards of his person, alarmed lest the emperor should suffer some unexpected thing. He therefore asked the foremost of his most intimate attendants, whom they call the parakoimomenos: Have you not seen the nun who just now went out of my bedchamber? And he stood agape, suspecting that the emperor had even lost his mind; nevertheless he answered that he had neither seen nor had any such thing happened.

[74] Ἀλλ᾽ ἰδοὺ πᾶσαι μὲν αἱ θύραι κεκλεισμέναι ἀσφαλέστατα φρουρούμεναι· αἱ κλεῖς δὲ ὑποτεθειμέναι τῇ ἐμῇ μέχρι τοῦ νῦν στρωμνῇ, καὶ οὐδαμόθεν πρὸς τὸν σὸν τὸ παράπαν εἴσοδος κοιτῶνα. Καὶ ὁ βασιλεὺς γενόμενος ἐν ἑαυτῷ· Νῦν οἶδα ἀληθῶς, εἶπεν, ὡς θεία τις ἦν ὀπτασία, τὰ ὁραθέντα μοι. Πρωΐας δὲ γενομένης ἐξαγαγὼν τῆς φυλακῆς τὸν κατεχόμενον παρίστησί τε αὐτὸν, καί φησι· Τίσι μαγείαις χρησάμενος ἀπειλὰς ἡμῖν ἐν ὀνείροις καὶ θορύβους ἔπεμψας, ὡς ἄν σοι διὰ τῶν τοιούτων γοητειῶν διαδρᾶναι γενήσεται τὰς κατὰ τῆς ἡμετέρας ἐπιβολάς σου βασιλείας; Ὁ δὲ μηδὲν ἔχων εἰπεῖν πρὸς ταῦτα, μόνον βλέπων ἦν ἐπὶ δεξιὰ καὶ ἐπ᾽ ἀριστερὰ τοὺς παρεστῶτας· μόλις δέ ποτε ἀπεκρίνατο· Πέποιθα ἐπὶ τὸν θεὸν, ὡς οὐδέποτε μάγῳ συνέτυχον, οὐδ᾽ ἠνέσχετό μου βασιλεῦ τοιοῦτον ἀκοὴ ἀσέβημα δι᾽ ὅλης τῆς ζωῆς παραδέξασθαι· ἀλλ᾽ οὐδὲ κατὰ τῆς σῆς βασιλείας, βουλὴν ἐγὼ, μοι γένοιτο μάρτυς κύριος, ἥντινα οὐκ ἐνενόησα. That is: But behold, all the doors are shut, most securely guarded; and the keys have been placed until now under my bedding, and from nowhere at all is there entrance to your bedchamber. And the emperor, coming to himself: Now I know truly, he said, that the things seen by me were some divine vision. And when morning came, having brought forth from prison the one detained, he sets him before him, and says: By what magic arts have you sent us threats and disturbances in dreams, that by such sorceries it might be possible for you to escape your designs against our empire? And he, having nothing to say to these things, was only looking to right and left at those standing by; and at last with difficulty he answered: I trust in God that I have never had dealings with a magician, nor has my hearing endured to admit such an impiety in all my life; nor indeed against your empire did I have any counsel, may the Lord be my witness, which I have not conceived.

[75] Καὶ ὁ βασιλεὺς πρότερόν πως διατεθεὶς, Ἐπιγινώσκεις δὲ τίνα, ἤρετο, Εἰρήνη ἐν μοναστηρίῳ λεγομένῳ Χρυσοβαλάντῳ διάγουσαν; Ναί, φησιν, βασιλεῦ, καὶ τὸ μοναστήριον ἔγγιστά που τῆς Ἄσπρός ἐστι τῶν γλυκέων ὑδάτων δεξαμενῆς. Καὶ εἰ νῦν ἀποστείλω, εἶπεν ὁ βασιλεὺς, εὕροιμι ταύτην ἆρα; Ἐκ παντὸς ἀπεκρίνατο· οὐδὲ γάρ ποτε τοῦ ἐκ τῆς ἔξεισι μοναστηρίου. Παραυτίκα τοίνυν τόν τε πρωτοβεστιάριον καί τινας ἄλλους τῶν μεγιστάνων μετὰ τῆς συνήθους ἐξαποστείλας ὑπηρεσίας· ἑπόμενον τούτοις καὶ ζωγράφον εἶναι παρήγγειλεν, ὑφ᾽ οὗ τὸ τῆς Εἰρήνης πρόσωπον εἰκονισθὲν αὐτῷ κομισθείη, ὅπως γνώσωμαί, φησι, τὸν ὁραθέντα μοι χαρακτῆρα. Ταῦτα δὲ προστεταχὼς, τῇ φυλακῇ καὶ αὖθις τὸν ὑπεύθυνον αὐτῷ νομιζόμενον κατέχεσθαι διωρίσατο. Ἡ μέν τοι ὁσία Εἰρήνη τὰς κατὰ τρόπον ἐπικαίρως πληρώσασα προσευχὰς, εἰς τὸ διακονικὸν γενομένη τῆς ἐκκλησίας, καὶ πάσας συγκαλεσαμένη τὰς ἀδελφάς, φησι πρὸς αὐτάς· Ταύτῃ τῇ νυκτὶ ὄναρ μοι συνέβη παρὰ βασιλέως ὁρᾷν πρὸς ἡμᾶς μεγιστᾶνας ἀπεσταλμένους, καὶ πολὺν ἱππέων τε καὶ πεζῶν ὄχλον ἐπισυρομένους καὶ τοσοῦτον, ὡς μηδὲ ταῖς αὐλαῖς τῆς μονῆς τὸν ὅλον χωρητὸν εἶναι· ὅμως εἴ τι καὶ συμβαίνοι τοιοῦτον, ἀλλ᾽ ὑμεῖς μηδαμῶς θροηθείητε· καὶ κύριος τὸ συμφέρον πάντως οἰκονομήσει. That is: And the emperor, being somewhat disposed as before, asked: Do you know a certain Irene, living in a monastery called Chrysobalanton? Yes, he says, emperor, and the monastery is very near the Cistern of Aspar of the sweet waters. And if I now send, said the emperor, shall I find her? Certainly, he answered; for she never goes out of her monastery. So straightway, having sent the protovestiarius and certain others of the nobles with the accustomed retinue; he commanded that a painter also follow them, by whom the face of Irene, being portrayed, might be brought to him, that I may know, he says, the appearance that was seen by me. And having commanded these things, he ordered that the one thought to be guilty be again held in prison. But the holy Irene, having fulfilled her prayers duly and opportunely, being in the diaconicon of the church, and having called together all the sisters, says to them: On this night it befell me to see in a dream nobles sent to us from the emperor, and dragging along a great crowd of horsemen and footmen, and so great that the whole crowd could not be contained even in the courts of the monastery; nevertheless, if any such thing should happen, do you by no means be alarmed; and the Lord will certainly dispose what is expedient.

[76] Αἱ δὲ φόβῳ καὶ δειλίᾳ ληφθεῖσαι, τὰς χεῖρας θατέρα προστρίβουσαι θατέρας ἐν μεγάλῃ λύπῃ ταῦτ᾽ ἐποιοῦντο. Καὶ παρευθὺς ἧκον οἱ παρὰ βασιλέως ἀπεσταλμένοι· ὧν τὸ πλῆθος καὶ τὸ μεγαλοπρεπὲς τῶν φαινομένων ἡ θυρωρὸς φοβηθεῖσα, τὸν τῆς μονῆς ἠνεῳγμένον λιποῦσα πυλῶνα, ᾤχετο δραμοῦσα τὴν ἀπροσδόκητον ἔλευσιν τῆς ἀρχόντων ἀπαγγεῖλαι. Ἐν τοσούτῳ δὲ τά τε ἐνδότερα τά τε τῆς μονῆς ἐξώτερα πλήρη τῶν ἵππων ὡρᾶτο καὶ τῶν ἡμιόνων· ὅπερ ταῖς ἀδελφαῖς πρῶτα μὲν οὐκ ὀλίγην πτόησιν ἐνεποίει, καὶ μάλιστα τὴν τῆς ὁσίας πρόῤῥησιν ἐχούσαις ἔναυλον. Πρᾴως δὲ τοὺς τῶν ἱπποζυγιῶν ἀποβαίνοντας πρὸς αὐτὰς ἔχοντας ὁρῶσαι, τοῦ φόβου μὲν ἀνιείθησαν, τῆς διδασκάλης δὲ τὴν πρόγνωσιν ἐξεπλήττοντο. Μηνύει τοίνυν τοῖς μεγιστᾶσι τούτοις διὰ μέσου τῶν ἀδελφῶν ἡ ὁσία πρὸς τὴν ἐκκλησίαν εἰσελθόντας, ἐκεῖσε ταύτην ὄψεσθαι. Εἰσίασιν οὖν οὐ πάντες, ἀλλ᾽ ὅσοι τὰ προστεταγμένα ὠσὶν οἰκείοις παρὰ βασιλέως ἐδέξαντο· καὶ προσευξάμενοι τῆς ὁσίας ἀνέμειναν τὴν ἔλευσιν. That is: And they, seized with fear and cowardice, rubbing their hands one against another, did this in great grief. And immediately there came those sent by the emperor; whose multitude and the magnificence of their appearance the doorkeeper, being frightened, left the gate of the monastery open, and ran off to announce the unexpected coming of the rulers. Meanwhile both the inner and the outer parts of the monastery were seen full of horses and mules; which at first caused the sisters no little alarm, especially as they had the holy woman's prediction ringing in their ears. But seeing that those who dismounted from the yoke-beasts behaved gently toward them, they were relieved of their fear, and were astonished at their teacher's foreknowledge. So the holy woman signifies to these nobles, through the sisters, that they should enter the church, and there they would see her. There enter, then, not all, but only those who had received the commands from the emperor with their own ears; and, having prayed, they awaited the coming of the holy woman.

[77] Νέφεσι δὲ τοῦ ἡλίου διατειχίσουσι τὰς λαμπηδόνας, ἀλαμπῆ συνέβαινε τὸν ἀέρα τυγχάνειν. Ἧκε τοίνυν καὶ ἡ ὁσία διὰ τῆς πλαγίας θύρας πρὸς αὐτούς. Προηγησαμένη δὲ τῆς προσκυνήσεως, προσκυνοῦντας εἶχε τούτους· καὶ δὴ ἀνανεύοντες εἶδον ἀστραπὴν ἐκ τοῦ αἰφνιδίου ἀνατέλλουσαν τοῦ τιμίου αὐτῆς προσώπου· καὶ μὴ φέροντες ἀπῆλθον εἰς τὰ ὀπίσω, καὶ ἔπεσον χαμαὶ, καθάπερ οἱ συλλαβεῖν ἐληλυθότες τὸν καθηγητὴν αὐτῆς καὶ νυμφίον Χριστόν. Ἐπεὶ καὶ ὅλον πεπλήρωκε τῆς φωτοχύσεως τὸν ναὸν, προσερχομένη δὲ χεῖρας ὤρεγεν ἑκάστῳ, καὶ διανίστη τούτους λέγουσα· Τεκνία μου μὴ φοβεῖσθε· κᾀγὼ γὰρ αὐτὴ ἄνθρωπός εἰμι τὴν αὐτὴν ἀσθένειαν περικειμένη τῆς φύσεως. Ἀλλὰ τί κόπους ὑμῖν παρέσχεν ὁ ἀποστείλας ὑμᾶς ἄπιστος; Εἴπατε γοῦν αὐτῷ πάλιν ἐκεῖνα, ἅπερ ἔδοξεν ἐν ὀνείρῳ παρ᾽ ἡμῶν ἀκούειν· Ἀπόλυσον τὸν ἄνθρωπον ἐκ τῆς φυλακῆς· οὐδέν ἐστιν ἄδικον εἰργασμένος· οὐδὲ κατὰ τῆς σῆς μελετήσας βασιλείας· ἐὰν δὲ μὴ, τὰ λαληθέντα σοι πάντως ἕξει καὶ πέρας, καὶ κύριος οὐ βραδύνει, ὅτι πᾶσιν ἐγγύς ἐστι τοῖς ἐπικαλουμένοις αὐτὸν ἐν ἀληθείᾳ. That is: And, clouds walling off the beams of the sun, it happened that the air was without brightness. So the holy woman also came to them through the side door. And, anticipating the obeisance, she had them making obeisance; and indeed, as they looked up, they saw lightning suddenly rising from her venerable face; and, not bearing it, they went backward, and fell to the ground, just like those who had come to seize her teacher and bridegroom, Christ. Since she had also filled the whole church with the outpouring of light, coming forward she stretched out her hands to each, and raised them up, saying: My children, do not fear; for I too am a human being, clothed with the same weakness of nature. But why has the unbeliever who sent you given you toils? Tell him again, then, those things which he seemed in a dream to hear from us: Release the man from prison; he has done nothing unjust; nor has he plotted against your empire; but if not, the things spoken to you will certainly have their fulfillment, and the Lord does not delay, for He is near to all who call upon Him in truth.

[78] Οἱ δὲ μήπω τοῦ προτέρου τελέως ἀνεθέντες φόβου, καὶ ταῦτα ἀκούοντες δέει πολλῷ πρὸς αὐτὴν εἶπον· Ἀπαγγελοῦμεν πάντα τῷ βασιλεῖ κατὰ τὴν σὴν πρόσταξιν· ἀξιοῦμεν δὲ μικρὸν καθεσθεῖσαν τῆς σῆς ἡμῖν ψυχωφελοῦς ὁμιλίας μεταδοῦναι· τοῦτο δὲ δυοῖν εἵνεκα παρ᾽ αὐτῆς ᾔτησαν· ἑνὶ μὲν, ὥστε τῆς τιμίας αὐτῆς ὄψεως καὶ τῶν θεοπνεύστων ἀπολαῦσαι ῥημάτων· ἑτέρῳ δὲ τὸ βασιλικὸν ἐπίταγμα, καὶ τὸν ζωγράφον ἐκτελέσαι τῷ παρέλκοντι τῆς ὁμιλίας ἀκριβέστερον, τὸ ταύτης εἶδος διαγράψαντα. Λαβόντες τοίνυν τὸ τῆς ὁσίας ἐκτύπωμα, καὶ μετὰ εὐχῶν αὐτῆς προπεμφθέντες, πρὸς τὸν ἀποστείλαντα τούτους ὑπέστρεψαν, ἀπαγγείλαντες αὐτῷ ὅσα τε εἶδον, ὅσα τε ἤκουσαν παρ᾽ αὐτῆς. Εἶτα δὲ καὶ τὴν εἰκόνα ταύτης ὑποδεικνύουσι· καὶ ἅμα τῷ τὰς ὄψεις ἐπιβαλεῖν αὐτῇ τὸν βασιλέα, ἀστραπή τις ἐξ αὐτῆς ὄψεως ἐκπηδήσασα, τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτοῦ φοβερὸν περιήστραψε, καὶ μετὰ τοῦτον ἐκ τοῦ φόβου πεποίηκεν ἀνακεκραγέναι· Ἐλέησόν με ὁ θεὸς κατὰ τὸ μέγα σου ἔλεος· καὶ μετὰ πολλῆς τῆς ἐκπλήξεως· καὶ εἱστήκει ἐννεὸς ἐπὶ πολὺ τὸν χαρακτῆρα βλέπων, καὶ διὰ θαύματος ἐμποιούμενος, ὅπως ἐκείνης αὐτῆς ἐστιν, ἣν κατὰ τοὺς ὕπνους ἑώρα διαπειλουμένην αὐτῷ. That is: And they, not yet fully relieved of their former fear, and hearing these things, said to her with much dread: We will announce all to the emperor according to your command; but we ask that, sitting a little while, you impart to us of your soul-profiting conversation. And this they asked of her for two reasons; for one, that they might enjoy her venerable sight and her God-inspired words; and for the other, the imperial command, and that the painter might, in the delay of the conversation, more accurately execute his task, depicting her form. So, having taken the likeness of the holy woman, and having been sent forth with her prayers, they returned to the one who had sent them, announcing to him what things they had seen, and what things they had heard from her. Then also they show her image; and at the same time as the emperor cast his eyes upon it, a certain lightning, leaping forth from her face, flashed terribly about his eyes, and after this made him cry out from fear: Have mercy on me, O God, according to your great mercy; and with much amazement; and he stood speechless a long time, looking at the appearance, and being made to marvel, how it was that very woman whom he had seen in his sleep threatening him.

[79] Μηκέτι γοῦν ἀμφιβάλλων τοῖς ὁράμασιν, ἐξάγει τὸν κατεχόμενον τῆς φυλακῆς, εὐχαριστῶν τῷ θεῷ, ὅτι διεκώλυσεν αὐτῷ τὴν ἄδικον τοῦ ἀνδρὸς ἀναίρεσιν, καὶ τῶν δι᾽ αὐτὴν μελλόντων ἐπενεχθῆναι τούτῳ δεῖν, προφανῶς ἐλυτρώσατο. Γράφει δὲ πρὸς τὴν ὁσίαν ἐπιστολὴν τὸν τύπον ἔχουσαν τοῦτον· Κατὰ τὴν πρόσταξίν σου, θεράπαινα τοῦ Χριστοῦ, τὸν κατεχόμενον, ὡς ἐδήλωσας, ἀθῶον ὄντα, τῆς φυλακῆς, ἰδού, σοι ἀπελύσαμεν, ἐπιγράφοντες δὲ καὶ χάριτας, καθότι διά σου τῆς ἐπηρτημένης δίκης ἡμεῖς ἀπηλλάγημεν, πρὸς τὴν σὴν σεμνοπρέπειαν· ἔδει γὰρ ἡμᾶς πεισθῆναι τῇ κελεύσει σου τῆς σῆς ἀξιωθέντας ἐπιφανείας, καὶ μηδαμῶς ἐνοχλῆσαί σοι. Σύγνωθι τοίνυν μητρικῇ συμπαθείᾳ, καὶ τὸν θεὸν ἵλεον τῇ πολλῇ σου παῤῥησίᾳ χρωμένη ποίησόν μοι. Ἔσται δέ σου γνώριμον τὸ συμπαθὲς, ἐὰν καὶ πρὸς ἡμᾶς οὐκ ἀπαξιώσῃς τὴν παρουσίαν ποιήσασθαι, ἵν᾽ ἐγώ τε καὶ ἡ βασίλισσα τῇ τῶν ἡγιασμένων σου χειρῶν εὐλογηθῶμεν ἐπιθέσει· εἰ δέ σοι τοῦτο μὴ κατὰ γνώμην, ἀλλ᾽ ἡμεῖς τε πάντως ἐλευσόμεθα πρός σε, καὶ δεηθησόμεθα τάχα δευτέραν διὰ ὄχλησιν δευτέρας καὶ συγνώμης. That is: No longer, then, doubting the visions, he brings out the one detained from prison, giving thanks to God, that He had hindered him from the unjust slaying of the man, and had manifestly delivered him from the penalties that were about to be brought upon him on her account. And he writes to the holy woman a letter having this form: According to your command, handmaid of Christ, the one detained, being innocent as you declared, we have, behold, released for you from prison, ascribing thanks also to you, inasmuch as through you we were freed from the impending judgment, to your venerable dignity; for it behooved us to be persuaded by your command, having been counted worthy of your appearing, and by no means to trouble you. Pardon, then, with maternal compassion, and, using your great freedom of speech, make God propitious to me. And your compassion will be made known to us, if you do not disdain to make your presence come also to us, that both I and the empress may be blessed by the imposition of your sanctified hands; but if this be not according to your mind, then we will certainly come to you, and will soon ask a second pardon for a second trouble.

[80] Δεξαμένη δὲ τὰ γράμματα, καὶ τὰ σὺν αὐτοῖς διά τινος τῶν τοῦ κοιτῶνος, αὐτῇ σταλέντα δῶρα βασιλικὰ, χερσὶν ἰδίαις ἀντιγράφει καὶ αὐτὴ τῷ βασιλεῖ· ὁ θεὸς ἀγαθὸς ὢν, βασιλεῦ, πάντοτε συγκαταβαίνειν οἶδε ταῖς ἀσθενίαις ἡμῶν· φιλάνθρωπος γὰρ, καὶ οὐ θελήσει θέλει τὸν θάνατον τοῦ ἁμαρτωλοῦ, ὡς τὸ ἐπιστρέψαι καὶ ζῇν αὐτόν. Σὺ δὲ ἀλλὰ μὴ ἡμῖν, ἀλλὰ ἢ τῷ ὀνόματι αὐτοῦ δὸς δόξαν. Πλὴν οὔτε τὴν βασιλείαν σου πρὸς ἡμᾶς ἐλθεῖν, οὔτε τὴν ἡμετέραν ταπείνωσιν πρός σε, πρέπον ἐστίν· οὐδεμία γάρ ἐστί σοι χρεία γυναίου πενιχροῦ καὶ ἁμαρτωλοῦ· ἔχεις δὲ τοὺς εὐλογοῦντάς σε, ὧν αἱ χεῖρες εἰς τὸ ἁγιάζειν μόνον ἐτάχθησαν, τὸν ἅγιον ἡμῶν πατέρα καὶ πατριάρχην, τοὺς ἀρχιερεῖς τῆς καθολικῆς καὶ ὀρθοδόξου ἐκκλησίας, τοὺς πνευματικοὺς πατέρας τῶν μοναστηρίων, καὶ ἐὰν θέλῃς ἐρωτήσασθαι τὰς παρ᾽ αὐτῶν νουθεσίας, καὶ τὸν θεὸν θεραπεύσεις, καὶ τὴν ἐμπιστευθεῖσάν σοι βασιλείαν εὐσεβῶς καὶ σωφρόνως καὶ δικαίως ἔσῃ κυβερνῶν. Εἰ δὲ τῷ σκοπῷ σου βουληθῇς ἀκολουθῆσαι, εὖ ἴσθι, ὡς οὔτε μεταστειλάμενος, οὔτε μὲν ἐλευσόμενος, ὄψει τὸ παράπαν ἡμᾶς, ἀλλὰ μᾶλλον καὶ τὸν θεὸν παροξυνεῖς· καὶ ἐὰν ἀκούσῃς μου, ἡ δεξιὰ τοῦ ὑψίστου σκεπάσει σε πάντως ἐκ παντὸς πειρασμοῦ. That is: And having received the letter, and the imperial gifts sent to her with it through one of the bedchamber attendants, she also with her own hands writes back to the emperor: God, being good, O emperor, always knows how to condescend to our weaknesses; for He is benevolent, and does not will the death of the sinner, but rather that he should turn and live. But do you give glory not to us, but rather to His name. Yet it is fitting neither for your majesty to come to us, nor for our lowliness to come to you; for you have no need of a poor and sinful little woman; but you have those who bless you, whose hands have been appointed only to sanctify—our holy father and patriarch, the bishops of the catholic and orthodox Church, the spiritual fathers of the monasteries; and if you will ask their admonitions, you will both serve God, and will govern the empire entrusted to you piously and prudently and justly. But if you should wish to follow your own aim, know well that neither by summoning us, nor by coming yourself, will you see us at all, but rather you will provoke God; and if you hearken to me, the right hand of the Most High will altogether shelter you from every temptation.

[81] Ταῦτα γράψασα καὶ σφραγίσασα, καί τινα χάριν εὐλογίας ἀνταπέστειλε τῷ βασιλεῖ· ὃς δὴ καὶ περίλυπος γενόμενος, ὅτι μὴ ταύτην ἀξιοῦται θεάσασθαι, περὶ τούτου μὲν οὐκέτι δεῖν ἔγνω βιάσασθαι. Συνεχέστερον δὲ πέμπων καὶ εὐχῶν αὐτῆς καὶ ῥημάτων ἀφθόνως ἀπήλαυε διὰ τῶν ἐρχομένων, καὶ πολλὴν παρ᾽ αὐτῆς εὑρίσκων ἦν τὴν παράκλησιν. Ὁ μέν τοι διασωθεὶς τοῦ κινδύνου συγγενὴς παρὰ τοὺς πόδας αὐτῆς ῥίψας ἑαυτὸν, εὐχαριστίας τούτους ἔπλυνε δάκρυσι. Διαναστήσασα δὲ τοῦτον, καὶ πολλὰ μὲν εὐχαριστίας πρὸς θεὸν εἰποῦσα ῥήματα, πολλαῖς δὲ τοῦτον στενώσασα παραινέσεσι, καὶ βίου λαβεῖν ἀρχὴν τὸν θεὸν θεραπεύοντος ἐπιτρέψασα. Εἰ μὴ γὰρ διὰ τὰς ἁμαρτίας ἡμῶν φεύγῃ, καὶ τὴν τῶν ἐντολῶν τοῦ χριστοῦ καταφρόνησιν ἐγκαταλειφθῶμεν, οὐκ ἔχει καθ᾽ ἡμῶν ἐπιφέρειν ὁ πονηρὸς ἰσχὺν τοὺς πειρασμοὺς, καὶ ὅτι διὰ τοῦτο καὶ ὁ ποιμὴν καὶ διδάσκαλος καὶ θεὸς γρηγορεῖν ἀεὶ καὶ προσεύχεσθαι, ἵνα μὴ εἰσελθῶμεν εἰς πειρασμοὺς, διεμαρτύρετο, καὶ τοῦτο διαπαντὸς ποιεῖν ἐδίδαξεν. Εὐφροσύνης ἡμέραν καὶ χαρμονῆς τῆς τούτου σωτηρίας τὴν σήμερον ἔκρινε γενέσθαι, καὶ τράπεζαν κοινὴν ἐπέτρεψεν ἑτοιμᾶσθαι, παντοδαποῖς κεκοσμημένην ἀσκητικοῖς ἐδωδήμασι, καὶ τούτῳ σὺν ταῖς ἀδελφαῖς εἰς δόξαν συνειστιάθη θεοῦ. Εἶτα τῇ τε γυναικὶ, καὶ τοῖς τέκνοις, καὶ πᾶσι τοῖς συγγενέσιν, εὐφροσύνης αὐτὸν πλείονος ἀφορμὴν καὶ ἀγαλλιάσεως ἐξαπέστειλεν. Ἀλλ᾽ ἱκανὰ μὲν καὶ ταῦτα παραστήσασθαι τὸν πλοῦτον That is: Having written and sealed these things, she also sent back to the emperor a certain gift of blessing; and he, becoming very sorrowful that he was not counted worthy to behold her, resolved no longer to use force about this. But sending more frequently, he enjoyed abundantly of her prayers and words through those who came, and found much consolation from her. But the kinsman who had been saved from the danger, casting himself at her feet, washed them with tears of thanksgiving. And having raised him up, and having said many words of thanksgiving to God, and having straitened him with many exhortations, and enjoined him to take the beginning of a life serving God. For unless, on account of our sins, He forsake us, and we be abandoned to the contempt of Christ's commandments, the evil one has no power to bring temptations against us; and on this account the Shepherd and Teacher and God testified that we should always watch and pray, that we enter not into temptations, and taught us to do this continually. She judged that this day should be one of gladness and joy for his salvation, and ordered a common table to be prepared, adorned with all kinds of ascetic foods, and with him, together with the sisters, she feasted to the glory of God. Then she sent him away as an occasion of greater gladness and exultation to his wife and children and all his kinsmen. But these things too are enough to set forth the wealth

τῆς ἐν αὐτῇ χάριτος τοῦ θεοῦ. That is: of the grace of God in her.

Let one more of her wonders be added to the narrative, which may afford effective testimony of how near her approach to God, and her intercession, was. A certain kinsman of the holy woman is in peril of his life on a false charge; Certain men, stirred up by envy (of which kind the malignant spirit suggests many things to perpetrate to those who are carried away by present matters), accuse before the emperor ^a the holy woman's near relative, and dear kinsman, honored with the dignity of the illustres ^b, and illustrious in the rest of the splendor which the world holds in esteem. Nor indeed was the calumny a small one. For whatever, they say, traitors are wont to plot, he devises and contrives against your power. But he, not instituting even a slight inquiry of so great and such a matter, ordered the man to be seized, and shut him up in a certain dark prison of the palace, knowing nothing at all of the cause why the emperor was so gravely angry against him. But those who visited the man, when they had heard a rumor spread in the court, that the emperor had it in mind to throw him into the depth of the sea, and that indeed not in the day, but in the night, so that his body might not obtain burial:

[72] And while such a death was known to none of his kinsmen, bidding all farewell, who declares his innocence to the emperor, appearing to him by night they flee to Irene, who is powerful in much grace with God, pouring copious tears from their eyes, and begging her to bring aid, by her gracious prayers, to their kinsman unjustly in peril. But what did she do? Since she was a soul taught in the benignity of God to these things, and knew how rightly to fulfill His law of charity, being affected with very great grief, and gravely groaning and weeping, she ordered them to go away home, and by no means to despond. But let us hope, she said, in the Lord; He will act. And judging that the other things she had in hand should be postponed, the door being shut, she supplicated God earnestly. And so much for Irene: but the emperor, about the middle of the night, seemed to see a vision, not dreams, that St. Irene stood by him, and said such things: Emperor, rising at once, release from prison him whom you have unjustly shut up in it: for the things which have been reported to you against him are not true: but they are lies and calumnies. If you refuse; stirring up against you the King of heaven Himself, I will move both war and slaughter against you, so that your flesh shall lie as food for the beasts of the earth and the birds of heaven;

[73] That he was troubled, and, boiling in mind, answered her: Who and whence are you, and threatening: who dare thus insolently to threaten me such things? And who granted you entrance at such an hour? To whom she: I am Irene, abbess of the monastery of Chrysobalanton. And this she said not once, but even a third time. Finally, pricking his side, she departed. But who will not admire the prodigies of God? For as soon as he, laboring in his side, awoke as in a tumult, he saw her walking before his eyes, departing, and, after she had now reached the doors of the chamber, going out: and he began to cry out, so that no small disturbance was struck into all who had the guard of his person, consternated in mind, lest the emperor should suffer something unexpected. He therefore questioned him who held the first place before the rest among the household attendants ^c, whom they call the paracoemonium ^d: Did you not see the nun, who just now went out of my chamber? He was astonished, and suspected whether the emperor was sufficiently in possession of his mind; and at the same time answered: That he had neither seen nor had any such thing happened.

[74] But, behold, he said, all the gates are shut, and are kept with a most secure guard: but he, having first questioned the accused, but the keys have until now been placed under my bedding, and from no place at all does an approach lie open to your chamber. And the emperor, weighing the matter with himself: Now I know truly, he said, that those things which I beheld were some divine vision. But after it had dawned, he sets before himself the captive, brought out from prison, and thus addresses him: By what incantations have you sent us threats and disturbances in dreams, that by such magic arts it might befall you to accomplish the undertakings which you have plotted against my empire? But he, having nothing to say to these things, only looked to the right and to the left at those standing around, and at last with difficulty answered: I trust by God that I have never had dealings with a magician, nor has my hearing, O emperor, endured to admit such a wickedness, as long as I have lived. But neither did I have in mind any counsel against your empire (let God be my witness).

[75] And the emperor, at first somehow disposed against him, said: Do you know a certain Irene, living in the monastery which is called Chrysobalanton? then, informed of the vision, I know her, he says, emperor: and the monastery is next to the Cistern of Aspar ^e of the sweet waters. And if I now send, said the emperor, shall I find her? Altogether, he answered: for she never goes out of her monastery. So straightway he sent the protovestiarius ^f and some others of the nobles with the accustomed retinue ^g, and likewise ordered a painter to follow them, that, when Irene's face had been expressed by him, it might be brought to him, and I may know, he says, the form seen by me. These things being prescribed, he ordered him, whom he thought guilty, to be sent again to prison. Irene, her prayers being duly and opportunely discharged, having entered the sacristy of the church, also called together all the sisters, and thus spoke: This night it happened to me to see in a dream nobles sent to us by the emperor, and drawing with them so great a crowd of horsemen and footmen, that the places of the monastery could not contain them all. And indeed, if any such thing should happen, be you by no means disturbed: and the Lord will altogether dispose that which will be to our advantage.

[76] But they, seized with fear and dread, rubbing their hands one against another, the truth being demonstrated, passed the time in great grief for that cause. Without delay, there came those who had been sent by the emperor: by whose multitude and magnificence, when they appeared, the doorkeeper, terrified, left the gate of the monastery open, and ran at full speed, to announce the unexpected arrival of the princes. Meanwhile both the interior and exterior places of the monastery were seen full of horses and mules: which at first struck no small consternation of mind into the sisters, especially as they had the holy woman's prediction lately ringing. But seeing that these, who descended from the horses, dealt gently with them, they were freed from fear, but were astonished at their Mistress's foreknowledge. To these nobles, then, the holy woman signifies through the sisters that they should enter the church, there about to see her. There enter, then, not all, but only those who had received the commands from the emperor with their own ears. And, praying, they awaited the coming of the holy woman.

[77] And, clouds obscuring the splendor of the sun, it happened that the air was wrapped in darkness. wonderfully, The holy woman therefore came to them through the oblique (side) gate. And indeed she anticipated them with veneration, and had them venerating her. And looking, they saw a splendor suddenly flashing from her venerable face. And not bearing it, they gave way backward, and fell to the ground; no otherwise than those who had come to seize Christ, her master and bridegroom. After she had therefore filled the whole temple with light, approaching, she stretched out her hands to each, and raised them up, saying: My sons, do not fear: for I too am myself a human being, subject to the same weakness of nature. But why has that incredulous one who sent you given you toil? Tell him therefore again those things which he seemed in a dream to hear from us: Release the man from custody: he has done nothing unjustly, he has plotted nothing against your empire. But if not; the things which have been said to you will altogether come to pass: and the Lord does not delay: because He is near to all who invoke Him in truth.

[78] But they, their former dread not yet perfectly abated, hearing these things, said to her with much fear: being taught, We will announce all to the emperor, as you have commanded us. But we ask that you tarry a little with us, and make us partakers of your conversation which is useful to our souls. And they said this to her for two causes; one indeed, that they might enjoy her venerable sight and her words inspired by God: but the other was the emperor's command; that, the time of conversation being drawn out, the painter might more accurately complete it, depicting her face. And so, the holy woman's likeness being taken, dismissed with her prayers, they returned to him who had sent them, reporting to him what they had seen, and what they had heard from her. Then they also exhibit her image. And as soon as the emperor cast his eyes upon it, a certain flash, suddenly flashing thence, surrounded his eyes with a terrible light, and made him cry out after it, from fear: Have mercy on me, O God, according to your great mercy. And with immense astonishment he stood mute, long contemplating the likeness, and by the miracle made more certain that the image was of the very woman whom he had seen in his dream threatening him.

[79] Therefore, doubting nothing about the apparition, he brings the captive out of prison, he dismisses the innocent man; a letter being given to the holy woman: giving thanks to God, that He had restrained him from the unjust killing of the man, and had openly freed him from those things which were about to come upon him on her account. He likewise gives a letter to the holy woman to this purport: Obeying your commands, Handmaid of Christ, the captive, guilty of no offense, as you indicated, from prison, behold, we have released for you: and indeed we give these thanks to your dignity, because through you we have been freed from the punishment which was impending. For it behooved us to obey your command, we whom you deigned with your apparition, and by no means to trouble you. Therefore, with maternal compassion, forgive, and, interposing the great favor by which you avail with God, render Him propitious to me. Your compassion will be manifest, if you do not disdain to be present before us, that both I and the empress may be blessed by the imposition of your sanctified hands. But if this shall not please you; then we certainly will come to you, soon about to ask a second pardon for a second trouble caused you.

[80] The letter being received, together with the gifts of the emperor, which were sent to her through a certain one who was of his bedchamber, to which she herself writes back, full of humility; she also writes back with her own hand to the emperor: God, who is good, O emperor, always knows how to be indulgent to our infirmities: for He is benign, and altogether does not will the death of the sinner, but that he himself should be converted and live. But do you give glory not to us, but rather to His name. Nor indeed is it fitting that your imperial majesty come to us, nor our lowliness to you. For you have no need at all of a poor and sinful little woman. But you have those who bless you, whose hands alone are ordained to sanctify—our holy father and patriarch; you have the prelates of the catholic and orthodox Church, and the spiritual fathers of the monasteries; and if you will inquire their instructions,

you will both serve God, and will govern the empire committed to you piously, prudently, and justly. But if you shall wish to pursue what you intend, O emperor, know that whether you send someone, or come yourself, you will by no means see us; but rather you will provoke God: but if you hearken to me, the right hand of the Most High will protect you from every temptation whatsoever.

[81] These things being written and sealed, she also sent back to the emperor something by way of blessing: in which she always persisted. Admonitions given to the freed kinsman. who certainly grieved that he had not obtained the honor of seeing her, being well aware that he ought by no means to force her to this. But sending very often to her, he enjoyed abundantly both of her prayers and words through those who came, and found much consolation through her. But that kinsman, who had been freed from the danger, cast himself at her feet; which he also washed with tears of thanksgiving. After she had raised him, and directed many words of thanksgiving to God, and confirmed him with many exhortations, she commended to him to begin a life devoted to God. For unless, on account of our sins, He flee from us, and we be forsaken on account of our contempt of Christ's commandments, the demon has no power to bring temptations against us. And therefore the Shepherd, Master, and God exhorted us always to watch and pray, that we enter not into temptations; and taught us to do this always. Moreover, she decreed that this present day, on which he had obtained his safety, should be held glad and joyful, and ordered a common table to be prepared, furnished with all kinds of ascetic foods, and together with him and with the sisters she reclined to the glory of God. Then she sent him back to his wife, children, and all his kinsmen, about to furnish a cause of greater gladness and exultation. But let these things suffice, said to exhibit the riches of the grace of God which was in her.

ANNOTATIONS.

CHAPTER IX.

Prediction of her own death and that of others; the effects of the miraculous apple; her death; the time of her life; wonders following her death.

[82] Ὁ λόγος δὲ βιάζεται, καὶ ἕτερον σιωπῆς οὐκ ἄξιον οὐκ ἐπικρύψαι. Ἀνήρ τις τῶν συνήθων αὐτῇ καὶ φίλων, Χριστοφόρος ὄνομα αὐτῷ, ὃν διὰ τὴν προσοῦσαν εὐλάβειαν δι᾽ αἰδοῦς εἶχε, καὶ τιμῆς, καὶ γνησίως ὡμίλει τούτῳ, καὶ τὰ πολλὰ θαῤῥοῦσα τῶν αὐτῆς ὑπῆρχεν. Οὗτος ὑγιής τε ὢν, καὶ μηδεμίαν ἔκ τινος ὄχλησιν ὑφορώμενος νόσου τῷ σώματι, ἐπείπερ ὁμιλίας συνήθους ἔτυχεν, ἀπιέναι μέλλων, μετὰ μετάνοιαν, τὴν εὐχὴν, ὡς ἔθος, ᾔτησε παρ᾽ αὐτῆς. Ἡ δὲ πρᾳείᾳ φωνῇ λέγει πρὸς αὐτόν· Ἄπιθι, τέκνον, ὁ θεός ἀναπαύσῃ μετὰ δικαίων τὸ πνεῦμά σου. Ὁ δὲ συνετὸς ὢν ὁ ἀνὴρ, καὶ τὸν νοῦν ὀξύτατος, οὐχ ἁπλῶς εἶναι ῥῆμα τὸ λεχθὲν ὑπείληφεν, ὅθεν καὶ διαταραχθεὶς τὴν ψυχὴν, σύντρομος ἔστη, καὶ κατηφής. Ἰδοῦσα δὲ τοῦτον οὕτως ἔχοντα ἡ ὁσία, ἀνακτᾶσθαι λόγοις ἤρξατο μειλιχίοις· Μὴ θορυβηθῇς, τέκνον, λέγουσα· ἔννοιά μου τὸν νοῦν ἀλλαχοῦ τις εἶχε συντετραμμένον, καὶ προύπεμψεν ἡ γλῶσσά σοι τὴν εὐχὴν οὕτω δι᾽ ἀπροσεξίαν. That is: But the discourse presses on, and I ought not to conceal another thing not worthy of silence. A certain man of her acquaintances and friends, Christopher by name, whom on account of the piety in him she held in reverence and honor, and with whom she conversed sincerely, and, greatly trusting him, he was of her circle. This man, being in health, and suspecting no trouble to his body from any disease, since he had had his accustomed conversation, being about to depart, after the obeisance, asked the prayer, as was the custom, from her. And she with a gentle voice says to him: Go, child, God will give rest to your spirit among the just. And the man, being intelligent, and most acute in mind, understood the thing said not to be a simple word; whence, being greatly disturbed in soul, he stood trembling and downcast. And the holy woman, seeing him thus affected, began to restore him with soothing words: Do not be troubled, child, she said; a certain thought had my mind turned elsewhere, and my tongue thus sent forth the prayer to you through inattention.

[83] Ἀλλ᾽ ἐκεῖνος ἅτε πεπειραμένος αὐτῆς οὐ μετεβάλλετο· ἔνθεν τοι καὶ παρακαθισαμένη τοῦτον πάλιν ὁμιλίας ἀπήρχετο, πρὸς εὐθυμίαν μεταθεῖναι σπουδάζουσα, καὶ προβαίνουσα τοῖς λόγοις παρῄνει τὰ περὶ τῆς βασιλείας τῶν οὐρανῶν, καὶ τὴν ἀπόλαυσιν τῶν αἰωνίων ἀγαθῶν, καὶ τὴν σὺν Χριστῷ ζωὴν τὴν ἀνώλεθρον· πρὸς δὲ κατάνυξιν αὐτὸν καὶ δάκρυα κινήσασα, ὡς ἔγνω τούτου καθεστηκυῖαν ἤδη τὴν ψυχὴν καὶ γαληνιῶσαν, ἀπέλυσεν ἐν εἰρήνῃ. Ἐπεὶ δὲ τὰ οἰκεῖα κατέλαβε, καὶ τροφῆς μετέλαβε περί που τοὺς ἐπιλυχνίους ὕμνους οὐδὲν πλεῖον εἰπὼν, ἀλλ᾽ ἢ τοῦτο μόνον· Τὴν κεφαλήν μου, τὴν κεφαλήν μου, τῇ γῇ καταβληθεὶς ἐξέψυξεν. Ἀλλὰ τοῦτο μὲν οὔπω δῆλον ἦν. Ὡς γοῦν ἐκεῖνος τῇ ὁσίᾳ συνταξάμενος ἀπῄει, μία τῶν ἀδελφῶν, ἐπεὶ καὶ πᾶσα πρὸς τὸν ἄνδρα γνησίως εἶχε, λέγει πρὸς αὐτήν. That is: But he, as one who had had experience of her, was not changed in mind; whence too, having seated him, she again entered upon conversation, striving to move him to good cheer, and, advancing in her words, she exhorted him on the things concerning the kingdom of heaven, and the enjoyment of eternal goods, and the imperishable life with Christ; and having moved him to compunction and tears, when she knew that his soul was now composed and calm, she dismissed him in peace. But when he had reached his own home, and had partaken of food, about the time of the lamp-lighting hymns, saying nothing more, but only this: My head, my head!—being cast to the ground, he expired. But this was not yet manifest. So when he, having taken leave of the holy woman, was going away, one of the sisters, since indeed all had a sincere affection for the man, says to her:

[84] Ἱνατί οὕτως ἀπελογήσω, κυρία μου, τῷ ἡμετέρῳ κατὰ πάντα Χριστοφόρῳ; καὶ ἰδοὺ περίλυπος ἄπεισιν ὁ ἄνθρωπος, καὶ λίαν κατώδυνος τὴν ψυχήν. Ἡ δὲ, ἀπελθὲ, τέκνον, φησι, καὶ οὐχ εὑρήσεις τοῦτον ἐν τοῖς ζῶσιν. οὐδὲ γὰρ ἁπλῶς ἐγὼ τοιοῦτον ἂν ἐξεφώνησα λόγον, ἀλλ᾽ ἐν ὅσῳ διαλεγομένη πρὸς αὐτὸν ἤμην, νεανίαν εἶδον λαμπρὸν τῷ εἴδει καὶ τῇ καταστολῇ τοῦ ἐνδύματος, ὄπισθεν ἑστηκότα τούτου, καὶ δρέπανον ἠκονημένην ὀξέως τῇ δεξιᾷ κατέχοντα, καί τινας συνεστῶτας, καὶ τοὺς χρόνους τῆς ζωῆς αὐτοῦ δακτύλοις ἀριθμοῦντας, καὶ μέχρι τῆς παρούσης ἑσπέρας πρὸς ἀλλήλους τούτων εἶναι τὸ πέρας, τὴν ψῆφον ἐκφέροντας. Ὅμως δ᾽ οὖν τὴν παιδίσκην εὐηθῆ ἂν καλέσατε· καὶ δὴ παραστάσης, πορεύθητι, τέκνον, εἶπε, παρὰ τὸν οἶκον τοῦ φίλου Χριστοφόρου, καὶ τὰ κατ᾽ αὐτὸν ὅπως ἔχει διερωτήσασα, ταχέως ἡμῖν ἀνάγγειλον ἐλθοῦσα. Ὑποστρέψασαν δὲ καὶ ζῶντα τοῦτον εἰποῦσαν οὐχ εὑρηκέναι τὴν παιδίσκην, μαθοῦσαι ἀπηνεώθησαν πᾶσαι αἱ ἀδελφαὶ, καὶ τῷ θεῷ δόξαν ἀνέπεμπον, τῷ τοιαύτης αὐτὰς καταξιώσαντι παιδαγωγοῦ. Ἐξ ἐκείνου τοίνυν, εἴ ποτέ τινι μετὰ τὴν ἐντυχίαν εὐχὴν ἔλεγεν ἐξιόντι, προσεῖχον ἀσφαλῶς· καὶ ᾧ τινι ἂν, ὁ θεὸς, εἶπεν, ἀναπαῦσαί σε, τέκνον, ἀναντιῤῥήτως αὐτὸν παρὰ πόδας ἡ τελευτὴ κατελάμβανε. That is: Why did you thus give such a farewell, my lady, to our Christopher, dear to us in all things? And behold, the man departs very sorrowful, and greatly pained in soul. And she: Go, child, she says, and you will not find him among the living. For I would not simply have uttered such a word, but while I was conversing with him, I saw a young man, bright in appearance and in the arrangement of his garment, standing behind him, and holding in his right hand a sickle sharply whetted, and certain others standing together, and counting the years of his life with their fingers, and casting the vote that the end of these was to be by the present evening. Nevertheless, call the servant-girl simple-minded; and, when she stood by, Go, child, she said, to the house of the friend Christopher, and, having inquired how his affairs are, come quickly and announce to us. And when the girl returned and said that she had not found him alive, all the sisters, learning it, were struck dumb, and sent up glory to God, who had deemed them worthy of such a guide. From that time, then, if ever she said the prayer to anyone departing after the interview, they attended carefully; and to whomever she said, God give you rest, child, without contradiction death overtook him immediately.

[85] Ἐπεὶ δὲ καὶ αὐτὴν ἄνθρωπον οὖσαν ἔδει τὸ κοινὸν ἀποτίσαι χρέος τὸν θάνατον· εἴγε δεῖ θάνατον ἐκείνης ὀνομάζειν, ἀλλὰ μὴ μετάστασιν καὶ τελείαν ἐγγύτητα· μανθάνει καὶ τοῦτο παρὰ τοῦ πνεύματος. Καί πως γὰρ ἂν τὴν οἰκείαν ἠγνόησε τελευτὴν, ἡ καὶ τὰς ἄλλων προλέγουσα; καὶ ἀκούει παρ᾽ αὐτοῦ, ὡς τοὺς ἀξίους ἀκούειν εἰκὸς, λαλοῦντος τοῦ πνεύματος. Παρῆν μὲν οὖν ἕκτη καὶ εἰκοστὴ μηνὸς Ἰουλίου, καθ᾽ ἣν τοῦ τῆς μονῆς ναοῦ, ὃς ἐπ᾽ ὀνόματι τοῦ ἀρχαγγέλου Γαβριὴλ ἵδρυται, τῶν ἐγκαινίων ἐτήσιος μνήμη τελεῖται. Προσευχομένη δὲ λέγει πρὸς αὐτὴν τὸ ἅγιον· Καὶ νῦν μὲν ἐπιτελέσεις, Εἰρήνη, τῶν ἐγκαινίων τὴν ἑορτὴν, καὶ εἰς τὸ ἐπερχόμενον ἔτος· τρίτῃ δὲ τῆς σήμερον ᾆσμα καινὸν ᾄσεις μετ᾽ ἀγγέλων τῷ θρόνῳ παραστᾶσα τῆς θεότητος. Ἐκείνου δὲ τοῦ ἐνιαυτοῦ περαιωθέντος, καὶ τοῦ Ἰουλίου πάλιν ἐπιστάντος μηνὸς, παρ᾽ ὅλην ἑβδομάδα ἡμερῶν ἄσιτος τῇ προσευχῇ προσεκαρτέρει, καὶ τῇ στάσει. Τὴν τῶν ἐγκαινίων δὲ τελέσασα μνήμην, καὶ τῶν θείων μεταλαβοῦσα μυστηρίων, τροφῆς μὲν οὐδεμίας τὸ παράπαν ἑτέρας ἐγεύσατο· τὸ δὲ μῆλον ἐκεῖνο τὸ σεβάσμιον, ὅπερ τὸν ἐπιστήθεον καὶ ἠγαπημένον τῷ Χριστῷ μαθητὴν μεθ᾽ ἑτέρων δύο πρὸς αὐτὴν ἀπεσταλκέναι φυλακτήριον αὐτῇ ὁ λόγος ἀνωτέρω δεδήλωκε· καὶ γὰρ εἶχεν αὐτὸ διαπαντὸς πᾶσαν αὐτῆς ἐξαῖρον ἀθυμίαν, ἅτε τροφὴν ὑπερφυῆ τῷ τῶν ὀσφράντων ἑαυτῆς διακριτικῷ πρὸς εὐπάθειαν προσφέρουσα. That is: But since she too, being human, had to pay the common debt, death; if indeed one ought to name it death in her case, and not rather a departure and a perfect nearness to God; she learns this too from the Spirit. For how could she who foretold the deaths of others have been ignorant of her own? And she hears from Him, as it is fitting for the worthy to hear, the Spirit speaking. Now it was the 26th of the month of July, on which the yearly memory of the dedication (Encaenia) of the monastery's church, which is established in the name of the archangel Gabriel, is performed. And as she prayed, the Holy Spirit says to her: And now indeed you will perform, Irene, the feast of the dedication, even for the coming year; but on the third day from today you will sing a new song with the angels, standing by the throne of the divinity. And when that year was completed, and the month of July again came on, for a whole week of days she persevered fasting in prayer and in standing. And having performed the memory of the dedication, and partaken of the divine mysteries, she tasted no other food at all; but that venerable apple, which—as the discourse indicated above—the disciple who leaned on Christ's breast and was beloved by Christ had sent to her, along with two others, as an amulet; for she had it continually, taking away all her despondency, as offering a supernatural food to the discerning faculty of her sense of smell, unto well-being.

[86] Τοῦτο μόνον μετὰ χαρᾶς ἀνεκλαλήτου φαγοῦσα, καὶ πληρώσασα τῇ διαμασσήσει πᾶσαν τὴν μονὴν ἀσυγκρίτου πάλιν τῆς εὐωδίας, τήν τε τοῦ θείου μεγαλομάρτυρος Παντελεήμονος μνήμην ἑορτάσασα, τῇ ἐπαύριον περὶ τὴν ἐννάτην ἀγωνιᾶν ἐοίκει καὶ ἀδημονεῖν, καὶ εὐχῇ τὴν εὐχὴν συνάπτουσα, πυκνὰ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς εἰς οὐρανοὺς ἀνέτεινε, δάκρυα ποταμηδὸν προχέουσα, καὶ τὸ ὑποκείμενον ἔδαφος καταῤῥαίνουσα, καὶ τὸν αὐτῆς ὅλον διάβροχον τιθεῖσα χιτῶνα, ὥς τε καὶ τὰς ἀδελφὰς διαταραχθείσας τῷ παραδόξῳ τοῦ πράγματος καὶ διαπορουμένας τὸ τολμῆσαι προσελθεῖν, καὶ τὴν αἰτίαν τοῦ τοσούτου κλαυθμοῦ ζητῆσαι μαθεῖν· ἡ δὲ μόλις ποτὲ πρὸς αὐτὰς ἀπεκρίνατο· That is: Having eaten this only, with unspeakable joy, and having again filled the whole monastery by the chewing with an incomparable fragrance, and having celebrated the memory of the divine great-martyr Panteleemon, on the next day about the ninth hour she seemed to be in agony and distress, and, joining prayer to prayer, she frequently lifted her eyes to the heavens, pouring forth tears like a river, and sprinkling the pavement beneath her, and making her whole tunic drenched, so that the sisters too, disturbed by the strangeness of the thing and at a loss whether to dare to approach, sought to learn the cause of so great a weeping; and she at last with difficulty answered them:

[87] Σήμερον, τέκνα μου, τοῦ παρόντος ἀπάρασα βίου, πρὸς ἕτερον ἄπειμι κόσμον αἰώνιον· καὶ οὐκέτι μου τὸ πρόσωπον ὄψεσθε· ἰδοὺ γὰρ ἡ ὥρα τῆς ἐμῆς ἐφέστηκεν ἀναλύσεως· ἕξετε δὲ τὴν κυρὰν Μαρίαν ἀντ᾽ ἐμοῦ εἰς μητέρα πνευματικήν· τοῦτο γὰρ καὶ θεὸς ἄνωθεν εὐδοκεῖ· καὶ καλῶς ὑμῖν αὕτη προστήσεται. Σπουδάσατε διὰ τῆς στενῆς ὁδοῦ καὶ τεθλιμμένης εἰς τὸ πλάτος τῆς αἰωνίου καταντῆσαι ζωῆς· μισήσατε τὸν κόσμον καὶ τὰ ἐν κόσμῳ· ματαιότης γὰρ ματαιοτήτων τὰ πάντα ματαιότης· μισήσατε τὰς ψυχὰς ὑμῶν, ὅπως ταύτας κερδήσητε ἀντιπίπτουσαι τῷ θελήματι τούτων, καὶ ἀγαπῶσαι τοῦ θεοῦ μόνον θέλημα. Οὐδεὶς γὰρ ἡμῖν ἐπὶ τοῦ φοβεροῦ κριτηρίου προστήσεται κρινομέναις; ἀλλὰ γυμναῖς ἀνιστάμεναι τοῖς σώμασι, καὶ μηδένα τῶν συγγενῶν ἢ φίλων εὑρίσκουσαι βοηθόν; ποταπῇ διακεισόμεθα τῇ διαθέσει, ἀναλογίσασθε. Μόνος γὰρ εὑρίσκεται τότε δυνάμενος ἡμᾶς τῆς καταδίκης ἀπολῦσαι, Χριστὸς ὁ κρίνων, ὁ καὶ προλέγων ταῦτα, καὶ πολλὰ παρακαλῶν ἡμᾶς νῦν καὶ καταφρονούμενος. That is: Today, my children, departing from the present life, I go away to another eternal world; and you will no longer see my face; for behold, the hour of my dissolution is at hand; but you will have the lady Maria in my stead as spiritual mother; for this too God approves from on high; and she will preside over you well. Strive, through the narrow and afflicted way, to attain to the breadth of eternal life; hate the world and the things in the world; for vanity of vanities, all is vanity; hate your souls, that you may gain them, resisting the will of these, and loving only the will of God. For who will stand up for us, when we are being judged at the fearful tribunal? But, rising with naked bodies, and finding none of our kinsmen or friends a helper; consider in what disposition we shall be. For the only one found then able to release us from the condemnation is Christ, the Judge, who both foretells these things, and much exhorts us now, and is despised.

[88] Τοιαύτας καὶ τελευταίας ποιησαμένη τὰς παραινέσεις, ὄμματα καὶ χεῖρας εἰς οὐρανὸν διάρασα· Κύριέ μου καὶ θεὲ, εἶπεν, Ἰησοῦ Χριστε, υἱὲ τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦ ζῶντος, ὁ ποιμὴν ὁ καλὸς, ὁ δοὺς ἑαυτὸν ἀντίλυτρον τῶν ψυχῶν ἡμῶν· εἰς χεῖράς σου παρατίθημι τὸ τοσοῦτο μικρὸν ποίμνιον. Τήρησον αὐτὸ ἐν τῷ ὀνόματί σου· σκέπασον αὐτὸ τῇ σκέπῃ τῶν πτερύγων σου, καὶ διατήρησον ἀπὸ τῶν ἐμπειριῶν τοῦ πονηροῦ· ὅτι σὺ εἶ μόνος ὁ ἐλεῶν καὶ σώζων, καί σοῦ ἐστιν ἡ ἐξουσία, καί σοῦ ἐστιν ἡ δύναμις. Σὺ γὰρ εἶ ὁ γενόμενος ἡμῖν δικαιοσύνη καὶ ἁγιασμὸς καὶ ἀπολύτρωσις· καί σοι εὐχαριστοῦμεν, καί σε δοξολογοῦμεν εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας, ἀμήν. Καὶ ταῦτα εὐξαμένη ἐκάθισε, καὶ ἤρξατο μειδιᾶν, οἷα δὴ τῶν μελλόντων αὐτὴν ἀγαθῶν διαδέξασθαι πολλῶν ἐν συναισθήσει γενομένη· καὶ τοὺς ἀπάξοντας αὐτὴν ἀγγέλους φωτοειδεῖς ὁρῶσα, καὶ ἡδομένη, οἷς δὴ πάντως καὶ φιλικῶς προσωμίλει συνεχέστατα. Καὶ παραυτίκα τὸ πρόσωπον αὐτῆς ἔλαμψεν ὡς ὁ ἥλιος. Ὥσπερ δὲ μεταλαβεῖν ὕπνου δόξασα, μικρὸν τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς καλυψαμένη, τὴν ἱερὰν αὐτῆς ψυχὴν ἀπέδοτο τῷ θεῷ. That is: Having made such and final exhortations, lifting her eyes and hands to heaven: My Lord and God, she said, Jesus Christ, Son of the living God, the good Shepherd, who gave Himself a ransom for our souls; into your hands I commit this so small flock. Keep it in your name; shelter it with the shelter of your wings, and preserve it from the assaults of the evil one; for you alone are He who has mercy and saves, and yours is the authority, and yours is the power. For you are He who became for us righteousness and sanctification and redemption; and to you we give thanks, and you we glorify unto the ages, amen. And having prayed these things, she sat down, and began to smile, as one who had come into the perception of the many goods about to succeed her; and seeing the luminous angels who were to lead her away, and being delighted, with whom indeed she conversed continually and in a friendly manner. And at once her face shone like the sun. And, as though she had taken sleep, having covered her eyes a little, she gave up her sacred soul to God.

[89] Καὶ εὐθέως θροῦς διηγείρετο, καὶ θρῆνος καὶ κλαυθμὸς καὶ ὀδυρμὸς πολὺς ταῖς κατὰ πνεῦμα θυγατράσιν αὐτῆς διηχεῖτο, καὶ συναποθανεῖν, εἰ δυνατὸν, ἐθελούσαις αὐτῇ· τὴν γὰρ ταύτης στέρησιν οὐ φορητὴν ὅλως ἐνόμιζον. Διαδοθείσης δὲ πανταχοῦ τῆς τελευτῆς ἐν ἀκαριαίᾳ ῥοπῇ, πᾶσα συνέῤῥεον πρὸς τὴν μονὴν ἡ πόλις σχεδὸν, ὡς μηδὲ τὰ πρὸς τὴν θύραν χωρεῖν βιαζόμενα ταῖς εἰσόδοις τῆς πληθύος· τῶν ποταμῶν γὰρ εἰκάσετο ῥεύματα. Ἀλλ᾽ οὐδὲ τὰς τῶν συγκλητικῶν γυναῖκας ἅμα καὶ θυγατέρας ἀπολιμπανομένας ἦν ὁρᾶν τῆς συνελεύσεως. Καὶ αὐταὶ γὰρ πᾶσαν αἰδὼ παρωσάμεναι πρὸς τὸ τῆς That is: And immediately a stir arose, and a lament and weeping and much wailing resounded among her spiritual daughters, willing to die with her, if possible; for they thought the loss of her not at all bearable. And, the death being spread abroad everywhere in a moment's turn, almost the whole city flowed together to the monastery, so that the crowds pressing at the door could not be contained by the entrances; for it was like the streams of rivers. But neither could the wives, together with the daughters, of the senators be seen absenting themselves from the assembly. For they too, having put aside all shame, pressed toward the

ὁσίας ἔνθεον λείψανον ἀγιασμὸν ἀρύσασθαι σπεύδουσαι· αἱ μὲν τῇ προσψαύσει, αἱ δὲ καὶ μόνῃ τῇ ὁράσει, ὅσαις μὴ τῆς ἁφῆς ἡ τοῦ πλήθους παρεχώρει φορά. Ὀψὲ δὲ τῆς νυκτὸς μόγις ὁ ὄχλος μετρίαν ἐδίδου τὴν ἄδειαν τὰ πρὸς τὴν κηδείαν τοῦ ἱεροῦ σώματος ἐκείνου ταῖς μοναζούσαις ἑτοιμάσασθαι. Ανῆπτον δὲ λαμπάδας καὶ κηροὺς καὶ μαλιστα ὅσοι τῆς συγκλήτου συνεληλύθασιν, ὑπὲρ ἀριθμὸν, καὶ μεγαλοπρεπέστατα μύρατε, καὶ θυμιάματα τῶν εὐωδεστάτων, καὶ πολυτίμων ὑπὲρ μέτρον ἀφειδῶς ἀνηλίσκετο. That is: they hastened to draw sanctification from the holy woman's divinely inspired relic; some by touch, others by sight alone—those to whom the surging of the multitude did not yield the opportunity of touch. And late in the night the crowd scarcely granted the nuns a modest freedom to prepare what was needful for the burial of that sacred body. And they lit torches and tapers—those especially who had come together from the senatorial order—beyond number; and most magnificent ointments and the most fragrant kinds of incense, and precious ones, were lavishly consumed beyond measure.

[90] Ἀλλ᾽ οὐκ ἦν ἄρα ταῦτα τῆς ἐκ τοῦ χρωτὸς αὐτῆς ἀναδιδομένης εὐωδίας ἀντισχεῖν, καίπερ ὄντα πολλά· κεραννύμενα δέ πως αὐτῇ, παράδοξόν τινα καὶ τί γὰρ ἕτερον ἢ θείαν τὴν ὀσμὴν ἀπετέλουν; Τιμήσαντες δὲ τὸ παρθένιον καὶ ἁγιασμῷ τετιμημένον ἐκεῖνο σῶμα, καὶ ὕμνοις καὶ ὠδαῖς πνευματικαῖς τὸν ἐνοικήσαντα ἐν αὐτῷ, καὶ ἐμπεριπατήσαντα μεγαλύνοντες θεὸν, τότε μὲν ἐν γλωσσοκόμῳ συνέστειλαν· μετ᾽ ὀλίγου δὲ τάφον καινὸν εὐπρεπίσαντες, ἐν εὐκτηρίῳ τοῦ χριστομάρτυρος Θεοδώρου τῷ τῆς μονῆς συνημμένῳ ναῷ ἐντίμως κατέθεντο, τὴν ὁμοίαν ἢ καὶ πολλῷ θαυμασιωτέραν ἀναπέμπον εὐωδίαν, καὶ ψαλμωδίαις πάλιν καὶ φωταψίαις ταύτην καταξιοῦντες, τὸ μυστήριον ἐχαρακτήριζον τῆς ἐν οὐρανοῖς ἀποκειμένης αὐτῇ φωταγωγίας καὶ δόξης ἀνεκφράστου. That is: But these, though they were many, could not by any means overpower the fragrance that her body breathed forth; and being somehow mingled with it, what else did they produce than a certain marvelous and divine odor? So when they had honored that virginal body, honored also with sanctification, magnifying with hymns and spiritual songs the God who had dwelt within it and walked in it, then for the time they laid it in a coffin; but a little afterward, having adorned a new tomb, they reverently deposited it in the oratory of the martyr of Christ Theodore, adjoining the sacred church of the monastery, the body sending forth a like—nay, a far more wonderful—fragrance; and honoring it again with psalmody and with the kindling of lights, they signified the mystery of the illumination laid up for her in the heavens, and of the ineffable glory.

[91] Λέγεται δὲ τὸν τῆς ζωῆς αὐτῆς χρόνον εἰς ἑκατὸν, τριῶν δεόντων, ἔτη παρεκταθῆναι, καὶ γνώρισμα γήρους ὁρᾶσθαι μηδὲν διὰ τὸ τῆς παρθενίας ἄνθος τὸ ἀμάραντον. Ὁ μέν τοι συγγενὴς ἐκεῖνος, ὃν ἐῤῥύσατο τῶν βασιλικῶν ἡ Μακαριωτάτη χειρῶν, οὐ διέλιπεν ἐν παντὶ τῷ τῆς ζωῆς αὐτοῦ χρόνῳ συνεχῶς ἐπὶ τὸν τάφον παραγενόμενος. τὴν μνήνην αὐτῆς ἐπιτελῶν λαμπρότατά τε καὶ πολυτελέστατα, καὶ τὴν εὐχαριστίαν οὕτως ἀποδιδοὺς ἀδιαλείπτως καὶ μεταστάσῃ. Καὶ νῦν ἐστιν ἡ τιμία ταύτης σορὸς πάσης ὠφελείας πηγή· καὶ πᾶς τις προτρέχων αὐτῇ, καὶ ὧν ἂν δέοιτο, τὴν θεραπείαν ἐπιζητῶν, ἑτοιμοτάτην εὑρίσκει καὶ πρόσφορον. Καὶ μάλιστα οἱ τοῖς ἀγαπήσασι κακίαν ὑπὲρ ἀγαθοσύνην, καὶ ἀδικίαν ὑπὲρ τὸ λαλῆσαι δικαιοσύνην, εἰς δικαστήρια ἕλκονται, οἷς ἥττημα ἐστιν ὅλως, κατὰ τὸν θεῖον Ἀπόστολον, ὅτι κρίματα ἔχουσι. Φεῦ γὰρ, ὅτι ἀδελφὸς μετὰ ἀδελφοῦ κρίνεται. That is: It is said that the time of her life was extended to a hundred years, save three, and that no sign of old age was seen in her, because of the unfading flower of her virginity. Moreover that kinsman, whom the most blessed woman had rescued from the hands of the emperor, did not cease throughout all the time of his life continually to come to the tomb, keeping her memory most splendidly and sumptuously, and thus rendering thanksgiving without ceasing even to her who had departed. And now her precious coffer is a fountain of every benefit; and everyone who runs to it, whatever he may need, seeking healing, finds it most ready and suitable. And especially those who are dragged into the courts by those who have loved malice above goodness, and iniquity above speaking justice—among whom it is altogether a fault, according to the divine Apostle, that they have lawsuits. For alas, that brother goes to law with brother.

[92] Καὶ διατί οὐχὶ μᾶλλον ἀποστερεῖσθέ, φησιν, ἀλλὰ ὑμεῖς ἀδικεῖτε καὶ ἀποστερεῖτε, καὶ ταῦτα ἀδελφούς. Ἢ οὐκ οἴδατε ὅτι ἄδικοι βασιλείαν θεοῦ οὐ κληρονομήσουσι, Καὶ αὖ πάλιν ἐκεῖνος Οἷς ὁ ἥλιος παροργιζομένοις ἐπιδύεται. Τῆς γὰρ ὑπερεχούσης πάντα νοῦν εἰρήνης ἐπώνυμος γενομένη· καὶ τελείαν εἴληφε τοῦ εἰρηνεύειν τὴν χάριν παρ᾽ αὐτῆς. Χριστὸς γάρ ἐστιν ἡ εἰρήνη ἡμῶν, καταλλάξας ἡμᾶς ἑαυτῷ διὰ τοῦ σταυροῦ πολεμωθέντας διὰ τῆς ἁμαρτίας. Ἀῤῥήτῳ γὰρ καὶ θείᾳ δυνάμει δίδουσιν ἀλλήλοις καὶ ὑπὲρ λόγον καταλλάττεσθαι τοῖς οὐ χθὲς καὶ σήμερον καὶ πρὸ ἐκείνης μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐπὶ μακρὸν ἠγριωμένοις καὶ τεθηριωμένοις, καὶ μηδ᾽ ἀκοῇ τὰς κλήσεις θάτερον ἀνεχομένοις ἐνωτίζεσθαι θατέρου· καὶ τοῦτο χαρίζεται τῷ πίστει προσερχομένῳ, καὶ τῆς ἀγάπης ἀνακαλουμένῳ τὸν οὗ πρὸς καιρὸν παρέκλινε θεσμὸν ἐπηρεασθείς. Ἀγγέλων γάρ, φησι, τὸ μὴ ἁμαρτάνειν· τῇ ἀνθρώπων δὲ συνέσει τετιμημένων τὸ ἁμαρτάνοντας μεταμελέσθαι. Καὶ εἴη μέν γε τὸν τῆς ἀγάπης τηροῦντες νόμον ταῖς αὐτῆς μεσιτείαις, ὥστε γινώσκεσθαι πᾶσιν ἡμᾶς ἀπ᾽ αὐτῆς μαθητὰς τοῦ Χριστοῦ· ᾧ πρέπει πᾶσα δόξα, τιμὴ καὶ προσκύνησις σὺν τῷ πατρὶ, καὶ τῷ ἁγίῳ πνεύματι, τῇ μιᾷ θεότητι καὶ βασιλείᾳ νὺν καὶ ἀεὶ καὶ εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. Ἀμήν. That is: And why do you not rather suffer yourselves to be defrauded, he says? But you yourselves do wrong and defraud, and that to your brethren. Or do you not know that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? And again that same one: those upon whose wrath the sun goes down. For she, having taken her name from the peace which surpasses all understanding, obtained from it also the perfect grace of making peace. For Christ is our peace, who reconciled us to Himself through the cross when we had been made enemies through sin. For by an unspeakable and divine power she grants that those be brought back into favor with one another, beyond what can be told—not only those who but yesterday and today and the day before that had been at variance, but even those who had been embittered and made savage for a long time, and could not endure even to hear each other's names in their ears: and this she bestows on him who approaches in faith, and is recalled to the law of love, from which he had for a time swerved when he had been wronged. For it belongs to angels, he says, not to sin; but to men, honored with understanding, to repent when they sin. And may we keep the law of love through her mediations, so that all may know us from her to be disciples of Christ; to whom belong all glory, honor, and adoration, together with the Father and the Holy Spirit, the one Godhead and kingdom, now and always and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

[82] To a certain man, a friend of his But now the discourse is compelled to make manifest another thing which cannot be passed over in silence. There was a certain man among her intimates and friends (his name was Christopher), whom, on account of the piety with which he was endowed, she held in reverence and honor, and with whom she conversed candidly, and to whom she confided very many things that pertained to her. When he was in good health, and suspected no illness from any disease, having enjoyed his customary conversation as he was, and now about to depart, after a deep bow of the body he asked of her, according to custom, that she would pray well for him. But she with a soothing voice said: Go, son: may God make your spirit to rest with the just. But he, being a man of understanding and most keen of mind, suspected that this word which had been spoken was not for nothing; whence, disturbed in mind, he trembled and fell silent. The holy woman, seeing him thus affected, began to revive him with sweet speech: Do not be troubled, she said, son: a certain thought had held my mind turned elsewhere, and so through inadvertence my tongue attended you with this wish.

[83] She foretells his death But he, taught by experience concerning her, could by no means be moved from his opinion. Whence, when he had been bidden to sit beside her, she began to converse with him again, striving to dispose him to be of good cheer; and continuing to speak, she set forth a discourse concerning the kingdom of heaven, the fruition of eternal goods, and the immortal life with Christ. But after she had moved him to compunction and tears, when she knew that his mind was now settled and at peace, she dismissed him in peace. Having gone home, he took food, and about the time of the lamp-lighting hymns, ^a having said nothing more than this alone, "My head, my head!," he expired, stretched out upon the ground. But this was by no means known. Scarcely, then, had he departed with Irene's kindly leave, when one of the sisters, since she was altogether sincerely affected toward the man, thus addressed her:

[84] Why did you thus excuse yourself, my lady, to Christopher, who is wholly ours? known by an apparition; And behold, the man went away sad, and greatly grieving in mind. But she said: Go, daughter, and you will not find him among the living. For I did not utter this word rashly; but at the time when I was conversing with him, I saw a young man, splendid in appearance and in garment, who stood behind him, and held in his right hand a very sharp sickle; and some standing together who were numbering the times of his life with their fingers; and by mutual agreement among themselves they declared that the limit of these was even to the present evening. Presently, then, they called the simple serving-maid; and when she was at hand, she said: Go, daughter, to the house of the friend Christopher, and having inquired in what state his affairs are, come at once and report it to us. When they heard that the serving-maid had returned and said that she had not found him alive, all the sisters were astounded, and gave glory to God, who had deemed them worthy of such a teacher. From that time, therefore, if she prayed well for anyone going out after a meeting, they attended carefully; and to whomever she said, "May God make you to rest, son," without contradiction death at once came upon him.

[85] she learns her own death also from God, But since it behooved her too, inasmuch as she was human, to pay the common debt of death (if indeed hers is to be called death, and not rather a passing over and a perfect drawing near to God), she learns this very thing from the Spirit; (And how should she have been ignorant of her own death, who foretold the death of others?) and she hears from Him, as it is fitting for those who are worthy to hear, the Spirit speaking. There was, then, at hand the twenty-sixth day of the month of July, on which the yearly memory of the dedication of the sacred building of the monastery, built in the name of the archangel Gabriel, is celebrated ^b. And as she was praying, the Holy Spirit said to her: And now indeed, Irene, you shall celebrate the festal light of the dedication, and also in the following year: but on the third day after today you shall sing a new song with the angels, standing by the throne of the divinity. And when that year had passed, and the month of July again grew light, for seven whole days she gave herself to prayer, fasting, and to standing. After she had celebrated the memory of the dedication, and had been made a partaker of the divine mysteries, she tasted no other food at all. But that venerable apple (which the disciple who leaned upon Christ's breast and was beloved by Him had sent to her, along with two others, that it might be an antidote for her, as we said above; for she always used it, because it took away every illness from her, bringing, as a supernatural nourishment, by the incomparable fragrance of its odors, that she might rightly endure)—

[86] and having used the miraculous apple, that alone, I say, when she had eaten it with ineffable joy, and by the eating had again filled the whole monastery with an incomparable fragrance, and had celebrated the memory of the divine great-martyr Panteleemon, ^c on the next day about the ninth hour she seemed to be at the point of death and failing; and joining prayers to prayers, she frequently lifted her eyes to the heavens, pouring forth floods of tears, and drenching the pavement beneath her, and soaking her whole garment; so that the sisters, disturbed by the strangeness of the matter, and doubtful in mind whether they dared to approach her, sought to learn the cause of so great a lamentation. But she at last with difficulty answered them:

[87] and having consoled her subjects and exhorted them to virtue, Today, my daughters, departing from the present life, I go away to another world, and that an eternal one; and you shall no longer see my face. For behold, the time of my dissolution is at hand: but you shall have the lady Maria in my place as spiritual mother; for this is well-pleasing to God from on high: for she will defend you well. Take pains that through the narrow and strait way you may come to the breadth of eternal life: hate the world, and all things that are in the world; for it is vanity of vanities, [and] all is vanity: hate your own souls, that you may gain them; resisting their will, and loving the will of God alone: for no one will defend us when we are to be judged in the dread judgment; but rising again with naked bodies, and finding none of our kinsmen or friends a helper, consider with what varied emotion we shall be tossed about. For then alone will there be found One who can free us from condemnation, Christ the Judge, who also foretells these things, and admonishes us of many things now, even while He is despised.

[88] She commends herself to God, and peacefully expires. Having used such final exhortations, with her eyes and hands lifted up to heaven, she said: My Lord and God, Jesus Christ, Son of the living God; who art the good shepherd; who gavest Thyself as a redemption for our souls; into Thy hands I deliver this little flock: keep it in Thy name: cover it under the veil of Thy wings, and preserve it from the craft of the malignant spirit: for Thou alone art merciful and Savior, and Thine is the power, and Thine is the might. For Thou art He who hast become for us righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: to Thee we give thanks, and Thee we glorify unto the ages. Amen. When she had prayed these things, she sat down, and began to smile; as one who foresensed that she was to be heaped with many future goods, and saw the shining angels who were to lead her away, and delighted herself with them, with whom she had wholly and most frequently conversed in friendly fashion. And immediately her countenance shone

like the sun. And, not otherwise than as if she seemed to take sleep, with her eyes somewhat closed, she delivered her sacred soul to God.

[89] A very great concourse to her, And soon a tumult was stirred up; and lamentation, weeping, and much mourning resounded among her spiritual daughters, who were willing, if it could be done, to die together with her: for they thought it altogether intolerable to be deprived of her. And so, this death having been spread abroad in every direction in a single moment of time, almost the whole city flowed together to the monastery, so that entrance did not lie open to the multitude that was forcing its way at the gate: for they were like the flowing of rivers. But the women, together with the daughters, of the senatorial order too could be seen not failing to come near: for, forgetful of their own condition, they hastened to draw sanctification at the body of the Saint, breathed upon by God; these indeed by touch, but those by sight alone—to whom in any case the tumult of the crowds did not permit touch. Scarcely at last, in the dead of night, did the tumult grant to the nuns so much security as to prepare what things were fit for performing the funeral rites for that sacred body. And they lit lamps and tapers—these especially who had assembled from the senatorial order—beyond number; and most magnificent ointments and most fragrant incenses were lavishly consumed beyond measure.

[90] But these, although they were many, could not obscure the fragrance which her body breathed; and when these were mingled with it, what else did they produce than a certain marvelous, indeed a divine, fragrance? the fragrance of the body; the sepulcher; After, then, they had honored that virginal body, honored also with sanctification, magnifying with hymns and spiritual songs the God who had inhabited it and walked within it, they then enclosed it in a coffin; but a little afterward, having adorned a new sepulcher, they honorably deposited it in the oratory of the martyr of Christ Theodore, adjoining the sacred building of the monastery, the body emitting a like—nay, a far more wonderful—fragrance: and while again with the singing of psalms and the kindling of light they honored it, they expressed the mystery of the illumination with which she is affected in heaven, and of the ineffable glory.

[91] It is reported, moreover, that the time of her life was extended even to a hundred years, save three; and that she saw in herself no sign of old age, on account of the unfading flower of her virginity. the time of her life, the miracles wrought after her death, But indeed that kinsman, whom the most blessed Irene had freed from the hands of the emperor, coming assiduously to the sepulcher throughout all the time of his life, did not neglect to complete her monument with the utmost splendor and magnificence; thus rendering thanks to her unceasingly, even after she had departed from life. And now indeed her precious coffin is a fountain of all good things: and whoever runs to it, in whatever he may finally be in need, seeking health, finds it most ready and salutary: these especially, who are dragged to the tribunals by those who love malice above kindness, and iniquity more than to speak equity: among whom it is altogether a fault, according to the divine Apostle, that they have lawsuits. For woe, because brother contends at law with brother.

[92] And why, he says, do you not rather suffer wrong? But you do injury and defraud, the grace of reconciling those at variance. and this to brethren. Do you not know that the unrighteous shall not possess the kingdom of God? And again that same one: those upon whose wrath the sun goes down. For the Saint, bearing her name from the peace which surpasses every understanding, obtained from it also the perfect grace of reconciling peace: for Christ is our peace, who reconciled us to Himself through the cross, when we had been made enemies by sin. For by a hidden and divine power He grants that both sides be brought back into favor, beyond what can be said—not only those who but yesterday and today and the day before that were at odds, but that even those also who, embittered and made savage over a long time, could not bear to receive in their ears even the names of one another. And this He grants to him who approaches with faith, and is recalled to the law of charity, from which he had for a time turned aside, when he had been affected by injury. For it belongs to angels, he says, not to sin; but to men endowed with understanding, to repent when they sin. May God grant that we keep the law of charity by the intercessions of the Saint, that all may know us through her to be disciples of Christ: to whom belongs all glory, honor, and adoration; whose, together with the Father and the Holy Spirit, is one Godhead and dominion, now and always, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

ANNOTATIONS.