The Book of Governors (chapters 25. Of the wonderful deed which the blessed mâr cyriacus wrought in the city of bâlâdh, and of the end of his life–12. The History of the Blessed Mâr Narsai (Narses), Bishop of the City of Shennâ)

The Book of Governors

continued

Chapter 25. Of the wonderful deed which the blessed mâr cyriacus wrought in the city of bâlâdh, and of the end of his life

1 Now since I have been in the habit of making enquiries concerning every thing which relates to this blessed man with great eagerness and desire, for stories about him are sweet and pleasant to me, one year when I went on certain business which called me to the city of Bâlâdh, I asked about his holy grave, and I was blessed by it. And I went out to the porch before the great temple of the church, and I found there a very old priest, whose name was Nekhwâr, and with whom I was acquainted when I was the secretary of the holy Mâr Abraham the Catholicus in the royal city, and I asked that old man to relate to me any miracles or mighty deeds which the blessed Mâr Cyriacus had wrought. And having told me of the many cures [which he had made] and of the devils which he had driven out from multitudes of men, he also told me the following:—"In the days of Mâr Cyriacus there was in this City a Bishop of the followers of Severus [of Antioch], and much friendship existed between him and our Bishop Cyriacus; and after the death of Mâr Cyriacus that Bishop related to me as follows:—'One day I had risen up early in the morning, and I had come from my cell to this your church to go in and to enjoy myself with the sight and conversation of the holy man your Bishop Cyriacus.

2 And while I was speaking in the porch and was not yet inside the church, behold the blessed man himself came down, and when he saw me he answered and said to me, Why art thou standing here, master? And I said to him, I have come to see thee, and to be blessed by thy holiness. He said to me, Blessed be thy coming! If thou hadst come to me before I came out, I would have gone nowhere; but since we two have met outside, come with me, and let us go together to pray in the Monastery of Rabban Pithion; and,' he continued, 'he took hold of my right hand with his left, and thus he and I singing a psalm went outside the city, and entered into that monastery. And when we had prayed, and he was still holding me by my hand, the two of us went down to the Tigris, and he answered joyfully, and said to me, Come now, let us cross over and pray in the Monastery of the holy Rabban Joseph, because his shrine is very dear to me and because he is from my own monastery and because I have not yet seen his monastery. I said to him, If thou hadst this intention in thy mind why did we not cross over at the ferry instead of troubling ourselves to come down to this [place]?

3 And he looked at me smiling, and said, Hast thou any doubt that, by the power of God, we can cross over on a wooden boat only? Now shalt thou see the power of Christ our Lord. And he made the sign of the Cross upon the face of the water, and another upon his own face, and another upon mine, and we turned to cross over. And while I was afraid lest peradventure the waters would let us drop through them, I perceived that they were becoming solid under my feet as if they were ice-bound, and thus we crossed over the Tigris and went into that monastery. And when we had come forth from there and he had dismissed the brethren who had come forth in honour of us, and they had returned to their cells, we remained for a little time on the bank of the river; now he did this that the monks might go away to a distance and not be able to see him. And again he answered and said to me, Let us cross over the river [to the place] exactly opposite to us, and let us go and pray in the monas-

4 (i. e., puthion), on the left bank of the river, about a farsah below Eski-Môṣul. See Hoffmann, Auszüge, p. 211. 5 tery of Rabban Aaron, and afterwards we will go into the city. And I said to him, Do as it pleaseth thy holiness. And he made the sign of the Cross upon the waters in front of us, and holding me by the hand he led me over the river, and we went into the monastery and prayed, and we went forth from there and came to the cell of the holy man. Now these things which that holy old man related to me, 'Uthmân, a believer of the confession of Jacob, who was surnamed Bar-Khusrau, confirmed to us. And Rabban George, the head of our monastery told me, saying, "One year I went into the city of Môşul about the taxes, and I went to the house of this believing man Uthmân bar-Khusrau, that I might obtain some assistance from him by his speaking for me a good word to the government, and I found him reading in the book Huppâkh Hushshâbhê, of our holy Mâr Îshô'-yahbh of Adiabene. And when I had sat down he said to me, 'I love your monastery of Bêth Abhê for two reasons; firstly, because of this teacher Îshô'-yahbh the Catholicus, who is in very truth a great teacher and debater, and [who] standeth firmly in the strength of his demonstrations against the confession of the duality of the Natures in one Person, which those who follow the Council of Chalcedon wickedly declare, and I meditate upon his composition continually;

6 and secondly, because of this story which our Bishop who was in Bâlâdh in the days of Cyriacus, Bishop of that city, who came from your monastery, and was surnamed 'Gêbhîltâyâ,' related to me.' Now he told me this history which I heard from our priests in the city of Bâlâdh, and we must be well aware that the testimony of adversaries is more exact and more to be believed [than our own], inasmuch as in such matters they have a habit of concealing certain facts, and concerning some certain and well attested deeds, which have been wrought by our holy men, they deliberately lie. Now when the celebration of the Fast of the Apostles drew near, the holy Bishop Mâr Cyriacus died on the Friday evening of the commemoration of the [twelve] Apostles, with a name filled with glory, and a remembrance for good, and was buried in honour with the holy Bishops who had died before him in that city; may his prayers be for the whole world, and for the Catholic Church, and may mercy be shewn to us in the Hall of Judgment, Amen.

7 Here endeth the Fourth Book.

Book V — Chapter 1. Of Rabban Mâr Shūbhīl-Īshō

1 O our brother [ʿAbhd-Īshō], let also this discourse, which is the fifth of the books of this our history, be received upon the table of the hearing of thy understanding, for by the glorious entreaty of thy electness my feeble tongue hath run, and will further run, upon the excellent matters of the histories of holy men, those athletes of might and warriors of strength, who did battle with the body and the passions thereof and with rebellious devils, and who bound on the crown of victory and overcame, and were crowned in the spiritual contest of their lives which pleased God. And we will place at the beginning of all those histories which our speech is about to unfold the account of the victorious deeds of the ascetic priest, and victorious martyr, the blessed Rabban Mâr Shûbhhâl-Īshō, the Metropolitan Bishop; and to it we will add that of the pious and holy men who followed in his footsteps throughout the land in which he taught, Mâr Yahbh-lâhâ and Kardagh his brother, as well as that of the blessed Bishop Mâr Elijah, the men who were ordained by the pious Mâr Timothy, the Catholicus and Patriarch, for the countries of the barbarians who were remote from all understanding and a decent manner of life, and to whose part of the world no preacher and planter of the truth had ever gone, and where the doctrine of the glad tidings of our Redeemer had never been proclaimed. But why should I speak of the [knowledge] of Christ our Lord [only]?

2 for they had not even received the knowledge of God, the Creator of the worlds and their Governor, like the Jews and other nations, but they offered, and behold they [still] offer, worship to trees, graven images of wood, four-footed beasts, fishes, reptiles, birds of prey, and [other] birds, and such like things, and they bow down to worship fire and the stars and planets. [Mâr Yahbh Allâhâ, and Kardagh and Mâr Elijah were] the men who preached the doctrine of Christ in those countries of Dailômâyê and of Gilâyê, and of the other barbarians who live beyond them, and they planted in them the light of the truth of the glad tidings of our Lord, and plucked out from the simple souls that were there all the abominable thorns and tares of evil deeds which Satan had sown in their hearts. And they taught and baptized, and wrought mighty deeds, and shewed forth wonderful works, and the fame of their acts was carried to all the ends of the East. And thou mayest learn clearly concerning all these things from the letter which certain merchants and king's scribes, who were going in and coming out from those countries for the purposes of trade and the business of the government, wrote to Mâr Timothy.

Chapter 2. Of the Origin of the Blessed Shūbhī-Âl-Īshō and of his Coming to This Monastery

1 The family of the blessed Shûbhhâl-Īshô was descended from the race of the children of Ishmael, and his city was Hêrâ-dhê-Na'mân, but his parents departed from there, and took up their habitation in Hesnâ Ebhrâyâ, and according to what I have learned, the blessed man was born and brought up in that city. And when he had become a young man, having, by the exceeding care of his parents, been trained in the Holy Scriptures and instructed in the literature of the Arabic [language], which was their own tongue, his parents departed this temporary life, and he and one sister, who was younger than he, were left behind. Now their parents had left them much riches, and this he divided between the two of them, and to his sister he left the estate and everything that was in the house, and he took his portion and came to this monastery. And having served in the monastery and performed the exercises of the monks in a perfect manner according to the command of the fathers, he persuaded the community to give him Bêth Ḥabbâ that he might sow it and give food to the brethren, according to what they should receive from the head of the monastery, from the produce of Bêth Ziwâ; and according to his wish it was given unto him. And he built a house for the ploughmen, (i.

2 e., a farm) to the south of this one of to-day, the site of which is well known, and he bought yokes of oxen, and he hired ploughmen, and he began to sow and to reap, and to be kind to and to give gifts to the monks of his congregation, and to strangers, and to the poor, like that merchant who traded with Spain with two ships, and [like] the blessed Apollonius who [lived] in Mount Nêṭirâ, and like that believing man, the account of whom is written in the history of the blessed Paphnutius, and like one of those two [brethren] Pēsis (Paesius) and Isaiah, the sons of one merchant, who did not scatter his portion, but placed it as an offering to God for the relief of the needy. And when the blessed man Shûbhhâl-Ishô had laboured in this course of life for many years, and was pleasing Christ by means of His Saints, certain wicked men in this congregation, through the working of Satan, the father of lies, and the hater of the love Christ left to His disciples, rose up craftily against him, like Judas among the twelve [disciples], and like the seven tares who were among the three hundred and eighteen Bishops, and besides these, like the disciples who were from among the people who were jealous of Paul, and of his teaching, and others who were among the companies of the saints, and they were envious of that love of love which filled his holy and believing soul.

3 First of all they began to make measures which were greater and fuller than 4 , those which were in current use everywhere among the merchants, now this he endured cheerfully, but finally they began to make him hear cruel words, saying, "Let our corn lands alone, and depart. And having sown much seed in the past year, and the harvest being near, certain sinful men and evil livers, when no one perceived, devised an artful plot to slay that holy man, having forgotten all the good deeds which he had done unto them; and [the words], "They rewarded me evil for good, and hatred instead of love," and again, "The eater of my bread upon whom I trusted greatly, hath acted craftily against me," were fulfilled in very deed in the matter of that holy man. But since our Lord God willed that those evil men should not be partakers in that innocent blood, His graciousness did not in any wise allow that man to be alienated from His household. And moreover, he that feareth the Lord, even though it be but a little, and would dare to commit some evil act, the holy angel which cleaveth to him alloweth not that evil act to be wrought successfully as he would wish, but he extinguisheth and hindereth and confoundeth the manner of his work, even as he wrought in the case of that blessed man who saw in the country [of Egypt] the daughter of a priest of idols, and by the agency of the Evil One he lusted after her.

5 And when he asked her from her father, he promised to give him to her, but after he had denied God, and the garb with which he was clothed, and baptism, the holy angel which clave to him compelled the Satan who dwelt in the idol, and he returned answer to the priest, saying, "Thou shalt not give him thy daughter, for God is with him, and He aideth him. Now therefore in this manner did that merciful Lord act, Who beareth with all our obstinacy, Who endureth our wickednesses, and Who doeth good unto us, until in the righteous judgment which is to come He will reward us according to our deeds with a measure pressed down and running over. 6 Now Rabban Īshō'-yahbh the Long, from whom I have received much material for these histories, told me, saying:—"When I was serving in the monastery, I was sent secretly by the monks who held the affairs of the community in their hands, saying, 'Go to Rabban Shûbhhâl-Īshô' at Bêth Ḥabbâ, and inform him, saying, If thou dost not save thyself by flight this night thou wilt certainly be slain by the assiduity of such and such persons, who have taken themselves out of everything which is seemly for the sake of thy destruction.' And that truthful old man swore to me, saying, When I had told him those things, he began to weep bitterly; and he answered and said, 'Am I worthy of the reward of being a participator in the sufferings of Christ? This day hath it been pointed out to me that the labours of my loving-kindness have reached unto heaven before God for an everlasting memorial. I entered Bêth Abhê with earthly riches, and I have spent them at the word of the mouth of Christ, according to His command, and this day I shall go forth from it without even a wallet.'' And Īshô'-yahbh the old man said, When I saw that I was obliged to make him set out on the road to flee to the city without bread, and without a wallet, inasmuch as he had nothing with him except his tunic and his cloak, I gave him my own wallet, and I put inside it three loaves of bread, and he departed; and he went down to the pious Mâr Timothy the Catholicus, and informed him what had been done to him."

Chapter 3. Of the Punishment which This Monastery Justly Received for the Persecution of the Holy Shûbhīl-Îshô

1 If now earthly judges should do unto those who work wickedness according to what the sword of justice which they hold demandeth, and should award good things to good men, this would be according to the testimony of the scribe of the Spirit, the blessed Paul, [who saith] "How just then and righteous is our good God! for He chastiseth and punisheth, and judgeth, and correcteth in such wise that we may not become altogether without perception [of sin], having trodden down conscience and cast out from our minds the [retribution of] justice which is to come". 2 Now when [those men] thought that behold they had slain the righteous man, and they would inherit his labour, and were making ready to go out and reap the fields which they had not sown, and to gather in that which they had not scattered, the Lord brought up against them only, a huge cloud of locusts, which devoured all the crops of Bêth Ḥabbâ, and which did not leave them a remnant; and year after year God sent this punishment upon them because it was as if the innocent blood of that innocent man had been shed by them by murder. And if God would judge a man for his readiness of intention, and would take vengeance upon him for what he wished to do, and would punish him according to His word, "He that looketh upon a woman to desire her, hath straightway committed adultery with her in his heart, and is already accounted an adulterer"—although [as in the case of the blessed man who lusted for the daughter of the priest], it is natural that the man who had subjected himself to that which was unnatural should be moved with desire for the beauty of a woman—[how much more would He do so in this case]? And although murder is an abominable thing, and ten thousand evil punishments are reserved for those who commit it, yet those men were prepared to slay him if an opportunity for doing so had come into their hands, and they were therefore strictly speaking murderers and men guilty of the blood of that holy man.

3 Now when, according to their custom, the monks of this monastery were going down to the blessed Timothy the Catholicus that he might give them help—for he loved this monastery greatly, and honoured it with many gifts, because it was here pointed out to him that he should become Catholicus—he asked how they and their crops did. And they made answer to him, saying, "They are going on poorly and badly, for behold, for some years [past] the locusts have eaten up our crops in particular [and those of no one else]". The blessed man said to them, "My sons, the locusts which devour the fields, and those which eat up the hidden fruits of your souls, shall not be scraped away from you, because ye were the cause of the persecution and driving away of the holy Mâr Shûbhhâl-Îshô from among you. For our Lord and His holy angels have testified to me [concerning] these things which I have learned from old monks in this monastery, and which I have not imagined out of my own mind, but have judged according to that which is said by the holy man, 'If an act of sin which happeneth accidentally is deserving of seventy and sevenfold punishment, how many times seventy and seven shall an act of wilful sin be punished?' Assume [if ye will] that for a man to look upon a woman is an act of accidental sin, but the going out of those wretched men to commit murder is certainly an act of wilful sin; even so are these things.

Chapter 4. Of the Laying on of Hands which the Blessed Mâr Shûbhhâl-Îshô Received to Be the Metropolitan of Gîlân and Dailôm

1 If now according to the goodness of his master, and according as he is able, a servant shall endeavour to measure the steps of his course of life along the smooth paths of his commandments, and shall arrange every thing concerning himself for the good will and pleasure of his master, he will be glorified with the glory of his master, and will be made ruler over all his treasures, for the treasure shall be added unto and increased by his industrious trafficking, like the man who received five talents and made them ten, and him that [received] two and made them into four, and both heard [the words], "Well done, good and faithful servants, ye have been faithful in little, and much shall be entrusted into your hands". According to the might of every man it is required of him: from him that hath received much that he should labour much [is required], and from him unto whom little hath been given little [is required]; every man according to his might, saith our Lord, to Whom be glory. And a certain holy man testifieth [to this], saying, "One man converteth a mighty people, and another a small district, and another hath acquired his own soul only; yet in excellence [all three] are equal."

2 Now in respect of this man of whom we speak, inasmuch as he was exceedingly able, very much was entrusted into his hand. And when he went down to the holy Mâr Timothy, who having learned concerning all his affairs, and seen that he was instructed in the Syriac language and learning, and also in the Arabic and Persian tongues, determined to anoint him with holy oil, and to make him hold the pastoral staff, and to send him as a shepherd and teacher to the barbarian nations who had never received the bridle of the teaching concerning God, and into whose country none of the preachers and evangelists of the kingdom of heaven had gone since the time of the Apostles until the present. And when he advised him to undertake this thing, relying upon the Lord and upon the Divine help which would cleave to him and which would convert those erring nations by his hand, inasmuch as this work to which he was called was from the Lord, he undertook [it] with fear and joy. And the day of the consecration of the blessed man was celebrated with the great ceremony which belongeth to a festival full of all joyous things, and all the chief men, among the believers who heard that he had undertaken the conversion of those countries, provided him with much money, and with the necessary clothing, and together with the Divine power and the venerable disciples who accompanied him, he set out for those countries. Now Mâr Abraham, the Catholicus, a holy man in very truth, related to me fully concerning all this matter [of Mâr Shûbhhâl-Îshô], and he told me that he made his entrance there with exceeding great splendour, for barbarian nations need to see a little worldly pomp and show to attract them and to make them draw nigh willingly to Christianity.

3 And when he had entered those countries he began to teach and to shew them the true knowledge of his doctrine, and while he was teaching with these words, Christ our Lord was confirming them by the miracles which he worked, by cleansing the lepers, by healing the sick, by opening the eyes of the blind, by making the lame to walk, by raising the dead, and by making barren women fruitful, for the Divine dispensation is accustomed to shew forth mighty works at the beginning of Divine operations, more particularly in the case of those barbarians who from their earliest times and throughout all their generations had been led captive by evil devils to the worship and service of their corrupt things. And by the sight of the miracles which our Lord worked by the hands of the blessed man, he taught many cities and thickly peopled districts, and baptized [their inhabitants], and brought them near to the doctrine of Divine life. And he built churches, and established priests and deacons in them, and he set apart some of the brethren who were with him to teach them psalms and spiritual praises, and he himself went further and further into the country, until [he arrived at] the ends of the East in the great teaching which he made among the heathen, and Marcionites, and Manichees, [against] every object of worship and every impure thing; and he sowed among them the glorious light of the doctrine of the Gospel, the mother of life and peace.

Chapter 5. Of the Murder of the Holy Mâr Shūbhīl-Īshō and of the Glorious Testimony of his Coronation

1 If the covenant of our freedom from death, and sin, and Satan was written with blood on the top of the mount of Golgotha in the body of Jesus, Who collated it, and signed it and gave it to His disciples, and if they also sealed their dispensation among all nations—for Stephen was stoned, the head of James was cut off, the brains of James the brother of our Lord were crushed by a blow, Simon [Peter] was crucified, Paul doctrines and belief of this sect resembled those of the Magians in many particulars. The Arabic text of the history of Bâbak and his parentage, etc., is given by Flügel, Kitâb al-Fihrist, Leipzig, 1871, p. 343; see also Bâbek seine Abstammung und erstes Auftreten, by Flügel in Z. D. M. G., Bd. xxiii. p. 531 ff. was slain, Bartholomew was flayed, the side of Thomas was torn open, and Mār Simon, Shāhādōst and Barba'shēmīn, the heads of the throne of the Eastern Church were slain, and others in all countries—it is then a glorious thing for disciples to be like unto their masters, and to be shepherds slain for the sake of their flocks, and keepers of treasure stoned for the sake of the sacred things [under their charge]; and this is what happened also to this person worthy of all good things, our holy father Mār Shūbhhāl-Īshō.

2 Now when he had remained in those countries for many years, while God planted and watered and nourished by his hands, like the blessed Paul, he was wishing to come [back] to the Bethel of his fathers, namely, to this monastery, and to pay back the gifts of honour due [from him] to the monastery from which he had gone forth, and was esteeming that which had happened [to be] a benefit [to him]—as was the selling of Joseph by his brethren—and he forsook the fields of the doctrine of life which he had sown, and the churches which he had founded, and the temples which he had established to the Lord, until he could come and worship and return there. But when the Enemy, the hater of all truth, saw that his own doctrine was made a mockery, and that the fire-temples and the fire-altars of his cakes were pulled down, he plotted death against the blessed man by the hands of certain workers of evil, a remnant that remained. And when they saw that he was provided with every thing which befitted the honour of his monastery, and that he began to go forth from thence, they went before him craftily, and sat down in ambush waiting for him, and at a terrible spot on that road they surrounded him, and crowned him with swords. Thus the blessed man departed from [this] laborious life, flowing with the blood of the reproach and disgrace of the Cross, to the greatly desired chambers of Paradise.

3 And certain Christians who had become his disciples, when they had learned [these things], went out to search for him and took his holy body, and according to their power and knowledge, they buried him hastily in a church, and mourned for him greatly; and they gathered together from the men who had murdered him the things which had been made for him, vails, curtains, and stoles in which the priest administers the sacrament, which they had taken from him, and sent them to Mār Timothy, and some of them were handed on to this monastery. To Christ our Lord, Who made that noble athlete to be victorious, be glory and honour, and praise, and worship, and may His mercy be upon the assembly of His worshippers and friends for ever and ever, Amen, and Amen.

Chapter 6. Of Mâr Yabhlâhâ, and of Mâr Kardagh his Brother

1 From the whole circle of the Holy Scriptures we may learn that the piety of the acts of [men's] lives which are wrought secretly, and of all the good qualities of the soul which are perfected spiritually in the hidden man, is not by any means hidden [on the contrary, for] God, for the gratification of Whose will [these things] have been wrought by righteous and holy men, maketh [them] manifest straightway; and [this we know] especially from the living mouth of our Redeemer, [Who] saith, "When thou prayest, enter into thy chamber and shut thy door, and pray to thy Father Who is in secret, and thy Father Who seeth in secret will reward thee openly. And He will increase and make to rejoice those of His household in this world, and He will shew that they are His glorious [subjects] and men united in concord by the signs and powers of healing which are wrought by them and by their hands in every kind of way, and will reward them in the kingdom of heaven by making them to live before His face with everlasting happiness. And this was what was wrought upon that holy union in blessed brotherhood of body and of spirit, Rabban Yabhlāhā and Abbā Ḳardagh his brother, the Metropolitans of the countries which have before been mentioned in writing. Now these two blessed men [came] from Rēsh Ainā, a village of Saphsāphā, in this country of Margā, and both became disciples together in this holy monastery.

2 And they excelled in chastity and in all the various kinds of observances which the sublime monastic life demandeth, the keeping of the tongue and of the passions, the evening fast, the watching all night, the prayer for collecting the thoughts, and the [keeping] pure the dwelling-place of Godhead, even according to the words of the blessed Mark the monk who in these three virtues included the whole ascetic life, namely, "Let a man cleanse his thoughts, let him pray without ceasing, and let him endure those things which shall come [upon him]; with these three virtues were these brethren adorned. Now the old man Ḳardagh was younger than his brother, and he was a beautiful writer; and Yabhlāhā was a book-binder, like the blessed Mār Aḥā and his brother. And they were praised by the tongues of all men, according to what the holy Mār Abraham told me, saying, "In the beginning when I came [here] to be a solitary, I worked in the monastery for the whole of the specified space of three years, and I did not know if Kṛḍagh had ever lifted his eyes or opened them to look upon me; and I thought, concerning him," he was saying to me, "perhaps he is blind. The labours and humility of Rabban Yahbh Allāḥā were," he was saying to me, "more excellent than [those of] his brother, but in each one of them there was some one thing in which the one was superior to the other."

3 Now inasmuch as the holy Mār Shūbhhāl-Īshō had finished the course of his testimony, it was necessary that another man should be chosen to succeed him, to go and rear the flocks which had been brought into the fold of life by the care of that holy man. And when Mār Timothy, of pious memory, had urged this [service] upon every man who was able to do this, and there was no one who would undertake the work for God's sake like unto that man, the blessed Mār Catholicus was obliged to send to this monastery for these two blessed brethren, that he might consecrate them bishops, and send them to those countries.

Chapter 7. Of the Choice of the Holy Men to Be Sent to Those Countries (I. E. Gīlān and Dailōm)

1 We must learn and recount that many shepherds have been chosen for all parts of the world from this holy monastery, who, through their splendid triumphs, have appeared in their generations like unto lamps set upon the candlestick the of Church, [and we must also learn and recount that this monastery] hath been named by the ancients the "house of the priesthood," and the "father of the pillars of the holy Church" by reason of the men who have in all generations gone forth [from it], and who have become shepherds set over the flocks of Christ. And they did not only accept established and princely thrones, which were [situated] in flourishing towns and civilized countries, but also [those of] the countries which were destitute of all knowledge of Divine things and holy doctrine, and which abounded in sorcery and idolatry and all corrupt and abominable practices, that they might uproot the evil and sow the good, and drive out the darkness of error and make to shine upon them the glorious light of their doctrine, and cast forth the devils [who were] teachers of all uncleanness. And that this was so we may learn from the blessed Mār Shubhhal-Īshō, and from these blessed men who succeeded him, and who because of their labour in other matters of the ascetic life, did not wish to depart.

2 And [Mār Timothy] wrote here that the blessed Yahbhlāhā and Kardagh should go down to him, saying that it was meet for them to preserve and rear the [fruits of the] teaching of Mār Shubhhal-Īshō, like a goodly inheritance handed on from one brother to another, according to what is said, "If the brother of a man die and leave a widow without children, let his brother take his wife and raise up seed to him; in this latter case according to the body, and in the former according to the spirit. So the two went down according to the rule of the Church, and [Mâr Timothy] anointed them both Metropolitans, Kardagh of Gilân and Yahbhlâhâ of the people of Dailôm. And when they came up to this monastery to put their affairs in order, there went with them according to what I have learned, fifteen monks [who were] holy and enlightened men, that they also might be companions with them in the spiritual labour of the Gospel of Christ, and among those men were those who were appointed to be Bishops of the countries beyond Gilân and Dailôm. For I have read the letter of Mâr Timothy the Catholicus to Mâr Yahbhlâhâ and the letter which was sent by him in answer to the Catholicus, saying, "Through thy prayers, O our father, by the grace of Christ, many nations have been converted to the belief of the truth, and we want to appoint Bishops over them from among the ascetics who have come with us.

3 And Mâr Catholicus wrote to them this, "Inasmuch as the ordination of a Bishop doth not absolutely require [the presence of] three persons, and ye in your country are free from this [regulation], ye have permission [to do so] by the power of the word of our Lord, in which every thing standeth and is directed. Appoint as Bishops whomsoever ye and the pious Kardagh shall choose, and in the place of the third [person who should be present], let the Book of the Gospels be laid on the [episcopal] throne on the right hand; thus by the hand of God perform the ordination of the first Bishop, and let others be appointed by means of [this] third [person]. May the Divine Spirit direct and govern His sanctifications by your means even as He did with the blessed Apostles. And when the blessed men had received this permission from the Patriarch, they ordained and made Thomas, Zacchaeus, Shem, Ephraim, Simon, Ananias and David, bishops of the countries which had been taught by their hands, through the signs and mighty deeds which had been manifested by them, no one of which, on account of their number and the remoteness of the countries in which they were wrought and completed, have we been able to distinguish clearly how it was worked, or in what village or city, or in whom a healing was performed, or from whom devils and sicknesses were expelled.

4 And I think, if we were to make false or incorrect statements, and to attempt to paint a picture of miracles which were never manifested to us, that this presumption would bring great danger upon him that should write down something with which he was not acquainted. Now the names of those persons among them who were elected and anointed for the episcopacy were handed down to me by venerable old men—but more especially by the holy old man Elisha—for they heard concerning them from the mouth of Mār Yahbhlāhā, who twice came to this holy monastery from Dailōm, and paid to the holy monastery of his fathers the honour which he was bound [to give]. Mār Kardagh, however, because he had penetrated far into the countries which were beyond those where his brother was, never came back here. But now if thou wishest to learn in part concerning the wonderful deeds which took place at their hands, consider in thy mind, that not without cause and simply through words divorced from deeds did those barbarian nations of daring thieves, and plunderers, and worshippers of devils turn from their polluted religions, which were established without the labour of fasting and prayer, and despise the customary acts of the service of hateful things, and bow their necks to the submission of the yoke of fasting and of prayer, of vigil by nights, and of abstinence from every [kind of] food on the stated fasts and holy festivals.

5 How fitting is it to quote here the words of the holy monk Ammonius, the chosen Bishop in the Church of God, who wrote in one of his letters to his disciples, saying, "For this reason the fathers lived apart in the desert, whether it be Elijah the Tishbite or John. Do not imagine that these men who were righteous among men were able to cultivate righteousness while they lived among men, for they first of all dwelt in great solitude, and thus received the power of God that it might dwell in them, and then, possessing all virtues, God sent them among men to be His stewards, and to heal the sicknesses of men. It was, then, only when all their own sicknesses had been healed, that they were sent, for it is not possible that a soul possessing any defect whatever should be sent among mankind for edification. And I, your father, also say, because I have written these things to you, that I endured a great fight in the desert and in the mountain, and then [only] did I arrive at this condition [of perfection]. Thus far according to the words of the blessed Ammonius.

6 Now this pair of holy men having been first of all healed [of their own sicknesses], and having gathered together treasure of the good things of heaven by tranquil solitude and by labours of asceticism in this holy monastery, were then sent forth as apostles by God to the countries of the heathen to make their souls to live. And they became like rays of light from the height of the eminence of their course of life, and the pure lamps of their doctrine were shining brightly, being set not under the bushel and measure of sluggishness, but upon a candlestick, and they lightened all the ends of the East. And like the blessed Apostles in their days, they also taught the erring nations by the piety of their daily life, and by abstinence from every [kind of] food, as the canon of the doctrine of our Lord requireth, Who when His disciples asked Him, "Why were we not able to heal him?" said distinctly, "This kind goeth not out except by fasting and by prayer."

7 And, moreover, the bread which is in those countries is made of rice, for the blessed family of wheat and barley is not found there, and there is nothing except rice and other kinds of dry grain, and this we have learned from the mouth of Mâr Yahbhlâhâ, of holy memory, for the old men Hênân-Îshô' and Elisha told me that he said, "As I began my journey to come here I arrived at [the dwelling of] the pious Mâr Ḥabbibhâ, the Metropolitan of the city of Râi, and when I had partaken of food and bread made of wheat I became exceedingly sick, because I was accustomed in those countries to a diet of rice-bread." And when [these men] had laboured in that uncultivated country for many years, and had spread abroad the Gospel of our Lord in those rational countries, and had taught, and converted, and baptized and sanctified many, they all of them ended their days there, and [their names] were written down with the first-born, [whose names] are written down in heaven, in the Book of the Kingdom, and happiness is laid up for them with the Prophets, and Apostles, and teachers, and martyrs, by whose prayers may our Lord make priesthood to be at peace with royalty; and may wars be abolished from the ends of the earth, and may our Lord give to the whole world, and especially to His Holy Church, of His hope, and rest and peace from all conflicts, and may we all lift up praise to the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, for ever, Amen.

Chapter 8. Of the Blessed Mār Elijah, Bishop of Mūkān [and of the Countries of the Barbarians]

1 Now having walked along the path of words in the histories of holy men, step by step, as along a ladder, and having revealed according to the sufficiency of my feeble knowledge, certain of their triumphs and noble deeds, I have now arrived at, and drawn near to enter into the Paradise, full of the blossoms and the beautiful odours of the glorious acts of our holy father Mār Elijah, the simple but wise man, the untutored but full of understanding, the ignorant in speech but enlightened in mind, for he lacked nothing in his humility [to prevent my] speech from exalting him above teachers. And, moreover, when the scribes and priests [of old] considered that the simple fishermen, the Apostles his fathers, were unlettered and ignorant men, the Apostles rejoiced that they were worthy to be spoken evil of for the sake of their Lord. Now this blessed twig was the produce of the gardening of the divine Mār Jacob, and his village was 'Ain Bakrē in the country of Margā; and having forsaken it and all the things of earth, his city to-day is heaven, and his companions are the Prophets and Apostles and Martyrs and all the ascetic Fathers, the glorious manner of whose lives he emulated. Now when he had elected to devote himself to the labours of the ascetic life, he himself invented a distinct manner of life, and held fast to it from the beginning of his discipleship;

2 for he possessed neither cell, nor place for storing his things, nor [any house] built with mud walls, and having a roof with thick beams and a framework with strong rafters, nor any place which needed repairs, or expenses, or watching [against] falling down suddenly, or shocks, but [he built a hut] of reeds and grass and of bands [made] of the thin, pliant branches of trees similar to that which watchers of vineyards, and husbandmen and gardeners make for themselves, of sufficient [width] to cover his body, and of sufficient [height for him] to stand up and pray, and to perform those things which must needs be done by all those who are fettered by the flesh and its needs. And he surrounded his booth with a hedge made of reeds and narrow [strips] of wood, and [he made] a door of reeds similar to that which they make for sheep-folds, and whether he was inside or out, it was always fastened by a fastening and shut. Now he possessed no utensils, for having reduced himself to the lowest depth of voluntary poverty, such things, which were held to be of great value by others, appeared to him superfluous; but he had a broken vessel, in which he used to put the dry crust of bread upon which he lived, and an earthenware jar into which he cast salt seasoned with wild thyme.

3 In [the court-yard of] his cell he had a well without a rope and without a bucket, and he made use of a long reed to supply the place of a rope, and on the top of this he tied a small jar, and each evening he used to take his crust of bread, and sit by the well, and draw up water and pour over it, and he ate and it was sufficient for him; but as for [other] foods or wine they never entered his cell, neither did he make use of them. The garments which were on his body were alike his clothing and his bed, though his ascetic mode of life did not need a bed; but a seat against the wall—according to what I have learned from the pious and holy Mâr Abraham—served as a sleeping place for him, even according to the words of the holy Mâr Evagrius, "Voluntary poverty is this, that a man shall possess nothing except a cloak, a tunic, a Bible, and a cell. Now when he went to the congregation on stated days, he used to take the Bible which he read with him in his cloak, and lay it upon the Kestrómâ of the temple until he went back to his cell [when] he took it with him;

4 but his cell he left [unguarded] without fear, according to the words of the blessed Evagrius, "The man that hath prepared himself for voluntary poverty dwelleth in peace of mind," and again he saith, "The monk who hath embraced voluntary poverty is a swift traveller; let him dwell wherever he wishes without fear. Such things concerning his voluntary poverty and asceticism we have thus briefly related. 5 verbum vendidi, quod jubet, vende omnia, et da pauperibus." Rosweyde, Vitae Patrum, p. 582, No. 5. "Interrogatus est senex quidam à fratre, quid faceret ut salvus esset. Ille autem exspolians se vestimento suo, et cingens lumbos suos, atque extendens manus, dixit: Sic debet nudus esse monachus ab omni materiâ saeculari, et crucifigere se adversus tentationem atque certamina mundi." Rosweyde, op. cit., p. 583, No. 16. The quotations from Evagrius made by Thomas of Margâ probably form part of the monachos e peri praktikes, extracts from which are given by Cotelerius, Eccles. Graec. Monumenta, tom. iii. pp. 68–102; by Bigot, Palladii De Vita S. Joh. Chrysostomi dialogus, 1680, pp. 349–355; and by Galland in his seventh volume of Bibliotheca Patrum; see also philokalia ton ieron neptikon, 1782, fol. pp. 41 and 46ff. upotutopis monachike didaskousa pos dei askein kai esuchazein and kephalaia peri diakriseos pathon kai logismon.

Chapter 9. Of the Sublime Kinds of Prayer with which He Enriched his Soul

1 Among all the virtues cultivated by holy men there is none greater and more excellent than the wonderful work of prayer, for prayer maketh the pure mind at one with God, and maketh the whole man a deified and spiritual being. It removeth him that giveth himself continually to it from earth, and from the anxious care which is upon it; it made the Prophets to be victorious; it sanctified the Apostles; it entered with the Martyrs into every kind of contest, and by it they conquered the threats of kings and terrible torments; it made them like asbestos before the fire, and they became like wood and creatures without feeling under the various tortures of every [kind of] affliction; and it protected the recluses, and anchorites, and ascetics in desert places, which were full of every [kind of] harmful assaults of devils, and evil animals, and noxious reptiles. For when our Lord Jesus, the Cause of the redemption of our nature, walked upon earth on our behalf in the days of His dispensation, and was teaching, and commanding, and exhorting the keeping of all the virtues which are in His Gospel with His living mouth, He shewed forth in His own Person the effectual working of prayer, going at one time to the mountain desert [by day], and at another to a solitary wilderness to pass the night alone, so that by His immunity from the sounds and sights which confuse the understanding, and by His solitude, He might assist [His] occupation in divine things.

2 On account of this the holy fathers the monks were more anxious about this than any other virtue, and they have taught us to do as they did, for the blessed Mark the monk saith, "Being men subject to passions it is meet that we subject ourselves to prayer; he that subdueth himself with the subjection of prayer is a wise athlete, for by means of his remoteness from things which can be felt by the senses, he sheweth forth openly the strife which is hidden. And again he saith, "There is nothing so powerful to help as prayer, and there is nothing which profiteth like unto it in respect of the Will of God, for it containeth the whole doing of the commandments; the prayer which is without wandering is a sign of the love of God to him that endureth patiently. And again the holy Evagrius saith, "We are not commanded to watch and fast at all times, but that we should pray continually is a law laid down for us; for those who would heal the part which is liable to affections and passions need the labour of the body."

3 And again the blessed Abbâ Macarius, on being asked by the brethren, "Which of the labours of the ascetic life hath a reward? answered thus:—"There is nothing more sublime than the continuing in prayer. To the very end the devils will wish to abolish [prayer], for they know that their artifices are made of none effect thereby. And the holy Abbâ Isaiah places endurance in prayer above all the glorious acts of the ascetic life, and thus also saith the blessed Expositor in his book on the Mysteries, "Every prayer that is [made] is a teaching concerning life to every one who is careful and knoweth [how] to regard that which is fitting. And again he saith, "Let him that is solicitous for [a life of] excellence, and is careful to do those things which please God, have anxious regard unto prayer more than unto any [other] thing; for it is manifest that the man who is not careful for even one virtue, and is not anxious to do those things which please God, will also be sluggish in respect of prayer. Wherefore also the holy Rabban Mâr Elijah, to whose noble deeds we bring back our simple narrative, aiming at the mark of the holy fathers, or rather having already entered into the experience of its efficacy, and felt through it all the hidden treasures [which are] hidden in the Books of the Spirit, knew and understood that without it a man was not able to be perfect in the service of the ascetic life.

4 And he yoked himself to it from the beginning of his going into the cell, and he joined to it bodily labours and the concentration of the mind, having learned from the blessed Mark the monk, that every prayer in which the body hath not laboured is accounted to be an abortion and imperfect in its bodily form. And because these two fierce contentions resist the man who has yoked his mind to the concentration which is in prayer, that is to say, disturbed wandering of the mind, and vacillating perplexity, Elijah was armed mightily, for he listened to the blessed Evagrius, who said, "If thou hast overcome the wandering of the mind, the aim of all aims, thou art worthy of perfection. Now concerning the pious and holy man [Mâr Elijah], Mâr Abraham the Catholicus told me that he had made himself accustomed to live in a dark spot in his cell, and that in it he used to perform all his seasons of prayer. And to every verse of the psalm which he said he joined a "Hallelujah! Glory be to Thee, O God," in such a way that his mind was compelled to think about the verse which was coming next and that he might not be distracted in prayer.

5 And he used to do this so that by reason of [his] too ready facility in calling the verse to mind, it might not be too easy for his mind to wander during his prayers, and to forget the verse which should follow, and that when, at the end of every verse, the mouth followed with, "Hallelujah! Glory be to Thee, O God," his mind might be compelled to make [one] verse follow the other in proper order. And because without the concentration of the mind divine intuition doth not give itself to the understanding so that the understanding may enter into the bosom of a divine intuition and the ascetic cannot find the shadowless Galilee, he made his understanding prepared for seeing [God], even as one of the saints saith, "The moon is not equal in all its periphery except at full moon," and he asked those who observe the mind by prayer if there were any corners in their country. And because it hath been said by the holy fathers "One word near is better than a thousand afar off," he cared less about the quantity of the Psalms [which he sang] than for the doubling of the riches and concentration of the thoughts which were in his mind, and it was superfluous to him that others said the psalter of David twice in a day and night, while their minds were building up, and hiding, and judging, and condemning, and buying, and selling.

6 Such were the advantages which this most praiseworthy man learned for himself, who although he was little cultivated in the Scriptures, and only [knew] the psalms, and responses, and the ordinary lessons for the day, yet included all the commandments in one [act, viz.,] voluntary renunciation of every thing, and the crucifixion of the mind against all [disturbing] thoughts. And when by means of great wrestling after many years he was freed from this defect of wandering [in prayer], he cleansed and purified his heart, and from this time and onward he forsook the first step of the ascetic life, and he changed his manner of life to the singing of psalms without ceasing, being silent neither day nor night. For the holy Mâr Abraham, who more than any was acquainted with every thing concerning him, told me that even when he was wearied in sleep his mouth was not silent, but was singing psalms audibly, and that whilst his soul was answering with secret hallelujahs, his mouth sang psalms as he dreamed. And as that holy soul was [engaged] in all the spiritual and external service of the Spirit, and was dwelling in that aged and ascetic body, that strife which existed between the spirit and the flesh, and the flesh and the spirit, ceased, and his two natures (lit. manhoods) were swallowed up in the desire for the happiness of the life which is to come.

7 And in proportion as the body languished, and his labour became less, his soul was lifted up to heaven on the wings of the spirit, as the holy Abbâ Isaiah wrote, saying, "The soul that hath walked worthily by the might of Christ, and hath departed from [this] world, delighteth itself in these countries whither pinions incapable of sufferings have borne it."

Chapter 10. Of the Election of the Holy Mâr Elijah to Be Bishop of Môkân a City of the Barbarians

1 There is a certain city called Môkân, which is [situated] in a country to the north-east, near to the border of the peoples of Dailôm, and its inhabitants are barbarians, and they worship dumb animals. Now when the pious Mâr Timothy had anointed and sent the holy Metropolitans Mâr Yabhlâhâ and Kardagh to Gilân and Dailôm, he wisely determined that he would appoint to the city of Môkân also a shepherd and prosperous husbandman to cultivate the rational souls that were therein, which had been led captive by the Calumniator from days of old. And because he knew by experience, and had found out in very deed that men of might and athletes of valour had gone forth from the divine congregation of the holy Mâr Jacob, and because from these men Mâr Catholicus had appointed fitting persons to all regions and cities [of the world], and because by them wonderful acts of power and glorious cures had been made manifest, he chose from this stock to send to that city also a rod of power as out of Zion, that he might obtain dominion over the demons and devils which were in that wretched city, [where] the sore of destruction had spread abroad. And because he had heard about the extraordinary manner of life of the blessed Elijah, he wrote a letter to him with love and patience, like a wise father to a son who can be easily persuaded, [telling him] to come down to him and he would appoint him Bishop of the city of Môkân.

2 And the pious Elijah answered, saying, "I cannot receive consecration except in the holy temple in which I am, and I would that this [rite] be performed upon me on the holy first day of the week of Pentecost," [wishing] in his simplicity that [he might receive the rite] on the day in which the blessed Apostles received the gifts of the Holy Spirit. And although the time which Mâr Elijah appointed [appeared] to be afar off to the quickened readiness of the Catholicus, Mâr Timothy put off the time until the day of Pentecost, and he wrote to the pious Nestorius, Metropolitan of Adiabene, who came here (i. e., to Bêth Âbhe) and ordained Mâr Elijah in this temple according to his will; and Mâr Elijah went down to Mâr Timothy who confirmed him, and sent him off with certain merchants who were going into the countries in which Môkân was situated. And the blessed Mâr Abraham the Catholicus related to me concerning him, that instead of a cross on his neck he used to hang upon his breast a complete Book of the Gospels in a small size; and he took with him a cross of brass which, when he required to sing the psalms where he passed the night, he placed on the top of the staff which was in his hand, and he used to drive it into the ground in front of him and pray, and in this manner he acted when he was travelling in terrible places.

3 Now when he was going along the road with the merchants in several companies, and he was following at some distance behind that he might have an opportunity of [singing] a psalm, a certain man had a mule which he was [trying] to keep close to the other animals (now this mule had a heavy load upon his back), and when he was going up through a high, rough and rocky pass, his foot slipped off the rugged rock, and the hoof of his foot was wrenched off and put out of its place. And when the holy Mâr Elijah came up to the man and asked him the reason of his staying behind his companions, behold he wept, and cried and rent his garments, and shewed the spiritual physician the hoof of his animal which had fallen off. Now because that holy old man in the time of his old age made use of olive oil with his dry crust by reason of the cold and feebleness which had fallen upon his stomach through [eating] dry bread and salt, he had with him in his cloak a phial of oil. And he answered and said to the owner of the mule, "Weep not, my son, neither be mournful, for God will heal thy mule easily.

4 And he said to him, "Bring me the hoof," and he took it, and poured upon it [some of] the oil for his food, and salt of wild thyme which he ate, and he laid it upon the leg of the mule, and made the sign of the Cross over it, and said to the man, "Lead on quickly in the name of the Lord, that he may not remain behind his companions; thus he bestowed healing on the animal and joy upon his master. And this was known to all that company of people which was journeying with him into that country, and they praised and confessed the mighty power of Christ by Whose disciples sicknesses were healed without medicines and without drugs.

Chapter 11.

1 Of the going in of the blessed mâr elijah to the city of môkân, and of his preaching in it, [and of his return to this monastery, and of the end of his life]. 2 Now when by the hand of God his helper the holy Mâr Elijah arrived at that city of the heathen, and went into it, and saw that the name of God, the Lord of all, and confession of Him did not exist therein at all, but that all the people that were in it offered up worship to dumb trees and senseless stones, and that it was destitute even of the Arabs and Jews who confess One God, the Creator of heaven and earth, he offered up prayer ceaselessly to Christ our Lord on their behalf, that He, Who according to the custom of His graciousness and longsuffering had brought all nations to the worship of His Godhead, might by his means, as by the hand of the Apostles, give to those people a new heart and a new spirit, that they might despise the images and senseless forms which they worshipped, and be converted to the knowledge of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

3 And together with all these [prayers] which he made on their behalf he bore suffering in his heart, and he placed the cross which [he had] with him upon the top of the staff which was in his hand, and during the whole day he went round about in the streets and lanes of the whole city, and preached to the inhabitants with a loud voice, saying, "O men, who have erred from the true knowledge of God, God the Lord of all hath sent me to you to turn you from the error in which ye live. Ye have served enough those things which from their nature are not gods, for without knowledge, and by the agency of daring devils, have ye offered the worship which was due to your Lord to the trees which the earth maketh to grow up for your honour. And having gone round and about the whole day in this preaching of Life, every evening he used to go forth outside the city, and fix the cross [upon his staff], and sing the service for the night and pray until dawn; and when it was morning, and they opened the gates, and [the people] came forth, and saw that he sat openly before the cross they marvelled and were astonished. Now in those days when he came to them, according to the Divine command and the curse of Jeremiah, the evening wolves gained the mastery over them, and all persons who were left outside the [city] wall were devoured mercilessly.

4 And the people having compassion upon him said to the blessed man, "Pass the night with us inside the wall that the wolves devour thee not. And he answered and said to them, "The God Whom I serve will protect me from the wolves; and this [thing] became to them a great wonder. And when he had tilled, and ploughed, and thrown up [the furrows], and cast the grains of the living wheat of the doctrine of our Lord into their ears, and had covered them up and made [the ground] smooth, he did not gather from them the fruit which he expected, but at one time they mocked at him, and at another they laughed at him. Then the good and merciful God Who saw his labour and toil on their behalf, brought upon them the sickness which is called "Sharʿûṭâ", and their bodies were smitten with ulcers and tumours. And when Mâr Elijah saw them in the depth of their infirmity and saw that they were nigh unto death, he demanded from them that [in return for] the healing of their bodies, [they should] worship his God, and they by reason of the affliction which they were suffering promised, saying, "We will do this at once, and we will become servants of that God Who is able to give us healing, and we will cast aside all our [present] objects of worship, and elect Him [in their stead].

5 And he blessed the oil [taken] from the phial which he had upon him, and by prayer, and the sign of the Cross, and the making mention of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost, he healed them all. Now when they were healed of this sickness by the grace of God, and they had seen the mighty deeds and miracles which [Mâr Elijah] worked among the sick, and the devils which he drove out of many [people], their hearts were softened to hearken unto his doctrine. And he began to speak before them concerning God, the Lord of all, and concerning the coming of our Lord Christ into the world, and they were converted by his words, and by the love of his God, and they answered him with one voice, saying, "We have Yazd, whom our grandfathers, fathers and ourselves have worshipped, and we are afraid of the injuries which he may do unto us, lest peradventure when we deny him, he may destroy our lives. If, however, thy God, in Whom thou hast made us to place our trust—for He is [God alone], and there is none other besides Him, and we also have chosen to be His servants and worshippers—is able to slay and destroy him, behold then we are before thee like matter before the handicraftsman, and it is in thy power to do with us according to thy will.

6 Now the holy Mâr Abraham told me—even as if he were standing before God the Lord of all, with His holy angels as witnesses, and I set down [here] his words without alteration—that when those people had said this to the blessed man, he answered and said to them, "Where is this Yazd, the son of a whore, whom ye and your fathers have served? And they went with him and shewed him from the top of a hill a mighty oak tree, situated in a valley, which was called the "chief of the forest," and which owing to length of time and the care with which they had tended it, had grown to a great height, and had acquired great breadth in its girth, and great density of foliage. And he asked for an axe, and they brought him [one], and he girded up his loins, and rolled up the sleeves of his tunic, and he took the axe like a warrior, and went down to the tree, more especially, however, against the devil which dwelt therein, and lifting up his voice in the courage of his confidence, saying, "The voice of the Lord moveth the hinds to calve, and uprooteth the trees of the forest," he lifted up his axe and brandished it against the tree. And he did it a second time, and a third time, and the tree fell, and he hewed down all its ancient strength and thickness with three strokes of the axe;

7 and he smote and cut down also the rest of the branches which were round about it, and which those erring people called the "children of Yazd. And he lifted up his voice, and with his hand he made signs to those people to come down to him, and they did so, and they gathered together reeds, and pieces of bramble and pieces of dry wood, and laid them on the tree and upon its branches, and burnt them up, and thus the error of that devil ceased. And they all lifted up their voices and glorified God Who had made the blessed Már Elijah to preach to them, as did those [men] who in the days of Elijah the Prophet mocked at Baal and destroyed all his priests; in that case heathen priests were destroyed, and in this case false gods, which by the error of their reproof made devils to abound to the destruction and annihilation of those who were obedient unto them. And after the burning of their images of accursed devils they all went up to that city, being glad and rejoicing in the victory which the soldier of Christ, who had been sent for the conversion and life of their souls, had wrought.

8 And they all began to build the glorious building of a church, and Mâr Elijah ordered it with all its arrangements, and he baptized many of them, and ordained them priests and deacons, and he wrote out psalms for them, and taught them the responses, and thus little by little they became virtuous, and increased, and the grace of Christ grew and dwelt in them. And they received the conviction in their hidden nature that they were in very truth converted from error to the light of life, and they laid fast hold upon the ordinances of the seasons of prayer, and the receiving of the Holy Mysteries, and they were sanctified in their manner of life, and the sun of the mind of God shone upon them, Who called them and brought them near, and made them members of His household. And when they were confirmed in their hope, and had become members of the household of this man in all the ordering of the Christians, that blessed man praised and glorified [God], and gave thanks unto our Lord, that the first seed which he had sowed in his plot of ground had come up in seed buds, and had given birth to ears, and had produced wheat and a granary full of wheat and grain. And when he had tarried with them for many years, the holy man was minded to come to this country to worship in the holy monastery of the house of his fathers, and to return.

9 And when he had done this, and had come here, he shewed to all his brethren the conversion of those erring nations which, by his hands, had been converted to life and redemption, and how he had built for them a church, and how he had baptized and sanctified them, and [how] they had become participators in his joy in divine gratitude for these things. And Mâr Jacob the Bishop of the country of Margâ, came to this monastery with certain well-known believers of this country, and he and the whole assembly of monks entreated him not to leave this country to return there before he had gone round about through it, and had blessed its inhabitants, and healed the sick, and visited the smitten that were in it; and certain old and venerable brethren of the congregation were appointed to go round about with him from village to village. And the pious Bishop Jacob wrote to all the believers, saying, "Behold I have entreated the pious and holy Mâr Elijah, Bishop of Môkân, the strenuous soldier of virtue and the doer of mighty deeds, to go forth and round about among all the villages which ye inhabit that ye may be blessed by his holiness. Now therefore any one of you who hath any [cause for] judgment, or who wisheth to receive the laying on of hands for grades of the Holy Church, hath the power to settle the idle matters of his contention before Mâr Elijah and to receive ecclesiastical ordination.

10 And the venerable old man Sergius said to me, "I was one of those who accompanied him from the monastery, and when all the believing men heard [of him] they came out to meet us from a great distance, and they brought us into their churches with service and honour, and a great crowd accompanied us from one village to another; and he healed and made whole the sick and the afflicted, and cast out devils by the word of his mouth. And heathen and Jews came to be blessed by him, and by his means the praise of God increased in the mouth of the inhabitants of this country who saw the sick that were made whole, and the deaf and the dumb who heard and spake. Now of all his wonders and mighty deeds which he wrought in this country I can only describe and write down one or two, but from these the reader will understand concerning all the mighty deeds of his wonderful acts and boldness of speech with Christ Who made him victorious. And that trustworthy old man Sergius, who went about with him through the whole country said, "He never sat upon an ass during the whole [time] of our going round about through this country. Now he acted thus all his life, for he walked upon his feet at an easy pace, and a psalm was never absent from his mouth.

11 And at the words Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost," which [came] between each marmithâ, he used to bow down and prostrate himself to the ground as a mark of honour, and he did not refrain from this even when he was [walking] upon stones, or briars or any other [thorny] growth, and at every place [in the psalm] where he ought to say the Gloria, he bowed down until he touched the ground with his head. Now when he had arrived at the city of Shahrai, the people saw him and came forth to meet him from this village, and they begged and entreated him to go into the house of a poor Arab woman who was afflicted with an evil devil, and pray for her, and he did so. And when we had gone in he commanded me to say, 'Peace', and he himself prayed and made the sign of the cross before the woman, who was in great affliction and was beaten so mightily by that devil that four women were [obliged to] hold her and to kneel upon her that the devil might not break her to pieces with the blows and beatings with which he rent her. Now the devil through the mouth of that woman began [to give utterance] in the Arabic tongue to wicked blasphemies and horrible abuse of the blessed man.

12 And since he wore hung round his neck the Book of the Gospels instead of a cross", (even as I have written in a preceding passage), "he brought it forth from his bosom, and laid it on the breast of that woman, at the same time anathematising and adjuring the devil to come forth from that woman. And when the devil had acted with great insolence, and had contended against the command of the holy man,—now the holy man was ordering him to depart from her with quietness,—his answers began to fail little by little. And he answered in the Arabic tongue and said to the blessed man, Where dost thou command me to go, O bishop? And the blessed man answered and said to him, "For the sake of our Lord, thou wilt not be restrained until thou goest to Harran, and moreover, by the word of our Lord thou art bound not to return to this woman again. And as the entire village being gathered together, was listening to the words of the holy man, and the answers of that devil to his speech, the devil began to go forth from her, and he cried out in Arabic, saying, "Ho, let us go to Harran, ho, let us go to Harran," many times, "the road is before us, let us go to Harran.

13 And we heard his voice as he cried out in the air, going towards the west, for a long time, and [then] little by little his voice died away and became inaudible to us in the distance. And fear and trembling laid hold upon all those that were there, and they began to glorify Christ and to magnify his servant the blessed Mâr Elijah; and that woman received a complete cure, and she confessed the power of Christ, and lived freed from the attacks of the devil a life of gratitude to Christ our Lord, and she proclaimed, "There is no true belief except among the holy Christian people." 14 And again, another woman entrusted an exceedingly valuable pledge to a neighbour, and when she demanded it back from her she denied her, saying, "Thou hast never given any pledge to me, and I cannot pay it back. And the defrauded woman drew nigh to this blessed man, and he sent and called the other woman, and said to her, "Behold, the pledge which thy neighbour gave thee is lying in such and such a place in thy house, bring it hither, and defraud her not lest the anger of the Lord come upon thee; and when she saw that she was made a mockery, she at once returned to that woman the things which belonged to her, that she might not be exposed in other matters also. Now very many other things were wrought by the holy man which I need not take the trouble to write down, because I only wish to receive some small blessing from the glorious deeds of these holy men, and to pass on. And when he had gone round about throughout all this country, and had been blessed in his holy steps and had made judicial decisions, and ordained priests and deacons, he came into this monastery.

15 Now when God the Lord of all saw his troubles and afflictions, and the length of his years, and the greatness of his age, in order that he might not die in exile, far away from the house of his fathers, like the blessed Moses whom He buried on Mount Nebo that he might not be disturbed by the war of the Canaanites, and the slaughter of insolent kings, He willed that this blessed man also should rest from a life full of anxiety and care; and he fell sick of a slight ailment, and so departed from [this] temporary life to the enjoyment of everlasting life. And our holy father Mâr Abraham the Catholicus told me, saying, "While many of us were gathered together about him at the hour of his departure, he sat and spake with us concerning his separation from us. And he commanded us to say the response of baptism [which runs], The doors of the spiritual marriage chamber are opened for the absolution of men," while he sat with his hands laid upon his knees. And when we had come [to the passage] "Enter in then ye that are called to the joy which hath been prepared for you," he opened his mouth three times [to join in the singing], and his soul departed from his body with the joy which was prepared for him.

16 And marvelling we understood that he actually saw and beheld with the hidden eye of his mind the happiness which had been prepared for him, and that it was because of this he had asked us to sing this baptismal response, and that the rest and happiness which is laid up for the righteous baptized firstborn whose [names] are written down in heaven had assumed a visible form. And he was buried with great ceremony and honour by all the congregation of his sons and brethren, and he was laid with the rest of the Bishops and Metropolitans who were before him in the martyrium of this monastery; and is made ready for him with those who are of like rank and garb the enjoyment of heaven, namely the just and righteous in whose footsteps he walked, and in whose manner of life he triumphed. Glory be to Christ our Lord Who made him victorious, and may mercy be shewn upon us sinners by his prayers in this world, and may we participate in his enjoyment in that which is to come, Amen.

Chapter 12. The History of the Blessed Mâr Narsai (Narses), Bishop of the City of Shennâ

1 Now every spiritual gift cometh down from above from the Father of lights, according to the words of the divine James in the Catholic Epistle, and the light which shineth upon our holy temples beareth the mark of spiritual knowledge, according to the affirmation of Evagrius the spiritual philosopher, and according to David, the prophet of the Spirit who said to God, "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path," and the Lord of the Prophets and Apostles stated definitely that He was 'the Light of the world', and that, even as the Scriptures say, "Rivers of living water should flow from the belly" of whomsoever believeth in Him. It is well known then that all the holy men who were authors of works upon the healthful doctrine of orthodoxy, whether of history, or doctrine, or prayer, or admonition, have drunk from the abundant streams of the sweetness of the Gospel, which like the breath of life is placed for the cooling of their bitterness. And they have filled the Church with the spiritual light of the glorious rays of their understanding, and they have enlightened the assemblies of its children, and they have made them to know and to understand that while they make use of those footsteps they must set their own feet in the paths which lead to the height above, where Christ our Lord sitteth on the right hand [of God], and maketh intercession for them, although they do not actually make perfect this ascent except by mysteries and types.

2 And I also, who am subject to all passions, have been obliged through the entreaty of many to write down also the history of the blessed and holy Mâr Narses, Bishop of the city of Kârdîlâbhâdh, which is Shennâ dhê Bêth Rammân, and to teach it together with those of the holy men his companions. And because I am a man lacking all wisdom, from the Light, the Father of light, according to the words of the holy and wise Dionysius, I ask for a gift and the bestowal of power, to enable me to speak and to enter into the sanctuary of the victorious deeds of the holy man concerning whom our speech hath made ready to praise. And I beg and entreat that as He hath bestowed a gift upon others to the praise and glorification of His saints, he will also bestow upon me a sinner, full of hypocrisy through his hateful deeds, a gift that I may speak, if it be only in part, concerning some of the noble deeds of the blessed Mâr Narses, the member of His household.

3 Moreover, I would make known unto those who come across these histories, that according to what I have learned from the gentle-souled Eustathius, the Archdeacon of the holy Mâr Abraham the Catholicus, at the time when he and I were deacons of the Catholicus in the city of the kingdom of the world, after the death of the elect and holy Mâr Narses, that by the encouragement of Bûrzâdh his father, the head of the church at Shennâ, he collected the [accounts of] his noble deeds and sent them to Rabban Ḥabbibhâ, the teacher of the monastery of Mâr Gabriel, that he might weave them into a crown, and glorify them in a history. Now Rabban Ḥabbibhâ having departed from the manner of diction which historical narrative requireth, composed an account in metrical discourses which were to be sung to the 'fourth tone'—a style of composition which doth not at all aid [the writer] to make known acts of piety and persecutions, and moreover this style is appropriate for hymns and for the sweet penitential compositions which are sung to tunes, but not for history. "And when we had seen it", he saith, "we rejected it, and we did not miss it, and the leaves were torn by reason of the lapse of time, and because it was not suitable we have not copied it into our book.

4 But I will now set down in writing, for the gratification of those who have commanded me, some of the things which I have learned from Eustathius, and from the monks who lived in the holy Monastery of Abbá Simon of Shenná, but more especially from the aged monks who were to be found in my days in the holy monastery of Běth Ábhé, and from the Tigris boatmen and fishermen whom I have seen; and taking refuge in the prayers of those who told me the stories, and of those who commanded me to write them, and of readers, and listeners, I will go into the sweet-smelling garden laid out and cultivated by the holy Mâr Narses, and I will write briefly about him, even as I have written about his companions, some few matters to commemorate his holiness.