A WOMAN'S QUEST

FOR SPIRITUAL GUIDANCE

THE ARCHBISHOP IAKOVOS LIBRARY OF
ECCLESIASTICAL AND HISTORICAL SOURCES NO. 11
N.M. VAPORIS, General Editor
A WOMAN'S QUEST
FOR SPIRITUAL GUIDANCE:
THE CORRESPONDENCE OF
PRINCESS IRENE EULOGIA
CHOUMNAINA PALAIOLOGINA
by
ANGELA CONSTANTINIDES HERO
HELLENIC COLLEGE PRESS
A WOMAN'S QUEST
FOR SPIRITUAL GUIDANCE:
THE CORRESPONDENCE OF
PRINCESS IRENE EULOGIA
CHOUMNAINA PALAIOLOGINA
by
ANGELA CONSTANTINIDES HERO
With an Introduction by
JOHN MEYENDORFF
HELLENIC COLLEGE PRESS
Brookline, Massachusetts 02146
A WOMAN'S QUEST
FOR SPIRITUAL GUIDANCE
Copyright 1986 by Hellenic College Press
Published by HELLENIC COLLEGE PRESS
50 Goddard Avenue
Brookline, Massachusetts 02146
All rights reserved
Cover design by MARY C. VAPORIS
Cover Illustration: Constantinopolitan nuns. Fourteenth century.
Typikon of the Convent of the Theotokos of Sure Hope (-fc BEaiac
'EA1i8oC). Ms. Gr. 35, f. 12, Oxford (after H. Hunger, Reich der neuen
Mitte. Graz-Viel1na, 1965, plate 24).
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Irene Eulogia Choumnaina Palaiologos, Princess, d. ca. 1356
A woman's quest for spiritual guidance: The correspondence of
Princess Irene Eulogia Choumnaina Palaiologina.
(Archbishop Iakovos library of ecclesiastical and historical sources;
no. 11).
Bibliography: p.
1. Spiritual life-Orthodox Eastern authors. 2. Irene Eulogia
Choumnaina Palaiologos, Princess, d. ca. 1356. 3. Nuns-Byzantine
Empire-Correspondence. 4. Byzantine Empire-Princes and prin
cesses- Correspondence. 5. Spiritual directors-Byzantine Empire
Correspondence. 1. Hero, Angela Constantinides, 1926- . II. Title.
III. Series.
BX384.174 1984 248.4'8190943
ISBN 0-917653-08-4
ISBN 0-917653-09-2 (pbk.)
84-25264
Contents
Foreword
9
Abbreviations
11
General Introduction
15
Critical Introduction 21
List of Signs 24
The Correspondence
25
Commentary 103
Indices
155
Index to the Greek Text of the Correspondence 155
Index to Biblical and other Quotations 165
Incipits 166
7
Foreword
The letters of the Princess Irene-Eulogia are a rare personal
testimony by a Byzantine woman of exceptional individuality.
In 1956, in his pioneering study of spiritual direction in Byzan
tium, the late Father Vitalien Laurent drew the attention of
scholars to the unique character of these documents. Today their
value to students of Byzantine monasticism, Byzantine social
history, Byzantine literature, as well as women's studies, is even
more evident than nearly thirty years ago.
In fulfilling the pleasant duty of expressing my thanks to the
distinguished Byzantinists who offered encouragement and
assistance in the preparation of this edition, I must first
acknowledge my debt to Father Jean Darrouzes, A.A . . Father
Darrouzes kindly allowed me to publish this correspondence
which he discovered on a visit to the Library of the Escorial and
later brought to the attention of Father Laurent. I am also in-
I
debted to Father John Meyendorff for encouraging me to edit
the letters and for writing the introduction to this edition. My
special gratitude must go to Professor Ihor Sevcenko who
meticulously reviewed this work at the final stage and made many
improvements. For errors I alone am responsible. Finally, I would
like to thank Father Nomikos M. Vaporis and the Hellenic Col
lege/Holy Cross Press for the courtesy I experienced since the
manuscript came into their hands.
This edition is respectfully dedicated to the memory of Father
Vitalien Laurent, A. A. in grateful acknowledgment of his in
valuable contributions to the study of the Palaiologan era in
general and the Princess Irene-Eulogia in particular.
Angela Constantinides Hero
Center Jor Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies
Queens College oj the City University oj New York
9
List of Abbreviations
Boissonade, Anecdota Graeca: J. F. Boissonade, Anecdota
Graeca, 5 vols. (Paris, 1829-33; reprint, Hildesheim, 1962).
Boissonade, Anecdota Nova: J. F. Boissonade, Anecdota Nqva
(Paris, 1844; Hildesheim, 1962).
Browning, Medieval and Modern Greek: R. Browning, Medieval
and Modern Greek, 2nd ed. (London, 1983).
BZ: Byzantinische Zeitschrift.
Delehaye, "Deux typiea": H. Delehaye, "Deux typiea de l'
poque des Palologues," Acadrnie Royale des Sciences,
des Lettres et des Beaux Arts. Mmoires. Srie 2, Classe
des Lettres (Brussels, 1921), vol. 13, fase. 4, 1-212.
Demetrakos, Lexikon: D. B. Demetrakos, Myu AEtKOV ti
'ElYtKi yWCl, 9 vols. (Athens, 1933-51).
DOP: Dumbarton Oaks Papers.
EO: chos d' Orient.
Fassoulakis, Raoul-Ral(l)es: S. Fassoulakis, The Byzantine Family
of Raoul-Ral(l)es (Athens, 1973).
Hero, "Irene-Eulogia": A. C. Hero, "Irene-Eulogia Choumnaina
Palaiologina, Abbess of the Convent of Philanthropos Soter
in Constantinople," Byzantinische Forschungen, 9 (1985),
119-47.
Hero, The Letters of Gregory Akindynos: A. C. Hero, Letters
of Gregory Akindynos ( = Corpus Fontium Historiae Byzan
tinae, 21), Dumbarton Oaks Texts, 7 (Washington, D. C. ,
1983).
Janin, Gographie ecclsiastique: R. Janin, La gographie
ecclsiastique de l' empire byzantin. J. Le sige de CP. et le
patriarcat oecumnique. 3, Les glises et les monastres,
2nd. ed. (Paris 1969).
Jannaris, Grammar: A. N. Jannaris, An Historical Greek Gram
mar (London, 1897; reprint Hildesheim, 1968).
Kalothetos, Syngrammata: D. Tsames, ed. , 'Ical< Kuo9tou
11
12 Prin cess Irene-Eulogia
LUyyp.a'a (Thessalonike, 1980).
Kourouses, Manuel Gabalas: St. 1. Kourouses, MavoUl raa
u d'a Ma'8ato 1'po1oiT 'E<aou (1271/2-1355/60)
(Athens, 1972).
Laurent, "Une princesse byzantine au clotre": V. Laurent, "Une
princesse byzantine au clotre. Irne-Eulogie Choumnos
Palologine, fondatrice du couvent de femmes 'oG <tav-
8pc1ou Lw'fpo, " EO, 29 (1930), 29-60.
Laurent, "La direction spirituelle": V. Laurent, "La direction
spirituelle Byzance. La correspondance d' Irne-Eulogie
Choumnaina Palologine avec son second directeur," REB, 14
(1956), 48-86.
Laurent, "Une fondation monastique": V. Laurent, "Une fon
dation monastique de Nicphore Choumnos. <H fV KIl ovY
T 0EO' tOKOU 'f ropyoE1lKOOU, " REB 12 (1954), 32-44.
Mercati, Notizie: G. Mercati, Notizie di Procoro e Demetrio
Cidone, Manuele Caleca e Teodoro Meliteniota ed altri ap
punti per la storia della teologia e della letferatura bizantina
deI secolo XIV, Studi e Testi, 56 (Vatican City, 1931).
Meyendorff, Introduction: J. Meyendorff, Introduction l'
tude de Grgoire Palamas (Paris, 1959).
Miklosich-Mller: F. Miklosich and J. Mller, Acta et
diplomata Graeca medii aevi sacra et profana, 6 vols. (Vien
na, 1860-90).
Moulton, Grammar: J.H. Moulton, A Grammar of New Testa
ment Greek, III: Syntax (London, 1963).
Papadopoulos, Genealogie: A. Th. Papadopoulos, Versuch einer
Genealogie der Palaiologen, 1259-1453 (Munich, 1938;
reprint, Amsterdam, 1962).
PG: Patrologiae cursus completus, Series Graeca, ed. J. P. Migne.
Previale, "Due monodie": L. Previale, "Due monodie inedite
di Matteo di Efeso," BZ, 41 (1941), 4-39.
PLP: Prosopographisches Lexikon der Palaiologenzeit, ed. E.
Trapp (Vienna, 1976-).
REB: Revue des tudes Byzantines.
Salaville, "Formes ou mthodes de prire": S. Salaville,
"Formes ou mthodes de prire d'aprs un Byzantin du
XIVe sicle, Tholepte de Philadelphie," EO, 39 (1940), 1-25.
A bbreviations 13
Salaville, "Une lettre et un discours indits": Salaville, "Une lettre
et un discours indits de Tholepte de Philadelphie,"REB, 5
( 1947) , 101-15.
Talbot, Faith Healing: A.-M. Talbot, Faith Healing in Late
Byzantium. The Posthumous Miracles of the Patriarch Atha
nasios 1 of Constantinople by Theoktistos the Stoudite
(Brookline, MA, 1983).
Talbot, The Correspondence of Athanasius: A.-M. Talbot, ed.
The Correspondence of Athanasius 1 Patriarch of
Constantinople. Letfers to the Emperor Andronicus II,
Members of the Imperial Family, and Officiais (= Corpus
Fontium Historiae Byzantinae, 7) Dumbarton Oaks Texts 3
(Washington, D. C. , 1975).
Verpeaux, Nicphore Choumnos: J. Verpeaux, Nicphore
Choumnos, homme d' tat et humaniste byzantin (ca.
1250/1255-1327) (Paris, 1959).
Verpeaux, "Notes prosopographiques": J. Verpeaux, "Notes
prosopographiques sur la famille Choumnos," Byzan
tinoslavica, 20 (1959), 252-66.
General Introduction
Historians have often bemoaned the fact that the great mass
of documents reflecting the life of Christian Byzantium has per
ished either in 1204 or in 1453 when the New Rome was sacked
successively, first by the crusaders and then by the Turks. Among
the writings which remain, and which are still relatively abun
dant for the Palaiologan period (1261-1453), only a small number
refect the intimate, personal and everyday life of the Byzantines.
Even collections of letters by leading personalities of that period
actually represent, for the most part, examples of literary exer
cise prepared for publication by their authors or their immediate
disciples, with the express purpose of either furthering a religious
cause (e.g. Palamism or anti-Palamism), or simply showing the
rhetorical ability of the author in imitating accepted epi
stolographical standards.
The correspondence between, on the one hand, the nun
Eulogia, daughter of the wealthy intellectual Nikephoros Choum
nos and widow of the Despot John Palaiologos, son of the
Emperor Andronikos II; and on the other, a still youthful monk,
whom the princess, very insistently, was in the process of per
suading to become her new spiritual director, was probably not
destined for publication by the authors. It is found in a single
manuscript now at the Library of the Escorial, which contains
what appear to be autograph letters by several contemporaries,
and which might have served as a personal notebook of Eulogia
herself.
It is the intimate and spontaneous character of the correspon
dence-and also the fact that it involves a woman of influence
which constitutes its documentary importance. Even if, general
ly speaking, women belonging to Byzantine high society had a
more frequent and easier access to education than their Western
15
16 Princess Irene-Eulogia
medieval counterparts, the personality of Eulogia remains excep
tional. Although her education did not equal that of the promi
nent humanists of the time, or that of an Anna Komnene, she
was certainly more literate than the average member male or
female, of the Byzantine imperial family and household} Her let
ters, and those of her newly-found director, contain some im
portant prosopographical data. They also provide a rather vivid
portrait of a willful, energetic and somewhat frustrated woman,
who could have reigned over Byzantium and was still addressed
as basilissa, in spite of her monastic garb. This allows us to im
agine more vividly what it meant for a woman of her background
to live in monastic retirement from the time of her widowhood
at the age of sixteen in 1307 until her death shortly after 1355.
Already studied in a preliminary way by Vitalien Laurent in
1956,' the correspondence is now being published and masterful
ly analyzed by Angela Hero. The editor points to the importance
of the text for the history of the Greek language, and singles out
much concrete information on the persons involved and their his
torical milieu. Seen in the wider perspective of the cultural and
social history of Byzantium in the fourteenth century, the corre
spondence opens an interesting window on the mentality and con
cerns of a personality influential with the court, the church, and
the intellectual circles, which after 1341, were to oppose Palamism.
Whether one considers that the eventual defeat of these circles by
the Palamites was a tragedy, a blessing or a misunderstanding in
terms of the destinies of Byzantine civilization, their role in the
sophisticated, somewhat naive and, at times, astonishingly char
ming life of the Byzantine aristocracy of the Palaiologan era, is
important for the understanding of the society as a whole.
The first general remark which comes to mind after reading
the correspondence is the contrast which exists between its text
and the generally practiced style of monastic spiritual writing of
the same period. Etlogia's director hardly mentions "struggle
against passions," "mental prayer," and the spiritual fruits of
ascetic life, i.e. all the classical to
p
oi which appear profusely,
for example, in the treatise addressed around 1345 by another
'
Laurent, "La direction spirituelle." For the most recent study of Eulogia, her two
known directors, and her role in the hesychast controversy, see Hero, "Irene-Eulogia."
General Introduction 17
monk, Gregory Palamas, to another nun, Xene, who was in
charge of educating the daughters of Andronikos III. 2 In his let
ters, the director occasionally uses hesychast terminology, 3 but
it is only to justify his personal reluctance to visit Eulogia as often
as she wants, not to teach spirituality as such. Otherwise, as two
well-educated friends, they exchange books and compliments.
Eulogia sends paper and generous monetary gifts. In return she
receives some mild scoldings and social advice concerning her
exaggerated attachment to her family,4 her behavior at a
memorial service,s and her high temper and arrogance. 6
The behavior and mentality of Eulogia, as it appears in the
correspondence, illustrates the life of a well-bred and wealthy
Byz,ntine forced into accepting monastic tonsure by a family
mishap or political circumstances. There are many contemporary
and similar examples of emperors, or members of the imperial
family retiring to monasteries. In most such cases, the monk or
nun in question was not required to give up much of his (or her)
income or social privileges. The monastic state excluded only the
formal resumption of political power. Thus, Constantinopolitan
convents welcomed widowed princesses-including Eulogia's own
- SIster-in-law, Mary, widow of Michael IX, who died as the nun
Xene-and dethroned emperors, including Andronikos II, who
was tonsured as monk Anthony in 1328. It was not unusual for
such personalities to invest part of their fortune in rebuilding and
later supporting the monastery in which they retired. This allowed
not only for personal comfort, but also for a preservation of social
ties in the capital. In the fourteenth century, the most famous
retiree of this type was the Emperor John VI Kantakouzenos.
Tonsured as the monk Joasaph in 1354, he continued to enjoy
the imperial title and political influence until 1383 when he died.
It is obvious, therefore, that such aristocratic monks, if they were
/
fulfilling normally the monastic vow of chastity, were not very
2
See Gregory Palamas, Ipos rrv ae/vorar1v ev /0va(ovaals Sev1v, 7epl 7a8wv Kal
dperwv Kal 7epi rwv TlKTO/eVWV eK "Is Kara vovv aXOArs, PG 150. 1044A-1088C.
3
Letter 14, lines 1-4.
'4\
I . . Letter 19, lines 1-3.
S
Letter 21, lines 1-3.
6
Letter 18, lines 6-14; Letter 19, lines 7-10.
18 Princess Irene-Eulogia
strict in following the two other traditional vows of monasti
cism-obedience and poverty.
Eulogia's own retirement lasted almost fifty years. As a young
bride of a despot, she never had a real opportunity to exercise
political power, but she was still titled basilissa by friends and
foes alike. The correspondence clearly shows her as very con
scious of her rank. Not only was she in a position to insist that
a monk of some repute, but of no financial means, become her
spiritual director in spite of his obvious reluctance to do so, but
she could also invoke imperial protocol (OUVi8E1U BU01A1Ki) to
refuse the presence in their conversations of a third person, a
saintly monk, uninvited by her and brought in by the director.7
Although this is not stated explicitly in the text, one may sup
pose that the same reason of protocol forbade her to visit her
director herself -a simple solution to her main problem-instead
of demanding his visits to her.
It is a pity that documents available so far do not allow us
to identify Eulogia's director more precisely. Dr. Hero does not
challenge his tentative identification by V. Laurent with Ignatios,
a hesychast and correspondent of Barlaam.8 The identification
appears as a possibility. The director confesses repeatedly his love
for solitude (touXiu), but he is also the author of a treatise in
defense of secular education, and he wrote poetry which he sent
to Eulogia.9 He is, rather suprisingly, unfamiliar with the
spiritual writings of Theoleptos of Philadelphia. 10 Furthermore,
he has high-positioned friends in Constantinople, including
bishops and the patriarch himself, most probably John Kalekas
(1334-1347).11 The fact that he is known as a hesychast may,
therefore, simply indicate his way of life as a monk outside of
a regular community, but it does not carry ideological imp lie a
tions.1
2
Not all Byzantine hesychasts sided with Palamas after

7
Letter 17, lines 66-95.
8
See Hero, "Irene-Eulogia," 139-40.
9
Letter 12, lines 1-3.
IO
Letter 8, lines 31-36.
II
Letter 17, line 34.
12Por the varied use of the term "hesychast," see my article "Hesychasme: problmes de
semantique," Melanges d' histoire des religions oJJerts a H -Ch. Pech (aris, 1974), 543-47.
General Introduction 19
1341, and we knw t
h
at Ignatios did not.
Whatever the,later options of Eulogia and her director in the
cultural and religious crisis which shook Byzantine society in the
middle of the fourteenth century, it is interesting to note that
by 1335-the approximate date of the correspondence-both of
them refer with great respect to spiritual authorities which will
also be highly praised by te Palamites. Indeed, for Eulogia there
never was a greater spiritual father than the Metropolitan
Theoleptos of Philadelphia, who tonsured her and remained her
director until his death in 1322. On the other hand, her new direc
tor and corresponde
n
t is the author of writings in honor of
Patriarch Athanasi
o
s I (1289-1293-1303-1310),13 whom he
could not have known personally, but whose prestige as an ascetic;
a social reformer, and a spiritual leader, he greatly admired. Fur
thermore, copies of his works on Athanasios were being kept at
the Monastery of Xerolophos, founded by the great ascetic
patriarch.
1
4
The director was, therefore, in close touch with one
of the hesychastic centers of the capital, where in 1341 the anti
Palamite theologian, Akindynos, will be forced to agree (tem
porarily) with the positions of Gregory Palamas.15 Both
Theoleptos and Athanasios are considered by Palamas himself
to be among the most eminent models of hesychasm.
16
Another
well-known Palamite, Joseph Kalothetos, also enhances the
prestige of Patriarch Athanasios by writing his vita.17
The personal correspondence between Eulogia and the anony
mous young monk, whom she convinces after so much insistence
to become her spiritual director, provides us with a very rare op
portunity to learn more about a Byzantine milieu rather foreign
to theological debates, sincerely pious, but seeing no contradic
tion between the preservation of ancient Greek culture and the
monastic austerity exemplified by Athanasios 1. It appears that
the high echelons of Byzantine society enjoyed this intellectual
13
Letter 1, lines 28-29; Letter 2, lines 18-19.
1
4
Letter 4, line 6.
15
See my Introduction, 86.
16
See Palamas, Trias 2, 2, 3, ed. J. Meyendorff, Gregoire Palomas, Defense des saints
hesychastes, 2nd. ed. (Louvain, 1974), 99, 323.
17
See commentary on Letter 1, lines 28-29.
20 Princess Irene-Eulogia
peace during much of the reign of Andronikos II (1282-1328).
It is that society which was responsible not only for much of the
literature of this period, but also for financing artistic
achievements of the so-called "Palaiologan Renaissance.
"18
It is easy to see how the aspirations, the mentality, and the
interests of Eulogia Choumnaina and that of her correspondent
are far from a real "Renaissance." But the subjectivism, the
aspirations to literary perfection-so very imperfect still in the
case of Eulogia-the aristocratic freedom from the strictures of
normal monastic discipline, can perhaps be seen as the signs of
a pre-Renaissance.
The second half of the fourteenth century will be much more
dramatic and divisive intellectually, religiously, socially, and
politically. The "pre-Renaissance" did not evolve into a "true
Renaissance." The activities and writings of Barlaam of Calabria
broke the peace between monks and humanists, whereas Eulogia
used her money and influence against Palamas and his disciples.
It is doubtful that she was ever moved by distinct personal
theological convictions. She was rather more sympathetic per
sonally to the humanistic circles where anti-Palamism was the
strongest. Her party lost the battle, but she did not suffer per
sonal or financial harm. In 1355, after the total triumph of the
Palamites, she was still in a position to donate a Macedonian
estate to the Monastery of Saint John Prodromos on Mount
Menoikion.19 The monastic zealots who took over the patriar
chate after the victory of Kantakouzenos in the civil war of
1341-1347, and had'the theology of Palamas solemnly confirmed
by the Church, did not suppress the close-knit aristocratic and
conservative society to which Eulogia belonged. This society, in
creasingly threatened by the military and political catastrophies
befalling Byzantium, survived in Constantinople or in Mis!ra as
a lingering pre-Renaissance until the very fall.
John Meyendorff
1 8
See my article "Spiritual Trends in Byzantium in the Late Thirteenth and Early Four
teenth Centuries," in P. Underwood, The Kariye Djami (Princeton, 1975), 4, 93-106.
1 9
See commentary on Letter 7, lines 42-44.
Critical Introduction
The correspondence edited below consists of twenty-two let
ters, eight of which are by the princess (Letters 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11,
13 and 15), and fourteen by her spiritual director (Letters 2, 4,
6, 8, 10, 12, 14 and 16-22).
20
The entire dossier was written
within the period of one year, 21 sometime after the death of An
dronikos II in 1332 and before the death of Eulogia's brother
John Choumnos, in 1338. These chronological indications are
provided by Letter 5, in which Eulogia assures her correspon
dent that if her father-in-law had been alive he would not have
failed to be his patron, 2 2 and by Letter 21, in which the director
20
The letters appear anonymously in the manuscript, bearing only the following super
scriptions: 'AnoAoyrr tKi npo< Tiv npoHllv, EmoToAi oWTEpa, wTEpa unoAoYlTtKi
npo< Tiv oWTEpav, TpiTll, n:TupTll unoAoYllTtKi npo< Tiv y
llV
, nEllnTll, EKTll uno
AOYllTtKi npo< Tiv nEllnTllv, E86llll, 6y86ll (sic) unoAoYllTtKi npo< Tiv E06IlllV,
EVVUTll (sic), OEKUTll unoAoYllTtKi npo< Tiv EVVUTllV (s, ic), EVOEKUTll (sic), OCOEKUTn
unQAoYllTJKi n, po< T, iv E\OEKUT, llV, TptoKmoEKuTll, tO
ll
unoAoYllTtKT npo< Tiv ty
l
l
V
,
lE
ll
, tOT
ll
, t1
ll
,1
1
1
1
1 , K
ll
, Ka
ll
. The terms unoAoYll TtKi (answer) and EmoToAi (let
ter) refer to the letters of Eulogia and to those of her director respectively. Starting with
the director's third letter, the letters of both the correspondents are numbered consecutive
ly, but there is no number 19. Either the scribe made a mistake in numbering the letters
or he left one out deliberately. He also failed to number the last letter in the collection
(Letter 22). It is obvious that the correspondence is incomplete. It begins with Eulogia's
answer to the director's first letter and ends with a brief note giving her permission to
attend the funeral of an aunt. Missing are both the director's first letter and Eulogia's
answers to his last six letters. Either the originals of these letters had been lost, or-as
suggested by Laurent ("La direction spirituelle," p. 50)-the letters in this collection
were copied from the princess' personal file by someone who selected them arbitrarily.
2l
Nos. 1-16 are an exchange in chronological order and, although Eulogia's letters stop
at this point, the remaining six letters by her director are sequential. Since Letter 9 was
written shortly before the Feast of the Transfiguration of the Savior on 6 August (cf.
commentary on Letter 9, lines 84-85), and Letter 21 shortly after the requiem on the
anniversary of Nikephoros Choumnos' death-16 January (cf. commentary on Letter
20, line 5)-the entire series does not exceed the chronological limits of one year.
22
See Letter 5, lines 39-50. We may even raise the terminus post quem to 1334 because,
as Laurent noted ("La direction spirituelle," p. 82, note 1), the mention of Dexios as
a friend of the patriarch indicates that the prelate in question was John XIV Kalekas. A
21
22 Princess Irene-Eulogia
refers to a meeting between the abbess and a "man of the
p
ara
koimomenos," most probably Eulogia's brother John, the
p
a
rakoimomenos of the Great Seal.
23
But even if the palatine of
ficial in question is not John Choumnos, we can safely say that
the letters were written before 1341 because they contain no allu
sion to the hesychast controversy in which the abbess was an ac
tive participant.
The correspondence has been preserved on the last folios
(235r-254v; three folios marked 237) of the codex Scorialensis
Gr. <. III-II (=S), a fourteenth century miscellany, which as
indicated by some of its other contents-four letters of Gregory
Akindynos (fols. 230r-234v) and one letter of a close friend of
John Kyparissiotes (fols. 213r-214v)-was either the property of
the princess or of one of her anti-Palamite protegeS.24
The entire text is by a practced hand, similar to Marcianus
Gr. 183 (1359-A. TuryDated Greek Manuscri
p
ts of the Thir
teenth and Fourteenth Centuries in the Libraries of Italy [Ur
bana, 1972], plate f82). Nevertheless, the copyist was no scholar.
He did not correct even the most noticeable spelling errors of
Eulogia who, by her own admission, was not proficient in gram
mar. 25 It would be tempting to ascribe the copying to the
princess herself, but we know from their mutual complaints that
neither she nor her correspondent had neat handwriting.26
In 1956 Father Laurent was the first to study Eulogia's cor
respondence and to publish short excerpts from it.
27
He dis
cussed the letters in detail, noting their prosopographical interest
and their importance for the study of the institution of spiritual
later anti-Palamite, Dexios is known to have been a member of Kalekas' entourage. See
Letter 18, line 10, and commentary.
23
See Letter 21, lines 3-6 and commentary on lines 3-4 of the same letter.
2
4
For a description of this MS, see G. De Andres, Catdlogo de los Codices Griegos
de la Real Biblioteca de el Escorial (Madrid, 1965), 2, pp. 60-64; Hero, The Letters of
Gregory Akindynos, pp. xxxvii-xl. I have studied the relevant part of this MS by means
of photographic reproductions.
25
See Letter 1, lines 5-6.
26
See Letter 10, lines 37-39 and Letter 13, lines 48-50.
27
See Laurent, "La direction spirituelle," 55, notes 4 and 6; 57, note 3; 58 note 1; 59,
notes 1-4, 6; 61, note 3; 62 notes 2 and 3; 63, note 2; 66; 69, notes 1-3; 70, note 5.
Critical Introduction 23
guidance in Byzantium. He also announced his intention to edit
the letters, but unfortunately his plans did not materialize. In
1957
T. D. Mosconas, the curator of the Library of the Orthodox
Patriarchate of Alexandria, studied Choumnaina's corre
spondence while on a visit to the EscoriaI and published a list
of the inci
p
its of the letters as well as photocopies of the folia
containing the first five letters. 28 However he relinquished his
interest in preparing a edition of this correspondence after learn
ing that Laurent was already considering the same project.
29
More recently, St. Kourouses, in his monograph on the Metro
politan Matthew of Ephesos, published a brief excerpt from one
of the letters (Letter
16
) .
30
Several excerpts have also appeared
in my article "Irene-Eulogia.
"31
In the present edition, the critical text diverges from S in spell
ing only. To avoid ambiguities, I have corrected Eulogia's er
rors and noted the original spelling in the apparatus. The or
thography of her director's letters is excellent, requiring only the
correction of occasional itacisms and the tacit changes in the ac
centuation of enclitics, in the addition of the iota subscript which
is found inconsistenly in S, and in punctuation. Finally, the
numbering of the letters is, of course, my own.
71-, notes 1 and 5; 72 notes 1-6; 73 notes 1, 5, and 6; 75 notes 2 and 4; 79 notes 3-4;
80, note 1; 83 note 2; 85, notes 1 and 5. For a French translation of select passages,
see ibid., 52, note 6; 54-55; 58; 63; 70-72; 74-79; 81-85.
28
See T. D. Mosconas, i1tu'ov EAA:VtKmV aVEK86twv 'EtPOYPUcwv, 'AVUAEKta,
'EK&OOW tOU 'IvOttTOUTOU tmv 'AVatOAtKmV L1ou8mv n< I1atptap'tKi< Bt1Ato8itKT<
'AAEav8pEia< (Alexandria, 1957), 6, pp. 95-111.
29
Mosconas, "La correspondance de Theoiepte de Philadelphie avec Ir
e
ne
Paieologue," 'AVUAEKta, 7 (1958), 32-33.
30
Kourouses, Manuel Gabalas, p_ 334, note 1.
31
Hero, "Irene-Eulogia," notes 1, 15, 24, 34-44, 47-57, 59-60, 73-76, 78.
24
* * *
t t t
< >
[ ]
s
Princess Irene-Eulogia
List of Signs
lacunae codicis
crucibus amplectuntur corruptelae
addenda
delenda
Codex Scorialensis Gr. <. ///-11
Angela C. Hero
THE CORRESPONDENCE

t, , Khi

KOV
5 ' ,

,

'
10
,
.

.
15 ,
, '
' ,
,
, -
20
. * * *

, 6
,
25 6 .

' , ,

' .
S 235r
10 ] S 11 20 S 11 21 post spat. cav. 1-21itt. (ut vid.) S 11 23
S 11 26 ' (ut vid.) S 11 28 S
26
Answer to the First Letter
I
was glad to receive your most eloquent and wise letter,
holy Father. Its beauty delighted me and moved me
to write to you so that you may understand two things about
me: from my mistakes in accents and itacisms < you will under
stand ) my ignorance and want of training in the art of gram
mar. But < you will also understand ) my capacity for think
ing, small as it is; lowe it to the great gift and benevolence and
grace of my Maker and Savior Jesus Christ and not to human
education or explanation. They would have taught me grammar
too, if they cared for me so much < as to gve me an education).
I am grateful for the letter of Your Holiness and I commend
and admire it. I am grateful for your praise, even though I am
nothing and a total stranger to such compliments. Nevertheless,
< I am grateful) for your kind feelings and your good opinion
of me. On the other hand, I praise and admire < your letter)
because the < letter ) in itself shows great philosophical abili
ty. I mean that it is ability and great evidence of philosophy to
present in a few and brief words a very significant and impor
tant matter. So, Your Holiness, you made your letter deliberately
brief out of humility and in the hope of escaping my detection,
but you achieved the opposite of your intention. For when I saw
such ability in so few words, I praised you even more and felt
impelled to disturb you.
I request Your Holiness, therefore, to let me see your other
works also. Furthermore it is my request, and ardent request,
that you do not deprive me of the work of Your Holiness in honor
of the most holy Patriarch Kyr-Athanasios.
27
28
< )
, '
,
,

5 .
[Fol. 235v]
, ,
, 1
.
10 -
i 1
,
1
, . ' , ,
15
,
-
-

20 , .
' ,
,
. .
S 235r-235v
1 smg 11 5 S 11 12 SSV
29
< Letter 2 )
Not only did I give something good but I also received < the
same ) in return. Rather, without giving anything good I re
ceived something marvelous: from the mouth of a woman came
a voice fit for a wise and noble man; it was the natural product
of a naturally wise soul. Previously, I wondered at the princess'
love of learning, but now I wonder whether there is anything more
useful that she can ingenuously discover and take from elsewhere
than she can offer to others from her own counsel.
It seems to me that my works will appear useless when of
fered to such a creature. So by the very means by which you
earnestly tried to urge me to give you my works, you deter me
from giving them to you. However, it is rude to disobey your
command. Just as I said, though, it is not easy to give them out.
Some of them are still on the paper on which they were first writ
ten. They are in the form of drafts and difficult to make out,
while those which have been finished-as I am wont to finish
them, that is-remain in Thessalonike. Among the latter are those
which I happened to write in honor of the noble and holy Atha
nasi os. Having said none of these things < to you ) at the time,
I failed to tell the truth. I wrote to have these < works ) sent
to me soon, and when they are brought here you may have those
you wish. Neither will I refuse to give you those < that are here)
as soon as they are edited. It is a fact that no one begrudges
anyone anything that is not good.
30
< )

, ,
'
.
5 ,

.
, ,
, ,
1 ,
10 .
i q q
1 i,
,
-
15 ,
va[Fol. 236r] 1 , ,
.
,
. -
20


, '
, ',
' ,
25 .
,
,
18 Greg. Naz., Or. 2, 40 (ed. Bernardi, 142, 16)
S 235v-236r
1 Smgll 6 S 11 8
S 11 12 S 11 (littera ex correcta) S / (litteris
ex correctis) S / 13 S 11 13-14 S 11 16 ]
(littera 2 partim erasa) S 11 post unum verbum eras. et
scr
.
S
svlI 17 S1/ 19 S 1/ 20 ,c 1/ 22
S 11 25 ante scripsit et deinde delevit S
31
< Letter 3 )
If they asked the sun what part of the creation it would rather
have prevail on the rest, it would answer thus (if it could utter
a word): that it would like the Universe to be eyes in order to
apprehend the sun's own beauty. And if someone asked a most
wise and learned man what he, too, would like more than anything
else, he would ask for an understanding audience. This is why
I was compelled to write to you in a rash and thoughtless man
ner, considering neither your wisdom nor my ignorance, but con
sidering this alone: to let you know that you are not talking to
an audience that is utterly lacking in understanding, even if I
cannot approach your wisdom.
You lead a life of poverty, simplicity, self-effacement and
obscurity in Christ, hiding and covering up your wisdom like a
budding rose. Thus you have left your most wise writings ne
glected and cast aside and you keep them only in drafts. I suspect
that you did not even edit those you sent to Thessalonike, nor
did your friends force you to do so. But you must know that
just as "the iron strikes the firestone," I shall not cease striking
until I light up the torch of your writings. So, if it is possible
to copy from the draft those of your works which are more
necessary < for me to read) and whatever Your Holiness ap
proves and considers me worthy of seeing, I shall not hesitate
to send paper and < pay for) the expenses. If this is not possi
ble, < send me ) at least your writings on the Patriarch Kyr
Athanasios, if there is a copy. And if you do not wish these to
circulate, I guarantee that also, because of the antipathy of cer
tain people. But if even this is not convenient, let the living spring
come-let Your Holiness visit me-and I shall bear the loss of
the river that flows with writings.
I would like' , however, to mention the following: in your first
32
.
' 1
30
,
, ,
,
.
35 , ,

1 ,
,
' -
40 .
30 S 11 32 S 11 32-33 forsitan corrige : ..
S 11 33 S 11 39

S 11 40 S
< )
"Q ,

, ,
.
5 [Fol. 236v]
' ,

1, ' , '
, ' ' -
10
. , 1,
. -
'
, , ,
15 ( .
S 236r-236v
1 Smg 11 7Qv S 11 8 S
33
letter, Your Holiness, you said to me that you sent me that let
ter as a taste of the wine-cask; if I did not find it distasteful, I
could drain the cask. Yet, although I found it delicious, I did
not even partake of a pitcher. I fear, therefore, that my ignorance
and obtuseness sealed the cask. Because you do not wish to be
praised yourself, you praised me excessively to make me realize
how much < praise ) is due to a wise and learned man, if even
an illiterate and ignorant woman is given so much praise. You
wished me to understand the enormity of the debt and feeling
dizzy at the thought to refrain from praising you. Things turned
out as you intended.
< Letter 4 )
I thought that what I wrote would quell your eagerness. But
since I see that it rather kindled and increased it extraordinarily,
I sent to you some discourses which are not good although they
appear to you to be good. These discourses of mine, for which
you particularly asked, were found in the monasteries of the
renowned Athanasios and they are not as I set them down later
and left them in Thessalonike, but they were taken directly from
birth, so to speak, and therefore they are not as carefully worked
out. Still they are more polished than the rest of my discourses
that are here. Read these, and if you require the rest, I shall hand
them over to you after they have been copied, in accordance with
your orders. I do not believe that these discourses should be kept
from those for whom I wrote them. For even if I am not too
anxious to display them, they were written so that these individuals
might hear them, not that they might not.
34
< >

, ,
. '
. KOV
5 ' ;
,

-
, , -
10 ,
, ,

,
, --
15
, ,
,

[Fol. 237r] -
20 '

-

; ,
, -
25 .
,
, ,
.
(\,t,\ 1, t;i ,u,,, "\",,,1'3,
1-2 Ps, 117 (118). 162-16 11 6
m
: 8 11 8-9 Oreg.
N
az., Or. 42,
13 ( 36.472D) 1110-11 Oreg.
N
az., Or 42,13 ( 36. 472D-73A) 1116-17
cf. Jn. 14.27
S 236v-237v
1

' s
m
g 11 S 11 2
S 11 3 S 11 14 S 11 23 S 11 26 S
35
< Letter 5 >
"I exulted because of thy words," holy Father, "as one that
finds much spoil." I was caught between two emotions. I felt
both great joy and much sorrow. I rejoiced at the beauty of your
writing. For what is not admirable about it? The fire-breathing
rhetoric or the saintly and most pious and proficient instruction?
For you "instruct in an instructive way," and the instruction is
such that no important argument is omitted and the' 'dispute is
between the arguments not the speakers." In such an impeccable
manner you deal a vital blow to the enemy of truth! Or is not
the benefit of your teaching < to be admired >? Not only < the
benefit > of those for whom it was written, but of us also who
read it. For we are certainly taught about gentleness of spirit and
the meaning of forbearance and the laws of double peace-I mean
both the divine and human-and what was the peace that Christ
bequeathed to His disciples and what is human peace, and how
he who is to have the Holy Spirit dwell in him needs the divine
peace. The discourse explains this admirably and reconciles the
Prophet's saying with that of the Gospel. Or, again, < should
one not admire > the great facility of mind and breadth of percep
tion and the marvelous and unaffected language? The breadth
of your perception reduces me to straits, Father, and your great
ease, makes me uneasy. I was so charmed by your writing that
I neglected all my duties, although they were most pressing, and
did not let go of your discourse until I had finished all of it.
36
, -
30
.

, , , ,
-
35 , ,
' ' , '
.

" ,
40
, ,
; ;
!
! ,
45 , , !"
'' , ,
."
[Fol. 237v]
, -
50 ! ,
, ,
.
-
' -
55 , .
,
.
.
30 S 11 31

S 11 33

(supra 1 littera [?] quae legi
potest) S 11 35 S 11 43 S 11 43 S 11 44
S 141 45 S 11 56 S 11 57 S
37
These were, then, the reasons for my rejoicing, but even more
so it was your virtue which shines through your writings for those
who are not altogether blind. As for the causes of my sorrow,
they were the following: the fact that a man was born filled with
blessings-wisdom, knowledge, eloquence, and what is more im
portant, virtue-and he races through time and time hurries him
off, stealing away the glory which is his due. All this because
of his virtue and because he does not care to show off, there be
ing no one who desires and seeks out the good. As I was turning
these thoughts around in my mind, I said to myself with many
tears: "Where is your spirit, my lord and father-in-law, the mighty
and holy emperor? You were a born philosopher and loved vir
tue and learning and goodness and the monks! And you, my most
wise father, who gave me life? Here is the friend you were seek
ing! Here is the kind of monk in whose company you delighted!
o what a loss you suffered, both you, my father, and you, Your
Holiness, the author of this work, holy Father!" For I shall turn
back to you. "You do not have, as I see, a worthy and genial
judge and listener." I almost blame public opinion for being
rather insensitive to such greatness. If my father and father-in
law were alive, even though you run away from fame with a most
swift foot, they would have chased you with honor's swifter feet,
moved by the love of honor, and they would have caught you
as they were wont to do.
As truth is my witness, I do not say this to flatter you. I am
just telling you what I noticed and learned from my reading. You
should know and write to assure me whether I grasped and
understood all the meaning of your work. I am providing paper
for < copies> of the rest of your works.
38
< ' >
1 , '
, ;

, 1 1 -
5 ' . ' ,
, ,
1 q
,
.
10 -
,
1
, ","

, " ,
."
15 ,
[Fol. 237ar]
,
.
, , 1 -
20 , .
,

'

:: , .

25 .
S 237v-237ar
1 smg
1
1 13-14 Cf. Joannes Colobus, Apophthegmata, 32 (Apoph
thegmata patrum, 65. 213-16)
6
1
1 13 S 11 18 S
39
< Letter 6 >
Will you not stop seducing my wretched and vain soul from
its established way of life with your praises? Because I already
foresaw this and was well aware of my own weakness, I did not
dare to give such a pretext against me to a mind so fond of learn
ing. With respect to me, you seem to be the only one who has
retained an absolute sense of the good, since you keenly perceive
even the smallest good and admire it as much as no one admires
even the greatest and most worthwhile.
I have not attained a greater degree of perfection than that
marvelous father who was weaving baskets and who said, when
someone sitting nearby praised him and repeatedly told him how
well he was weaving: "Keep quiet, my good man, for ever since
you came here you led me away from God." Inasmuch as I am
inferior to that man and less accomplished in the pursuit of
virtue-and I must add to this the superiority of the praise and
of the admirer-I am led further away from God by being praised.
Let the burden stop here, then, lest like a small boat, having taken
a heavier load than I can carry, I go under.
That renowned emperor and your wise father should have
been born immortal because of all they had and gave to others.
I am well aware of being too lowly for their love.
40
< )

,
;

5 '
,

,
, -
10 .
,
,
'
.
15 -
- q -
,
, ' 1
[Fol. 237
a
] -
20
,
,
, '
, .
25 , ,
.
,
-
'1-2 I
s
. 10. 15 11 7-10 2 Cor. 6. 7-8 11 27-28 Ps. 76 (77). 3
S 237
a
r-237
b
r
1 smg 11 5 S 11 7 S 11
10 S 1116 S
s
v 11 ] S 1117 S 11 S 1118 S 11


S 11 19 S 11 24 S 11 S 11 25-26 6
S 11 27-28 S
41
< Letter 7 >
"Shall the axe glorify itself without him that hews with it"
or will iron be tempered without fire and water? Thus neither
will a wisdom-loving mind be glorified and thrive without an ad
mirer and a critic. For even praise becomes a weapon of virtue
to a champion, in the words of the Apostle saying: "with the
weapons of righteousness for the right hand and for the left; in
honor and dishonor, in ill-repute and good repute." Accept, then,
the words of praise as a weapon of righteousness sent to you from
God, since this is how He saw fit to dispose of the lives of His
servants (if indeed what I say to you is truly praise and I am not
insulting you by my praise).
I sent to you the discourses of the marvelous man-if love
does not blind me-and I wish you to look first at what I have
checked because it has a double value: literary and spiritual.
Besides, you must see the double bereavement and loss I suf
fered-wretched me-when I lost both my fathers; the one who
gave me birth in fesh and the other who regenerated me by the
monastic habit and to whose direction I submitted as best as I
could. If time permits, you shall hear what he taught me by way
of initiation. Unable to bear their loss, and more so that of my
spiritual father, I live in grief. Because I could not find company
< which offered > both spiritual and literary < benefits > so as
to be complete and perfect, "my soul refused to be comforted
42
' , -
30
. , ,
,
-
- -
35 '
,
. '
. ,
' -
40 ' ,
.

,
,
45 , * * *
[Fo1.237br]
,
.
28-29 Ps. 60 (61). 2 11 35 cf. Mt. 25. 15-28
28-29 S 11 32 S 11 33 S 11 34 S 11
S 11 35 S 11 38 ' S 11 40 S 11 43 post
vocabulum quod legi potest expunxit S 11 44 S 11
S " 45 post vocabulum quod legi potest - S
43
and my spirit was in trouble." This is why my heart moved me
from within to seek your company. If it is no trouble, therefore,
just as I said before, do visit me once a month and become a
muzzle of my depression, so to speak, since even a bow string
cannot bear tension and must be loosened for a while from the
notches. Do this for the sake of Him Who enjoined us not to
hide the talent. Since you are entrusted with both a literary and
spiritual talent, give to those who ask eagerly. Perhaps you will
say, because of your excessive modesty, that you are not suffi
ciently endowed in either respect. Please do not say that, for it
is a complaint muttered against the Lord Who granted you these
talents. I also tell you that I am satisfied with what I saw and
understood and I need no more.
Since the Lord made me also a trustee and manager of < ma
terial ) goods and they were managed as He sees fit and since
a fraction < of them > still remains and I a managing it, please
let me know how much you need for your comfort from the goods
of our common Master and may I not fail < to provide it > as
best as I can.
44
< )
' ' ,
, ,

< -
5 ,

.
, ,
, '
10 - ,
, ,
- '
,
, ,
15 , ,
.
'
, '
, -
20 i .
.
,
' ,

25
[!. 237bv]
, i
, , .
,
30 ,
, '
7-11 Cf. 2 Cor. 6. 7-8 1114-16 Ro
m
. 8. 35 11 27-28 Cf. Pind., O/ymp. 2.86
S 237br-238r
1 s
m
g 11 4 S 11 12-13 S 11 15 S 11 19
S 11 30-31 S
45
< Letter 8 )
Praise is a weapon of virtue not by itself but by accident, and
not for those who acquire virtue intelligently but for those who
have the mentality of a child. For just as their guardians lead
the children to the teacher by the use of fattery and soothing
words, in the same way praise incites people of childish mental
ity to virtue when offered for that purpose. This is not, however,
what the Apostle means when he speaks of "the weapons of
righteousness for the right hand and for the left, honor and
dishonor. " He means instead that none of these can turn him
away from his proposed task-"neither honor nor dishonor nor
ill-repute nor good repute" nor any other such thing-but through
everything he remains the same and unchangeable servant and
apostle of Christ, just as he says elsewhere that nothing can
separate him' 'from the love of Christ, neither tribulation nor
distress" nor all that he enumerates in this passage also. But
whoever is intelligent and pursues the good intelligently, he will
not adhere to the good because of any of all the other reasons
but because of the very nature of the good alone and foremost,
even if there should be no one to know his frame of mind.
This is what I have to say about these matters. As for the book
of your most wise father, I admire it very much and no longer
on account of your testimony but on account of the very wisdom
of your father, for I observed in his discourses admirable think
ing, gracefu language, and moderation coupled with magnificence.
I admired especially the topics of the discourses, so noble are they
and so beftting a man "born wise," as Pindar said. Such are the
works of your natural father! I saw them and will see them and
the more I see them the more I will admire them, for such are the
46
, a
35 ,
.
,
.
, -
40
,

1
, ,
45 ' .
, ,


, -
50 [Fol. 238r] .
6 ,
6 '
,
.
55 ,

.
' ,

60 1 ' , , ,
.
.
39 S 11 45 ' S 11 60 ssv
47
good and unusual things. Now it remains for me to see the works
of your other father, which must be great and marvelous since
you admire and honor them. For I have well and sufficiently con
cluded that whatever you may consider good and acceptable can
not possibly be otherwise.
As for my visits, if I were not speaking to an expert on the
monastic and, as much as possible, the ascetic life, I would have
explained why they are difficult if not impossible. But since your
own God-loving disposition happens to prefer solitude to soci
ety, I do not suspect that I shall cause you any distress even if
I were never to leave my solitude. Besides, if we could not com
municate by letters-just as we do now-such visits would have
probably been necessary. But since you can write as well as others
can talk, and with such learning and grace, you must not set so
much value on these visits. I may also hesitate to walk through
the center of the City so often, but I shall not hesitate to write
from my solitude. Still if it is not impossible for me, < I shall
come > when I decide to upon reflection.
I say the same about my physical needs for which you pro
vide so generously, not only by words but also by deeds. If you
did not lavish such gifts on me continually and abundantly and
devoutly, it would be up to me to ask for what I need. But since
you seem to be doing what you do for me as if it were an obliga
tion, it is superfluous for me to say anything. Perhaps even this
matter will be properly discussed at the proper time.
48
< >
Q , ,
,
;
,
5 ,
q
,
, , , ,
-
10 .
' , ,
,
[Fol. 238v] ,
,
15 ,
,
' ,
,
, -
20 , .
,
,

. ,
25 ' , ,
'
1 ;
.
7-9 Cf. 2 Cor. 6. 9-10 11 9-10 Rom. 8. 35
S 238r-240r
1
(sic) s
m
g
11 3 ] S 11
4 S 11 5 S 11 13 S 11 16 S
11 17 S 11 18 S 11 20 S 11 20-21 S 11 21-22
(litteris s.v. scriptis) S 11 25 (litteris s.V.
scriptis) S 11 post vocabulum quod le
g
i potest expunxit S
49
< Letter 9 )
Does Your Holiness see, holy Father, the weakness and inex
perience of my writing, how it does not have the power to ex
press the intent of my mind? God forbid that I should have been
so obtuse as to call my praise for you a weapon of virtue, mean
ing that it incites you to virtue, even if this happens with some
small and indolent man. Instead, I rather intended < to say ),
just as the Apostle did, that "neither honor nor dishonor" nor
exaltation nor humiliation nor ill-repute nor praise can "separate
you from the love of Christ." Since, then, according to < the
Apostle ), all these amount to training exercises, < testing ) our
love for Christ so that he who was not defeated by them may
shine even brighter, because none of these temptations had the
power to separate him from the object of his desire, just as a
son who loves his father, even if he happens to have innumerable
friends who give him many gifts, he does not change his feelings
for his father nor his attachment to him, but while he loves his
friends and accepts their gifts, he uses everything for the honor
and glory of his own father-this is what the Apostles did and
this is what the servants of God like you do-for this reason I
called praise a weapon of virtue. I was forced to say this because
although you said that I drove God away from you by my praise,
no one can take God away from such a wisdom-loving and God
loving soul. < Sure as I see it ), first that holy father, and then
you, prove that God dwells in both of you by saying that God
has been driven away from you. What can be more blessed or
praiseworthy than this? But I did not wish to say that at the time
from fear of being reprimanded.
50
. -
30 , ,
, , '
'
'

35 .
,

,
, [l. 239r]
40
. ,

, ' "
; 1 -
45 ,
;
, ,
, ,
,
50 ,
,
.
.
."
55 ,
- -

,
, ' -
60 . -
50 cf. Sir. 6.191152-53 1 Jn. 3.17 1153-54 Gen. 4.7
30-31 S 11 35 S 11 36 S 11 39 S 11
40 S 11 41 post scripsit et deinde delevit S 11 42
S 11 58 S 11 59 ' smg
51
So much for that. As for failing to obtain my request, it
distresses me very much -I like to say the truth -and more so
because I understand your reasons: you avoid me because of your
love of solitude. Yet, in the lover of solitude is found what I desire
and seek, and because of many signs I think that the treasure
I seek is concealed in you. The more I am assured of this, the
more I wish to cultivate and enjoy your most beneficial company.
And the more I desire this to no avail, the more I grieve having
missed so great a blessing and lost the treasure for which I yearned
and searched of old. And I would have drowned in sorrow, had
I not rebuked myself severely and recovered from grief, saying
the following: "Why do you refuse to enter < God's abode)
yourself, while preventing those who hasten after God < from
entering it )? Are you not aware that this is God's dispensation
because of your unworthiness so that this < failure ), too, may
not be judged against you? For just as you did not observe < the
precepts ) of your other < spiritual ) fathers-and above all
those of your ( spiritual father) and master, the great bishop,
but proved that the great and immeasurable pains he took to
plough and sow the soil of your heart were in vain and you re
mained barren-you will do the same with the precepts of others.
This is why God 'closed the hearts' of His servants. 'You sinned,
so keep quiet.' "
I am distressed on account of my sins but not at all on ac
count of Your Holiness, as truth is my witness. Instead, I am
grateful and I accept and admire your good intention, because
you attend to what many people desire but few zealously pursue
and achieve. May the love, illumination and sweetness, and the
52
,
, ,
,
[Fol.
65 239v] ,
, ,
'
.

70 6


. ,

75 ,
6 "
, .
,

80 . ,
, .
,


85 .
, .
.

[Fol. 240r] -
90 , .
68-69 Phil. 4
.
7 11 70-71 Greg. Naz., Or. 21, 1 (ed. Mossay-Lafontaine, 112,
25) 11 72-73 Greg. Naz., Or. 21,2 (ed. Mossay-Lafontaine, 114,5) 11 76-77
cf. 1 Cor. 10.24-25
64 S
s
v
11 69 S 11 73 S 11 76 f S 11 78
S 11 S 11 80 S 11 84 S 11 86 ante scripsit et deinde
dele
v
it S 11 87 S 11 S 11 89 S 11 90
S
53
pure delight of Christ be forever within you together with peace
of mind, as the two passionate parts of the soul become peaceful
and submit to reason, and the four senses of the soul submit to
the mind, and the mind, in turn, submits to Christ so that it does
not act, but is acted upon, nor does it operate but is operated
upon by the divine grace and the divine light. And thus "the peace
which passes all understanding will keep your heart." "This is
the loftiest of aspirations and when it happens all contemplation
rests." May you never tire of "ascent and deification!" As for
me, I shall lament for my sins which separate me from God and
His servants. I am left with no way out. It is better to grieve and
suffer than to become an obstacle to you, for we must not seek
our own good but that of others. As for writing, the living voice
differs from the message on paper and ink as much as the living
and speaking man differs from a lifeless image in a painting. I
beg you, do not give up your visits altogether.
I shall talk to you about my two fathers in another letter, for
this is too long and beyond the proper limits. But I fear that my in
experience and the distraction of the celebration of the Feast of
< the Transfiguration ) of the Savior will prevent me from writ
ing. Besides, I do not wish to talk but rather listen to others teach
and talk. I sent papers and writing < fee). For the time being,
therefore, let those discourses Your Holiness chooses be copied
from their drafts, and when your books arrive I shall then delight
54

, , :
, '

95 ,
' ,

, ,
' ,
100 ,

.
92-94 Cf. Greg. Naz., Or. 2,3 (ed. Mossay-Lafontaine, 44, 7-10):
, ' ,
11 95-96 Greg. Naz., Or. 4, 100 (ed.
Bernardi, 248, 10) 11 100-10 1 1 Tim. 1.9
92 S
s
v 11 S 11 94 S 11 99 S 11 100 S
55
in all < your works> also. For I do not dare say with the great
and most accomplished theologian, my favorite master, the Great
Gregory, that" I have shaken off all fear since I attached myself
to Christ, and nothing can overpower me," and all the other
< temptations> he recounts, but "I am fond of learning and
cling to it." Surely this is what I, too, would say and for this
reason I seek your company, because not only is it to my spiritual
benefit and training-the training which I received but did not
accomplish successfully-but it is also most erudite. I repeat,
however, < only > if it is not burdensome < to you > and when
ever you decide. "The law is not laid down for the just!"
56
< )

OC 1 '

'
, ' -
5 , ' ,


. a '
, -
10
,
' [!. 240v]
.
q
15 1, ,
.
'

, 1 -
20 ,
, , q 1,

' ,
'
25
, '
'
, 1, '
{ '
-
30 ,
13-15 Cf. Ps. 21 (22).25 11 20-21 Herodotus st'J 1.178; 7.117
S 240r-241r
1 (sic) smg 11 8 ' S 11 15 ] S 11 18

S 11 28

S
57
< Letter 10 >
I thought it unnecessary to express my gratitude to your
Christ-loving disposition for the attention you saw fit to bestow
on me and my insignificance. For you do not do this in order.
to receive your reward in this world, but you are looking to the
divine glory. Even if you were overcome by worldly ambition,
it would have been impossible for me to praise adequately your
kind sentiments and to repay them with the proper gratitude, as
would be fair. < Your generosity > is most remarkable in itself,
but the fact that it is expressed with such eagerness, and flows
constantly with increasing impetus like water running downhill
with nothing to stop it, is no less remarkable than < your generos
ity > itself, and it is beyond the power of my words. This is why
I leave it to the divine "praises" which the Prophet David re
quests from God' 'in a great congregration," for it is worthy of
them and fit for them.
As for what you wrote to me about your inability to express
your thoughts clearly in writing and about my company, the
former does not happen to you alone-who surpass all contempo
rary women in education by a "royal cubit," as they say-but
it seems also to happen occasionally even to men who have
reached the peak of Hellenic learning and rhetorical skill, and
probably no one can escape this < difficulty \ > all the time. But
it is a sign of wise thinking and judgment to correct one's
mistakes, especially if one is under the guidance of others and
accepts the correction kindly, and if the error is in words alone,
not in intention, as was precisely your case. For this is what hap
pened to you. As for my worthless company, which you seek out
of your excessive love of learning as if it were something of worth
and beneficial to those who converse with me, it may be up to
me to offer it, but offering it well and profitably is up to God
58
, ,

.
,
, ' 1
35 ,
[1.241], .

,
.
40 ,

, '
, ,
, . '
45 ,
,

, , .
, -
50 , .
43 ' S
59
Who helps and makes perfect and does good to all. Since living
as ascetics is better and loftier than living well, we must meet
whenever God wills it and we must not complain if this happens
at some intervals, for this is what God decrees. If you have trouble
reading this letter because of my bad hand writing, think of yours
and you shall have less trouble.
I believe that you have in store a large number of books, both
profane and sacred, which were accumulated because of your
father's erudition and your own love of learning. I lack both and
am fond of both, although, just as with everything else, I am
too weak to read. So that Your Piety may provide me with this
also, let a copy of the list of both < the profane and sacred )
books be made and sent to me, so that I may choose what I con
sider more necessary and useful and ask to have it with your per
mission. For the time being, if you have the five books of Moses
and the four books of Kings, let them be sent to me.
60
< < )
'
, '
,
,
5 .

,
1 q
. [!. 241 ] , '
10 . ' ' , '
,

q 1 q q .
7 Cf. Hebr. 11.71112 ... : 1 Jn. 5. 20-21; Joannes Chrysosto
m
us,
Liturgia, (ed. Bri
g
ht
m
an), 361, 13 11 12-13 Ps. 21 (22). 25
S 241r-241v

1 (sic) s
m
g
11 4 S 11 5 s
m
g
61
< Letter 11 )
I do not know whether the paper I sent to Your Holiness has
arrived because I did not receive any copies. I wait < to hear )
your talk like the thirsty earth awaits the rain, because I can sense
its benefit. Inasmuch as your writings made me cry so much in
contrition and I benefited so much, may God, "Who gives the
rewards," give you an infinitely greater reward on the Day of
Judgment. You do not tolerate praise nor can I praise you pro
perly. But neither will you receive from men in this life the praise
you deserve but from "Christ the true God" "in a great con
gregation" during His second coming.
62
< >

,
.
,
5
, ,
.
' ,
, '
10 .
,
,
oC .
, , .
15 '' '
,
,
, '
' , [Fol.
20 242r] ,
, '
.

,
25 .
C , ,
, , ,
. ' ' ,
-
30 .
S 241v-242r
1 (sic) s
m
g
11 4 S 11 6 S 11 10
S 11 15 S 11 21 ' s
m
g
11 26 s 11 27
S 11 S
63
( Letter 12 )
This book contains my discourses in defense of ( Hellenic )
learning against those who do not consider such learning a benefit.
It also contains some iambics and hexameters. I wrote the
discourses while still a layman and for this reason they have been
neglected, but the verses ( I wrote) after I became a monk.
Some verses are easy to understand, as you will find out im
mediately when you read them, while others have a meaning
somewhat deeper than the obvious. Such are those which have
been arranged alphabetically. They have a spiritual significance
and bear the fruit of contemplation picked from the labors of
the Fathers, not mine. Since you are always piously anxious to
talk with me and I am not quite able to do so, I cannot all the
time refuse to share my possessions with your scholary mind. Take
this book and, if you like it, read it.
As for the book of the great and marvelous father, the
metropolitan of Philadelphia, which, as you say, is instructive
on contemplation and contains a useful discourse on the matter
we are discussing, send it to me with the holy and marvelous father
from whom you will learn all my news; having seen him and en
joyed his company, believe that you saw me, for we dwell in each
other and by each other by the grace of Christ the All-benevolent.
I am grateful to you also for the sagacity and learning of the
noble Aaron, who gave me additional reason to praise your judg
ment. For the object of a person's esteem, whatever its qualities
may be, allows us to assume that the person showing esteem is
possessed of the same qualities: if they be good, of good; if they
be bad, of bad. Since, then, Aaron is preeminently good, he shows
by being held in esteem that the person who decided to hold him
in esteem and to befriend him is good.
64
< - >
,
,

;

1 ,
5 ,
,
;
,
,
10 ,
[Fl. 242v] .
0-
,
; 0-
15 ,
. , , 0-
,

.
20
; ; Q K
. ;
;
;
25 * * * ;
; ;
;
, , ;
1 1 Tim. 6.11 1116-17 Mt. 18. 26,291120-21 1 Tim. 6. 11
S 242r-243v
1 (sic) s
m
g
11 s 11 3
S 11 4 S 11 S 11
5
S 11 6 S 11 7
S 11 8 S 11 10 ssv 11 11 ] folio sequenti ineunte
iteravit S
11 21 S 1
1
25 post lacunam indicavi, aliquid excidisse suspiciens
11
27-28 S
65
< Letter 13 >
What is this you are saying, 0 most marvelous' 'man of God,"
most genuine servant of Christ and my most revered and holy
father? Will he who has become acquainted with your discourses
give up his desire to meet you, or rather will he become even more
excited, and with fervor and ardor seek out the author, the finest
intellect and the most beautiful tongue which charms both ear
and mind? If you were not among the living and some intelligent
man came upon your discourses, he would be sitting on your grave
and crying wholeheartedly, hoping to hear a word from < a man
of > such an extraordinarily beautiful soul and tongue. How
can I, then, who was deemed by God worthy of finding you
among the living, give up my good and profitable request? So,
by the very means by which you were anxious to make me shun
your company, you made me even more eager and determined.
Please bear with me and' 'have patience" for I shall not hesitate
to proclaim boldly before your God-inspired soul all the prais' es
I can possibly muster.
Is there anything about your discourses, 0 "man of God,"
which does not excite admiration? Is there < a virtue > they do
not exhibit? Not the wisdom of an old man at an early age? Not
the strictest observance of monastic discipline and life ahead of ap
pointed time? Not a profound study and understanding of profane
and sacred writings? Not < an inkling > (?) of the later move
ments of virtue which were of the highest < order> from the
start? Not a wide compass of thought? Not a copious vocabulary?
Not a flowing and lofty style? Will your Alphabetos-which I
66
,
30
,
,
[. 243r]
, -
35 , ; '
,
. '
", ,
-
40 ."
. ,
, ,
,

45
; ' ,
,
, '
-
50 ,

,
,
.
[!.
55 243v] ,

o. ,
, 1
1 K 1 . ' -
60
.
30-32 Arsenius, Apophthegmata, 6 (Apophthegmata Patrum, 65. 89

) 11
36-37 Ps. 138 (139). 6 11 51-52 Ps. 149 (150).8
33 S 11 1 11 38
S
11 44 S 11 47 S
"
48 S
"
S
Sv
"
51 S
"
52 S
"
54
S
"
57 S
"
S " 58 S
"
58-59 S
67
have not learned yet-fail to amae anyone? For if Saint Arsenios
said about some ignorant peasant: "1 have been educated in Greek
and Latin, but 1 have yet to learn the alphabet of this ignorant
peasant," what must 1 say when the Alphabetos is heavenly and
its author a great philosopher, whereas 1 who received it am most
ignorant? 1 shall say, however, what the divine David said to God:
"1 magnify thy knowledge!" Thus 1 shall say about you also:
"0 my God, the disposition and nature and loftiness of spirit
of this man of yours magnify Your powers of creation and
wisdom and knowledge!"
So much for that. Now, why did you do this, 0 most holy
Father? Why did you first praise learning as much as it deserves,
and then left your discourses looking naked and dark and sad as if
mourJing their obscurity and nakedness and neglect and rejection
and bewailing the injustice done to them? But 1 suspect that you
did this on purpose, to test the love of the lovers of learning who
would stick to the reading. This is what happened to me too.
The handwriting and its confusion made me turn away from
reading, but the beauty of what you wrote held me bound by
force with' 'manacles of iron." 1 was under the sway of a sweet
tyrant and did not min the difficulty of the handwriting.
1 am only teasing, of course. You worked carefully and hard
to acquire the wisdom of the world and have now brought and
delivered it to the supreme wisdom to be its ministrant. For this
reason you humble and crush it-because it met with a superior
character < like yours >-that it may obey and work eagerly for
its mistress and lady. As for the message you sent me with Aaron
about your coming here, 1 am grateful and 1 wait and look for
ward to < your visit - .
68
< )


,

5 , ,
,
1
,
' , ,
10 , '
, '
.
, -
15 , [!. 244] '

.
,
,
20 , , ,
.

, ' ,
, -
25 -
,
- ,
1 1
' , -
30 .
-
- ,
S 243v-245r
1 smg
5-6 S 11 ] S 11 14 iteravit et deinde delevit S 11 31
S 11

S
69
< Letter 14 )
I sat in my cell and collected myself before the only God, He
Who watches over all ad knows all, and examined conscientious
ly my knowledge and ability. I also considered as carefully as
possible how I must live, and I discovered that if I am to control
myself at all and draw near to God I must not follow any other
path in life but remain in my cell all the time, having nothing
to do with the world of the senses-except when absolutely nec
essary-and living in obscurity as a man needed by no one and
needing nothing; the first, on account of my contributing-nothing
to human affairs; the second, on account of my living as spar
ingly as possible. I thought that by pursuing such a course I might
acquire some wisdom and ability, small in comparison to that
possessed by men of quality, but still of some magnitude, for
it seems that I am the least capable and wise of men when it comes
to directing others or to living in the outside world. I do not know
whether God Himself, the source of every blessing and ability
and wisdom, might give me one day a share of such < a gift ),
but in my present condition I dwell far from such merit and grace.
But since it will be perhaps impossible for me to concentrate all
the time on myself and God-this on account of another kind
of insufficiency-and since I shall have to leave my cell and speak
to some people, I thought that I must leave my meetings with
others to chance, thinking nothing of it even if I should happen
to meet no one, but to see to it, on your account, that I visit
your cell no more than three or at the most four times a year.
To do more than this is beyond my power. I mean it, upon the
happiness of my conscience. But if God should give me more
strength and show me-even though I am unworthy of such
signs-that He wishes me to do this more often, I shall not resist
70
, '
,
.
35 [. 244v] 1 -
1 ,
,
' a
, , -
40 , .

,
, ,
' -
45 , a
.
, '
.
1 -
50 ,
,

. , , ,
. -
55 , Q ,
,
[. 245r] '
.
38-40 Cf. Mt. 7.12 11 44-45 cf. Meletius, De natura hominis, 30 (.
64. 1276D).
53-54 ' (sic) S
71
nor will I disobey God. Now, however, I have to force myself
to do even this, fulfilling the manifest commandment of the
Savior.
Just as you take care of yourself and are quite right in never
leaving your holy convent, you must also consider my salvation
and show your spiritual concern for me. For, as the Gospel says:
"Whatever you wish that men would do to you, do so to them."
And if I recently said something else to Your Highness-O you
who gave up and rejected the worldly kingdom, and are seeking
and pursuing the kingdom of God!-this is nothing to be mar
veled at. "Man is a thinking animal," and after much thinking
he modifies what he had earlier accepted with no or little delibera
tion. If you think back to the earlier time, this was exactly what
I said then and my mind, which became at a later point divided,
has now come back to its original < resolve >. If you, too, will
accept this decision and be satisfied with my way of thinking,
you shall certainly come to the conclusion that I did not reason
and think badly. Accept this in place of other useful counsel and
you shall not regret it. Otherwise, let God watch over what is
true and profitable for everyone, as He certainly does. Since He
is good and is the indispensable and unfailing provider for all,
and especially for those who seek Him truly, may He look after
you and me and all who have placed their hopes in Him.
72
< >
,

.
i i
5 q
,
,
. '
, ,
10 , , 1
1
.

, 1, ,
15
,
. '

.
20 , ' -
, 1

, [Fol. 245v]
-
25
, , '
.
,
3-4 Ps. 44 (45). 4 11 5-6 Cf. 1 Jn. 5.21; Joan. Chrysost., Liturgia (ed.
Bri
g
htman), 361, 13 116-7 2 Tim. 4. 7
-
8 11 11-12 Cf. Mt. 25. 15-28
S 245r-247r
1

'

'
S
m
g
11 6 S 11 10 S 11 S 11
12 ' 11 14 ] S 11 18 S 11 20-21 S 11 21
S 11 26 S
73
< Letter 15 >
I admire your deifying pursuit and the admirable goal you
set for yourself, most reverend and holy Father, and I a grateful.
"Bend thy bow," then, "and prosper," guarded by the almighty
right hand of "Christ our true God," from which you will receive
the "crown of righteousness, having finished the race." Yet nei
ther is your presence here without reward and fruitless, most honor
able Father. God knows in the first place, and then myself, how
great is the fruit and how great the profit from < that presence >.
Your Holiness will know it, too, when God comes to give out the
rewards for the talents. Since I have nothing of my own which
is good or worthy of your ears and < of your > saintly soul with
which to welcome you when you come for a visit, for this reason
I bring forth and recount in your presence the lives of my saint
ly fathers. With these stories I welcome your God-loving and
saintly soul. I dare say, therefore, that for my part I have not
done anything by my talk to cause your saintly soul to stumble.
Now, do not take away from me, on account of my innumera
ble sins and of my being abandoned by God, the freedom and com
fort and peace and restoration of what lay destroyed for so many
years, which I have found through you. Anything else that has
happened to me up to now I might think of as an obstacle to
my spiritual labor set up by the enemy and I might bear it. But I
cannot bear < being rejected > by you: I find it to mean that
God has openly abandoned me as unworthy of His work and
salvation. This is why I have come to feel desperate and absolutely
74
, ,
30 '
, .

,
' -
35 ,
. ,
,
, l
. -
40 , ,

' ,
' , ' Q.
' [Fo1.246r] ,
45 '
,
, ' .
,

50 ,
. ,
,

'
55 l,

.
.
"
60 ,
,
29 S 11 30 S 11 32 S 11 36 S 11 37
S 11 39 S 1142 ] (sic) S 1146-47 ... S 1149
S 11 50 ], S 11 54 S 11 55 S
75
dazed. For such is the property of our mind: when it is aware
of submission, it is restrained by it as if by a bridle, but when
it is released from the yoke and set free, it is immediately suscep
tible to capture by wild beasts. Thus ever since my mind has been
released from the yoke of spiritual submission to the bishop, it
has been caught by the wild beasts and become a prisoner and
gone under. But now, stirred by God, my soul found full
assurance in you. I breathed again: I found peace and recovered.
I beg you, therefore, for the sake of Christ, for the sake of His
utterly pure Mother, for the sake of your labors in Christ, do
not let me go under again: A human being is not less valuable
than cattle which the law enjoins < us > to help, especially when
< that human being > is asking for help for < her > spiritual
soul from you who alone have the power to < help > me. It is
for this reason that God became man, and it is He who asks you
through me, and it is from Him that you expect the best.
I even give up asking for monthly visits. Let it be six times
a year. For in this way I shall be able to achieve a measure of
my goal and benefit, sometimes by writing, sometimes by con
versation. Add two to the four < times > as an offering to Christ,
and if you are to lose six days a year for the sake of an entire
human life, the latter's benefit will affect many other souls-I
mean those of people in my charge. Yes, I beg you, allow me
to breathe, for I am already drowning in unbearable sorrow. My
relaxation and happiness should not last only for a month and
a half. It will cause me more sorrow and bitterness than glad
ness, for just as I tasted of relaxation, I have been thrown back
to sink deeper into the sea. This was written with tears rather
than with ink.
You think that by not going out and by asking for something
that I do not do, I am being contentious, and, therefore, my
spiritual disposition is not pure but abounds more in self-interest
76
, .
,

65 ,
Q, [ 246v] ,

.
,
70
; ,
, , . ,
' ,
,
75 , .
,
.

,
80 , ,
1


1

1
,
'
1
,
.
,
85 [ 247r]
.

,
-
90 , ,
,
1
.
.
,
i ' -
95 i ,
64 S 11 65 S 11 66 S 11 75 S 11 81-82 '
]' S " 84 S " post expunxit (?) S " 90
S 11 94 s
s
v 11 94-95 post expunxit S 11 95
S " '
77
than in the interest of your God-inspired soul. Yet this is not so,
as conscience is my witness. The reason for my not leaving the
convent is different. Since I am closely related to the emperor,
as you are well aware, if I ever went out, it would be absolutely
necessary to attend imperial weddings and funerals and royal
gatherings whether I wished it or not. This would require quite
a number of attendants as well as a corresponding number of
horses, and how would my fortune < suffice ) for a royal retinue
and household? Because of these extraordinary circumstances I
kept to myself, having done away with all pretexts, as I just men
tioned. But it is not so in your case. When you leave your cell,
you go to another monastic cell: from benefit to greater benefit,
I dare say, which returns to you again. I demand that which I
do and my fathers did as well. For I stay here slaving for the
benefit of others, and I did not at all consider material concerns
and < the concern for ) others to be an obstacle to spiritual
labor, nor do I stay at this place-as conscience is my witness
either for the sake of glory or power or the company of my
relatives, but for the salvation of the nuns alone, helping them
to that effect as much as I can. My master, the bishop, became
even more enlightened at the age of thirty-three (eight years after
he retired from the world) through the help of those who benefited
from him.
If you are also concerned about the good and saintly Kyr Me
nas-for I learned from Aaron that your holiness is annoyed be
cause we do not converse when he, too, is present-I shall attend
to this matter also, as I can, and let you know through Aaron, or
I shall write to you how I propose to deal with this. This letter
is already too long. As for your having full assurance that God
approves of my being directed by you, the following is sufficient
assurance that I benefit through His might: in my heart God sees
78
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79
all your teaching, no one else's, from the time of the metropolitan
of Philadelphia until now. It is up to you then to water this
teaching, and up to God to make it grow; that is, to approve it.
< Letter 16 >
If I wished to defend what I said and thought, it would be
easy to do so from the lives and sayings and opinions of the
Fathers. Consider those holy women who were shut up by the
holy fathers in some caves and cells. Some of them, after hearing
from their spiritual fathers once for all what they ought to do in
these places, did not see their < directors > until the blessed end
of their lives, although they lived for many years in their hermit
ages. Others saw the holy men at three-year intervals, and others,
at any rate, once a year. And they lived out the marvelous life in
God's way < following > perfectly the few instructions of their
holy fathers and remaining in absolute peace, even though they
had just retired from the world for the first time and had no
previous training, so to speak.
In fact, you will attest to this yourself, seeing that you did
not enjoy the presence of the late holy bishop continuously, but
I believe that you were deprived of him for one or two, or perhaps
even for more years, when he went away to be at his own church
and he edified you by correspondence alone. And even if he
assumed the episcopal office eight years after he retired from the
world, and thirty-three years after he was born, and rushed to
help many people, bear in mind and consider the power which
is bestowed by divine grace upon those who have been called to
this task and have well obeyed the call. Remember also that before
he was called, that God-loving man did not devote himself to such
80
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45-46 Ps. 15 (16). 8
33 S 11 34 S 11 35 S 11 57 S
sv
11 58 post
scripsit et deinde delevit

S 11

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Sv
81
a task nor did he dare to do so, but he lived in deserted places,
free of crowds, until he was given the word through the holy
ordination.
Whatever reasons you may have for not leaving the convent,
you do what is right and necessary. Even if the reasons you ad
duce were not those that kept you at the convent and did not
allow you to go out, if you cared for your salvation-as no doubt
you do-you would not have gone out. So I shall say to you the
exact same thing I said before, that you consider more how you
will be saved than I will, and that the spiritual concern you claim
to have for me is unequal < to that which you have for yourself>.
But so as not to annoy you too much, seeing that you are ex
ceedingly deceived about my mediocrity, I shall grant you what
you asked for. With the help of God the number < of visits >
will be as you requested. For the time being be at peace, and
during the period of meditation that you have started, remain
seated in your cell with fear and love of the Holy Trinity,
"foreseeing the Lord always before your face," in the words
of the holy Psalmist. And sanctify your soul and illuminate
your mind with the pure and continuous thought of His holy
name which purifies those who keep it in their thoughts, doing
your best to accomplish successfully all His commandments,
and being in body with Him as much as possible. And if
sometimes you fall short of your goal, renew your effort, just
as you were wont to do and, upon hearing of it, I used to
admire your intelligence and love of the good and wisdom in
the face of temptations which tear and lead away from the
good. With this wisdom you render impotent the master of evil
and return to Christ with more devotion. This is the sharpest
sword against the enemy and the greatest < source of > gratifica
tion to the Holy Trinity. Be assured, 0 you who bear the name
of blessing, that the more time you allow me for living in seclu
sion, turning to myself and God, and the more you listen to what
82

1 ,
,
65 1 '
, .
,
,
70 .

, , [l.
249], ,

75 .
62 S 11 64 S 11 69 S 11 71 S 11 72 S
83
I say without questions and suffer with patience the distressing
thoughts, living quietly, the more you will see in you a greater
divine presence. Thus you will attain your desire better than if
I saw you every day and you will allow me not to fail in my
objective.
I wish to know how you will attend to the matter about which
you wrote to me regarding the holy and saintly Kyr Menas, my
most loyal and true friend. I intended to send this to you as soon
as I received your letter so that you may not be worried, but I
had no one to carry my letter because of the disturbance of which
you heard. For this reason it was delayed until now.
84
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85
< Letter 17 )
Since you were granted your request, it was unnecessary to
persuade me further from the < examples ) of the holy bishop
and the pious women. But since you still attempt to persuade
me by these, you must know, in reply to your argument regard
ing that man's youth and great confidence, that the same things
are not good or acceptable or easy for all people, and for this
reason you will find in the writings and sayings of the Fathers
that different men liked different pursuits, but that being dead
to the world and withdrawing from it and keeping silent and lov
ing solitude to the extreme were generally respected, whereas tak
ing a different path was the rarest of exceptions. In fact, even
you attest that what I asked was not impossible when you say
that the holy bishop was absent for one or two years and that
he edified your soul by letters alone. Three months are indeed
one fourth of the whole year, during which I agreed to visit you
once personally and to converse with you by correspondence as
often as you wished, so that the four seasons of the yearly cycle
would be honored in like fashion by four personal visits on my
part, assignng one visit to each season and a letter to each month.
To the extent, therefore, that a whole year is longer than its
quarter and writing twelve times is more than < writing) four
times, it should have been easier for you to do < what I pro
posed ) rather than < what you did under the direction of the
holy bishop ). And you would have submitted < to my direc
tion ) -although the task < of directing you) exceeds my
powers (?) -while I would have remained in solitude, two good
things instead of one and to us more beneficial and without cause
for scandal.
What do you think, indeed, about those men who have
reached ripe old age pursuing many virtues? Don't you think that
this will annoy them and stir up their jealousy, since they, too,
are human even if they have attained a full measure of virtue? And
86
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35 ' ,
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41-42 Cf. Mt. 18. 7-10; Luc. 17. 1-3
31 ' S 11 42 S 11 46 S 11 48 S
87
what about the other women to whom I did not give spiritual
advice at all, for all their many entreaties? Will they not think
that I am a slave to gorge and belly and the glory of this world .
when they see me visiting you so often? Not to mention my other
friends and the bishops and even the patriarch himself, who ask
me to give them a little < of my time >, but I do not do so ex
cept under duress, adducing this very reason that I am an
anchorite.
Since it is possible, then, for you to receive from me whatever
you may think good and useful and not unprofitable to you, and
for me to remain by myself, and for others to have no cause for
scandal-for according to the divine laws we must not give cause
of scandal to others-would it not have been wiser to choose < my
proposal > and to accept it rather than the system of frequent
< visits >, to believe that my judgment on this matter was a lit
tle better than yours and to be satisfied with this, as if it were
God's decision, if indeed your disposition towards me is one of
pure obedience? Bear in mind that those pious women, too, were
annoyed at the beginning because their spiritual fathers did not
communicate < with them > at all nor did they visit < them >
in person, and that they were asking for a closer association, but
once they received their instructions from their directors and
devoted themselves to that way of life, they proved to be truly
obedient and gave up completely their own wishes and submitted
obediently to the decisions of their < spiritual> fathers. With a
little patience they found ease in difficulty and comfort in discom
fort and joy in sorrow. In this joy they spent the rest of their
lives and were blessed. This, then, is my response to your objec
tions which smack of rhetoric but not of obedience. Nevertheless,
have the six < visits > that you requested from me and write
and note down what you wish, as you have tried to do.
I do not think that you understand the whole matter regarding
Kyr Menas, and for this reason you fear the burden of a second
88
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64 ] S 1173 S 11 S 1177-78
S 11 78 S 11 89-90 S 11 94 post lacunam indicavi,
aut aliquid simile excidisse coniciens 11 94 ' S
89
tutelage by a second tutor. I would have been guilty of a great
deal of bad judgment and ignorance of proper conduct if, know
ing this, I had asked from you what I asked about my friend.
Kyr Menas demands neither honor from me nor any other grateful
acknowledgement, but behaves towards me as someone who owes
me obedience; and he always listens to me as if to a teacher but
questions < me > very little, although the man is superior to me
in virtue. I considered it right, therefore, to honor him properly
seeing that he needed nothing else. For this reason, I thought
that it was necessary to have him accompany me everywhere by
the right of friendship and that it was unseemly and disgraceful
during some conversations to send him out to sit somewhere, as
if I did not fully trust him and considered him unworthy of as
much as listening to spiritual discussion, since he questions
nothing nor does he display any airs of a teacher, but he follows
me and my decisions as if we were one man and did not differ
at all. He respects me even when I reprimand him many times,
and loves me when I instruct him, and follows me in all respects.
And before your generous assistance he offered me all he had,
and even though now he has all that he needs, more than any of
his fellow monks, and lacks nothing, the fact remains that he gave
me things that were necessary to him just as if he were giving them
to himself, without keeping anything for himself or setting it aside.
I did not think, therefore, that there was any offense to having
him there as an auditor of our conversation- not as a second
teacher nor dividing your single predilection for one < teacher >
- such a man who was in want of nothing and so obedient to
me and not unworthy of sitting at such a conference and listen
ing. Besides, his presence was not harmful to you, as I said.
Whether you adduce imperial protocol as a reason or lack of con
fidence or anything else whatsoever, * * * < you ought > to give
this up and follow the orders of your adviser and have no other
90
, .
,
, . ,
, -
100 .
96-97 ... : satis perspicio 11 97 ] S " 99

S
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[Fol. 251v]

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91
wish-even if < what you wish> seems to be most sensible
stronger than that of your adviser. But since you are extremely
contentious about this matter also, I agree with what you saw
fit to say. May the Lord Jesus, the source of every blessing, pro
vide for this, too, according to His will.
< Letter 18 >
As Kyr Aaron knows, I went to the patriarch and presented
my letter < of complaint> against the monks, so that after they
have been summoned on this account and received the letter, the
inquiry may be opened and conducted for us by the patriarch.
I do not know, however, what happened yet. Nevertheless, I think
that you ought to appease the patriarch, for he seemed to me
to dislike you, and you ought to behave towards him with con
siderable humility and the language of obedience. The marvelous
Dexios will skillfully contrive to accomplish this without embar
rassment to you and to prepare the patriarch for reconciliation.
You must summon Dexios and carefully assign this task to him
because he is your friend, as I exactly perceived. Let this be done
in earnest, for I do not think that it is right, especially when speak
ing to you about humility, not to advise you to consider humili
ty towards the patriarch above all. For whatever you may say,
he is the father of all Christians and he must have the love of
all, and especially of those who care for what is perfectly good
in every way. And when you deal with him on a legal matter,
mollify him with words of humility and deference, and I believe
that in this manner you will fare better.
In fact, I do not think that you should be petty in disputes
not only with the patriarch but with anyone whomsoever. For
this is what stirs up and arms the wild passions in us. I do not
92
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, ' '
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30 - ,
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27 addidi 11 31 (littera ex cecta) S 11 32 S 11 -
S 11 34 scripsi: ' S 11 36 S 11 38
S 11 39 S 11 S
s
v 11 40 S 11 47 ' S 11 52 S
93
mean, of course, that you ought to neglect the monastery and
thereby all that you have dedicated to God, but since you are
fortunate to have the marvelous Ralaina, who is so sensible and
efficient both in these matters and in everything else, as I hear,
let her attend to matters of dispute, unless there is something that
requires absolutely your own supervision. If you must divert your
attention to the affairs of the monastery, divert it to the care of
the souls, and do this gently, as I have said to you before, and
very carefully. And when it comes to necessary inquiries, fight
unto death against < your > irascible and arrogant disposition,
but, as I said, conduct < yourself ) in an orderly and sensible
manner.
I heard that you suffered a paroxysm, that is an attack of
chills, and I prayed to Him Who lifted our ailments by His In
carnation to cure you also. Know that just the night before I,
too, suffered not anything simple as I often do nor any other
moderate indisposition, but a mortal < illness >, the kind that
immediately kills whomsoever it grips firmly. I almost died and
I fear that it was the same < illness >, from which Synkletike
died, the attendant of the queen < of Serbia>. For while I was
asleep, some vapor drawn from my stomach, or I know not from
where inside my body, came up to my chest and drawing a thick
mucus, threw it over my lung, stopping my breathing and near
ly choking me. Then, just a bit of the mucus came up to my
mouth; I spat it out and breathed a little. But another vapor came
up from the stomach, or the liver, and oppressed me. And none
of my companions were there, so that I might have died without
anyone being aware of it. After suffering for a whole hour, I
barely felt some relief as my body got rid of a great deal of thick
mucus. This had happened to me many times before, but never
like this time, and I fear that I shall die from this illness, for it
94
' .
60 , , ,
' ,
. .
< ' - ' )

q,
"
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5
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,
,
,
10 .
t '

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smg 11 S 11 5 s
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95
is already progressing and conquering < my body >. Let it be
so, if that be the will of God. I do not find it difficult to accept
if only I may be granted the time for true repentance. Otherwise,
I would be distressed. You also should pray for my salvation.
< Letter 19 >
You know the origin of your other feelings of indifference
and listlessness; it is your intimate association with your relatives.
As for telling Martha' 'this and that," if it had been said calmly
for the purpose of educating and guiding her, as human beings
are wont to do, it would have been blameless and done for a good
cause. Now, however, because it is anger that shoots and hurls
these < words > like javelins, it is beyond the limits of the good
and, therefore, you must first take care of the irascible part of
the soul and then feel free to educate others.
I agree with the * * * inspired by the holy hymns and con
templation according to them and the * * * according to the in
tent of the saying of Basil the Great. I received the pastries of
Dexios. Manuel told me personally what Aaron had said to me
the day before yesterday. As for the pious Ralaina, I admit that
lowe her much gratitude for her troubles on my behalf, but I
do not think that I ought to repay my debt in this manner but
with my prayers and grateful thanks. I find it difficult to appear
for the purpose for which I have been invited. I shall not come,
of course. You must persuade Ralaina's pious and perfect good
sense to accept this, my absence that is, without complaining.
96
< )
, '
, , '
,
. " 1
5 1 ;
, '
.
, , , ,
,
10 . , [.
253v] , 1
. '
.
2-4 Cf. Basil. Caes., Epist. 210, 1 (ed. Courtonne, 2, 189-190):

.
S 253r-253v
1 ' smg 11 S
97
< Letter 20 )
It seems that you have not yet understood what I meant. For
I dare say, with Basil the Great, that "I avoid public appearances
as zealously as those who like public appearances seek these very
appearances." What does such an inclination have in common
with glittering gatherings? If it is for the memorial service of your
father that you command my appearance, I shall celebrate his
memory better by myself. As for your nieces, I do not think that
it is absolutely necessary for me to come because I saw them just
the other day. If there is an urgent reason, surely you did not
write to me about it. However, if there is a very urgent reason,
it is better that I come after, not now, during the gathering. I
sent Kyr Nephon in my place and you must bear with this.
98
< - )

1 i
.
-
5 , , , .
, .

,
1 -
10 ,

, 1.
, ,

15
.

, 1
[Fol. 254r] .
20 ,
,
'
,
.
25 ' . -
, , '
, ,
.
20-21 Cf. Matt. 11. 12-3; Macarius, Apophthegmata, 1 ( 34. 233); Sy
m
eon Junior, Capita moralia, 138 ( 120. 676)
S 253v-254r
1
:
s
m
g
11 . S 11 2 S 11 3 S
sv
11 6 S
11 9 S 11 12 S
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99
< Letter 21 )
I thought that < your ) loud weeping at the memorial ser
vice was unnecessary and unbecoming to a soul who is at peace
near God. What happened with the man of the parakoimomenos
happened in inverse order. When you should have seen him, you
did not see him; and when you should not have, then you saw
him. But there is no cure for the past, therefore let us forget it.
I have no time for a systematic analysis of the vice of coward
ice and an examination of its causes. But you must earnestly see to
it that the only conqueror and redeemer of evils free you of your
passions. Love Him insatiably and fear Him and cling to His com
mandments unto death and no evil will gain possession of your
soul. God alone is the truly "watchful" master builder. For He is
the eye that watches everything and does not go to sleep, and sleep
lessly edifies the souls that belong to Him and are attached to Him
and makes them His temples. Seek Him with zeal and longing,
and with works that are invariably good and with pure thoughts,
and you shall build of yourself an indestructible temple to Him.
Wish the same for me also. I, too, know that salvation-that
is the kingdom of Heaven-requires strenuous effort and great
pains and a different way of life from that which most of us are
wont to lead. May we succeed in attaining this < salvation ),
having thrust away most carefully every human habit and way
of life.
I agree about the matter of Aaron. Expect me to come, if
I am still alive, near the end of the season of the Apokreo. At
that time your nieces will talk to me, if they so wish, together
with you.
100
< - )
.
, i ,
,

5
. i,
OK, '
OK,
. [F1.254v]
10
. , , .
S 254r-254v
1 S
101
( Letter 22 >
May God forgive you! Go to the funeral of your aunt and
derive a vital lesson from the death of the body. Let all fear go
away from your soul, for this passion is the work of the enemy
who wrests the soul away from meditation and the full assurance
that it has in God. Neither should you fear the death of the body,
for a pious person does not die but passes from death to life,
and life without end at that. It is unnecessary, indeed, to say these
things to you who have firm ( convictions > acquired through
long experience of God. As for me, I will come to you if possible.
Commentary
Letter 1
2-3 'TV AOytW'U'lV ... ypa<1v oou: The director' s
first letter which has not survived.
5-6 ua8tav ... ypaa'tKi<: This is not a banal ex
pression of modesty. Both the orthography and the
syntax of Eulogia' s letters confirm her complaint
that she had no literary training. For her mistakes
in spelling, see the apparatus to the text; for the
peculiarities of her syntax, see the commentary
below. For some general remarks on her style, which
is a mixture of different lexical and stylistic levels ,
see my article, "Irene-Eulogia, " note 48 .
6-7 EK 'rv uv'to'OtXwv: Eulogia refers here to instances
of itacism which account for most of her mistakes
in spelling.
On the term uV'to'otxa (corresponding) as used by
Byzantine grammarians to denote vowels , diph
thongs or words which are identical in sound but
differ orthographically, see for example, Theodore
Ptochoprodromos , Kavcv 1Epi uv'to'OtXWV, ed.
A. Pappadopoulos, "Notice et collation d' un
manuscrit grec de la bibliotheque de Smyrne, con
tenant des lexiques grecs, " Annuaire de [' Associa
tion pour [' encouragement des etudes grecques en
France, 1 0 (1867) , 13 1 -34; and the short spelling ex
ercise by Maximos Planoudes , ed. M. Treu, "An
tistoichien, " BZ 5 ( 1 896) , 337-38 .
1 03
1 04
21 - 23
24-25
26
26- 27
28- 29
Princess Irene-Eulogia
8ux 'unlvc(tV KUt 8ux ' * * * EK(YOt< Yla< . . .
(UV'E'lll IEVOV: Although the meaning of this
passage is clear (you made your letter deliberately
brief out of humility and in order " to give me the
slip' ' ), the text appears suspect . ux 'o with infinitive
was common in biblical and Byzantine Greek (see
Jannaris , Grammar, 1 5 22) , and Eulogia uses this
final construction in Letter 3, lines 3-4 (o<8uAIOU<
8EAEtV ElVUt 'o nav 8tu 'o 'o ulnoD KUAAO<
KU'UVOEv). It is, therefore, difficult to explain here
the substitution of the optative for the infinitive.
E80u(uIEV (Ot . . . 0XAEV (Ot: The substitution
of the dative for the accusative reflects the author' s
underlying uncertainty about the use of the dative
which had disappeared from colloquial speech since
the early Middle Ages . See Browning, Medieval and
Modern Greek, 37 . For another example, see Let
ter 1 5 , lines 14 and 16, where the verb 8EtOD(8ut
has first the dative and then the correct accusative.
atW tvu 18c: tvu with the subjunctive had ap
propriated the function of the prospective infinitive
since biblical Greek; see Jannaris , Grammar, 1 762.
"UAAU (UYYPUIIU'U (ou: For the director' s other
writings, see commentary on Letter 1 2.
unEp . e . ' A8uvu(iou (UYYPUIIU: On Patriarch
Athanasios I of Constantinople, see Talbot , ed. The
Correspondence of Athanasius, xv-xxxi; eadem,
"The Patriarch Athanasius ( 1 289- 1 293 ; 1 303- 1 309)
and the Church. " DOP, 27 (1973), 1 1 -28; and J. Boo
j amra, Church Reform in the Late Byzantine Em
pire (Thessalonike, 1 982) . For the known encomiasts
of Athanasios-the fourteenth century monks Theo
ktistos the Studite, Joseph Kalothetos and Ignatios,
as well as the otherwise unknown Basil-and for the
reason that, with the exception of Ignatios, they can
not possibly be identified with Eulogia' s director,
Commentary 105
see my " Irene-Eulogia, " note 62, and my Additional
Note below. See also A. -M. Talbot, Faith Healing,
24- 25 and 1 48- 52, where the author discusses the
hagiographers of Athanasios and gives a complete
listing of Theoktistos' works . As for the director' s
writings on Athanasios, all that we can say is that
they must have been rather extensive, consisting of
more than an encomium, since he refers to them as
AOYOL See Letter 2, lines 1 8- 1 9; and Letter 4, line 5 .
Letter 2
3-7 uVDpi <o<Q . . . pU<tAiDO< \uxf<: See Letter 10,
lines 20- 21 , where the director calls Eulogia the most
educated of contemporary women.
1 4 c< E<81V Etnwv: The reference i s t o the director' s
first letter to Eulogia which has been lost.
1 7 "EAEt(8EV"U< . . . "EAEC8EV"U<: Note the use of
both forms of the verb: "EAEtOC - "EAEOC.
1 8 EXEt 0E<<uAoviKl: The Letters contain no other in
formation about the director' s background, except that
he had come to the capital from Thessalonike, where
he had left the finished copies of his works on
Athanasios. However, the fact that these works were
found in their original version at the double monastery
of that patriarch in Constantinople, taken from the
author " at birth," a he puts it, suggests that the direc
tor had lived in the capital before going to Thessalon
ke (cf. Letter 4, lines 5-7) . It is even possible that he
was a monk at the monastery of Athanasios when he
was first inspired to write in his honor. For Laurent' s
view that Eulogia' s correspondent was a student of
Theoleptos and, therefore, another Philadelphian, see
commentary on Letter 9, lines 43-54.
20 OUDEV . . . E\EU<ullV: Another reference to the frst
letter where the director must have mentioned his
works without adding any specific details about them.
106
1 -4
1 5- 1 6
1 5- 1 6
1 9-20
25
Princess Irene-Eulogia
Letter 3
E1 TPor81 6 fAtO< . . . KU'UVOftv: An alternative
interpretation of this passage would be to construe
'ou'o with 'o 1aV and translate, " If they asked the
sun what part of the creation it would rather have
prevail on the rest , it would answer (if it could ut
ter a word) that it would like < our ) universe . . . "
ou8t 'u U1EO'UAIVU EV 0EOOUAOviK1: In Letter 2,
line 1 8, the director wrote that the edited copies of
his works were in Thessalonike. Eulogia-who was
apparently unacquainted with his background
inferred from this statement that he had sent them
to Thessalonike, but he explains in the following let
ter (Letter 4, lines 6-8) that he had left them in that
city: KUt dol oux Otou< EYW 'oou< IE'U 'uu'u
KU'0'10U KUt uqrKu EV 'i 0EOOUAOviK1.
I do not believe that Uqtllt is used in this passage
as a synonym for the usual1I1w or U1OO'AAW,
a usage which I have not found in the dictionaries
or any other author. Furthermore, neither the con
struction of UQtllt with a locative dative by the
learned director nor his use of the verbs UQ)tllt and
1I1W warrant the translation, "I sent to
Thessalonike. " In Letter 1 4, line 24, the director
again uses UQ)tllt in the sense of "to leave behind"
(uqfVUt TV KAAUV) , whereas in Letter 4, line 3 ,
he writes: E1EI\c OOt nov ou KUA<V AOyWV.
'u U1EO'UAIVU EV 0EOOUAOviK1: For the confu
sion of EV with d< in biblical and medieval Greek,
see J annaris , Grammar, 1 565 .
EVt 8uvu'ov: On the replacement of EO't by EVt (there
exists) since the early Middle Ages , see Browning,
Medieval and Modern Greek, 66.
8tu 'rV nvwv u18tuv: A high-minded but austere as
cetic who took a firm line with the Church as he
sought to reform the morals of contemporay society,
Athanasios made many enemies and was forced to
3 2-33
34-35
36
37
Commentary 107
resign twice; see Talbot , ed. , The Correspondence
of Athanasius, xvii-xxv. Eulogia' s father was among
the officials whose extravagance or abuse of author
ity had aroused the wrath of the patriarch. In a let
ter to Andronikos II, Athanasios lashed out at Nike
phoros Choumnos for seeking advantageous mat
ches for his children instead of seeking ' 'to be recon
ciled with God, for all that he has used his author
ity harmfully. " See The Correspondence of
Athanasius, no. 37, lines 3 3 -36.
'El< 8E Kat Aiav ,8uo8tv"E<: Note t he breach of
concord i n gender . Such confusion was not unusual
in Byzantine subliterary texts ; see Browning,
Medieval and Modern Greek, 64. For other ex
amples, see Letter 9, lines 1 2 and 65 ; Letter 1 1 line
6. Even the learned Theoleptos was occasionally
careless about congruence when writing to Eulogia.
See, for example, hi s Address to Eulogia and the
nun Agathonike, Ottobonianus 405 , fol 21 0v:
'UAACV, onxoAoyrv Kat avaytVo 0 KCV, Btuou
OEau"TV Kat 1Ept "TV nov fV"OArV "TtPlotV Kat "TV
"CV apE"CV 1oilOtV . . . tva ouvQ8cv "( Euay
YEAtO"i AtY1< . . . Note also the incorrect form
,8uo8tv"E< for '8uv8tv"E<.
ou 8E 8uI "o T BouAEo8ai Of fYKCtUE08at: OE
is superfuous here, but such construction was not
uncommon in biblical and Byzantine Greek; See Jan
naris, Grammar, 2067-68 .
yuvi: For the inflection of YUVT as a first declen
sion noun in medieval Greek, see J annaris, Gram
mar, 433 , 4b
i8tc"iOO1: This demotic form of i8trn< i s not
found in the dictionaries, but such forms are attested
in Modern Greek for a number of feminines in -t<.
For example, see Demetrakos, s.v. fPyu"t< (fpyuno
oa), aKapht< (aKapinooa) , 1EAU"l< (1EAU"t<-
1 08 Princess Irene-Eulogia
Letter 4
3-5 E1EI\ OOt 'rv ou KUArV AOYOV . . . oG IUAtO'U
Er'Et: This is a covering letter accompanying the
writer' s works on Athanasios which Eulogia had
specifically requested; See Letter 3 , line 23 .
5-6 EV 'Ot IlOVUO'llPiot , A9uvuoiou: The double
monastery of Athanasios on the hill of Xerolophos
in Constantinople. Laurent refers to five monasteries
built by Athanasios in the capital ( "La direction
spirituelle, " 62, note 3), but Dr. Alice-Mary Talbot
has kindly informed me that it would be more precise
to state that he built one double monastery at Xe
rolophos (which included the Church of Christ the
Savior where the relics of the patriarch were pre
served) and at least three other churches . The key
passage is to be found in Theoktistos' B{or Kat nOAl
Te{a TOr tv aY{OIr naTpOr r,/WV eavaa{ov, IaTpl
apxov KwvaTavTlvovnOAewr, ed. A. Papadopou
los-Kerameus , c c
Z
itija dvuh Vselenskih patriarhov
XIV v. , svv. Afanasija I i Isidora I, " Zapiski istori
ko- filologiceskago fakul' teta Imperatorskago S. -Pe
terburgskago Universiteta, 76 ( 1 905), 48: . . E1d
8E KUt IvllllOOUVOV 'f EKElVOU IlEYUAO\uXiu E8Et
'e JiQ KU'UAEt<9fvut , 'i IfAAOV E8Et f 'ou
vuou 'o\hou, oG 0Ee 'E iYEtPE KUt TltV, EPYU
Ili oto1i (tU, \IUXrv <pov'to'rptU, AtIlEVU yu
AlVO'U'ou, 1UpOOU EV 'l VUK't 'oG Jiou; rv 6
IlEV uivE'ut 'l SOO1Ote Tptu8t, 6 8E 'e EVt 'f
Tptu80 LO'fPt Xpto'e, tVU KUt 'o tEPOV uU'oG
KU'UKEt'Ut AEl\lUVOV' 'l 8E 1UVUXPuv'Q 'oG LO
'fpo Ill'pt 6 E'EPO, 'Ot 8uot TUtupXUt 'rv
(vo 8uvuIlEOV 6 AOt1O' Ot KUt 'o IlEoUi'U'ov 'f
JuOtAEUOUOl EKAll PWOUV'o KUt KU'EXOUOt.
Talbot believes that Laurent must have been mis
led by Theoktistos' allusion to phrontisteria and she
Commentary
1 09
agrees with J anin that the references are all to chur
ches . For the Church of the Trinity see, J anin, La
geographie ecc/esiastique, 487; for the Church of
Christ the Savior, part of the monastic complex of
Xerolophos , see ibid. , 504; for the Church of the
Virgin, see ibid. , 21 5 ; and for the Church of the Tax
iarchs , see ibid. , 48 1 . Athanasios also established
a double monastery on the mountain of Ganos in
Thrace before he became a patriarch; see Theokti
stos, BioC, ed. cit. , 1 7. The director' s works in honor
of Athanasios were undoubtedly kept at Xerolophos
because that double monastery was the center of the
posthumous cult of the patriarch in Constantino
ple; see Talbot , Faith Healing, 29.
6-8 Kai dCHY oux OtOUe EYc TOlOUe !ETa TaUTa Ka
TECl<a Kat uqiKa EY Ti 0E<<aAoviK1: See com
mentary on Letter 3 , lines 1 5- 1 6.
Letter 5
5- 14 Ti yap . . . EYTuyxaYOVTWY: Eulogia was fond of rhe
torical questions, a device she probably copied from
her favorite ecclesiastical orator, Gregory of Nazian
zos . For some other examples, see Letter 7, lines 1 -3
and Letter 1 3 lines 1 -7; 1 1 - 1 4; 20-28; 33-35; 41 -46;
7 -8 1E1at8EU!EYOY Tie 1at8EU<EWe: Note the punning
assonance. Other examples occur on line 8 (u1at-
8EUTWe 1at8EUEte) -although in this instance
Eulogia copies Gregory of Nazianzos-and on lines
24- 25 (1 1OAAit <ou EU1opia U10PEtV !E
1E1oilKEV) .
1 4- 21 8t8a<KO!E8a . . . <uvEjija<Ev: The reference is not
to a treatise on peace, as assumed by Laurent ( "La
direction spirituelle, " 63-64) but to the director' s en
comium of Patriarch Athanasios which was written
against that prelate' s detractors (Letter 4, line 1 3) .
This is the work which Eulogia had demanded and
1 1 0
1 7
27-28
39-42
Princess Irene-Eulogia
received (Letter 3 , lines 23-24; Letter 4, lines 3-6) ,
and her remark regarding the benefit of those against
whom the discourse was written, further indicates
that she had read the encomium. I believe, therefore,
that she is here commenting on certain passages from
this work which she must have found particularly
interesting, such as the author' s explication of the
meaning of forbearance and of divine and human
peace. It must be noted that a disquisition on divine
and human peace is not found in any of the surviv
ing works on Athanasios, and this is further evidence
that Eulogia' s director cannot be identified with
either Theoktistos or Joseph Kalothetos . See Theo
ktistos , Bloe, ed. A. Papadopoulos Kerameus as in
commentary on Letter 4, lines 5-6), 1 -5 1 ; idem, 'y
KW/lIOV de rov aYlov ' 8avaalov, cod. Const.
Chalco mon. 64 (Istanbul, Patriarchate Library, col
lection Qf the monastery of the Holy Trinity on
Chalke, nunc 57, olim 64) , fols . 1 07r- 1 33r; idem,
Aoyoe de rrv aVaKO/ll(rV rou 8V aYlOle narpoe
r/j v '8avaalOV narplapxov KwvaravTlvovno
AeWe, ed. A-M. Talbot , Faith Healing, 44- 1 22;
Joseph Kalothetos , Bloe Kai nOAlrela rou 8V aYlOle
narpoe r/lWV apX1eniaKonov KwvaravTlvovno
AeWe '8avaalov, ed. D. Tsames , Syngrammata,
453-502.
fy aqlKE 'ou< ael'<<: For the replacement of the
dative proper by the accusative in Byzantine popular
compositions, see Jannaris, Grammar, 1 349 and
Browning, Medieval and Modern Greek, 37. For other
exaples, see line 43 of this letter; Letter 7, lnes 23-24;
Letter 1 3 , lines 4 and 8; Letter 1 5, lines 1 8- 1 9.
aEA:(a(ay . . . OUK avKa: Note the anacoluthon.
Another such example in Letter 1 5, lines 55-57.
<U(IKE <lAO(O<E . . . 1EyeEpE: Andronikos II is
described by his encomiasts as a born philosopher,
41
42
44
Commentary 1 11
the ideal ruler as envisaged by Plato. See the address
which Gregoras dedicated to the emperor' s love of
and conformity with the tenets of Platonism, ed. P.
A. Leone, " Nicephori Gregorae ad imperatorem An
dronicum II Palaeologum orationes , " Byzantion, 41
(1971) , 503-10. See also Nikephoros Choumnos ,
Enkomion, ed. Boissonade, Anecdota Graeca, 2, 4
and 36-37; Gregory of Cyprus , Enkomion, ed.
Boissonade, Anecdota Graeca, 1, 386; 387-88; and
Gregoras' funeral oration of Andronikos II, in which
the learning and piety of the deceased are extolled
(Hist. 10, 1: 1, 471) .
auSEVT: Eulogia uses the vocative common in col
loquial speech, instead of the purist aUSEVa.
(o<c'an: nu'Ep: On Nikephoros Choumnos as a
man of letters, see Verpeaux, Nicephore Choumnos,
63-192.
ETltcST'E: Eulogia' s correspondent obviously ar
rived in the capital after the death of both her father
and father-in-law. Choumnos died as the monk
Nathaniel on 16 January 1327, according to a note
on fo1 . Iv of cod. Ambrosianus C 71, published by
A. Martini D. Bassi in Catalogus codicum
graecorun Bibliothecae Ambrosianae (Milan, 1906) ,
1 , 201. See Verpeaux, Nicephore Choumnos, 62, note
10. For Laurent' s persuasive argument that Choum
nos died in the men' s section of Eulogia' s double
monastery, and not at the monastery which he had
founded, see Laurent , "Une fondation monasti
que, " 42-44. Andronikos II also ended his life as
a monk, taking the name Anthony. He died at the
convent of Lips in Constantinople, in February 1332.
See P. Schreiner, Die byzantinischen Kleinchro
niken, I-III [ = Corpus Fontium Historiae Byzan
tinae, XII, 1-3] (Vienna, 1975-79) , Chronicle 8, 26a,
v. 1, p. 79.
1 12 Princess Irene-Eulogia
Letter 6
10-14 OUK dill 'OU 1a'po EKElVOO . . . U1iyaYE: The
reference is not to Theoleptos of Philadelphia, as
Laurent thought ("La direction spirituelle, " 72-73),
but to John Kolobos, one of the Desert Fathers. See
'noc8iY/ara ayfwv ycp6vrwv, PO 65. 213D-16A.
2-3
15-16
17-18
1 7
21-22
Letter 7
i o'0Iw8ioE'al oi81po lVEO 1OpO Kat u8a'0:
See Theoleptos ' second letter t o Eulogia i n Ottobo
nianus Gr. 405, fol . 236r: OU'E Iuxalpa 8ixa 1OpO
Kat u8a'0 o'ollou'al, OU'E lv8pa 1E1OPWIlVO
AaP180 EK'O oovXE'al .
'OU 8aollao'ou uv8pc1oo: The reference is to
Nikephoros Choumnos ; See Letter 8, lines 26-29,
where her correspondent tells Eulogia that he read
and admired her father ' s discourses .
811A1V 'lv cqAElav: Eulogia does not fail to men
tion the literary value of her father' s works. An ad
vocate of clarity and simplicity in writing, Choum
nos was the author of two essays on style. See IEpt
AOYWV KpioEW Kat Epyaoia, 'iVl 'ou'wv E8El Kat
01W 1POOEK'OV Kat 'ivo UqEK'OV, ed.
Boissonade, Anecdota Graeca, 3, 356-64; and Ipo
'ou 8ooXEpaivov'a E1t 'ol EAYX01 'rv
uoaqr Kat KaKo'xvW Pll'OPEOOV'WV Kat
'uvav'ia IAU'WVl Kat 'Ol alQ 80KOU01V uo'po
VOlouv'a, ed. Boissonade, ed. cit . 365-91 . On
Choumnos' literary feud with the polymath Theo
dore Metochites, which prompted him to write these
essays, see I.
S
evcenko,
E
tudes sur fa po tmique en
tre Theodore Metochite et Nicephore Choumnos. La
vie intellectuelle et politique a Byzance sous fes
premiers Pateofogues (Brussels, 1962) .
EOll1lU8Eooa: A demotic word meaning "to mark. "
810 'OU llovaX1Kou uvaYEvviJ oav'o IE oxiJla'o:
22-23
24-26
Commentary 113
Theoleptos the Metropolitan of Philadelphia (ca.
1 283-ca. 1 322) . See the superscription of his first let
ter to Eulogia, which states that he tonsured the
princess with his own hands (ed. Salaville, "Une let
tre et un discours inedits , " 1 05) . On Theoleptos , in
general , see the biographical sketch in PLP (Vien
na, 1 980) , fasc. 4, no. 7509. On his association with
the Choumnos family, see V. Laurent , "Une prin
cesse byzantine au cloitre, " 45-58 and I .
S
evcenko,
"Le sens et la date du traite ' Anepigraphos ' de
Nicephore Choumnos , " Bulletin de la Classe des
Lettres et des Science Morales et Politiques, Acade
mie Royale de Belgique, 5th ser. , 35 (1 949) , 473-78 .
On his role as Eulogia' s spiritual adviser, see the
following articles by S. Salaville, " Formes ou
methodes de pri
e
re" ; " La vie monastique grecque
au debut du XIVe siecle d' apres un discours inedit
de Theolepte de Philadelphie, " REB, 2 (1 944) ,
1 1 9-25; "Une lettre et un discours inedits " ; "Un
directeur spirituel a Byzance au debut du XIVe si
e

cle, Theolepte de Philadelphie. Homelie inedite sur

Noel et la vie religieuse, " Melanges J. de Ghellinck,
II (Museum Lessianum, sect. hist . , 14, 1 95 1) 877-87.
See also Hero, "Irene-Eulogia, " 1 21 -30. For the date
of Theoleptos' death, see Kourouses, Manuel
Gabalas, 335-39.
By . . . U1E'UYlY: For other examples of t he use of
the accusative instead of the dative, see commen
tary on Letter 5 , line 1 7.
<'EPl<tY . . . 68uYlPrC sr: On Eulogia' s attach
ment to Theoleptos and her grief over his death, see
her father' s eulogy of Theoleptos, ed. , Boissonade,
Anecdota Graeca, 5, 1 84, lnes 6- 10; 1 85 , lines 23-25.
See also Manuel Gabalas' consolatory address to the
princess on the occasion of her spiritual father' s
death, ed. Previale, "Due monodie, " 28, lines 1 5-22.
Gabalas, reminded Eulogia that she was no stranger
1 14
31-32
Princess Irene-Eulogia
to death and bereavement , having lost at such a
tender age her young and beloved husband (cf. ibid. ,
lines 26-31). Indeed we know from her own father
that the young widow was so afflicted by that loss
that Choumnos wrote to her begging her to control
her sorrow as a favor to him and her mother and
brothers . See Ipoe 'lV Eau'ou 8uya'Epa BaoiAtO
oav, bti '4 nu8ft 'le XlpEiae, aU'le ElKat8EKa
'ov uYOUole Xp6vov, ed. Boissonade, Anecdota
Graeca, 1, 299. Despite the advice of her mentors
and her own vocation, Eulogia found it hard to ac
cept death with equanimity. Her weeping at a
memorial service for her father, several years after
his death, drew a reprimand from her new spiritual
adviser who found her conduct unbecoming to a
nun; see Letter 21, lines 1-2.
unal 'ou lVOe . . . uQnlw: Reluctant to leave his
solitude, the director obj ected to Eulogia' s request
for monthly visits and offered instead to advise her
by correspondence (Letter 8, lines 39-53). He did not,
however, exclude the possibility of visiting her in per
son (Letter 8, 53-54), and eventually, yielding to her
emotional appeals (Letter 9, 29-81), he went to her
convent (Letter 13, lines 60-61). But their first two
meetings reawakened his scruples and he wrote that
he could not leave his cell more than three or four
times a year without endangering his own spiritual
salvation (Letter 14, lines 1-34). Crying that her hap
piness had lasted only for a month and a half, the
despondent princess begged him to meet her halfway
by agreeing to visit her every other month (Letter
15, lines 20-55), and he reluctantly bowed to her
wishes (Letter 16, lines 41-43). It must be noted that
as anxious as the abbess was to meet and converse
with her director , she never offered to visit him
herself, although this would not have been absolutely
impossible for a nun of her exalted rank. Laurent
32
40-41
41
42-44
Commentary
115
cites the example of an unidentified nun of noble birth
who was allowed to leave the cloister and visit her
mentor-an early fifteenth (?) century metropolitan
of Chalcedon-for the purpose of receiving instruc
tion. See Laurent, " La direction spirituelle des grandes
dames a Byzance. La correspondance inedite d' un
metropolite de Chalcedoine, " REB, 8 (1950) 71-73 .
EXOU -lv aqnlV: Note the incorrect use of the mid
dle instead of the active form. For such usage, see
Jannaris , Grammar, 1 486.
apKOUIUt de OOOV: apKOUIUt takes the dative, but
Eulogia prefers the prepositional construction
reflecting the living speech. For other examples, see
Letter 9, lines 5, 6 and 75 .
1AEOV ou XP1O: Verbs denoting need took the ac
cusative instead of the genitive in Byzantine ver
nacular; See Jannaris , Grammar, 1319. For another
example, cf. line 45 of this letter .
KallOl EVE1lo-EuoEv 6 0EOe . . . 1OAAOO'lIl OptOV:
After the death of her husband, Eulogia spent part
of her considerable fortune on the relief of the poor
and the redemption of prisoners , and the rest she
used for the restoration of the convent of Philan
thropos Soter, which she completely and luxuriously
rebuilt , sparing no expenses . See Gregoras , Hist. ,
29, 22: 3, 238; and Theodore Hyrtakenos, Movc8iu
E1l -e 1Ept108i-c . . . KUPe NtKl<OPCP XOUIlVc,
ed. Boissonade, Anecdota Graeca, 1, 287. Although
she says here that only a small fraction of her wealth
was left , and in another letter she claims that her
fortune was not sufficient for the maintenance of
a royal household (Letter 15 , lines 70-71) , Eulogia
was still a wealthy woman. As late as 1355 she still
owned the village of Tholos , near Zichna-in the
theme of Serres and Strymon in Macedonia-which
she partly sold and partly donated to the monks of
116
45
48
26-27
34-36
39-54
43
48-49
50-52
Princess Irene-Eulogia
the monastery of Saint John Prodromos on Mount
Menoikion. See A. Guillou, Les Archives de Saint
lean- Prodrome sur Ie Mont Menecee (Paris, 1 955),
no. 46, 1 42- 44.
OtKOVOIWIEV: For the ascendancy of the -uw over
the -EW contraction in the spoken language, see Jan
naris, Grammar, 85 4-55 .
UIEATOUtIEV: Here Eulogia improperly substitutes
aorist optative for future indicative.
Letter 8
'u< un09EOEt< 'wv AOYWV . . . E9uUIUOU: Since
Eulogia speaks of their spiritual interest (cf. Letter
7, line 1 8) , the discourses in question may have been
Choumnos' religious works, most of which were ad
dressed to Theoleptos . On these works, see
Verpeaux, Nicephore Choumnos, 1 8 and 1 46.
t8cv KUt 'oG 9U'EPOU nu'po<, a
11
IEYUAU . . .
ElVUt OUK dKO<, ooG 9uUIUOU01< 'uG'u: The
reference is to the writings of Theoleptos of Phila
delphia, with which the director was obviously unac
quainted. This is further proof that he was not a
disciple of the metropolitan, as Laurent thought; see
commentary on Letter 9, lines 43-5 4.
nEpt 88 'i< OltAiu< . . . nOtToOIEV: See commen
tary on Letter 7, lines 3 1 -32.
qnAOltAoV: This word is not found i n the dic
tionaries . It is used here in contrast to qnATt ouxoV
(fond of peace/quietude/solitude) and undoubted
ly means "social , " "gregarious . "
EXEt< E1tO'EAAEtV . . . nUt8EUoEc< 'E KUt xupt'o<:
For other compliments to his correspondent' s learn
ing, see Letter 2, lines 3-5; and Letter 10, lines 20-21 .
u8iEtV . . . 8tu IE01< 'i< nOAEw<: As Laurent
observes ("La direction spirituelle, " 57 note 1 ) , the
55- 58
1-2
4-6
1 1-12
13-16
Commentary 117
director may be here referring to the center of the
City-the area from the Forum of Constantine to
the Palace and the cathedral of Saint Sophia, near
which Eulogia' s monastery was situated-or alluding
to the necessity of crossing the City' s central
thoroughfare, the so-called "Mese. " This main
artery led from the imperial palace to the Forum of
Constantine, at which point i t divided into two
avenues-one heading westward to the Golden Gate,
and the other northward to the church of the Holy
Apostles and the Gate of Adrianople. See R. lanin,
Constantinople byzantine (Paris, 1964) , 88. For the
location of Eulogia' s monastery, see lanin, La
geographie ecc/esiastique, 541-42.
DEpt 'ic <(anKic XPEiac . . . E1TV'AlC: See Let
ter 1 0, lines 1 - 1 6, where he again thanks the princess
for attending to his material needs so generously.
Letter 9
opQ . . . on(c OUK t<XUE1 : Eulogia probably thought
that on(c was more stylish than n&c which had
become the common declarative conj unction after
verbs of seeing and hearing; see Jannaris, Grammar,
App. 6, 13 and 14.
EYKcla et c <E . . . 8TYE<8ai < dC ap'Tv . ..
et c nvac yivE'at: For other examples of preposi
tional construction, see commentary on Letter 7,
lines 40-41.
,8EV . . . t<xu<ac: Here we expect a genitive ab
solute, but Eulogia uses the nominative and, as in
other instances , she fails to observe the required
agreement between the participle and its subj ect .
c<np UlOV QHAonu'opa, d Kat upiouc <iAouC E
X1V <uPival . . . OUK Ei<'a'al 'tic npoc 'OY na
'Epa au'o\ 81a8E<(C: Note the lack of syntactical
118
1 9-20
24
40
43-54
43-44
Princess Irene-Eulogia
agreement between the clauses and especially the use
of the infinitive instead of the finite mood of the
verb in the conditional sentence. In the latter case
we should perhaps postulate a scribal error and read
OUj.i(?), seeing that such a blatant breach of the
rules of syntax does not appear anywhere else in
Eulogia' s letters.
ou' KUt Ot unoo'oAOt, OU'f KUt Ot KU'U OE
80GAOt uU'oG: Laurent thought that this phrase was
an allusion to the director' s followers and concluded
that he was the leader of a group of hesychasts; see
"La direction spirituelle, " 58 note 1 . In this case,
however, KU'U OE means "like you. " Eulogia likens
her correspondent to the Apostles and the other true
servants of God whom no temptation can separate
from God.
(ytOV EKUVOV nu'Epu: The Desert Father, John
Kolobos ; cf. Letter 6, lines 1 0- 1 4.
unoAAouoU: on the verb unoAAf, a post classical
form of UnOAAUj. t, see Jannaris Grammar, 775 . The
learned Theoleptos also writes unoAAouoU. See his
first letter to Eulogia in Ottobonianus 405, fo!' 232r :
'o j.EV Ku'op9f9EV KUAOV unoAAouoU 8tu 'i
OlitoEf . . .
tvu 't . . . Tooxuoov: Laurent' s conclusion that the
director was a student of the metropolitan of
Philadelphia is based on his assumption that Eulogia
is here apostrophizing her correspondent (' ' La direc
tion spirituelle, " 55 and note 6) . However, a careful
reading of this paragraph leaves no doubt that the
disobedient student was Eulogia herself and not the
director, who was not even familiar with the writings
of Theoleptos (cf. Letter 8, lines 34-36) .
tVU 't KUt ou OUK ElOEPX1 KUt 'ou npo 0EOV 'PE
XOV'U KfAOEt: I am indebted to Professor
S
evcenko for pointing out to me that this is a para-
46-47
48
58
60-68
Commentary 119
phrase of Matt . 23 . 13-15 : Ouui b811ltY, ypull lu
'Ete Kui <uptaUtOt lOKpnui, on KAElE'E '1Y u
atAElUY nov OUPUyry 11pOa8EY 'rY ay8pc1wy'
Ullde yap OUK daEPXEa8E, OUb8 'oue daEPxollE
VOl)e a<iE'E daEA8dv.
Kui yap me OUb8 'o 'rv aAAWY 1U'EPWV f<UAU
ue: In addition to a resident priest, female monastic
communities were required to have a confessor who
visited the convent regularly to hear the confession
of the nuns and advise them on spiritual matters .
He had to be a monk (see the typikon of the con
vent of Lips in Constantinople, founded by empress
Theodora, the wife of Michael VIII Palaiologos, ed.
Delehaye, " Deux typika, " 1 1 2) or both a monk and
a eunuch; see the typikon of Irene Doukas , the wife
of Alexios I , for the convent of the Theotokos Ke
charitomene ed. Miklosich-Miiller, 5 , 346. Eulogi
a, therefore, must have had other spiritual advisers
after the death of Theoleptos , but she claimed that
only he and her current director truly inspired her .
See Letter 15 , lines 93-97.
1u'poe Kui bEa16'ol: Theoleptos of Philadelphia.
f1tIEAdaut: On the -EaUt form of the second per
son singular of medio-passive verbs, common in
modern Greek but present since the Hellenistic
period, see Jannaris , Grammar 773 . For other ex
amples , see Letter 15, line 59; and Theoleptos ' let
ter to Eulogia, ed. Salaville, "Une lettre et un
discours inedits , " 1 06 and note 1 .
Kui 11 bta 1Uv'oe 1 aYU11 . . . 8Eiol <w'6e: Intel
lectual purification as a prerequisite for the attain
ment of contemplation and divine illumination is a
common theme of ascetic and mystical literature.
See, for example, Saint Basil , 'aKITIKai lzaTaclC,
fpOO[/10V, PG 3 1 . 1324C- 1 325A; Evagrios , Kcqa
Aala npaKTIKa, 7 1 , PG 40. 1244A-B; Makarios ,
120 Princess Irene-Eulogia
I8pi 8A8vB8piac vo6C, 21-25 , PG 34. 956A-957D;
John of the Ladder , KAfla, 28 , schol . 22, PG 88.
1145B-C; 29, PG 88. 1148B-C; Maximos the Con
fessor K8quAala n8pi dyun'C, 2, 61, PG 90. 1004C;
Gregory Palamas , IpoC Eiv'v PG 150. 1080C-81A.
See also Meyendorff, "Le theme du 'retour en soi '
dans la doctrine palamite du XIVe siecle, " Revue
d' histoire des religions, 145, 2 (1954) , 188-206;
reprinted in Byzantine Hesychasm (London 1974) ,
Study 12. Theoleptos-who initiated Palamas
himself to the hesychast method of prayer (cf. Philo
theos , Encomium, PG 151. 561A)- must have ac
quainted Eulogia with the hesychast tradition and
the doctrine of the pure prayer . The Ottobonianus
405-which in all probability was the property of
the princess (cf. commentary on Letter 12, lines
15-18)-contains, among other works of Theoleptos,
a discourse on vigilance and prayer and a short ex
position on the ascetic life, whose preface shows that
it was written specifically for Eulogia. See Salaville,
"Formes ou methodes de priere, " 1-4.
62-67 T VOEPU dpTtvl, dplvEucvnv JEV 'rv DUO nu-
81'KrV JEPrv 'i \u'i KUt uno'uYEv'WV 'Q AO
ye, 'rv DE 'ECUpWV uta8Ttcwv . . . uno'uYEv'WV
'Q vQ, 'OU DE YOU uu8t uno'uYEv'O 'Q Xpta'Q,
J1 npu''EtV, UAAU nua'EtV, JlD' VEPYEtV, UAA'
vEPYEa8ut: Another example of the author' s pre
dilection for assonantal devices .
62-63 'rv DUO nU81'tKrv JEPrV 'i \u'i: The ap
petitive part and the passionate part of the soul. See
Plato, Republic 439d-e; Aristotle, De anima, 432a
25 . Adopted by the fathers of the church, Plato' s
tripartite division of the soul i s another topos in
patristic and ascetic writings. See for example, Greg
ory of Nyssa, EnlaroAY KavovlKY npoc AtrolOv,
PG 45 . 224 A; Evagrios K8quAaza npaKrlKa 61, PG
40. 1236 A-C; Maximos the Confessor, K8quAala
64-65
64-65
84-85
Commentary 1 21
nspi dyanI< 3, 20, PO 90. 1 021 B-C; John
Damascene Ispi rwv oKrw r< novIpfa< nvsvf1a
rwv, PO 95 . 92B-D; Niketas Stethatos , 'Karov
ra<, 1 , 1 5 , PO 1 20. 857C.
rwv (s rsaaapwv ala8taswv avr< r< IVX< vno
rayevrwv re ve: Ascetic and spiritual writers
distinguish between the senses of the body and the
rational senses or senses of the soul . The latter, also
known as powers (8UVUJEl<) , are: 8lUVOlU, vou<,
8ou, <uV'uoiu, uto81ol< (understanding, reason,
opinion, imagination and sense). See, for example,
Makarios of Egypt, '0flA[a 4, 7, PO 34. 477B; John
Damascene, Ispi rwv oKrw r< novIP[a< nvsvfa
rwv, PO 95 . 85B-D; Theodore the Studite, 'nlaro
Ar 36, PO 99. 1 220B-C; Niketas Stethatos , 'EKa
rovra< 1 , 1 0, PO 1 20. 856C; Theophylact of
Bulgaria, 'PfIvsfa si< ro Kara AOVKUV svayyeAlOv,
1 4, PO 1 23 . 937A. See also the following excerpt
from the letter which Theoleptos wrote to Eulogia
shortly before she entered the cloister, ed. Salaville,
"Une lettre et un discours inedits, " 1 06: "01UV yap
10< Ut08ioEl< 1OU ocJU1o< 1oi< 1IV EV1OAIV
rpui'< 1POrOl<, 1lV 8E YAIOOUV 1oi< 8Eiol< u
JVOl< KU1uo<uAi'<, 10< 8E 8UVUJEl< 11< 'UX1<
1i rtKV01l1l 11< rpOOEtX1< KU1UOEJVUV'<,
EuqmI< 101E AEYEl< "JVllo8iooJul 1OU 6voJu1o<
oot EV ruo' YEVEQ KUt YEVEQ." (Ps 44[45] . 1 8) . I
do not know, however, to which of these five senses
Eulogia is referring when she speaks of the "four
senses of the soul" which must submit to the mind.
Ut08ioEWV . . . Ur01 UYEV1WV: Note again the
breach of concord in gender.
6 rEPlorUOJ0< 11< EOP11< 1OU LW11PO<: The refe
rence is to the Feast of the Transfiguration of the
Savior, celebrated on 6 August and often called
simply the "feast of the Savior. " See N. Louvaris,
MsyaAI 'AAIV1Kr 'YKvKAOnal(sfa (Athens:
122
86-87
92-93
Princess Irene-Eulogia
Pyrsos, 1 933), vol . 22, 728; E. Theodorou, epl
aKeVTZKr Kai 'H8zKr 'YKvKAonazJe[a (Athens ,
1 966) , 8, 1 053-54. Since Eulogia' s convent was de
dicated to Christ the Savior , this was a very impor
tant holiday, and she was not merely pretending
when she claimed to be busy. It was the custom to
celebrate the feast of the patron saint of the
monastery with a special liturgy and distribution of
alms and food to the poor . Irene Doukas included
in her foundation charter a special clause regarding
the celebration of the Feast of the Dormition of the
Holy Virgin after whom she had named her convent .
The instructions of the empress ranged from the type
of candles to be used for the illumination of the
church on that festive day, to the menu for the nuns
and the exact amount of bread and money to be
distributed to the poor who were expected to gather
at the convent' s gate. See Miklosich-Miller 5 ,
369-70. Theodora Synadena, a niece of Michael VIII
Palaiologos and founder of another convent de
dicated to the Holy Virgin (eeoT6KO Ti Bepa[a
'An[Jo), left similar instructions for the celebra
tion of the Feast of the Dormition; see Delehaye,
"Deux typica, " 79. For another example, see the
typikon of the convent of Lips (Delehaye, " Deux
typica, " 1 26-27) , where Theodora Palaiologina
specified how the feasts of the patron saints were
to be celebrated.
EcEtAa OE Kat xap"ia Kat "o YPU\tov: A word
of the demotic, YPu\tov/ypa\ia"ov meant either
the copying of a manuscript or the fee charged by
the copyist; see B. Atsalos , La terminologie du livre
manuscrit a I' epoque byzantine (Thessalonike,
1 971 ) , 1 86-89. Evidently there was no scribe among
Eulogi a' s nuns , for she did not offer to have her
director' s works copied at her convent.
1uv"a <6ov a1E(Et(UlV: This is not a misquota-
1 7- 1 8
20-21
21
37-38
40-42
Commentary 123
tion but a deliberate paraphrase of Gregory of Na
zianzos (cf. critical apparatus , Testimonia) . Judg
ing from her director' s counseling, Eulogia was par
ticularly afraid of death. See Letter 21 , lines 1 -2, 7-8;
Letter 22.
Letter 1 0
a DE flv EYPU<E . . . EKKuAun'Etv: See Letter 9,
lines 1 -3 .
'D YUVUtKrV unuarv . . . EUnUtDdg Kpu'oUa1:
For similar compliments to Eulogia' s learning by
Manuel Gabalas , Gregory Akindynos and Nike
phoros Gregoras , see my article, "Irene-Eulogia, "
notes 1 , 68 and 69.
EUnUtDdg: EUnUtDdu-a word not attested in the
dictionaries-is used here in the sense of EUnUtDEU
alu: "good education, " "culture, " "scholarship. "
See Liddell-Scott , Greek-English Lexicon, s . v .
Eun u tDEU alu.
d DuaXEpulVEt avuytVcaKouau Dte 'o KU KoXa
puyov, Ev8uoG 'e aEuu'f: KUKoxapuyo is not
found in the dictionaries , but it must have the same
meaning as KUKoxapuK'o, i. e. "badly engraved/
drawn. " See Demetrakos Lexikon, 3554. Although
her correspondent warned Eulogia that she was not
in a position to complain because her own hand
writing was equally bad, she did not refrain from
playfully describing her ordeal in trying to decipher
his illegible hand. See Letter 1 3 , lines 48-54.
tAlCV, OtUt, acpov . . . EAAlVtKrV 'E KUt 8ElCV:
In his correspondence with the Protobestiarissa
Theodora Raoulaina, Choumnos complained that
he lacked the necessary books for his literary studies,
and begged this learned niece of Michael VIII to
alleviate his disgraceful indigence by lending him the
books that he needed. See Choumnos, Letter 77, ed.
124
37-50
49-50
Princess Irene-Eulogia
Boissonade, Anecdota Nova, 93-94. Verpeaux
(Nicephore Choumnos, 54) rightly points out that in
this instance Choumnos was exaggerating, for despite
the allegedly modest size of his library, he was able
to lend the Protobestiarissa a manuscript-albeit an
inferior copy and the only one he possessed-con
taining, among other works of Aristotle, the Mete
orologica and the commentaries on the letter by
Alexander of Aphrodisias. See Choumnos , Letter
76, Anecdota Nova, 91 . His two letters to Raoulaina
were written before her death on 6 December 1 300
(on this date, see Fassoulakis , Raoul Ral(les, no.
1 1 , p. 27) , therefore they antedate his retirement
from public office. It was after the ascendancy of
Theodore Metochites, his political and literary rival ,
that Choumnos devoted himself to scholarly pur
suits and he must have then enriched his library,
which was inherited by his scholarly daughter in
whose double monastery he spent his last days .
'i yp<a'a . . . 1E<ei'o<v Ot : This part of
the letter formed a postscript . It is marked off by
crosses indicating the beginning and end of each letter
in the MS, but it is not numbered as a separate let
ter nor does the context warrant such an assumption.
MWoatK< . . . Kat 'o 'E'paaoi"EtOV: The Penta
teuch and the four books of Kings .
Letter 1 2
1 -4 'o 1apov t,iov EXEt ,oyou U1EP 'rv "0-
ywv . . . lE"lv'at: This treatise in defense of
"outer" learning and against its detractors obviously
had not circulated, since it was still in draft form.
Written while the author was still a layman, it was
the earliest of his known works and it had certainly
nothing to do with the later dispute between Pala
mas and Barlaam (1 337-41 ) which called attention
briefly to the issue of humanism in Byzantium. For
the attitude of the Church towards ancient Greek
Commentary
125
philosophy and science, see D. M. Nicol, "The Byz
antine Church and Hellenic Learning in the Four
teenth Century, " Studies in Church History, 5
( 1 969) , 23-57; idem, Church and Society in the Last
Centuries of Byzantium (Cambridge, 1 979) , 3 1 -65 .
8- 1 0 KU-' uA<cPl-ov Ku-u-ux8Evn:< . . . nu-EptKOV E
EtAEYJEVOV novOv: As indicated by Laurent (' ' La
direction spirituelle, " 66, notes 3 and 4) , such a work
has survived under the name of Ignatios and was
published by Boissonade from the Paris. gr. 3058
(fo1. 32
r
) . See Boisonade, Anecdota Graeca, 4, 436-37
(PG 1 1 7. 1 1 76C-77B) . An acrostic poem of twenty
four iambic verses in the regular sequence of the let
ters of the Greek alphabet , it is addressed to a
"diligent youth" (npo< qtAonovov nuiDu) and con
tains the usual pious exhortations . Versions of the
same poem have been preserved in twenty-two man
uscripts, eight of which assign it to Gregory of Na
zianzos, thirteen present it anonymously and only the
Paris MS attributes it to Ignatios, who has been iden
tified by Boissonade with Ignatios the Deacon, an
eleventh-century author of a similar alhabetos. See
D. N. Anastasijewic, Die Parinetischen Alphabete
in der griechischen Literatur (Munich, 1 905) , 44-45;
Boissonade, Anecdota Graeca, 4, 436. Boissonade' s
identification was rejected by later scholars who con
sider this poem, for stylistic reasons, to be the work
of a writer of the late Byzantine period. See Anastasi
jewic, op. cit. , 46-48; K. Krumbacher, Geschichte der
byzantinischen Litteratur (Munich, 1 897), 7 1 8; and,
especially, K. F. Muller, "Handschriftliches zu Ig
natius Diaconus, " BZ, 3 (1 894), 520-22. Unfortunate
ly, even though the late date of this alphabetos has
been established, the name of its author remains
uncertain. It is impossible to determine whether he
was, in fact , a fourteenth century monk named Ig
natios or his work was arbitrarily assigned in the Paris
MS to the older Ignatios, j ust as it was elsewhere at
tributed to Gregory of Nazianzos, because both men
126 Princess Irene-Eulogia
were known as the authors par excellence of such
poems; see F. D6lger, Die byzantinische Dichtung
in der Reinsprache (Berlin, 1 948), 28 .
1 5- 1 8 0 8E qC Elvat 'oG fYUAOU . . . 1E\OV "lv: The
book in question may be the Vat. Ottob. gr. 405
which contains Theoleptos' discourses and letters to
Eulogia and which was originally her property; see
J. Gouillard, "Theolepte, " DTC, 1 5 1, cols 3 40- 41 .
As already commented by Laurent (' 'Une princesse
byzantine au dOltre, " 34 note 7) , the Ottobonianus
dates from the fourteenth century and was copied
for a woman. The same practiced hand which has
transcribed most of the manuscript added on the
lower margin of fol . a: the invocation: XptcnE OU,
(uAa''f 'nv KfKTEvlv. If the copyist was a
woman, as Salaville suggests (' 'Une lettre et un dis
cours inedits, " 1 02) , she was certainly not the prin
cess because she did not have a neat handwriting (cf.
Letter 1 0, lines 37-39) . Unfortunately, I was as yet
unable to obtain a microfilm of the other surviving
manuscript of the same works of Theoleptos, the
codex Alexandrinus 131 (126 PI) For a descrip
tion of this MS, see T. D. Mosconas, " i1'uxov
uVfK86'wv EAAlVtKWV xftpoypuqwv, " ' vaAeKTa
(Alexandria, 1 957), v. 6, 95- 1 03 .
1 8-21 8ta 'oG uyiou Ot Kat 8f<1f<iou 1a'poc . . . EV
yap UAATAOtC E<EV: Probably the monk Menas
whom the director describes in Letter 17 as his alter
ego. See commentary on Letter 1 7, line 6 1 .
24 'Aaprv: Aaron acted as Eulogia' s emissary, but we
do not know whether he was a layman or an ecclesia
stic. See Letter 1 3 , lines 59-61 ; Letter 1 5, line 88; Let
ter 1 8, line 1 ; Letter 1 9, line 1 5; Letter 21 , line 25 .
The family name is known since the late thirteenth
century; see PLP (Vienna, 1 976) , fasc. 1 , no. 6. In
his study of the correspondence of an anonymous
4 and 8
22-23
27-28
29
Commentary 127
Byzantine of the first half of the fourteenth century
(now identified with George Oinaiotes ; see Kourou
ses , Manuel Gabalas, 1 01 - 1 1 0) , E. Rein mentions
a Nicholas Euapcv CEapc [ ?] ), to whom the author
had written to request a book containing the works
of Aristophanes . See Rein, "Die florentiner Brief
sammlung. (Codex Laurentianus S. Marco 3 56) , "
Annales Academiae Scientiarum Fennicae, Ser . B,
1 4, 2 (Helsinki , 1 9 1 5) , 5 ; 78 . I f the correct reading
of that name is "Aaron, " as cited in the PLP, no.
7, then Nicholas Aaron may be identified with
Eulogi a' s learned friend.
Letter 1 3
'oue <oue AOYODe ctAlKce . . . 'oue <oue AOYODe
EVE'DX: On this construction, see commentary on
Letter 5 , line 1 7 .
aKptiae . . . aKpo'a'lv aKpitav: Eulogi a' s
penchant for assonance is again reflected in this in
stance of alliteration.
6 . . . aA<al'Oe: Many feminine substantives in
-oe changed to masculine in early medieval Greek;
See Browning, Medieval and Modern Greek, 59.
Eulogia uses both forms interchangeably.
aytoe Ap<EVtOe: One of the most venerable ascetics,
Arsenios was a Roman nobleman noted for his
ed ucation in both Greek and Latin. Theodosios I
(379-395) summoned him to Constantinople to be
the teacher of his sons , Arkadios and Honorios .
After spending forty years at court , Arsenios retired
to the Egyptian desert where he became the follower
of the anchorite John Kolobos . See Theodore the
Studite, Encomium, PG 99. 849B-8 1 C; critical edi
tion by Th. Niesen, " Das Enkomion des Theodoros
Studites auf den heiligen Arsenios , " Byzantinisch
Neugrichische Jahrbucher, 1 ( 1 920) , 241 -62.
128
28-32
42-44
48-49
52-53
54-59
Princess Irene-Eulogia
d yap . . . OU1C Eu81l Ka: This is rather a play
on the word alphabetos (the title of the director' s
didactic poem) than an appropriate use of Arsenios'
saying. Arsenios-who made this remark when a
fellow ascetic was surprised to see him engaged in
a serious conversation with a rustic Egyptian ancho
rite-implied that in his pursuit of spiritual perfec
tion he could learn even from the simple but pious
monks of the desert . See Arsenios, 'noq8iY/ara,
no. 6, 'noq8iY/ara ayzwv yspovrwv, PG 65 . 89A.
vGv Ev 'oue Aoyoue YKClUCV . . . aKu8pc1oue
uaae: An allusion to her correspondent ' s treatise
in defense of "outer" learning which was left in the
form of an unedited draft.
a1O Ev yap 'rv ypau'cv Kat 'fe 'otcv auy
xuaEc<: See commentary on Letter 10, lines 37- 38 .
'upavvouEval . . . 'upavvi8a: This i s an instance
of a cognate accusative-a Hebraism, common in
the New Testament (cf. Moulton, Grammar, 245)
rather than an example of the rhetorical device
known as Jigura etymologica (cf. J . D. Denniston,
Greek Prose Style, 4th ed. [London, 1970] , 134) .
Since Eulogia had no literary training, it is safe to
assume that she reflects the influence of Biblical
Greek.
au 8E Ete 'nv KU'C aO<iav . . . 80UAEU1: Eulogia
is here expressing the traditional Byzantine view that
all profane studies were ancillary to the supreme
wisdom of God. For similar statements by other
learned contemporaries, including Eulogia' s own
father , see Nicol ' 'The Byzantine Church and Hel
lenic Learning, " 35-46. Eulogia' s protege, Grego
ry Akindynos , was of the same opinion and he con
gratulated his erudite correspondents for making
philosophy the handmaiden of theology, which he
called the ultimate goal of all philosophic pursuits .
59-60
60-61
1
36
42-43
46-48
C
o
mmentary 129
See The Letters of Gregory Akindynos, ed. Hero,
Letter 1 9, lines 8- 1 3 ; Letter 42, lines 1 5-21 .
'Aapwv: See commentary on Letter 1 2, line 24.
1Ept 'f Ev8u8E a<iEc 'f uYtcauvl aou: This
was to be the director' s first visit and the abbess was
anxiously awaiting it .
Letter 1 4
Ka8iaa EV 'e KEAAiQ /OU Kat auvayayfv E/aU
'OY: The director wrote this letter after his first visit
to Eulogia. We can only guess that they met more
than once from the following statement, in which Eu
logia' s use of the present tense suggests recurrent ac
tion: E1Et Kat Eyf E E/au'f /EV n aya80v . . .
OUK Xc, o'av A81, 8EtOua8ai aOt, 8tu 'OU'O
'rv uyicv /OU 1a'Epcv 'ou Piou 1POpUAAO/at
Kat 8tlyou/at /1pOa8EV aou (Letter 1 5 , lines
1 2- 1 6) . On the other hand, his visits could not have
been more than two, since Eulogia did not ask for
more than monthly visits (cf. Letter 7, lines 3 1 -32) ,
and the present letter was written a month and a half
after their first meeting; see Letter 1 5 , lines 53-54,
where she complains that her happiness lasted only
for a month and a half.
ou8a/r EEPX1 'f 8Ea1Eaia /ovf: See Eulo
gia' s comments on this statement in Letter 1 5 , lines
59-72.
'TV /fV KU'C paatAEiav a<Etaa Kat pi
'
aaa: A
reminder to the imperial widow that she had given
up the comforts and splendor of life at court in order
to seek salvation.
d 8f 'u 1po'Epa Ev8u/18Eil . . . 8tatpE8Ei AOyt
a/o: The director had originally offered to direct
Eulogia by correspondence, although he did not ex
clude the possibility of an occasional visit . See Letter
130
14, 16-
17, 18-19
34-35
39-43
39-40
40
53-54
59-83
Princess Irene-Eulogia
8, lines 39-54; and commentary on Letter 7, lines
31-32.
Letter 15
8EtOUOeu{ OOt . . . 8EtOUIEV1 'lv 0lv eEoqnAi KUt
uyiuv 'UXlv . . . EI108wv . . . 'lv 0lv uyiuv 'U-
XTv: On Eulogia' s uncertainty about verbs taking the
dative case, see commentary on Letter 1, lines 24-25.
0EO Ktvr0W; . . . aVE1VEuOU: Note the anacoluthon.
OUK EO'tV a'tloHEpO 'ou K'TVOU 6 uvepr-
1O . . . KUt 'uu'u VOEpa 'uX'i OTeEtUV 8EOIE-
YOU . . . 1p0080KQ: Despite the breach of concord
in case, I believe that the subject of 8EOlEVOU is uv
epr1O (sc. Eulogia) and have translated it
accordingly.
'ou K'TVOU ... 6 Olecv 6 v610 8tUKEAEUE'Ut:
Possibly an allusion to Si . 7.22: K'TV1 ooi EO'tV;
E1tOKE1'OU uU'u.
6 OleEtV:It is tempting to treat this as another in
stance of itacism and change the accusative to the
correct dative, but I suspect that here, too, Eulogia' s
syntax reflects the infuence of the spoken language.
11
EO'r" avuKrXl KUt " Eu8utloviu 10U fVO
1
1-
VO KUt "1{OEO Iovou: See commentary on Letter
14, line 1.
o't 88 OUK EEPXOIUt . . . ooov 8uVUIUt: The direc
tor claimed that by asking him to leave his cell while
she never left her convent , Eulogia proved that she
cared more for her salvation than for his (cf. Letter
14, lines 35-38 and Letter 16, lines 37-40) . In
response to this charge, Eulogia explains here the
reasons for which she never ventured outside the
confines of her convent and points out that her
reasons differ from his . The director' s visits to her ,
59-62
64-65
67-68
Commentary 131
she argues, present no spiritual risk; on the contrary,
they may be of spiritual advantage to him since his
counselling benefits not only herself but also her
nuns (cf. lines 50-51) . On the other hand, if she had
broken the rule of enclosure, it would have been for
secular reasons, such as visits to her exalted relatives .
This would have been extremely expensive, in addi
tion to being spiritually unproductive.
on 8f OUK EEpxOJl at . . . 8EOAT'OU \uXfC:
Another instance of confused syntax.
cmYYEVEtaV Kat YVll (:OTll'a EXC dC 'lV a(tAEiav:
Eulogia was the aunt by marriage of the reigning
monarch Andronikos III .
unEpxE(8at . . . nEV81l Kat Vc(EtC: In accordance
with the 46th canon of the Synod in Trullo, which
enj oined that religious be given permission to leave
the convent only in extraordinary circumstances,
nuns were allowed to pay a brief visit to a gravely
ill parent, but they had to be accompanied by two
aged and venerable members of their community and
were under strict orders to return to the convent
before sunset . See G. A. Rhalles-M. Potles, eds . ,
}uv'aYJa 'rv 8EiCV Kat lEPrv KavovCv (Athens,
1852-56), 2, 41 4; Typikon of Irene Doukas
(Miklosich-Miller, 5, 347) ; Typikon of Theodora
Synadena (Delehaye, "Deux typica, " 63); Typikon
of Theodora Palaiologina ("Deux typica, " 11 4) .
This rule, however, was not strictly enforced in the
case of imperial princesses and other noble ladies .
They were permitted to spend two or three days by
the bedside of a sick relative and, if they had a dy
ing kinsman, they could remain with him until the
end. See the typikon of Irene Doukas, Miklosich
Miiller, 5, 336. We do not know ho'w strict Eulogia' s
Rule was . Only a fragment from her typikon sur
vives and, as already noted by its editor, it indicates
132
68
70-71
75-77
Princess Irene-Eulogia
that she had copied the typikon of Irene Doukas . See
Ph. Meyer, " Bruchsticke zweier wnlKu K'TrOptKU, "
BZ 4 ( 1 895) , 48-49. According to this letter the ab
bess never left her convent but suprisingly enough,
she says that if she had not observed so strictly the
rule of enclosure, she would have been expected to
attend not only the funerals but also the weddings
of the various members of the imperial family.
EvdEt aUeEV'lKU: For this meaning of Ev(cn
(assembly, meeting) , see E. Kriaras, AElKD "i E
aat(vtKi EAAlVtKi 81c80u ypaa'Eia
(Thessalonike, 1 978), 6, s. v. Ev(at, 4a-4J
Kat noG EEAAE 81apKElV 6 Jio ou JaalA1KDv Aa
DV Kat oIKOV; : After explaining that if she left her
convent to attend her relatives' weddings and
funerals, she would have needed the proper retinue
of men and horses , Eulogia asks : " And how was
my fortune to provide adequately for a princely
retinue and household?" She does not say-as
Laurent thought-that she would have had to
"spend her life running a princely household" (cf.
"La direction spirituelle, " 79) . For the meaning of
Jio (property) and 8tapKw (to sustain; to satisfy
the needs) , see Demetrakos, Leikon, 1 41 5 and 1 929
respectively. Instead of maintaing a royal equipage,
the princess preferred to spend the funds for the
benefit of her nuns and her worthy proteges such
as the director.
6 ryf notw Kat ot na"EpE ou rnoill aav . e . a
nal"w: By providing for the salvation of others,
Eulogia followed in the footsteps of her father and
Theoleptos . Eulogia' s father was the founder of the
monastery of Theotokos Gorgoepekoos in Constan
tinople; see Laurent, "Une fondation monastique. "
As for Theoleptos , he had been the spiritual adviser
and teacher of many of his fellow citizens , even
78-79
82-83
Commentary 1 33
before his appointment to the episcopacy, when he
liv,ed as an ascetic in the wilderness near his native
city of Nikaia. See his eulogy by Nikephoros Choum
nos, '7lTUrlOe de TOV /1aKUpIOV Kai aY1WTaTOV /11-
TP07OAlIV l1AaosArsiae BSOAI17Tov, Boissonade,
Anecdota Graeca, 5, 21 2- 1 3.
Kat OUK EKplVa 1aV'EAW< 'i< UAll < Kat 'WV aAAwv
tll168loV 'i< 1VEUlla1lKi< tpyaaia<: Because of
Eulogi a' s faulty syntax-the incorrect use of the
genitives and the lack of accord between them and
their modifiers-it is not clear whether by aAAwv
she means "other secular concerns , " such as the ad
ministration of her large monastery, or her concern
for "other human beings . " I have opted for the lat
ter interpretation in view of the following statements
that she makes further on in this letter : 1 ) tyw 8lU
'TV 'WV aAAwv r<EAElav Ku81llal 8E80UAWIEVll
c8E (lines 77-78): unlike the director who stays in
his cell for the sake of his own salvation, the ab
bess remains confined to her nunnery for the pur
pose of serving her nuns and providing for their
salvation. 2) 1 'WV t aU'oG r<EAOUIEVWV J0r8Ela
leAAOV t<W1laEV au'ov (lines 85-86): it was not his
retirement from the world but the guidance he of
fered to others that provided Theoleptos of Phila
delphia with a higher degree of spiritual illumination.
8lU 'TV 'WV Iovaouawv aW'llPiav . . . oaov 80-
vallal: According to Gregoras , there were over one
hundred nuns at Eulogia' s convent (Hist. , 29, 22: 3,
238, lines 22-23). This was an unusually large number.
Irene Doukas limited the number of the religious at
her convent to forty (Miklosich-Miiller, 5, 337); Le
on the bishop of Nauplion mentions only thirty-six
nuns in his typikon of the convent of Areia, (ed. G.
Choras , I ayia /ovr 'psiae NaV7Aiov [Athens ,
1 975] , 239); and the Palaiologan convents of Bebaia
Elpis and Lips were allowed fifty nuns each,
134 Princess Irene-Eulogia
while that of Saint Kosmas and Damian, no more
than thirty (Delehaye, "Deux typika, " 97; 109; 139).
Gregoras tells us that Eulogia was not only a model
of virtue to her nuns but , like a true fellow servant ,
she shared with them the most menial duties , in
cluding work in the kitchen and even more " vulgar"
tasks if necessary (Rist. , 29, 22: 3 , 238 , line 23-239,
line 5) .
83-86 6 oE<nO'l< Ol . . . UlOY: This type of anacolu
thon -a nominative standing at the head of a clause
without construction-is not uncommon in the New
Testament ; see Moulton, Grammar, 231.
84 ano oyOOOY iho<: For the substandard construction
of ano with the accusative instead of the genitive
since the Greco-Roman period, see Jannaris, Gram
mar, 1517.
84-85 ano oyOOOY E'O< . . . 'ptUKO<'< 'pic E'Et: The
inference from this obscure passage is that Theolep
tos was elected to the episcopacy at the age of thirty
three, after spending eight years as a soltary (cf. Let
ter 16, lines 20-22, where the director clarifies
Eulogia' s statement) .
According to Nikephoros Choumnos, Theolep
tos was a young deacon of twenty-five when John
Bekkos, upon his ascension to the patriarchal throne
in 1275, ordered the strict enforcement of the union
of Lyon (cf. Choumnos , Ent'qno<, Boissonade,
Anecdota Greaca, 5, 199-200) . Instead of comply
ing with the patriarch' s orders, Theoleptos left his
native city of Nikaia and set off for Mount Athos
(cf. Choumnos, Ent'qo<, 20-04; Philotheos, En
comium PG 151. 561A) . He was later summoned to
Constantinople, but even a personal interview with
Emperor Michael VIII failed to move him from his
firm antiunionist stand and he suffered im
prisonment . When he was released, he resisted his
88-90
88
89
93-94
94
97-98
Commentary 135
wife' s pleas to return to their home, and settled in
stead as a solitary in the wilderness near Nikaia, re
maining there until his appointment to the metro
politan see of Philadelphia shortly after the restora
tion of Orthodoxy by Andronikos II in 1 283 (cf.
Choumnos , op. cit . , 204- 1 7) . The exact date of his
appointment is not known, but on the basis of Eulo
gia' s evidence we can now assign it to 1283 , eight
years , that is , after his retirement from the world
in 1 275 . This date agrees with the purported age of
the metropolitan at the time of his appointment, for
in 1 283 Theoleptos was thirty-three years old, in
asmuch as he had been twenty-five in 1 275 .
KUpOU MlVU . . . 9EpunEuac KUl TOUTO: Eulogia
obviously obj ected to the presence of a third per
son at her meetings with the director . We do not
know how she proposed to deal with the matter, but
her correspondent ' s complaint that her alleged ex
cuses for refusing to talk before his companion were
not valid and that she was as contentious about this
matter as about everything else suggests that he
found her answer unsatisfactory. See Letter 1 7, lines
61 - 1 00.
'Aupmv: See commentary on Letter 1 2, line 24.
nwc ou AUAOUJ.EV: For declarative clauses intro
duced by nwc in modern Greek, see Jannaris, Gram
mar, 1 942.
tiC un080x-v EVl: For the replacement of EaTl by
EVl, see commentary on Letter 3 , lines 1 9-20.
TUUTll nAlPO<opiu: For the substitution of TUUTl
for uihl in subliterary texts , see Jannaris , Gram
mar, 567b
auvEu80KtlV TOU AOYOU: Here Eulogia uses the
genitive instead of the correct dative.
136 Princess Irene-Eulogia
Letter 1 6
3- 1 4 EVVOl<OV yap 'ae lEpae yuvalKae EKEtVae . . . EE
'AE<av 'lV eaUla<taV fiV: In his consolatory
address following the death of Theoleptos, Manuel
. Gabalas gave Eulogia similar advice, urging her to
imitate the example of the martyr Thekla who, hav
ing been converted to Christianity by Saint Paul,
never saw the Apostle again but lived piously on the
memory of their one and only meeting. See Previale,
"Due monodie, " p. 30, lines 27-37. On Thekla, see
now G. Dagron-M. Dupre La Tour , eds . , "La vie
et miracles de Sainte Thecle, " Subsidia Hagio
graphica, 62 (Brussels , 1 978) .
Eulogia must have been famliar with the history
of other early women ascetics whose monastic life
was spent in total isolation such as, for example,
Saint Mary of Egypt, who lived for forty-seven years
in the desert beyond the river Jordan ( Vita by
Sophronios, PG 87
3
. 3697 A-3725C) ; or Saint Pelagia
the Harlot who, after her baptism by the bishop
Nonnos of Edessa retired in secrecy to the Mount
of Olives where she spent the remainder of her life
confined to a cell ( Vita, by ps. -Jacob, ed. H. Usener,
Legenden der hi. Pelagia (Bonn, 1 879); or Saint The
odora of Alexandria, the transvestite nun accused
of having seduced a young girl and forced to stay
for seven years in the desert ( Vita by Symeon Me
taphrastes , PG 1 1 5 . 665A- 89C) ; or finally Saint
Theoktiste of Lesbos, a late ninth-century nun taken
prisoner by the Arabs, who succeeded in escaping
from her captors and lived for thirty-five years
hiding on the deserted island of Paros ( Vita by Ni
ketas Magistros, Acta Sanctorum, 9 Novembris
[ 1 925) 224-233) .
1 5- 1 8 'ie 'ou eeiou apxlEpEfe EKEtVOU 1apou<tae . . .
Kat Eva Kat 8uo . . . Kat 1Aeioue EVlaU'OUe <'E
PleEl<a: Shortly after her tonsure in 1 307/8,
32
43-44
Commentary
137
Eulogia was separated from her spiritual father for
nearly a decade. Theoleptos remained in Phila
delphia from 1 309, when he sent Manuel Gabalas
to Constantinople on a mission regarding his belea
guered diocese (see Kourouses, Manuel Gabalas, 68),
until September 1 3 1 7, when his name reappears in
the acts of the Permanent Synod. See Miklosich
Muller, 1 , no. 41 , pp. 75-76; J. Darrouzes , Les
Regestes des actes du patriarcat de Constantinople,
vol . 1 , fasc. 5 [Paris, 1 977] , no. 2082; H. Hunger
O. Kresten, eds . , Das Register des Patriarchats von
Konstantinopel (Vienna, 1 98 1 ) , no. 52, pp. 342-47 .
He did not leave the capital again until sometime
between November 1 3 1 8 and February 1 3 1 9 (Miklo
sich-Muller, 1 , nos 43-45, pp. 76-83 ; no. 50, pp.
92-93 ; Darrolzes, Regestes, nos . 2083 , 2085-87,
2093 ; Hunger-Kresten, Das Register, nos. 54-56, 6 1 ,
pp. 354-65 , 388-93) and he returned in June 1 321
t o intercede i n the dispute between the two An
dronikoi . See Gregoras, Hist. , 8, 6: 1 , 320-21 ; Kan
takouzenos , Hist, . 1 , 1 4; 1 9: 1 . 67; 94-96. By
November of the same year, Theoleptos was back
in Philadelphia from where he wrote his last four
letters to Eulogia. He died in that city in the last
months of 1 322. See Kourouses, Manuel Gabalas,
335- 39. It was during the last five years of his life
that the Metropolitan kept in closer contact with his
spiritual daugther and, as Kourouses notes (Manuel
Gabalas, 334, note 1 ) , it is to this period that the
director refers in this letter when he says that Eulogia
was at times separated from Theoleptos for one or
two years .
8Eiac oqpayicoc: For this meaning of o<payic (in
vestiture/ordination) , see J. Darrouzes, Recherches
sur les O<<IKIA de I' eg/ise byzantine (Paris, 1 970),
index, s . v. oqpayic.
ouvayrYv: Literally "assembling" or "collecting
138
44-49
Princess Irene-Eulogia
one' s mind within one' s self" during prayer . The
expression <uvuyr "ov VOUV is widely used by
spiritual writers in connection with prayer and the
need for the monk to avoid distraction and the
wanderings of the mind. See, for example, Kallistos
Xanthopoulos, MiBobor Kat Kavwv, PO 1 47. 680B;
Nikephoros the Hesychast, Iept Vrlewr Kat (VAa
Klr Kapb{ar, PO 1 47. 963B; Palamas , TplUr 1 , 2:
3 , 7, 1 0, ed. P. Chrestou, rp1YOp{OV rou IaAal6
Ivyypapara (Thessalonike, 1 962), 1 , p. 396, lines
1 0- 1 4; p. 399, lines 1 9-25 ; p. 403 , line 7. See also
the passage from Theoleptos' address to Eulogia and
Agathonike quoted below (commentary on lines
44-49) .
8iuYE KU8E0EV1 . . . n p 0 0 p r E v 1 " 0 v
K U P t 0 V . . . Qr"iou<u 8t1VEKWe "TV 8tuvotuv:
Years earlier, Eulogia had received identical instruc
tions from Theoleptos who wrote to her in his short
manual on ascetic life: Ku81EV1 youv EV "4 OtKq,
V16vEuE EEou, Enuipou<u "ov VOUV uno nuv"rv
KUt npOe "ov 0EOV uQ86yyre Entppin"ou<u, KUt
nU<uv "1e Kup8iue 8tu8E<tV EKXEOU<U EVc1tOV
uU"ou Kut 8Ul "1e uyun1e uu"4 npo<KoAArEV1.
Vrl yap 0EOU 8Erpiu 0EOU E<"tV EAKOV"Oe "TV
oPU<tV KUt "TV EQE<tV "ou vou npoe EUU"OV KUt
"4 nup' EUU"OU <r"t nEptUuyuov"oe uu"OV (as
quoted in Salaville, "Formes ou methodes de
priere, " 1 1 , note 1 ) .
I n his long address t o Eulogia and the nun Aga
thonike, written shortly before his death, the metro
politan, who was one of the inspirers of the hesychast
revival in the fourteenth century (cf. Meyendorff,
Introduction, 30) , reiterated the importance of con
tinuous prayer for intellectual purification and the
attainment of contemplation. See, for example, the
following two excerpts from Ottobonianu 405, fols.
1 99v-200r: a) <EUYrV yap 6 voue "a Er KUt <uv-
67-70
Commentary 139
UYOIEVOC btl 'a EVDOV, 1pOC uu"V E1UVUYE'Ut,
ElOUV 'c qUOtKrC Ku'a DtUVOtUV KPU1'OIEVq
UU'OU AOyq oUyyiVE'Ut, KUt Dta 'OU ouvov'oC
uU'c OUOtCDrC AOYOU, OUVU1'E'Ut 'i EUXi, KUt
Dta 'lc Euxlc dC yvrOtV 'OU GEOU uvuBuivEt IEe'
OA1C 'lc uYU111tKlC DUVUIEcC 'E KUt Dtu8EOECC.
'o'E OUPKOC IV E1t8uliu oiXE'ut, 1Cou D i KU-
8iDovoC upyd ui081OtC, KUt 'a cpuTu 'lc YlC
U1Dl KU'uquivE'Ut

o1ioc yap uu'lc i \UXT
1uv'u 'a 'OU ocIU'OC KUt 'a 1Ept 'o orlu 8E
IEV1, o1ioc 'lc cPUto'1'OC 'OU Xpto'ou yiVE'Ut,
uU'c KU'UKOAou80uou IE'a 'rv EPYCV 'lc OE
IVO'1'OC KUt 'lc KU'a DtUVOtUV uyvtiuC KUt \UA
AOUOU u 1 E V E X 8 i 0 0 V ' U t ' c B U 0 t
A E T 1 U P 8 E v 0 t 0 1 i 0 c U U ' 0 U (P s .
44 [45] . 1 4) , Xpto'ov quV'UOIEV1 KUt 1poopr
ou KUt AEYOUOU 1 p O C P c
1
1 v ' OV K u p t
o v E v c 1 t OV I 0 U D t a 1 U v ' 0 C (Ps .
1 5 [ 1 6] . 8); b) fo1 . 201 r : Kut W01EP 6 'ADal XEtpt
GEOU 1Au08tiC, U1O XOOC YEYOVEV dC \UXTV r
ouv EV quoiIU1t 8Eiq, oihc KUt 6 vouc 'uTC UPE
'uTC DtU1AU08tiC, 1UKVi E1tKAioEt Kupiou EK KU-
8upCC DtuvoiuC KUt 8EPllc Dtu8EOECC U1gDoIEVl,
'Tv 8Eiuv UAAOtOU'Ut UAAOicotV, coYOVOUIEVOC
KUt 8E01OtOUIEVOC EK 'ou YtVcOKEtV KUt uyu1Cv
'ov GEOV.
DEpt D 'ou iEPOU M1VC . . . 01EP 10t YEypUqUC:
See Letter 1 5 , lines 87-91 ; and commentary on Let
ter 1 7, line 61 .
Letter 1 7
'E1EtDit oot 'o l'OUIEVOV DEDO'Ut: Eulogia had
asked her correspondent to visit her six times a year
and he finally agreed; see line 58 of this letter, Let
ter 1 5 , line 45 ; and Letter 1 6, lines 41 -43 . Apparent
ly, in her answer to Letter 1 6 (now lost) , Eulogia
140
1 - 3
4-5
1 1 -23
22
33-34
Princess Irene-Eulogia
still belabored the subj ect .
npl''ov Tv . . . 'OU edou UPXlPCC Kat 'IV
<n'IV yuvalKIV: See commentary on Letter 1 6,
lines 3- 1 4 and 1 5- 1 8 .
npoc 'TV vo'n'a 'OU uv8poC EKdvou . . . 'ov
AOYOV uV'nuppov'a: The director reiterates his
argument that Theoleptos was an anchorite in his
youth and did not undertake the task of directing
others before he was elevated to the episcopate (see
Letter 1 6, lines 20-32) . It must be noted, however ,
that in his eulogy of Theoleptos , Nikephoros
Choumnos wrote that even while in the wilderness
the future metropolitan taught all those who visited
him seeking his advice; see Boissonade, Anecdota
Graeca, 5, 21 2- 1 3 .
Kai TV Kai <u ap'upiC . . . 'ou' ' uv E8uvil enc
EKivou: The director points out t o Eulogia that in
offering to direct her by means of four visits and
twelve letters per year , he had offered more
favorable terms than she had at times enjoyed under
the direction of Theoleptos .
''paKlC: The four letters which Theoleptos wrote
to Eulogia during the last year of his life; see com
mentary on Letter 1 6, lines 1 5- 1 8 .
uv8pan08ov voi<al Aalou Kai KOlAiac Kai
uvepcnivnc 8onc: During the hesychast controver
sy, Akindynos ' close association with the wealthy
abbess made him the butt of similar imputations by
his opponents . See, for example, Kalothetos , Aoyos
Tpfos KaTa TOU Klvtvv8vaavTos 'K1 VtVVOV, Syn
grammata, 1 43 , lines 49-53 : AAAU 'i no'' UV < '
Tc
'ou XPl<'OU uyannC Kai 'ou 8<ou anayayol;
MfAAOV 8t 'iC n8uvil en unayayiv <; rUVT Ka'u
YT
v uyvil C, apoc apyupiou, Alnapai 'panSal,
aydpcv ayyavua'a, epU\C <apKoc, olVOC
uveo<iac, Ka'ppa<'cvuvoC ioC . . .
36
61
93-94
Commentary 141
na'puipXllv: The reference is either to Patriarch
Isaiah (1 323-34) or to John XIV Kalekas ( 1 334-47) .
The evidence points to the latter because Dexios ,
whom the director proposes as a suitable mediator
between the princess and the patriarch she had dis
pleased with her arrogance (Letter 1 8 , lines 1 0- 1 2) ,
was a member of Kalekas ' entourage. See commen
tary on Letter 1 8 , line 1 0.
KGp Mllvi: This simple-minded monk, who was the
director ' s constant companion, is otherwise un
known. He certainly cannot be identified with the
staunch Palamite monk by the same name who was
one of Akindynos ' fiercest persecutors, nor with the
hesychast Menas , author of an ascetic work contain
ing instructions to the monks for the period of Lent .
See, Hero, ed. , The Letters of Gregory Akindynos,
commentary on Letter 63 , line 1 5 .
anAll PoQoPllaia: Not in the dictionaries . The word
anAllpoQoPll'o is defined in G. Lampe (A Patristic
Greek Lexicon, 6th ed. [London, 1 982] , s . v. ) , as
" unsatisfied, " " lacking in confidence, " " uncer
tain" ; and in Demetrakos (Lexikon, s . v. ) as apE
pal0, aaaQiJ , ayvowv. I have translated anAll
pOQoPll aia "lack of confidence, " on the basis of
the director' s own use of the word anAll poQoPll'o.
He writes in the present letter (line 76) that he did
not wish to offend his companion, Kyr Menas , by
excluding him from his conversations with the
princess "as if I did not fully trust him" (&anEp
Ef. 101YE anAll PoQoPll'ov) . When he says therefore
that anAll PoQoPll aia was one of Eulogia' s alleged
reasons for refusing to talk in the presence of Menas,
he must mean that she claimed not to trust the man.
Letter 1 8
aniya: Here the director lapses into the demotic.
142 Princess Irene-Eulogia
On the modern Greek verb unuye-nlYU(ve-nuyui
ve (to go), see Jannaris, Grammar, 996. 3
2-4 noilau 'o npo< 'ou< !OVUXou< YPU!!U !OU . . .
nu'ptUPXtKc< uVEa8ut '1V l'latV n!tv: I do not
know the nature of Eulogia' s complaint nor the iden
tity of the monks against whom it was addressed.
Perhaps they were members of the adjacent male
monastery which was also under her patronage and
management , although not under her spiritual juris
diction. See Laurent , " Une princesse byzantine au
cloltre, " 48-50; Salaville, " Une lettre et un discours
inedits, " 1 08- 1 2; R. Trone, "A Constantinopolitan
Double Monastery of the Fourteenth Century: the
Philanthropic Saviour , " Byzantine Studies/
E
tudes
Byzan tines, 1 0 ( 1 983) , 8 1 -87.
1 0
The patriarchal tribunal, composed of the
patriarch and the synod of bishops, had jurisdiction
over al disputes between ecclesiastics. See Epanagoge,
title 3 , 1 0 (J. and P. Zepos, Jus Graeco-Romanum
[Athens, 1 93 1] , 2, 243). Proceedings were intiated by
the plaintiff who filed a formal complaint in writing;
see P. Lemerle, " Recherches sur les institutions
judiciaires des Paleologues. II. Le tribunal du patriar
chat ou tribunal synodal, " Analecta Bollandiana, 68
( 1 950) ( =Melanges P. Peeters, 2) , 324.
6 8uu!uato< Et6<: Theodore Dexos, known from
his role in the hesychast controversy. At the synod
of July 1 341 , Dexios was asked by Patriarch Kalekas
to read a patristic passage on the incomprehensibility
of God which was damaging to the Palamite cause;
see Akindynos , Report to the Patriarch and the
Synod, ed. Th. Uspenskij , Sinodik v nedelu Pra
voslavia (Odessa, 1 983), 89. Later that summer, he
was one of the emissaries sent to Epibatai by the em
press, the patriarch, and John Kantakouzenos to
assure Alexios Apokaukos that he had been granted
1 43 Commentary 1 43
amnesty for his machinations following the death
of Andronikos III (Kantakouzenos, Hist. , 3 , 1 6: 2,
1 03) . After the death of Kalekas and Akindynos ,
Dexios emerged as one of the leaders of the anti
Palamite party and as such he participated in and
was condemned by the council of 1 35 1 . See the frag
ment of an anti-Palamite tome by Arsenios of Tyre,
ed. Mercati, Notizie, 223 , notes 8-9 ( Meyendorff,
Introduction, 1 42, note 71 ) ; Gregoras , Hist. , 1 8 , 5 :
2, 894; Kantakouzenos , Hist. , 4, 23 : 3 , 1 68;
LvvolzKor r0I0r, PG 1 5 1 . 720C, 73 1 D.
Later on, Dexios became involved in a dispute with
Isaak Argyros , another prominent anti-Palamite over
the created nature of the light of the Transfiguration
(cf. M. Candal, "Argiro contra Dexio, " Orientalia
Christiana Periodica, 23 [ 1 957] , 80- 1 1 3) and this, as
Meyendorff suggests (Introduction, 1 53 , note 1 30) ,
may be the reason why he is represented as a moderate
anti-Palamite in the Dialogue on Dogmatic Theology
by Philotheos of Selybria (cod. Patmiacus 366, fols.
393r-393v, as cited by Meyendorff) .
For the polemical works by Arsenios of Tyre
which were erroneously attributed to Dexios , see
Meyendorff, Introduction, 409.
1 0 EtOC 8Et(C unEPyuoE'Ut: For similar puns on
Dexios' name, see Akindynos , Report . e . 89 and
Gregoras , Hist. , 1 8 , 5 : 2, 894.
1 6- 1 7 nu'TP EO't 'rv nuv'{v Xpto'tuvrv: According to
the Epanagoge, the patriarch was the living image
of Christ; see Title 3 , 1 (ed. J. and P. Zepos , Jus
Graeco-Romanum [Athens , 1 93 1 ] 2, 242) .
28-29 'lv eUluoiuv ' Pu"UtVuv: This competent assistant
of Eulogia cannot be identified with any certainty.
For references to the Rales, or-according to the
original and more common form of the name-Raoul
family during the first half of the fourteenth century,
144
33-36
33-34
Princess Irene-Eulogia
see Fassoulakis, Raoul-Ral(les, nos . 1 6-3 1 . The
Raouls, whose Norman ancestors entered the ser
vice of the Byzantine emperors at the end of the elev
enth century, had by this time intermarried with such
prominent Byzantine families as the Palaiologoi and
Asanes (cf. Fassoulakis , p. 3) , and were among the
leading members of Byzantine nobility; see E. Folli
eri , "11 poema bizantino di Belisario, " Atti del con
vegno internazionale sui tema c cLa poesia epica e la
sua jormazione, Accademia nazionale dei Lincei ,
Problemi attuali di scienza e di cultura, quad. 1 39
(Rome, 1 970) , 622, 52; 637, 3 1 6.
It must be noted that the variant "Ralaina", used
here by the author is one of the earliest instances
of the Hellenized form of the name (Rales), which
did not become prevalent in Constantinople until the
fifteenth century; see Fassoulakis , p. 5 .
d 'a WUXa 1Ept<1W, KUt 'ou'o 8i iEPC . . .
'i 8UIW8Et 8tu8E<Et KUt 'i Otl1U'tKi IExpt 8u
vu'ou IUxou: This is one of the rules prescribed for
superiors by St . Basil ; see " OPOt KU'a 1AU'O,
' EpW'l<t N: nw xPi E1t'tIUy 'OY 1POE<'W'U
(PO 3 1 . 1 040A-40B) : 'AAAa Kui 'a E1t'tIT<Et Ii
EI1u8w 'ol TIUP'lKo<tV 6 1pOE<' 1pO<U
yE'C. To yap IE'a 8uIOU KUt 6pYi EAEYXEtY 'OY
U8EA<OY ouxi EKElYOY E<'tY alup'iu EAEU8EPW
<Ut , UAA' EUU'OY 1EptpUAEIY 1AlIIEATlu<t.
'OU'o 8i TIEpC: I proposed this conjectural emen
dation because the reading 8t' TIEPWY does not ap
pear satisfactory in the context . The phrase 8t' TIE
PWY is not attested in the dictionaries . Both Liddell
Scott and Demetrakos (s . v. T IEpU) cite 8ta 1OAAWY
TIEpWY, 8t' TIEpWY 'tYCY, meaning "at a distance
of, " but such an interpretation would not make
sense in this passage. Even if we assume that 8t' TIE
PWY is used here in the same sense as 8t' TIEpU (the
whole day long) and translate accordingly, " divert
36
3 8
45
45
Commentary 145
your attention to the care of the souls , and do this
for whole days , as I have said to you before, " we
find that nowhere in his letters did the director give
such advice to Eulogia. On the other hand, the need
to control her irascible disposition is a recurrent
theme in their correspondence. See lines 5-25 and
36 0 f this Letter , and Letter 1 9, lines 7- 1 0.
EXPt Suvaou: This i s apparently a favorite phrase
of the director, for he uses it again in Letter 21 , line
1 1 .
1UPCUVSls, 'ou'' EO'V eppiycous: Eulogia
evidently suffered an attack of fever of malarial
character, usualy accompanied by paroxysms
marked by chills , high fevers and sweating. On 1U
pouVOUt (to suffer an attack or exacerbation of
a disease) , see, e. g. Hippocrates , Iepi apxa[1C [1-
rpIKic, 6. On ptym (to have a shivering fit) , see idem,
' E1tbliut, 3 , I , o'. '
Although she lived to be sixty-five, the rigors of
monastic life must have affected Eulogia physical
ly. In the first letter he wrote to her after his return
to Philadelphia in 1 321 , Theoleptos prays for her
deliverance from her " ailments and her suspected
serious illness . " See Ottobonianus 405, foI . 234r :
6 bf iu'pos 'mv \UXmv KUt 'mv ocu'cv Xpt
o'os . . . puoUt'o Of a1O 'mv OU1t1'ov'cv OOt
apPCO'la'CV KUt 'OU U101'fUOEVOU XUAf1OU
1uSous

LUYKAl'tKi: It is not clear whether the word is used
here as a proper name or a title. However, since
Simonis-the widowed queen of Serbia-was by that
time living as a nun in Constantinople, and since
Synkletike happens to be a monastic name, it is most
probable that the reference is to an unknown nun
in the service of Simonis .
KpuAuivls: Eulogia' s sister-in-law Simonis, daugh-
146 Princess Irene-Eulogia
ter of Andronikos II from his marriage to Yolanda
of Montferrat and widow of Uros II Milutin of Ser
bia. After the death of her husband in 1 321 , she
returned to the capital, became a nun and ended her
life at the convent of Saint Andrew in Krisei . See
Papadopoulos , Genealogie, no. 65 , for pertinent
bibliography. Like Eulogia, Simonis must have
espoused the Akindynist cause because her name is
listed among those of prominent anti-Palamites; see
Mercati, Notizie, 223 , no. 28. For her alleged literary
interests , see my Additional Note below.
45-5 1 ava01a08EV yap 1VEUa . . . avTA8Ev E1t 'OU
8wpaKoe Kat CWvava01ooav <AEya . . . E1VtYE
E . . . U1o1'uoae 'OU'o . . . aVE1VEuoa: On the
symptoms described here by the director, I consulted
my husband, who is a physician, and he agrees with
Laurent ' s observation that Eulogia' s correspondent
suffered from pulmonary oedema due to cardiac
failure. See "La direction spirituelle, " 58 note 2.
Unconnected with Eulogia' s correspondence but
of possible prosopographical interest is a note that
appears on the last folio of the Scorialensis (254v) ,
immediately after the director' s last letter (Letter 22) ,
by a hand different from that of the main scribe. In
the note the author offers his condolence to a fellow
monk who had lost his father, and concludes with
the following request for the medicines for his own
serious illness: "01EP EXW aeio1 1pOe 'rv acEA
<rvo c n ouv cUV1, poi81oov Ot, 1E\ae aAEl
'iPta <upaKa Kat T VOoe 1OAEta. Ka'a01U
oai OE, OVE YV10tw'a'E <iAE Kat acEA<E, 1ATV
E1tOaAEUE'W EA1ie ne Kat 8upooe E'a 0EOV' 'ie
yap OtcEV d E'aEA18ioE'at Kat au8te E1VEUOEt
WTV 'e VEKPe Kat o\oai OE 'OY <iA 'a'ov. The
note' s position in the manuscript and the complaints
of ill health that it contains suggest that it might
belong to the director. However, if he wrote it soon
Commentary 147
after his last letter to Eulogia and in extremis, this
evidence would argue against his identification with
anyone who lived into the 1 340s.
Letter 1 9
2-3 1iC npoc 100C (uYYEvdC (ou npo(nu90uc O!lAiuC:
Citing Luke 1 4. 26 ( "If anyone comes to me and
does not hate his own father and mother and wife
and children and brothers and sisters , yes, and even
his own life, he cannot be my disciple" ) , the Fathers
of the Church ordained that the monk must have
no earthly family. See, for example, Saint Basil ,
'aK1TlKai (zaTU8l(, 20, PO 3 1 . 1 3 89C- 1 393C;
Evagrios, Twv KaTa fovaxwv npaYf,UTWV TO ai'za,
5 , PO 40. 1 257A. Consequently, any contact bet
ween nuns and their relatives outside the cloister was
officially discouraged, although in practice a limited
number of visits by a nun' s close relatives was per
mitted as a concession to human weakness .
Irene Doukas allowed the mothers , sisters and
sisters-in-law of her nuns to visit the convent twice
a year. On those occasions they were invited to par
take of the common meal at the refectory but they
could not remain overnight . Only the mother of a
seriously ailing nun was allowed to spend the night
with her daugther . Fathers, brothers and brothers
in-law, on the other hand, were received at the outer
gate of the convent , and if a nun happened to be ill ,
she was carried thither on a litter. Even the imperial
princesses were subject to this rule, for the convent
was strictly out of bounds to men. See Miklo
sich-Miller, 5, 346- 47. The typika of the Palaiologan
convents of Bebaia Elis and Lips are equally strict
on this point (Delehaye, "Deux typica, " 61 ; 1 1 5) ,
although Empress Theodora authorized occasional
visits by her son Andronikos II, and the female
members of her family; see Typikon ofthe Convent
148
3
7
1 3- 1 4
1 4
1 5
21
5
Princess Irene-Eulogia
of Lips, Delehaye, "Deux typica, " 1 1 5 .
I n his short manual on monastic life, addressed
to Eulogia at the beginning of their association,
Theoleptos warned her that her close relatives were
among the many things she would have to renounce
when she embraced monastic life (Salaville, " Formes
ou methodes de priere, " 7 and note 2) . It appears
that his advice went unheeded for we know from
Choumnos' correspondence that Eulogia received
her father every Saturday and Sunday; see Choum
nos , Letter 1 63 , ed. Boissonade, Anecdota Nova,
1 82. Until the end of his life, Theoleptos continued
to voice his disapproval of Eulogia' s passionate
attachment to her family and, like her future direc
tor, he held this attachment responsible for her
general malaise. See Hero, "Irene-Eulogia, " 1 29.
KU'U Map9uc: An unknown nun who had provoked
the abbess' quick temper .
on 9uoC (nv 6 'ufhu aAAcv KUt aKov1icv:
Theoleptos also advised Eulogia to exercise greater
self-control in dealing with the nuns in her charge
and reprimanded her for her occasional pettiness and
severity. See Hero, "Irene-Eulogia, " 1 25-26.
EtOG: Theodore Dexios ; see commentary on Let
ter 1 8 , line 1 0.
MuvourA: Unknown.
, Aupcv: See commentary on Letter 1 2, line 24.
< PuAuivlC: See commentary on Letter 1 8 , lines
28-29.
Letter 20
AU1pOtC (UAAOYOtC: Eulogia had invited her cor
respondent to the commemoration of the anniver
sary of her father' s death ( 1 6 January; on this date,
cf. commentary on Letter 5, line 44) , which accord-
Commentary 149
ing to custom would have been solemnized with a
special liturgy, followed by an elaborate meal for
members of the family, friends and the monastic
community. See, for example, the typikon of Irene
Doukas for the convent of Kechari tomene
(Miklosich-Miller , 5 , 374-75) and Theodora Syna
dena' s typikon for the convent of Bebaia Elpis, in
which she too gave detailed instructions for the re
quiems of the various members of her family
(Delehaye, "Deux typica, " 91 -94) .
7-8 aVE'l wV aou: It is not clear whether these nieces of
the abbess were members of the monastic communi
ty or occasional visitors. The director says here that
he had just seen them recently, and in Letter 21 (line
27) he offers to meet with them again during his forth
coming visit to the convent . Eulogia had one attested
niece, the daughter of her eldest brother John; See
Verpeaux, "Notes prosopographiques, " no. 24. It is
possible, however, that she had other nieces from her
three younger brothers. Of her nieces by marriage,
only two were living at this time: Theodora, the
daughter of Michael IX and widow of Michael
S
isman
of Bulgaria, who was by then the nun Theodosia at
the convent of Kyra Martha, and the young Princess
Irene, daughter of the Despot Demetrios and future
wife of Matthew Kantakouzenos. See Papadopoulos,
Genealogie, nos . 7 1 and 64 respectively.
1 3 Kup Ni<cva: Perhaps the monk Nephon who car
ried one of Eulogi a' s last letters to Theoleptos in
1 322; See Theoleptos' second letter to Eulogia in Ot
tob. 405 , fo! . 234v. He may even be further iden
tified with the anti-Palamite Nephon who is men
tioned in the Fifth Antirrhetic of Patriarch Philo
theos Kokkinos together with Dexios and Oregoras,
(PO 1 5 1 . 872C; latest edition by D. Kaimakis, ll
Ao8iov KOKKlvov LoY/UTlKa "Epyu [Thessalonike,
1 983] , 1 53) , and who is listed among the prominent
150 Princess Irene-Eulogia
anti-Palamites as hieromonk and father confessor
(nvEU'tKOC) ; see Mercati , Notizie, 223 , no. 1 0.
Letter 21
3-4 1OU nupUKOtJ(JEVOU: As suggested by Laurent ("La
direction spirituelle, " 52) , the reference is to Eulogi
a' s eldest brother John, the Bearer of the Great Seal
(nupUKOlJcJEVOC 1iC JEyaA1C oqEv8oVlC), a Palace
official, successful general and man of letters . See
Verpeaux, "Notes prosopographiques , " no. 1 6, pp.
257-59. Joh had been governor of the islad of Chios
for one year when he died (cf. his eulogy by Manuel
Gabalas, Vindobon. gr. 1 74, foI. 1 94r, a in Verpeaux,
"Notes . . . , " 259, note 52), but the exact date of
his death is unknown. Kourouses recently concluded
that John was dead by 1 338 because Manuel Gaba
las in a letter dating from the middle of 1 339 wrote
that he had composed the eulogy of John Choumnos
"sometime ago"; see Manuel Gabalas, 1 91 .
1 2- 1 3 apXtotK08oJ0C: According t o W. Petersen and C.
Buck (A Reverse Index of Greek Nouns and Adjec
tives [Chicago, 1 945] , 1 95), this extremely rare word
is found only in an early Byzantine inscription from
a building in Assuan, Egypt ; See F. Bilabel . ed. ,
Sammelbuch griechischer Urkunden aus
A
gypten
(Heidelberg, 1 93 1 ) , IV, no. 7425 , p. 72.
1 2- 1 3 apXtotK08oJ0C 8 KUt rplyoptOC, rc aA19rc, J0-
voc t01tV 6 eEOC' OU1OC yap to't v 6 YPTYoP0C 8t
a nuv1oc Oq9UAJ0C: Here the director appears to
be answering a statement which Eulogia had made
using the words apXtotK08oJ0C and rplyoptOC. It
is, however, difficult to determine how Eulogia had
used these terms . The first thought that comes to
mind is that her correspondent' s name was probably
Gregory and that she had made a pun on it , since
the verb YPlYOPr means " to be fully awake, to
watch, to live. " In that case it would be very tempt-
Commentary
1 51
ing t o identify the director with Gregory Akindynos,
Eulogia' s protege and close associate during the he
sychast controversy. Certain evidence would, in fact,
support such a conjecture. Like the director, Akin
dynos was a scholar-monk who arrived in the capital
from Thessalonike in the late 1 330s and became
known in the patriarchal circles . Furthermore, four
of his letters are found in the Escorial manuscript
adjacent to Choumnaina' s correspondence edited
here. Unfortunately, however, there is no evidence
that Akindynos, who had been denied admittance by
most of the Athonite monasteries (cf. Hero, Letters
of Gregory Akindynos, x-xi) , was a highly respected
hesychast, nor is there any evidence in his surviving
writings , or in those of his opponents, that he ever
wrote any such works as are here attributed to Eulo
gia' s correspondent. Moreover, there are no notice
able similarities between the director' s style and that
of Akindynos in his correspondence, although this
may be due to the difference in their respective
readers . Akindynos' surviving letters are addressed
to his fellow-literati and other learned men, and con
sequently they exhibit all the traits of the rhetorical
style. On the other hand, the director' s simple and
concise manner of writing most probably refects the
fact that he is addressing a woman. Still , one small
but interesting detail must be noted: Akindynos does
not share the director' s predilection for rare words .
His seventy-six letters contain only two words which
are unattested in the dictionaries, whereas the direc
tor' s fourteen letters show five such words . Finally
had she been writing to Gregory Akindynos, it is
highly unlikely that Eulogia would have missed the
opportunity to make some pun on his last name, as
he himself and his opponents did later during the
controversy. For that matter neither are there any
other puns in her letters on the name rplyoptOC or
the verb YPllYopw and its derivatives . I am inclined,
152
26-27
Princess Irene-Eu/ogia
therefore, to dismiss the possibility of a pun and the
only explanation I can suggest regarding this obscure
allusion is that Eulogia might have referred to
Gregory of Nazianzos who was her favorite Church
Father, according to her statement in another letter
(Letter 9, lines 91 -92) .
'rv iEPrV Ti< 'AnoKpEc: The Director promises
to visit Eulogia at the end of the three-week period
which precedes the Great Lent . The whole period
receives its name from the third Sunday, the Sun
day of the Apokreo, so called because after that day
no meat may be eaten until Easter Sunday. See E.
Theodorou, ' " AnoKpEc<, " epl1aKSVTlKY Kai '81-
KY 'YKvKAonalbs[a (Athens 1 960) , 2, 1 098- 1 1 02.
Letter 22
1 -2 'OY VEKPOV 'f< 9Eiu< 000. Nothing is known about
the brothers or sisters of Eulogia' s parents , except
that Choumnos had one attested brother; see Ver
peaux, "Notes prosopographiques, " no. 21 , p. 262.
Of her husband' s aunts-the sisters of Andronikos
II-Anna, the wife of Michael of Epiros died in 1 300
and Eudokia the empress of Trebizond died in 1 302.
See Papadopoulos , Genealogie, nos . 47 and 52, pp.
29; 32-33 . However, the date of death of Irene, the
wife of John III Asen, is unknown; see Papadopou
los, op. cit . , no. 44, pp. 27-28 .
Additional note
When this edition was already in press , I was in
formed by Father Darrouzes of G. A. Papademe
triou' s article, " <H KpaAUtyU 'ry TptpuArv KUt
6 Kc8tKoypa<o< 0EOK'tO'O< ( 1 340) , " Msaalw
vlKa Kai Nia tEAAIV1KU, 1 ( 1 984) 41 9-5 1 . In this
study, the author convincingly identifies Simonis
the daughter of Andronikos II and widow of Uros II
Commentary
153
Milutin of Serbia-with an unnamed ' ' kralaina of
the Tribali " for whom a scribe by the name of
Theoktistos had copied several manuscripts contain
ing an anthology of ascetic writings known as Ever
getinos (Barlaam 1 5 1 ) , various menaia (Vindob.
theol. gr. 1 32, Vindob. hist. gr. 66, Vindob. theol.
gr. 1 38) , seven tragedies of Sophocles (Marc. gr.
467) , and Plutarch' s Moralia (Bruxellensis 1 8967) .
Papademetriou identifes this scribe with Theoktistos
the Studite, author of several works on Patriarch
Athanasios I of Constantinople, and concludes that
the same man was the spiritual director of Choum
naina through whom he must have made the ac
quaintance of the latter' s sister-in-law, Simonis .
Unfortunately the evidence from their letters
does not permit us to identify Eulogia' s correspon
dent with a man who was a scribe. We know from
his own a well as Eulogia's comments that the direc
tor' s handwriting was very bad (see commentary on
Letter 10, lines 37-38, above) and that when the prin
cess requested fresh copies of his writings she pro
vided both paper and money for a copyist's fee (Let
ter 9, lines 86-87, above) . Indeed, if Theoktistos the
Studite was the copyist of the manuscripts commis
sioned by Simonis , this would be further evidence
against his identification with Eulogia' s corre
spondent .
I wish to thank both Father Darrouzes for bring
ing Dr. Papademetriou' s study to my attention and
Dr. Papademetriou for providing me with an off
print of his article.
Addenda
The following passages were misprinted in my arti
cle, "Irene-Eulogia, " notes 15 and 75: Letter 9, lines
78-80 (EV xaplU . . . u\uxou) and Letter 1 8 , lines
1 6-20 (1oP . . . U1EpXOU) .
Indices
INDEX GREEK OF CORRESPONDENCE
* Distinguishes unattested or rare words
, (emissary of Eulogia) 12.
24, 28; 13. 60-61; 15. 91; 18. 1;
19. 15; 21.25
7. 31
9. 100
() 5. 23
5. 1, 43-44
1. 2-3
5. 6
(Andronikos ) 5. 41; (of
director) 1. 1; 5. 45; 9. 1;
(monk) 12. 18; 15. 87; (others)
16. 9, 11. Cf. also ',

,
(director) 11. 1
, (director) 1. 13,
26, 29; 3. 20, 27, 30; 5. 45; 9.
1, 56, 88; 13. 61-62; 15. 11, 89
(Patriarch Athanasios
) 1. 28; (director) 13. 41-42;
15. 1
() 3. 36
13. 29, 32.
(ref. Eulogia) 13.
34-35.
(): of God
14. 56
14. 16
3. 25
3. 31-32
() 18. 7
155
, , patriarch of Con
stantinople 1. 29; 2. 18-19; 3.
23; 4. 6
() 9. 61
() 9. 64
15. 33
9. 51
21. 19
7. 28-29
7. 33
7. 4; 13. 15
(): of God
21. 15
21. 10
13. 22, 23; 18. 18
18. 23
16. 69
16. 64
(horse) 15. 69
12. 8; 13. 28, 31, 33
2. 14; 3. 33
1. 5
19. 1
9. 49; 15. 20
15. 8
21. 18
9. 72
(): of God
14. 56
9. 3-4
15. 53
156 Princess Irene-Eulogia
8. 12-13
9. 45
7. 46; 9. 71
8. 40-41; 17. 24
17. 9
(
) 17. 32
3. 24; 4. 12-13
19. 21-22
5. 15
5. 12
, 17. 48
17. 64
15. 21, 56; 17. 55
(nieces of Eulogia) 20.
7-8; 21. 27
(): ref. director
13. 1, 20; () ref.
Nikephoros Choumnos 7. 15-16
() 21. 3
, 17. 48
( ) 9. 96
11. 2
, itacism 1. 6
12. 8-9
, ask 1. 26. 27; 17.65
5. 8
7. 26-27
3. 11
9. 84
, 9. 1-2
22. 8-9
3. 6-7
14. 10
* , lack of con-
fidence 17. 93-94
17. 76
15. 27
21. 27
9. 40
, 9. 75
9. 93
(St. Paul) 8. 9, 13; 9.
7; (l.) 9. 19
, arrive 11. 2
16. 21
, , 13. 29
7. 27
(Theoleptos of Phiala
delphia) 9. 48; 15. 32-33, 83-
84; 16. 16; 17. 2, 13; (others)
17. 34
16. 22
* (of God) 21.13-14
, 6. 3;
10. 2-3
18. 42
17. 25, 40
16. 8
4. 9
9. 39
3. 9
14. 8
18. 26
8. 8, 10-11
17.74
15. 71
(Andronikos ) 5. 41;
(Gregory of Nazianzos) 9. 91
15. 68
17. 18
17. 16
2. 5
, 16. 41
, genial 5. 47
15. 53
14. 16
9. 80
() 15. 89
(of empire) 14. 42;
(emperor) 15. 65; (kingdom
Indices 157
of heaven) 21. 20-21
19. 12-13; 20.
2
(Andronikos ) 5.
41; 6. 21
() 2. 6-7
(form of adress) 6. 13
21. 20
(book of Nikephoros
Choumnos) 8. 21; (of the direc
) 9. 90; 12. 1, 14; (of Theo
leptos) 12. 16; (Eulogia's libra
ry) 10. 40
(fortune) 15. 70
14. 44
() 15. 67
(of patriarch Athanasios
) 2. 19; (gen.) 2: 3; 8. 27; 14.
13-14
(Nikephoros Choum-
nos) 5. 4; 6. 21
, taste 3. 30
() 9. 61
7. 34
, relative 15. 81
( )
15. 65
7. 39
, letter of complaint 18. 2
1. 6, 10-11
(letter)
1. 1, 13; 3. 30, 31;
5. 56-57; 15. 47; 16. 71;
(writing) 5. 5, 26, 56, 58; 9. 2;
13. 24, 50
, writing < fee > 9. 87
, Gregory of Nazianzos
9. 92; (of God) 21. 13
(): of God 21.
14
9. 10
13. 44
2. 4
3. 36; 10. 20; 16. 3; 17. 3, 30,
47
5. 39; 15. 57
11. 6
(bibl. ) 10. 13; 13. 35; cf.
also ,

8. 57
21. 7; 22. 3
() 18. 10; 19.
13-14
(God) 7. 40, 42, 47;
(Theoleptos of Philadelphia) 9.
48; 15. 83
1. 16; 7. 37; 13. 7; 14. 38;
15. 61; 16. 39;

8. 36; 19. 13, 19

13. 7
, suffice 15. 70
2. 16
5. 13
8. 4; 12. 16; 17. 63,
69, 91
() 8. 13; 9. 19-20,
74; 13. 2
18. 29
( ): of God
21. 9
3. 34
2. 16
3. 10
7. 9; 8. 11
3. 35; 13. 42
9. 27
1. 15; 3. 39; 7. 12, 14;
9. 4, 20, 22
, peace 15. 22; () 5.
16; () 5. 18; () 9. 62
() 5. 17
158 Princess /rene-Eu/ogia
9. 62; 15. 35
4. 12
, edit 2. 22
, congregation 10. 14;
11. 12-13; (metropolis of
Philadelphia) 16. 18-19
1. 11
<, profane 10. 42;
Greek 13. 30
<, Hellenic learning
10. 22
9. 42
16. 72
18. 39
17. 31
16. 32
9. 66, 67
, gathering 15. 68
, 3. 22
( ) 9. 85
4. 15
5. 57
() 16. 64
() 8. 39-40
( ) 14.
21 ( ) 16. 60
(of God) 14. 53-54
13. 13
() 9. 32
() 9. 31-32
15. 53-54
( ) 13. 27
5. 7; 8. 58
(. ) 16. 59
* , education 10. 21
3. 26
5. 24-25; 13. 26
, ( ) 5.
21-22
(of director) 3. 11
7. 9, 10; 8. 11
, 5. 29; 15. 55
, 2. 8
(of devil), 22. 4
, 15. 30-31
, inquiry 18. 4, 35
( ), 15. 32
() 9. 61
3. 32-33
18. 6
18. 34
() 12. 3
21. 2
8. 39, 45, 52; 9. 32, 32-33;
12. 9, 16
18. 4243
(of director) 13.1
(of Nikephoros Chou-
mnos) 7. 15
13. 36, 38
(Eulogia's aunt) 22. 2
(of patriarch Athanasios )
2. 19; (Theoleptos) 16. 15; 17.
13
< >, metropolitan of
Philadelphia cf. ,
, , ,
,
(of director) 13. 18;
15. 62
(of Gregory of
Nazianzos) 9. 91
15. 1-2
16. 3
(of director) 15. 16-17;
(Theoleptos) 16. 26
(of Theoleptos) 12. 15
(monk) 12. 18; (monastery) 14.
36
Indices
159
2. 18; 3. 16; 4.
7-8
contemplation 9. 71
9. 72-73
(of director) 9. 35, 40
15. 31
8. 15
( ) 19. 9
19. 7
() 18. 35
() 12. 3
16. 60
12. 29-30
1. 5; 3. 8
3. 37
(of monk) 16. 67; (nuns) 17.
46
, David 16. 47
' () 17. 99; '
1. 9; cf. also
3. 39
, 3. 24
, edit 3. 16
* , bad hand writ
ing 10. 38
< ' >, J ohn
V Patriarch of Constantino
ple cf.
(ref. director) 13. 5,
11
() 1. 2; 5. 4; 13.
50
10. 26; 17. 49
7. 30; 9. 50, 69; 15. 95
Ko 9. 41
5. 25
5. 48
11. 6
3. 21
15. 34, 38-39,
52, 56-57
7. 11-12
10. 46
9. 90
9. 98
4. 12
14. 23
14. 1, 8, 27; 15. 73, 74;
16. 44
() 13. 25
5. 53
< ' >, Desert
Father 6. 10; 9. 24
layman 12. 4
, Simonis, Queen of
Serbia 18. 45
(of Andronikos ) 5.
41
9. 46
15. 39
, (indecl. ): of monks 16.
67; 17. 61, 66; 20. 13; others
18. 1
, (Patriarch Athanasios )
1. 29; 3. 23; (monk) 15. 88
11. 4
() 15. 70
, literary 7. 18, 27; rhe-
torical 10. 22
3. 38
5. 33
5. 38; 14. 48, 49-50; 15.
87; 16. 63
1. 1; 3. 4; 9. 99
, argument 5.11; learning
9. 95; 13. 42; Hellenic learn
ing 12. 1, 2; written work
2. 10-11, 13; 3. 19; discourse
4. 3, 5, 11; 5. 20, 27; 7. 15;
8. 24, 26; 9. 88; 12. 1, 3,
16-17; 13. 4, 8, 20; reason
160 Princess Irene-Eu/ogia
9. 63; teaching 15. 95, 98; 16.
11
4. 8
5. 31; 9. 41, 43; 15, 53
( ): of God
21. 9-10
(of Nikephoros Chou
mnos) 20. 5-6
(emissary of Eulogia),
19. 14
(nn) 19. 3
( ) 9. 56; ( -
) 15. 80
8.25-26
13. 39-40
(of Gregory of Nazianzos),
9. 91, 92; (Theoleptos of Phila
delphia) 12. 15
, , ink 9. 79; 15. 58
8. 4
5. 6
3. 21; 9. 87; 10. 45
5. 3
18. 61
(monk) 15. 88; 16. 67; 17.
11, 66; < 12. 18 >
() 15. 37
9. 6
(of God) 11. 7
, memorial service 21. 1
8. 40
12. 5; 15. 82
(of Patriarch
Athanasios ) 4. 5-6; (Philan
thropos Soter) 18. 27
7. 22; 15. 73
5. 43; 18. 2
(of Philanthropos Soter), 14.
36; 15. 64; 16. 33
6. 1
11. 8
7. 23
(Pentateuch) 10. 49
21. 16
, funeral 22.
7. 33
8. 3
8. 3, 5-6
(monk) 20. 13
() 9. 62; ()
15. 32; () 15. 40
5. 22, 24; 13. 26
1. 20; 7. 3; 8. 17; 9. 65; 13.
5,28; 15. 29
15. 93
7. 26
18. 36
16. 5
5. 57; 7. 43, 45; 17.
100
() 9. 44-45
7. 43
, association 17. 49; 19.
3; company 7. 26, 30-31; 9. 37,
97; 10. 19, 28; 12. 20; 13. 14;
conversation 17. 91; talk 15. 18;
visit 8. 39, 47, 50; 9. 81, 17.18
17. 83-84
() 5. 49-50
9. 70
7. 19
() 13. 33
9. 62-63
1. 10; 5. 8, 9; 8. 49; 12.
24; 13. 31
< ' >,
Andronikos cf. ,
, , ,
Indices
161
, ,
, , ,
, ;
Andro
nikos < 15. 65 >
() 12. 22
15. 4
, John Chou-
mnos 21. 3-4
5. 9
18. 38
() 11. 13;
(of director) 15. 8
12. 10; 16. 2
, author 13. 6; father
(Nikephoros Choumnos) 5. 42;
8. 22, 23; 9. 82; 15. 15, 76; 20.
6; spiritual father (patriarch)
18. 16; (Theoleptos of
Phialdelphia) 7. 25; 8. 34; 9. 48,
82; 12. 15; 15. 15, 76; (John
Kolobos) 6. 10; 9. 24; (monk
Menas) 12. 18; 15. 88; (others)
9. 47; 16. 4; 17. 7, 53; form of
address (ref. director) 1. 1; 5.
23-24, 45; 9. 1; 13. 42; 15. 1, 9
, Athanasios 1.
28; John Kalekas (?) 17.
34; 18. 1, 6, 10, 15, 24
18. 4
, Andronikos 5. 42
, funeral 15. 68
( ), 9. 96
9. 84; 16. 73
18. 1
(): ref. director 3.
26; ( ): ref.
Christ 17. 99
() 10. 21
, 15. 55
8. 28
19. 14
() 5. 22, 24
, full assurance 15.
34-35,
92, 94; 22. 5; tutelage 17.
62
, Holy Spirit 5. 18-19;
spirit 5. 39; 7. 29; breathing 18.
49; vapor 18. 46, 53
() 14. 38;
15. 61; ()
12. 9; (
) 15. 79;
() 7. 26-27;
9. 97-98; () 7. 25 (
) 7. 18;
16. 63
17. 55
ref. Christ 1. 8-9
, Constantinople 8. 52
() 13. 23
7. 44
(
): ref. director 3. 28
, <material > goods
7. 43, 46; matters of dispute
(ref. legal disputes) 18. 24, 31
5. 36-37
18. 19
5. 15
17. 26-27
13. 22-23
(of God) 14. 55-56
16. 13
3. 6
9. 16
19. 3
2. 5
, David 10. 14
(of director) 3. 11
() 3. 18
() 3. 19
q 19. 2
162
rncess rene-ug
o 9. 6
', nn 18. 28-29; 19. 16,
21
5. 6; 17. 58
18. 38
19. 5
' 13. 30
(ref. director) 15.
1
, 14. 42
7. 17
6. 19
15. 28
13. 44
13. 43
5. 2
() 13. 58; ()
13. 56; () 13. 39; (of direc
tor) 3. 7, 10, 13; 5. 33; 14. 13;
(Eulogia) 16. 56; (Nikephoros
Choumnos) 8. 23
(), devil 16. 56
(director) 3. 38; (Nikepho
ros Choumnos) 5. 42; 6. 21; 8.
22
16. 4
6. 11
8. 15-16
7. 2
, 22. 11
9. 34, 36
( ) 15.
64
19. 2
1. 29;
3. 14, 28; 11.
5-6; 17. 7
, nn 18. 45
20. 5, 11
17. 95, 96
, collect oneself 14. 1
, meditation 16. 43-44
17. 88
14. 29; 15. 63, 80
(of director) 13. 22, 24;
(Eulogia) 16. 54
3. 6; 5. 7
() 21. 24;
() 17. 93
22. 5
17. 73
9. 94
1. 19-20, 22-23
, 7. 33
(ref. spiritual direction)
14. 15
, ordination 16. 31
3. 15, 21-22; 9. 88
, monastic habit 7. 22
15. 71
16. 11
, Christ 1. 9; (
) 14. 34; (
) 9. 85
15. 82; 16. 36; 18. 62; 21.
20
(of Eulogia) 7. 20
7. 35; 15. 12
18. 14
(of director) 1. 21;
7. 38
1. 19; 9. 34
6. 10-11
2. 17
2. 17
, the four books
of Kings 10. 49-50
21. 7
(of director) 15. 9
16. 58
Indices 163
, accent (gramm.) 1. 7
, 16. 45, 58-59
15. 3
( ) 15. 37
8. 23
17. 51, 57, 68
6. 20
1. 20; 8. 26; 18. 19
. 17
3. 29
15. 29, 32; 17. 45; 18. 8
, submit to the
direction 7. 23; 17. 23, 50
1. 28
( ) 13. 27
9. 8
5. 47-48
12. 16; 15. 96
(of Christ) 1. 8
18. 40
(Andronikos ) 5. 40;
) 19. 15-16
, 17. 10
(of Eulogia) 8. 43
(of director) 6. 1
, : ref. Eulogia 10. 45
(of Eulogia) 8. 44;
(director) 9. 23
(of Andronikos ) 5.
40-41
(of Andronikos ) 5.
40; (Eulogia) 6. 4; 12. 13 (gen.)
13. 46
(of Eulogia) 10. 30, 41
(of
Eulogia) 2. 6
* , loing society, com
pany 8. 43
(of Andronikos )
5. 41
15. 59
17. 97
9. 14
1. 18, 18-19
(of Andronikos ) 5.
40; (ref. director) 7. 3; 9. 23; 13.
34
5. 51; 10. 5
4. 15
(of Eulogia) 10. 1
7. 16
7. 32
18. 48, 50, 55
13. 27
19. 22
18. 29
8. 27
(): ref. An-
dronikos 5. 39-40
2. 11; 13. 59
() 9. 68
15. 86; 16. 49
9. 60-61
15. 30
() 14. 28-29
(diine) 9. 67; 12. 21;
16-24; grace < of style > 8.
49; gratitude 10. 1
2. 16; 9. 78
3. 22; 5. 58; 9. 87; 11. 1
13. 51
17. 82
18. 17
< > cf. pa

< > cf.
, ,
, ,
1.9; 3. 12; 8. 13, 14; 9.
164 Princess Irene-Eulogia
10, 11,61,66,93; 11. 13; 12.
22; 13.2; 15.5,36,38,48; 16.
57; cf. also

()
10. 36
2. 5, 7; 6
. 1; 7.28; 9. 23, 63,
64; 13. 18; 15. 17, 19, 35, 41,
50-51,62; 19.9; 21. 2, 12
(): ref. director
13. 5
(): ref. direc
tor 9. 37
Index to Biblical and Other Quotations
BIBLE
Genesis
4. 7: 9. 53-54
Psalms
15 (16). 8: 16. 45-46
21 (22).25: 10. 13-15; 11. 12-13
44 (45). 4: 15. 3-4
60 (61). 2: 7. 28-29
76 (77). 3: 7. 27-28
117 (118). 162-163: 5. 1-2
138 (139). 6: 13. 36-37
149 (150). 8: 13. 51-52
Isaiah
10.15: 7. 1-2
Siracides
/6. 19: 9. 50
Matthew
7. 12: 14. 38-40
18. 7-10: 17. 41-42
18.26,29: 13. 16-17
25. 15-28: 7. 35; 15. 11-12
Luke
17. 1-3: 17.41-42
John
14. 27: 5. 16-17
Romans
8. 35: 8. 14-16; 9. 9-10
1 Corinthians
10. 24-25: 9. 76-77
2 Corinthians
6. 7-8: 7. 7-10; 8. 7-15
6. 9-10: 9. 7-9
Philippians
4.7: 9. 68-69
1 Timothy
1. 9: 9. 101-102
6. 11: 13. 1, 20
2 Timothy
4. 7-8: 15. 6-7
Hebrews
11. 7: 11. 12-13
1 John
3. 17: 9. 52-53
5.20-21: 11. 12; 15.5-6
B. OTHER
Arsenios
Apophthegmata, 6 (PG 65.89A):
13. 30-32
Saint Basil
Epist. 210, 1 (Courtonne, 2,
189-90): 20. 2-4
Saint Gregory of N azianzos
Or. 2,40 (Bernardi, 142, 16): 3. 18
165
166 Princess /rene-Eulogia
Or. 4, 100 (Bernardi, 248, 10): 9.
95-96
Or. 21, 1 (Mossay- Lafontaine,
112, 25): 9. 70-71
Or. 21, 2 (Mossay-Lafontaine,
114, 5): 9. 73
Or. 24, 3 (Mossay-Lafontaine,
44, 7-10): 9. 92-94
Or. 42, 13 ( 36. 472D): 5. 8-9
Or. 42, 13 ( 36. 472D-73A): 5.
10-11
Herodotos
Hist. 1, 178; 7. 117: 10.20-21
Homer
Iliad 6, 182: 5. 6
St. John Chrysostol1l
Liturgia (Brightman, 361, 13): 11.
12; 15. 5-6
John Kolobos
Apophthegmata, 32 ( 65.
213D-16A): 6. 13-14
Meletios
De Natura hominis, 30 ( 64.
1276D): 14. 44-45
Pindar
Olymp. 2, 86: 8. 27-28
INCIPITS
" 1
19
16
3
18
17
5
14
7
< 22
' 8
<O 9
1 6
2
15
, 13
' 11
12
21
10
"Q 4
< , 20