Cause of all Causes: Book 5

Again, the fifth treatise is written concerning the constitution of this world, its ordering, and the many changes within it, which contains seven chapters. The first chapter, together with God who makes wise, concerns the beginning of the constitution of this creation, and concerning it, how light was created, and what it is. In these four treatises that have been spoken up to now, it was discussed concerning all those things that are necessary for a rational being to be equipped for knowledge. And after it was investigated and made wise by the knowledge of truth, and it was confirmed and believed, both by nature and by philosophy, that there is a Lord and Creator of all this. And He is the governor, provider, and almighty. [And how the worlds were created and established.] And why the rational being was created, along with many other things that are always, which are perfected to infinity by knowledge, understanding, and by faith, speaking and which cannot be disputed concerning truth, nor can they accept it. And all these things with natural theory. And from what nature finds and learns. And in it there is the discourse of divinity, as much as the creature can know and comprehend the Creator. And concerning all divine things to speak. And from them a person learns what nature is and what it is. And on account of which cause he was created. And a person is investigated concerning divine and human things, and concerning the knowledge of spirits and their state, rationally and wisely. And when he was investigated and perfected in these things, and his spiritual senses were sharpened, and he was clarified in his dignity. And he understood the order of his freedom and the authority of his house and his rationality. Then and thereafter, he hears and understands the constitution of this world from the beginning, how it was established and ordered by the wise Creator.

...and it was adorned and arrayed with many beauties and changes, and behold, from that time a new equality was made, establishing the light, just as that Creator is glorious, and the uncreated light began with the created light in its splendid and illuminating creation; that one illuminates the world with its beautiful and glorious light, that which darkness can never reach. As it is said thus: Consider, then, a great and powerful king, who has an only son, beloved, a prince. And he desired to honor him and to make for him a great wedding feast and banquet, and to rejoice in him and to expand his heart and his will, in that hope that he would be the heir of his kingdom and of his vast acquisitions, and his wealth without end. First, before everything, he prepared and made ready those things necessary for the wedding feast and for the musicians and for the glorious summer house, and for the bride in the bridal chamber, and he set up spacious houses and high and splendid porticoes, and hung in them precious and splendid curtains in the bridal chamber, and he set up spacious houses and high and splendid porticoes, and hung in them many precious and splendid things to see and to delight in the beauty of the porticoes, in the names of the house, golden vessels set with wise craftsmanship, with glorious forms upon walls and upon doors of every kind and every color, with coverings and crowns and curtains spread out in courts and everywhere, with carpets and coverings (or: upper rooms) spread on the floors of the houses, and with provisions of foods of every kind and every sort, with clarified wines, and the rest of pleasant and joyful drinks, with perfumes and aromatic scents, delights of the sense of the market.

...with varieties of songs and citharae and dances and gifts and halves and springs, with splendors and blossoms and loves and all kinds of roses and lilies, with dances and entertainments, and the rest of the musicians and architriclini, with changing and very many tastes and fragrances of kinds, with servants and attendants and seal-bearers and majordomos and the rest of the stewards, with prepared chariots and glorious carriages for the service of the bride and the saltiness of the charioteers, with praise and honor and greatness, along with the rest of the necessities and supplies that are sought and needed for the bridegroom and the bride and for the guests and the invited, both near and far. And when all these were established and prepared, then he called the bridegroom and began to seat him in his bridal chamber, and he brought the bride into his bridal bower, and he began and established feasts and delights and banquets for the groomsmen, and also for all the dancers and musicians, and they began to eat and drink and delight and rejoice in a great and glorious wedding feast. And when the day declined, he prepared for them lamps and torches and candelabra, and he made the night more than the day. And when they wished to take their leave, he prepared for them prepared chariots and glorious carriages, and they mounted to ride and to take their leave, and he provided them with provisions and supplies for their journeys and their roads. Thus was the good father and praiseworthy king and sweet lord, when he wished that his beloved bridegroom be honored at the head and his betrothed bride be his partner, and that he make for him a great wedding feast in this world, and that it be the inheritance of his heavenly kingdom and of his abundant and inexhaustible wealth. And behold, at the head he was a son to him, and God was a father to him; before, he established and prepared for him a bridal chamber and a glorious bridal bower.

and the glorious and beautiful dwelling-place which is this world of wonder, which fills all varieties. And it stretched out this glorious curtain. And it erected this high and royal dome. And it hung in it like lamps the stars that radiate light. And it placed upon the path of the two great luminaries, the sun and the moon. And it gave this sweet air for the breathing of its ascent. And rains and dews and sprinklings for its irrigation. And to water its paradise and its fields. And it caused birds and fowl and many species to fly in the air. And it opened the bosoms for its joy and for song and for music with melodies and canticles before its entrance. And it spread the earth beneath it for its walking. And it planted in it gardens and paradises of all fruits and flowers and roses and lilies for its fragrance. And it made for it horses and steeds, tall and glorious, glorious in stature for its riding and for its splendor. And camels and mules and asses for its burden. And flocks of sheep and lambs and kids for its fattening. And oxen and yokes of plowshares that plow and open the earth for its cultivation. And wild beasts of the mountains to dance before it and for its delight. And the sea together with the dry land to be subservient to it for the human being. And to bring it gifts. And to offer it tribute. Then it created and established for the human being a rational power, a composite instrument, by which all creatures are bound in its image and likeness. In this thought God created it first for the world and its desire and its adornment. And he filled and equipped it with all blessings and all varieties. And then he created the human being in the image of his greatness. At the end of all his creatures, like a glorious crown and a beloved son. And a son of the kingdom of dominion. And an heir of all treasures and deposits.

and set him up as lord and ruler, and as a free and exalted one. And he turned in his hands all the visible creatures, and placed in his mind wind and intelligence and wisdom and knowledge, to know hidden things and to reveal secrets, and to comprehend spiritual things. And after a time he made for him a renewal, and again added to him a great and glorious word, enduring and imperishable, and it became the inheritance of the eternal kingdom. And when there was a great silence and stillness over all the powers of the heavens, and they were in great fear and trembling until the great fall of Satan. And when also the elements were still in their mixture, while the earth was in confusion and disorder, and darkness was on the face of the abyss of the unformed chaos, while the living and life-giving spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. And behold, immediately a command and a lordly sign went forth from the essence. And God said, "Let there be light." And with the sign, like a swift flash, there was light. And that light was the illumination of the mixed elements, and the confusion and disorder were placed in the dark mind. Thus was the first beginning of the substance of creation and the commencement of the order of creation. And that light was fitting, perfect and healing, that with light it might dwell in the order of creation. But darkness truly existed before the creation of light. However, that darkness was nothing. But light is something and was created by the word of God. But darkness is nothing. It is not a creation. It is not an essence. But it is a privation, like an empty place in which there is nothing at all. That emptiness is privation, and nothing else.

Therefore, those things that are prior to darkness and light, they were understood and known, in this one nature and essence of his. And they are not companions and equals in time and nature, but light and darkness are their existence. And not as one thing that is prior to another, but as nothing prior to something. And this something is called new and first, and not another. Because the name of another is said as something that is after something. That which is equal to it in word, but light is the first thing, which nothing else preceded it. Therefore, darkness is not something and is not called something, but the privation of something. Therefore, it was established that light is prior in the creation of this world to all visible creatures. And if you say that this earth was indeed created with light, in that with the heaven indeed the creation of the spirits was created, and they said concerning this distinction, that the whole nature of creatures was created and came to be in one instant. When God created [in the beginning the heaven and the earth. Again, nothing new came to be. God is not idle. And nothing is lacking in his nature. Nor is there in his nature any syllogism or any other thought. But his thought and his knowledge are one, complete and perfect, and the wisdom of everything before it came to be. Everything that was destined to be created, in the beginning, in one instant, he created them in the beginning, as the Holy Scripture says: In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And all the orders of the spiritual powers were made and established between the heavens.

And all the nature of animals and the rest of living beings and of all visible things, was placed in that mixture of elements in the earth. And thus those many signs of God were for knowledge alone, when he wished to establish and order this world. Then from that mixture he took and made and established all visible creatures, like the craft of a potter who takes from the primordial clay, kneaded and mixed, and fashions many vessels for needs. And also this created and elemental light was hidden and concealed in the nature of fire within the elements. And when God commanded that created and elemental light come to be, it was hidden and concealed in the nature of fire within the elements. And when God commanded that light come to be, the light showed itself, and the elements with the nature of fire that had been hidden in them. Now it was first known that this light was created, even after the mixture of the mixture, for the word that it was created is when God said, "Let there be light," and light came to be. But with the mixture it was created before, in the nature of fire, which is one with the elements of the mixture. However, the word concerning this world and its establishment is its order. And this manner of establishing creatures is the order of what are called beings. But all creation was created and established by one word, as Scripture says: "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." And by this word he encompassed all that is in the heavens of angels and all that is on the earth of animals.

When, then, the Creator wished to arrange this visible world and to establish the beings in it from that first mixture which was like an ocean over the earth, the wise Architect took the elements and the heads of the kinds and the principles of the essences, and began to establish the beings. And he arranged the world, and the beginning of all things he made and established for light. He commanded the nature of light and illuminated the elements. And concerning them it is said, "Light was first in the creation of the establishment of this world," and it is certain and true. And light has existence and is said to be something. Darkness, however, is not at all; it has no existence and is not spoken of, but is like a privation of light where light is present. And it has no substance and no essence, because God did not say, "Let there be darkness," as he said, "Let there be light," and there was light. And concerning this, light has existence and subsistence, just as also good and truth have existence, and they have a word and existence and nature and subsistence. Evil, however, is not at all; it has no word and no existence and no nature and no subsistence, but is a privation of good. Therefore it is rightly said that just as darkness is spoken of and known by the privation of light, in that light is hidden, but otherwise it does not exist and is not spoken of. So it has been demonstrated that there is no nature of evil, nor of darkness. And light was first in the creation of this world. And that which is with the first evening receives the day of its light; it is well made. And this is certain and true. And concerning these things, they will again be clarified and confirmed when their time comes. And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light.

And God saw the light that it was beautiful. And God separated between the light and the darkness. This separation is such that when light is present, there is no darkness; and when a place is deprived of light, darkness is said to exist. And God called the light "day" and the darkness He called "night." And the whole extension of the day and the whole extension of the concealment of the light, which was called night, were called one day. Now understand and consider the glorious order by which the wise Creator, who enlightens the worlds, began with light in the foundation of this creation. And this light He established together with the element of fire, because, as we have said, all the creatures in this world were created and established from that primordial matter. For in one instant the Creator brought them into being, as He knew everything from the beginning. By that word which the Scripture says, "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth," with this utterance He encompassed all the creatures that God created. And the heavens, with all the powers of the spirits, and the earth, which is the matter that was from the four elements that existed before creation and was placed like a mass of leaven. And now the skilled craftsman began to fashion from it the instruments for the necessity of the existence of this world. And now, when He created light together with the element of fire, the light was extended like the span of twelve hours. And then it would be concealed and remain invisible, thus like twelve hours. And then it would again be revealed and shine. And in this manner the first three days were completed.

until the fourth day, when the sun, the moon, and the stars were created. And with these, the first cycle was completed by the mighty and helping God. The second cycle of the discourse, which is with the wise God, concerning how the heavens were stretched out, and what they are, and what the firmament above is. After the Scripture said, "And there was evening," this is the end of the day of the first of the week. And there was morning, the first day. When light was created, it was considered the morning of the first day of the week. And this morning is the evening of the second day. And God said on the morning of the second day, "Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters." And let it separate between the waters. And God made the firmament, and separated between the waters below the firmament and the waters above the firmament. And it was so. And God called [the firmament] "heavens." On this second day, for the element of air, God separated it from the elements and established it in its order above. And he separated between the waters below the firmament. These are the elements of water and earth, which until then were mixed together. And by their weight, they sank below and were arranged in the midst of this sphere of the firmament. And this place in the middle of the center was called the lower part of everything. And air surrounded it, encircling like the hollow of an egg around the yolk. And the orbit above the firmament, which is air, like the shell of an egg that surrounds everything from outside. And by one revolution of the order of the Creator for the orbit, the firmament was confined beneath it. And earth and water, because of their weight, sank in the midst of everything, like the yolk of an egg. And this place was called the lower, that is, the inner part of everything.

And outside of it, the air was extended to the world, existing as a sphere, surrounding it equally from all sides, like a circle around a sphere. And outside of this, the ether was arranged, the fiery region. And above this, the firmament, likewise the spheres of the zodiac. And above all of them, those waters that are above the heavens were stretched out and adorned. That vault which is seen above the stars—these are the waters above the heavens of which Scripture speaks. And the Creator established them like a curtain, and like the covering of a sphere that surrounds everything from outside. And within it, the firmament of the air is enclosed like a circle, and the waters below the firmament, together with the earth, within everything. And these [are] the upper waters, whose openings the Creator opened and in which he established all this. Their order is such that they revolve swiftly and violently, more than the sharpness of lightning. By the swiftness of their rotation, in the form of a wheel, they are commanded and become solid, so that they do not scatter here and there. Just as when a man takes water in a vessel, something that has a third, and shakes it in the third and whirls it up and down, and by the swiftness of the rotation the water is solidified within that vessel, and yet not a single drop is scattered from it—so also the waters above all the firmaments of the heavens, by the swift, sharp rotation of their circuit, are not scattered, but are solidified and become solid by the command of the wise Creator, and by the strong and sharp swiftness of the rotation of that upper sea. Behold, it revolves with it the entire region of the zodiac from the boundary of the waters up to the fiery region that is above this air which is suspended and surrounds it. And that region of the zodiac in which the stars are arranged and ordered.

The opinion concerning the nature of the ether is that it is the fifth element. There are some who say that the nature of the zodiac and the stars is another, separate from the four elements that have been mentioned. And it is called the fifth element. However, it is not true. Nor does it subsist by itself. One of the things in the creation of heaven and earth, nothing else is mentioned. But rather, heaven and earth, and the rest within the waters and outside the air and the fiery ether. It is not possible that this nature is another separate from them. And the final thing from the making of this event is with the rotation of the zodiac and the course of the stars together. And the simplicity of their rays within the wheel of the moon. And their being carried towards it. By means of the rays of the moon itself, it was established that from them the elements are the nature of the zodiac and the luminaries in it, and not from another nature. And concerning these, it is again confirmed more firmly from below. And there are also some who say that from the element of air alone is the nature of the zodiac and the luminaries. Nor is this certain, as will be shown by the God who guides. And in this firmament outside, that is, above the earth, the element of air was separated and stood alone to the side. And it became a path for the breathing of life for the sustenance of all flesh of living beings upon the earth. The elements of water and earth, however, were still mixed together. And the firmament of air outside, that is, above them. And it was called heaven. Because it is above them. And they were called heavens in the plural because there are many courses of the firmament. As will be shown. And with these, the chapter of the second is completed, by the God of power and help.

Chapter three of the fifth treatise, with God who makes wise. Concerning how the natures of the spheres are, and how they are bound together, and how many they are. That wise Creator who created the human being in his image and likeness placed in his nature spirit, intellect, and mind, which apprehend and know many profound and deep things, and not only those things which the eyes of the body see, the ears hear, and the hands touch, but with his inner senses he distinguishes and comprehends hidden and secret things which are in that spiritual nature of his own rational, speaking, and knowing soul; and it is fitting in its nature and pure from the sensible, it learns everything, and from the revealed it knows the hidden, and from the manifest creation it apprehends and recognizes the hidden Creator. In this very thing, when the human being was left in the revolution of this sphere, this profound and difficult thing, and he was wearied by its many changes, and he was perplexed by pure knowledge, because he has something from his Creator, he stood clearly over the whole profound order of the revolution of this glorious sphere, and he was confirmed against the opposition and changes which occur in it, that they are not one only, but many, and not in one place but in many regions, the wise Creator arranges for the Creator, and these are the principles which hold all the regions; they are two which are interwoven and mounted upon each other, and bound together again in each other with great wonder, and that interweaving and binding together in each other is not hindered, but proceeds with order and measure, and that interweaving and the place of their binding together in each other does not remain in one place.

But it has a hidden law that is known precisely by nature, measure, and motion that does not change; and to this knowledge of hiddenness and concealment of something invisible, its teaching is from many causes of eclipses, that is, darknesses that occur to the sun and the moon. And these are from beneath the luminaries, luminously. And with these ends the chapter of the third, by the God of power and help. Chapter four of the fifth treatise, by the God who makes wise. Concerning whether there is anything hidden and invisible to the eyes in those zodiacal signs. And what the kalparos is and the necessity of its being known; what the causes and investigation of the multiplicity of times and the extensions of hours are. It reaches precisely the truth in the investigations. That in those zodiacal signs there are boundaries, divisions of places, bonds, and connections. What the kalparos is, the necessity of knowing which. How it stands upon the knowledge of times and the cycles of hours and the boundaries of months, weeks, and days, and so forth. The whole zodiacal sign is therefore divided circularly into twelve constellations. These are called zodia or maluše. And natural operations of some kind were established for them in those places. And again, what is the nature of the fixedness of the stars? These are they. First, Aries is for the month of Nisan. Because in it the sun rules in the month of Nisan. Second, Taurus for the month of Iyar. Third, Gemini for the month of Ḥeziran. These are of the spring season. Fourth, Cancer for the month of Tammuz. Fifth, Leo for the month of Ab. Sixth, Virgo for the month of Elul. And these again are three for the summer season. Seventh, Libra, which is the balance, for the month of Tishrin the first. Eighth, Scorpio for the month of Tishrin the second.

that the ninth degree of the moon of Kānūn Qaḏīm. And these again are three of the beginnings. That the tenth of Gadyā is for the moon of Kānūn Aḥrāy. That the eleventh of Dūlā is for the month of Šbaṭ. That the twelfth of Qūrā is for the month of Adar. These are three of the winter. And these twelve signs complete the entire circuit of the revolution of the zodiac. Their length is measured with the latitude of the zodiac. And their width is from above to below, as it is held in all the circles, that is, the firmaments of the heavens. And from above, as it is much extended, and as it descends, it is narrow and small, as is its pattern of the circle of its outer circumference, wide. And as it enters within, it is narrow until it reaches the center, that is, the navel that is in the middle. And each one of the signs, that is, the signs, is divided into thirty degrees. And each degree is divided into sixty minutes. And each minute is again divided into sixty seconds. And each second is divided into sixty thirds. Thus as much as is possible, because of the great extension of the zodiac. And again each sign is divided into three decans, that is, faces. And each face, that is, a decan, has ten degrees, that is, ten steps. And each sign is also divided into five boundaries. And the boundaries are not equal, but there is a boundary that has ten degrees, that is, ten steps. And there is a boundary that has seven steps. And there is a boundary that has six steps. And another five. And four, as the ancients who studied much in the thought of the zodiac have ordained. There are also in the zodiac twelve places, which are the bonds, that is, the knots.

where the conjunctions or the meetings of the two courses are opposite each other. And they are the nodes opposite each other, diametrically equal, like the two signs opposite each other. And there is one house to another, six intervals. Or the degrees of that which is of the degrees, 60 from this side. And thus six other intervals from the other side. So that it is half of the circuit of the course between these nodes equally, and it is called one node of the head of the dragon. Or the ascending node. And the other node of the tail of the dragon, and it is called the descending node. These are the narrow places in the course that are not seen by the eyes. But they are apprehended by the mind, and they are the ecliptic. And when the sun and the moon are conjoined in one of them in the syzygy, there occurs an eclipse of the sun. And when the sun is in one and the moon in the other in the opposition, or the fullness of the moon, there occurs an eclipse of the moon. And these are shown clearly from below. All these that we have said: the half of the twelve intervals, and their parts or aspects, and the boundaries in each of the intervals and the quantity of the degree or of the degree, thus also of the latitude and of the longitude, and the rest of the nodes, those of the head of the dragon and of its tail, together with the rest of the other places that are in the course and are not seen. Nor are they known by the sight of the eyes, but are apprehended by the mind. And by acute and precise reasoning and thought they are known and learned accurately and without doubt, through the gifts and revelations that are from God, by the long duration of time those all are known to the wise.

And Metamorphosis was necessary to be known, because upon them depend the times, the hours, the months, and the changes of winter and summer, of spring and autumn. And if it were not so, like a ship without a rudder, the days of the children of Israel would be directed without knowledge of times and seasons. And with these, the fourth chapter is completed, by the help of God of power. Chapter 5 The fifth chapter of the fifth treatise, with God the wise. On how many are the firmaments, or rather the orbits of the zodiac. Return to the Creator and the wise arranger of the worlds and creations. For everything that he created and established by his wisdom, full of distinctions and many great wonders. For a small thing and a hidden mystery, he conceals it. And in all mysteries, types, natures, elements, worlds, and creations, visible and invisible, his power is active, his wisdom is manifest, and his glory is proclaimed, one to another. And just as he established in the heavens of the spirits ten orders of powers and archangels, so he divided and limited the upper zodiac into ten orbits. Each one is called a heaven. And that which is above them is the heaven of heavens. And the waters above all of them. The waters above the heavens. The waters above the firmaments. And he arranged three firmaments. And in each firmament, three orbits. And in each orbit, stars in number. But the tenth, which is not numbered and not visible, because of their high elevation. And above all of them is that great sea, unencompassable, made for the high divinity, unencompassable and immeasurable.

First, to the outside of the sphere of the zodiac, and to the firmament that separates between the lower and the upper heavens. And the first orbit of the moon is regulated in it by three circuits. The first is that in which the moon that resembles the order of the angels of the first rank runs. The second is that in which Hermes, the star that is the same as ʻUṭārid, runs, and it resembles the order of the chief angels. The third is that in which the star of Belthī, Aphrodīṭī, that is Zūharā, runs, and it resembles the order of the principalities. The second firmament, which is the middle one, is that of the sun, like the middle church of the spiritual ones. And in its first circuit, which is the fourth, the sun runs in it, and it resembles the order of the authorities. The second, which is the fifth, is that in which Krīg, who is Arīs Marrīk, runs, and it resembles the order of the powers. And the third of this middle firmament, which is the sixth circuit, is that in which Bēl, who is Zūs, that is Mūshtarī, runs, and it resembles the order of the dominions. And the third firmament, which is called that of Kronos. In its first circuit, which is the seventh, Kronos runs, and it resembles the order of the thrones. And in the second circuit, which is the eighth, the bright stars, one thousand one hundred and twenty in number, run, and they resemble the order of the many-eyed bright cherubim. And the third, which is the ninth circuit, the high stars that have no number run in it, and they resemble the order of the six-winged seraphs. And above these is the tenth firmament, which is called the Crown of the Zodiac, and in it are stars without number and without end.

their great height conceals them, and they are not visible except faintly, like a thin cloud. Like that glow which is seen in the path of the zodiac. And this upper firmament is very dense. And the sphere of the zodiac encloses all the stars, for the high rank of the star of the sun. That which was above all its companions and encloses the ten—the completion of the ten—which is the sphere of the nine others beneath it. And it is filled with measure. And just as the upper stars in the sphere of the zodiac have no limit or measure for knowledge, so also the powers in the rank of the rebel are not known in quantity or measure. And just as these upper stars are deep and not moved, but like a thick cloud something, so also those opposing powers became deep and were darkened from the light of divine knowledge. And just as the path of the zodiac appears like a kind of streak in the firmament of the zodiac, so the heavens that were ordered and stand in it were streaked, and they fell like lightning to the lower Sheol of darkness, a creation without knowledge. Above, however, from these ten orbits and firmaments of the heavens and heavens of heavens, again nothing is known except that great sea, which is not to be crossed or measured. The waters above the firmaments that form and shape its greatness and height and the uncrossability of the substantial essence. And the great sea of Oceanus, whose boundary and limit are not known, while the Atlantic Ocean has an end and a boundary, in that it is bounded within the air and limited by the earth. But that unutterable sea which surrounds the whole limit of the firmaments of the heavens and the orbits of the zodiac.

and is placed in that high and invisible height. How great then is its magnitude, how infinite its boundlessness, it is not to be measured, not to be measured, not to be apprehended, not to be comprehended, not to be limited. It has no end and no limit. It is the abyss above that cannot be fathomed, a deep and high depth which human knowledge cannot reach. And even this sea, when it is very deep, is only a small image of that greatness of the infinite and uncreated and eternal substance, which is the substance of the essence that is exalted and hidden and elevated above all generation and thought. How incomprehensible is its depth, how glorious its height, how much is knowledge amazed at the inquiry concerning it, how much do all generations marvel and all movements become bewildered at the incomprehensibility of the thought concerning its boundlessness. Great is the Lord and glorified magnificently. The nature of the eternal substance is not to be grasped, not to be apprehended, not to be fathomed, not to be measured, not to be limited, not to be spoken of, but is honored and praised in silence. And with these words the chapters of the fifth book are completed, by the help of the living God. The chapters of the sixth book of the discourse on God the wise. Concerning the sun, the moon, and the rest of the stars, what they are, and from what they were, and what their nature is, and what their order is, and what their usefulness is, and where their places are, and what their activity is and all their law, in a word, from the beginning of creation, the trees, the plants, and the first seeds in their creation with the creation of the stars. And also the manifestation of the dry land and the separation of the waters to the side. And the beds of the seas were likewise arranged from the beginning before the lights appeared.

but it is necessary, because above it began to show concerning each one of the beings and orders of creation. And when it spoke concerning the firmaments of the heavens and the spheres of the zodiac, it was fitting that it should take up in order and speak concerning the whole arrangement and law of the zodiac. And concerning the luminaries that are arranged in it, it spoke. And then it showed and spoke concerning those below the firmament. And concerning the air, those things that are in the midst of this air. And then, in that arrangement, when it reached the earth, it spoke concerning it and concerning everything in it and concerning its surface. As the divine wisdom wisely and primarily, together with the holy words of Scripture that are set down, that as they were created, the luminaries and the stars. Then it spoke concerning them. And it said, "God made the luminaries in the firmament of the heavens, to distinguish between day and night. And they were for signs and for times and for days and for hours. That they might hasten in the firmament of the heavens, and to hasten over the earth, and to rule by day and by night." And it was so. And God made two great luminaries: a great luminary for the dominion of the day, and a small luminary for the dominion of the night and the stars. And God placed them in the firmament of the heavens to hasten over the earth, and to rule by day and by night, and to distinguish between light and darkness. And God saw that it was good. For it said above, that divine Scripture, as with children, it plays with those who are able to hear it and understand and know. And all these things come and make you hear that the living God said, that he made the light and he made the darkness. Thus it happened, and one order of creation, and then after it others. Not so understand.

but all of them were created and established in a single instant, and all of them that are subject to a thousand thousand years of reckoning cannot be counted, because the knowledge of the truth is in the interpretation of the spoken word. And for one to understand and know what it means here. In the thought of God, they exist essentially in a single perfect and complete moment. In a single sign that he signified when he willed, and all creatures came to be and stood, being established complete and perfect. And there is no nature of existence that is twofold, nor any time or priority and posteriority. But all of them together he knows, those that are and those that will be forever, in their measure and their time and their quality and their quantity. For in the case of the wicked, it is not possible for them to know these things, apart from the length of time and measure and quantity and number, in order, one, two, three, according to the order of time, and to hear the account in many discourses, one word at a time, and a phrase after a phrase. Like a person who is in a large house full of many different objects, and it is dark like night. And when a bright lamp is brought into the house, and when he looks, he sees many objects and desires to hear from others what he sees in the whole house. And those that he sees in a single instant he cannot describe thus briefly. But one object after another, and each one, two phrases that he speaks are extended and spread out and ascend in name. And then again he speaks. Thus also the hearers cannot hear all of them together, but in order, one word after another. Thus also the sacred scriptures, as it is possible to speak and to hear, they converse with them in order.

but all of them were created and established in a single instant, and all of them that are subject to a thousand thousand years of reckoning cannot be counted, because the knowledge of the truth is in the interpretation. And again, therefore, it is fitting for you that you learn how and in what manner the Chaldeans found, by means of the sciences which they perceived and knew and taught with certainty, the law of the stars and the order of the courses of the zodiac, the planets, the natures, the workings, and the rest of the sciences concerning these sublime things and their existence in the firmaments of the heavens, and in the far ends and the lower depths. Behold, all these sciences are rational, and ready wisdom, and glorious crafts, without the divine working being able to teach them—impossible. For the nature of creatures is not able to perceive and know these things without the gift of divine wisdom, which itself made and created and established all creatures, and placed in the nature of the Chaldeans a rational and cognitive soul that is able to receive the sciences concerning all these things. And truly he was called and became in the beginning the image and likeness of his Creator, which was placed in his nature to perceive and reveal the sciences concerning everything that was, is, and will be. And all these are taught by means of practice and study, and learning with knowledge of the entire law of the stars, which the Arameans, the Babylonians, that is, the Chaldeans, who are in the east of the south of the inhabited world, found. Because that entire land of their regions is clayey and not easily known are the paths and roads that lead from region to region, and from city to city, and from village to village, because the winds shift and change the paths in that soft and scattered sand.

And that region is very hot and burns the sun by day. The inhabitants of that region are constrained, just as that earth which is in the nights, they go and wander from place to place, so that they are not burned by the intensity of the sun, because there is no visible path for the head. The stars are placed for them as a sign, and over them the wind blows every way it wishes. And through the slowness of the motion of the stars in all the changes of the hour, they began to know something from the law of their course and their signs. And thus, little by little, through the slowness of long time, they learned the entire law and circuit of the zodiac. And there was in that region a certain man, with the sons of the sons of the spirit who is called Yoniton. This one discerned with his knowledge and chose for himself a dwelling in a place, and he went and lived alone in a quiet desert, far from all sounds and abstaining from all cares. And slowly he observed the firmaments of the heavens and was occupied with the stars and their varying bright times, and he was filled with great wonders and praised the wise creator and orderer of all these. And thus, through his solitude and his aloneness and his abstinence from all sounds and voices and the disturbance of the world, and through his diligence from all actions and the purity of his heart from all cares, through the slowness of his observation of the zodiac and his occupation with the stars, there was given to him the grace of knowledge concerning the entire law of the stars and the circuit of the zodiac. And from time to time, one by one from those of that region would come to him, and they would marvel at him and learn how these things are.

And they were writing and recording these peoples and tribes in books, as a memorial and knowledge, so that they would not be forgotten. And thus, little by little, they learned the entire law of the stars, which is called in Greek "astronomy." And as time passed, they again became wise, in that they were accurately observing the zodiac and were being investigated by the stars. And because there was no other teaching for them yet besides the accurate observation of the zodiac, the Chaldean peoples learned it. And they recorded in books the movements and courses of the stars, and their effects and natures, and the entire law that pertains to them, just as they were created and ordered by the wise Creator, to be signs for times and to distinguish seasons and changes, according to the natures established in their being, by which they act like the rest of creation. After some time passed, corrupt men arose who corrupted their minds with the knowledge of the working of demons, and they erred among them and proclaimed one thing in place of another. And they proclaimed that they were rational, and that they have free will and authority over the house. And little by little they led them astray, until they proclaimed concerning them that they are creators and makers. And they set each one of them as the name of a god, and they worshipped them and bowed down to them, and they set up images in their names and raised up forms on pillars and columns. And they appointed festivals for them and honored them and offered incense before them and sacrificed sacrifices to them. Also, at various times, [the demon] spoke through each one of these images, and deceived them and revealed hidden things and future events, and hastened and proclaimed the good things that were in distant regions.

And death came upon their hearts, a thought, and it was revealed to others. And in this way it led many astray until this day. The discerning ones, however, and those firm in knowledge of the truth, were not led astray. Rather, they knew them truly, what they are—that is, in their order and nature and properties, and the likeness of creation which the Creator established, ordered, and arranged them, as they are and for the sake of what they are—for signs and for times and for the ripening of days and nights, and for making changes in the air, and for sprouting seeds and ripening fruits, and for making many changes in the nature of the earth. And these and the like the Creator set and fixed in them as natures and properties, like the rest of creation: trees and fruits and plants and lands and stones, and not by their own will, nor even rational beings in another manner—that is, those that are subject to divine signs and obedient to His will. Rather, this is for all creatures, both rational and non-rational, both inanimate and insentient, and everything that exists in creation is known to the Creator and subject to His sign. In truth, their creation is good, their place is high and glorious, and by the unchangeableness of their law and discipline, thousands of years are known, so that their nature is very abundant and pure and clean, and their creation is very good. But they are created and made, and in their nature there are properties that are not changed by will, but by nature, like trees and plants and stones and lands which God set in the nature of each one as a property, something and an action toward something, for the need and necessity of the existence of the world.

But the Logos and the great mystery of the foreknowledge of God, which God concealed [in their nature], the hidden knowledge and the foreknowledge of those things that are to come to pass—whether in the air and firmament, or upon the earth, and in the signs that are in the body, or in the bodies of rational animals. And again, God placed in them some deep foreknowledges of what is to come, and they know them as He knows all things that are to come to pass, whether in deeds, or in words, or in the thoughts of rational animals, by their will, by the motion of their freedom, and by the authority of their house. And not by a prior cause does He know them as He knows all. And He placed knowledge [concerning them] in nature and in the properties of the stars, and in the art of the philosophers and the wise in divine truth. These foreknowledges demonstrate and prove the greatness of the wisdom of God and the foreknowledge of His knowledge, and not the freedom and the authority of the house of the human being, as is heard. For example, someone says that such a human being was born at such a time. And when those who are instructed in this teaching of astrology, which they learned from the Chaldeans and the wise men of India, observed and saw, they added to it the thought of knowledge: that this human being is destined to become such and such. And to those who enter into his body they make known, as by events and signs, and by natures and magnitudes, and smallnesses, and sharpnesses, and dullnesses, and confirmations, and weaknesses, and strengths, and weaknesses, and beauty, and ugliness, and cleverness, and simplicity, and sharpness of sense, and dullness of sense, and abundance of desire, and sadness, and excess of anger, [and timidity,] and courage, and boldness, and rashness, and folly, and perfection.

many of those which are like these from the movements of the body happen. These are learned with certainty from experience. The knowledge of the soul, however, is truly voluntary, for it is the motion of freedom and the power of choice. It is fitting and governs all these things rationally and not bestially and animally. And as a rational beginning, it is governed and directed in its own dignity and the high nature of the rational and created being in the image of its Lord and in the likeness of its Creator. All these things are spoken rationally and according to the will of its Lord, and as is proper, it is governed and bears everything. And it subdues anger, it calms wrath, it humbles pride, it makes foolishness wise, it subdues the rebelliousness of the body, along with the rest. If, however, it is disturbed and gives pain to these, their passions, and resembles the rest of the beasts and animals without reason, the body is composed of elements and is under the influence of the zodiac. For this reason, with the zodiac, all these things, both accidental and natural, are agitated in it. The soul, however, is not from the elements that are under the influence of the zodiac, its nature. But it is above and beyond the zodiac and the material elements. It is something spiritual, pure, and simple, like the nature of spirits. And it knows and commands the zodiac and enslaves the elements, and they are not enslaved to it. For it is not subject to the material composition that is with them. Now, thoughts and movements of freedom and words that proceed from the heart through the movements of the tongue, through the composition of sounds and the movement of the hands, voluntarily and rationally, through these, sin and righteousness are known. These are the power of choice of the rational and cognitive soul.

and not the movements of the body, the living composite. But because the soul is bound and united to the body, it is compelled along with it to its affections. And all that is its own is also said to be its own, because it is the charioteer of the body, like a rider to a horse, and not the horse that drives it. For just as the horse cannot resist the will of the rider who holds its reins, if the horse is stubborn and tries to run here and there according to its nature, yet the rider, by holding its reins, does not let it go; and if it does let go and the horse runs off in a disorderly manner, or if it stumbles and both fall and are broken, and all is lost when the rider is thrown—so also, I think, with the soul. Again, another mystery is revealed before the interpreters of truth. Tell me, brother: all those things that are destined to occur in the beginning, after hundreds of years, or a thousand, or more, or beyond speech or thought—does God know them all beforehand, or not? Metacelphros knows all of them before they happen. And how can he know them? They are known, then, either through the decrees of the nature that are given to each one by grace, on account of the powers of governance, or through the companionship of nature that is given and known after much labor, study, and learning, which is hidden in the knowledge of the stars by the will of a wise and high Creator in the foreknowledge of knowledge. But not because God knows beforehand those things that are destined to be done or to happen to him in the beginning, and thus he knows them. These are known through the movements of the stars, as the astrologers who determine beforehand and announce the things that are destined. With Metacelphros, it is necessary that these things happen inevitably.

but because the things that are to be are with every prosopon in a movement of freedom and authority, the house wills voluntarily and not by constraint. Before knowing, that one knows all and rules all and can all. And where he wills, he leaves his will to be fulfilled. As he knows in the depth of his knowledge the incomprehensible. And if you say that the Lord does all that he wills, and changes and abolishes, and strikes and heals, and gives life and kills, the truth is indeed so. But not yet does he will in these things. He wills with them at once in all that he wills. And all of them are complete and perfect in his thought, and not yet are they considered. And then [he wills] as in the poverty of his own, that whenever something new is considered, willed, and done. Far be that wise knowledge from all, that it would be or [happen in creation, or yet be or] happen. Whether in deed or in word or in thought, that he does not know them completely, as that which is with him at once before the foundation of the world. And all that he wills from the beginning of the creation of the worlds until eternity, are complete and perfect in his knowledge and fulfilled, and not new. There is nothing new that comes near that perfect and all-wise knowledge. And if a man in one day changes many times in his thoughts, and many times sins and turns back again, and becomes rich and becomes poor, and does something and repents of it, God knows all these things perfectly as they are. And nothing new comes near his knowledge. Therefore, those who say that the Lord does, abolishes, and changes as it pleases him, these do not magnify but diminish God.

but it greatly diminishes that perfect and complete greatness. Therefore, the will is like the whims of children, who desire something today and tomorrow abandon it and learn something else and desire another. However, the word of the stars and the knowledge that the Creator placed in their nature are not abolitions of freedom, but rather confirmations and strengtheners. And that which is future, the freedom of action in its authority, foreknows and makes known. And thus also concerning the changes that happen to a human being, whether voluntary or necessary, or accidental or natural, throughout the entire span of his life. The Creator placed in their nature knowledges that foreknow and make known. And not because in the nature of the stars there is this fixed prosopon that this should be, as many say. But because it is destined to be a prosopon by free will. The Creator foreknows and placed it in their nature. Just as [therefore] one knows that winter is destined to come, and in it there is rain and cold, and snow and ice, and after it comes spring, and then summer and intense heat. And not because of the foreknowledge of these events from every prosopon. But because they are destined to be from every prosopon. They are known beforehand through the signs that precede them, as much as they are destined to be. For even the great ones, such as sailors on the sea who are left in the air for days, through the knowledges that they have, they learn beforehand from the signs of the time, they foreknow and make known the changes of the air and of the direction of the wind and of the clouds, and also of the waves and of the calmness of the sea and of its movements.

This is not because those things that were said and divided were destined to be with every kind of necessity, but because they were destined to be with every kind of nature. They knew, said, and made known those things beforehand with reason. And again, see a man who has a garden in which there are many trees. And a man comes to him in winter, when the trees are stripped of leaves and fruits, and he sees dry sticks like dry wood. And that man makes known to that head the natures of the bodies of those trees: that this one is destined to produce white fruits, and this one black ones, and this one red ones, and this one sweet pomegranates, and this one sour ones, and this one soft ones, and this one hard ones, and this one round ones, and this one long ones, and this one peach-like ones, and this one durkian ones. And he makes known the body of each one and its members, and its changes, and its color, and its smell, and its taste, and the quantity of its size and its thickness, and its abundance and its scarcity. And when the time of fruits comes, with every kind, just as the man had previously made known, so it happens and is fulfilled. Now, this is not because that man previously knew and divided those things, but because they were destined to happen naturally with every kind. He knew them beforehand with reason. So also is the matter of the stars. Because it is destined in the beginning that they will act in one way and another by their will and by the movement of their freedom, or that they will happen to them accidentally, necessarily, naturally, or fortuitously. The wise Creator knew beforehand and placed in their natures some indications. But chance (not distinction) does not exist. And nothing happens by chance, but everything is under the governance, command, and administration of God.

And one leaf does not fall from a tree, nor one letter of a book from a beginning, nor from an animal, nor from a bird, except by the knowledge and will of God. And this does not abolish freedom by the will of God and His providence and the foreknowledge of His knowledge. Rather, they speak more, confirming and demonstrating and establishing freedom. Just as even the [foreknowledge] of the knowledge that God placed in the nature of the stars does not abolish any one of these things—neither freedom nor will—but all of them together bear witness to, confirm, and establish one another. The foreknowledge that is in the stars confirms and bears witness to freedom, that truly the power of choice is within it. In the image and likeness of the Creator. And these things that are destined [freedom] to accomplish [by] the power of choice within it, the speaking of the stars foreknows as a possibility. And nothing else. And both of them bear witness to and confirm the divine will and the wise providence in everything, that by it they stand and are moved and have their existence. And not by chance or by atomistic necessity is the world governed and ordered. And that which at the time of obedience to the divine will is for freedom, or that it does not fulfill its desire when it wills well and is prepared by the whole from which it is to accomplish as it pleases. And at the time it leaves it to accomplish and fulfill its desire according to its inclination, it confirms both—freedom and will. And if at all times freedom were to accomplish its desire, it would be understood that this is a necessity for it, and not a matter of desire. And chance would be everything and the will of itself, and not under the ruling will. But wondrously and clearly it is made known.

When freedom is hindered at a time, and at a time it is not, both of them are from the Lord. For when it is good, that which is hindered at a time is freedom; and that which is left at a time, again, so that its will may be fulfilled. By the precedence of the knowledge of God, all things are foreknown, complete, and fulfilled: when it leaves in idleness the free one to fulfill its will, and when it hinders and does not leave it. And all these cognitions were placed beforehand in the nature of the stars, as everyone knows. And by the precedence of the knowledge of the stars, freedom and idleness are confirmed. And it is not because the former is known to those that are prior in knowledge. And the future things that are yet to happen in deed, both with freedom and with idleness, that is the former. But freedom is prior to all, and idleness follows after freedom. And at a time it hinders it, at a time it does not hinder it; and by the precedence of the knowledge of the stars, that is the last for all of them, that which is destined to happen with every individual. And before it is known like servitude. And servitude, again, is not because the future things are beforehand made servile with every individual on account of their being and being stirred, but because with every individual they are destined to happen as their unattainable judgments of God. He knows and makes known them beforehand as servitude. And as at a time it falls and does not stand, servitude does not stand, because freedom and idleness are confirmed by this occurrence, and not that servitude is not true. Or else it is a lie. When this is foreknown by the precedence of the knowledge of God, that where it is destined to cease and not to stand, and servitude is not fulfilled. And at a time also freedom ceases to servitude, as that of Hezekiah the king.

and at a time it is hindered, it is not freedom but compulsion. As that which is known and foreknown. And all these are known beforehand by God, that they are destined to be thus. And the knowledge that is placed in the nature of the stars, which first makes known the future, holds all these and does not err in cancellation or hindrance, or in anything else. For it is natural that every season occurs and is completed, as winter is destined from every season, and also summer. And the trees that produce fruits and the branches of fruits come forth from every season. And like these. And not the voluntary things, such as freedom and hindrance. For those that are destined from every season are shown, and not those that are hindered by freedom or by hindrance, those that are hindered and are not at all actualized, are considered nothing, but rather nothing. For they do not exist, and they are not actualized, and they have no existence. But the power of prayer, which truly is prayer and truly has efficacy, is God who moves it, and commands it royally and acts authoritatively. Great is the power of prayer and ineffable. It compels the will and cancels freedom. It changes natures and creates new ones. And to say that it has authority over everything like God, to speak and to bring into being. And even over the heavenly powers, prayer commands masterfully. That which is truly prayer in its rights is it. And its witness is the experience of those who pray, with boldness of heart and without division of thought. This commands the course and is exercised, and for the vigilant it restrains the boldness of their discipline. Truly, the sun does not exceed its circuit, nor the moon in the eclipse of Elul and the rest. And behold, the Lord before whom you have risen.

if it were to rain or snow upon the earth until it said, "Thus openly and heartily the pure and true prayer is found." Again they say that God knew beforehand those things that were destined to be done by the hands of the great Moses and Joshua son of Nun and Elijah the prophet, and with Hezekiah the king and his associates, and whether such things or not. Truly, in his knowledge they are before the world existed, as they are certainly. However, not because God foreknows that they are destined to be with compulsion, but because they are destined to be with freedom, or with idleness, forcibly or willingly, or by chance, or by nature. The one who knows all foreknows them as they are with their conditions and circumstances. Now I shall explain thus: that these things that are, which are ancient, are spoken of with the knowledge of God. Even before his knowledge, his knowledge knows them, but that they are destined to be before his knowledge knows them, so that the simple ones who deny freedom are not confounded. [And therefore] all things that are destined to be, whether with human freedom or with divine idleness, or with nature, or with what is understood as chance, or with the evil of prayer, truly God foreknows them. And if he also placed signs for all these things in the nature of the stars, as they are known with certainty for all particular evils, whether great or small, or hidden, along with the knowledge of truth, he does not think so. And if you say that the Lord can change natures and the times of summer and winter.

and to do whatever he wills, he is faithful and true and many with these. But all of them he foreknew beforehand that they were destined to change and to be done, this and that, and it was not considered newly to do these things as if he were deficient in his knowledge. All of them are perfect and complete in the knowledge of God. And no will ever newly arises that he did not know essentially. He who reads these will understand. And it is not considered a deficiency or lack or weakness or inability concerning that good and perfect and complete nature of the substantial and lordly essence. And if he cannot understand clearly this depth of meanings and precision of thoughts, let him confess his simplicity and not blaspheme against the greatness that cannot be grasped, while supposing that he is magnifying God as a believer and says [that there is] no futurity. But the Lord does whatever he wills and changes and abolishes, this and that. Or he will be wise in his own eyes, not yet willing anything that he did not previously know and will from eternity. But he wills everything that is destined to be willed. And he seals everything and perfects and completes in his knowledge. And it was not beforehand the will of God that this should happen in a fixed manner and with every face that those who think [about it] futurity abolishes freedom, but because it is destined that the hand of that one should be. Whether with freedom or with idleness, as many say. He foreknew which ones that one knows all. And he placed their knowledge in the nature of the stars. And their true knowledge is found for the wise and the rational, that they also beforehand knew these things certainly. And they also made known to others.

and all of them are witnesses to the foreknowledge of God. And this knowledge is similar to providence, as was said above. And providence, because it foreknows and makes known future things, behold, it abolishes freedom and introduces necessity—no. But because future things are to happen either through freedom or through necessity, God foreknows them divinely and providentially. And freedom confirms necessity, and necessity confirms freedom. And the true knowledge of the stars confirms the foreknowledge of God. And the foreknowledge of God confirms all of them and does not abolish any one of them. From the chapter of the sixth treatise. Concerning why the stars are called some good and some evil, when they have no freedom. Why they are called wanderers. And why Zoroaster and all the doctrines of his disciples ceased. And that which is called some good and some evil, this is the cause. And first, it was said that they have no freedom to become good or evil by their own will, but by their nature, which is the reason they are named good and evil. As you have heard, consider and understand. Everything that preserves the existence of this world, such as life, health, and the good mixture of the elements, the abundance of causes, and the growth of fruits, is truly called and is its good. And everything that is destructive and ruinous, such as death, the evil of the elements, the corruption of fruits, and the destruction of causes and the like, is the evil of this world.

and other kinds of small diseases and defects are called their afflictions and sufferings and passions and disturbances over the nature of these four elements that constitute this world. For everything from all the natures that exist in the world, which are body and flesh of animals, likewise the element of air, which is hot and moist, it is the increase and the cause of life. And whenever air remains pure in its nature, which is hot and moist, the goodness of mixture and health and life and the preservation of causes and fruits produce in creation. But when it is mixed with something that rises from the earth, or with the odor of decay and mold of trees and seeds and plants that are upon waters, such as reeds and rushes and roses and rues, by which waters are said to be upon them, they produce decay and mold, and their odor mixes with the air, it corrupts its nature and produces diseases and plagues and blights and many destructions. And again the element, the nature of earth, is cold and dry. When it remains alone without being mixed with the elements of water or air, which is the destroyer of life of every body that is buried in it. And thus everything that is cold and dry produces death. And the nature of death is cold and dry. For it is the opposite of hot and moist, which is the nature of life. It is established, therefore, that hot and moist, which produces good life, is good and is called good. And cold and dry, which produces evil death, is evil and is called evil.

those that are mixtures of these four elements, such as hot-dry, or moist-cold. These do not produce death nor life, but they produce diseases. For these elements are called afflictions. And these stars, which move in the zodiac over a long period of time, some of them are in their nature hot-moist, such as Zeus and Aphrodite; they are called good in their nature and not in their will. And Kronos is cold-dry; they call him evil. Ares is hot-dry; they call him affliction or disturbance. As for the Sun and the Moon, because they are the ones that establish all the kinds and species of the elements of creation, they are called rulers and governors. For the Sun heats, cooks, and dries to the measure and limit of excessive moisture and coldness. And the Moon, again, moistens, softens, and nourishes the elements, and like a waterer and cooler, it tempers the excessive heat from the power of the Sun's rays. And again, for those that are greatly moistened by the Moon's rays, the Sun purifies, dries, and heats. And through these operations of these two great luminaries, all the elements of creation are nourished, established, and adorned. For this reason they are called rulers and lords. Also because the Sun is great and glorious among all the stars, and the Moon because it is the lowest of all the luminaries, and near to the earth, and its rays are spread out and act upon creation, and its nature is cold-moist.

but which has no light or rays of its own except from the sun, for its light is from the sun. Its nature mixes with the nature of the sun, or of one of the stars that casts rays upon it. Thus its rays act by mixture. And if you say, "How was the nature of the stars known and understood, and how were their rays known?" Listen. It is known that when stars look at the moon or at each other, by conjunction or by their proximity to each other, when two or many are fixed in one degree, or when by the hexagon which is the foundation, or the tetragon which is the quartile, or that which is between them, three signs, a quarter of the zodiac, or the trigon which is the third of the signs, that is, three signs, the third of the zodiac, which is four signs, or by the diameter which is the opposition that occurs between them, half of the zodiac, that is, six signs. When, therefore, they look at each other with these forms, they cast their rays upon each other. And when they look at the moon and cast rays upon it, the rays of the moon itself, together with the light of the sun, are spread over the creatures, acting according to the nature of the star that looked at the moon and cast its rays upon it, whether one according to its nature, or two or many by mixture. And the word concerning these many is that. But indeed, from such forms of operations, the Chaldeans discerned the natures of the stars and called some of them good and some of them evil, and some of them moderate.

When the rays of good and evil mix and are cast upon the moon and spread over creation, being blended in the air, they are called mixtures. As for the star of Hermes, or the star of ʿOṭrā, the Creator made it in the nature of wonder, for it has no mixture. And just as the nature of every star whose rays are mixed with it, so also the nature of that star becomes its own nature. This is the reason why good and evil are so called, because of the properties that the Creator placed in their natures, like the rest of the other natures—those of trees, fruits, roots, stones, lands, and the rest of the elements. For in their natures lie their beneficial or harmful qualities and their destructive or injurious qualities, and not by their will or by the motion of their freedom, since they have no such thing, because they are not rational and not autonomous in themselves, but are bound natures, subjugated, subject to signs, times, and indications like the rest of creation. Each one exists for a reason, and a law has been set for them [an operation] in an orderly, sequential, proportionate, and enduring manner, and it never transgresses nor changes. And thus He established them for eternity. That which is also called "wandering" by the erring—its meaning is this: everything that goes and roams is called "wandering," not in the sense of error, but in the sense of a course opposite its face, as one says, "This sheep has gone astray in the desert," meaning it roams and runs opposite its face, not intentionally. And these seven stars that are called "wandering" are: the Sun, the Moon, Kronos, Zeus, Ares, Aphrodite, and Hermes.

because it is not naturally driven and does not travel in the zodiac opposite its faces. For this reason they are called wanderers, for they do indeed wander. One is driven opposite the east and does not turn back at all, while in the zodiac opposite the west it indeed completes a circuit. As for the stars, they are opposite in their faces, indeed wandering and driven in that opposite the east. And because the revolution of the zodiac is swift and very sharp, the rim of the circle is turned with velocity. As for the stars, each according to the thickness of its own circle, which is in the rim of the zodiac, completes its course. And the moon, because its circuit is narrow, is indeed within all the stars, below, while above it is with the ether. In thirty days it travels, runs, and indeed completes the entire zodiac. As for Hermes, it is above the moon; its circuit and course indeed revolve around the entire circle of the zodiac in six months. Aphrodite likewise, which is the star of light, is above Hermes; its circuit is indeed completed in nine months, more or less. But because the rays of the sun have some effect on these two stars, Hermes and Aphrodite, they are naturally driven with the sun, either before it from the west at evening time, or again behind it from the east, and they appear with the light. And Aphrodite cannot recede from the sun more than forty-five degrees. As for Hermes, it recedes from the sun up to twenty degrees, indeed, degrees alone. And there is some effect of the rays of the sun that turns them toward it.

And as it said, at the time when it is in front of the sun, it appears in the evening in the west. And again, at the time when it is behind it, it appears with the dawn. And these three are below the sun, namely Aphrodite, Hermes, and the moon. And the other three, Ares, Zeus, and Kronos, are above the sun. And whenever the sun distances itself from one of these three upper ones, the four signs in front of it, the sun casts rays from its trigon and turns it to its back. And thus it remains turned to its back, that star, until the sun passes four other signs. And again, that turned star casts rays from its back, from the western trigon. And then that star is set right and passes according to its order by its own will. The sun, when it is above it, regulates the measures of hours and times. And it produces winters and summers and the rest of the changes. Every three hundred sixty-five and a quarter circuits of the zodiac, the sun completes one circuit of the entire zodiac. For each sign it passes in thirty days. The day, however, is the circuit of the entire circle of the zodiac. And in this circuit of the entire sphere, the sun passes one degree before it. And every four hours that quarter is completed and becomes one full day. And it is added to the days of the month, and that hour becomes the days of the year, and it is called the intercalary day.

Ares, however, revolves above the sun in the orbit of the fifth heaven. It completes the entire circle of the zodiac in one year and a half. Zeus, on the other hand, in that same orbit, because as it ascends it goes out to the outer orbit, revolves in the sixth heaven and completes the entire zodiac in twelve years, each sign in one hour. Kronos, moreover, revolves in the seventh circuit, and its heaven is very wide and spacious. It completes the entire circle of the zodiac in thirty years, that is, in each sign two and a half years. That which the moon traverses in one day, Kronos traverses in one hour because of the spaciousness of its circuit. In the heaven of the eighth, that which is above Kronos, revolve the shining stars which number one thousand one hundred and twenty. And because their circuit is very wide, for one degree, which is one step, they complete it in seventy-two years for one degree, that is, with thirty signs. The ninth circuit, moreover, is very wide because of its height or its thickness. In the swiftness of the circle of the zodiac, for one degree, that is, one step, to be measured, the stars in it traverse it in one hundred years. Then the circuit which crowns all the signs, in which are seen the stars of the zenith, like clouds somewhat luminous, how very wide and great it is. And when this motion of the stars is good, each in its own circuit, more than gentle breezes. Then how, that which is the extent of the spaciousness of the first swiftness of the circle of this zodiac, cannot be measured nor conceived.

That which one portion of the sixty of the whole circle does not traverse, the stars that fly like a whirlwind traverse in a hundred years. The whole extent is traversed in how many thousands of years, if the world were to remain and not pass away. In thirty-six thousand years they would traverse the whole extent of the ninth sphere of the zodiac. Measure, then, that tenth sphere, how great and vast it is. The nature of fire does not reach it. But measure, then, that great sea of waters which is above the heavens, which is spread like a tent over all creation, above and outside all the heavens of heavens, and like the ribs of an egg holds within itself all the firmaments and the sphere of the zodiac, and within that the whole firmament of air, and again below the whole creation, this dry land and the boundless seas that are fixed in the earth. How great, then, is the magnitude of that sea, which appears like a kind of vault and holds everything within itself. Can the nature of fire reach it? Or can any thought conceive of it? It cannot. Or to a wonder that is unspeakable. How glorious is your greatness, O Creator, or the wonderful and wise work in all things. And when one of your creatures is not comprehended nor even perceived, you, then, are the Creator and Maker of all things, to whom a likeness is not. Who can speak of you? Who is able to speak of the incomprehensibility of your essence? There is no speaking or uttering, but only to marvel at your works and to praise the great power of your essence. At all times, Amen. That which again they remembered all thanksgivings to the knowledge of the stars and abandoned the teaching of astrology. The speech of the stars.

This is the cause, and it is very good and wise, that they created and warned the faithful greatly, and they completed them from the knowledge of astrology, because not every person is sufficient for the word of knowledge, and one out of a thousand of the learned can enter into these deep things and ascertain the exactitudes of these things that are delineated from eternity. And from their simplicity and plainness, they cannot ascertain the exactness of the course from its beginning. And what is this cause? But at the end and conclusion of the teaching, they look. And when they hear the astrologer, that by means of their calculations they reckon and predict and make known to a person future things, they marvel. And they think that it is fate, a bond and a constraint. And they abolish freedom and say, "Henceforth, these things that are determined by the stars are the things that will be. What benefit is freedom?" And they do not answer exactly that that which is future, freedom is what, by its own will, is lordly and by its own power, predicts and makes known, and not something bound that constrains freedom, as also with slavery. However, again, the confessions say that when a person hears from the astrologer those things that are destined for him, whether good or evil, he trusts and does not confess concerning good things. And if he seeks and appeases on account of evil things, they are very true in this. And it is very good that they created and completed the faithful from this teaching. And if the simple faithful were able to understand the deep and exact things, they would understand and know that it should not abolish its own properties, nor should it trust at all as the confessions command, but that it should strive earnestly and do good things as much as it can, and abolish evil things.

For all the works under heaven praise good actions and condemn evil actions. This is righteousness, and this is sin. Those who have authority in the house act with the movement of their free will, which is choice. But those who are violent and act with rebellion, domination, and oppression—whether murders or sorceries, or drownings in waters, or burials under ruins, mounds, and pits, or captivity, or destruction of fruits and causes, or severe pains and various diseases—these are not properly called evil. Rather, they are punitive chastisements of evil, which is sin that comes from choice. And again, they rejected the entire teaching of astrology as all confessions do, because it is very wide, deep, and difficult, and it is beyond idleness, negligence, and the many disputes within it. And even if a person lived a hundred years, it would not suffice for him to learn completely and know accurately all its movements, operations, and significations. And people would be occupied with it instead of other beneficial teachings of the soul, and those that bring one near to God. That which a person learns and knows the future—whether through the gift of prophecy or through the teaching of astrology—does not help a person if there are no good works in it. For prophecy fills the mouth of sinners, the forgetful, and the deniers, because the separations and judgments of God are not comprehended. And they are not justified by this. But they speak and are for them this for judgment, for consequence, and for great condemnation. Yet there are many simple and pure people.

The simple ones, by the nature of speech, are in servitude, while they do not understand its power and its force, and therefore they are neither justified nor condemned. But those who understand the force and power of servitude and do not perform good deeds—these are justly condemned. But those who perform the good deeds that the command of servitude enjoins are praised. Thus also many, by the sharpness of their nature and the composition of their temperament, perceive the power of astrology and its movements and its cognitions, and by the vanity of many and the investigation they make concerning it, they show that good actions that are seemly for everyone and are praised by all do not produce thanksgivings, but are contemptible and condemnable, and are pursued with greater penalty. And the power and force of thanksgiving is faith without hesitation. And faith is a spiritual understanding that leads the soul naturally to that which is naturally fixed in its nature: the living, rational, and spiritual nature that is superior to the nature of fate. And it knows fate, but is not known by fate. Fate, however, commands and acts upon the elements within, that is, beneath it, and the soul is not with the composition of the elements its nature, but with a pure spirituality and not with a material composition. And fate, when it comes upon composite bodies, commands and acts through the elements and speaks concerning them. And because the soul is bound with the body, it is enslaved along with its nature to the elements, its fathers. However, if it is vigilant, pure, and stands in the nature of its creation.

not understand the servitude to the nature of the body, because the body is a thing that is subject to the spirit, which is something that obeys it and acts according to its disposition, like the seasons, the winds, the fruits, the hours, the pairs, and the mixtures. And these darken the mind and blind the intellect and darken the spirit. Therefore, when the stars indicate something about the nature of the body, they indicate that it is composed of the elements from which the stars themselves are made. And because they know that the name of the person is from one of his parts. [At the time of his body.] At the time of his soul. When his body suffers, either from illness or from a blow, they say that the person suffers, while the soul is neither ill nor injured. Because it is bound with him, in every way, it suffers in his suffering, while its nature is above these material sufferings. When, again, the soul suffers from anxiety or from grief, because of something that distresses it, either concerning death or concerning some loss, or it thinks of opposites and seeks Hermes, or again rejoices and is glad and thinks of right things and seeks true teachings. Concerning the whole person, these and these are said, and these are material, and not concerning his part. Therefore, this is easy for its understanding: it will be clear and acceptable to every man, that the stars indicate the events of the body, in that they act through the elements. Concerning the soul, however, they do not indicate, because the nature of the soul is above the elements and above the stars and above the zodiac, and the rational soul is able, by the authority of its house and by the movement of its freedom, which is its will, to change natures and to resist the passions of the body. But the majority of people, together with the passions of the body, are carried away violently, and like the chariot of the charioteer of their mixture.

and they did not investigate rationally how nature can be constrained and how seasons and properties that endure for a long time can be ordered. Or the mixtures of the body, or those of the place in which they were raised. Or the discipline and teaching in which they were instructed. Or other things of this kind. Each one of them is among those that can rationally govern themselves and order the seasons and properties that were satisfied and established in them over a long time. And one out of many thousands is found who knows these things and is wise with the knowledge of truth. For this one there is no law, and he is not placed under the law of nature. But he is the one who establishes law and determines orders and canons, and seeks out true teachings and interpretations of hidden and secret things, because his heart is purified and his existence is tranquil, and his mind is illuminated, and he stands in the nature of his creation and is deified and elevated to spirituality, in that his self is united with his Creator. Therefore, the heads of all the churches did very well and properly to forbid the simple and those within the churches from the teaching of astrology, because they are coarse and simple and the majority of men are coarse and simple and carnal, lest they be shaken in their faith and be divided over the authoritative freedom that they have from their Creator. But the wise and those who know the truth—there is no law over them, because they have attained the truth that He taught and established laws and canons. The law is not established for the wise, but for the wicked and the sinners of the rest. From the beginning of the sixth chapter: On how great is the need of the stars, and where their places are, and what their natures are, and on the rest of all their law.

their usefulness, what it is, and what their efficacy is, by which the directions of east, west, north, and south are known. And what place the winds have, and the knowledge of times and hours of days and nights, and dawns and dusks, and the changes of the seasons of winter, spring, summer, and autumn. And also the perfect season and the boundaries of months and the division of weeks and the courses of days. And upon them the navigators direct their ways along their paths, especially those whose guidance and course are on the sea, without signs and indications that exist in the stars. But they were not able to navigate the sea, nor were they saved. The divine writer, the great Moses, spoke well concerning them: that God created them and set them as signs for festivals, for days, and for hours. Again, what their conjunction with one another is, what the firm bond of their existence and mixture is, is made known by cold and heat, and by the change of winds, of storms, and of cyclones, which first warn by their usefulness and their courses on sea and land and in every activity. Especially, the Creator placed in them true and unerring signs, in that He did not arrange them in rows like rows of a vineyard, nor did He make them equal in light and radiance. And like one fire, He made them all of one kind and measure, and in one firmament and order. And if they were so arranged, they would not be distinguished one from another, nor would their places and boundaries be known, nor would the times and watches and hours of the night be known, nor would anyone be able to travel by night.

nor in the sea, nor on dry land. And many confusions and disturbances occur from it. Otherwise, the rotation of the world would not stand, but by that knowledge, a wise creator in every diverse way, through forms and changes of species, and through measurements and clarities and inclinations and depths, and through all the rest, they were distinguished and known with certainty. Just as they know and distinguish many plants from their seeds, so also for cattle and beasts, and even for regions and places on earth, from heights and depths and clefts and valleys and the like. Thus they know to distinguish the places of the stars and their boundaries, the time of their courses, and the change of their species and their positions. And they also learn their measurements and their heights. And these are known with certainty from the science of geometry, that is, the measurement of the earth. [And to this they attest from below, when they speak about the earth] they speak in the matter of wisdom, by which a person attains to know the quantity of the height of mountains and also of the stars, and their measurement and their quantity. And concerning many that are clear and glorious, and also from them, the stars are able to be apprehended and calculated by means of the science of arithmetic, that is, of numbers, which the Phoenicians discovered, because they were engaged in trade and counted numbers of time and movement, and in the course of time, they investigated with numbers and discovered it and arranged it in books, and it became a sublime science. And there are other sciences from the rational sciences that are called music, that is, the harmony of strings, which the Thracians of the house of Javan discovered.

because they are sweet and bitter loves. They taught the composition of diverse natures, and they made excellent essences. For there are four principal sciences of rationality by which the entire revolution of the world stands. One of them is astronomy, which the Chaldeans discovered, as was shown above. And another is geometry, which the Egyptians discovered in the land of Aegyptus, as will be shown. And arithmetic and music, as was said. And the positions of the stars are as was said above. The first above the sphere of the moon is the firmament of Saturn. And its height is from the boundary of the sphere of Jupiter to the limit of the firmament of Hermes, which is above the moon. Known and measured intervals, which were known from the science of geometry. Thus the height of the firmament in which Hermes travels above the moon: and above this is the firmament in which Aphrodite travels. And it is not low like those. And above this is the third firmament in which the sun travels. And it is much higher than those mentioned. For the sun itself is much larger than all the stars. And above Mars, Zeus travels. This is much higher than those. For it is much larger than all the stars after the sun. And above Zeus, in the seventh firmament, Kronos travels, and this firmament is very high, up to the boundary of the many shining stars. And it is very large, but smaller than Zeus by a little. And above this, in the eighth firmament, travel a thousand stars and more in number.

and this firmament is very high above those earlier ones. And above the ninth firmament, many stars revolve which have no number. And this time and its half are like the firmament of the bright stars which are beneath it. And in the tenth firmament, which is crowned with constellations, visible stars revolve. And this is much higher than all the firmaments. And then above this extends a great sea of waters which are above the heavens. Now the constellations of the stars were arranged thus from the beginning: to the Sun, which is the great and royal luminary, was given the constellation of Leo; and from its west upon its boundary was given to the Moon, which is the small luminary, the constellation of Cancer. To these two great luminaries was given one constellation each. And to the five remaining stars, to each two constellations, thus: to Hermes, who is above the Moon, was given Virgo upon the boundary of the Sun from the east, and the Twins upon the boundary of the Moon from the west. To Aphrodite, who is above Hermes, was given Libra upon the boundary of Hermes from the east, and again Taurus upon the boundary of Hermes himself from the west. To Ares, who is above the Sun, was given Scorpio from the east upon the boundary of Aphrodite, and again Aries upon the boundary of Aphrodite herself from the west. To Zeus, who is above Ares, was given Sagittarius upon the boundary of Ares from the east, and again Aquarius upon the boundary of Ares himself from the west. To Kronos, who is above Zeus, was given Capricorn from the east upon the boundary of Zeus.

and the tail of the Dragon is upon its own boundary of Zeus from the west. And the two faces of Kronos are joined together. And in the opposition of the sun and the moon, every conjunction that is opposite, whether of the stars or of the planets, is not good. And again, the signs or the faces are reckoned thus: the first face of Ares, and the second of the sun which is below Ares, and the third of Aphrodite which is below the sun. And the first face of Taurus is of Hermes, and so on one after another until their end. And the boundaries, and also the degrees or the steps of the signs, are in another manner apart from the sun and the moon, for which boundaries are not reckoned. And also the degrees or the steps of the signs are reckoned one after another upon the sevenths of the planets, beginning from the first step of Ares, and the second of the sun, and so on one after another until the end of the twelve signs. The days, however, are divided thus: the first day of the week is of the sun; the night of the second day is of Zeus, because the first hour of that night belongs to Zeus; the second day is of the moon, and its night of the third is of Aphrodite; the third day is of Ares, and its night of the fourth is of Kronos; the fourth day is of Hermes, and its night of the fifth is of the sun; the fifth day is of Zeus, and its night of the sixth is of the moon; the sixth day is of Aphrodite, and its night of the Sabbath is of Ares; the Sabbath day is of Kronos, and its night of the first day of the week is of Hermes. And again, the hours of the day and of the night are also divided upon their sevenths, beginning from the first hour of the first day of the week, and each hour takes one after another, night and day, until the end of the week.

and that which is adjusted to it, the first hour of the day or of the night, is considered its day or its night. And these are their signs: the Sun, the Moon, Kronos, Zeus, Ares, Aphrodite, Hermes. And to the Sun is assigned gold; to the Moon, silver; to Hermes, quicksilver; to Aphrodite, copper; to Ares, iron; to Zeus, tin; and to Kronos, lead. And all this was ordered and established by the wise Creator of all. Seven by seven, as is fitting, as is seen in the treatise on the earth in the Lord of Wisdom. And these things are briefly spoken concerning the course of the stars. But he who is diligent and desires to learn many things about them, let him read the books of the science of astronomy, and praise their Creator and their orderers. For it is in that of astronomy that they speak, and not in that of astrology. Because astronomy properly teaches the law of the stars, their courses, their risings, and the rest of their qualities. But that of astrology properly means the speech of the stars concerning lots, futures, and predictions beforehand. This is not accepted by the confessions. And the heads of the confessions did well to limit it. For it is deep and not understood by everyone. And it appears to compel and abolish freedom. And many of those who studied in the science of astrology were neither firm in the confession of their faith nor wise in the knowledge of truth, and they had no gift from divine grace to distinguish truth and rectitude from falsehood and error. They fell much, erred, and deviated from the path of truth.

and they believed in the seven planets that are agents, not acted upon; and they are lords, not subjugated. And they did not understand that the world cannot stand without a single God, as was demonstrated above in the first discourse. And thus, in their error, they were deceived by the planets through the agency of Satan, and they offered to them sacrifices, oblations, incense, and the rest of the offerings that were appropriate to the nature of each one, along with many rites of error and vanity. And others set up for them images and likenesses from bodies of gold, silver, bronze, stone, and wood, and they worshipped them as if they were living, rational, ruling, and governing beings. And demons also spoke through those images at certain times, and they showed wonders and portents, and they foretold future events and performed many deeds that seemed marvelous and great to those who saw them. And they believed that those planets themselves were doing, acting, speaking, and showing all these things. And through this they erred from the truth and from the knowledge of the one God, and they led many astray, and they persecuted harshly and violently those who did not agree with them. And thus many heresies arose in that same knowledge of planetary speech, which conflicted with the truth. Concerning this, they especially rejected the entire teaching of astrology, all the doctrines of all peoples, and they did well and were not compelled regarding it, because not everyone is capable of it and can attain its certainty.

Now, as for the law of the stars of astronomy, it is beautiful and not to be despised. And it does not conflict with religion. Rather, it greatly assists it and is sought by every person. For through it the seasons and cycles of times, the changes of hours, months, and weeks, and the entire order by which this world stands are known. For this reason, religions do not reject it, because by it they are enabled to know the times, festivals, and feasts for the observance of their own religion and of the rest. Because of the nature of the stars and of the zodiac—what their elements are, and how human beings have inquired into this, and which is the more certain—everything that is seen by the eyes, heard by the ears, perceived by the sense of touch, and felt by the hands—from every person, it is from the four elements that it exists and subsists, or from all of them, or from three, or from two. And it is not possible that there exists anything below those waters that are above the heavens, and within the zodiac, that is not from those elements. But if there is a spiritual nature, like that of angels, souls, and demons, the nature of these is not seen, nor heard, nor touched, nor perceived. And the stars are indeed seen by the eyes, and the activity of their nature is known from their movements, which are from the nature of the elements. However, they are the simplicity of the elements—that simple and pure thing that exists from the nature of fire, air, and water. The Creator made from them these bodies of the stars. From the nature of earth, there is not one of them.

And the moon, whose sphere is deep and dark, is thought to be the nature of that pure and subtle element which is with the elements of the stars. That whole nature is bent to the sphere of the moon by the will of the Creator, just as also in the microcosm, which is the bond of all worlds and creations. By the nature of the microcosm, everything is measured and bent. The image and likeness of its Creator are known in it. The nature of its soul is with the world of spirits and the nature of the angels. All of it, in the microcosm, its composition and its structure, takes from the zodiac and its signs, and to the earth, mountains, seas, rivers, trees, and animals, as it is about to show clearly from below. And when the microcosm receives a form from the elemental food that establishes the elements, that subtle power of the food is sent to the liver, like that pure power from the elements that is sent to the zodiac. And that liver again dissolves that subtlety which it received and distributes it. And that pure one sends to sight, hearing, and taste, speaking to the mind, the king of the members, in which the senses are fixed and confirmed like stars in the zodiac. And that other nature which again is with the subtle power of the food that the liver received, sends it to the spleen, by which it establishes with that nature of the subtlety of the food, like this nature which is with that pure subtlety of the elements, and is bent in the sphere of the moon, and upon it is deep and thick. So then, the sphere of the moon is the spleen of the zodiac, by which the thickness and nature of the excess beyond the purity of the elements is bent.

which the stars were established. Others say that the element of air alone establishes the stars. And air by itself is not able to be bent and formed, unless there is something else that bends it. For every nature that is moved has a measure and a limit. Thus air is considered to be something like a solid substance, or it becomes like a sack or a wineskin, or like that vessel which is similar to these. So also in every nature and species of body, air is bent: in stones, wood, trees, fruits, grasses, animals, birds, and the rest. And all these, with their four elements, establish and are bent together with the elements to each other. Therefore air by itself is not able to be bent and become with it established substances, but it becomes with it other elements that are bent together with each other. Therefore it is not true, nor is it possible, that the stars are from the nature of air alone. Nor are they a fifth element or something else. Rather, with them, when their elements from matter were established, this whole [system] was established. The simplicity and density of the elements of air, water, and earth were formed by the will of the Creator, and with it these stars came to be. And the excess of them was again formed by the sphere of the moon. And upon it, deep and dark as it is in its nature, the light of the moon is not from its own nature, but its light is from the sun. And when they are joined together in the conjunction that is called *sūḡdōs*, it enters beneath the rays of the sun and gives light above opposite the sun.

and when it gradually recedes from her, it casts its rays upon her and shows her light until she stands diametrically opposite to it; then when the sun looks at her from that distance, it casts upon her abundantly and shows her light on half of her sphere. And she is not seen like a sieve, nor is that her shape as the moon, but a spherical globe like a round ball of fire and a globe. And her size is very great in magnitude. Yet she is also very great, but very small compared to all the stars. But because she is very near, she appears thus large. And Aphrodite is like the size of the moon; Hermes, however, is very small even compared to the moon; the sun, however, is very much larger than all of them, and very much larger than the earth, the seas, and the dry land many times over; Ares, however, is much larger than the whole earth, many times and half of it. Zeus, however, is very much larger than all of them after the sun. Kronos is smaller than Zeus. And the Dog of the Man is as large as Zeus, and because of their great heights they appear thus small. But yet they are very large. And this is taught by the wise men accurately from the art of geometry, that is, from the measurement of the earth. And all the stars, the sun, and the moon are spherical and round. And those places that are seen in the moon when it is full, like valleys and plains and depths, are their nature. And they produce shadows and are not seen thus. Just as there are valleys and depths on earth, so also on the moon. And the earth itself, together with the basins of the seas, is entirely spherical, as it is destined to be seen by the hand of God.

and when the cycle is completed, by the power of God and with help. The seventh cycle of this discourse is with the God of wisdom. Concerning the fact that the eclipse, that is, the darkness of the sun and the moon, occurs. And when does this event occur and how? The sun has its own eclipse, that is, its darkness, when the moon is directly beneath it and covers it from us, just as a cloud passing through the air covers the sun from us. So also the moon. And the moon has its own eclipse, that is, its darkness, when the earth is between the sun and the moon. When the moon rises and stands diametrically and directly opposite the sun, the earth is in the middle and blocks the rays of the sun from the moon. And that darkness which is seen on the moon is the shadow of the earth. But how does the cause and the explanation work? Not every time the moon is full and stands opposite the sun does this darkness from the shadow of the earth occur, but only at certain times. So also for the sun, not every time it is in conjunction with the moon when it stands beneath it does darkness occur, but only at certain times. And the explanation is that at certain times the entire disk of one of them is darkened, at other times two-thirds, at other times half, or a third, or again less or more. Concerning all these things, we speak confidently with the God of wisdom, who in his wisdom ordered and determined all these things. The pattern of the matter is like two wheels of chariots and axles interlocking with each other. And these two places have their poles, that is, their axles, together, just as chariots are mounted on each other. They are called poles. One is the head of the axis, and the other is its base. And they are directly opposite each other like an eye.

and there is no separation from one place to another. In these regions, but very narrow, and not in one place are these knots fixed, but they pass and move in a spherical manner throughout all the orbits. And each one of them is completed in an orbit in less than one hour. And when a conjunction occurs [] and they are joined one with another from these knots, because there is no separation in that place in the zodiac, the moon stands directly under the sun. And its rays are blocked from the earth. Thus, directly in the middle of the knots, a conjunction, that is, an eclipse of the sun and moon, occurs. The whole sun is darkened. But if it is near the knot, and not in the middle of the knot, not the whole is darkened, but parts, parts of it. Or half of its disk, or more or less. And what appears to the eye as dark is not the sun, but the moon, which is placed under the sun and has blocked its rays from the earth. Likewise, when a full moon, that is, the fullness of the moon, occurs, when it stands diametrically opposite the sun, if they are joined in these knots, each with the other, the earth, being between them in the middle, stands and blocks the rays of the sun from the moon, and casts its shadow and darkness upon the moon, either the whole or a part, or half or less. Thus, when a conjunction or a full moon occurs, if they are not joined in these narrow knots, there is no separation for them from one place to another, there is no eclipse for them. And behold, I indicate the scheme of what is visible to the readers. The knot of the head: Anabibazon. The knot of the tail: Katabibazon. Now this is placed without the scheme.

Thus is the configuration of the two wheels of the zodiac. In one of them the sun revolves, in the other the moon. And when the conjunction of the two luminaries occurs, in one of these knots, from the opposite side, the sun is darkened by the moon, which is placed directly beneath it, and its rays are cut off from it. However, the air becomes bright in that place where the sun's rays are spread, because the wheel of the sun is much larger than that of the moon by a thousand times. And it is not possible for the whole air to be darkened by the wheel of the moon, but only the earth is darkened and the day becomes dim. And if the conjunction occurs in that knot, the whole sun is darkened. Or it is darkened by the moon, and what is seen to us when it is not eclipsed is not the sun, but the moon. Then, a little beyond the knot, when the conjunction occurs, less than the whole is darkened. Then again, a little more, half of it alone is darkened. Then again, further beyond the knot, when the conjunction occurs, a little something is darkened from the sun. Thus also when there is a phase or the fullness of the moon. If the sun is in one knot and the moon in another, in the middle of the knots, from the opposite side, the whole moon is darkened by the shadow of the earth, which prevents the sun's rays from reaching it. Then, a little beyond the knots, when the luminaries are in conjunction, at the time of the phase or the waning of the moon, not all of it is darkened. And these things are known luminously from the calculations of astronomy, when they make every hour a new calculation concerning the course of the whole year.

And if an eclipse of one of the two luminaries occurs at that hour, and that of both is known beforehand by calculation, that which is above the earth is calculated and spoken about concerning its course. But that which is below the earth is not spoken about, nor is it perceived. And it is possible to know by calculation at what hour the eclipse will begin, and how much of the luminary will be darkened, and how long the completion of the darkness will be delayed, and when the darkness begins to be revealed, [and how many hours occur from when the darkness begins] until it is all revealed. And also the manner of the luminary's appearance when it is darkened, and in which sign, and in how many degrees. All these things God has given to humanity to know and to perceive. And also the stars, when they are concealed with the moon in one of these knots, are hidden by it, whether they be among the seven, or among the fixed stars in the circle of the signs, on the path of their course of the seven in the zodiac. And also these stars, when two of the seven are concealed in one of these knots, the upper one is hidden by the lower one, until it passes by it. Aphrodite conceals Ares, Zeus, Kronos, and the rest of the stars that are concealed with her in one conjunction in one of these knots, because she is below them. And she herself is hidden by the moon, because she is below it. And Zeus in turn conceals Kronos, who is above him, and the rest of the stars. And also Kronos conceals the one above him when he is conjoined with him in one of these knots. And this is the concealment of the synodos, as they say, even when they are concealed in one conjunction and degree with each other, but each one is very high above its companion.

as has been shown above concerning their firmaments and their circuits and their orbits. Praise, worship, and thanksgiving to Him who created, established, and ordered them. He alone knows the certainty of the truth of all these. Through the signs of the times, however, from the course of the empty time and much disputation, they were able to know these by the grace of the wisdom of their Creator. And from the book we hear that their Creator, God, set and placed the signs and the times and the seasons. And another book says: He called the stars and all of them by names. And again it says: The heavens praised the Lord, and they praised Him in the heights. All His angels and all His hosts. And again the sun and the moon praised Him. And all the stars and the light praised Him. The heavens and the waters above the heavens praised the name of the Lord. For He spoke and they came to be. And He commanded and they were created and established for everlasting ages. He gave a law and it does not pass away. And in all the books of the ancient powers they are read, and many, many things have been considered concerning them. But here we indicate the certainty of the truth: that which receives all these thanksgivings. They speak, however, concerning the philosophers, the wise in the knowledge of truth, and not the common people wise in their own eyes and the disputants without understanding. And in these is completed the chapter of the seventh by the God of power and help: to Him is fitting praise and honor and worship in all worlds of worlds, amen.

The end of the fifth discourse, by the grace of God who is mighty and helpful. In it he spoke gloriously and amply concerning the creation of the light and the expanse of the heavens, and concerning the waters above the heavens, and concerning the firmaments of the heavens, and the arrangement of the zodiac, and concerning the stars and their positions, their courses, and their revolutions, and concerning the eclipse of the sun and the moon, and concerning the entire circuit and cycle of the zodiac and the stars.