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eis to pipi

Evagrius Ponticus · khazarzar

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machine-draft · no human review 1 passages · 224 words

Work dossier · summary and historical context

Summary

This short, aphoristic text attributed to Evagrius Ponticus (c. 345–399) discusses the divine name, focusing on the Tetragrammaton (YHWH) and its Hebrew equivalents such as Adonai. Written in a directive, spiritual register for monastic readers, it reflects early Christian interest in Hebrew names and the unpronounceable nature of the divine name. The work survives in Greek manuscripts of the Evagrian corpus, but its attribution is traditional and not securely established by external evidence. The Khazarzar edition is a digital transcription without critical apparatus, limiting verification of textual variants. The text likely dates from the late 4th to early 5th century.

This text is significant for its early Christian reflection on the Tetragrammaton and Hebrew divine names, showing how Greek-speaking monks engaged with Jewish traditions. It provides insight into the transmission of Hebrew linguistic knowledge in Christian monastic circles and the development of apophatic theology. The work relates to Evagrius's broader corpus on prayer and contemplation, as well as to patristic discussions of the divine name in Origen and later writers.

Historical context

The work belongs to the ascetic tradition of late antique Christianity, likely composed in a monastic community in the Greek-speaking Eastern Mediterranean, possibly in Egypt or Palestine, where Evagrius spent his later years. Evagrius Ponticus was a prominent theologian and monk, known for his integration of Origenist thought with practical asceticism. The text's focus on the Tetragrammaton and Hebrew divine names indicates engagement with Jewish exegetical traditions, possibly through Origen's Hexapla or contemporary Christian interest in the divine name. The manuscript transmission is unclear; the work survives in Greek codices of the Evagrian corpus, but its exact place in the tradition is uncertain. The Khazarzar edition provides no apparatus criticus, translation, or commentary, so readers cannot assess the reliability of the transcription against the manuscript base. The text's genre is other, likely a short treatise or note on the divine name, not a systematic theological work.

Apparatus · what the pipeline recorded

Annotation and terms

6 commentary units 2 background1 term1 scripture1 caution1 reception 0 derived notes 1 open questions 1 narrative
What the kinds mean

Pipeline notes

  • coverageNo English translation could be identified: a language model asked twice could not name one, though it could not rule one out either. That is not proof that none exists — translations in dissertations, recent books and other modern languages are easily missed.
  • limitThe English is a machine draft produced passage by passage from the transcribed Coptic; no human has verified it. The commentary is model-written and cites only keys the pipeline could resolve.
  • registerRegister: other in ancient Greek; the English keeps the liturgical formulae and the vocatives rather than normalising them.
  • structurePassages: 1 narrative.
  • sourceSource edition: khazarzar — Migne PG text (public domain); khazarzar host and the digitising project state no licence for this layer

Term index

CopticRenderingCountFirst
no glossary terms recorded
khazarzar-evagrius-ponticus-eis-to-pipi:1 · narrativemedium
Source
Εὐαγρίου εἰς τὸ πιπι. Διὰ τὴν ἑβραϊκὴν ἐπὶ τοῦ κυρίου παρασημείωσιν ταῦτα λεκτέον. δέκα ὀνόμασι παρ' Ἑβραίοις ὀνομάζεται ὁ θεός. ὧν ἓν μὲν Ἀδωναῒ λέγεται, ὅ ἐστιν κύριος, ἕτερον δὲ Ἰά, ὃ αὐτὸ ἐν τῷ ἑλληνικῷ εἰς τὸ κύριος μετελήφθη. ἕτερον δέ τι παρὰ ταῦτά ἐστι, τὸ τετραγράμματον, ἀνεκφώνητον ὂν παρ' Ἑβραίοις, ὃ καταχρηστικῶς παρὰ μὲν αὐτοῖς Ἀδωναῒ καλεῖται, παρὰ δὲ ἡμῖν κύριος. τοῦτο δὲ φασὶν ἐπὶ τῷ πετάλῳ τῷ χρυσῷ τῷ ἐπὶ τοῦ μετώπου τοῦ ἀρχιερέως γεγράφθαι κατὰ τὸ ἐν τῷ νόμῳ εἰρημένον «ἐκτύπωμα σφραγῖδος ἁγίασμα κυρίῳ πιπι». τὰ δὲ λοιπὰ ὀνόματά ἐστιν ταῦτα· Ἤλ, Ἐλωείμ, Ἀδών, Σαβαώθ, Σαδδαΐ, Αἰϊὲ ἐσεριὲ καὶ τὰ προγεγραμμένα τρία, ὧν ἐστὶν τὸ τετραγράμματον, τούτοις γραφόμενον τοῖς στοιχείοις ἰὼθ ἣ οὐαὺ ἣ. πιπι ὁ θεός. Τὸ ἐπὶ τοῦ κυρίου ταττόμενον ἀνεκφώνητον ὄνομα διὰ τεσσάρων γράφεται στοιχείων, διὰ τοῦ ἰώθ, διὰ τοῦ ἣ, διὰ τοῦ οὐὰβ καὶ διὰ τοῦ ἤθ. τούτων μέσον παρεντεθὲν μετὰ τὰ πρῶτα δύο παρ' Ἑβραίοις στοιχεῖον καλούμενον σέν, ὅ ἐστιν ὀδόντες, ὡς εἶναι τὸν εἱρμὸν τῶν πέντε γραμμάτων οὕτως· ἀρχὴ αὕτη, ὀδόντες ἐν αὐτῇ ὁ ζῶν. ἑρμηνεύεται τὰ τέσσαρα στοιχεῖα, τὸ ἰὼθ ἀρχή, καὶ διὰ τοῦ ἣ αὕτη, καὶ διὰ τοῦ οὐὰβ καὶ διὰ τοῦ ἤθ. τούτων μέσον παρεντεθὲν μετὰ τὰ πρῶτα δύο παρ' Ἑβραίοις στοιχεῖον καλούμενον σέν, ὅ ἐστιν ὀδόντες, ὡς εἶναι τὸν εἱρμὸν τῶν πέντε γραμμάτων οὕτως· ἀρχὴ αὕτη, ὀδόντες ἐν αὐτῇ ὁ ζῶν. ἑρμηνεύεται τὰ τέσσαρα στοιχεῖα, τὸ ἰὼθ ἀρχή, καὶ διὰ τοῦ ἣ αὕτη, καὶ διὰ τοῦ οὐαὺ ἐν αὐτῇ καὶ διὰ τοῦ ἢθ ὁ ζῶν.
English
Evagrius on the Tetragrammaton. On account of the Hebrew notation concerning the Lord, these things must be said. God is named by the Hebrews with ten names. Of these, one is called Adonai, which is Lord; another is Ia, which in Greek was rendered as Lord. There is yet another besides these, the Tetragrammaton, which is unpronounceable among the Hebrews, and which is called by them, by a misuse, Adonai, and by us, Lord. They say that this was written on the golden plate on the forehead of the high priest, according to what is said in the Law: "an impression of a seal, a sanctification to the Lord, pi pi." The remaining names are these: El, Eloeim, Adon, Sabaoth, Saddai, Aïe eserie, and the three previously written, among which is the Tetragrammaton, written with these letters: ioth, he, uau, he. Pi pi, God. The unpronounceable name assigned to the Lord is written with four letters: with ioth, with he, with uab, and with eth. Between these, after the first two, is inserted a letter called by the Hebrews sen, which means "teeth," so that the sequence of the five letters is thus: beginning, this, teeth in it, the living one. The four letters are interpreted: ioth is "beginning," and through he "this," and through uau "in it," and through eth "the living one.
Citation. Tergwame, “eis to pipi”, khazarzar-evagrius-ponticus-eis-to-pipi:1, machine-draft, 2026. https://naxiai.com/christian/works/khazarzar-evagrius-ponticus-eis-to-pipi#s1
Colophon. Source: khazarzar · licence: Migne PG text (public domain); khazarzar host and the digitising project state no licence for this layer · model: deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash:floor · provider: Relace · cost: $0.0012 · generated 2026-11-15.