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| A Letter of Mara, Son of Serapion.
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Ancient
Syriac Documents.
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A Letter of Mara, Son of
Serapion.3463
| 3463
[Elucidation I. p. 742, infra. See p. 722,
supra.] |
Mara, son of Serapion, to
Serapion, my son: peace.
When thy master and guardian wrote me a letter,
and informed me that thou wast very diligent in study, though so
young in years, I blessed God that thou, a little boy, and
without a guide to direct thee, hadst begun in good earnest; and
to myself also this was a comfort—that I heard of thee,
little boy as thou art, as displaying such greatness of mind and
conscientiousness:3464
| 3464 Lit. “good
conscience.” | a
character which, in the case of many who have begun well,
has shown no eagerness to continue.
On this account, lo, I have written for thee this
record, touching that which I have by careful observation
discovered in the world. For the kind of life men lead has been
carefully observed by me. I tread the path of learning,3465
| 3465 Or, “my
daily converse is with learning.” So Dr. Payne Smith is
inclined to take these difficult words, supplying, as Cureton evidently
does, the pronoun ***. The construction would be easier if we
could take the participle *** as a passive, and render: “It
(the kind of life men lead) has been explored by me by means of
study.” | and from the study of Greek
philosophy3466
have I found
out all these things, although they suffered shipwreck when the birth
of life took place.3467
| 3467 The meaning
probably is, that the maxims referred to lost their importance for him
when he entered upon the new life of a Christian (so Cureton), or their
importance to mankind when Christianity itself was born into the
world. But why he did not substitute more distinctive Christian
teaching is not clear. Perhaps the fear of persecution influenced
him. |
Be diligent, then, my son, in attention to
those things which are becoming for the free,3468
| 3468 That is,
the matters constituting “a liberal
education.” | so as to devote thyself to
learning, and to follow after wisdom; and endeavour thus to become
confirmed in those habits with which thou hast begun. Call
to mind also my precepts, as a quiet person who is fond of the pursuit
of learning. And, even though such a life should seem to
thee very irksome, yet when thou hast made experience of it for
a little while, it will become very pleasant to thee: for to me
also it so happened. When, moreover, a person has left his home,
and is able still to preserve his previous character, and
properly does that which it behoves him to do, he is that chosen man
who is called “the blessing of God,” and one who does not
find aught else to compare with his freedom.3469
| 3469 Cureton’s
less literal rendering probably gives the true sense: “with
whose liberty nothing else can be compared.” | For, as for those persons who are
called to the pursuit of learning, they are seeking to extricate
themselves from the turmoils of time; and those who take hold upon
wisdom, they are clinging to the hope of righteousness; and those who
take their stand on truth, they are displaying the banner of their
virtue; and those who cultivate philosophy, they are looking to escape
from the vexations of the world. And do thou too, my son, thus
wisely behave thyself in regard to these things, as a wise
person who seeks to spend a pure life; and beware lest the gain
which many hunger after enervate thee, and thy mind turn to covet
riches, which have no stability. For, when they are acquired by
fraud, they do not continue; nor, even when justly obtained, do
they last; and all those things which are seen by thee in the world, as
belonging to that which is only for a little time, are
destined to depart like a dream: for they are but as
the risings and settings of the seasons.
About the objects of that vainglory, too,
of which the life of men is full, be not thou solicitous: seeing
that from those things which give us joy there quickly comes to us
harm. Most especially is this the case with the birth of
beloved children. For in two respects it plainly brings us
harm: in the case of the virtuous, our very affection for
them torments us, and from their very excellence of character we
suffer torture; and, in the case of the vicious, we are worried with
their correction, and afflicted with their misconduct.
Thou hast heard,3470
| 3470 Cureton:
“I have heard.” The unpointed text is here
ambiguous. | moreover, concerning our companions,
that, when they were leaving Samosata, they were distressed about
it, and, as if complaining of the time in which their lot was
cast, said thus: “We are now far removed from our home,
and we cannot return again to our city, or behold our people, or offer to
our gods the greeting of praise.” Meet was it that that day
should be called a day of lamentation, because one heavy grief
possessed them all alike. For they wept as they remembered their
fathers, and they thought of their mothers3471
| 3471 Read ***, instead
of ***, “peoples.” | with sobs, and they were distressed for
their brethren, and grieved for their betrothed whom they had
left behind. And, although we had heard that their3472
| 3472 Perhaps
“our” is meant. | former companions were proceeding to
Seleucia, we clandestinely set out, and proceeded on the way
towards them, and united our own misery with theirs. Then was our
grief exceedingly violent, and fitly did our weeping abound, by reason
of our desperate plight, and our wailing gathered itself into a
dense cloud,3473
| 3473 Cureton:
“and the dark cloud collected our sighs.” But the
words immediately following, as well as the fact that in each of the
clauses the nominative is placed last, favours the rendering given. | and our
misery grew vaster than a mountain: for not one of us had the
power to ward off the disasters that assailed him. For affection
for the living was intense, as well as sorrow for the dead, and our
miseries were driving us on without any way of escape. For
we saw our brethren and our children captives, and we remembered our
deceased companions, who were laid to rest in a foreign3474
land. Each one of us, too, was
anxious for himself, lest he should have disaster added to disaster, or
lest another calamity should overtake that which went before it.
What enjoyment could men have that were prisoners, and who
experienced things like these?
But as for thee, my beloved, be not distressed
because in thy loneliness thou hast3475
been
driven from place to place. For to these things men are born,
since they are destined to meet with the accidents of
time. But rather let thy thought be this, that to wise men
every place is alike, and that in every city the good have many
fathers and mothers. Else, if thou doubt it, take thee a
proof from what thou hast seen thyself. How many people
who know thee not love thee as one of their own children; and
what a host of women receive thee as they would their own
beloved ones! Verily, as a stranger thou hast been fortunate;
verily, for thy small love many people have conceived an ardent
affection for thee.
What, again, are we to say concerning the
delusion3476
| 3476 Or
“error.” He may refer either to the delusion of those
who pursue supposed earthly good, or to the false appearances by which
men are deceived in such pursuit. | which has
taken up its abode in the world? Both by reason of toil3477
painful is the journey through it,
and by its agitations are we, like a reed by the force of the wind,
bent now in this direction, now in that. For I have been amazed
at many who cast away their children, and I have been astonished at
others who bring up those that are not theirs. There are persons
who acquire riches in the world, and I have also been astonished at
others who inherit that which is not of their own
acquisition. Thus mayest thou understand and see
that we are walking under the guidance of delusion.
Begin and tell us, O wisest of men,3478
| 3478 Cureton:
“A sage among men once began to say to us.” This
would require ***, not ***. | on which of his possessions a
man can place reliance, or concerning what things he can say that they
are such as abide. Wilt thou say so of abundance of
riches? they are snatched away. Of fortresses? they are
spoiled. Of cities? they are laid waste. Of greatness? it
is brought down. Of magnificence? it is overthrown. Of
beauty? it withers. Or of laws? they pass away. Or of
poverty? it is despised. Or of children? they die. Or of
friends? they prove false. Or of the praises of men?
jealousy goes before them.
Let a man, therefore, rejoice in his empire, like
Darius; or in his good fortune, like Polycrates; or in his bravery,
like Achilles; or in his wife, like Agamemnon; or in his offspring,
like Priam; or in his skill, like Archimedes; or in his wisdom, like
Socrates; or in his learning, like Pythagoras; or in his ingenuity,
like Palamedes;—the life of men, my son, departs from the world,
but their praises and their virtues abide for ever.
Do thou, then, my little son, choose thee that
which fadeth not away. For those who occupy themselves with these
things are called modest, and are beloved, and lovers of a good
name.
When, moreover, anything untoward befalls thee, do not
lay the blame on man, nor be angry against God, nor fulminate against
the time thou livest in.
If thou shalt continue in this mind, thy gift is
not small which thou hast received from God, which has no need of
riches, and is never reduced to poverty. For without fear shalt
thou pass thy life,3479
and with
rejoicing. For fear and apologies for one’s nature
belong not to the wise, but to such as walk contrary to law. For
no man has even been deprived of his wisdom, as of his
property.
Follow diligently learning rather than
riches. For the greater are one’s possessions, the
greater is the evil attendant upon them. For I have myself
observed that, where a man’s goods are many, so also are
the tribulations which happen to him; and, where luxuries are
accumulated, there also do sorrows congregate; and, where riches are
abundant, there is stored up the bitterness of many a
year.
If, therefore,
thou shalt behave with understanding, and shalt diligently watch over
thy conduct, God will not refrain from helping thee, nor men
from loving thee.
Let that which thou art able to acquire suffice thee;
and if, moreover, thou art able to do without property, thou shalt be
called blessed, and no man whatsoever shall be jealous of thee.
And remember also this, that nothing will disturb
thy life very greatly, except it be the love of gain; and
that no man after his death is called an owner of property:
because it is by the desire of this that weak men are led captive, and
they know not that a man dwells among his possessions only in
the manner of a chance-comer, and they are haunted with fear because
these possessions are not secured to them: for they
abandoned that which is their own, and seek that which is not
theirs.
What are we to say, when the wise are dragged by
force by the hands of tyrants, and their wisdom is deprived of its
freedom3480
| 3480 Lit., “made
captive.” | by slander,
and they are plundered for their superior intelligence, without
the opportunity of making a defence? They are not
wholly to be pitied. For what benefit did the Athenians
obtain by putting Socrates to death, seeing that they received as
retribution for it famine and pestilence? Or the people of Samos
by the burning of Pythagoras, seeing that in one hour the
whole3481
of their country was covered with
sand? Or the Jews by the murder of their Wise King, seeing
that from that very time their kingdom was driven away from
them? For with justice did God grant a recompense to the
wisdom of all three of them. For the Athenians died by
famine; and the people of Samos were covered by the sea without remedy;
and the Jews, brought to desolation and expelled from their kingdom,
are driven away into every land. Nay, Socrates did
“not” die, because of Plato; nor yet Pythagoras, because of
the statue of Hera; nor yet the Wise King, because of the new laws
which he enacted.
Moreover I, my son, have attentively observed
mankind, in what a dismal state of ruin they are. And I have been
amazed that they are not utterly prostrated3482
| 3482 No verb is
found in the lexicons to which *** can be referred. It may
perhaps be Eshtaphel of a verb ***, cognate with ***, “to be
bent.” | by the calamities which surround
them, and that even their wars3483
are not enough for them, nor the
pains they endure, nor the diseases, nor the death, nor the
poverty; but that, like savage beasts, they must needs rush upon
one another in their enmity, trying which of them shall
inflict the greater mischief on his fellow. For they have broken
away from the bounds of truth, and transgress all honest laws, because
they are bent on fulfilling their selfish desires; for, whensoever a
man is eagerly set on obtaining that which he desires, how is it
possible that he should fitly do that which it behoves him to
do? and they acknowledge no restraint,3484
and but seldom stretch out their
hands towards truth and goodness, but in their manner of life behave
like the deaf3485
| 3485 Cureton:
“dumb.” The word *** has both senses. | and the
blind. Moreover, the wicked rejoice, and the righteous are
disquieted. He that has, denies that he has; and he that
has not, struggles to acquire. The poor seek help, and the
rich hide their wealth, and every man laughs at his
fellow. Those that are drunken are stupefied, and those that have
recovered themselves are ashamed.3486
Some weep, and some sing; and some laugh, and others are a prey to
care. They rejoice in things evil, and a man that speaks the
truth they despise.
Should a man, then, be surprised when the world is
seeking to wither him with its scorn, seeing that they and
he have not one and the same manner of life?
“These” are the things for which they care. One of
them is looking forward to the time when in battle he shah
obtain the renown of victory; yet the valiant perceive not by how many
foolish objects of desire a man is led captive in the world. But
would that for a little while self-repentance visited them! For,
while victorious by their bravery, they are overcome by the power of
covetousness. For I have made trial of men, and with this
result: that the one thing on which they are intent, is abundance
of riches. Therefore also it is that they have no settled
purpose; but, through the instability of their minds, a man is of a
sudden cast down from his elation of spirit to be swallowed up
with sadness. They look not at the vast wealth of eternity,
nor consider that every visitation of trouble is conducting us
all alike to the same final period. For they are devoted
to the majesty of the belly, that huge blot on the
character of the vicious.
Moreover, as regards this letter
which it has come into my mind to write to thee, it is not enough to
read it, but the best thing is that it be put in practice.3487
| 3487 So Dr.
Payne Smith, who is inclined to take *** in the sense, “it goes
before, it is best, with respect to it.” Cureton
translates, “it should also proceed to practice,” joining
*** with the participle just mentioned; whereas Dr. Smith connects it
with ***, thus: “but that it should be put in
practice is best with respect to it.” | For I know for myself, that
when thou shalt have made experiment of this mode of life, it will be very
pleasant to thee, and thou wilt be free from sore vexation; because it
is only on account of children that we tolerate riches.3488
| 3488 This appears
to show that the life of learned seclusion which he has been
recommending is one of celibacy—monasticism. |
Put, therefore, sadness away from thee, O
most beloved of mankind,—a thing which never in anywise
benefits a man; and drive care away from thee, which brings with
it no advantage whatsoever. For we have no resource or skill
that can avail us—nothing but a great mind
able to cope with the disasters and to endure the tribulations
which we are always receiving at the hands of the times. For at
these things does it behove us to look, and not only at those
which are fraught with rejoicing and good repute.
Devote thyself to wisdom, the fount of all things good,
the treasure that faileth not. There shalt thou lay thy head, and
be at ease. For this shall be to thee father and mother, and a
good companion for thy life.
Enter into closest intimacy with fortitude and
patience, those virtues which are able successfully to
encounter the tribulations that befall feeble men. For so great
is their strength, that they are adequate to sustain hunger, and
can endure thirst, and mitigate every trouble. With toil,
moreover, yea even with dissolution, they make right merry.
To these things give diligent attention, and thou
shalt lead an untroubled life, and I also shall have comfort,3489
| 3489 Or, “and
thou shalt be to me a comfort,” as Cureton. | and thou shalt be called “the
delight of his parents.”
For in that time of yore, when our city was
standing in her greatness, thou mayest be aware that against many
persons among us abominable words were uttered; but for
ourselves,3490
we acknowledged
long ago that we received love, no less than honour, to the fullest
extent from the multitude of her people: it was the state of the
times only that forbade our completing those things which
we had resolved on doing.3491
| 3491 Such appears
to be the sense of this obscure passage. The literal rendering
is, “We acknowledged of old that we received equal love and
honour to the fullest extent from her multitude” (or, from her
greatness); “but the time forbade our completing those
things which were already accomplished in our mind.”
What things he refers to (for his words seem to have a particular
reference) is not clear. The word rendered
“greatness,” or “multitude,” is in reality two
words in pointedmss. Here it does not
appear, except from the sense, which is intended. | And here
also in the prison-house we give thanks to God that we have received
the love of many: for we are striving to our utmost to maintain a
life of sobriety and cheerfulness;3492
| 3492 Lit., “We
are putting ourself to the proof to see how far we can stand in
wisdom,” etc. | and, if
anyone drive us by force, he will but be bearing public
testimony against himself, that he is estranged from all things good,
and he will receive disgrace and shame from the foul mark of shame
that is upon him. For we have shown our
truth—that truth which in our now ruined kingdom we
possessed not.3493
| 3493
“This is a very hopeless passage.…Perhaps the codex
has ***, ‘the kingdom of our ruin,’ i.e., the ruined
country in which we used to dwell. For possibly it refers to what
he has said before about the ruined greatness of his city, captured by
the Romans. I suppose Mara was a Persian.”—Dr.
Payne Smith. | But, if
the Romans shall permit us to go back to our own country, as
called upon by justice and righteousness to do, they will be
acting like humane men, and will earn the name of good and righteous,
and at the same time will have a peaceful country in which to
dwell: for they will exhibit their greatness when they shall
leave us free men, and we shall be obedient to the sovereign
power which the time has allotted to us. But let them not like
tyrants, drive us as though we were slaves. Yet, if it has
been already determined what shall be done, we shall receive
nothing more dreadful than the peaceful death which is in store
for us.
But thou, my little son, if thou resolve
diligently to acquaint thyself with these things, first of all put a
check on appetite, and set limits to that in which thou art
indulging. Seek the power to refrain from being angry;
and, instead of yielding to outbursts of passion, listen to
the promptings of kindness.
For myself, what I am henceforth solicitous about
is this—that, so far as I have recollections of the
past, I may leave behind me a book containing them, and with
a prudent mind finish the journey which I am appointed to take,
and depart without suffering out of the sad afflictions of the
world. For my prayer is, that I may receive my dismissal;
and by what kind of death concerns me not. But, if any one
should be troubled or anxious about this, I have no counsel to
give him: for yonder, in the dwelling-place of all the world,
will he find us before him.
One of his friends asked Mara, son of Serapion,
when in bonds at his side: “Nay, by thy life, Mara, tell me
what cause of laughter thou hast seen, that thou
laughest.” “I am laughing,” said Mara,
“at Time:3494
inasmuch
as, although he has not borrowed any evil from me, he is paying me
back.”
Here endeth the letter of Mara, son of
Serapion.
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