The Stream

Ὑποθώμεθα γάρ τι ὕδωρ ἐκ πηγῆς προχεόμενον, εἰς διαφόρους ἀποῥῥοὰς κατὰ τὸ συμβὰν διασχίζεσθαι. Οὐκοῦν ἕως ἂν οὕτω φέρηται, εἰς οὐδεν τῶν πρὸς τὴν γεωργίαν χρησίμων ἐπιτήδειον ἔσται, τῆς εἰς πολλὰ διαχύσεως ὀλίγον τὸ ἐν ἐκάστῳ, καὶ ἀδρανὲς, καὶ δυσκίνητον ὑπὸ ἀτονίας ποιούσης· εἰ δέ τις πάσας αὐτοῦ τὰς ἀτάκτως ἀποῥῥοὰς συναγάγοι, καὶ εἰς ἔν ῥεῖθρον τὸ πολλαχῆ τέως ἐσκεδασμένεν ἀθροίσειεν, εἰς πολλὰ ἂντῶν βιωφελῶν καὶ χρησίμων ἀθρόῳ καὶ συντεταγμένῳ τῷ ὕδατι χρήσαιτο. Οὒτω μοι δοκεῖ καὶ ὁ νοῦς ὁ ἀνθρώπινος εἰ μὲν πανταχοῦ διαχέοιτο, πρὸς τὸ ἀρέσκον ἀεὶ τοῐς αἰσθητηρίοις ῥέων καὶ σκεδαννύμενος, μηδεμίαν ἀξιόλογον δύναμιν ἵσχειν πρὸς τὴν ἐπὶ τὸ ὅντως ἀγαθὸν πορείαν· εἰ δὲ πανταχόθεν ἀνακληθεὶς, καὶ περὶ ἑαυτὸν ἀθροισθεὶς, συνηγμένος καὶ ἀδιάχυτος πρὸς τὴν οἰκείαν ἑαυτῷ καὶ κατὰ φύσιν ἐνέργειν κινοῖτο, ούδὲν τὸ κωλύον αὐτὸν ἔσται πρὸς τὰ ἄνω φέρεσθαι, καὶ τῆς ἀληθείας τῶν ὅντων ἐφάπτεσθαι. Περὶ ΠαρΘενίας, Ἅγιος Γρηγόριος Νύσσης

Let us imagine a stream flowing from a spring and dividing itself into a number of accidental channels. As long as it proceeds so, it will be useless for any purpose of agriculture, the dissipation of its waters making each particular current small and feeble, and therefore slow. But if one were to mass these wandering and widely dispersed rivulets again into one single channel, he would have a full and collected stream for the supplies which life demands. So it seems to me is the human mind, as long as its current spreads itself in all directions over the pleasures of the sense, has no power that is worth the naming of making its way towards the real Good; but once call it back and collect it upon itself, so that it may begin to move without scattering and wandering towards the activity which is congenital and natural to it, it will find no obstacle in mounting to things above and in grasping the truth of the things that are. On Virginity, Saint Gregory of Nyssa