4. Makkabeler (Ek) 7

¹Çünkü babamız Eleazar'ın muhakemesi, tutkular denizinde dindarlık gemisini yönlendiren usta bir dümenci gibi,

²zorbanın tehditleriyle hırpalanıp işkencelerin dev dalgalarıyla sular altında kaldığı halde,

³dindarlık dümenini hiçbir şekilde başka yöne çevirmedi, ta ki ölümsüz zaferin limanına yelken açana dek.

⁴Kuşatılmış hiçbir kent, pek çok ve çeşitli savaş makinelerine karşı hiçbir zaman o her bakımdan kutsal Eleazar kadar direnememiştir; o, kutsal ruhu işkenceler ve gergi aletleriyle ateşe verilip yakılırken, dindarlığı savunan muhakemesi sayesinde kendisini kuşatanları yendi.

⁵Çünkü baba Eleazar, kendi düşünce gücünü sarp bir burun gibi ileri uzatarak tutkuların azgın dalgalarını kırdı.

⁶Ey kâhinliğe yaraşır kâhin! Kutsal dişlerini kirletmedin; Tanrı korkusunu ve yasaya uygun arınmayı barındıran mideni murdar beslenmeyle lekelemedin.

⁷Ey yasayla uyum içinde olan ve ilahi yaşamın filozofu!

⁸Yasayı kendi kanlarıyla ve soylu alın terleriyle, ölüme kadar varan acılara karşı savunan ve onu kutsal bir hizmet olarak yerine getirenler işte böyle olmalıdır.

⁹Sen ey baba, sabrınla yasalara bağlılığımızı yücelterek pekiştirdin; kutsal ibadetimizi yücelterek yıkılmasına izin vermedin ve işlerinle ilahi felsefenin sözlerini mühürleyip doğruladın.

¹⁰Ey işkencelerden daha güçlü olan ihtiyar, ateşten daha dayanıklı olan yaşlı adam ve tutkuların en büyük kralı Eleazar!

¹¹Çünkü baba Harun, buhurdanıyla kuşanıp halk kalabalığının arasından koşarak yakıcı meleği nasıl yendiyse,

¹²Harun soyundan gelen Eleazar da ateşte eriyip bittiği halde muhakemesinden dönmedi.

¹³En şaşılacak olanı da şudur ki, yaşlı bir adam olmasına, bedeninin gücü zaten çözülmesine, etleri gevşemesine ve sinirleri yıpranmasına rağmen, yeniden gençleşti;

¹⁴ruhuyla, muhakeme aracılığıyla ve İshakvari bir muhakemeyle o çok başlı gergi aletini etkisiz kıldı.

¹⁵Ey kutsal ölüm mührünün tamamladığı o kutsanmış yaşlılık, saygın kır saçlar ve yasaya uygun yaşam!

¹⁶Eğer yaşlı bir adam dindarlık uğruna ölüme götüren işkenceleri hiçe saydıysa, dindar muhakemenin tutkuların efendisi olduğu kuşkusuzdur.

¹⁷Ama belki bazıları şöyle diyebilir: "Herkes tutkularına egemen olamaz, çünkü herkes bilgece bir muhakemeye sahip değildir."

¹⁸Ancak bütün yürekleriyle dindarlığa yönelenler, yalnız onlar benliğin tutkularına egemen olabilirler;

¹⁹çünkü onlar Tanrı'ya ölmediklerine, aksine atalarımız İbrahim, İshak ve Yakup gibi Tanrı için yaşadıklarına inanırlar.

²⁰Dolayısıyla, zayıf muhakemeleri yüzünden bazılarının tutkularına yenik düşmesi bu gerçeğe gölge düşürmez;

²¹çünkü felsefenin tüm kuralına göre dindarca felsefe yapan,

²²Tanrı'ya inanan ve erdem uğruna her türlü sıkıntıya katlanmanın ne mutlu bir şey olduğunu bilen hangi insan, Tanrı korkusu sayesinde tutkularına egemen olamaz?

²³Çünkü sadece bilge, özdenetimli ve cesur olan kişi tutkularının efendisidir.

¹Ωσπερ γὰρ ἄριστος κυβερνήτης ὁ τοῦ πατρὸς ἡμῶν ᾿Ελεαζάρου λογισμὸς πηδαλιουχῶν τὴν τῆς εὐσεβείας ναῦν ἐν τῷ τῶν παθῶν πελάγει

²καὶ καταικιζόμενος ταῖς τοῦ τυράννου ἀπειλαῖς καὶ καταντλούμενος ταῖς τῶν βασάνων τρικυμίαις,

³κατ’ οὐδένα τρόπον μετέτρεψε τοὺς τῆς εὐσεβείας οἴακας, ἕως οὗ ἔπλευσεν ἐπὶ τὸν τῆς ἀθανάτου νίκης λιμένα.

⁴οὐχ οὕτως πόλις πολλοῖς καὶ ποικίλοις μηχανήμασιν ἀντέσχε ποτὲ πολιορκουμένη, ὡς ὁ πανάγιος ᾿Ελεάζαρος· τὴν ἱερὰν ψυχὴν αἰκισμοῖς τε καὶ στρέβλαις πυρπολούμενος ἐνίκησε τοὺς πολιορκοῦντας διὰ τὸν ὑπερασπίζοντα τῆς εὐσεβείας λογισμόν.

⁵ὥσπερ γὰρ πρόκρημνον ἄκραν τὴν ἑαυτοῦ διάνοιαν ὁ πατὴρ ᾿Ελεάζαρος ἐκτείνας, περιέκλασεν τοὺς ἐπιμαινομένους τῶν παθῶν κλύδωνας.

⁶ὦ ἄξιε τῆς ἱερωσύνης ἱερεῦ, οὐκ ἐμίανας τοὺς ἱεροὺς ὀδόντας οὐδὲ τὴν θεοσέβειαν καὶ καθαρισμὸν νόμιμον χωρήσασαν γαστέρα ἐκοινώνησας μιαροφαγίᾳ.

⁷ᾦ σύμφωνε νόμου καὶ φιλόσοφε θείου βίου.

⁸τοιούτους δὴ δεῖ εἶναι τοὺς ἱερουργοῦντας τὸν νόμον ἰδίῳ αἵματι καὶ γενναίῳ ἱδρῶτι τοῖς μέχρι θανάτου πάθεσιν ὑπερασπίζοντας.

⁹σὺ πάτερ, τὴν εὐνομίαν ἡμῶν διὰ τῶν ὑπομονῶν εἰς δόξαν ἐκύρωσας καὶ τὴν ἁγιστείαν σεμνολογήσας οὐ κατέλυσας καὶ διὰ τῶν ἔργων ἐπιστοποίησας τοὺς τῆς θείας φιλοσοφίας λόγους,

¹⁰ὦ βασάνων βιαιότερε γέρον, καὶ πυρὸς εὐτονώτερε πρεσβῦτα, καὶ παθῶν μέγιστε βασιλεῦ ᾿Ελεάζαρε.

¹¹ὥσπερ γὰρ ὁ πατὴρ ᾿Ααρὼν τῷ θυμιατηρίῳ καθωπλισμένος διὰ τοῦ ἐθνοπλήθους ἐπιτρέχων τὸν ἐμπυριστὴν ἐνίκησεν ἄγγελον,

¹²οὕτως ὁ ᾿Ααρωνίδης ᾿Ελεάζαρος διὰ τοῦ πυρὸς ὑπερτηκόμενος οὐ μετετράπη τὸν λογισμόν.

¹³καίτοι τὸ θαυμασιώτατον, γέρων ὤν, λελυμένων μὲν ἤδη τῶν τοῦ σώματος τόνων, περικεχαλασμένων δὲ τῶν σαρκῶν, κεκμηκότων δὲ καὶ τῶν νεύρων, ἀνενέασε

¹⁴τῷ πνεύματι διὰ τοῦ λογισμοῦ καὶ τῷ ἰσακίῳ λογισμῷ τὴν πολυκέφαλον στρέβλαν ἠκύρωσεν.

¹⁵ὦ μακαρίου γήρως καὶ σεμνῆς πολιᾶς καὶ βίου νομίμου, ὃν πιστὴ θανάτου σφραγὶς ἐτελείωσεν.

¹⁶εἰ δέ τοίνυν γέρων ἀνὴρ τῶν μέχρι θανάτου βασάνων περιεφρόνησε δι’ εὐσέβειαν, ὁμολογουμένως ἡγεμών ἐστι τῶν παθῶν ὁ εὐσεβὴς λογισμός.

¹⁷῎Ισως δ’ ἂν εἴποιέν τινες· τῶν παθῶν οὐ πάντες περικρατοῦσιν, ὅτι οὐδὲ πάντες φρόνιμον ἔχουσι τὸν λογισμόν.

¹⁸ἀλλ’ ὅσοι εὐσεβείας προνοοῦσιν ἐξ ὅλης καρδίας, οὗτοι μόνοι δύνανται κρατεῖν τῶν τῆς σαρκὸς παθῶν,

¹⁹πιστεύοντες, ὅτι Θεῷ οὐκ ἀποθνήσκουσιν, ὥσπερ οὐδὲ οἱ πατριάρχαι ἡμῶν ῾Αβραάμ, ᾿Ισαάκ, ᾿Ιακώβ, ἀλλὰ ζῶσι τῷ Θεῷ.

²⁰οὐδὲν οὖν ἐναντιοῦται τὸ φαίνεσθαί τινας παθοκρατεῖσθαι διὰ τὸν ἀσθενῆ λογισμόν.

²¹ἐπεὶ τίς πρὸς ὅλον τὸν τῆς φιλοσοφίας κανόνα εὐσεβῶς φιλοσοφῶν

²²καὶ πεπιστευκὼς Θεῷ καὶ εἰδὼς ὅτι τὸ διὰ τὴν ἀρετὴν πάντα πόνον ὑπομένειν μακάριόν ἐστιν, οὐκ ἂν περικρατήσειεν τῶν παθῶν διὰ τὴν θεοσέβειαν;

²³μόνος γὰρ ὁ σοφὸς καὶ σώφρων ἀνδρεῖός ἐστι τῶν παθῶν κύριος.

¹The reasoning of our father Eleazar, like a first-rate pilot, steering the vessel of piety in the sea of passions,

²and flouted by the threats of the tyrant, and overwhelmed with the breakers of torture,

³in no way shifted the rudder of piety till it sailed into the harbour of victory over death.

⁴Not so has ever a city, when besieged, held out against many and various machines, as did that holy man, when his pious soul was tried with the fiery trial of tortures and rackings, move his besiegers through the religious reasoning that shielded him.

⁵For father Eleazar, projecting his disposition, broke the raging waves of the passions as with a jutting promontory.

⁶O priest worthy of the priesthood! thou didst not pollute thy sacred teeth; nor make thine appetite, which had always embraced the clean and lawful, a partaker of profanity.

⁷O harmonizer with the law, and sage devoted to a divine life!

⁸Of such a character ought those to be who perform the duties of the law at the risk of their own blood, and defend it with generous sweat by sufferings even unto death.

⁹Thou, father, hast gloriously established our right government by thy endurance; and making of much account our service past, prevented its destruction, and, by thy deeds, hast made credible the words of philosophy.

¹⁰O aged man of more power than tortures, elder more vigorous than fire, greatest king over the passions, Eleazar!

¹¹For as father Aaron, armed with a censer, hastening through the consuming fire, vanquished the flame-bearing angel,

¹²so, Eleazar, the descendant of Aaron, wasted away by the fire, did not give up his reasoning.

¹³And, what is most wonderful, though an old man, though the labours of his body were now spent, and his fibres were relaxed, and his sinews worn out, he recovered youth.

¹⁴By the spirit of reasoning, and the reasoning of Isaac, he rendered powerless the many-headed instrument.

¹⁵O blessed old age, and reverend hoar head, and life obedient to the law, which the faithful seal of death perfected.

¹⁶O If, then, an old man, through religion, despised tortures even unto death, confessedly religious reasoning is ruler of the passions.

¹⁷But perhaps some might say, It is not all who conquer passions, as all do not possess wise reasoning.

¹⁸But they who have meditated upon religion with their whole heart, these alone can master the passions of the flesh;

¹⁹they who believe that to God they die not; for, as our forefathers, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, they live to God.

²⁰This circumstance, then, is by no means an objection, that some who have weak reasoning, are governed by their passions:

²¹since what person, walking religiously by the whole rule of philosophy, and believing in God,

²²and knowing that it is a blessed thing to endure all kinds of hardships for virtue, would not, for the sake of religion, master his passion?

²³For the wise and brave man only is lord over his passions.