Catalogue of Coptic and Arabic Manuscripts in Dayr Al-suryan: Arabic Ascetic Discourses (4) (Corpus Scriptorum Christianorum Orientalium, Subsidia, 145) 9789042944671, 9789042944688, 9042944676

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CORPUS S C R I P T O R U M C H R I S T I A N O R U M O R I E N TA L I U M EDITUM CONSILIO

UNIVERSITATIS CATHOLICAE AMERICAE ET UNIVERSITATIS CATHOLICAE LOVANIENSIS Vol. 697

SUBSIDIA TOMUS 145

CATALOGUE OF COPTIC AND ARABIC MANUSCRIPTS IN DAYR AL-SURYĂN EDITORS-IN-CHIEF STEPHEN J. DAVIS AND FATHER BIGOUL AL-SURYĂNĪ

VOLUME 4 ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES BY

STEPHEN J. DAVIS and MARK N. SWANSON

LOVANII IN AEDIBUS PEETERS 2022

CATALOGUE OF COPTIC AND ARABIC MANUSCRIPTS IN DAYR AL-SURYĂN VOLUME 4

CORPUS S C R I P T O R U M C H R I S T I A N O R U M O R I E N TA L I U M EDITUM CONSILIO

UNIVERSITATIS CATHOLICAE AMERICAE ET UNIVERSITATIS CATHOLICAE LOVANIENSIS Vol. 697

SUBSIDIA 145

CATALOGUE OF COPTIC AND ARABIC MANUSCRIPTS IN DAYR AL-SURYĂN EDITORS-IN-CHIEF STEPHEN J. DAVIS AND FATHER BIGOUL AL-SURYĂNĪ

VOLUME 4 ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES BY

STEPHEN J. DAVIS and MARK N. SWANSON

LOVANII IN AEDIBUS PEETERS 2022

A catalogue record for this book is available from the Library of Congress.

© 2022 by Corpus Scriptorum Christianorum Orientalium Tous droits de reproduction, de traduction ou d’adaptation, y compris les microfilms, de ce volume ou d’un autre de cette collection, réservés pour tous pays. ISSN 0070-0444 ISBN 978-90-429-4467-1 eISBN 978-90-429-4468-8 D/2022/0602/59 Éditions Peeters, Bondgenotenlaan 153, B-3000 Louvain

INTRODUCTION Stephen J. DAVIS

The introduction to Volume Four of the Catalogue of Coptic and Arabic Manuscripts in Dayr al-Suryān (CCAMDS) will follow the organizational schema established in Volumes One, Two, and Three. First, I review the history of the project and summarize our cataloguing methodology. Second, I introduce the textual contents of the manuscripts catalogued in this volume. These fall under the rubric of Arabic Ascetic Discourses (Nusukiyyāt), an Arabic-language genre classification indigenous to the Dayr al-Suryān library, which principally includes treatises, letters, rules/canons, and teachings oriented toward instruction in the monastic life. In this context, I also discuss some of the ambiguities related to the definition of “Ascetic Discourses” and that of other, sometimes overlapping, Arabic genre categories. Third, I present case studies designed to give a more textured sense of what our holistic cataloguing approach yields for researching and writing a material history of Dayr al-Suryān and its library. Fourth, I provide a note on the appendices included at the end of the volume. Fifth and finally, as in the case of previous volumes, I add a Catalogue Key for the reader’s reference. 1. HISTORY AND METHODOLOGY As indicated in the first three volumes of this series, the CCAMDS project was initiated in 2013 in partnership with Bishop Mataeos and the past and present librarians at Dayr al-Suryān, Father Bigoul al-Suryānī, Father Azer (Lazarus), and Father Amoun. I am particularly indebted to Father Bigoul, the former head librarian, who is serving as my co-editor-in-chief for this catalogue series and without whose hospitality and expertise this work would not have been possible. Funded by the William K. and Marilyn M. Simpson Endowment for Egyptology at Yale University, the project has involved the work of eight textual experts and one photographer over the course of thirteen on-site seasons (through December 2019). During our first six plus years of work we have logged upwards of 3300 person-hours in the library and have produced entries for 680 of the approximately 1000 total Coptic and Arabic manuscripts in the Dayr al-Suryān collection. Volume 4 has benefited from the substantial contributions of Mark Swanson, who recorded a portion of the manuscript entries for the Ascetic Discourses section. For my part, in addition to documenting the majority of manuscripts in this category, I have

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also been responsible for editing and formatting all of the entries, for compiling the appendices and bibliography, and for composing this introduction.1 Once again, our collection of data was organized according to nine fields of entry. These are: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.

MS number(s) and genre Summary of MS contents Date, language, script, and material Scribe, patron/owner, restorer Tables of contents, colophons, and endowments (waqf-statements) Foliation and numbering systems Dimensions, area of writing, lines per page Cover and condition of MS Scribal Practice and Readers’ Insertions

The Catalogue Key below is meant as an aid to the reader. It provides a more detailed description of the specific information included in each of these categories. These categories were designed to collect data not only on the textual contents of each manuscript, but also about the material transmission and use of the collection in Dayr al-Suryān, including the role scribes (nussākh), owners and patrons (muhtammūn), readers (qurā’), and restorers (murammimūn). As we compile such contextual information, we hope to gain a clearer glimpse of the persons and social practices that helped preserve the Coptic and Copto-Arabic biblical, literary, and theological heritage at Dayr al-Suryān. 2. CONTENTS In discussing the manuscripts found in the Ascetic Discourses (Nusukiyyāt) section of the library, it is important to note from the outset that their contents exhibit a fairly wide variation in literary type. These include, first and foremost, nusukiyyāt properly considered — a large and varied assemblage of ascetic works including letters to monks by figures such as Antony the Great, Evagrius Ponticus, Philoxenos of Mabbug, John Saba, and Elias of Nisibis, rules and canons designed for the regulation of life in coenobitic communities such as those associated with the Pachomian and Shenoutean federations, and treatises and teachings involving instruction on prayer, fasting and other aspects of the monastic life by the authors mentioned above, along with other luminaries such as John Cassian and Isaac the Syrian. In addition, the volumes in this section of the library also preserve works of assorted other genres, including three 1

I am also grateful to Mark Swanson for his critical eye and helpful feedback as I made revisions to this introduction.

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biblical texts and one work of biblical apocrypha, one unidentified canonical text on church order, sixteen theological treatises, and over one hundred mayāmir, as well as several liturgical texts and additional miscellaneous works. The Arabic genre category of Mayāmir and its relationship to the category of Nusukiyyāt deserves special commentary here.2 Typically comprised of monastic sayings, saints’ lives, and sermons, the Mayāmir classification constitutes one of the largest separate sections of the Dayr al-Suryān library, a section so large that it will in fact take up two future catalogue volumes in this series (CCAMDS Volumes 5 and 6). In the collection, only the Liturgy classification (slated for CCAMDS Volumes 7 and 8) contains a greater number of manuscripts. The manuscripts in the library formally classified as Mayāmir are supplemented by varying numbers of individual mayāmir — some standalone, others transmitted as part of small collections — found in manuscripts labeled under other genre categories. By way of comparison, while the Coptic and Arabic Biblical Texts section contains only two such mayāmir, the Arabic Commentaries section fourteen, the Arabic Canons section eight, and the Arabic Theology section twenty, the section of Ascetic Discourses (Nusukiyyāt) contains over one hundred works designated in their title as mayāmir.3 Also important to highlight here is the fact that the lines of the distinction between Nusukiyyāt and Mayāmir as classificatory divisions often become quite blurred in practice. Part of the reason for this has to do with the variability and interchangeability of certain title headings such as mayāmir, “sayings” (aqwāl), “teachings” (ta‘ālīm), “commandments” (waṣāyā), “reports/accounts” (akhbār), “chapters” (ru’ūs, abwāb, or fuṣūl) and “discourse(s)” (kalām). For example, individual collections of mayāmir are sometimes organized into sections that carry different title headings. Thus, John Cassian’s treatise, On the Eight Evil Thoughts, preserved in seven different manuscripts, is labeled a maymar in its title heading but is divided into numbered aqwāl (“sayings”).4 Another example is a collection of Mayāmir in four books written by Isaac the Syrian, found in three different manuscripts in the Dayr al-Suryān library.5 The introduction to that four-book collection is called a khabar (“report/account”), but Book One consists of twenty sections, variably labeled as abwāb (“chapters”), 2

Mayāmir is the plural form of maymar, an Arabic loan word derived from Syriac. For the purposes of this catalogue, I distinguish the broader genre category of Mayāmir by capitalizing it. When it comes to individual works of mayāmir, I typically use the lower case, unless the syntax of the sentence or context requires capitalization. The same principles apply to my use of the singular form of the word, maymar. 4 DS Arabic Ascetic 14 (ff. 155b–170b; Copt. 205b–220b); 16 (ff. 181a–200b); 19 (pp. 417–472; Copt. ff. 206bisa–233b); 25 (ff. 100b–130a; = Copt.); 33 (ff. 2b–23a; Copt. [3]b–24a); 48 (pp. 504–555); 51 (Copt. 2552a). 5 DS Arabic Ascetic 1 (ff. 3b–231b); 30 (pp. 2–40; Copt. 4a–23a); 57 (ff. [1]a–[21]b). 3

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mayāmir, aqwāl (“sayings”), or ta‘ālīm (“teachings”). Books Two, Three, and Four exhibit a similar variation in nomenclature, with Book Four also being organized into ru’ūs (“chapters”). In addition, the same work (or variations thereof) could be transmitted under different headings. Thus, the collection of teachings and stories related to the desert fathers known as Bustān al-ruhbān (“The Garden of the Monks”) could also pass under the name, al-Ḥadā’iq (“The Gardens”), or under other, alternative titles such as Akhbār al-ābā’ al-ruhbān (“Reports/Accounts of the Monastic Fathers”), Kitāb riyāḍah (“Book of Exercises/Devotions”), Ādāb [al-ābā’ al-ruhbān] (“The Disciplines [of the Monastic Fathers]”), and Ta‘līm [al-ābā’ al-ruhbān] al-ḥasanah (“The Good Teaching(s) [of the Monastic Fathers]”).6 To make things more complicated, when it comes to Mayāmir as a genre category, the library system at Dayr al-Suryān sometimes (but not always) distinguishes between homiletic Mayāmir (mayāmir wa‘ẓiyyah) and hagiographical Mayāmir (mayāmir sīriyyah), with these distinctions inconsistently observed in the labeling of manuscript contents. Furthermore, throughout the collection, regardless of a particular manuscript’s classification, individual works preserved therein can and do freely cross over the notional barrier between the genre categories. Thus, manuscripts listed under the Mayāmir classification often include works that just as easily could have been filed under Ascetic Discourses (not to mention other genres). The same applies to the manuscripts listed and documented in this volume under the classificatory label, Ascetic Discourses. Their contents are likewise often a bricolage of literary types, with numerous works bearing title headings containing the word mayāmir, or its singular form maymar. As in previous volumes, Appendix B gives a full accounting of individual works organized according to specific genre category (as distinct from the genre label for the manuscript as a whole), with bibliographical references provided where applicable. It is important to acknowledge that, in many cases, the placement of individual works under different categories is an act of interpretive judgment on my part. Furthermore, as a result of the blurred genre lines in Arabic that I have highlighted here, there are many cases where I have decided to list individual works under more than one category. As an example, the works of Isaac the Syrian — mentioned above as bearing a wide variety of title headings and organizational labels — are listed primarily under the genre of Mayāmir, but also secondarily under Nusukiyyāt. This double listing has, in fact, a double purpose. First, it acknowledges the slipperiness of some of these genre divisions. Second, it will also give the reader, I hope, some additional assistance in tracking down works found in more than 6

DS Arabic Ascetic 22 (ff. 140a–238a; Copt. 12–952, [96–99]); 31 (ff. 73b–115b; Copt. [12b]–432b); 33 (ff. 79a–b, 81a–82b; Copt. 80a–82b); 37 (Copt. 35a–97a); see also DS Arabic Ascetic 51, probably a fragmentary copy of the same work.

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one manuscript in the collection. To that same end, I supply numerous cross references, especially in the case of works transmitted under variant titles. Thus, while at the level of manuscripts the genre of Nusukiyyāt is a given category in the Dayr al-Suryān library, there is considerable variation in the way individual works within manuscripts are labeled and categorized. The blurring of genre boundaries presents a set of logistical challenges. As I have acknowledged, the assignment of individual works to different genre categories in Appendix B required me at points to exercise my own interpretive agency in my role as cataloguer. In doing so, however, I have tried to be as consistent as possible in reserving the category of “Ascetic Discourses” — nusukiyyāt, properly considered — for individual works and collections of treatises, letters, rules, and teachings/instructions related to the conduct of the monastic life. What, then, does this corpus of “Ascetic Discourses” look like as curated in the Dayr al-Suryān library? In this introduction, I will briefly evaluate this question along several axes, focusing on authorship, chronology, geography, and collections. When it comes to authorial figures represented among the Ascetic Discourses section of the Dayr al-Suryān collection, three stand out in particular, one associated with Egypt and two with Syria.7 Perhaps surprisingly, the best represented author associated with Egypt is Evagrius Ponticus (349–399 CE), known in Arabic as Anbā Ūghrīs or Anbā 7 I adopt the term “authorial figure” instead of “author” in my introduction for two reasons. First, it is meant to cover the entire range of authorial attributions, from situations where an individual attribution of authorship can be confirmed as authentic, to those where the attribution is unconfirmed or spurious. For generations of monastic readers, the act of attribution itself — regardless of its historical validity — would have served the purpose of linking the work to the authority of the named authorial figure. Second, and along these same lines, in using the term “authorial figure,” I am making specific reference to Michel Foucault’s discussion of the “author-figure,” in which he “examine[d] the author ‘as a function of discourse’, replacing the conventional figure of ‘the author’ with what he called the ‘author-function’ — a concept which sought to capture the discursive role played by that figure”; in other words, “it is precisely the author-function which authorizes the very idea of ‘an author’”(Adrian Wilson, “Foucault on the ‘Question of the Author’: A Critical Exegesis,” The Modern Language Review 99.2 (2004), 339–363, quotations at 341). In applying these insights to the study of monastic manuscripts, we might say that the very attribution of authorship, as a discursive act embedded in scribal practice, produced and continually reproduced authoritative authorial figures for new generations of monastic readers. For further discussion of authors/author-figures as social products, see Michel Foucault, “What Is An Author?” in Aesthetics, Method, and Epistemology, vol. 2, ed. James D. Faubion, trans. J. V. Harari, modified by R. Hurley (New York: The New Press, 1998), 205–222; see also Friedrich Nietzsche, “Homer and Classical Philology” (inaugural lecture delivered at Basel University, May 1869), in The Complete Works of Friedrich Nietzsche, vol. 3, ed. O. Levy, trans. John McFarland Kennedy (Edinburgh: T. N. Foulis, 1910), 145–170; Roland Barthes, “The Death of the Author,” in Image, Music, Text, trans. S. Heath (New York: Hill and Wang, 1977), 142–148; Roger Chartier, “Figures of the Author,” in The Order of Books: Readers, Authors, and Libraries in Europe between the Fourteenth and Eighteenth Centuries, trans. L. G. Cochrane (Cambridge: Polity Press, 1994), 25–59; Hindy Najman, “Configuring the Text in Biblical Studies,” in A Teacher for All Generations: Essays in Honor of James C. VanderKam, Volume One, ed. E. F. Mason, S. I. Thomas, A. Schofield, and E. Ulrich (Supplements to the Journal for the Study of Judaism 153; Leiden and Boston: Brill, 2012), 3–22; Najman, “Traditionary Processes and Textual Unity in 4 Ezra,” in Fourth Ezra and Second Baruch, ed. M. Henze and G. Boccaccini (Supplements to the Journal for the Study of Judaism 164;

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Waghrī. Despite the fact that his name famously became embroiled in the Origenist Controversies after his death and his works were expurgated from many library rolls,8 Evagrius remained a favored author in the Dayr al-Suryān library. Thirteen titles are attributed to him in the Nusukiyyāt section: (1) his Letter in response to Eulogius, (2) On Vices opposed to Virtues, (3) On Prayer, (4) Praktikos (transmitted under the title On [the Eight Evil] Thoughts), (5) Antirrhetikos, (6) On the [Eight] Spirits of Wickedness, (7) On [Evil] Thoughts, (8–10) three short works In Imitation of Ecclesiastes, the Song of Songs, and Proverbs, (11) Interpretation of the Lord’s Prayer, (12) On Perfection, and (13) his Kephalaia Gnostika. These writings are found across nine different manuscripts, one of which also includes an untitled work attributed to him.9 Furthermore, mayāmir associated with his name are preserved in three of these nine manuscripts, as well as in two other volumes.10 This makes a total of eleven (11) manuscripts containing Evagrian works: 17.7% of the 62 total volumes catalogued in the Nusukiyyāt section.11 Three of these manuscripts definitively date to the fifteenth century or earlier.12 This evidence in the library for the transmission of Evagrius’ works in Arabic has been a subject of my recent research.13 Along with Evagrius, two authors from Syria are the most represented among the Ascetic Discourses: (1) Isaac (Isḥāq) the Syrian (also known as Isaac of Nineveh, ca. 613–ca. 700 CE), and (2) John (Yūḥannā) Saba (also known as John of Dalyatha, Leiden: Brill, 2013), 99–117; Stephen J. Davis, Christ Child: Cultural Memories of a Young Jesus (New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2014), 20 and 233 (note 2). 8 On the first Origenist controversy, see Elizabeth Clark, The Origenist Controversy: The Cultural Construction of an Early Christian Debate (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1992); and Krastu Banev, Theophilus of Alexandria and the First Origenist Controversy: Rhetoric and Power (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2015). On the second Origenist controversy, see Daniël Hombergen, The Second Origenist Controversy: A New Perspective on Cyril of Scythopolis’ Monastic Biographies as Historical Sources for Sixth-Century Origenism (Rome: Pontificio Ateneo S. Anselmo, 2001). 9 DS Arabic Ascetic 21, 22 (1484 CE), 23, 24, 25, 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE), 32, 33, 46. Works 1–10 in the list above are each preserved in three or more copies, while works 11, 12, and 13 each appear in only one or two manuscripts. 10 DS Arabic Ascetic 25, 30, 31, 33, 51. 11 Evagrius Ponticus: DS Arabic Ascetic 21, 22 (1484 CE), 23, 24, 25, 30 (1461 CE), 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE), 32, 33, 46, 51. 12 DS Arabic Ascetic 22 (1484 CE), 30 (1461 CE), and 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE). In the final example, the presence of a dated statement of endowment written after the time of the original scribe provides us with a terminus ante quem. My conclusions here regarding dating represent updates since the publication of my article, “Evagrius Ponticus at the Monastery of the Syrians: Newly Documented Evidence for an Arabic Reception History,” in Heirs of the Apostles: Studies on Arabic Christianity in Honor of Sidney H. Griffith, ed. D. Bertaina, S. T. Keating, M. N. Swanson, and A. Treiger (Leiden: Brill, 2019), 349–364. 13 See also Stephen J. Davis, “Evagrius Ponticus at the Monastery of the Syrians,” 349–364; and Davis, “Arabic Evagriana: Three Works in Imitation of Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, and Proverbs.” Paper presented at the North American Patristics Society Annual Meeting (May 2018). I am also currently working on a critical edition of Evagrius’ Kephalaia Gnostika in Arabic, based on the two copies of the work preserved in the Dayr al-Suryān library.

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ca. 690–ca. 780 CE), who throughout the collection and elsewhere is commonly referred to by the honorific title, “The Spiritual Elder” (al-Shaykh al-rūḥānī). As mentioned above, the titles of works attributed to Isaac are notoriously difficult to track, organized variously as they are into collections of mayāmir, “sayings” (aqwāl), “teachings” (ta‘ālīm), “commandments” (waṣāyā), “reports/accounts” (akhbār), “chapters” (ru’ūs, abwāb, or fuṣūl) and “discourse(s)” (kalām). These labels straddle the lines between the Arabic genre categories of Nusukiyyāt and Mayāmir. As a result, individual works attributed to Isaac are difficult to enumerate with any exactitude. Indeed, even the original scribes must have had difficulty counting them, given the fact that they were transmitted in divergent collections, often in four main “Books,” but also in smaller subdivisions of 24, 40, or 57 mayāmir, or in 35 “chapters.” One way to take a broader measure of Isaac’s popularity among the monks at Dayr al-Suryān is to observe that these assorted works are preserved in fourteen (14) separate manuscripts in the Ascetic Discourses section, 22.6% of the total volumes catalogued under that rubric. One of them, DS Arabic Ascetic 5 (1260 CE), is the oldest dated manuscript among the Nusukiyyāt.14 As for John Saba (“The Spiritual Elder”), major works of his include his own Kephalaia Gnostika (“Chapters of Knowledge”), of which we have nine copies, as well as a voluminous corpus of letters, including his Correspondence with his brother at the Coenobion Monastery, of which we have seven copies. Including a couple homilies/discourses and numerous mayāmir, works attributed to him appear in a total of fifteen manuscripts (24.2% of the total volumes), the most of any author attested in the Nusukiyyāt section.15 The earliest among them is DS Arabic Ascetic 14, a volume dated to 1281 CE and dedicated solely to John Saba’s works. There are several other authorial figures worthy of note. Letters, rules/canons (qawānīn), and sayings attributed to Antony the Great (ca. 251–ca. 356 CE) are preserved in seven different manuscripts, the oldest of which dates to 1270 CE (DS Arabic Ascetic 52).16 Other authorial figures associated with Egypt include four associated with monasticism in Wādī al-Naṭrūn (ancient Scetis) and five others associated with monasteries in Upper Egypt. Of those with a local connection to Wādī al-Naṭrūn, John Cassian (ca. 360–ca. 435 CE) is best attested. His treatise On the Eight Evil Thoughts (= Part Two, Books 5–12 of his Institutes) is preserved in seven manuscripts, along with selected sayings or mayāmir. Only one of the seven manuscripts bears a date, 14 Isaac the Syrian: DS Arabic Ascetic 1, 2, 3 (1344 CE), 4, 5 (1260 CE), 6 (1794 CE), 29 (1778 CE), 30 (1461 CE), 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE), 34, 49, 50, 51, 57. 15 John Saba: DS Arabic Ascetic 7 (1317 CE), 8, 9 (no date, but before 1798 CE), 10 (1778 CE), 11, 12, 13 (no date, but before 1805 CE), 14 (1281 CE), 24, 25, 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE), 37, 53, 55, 62. 16 Antony the Great: DS Arabic Ascetic 29 (1778 CE), 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE), 32, 34, 38, 45, 52 (1270 CE).

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but it is notably an early Arabic copy, dated to 1281 CE.17 Next best attested is Isaiah of Scetis, a local monastic figure from the early fifth century CE. Works attributed to him appear in six different volumes.18 Two of them preserve copies of his Asketikon, transmitted under the title Spiritual Teaching — one from the thirteenth century (DS Arabic Ascetic 5; 1260 CE), and the other from the late eighteenth (DS Arabic Ascetic 6; 1794 CE). The other four manuscripts (DS Arabic Ascetic 28, 30, 31, 32) contain a variety of sayings and teachings belonging to him, including his Commandments to Apprenticing Monks. In addition to John Cassian and Isaiah of Scetis, the other three authorial figures from the region are Macarius the Great (ca. 300–ca. 391 CE), John the Little (ca. 339–ca. 405 CE), and Arsenius the Great (ca. 350–ca. 445 CE), whose ascetic instructions are represented in three, two, and one manuscript, respectively.19 Authorial figures associated with Upper Egypt include John and Stephen of the Thebaid, Pachomius and his monastic successor Theodore of Tabennese, and finally Shenoute of Atripe. Teachings, discourses, letters, and sayings attributed to John of the Thebaid (also known as John of Lycopolis, ca. 305–394 CE) are preserved in four different manuscripts.20 Three of these volumes, along with a separate fourth one, contain copies of analogous pedagogical material credited to a certain Stephen of the Thebaid.21 Teachings and sayings by Pachomius (ca. 292–348 CE) appear in three different volumes, one of which also includes a letter by his monastic successor Theodore of Tabennese (ca. 314–368 CE).22 Finally, two Nusukiyyāt manuscripts contain a Testament and a set of Canons attributed to Shenoute of Atripe (ca. 347/48–465/66 CE).23 The latter of these two works provides our first documented evidence for selections from Shenoute’s authentic Canons translated from Coptic into Arabic.24 17

John Cassian: DS Arabic Ascetic 14 (1281 CE), 16, 19, 25, 33, 48, 51. Isaiah of Scetis: DS Arabic Ascetic 5 (1260 CE), 6 (1794 CE), 28 (1840/41 CE), 30 (1461 CE), 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE), 32. 19 Macarius the Great: DS Arabic Ascetic 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE), 38, 51. John the Little: DS Arabic Ascetic 25, 51 (?). Arsenius the Great: DS Arabic Ascetic 38. On the transmission of apophthegmata associated with John the Little as part of his Arabic vita, see Stephen J. Davis, The Arabic Life of St. John the Little by Zacharias of Sakhā (Coptica 7; Los Angeles: Saint Mark Foundation and Saint Shenouda the Archimandrite Coptic Society, 2008). 20 John of the Thebaid: DS Arabic Ascetic 30 (1461 CE), 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE), 32, 33. 21 Stephen of the Thebaid: DS Arabic Ascetic 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE), 32, 33, 38. Regarding this enigmatic figure, Graf (GCAL 1, 413) notes that in the manuscript record there may have been confusion between “Stephanus Thebaita” and “Stephanus Sabaita,” the nephew of John of Damascus. If this proves to be the case, then this Stephen should be reassigned to the authors from a Syrian provenance that I discuss below. 22 Pachomius: DS Arabic Ascetic 32, 38, 61. Theodore: DS Arabic Ascetic 32. 23 Shenoute: DS Arabic Ascetic 26, 32. 24 For a forthcoming critical edition and analysis of the text, see Stephen J. Davis, “The Arabic Canons of the Holy Father Anbā Shenoute: Introduction, Text, and Translation,” in The Rediscovery of Shenoute, ed. A. Boud’hors, with the assistance of D. Brakke, A. Crislip, and S. Moawad (OLA 310; Louvain: Peeters, 2022), 219–284. 18

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Aside from the aforementioned Isaac the Syrian and John Saba, there are a handful of other authorial figures from a Syriac-speaking provenance witnessed in the Ascetic Discourses section. An assortment of mayāmir — sermons and teachings on biblical, liturgical, and eschatological themes — was transmitted under the name of Ephrem the Syrian (ca. 306–373 CE) and preserved in four different Nusukiyyāt manuscripts.25 Letters and sayings by Philoxenos of Mabbug (d. 523 CE) are found in a total of six manuscripts, one of which dates to the fifteenth century.26 Mayāmir (predominantly homilies) by Jacob of Sarug (ca. 451–521 CE) are witnessed in two volumes, while sayings by Simeon Stylites (d. 459 CE) are attested in just one.27 Teachings by monastic figures most closely associated with Palestine such as Barsanuphius, Dorotheus, and Gerasimus, however, are somewhat less well attested. One thirteenth-century manuscript contains Barsanuphius’ Selected Discourse and Questions on the Monastic Life, and sayings attributed to him appear in two other volumes.28 But, taken together, only two manuscripts contain teachings attributed to Dorotheus and Gerasimus, and neither of them bears a date.29 It is also important to note the presence of two major collections of monastic stories and sayings, including those connected with well-known monks from Egypt, Syria, and Palestine. The first is the so-called Garden of the Monks (Bustān al-ruhbān), which was transmitted in ever evolving forms and sometimes under alternative Arabic titles such as al-Hadā’iq (The Gardens). This collection would appear to be preserved in at least five different manuscripts among the Nusukiyyāt.30 The second major collection is called the Book of Paradise (Kitāb al-firdaws), originally compiled and edited by the seventh-century Syrian monk, ‘Enanisho‘, and later translated into Arabic.31 Versions of it are preserved in two different Ascetic Discourses volumes.32 Among Greek patristic authors in Arabic translation, the best attested are associated with Sinai, Cappadocia, or Antioch. John Climacus (sixth-seventh century CE) leads the way: his famous work, The Spiritual Ladder, survives in seven manuscript copies.33 25

Ephrem the Syrian: DS Arabic Ascetic 26, 28 (1840/41 CE), 51, 62. Philoxenos of Mabbug: DS Arabic Ascetic 25, 26, 27, 28 (1840/41 CE), 30 (1461 CE), 32. 27 Jacob of Sarug: DS Arabic Ascetic 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE), 32. Simeon the Stylite: DS Arabic Ascetic 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE). 28 Barsanuphius: DS Arabic Ascetic 14 (1281 CE), 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE), 51. 29 Dorotheus: DS Arabic Ascetic 25, 51. Gerasimus: DS Arabic Ascetic 51. 30 DS Arabic Ascetic 22 (late fifteenth century CE or earlier), 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE), 33, 37, 51 (?). The last volume is fragmentary and therefore the identification of its contexts is provisional. 31 For a Syriac edition and English translations, see E. A. W. Budge, Book of Paradise, 2 volumes (London: Printed for Lady Meux by W. Drugulin, 1904); for another English translation by the same author, see E. A. W. Budge, Paradise or Garden of the Holy Fathers, 2 volumes (London: Chatto & Windus, 1907). For a more recent study of its transmission in Arabic, see J.-M. Sauget, Une traduction arabe de la collection d’Apophthegmata partum de ‘Enānīšō‘ (CSCO 495; Louvain: Peeters, 1987). 32 DS Arabic Ascetic 37, 51. 33 DS Arabic Ascetic 14 (1281 CE), 15 (before 1451 CE), 16, 17, 18, 19, 20. 26

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The monks at Dayr al-Suryān apparently read him early and often: one of the volumes dates to 1281 CE (DS Arabic Ascetic 14) and another must have been copied before the middle of the fifteenth century (DS Arabic Ascetic 15). In the Theology section of the library, John Chrysostom (ca. 347–407 CE), originally a priest from Antioch and later the archbishop of Constantinople, was one of the most cited authors, as documented in Volume 3 of this catalogue series.34 Chrysostom has a similarly robust presence in the Ascetic Discourses section of the library, with multiple mayāmir (including discourses, exhortations, and sermons) preserved in five different manuscripts.35 One large, well-known collection of his sermons was transmitted under the title, The Choice Pearl (al-Durr al-muntakhab).36 Two Capadoccian Fathers, Basil of Caesarea (330–379 CE) and Gregory Nazianzen (ca. 329–390 CE), come next with four and two manuscript attestations, respectively. The Basilian corpus includes part of his Asketikon, as well as a set of Rules/Canons and several sayings attributed to him.37 The material associated with Gregory Nazianzen is slightly less prevalent, consisting primarily of his Homilies (or Orations).38 None of the manuscripts with works by John Chrysostom, Basil of Caesarea, or Gregory Nazianzen bears a date, so it is difficult to trace the chronological patterns of their local transmission. Finally, one work, preserved in a single manuscript, has been (spuriously) attributed to Athanasius of Alexandria (328– 373 CE): it is in fact a piece of biblical pseudepigrapha usually known as The Testament of the Patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, but transmitted here under the title, The Death of the Patriarchs.39 Among later Greek authors, a work by Gregory of Cyprus is also attested, again only in one fifteenth-century manuscript.40 While most of the Christian works originally composed in Arabic have been catalogued under the rubric of Theology, there are, by contrast, just three attested in the Nusukiyyāt section, each preserved in a single manuscript. All three, it should be mentioned, are found as single elements in manuscripts containing multiple other works. Most prominent among the three is the Book of the Tower (Kitāb al-majdal), a magisterial theological summa written in rhymed prose.41 It is attributed to the Iraqi author, ‘Amr Ibn Mattā, about whom little is known other than the fact that he belonged to the 34

Stephen J. Davis and Mark N. Swanson, Catalogue of Coptic and Arabic Manuscripts in Dayr al-Suryān, Volume 3 (CSCO 694, Subsidia 143; Louvain: Peeters, 2022). 35 John Chrysostom: DS Arabic Ascetic 26, 32, 34, 44 (no date, but before 1785/86 CE), 51. 36 DS Arabic Ascetic 44 (no date, but before 1785/86 CE). For an edition of this collection in Arabic, see al-Qummuṣ Ughusṭīnūs al-Baramūsī, ed., ‘Iẓāt al-Qiddīs Yūḥannā-l-Dhahabī-l-Fam, 3 volumes (Silsilat kunūz makhṭūtāt al-Baramūs 12–14; Wādī al-Naṭrūn: Dayr al-Baramūs, 2010–2012; second edition of volume 1, 2016). 37 Basil of Caesarea: DS Arabic Ascetic 24, 26, 29, 45. 38 Gregory Nazianzen: DS Arabic Ascetic 26, 34. 39 Testament of the Patriarchs: DS Arabic Ascetic 21. 40 DS Arabic Ascetic 30 (1461 CE). 41 DS Arabic Ascetic 33 (1333/34 CE).

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Church of the East.42 The manuscript to which this work belongs (DS Arabic Ascetic 33) is a composite one, consisting of two (originally separate) manuscripts that were bound together. Its second half, which contains parts of chapters 3, 5, 6, and 7 from the Book of the Tower, dates to 1333 or 1334 CE. The other two Christian Arabic works are letters or exchanges of letters. The first is a Letter on the Virtue of Abstinence attributed to Elias of Nisibis (975–1046 CE), another author who belonged to the Church of the East.43 The second is a copy of a late eighteenth-century correspondence between Marqus al-Mashriqī and Jirjis al-Qibṭī, involving an apologetic exchange in which the former sought to correct the latter’s conversion to Western Catholic doctrine and advocated for the rightness of Coptic Orthodox belief.44 While we are on the subject of engagement with the West, it is interesting that the Ascetic Discourses section of the Dayr al-Suryān library also contains works of three European authors translated into Arabic. The first is by a sixteenth-century author named Diego d’Estella Scala, also known as Didacus Stella (1524–1578 CE), whose Book on the Vanities of the World was translated into Arabic a couple centuries after his death.45 Because of its length, it was broken up and transmitted in parts. In the Dayr al-Suryān collection, one copy of Part One and two copies of Part Two are preserved, each in a different nineteenth-century manuscript.46 The second European author was a Jesuit named John Eusebius Nieremberg (1595–1658 CE), who wrote a pair of treatises called the Book of Jesus the Beloved and the Book of Mary the Beloved. Translated into Arabic from Italian, this pair of works is preserved in a single manuscript dating to 1737 CE (DS Arabic Ascetic 43).47 The third author is Joseph of Reuilly, a French Capuchin monk who spent time as a missionary in Aleppo and Cairo in the early eighteenth century and who composed a work entitled The Trumpet of Heaven (Būq al-samā’), one copy of which is preserved in DS Arabic Ascetic 42 (1832 CE).48 What does this survey of authors and works tell us about the archival practices and reading habits of monks at Dayr al-Suryān across the generations? It confirms for us that from the thirteenth through the nineteenth century the monastic library remained a repository for ascetic literature drawn especially from the dual reservoirs of Egyptian 42 For a discussion of ‘Amr ibn Mattā and this work, see Mark N. Swanson, “Kitāb al-majdal,” CMRBH 2, 627–632; updates in CMR-BH 5, 743. For an online version with further updates, see Mark N. Swanson, “‘Amr ibn Mattā,” in Christian-Muslim Relations 600–1500 (General Editor, David Thomas; consulted online on 21 July 2020 . 43 DS Arabic Ascetic 21. 44 DS Arabic Ascetic 27. On this exchange of letters, see Graf, GCAL 4, 137. 45 Graf, GCAL 4, 184–185 (#2b). 46 Part One: DS Arabic Ascetic 39 (no date, but before 1886 CE). Part Two: DS Arabic Ascetic 40 (1847/48 CE), 47 (1865 CE). 47 DS Arabic Ascetic 43 (1737 CE). On this pair of works, see Graf, GCAL 4, 228. 48 DS Arabic Ascetic 42 (1832 CE). On this work, see Graf, GCAL 4, 203.

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and Syrian monasticism. In the latter case, we see evidence for the robust transmission of the Syriac Christian literary heritage — represented by authors such as Isaac, John Saba, Ephrem, Philoxenos, and Jacob of Sarug — into Arabic. Even in the case of authors such as Evagrius Ponticus, whose own monastic practice and literary output were forged in the context of time spent in Egypt, the path of transmission of his works into Arabic principally ran through Syriac-language channels. As for the translation of Coptic works into Arabic, the evidence is somewhat slimmer but still present. More study will be necessary to determine the linguistic basis for the Pachomian materials in the collection, but they are likely to have been translated from earlier Coptic (and/or Greek) Vorlagen. On this subject, the above-mentioned discovery of authentic Shenoutean rules translated into Arabic opens up new possibilities for tracing a history of reception for that monastic author in medieval and early modern Egypt. With regard to Coptic-Arabic bilingualism, one of the manuscripts (DS Arabic Ascetic 27) found in the Nusukiyyāt section also includes An Oath to the Only[-Begotten] Son preserved only in Coptic, apart from its Arabic title, which indicates that it is “to be said [i.e. recited] at any time.”49 The patron for the manuscript’s production was the late eighteenth-century monastic librarian, Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī, whose fingerprints are all over the collection.50 This would seem to indicate that a bilingual scribal facility (and presumably, a corresponding bilingual reading facility) in Coptic and Arabic endured among some monks at Dayr al-Suryān even into the modern period. 3. CASE STUDIES In the three previous volumes of this catalogue series, I have concluded each of my introductions with case studies designed to give more of a “three-dimensional” perspective on the history of the manuscript library at Dayr al-Suryān, with an eye toward documenting not just the literary contents of the volumes but also the role of scribes, patrons, readers, and restorers who contributed tangibly to the material production, use, and preservation of the collection. (Once again, Appendix E provides a full accounting of names recorded in the colophons, endowments, and readers’ notes in the Ascetic Discourses manuscripts, and a number of these names have already appeared in the corresponding appendices to Volumes 1, 2, and 3.) 49

DS Arabic Ascetic 27, ff. 1412b–1402a. On Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī, see Bigoul al-Suriany, “The Manuscript Collection of Deir al-Surian: Its Survival into the Third Millennium,” in Mat Immerzeel and Jacques van der Vliet, eds., Coptic Studies on the Threshold of a New Millennium: Proceedings of the Seventh International Congress of Coptic Studies, Leiden, 27 August – 2 September 2000, Volume 1 (Orientalia Lovaniensia Analecta 133; Leuven: Peeters, 2004), 281–294, at 289. See also my introductions to the first three CCAMDS volumes: Stephen J. Davis, Catalogue of Coptic and Arabic Manuscripts in Dayr al-Suryān, Volumes 1–3 (CSCO 677, 678, 694, Subsidia 139, 140, 143; Louvain: Peeters, 2020–2022). 50

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For the present volume, the special focus of these case studies will be on the way that the collection of Ascetic Discourses at Dayr al-Suryān reflects a literary and linguistic legacy drawn from both Egyptian and Syrian monastic contexts. First, I will explore evidence for intra-Egyptian social and scribal connections between the Dayr al-Suryān library and the Monastery of St. Antony at the Red Sea during the thirteenth century. Then, I will examine the evidence for a robust Syriac cultural inheritance among Nusukiyyāt manuscripts from the fourteenth to the nineteenth century, including indications of scribal and readerly multilingualism. Egyptian Cultural Connections: The Monastery of St. Antony The three earliest, definitively dated manuscripts in the Ascetic Discourses section were copied in the second half of the thirteenth century, and all three were produced by scribes associated with the Monastery of St. Antony.51 The first of these three volumes, DS Arabic Ascetic 5, dates to 1260 CE and contains a collection of mayāmir credited to Isaac the Syrian, along with the Spiritual Teachings of Anbā Isaiah (of Scetis). When considered in the context of the Dayr al-Suryān archive, the pairing of these authors mirrors the Ascetic Discourses collection as a whole, which more broadly draws on the dual spiritual authority of both Syrian and Egyptian monastic fathers. The scribe of DS Arabic Ascetic 5 identifies himself (anonymously) as a monk from the Monastery of St. Antony at the Red Sea. A colophon at the end of the volume reveals that he in fact copied it there.52 It was only at a later, undetermined date that the manuscript would be endowed to Dayr al-Suryān.53 The juxtaposition of works by Isaac the Syrian and Isaiah the Egyptian in a manuscript copied in the Monastery of St. Antony should not be surprising, given the fact that St. Antony’s monastery was characterized by a multicultural and multiethnic population in the thirteenth century. Like Dayr al-Suryān, the Red Sea community was inhabited at different times by both Egyptian and Syrian monks, as well as by Ethiopian and Armenian brothers, and its library contained books left behind by its Syriacspeaking members.54 51 DS Arabic Ascetic 5 (1260 CE), 14 (1281 CE), and 52 (1270 CE). Each of these manuscripts is written in a different hand. 52 DS Arabic Ascetic 5, Copt. f. 174b. 53 DS Arabic Ascetic 5, Copt. f. 175a. In the waqf-statement, Dayr al-Suryān is described as being located “in Wadī Habīb, the Scetis of the great Saint Macarius” (bi-Wadī Habīb Iṣqīṭ al-qaddīs al-‘aẓīm Maqāriyūs). 54 On Syrian, Ethiopian, and Armenian monks at the Monastery of St. Antony, see Gawdat Gabra, “Perspectives on the Monastery of St. Antony: Medieval and Later Inhabitants and Visitors,” in Elizabeth S. Bolman, ed., Monastic Visions: Wall Paintings in the Monastery of St. Antony at the Red Sea (New Haven and London: American Research Center in Egypt and Yale University Press, 2002), 173–184, esp. 175– 178. On Ethiopian monks in Wādī al-Naṭrūn, see Stephen J. Davis, “Egyptian and Ethiopian Christians

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Something else these two monastic centers had in common was their reverence for a shared roster of monastic exemplars, a fact reflected not only in the transmission of texts, but also in the commissioning of wall paintings for their main churches. The medieval Church of the Virgin at Dayr al-Suryān, for example, contains a recently discovered late ninth-century painting of the local Egyptian saint, Macarius the Great, along with Coptic and Syriac inscriptions commemorating the death of his namesake, Abbot Maqari. The Syriac text to the left of the painting praises the abbot by invoking the names and monastic piety of both St. Macarius and St. Antony.55 In that commemorative text, these two luminaries together stand in as exemplary representatives of “the lovely rank of the [el]ected and [ho]ly ones” and of the larger “crowds of ascetics.”56 In this inscriptional act — and in the various readerly and viewerly acts that followed in subsequent centuries — Wādī al-Naṭrūn and the Red Sea monasteries were foregrounded as privileged places of monastic practice for monks worshipping in the Dayr al-Suryān church. A similar iconographic connection is forged in the painted program of the main church at the Monastery of St. Antony at the Red Sea. The program was created by a team led by a medieval Coptic artist named Theodore, and it was completed in 1232/ 1233 CE, not even thirty years before the copying of DS Arabic Ascetic 5 by one of the monks who would have frequented the church for the daily and weekly liturgy. Elizabeth Bolman has described the church’s iconography — a visual chorus of martyrs and monks — as “a genealogy of Coptic monasticism in paint.”57 On the south side of the khurus entrance, there are paintings of Antony and Paul, the patron saints of the two Red Sea monasteries.58 In the nave of the church are images depicting an array of monastic saints associated with ancient Scetis: Pishoi/Bishoi the Great, John the Little, Sisoes, Arsenius, Moses the Black, Maximus and Domitius, and Macarius the Great.59 in Intersection: Monastic Multiculturalism and Migration, Discourses of Race, and the Problem of Premodern “Africa” and the “Middle East” (forthcoming). Denis Nosnitsin and colleagues from the University of Hamburg have recently catalogued the Ethiopic materials preserved in the Dayr al-Suryān library and have made that data available on their Beta Masaheft website: see https://betamasaheft.eu. A print version of the catalogue is currently in preparation. 55 Karel C. Innemée, “Dayr al-Suryan: New Discoveries,” Claremont Coptic Encyclopedia (January 29, 2016), at http://ccdl.libraries.claremont.edu/cdm/singleitem/collection/cce/id/2137/rec/3; also Karel C. Innemée, Grzegorz Ochala, and Lucas Van Rompay, “A Memorial for Abbot Maqari of Deir al-Surian (Egypt): Wall Paintings and Inscriptions in the Church of the Virgin Discovered in 2014,” Hugoye: Journal of Syriac Studies 18.1 (2015), 147–190, esp. 150–152, 160–166. 56 Innemée, Ochala, and Van Rompay, “A Memorial for Abbot Maqari,” 161 (Syriac text), 163 (English translation). 57 Elizabeth S. Bolman, “Theodore, ‘The Writer of Life,’ and the Program of 1232/1233,” in Bolman, ed., Monastic Visions, 37–76, quote at 40. 58 Bolman, “Theodore,” xiii (N1 and N2, fig. 7), 50. 59 Bolman, “Theodore,” 49–53 (N7, N8, N9, N10, N30, N32, N33, figs. 4.19, 4.21, 4.22).

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Depicted alongside them, one also finds a Syrian saint, Barsauma, whose figure faces that of St. Antony across the aisle of the nave.60 In fact, a contingent of Syrian monks seems to have inhabited the Monastery of St. Antony for a time, and at one point in the early to mid-thirteenth century an abbot from Dayr al-Suryān temporarily took up residence there.61 For evidence, we turn to a thirteenth-century Syriac manuscript originally copied in Dayr al-Suryān but now preserved in the British Museum, containing works by Isaac the Syrian.62 A colophon in the manuscript reports that the Monastery of St. Antony likewise once “belonged to the Syrians” and that “many Syriac books” could still be found in its library, even though the community was now under the authority of Egyptian monks. This report is made is the context of an account concerning a certain abbot of Dayr al-Suryān named Constantine I, who fled to St. Antony’s after growing frustrated with criticism from “monks who were of an evil spirit” in his home community, an event that must have taken place sometime between 1222 and 1254 CE. We are told that upon his departure Constantine I took “a book of Mar Isaac to read and delight in.” The colophon’s author identifies the book the abbot took as one that matched in content the Dayr al-Suryān volume that he himself was copying. The colophon goes on to explain that the abbot intended to return his copy to Dayr al-Suryān, but that after his arrival at St. Antony’s he fell ill and died.63 It was only shortly after these events transpired that DS Arabic Ascetic 5 — another manuscript containing a collection of Isaac’s works, now translated into Arabic — was copied at St. Antony’s. Ironically, that Arabic copy would eventually make the return journey originally intended by Constantine I, finding its way back to the library at Dayr al-Suryān, where it remains to this day. The scribal and archival connections between Dayr al-Suryān and St. Antony’s monastery evidenced by DS Arabic Ascetic 5 are also witnessed in two other thirteenth-century Nusukiyyāt manuscripts. The second oldest dated volume in the Ascetic Discourses section is DS Arabic Ascetic 52, copied in 1270 CE at “the Monastery of 60

Bolman, “Theodore,” 52–53 (N11, fig. 4.22). Tim Vivian, “St. Antony the Great and the Monastery of St. Antony at the Red Sea, ca. A.D. 251 to 1232/1233,” in Bolman, ed., Monastic Visions, 3–17, at 14; 62 William Wright, Catalogue of Syriac Manuscripts in the British Museum (London: British Museum, 1871), 576–581 (MS 695). 63 Wright, Catalogue, 579–580 (MS d695, f. 1b); trans. in Hugh G. Evelyn White, The Monasteries of the Wâdi ’n Natrûn. Volume 2 (New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1932; repr. Arno Press, 1973), 389–390 (note, however, that Evelyn White misreports the manuscript number and page number in Wright’s catalogue). For other discussions of this source, see Bigoul al-Suriany, “New Elements in the History of Pope Gabriel III the 77th (1268–1270 A.D.),” in Nathalie Bosson and Anne Boud’hors, eds., Actes du Huitième Congrès International d’Études Coptes, Paris, 28 juin – 3 juillet 2004, Volume 1 (Orientalia Lovaniensia Analecta 163; Leuven: Peeters, 2007), 15–24, at 19; Vivian, “St. Antony the Great,” 14; and Gabra, “Perspectives,” 175. 61

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‘Arabah,” an alternative designation for the Monastery of St. Antony.64 In this case, the manuscript’s contents consist of letters, rules/canons, and teachings attributed to Antony the Great, the patron saint of the Red Sea monastery. The scribe does not disclose his name, but in a colophon he asks for prayers of remembrance not only on behalf of the volume’s patron (muhtamm), but also on behalf of those instrumental to the chain of transmission: first, the person who originally translated the text into Coptic (presumably from Greek); second, the person who “simplified” the text (i.e. made an accessible translation of it) into Arabic; and third, the scribe himself.65 Given the context, it is possible that the second and third figures in this list were identical — self-referential nods to the fact that it was the scribe himself who both translated the text from Coptic into Arabic and produced this particular copy. Eventually, DS Arabic Ascetic 52 too would find its way into the Dayr al-Suryān collection, where St. Antony’s teachings would likewise be taken as a source of inspiration. Indeed, it was probably in reference to the saint that an anonymous reader added a note in the volume indicating his love for “the spiritual one.”66 The third oldest dated manuscript categorized under the rubric of Ascetic Discourses is DS Arabic Ascetic 14, a mixed collection of wisdom literature and monastic teachings copied in 1281 CE by yet another monk from the Monastery of St. Antony, a scribe named Marqus ibn Ṣalīb.67 In a waqf-statement, an early owner of the volume is identified as al-mu‘allim Yūḥannā ibn Naṣrallah, who served as “a teacher of children” (mu’addib aṭfāl) in Ḥarat al-Zuwaylah (in Cairo).68 Two later waqf-statements endow the manuscript to Dayr al-Suryān, thus confirming its final destination.69 The contents of the manuscript are again indicative. After an initial collection of proverbs and a letter attributed to Hermes the Wise, the volume contains a mix of ascetic discourses written by different authors associated with Egypt, Syria, and Sinai, including John Climacus’ The Spiritual Ladder, John Cassian’s On the Eight Evil Thoughts, a Story of an Elder from the Monastery of St. Antony, and Barsanuphius’ Selected Discourses and Questions on the Monastic Life. Alongside sources and stories connected with monasticism at Sinai (John Climacus) and the Red Sea (epitomized by a Story of an Elder from the Monastery of St. Antony), the presence of works by Cassian and Barshanuphius once more reflects a dual reverence for the monastic teachers of Scetis and Syria. 64 For another example of this designation, see Saint Antony MS 1 Liturgy, which contains an eighteenth-century endowment to “the Monastery of the great Saint Antony, in the monastery of Arabah” (f. 43v): ed. Youhanna Nessim Youssef, The Rite of Consecration of the Myron (Textes et Documents 18; Cairo: Société d’archéologie copte, 2017), 20. 65 DS Arabic Ascetic 52, Copt. f. 117a. 66 DS Arabic Ascetic 52, Copt. f. 103b. 67 DS Arabic Ascetic 14, f. 170b. 68 DS Arabic Ascetic 14, f. 11b. 69 DS Arabic Ascetic 14, ff. 12a and 217a.

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To judge by the manuscript record, such codicological connections between Dayr al-Suryān and the Monastery of St. Antony would prove to be enduring. Two examples from the eighteenth century are illustrative. The first comes from the year 1746 CE, when a scribe named Yū’annis al-Ḥabashī (“John the Ethiopian”) from the Monastery of St. Antony copied a collection of miscellaneous canons (DS Arabic Canons 9; = MS 106a).70 Just three years later, Yu’annis sold the volume for the price of two riyāls to Buṭrus, the metropolitan and abbot of Dayr al-Suryān, before returning to his home country.71 A second waqf by Buṭrus marks the abbot’s endowment of the manuscript (DS Arabic Canons 9) to the monastery on Sunday, 27 Tūt, AM 1466 [= 1749 CE].72 Another example, more directly relevant to the transmission of Nusukiyyāt in the Dayr al-Suryān collection, comes from three decades later. In 1778 CE, an anonymous scribe from St. Antony’s produced a volume (DS Arabic Ascetic 29) containing works attributed to both Antony and Isaac the Syrian (along with a selection of rules associated with Basil of Caesarea). A pair of colophons confirm the volume’s original provenance and indicate that at least part of it was copied from an earlier, sixteenth-century manuscript.73 Within ten to twenty years, however, the manuscript would come to be endowed to Dayr al-Suryān, where it fell under the care of Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī, the late eighteenth-century monastic librarian whose extensive work as a scribe, patron, and restorer has been discussed in previous volumes. Finally, in a reader’s note at the end of the manuscript, a monk from Dayr al-Suryān named Arsenius tells us that he made a transcription of the volume for himself in 1938 CE. Thus, from the production of DS Arabic Ascetic 29 at the Monastery of St. Antony in the late eighteenth century, to its endowment to the library at Dayr al-Suryān a decade or two later, to its copying by Arsenius in the first half of the twentieth century, we see evidence for the ongoing devotional and hagiographic interest generated by the authorial figures of Antony (as the father of Egyptian monasticism) and Isaac the Syrian (as the Syrian ascetic teacher par excellence) in these two communities of monastic readership. Syrian Cultural Connections: Evidence for Practices of Translation and Multilingualism The foregoing discussion raises questions related to Dayr al-Suryān’s role as a conveyer of Syriac ascetic knowledge via practices of translation, copying, and commentary, and how those practices were perhaps facilitated by multilingualism within the community. What evidence do we have for local medieval and early modern 70 DS Arabic Canons 9, ff. 62b and 261b; see also Davis, “Egyptian and Ethiopian Christians in Intersection.” 71 DS Arabic Canons 9, f. 261b. 72 DS Arabic Canons 9, f. 262b. 73 DS Arabic Ascetic 29, Copt. ff. 88a, 101b–102a.

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monks’ facility in Coptic and Syriac, in addition to their (by-then) primary language of Arabic? What cultural memory of Syriac ascetic teachings was retained and reproduced in the Nusukiyyāt manuscripts? In previous volumes of this catalogue series, we have witnessed numerous instances where scribes made note of earlier translational acts from Syriac or Coptic into Arabic, as well as specific examples of bilingualism (or trilingualism) among scribes, patrons, and readers. The Syriac- and Coptic-language holdings of the library provide ample evidence of these linguistic inheritances.74 But the collection of Arabic Biblical and Commentary manuscripts at Dayr al-Suryān also serve as a valuable set of witnesses. In most cases, references to the translation of texts from Syriac into Arabic are transmitted by scribes as parts of introductions to works or are added in colophons appended to the end of works. DS Arabic Biblical 20 (1281 CE) provides an early example where a known medieval author/commentator is credited with an act of translation and with correlative acts of textual collation involving the study of parallel copies in Greek, Syriac, and Coptic. In a colophon at the end of the Gospel of John, the scribe (a certain Jirjis ibn Ghubriyāl ibn Yūsuf ibn Manṣūr ibn Abū al-Faraj) notes that his copy was based on an early version commented on by the thirteenth-century theologian, al-As‘ad Abū al-Faraj ibn al-‘Assāl, and that al-As‘ad “corrected it on the basis of the Coptic, including all its chapters, and he marked it with notes from the Syriac text, the Greek text (al-rūmī), and other languages besides those two.”75 Another illustrative example comes from the sixteenth century: the scribe of DS Arabic Commentary 24 (1578 CE), a priest named Būlus Abū Sayyid of the (Church of St. George) penned a colophon after Ibn al-Ṭayyib’s Commentary on John in which he indicates that the text was translated from Syriac to Arabic by [‘Abīdallah ibn ‘Alī Far]ābī ‘Isā al-Shammā[s] al-‘Ibādī in 1018/1019 CE, shortly after Ibn al-Ṭayyib’s original composition of the text.76 Sometimes, however, it is more difficult to pinpoint the chronological context for the acts of translation reported by scribes. Another manuscript containing biblical commentaries by Ibn al-Ṭayyib is a case in point. In DS Arabic Commentary 22 (1235 CE), there is a colophon after the author’s Commentary on Matthew, in which the scribe (a priest from Bilbays named Jirjis ibn Manṣūr) indicates that the text was 74 On the Syriac collection at Dayr al-Suryān, see Sebastian P. Brock and Lucas Van Rompay, Catalogue of the Syriac Manuscripts and Fragments in the Library of Deir al-Surian, Wadi al-Natrun (Egypt) (Orientalia Lovaniensia Analecta 227; Leuven: Peeters, 2014). On the Coptic biblical collection, see Stephen J. Davis, Catalogue of Coptic and Arabic Manuscripts in Dayr al-Suryān, Volume 1 (CSCO 677, Subsidia 139; Louvain: Peeters, 2020). 75 DS Arabic Biblical 20 (1281 CE), f. 192b. This account may refer to the critical Gospels translation produced by al-As‘ad, recently published in a critical edition by Samuel Moawad, ed., al-Anājīl alarba‘ah tarjamat al-As‘ad Abī-l-Faraj Hibatallāh al-‘Assāl (1253 m[iladī]) (Cairo: Madrasat al-Iskandriyyah, 2014). 76 DS Arabic Commentary 24 (1578 CE), f. 294b.

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copied “from an old Syriac and Arabic Iraqi copy” (min nuskhah ‘irāqiyyah ‘atīqah suryānī wa ‘arabī), but it is unclear whether he is referring to a translation made by the author or someone in his circle, or by a later translator in the text’s history of transmission.77 Similar examples occur in manuscripts ranging from the fourteenth to the nineteenth century. In DS Arabic Commentary 3 (1358 CE), the title of a treatise attributed to Jacob of Sarug contains a note that the text had been translated from Syriac into Arabic.78 In DS Arabic Commentary 26 (1740 CE), the Introduction to a Commentary on the Pauline Epistles contains a note that the text was translated from Syriac to Arabic, that parts were added that were not present in the original Syriac, and that parts in the original Syriac were taken out due to the difference in the composition of Syriac and Arabic. It also confirms that the translation from Syriac was checked against Coptic and Greek.79 Generic references to translations from Syriac to Arabic also appear in colophons appended to individual biblical commentaries.80 There are also hints, however, of direct scribal responsibility for such acts of translation. In DS Arabic Biblical 51 (1786 CE), the scribe (a monk and priest from the Monastery of St. Bishoi named Bishārah) wrote a colophon at the end of al-Mu’taman ibn al-‘Assāl’s Short Introduction to the Pauline Epistles in which he notes that the epistles were translated (nuqilat) from Syriac into Arabic for the purpose of clarifying their meaning for Arabic readers, and that his copy was checked over against the Coptic (qibṭī) and Greek (rūmī). Here, these activities of translation and collation were probably performed by the scribe himself, as in the same colophon he goes on to comment on linguistic confusion generated by the similarity of two Greek nouns — ⲥⲭⲩⲧⲟⲧⲟⲙⲟⲥ (“leather-worker”) and ⲥⲭⲩⲛⲟⲧⲟⲙⲟⲥ (“tent-maker”) — and their respective translations into Coptic and Arabic.81 In the nineteenth century, the scribe responsible for DS Arabic Biblical 46 (1849 CE) — a priest named Yūḥannā from “Dayr al-Suryān at Barāmūs” — also refers to the translation of the Pauline Epistles from Syriac to Arabic, which he attributes to the goal of making the text understandable to Arabic readers, while still drawing inspiration from the original Syriac point of view. Here again, we seem to have a case where the scribe Yūḥannā himself was engaged in this work of translation, as he goes on to explain to his readers how he sought to avoid contradictions with the Syriac version without any omitting any details.82 77

DS Arabic Commentary 22 (1235 CE), ff. 286b–287a. DS Arabic Commentary 3 (1358 CE), f. 136a. 79 DS Arabic Commentary 26 (1740 CE), f. 163a. 80 DS Arabic Commentary 12 (1673 CE), f. 222a; DS Arabic Commentary 9 (1882 CE), f. 301b. 81 DS Arabic Biblical 51 (1786 CE), f. 34a. 82 DS Arabic Biblical 46 (1849 CE), ff. 216b–217a. For another case of a scribe justifying the purpose of translation from Syriac to Arabic as clarifying the meaning of the text, see DS Arabic Biblical 50 (undated), f. 289a. 78

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The examples cited above come from the Biblical and Commentary manuscripts in the Dayr al-Suryān library. It would make sense to find similar scribal patterns in the corpus of Ascetic Discourses, and in fact we do. Two Nusukiyyāt manuscripts — DS Arabic Ascetic 24 (undated) and 31 (undated, but before 1484 CE) — contain references to authorial acts of translation associated with the works by John Saba/The Spiritual Elder. In each case, the title and incipit for the author’s Chapters of Knowledge mention the fact that he translated the text from Syriac to Arabic.83 In the first of these two manuscripts (DS Arabic Ascetic 24), a scribal colophon also includes a petition to the reader to remember the author, who is referred to as “the one who translated it from Syriac into Arabic.”84 Other Nusukiyyāt manuscripts also give information about histories of transmission, including references to acts of Syriac-to-Arabic translation. One example is found in a colophon to a nineteenth-century manuscript — DS Arabic Ascetic 28 (1840/41 CE), in which the scribe (Bishārah) notes the fact that his copy was made on the basis of an older one dating six centuries earlier (to 1240/41 CE), which itself was copied from an even earlier manuscript translated from Syriac into Arabic.85 In the case of one volume (DS Arabic Ascetic 33), a statement of endowment to Dayr al-Suryān makes reference to the fact that some of the contents had been translated from Syriac.86 But when it comes to the corpus of Ascetic Discourses, in comparison with the corpora associated with other library classifications at Dayr al-Suryān, there is a notable uptick in evidence for scribal, patronal, and readerly facility in Syriac, alongside Arabic and Coptic. Thus, in the case of DS Arabic Ascetic 9, a manuscript featuring at least four scribal hands, one of the scribes signals that he was the one who translated a copy of John Saba’s Chapters of Knowledge from the Syriac and notes that the work, to his knowledge, is not otherwise available in Arabic.87 Another manuscript, DS Arabic Ascetic 3 (1344 CE), contains a waqf-statement written in Syriac marking the book as the property of “the Monastery of the Holy Mother of God in the desert of Scetis,” with a warning against anyone who would try to remove it from the monastery: the endowment is written in dark black ink at the bottom of one of the folia, but part of it was later crossed out and as a result the end of the text is obscured.88 In addition to scribes and patrons/endowers, the readers of Nusukiyyāt manuscripts also marked their knowledge of Syriac in explicit ways. DS Arabic Ascetic 2, for instance, contains a brief request for prayer written in ornamental Syriac script on 83 DS Arabic Ascetic 24 (undated), f. 1b; DS Arabic Ascetic 31 (undated, but before 1484 CE), f. 116a. 84 DS Arabic Ascetic 24 (undated), f. 56b. 85 DS Arabic Ascetic 28 (1840/41 CE), ff. 66b–67a. 86 DS Arabic Ascetic 33 (1333/34 CE), f. 104b. 87 DS Arabic Ascetic 9 (undated), ff. 182b, 216b–217a. 88 DS Arabic Ascetic 3 (1344 CE), f. 192a.

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behalf of a certain Philoxenos of Cyprus: the writer identifies himself Mar Gregorius, almost certainly the Metropolitan of Jerusalem who visited Dayr al-Suryān in 1516 CE.89 In the case of another manuscript (DS Arabic Ascetic 12), one of the folia at the end of the volume contains a reader’s note in Garshuni (Arabic written in Syriac script) filling the upper two-thirds of the page. It is also only fragmentarily preserved but seems to contain Trinitarian reflections on the nature of divine vision. On the same page, below the Garshuni text, a sequence of letters from alpha to thēta has been written in Coptic cursive, followed by prayers of remembrance in both Coptic and Arabic, written by a reader who identifies himself as John (Copt. Iōannēs; Ar. Yūḥannā).90 It is unclear whether this John was responsible for the writings in all three languages. One last example shows multilingualism at work in the codicological interactions of translator, scribe, and reader in the history of the library at Dayr al-Suryan. DS Arabic Ascetic 30 is a volume that contains a collection of Ascetic Discourses, entitled Teaching(s) of the Fathers Skilled in Knowledge (Ta‘līm al-ābā’ al-ḥādhiqīn bi-lma‘rifah), which includes various works by ascetic authors, most of whom are associated with Egypt or Syria: Evagrius Ponticus, Isaac the Syrian, Philoxenos of Mabbug, John of the Thebaid, Isaiah of Scetis, Diadochus, and Gregory of Cyprus. The manuscript was copied in 1461 CE by a monk from Dayr al-Suryān named Īwannīs al-Manṣūrī al-Mashriqī al-Suryānī, who pens a colophon at the end of the volume indicating the date, identifying himself by name, and expressing his indebtedness to his father and teacher at the monastery, Ya‘qūb al-Suryānī. Īwannīs indicates that Ya‘qūb was the one responsible for collecting the works in Syriac and transcribing them into Garshuni, which he did for his own reading benefit. In a gesture of humility, Īwannīs then goes on to apologize for his lack of fluent Arabic and his unfamiliarity with texts translated from Syriac to Arabic.91 In this information-rich colophon, we get a glimpse of the linguistic gradations of a multilingual monastic community in fifteenth-century Wādī al-Naṭrūn. In a monastery where the daily liturgy was conducted in the Bohairic dialect of Coptic, there were monks like Ya‘qūb al-Suryānī, who was able to read and collate works in Syriac and transcribe them into Garshuni, and who did so apparently because of his greater comfort level with the Syriac script. At the same time, there were also other monks like Īwannīs, able to decipher the Syriac lettering of Garshuni and to render it in Arabic script, but still conscious of their own limitations both with the Syriac language and with the formal niceties of written Arabic. Of course, there also would have been monks for whom Syriac and Garshuni were a complete mystery. For members of the 89 DS Arabic Ascetic 22, f. 223a. I want to thank David Brakke for his invaluable help in my interpretation of Mar Gregorius’s note, as well as the Syriac waqf-statement cited in the previous footnote (DS Arabic Ascetic 3, f. 192a). 90 DS Arabic Ascetic 12 (undated), f. 176b. 91 DS Arabic Ascetic 30 (1461 CE), p. 359 (Copt. f. 399b).

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community literate only in Arabic, the ascetic heritage of the Syrian fathers would have necessarily been taken up via translations, such as those produced by Īwannīs and all the monastic scribes who both proceeded and succeeded him. For literate and illiterate monks alike, however, this dual Egyptian and Syrian monastic inheritance would also have been reinforced on a daily and weekly basis through their visual engagement with the wall paintings and inscriptions in the main church and through participation in the liturgy where the ascetic teachers of Egypt and Syria were regularly remembered. In this way, we can see how the library holdings at Dayr al-Suryān — and in particular the multicultural literary and linguistic heritage reflected in the Ascetic Discourses section — must be considered in relation to a broader landscape of monastic practices, from the translocal traffic of manuscripts between different communities to local forms of worship and pious viewing in sacralized church spaces.

GUIDE TO DAYR AL-SURYĀN LIBRARY NUMBERS AND CATALOGUE NUMBERS Current Library Number

DS Cat. No.

MS 153

DS Arabic Ascetic 1

MS 154

DS Arabic Ascetic 2

MS 155

DS Arabic Ascetic 3

MS 156

DS Arabic Ascetic 4

MS 157

DS Arabic Ascetic 5

MS 158

DS Arabic Ascetic 6

MS 159

DS Arabic Ascetic 7

MS 160

DS Arabic Ascetic 8

MS 161

DS Arabic Ascetic 9

MS 162

DS Arabic Ascetic 10

MS 164

DS Arabic Ascetic 11

MS 165

DS Arabic Ascetic 12

MS 166

DS Arabic Ascetic 13

MS 167

DS Arabic Ascetic 14

MS 168

DS Arabic Ascetic 15

MS 169

DS Arabic Ascetic 16

MS 170

DS Arabic Ascetic 17

MS 171

DS Arabic Ascetic 18

MS 172

DS Arabic Ascetic 19

MS 173

DS Arabic Ascetic 20

MS 174

DS Arabic Ascetic 21

MS 175

DS Arabic Ascetic 22

MS 176

DS Arabic Ascetic 23

MS 177

DS Arabic Ascetic 24

MS 178

DS Arabic Ascetic 25

MS 179

DS Arabic Ascetic 26

MS 180

DS Arabic Ascetic 27

MS 181

DS Arabic Ascetic 28

MS 182

DS Arabic Ascetic 29

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Current Library Number

DS Cat. No.

MS 183

DS Arabic Ascetic 30

MS 184

DS Arabic Ascetic 31

MS 185

DS Arabic Ascetic 32

MS 186

DS Arabic Ascetic 33

MS 187

DS Arabic Ascetic 34

MS 188

DS Arabic Ascetic 35

MS 189

DS Arabic Ascetic 36

MS 190

DS Arabic Ascetic 37

MS 191

DS Arabic Ascetic 38

MS 192

DS Arabic Ascetic 39

MS 193

DS Arabic Ascetic 40

MS 194

DS Arabic Ascetic 41

MS 195

DS Arabic Ascetic 42

MS 196

DS Arabic Ascetic 43

MS 197

DS Arabic Ascetic 44

MS 689

DS Arabic Ascetic 45

MS 743

DS Arabic Ascetic 46

MS 750

DS Arabic Ascetic 47

MS 771

DS Arabic Ascetic 48

MS 820

DS Arabic Ascetic 49

MS 821

DS Arabic Ascetic 50

MS 822

DS Arabic Ascetic 51

MS 823

DS Arabic Ascetic 52

MS 824

DS Arabic Ascetic 53

MS 978

DS Arabic Ascetic 54

MS 979

DS Arabic Ascetic 55

MS 980

DS Arabic Ascetic 56

MS 981

DS Arabic Ascetic 57

MS 982

DS Arabic Ascetic 58

MS 983

DS Arabic Ascetic 59

MS 984

DS Arabic Ascetic 60

MS 985

DS Arabic Ascetic 61

MS 986

DS Arabic Ascetic 62

CATALOGUE KEY 1. MANUSCRIPT NUMBERING SYSTEMS (CAT. NO.) The library at Dayr al-Suryān has employed several different numbering systems over the last century, traces of which are recorded either in the manuscripts themselves or in one of two handwritten Arabic-language catalogues recorded in notebook form. Here, this information is recorded in order to give readers access to the (early modern/modern) history of classification within the monastery. For the purposes of our catalogue volumes, we have created a sequential numbering system for each classificatory section. This system begins with DS (for Dayr al-Suryān), followed by the language (Coptic or Arabic), the genre classification (e.g. Commentary, Canon, etc.), and the number in the sequence. This new catalogue designation is followed by its current shelf or registration number (e.g. MS 1). Then, on the next line, older registration numbers — documented either in or on the manuscripts themselves, or in the local handwritten Arabic-language catalogues — are provided as supplemental references. Some of these include earlier genre categories that may or may not still be applicable to the library’s current cataloguing system; some provide evidence that manuscripts have been reclassified from one genre to another. In collection of biblical and Coptic grammatical manuscripts, the older catalogue numbers often featured a genre designation as a constituent part of their classification, or alternatively a series number marked by the Arabic term Silsilah or Musalsal. See also “Appendix A: Manuscripts, Numbering Systems, and Contents.” 2. MANUSCRIPT CONTENTS In recording the contents of individual manuscripts, I provide tables of contents with folio and/or page references. In the Dayr al-Suryān collection, folia are typically numbered according to a modern Arabic foliation (in pen or pencil), as well as their earlier Coptic cursive (Copt.) or Coptic uncial (Copt.) systems, which sometimes match and sometimes diverge. The same applies to systems of pagination as well. (For further commentary on these complications, see “Pages, Numbering” below.) In the catalogue entries, the recto and verso of folia are indicated by “a” and “b” respectively, following the Arabic language convention. Superscript “bis” and “ter” are used to indicate repeated individual folia or page numbers within a particular foliation sequence: “bis” indicates the first repetition (i.e. the second appearance of the same number); “ter” indicates the second repetition (i.e. the third appearance of the same number). In the

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case of manuscripts featuring more than one foliation number sequence, superscript numbers are used to indicate the second and third iterations of each sequence: thus, f. 12a would indicate the first folio, recto, of the second foliation sequence, and f. 13a would indicate the first folio, recto, of the third foliation sequence. See also “Appendix B: Textual Attestations, with Select Bibliography.” 3. DATE, LANGUAGE, SCRIPT, MATERIAL Date: Within the collection, manuscripts are dated primarily according to the Coptic calendar, which is calculated according to the anno martyrum (“Era of the Martyrs”) from year 284 CE, the beginning of Diocletian’s reign. This is sometimes marked by Coptic or Arabic sigla based on the word for “martyrs”: in Coptic, an abbreviation or monogram derived from the Greek loan word, ⲙⲁⲣⲧⲩⲣⲉⲥ; in Arabic, the first letter (‫ )ش‬in the word, ‫شهداء‬. Sometimes only the year is indicated; in other cases, the specific day and name of the Coptic month are supplied as well. Occasionally, the equivalent year according to the Islamic (Hijrī) calendar along with the month and day, is also provided by the scribes of the manuscripts. These dates are marked with the abbreviation ‫ه‬, for ‫( هجري‬hijrī, “pertaining to the [year of Muḥammad’s] emigration [to Medina]”). In all cases where a date is indicated, I supply the equivalent Common Era date, calculated by adding 283 or 284 to the number of year according to the Era of the Martyrs. This number varies depending on the specific month. Where no month is supplied, both possible years of the CE date are given. See also “Appendix C: Dated and Undated Manuscripts.” Language and Script: The manuscripts included in this volume all feature Arabic as their primary scribal language, although occasionally Coptic is used by scribes and readers in colophons, endowments, marginal notes, blessings, petitions, and prayers. Observations about script include notes on the color of ink (distinguishing text, headings, and scribal dots/punctuation); general characteristics and distinctive letter forms, and relative scale. For the purposes of this catalogue, I typically estimate scale according to height, using a threefold system of classification: small (≤ 5mm), medium (approx. 5–10mm), and large (≥ 10mm). Material: All manuscripts in this volume utilize paper folia. The weight of the paper is estimated subjectively, according a threefold system of classification (light, medium, or heavy stock). Handmade paper without watermarks, traditionally described elsewhere as “Oriental paper,” is described here as “Middle Eastern.” It is typically heavier or thicker in stock. Paper with watermarks in the collection tends to indicate a more recent, lightweight product. Where possible, catalogue entries supply information about

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CATALOGUE KEY

the watermarks that could be detected. See also “Appendix D: Parchment, Paper and Watermarks (with Dates).”1 4. SCRIBES, PATRONS/OWNERS, RESTORERS Scribes: The colophons to works within the manuscripts sometimes supply the names of scribes, with provenance and dates, and this information has been recorded with folio references. The Arabic word for scribe is nāsikh (“scribe”; pl. nussākh), or alternatively kātib (“writer”; pl. kuttāb). See also “Appendix E: Prosopography of Scribes, Patrons/Owners, Restorers, Illustrators, Readers, and Other Named Figures.” Patrons/Owners: Colophons, endowments, and readers’ notes sometimes designate named figures with the Arabic word muhtamm (“caretaker, patron”; pl. muhtammūn). In these Arabic manuscripts, this word has a range of meanings. Most often, it seems to indicate a “patron” who has funded the production of the manuscript and/or who has donated the manuscript to the library. In this context, it can also mean an original or former owner (ṣāhib) of the volume. To make matters more complicated, it may also sometimes refer either to the original scribe or to a latter-day restorer, who in writing/ rewriting and binding/rebinding the text have served as its caretakers. Restorers: There is extensive evidence within the collection for the work of monks (both named and anonymous) who re-bound manuscripts and reinforced or replaced damaged folia. Such premodern or early modern attempts at preservation/restoration are sometimes marked in the texts themselves in the context of endowments or readers’ notes, with the restorers (murammim; pl. murammimūn) identified by name. Most prominent among them is Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī, who (as noted in the introduction) was active at the end of the eighteenth and beginning of the nineteenth century and whose imprint on the collection is almost ubiquitous. 5. TABLES OF CONTENTS, COLOPHONS,

AND

ENDOWMENTS

Tables of Contents: In addition to supplying a detailed record of each manuscript’s contents (see above), the catalogue entries also document the indigenous tables of 1 For a discussion of watermarks, including a listing of important reference works, see Adam Gacek, Arabic Manuscripts: A Vademecum for Readers (Handbook of Oriental Studies, Section 1, Volume 98; Leiden: Brill, 2009), 131, 290–292, 330–331. Three of the most common watermarks found in the collection are: (1) the Tre Lune (three crescent moon) associated with Isaac Lurion & Co. in Vienna; (2) shield with man-in-the-moon (crescent with human profile) associated with bayāḍ Abū Shabbak Islambūlī ‘āl aṣīlī; and (3) Andrea Galvani Pordenone, also indicated by the initials AG.

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contents written by the original scribes and monastic readers. In the former case, these are typically introductions written in the scribe’s hand providing chapter outlines for the works contained within the manuscript. In the latter case, they are often more recent tables of contents written in blue or black ballpoint pen inside the front cover, on a flyleaf, or on the recto of the first (blank) folio. Colophons: At the end of individual works and/or at the very end of the manuscript, scribes often penned colophons, including final blessings and prayers, warnings against unauthorized (mis)use of the text, notes about the context and date of completion, and sometimes acts of self-identification. These colophons are invaluable sources of information about the history of the manuscript collection, and this catalogue volume documents them according to their folia, with notes on their contents. Endowments: Many of the manuscripts contain endowments (in Arabic, waqf; pl. awqāf) marking the date of their donation to the monastic library and confirming the text as the property of the monastery. These waqf-statements sometimes identify the patrons (muhtammūn) who made the donation and often include warnings (invoking the fate of Judas Iscariot, Simon Magus, and the Emperor Diocletian) against anyone who would attempt to alter or abscond with the manuscript. In this catalogue, each endowment is documented according to its folio, with notes on its contents. 6. PAGES AND NUMBERING This catalogue documents the physical layout and foliation/pagination of each manuscript, distinguishing between frontmatter, numbered folia, and backmatter. Frontmatter consists of any unnumbered leaves at the beginning of the manuscript, and these are labeled and identified with lowercase Roman numerals. The numbering of folia within the collection falls into two general categories: (1) original foliation or pagination using either Greek or Coptic cursive (Epact) letters for the numeration system; (2) more recent Arabic numbering of folia or pages. Coptic cursive foliation is far more common than Greek in this collection, but in both cases these original systems and sequences are often not completely preserved due to page corners that have been damaged, missing and/or replaced folia, and/or texts from different manuscripts that have been rebound together. By contrast, the more recent Arabic foliation systems, while sometimes imperfect, are typically better preserved and serve as a more accessible baseline guide to the contents of the manuscripts. As a result, when present, both systems are documented here, including their areas of divergence and specific irregularities such as skipped or repeated numbers. In addition, the catalogue entries frequently make note of the quiring of volumes, especially when the collation of the quires indicates disruptions in the manuscript’s material history.

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XXXIII

7. DIMENSIONS AND LAYOUT The catalogue provides the dimensions of folia and areas of writing on the page (both height and width) in centimeters, as well as the number of lines per page. In places where a secondary and/or tertiary hand is in evidence (e.g. on replacement pages), these data are supplied for those sections as well, in order to document variations in the manuscript’s physical presentation. 8. COVER AND CONDITION This section documents the material, color, and condition of the manuscript cover, binding, and folia, including notes on cover decoration (e.g. tooled and embossed designs), areas of wear (e.g. surfaces, corners, edges, and spine), the state of the pages, evidence for environmental damage, earlier attempts at restoration, and the need for further preservation. 9. SCRIBAL PRACTICE AND READERS’ INSERTIONS Scribal Practice: The catalogue documents specific characteristics and idiosyncrasies of the scribe’s (or scribes’) execution of the manuscript, including orthography and illumination, matters of organization, the format and content of headings and blessings, and marginal commentary. Transcriptions and translations of selected passages are occasionally provided. Readers’ Insertions: In addition to features of scribal practice, the catalogue also documents the interventions of readers in the manuscript, including the inscriptions of names, petitions, prayers, and blessings. This section may also include written contributions by secondary (or tertiary) scribal hands and by restorers, who also functioned as readers of the texts they inherited. See also “Appendix E: Prosopography of Scribes, Patrons/Owners, Restorers, Illustrators, Readers, and Other Named Figures.”

WORKS CITED ABBREVIATIONS CMR-BH CPC CPG CPL CSCO GCAL GCS MṬK PO

David Thomas et al., Christian-Muslim Relations: A Bibliographical History, Volumes 1–6 (History of Christian-Muslim Relations 11, 14, 15, 17, 20, and 22; Leiden: Brill, 2009–2014). Tito Orlandi, Clavis Patrum Copticorum, available at http://www.cmcl.it/~cmcl/ chiam_clavis.html. Mauritius Geerard, Clavis Patrum Graecorum, Volumes 1–6 (Turnhout: Brepols, 1974–1998). Eligius Dekkers, Clavis Patrum Latinorum, Third edition (Steenbrugis: In Abbatia Sancti Petri, 1995). Corpus Scriptorum Christianorum Orientalium (Louvain, CorpusSCO/Peeters, 1903– ). Georg Graf, Geschichte der christlichen arabischen Literatur, Volumes 1–5 (Studi e Testi 118, 133, 146, 147, 172; Vatican City: Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana, 1944–1953). Die griechischen christlichen Schriftsteller der ersten drei Jahrhunderte (Leipzig: J. C. Hinrichs; Berlin: Akademie Verlag, 1897– ). Athanāsiyūs al-Maqārī, Maṣādir ṭuqūs al-kanīsah [Sources for the Liturgies of the Churches], Volumes 1.1–14 (Cairo: Dār Nūbār, 2000–2010). Patrologia Orientalis (Paris: Firmin-Didot, 1907– ).

Amélineau, Émile. De Historia Lausiaca quaenam sit huius ad Monachorum Aegyptiorum historiam scribendam utilitas. Paris: Leroux, 1887. Assemanus, S. E., and J. S. Assemanus. Bibliothecae apostolicae Vaticanae codicum manuscriptorum catalogus. Volume 1.2. Rome: Typographia Linguarum Orientalium, 1758. Athanāsiyūs al-Maqārī, Maṣādir ṭuqūs al-kanīsah [Sources for the Liturgies of the Churches] [= MṬK]. Volumes 1.1–14. Cairo: Dār Nūbār, 2000–2010. Banev, Krastu. Theophilus of Alexandria and the First Origenist Controversy: Rhetoric and Power. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2015. Barthes, Roland. “The Death of the Author.” In Image, Music, Text. Translated by S. Heath, 142–148. New York: Hill and Wang, 1977. Bcheiry, Iskandar. “Lettera del patriarca copto Yūḥannā XIII al-patriarca siro Nūḥ libanese,” Parole de l’Orient 30 (2005), 383–409. Bigoul al-Suriany. “The Manuscript Collection of Deir al-Surian: Its Survival into the Third Millennium.” In Coptic Studies on the Threshold of a New Millennium: Proceedings of the Seventh International Congress of Coptic Studies, Leiden, 27 August – 2 September 2000, Volume 1. Edited by Mat Immerzeel and Jacques van der Vliet. Orientalia Lovaniensia Analecta 133, 281–294. Leuven: Peeters, 2004. Bigoul al-Suriany. “New Elements in the History of Pope Gabriel III the 77th (1268–1270 A.D.).” In Actes du Huitième Congrès International d’Études Coptes, Paris, 28 juin – 3 juillet

XXXVI

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2004, Volume 1. Edited by Nathalie Bosson and Anne Boud’hors. Orientalia Lovaniensia Analecta 163, 15–24. Leuven: Peeters, 2007. Bigoul al-Suriany. “Pope John (Yu’annis) XIII (1484–1524): New Biographical Data.” Paper presented at the 11th International Congress of Coptic Studies, Claremont, CA, 2016. Bladel, Kevin van. The Arabic Hermes: From Pagan Sage to Prophet of Science. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009. Bolman, Elizabeth S., ed. Monastic Visions: Wall Paintings in the Monastery of St. Antony at the Red Sea. New Haven and London: Yale University Press and the American Research Center in Egypt, 2002. Bolman, Elizabeth S. “Theodore, ‘The Writer of Life,’ and the Program of 1232/1233.” In Monastic Visions: Wall Paintings in the Monastery of St. Antony at the Red Sea, ed. Elizabeth S. Bolman, 37–76. New Haven and London: Yale University Press and the American Research Center in Egypt, 2002. Brock, Sebastian P., and Lucas Van Rompay. Catalogue of the Syriac Manuscripts and Fragments in the Library of Deir al-Surian, Wadi al-Natrun (Egypt). Orientalia Lovaniensia Analecta 227. Leuven: Peeters, 2014. Budge, E. A. W. Book of Paradise. 2 volumes. London: Printed for Lady Meux by W. Drugulin, 1904. Budge, E. A. W. Paradise or Garden of the Holy Fathers. 2 volumes. London: Chatto & Windus, 1907. Bunge, Gabriel, and Adalbert de Vogüé. Quatre ermites égyptiens. D’après les fragments coptes de l’histoire lausiaque. Bégrolles-en-Mauges: Abbaye de Bellefontaine, 1994. Butts, Aaron Michael. “Diversity in the Christian Arabic Reception of Jacob of Serugh (d. 521).” In Patristic Literature in Arabic Translations, ed. B. Roggema and A. Treiger. Arabic Christianity: Texts and Studies 2, 89–128. Leiden: Brill, 2020. Chartier, Roger. “Figures of the Author.” In The Order of Books: Readers, Authors, and Libraries in Europe between the Fourteenth and Eighteenth Centuries. Translated by L. G. Cochrane, 25–59 (notes at 98–108). Cambridge: Polity Press, 1994. Chryssavgis, John, ed. and trans. Abba Isaiah of Scetis: Ascetic Discourses. Cistercian Studies 150. Kalamazoo, MI: Cistercian Publications, 2002. Clark, Elizabeth. The Origenist Controversy: The Cultural Construction of an Early Christian Debate. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1992. Corpus Scriptorum Christianorum Orientalium [= CSCO]. Louvain, CorpusSCO/Peeters, 1903–. Davis, Stephen J. “The Arabic Canons of the Holy Father Anbā Shenoute: Introduction, Text, and Translation.” In The Rediscovery of Shenoute. Edited by A. Boud’hors, with the assistance of D. Brakke, A. Crislip, and S. Moawad. Orientalia Lovaniensia Analecta 310, 219–284. Louvain: Peeters, 2022. Davis, Stephen J. “Arabic Evagriana: Three Works in Imitation of Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, and Proverbs.” Paper presented at the North American Patristics Society Annual Meeting (May 2018). Davis, Stephen J. The Arabic Life of St. John the Little by Zacharias of Sakhā. Coptica 7. Los Angeles: Saint Mark Foundation and Saint Shenouda the Archimandrite Coptic Society, 2008. Davis, Stephen J. Catalogue of Coptic and Arabic Manuscripts in Dayr al-Suryān, Volumes 1–3. CSCO 677, 678, 694, Subsidia 139, 140, 143. Louvain: Peeters, 2020–2022. Davis, Stephen J. Christ Child: Cultural Memories of a Young Jesus. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 2014.

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XXXVII

Davis, Stephen J. Davis. “Egyptian and Ethiopian Christians in Intersection: Monastic Multiculturalism and Migration, Discourses of Race, and the Problem of Premodern “Africa” and the “Middle East,” forthcoming. Davis, Stephen J. “Evagrius Ponticus at the Monastery of the Syrians: Newly Documented Evidence for an Arabic Reception History.” In Heirs of the Apostles: Studies on Arabic Christianity in Honor of Sidney H. Griffith. Edited by D. Bertaina, S. T. Keatin, M. N. Swanson, and A. Treiger. Arabic Christianity: Texts and Studies, Volume 1, 349– 364. Leiden: Brill, 2019. Dekkers, Eligius. Clavis Patrum Latinorum [= CPL]. Third edition. Steenbrugis: In Abbatia Sancti Petri, 1995. Foucault, Michel. “What Is An Author?” In Aesthetics, Method, and Epistemology. Edited by James D. Faubion; translated by J. V. Harari; modified by R. Hurley. Volume 2, 205–222. New York: The New Press, 1998. Gabra, Gawdat. “Perspectives on the Monastery of St. Antony: Medieval and Later Inhabitants and Visitors.” In Monastic Visions: Wall Paintings in the Monastery of St. Antony at the Red Sea, ed. Elizabeth S. Bolman, 173–184. New Haven and London: Yale University Press and the American Research Center in Egypt, 2002. Gacek, Adam. Arabic Manuscripts: A Vademecum for Readers. Handbook of Oriental Studies, Section 1, Volume 98. Leiden: Brill, 2009. Geerard, Mauritius. Clavis Patrum Graecorum [= CPG]. Volumes 1–6. Turnhout: Brepols, 1974–1998. Géhin, Paul. “Evagriana d’un manuscrit basilien (Vaticanus gr. 2028; olim Basilianus 67),” Le Muséon 109 (1996), 59–85. Géhin, Paul. “La tradition arabe d’Évagre le Pontique,” Collectanea Christiana Orientalia 3 (2006), 83–104. Géhin, Paul. “Les versions syriaques et arabes des Chapitres sur la prière d’Évagre le Pontique: quelques données nouvelles,” Patrimoine 9 (2005), 178–197. Gibson, M. D. An Arabic Version of the Acts of the Apostles and the Seven Catholic Epistles. Studia Sinaitica 7. London: C. J. Clay and Sons, 1899. Graf, Georg. Geschichte der christlichen arabischen Literatur [= GCAL]. Volumes 1–5. Studi e Testi 118, 133, 146, 147, 172. Vatican City: Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana, 1944–1953. Graf, Georg. Verzeichnis arabischer kirchlicher Termini, Second edition. CSCO 147, Subsidia 8. Louvain: L. Durbecq, 1954. Die griechischen christlichen Schriftsteller der ersten drei Jahrhunderte [= GCS]. Leipzig: J. C. Hinrichs; Berlin: Akademie Verlag, 1897–. Griffith, Sidney H. The Bible in Arabic: The Scriptures of the “People of the Book” in the Language of Islam. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2013. Guidi, Ignazio. “Il testo copto del Testamento di Abramo. Il Testamento di Isaaco e il Testamento di Giacobbe,” Rendiconti della Reale Accademia dei Lincei 9 (1900), 157–180, 223–264. Hausherr, Irénée. “Le ‘De Oratione’ d’Évagre le Pontique en syriaque et en arabe,” Orientalia Christiana Periodica 128 (1939), 7–71. Hombergen, Daniël. The Second Origenist Controversy: A New Perspective on Cyril of Scythopolis’ Monastic Biographies as Historical Sources for Sixth-Century Origenism. Rome: Pontificio Ateneo S. Anselmo, 2001. Innemée, Karel C. “Dayr al-Suryan: New Discoveries.” Claremont Coptic Encyclopedia (January 29, 2016), at http://ccdl.libraries.claremont.edu/cdm/singleitem/collection/cce/id/2137/ rec/3.

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Innemée, Karel C., Grzegorz Ochala, and Lucas Van Rompay. “A Memorial for Abbot Maqari of Deir al-Surian (Egypt): Wall Paintings and Inscriptions in the Church of the Virgin Discovered in 2014,” Hugoye: Journal of Syriac Studies 18.1 (2015), 147–190. Kashouh, H. The Arabic Versions of the Gospels: The Manuscripts and Their Families. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 2012. Kitāb rawḍat al-nafs fī rasā’il al-qiddīs Anṭūniyūs. Cairo: n.p., 1899. Kitchen, Robert A. ed. The Discourses of Philoxenos of Mabbug. Cistercian Studies 235. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2013. Leroy, Jules. “Un témoignage inédit sur l’état du Monastère des Syriens au Wadi ’Natrûn au début du XVIème siècle,” Bulletin de l’Institut français d’archéologie orientale 65 (1965), 1–23. Mat’ā’us, Bishop, ed. Manārat al-ṣalāh: Sīrat al-Qiddīs Sim‘ān al-‘Amūdī wa-aqwālihi. Wādī al-Naṭrūn: Maktabat Dayr al-Suryān, 2017. Mat’ā’us, Bishop, ed. Nusukiyyāt al-Anbā Anṭūniyūs. Wādī al-Naṭrūn: Maktabat Dayr al-Suryān, 2009. Second edition 2015. Mat’ā’us, Bishop, ed. Sīrat wa-ta‘ālīm al-Qiddīs al-Anbā Bākhūmiyūs. Wādī al-Naṭrūn: Maktabat Dayr al-Suryān, 2009. Third edition, 2015. Mat’ā’us, Bishop, ed., Ta‘ālīm Mār Ūghrīs ‘an afkār wa ḥayl al-shayāṭīn. Wādī al-Naṭrūn: Maktabat Dayr al-Suryān, 2008. Second edition, 2017. Mikhail, Maged S. A., and Tim Vivian, ed. and trans. (with Rowan A. Greer, trans.). The Holy Workshop of Virtue: The Life of John the Little by Zacharias of Sakhā. Cistercian Studies 234. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2010. Moawad, Samuel, ed. al-Anājīl al-arba‘ah tarjamat al-As‘ad Abī al-Faraj Hibatallah Ibn al-‘Assāl. Cairo: Madrasat al-Iskandariyyah/Alexandrian School, 2014. Najman, Hindy. “Configuring the Text in Biblical Studies.” In A Teacher for All Generations: Essays in Honor of James C. VanderKam, Volume One. Edited by E. F. Mason, S. I. Thomas, A. Schofield, and E. Ulrich. Supplements to the Journal for the Study of Judaism 153, 3–22. Leiden and Boston: Brill, 2012. Najman, Hindy. “Traditionary Processes and Textual Unity in 4 Ezra.” In Fourth Ezra and Second Baruch. Edited by M. Henze and G. Boccaccini. Supplements to the Journal for the Study of Judaism 164, 99–117. Leiden: Brill, 2013. Nietzsche, Friedrich. “Homer and Classical Philology.” In The Complete Works of Friedrich Nietzsche. Edited by O. Levy; translated by John McFarland Kennedy. Volume 3, 145–170. Edinburgh: T. N. Foulis, 1910. Orlandi, Tito, ed. “Bibliographie copte.” https://www.coptica.ch/Orlandi-Bibliographie.pdf. Orlandi, Tito, ed. Clavis Patrum Copticorum [= CPC], available at http://www.cmcl.it/~cmcl/ chiam_clavis.html. Patrologia Orientalis [= PO]. Paris: Firmin-Didot, 1907–. Ramsey, B., ed. and trans. John Cassian: The Institutes. Ancient Christian Writers 58. New York and Mahwah, NJ: Newman Press, 2000. Rubenson, Samuel. The Letters of St. Antony: Monasticism and the Making of a Saint. Minneapolis: Fortress, 1995. Samir, Samir Khalil. “Évagre le Pontique dans la tradition arabo-copte.” In Actes du IVe congrès copte; Louvain-la-Neuve, 5–10 septembre 1988. Ed. M. Rassart-Debergh and J. Ries, 125–153. Louvain-la-Neuve: Institut Orientaliste, 1992. Samuel, Bishop. Mayāmir Mār Ughrīs. Cairo: al-Na‘ām li-l-Ṭibā‘ah wal-l-Tawrīdāt, 1986.

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Sauget, J.-M. Une traduction arabe de la collection d’Apophthegmata partum de ‘Enānīšō‘. CSCO 495. Louvain: Peeters, 1987. Sidarus, Adel. “Alexandre le Grand chez les Coptes (recherches récentes et perspectives nouvelles).” In Orientalia Christiana: Festschrift für Hubert Kaufhold zum 70. Geburtstag, ed. P. Bruns and H. O. Luthe. Eichstätter Beiträge zum Christlichen Orient 3, 477–495. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 2013. Sophocles, Evangelinus Apostolides. Greek Lexicon of the Roman and Byzantine Periods (from B.C. 146 to A.D. 1100). New York: C. Scribner’s Sons, 1900. Staal, H. Mt. Sinai Arabic Codex 151. 4 volumes. CSCO 452–453, 462–463. Louvain: Peeters, 1983–1984. Swanson, Mark N. “‘Amr ibn Mattā,” in Christian-Muslim Relations 600–1500 (General Editor, David Thomas); consulted online on 21 July 2020 . Swanson, Mark N. “Alexander the Great among Medieval Copts: Some Comments on the Uses of Alexander-Materials in Copto-Arabic Literature,” Coptica 15 (2016), 81–88. Swanson, Mark N. “The Church and the Mosque in Wisdom’s Shade: On the Story of ‘Alexander and the Hermit Prince.’” In Heirs of the Apostles: Studies on Arabic Christianity in Honor of Sidney H. Griffith, ed. D. Bertaina, S. T. Keating, M. N. Swanson, and A. Treiger. Arabic Christianity: Texts and Studies 1, 284–309. Leiden: Brill, 2019. Swanson, Mark N. The Coptic Papacy in Islamic Egypt (641–1517). The Popes of Egypt 2. Cairo and New York: American University in Cairo Press, 2010. Swanson, Mark N. “Kitāb al-majdal,” CMR-BH 2, 627–632; updates in CMR-BH 5, 743. Tādurus al-Suryānī, ed. Nuskiyyāt wa-mayāmir Mār Isḥāq al-Suryānī. Wādī al-Naṭrūn: Maktabat Dayr al-Suryān, 2016. Thomas, David, et al. Christian-Muslim Relations: A Bibliographical History [= CMR-BH], Volumes 1–6. History of Christian-Muslim Relations 11, 14, 15, 17, 20, and 22. Leiden: Brill, 2009–2014. Ughusṭīnūs al-Baramūsī, al-Qummuṣ, ed. ‘Iẓāt al-Qiddīs Yūḥannā-l-Dhahabī-l-Fam. 3 volumes. Silsilat kunūz makhṭūtāt al-Baramūs 12–14. Wādī al-Naṭrūn: Dayr al-Baramūs, 2010–2012. Second edition of volume 1, 2016. Vivian, Tim. Four Desert Fathers: Pambo, Evagrius, Macarius of Egypt, and Macarius of Alexandria. Crestwood, NY: St Vladimir’s Seminary Press, 2004. Vivian, Tim. “St. Antony the Great and the Monastery of St. Antony at the Red Sea, ca. A.D. 251 to 1232/1233.” In Monastic Visions: Wall Paintings in the Monastery of St. Antony at the Red Sea, ed. Elizabeth S. Bolman, 3–17. New Haven and London: Yale University Press and the American Research Center in Egypt, 2002. de Vogüé, Adalbert. “Les fragments coptes de l’Histoire Lausiaque: l’édition d’Amélineau et le manuscrit,” Orientalia 58.3 (1989), 326–332. White, Hugh G. Evelyn. The Monasteries of the Wâdi ’n Natrûn, Volume 2. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1932. Repr. Arno Press, 1973. Wright, William. Catalogue of Syriac Manuscripts in the British Museum. 3 volumes. London: British Museum, 1870–1872. Youssef, Youhanna Nessim. The Rite of Consecration of the Myron. Textes et Documents 18. Cairo: Société d’archéologie copte, 2017.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 1 (= MS 153) Old number(s): 8[2?] Lāhūt

Contents

Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Discourses/Mayāmir

3

1. Isaac the Syrian, Mayāmir/Chapters, in four books: ff. 3b– 231b. Introduction (khabar): f. 3b. Book One: ff. 4a–76a. ff. 4a–65b: Nine numbered abwāb (“chapters”) or mayāmir. ff. 65b–72a: Eleven unnumbered sayings/teachings, interspersed with four sets of questions and answers. ff. 72a–76a: Dialogue between Isaac and another monk. ‫حوار مار اسحق لأخيه الطبيعي والروحاني لما سأله برسالة لكي يحظر‬ ‫إليه وينظره في ديره لأنه كان متعطش لنظره في السكون‬ The dialogue includes the following subsections on the discernment of the mental powers and theories of the Spirit, and on the authority of the mind and prayer: ‫ على افرازات قوات العقل المعقوله مع استعلامات‬:‫ ب‬٧٢ ‫ف‬ ‫ومناظر الروح‬ ‫ في السكون وعلى سلطان العقل‬:‫ أ‬٧٣ ‫ف‬ Book Two: ff. 76a–119b. ff. 76a–106a: Sixteen numbered maymars (mayāmir). ff. 106a–119b: Six unnumbered sayings/teachings on various topics. Book Three: ff. 120a–192b. ff. 120a–186a: Thirty-five chapters (abwāb). See also DS Arabic Ascetic 2 (MS 154), ff. 81a–225a; and DS Arabic Ascetic 3 (MS 155), ff. 3b–142b. ff. 186a–187b: Letters from Isaac to other monks. ff. 187b–189b: Question asked by Isaac. ff. 189b–190b: Two unnumbered maymars/sayings of Isaac. ff. 190b–192b: Answer given by Isaac. Book Four, Chapters of Knowledge (Ru’ūs al-ma‘rifah): ff. 192b–231b. ff. 192b–212b: Six unnumbered chapters/sayings/teachings from Isaac. ff. 212b–231b: Six numbered maymars (mayāmir).

4 Date, Language, Script, Material

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Date: none indicated. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink, with headings in red. Letters of medium scale with relatively bold, thick lines. Material: Paper. Fairly thick/heavy Middle Eastern stock with no watermarks.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

Scribe: a monk named Gabriel (Ghubriyāl) (f. 241b).

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents:

No identification of patron/owner or restorer.

ff. ia–iia: table of contents written in modern ballpoint pen. Colophons: f. 241b: a colophon written by the scribe (al-nāsikh), who identifies himself as a monk (rāhib) named Gabriel (Ghubriyāl) and requests from his readers prayers to the Lord for his forgiveness. ‫والناسخ المسكين احقر الناس وارذلهم العادم الفضايل والممتلىء من كل‬ ‫الرذايل الذى بالاسم والشكل راهب وبعيد عن عمل الرهبان الحقير أسأل من‬ ‫جهة محبة المسيح كلمن يقف على هذا الكتاب ان يقول بكل قلبه ياربى‬ ...‫يسوع المسيح اغفر خطايا عبدك غبريال وسامحه بآثامه فى اليوم المرهوب‬ Endowments (waqf-statements): none

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–v Numbered folia: ff. 3–241 [= Copt.] Backmatter: ff. 242–249 The first quire contains 10 folia (ff. v, 3–11). The second quire contains 9 folia (ff. 12–20). The rest of the quires contain 10 folia each (ff. 21–30, 31–40, etc.), with the number of the quire labeled on the recto of the first folio.

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 29 × 22.5 cm Area of writing: 24 × 17 cm 25 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Red leather binding. Tooled with a rectangular border with two double lines, between which are small floral medallion stamps. The rectangle is bisected by a large tooled double-lined X with each arm flanked by small oblong/oval stamps. Between the

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

5

arms are large tooled crosses. The cover is well worn, especially on the edges and at the spine. Pages are yellowed and discolored. Folio 3 has been reinforced with a separate paper (25 × 20 cm) glued on the recto: it is blank on the outward facing side, but letters are visible (upside down relative to the MS) on the inward facing side. Folia 20 and 71 appear to be replacement pages. A number of original pages throughout the MS have been reinforced with strips of paper along the edges and spine. There is significant separation visible at the spine between quires, with the connective stitching visible. Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. f. 120a: Book Three in this manuscript lacks the introduction Insertions found in the corresponding sections of DS Arabic Ascetic 2 and 3 (MSS 154 and 155). Readers’ insertions: 1. f. ia: An older catalogue number is written in pencil, but the second digit in the number is mostly erased (8[2]). 2. f. 4b: a reader’s note has been written in the outer margin in red ink (with large, fairly unpracticed letters), commenting on Isaac the Syrian’s virtues. 3. The Arabic handbook notes: “The rest of the first part/book is not extant except in the lands of the Syrians.”

6

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 2 (= MS 154) Old number(s): 114 Lāhūt

Contents

Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Discourses/Mayāmir 1. Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq al-Suryānī), Mayāmir: ff. 1b–79a (no Copt.). ff. 1b–78a: Twenty-four numbered maymars (mayāmir). See also DS Arabic Ascetic 4 (MS 156), ff. 184a–297a. ff. 78a–79a: On fasting. 2. Isaac the Syrian, Treatises (Maqālāt): ff. 79b–225a (= Copt. 56b–201a). ff. 79b–81a: Introduction. See also DS Arabic Ascetic 3 (MS 155), ff. 3b–5a. ff. 81a–225a: Thirty-five numbered chapters (abwāb). See also DS Arabic Ascetic 1 (MS 153), ff. 120a–186a; and DS Arabic Ascetic 3 (MS 155), ff. 5a–142b; cf. Graf, GCAL 1.439, #2, part 3. 3. Isaac the Syrian, Maymar on the Way of Silence (sīrat al-sukūt): ff. 225b–229a (= Copt. 201b–[205a]). See also DS Arabic Ascetic 3 (MS 155), ff. 143a–146b (= Copt.).

Date, Language, Script, Material

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

Date: none indicated. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink. Letters of medium-to-large scale with clear, rounded, and practiced strokes. Headings in red ink. Material: Paper. Middle Eastern paper, thick stock. Folia i and 235 (front and back flyleaves attached to the paper lining the inside of the front and back covers) are of much thinner, whiter stock, with no watermarks. Otherwise the folia in the front- and backmatter have Andrea Galvani Pordenone (shield with man-inthe-moon) watermarks. Scribe: not identified. Patron/owner: Gabriel (Ghubriyāl), priest and servant of the Church of the Virgin at Ḥarat al-Zuwaylah is identified as an owner of the book prior to its endowment to Dayr al-Suryān (f. 79a). Three patrons of the original translation from Greek to Arabic are also identified by name: ‘Abdallah ibn al-Faḍl ibn ‘Abdallah, Abī Ḥasan Sim‘ān, and Abī-l-Khayr (ff. 79b–80b). Restorer: al-qiss Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī (f. 79a).

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

7

Tables of contents: none Colophons: f. 79a: at the end of the first section, the scribe adds a colophon that begins with the following, seemingly misplaced, phrase: “This completes the vision of the holy father Gregory” (kumilat ru’yā al-āb al-qiddīs Ighrīghūriyūs). f. 229b: a colophon including a petition for blessing on behalf of the scribe and the readers of the text. This petition is similar to that found in DS Arabic Ascetic 3 (MS 155), f. 147b. Endowments (waqf-statements): f. 79a: endowed to Dayr al-Suryān; includes a petition for remembrance on behalf of the writer, al-qiss Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī, who identifies himself as “the one who took care of the restoration of this book” (al-muhtamm bi-marammat hādhā-l-kitāb). f. 229b: endowment to Dayr al-Suryān, including warnings about taking the MS from the collection, with reference to the fate of Judas Iscariot and Simon Magus.

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–v Numbered folia: ff. 1–229 (Arabic ff. 79–210, 212–228 = Copt. 56–58, [59–60], 61–204) Backmatter: ff. 230–235 Quires contain 10 folia each, but they are only labeled beginning with the recto of f. 94 (Copt. 71; = 8th quire) and continuing through f. 215 (Copt. 191 = 20th quire). Some of the quires at the beginning of the volume are labeled in Syriac. The quire number is missing on f. 225 (Copt. 201) because it is a replacement page. The Arabic foliation is written on the verso: it skips number 211. The Coptic cursive numbering is written on the recto, beginning with the number 56 on Arabic folio 79. There are two unnumbered folia between the folio numbers 58 and 61 (equivalent to folia 59 and 60). On Arabic folio 229, the number 205 is written on the recto, which follows the Coptic cursive sequence.

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 25 × 17 cm Area of writing: 20 × 11.5 cm 17 lines/page

8 Cover, Condition

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Red leather cover worn at the edges. There has been an attempt to reinforce pages with strips of paper at the spine, especially between quires. But there is still significant separation at the spine between quires and especially toward the end of the MS. A more recent piece of paper, half of which functions as a flyleaf, was glued to the inside of the front board to reinforce and guard against further separation at the spine. On ff. 73 and 74, there are restorations with strips of paper containing Syriac text. Folio 225 (Copt. 201) is a replacement page. Folio 227 (Copt. 203) is loose/detached.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. ff. 79b–81a: The introduction to Mār Isḥaq’s Treatises Insertions indicates that the text was translated from Greek into Arabic by al-shammās ‘Abdallah ibn al-Faḍl ibn ‘Abdallah, who was authorized to do so by Abū Naṣr Nīkīfūr ibn Buṭrus al-Qabaqlīs. The translator and who also benefitted from the patronage of two other figures, Abī Ḥasan Sim‘ān and Abī-l-Khayr Mīkhā’īl. Father Bigoul has noted that al-Qabaqlī[s] is a place name in Syria. 2. f. 79b–81a (= Copt. 56b–58a): After a Trinitarian blessing, the rhetoric of the remainder of the introduction is characterized by a high rhetorical style with rhymed phrasings. 3. f. 229a: the scribe has written a note on his interpretation of brackets in his text as a means of highlighting the meaning of the previous word. 4. f. 229b: the scribe has recorded an earlier note transmitted from the copy he was copying: ‫وقيل في النسخة المنقول منها هكذا‬ ‫وقد فسرنا ما ورد أولا من اللغة وتركنا ما تكرر‬ ‫منه بعد ذلك لأن تفسيره تقدم فليفهم القاري‬ ‫ارحم يا رب الكاتب المسكين والقاري والسامعين‬ ‫و﷽ المجد والشكر إلى الأبد أمين‬ “It was said in the copy from which this one is transmitted: We have interpreted what was found originally in the language and we have left out what was repeated in it after that, because its interpretation was already put forward. So, let the reader understand. Have mercy, O Lord, on the poor writer/scribe, on the reader, and on the listeners. And to God be glory and thanks forever. Amen.”

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

9

Readers’ insertions: 1. Folio 1a constains a reader’s note with measurements and ingredients for a recipe, possibly medical (including seeds, pepper, honey, cinnamon etc.). 2. On folio 1b, “Part Two” (al-juz’ al-thānī) is written in pencil in the top margin of the text itself. In the handbook this first section is (mis)labelled “Part Three.” In the subject headings of these mayāmir, however, there is no clear relationship to the mayāmir in Book Two of DS Arabic Ascetic 1 (MS 153). 3. Folio 79a contains a prayer/petition for remembrance on behalf of a reader named ‘Abd al-Masīḥ al-Kharrāṭ al-Jirjāwī (‘Abd al-Masīḥ, the turner from Jirjā), who describes himself as “the visitor to this holy monastery.” He goes on to ask forgiveness for himself, his parents, his children, his family, his relatives, his brothers, etc. He concludes by providing a date: 20 Kiyahk, AM 1404 [= 1687 CE]. 4. With regard to folio 79b, in the Handbook, the section beginning here is labelled “Part Two”. In fact, it is equivalent to Book Three in DS Arabic Ascetic 1 (MS 153). 5. On folio 230b, two brief petitions for remembrance have been written in light/faded brown ink: ‫اذكر‬ “Remember.” ‫اذكر يا رب عبدك‬ “Remember, O Lord, your servant.”

10

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 3 (= MS 155) Old number(s): 47 Lāhūt; 9-ⲕⲏ/50

Contents

Isaac the Syrian, Discourses/Mayāmir 1. Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq al-Suryānī), Treatises (Maqālāt): ff. 3b–142b (= Copt.). ff. 3b–5a: Introduction. See also DS Arabic Ascetic 2 (MS 154), ff. 79b–81a. ff. 5a–142b: Thirty-five numbered chapters (abwāb). See also DS Arabic Ascetic 1 (MS 153), ff. 120a–186a; MS 154, ff. 81a–225a. 2. Isaac the Syrian, Maymar on the Way of Silence (sīrat al-sukūt): ff. 143a–146b (= Copt.). See also DS Arabic Ascetic 2 (MS 154), ff. 225b–229a (= Copt. 201b–[205a]). 3. Isaac the Syrian, Saying on the ordering of the monastic life and on withdrawal from the world, an abridged version: ff. 148a–156b (= Copt.). ‫من كتاب أحد اختصر‬ ‫بسم المسيح منير أنفسنا ومهدي عقولنا‬ ‫أيضأ للقديس ماري إسحق قاله على تدبير‬ ً ‫قول‬ ‫الرهبنية والابتعاد من العالم كلام مختصر‬ Contains three numbered maymars and three other unnumbered sayings/stories. 4. Isaac the Syrian, Letter [to a brother] who loved silence: ff. 157a–160a (= Copt.). ‫رسالة لماري اسحق كان يحب السكوت‬ See also DS Arabic Ascetic 4 and 50. 5. Isaac the Syrian, Excerpts from Chapters of Knowledge: ff. 160a–174b (= Copt.). Includes five chapters/sayings. a. Chapter on temptation: ff. 160a–168b. ‫رأس يعلم فيه أن التجربة تعلم‬ b. Another chapter on love: ff. 168b–170a. ‫أيضا لمار اسحق القديس على الحب‬ ً ‫رأس أخر‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

11

c. Another chapter selected from the saying(s) of Mār Isḥaq: ff. 170a–171b. ‫رأس أخر لمار اسحق مختار من قوله‬ d. Also from the saying(s) of the holy Mār Isḥaq: ff. 171b–174b. ‫وأيضا من قول مار اسحق القديس‬ ً e. Beginning of another chapter (incomplete): f. 174b. The title is only partially preserved and is largely illegible (see notes on the condition of the MS below). 6. Isaac the Syrian, Selected sayings: ff. 175a–177b (= Copt. 180a– 182b). ‫أيضا‬ ً ‫أقوال ملتقطة للقديس البار مار اسحق السرياني‬ Includes a question and answer (mas’alah / jawāb), and an additional saying/story. 7. Isaac the Syrian, Letter to Father Simeon (excerpt): ff. 177b–191b (= Copt. 182b–195b). ‫وله من الرسالة التي أنفذها إلى الأب سيمأون‬ Includes an answer (jawāb) and two unnumbered stories framed by the verb muḍiyat. Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: 11 Bashans, AM 1060 [= 1344 CE] (f. 147a). Language and script: Arabic. Black ink, with headings in red ink. Letters are of medium-to-large scale, well-formed by a practiced hand. Material: Paper. Thick Middle Eastern stock, with no watermarks. The leaves in the front- and backmatter are of European stock with shield with man-in-the-moon (Andrea Galvani Pordenone) watermarks.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

Scribe: not identified. Patron/owner: the monk and priest [B]isṭ[aw]rās, who is described as the one who “took care of the book” (ihtamma bi-l-kitāb) (f. 192a). Three patrons of the original translation from Greek to Arabic are also identified by name: ‘Abdallah ibn al-Faḍl ibn ‘Abdallah, Abī Ḥasan Sim‘ān, and Abī-l-Khayr (ff. 79b–80b). Restorer: not identified.

12 Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Tables of contents: ff. ia: colophon written in modern ballpoint pen. Colophons: f. 147a (= Copt.): a colophon after the maymar on the way of silence providing the date as 11 Bashans, AM 1060 [= 1344 CE]. The date is written as sanat alfūliyyah wa-sittīn (‫)سنة ألفولية وستين‬. Here, the word alfūliyyah (‫ )ألفولية‬may be a variant spelling of alfiyyah (‫)ألفية‬. The colophon also gives the provenance as the Monastery of St. John the Hegoumen in the desert of Scetis (Dayr al-Qiddīs al-‘aẓīm Abū Yaḥnis al-aghūmanus bi-bariyyat Shīhāt), i.e. the Monastery of John the Little. It also includes a note that errors in the text are struck through with a double red line, and that bracketed words indicate a commentary or clarification of meaning for the preceding word. f. 147b (= Copt.): a continuation of the previously recorded colophon containing a statement testifying to the scribe’s attempt to be faithful to both the language and interpretation of the text and raising a petition for blessing on behalf of himself and the readers, a petition similar to that found in DS Arabic Ascetic 2 (MS 154), f. 229b. f. 191b (= Copt. 195b): a colophon after the excerpt from the Letter to Simeon, which reads, “Whatever serves with respect to this useful and beneficial book for the salvation of the soul from the collected and abridged sayings has been completed. Glory be to God always and forever.” ‫تم ما انضاف لهذا المصحف المفيد النافع‬ ‫لخلاص النفس من أقوال ملتقطة مختصرة‬ ‫دايما أبدً ا‬ ﷽ ‫والمجد‬ ً f. 192a (= [Copt. 196a]): a colophon by the anonymous scribe who identifies himself as a priest (qiss and kāhin) and prays that the volume he copied would be of benefit to readers. Endowments (waqf-statements): f. 147b (= Copt.): endowed to Dayr al-Suryān, with warnings against anyone who would remove the manuscript from the monastery.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

13

f. 192a: a waqf-statement in Syriac marking the book as the property of “the Monastery of the Holy Mother of God in the desert of Scetis,” with a warning against anyone who would try to remove it from the monastery. Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–iv Numbered folia: ff. 3–181, 183–192 (= Copt. [3], 4–174, 180– 195, [196]) Backmatter: ff. 193–197 Folio 3 is a replacement page. Folia 4–10 constitute the first quire. After that, the quires contain ten folia each (ff. 11–20, 21–30, etc., with the recto of the first folio in the quire labeled by number (“the second quire,” “the third quire,” etc.). The first quire consists of only seven folia (ff. 4–10). The Arabic foliation skips number 182 (f. 181 = Copt. 186; f. 183 = Copt. 187). The Coptic cursive foliation skips numbers 175–179 (f. 174 = Copt. 174; f. 175 = Copt. 180).

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 26 × 17.5 cm Area of writing: 19.5 × 11.5 cm 17 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Red leather cover, worn/abraded at the edges, with a rectangular border made by two incised double lines flanking a row of small floral medallion stamps. Inside the border, there are five crosses each consisting of five of those same small floral medallion stamps (one above, three across, and one below). The five crosses are themselves configured in the shape of a cross with one above, three across, and one below. The manuscript leaves are slightly discoloured and reasonably intact, but there is separation at the spine inside the front board and more severe separation between folia 50 and 52, with folio 51 loose (unattached). There were attempts in the past to reinforce the pages at the spine with strips of paper attached with glue, but this did not solve the problem. The manuscript is in need of conservation/rebinding. On folio 174b, the title is only partially preserved, as the bottom three-quarters of the page was at some point covered up by a piece of paper glued to cover that section. That covering paper was later removed or fell off. Following this folio, there are five missing folia as

14

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

reflected in the gap in the Coptic cursive numbering sequence. The top of folio 175a (= Copt. 180a) contains the final line of a blessing marking the end of a section: “To him be praise and upon us mercy, amen.” ‫له السبح وعلينا الرحمة أمين‬ Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. ff. 3b–5a: The introduction to Mār Isḥaq’s Treatises indicates Insertions that the text was translated from Greek into Arabic by al-shammās ‘Abdallah ibn al-Faḍl ibn ‘Abdallah, who was authorized to do so by Abū Naṣr Nīkīfūr ibn Buṭrus al-Qabaqlīs. The translator and who also benefitted from the patronage of two other figures, Abī Ḥasan Sim‘ān and Abī-l-Khayr Mīkhā’īl. Father Bigoul has noted that al-Qabaqlī[s] is a place name in Syria. 2. ff. 3b–5a: After a Trinitarian blessing, the rhetoric of the remainder of the introduction is characterized by a high rhetorical style with rhymed phrasings. 3. f. 176a (Copt. 181a): In the margin, a scribal note has been written in red: “Marginal commentary: The speaker of this question and its answer is not confirmed.” ‫حاشية هذه المسئلة وجوابها لم يتحقق قايلها‬ Readers’ insertions: 1. f. iia: a prayer to Jesus Christ for remembrance has been written in black pen. 2. f. 147a: a reader has written the number/date [AM] 1060 in pencil in the margin. 3. f. 192b: a reader’s prayer for remembrance written in thick black ink by Yūḥannā ibn al-Miṣrī (who would become Pope John XIII, serving as the Alexandrian patriarch for forty years from 1484–1524 CE). For additional evidence for Yūḥannā al-Miṣrī’s involvement with manuscripts from Dayr al-Suryān, see Iskandar Bcheiry, “Lettera del patriarca copto Yūḥannā XIII al-patriarca siro Nūḥ libanese,” 383– 409; Swanson, The Coptic Papacy in Islamic Egypt, 125– 127; and Bigoul al-Suryānī, “Pope John (Yu’annis) XIII (1484–1524).”

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

15

4. f. 192b: another reader’s prayer for remembrance written in black ink rendered in a different, smaller hand by Yūḥannā ibn Ḥizqiyāl. He concludes by writing the date as AM 1190 (= 1473/74 CE) and the name of the Monastery of Moses (Dayr Mūsā). For additional evidence for Yūḥannā ibn Ḥizqiyāl’s involvement with manuscripts from Dayr al-Suryān, see MS Vat. Syr. 26: S. E. Assemanus and J. S. Assemanus, Bibliothecae apostolicae Vaticanae codicum manuscriptorum catalogus, vol. 1.2, 218–222; cited by Bigoul al-Suryānī, “Pope John (Yu’annis) XIII (1484–1524).”

16

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 4 (= MS 156) Old number(s): 4-ⲕⲑ 67 or 17

Contents

Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq al-Suryānī), Discourses/Mayāmir 1. Isaac the Syrian, Mayāmir: ff. 184a–297a (= Copt. [184a–192b], 193a–297a). 40 mayāmir in total. The Handbook reports that the first twenty-four mayāmir in this section correspond to the twenty-four mayāmir in DS Arabic Ascetic 2 (MS 154): see ff. 1b–78a. 2. Maymar on temptation: ff. 297a–301a (= Copt.). ‫ميمر على التجربة التي تعلم كل‬ 3. Maymar on spiritual love: ff. 301a–302b (= Copt.). ‫ميمر على الحب الروحاني‬ 4. Two additional mayāmir: ff. 302b–306b (= Copt.). 5. Maymar on blessed prayer, in the form of a question-andanswer: ff. 306b–307a (= Copt.). ‫ميمر على الصلاة المغبوطة مسئلة‬ 6. Two additional maymars: ff. 307a–312b (= Copt.). 7. Mayāmir on the way of silence: ff. 312b–315b (= Copt.). ‫ميمر على سيرت السكوت‬ 8. Letter of Mār Isḥaq to a brother who loved silence: ff. 315b–318a (= Copt.). ‫رسالة القديس إلى أخ كان يحب السكوت‬ See also DS Arabic Ascetic 3 and 50.

Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: none indicated. Language and script: Arabic. Original pages written with black ink in a medium-to-large script, with headings and punctuation in red. The primary scribal hand is legible but slightly cramped. The replacement pages are written with black ink in a small-tomedium, squarer script, with faded red headings or punctuation (f. 312, however, has no red ink). Material: Paper. Thick/heavy Middle Eastern stock. Replacement pages (ff. 184–202) consist of more recent European paper, with the Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) watermark.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: none.

17

Colophons: f. 318a: short identification of the book and a brief blessing. Endowments (waqf-statements): f. 203a: endowment to Dayr al-Suryān written in the upper margin in thick black ink. f. 318a: endowment to Dayr al-Suryān, includes a warning against taking the book out of the monastery, with reference to the fate of Diocletian, Judas Iscariot, and Simon Magus.

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–iv Numbered folia: ff. 184–318 (= Copt. [184–192], 193–318) Backmatter: ff. 319–321 Folio i is a thin-stock, modern white flyleaf, with its other side pasted to the inside of the front board. Folia ii–iv are reused pages from a Coptic MS containing short readings from the Psalms and the Gospels of Matthew and John and bearing Greek folio numbers. The number for folio ii is partially elided and indiscernible, but the numbers for folia iii and iv are ⲅ (“3”) and ⲃ (“2”) respectively. The Arabic foliation starts with 184. The Coptic cursive foliation begins on folio 193 and matches that of the Arabic throughout, although the first folio number is miswritten with the symbol for 90 mistakenly written in place of the symbol for 100 (the symbol for 90 is thus written twice). Folio 319 is blank. Folio 320 bears the Coptic cursive foliation 185: it is a leaf taken from an Arabic commentary on the Gospel of Matthew. Folio 321 is a thin-stock, modern white flyleaf, with its other side pasted to the inside of the back board.

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 26 × 16.5 cm, with some variation as follows: ff. 184–198, 312: 24 × 16.5 cm ff. 319–320: 23.5 × 16 cm

18

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Area of writing: 18.5 × 11.5 cm, with some variation as follows: ff. 184–198: 17.5–18.5 × 12.5 cm ff. 199–202: 19.5–20.5 × 13–13.5 cm f. 312: 19.5 × 12.5 cm 17 lines/page, with some variation as follows: ff. 184–198: 16–18 lines/page ff. 199–202: 19–24 lines/page f. 312: 21 lines/page Cover, Condition

Light brown leather cover, with a tooled double-line rectangular border bisected by a large tooled X, with four large triangular floral stamps in the fields between its arms. The cover is heavily worn/abraded at the corners and edges and on its surface. The original folia are somewhat yellowed/discoloured. Folia 184 to 202, and folio 312, are replacement pages, slightly lighter in color. Folia 184 to 198, and folio 312, are slightly shorter in height, with their lower edges cut (or torn) unevenly/roughly. There has been an attempt to reinforce some pages along the spine with strips of paper. One wide strip was cut from a reused Coptic MS and pasted along the spine of folio 319a, obscuring the left third of the text written on the page.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. Folio 320 consists of a leaf reused from an Arabic Insertions Commentary on the Gospel of Matthew. The recto includes the headings “Chapter 24” (al-faṣl al-rābi‘ wa-l-‘ishrūn) and “Matthew the apostle said” (qāla Mattā al-rasūl). The verso includes the heading “The commen[tator] said” (qāla al-mufass[ir]). Readers’ insertions:

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

19

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 5 (= MS 157) Old number(s): 125 Lāhūt; 20-ⲕⲑ/288

Contents

Isaac the Syrian, Mayāmir; Isaiah of Scetis, Spiritual Teaching 1. Isaac the Syrian, Mayāmir: ff. 2b–158b. 57 mayāmir, which are numbered. The handbook reports that the first twenty-four mayāmir in this section correspond to the twenty-four mayāmir in DS Arabic Ascetic 2 (MS 154), see ff. 1b–78a. 2. Isaiah [of Scetis], Spiritual Teaching: ff. 159a–174b. ‫تعليم روحاني من قول أبينا القديس أنبا اشعيا‬

Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: Wednesday, 30 Amshīr, AM 976 [= 1260 CE] (f. 174b). Language and script: Arabic. Black ink, with headings and occasional punctuation in red. The script is small-to-medium in scale, and the hand is somewhat inconsistent, with scrawled lettering and cramped spacing. The replacement pages are also written with black ink at a similar scale and in a similar style. Material: Paper. Medium-weight Middle Eastern stock. Replacement pages (ff. 2, 9–10) are more recent, with a watermark possibly visible on folio 10 (perhaps the [shield with] man-in-the-moon design). Folia i and 178 consist of blue paper with no watermarks, and they match the paper used to line the inside of the front and back boards. The paper used for the rest of the front- and backmatter (ff. ii–iv, 176–177) bears Andrea Galvani watermarks.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

Scribe: an anonymous monk from the Monastery of St. Antony (Dayr al-qaddīs al-‘aẓīm Anbā Anṭūniyūs) (f. 174b).

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

No tables of contents.

No identification of patron/owner or restorer.

Colophons: f. 158b: after the Mayāmir by Isaac the Syrian, the colophon identifies the work and offers a brief blessing. f. 174b: after the Spiritual Teachings by Isaiah of Scetis, the colophon indicates that the MS was copied in the Monastery

20

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

of St. Antony, provides the date as Wednesday, the last day of the month Amshīr (30 Amshīr), AM 976 [= 1260 CE], and identifies the scribe as a monk from that monastery. Endowments (waqf-statements): f. 175a: endowed to Dayr al-Suryān, which is “in Wadī Habīb, the Scetis of the great Saint Macarius” (bi-Wadī Habīb Iṣqīṭ al-qaddīs al-‘aẓīm Maqāriyūs); includes warnings about taking the MS from the monastery, with reference to the fate of Diocletian, Herod, and Simon Magus. Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–iv Numbered folia: ff. 2–175 (= Copt. [2], 3–174, [175]) Backmatter: ff. 176–178 The first quire has nine folia (ff. 2–10, with 2, 9, and 10 being replacement leaves). The rest of the quires have 10 folia each, except the final one which has only five (ff. 171–175, with 175 being an added leaf). The first quire is marked on ff. 2, 3, 9, and 10 in the upper lefthand corner of the verso with the word awwal. In the rest of the quires, the first folio is marked in the same place with its cardinal number in Arabic (thāniyah, thālithah, etc.), with the exception of the final quire.

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 17.2 × 12.5 cm Area of writing: 14 × 10–11 cm 17 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Black cloth cover with a leather spine and corners. The binding is relatively recent: it is in good shape apart from some separation at the spine inside the back board. Some candle dripping is evident on folio 2, and folio 3a has a red-swiped stain at the top. The pages are slightly yellowed/browned, with the corners at the back of the MS showing some minor wear. Folia 9 and 10 are replacement pages, lighter in color.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ Readers’ insertions: Insertions 1. On f. 158b, a reader named Mūsā has written a prayer/petition for remembrance and forgiveness after the mayāmir in a rather unpracticed hand.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

21

2. On f. 174b, a note has been added in red ink by the person responsible for “collating” (al-muqābalah) the text, indicating the completion of his task. To the right of the note, he wrote his name vertically with non-connecting letters, identifying himself as Īsḥaq. 3. On f. 174b, a reader has written a prayer for remembrance at the bottom of the page, below the collator’s note. In the margin, he has written his name vertically with non-connecting Arabic letters.

22

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 6 (= MS 158) Old number(s): 81 Lāhūt; 21-ⲕⲑ/294

Contents

Isaac the Syrian, Mayāmir; Isaiah of Scetis, Spiritual Teaching 1. Isaac the Syrian, Mayāmir: ff. 2b–142b. 57 mayāmir. The handbook reports that the first twenty-four mayāmir in this section correspond to the twenty-four mayāmir in DS Arabic Ascetic 2 (MS 154), see ff. 1b–78a. 2. Isaiah [of Scetis], Spiritual Teaching: ff. 142b–155b. ‫تعليم روحاني من قول أبينا القديس أنبا اشعيا‬

Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: 20 Bashans, AM 1510 [= 1794 CE] (f. 155b). Language and script: Arabic. Black ink, with titles, headings, and punctuation in red. The hand features very small letters with thick, bold, somewhat cramped strokes. Material: Paper. Medium-weight European stock, with laid lines and rough-cut edges, but no visible watermarks. The folia in the front- and backmatter bear Andrea Galvani Pordenone (shield with man-in-the-moon) watermarks.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Table of contents: Inside front board: a modern table of contents in red and blue ballpoint pen. Colophons: f. 155b: a colophon that refers to the contents of the MS as “the book of Anbā Isḥaq, some mayāmir from the book of the Spiritual Elder (al-Shaykh al-Rūḥānī), and the teaching from the saying(s) of Anbā [I]saiah”; it provides the date as 20 Bashans, AM 1510 [= 1794 CE] and invokes the healing of the Lord and of Anbā Bishoi. ‫تم وكمل هذا الكتاب المبارك الذي هو كتاب أنبا اسحق‬ ‫وبعض ميامر من كتاب الشيخ الروحاني وتعليم من‬ ‫قول أنباشعيا ]كذا[ بسلام من الرب امين وكان الفراغ‬ ‫منه في اليوم العشرين من بشنس سنة ألف‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

23

‫وخمسماية وعشرة للشهدا الأطهار السعدا‬ ‫الأبرار نفعنا ا﷽ بما فيه من القول الصالح‬ ‫دائما‬ ﷽ ‫بشفاعت السيد وأنبا بيشوي والسبح‬ ً “This blessed book — the Book of Anbā Isaac, some mayāmir from the Book of the Spiritual Elder, and the Teaching from the saying of Anbā Isaiah — was finished and completed with peace from the Lord, Amen. The cessation [of work] on it took place on day 20 of [the month] Bashans, in year 1510 of the pure, happy, and righteous martyrs. My God grant us benefit from the pious word/saying(s) in it through the intercession of the Lord and Anbā Bishoi. Praise be to God forever.”

Endowments (waqf-statements): no endowment except for the modern purple stamps of Dayr al-Suryān. Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–vii Numbered folia: ff. [1]–155 (= Copt.) Backmatter: ff. 156–163 The first folio either lacks a number or the number is not preserved. The Arabic and Coptic cursive systems start together on folio 2 and continue in sync through folio 155.

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 16.5 × 11.5 cm Area of writing: 13.5–14.5 × 8–8.5 cm 17–20 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Red leather binding, worn with abrasions. There is nearly complete separation at the spine inside the front board and some separation at the spine inside the back board as well. The MS is in need of rebinding. The pages themselves are intact and fairly well preserved.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ Readers’ insertions: Insertions 1. On f. ia, someone wrote the old catalogue number 82 Lāhūt in thick blue/purple pencil, and then later someone else corrected it with a grey graphite pencil to 81 Lāhūt. 2. On f. iib, a reader’s note is written upside down on the page, indicating that the person writing it had received a note or message from his “director” (mudīr) and was petitioning God for forgiveness of his sins.

24

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

3. On f. iiib, a reader’s note is written upside down on the page, written in the same hand as the one on folio iib. In the note, the writer marks his stage of life as near its end and addresses his soul, asking it to remember its own sinfulness and the fact that the world is passing away. 4. On f. viia, someone wrote the old catalogue number 82 Lāhūt in thick blue/purple pencil.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

25

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 7 (= MS 159) Old number(s): 41 Lāhūt [Matḥaf]; 65/14-ⲕⲏ

Contents

John Saba/The Spiritual Elder (al-Shaykh al-rūḥānī), Mayāmir, Letters, and Chapters of Knowledge 1. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Mayāmir. Initial blessing and prayers: f. 1b. [Maymar 1,] On warning and caution regarding withdrawal: ff. 1b–5b. ‫ميمر على التحذير والتحفظ على الانقطاع‬ [Maymar 2,] On the understandings/intellections that come from the Spirit: ff. 5b–6b. ‫ميمر على الافهام الذي من الروح‬ [Maymar 3,] On the visitation of the spirit that is granted to the solitaries: ff. 6b–12a. ‫ميمر على زيارة الروح التي تعطى المتوحدين‬ ff. 6b–7a: Righteousness. ‫صلاح‬ ff. 7a–8a: Visitation of the first station. ‫زيارة المنزلة الأولى‬ ff. 8a–9a: The middle degrees that belong to the soul. ‫الدرجات الوسطانية التي هي النفسانية‬ ff. 9a–12a: On the degree of perfection. ‫ درجة[ الكمال‬:‫على درجت ]لازم‬ [Maymar 4,] On the demon of fornication and control of one’s bodily members: ff. 12a–15b. ‫ شيطان[ الزناء وماسك الأعضاء‬:‫على الشيطان ]لازم‬ [Maymar 5,] On the demon of blasphemy and the nature of [his] subterfuge and his blasphemies: ff. 15b–17a. ‫ميمر على شيطان التجديف وكيف حيلة وتجاديفه‬ [Maymar 6,] On annoyance and rashness, and on pridefulness: ff. 17a–18a. ‫ميمر على الحرد والطياشة وعلى الكبرياء‬ [Maymar 7,] On the love that the pure angels show: ff. 18a–19b. ‫ميمر على المحبة التي يظهرها الملائكة الأطهار‬

26

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

[Maymar 8,] On ultimate contemplation: ff. 19b–22b. ‫على الثاؤريا القاطية‬ [Maymar 9,] On the fact that no one should [reproach] the fathers, when they speak imperfectly for the sake of the capacity of the knowledge of the listeners. Among the fathers, there are some who speak about the hidden things of the secrets of God: ff. 22b–23b. ‫ميمر على أنه لا ينبغي لأحد ]أن يلوم[ الأباء إذا تكلموا بالنقص لقدر‬ ﷽‫معرفة السامعين من الأباء من يتكلم بخفايا أسرار ا‬ [Maymar 10,] On the heretical brothers: ff. 23b–25b. ‫ميمر على الإخوة المبتدعين‬ [Maymar 11,] On prayer and the powers of the spiritual natures, on the knowledge of God [and] many discernments/distinctions: ff. 25b–26a. ‫ميمر على الصلاة وعلى القوات الطبائع الروحانية وعلى معرفة ا﷽ افرازات‬ ‫كثيرة‬ [Maymar 12,] On the substance (hypostasis) of spiritual beings: ff. 26a–28a. ‫على أقنوم الروحانيين‬ [Maymar 13,] Eternal/continuous prayer: ff. 28a–30a. ‫الصلاة الدائمة‬ [Maymar 14,] On preserving internal and external senses: ff. 30a–32b. ‫ميمر على حفظ الحواس الداخلة والخارجة‬ [Maymar 15,] On voluntary death: ff. 32b–33a. ‫على الموت الإرادي‬ [Maymar 16,] Question asked when one of the fathers says that the souls after their transport [i.e. after death] ascends to heaven, [and when] among them someone says [that they ascend] to paradise and another says that it is buried: ff. 33a–34b. ‫مسألة يسأل لما من أبائنا من يقول إن الأنفس بعد انتقالها يرتفع إلى‬ ‫السماء ومنهم من يقول إلى الفردوس وأخر يقول يدفن‬ [Maymar 17,] On boldness: ff. 34b–35b. ‫ميمر على الدالة‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

27

[Maymar 18,] On singling out the types of [spiritual] gifts: ff. 35b–36a. ‫ميمر على افراد أنواع المواهب‬ [Maymar 19,] On the mystery/secret of the new world: ff. 36a–37a. ‫ميمر على سر العالم الجديد‬ [Maymar 20,] On a question/matter that a brother asked him about when he saw him praying toward the north: f. 37a–b. ‫مسألة سأله عنها أخ إذ نظره يصلي إلى ناحية الشمال‬ [Maymar 21,] On marveling at the appearance of God in the soul … and on its mingling with the angels: ff. 37b–38b. ‫ وعلى خلطتها مع الملائكة‬... ‫ميمر على عجب ظهور ا﷽ في النفس‬ [Maymar 22,] On the Holy Trinity: ff. 38b–40b. ‫ميمر على الثلوث المقدس‬ [Maymar 23,] On the gifts that come from the Spirit: ff. 40b–44a. ‫ميمر على العطايا التي من الروح‬ [Maymar 24,] On human bliss … in their vision of his [i.e. God’s] glory: ff. 44a–48a. ‫ في نظرهم لمجده‬... ‫على اللذة الإنسية‬ [Maymar 25,] On flight from the world and the withdrawal from [worldly] familiarity: ff. 48a–50a. ‫ميمر على الفرار من العالم والانقطاع من الدالة‬ [Maymar 26,] Warnings and counsels on pure repentance: ff. 50a–51b. ‫تحذيرات ومشورات على التوبة الطاهرة‬ [Maymar 27,] On the announcement/disclosure of the appearance of Christ: ff. 51b–53b. ‫ميمر على استعلان ظهور المسيح‬ [Maymar 28,] One of the brothers wrote about them and caused them to be before him always, and he himself would recall/remember them: ff. 53b–54b. ‫دائما وكان يذكر بهم ذاته‬ ‫إنسان من الإخوة كتب بهؤلاء وجعلهم قدامه‬ ً

28

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

[Maymar 29,] [A maymar] belonging to the holy Elder [sent] to a brother who requested that he show him how repentance was possible: ff. 54b–59a. ‫للشيخ القديس إلى عند إخوة الذي طلب منه أن يوريه كيف تقدر التوبة‬ [Maymar 30,] A vision revealed by God when he came forward to sanctify the divine mysteries for humankind: f. 59a–b. ‫ر]ؤ[يا أوري من ا﷽ لما تقدم ليقدس للإنسان الأسرار الإلهية‬ [Maymar 31,] [A maymar] belonging to the saint on the meaning [of the fact] that the brother who was from of old told his glorified vision on the holy mysteries: ff. 59b–60a. ‫ إنه قال الرؤيا الممجدة الذي له‬...‫للقديس في المعنى الأخ الذي من قديم‬ ‫على الأسرار القديسة‬ [Maymar 32,] On how much rest/tranquility is beneficial to those who are active and how much exhaustion is produced for the labor of the monastic life: ff. 60a–61a. ‫ميمر على أنه كم ينفع الهدوء للنشطاء وكم يصنع الاحلال لتعب الرهبنة‬ [Maymar 33,] On love and the love of God: ff. 61a–66b. ﷽‫ميمر على الحب وعلى محبة ا‬ [Maymar 34,] On meditation on the economy of our Lord: ff. 66b–69a. ‫ الهذ[ في تدبير ربنا‬:‫ميمر على الهذو ]لازم‬ [Maymar 35,] The vision/discernment of God: ff. 69a–75b. ﷽‫نظر ا‬ [Maymar 36,] Maymar belonging to the saint on the remembrance of meditating on God and focusing [one’s attention] on him: ff. 75b–79a. ‫ميمر للقديس على في ذكر الهذيذ با﷽ والاهتمام به‬ 2. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Letters (Rasā’il), which he sent to one of his beloved friends: ff. 79a–122a. ‫رسائل للشيخ القديس بعث بهم لإنسان من أحبائه‬ 48 letters. 3. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Chapters of Knowledge (Ru’ūs al-ma‘rifah), Treatises 1–3: ff. 122a–135a.

29

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Treatise One: ff. 122a–129b. ‫المقالة الأولى‬ Treatise Two: ff. 129b–133b. ‫المقالة الثانية‬ Treatise Three: ff. 133b–135a. ‫المقالة الثالثة‬ 4. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Correspondence with his brother at the Coenobion Monastery: ff. 135a–136a. Apology of the saint’s brother on account of this book: f. 135a–b. ‫اع]ت[ذار أخو القديس سبب هذا الكتاب‬ Letter of the Elder to his brother who was in the Coenobion Monastery (Dayr Kanūbiyūn): ff. 135b–136a. ‫رسالة الشيخ إلى عند أخوه الذي كان في دير كنوبيون‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: Saturday, 18 Ba’ūnah, AM 1033; equivalent to 20 Rabī‘ al-Awwal, AH 716 [= 1317 CE] (f. 136b). Language and script: Arabic. Black ink (which has faded to brown at certain points, especially toward the middle of the manuscript), with headings and scribal corrections in red ink. Medium-to large letters, although their dimensions are variable, growing larger toward the end of the manuscript. The style of the hand is somewhat cramped and not particularly elegant. Lines of text are not always straight. The trailing tails of letters regularly drift into the left margin (by design). Material: Paper. Thick Middle Eastern stock. The manuscript leaves have browned/yellowed over time. The front matter (ff. i–iv) and the replacement leaf of folio 1 consist of European paper bearing the Tre Lune watermark.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

Scribe: not identified. The anonymous scribe wrote the colophon on f. 126a–b but did not reveal his name, although he identifies himself as al-muhtamm. Patron/owner: anonymous (see above under “Scribe”). No identification of restorer.

30 Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Tables of contents: ff. ia–iia: table of contents in black ballpoint pen, with red ball point headings Colophons: f. 126a–b: the colophon contains a prayer for remembrance on behalf of the muhtamm (in this case, the scribe), asking for blessing for his descendants along with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, along with the prayers of the Virgin and the saints, and requests prayers from his readers. There is a heading in red on f. 126a. Endowments (waqf-statements): f. 1a: endowed to Dayr al-Suryān, with warnings against anyone who would remove the book, invoking the judgment against Simon Magus and Diocletian.

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–iv Numbered folia: ff. 1–137 [= Copt.] Backmatter: ff. 138–141 The Coptic cursive folio numbering is only intermittently preserved at the beginning of the manuscript (beginning on folia 10a, partially preserved on f. 15a, and then preserved more consistently from folia 16–18 and folia 20ff.), but the Arabic numeration matches the Coptic cursive number sequence. 14 quires are preserved. They are labeled on the upper corner of the recto on the first page of each quire, beginning with the third quire (ff. 20a, 30a, 40a, 49a, 59a, 69a, 79a, 89a, 99a, 109a, 119a, 131a). The first (unlabeled) quire contains 9 folia, including the initial replacement page (ff. 1–9). Beginning with quire 2 (ff. 10–19), quires 2–12 contain 10 folia each. The thirteenth quire contains 12 folia (ff. 119–130). The fourteenth contains 6 folia (ff. 131–136).

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 25.5 × 17.1 cm Area of writing: 21.5–22 × 13.5 cm 19–20 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Light brown leather cover, tooled with a large X and a double-lined rectangular border, and cruciform medallion stamps along the arms of the X and the border. The front cover and the

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

31

spine have small rectangular paper labels glued on, with the following text: ٥ ‫كتاب الشيخ الروحاني قلم ص‬. The cover is well worn with a vertical crack on the back cover near the spine, and the corners of the covers and edges of the spine are worn through. The pages of the manuscript itself are in decent shape: the insides of the covers are intact, but there is some separation between quires. Folio 1 is a replacement page. The edges of some folia have been reinforced with strips of paper (with Coptic and Arabic letterring occasionally visible). Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ Readers’ insertions: Insertions 1. f. 1a: a reader’s note has been written in the same hand as that the writer of the waqf-statement below it, with selected words in red ink. It contains a prescription or curse against the bite of a dog, snake, or scorpion: ‫هاولا الاسما ننتقا للمتلوع والكلب الكلب والحية والعقرب‬ ‫ستنا ماريا برخيا لكرستا يتفها نومي‬ ‫ننبا لاجاري نوكستا نان لتراه تلوفي فليوفي‬ + ‫يومنا دومنا كماشتا سيايي ابو تمي‬ ‫ننتقا للمثلوع بلبن حليب من شاه حمره او زيت طيب‬ ‫للكلب الكلب والحية والعقرب‬ + ‫ يا كبيكج يا كبيكج لحسن قومك القراضه‬+ These names we select for the one who is sick and rabid [from] a dog, serpent, or scorpion: Our Lady (Sittinā) Māriyā Barkhiyā Lakaristā. He should spit [on?] them (yatuffuhā). We make a sign (nūmi’u). We overcome (nanba’u). Lajārī Nawkastā Nān. May you see him. Talūfī Falyūfī. Our day (yawmunā). Our duration (dawmunā). Kamashtā Siyāyī. Abū Tamī. + We select cow’s milk for the one who is sick. Whoever desires it, let him dye it red. Or [we select] fine olive oil for the one who is rabid [from] a dog, or serpent, or scorpion. + O Kabīkij. O Kabīkij, for the good of your kin, this curse [al-qurāḍah, i.e. an evil saying directed against another person/being].

2. f. 67b: a reader has written a bibliomantic note in black or dark blue felt-tip pen: “Count seven pages to your left and read.” ‫عد سبعة ورقات من على‬ ‫شمالك واقرى‬

32

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

3. f. 137b: a reader’s note alludes to two related events and provides two dates: a. Saturday, 16 Abīb, al-Muḥarram AM 1094 (?) [= 1378 CE (?)], which is said to correspond to AH 746 [= 1346 CE]. Written in Coptic cursive numeric symbols, the AM date is uncertain: it does not correspond to the AH date that follows. b. Monday, 1 Tūt (al-Nārūz), AM 1056 (= 1339 CE), equivalent to 14 Ṣafar, AH 740 (= 1339 CE).

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

33

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 8 (= MS 160) Old number: 31/11-ⲕⲏ

Contents

John Saba/The Spiritual Elder (al-Shaykh al-rūḥānī), Mayāmir, Letters, and Chapters of Knowledge 1. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Mayāmir: Copt. 4a–8b, 10a– 83b (= ff. 1a–79b). Initial blessing and prayers: Copt. 4a (= f. 1a). [Maymar 1,] On warning and caution regarding withdrawal: Copt. 4a–8a (= ff. 1a–5a). ‫ميمر على التحذير والتحفظ على الانقطاع‬ [Maymar 2,] On the understandings/intellections that come from the Spirit: Copt. 8a–b (= f. 5a–b). ‫ميمر على الافهام الذي من الروح‬ [Maymar 3,] On the visitation of the spirit that is granted to the solitaries: Copt. 8b, 10a–15a (= ff. 5b–11a). ‫ميمر على زيارة الروح التي تعطى المتوحدين‬ Copt. 8b, 10a (= ff. 5b–6a): Righteousness. ‫صلاح‬ Copt. 10a–11a (= ff. 6a–7a): Visitation of the first station. ‫زيارة المنزلة الأولى‬ Copt. 11b–12a (= ff. 7b–8a): The middle degrees that belong to the soul. ‫الدرجات الوسطانية التي هي النفسانية‬ Copt. 12a–15a (= ff. 8a–b, 10a–11a): On the degree of perfection. ‫على درجة الكمال‬ [Maymar 4,] On the demon of fornication and control of one’s bodily members: Copt. 15a–18b (= ff. 11a–14b). ‫ شيطان[ الزناء وماسك الأعضاء‬:‫على الشيطان ]لازم‬ [Maymar 5,] On the demon of blasphemy and the nature of [his] subterfuge and his blasphemies: Copt. 18b–20b (= ff. 14b–16b). ‫ميمر على شيطان التجديف وكيف حيلة وتجاديفه‬

34

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

[Maymar 6,] On annoyance and rashness, and on pridefulness: Copt. 20b–21b (= ff. 16b–17b). ‫ميمر على الحرد والطياشة وعلى الكبرياء‬ [Maymar 7,] On the love that the pure angels show: Copt. 21b– 23a (= ff. 17b–19a). ‫ميمر على المحبة التي يظهرها الملائكة الأطهار‬ [Maymar 8,] On ultimate contemplation: Copt. 23a–26a (= ff. 19a–22a). ‫على الثاؤريا القاطية‬ [Maymar 9,] On the fact that no one should reproach the fathers when they speak imperfectly for the sake of the capacity of the knowledge of the listeners Copt. 26a–27a (= ff. 22a–23a). ‫ميمر على أنه لا ينبغي لأحد أن يلوم الأباء إذا تكلموا بالنقص لقدر معرفة‬ ﷽‫السامعين من الأباء من يتكلم بخفايا أسرار ا‬ [Maymar 10,] On the heretical brothers: Copt. 27a–29a (= ff. 23a–25a). ‫ميمر على الإخوة المبتدعين‬ [Maymar 11,] On prayer and the powers of the spiritual natures, on the knowledge of God [and] many discernments/ distinctions: Copt. 29a–b (= f. 25a–b). ‫ميمر على الصلاة وعلى القوات الطبائع الروحانية وعلى معرفة ا﷽ افرازات‬ ‫كثيرة‬ [Maymar 12,] On the sublimity of spiritual beings: Copt. 29b–31b (= ff. 25b–27b). ‫على عظمة الروحانيين‬ [Maymar 13,] Eternal/continuous prayer: Copt. 31b–34a (= ff. 27b–30a). ‫الصلاة الدائمة‬ [Maymar 14,] On preserving internal and external senses: Copt. 34a–37a (= ff. 30a–33a). ‫ميمر على حفظ الحواس الداخلة والخارجة‬ [Maymar 15,] On voluntary death: Copt. 37a–b (= f. 33a–b). ‫على الموت الإرادي‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

35

[Maymar 16,] Question [and answer]: Copt. 37b–38b (= ff. 33b–34b). [‫مسألة ]والجواب‬ [Maymar 17,] On boldness: Copt. 38ba–39b (= ff. 34b–35b). ‫ميمر على الدالة‬ [Maymar 18,] On singling out [spiritual] gifts: Copt. 39b–40b (= ff. 35b–36b). ‫ميمر على افراد المواهب‬ [Maymar 19,] On the mystery/secret of the new world: Copt. 40b–41b (= ff. 36b–37b). ‫ميمر على سر العالم الجديد‬ [Maymar 20,] On a question/matter that a brother asked him about when he saw him praying toward the north: Copt. 41b– 42a (= ff. 37b–38a). ‫مسألة سأله عنها أخ إذ نظره يصلي إلى ناحية الشمال‬ [Maymar 21,] On marveling at the appearance of God in the soul … and on its mingling with the angels: Copt. 42a–43a (= ff. 38a–39a). ‫ وعلى خلطتها مع الملائكة‬... ‫ميمر على عجب ظهور ا﷽ في النفس‬ [Maymar 22,] On the Holy Trinity: Copt. 43a–44b (= ff. 39a–40b). ‫ميمر على الثلوث المقدس‬ [Maymar 23,] On the gifts that come from the Spirit: Copt. 44b–48b (= ff. 40b–44b). ‫ميمر على العطايا التي من الروح‬ [Maymar 24,] On intimate bliss … in their vision of his [i.e. God’s] glory: Copt. 48b–52b (= ff. 44b–48b). ‫ في نظرهم لمجده‬... ‫على اللذة الأنيسة‬ [Maymar 25,] On flight from the world and withdrawal from [worldly] familiarity: Copt. 52b–54b (= ff. 48b–50b). ‫ميمر على الفرار من العالم والانقطاع من الدالة‬ [Maymar 26,] Warnings and counsels on pure repentance: Copt. 54b–56b (= ff. 50b–52b). ‫تحذيرات ومشورات على التوبة الطاهرة‬

36

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

[Maymar 27,] On the announcement/disclosure of the appearance of Christ: Copt. 56b–58b (= ff. 52b–54b). ‫ميمر على استعلان ظهور المسيح‬ [Maymar 28,] [A maymar] also attributed to him: Copt. 58b– 59b (= ff. 54b–55b). ‫وأيضا له‬ ً [Maymar 29,] [A maymar] belonging to the holy Elder [sent] to a brother who requested that he show him how repentance was possible: Copt. 59b–64a (= ff. 55b–60a). ‫للشيخ القديس إلى عند إخوة الذي طلب منه أن يوريه كيف تقدر التوبة‬ [Maymar 30,] A vision revealed by God when he came forward to sanctify the divine mysteries for humankind: Copt. 64a–b (= f. 60a–b). ‫رؤيا أوري من ا﷽ لما تقدم ليقدس للإنسان الأسرار الإلهية‬ [Maymar 31,] [A maymar] belonging to the saint on the meaning that the brother who was from of old told his glorified vision on the holy mysteries: Copt. 64b–65a (= ff. 60b–61a). ‫ إنه قال الرؤيا الممجدة الذي له‬...‫للقديس في المعنى الأخ الذي من قديم‬ ‫على الأسرار القديسة‬ [Maymar 32,] On how much rest/tranquility is beneficial to those who are active and how much exhaustion is produced for the labor of the monastic life: Copt. 65a–66a (= ff. 61a–62a). ‫ميمر على أنه كم ينفع الهدوء للنشطاء وكم يصنع الاحلال لتعب الرهبنة‬ [Maymar 33,] On love and the love of God: Copt. 66a–71a (= ff. 62a–67a). ﷽‫ميمر على الحب وعلى محبة ا‬ [Maymar 34,] On meditation on the economy of our Lord: Copt. 71a–74a (= ff. 67a–70a). ‫ميمر على الهذ في تدبير ربنا‬ [Maymar 35,] The vision/discernment of God: Copt. 74a–80b (= ff. 70a–76b). ﷽‫نظر ا‬ [Maymar 36,] Maymar belonging to the saint on the remembrance of meditating on God and focusing [one’s attention] on him: Copt. 80b–83b (= ff. 76b–79b). ‫ميمر للقديس على في ذكر الهذيذ با﷽ والاهتمام به‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

37

2. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Letters (Rasā’il), which he sent to one of his beloved friends: Copt. 83b–126b (= ff. 79b–122b). ‫رسائل للشيخ القديس بعث بهم لإنسان من أحبائه‬ 48 letters. 3. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Chapters of Knowledge (Ru’ūs al-ma‘rifah), Treatises 1–3: Copt. 126b–137b (= ff. 122b–133b). Treatise One: Copt. 126b–133a (= ff. 122b–129a). ‫المقالة الأولى‬ Treatise Two: Copt. 133a–136b (= ff. 129a–132b). ‫المقالة الثانية‬ Treatise Three: Copt. 136b–137b (=ff. 132b–133b). ‫المقالة الثالثة‬ 4. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Correspondence with his brother: Copt. 137b–138b (= ff. 133b–134b). Letter of the Elder to his brother who was in the Coenobion Monastery (Dayr Kanūbiyūn): Copt. 137b–138a (= ff. 133b–134a). ‫رسالة الشيخ إلى عند أخوه الذي كان في دير كنوبيون‬ Apology of the saint’s brother on account of this book: Copt. 138a–b (= f. 134a–b). ‫اعتذار أخو القديس سبب هذا الكتاب‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: none indicated. Language and script: Arabic. An elegant, small-to-medium-sized script in black ink with red headings. Some variability in size of lettering. The writing at the beginning of the manuscript is somewhat smaller. Material: Paper. Medium-to-heavy Middle Eastern stock. Pages have yellowed and become browner over time. The frontmatter bears an Andrea Galvani Pordenone watermark. The endmatter shows a [shield with] man-in-the-moon watermark.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe or restorer. Patron/owner: Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī (Copt. 3b).

38 Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Tables of contents: Copt. 3a–b: original table of contents in black ink with folio numbers in red ink. Colophons: none. Endowments (waqf-statements): Copt. 3b: waqf-statement written in a fairly sloppy hand, different from that of the scribe, endowing the text to Dayr al-Suryān (Dayr al-sitt al-sayyidah bi-l-Suryān). The writer of the waqf identifies himself as Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī.

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–iv Numbered folia: Copt. 3–8, 10–138 (= ff. [one folio with no Arabic number], 1–134) Backmatter: ff. 135–139 The first surviving original folio in the manuscript is labelled with the Coptic cursive number 3; there are probably two original folia [Copt. 1–2] missing from the text as it is preserved. Copt. 3 is not numbered in Arabic. The Arabic numbering starts with the next folio (Copt. 4 = f. 1) and continues through to f. 134. The Coptic cursive sequence skips from number 8 (= f. 5) to number 10 (= f. 6) — there is no Copt. 9 — but then the sequence continues consistently to Copt. 138 (= f. 134). The end of the manuscript is missing. The manuscript consists of 14 quires. The first quire is incomplete, consisting of only 7 folia (Copt. 3–8, 10). The rest of the quires contain ten folia each (quire 2 = Copt. 11–20; quire 3 = Copt. 21–30; etc.), with the exception of the final quire, which contains eight folia (quire 14 = Copt. 131–138).

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 26.5 × 17.5 cm Area of writing: 20 × 12.5 cm 18 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Red leather binding, tooled with a rectangular border consisting of two parallel double lines. The cover is well worn, especially at the edges. The back cover has a rectangular piece of paper with a note glued to the surface (see below under “Readers’ insertions”).

39

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

There is significant separation at the spine inside the front board with the stitching plainly visible. Separation also evident after the sixth quire (between folia 56 and 57; Copt. 60 and 61). Pages have been reinforced along the edges and spine with strips of paper, some of which has Ethiopic writing (ff. v, 1–3). This reinforcement is more extensive toward the beginning of the manuscript. Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. f. vb (= Copt. 3b): at the end of the table of contents, the scribe Insertions writes the following: ‫ذكر الربان يوسف نيح ا﷽ نفسه ان اسم هذا الشيخ يوحنا الدلياتي‬ ‫وله اربع كتب هذا احدهم من هذه النسبة‬ “Yūsif, the one who is preeminent [in devotion], may God give his soul rest, mentioned that the name of this Elder was Yūḥannā al-Dalyātī, and to him belong four books. This is one of them according to this attribution.”

2. f. 29b: a scribal note in the margin comments on the role of the Holy Spirit. The same note appears in DS Arabic Ascetic 9 (= MS 161), f. 46a; but it is not present in DS Arabic Ascetic 7 (= MS 159), which suggests that one of MS 160 and 161 was dependent on the other, or the two are dependent on a common source. Readers’ insertions: 1. On the back cover, there is a note on a rectangular piece of paper glued to the leather surface, with the following text written on it: ‫قال القمص عبد المسيح‬ ‫صليب البرموسي‬ ‫ بابة‬٣ ‫احضرته في‬ ‫ للمقابلة عنه‬١٦٣٣ ‫وبعدها نرجعه‬ ‫إلى دير السريان‬ ‫محله ونأخذ وصلنا‬ “The qummuṣ ‘Abd al-Masīḥ Salīb al-Baramūsī said, ‘I took it on 3 Bābah, AM 1633 [= 1916 CE] to collate it, and afterwards [i.e. after that collation] we returned it to Dayr al-Suryān, its [proper] place. We took [it] and we brought [it] back.’”

40

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 9 (= MS 161) Old number: 43 Lāhūt; 43/12-ⲕⲏ

Contents

John Saba/The Spiritual Elder (al-Shaykh al-rūḥānī), Mayāmir, Letters, and Chapters of Knowledge 1. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Mayāmir: ff. 6b–114a (Copt. [6b]–114a). Initial blessing and prayers: f. 6b. [Maymar 1,] On warning and caution regarding withdrawal: ff. 7a–12b. ‫ميمر على التحذير والتحفظ على الانقطاع‬ [Maymar 2,] On the understandings/intellections that come from the Spirit: ff. 12b–13b. ‫ميمر على الافهام الذي من الروح‬ [Maymar 3,] On the visitation of the spirit that is granted to the solitaries: ff. 13b–21b. ‫ميمر على زيارة الروح التي تعطى المتوحدين‬ ff. 13b–14b: Righteousness. ‫صلاح‬ ff. 14b–16a: Visitation of the first station. ‫زيارة المنزلة الأولى‬ ff. 16a–17a: The middle degrees that belong to the soul. ‫الدرجات الوسطانية التي هي النفسانية‬ ff. 17a–21b: On the degree of perfection. ‫على درجت درجة الكمال‬ [Maymar 4,] On the demon of fornication and control of one’s bodily members: ff. 21b–25b. ‫ شيطان[ الزناء وماسك الأعضاء‬:‫على الشيطان ]لازم‬ [Maymar 5,] On the demon of blasphemy and the nature of [his] subterfuge and his blasphemies: ff. 25b–28a. ‫ميمر على شيطان التجديف وكيف حيلة وتجاديفه‬ [Maymar 6,] On annoyance and rashness, and on pridefulness: ff. 28a–29b. ‫ميمر على الحرد والطياشة وعلى الكبرياء‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

41

[Maymar 7,] On the love that the pure angels show: ff. 29b–31b. ‫ميمر على المحبة التي يظهرها الملائكة الأطهار‬ [Maymar 8,] On ultimate contemplation: ff. 31b–36a. ‫على الثاؤريا القاطية‬ [Maymar 9,] On the fact that no one should reproach the fathers when they speak imperfectly for the sake of the capacity of the knowledge of the listeners: ff. 36a–37b. ‫ميمر على أنه لا ينبغي لأحد أن يلوم الأباء إذا تكلموا بالنقص لقدر معرفة‬ ﷽‫السامعين من الأباء من يتكلم بخفايا أسرار ا‬ [Maymar 10,] On the heretical brothers: ff. 37b–40a. ‫ميمر على الإخوة المبتدعين‬ [Maymar 11,] On prayer and the powers of the spiritual natures, on the knowledge of God [and] many discernments/ distinctions: f. 40a–b. ‫ميمر على الصلوة وعلى القوات الطبائيع الروحانية وعلى معرفة ا﷽ افرازات كثيرة‬ [Maymar 12,] On the sublimity of the substance (hypostasis) of spiritual beings: ff. 40b–43b. ‫على عظمة قنوم الروحانيين‬ [Maymar 13,] Eternal/continuous prayer: ff. 43b–46b. ‫الصلاة الدائمة‬ [Maymar 14,] On preserving internal and external senses: ff. 46b–50b. ‫ميمر على حفظ الحواس الداخلة والخارجة‬ [Maymar 15,] On voluntary death: ff. 50b–51a. ‫على الموت الإرادي‬ [Maymar 16,] Question and answer: ff. 51a–52b. ‫مسألة والجواب‬ [Maymar 17,] On boldness: ff. 52b–53b. ‫ميمر على الدالة‬ [Maymar 18,] On singling out [spiritual] gifts: ff. 54a–55a. ‫ميمر على افراد المواهب‬ [Maymar 19,] On the mystery/secret of the new world: ff. 55a–56b. ‫ميمر على سر العالم الجديد‬

42

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

[Maymar 20,] Question [and answer]: ff. 56b–57a. [‫مسألة ]والجواب‬ [Maymar 21,] On marveling at the appearance of God in the soul … and on its mingling with the angels: ff. 57a–58b. ‫ وعلى خلطتها مع الملائكة‬... ‫ميمر على عجب ظهور ا﷽ في النفس‬ [Maymar 22,] On the Holy Trinity: ff. 58b–61a. ‫ميمر على الثلوث المقدس‬ [Maymar 23,] On the gifts that come from the Spirit: ff. 61a–66b. ‫ميمر على العطايا التي من الروح‬ [Maymar 24,] On intimate bliss … in their vision of his [i.e. God’s] glory: ff. 66b–71b. ‫ في نظرهم لمجده‬... ‫على اللذة الأنيسة‬ [Maymar 25,] On flight from the world and withdrawal from [worldly] familiarity: ff. 71b–74a. ‫ميمر على الفرار من العالم والانقطاع من الدالة‬ [Maymar 26,] Warnings and counsels on pure repentance: ff. 74a–76b. ‫تحذيرات ومشورات على التوبة الطاهرة‬ [Maymar 27,] On the announcement/disclosure of the appearance of Christ: ff. 76b–79a. ‫ميمر على استعلان ظهور المسيح‬ [Maymar 28,] [A maymar] also attributed to him: ff. 79a–80b. ‫وأيضا له‬ ً [Maymar 29,] [A maymar] belonging to the holy Elder [sent] to a brother who requested that he show him how repentance was possible: ff. 80b–86a. ‫للشيخ القديس إلى عند إخوة الذي طلب منه أن يوريه كيف تقدر التوبة‬ [Maymar 30,] A vision revealed by God when he came forward to sanctify the divine mysteries for humankind: ff. 86a–87b. ‫رؤيا أوري من ا﷽ لما تقدم ليقدس للإنسان الأسرار الإلهية‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

43

[Maymar 31,] [A maymar] belonging to the saint on the meaning [of the fact] that the brother who was from of old told his glorified vision on the holy mysteries: ff. 87b–88a. ‫ إنه قال الرؤيا الممجدة الذي له‬... ‫للقديس في المعنى الأخ الذي من قديم‬ ‫على الأسرار القديسة‬ [Maymar 32,] On how much rest/tranquility is beneficial to those who are active and how much exhaustion is made for the labor of the monastic life: ff. 88a–89b. ‫ميمر على أنه كم ينفع الهدوء للنشطاء وكم يصنع الاحلال لتعب الرهبنة‬ [Maymar 33,] On love and the love of God: ff. 89b–97a. ﷽‫ميمر على الحب وعلى محبة ا‬ [Maymar 34,] On meditation on the economy of our Lord: ff. 97a–100b. ‫ميمر على الهذ في تدبير ربنا‬ [Maymar 35,] The vision/discernment of God: ff. 100b–109b. ﷽‫نظر ا‬ [Maymar 36,] Maymar belonging to the saint on the remembrance of meditating on God and focusing [one’s attention] on him: ff. 110a–114a. ‫ميمر للقديس على في ذكر الهذيذ با﷽ والاهتمام به‬ 2. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Letters (Rasā’il), which he sent to one of his beloved friends: ff. 114b–168a. ‫رسائل للشيخ القديس بعث بهم لإنسان من أحبائه‬ 48 letters. 3. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Chapters of Knowledge (Ru’ūs al-ma‘rifah), Treatises 1–3: ff. 168b–181b (= Copt. 168b– [181b]). Treatise One: ff. 168b–176a. ‫المقالة الأولى‬ Treatise Two: ff. 176a–180b. ‫المقالة الثانية‬ Treatise Three: ff. 180b–181b. ‫المقالة الثالثة‬

44

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

4. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Letter to his brother: ff. 181b–182a (no Copt.). ‫رسالة الشيخ القديس إلى أخيه الجسداني‬ 5. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Chapters of Knowledge (Ru’ūs al-ma‘rifah), Treatises 3–7: ff. 182b–216b (no Copt.). Treatise Three: ff. 182b–189b. ‫المقالة الثالثة‬ Treatise Four: ff. 189b–197a. ‫المقالة الرابعة‬ Treatise Five: ff. 197a–205a. ‫المقالة الخامسة‬ Treatise Six: ff. 205a–209b. ‫المقالة السادسة‬ Treatise Seven: ff. 209b–216b. ‫المقالة السابعة‬ 6. Apology by the [Spiritual] Elder’s brother: ff. 217b–218a. ‫ الذي[ يوضح فيه سبب الكتاب‬:‫اعتذار أخ الشيخ ]ال[خسداني إني ]لازم‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: no date given by either of the two primary scribes. The third scribe (who was responsible for the first restoration of the text) gives the date for the completion of his work as Holy Friday, 18 Bābah, AM 1515 [= 1798 CE] (f. 182a). A modern waqf-statement written in felt-tip pen gives the date of 27 Baramhāt, AM 1649 (= 1933 CE). Language and script: Arabic. There are different hands in evidence. The first major hand wrote the text on folia 3b–180. It is written in a bold black ink, with headings, single “punctuation” dots, and some marginal notes in red ink. Its script is fairly large and well-executed, with the height of vertical strokes accentuated. The second major hand wrote the text on folia 182b–217a. It is written in a bold black ink, with heads and punctuation (including four dots in the form of a cross) in red ink. Its script is medium-to-large, with shorter letters than those of the first hand. These first two hands represent the fact that the manuscript is composed of two different sections of John Saba’s work,

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

45

combined into a single manuscript. The material written by the second scribe — John’s Chapters of Knowledge, chapters 3–7 (ff. 182b–216b, with colophon at ff. 216b–217a) — is inserted between John’s letter to his brother (ff. 181b–182a) and his brother’s response/apology (ff. 217b–218a). The original table of contents at the beginning of the manuscript (ff. 3b–6a) does not include the second scribe’s material: it lists John Saba’s letter to his brother as starting on Copt. folio 181 and his brother’s apology as starting on Copt. folio 182. The third and fourth hands represent two later stages of restoration. The third hand supplied restored text on folia 181a–b, 182a, and 217b. It is written in black ink, with red-ink headings that have faded to brown. Its script is smaller and shorter, executed in a less skilled hand. The fourth hand appears on strips of paper affixed to the bottom of f. 181b, the top of f. 182a, top of f. 217a, and f. 218a. See below under “Cover, Condition” for a description of these scribal restorations. Material: Paper. Medium-to-thick Middle Eastern stock. Pages have yellowed and become browner over time. The frontmatter bears Andrea Galvani Pordenone watermarks. The endmatter bears [shield with] man-in-the-moon watermarks. Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

Scribe: not identified. Patron/owner: al-qiss Yūsif ibn Sa‘m (?) (f. 3a); al-qiss Ibrāhīm al-Suryānī (f. 3a). Restorer: Both of the secondary scribes/restorers of the text remain anonymous as well, although the date of the first restoration (1798 CE) is consistent with the time period of Yuḥannā al-Fayyūmī’s work.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: ff. 3b–6a: original table of contents in black ink with folio numbers and references in red ink. Colophons: f. 182a: colophon written by the third scribe and restorer, who provides his date of restoration as Holy Friday, 18 Bābah, AM 1515 [= 1798 CE].

46

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

ff. 216b–217a: colophon written by the second scribe and restorer, who ends the seventh chapter of the Chapters of Knowledge (Ru’ūs al-ma‘rifah) with the phrase, “The end of the book containing testimonies from the elders” (nihāyat al-kitāb bi-shahādāt min al-shiyūkh, f. 216b), and then adds an extended blessing invoking the author John [Saba] and the saints in the name of “the children of Scetis (ṣubyān al-Isqīṭ). He concludes by requesting blessings from the readers of the text, which he translated from Syriac into Arabic. Endowments (waqf-statements): f. iia: a waqf-statement written in black felt-tip pen, endowing the MS to Dayr al-Suryān on 27 Baramhāt, AM 1649 [= 1933 CE]. f. 3a: a waqf-statement mentioning that the volume was given by al-qiss Yūsif ibn Sa‘m (?) to al-qiss Ibrāhīm al-Suryānī, and that he died in the monastery and had told the abbot that he wanted to endow all his books the Monastery of the Virgin bi-lSuryān. The statement concludes with warnings that no one has the authority to remove it from the monastery. f. 182a a waqf-statement written by the third scribe and restorer who was responsible for the replacement pages: he endows the restored volume to the Monastery of the Virgin bi-l-Suryān in Wādī Habīb, Jabal al-Aṭrūn, the Scetis (Iṣqīṭ) of the great Saint Macarius. He concludes with warnings against removing it from the library on the threat of the fates of Diocletian, Judas Iscariot, and Simon Magus. He also mentions that at the end of the book is found a part (jānib) of the Book of Mar Isaac (Kitāb Mārī Isḥāq). f. 223b: a waqf-statement is written upside-down on the page in black felt-tip pen indicating that the text was endowed at some point to the Monastery of St. Macarius (waqfan Dayr Abī Maqār). Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–iv Numbered folia: 3–218 (= Copt. [3–10 no number], 11–177, [178–218 no number]) Backmatter: ff. 219–223 The Coptic cursive numbering is visible on folia 11–177, and it aligns with the later Arabic foliation throughout. The Coptic cursive is absent at the beginning (ff. 3–10) and end (ff. 178–218) of the manuscript.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

47

The first quire (not labelled) contains eight folia (ff. 3–10). The quires that follow contain ten folia. The first one visibly labelled is the fifth quire (beginning with f. 41a). This continues through to the eighteenth quire (ff. 171–180). The second half of the manuscript contains four quires, but they are not numbered or marked: ff. 181–190, 191–200, 201–211, 212–217 (with replacement folio 218 added in with the backmatter). Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 25.5 × 18 cm Area of writing: 19.5 × 12 cm 14 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Red leather cover, well worn with some abrasions at the edges of the covers and spine. There is significant separation at the spine inside the front and back boards, with the stitching plainly visible. Some separation between some of the quires is also evident. A number of pages have been reinforced along the spine and edges with strips of paper. Some of these strips were reused from Ethiopic, Coptic, and Arabic manuscripts. Folio 81 (the first folio in quire 9) is almost detached. Some insect holes are evident in folia 217 and 218. Folio 218 is partially detached. Folio 219 is almost completely detached (it only remains connected to folio 218 by some glue near the spine). The manuscript went through at least two early stages of restoration. The first stage is associated with the third scribal hand. The current folio 181 is a replacement page written in that third hand (the original folio 181 is no longer present). On this folio, the third hand completed the third chapter of John Saba’s Chapters of Knowledge (Ru’ūs al-ma‘rifah), which ends on f. 181b, and then began John’s letter to his brother. This letter ends on f. 182a (which the first scribe probably had left blank), and on that same folio the third hand has supplied a colophon related to his scribal activity and restoration work, as well as a waqf-statement. This third hand is also responsible for the text written on the replacement folio 217b. The second stage of restoration is associated with the fourth hand and is evidenced by the application of strips of paper to the bottom of folio 181b and the top of folio 182a. These strips of paper were used to cover parts of the replacement text written

48

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

by the third scribe, and on them the fourth scribe replaced the covered text in his own hand. Three lines are written on the strip of paper at the bottom of folio 181b. At the top of folio 182a, a strip of blank paper was first used to cover five or six lines written by the third scribe (the end of John Saba’s letter to his brother). Another smaller strip of paper was then glued at the top of the page, on top of the wider blank strip, and on this smaller strip one line of text was added by the fourth hand. At a subsequent point, part of this older, wider strip of paper was subsequently removed (ripped away), and four lines of the third scribe’s earlier text are now partially visible. The fourth hand is also responsible for one line of text written on the strip of paper at the top of folio 217b (this is the first line on the page; he also completes the tops of letters in the second line that had been covered by the strip of paper). Finally, the fourth hand also wrote five lines of text on the replacement folio 218a (the end of the final work in the manuscript). The current folio 218 is a replacement page that is slightly smaller in dimension (1 cm shorter) than the other folia in the manuscript: it would have replaced the original folio 218, on which the third scribe would have completed his own restoration of the text. It is possible that the third scribe had covered the original folio 218a with his own replacement page glued to its face (like he did with f. 217b), but in any case the original folio (belonging to the second scribe) and its restoration by the third scribe are no longer in evidence. Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. f. 6a: the scribe identifies the Elder (al-shaykh) as Yūḥannā Insertions al-Dalyānī, and the book as the first of four books written by him. 2. f. 46a: a scribal note in the margin comments on the role of the Holy Spirit. The same note appears in DS Arabic Ascetic 8 (= MS 160), f. 29b, which suggests that one of these MSS was dependent on the other or the that both were dependent on a common source. 3. f. 109b: the first scribe wrote a final title/blessing to the preceding section of text, but it was subsequently crossed out because it was not the actual end of the collection of homilies.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

49

4. f. 165b: the first scribe has crossed out a section of text in the main body with cross-hatching in red ink. The same text appears twice in the margin, the first of which is crossed out with a single line in black ink. 5. f. 182b: the second scribe introduces this section by saying that John’s Chapters of Knowledge, chapters 3 and following, has been translated here from Syriac into Arabic, and that this section of the work is otherwise not available in Arabic. Readers’ insertions:

50

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 10 (= MS 162) Old number(s): 25 Lāhūt [Matḥaf]; 19/7-ⲕⲏ

Contents

John Saba/The Spiritual Elder (al-Shaykh al-rūḥānī), Mayāmir, Letters, and Chapters of Knowledge 1. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Mayāmir: ff. 4a–95b. Initial blessing and prayers: f. 4a. [Maymar 1,] On warning and caution regarding withdrawal: ff. 4a–9a. ‫ميمر على التحذير والتحفظ على الانقطاع‬ [Maymar 2,] On the understandings/intellections that come from the Spirit: f. 9a–b. ‫ميمر على الافهام الذي من الروح‬ [Maymar 3,] On the visitation of the spirit that is granted to the solitaries: ff. 9b–16a. ‫ميمر على زيارة الروح التي تعطى المتوحدين‬ f. 10a–b: Righteousness. ‫صلاح‬ ff. 10b–11b: Visitation of the first station. ‫زيارة المنزلة الأولى‬ ff. 11b–12b: The middle degrees that belong to the soul. ‫الدرجات الوسطانية التي هي النفسانية‬ ff. 12b–16a: On the degree of perfection. ‫على درجة الكمال‬ [Maymar 4,] On the demon of fornication and control of one’s bodily members: ff. 16a–20a. ‫ شيطان[ الزناء وماسك الأعضاء‬:‫على الشيطان ]لازم‬ [Maymar 5,] On the demon of blasphemy and the nature of [his] subterfuge and his blasphemies: ff. 20a–22a. ‫ميمر على شيطان التجديف وكيف حيلة وتجاديفه‬ [Maymar 6,] On annoyance and rashness, and on pridefulness: ff. 22a–23b. ‫ميمر على الحرد والطياشة وعلى الكبرياء‬ [Maymar 7,] On the love that the pure angels show: ff. 23b–25a. ‫ميمر على المحبة التي يظهرها الملائكة الأطهار‬

51

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

[Maymar 8, On definitive/ultimate contemplation] (no heading): ff. 25a–28b. [Maymar 9,] On the fact that no one should reproach the fathers when they speak imperfectly for the sake of the capacity of the knowledge of the listeners: ff. 28b–30a. ‫ميمر على أنه لا ينبغي لأحد أن ]يلوم[ الأباء إذا تكلموا بالنقص لقدر معرفة‬ ﷽‫السامعين من الأباء من يتكلم بخفايا أسرار ا‬ [Maymar 10,] On the heretical brothers: ff. 30a–32a. ‫ميمر على الإخوة المبتدعين‬ [Maymar 11,] On prayer and the powers of the spiritual natures, on the knowledge of God [and] many discernments/distinctions: f. 32a–b. ‫ميمر على الصلاة وعلى القوات الطبائيع الروحانية وعلى معرفة ا﷽ افرازات كثيرة‬ [Maymar 12,] On the substance (hypostasis) of spiritual beings: ff. 32b–35a. ‫على أقنوم الروحانيين‬ [Maymar 13,] Eternal/continuous prayer: ff. 35a–38a. ‫الصلاة الدائمة‬ [Maymar 14,] On preserving internal and external senses: ff. 38a–41a. ‫ميمر على حفظ الحواس الداخلة والخارجة‬ [Maymar 15,] On voluntary death: ff. 41a–42a. ‫على الموت الإرادي‬ [Maymar 16,] Question and answer: ff. 42a–43a. ‫مسألة وجواب‬ [Maymar 17,] On boldness: ff. 43a–44a. ‫ميمر على الدالة‬ [Maymar 18,] On the types of [spiritual] gifts: ff. 44a–45a. ‫ميمر على أنواع المواهب‬ [Maymar 19,] On the mystery/secret of the new world: ff. 45a–46b. ‫ميمر على سر العالم الجديد‬ [Maymar 20,] Question and answer: ff. 46b–47a. ‫مسألة وجواب‬

52

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

[Maymar 21,] On marveling at the appearance of God in the soul … and on its mingling with the angels: ff. 47a–48b. ‫ وعلى خلطتها مع الملائكة‬... ‫ميمر على عجب ظهور ا﷽ في النفس‬ [Maymar 22,] On the Holy Trinity: ff. 48b–50a. ‫ميمر على الثلوث المقدس‬ [Maymar 23,] On the gifts that come from the Spirit: ff. 50a–55a. ‫ميمر على العطايا التي من الروح‬ [Maymar 24,] On human bliss … in their vision of his [i.e. God’s] glory: ff. 55a–59b. [﷽‫ في نظرهم لمجده ]مجد ا‬... ‫على اللذة الإنسية‬ [Maymar 25,] On flight from the world and withdrawal from [worldly] familiarity: ff. 59b–62a. ‫ميمر على الفرار من العالم والانقطاع من الدالة‬ [Maymar 26,] Warnings and counsels on pure repentance: ff. 62a–64a. ‫تحذيرات ومشورات على التوبة الطاهرة‬ [Maymar 27,] On the announcement/disclosure of the appearance of Christ: ff. 64a–66a. ‫ميمر على استعلان ظهور المسيح‬ [Maymar 28,] [A maymar] also attributed to him: ff. 66a–67a. ‫وأيضا له‬ ً [Maymar 29,] [A maymar] belonging to the holy Elder [sent] to a brother who requested that he show him how repentance was possible: ff. 67a–72b. ‫للشيخ القديس إلى عند إخوة الذي طلب منه أن يوريه كيف تقدر التوبة‬ [Maymar 30,] A vision revealed by God when he came forward to sanctify the holy mysteries for humankind: ff. 72b–73b. ‫رؤيا أوري من ا﷽ لما تقدم ليقدس للإنسان الأسرار الإلهية‬ [Maymar 31,] [A maymar] belonging to the saint on the meaning [of the fact] that the brother who was from of old related the glorified vision that he had on the holy mysteries: ff. 73b–74a. ‫ إنه قال الرؤيا الممجدة الذي‬... ‫للقديس في المعنى الأخ الذي من قديم‬ ‫له على الأسرار القديسة‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

53

[Maymar 32,] On how much rest/tranquility is beneficial to those who are active and how much exhaustion is made for the labor of the monastic life: ff. 74a–75a. ‫ميمر على أنه كم ينفع الهدوء للنشطاء وكم يصنع الاحلال لتعب الرهبنة‬ [Maymar 33,] On love and the love of God: ff. 75a–81b. ﷽‫ميمر على الحب وعلى محبة ا‬ [Maymar 34,] On meditation on the economy of our Lord: ff. 81b–84b. ‫ميمر على الهذيذ في تدبير ربنا‬ [Maymar 35,] The vision/discernment of God: ff. 84b–92a. ﷽‫نظر ا‬ [Maymar 36,] Maymar belonging to the saint on the remembrance of meditating on God and focusing [one’s attention] on him: ff. 92a–95b. ‫ميمر للقديس على في ذكر الهذيذ با﷽ والاهتمام به‬ 2. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Letters (Rasā’il), which he sent to one his beloved friends: ff. 95b–141b. ‫رسائل للشيخ القديس بعث بهم لإنسان من أحبائه‬ 48 letters. 3. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Chapters of Knowledge (Ru’ūs al-ma‘rifah), Treatises 1–3: ff. 141b–153a. Treatise One: ff. 141b–148b. ‫المقالة الأولى‬ Treatise Two: ff. 148b–152a. ‫المقالة الثانية‬ Treatise Three: ff. 153a–154b. ‫المقالة الثالثة‬ 4. Correspondence between John Saba and his brother: ff. 153a–154b. Letter of the Elder to his brother who was in the Coenobion Monastery (Dayr Kanūbiyūn): f. 153a–b. ‫رسالة الشيخ إلى عند أخوه الذي كان في دير كنوبيون‬ Apology of the saint’s brother: ff. 153b–154b. ‫اعتذار أخو القديس الجسداني‬

54 Date, Language, Script, Material

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Date: Thursday, 10 Abīb, AM 1494 [= 1778 CE] (f. 154b). Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with headings and dots/ “punctuation” in red. The hand is large, with thick, bold lettering, especially at the beginning of the manuscript. The writing area is framed by a ruled rectangular border consisting of three lines, one in black (the outer line) and two in red (the two inner lines). Material: Paper. Thin-to-medium European stock with Tre Lune watermarks.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

Scribe: al-qummuṣ Mūsā, a priest (kāhin) and servant (khādim) of the Virgin at Ḥārat al-Zuwaylah al-Kubrā (f. 155a). Patron/owner: Īlyās Abū Wāsif, a layperson (archan) and a deacon (shammās) living in Old Cairo (madīnat Miṣr), was the patron (muhtamm) (f. 155a); abūnā al-qummuṣ ‘Abd al-Quddūs, owner (f. 154b). Restorer: not identified.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: none Colophons: f. 154b: the scribe provides the date of his completion of the manuscript as Thursday, 10 Abīb, AM 1494 [= 1778 CE]. f. 155a–b: the scribe identifies the patron (muhtamm) as Īlyās Abū Wāsif, who is described as a layperson (archan) and a deacon (shammās) living in Old Cairo (madīnat Miṣr); the scribe identifies himself as al-qummuṣ Mūsā, a priest (kāhin) and servant (khādim) of the Virgin at Ḥārat al-Zuwaylah al-Kubrā. He then asks for prayers of remembrance from the reader and the intercession of the archangel Michael. He refers to his hope in resurrection after death, citing Jesus’ teaching about faith in God in the Gospel of John. He then concludes with prayers for intercession from Mary the Mother of God, the archangel Michael, and the saints. After concluding with “Amen,” the scribe adds Kyrie eleison in Arabic (kīriyālayṣūn). Endowments (waqf-statements): f. 154b: contains a written statement written in black ink indicating that the book belonged to al-qummuṣ ‘Abd al-Quddūs, identified by the title Abūnā/Abīnā, indicating his monastic status.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

55

f. 156a: a waqf-statement in the same handwriting as the statement on f. 154b, endowing the volume to Dayr al-Suryān, which is also identified as the Monastery of John Kame (Dayr al-Sitt al-Sayyidah bi-l-Suryān Dayr Abū Iḥnas Kāmā bi-bariyyat Shīhāt bi-Jabal al-Naṭrūn). Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: f. i Numbered folia: ff. 4–156 [= Copt. 4–155, [156]] Backmatter: f. 157 There are three different numbering systems visible (all on the recto sides of the manuscript leaves). First, an original Coptic cursive foliation system was written by the scribe in black ink, beginning with Copt. 4 and continuing up to Copt. 155. Second, an Arabic pagination system was written on every other page (only odd pages) in black ink above each Coptic cursive folio number. This pagination sequence runs from p. 1 to p. 79 (ff. 4a–43a), and then skips to p. 91 and continues through p. 313 (ff. 44a–155a). A later hand tried to correct this gap by emending page numbers 91–313 in graphite pencil. However, this emender neglected to change the hundred’s digit for pages 301 to 313, resulting in the following sequence: 81–289, 391– 399 (which are supposed to be 291–299), 301–303. Third, an Arabic foliation system written in blue ballpoint pen follows the Coptic cursive sequence, beginning with f. 4 and ending with f. 156 (the number on f. 156 is also written in English numbers in graphite pencil). Along the spine, a 5 cm wide strip of folio 157 is glued to the inside back board.

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 32 × 21.5 cm Area of writing: 24.5 × 15 cm 19 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Medium brown leather cover with an oval floral medallion indented in the center, flanked at its top and bottom by two smaller indented oval medallions, and with floral indented decorative corners. The faces of the covers are abraded in sections and the edges and spine are worn through, showing the layers of the board inside. The cover features a leather flap, which is attached to the back board and wraps around to the front. It features an indented oval medallion visible when it is closed. This flap is in reasonably good shape.

56

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Folio 4 is completely detached, and there is significant separation between the front cover and the manuscript pages. There is also some separation at the junction of quires between f. 141 and f. 142. Some page edges are frayed. There is significant insect damage (holes) near the spine at the front of the manuscript. The volume is in need of physical conservation. Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ Readers’ insertions: Insertions 1. Folio 156b contains two lines of script followed by what seems like accounts written in black ink. In the second line of script there are two dates: 1265 and 1264. 2. Folio 157a contains one line of very small script written in a light black ink at the top of the page, which appears to be a prayer or blessing. The upper half of the page contains a series of marks, arranged in two columns and eight rows (two sets of four rows), as well as some designs made up of short horizontal lines and dots.

57

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 11 (= MS 164) Old number(s): 43 Lāhūt; 289/18-ⲕⲏ

Contents

John Saba/The Spiritual Elder (al-Shaykh al-rūḥānī), Mayāmir, Letters, and Chapters of Knowledge 1. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Mayāmir: ff. 1a–172b. Initial blessing and prayers: f. 1a–b. [Maymar 1,] On warning and caution regarding withdrawal: ff. 1b–10b. ‫ميمر على التحذير والتحفظ على الانقطاع‬ [Maymar 2,] On the understandings/intellections that come from the Spirit: ff. 11a–13a. ‫ميمر على الافهام الذي من الروح‬ [Maymar 3,] On the visitation of the spirit that is granted to the solitaries: ff. 13a–24b. ‫ميمر على زيارة الروح التي تعطى المتوحدين‬ ff. 13a–14a: Righteousness. ‫صلاح‬ ff. 14a–16a: Visitation of the first station. ‫زيارة المنزلة الأولى‬ ff. 16a–18a: The middle degrees that belong to the soul. ‫الدرجات الوسطانية التي هي النفسانية‬ ff. 18a–24b: On the degree of perfection. ‫على درجت درجة الكمال‬ [Maymar 4,] On the demon of fornication and control of one’s bodily members: ff. 24b–32a. ‫ شيطان[ الزناء وماسك الأعضاء‬:‫على الشيطان ]لازم‬ [Maymar 5,] On the demon of blasphemy and the nature of [his] subterfuge and his blasphemies: ff. 32a–36a. ‫ميمر على شيطان التجديف وكيف حيلة وتجاديفه‬ [Maymar 6,] On annoyance and rashness, and on pridefulness: ff. 36a–38a. ‫ميمر على الحرد والطياشة وعلى الكبرياء‬ [Maymar 7,] On the love that the pure angels show: ff. 38a–41a. ‫ميمر على المحبة التي يظهرها الملائكة الأطهار‬

58

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

[Maymar 8,] On definitive/ultimate contemplation: ff. 41a–48b. ‫على الثاؤريا القاطعة‬ [Maymar 9,] On the fact that no one should reproach the fathers when they speak imperfectly for the sake of the capacity of the knowledge of the listeners: ff. 48b–50b. ‫ميمر على أنه لا ينبغي لأحد أن ]يلوم[ الأباء إذا تكلموا بالنقص لقدر معرفة‬ ﷽‫السامعين من الأباء من يتكلم بخفايا أسرار ا‬ [Maymar 10,] On the heretical brothers: ff. 50b–54b. ‫ميمر على الإخوة المبتدعين‬ [Maymar 11,] On prayer and the powers of the spiritual natures, on the knowledge of God [and] many discernments/ distinctions: ff. 55a–56a. ‫ميمر على الصلاة وعلى القوات الطبائع الروحانية وعلى معرفة ا﷽ افرازات كثيرة‬ [Maymar 12,] On the sublimity of the substance (hypostasis) of spiritual beings: ff. 56a–60b. ‫على عظمة أقنوم الروحانيين‬ [Maymar 13,] Eternal/continuous prayer: ff. 60b–65a. ‫الصلاة الدائمة‬ [Maymar 14,] On preserving internal and external senses: ff. 65b–71b. ‫ميمر على حفظ الحواس الداخلة والخارجة‬ [Maymar 15,] On voluntary death: ff. 71b–72b. ‫على الموت الإرادي‬ [Maymar 16,] Question and answer: ff. 72b–74b. ‫مسألة وجواب‬ [Maymar 17,] On boldness: ff. 75a–76b. ‫ميمر على الدالة‬ [Maymar 18,] On singling out the types of [spiritual] gifts: ff. 76b–78a. ‫ميمر على أنواع المواهب‬ [Maymar 19,] On the mystery/secret of the new world: ff. 78a–81a. ‫ميمر على سر العالم الجديد‬

59

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

[Maymar 20,] Question [and answer]: f. 81a–b. [‫مسألة ]وجواب‬ [Maymar 21,] On marveling at the appearance of God in the soul: ff. 81b–84b. ‫ميمر على عجب ظهور ا﷽ في النفس‬ [Maymar 22,] On the Holy Trinity: ff. 84b–88a. ‫ميمر على الثلوث المقدس‬ [Maymar 23,] On the gifts that come from the Spirit: ff. 88a–96b. ‫ميمر على العطايا التي من الروح‬ [Maymar 24,] On human bliss … in their vision of his [i.e. God’s] glory: ff. 96b–104b. [﷽‫ في نظرهم لمجده ]مجد ا‬... ‫على اللذة الإنسية‬ [Maymar 25,] On flight from the world and withdrawal from [worldly] familiarity: ff. 105a–109a. ‫ميمر على الفرار من العالم والانقطاع من الدالة‬ [Maymar 26,] Warnings and counsels on pure repentance: ff. 109a–113a. ‫تحذيرات ومشورات على التوبة الطاهرة‬ [Maymar 27,] On the announcement/disclosure of the appearance of Christ: ff. 113a–117a. ‫ميمر على استعلان ظهور المسيح‬ [Maymar 28,] [A maymar] also attributed to him: ff. 117a–119a. ‫وأيضا له‬ ً [Maymar 29,] [A maymar] belonging to the holy Elder [sent] to a brother who requested that he show him how repentance was possible: ff. 119a–128a. ‫للشيخ القديس إلى عند إخوة الذي طلب منه أن يوريه كيف تقدر التوبة‬ [Maymar 30,] A vision revealed by God when he came forward to sanctify the holy mysteries for humankind: ff. 128a–129b. ‫رؤيا أوري من ا﷽ لما تقدم ليقدس للإنسان الأسرار الإلهية‬

60

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

[Maymar 31,] [A maymar] belonging to the saint on the meaning [of the fact] that the brother who was from of old related the glorified vision that he had on the holy mysteries: ff. 129b–130b. ‫ إنه قال الرؤيا الممجدة الذي له‬...‫للقديس في المعنى الأخ الذي من قديم‬ ‫على الأسرار القديسة‬ [Maymar 32,] On how much rest/tranquility is beneficial to those who are active and how much exhaustion is made for the labor of the monastic life: ff. 130b–133a. ‫ميمر على أنه كم ينفع الهدوء للنشطاء وكم يصنع الاحلال لتعب الرهبنة‬ [Maymar 33,] On love and the love of God: ff. 133a–145a. ﷽‫ميمر على الحب وعلى محبة ا‬ [Maymar 34,] On meditation on the economy of our Lord: ff. 145a–151a. ‫ميمر على الهذيذ في تدبير ربنا‬ [Maymar 35,] The vision/discernment of God: ff. 151a–166a. ﷽‫نظر ا‬ [Maymar 36,] Maymar belonging to the saint on the remembrance of meditating on God and focusing [one’s attention] on him: ff. 166a–172b. ‫ميمر للقديس على في ذكر الهذيذ با﷽ والاهتمام به‬ 2. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Letters (Rasā’il), which he sent to one his beloved friends: ff. 173a–267a. ‫رسائل للشيخ القديس بعث بهم لإنسان من أحبائه‬ 48 letters. 3. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Chapters of Knowledge (Ru’ūs al-ma‘rifah), Treatise 1 (incomplete): ff. 267a–269b. Treatise One: ff. 267a–269b. Incomplete. ‫المقالة الأولى‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: none indicated. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink, with headings in red. Small-to-medium script rendered with dark, thick letter strokes. Material: Paper. Thick/heavy Middle Eastern stock with no watermarks. The replacement pages and front- and backmatter are more recent, with Tre Lune watermarks (and at least one that bears an uppercase W).

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

61

Scribe: none identified. Patron/owner: Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī, khādim at Dayr al-Suryān (f. 270b). Restorer: Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī, khādim at Dayr al-Suryān (f. 270b)

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: none Colophons: none Endowments (waqf-statements): f. iiia (= f. 12a): waqf-statement endowing the volume to Dayr al-Suryān. f. 270b: waqf-statement in a different (larger, sloppier) hand endowing the volume to Dayr al-Suryān. The writer identifies himself as Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī, khādim at the monastery.

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–iii Numbered folia: ff. 1–41, 43–111, 111bis, 113–270 (Copt. [1–41], 43–48, [49], 50–60, [61], 62–69, [70], 71–80, [81], 82–89, [90], 91–109, [110–111], 112–120, [121], 122–129, [130], 131–139, [140], 141–159, [160–161], 162–189, [190], 191–199, [200], 201– 225, [226], 227–245, [246], [2]47, [248–250], 251, [25]2, 253, [25]4, [2]55, [256–260, [2]61, [262–269]) Backmatter: ff. 271–273 Folia 1–11, pages 18–39, and folia 40–41, 81, 90, 111, 121, 160– 161, 270 are replacement pages (dimensions 17 × 12.5), slightly smaller than the original leaves. The restorer of these pages seems to have used the same kind of paper for the front- and backmatter. Folia i–ii are unnumbered and blank. Folio iii was not originally numbered, but someone later labelled its recto in pencil with the number 1 (= f. 12a): it has a blessing and waqf-statement on the recto, but is blank on the verso. Folio 270 is numbered: it is blank on the recto, but has a waqf-statement on its verso. Folia 271–272 are unnumbered and blank. The Coptic cursive foliation is only visible starting on folio 43. It continues in a consistent numerical sequence after that, apart from replacement pages and pages where the numbers are no longer extant due to wear or strips of paper used for restoration page edges and corners. The Arabic foliation/pagination of the

62

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

manuscript is confused at points. There were attempts in both pen and pencil to correct/regularize the foliation, but this simply created additional confusion. One example of this is the repetition of folio number 111, and the omission of number 112. The manuscript is composed of 26 surviving quires. The first four are not labelled. The recto of folio 51a is marked as the first folio in the sixth quire, and the sequence continues up to the twenty-sixth quire, which is marked on folio 251a. The final quire is not labelled. Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 17.6 × 13.4 cm Area of writing: 12.5 × 8 cm 13 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Light brown leather cover, tooled with an X and a double-line rectangular border and stamped with small cruciform medallions: 8 around the border (4 of which are in the corners); 4 on the arms of the X, close in toward the middle; and 1 in the middle at the intersection of the X. The manuscript is in decent shape: the covers show some abrasions and the inner boards are visible at the lower corners. The binding is intact: it was rebound/restored when the replacement pages were added.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ Readers’ insertions: Insertions 1. f. iiia (= 1a): a written blessing reads bismillāh al-ru’ūf al-raḥīm (“In the name of God the merciful and beneficient”), followed by a waqf-statement in the same hand.

63

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 12 (= MS 165) Old number(s): 44 Lāhūt (the handbook lists it incorrectly as 45)

Contents

John Saba/The Spiritual Elder (al-Shaykh al-rūḥānī), Mayāmir, Letters, and Chapters of Knowledge 1. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Mayāmir: f. 5b–108b. Initial blessing and prayers: f. 5b–6a. [Maymar 1,] On warning and caution regarding withdrawal: ff. 6a–12a. ‫ميمر على التحذير والتحفظ على الانقطاع‬ [Maymar 2,] On the understandings/intellections that come from the Spirit: ff. 12a–13a. ‫ميمر على الافهام الذي من الروح‬ [Maymar 3,] On the visitation of the spirit that is granted to the solitaries: ff. 13a–20a. ‫ميمر على زيارة الروح التي تعطى المتوحدين‬ ff. 13a–14a: Righteousness. ‫صلاح‬ ff. 14a–15a: Visitation of the first station. ‫زيارة المنزلة الأولى‬ ff. 15a–16a: The middle degrees that belong to the soul. ‫الدرجات الوسطانية التي هي النفسانية‬ ff. 16a–20a: On the degree of perfection. ‫على درجت درجة الكمال‬ [Maymar 4,] On the demon of fornication and control of one’s bodily members: ff. 20a–24b. ‫ شيطان[ الزناء وماسك الأعضاء‬:‫على الشيطان ]لازم‬ [Maymar 5,] On the demon of blasphemy and the nature of [his] subterfuge and his blasphemies: ff. 24b–26b. ‫ميمر على شيطان التجديف وكيف حيلة وتجاديفه‬ [Maymar 6,] On annoyance and rashness, and on pridefulness: ff. 26b–28a. ‫ميمر على الحرد والطياشة وعلى الكبرياء‬ [Maymar 7,] On the love that the pure angels show: ff. 28a–29b. ‫ميمر على المحبة التي يظهرها الملائكة الأطهار‬

64

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

[Maymar 8,] On definitive/ultimate contemplation: ff. 29b–33b. ‫على الثاؤريا القاطعة‬ [Maymar 9,] On the fact that no one should reproach the fathers when they speak imperfectly for the sake of the capacity of the knowledge of the listeners: ff. 33b–35a. ‫ميمر على أنه لا ينبغي لأحد أن ]يلوم[ الأباء إذا تكلموا بالنقص لقدر معرفة‬ ﷽‫السامعين من الأباء من يتكلم بخفايا أسرار ا‬ [Maymar 10,] On the heretical brothers: ff. 35a–37b. ‫ميمر على الإخوة المبتدعين‬ [Maymar 11,] On prayer and the powers of the spiritual natures, on the knowledge of God [and] many discernments/ distinctions: ff. 37b–38a. ‫ميمر على الصلاة وعلى القوات الطبائع الروحانية وعلى معرفة ا﷽ افرازات‬ ‫كثيرة‬ [Maymar 12,] On the sublimity of the substance (hypostasis) of spiritual beings: ff. 38a, 39a–41b. ‫على عظمة أقنوم الروحانيين‬ [Maymar 13,] Eternal/continuous prayer: ff. 41b–44b. ‫الصلوة الدائمة‬ [Maymar 14,] On preserving internal and external senses: ff. 44b–48a. ‫ميمر على حفظ الحواس الداخلة والخارجة‬ [Maymar 15,] On voluntary death: ff. 48a–50a. ‫على الموت الإرادي‬ [Maymar 16 missing] [Maymar 17,] On boldness: ff. 50b–52a. ‫ميمر على الدالة‬ [Maymar 18,] On singling out the types of [spiritual] gifts: ff. 52a–53a. ‫ميمر على أنواع المواهب‬ [Maymar 19,] On the mystery/secret of the new world: ff. 53a–54b. ‫ميمر على سر العالم الجديد‬

65

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

[Maymar 20,] Question [and answer]: ff. 54b–55a. [‫مسألة ]وجواب‬ [Maymar 21,] On marveling at the appearance of God in the soul: ff. 55a–56b. ‫ميمر على عجب ظهور ا﷽ في النفس‬ [Maymar 22,] On the Holy Trinity: ff. 56b–58b. ‫ميمر على الثلوث المقدس‬ [Maymar 23,] On the gifts that come from the Spirit: ff. 58b–64a. ‫ميمر على العطايا التي من الروح‬ [Maymar 24,] On intimate bliss … in their vision of his [i.e. God’s] glory: ff. 64a–68b. [﷽‫ في نظرهم لمجده ]مجد ا‬... ‫على اللذة الإنيسة‬ [Maymar 25,] On flight from the world and withdrawal from [worldly] familiarity: ff. 68b–71a. ‫ميمر على الفرار من العالم والانقطاع من الدالة‬ [Maymar 26,] Warnings and counsels on pure repentance: ff. 71a–73b. ‫تحذيرات ومشورات على التوبة الطاهرة‬ [Maymar 27,] On the announcement/disclosure of the appearance of Christ: ff. 73b–76a. ‫ميمر على استعلان ظهور المسيح‬ [Maymar 28,] [A maymar] also attributed to him: ff. 76a–77a. ‫وأيضا له‬ ً [Maymar 29,] [A maymar] belonging to the holy Elder [sent] to a brother who requested that he show him how repentance was possible: ff. 77a–82b. ‫للشيخ القديس إلى عند إخوة الذي طلب منه أن يوريه كيف تقدر التوبة‬ [Maymar 30,] A vision revealed by God when he came forward to sanctify the holy mysteries for humankind: ff. 82b–83b. ‫رؤيا أوري من ا﷽ لما تقدم ليقدس للإنسان الأسرار الإلهية‬

66

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

[Maymar 31,] [A maymar] belonging to the saint on the meaning [of the fact] that the brother who was from of old related the glorified vision that he had on the holy mysteries: ff. 83b–84b. ‫ إنه قال الرؤيا الممجدة الذي له‬...‫للقديس في المعنى الأخ الذي من قديم‬ ‫على الأسرار القديسة‬ [Maymar 32,] On how much rest/tranquility is beneficial to those who are active and how much exhaustion is made for the labor of the monastic life: ff. 84b–85b. ‫ميمر على أنه كم ينفع الهدوء للنشطاء وكم يصنع الاحلال لتعب الرهبنة‬ [Maymar 33,] On love and the love of God: ff. 85b–92b. ﷽‫ميمر على الحب وعلى محبة ا‬ [Maymar 34,] On meditation on the economy of our Lord: ff. 92b–96a. ‫ الحذ[ في تدبير ربنا‬:‫ميمر على الهدو ]لازم‬ [Maymar 35,] The vision/discernment of God: ff. 96a–104b. ﷽‫نظر ا‬ [Maymar 36,] Maymar belonging to the saint on the remembrance of meditating on God and focusing [one’s attention] on him: ff. 105a–108b. ‫ميمر للقديس على في ذكر الهذيذ با﷽ والاهتمام به‬ 2. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder: Letters (Rasā’il), that he sent to one of his beloved friends: ff. 109a–161a. ‫رسائل للشيخ القديس بعث بهم لإنسان من أحبائه‬ 48 letters. 3. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Chapters of Knowledge (Ru’ūs al-ma‘rifah), Treatises 1–3: ff. 161a–174b. Treatise One: ff. 161a–169a. ‫المقالة الأولى‬ Treatise Two: ff. 169a–173b. ‫المقالة الثانية‬ Treatise Three: ff. 173b–174b. ‫المقالة االثالثة‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

67

4. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Correspondence with his brother who was in the Coenobion Monastery: ff. 174b–176a. Letter of the Elder to his brother who was in the Coenobion Monastery (Dayr Kanūbiyūn): ff. 174b–175a. ‫رسالة الشيخ إلى عند أخوه الذي كان في دير كنوبيون‬ Apology of the saint’s brother on account of this book: ff. 175b–176a. ‫اعتذار أخو القديس سبب هذا الكتاب‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: none indicated. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink, with headings in red. Small-to-medium script rendered with dark, thick letter strokes. Material: Paper. Thick/heavy Middle Eastern stock with no watermarks. The replacement pages and front- and backmatter are more recent, with Tre Lune watermarks (and at least one that bears an uppercase W).

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: ff. 2b–5a: table of contents by the original scribe. Colophons: none. Endowments (waqf-statements): none.

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–iv Numbered folia: ff. 2–176 [= Copt., where extant] Backmatter: ff. 177–183 The Coptic cursive foliation is inconsistently preserved, but where it is visible it aligns with the later Arabic foliation.

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 25.5 × 16.5 cm Area of writing: 20.5 × 12 cm 17 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Light brown leather cover, tooled with an X and a double-line rectangular border and stamped with small cruciform medallions: 8 around the border (4 of which are in the corners); 8 on the arms of the X, and 1 in the middle at the intersection of the X.

68

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

The manuscript is in decent shape: the covers and the first and last folia in the front- and backmatter show some signs of insect holes. The binding is intact. Many of the pages have been reinforced with strips of paper along the edges and spine. In some cases, these strips of paper cover parts of the original text, and the restorer has made inconsistent efforts to supply the missing text on the reinforcing strips. Folio 80 is a replacement page. Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. f. 38b: left blank apart from the following petition for Insertions forgiveness: ‫سهو يا قاري اغفر لي سبحان من لا ينسا‬ “An omission/oversight, O reader. Forgive me. Praise be to the One who does not forget.”

2. f. 50b: the heading/title for [Maymar 17] stands alone on this folio; the text follows on the next page. 3. f. 176a: the scribe writes a petition for remembrance and mercy toward his readers (plural). Readers’ insertions: 1. f. 176a: a reader’s prayer for remembrance is inserted between the end of the text and the scribe’s prayer at the bottom of the page. 2. f. 176b: on the upper two-thirds of the page there is text written in Garshuni (Arabic written in Syriac script), which is fragmentarily preserved at certain points. It contains Trinitarian reflections on the nature of divine vision, and it characterizes internal (hidden) insight as a “portion of the kingdom [of God]” (juz’ al-malakūt). 3. f. 176b: a sequence of letters from alpha to thēta has been written below the Garshuni text. 4. f. 176b: a prayer for remembrance in Coptic has been written by a certain Yūḥannā, accompanied by an Arabic translation: ⲁⲣⲓⲫⲙⲉⲩⲓ ⲡϭⲥ ⲙⲡⲉⲕⲃⲱⲕ ⲓⲱⲁⲛⲛⲏⲥ ⲡⲓⲣⲉϥⲉⲣⲛⲟⲃⲓ ⲟⲩⲟϩ ⲭⲱ ⲛⲁϥ ⲉⲃⲟⲗ ⲛⲛⲉϥⲛⲟⲃ[ⲓ] ⲛⲉⲙ ⲛⲓⲛⲟⲃⲓ ⲛⲧⲉⲛⲉϥⲓⲟϯ[…] ⲁⲙⲏⲛ ⲉⲥⲉϣⲱⲡⲓ[…]

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

69

“O Lord, remember your servant John (Iōannēs) the sinner, and forgive his sins along with the sins of his parents Amen, let it be so.” ‫التفسير‬ ‫اذكر يارب عبدك‬ ‫يوحنا الخاطئ‬ ‫واغفر له خطاياه‬ ‫وخطاياه والديه‬ ‫أمين كون ومن قال شي‬ ‫الرب يعوضه‬ “Translation: O Lord, remember your servant John (Yūḥannā) the sinner, and forgive his sins along with the sins of his parents Amen, let it be so. Whoever says something, the Lord will give him recompense.”

70

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 13 (= MS 166) Old number(s): 53 Lāhūt; 71/5-ⲕⲑ

Contents

John Saba/The Spiritual Elder (al-Shaykh al-rūḥānī), Mayāmir, Letters, and Chapters of Knowledge 1. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Mayāmir: ff. 2a–96b. Initial blessing and prayers: f. 2a. [Maymar 1,] On warning and caution regarding withdrawal: ff. 2a–4a, 5b–7b. ‫ميمر على التحذير والتحفظ على الانقطاع‬ [Maymar 2,] On the understandings/intellections that come from the Spirit: ff. 7b–8b. ‫ميمر على الافهام الذي من الروح‬ [Maymar 3,] On the visitation of the spirit that is granted to the solitaries: ff. 8b–15a. ‫ميمر على زيارة الروح التي تعطى المتوحدين‬ ff. 8b–9b: Righteousness. ‫صلاح‬ ff. 9b–10b: Visitation of the first station. ‫زيارة المنزلة الأولى‬ ff. 10b–11a: The middle degrees that belong to the soul. ‫الدرجات الوسطانية التي هي النفسانية‬ ff. 11a–15a: On the degree of perfection. ‫على درجت درجة الكمال‬ [Maymar 4,] On the demon of fornication and control of one’s bodily members: ff. 15a–19a. ‫ شيطان[ الزناء وماسك الأعضاء‬:‫على الشيطان ]لازم‬ [Maymar 5,] On the demon of blasphemy and the nature of [his] subterfuge and his blasphemies: ff. 19a–21a. ‫ميمر على شيطان التجديف وكيف حيلة وتجاديفه‬ [Maymar 6,] On annoyance and rashness, and on pridefulness: ff. 21a–22a. ‫ميمر على الحرد والطياشة وعلى الكبرياء‬ [Maymar 7,] On the love that the pure angels show: ff. 22b–24a. ‫ميمر على المحبة التي يظهرها الملائكة الأطهار‬

71

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

[Maymar 8,] On definitive/ultimate contemplation: ff. 24a–28a. ‫على الثاؤريا القاطعة‬ f. 24a–b: Righteousness. ‫صلاح‬ ff. 24b–28a: Contemplation of the intelligible natures. ‫ثاؤريا الطبائع المعقولة‬ [Maymar 9,] On the fact that no one should reproach the fathers when they speak imperfectly for the sake of the capacity of the knowledge of the listeners: ff. 28a–29b. ‫ميمر على أنه لا ينبغي لأحد أن يلوم الأباء إذا تكلموا بالنقص لقدر معرفة‬ ﷽‫السامعين من الأباء من يتكلم بخفايا أسرار ا‬ [Maymar 10,] On the heretical brothers: ff. 29b–31b. ‫ميمر على الإخوة المبتدعين‬ [Maymar 11,] On prayer and the powers of the spiritual natures, on the knowledge of God [and] many discernments/distinctions: ff. 31b–32a. ‫ميمر على الصلاة وعلى القوات الطبائع الروحانية وعلى معرفة ا﷽ افرازات كثيرة‬ [Maymar 12,] On the sublimity of the substance (hypostasis) of spiritual beings: ff. 32a–35a. ‫على عظمة أقنوم الروحانيين‬ [Maymar 13,] Eternal/continuous prayer: ff. 35a–37b. ‫الصلوة الدائمة‬ [Maymar 14,] On preserving internal and external senses: ff. 37b–41a.

‫ميمر على حفظ الحواس الداخلة والخارجة‬ [Maymar 15,] On voluntary death: f. 41a–b. ‫على الموت الإرادي‬ [Maymar 16,] Question and answer: ff. 41b–43a. ‫المسألة والجواب‬ [Maymar 17,] On boldness: ff. 43a–44a. ‫ميمر على الدالة‬ [Maymar 18,] On singling out the types of [spiritual] gifts: ff. 44a–45a. ‫ميمر على أنواع المواهب‬

72

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

[Maymar 19,] On the mystery/secret of the new world: ff. 45a–46b. ‫ميمر على سر العالم الجديد‬ [Maymar 20,] Question [and answer]: ff. 46b–47a. [‫مسألة ]وجواب‬ [Maymar 21,] On marveling at the appearance of God in the soul: ff. 47a–48b. ‫ميمر على عجب ظهور ا﷽ في النفس‬ [Maymar 22,] On the Holy Trinity: ff. 48b–50b. ‫ميمر على الثلوث المقدس‬ [Maymar 23,] On the gifts that come from the Spirit: ff. 50b–54b. ‫ميمر على العطايا التي من الروح‬ [Maymar 24,] On intimate bliss … in their vision of his [i.e. God’s] glory: ff. 54b–58b. [﷽‫ في نظرهم لمجده ]مجد ا‬... ‫على اللذة الإنيسة‬ [Maymar 25,] On flight from the world and withdrawal from [worldly] familiarity: ff. 58b–62a. ‫ميمر على الفرار من العالم والانقطاع من الدالة‬ [Maymar 26,] Warnings and counsels on pure repentance: ff. 62a–64a. ‫تحذيرات ومشورات على التوبة الطاهرة‬ [Maymar 27,] On the announcement/disclosure of the appearance of Christ: ff. 64b–66b. ‫ميمر على استعلان ظهور المسيح‬ [Maymar 28,] [A maymar] also attributed to him: ff. 66b–67b. ‫وأيضا له‬ ً [Maymar 29,] [A maymar] belonging to the holy Elder [sent] to a brother who requested that he show him how repentance was possible: ff. 67b–73a. ‫للشيخ القديس إلى عند إخوة الذي طلب منه أن يوريه كيف تقدر التوبة‬ [Maymar 30,] A vision revealed by God when he came forward to sanctify the holy mysteries for humankind: ff. 73a–74a. ‫رؤيا أوري من ا﷽ لما تقدم ليقدس للإنسان الأسرار الإلهية‬

73

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

[Maymar 31,] [A maymar] belonging to the saint on the meaning [of the fact] that the brother who was from of old related the glorified vision that he had on the holy mysteries: f. 74a–b. ‫ إنه قال الرؤيا الممجدة الذي‬... ‫للقديس في المعنى الأخ الذي من قديم‬ ‫له على الأسرار القديسة‬ [Maymar 32,] On how much rest/tranquility is beneficial to those who are active and how much exhaustion is made for the labor of the monastic life: ff. 74b–75b. ‫ميمر على أنه كم ينفع الهدوء للنشطاء وكم يصنع الاحلال لتعب الرهبنة‬ [Maymar 33,] On love and the love of God: ff. 75b–82b. ﷽‫ميمر على الحب وعلى محبة ا‬ [Maymar 34,] On meditation on the economy of our Lord: ff. 82b–85a. ‫ الهذ[ في تدبير ربنا‬:‫ميمر على الهذو ]لازم‬ [Maymar 35,] The vision/discernment of God: ff. 85a–93a. ﷽‫نظر ا‬ [Maymar 36,] Maymar belonging to the saint on the remembrance of meditating on God and focusing [one’s attention] on him: ff. 93a–96b. ‫ميمر للقديس على في ذكر الهذيذ با﷽ والاهتمام به‬ 2. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder: Letters (Rasā’il), that he sent to one of his beloved friends: ff. 96b–146b. ‫رسائل للشيخ القديس بعث بهم لإنسان من أحبائه‬ 48 letters. 3. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Chapters of Knowledge (Ru’ūs al-ma‘rifah), Treatises 1–3: ff. 146b–159b. Treatise One: ff. 146b–154a. ‫المقالة الأولى‬ Treatise Two: ff. 154a–158a. ‫المقالة الثانية‬ Treatise Three: ff. 158a–159b. ‫المقالة االثالثة‬

74

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

4. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Correspondence with his brother who was in the Coenobion Monastery: ff. 159b–160b. Apology of the saint’s brother on account of this book: ff. 159b–160a. ‫اعتذار أخو القديس سبب هذا الكتاب‬ Letter of the Elder to his brother who was in the Coenobion Monastery (Dayr Kanūbiyūn): f. 160a–b. ‫رسالة الشيخ إلى عند أخوه الذي كان في دير كنوبيون‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: none given for the completion of the original manuscript. The date of restoration is given as Thursday, 20 Ba’ūnah, AM 1521 [= 1805 CE]. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink, with headings and punctuation dots in red. Medium-scale script featuring rounded, well-formed letters. Replacement pages have a smaller, more angular script in darker black ink, with headings in red ink that has faded with age. Material: Paper. Thin-to-medium Middle Eastern stock, with no watermarks. Front- and backmatter and replacement pages feature Tre Lune watermarks. Folia iii and 163 also have watermarks with an uppercase W and a forearm/hand holding a sword.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

Scribe: not identified.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: none, although the preface to the work on folio 2a gives a brief summary of works/subjects.

Patron/owner: not identified. Restorer: An anonymous restorer supplied the replacement pages and penned the colophon with prayer/petition on f. 160b. The handwriting on the replacement pages is the same as found on the replacement pages in DS Arabic Ascetic 12 (= MS 165) and the third scribe in DS Arabic Ascetic 8 (= MS 161). The date of the restorer’s work would be consistent with the time period when Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī was active.

Colophons: f. 160b: a colophon written by the secondary scribe/restorer of the text, containing a prayer/petition for intercession by the Virgin and the saints. The writer does not identify himself by name,

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

75

although he is probably Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī. He records the date when the text was restored/conserved (Thursday, 20 Ba’ūnah, AM 1521 [= 1805 CE]) and then concludes with a halleluia and a kyrie eleison (kīryāliṣūn). Endowments (waqf-statements): f. 5a: waqf-statement written in the same hand as the text on the replacement pages, endowing the MS to Dayr al-Suryān, with warnings against taking the book from the monastery that invoke the fate of Simon Magus and Diocletian. Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–iii Numbered folia: ff. 2–160 [= Copt., where extant] Backmatter: ff. 161–163 The Coptic cursive foliation first appears on folio 11 and continues on the original MS pages through folio 155. Beginning in the ninth quire (ff. 81ff.), however, the scribe seems to have omitted this Coptic cursive numeration from the second half of each quire. The Arabic foliation seems to have been rendered by two hands: one added small-to-medium sized numbers in black ink (ff. 2–10, 31–160); the other wrote very, very small numbers in pencil (ff. 11–30). Quires are marked on the recto of the first folio in each quire, beginning at the second quire (f. 11a) and continuing through the sixteenth (f. 151a).

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 25.2 × 17.5 cm Area of writing: 19.7 × 12.5 cm 19 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Medium brown leather cover tooled with an X and double-lined rectangular outside border, with two double-lined horizontal borders inside that outside border. Cruciform medallions are stamped along each of these lines (nineteen on each cover). Cover is well worn with abrasions at the corners and along the spine. Condition of the binding is decent, although there is some separation between the first and second quires (between ff. 10 and 11). Some of the pages have been reinforced with strips of paper along the edges and spine. Folia 2–10, 20–21, 51–60, 70, 72, and 160 are replacement pages, some of which are of a slightly smaller dimension than the original MS folia.

76

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. f. 4b: blank, except for the word ‫“( سهو‬omission”) written in Insertions red ink. Probably the same hand as the secondary scribe/ restorer who wrote the replacement pages. 2. f. 5a: above the waqf-statement, the same hand that wrote the word on f. 4b has written the following in red ink: ‫سهو لم تأخذوا علينا‬ “Omitted. Do not hold it against us.”

Readers’ insertions:

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

77

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 14 (= MS 167) Old number(s): 49 Lāhūt

Contents

John Climacus, The Spiritual Ladder; John Cassian, On the Eight Evil Thoughts; and Hermes the Wise, Letter on the Rebuke of the Soul 1. Collection of Proverbs/Wise Sayings: ff. 4a–13b (Copt. 34a– 43b). The text begins on f. 4a with a quote from the biblical book of Proverbs 8:22: ... ‫الرب خلقني اول خلائقة وقبل جميع اعماله واصلحني قبل جميع العالمين‬ A subtitle in red on f. 5b is labeled as “chapter five” (al-aṣḥāḥ al-khāmis). The section begins as follows: ... ‫حيث يدخل الجهل والسفة يدخل الذل واما المتواضعين فلهم الحكمة‬ A subtitle in red on f. 11b is labeled as “chapter eight” (al-aṣḥāḥ al-thāmin). The section begins as follows: ... ‫الذي يحب الاثم هو الاثيم الذي يطلب الظلم والهراس والذي يرتفع‬ The text ends on f. 13b with the following: ‫اوصيك يا بني لا تشتهي ما ليس لك لئلا تهان ولا تمد يدك الى فيك‬ ‫بشي اكتسبته من الظلم‬ 2. Hermes the Wise, Letter on the Rebuke of the Soul (Risālah fī mu‘ātabat al-nafs): ff. 13b–38a (Copt. 43b–68a). ‫رسالة هرمس الحكيم الفاضل في معاتبة النفس ورجوعها عن الامور السفلية‬ ‫وحضها على طلب ما يلاومها من الامور العلوية‬ This copy in DS Arabic Ascetic 14 is among the earliest known Arabic copies of the work and is clearly one made by a Christian scribe. After a brief Introduction, the work is divided into 14 chapters, each addressed to the soul (yā nafs). After the first chapter (awwal al-risālah) and chapters two and three (which are each referred by the heading faṣl), each chapter is labeled as a bāb, simply numbered without title. The chapter headings appear on the following folia: Chapter 1: f. 14a. Chapter 2: f. 15b.

78

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Chapter Chapter Chapter Chapter Chapter Chapter Chapter Chapter Chapter Chapter Chapter Chapter

3: f. 18a. 4: f. 19b. 5: f. 21a. 6: f. 23a. 7: f. 25a. 8: f. 26b. 9: f. 28a. 10: f. 29b. 11: f. 31a. 12: f. 32b. 13: f. 33b. 14: f. 35b.

3. John Climacus, The Spiritual Ladder: ff. 38a–155a (Copt. 68a– 205a). ‫الواح روحانية سلم يصعد الى السما كتبها القديس يوحنا رئيس دير طور‬ ‫سينا الى يوحنا رئيس دير رايتوا‬ The title given in this manuscript is: “Spiritual tablets, a ladder ascending to heaven” (Alwāḥ ruḥaniyyah sullam yas‘ad ilā al-samā’). The work was authored by “St. John, the superior of the Monastery of Mt. Sinai,” and sent to “John, the superior of the Monastery of Raitho.” The word, alwāḥ (“tablets”) is presumably an allusion to the Tablets of the Law that were given to Moses at Mount Sinai. Here, 10 commandments correspond to 30 steps. Introduction: ff. 38a–39a [for Copt. equivalents, see under “Pages, Numbering” below]. [Maymar 1,] Leaving the world: ff. 39a–43b. ‫الخروج من العالم‬ [Maymar 2,] On detachment from things: ff. 43b–45b. ‫على الزهد في الاشياء‬ [Maymar 3,] On virtuous, godly estrangement/exile: ff. 46a–49a. ‫من اجل الغربة الفاضلة الالهية‬ [Maymar 4,] On virtuous obedience, which resembles that of Christ unto death ff. 49a–60b. Ending missing. ‫من اجل الطاعة الفاضلة المتشبهة بالمسيح الى الموت‬

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ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

[Mayāmir 5–6 missing]. [Maymar 7, title heading does not survive]: ff. 61b–66a. Beginning missing. [Maymar 8,] On gentleness/meekness and extinguishing anger: ff. 66a–69b. ‫لاجل الوداعة وعدمان الحرد‬ [Maymar 9,] On extinguishing resentment, which produces sins: ff. 69b–70b. ‫من اجل عدمان الحقد الذي يحل الخطايا‬ [Maymar 10,] On slander and judgment: ff. 70b–72a. ‫من اجل الوقيعة والدينونة‬ [Maymar 11,] On talkativeness and on silence: ff. 72a–73a. ‫على كثرة الكلام وعلى الصمت‬ [Maymar 12,] On falsehood: ff. 73a–74a. ‫من اجل الكذب‬ [Maymar 13,] On listlessness: ff. 74a–75a. ‫على الملل‬ [Maymar 14,] On the haughtiness of the stomach, the well-known mistress. ff. 75a–78b. ‫على كبر البطن السيدة المخبورة‬ Subtitle at f. 78b: Maymar on the bodies of bodiless people. ‫ميمر على اجساد الناس الغير متجسدين‬ [Maymar 15,] On purity, chastity, and extinguishing the hardness present in those who are corrupt, which comes from toil and labor: ff. 78b–89a. ‫على الزكاوى والعفة وعدمان القساوة الموجودة فى الفاسدين الذي‬ ‫يكون من الاتعاب والاعمال‬ [Maymar 16,] On love of money: f. 89a–b. ‫من اجل حب الفضة‬ [Maymar 17,] On poverty: ff. 89b–90b. ‫من اجل المسكنة‬

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[Maymar 18,] On insensibility, which is the death of the soul and intellect [before] the death of the body: ff. 90b–92a. ‫من اجل عدمان الحس الذي هو موت النفس وموت العقل وموت‬ ‫الجسد‬ [Maymar 19,] On sleep, prayer, and chanting psalms with the community: ff. 92a–93a. ‫على الرقاد والصلاة والتزمير مع الجماعة‬ [Maymar 20,] On the watchfulness of the body, from which comes watchfulness of the spirit: ff. 93a–94a. ‫على سهر الجسد الذي يكون منه سهر الروح‬ [Maymar 21,] On cowardice: ff. 94a–95a. ‫على الجبن‬ [Maymar 22,] On the many forms of vainglory: ff. 95a–99a. ‫على سبح الباطل الكثير الاشباه‬ [Maymar 23,] On pride: ff. 99a–101a. ‫على العظمة‬ [Maymar 24,] On inexplicable thoughts of blasphemy, which cling to unclean pride: ff. 101a–103a. ‫على افكار التجديف الذي لا تفسير لها الذي تلتصق بالعظمة النجسة‬ [Maymar 25,] On meekness and lack of affectation, which are born of and speak by wisdom, and which do not come by nature: ff. 103a–105a. ‫على الوداعة والاسترسال الذي بحكمة يولدوا ويتكلموا وليس على‬ ‫الطبيعيات‬ [Maymar 26,] On the destruction of the passions, i.e. the sublime humility of the intellect, which is rooted in unseen sensibility: ff. 105a–112a. ‫على هلاك الاوجاع أعني تواضع العقل الشريف الذي يكون بحس لا‬ ‫يري‬ [Maymar 27,] On the discernment/distinction of passions, thoughts, and virtues: ff. 112a–127a. ‫على افراز الاوجاع والافكار والفضائل‬

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ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Subheadings in red: f. 119a: On mature discernment. ‫وايضا على الافراز البالغ الحسن النافع من الميمر الذي تقدكم‬ f. 124a: Another abridged idea on discernment. ‫معنى اخر مختصر في الافراز‬ [Maymar 28,] On pure stillness, the stillness of soul and body: ff. 127a–134b. ‫على السكوت الطاهر سكوت النفس والجسد‬ Subheading (f. 129a): On the difference and discernment/ distinction of righteous stillness. ‫على اختلاف وافراز السكوت البار‬ [Maymar 29,] On holy, blessed prayer, the mother of the virtues; and on beautiful, mindful standing in [prayer]: ff. 134b–139b. ‫على الصلاة القديسة المغبوطة التي هي ام الفضائل وعلى الوقوف‬ ‫العقلي الحسن فيها‬ [Maymar 30,] On the earthly heaven/paradise, godlike passionlessness, and the resurrection of the soul that precedes the general resurrection: ff. 139b–141b. ‫على السماء الارضية وعدمان اوجاع المتشبة با﷽ وقيامة النفس التي‬ ‫تكون قبل القيامة العامية‬ [Maymar 31,] On the bond of pure affection or love, source of the sublime virtues: ff. 141b–144a. ‫على رباط الحب الذكي والمحبة معدن الفضائل الشريفة‬ [Maymar 32,] On the conduct of the shepherd: ff. 144b–155a. ‫على تدبير الراعي‬ 4. [John] Cassian, On the Eight Evil Thoughts: ff. 155b–170b (Copt. 205b–220b). ‫ميمر وضعه انبا قسيان وارسله الى قسطرا بابا رومية على الثمانية الافكار‬ ‫الشريرة‬ Full title (f. 155b): “A maymar that Father Cassian (al-anbā Qasyān) composed and sent to Castor (Qusṭrā), Pope of Rome (sic), on the eight evil thoughts.”

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The maymar is divided into numbered “sayings” (qawl; pl. aqwāl). Saying 1, On the desire of the body: ff. 155b–156b. ‫في رغبة البطن‬ Saying 2, On fornication: ff. 156b–158b. ‫في الزناء‬ Saying 3, On the love of money: ff. 158b–162a. ‫في حب الفضة‬ Saying 4, On the demon of wrath and its spirit: ff. 162a–165a. ‫على شيطان الغضب وروحه‬ Saying 5, On the spirit of sadness, and its darkness: ff. 165a–166a. ‫على روح الحزن وظلمته‬ Saying 6, On the demon of discontent, and its combat [against the monk]: ff. 166a–168a. ‫على شيطان الضجر وقتاله‬ Saying 7, On the demon of self-inflation and vainglory: ff. 168a–169a. ‫على شيطان التنفخ والسبح الباطل‬ Saying 8, On the demon of pride, and its [power of] destruction: ff. 169a–170b. ‫على شيطان العظمة وهلاكه‬ 5. Story of an Elder from the Monastery of St. Antony: ff. 171a–178b (Copt. 241a–248b). ‫قصة الشيخ صاحب القلف ووصيته لولده‬ Full title (f. 171a): “The story of the elder who had a qalaf and his commandment to his son.” Incipit: ‫كان شيخ من ابهات القديسين ذات يوم ذاهب الى مصر في حاجة واخد‬ ‫تلميده معه وكان هذا الاب القديس يسكن في قلف مار انطونيوس ورا‬ ... ‫القلزم‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

83

6. Barsanuphius the Great [of Gaza], Selected Discourse and Questions on the Monastic Life: ff. 178b–216b (Copt. 248b–286b). ‫كلام مختار ومسائل عن الرهبانية من كتاب الاب الكبير برصنوفيوس‬ Incomplete at the end. Book One: ff. 178b–211a. 123 entries (numbered with Coptic cursive numerals in the margins). Book Two: ff. 211a–216b. (10 is the last entry number visible in the margin: the final pages are repaired along the edges.) 7. Romans (fragmentary): ff. 217b–223b (Copt. 13b–18b). ‫فاتحة رسالة بولس الرسول الاولى إلى أهل رومية‬ Incomplete. The surviving text starts at the beginning of the epistle and ends at Romans 3:25. Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: 1 Misrā, AM 997 [= July 25, 1281 CE] (f. 170b). Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with red for titles and subtitles; red dots used as punctuation/pause markers, or four red dots in the form of a cross to mark the end of a section. The scribe used a practiced, legible, medium-scale naskhī hand and was efficient in the use of space. A new word often begins over the tail of the previous word. The leaves at the end of the manuscript (ff. 217–223), are in a different hand: again practiced, but quite angular, with complete vocalization. Material: Paper. Medium-weight Middle Eastern stock, lightly ruled for writing. The leaves at the end of the manuscript (ff. 217–223) are on different Middle Eastern paper, probably of more recent vintage, slightly heavier in weight, with clear chain lines visible.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

Scribe: Marqus ibn Ṣalīb, who copied the MS at the Monastery of St. Antony (f. 170b). Patron/owner: al-mu‘allim Yūḥannā ibn Naṣrallah, a teacher of children (muʼaddib aṭfāl) in Ḥarat al-Zuwaylah, is identified as the owner of the book (ff. 11b, 94b). Restorer: not identified, although the restoration appears consistent with the work of Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī.

84 Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Tables of contents: none. Colophons: f. 155a: a colophon gives the name of the author as al-Darajī and enumerates 31 mayāmir: ‫كمل كتاب القديس المعروف بالدرجي وعدته احد وثلثين ميمر‬ f. 170b: a colophon listing the texts in the manuscript up to this point: the Book of Climacus (Iqlīmaqus, known as al-Darajī); The Eight Thoughts (awjā‘) of Cassian (Qasiyān); the Sayings of the Sages (min qawl al-ḥukamāʼ), the Proverbs of Solomon, and Hermes. The colophon continues by indicating that the MS up to that point was completed on Friday, 1 Misrā, AM 997 [= July 25, 1281 CE], at the Monastery of St. Antony, by Marqus ibn Ṣalīb (identified further only as al-miskīn). Endowments (waqf-statements): f. 11b: in the margin, a notice of waqf has been written by the manuscript’s owner, al-mu‘allim Yūḥannā ibn Naṣrallah, a teacher of children (muʼaddib aṭfāl) in Ḥarat al-Zuwaylah. The beneficiary of this waqf is not clear. He emphasizes that the fate of the one who attempts to remove the book will be with Judas the betrayer of his Lord (Yahūdhā musallim sayyidahu). The statement appears to continue (or be repeated) in the bottom margin of f. 12a, with another curse formula. f. 12a: in the side margin, there is a statement of waqf (in a style very similar to that found on f. 217a), to Dayr al-Suryān (Dayr al-Sitt al-Sayyidah al-ma‘rūf bi-l-Suryān), with a curse statement: the fate of the one who attempts to remove the book will be with Judas the Betrayer and Simon Magus (Yaḥūdhā al-dāfi‘ wa-Sīmūn al-sāḥir). f. 217a: a statement of waqf to Dayr al-Suryān (Dayr al-Sitt al-Sayyidah al-‘Adhrā’ al-ma‘rūf bi-l-Suryān) (but without names or date).

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: f. i Numbered folia: ff. 1–222 Backmatter: f. 223 The older foliation is given in Coptic cursive numerals, but it appears that 7 quires (quinions) of the original manuscript had been lost before the Arabic foliation was added, with the following result:

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

85

[3 quires missing] ff. 1–3 (Arabic) ff. 4–60 (Arabic) = Copt. 34–90 [Copt. = Arabic + 30] [2 quires missing] ff. 61–170 (Arabic) = Copt. 111–220 [Copt. = Arabic + 50] [2 quires missing] ff. 171–216 (Arabic) = Copt. 241–286 [Copt. = Arabic + 70] In addition, leaves have been added at the end: ff. 217–222 (Arabic) = Copt. 13–18 Quire signatures are found in the upper right-hand corner of the first leaf of each quire; these are not always fully legible because of the paper added to the folds in the restoration (see below). The original manuscript would have consisted of 28 quinions (of which 1–3, 10–11, and 23–24 have been lost) and a final ternion.

Dimensions, Layout Cover, Condition

The manuscript has been restored in a manner consistent with the late eighteenth-century restoration of many MSS at Dayr al-Suryān: some leaves, especially at the beginning and end of the manuscript, have been reinforced at the edges and/or at the fold before re-sewing (with six sewing stations). Dimensions: 26 × 18 cm Area of writing: 22 × 12 cm 22 lines/page The cover is brown leather on pasteboard, worn at the corners but in generally good condition. The front and back are decorated: the tooled rectangular frame and diagonal lines are marked with cruciform medallion stamps (all around the three outer edges of each cover, with nine stamps marking the X of the diagonal lines). The spine is ribbed; in the top area of the spine a blue Le Sphinx sticker with the present library number is attached (and taped). On the front cover, a pentagonal sticker, affixed within the upper triangle created by the diagonal lines, identifies the content of the manuscript in thick black letters: “the Book of John Climacus and also Hermes the Wise.” The manuscript itself is in fairly good condition, although the binding has become quite loose: the text block has largely broken away from the spine of the boards. The final folio of the original MS (f. 216) is discolored, torn, and brittle.

86

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. The opening blessing on f. 13b (the heading for the letter by Insertions Hermes the Wise) takes the following form: “In the name of God the merciful and beneficent.” ‫بسم ا﷽ الرحمن الرحيم‬ Readers’ insertions: 1. f. 38a: at the top of the leaf there is a prayer for the patron/ owner (muhtamm) of the manuscript, as well as for the scribe (nāsikh), without mentioning names or particulars. 2. f. 94b: in the margin, an owner of the book, al-mu‘allim Yūḥannā, a teacher of children (muʼaddib aṭfāl) in Ḥarat al-Zuwaylah, explains that he brought it with him (to Dayr al-Suryān?) when he explored the possibility of becoming a monk. He did not in fact become a monk and departed, but he left the manuscript for “his brother” (presumably a monk at the monastery) so that he might read it and pray for him. Here is the text in full: ‫هذه كتاب ميامير ]كذا[ للمعلم يوحنا مأدب الاطفال بحارة زويلة‬ ‫جابه يوم انجا يعمل راهب ولا قسم له رهبنة راح وخلاه‬ ‫لاخوه يقرا فيه ويذكره وحبكه ابونا الاسقف ميخاييل يوم‬ ‫طلع ابونا يعمر السور في قلاية القمص يوحنا السفير وكان انبا غبريال حاضر‬ “This book of mayāmir belongs to al-mu‘allim Yūḥannā, the teacher of children in Ḥārat al-Zuwaylah. He brought it the day he came to be made a monk, but he did not take an oath with respect to the monastic life. He went away and left it for his brother to read and to remember him. Our father, Bishop Mikhā’īl bound it, on the day our father went to build the wall in the cell of al-qummuṣ Yūḥannā al-Sifīr [i.e. from the village of Beth-Severina near Tur Abdin], when Anbā Gabriel (Ghubriyāl) was present.”

The name of this monk named Yūḥannā from Beth-Severina also appears in reader’s notes preserved in two Syriac manuscripts preserved in the British Museum: see Wright, Catalogue of Syriac Manuscripts in the British Museum, I.38–39 (MS 50, f. 2a), and II.851 (MS 825, f. 355a).

87

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 15 (= MS 168) Old number(s): 50 Lāhūt; 52 Lāhūt; Musalsal 173

Contents

John Climacus, The Spiritual Ladder 1. John Climacus, The Spiritual Ladder: Copt. 2a–190b. Title on Copt. 2a (= f. 1a): “The ladder of virtues (Daraj al-faḍāʼil), for those who seek to ascend to the blessings of the Kingdom of Heaven, also called, in Greek, Climax (Iklimaks).” ‫كتاب درج الفضائل للذين يسعون في طلب الصعود الى نعم ملكوت‬ ‫ايضا تسمية رومية اكلمكس‬ ‫السماء‬ ً ‫ويسمى‬ ّ This title is regularly abbreviated to al-Daraj. At the beginning of the text (Copt. 2b; f. 1b) the work is referred to as “The Thirty Mayāmir” (al-mayāmir al-thalāthīn), although later each chapter is called a maqālah and there are 31 in total. Introduction with table of contents: Copt. 2b–9a (= ff. 1b–3b, pp. 4–12). Subheading on Copt. 7b (= p. 9): “Spiritual tablets: the letter of Abba John Climacus, in response to the letter of Abba John, superior of Rāyah.” ‫الواح روحانية رسالة ا ّبا يوحنا اقلمس جوا ًبا عن رسالة ا ّبا يوحنا رئيس‬ ‫راية‬ Maymar 1, On being contrary to this vain world and departing from it: Copt. 9a–15b, 17a (= ff. 12a–32b, 4a–8a; pp. 12–26). ‫في مباينة العالم الباطل والانصراف منه‬ Maymar 2, On extinguishing pain at the loss of existing things: Copt. 17a–20a (= ff. 8a–11a; pp. 26–32). ‫في زوال التألم لفقد الموجود‬ Maymar 3, On estrangement/exile: Copt. 20a–b, 31a–34b (= ff. 11a–15b; pp. 32–41). ‫التغرب‬ ‫في‬ ّ Subheading on Copt. 33b (= f. 14b; p. 39): On the dreams attending those entering the ascetic life. ‫في المنامات التابعة الداخلين في الزهد‬

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Maymar 4, On glad, ever-remembered obedience: Copt. 34b– 61a (= ff. 15b–42a; pp. 41–94). ‫في الطاعة السعيدة الدائم ذكرها‬ Maymar 5, On repentance, which is of constant concern and truly clear-sighted: Copt. 61a–70a (= ff. 42a–51a; pp. 94–112). ‫في التوبة الم ّتصلة الاهتمام الواضحة بالحقيقة‬ Maymar 6, On the remembrance of death: Copt. 70a–72b (= ff. 51a–53b; pp. 112–117). ّ ‫تذكر الموت‬ ‫في‬ Maymar 7, On the mourning that leads to joy: Copt. 72b–80b (= ff. 53b–61b; pp. 117–133). ‫المفرح‬ ُ ‫في النوح‬ Maymar 8, On extinguishing wrath and on gentleness/meekness: Copt. 80b–84b (= ff. 61b–65b; pp. 133–141). ‫في زوال الغيظ وفي الوداعة‬ Maymar 9, On resentment: Copt. 84b–85b (= ff. 65b–66b; pp. 141–143). ‫في الحقد‬ Maymar 10, On slander: Copt. 86a–87b (= ff. 67a–68b; pp. 144–147). ‫في الوقيعة‬ Maymar 11, On talkativeness and on silence: Copt. 87b–88b (= ff. 68b–69b; pp. 147–149). ‫في اكثار الكلام وفي الصمت‬ Maymar 12, On falsehood: Copt. 89a–b (= f. 70a–b; pp. 150–151). ‫في الكذب‬ Maymar 13, On discontent: Copt. 90a–91a (= ff. 71a–72a; pp. 152–154). ‫في الضجر‬ Maymar 14, On the stomach, our well-known master: Copt. 91a–95a (ff. 72a–76a; pp. 154–162). ‫سيدنا الذايع‬ ّ ‫في البطن‬ Maymar 15, On purity and chastity: Copt. 95a–106a (= ff. 76a– 87a; pp. 162–188). ‫في الطهارة والعفّة‬

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89

Maymar 16, On the love of money, the root of evils: Copt. 106a–b (= f. 87a–b; pp. 188–189). ‫الفضة أصل الشرور‬ ‫حب‬ ‫في‬ ّ ّ Maymar 17, On detachment with respect to property: Copt. 107a–108a (= ff. 88a–89a; pp. 190–192). ‫في الزهد في القنية‬ Maymar 18, On insensibility: Copt. 108a–109b (= ff. 89a–90b; pp. 192–195). ‫الحس‬ ‫في زوال‬ ّ Maymar 19, On sleep, prayer, and chanting in the company of the brethren: Copt. 109b–110b (= ff. 90b–91b; pp. 195–197). ‫في النوم وفي الصلاة وفي الترتيل في رفقة الاخوه‬ Maymar 20, On the watchfulness of the body and how me must use it: Copt. 110b–112a (= ff. 91b–93a; pp. 199–200). ‫في سهر الجسم وكيف يجب ان نستعمله‬ Maymar 21, On cowardice: Copt. 112a–113a (= ff. 93a–94a; pp. 200–202). ‫في الجبانة‬ Maymar 22, On multiform vanity and on “headless” pride: Copt. 113a–119b (= ff. 94a–100b; pp. 202–217). ‫في العجب الجزيلة صوره وفي الكبرياء المسلوبة راسها‬ Subheading on Copt. 117a (= f. 98a; p. 210): On pride. ‫في الكبرياء‬ Maymar 23, On thoughts of blasphemy, which are hindered by exposure and illumination: Copt. 119b–121b (= ff. 100b–102b; pp. 215–219). ‫في افكار التجديف التى تحتجر اذاعتها وايضاحها‬ Maymar 24, On meekness, simplicity, and innocence that is free of evil, and on wickedness: Copt. 121b–124a (= ff. 102b– 105a; pp. 219–224). ‫الشر وفي الخبث‬ ‫في الوداعة والبساطة والسذاجة الخاليه من‬ ّ Maymar 25, On exalted humility: Copt. 124a–132b (= ff. 105a– 113b; pp. 224–241). ‫في التواضع العلي‬

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Maymar 26, On the discernment, distinction of our thoughts: Copt. 132b–158b (= ff. 113b–139b; pp. 241–293). ‫في افراز افكارنا‬ Subheadings in red: Copt. 145a (= f. 126a; p. 266): On the correct kind of discernment. ‫في افراز صواب الافراز‬ Copt. 155a (= f. 136a; p. 286): Brief summary. ‫مجموع وجيز‬ Maymar 27, On the quietness of silence of our soul and body, sublime in power: Copt. 158b–168a (= ff. 139b–149a; pp. 293–312). ‫في ُهدُ ّو صمت نفسنا وجسمنا الجليل قدره‬ Subheading on Copt. 161b (= f. 142b; p. 299): On the description of the ways of the quietness of silence, and their discernments/distinction. ‫في وصف مساعي هد ّو الصمت وافرازاتها‬ Maymar 28, On exalted prayer, mother of the virtues, and on standing in [prayer] in mind and body: Copt. 168a–174a (ff. 149a–b, 1452a–1492b, 150a; pp. 312–320). ‫في الصلاة الجليلة ا ّم الفضائل وفى الوقوف فيها المعقول والمحسوس‬ Maymar 29, On extinguishing the sicknesses of caprice: Copt. 174a–176b (= ff. 150a–152b; pp. 320–325). ‫في زوال اسقام الهوى‬ Maymar 30, On the order of the trinity [of virtues: faith, hope, and love]: Copt. 176b–179b (= ff. 152b–155b; pp. 325–331). ‫في نظام الثالوت‬ Maymar 31, On leaders, the final letter to the shepherd, Abba John: Copt. 180a–190b (= ff. 156a–166b; pp. 332–353). ‫على الرووسا ]كذا[ وهي الرسالة الاخيره الى الراعي ا ّبا يوح ّنا‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: none indicated, but a later reader’s note contains the date AM 1168 [= 1451 CE] (Copt. 2a; = f. 1a), which means the manuscript must have been copied before then.

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91

Language and script: Arabic. Black ink, with red for titles and dots/“punctuation”. The medium-scale naskhī hand is neat and easily legible, with well-spaced, fluidly written letters Material: Paper. Middle Eastern stock, with no watermarks but with ruled lines for writing. Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: Copt. 2b–3b (f. 1b–2b). A scribal table of contents with chapter titles that differ slightly from those in the individual chapter headings, which are recorded above under “Contents.” In the margin, a later hand has added the page numbers of these chapters in pencil. Colophons: none. Endowments (waqf-statements): none.

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: f. i Numbered folia: Copt. 2–15, 17–20, 31–190 (see below for other foliation and pagination systems) Backmatter: Copt. 191 Three numbering systems compete: a Coptic cursive foliation in (old) black ink in the upper left-hand corner of the recto, an Arabic foliation in (modern) blue ink in the lower left-hand corner of the recto, and an Arabic foliation/pagination in pencil in the upper and outer corner of each page. In the Arabic foliation written in pen, five folio numbers are repeated, and here they are given the designation ff. 1452–1492. For a complete table of the different folio and page numbers used, see below. None of the systems is fully accurate: the Coptic foliation skips 16 and 21–30; the Arabic pen foliation only begins after 7 leaves and repeats folio numbers 145–149 (as noted above); the penciled system begins with foliation (ff. 1–3) but switches to pagination (pp. 4–353). Because the penciled system begins with folia 1–3, the first three folia of the penned system are designated as folia 12–32.

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A summary of the system correspondence is as follows: Coptic cursive

Arabic foliation (pen)

Arabic fol./pag. (pencil)

Copt. 2–4 Copt. 5–8 Copt. 9–15 Copt. 17–20 Copt. 31–168 Copt. 169–173 Copt. 174–190

[none] [none] ff. 12–32, 4–7 ff. 8–11 ff. 12–149 ff. 1452–1492 ff. 150–166

ff. 1–3 pp. 4–11 pp. 12–25 pp. 26–33 pp. 34–309 pp. 310–319 pp. 320–353

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 26 × 17 cm Area of writing: 20 × 11.5 cm 19 lines/page

Cover, Condition

The undecorated brown leather cover on pasteboard has a roundback binding and is somewhat worn at the edges. A very worn blue Le Sphinx sticker at the top of the spine once gave the library number. The manuscript is generally in good condition, although the textblock is pulling away from the boards: the front flyleaf has separated from the endpaper, and the binding is loose before the final quire. The text block is constructed out of 18 labeled quinions, with a leaf lost or removed from the beginning of the first quinion and the end of the second. The manuscript has been restored, with strips of paper sometimes added to the edges or at the interior fold before resewing. The final two leaves are replacement leaves, consist of heavier paper, and contain writing written in a different hand (perhaps that of Yūhannā al-Fayyūmī or one of his associates?), with smaller margins (writing area: 21 × 12.5 cm) and thicker lines (especially the horizontal strokes, as in the elongated, square kāf).

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. The scribe occasionally transgresses his own margins; the Insertions margins also contain corrections and readers’ glosses, in a couple of cases (e.g. ff. 79b, 105a, 146a, 148b) on the Greek text. 2. The scribe uses red dots as pause markings. Other punctuation includes a colon in black or red ink, and, at the end of sections, a black circle with a black dot in it, colored in with red, or a sign like the letter hāʼ. These last two signs are also used to bracket lines in subtitles.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

93

3. John Climacus is referred to in Arabic as Yūḥannā al-musammā Iqlimīs, raʼīs Ṭūr Sīnā (“John, called Climacus, the head of [the monastery at] Mount Sinai”). Readers’ insertions: 1. Notes on the title page (Copt. 2a; = f. 1a) include: a. A note in black ink, indicating that this is the well-known book of Yūḥannā al-Darajī. b. A note in black ink, commending the book to monastic readers. c. A note carelessly written in a thick, unpointed script, which concludes with a date: AM 1168 [= 1451/52 CE]. d. A modern reader’s note, in pencil, referring the reader to MS 215, saying: “This is the second part of the same manuscript.”

94

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Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 16 (= MS 169) Old number(s): 78 Lāhūt

Contents

John Climacus, The Spiritual Ladder; John Cassian, On the Eight Evil Thoughts 1. John Climacus, The Spiritual Ladder: ff. 3b–180a (= Copt.). ‫الواح روحانية سلم يصعد الى السما وكتبها القديس يوحنا ريس دير طور‬ ‫سينا الى يوحنا ريس دير رايتوا‬ Full title: “Spiritual tablets: a ladder ascending to heaven, written by St. John the superior of the Monastery of Mt. Sinai to John, the superior of the Monastery of Raitho.” Introduction and table of contents: ff. 3b–5b. The work now consists of numbered maymars, although each maymar can also be called a maṣ‘ad (a “rung” in the ladder), or simply a qawl (a “saying”). Maymar 1, Leaving the world: ff. 6a–11b. Incomplete at end. ‫الخروج من العالم‬ Maymar 2, On detachment from things: ff. 12a–13b. Incomplete at the beginning. [‫]الزهد في العالم‬ Maymar 3, On estrangement/exile: ff. 14a–17b. ‫على الغربة‬ Subtitle in red (f. 17a): On the dreams that befall beginners. ‫ من اجل الاحلام التى تعرض للمبتديين‬ Maymar 4, On ever-praiseworthy obedience: ff. 18a–42b. ‫على الطاعة الممدوحة في كل حين‬ Maymar 5, On the repentance that is pleasing [to God]: ff. 43a–50b. ‫على التوبة المرضية‬ Maymar 6, On the remembrance of death: ff. 51a–53b. ‫على ذكر الموت‬ Maymar 7, On the mourning that begets joy: ff. 54a–62a. ‫على النوح والد الفرح‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

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Maymar 8, On gentleness/meekness and extinguishing rage: ff. 62b–66b. ‫على الدعة وعدمان الغضب‬ Maymar 9, On resentment: ff. 67a–68a. ‫على الحقد‬ Maymar 10, On slander and judgment: ff. 68b–70a. ‫على الوقيعة والدينونة‬ Maymar 11, On talkativeness and on silence: ff. 70a–71a. ‫على كثرت الكلام وعلى الصمت‬ Maymar 12, On falsehood: ff. 71a–72a. ‫من اجل الكذب‬ Maymar 13, On listlessness: ff. 72b–73b. ‫على الملل‬ Maymar 14, On the haughtiness of the stomach, the well-known mistress: ff. 74a–77b. ‫على كبر البطن السيدة المخبورة‬ Subtitle at f. 77b: Maymar on the bodies of bodiless people. ‫ميمرعلى اجساد الناس الغير متجسدين‬ Maymar 15, On purity, chastity, and extinguishing the hardness present in those who are corrupt, which comes from toil and labor: ff. 78a–90a. ‫على الذكاوة والعفة وعدمان القساوة الموجودة في الفاسدين الذي يكون‬ ‫من الاعمال والاتعاب‬ Maymar 16, On poverty and the love of money: f. 90a–b. ‫من اجل المسكنة وحب الفضة‬ Maymar 17, On poverty: ff. 91a–92a. ‫من اجل المسكنة‬ Maymar 18, On insensibility, which is the death of the soul and intellect [before] the death of the body: ff. 92b–94a. ‫من اجل عدمان الحس الذي هو موت النفس وموت العقل وموت الجسد‬ Maymar 19, On sleep, prayer, and chanting psalms with the community: ff. 94b–95a. ‫على الرقاد والصلاة والتزمير مع الجماعة‬

96

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Maymar 20, On the watchfulness of the body, from which comes the watchfulness of the soul: ff. 95b–96b. ‫على سهر الجسد الذي يكون منه سهر الروح‬ Maymar 21, On cowardice: f. 97a–b. ‫على الجبن‬ Maymar 22, On the many forms of vainglory, and the “headless” form [i.e. pride]: ff. 98a–102b. ‫على سبح الباطل الكثير الاشباه والشبه الذي ليس له رأس‬ Maymar 23, On pride: ff. 103a–108a. ‫على العظمة‬ Subheading on f. 106a: On inexplicable thoughts of blasphemy, which cling to unclean pride. ‫على افكار التجديف الذي لا تفسير لها الذي يلصق بالعظمة النجسة‬ Maymar 24, On gentleness and lack of affectation, which are born of and speak by wisdom, and which do not come by nature: ff. 108b–110b. ‫على الوداعة والاسترسال الذي بحكمة يولدوا ويكملوا وليس على الطبيعيات‬ Maymar 25, On the destruction of the passions, that is, the sublime humility of the intellect, which is rooted in unseen sensibility: ff. 111a–120a. ‫على هلاك الاوجاع أعني تواضع العقل الشريف الذي يكون يحس لا يرى‬ Heading at the bottom of f. 111a: On sublime humility. ‫على الاتضاع الشريف‬ Maymar 26, On the discernment/distinction of passions, thoughts, and virtues: ff. 120b–141b. ‫على افراز الاوجاع والافكار والفضائل‬ Subheadings: f. 131b: On mature discernment. ‫وايضا على الافراز البالغ الحسن النافع من الميمر الذي تقدكم‬ f. 139b: We write to your excellence and say, Firm faith is the mother of leaving [the world] for monasticism. ‫نكتب الى جلالتك ونقول ان الامانة الثابتة هي ام الخروج الى‬ ‫الرهبانية‬

97

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Maymar 27, On pure stillness, the stillness of soul and body: ff. 142a–144b, 144bisa–b, 145a–151a (= Copt. 141a–151a). ‫على السكوت الطاهر سكوت النفس والجسد‬ Subheading on f. 144a: On the difference and discernment/ distinction of righteous stillness. ‫على اختلاف وافراز السكوت البار‬ Maymar 28, On holy, blessed prayer, the mother of the virtues; and on beautiful, mindful standing in [prayer]: ff. 151b–157b. ‫على الصلاة القديسة المغبوطة التي هي ام الفضائل وعلى الوقوف العقلي‬ ‫والحسن فيها‬ Maymar 29, On the earthly heaven, godlike passionlessness, and the resurrection of the soul which precedes the resurrection of the body: ff. 158a–160b. ‫على السماء الارضية وعدمان اوجاع المتشبه با﷽ وقيامة النفس التي تكون‬ ‫قبل القيامة العامية‬ Maymar 30, On the bond of pure affection or love, source of the sublime virtues: ff. 161a–164a. ‫على رباط الحب الذكي المحبة معدن الفضائل الشريفة‬ Maymar 31, On the conduct of the shepherd: ff. 165a–180a. ‫على تدبير الراعي‬ 2. [John] Cassian, On the Eight Evil Thoughts: ff. 181a–200b. ‫ميمر وضعه انبا قسيان وارسله الى قسطرا بابا رومية على الثمانية الافكار‬ ‫الشريرة‬ The maymar is divided into numbered “sayings” (aqwāl). Saying 1, On the desire of the body: ff. 181a–182b. ‫في رغبة البطن‬ Saying 2, On fornication: ff. 182b–185b. ‫في الزناء‬ Saying 3, On the love of money: ff. 185b–190b. ‫في حب الفضة‬ Saying 4, On the demon of wrath: ff. 190b–195b. ‫على شيطان الغضب‬

98

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Saying 5, On the spirit of sadness, and its darkness: ff. 196a–197b. ‫على روح الحزن وظلمته‬ Saying 6, On the demon of discontent, and its combat [against the monk]: ff. 197b–199a. ‫على شيطان الضجر وقتاله‬ Saying 7, On the demon of self-inflation and vainglory, and its subtlety: ff. 199b–200a. ‫على شيطان النفخ والسبح الباطل ودقته‬ Saying 8, On the demon of pride, and its [power of] destruction: f. 200a–b (incomplete). ‫على شيطان العظمة وهلاكه‬ The text breaks off at: ... [‫فينبغي لنا اذ قد علمنا هذا الآن ]ان نحفظ‬ 3. Unidentified canonical text: ff. 202a–203b (no Copt.). These two leaves are reused from an earlier manuscript to serve as protective endpapers. Incipit (f. 202a): “Drawing near to our Lord God” (either a title or the last words in a sentence). ‫التقرب الى ا﷽ ربنا‬ This is immediately followed by a chapter title in red: “Chapter Two on the bishops, priests, and deacons.” ‫الباب الثاني لاجل الاساقفة والقسا]وسة[ والشمامسة‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: not indicated. Language and script: Arabic. There is evidence for at least three scribal hands. The principal scribe of the original manuscript wrote with a clear, uncrowded naskhī script with carefully formed letters, observing straight vertical and horizontal lines on a ruled and well-spaced page. In the middle of f. 120b, this first scribe suddenly gives way to a second scribe, whose hand is thicker, less regular, and more apt to angle down from the horizontal ruling lines, sometimes almost becoming a scrawl, neglecting dots. The tertiary scribe responsible for the replacement pages (al-qiss Bishārah) writes with thick horizontal strokes,

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

99

obvious in the tails of final letters. The loops of letters like ‘ayn, fā’, qāf, mīm, and wāw are regularly entirely filled in. Bishārah attempts to maintain the original foliation and adjusts the size of his writing accordingly: thus, he ranges from 11 lines per page (f. 61a) to as many as 24 lines per page (f. 141b), with some variation in the height of the writing area as well (from 16 to 20.5 cm). Material: Paper. Middle Eastern stock. Black ink, with red used for subtitles and pause markings. In the original manuscript pages, the red has sometimes faded to a silvery pink (e.g. at f. 181a). The paper of the replacement leaves has clear laid and chain lines, which is lacking in the earlier leaves. The red ink of the replacement hand also has a silvery, reflective quality. Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

Scribe: Neither the name of the principal scribe of the original manuscript nor that of the secondary scribe (ff. 120b–139b) is identified. The scribe of the replacement pages is al-qiss Bishārah (ff. 71a, 141b). Patron/owner: Yūḥannā ibn Ṣalīb al-Fayyūmī (ff. 102b, 180b). Restorer: Yūḥannā ibn Ṣalīb al-Fayyūmī (f. 180b).

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: ff. 4b–5b: original table of contents for The Ladder, to which a modern hand has added entries for two other texts. Colophons: f. 42b: at the end of the Maymar 4 of The Ladder, the tertiary scribe requests prayers for the muhtamm and for copyists, but without names. f. 71a: at the end of the Maymar 11 of The Ladder, the tertiary scribe identified himself as Bishārah, “a priest in name” (bi-l-ism qiss). f. 141b: at the end of the Maymar 26 of The Ladder, the tertiary scribe asks for prayers and gives his name, Bishārah. f. 164b: after the Maymar 30 of The Ladder, the original scribe fills a page with an exhortation, and at the bottom of the page asks the Lord for mercy upon the reader, the muhtamm, and himself as the “sinful scribe.”

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Endowments (waqf-statements): f. 102b: waqf-statement to Dayr al-Suryān (Dayr al-Sitt al-Sayyidah bi-l-Suryān), made by al-qiss Yūḥannā ibn Ṣalīb al-Fayyūmī. f. 180b: waqf-statement to Dayr al-Suryān (Dayr al-Sitt al-Sayyidah al-ma‘rūf bi-l-Suryān), by the one who restored and completed it, Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī. Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–vi Numbered folia: ff. 3–144, 144bis, 145–204 (see below for Copt. equivalents) Backmatter: f. 205 Arabic and (when present) Coptic cursive numerals are both found in the upper left-hand corner of the recto, and are largely in agreement (ff. 12–179, after which the folia are numbered in Arabic only). It appears that there was an effort to preserve the foliation of the original manuscript. The original manuscript consisted of 20 quinions. Quires 9–18 are plainly labelled with quire signatures, which take the form of written-out ordinal numerals in the upper left-hand corner of the first page of the quire, above the Coptic cursive folio number: see ff. 81a through 171a at ten-folio intervals. One discrepancy is described below: Copt. 141 = f. 142 (Arabic). The first eight quires of the manuscript are heavily restored, with many replacement leaves (3 leaves at the beginning of quire 1; the outer leaves of quires 3, 6–8, and the whole of quires 4 and 5). One leaf of the original manuscript has been lost and not replaced, between f. 11 (the Coptic cursive folio number is not clear, perhaps Copt. 10) and f. 12 (= Copt. 12). Also, at ff. 140–144, there is a slight discrepancy between the Arabic and Coptic cursive foliation: ff. 140–141 in the Arabic foliation appear to have replaced a single leaf (perhaps originally Copt. 140), with the result that the two numbering systems are off by one number for three leaves: ff. 142–144 = Copt. 141–143. Then f. 144 is repeated in the Arabic: f. 144bis (= Copt. 144), and the numbering systems align again.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

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The numbering system may be summarized as follows: ff. 3–10 [no Copt.] f. 11 = Copt. 10 (?) [Missing leaf would have been Copt. 11] ff. 12–139 = Copt. ff. 140–141 [replacement leaves, no Copt.] ff. 142–144 = Copt. 141–143 = Copt. 144 f. 144bis ff. 145–179 = Copt. ff. 180–204 [no Copt.] The replacement leaves are the following: ff. 3–5, 21, 30–51, 60–61, 70–71, 80, 115–116, 140–141, 191–192, 199–200. Folio 201 is blank but consists of the same paper. Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 24.5 × 16.5 cm Area of writing: Primary and secondary scribes: 21 × 11 cm Tertiary scribe (replacement pages): 16–20.5 × 11 cm Lines per page: Original scribe: 17 lines/page Secondary scribe: 17–18 lines/page Tertiary scribe (replacement pages): 11–24 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Brown leather cover on pasteboard, worn at the corners and edge (similar to many other volumes in the collection: e.g. DS Arabic Ascetic 14 [= MS 167]). The front and back covers are decorated with a tooled rectangular frame and diagonal lines, which are accentuated with cruciform medallion stamps (here in a symmetrical pattern with three stamps per edge and seven per diagonal, with five stamps creating an X at the intersection of the diagonal lines). The spine is ribbed, and in the space above the first rib a blue Le Sphinx sticker gives the present library number. On the front cover, an older pentagonal sticker in the upper triangle created by the diagonal lines identifies (in thick letters written in black ink) the major content of the manuscript: Kitāb Yūḥannā al-Darajī (“The Book of John Climacus”), as well as a shelf number, ṣād 5.

102

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The textblock itself (in the form in which we have received it after its earlier restoration) is relatively intact but is now only very loosely connected to the boards. Leaves in the front matter are in danger of falling out. The restorer tried to reinforce a number of pages with strips of paper along their edges and at the fold. As noted above, many leaves have also been replaced. While the restoration has held up quite well, from about folio 150 on there is some damage to the bottom of the leaves, with discoloration, tearing, and loss of material. Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. Five leaves in the frontmatter (ff. ii–vi) are a miscellaneous Insertions lot from different Coptic manuscripts, containing, respectively, the Third Ode, a Theotokia of Sunday, another Theotokia, The Song of the Three Young Men from the Psalmody, and a Theotokia of Saturday with its “Greek explanation.” 2. The scribe of the original manuscript often adds brief words of summary or exhortation at the end of each maymar. For example, at the end of Maymar 30 (f. 164a), he writes, “Climb, climb, climb!” (iṣ‘adū iṣ‘adū iṣ‘adū). This is followed by a more extensive exhortation on the verso. Readers’ insertions:

103

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 17 (= MS 170) Old number(s): 169 Lāhūt; 12-ⲕⲑ

Contents

John Climacus, The Spiritual Ladder; with a Fragment from a Patristic Collection 1. John Climacus, The Spiritual Ladder: ff. [two unnumbered leaves], 24, 100–218 (= Copt.). The title is missing. Each chapter is referred to as a “Step” or “Rung” (maṣ‘ad). Preserved chapter titles (from the conclusion or beginning of the chapter) include: Step 15, On chastity and fornication: ff. 100a–111b (beginning missing). ‫على العفة والزناء‬ Step 16, On poverty and the love of money: f. 111b (incomplete). ‫منجل المسكنة وحب الفضة‬ Step 24, On meekness and lack of affectation, which are born of and speak by wisdom, and which do not come by nature: f. 133b (incomplete). ‫على الوداعة والاسترسال الذي بحكمة يولدو ويكملوا وليس على‬ ‫الطبيعات‬ Step 25, On sublime humility: ff. 143a–145b (beginning missing). ‫على الاتضاع الشريف‬ Step 26, On the discernment/distinction of passions, thoughts, and virtues: ff. 145b–167b. ‫على افراز الاوجاع والافكار والفضائل‬ Step 27, On pure stillness, the stillness of soul and body: ff. 167b–178a. ‫على السكوت الطاهر سكوت النفس والجسد‬ Step 28, On holy, blessed prayer, mother of the virtues; and on beautiful, mindful standing in [prayer]: ff. 178a–185b. ‫على الصلاة القديسة المغبوطة التي هي ام الفضائل والوقوف العقلي‬ ‫والحس فيها‬

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Step 29, On the earthly heaven, godlike passionlessness, and the resurrection of the soul that enlightens before the general resurrection: ff. 185b–188b. ‫السماء الارضية وعدمان الاوجاع المتشبة با﷽ وقيامة النفس التي ينور‬ ‫]كذا[ قبل القيامة العامة‬ Step 30, On the bond of pure affection or love, source of the sublime virtues: ff. 188b–193b. ‫على رباط الحب الذكي المحبة معدن الفضائل الشريفة‬ Step 31, On the conduct of the shepherd: ff. 193b–198b (incomplete).

‫على تدبير الراعي‬ 2. Fragment from a book of patristic anecdotes and sayings: ff. 214–218 (= Copt.). Incipit: ... ‫فلما امضي الاخ بمعونة ا﷽ وصلاة الشيخ فلزم الصمت‬ Preserved headings in red: f. 214b: From the discourse of Diadochus. ‫من كلام الديادخس‬ f. 215b: From the discourse of Basil. ‫من كلام باسيليوس‬ f. 216b: From John Chrysostom’s commentary on the Psalm of David. ‫من تفسير يوحنا لسان الذهب لزبور داود‬ f. 217b: Twice, additional sayings are introduced with: “And also belonging to him.” ‫وله ايضا‬ f. 218a: From the speech of St. Maximus: Question … Answer. ‫ جواب‬... [‫من كلام القديس مكسيموس مسلة ]كذا‬ f. 219b: A question … the answer. ‫ الجواب‬... ‫مسلة‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Date, Language, Script, Material

105

Date: not indicated. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink, with red ink used for chapter titles and sometimes for pause dots/punctuation. The scribal hand is written in a careful, legible, medium-scale naskhī script, with well-formed letters of consistent thickness. The script follows the ruling lines quite closely, resulting in neat, straight lines and margins. Material: Paper. Middle Eastern stock with visible laid lines but no watermarks.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: none

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–ii Numbered folia: ff. 24, 100–111, 133, 138–139, 143–159, 162–170, 161, 171–198, 214–218 Backmatter: none

Colophons: none Endowments (waqf-statements): none

The surviving quire structure of the manuscript is as follows : ff. i–ii: 2 leaves from a single sheet, which have lost their numbers [Quire 3 (fragmentary)]: f. 24 [Quire 10 (fragmentary)]: f. 100 Quire 11: ff. 101–110 Quire 12 (fragmentary): f. 111 [Quire 14 (fragmentary)]: ff. 133, 138–139 [Quire 15 (fragmentary)]: ff. 143–150 Quire 16 (fragmentary): ff. 151–159 Quire 17 (disordered): ff. 162–170, 161 Quire 18: ff. 171–180 (f. 172 loose, badly damaged) Quire 19: ff. 181–190 Quire 20 (fragmentary): ff. 191–198 [Quire 22 (fragmentary)]: ff. 214–218 Note the disorder in Quire 17. The quire signatures (written out ordinal numerals in the upper left-hand corner of the first leaf) are preserved for quires 11–12 and 16–20.

106

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 17 × 13 cm Area of writing: 13 × 9 cm Lines/page: 15 lines/page

Cover, Condition

The manuscript has no cover and is now fragmentary, although the section from folio 143 to folio 198 (preserving much of chapters 25 through 31 of The Ladder) is mostly preserved. Some quires are still bound together, but there are also individual loose leaves. While the preserved text is mostly legible, many of the pages have suffered water damage and are very dirty (e.g. ff. 143 and 152). Folio 172 is loose, torn in the middle, and very fragile. Folia 214 and 217 have been repaired with cellotape, now very discolored.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ Insertions Readers’ insertions:

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 18 (= MS 171) Old number(s): 52 Lāhūt; 10-ⲕⲑ

Contents

John Climacus, The Spiritual Ladder

107

1. John Climacus, The Spiritual Ladder: Copt. 2a–30b, 41a–195b. ‫الواح روحانية سلم يصعد الى السماء وكتبها القديس يوحنا رئيس دير طور‬ ‫سينا الى يوحنا رئيس دير رايتوا‬ Full title: “Spiritual tablets: a ladder ascending to heaven, written by St. John the superior of the Monastery of Mt. Sinai to John, the superior of the Monastery of Raitho.” The work now consists of an introduction with table of contents, followed by numbered chapters, each referred to as a maymar, a darajah (“step”), or a qawl (“saying”). Introduction and table of contents: Copt. 2a–4b. Maymar/Step 1, Leaving the world (which is the first step): Copt. 5a–12a. ‫الخروج من العالم وهو الدرجة الاولة‬ Maymar/Step 2, On detachment from things: Copt. 12b–15b. ‫على الزهد في العالم‬ Maymar/Step 3, On virtuous estrangement/exile: Copt. 15b–19b. ‫على الغربة الفاضلة‬ Subtitle on Copt. 19a: On the dreams that befall beginners. ‫من اجل الاحلام التي تعرض للمبتديين‬ Maymar/Step 4, On virtuous obedience, praiseworthy at all times: Copt. 20a–30b, 41a–58b. ‫على الطاعة الفاضلة الممدوحة في كل زمان‬ Maymar/Step 5, On repentance: Copt. 58b–68b. ‫على التوبة‬ Maymar/Step 6, On the remembrance of death: Copt. 68b–72a. ‫على ذكر الموت‬ Maymar/Step 7, On the true mourning that begets joy and gladness: Copt. 72a–80b. ‫على النوح الحقاني والد الفرح والسرور‬

108

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Maymar/Step 8, On rage: Copt. 80b–85b. ‫على الغضب‬ Maymar/Step 9, On resentment: Copt. 85b–87a. ‫على الحقد‬ Maymar/Step 10, On slander and judgment: Copt. 87a–88b. ‫على الوقيعة والدينونة‬ Maymar/Step 11, On silence: Copt. 89a–90a. ‫على الصمت‬ Maymar/Step 12, On falsehood: Copt. 90a–91a. ‫على الكذب‬ Maymar/Step 13, On listlessness and discontent: Copt. 91a–92b. ‫على الملل والضجر‬ Maymar/Step 14, On the desire of the stomach, mistress of the passions: Copt. 92b–97a. ‫على رغبة البطن سيدة الاوجاع‬ Maymar/Step 15, On the battle with fornication: Copt. 97a– 109b. ‫على قتال الزناء‬ Maymar/Step 16, On contentment and the love of money: Copt. 110a–b. ‫على القناعة وحب الفضة‬ Maymar/Step 17, On poverty: Copt. 110b–112a. ‫على المسكنة‬ Maymar/Step 18: On hardness of heart, which is the death of the intellect before the death of the body: Copt. 112a–114a. ‫على قساوة القلب التي هي موت العقل قبل موت الجسد‬ Maymar/Step 19, On prayer and sleep: Copt. 114a–115a. ‫على الصلاة والنوم‬ Maymar/Step 20, On watchfulness: Copt. 115a–117a. ‫على السهر‬ Maymar/Step 21, On cowardice: Copt. 117a–118b. ‫على الجبن‬

109

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Maymar/Step 22, On pride (al-’aẓamah) and self-admiration: Copt. 118b–127a. ‫على العظمة والاعجاب‬ Subheading on Copt. 124a: “Excerpted from the Greek, on pride.” ‫هذا مفصول من اليوناني على العظمة وهو هذا‬ Maymar/Step 23, On thoughts of blasphemy: Copt. 127a–129b. ‫على افكار التجديف‬ Maymar/Step 24, On simplicity of heart: Copt. 129b–132a. ‫على سهولة القلب‬ Maymar/Step 25, On exalted humility of thought and that which destroys all the passions: Copt. 132a–141a. ‫من اجل اتضاع الفكر المتعالي ومتلف جميع الاوجاع‬ Maymar/Step 26, On the discernment/distinction of passions, thoughts, and virtues: Copt. 141a–161a. ‫من اجل الافراز ]كذا[ الاوجاع والافكار والفضائل‬ Maymar/Step 27, On righteous stillness, the stillness of soul and body: Copt. 161a–171a. ‫من اجل السكوت البار سكوت النفس والجسد‬ Maymar/Step 28, On holy, blessed prayer, mother of all the virtues; and on the acceptable uprightness of sense, through which alone a human mingles with God: Copt. 171a– 177b. ‫على الصلاة القديسة المغبوطة التي هي ام الفضائل كلها وعلى تقويم‬ ﷽‫الحس المقبول التي بها خاصة اختلاط الانسان با‬ Maymar/Step 29, On victory over the passions, on the consummation, and on the resurrection of the soul that precedes the general resurrection: Copt. 178a–180a. ‫من اجل غلبة الاوجاع والكمال وقيامة النفس التي هي قبل القيامة العامية‬ Maymar/Step 30, On love, hope, and faith: Copt. 180a–183a. ‫على الحب والرجاء والامانة‬ Maymar/Step 31, On the shepherd: Copt. 183b–195b. ‫من اجل الراعي‬

110 Date, Language, Script, Material

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Date: not indicated. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink, with red for titles, subtitles, and punctuation. The original scribe uses red for pause dots, with three dots used for stronger pauses. He wrote in a clear naskhī hand, medium scale, with regularly formed letters following ruling lines. His hand is characterized by strong vertical and horizontal strokes, roomy S-shaped kāfs, and extended final letters, including pronounced bowls for final nūn (and other letters). The secondary scribe responsible for the replacement pages has a familiar-looking nineteenth-century hand: more cramped and rather flattened in comparison to that of the original scribe, and more likely to drift away from the horizontal line. Vertical strokes are thin, horizontal ones thick. Looped letters often have their loops entirely filled in. The letter sīn is written with small teeth (sometimes two rather than three) and two small strokes above the letter (to distinguish it from shīn, where the three dots often appear as a stroke and a dot, or as a lopsided v). The kāf is distinctive in both its medial and final form: a rather square S-shape in which a diagonal stroke meets a long, flat rectangle open to the left. The secondary scribe also has a distinctive pause marker that looks like a division sign: a dot over a short line over another dot. The red inks used by the two scribes have faded differently: the older red shades toward orange (= Juva Sante), while the more recent red shades towards a pinkish silver (= lead red ink). Material: Paper. Middle Eastern stock with no watermarks. The paper of the original manuscript appears patternless; the paper of the restoration, by contrast, has very clear laid and chain lines.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: Copt. 3b–4b: a scribal table of contents for The Spiritual Ladder presented as part of the introduction to the work; it includes the Coptic cursive folio numbers for individual chapters/sections. The chapter titles as given in the table of contents are often

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

111

worded in ways similar to that of other manuscripts, but different from the titles recorded above; thus, we have two versions of the chapter titles in the same manuscript. Colophons: none. Endowments (waqf-statements): Copt. iia, 2a, 112a, and 195b: the ubiquitous modern library stamp is also found in several places. Copt. 4b: a waqf-statement after the table of contents endowing the MS to Dayr al-Suryān (Dayr al-Sitt al-Sayyidah al-ma‘rūf bi-l-abahāt al-Suryān). It includes warnings that the fate of the one who removes the book will be with Diocletian (Diqlā al-kāfir), Judas Iscariot (Yahūdhā al-dāfi‘), and Simon Magus (Sīmūn al-sāḥir). Below, there is an old waqf seal in blue ink. Copt. 91a: an old waqf seal in blue ink. Copt. 195b: a waqf-statemewnt at the end of the manuscript endowing the MS to Dayr al-Suryān (Dayr al-Sitt al-Sayyidah al-ma‘rūf bi-l-abahāt al-Suryān). It includes warnings that the fate of the one who removes the book will be with Diocletian (Diqlā al-kāfir), Judas (Yahūdhā al-dāfi‘), and Simon Magus (Sīmūn al-sāḥir). Below, there is an old waqf seal in blue ink. Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–xi Numbered folia: Copt. 2–30, 41–196 Backmatter: ff. 197–206 Coptic cursive folio numerals are found in the upper left-hand corner of the recto. These skip from 30 to 41, but this appears to indicate a lapse by the person doing the numbering rather than a lacuna in the manuscript. Arabic folio numerals are found at the beginning of the manuscript (on Copt. 2–27), generally in the lower left-hand corner, but in the upper left-hand corner of Copt. 14–15. Another hand has attempted to correct some of these numbers (Copt. 2–5) by writing over them in pencil, adding 2; but these “corrections” are best ignored. The following folia are replacement leaves: ff. 2–11, 14–16, 190, 194–196.

112

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 23.5 × 15.5 cm Area of writing and lines/page: Original scribe: 19 × 11–11.5 cm; 17 lines/page Secondary scribe (replacement pages): 18 × 11–12 cm; 16–21 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Modern black cloth cover on pasteboard, with leather (or an imitation?) on the ribbed spine, where the five ribs create six flat rectangular areas. From the top, the second, fourth, and sixth areas contain gilt lines and lettering. A handwritten plain white modern sticker with the library number has also been attached (and taped) in the third area. Black marbled paper is used for the end papers and flyleaves. The cover is slightly worn at the top and bottom of the spine, but otherwise in good condition. The textblock is generally in good condition, although the binding is loose; the book falls open too readily at some points (e.g., between Copt. 52 and 53, and between Copt. 171 and 172). Some leaves, especially in quire 5, are tearing through the top stitching. The manuscript has undergone an earlier restoration. Some of the original leaves have been reinforced with strips of paper at the edges or at the fold. Several leaves have been replaced, including the whole of the first quire (Copt. 2–11), but also leaves in the second quire (Copt. 14–16) and at the end of the manuscript (Copt. 190, 194–195). The original manuscript consisted of quinions: original quire signatures (written out ordinal numerals) may be seen in the upper left-hand corners of Copt. 21a, 41a, 51a, etc., to 171a and perhaps also 181a. In some cases, these signatures were damaged or lost when the pages were straight-cut as part of the restoration work.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. The frontmatter consists of the front flyleaf, seven leaves of Insertions modern paper, and three leaves of a Coptic text. 2. The backmatter consists of two leaves of a Coptic text, seven leaves of modern paper, and the back flyleaf. 3. The five leaves of Coptic text in the front and back matter are consecutive leaves of a lectionary (for the month of Tūt). 4. Copt. 196 has been left blank. Readers’ insertions:

113

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 19 (= MS 172) Old number(s): 57 Lāhūt

Contents

John Climacus, The Spiritual Ladder; and John Cassian, On the Eight Evil Thoughts 1. John Climacus, The Spiritual Ladder: pp. 1–417 (= Copt. 2a– 206bisa). ‫الواح روحانية سلم يصعد الى السما وكتبها القديس يوحنا ريس دير طور‬ ‫سينا الى يوحنا ريس دير رايتوا‬ Full title: “Spiritual tablets: a ladder ascending to heaven, written by St. John the superior of the Monastery of Mt. Sinai to John, the superior of the Monastery of Raitho.” Introduction and table of contents: pp. 1–7 (= Copt. 2a–5a). The chapters that follow are each called a “step” (darajah or maṣ‘ad). Step 1, Leaving the world: pp. 8–26 (= Copt. 5b–13b). ‫الخروج من العالم وهو الدرجة الاولى‬ Step 2, On detachment from things: pp. 26–33 (= Copt. 13b– 17a). ‫على الزهد في الاشياء‬ Step 3, On virtuous estrangement/exile: pp. 33–45 (= Copt. 17a–23a). ‫على الغربة الفاضلة‬ Subtitle at p. 42 (= Copt. 21b): On dreams. ‫لاجل الاحلام‬ Step 4, On praiseworthy obedience: pp. 45–111 (= Copt. 23a–55a). ‫على الطاعة الممدوحة‬ Step 5, On the repentance that is pleasing (to God): pp. 111–132 (= Copt. 55a–65b). ‫على التوبة المرضية‬ Step 6, On the remembrance of death: pp. 132–139 (= Copt. 65b–69a). ‫على ذكر الموت‬

114

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Step 7, On the mourning that begets joy: pp. 139–157 (= Copt. 69a–78a). ‫على النوح والد الفرح‬ Step 8, On gentleness and the lack of rage: pp. 157–168 (= Copt. 78a–83b). ‫على الدعة وعدم الغضب‬ Step 9, On resentment: pp. 168–172 (= Copt. 83b–85b). ‫على الحقد‬ Step 10, On slander and judgment: pp. 172–176 (= Copt. 85b–87b). ‫على الوقيعة والدينونة‬ Step 11, On talkativeness and silence: pp. 176–179 (= Copt. 87b–88bisa). ‫على كثرت الكلام والصمت‬ Step 12, On overcoming falsehood: pp. 179–181 (= Copt. 88bisa-89a). ‫على عدمان الكذب‬ Step 13, On overcoming listlessness: pp. 181–185 (= Copt. 89a–91a). ‫على عدمان الملل‬ Step 14, On the haughtiness of the stomach, the lord of the passions: pp. 185–195 (= Copt. 91a–96a). ‫على كبر البطن السيدت الاوجاع‬ Step 15, On chastity and purity: pp. 195–223 (= Copt. 96a– 110a). ‫على العفة والذكاوة‬ Step 16, On poverty and the love of money: pp. 223–225 (= Copt. 110a–111a). ‫على المسكنة وحب الفضة‬ Step 17, On the poverty that leads to heaven: pp. 225–227 (= Copt. 111a–112a). ‫على المسكنة التي تجري الى السماء‬ Step 18, On insensibility, which is the death of the soul: pp. 228–231 (= Copt. 112b–114a). ‫على عدم الحس الذي هو موت النفس‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

115

Step 19, On sleep and prayer: pp. 232–234 (= Copt. 114b– 115b). ‫على الرقاد والصلاة والنوم‬ Step 20, On the watchfulness of the body, from which comes the watchfulness of the spirit: pp. 234–239 (= Copt. 115b– 118a). ‫على سهر الجسد الذي منه يكون سهر الروح‬ Step 21, On unforced cowardice: pp. 239–241 (= Copt. 118a– 119a). ‫على الجبن الغير مجبر‬ Step 22, On the many forms of vainglory: pp. 241-254 (= Copt. 119a-125b). ‫على السبح الباطل الكثير الاشباه‬ Step 23, On pride and satanic presumption: pp. 254–267 (= Copt. 125b–131a). ‫على العظمة والظن الشيطاني‬ Subheading on pp. 261–262 (= Copt. 128bisa–b): On the spirit of blasphemy. ‫وفيه ايضا بعينه قول على روح التجديف الردي جدا‬ Step 24, On gentleness and lack of affectation: pp. 267– 272 (= Copt. 131a–134b). ‫على الوداعة والاسترسال‬ Step 25, On the destruction of the passions, that is, the humility of the intellect: pp. 272–292 (= Copt. 134b–145b). ‫على هلاك الاوجاع أعني تواضع العقل‬ Step 26, On the discernment/distinction of passions, thoughts, and virtues: pp. 292–339 (= Copt. 145b–168a). ‫على افراز الاوجاع والافكار والفضائل‬ Step 27, On pure stillness, the stillness of soul and body: pp. 339–360 (= Copt. 168a–178b). ‫على السكوت الطاهر سكوت النفس والجسد‬ Step 28, On holy, blessed prayer: pp. 360-–376 (= Copt. 178b–186b). ‫على الصلاة المقدسة المغبوطة‬

116

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

29, On the harbor of passionlessness: pp. 376–381 (= Copt. 186b–189a). ‫على مينا عدمان الاوجاع‬ Step 30, On the consummation, and hope, love, and faith: pp. 381–388 (= Copt. 189a–192b). ‫على الكمال والرجاء والمحبة والامانة‬ Step 31, On the conduct of the shepherd: pp. 389–417 (= Copt. 193a–206bisa). ‫على تدبير الراعي‬ 2. [John] Cassian, On the Eight Evil Thoughts: pp. 417–472 (= Copt. 206bisa–233b). ‫ميمر وضعه انبا قسيان وارسله الى قسطرا بابا رومية على التمانية الافكار‬ ‫الشريرة‬ The maymar is divided into numbered “sayings” (aqwāl). Saying 1, On the desire of the body: pp. 417–422 (= Copt. 206bisa–208b). ‫فى رغبة البطن‬ Saying 2, On fornication: pp. 422–429 (= Copt. 208b–212a). ‫في الزناء‬ Saying 3, On the love of money: pp. 429–443 (= Copt. 212a– 220a). ‫في حب الفضة‬ Saying 4, On the demon of wrath, and its spirit: pp. 443– 455 (= Copt. 220a–226a). ‫على شيطان الغضب وروحه‬ Saying 5, On the spirit of sadness, and its darkness: pp. 455–459 (= Copt. 226a–228a). ‫على روح الحزن وظلمته‬ Saying 6, On discontent, and its combat [against the monk]: pp. 459–464 (= Copt. 228a–230b). ‫على الضجر وقتاله‬

117

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Saying 7, On the demon of self-inflation and vainglory, and its subtlety: pp. 464–468 (= Copt. 230b–232b). ‫على شيطان النفخ والسبح الباطل ودقته‬ Saying 8, On the demon of pride, and its [power of] destruction: pp. 468–472 (= Copt. 232b–233b). ‫على شيطان العظمة وهلاكه‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: Tūt, AM 1573 [= September-October 1856 CE]. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink, with red ink used for titles and chapter headings, and for pause/punctuation dots. The medium-scale naskhī hand is characterized by carefully formed letters rendered with thick strokes. The scribe followed the (faint) ruling lines closely for a neat if not precisely elegant appearance. Some letters are quite distinctive: a deep and narrow fishhook for final lām; forms of kāf (medial) and sometimes initial S-shaped forms with a fairly short diagonal stroke down to a long, thin rectangle open to the left; final forms with both an upper stroke and an s-shaped sign in a pronounced bowl; pronounced bowls also for final nūn and yāʼ in particular. Frequent use of fatḥa-like sign to indicate absence of a dot over ḥāʼ, ṣād, ṭā’, ‘ayn; and a double stroke over sīn. Material: Paper. Middle Eastern stock with clear laid and chain lines but no watermarks. The modern paper used for the front- and backmatter, which has turned brown, has shield with man-in-themoon watermarks.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents:

Patron/owner: al-qiss Bākhūm, a monk at Dayr al-Suryān, is identified as the muhtamm (p. 473, Copt. 235a). pp. 5–7 (= Copt. 4a–5a): the scribal table of contents internal to the work. Page numbers have been added in pencil to accompany the original folio numbers (which are written in ink in Arabic numerals). Colophons: p. 473 (Copt. 235a): a colophon indicating that the manuscript was completed in Tūt, AM 1573 [= 1856 CE]. The muhtamm is

118

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

identified as al-qiss Bākhūm, a monk at Dayr al-Suryān, who “commissioned it to be written from his own resources” (kattabahu min mālihi). The scribe asks for prayers but does not leave his name. Endowments (waqf-statements): p. 472 (Copt. 234b): the waqf-statement at the bottom of the page is divided from the end of the text by a decorative chain pattern (quadrilaterals with inner dots) and is written in two lines in a kind of bowl shape, with two additional words in the spaces at the lower corner. The MS is endowed to Dayr al-Suryān (Dayr al-Sitt al-Sayyidah bi-l-Suryān). The hand appears to be that of the scribe. p. 473 (Copt. 235a): under the colophon, facing the endowment on page 472, there is another waqf-statement in a different hand (perhaps that of the patron Bākhūm?) to Dayr al-Suryān (Dayr al-Sayyidah bi-l-Suryān). The fate of the one who removes the manuscript will be with Simon Magus (Sīmūn al-sāḥir), Diocletian the Unbeliever (Diqlā al-kāfir), and Judas the Betrayer (Yahūdhā al-dāfi‘). It ends with the saying: “As for the son of obedience, may the blessing come upon him. As for the one who breaks [the waqf], let his condition be ruined.” ‫وابن الطاعة تحل عليه البركة والمخالف حاله تالف‬ Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–viii Numbered folia: pp. 1–473, [474] (= Copt. 2–235; see chart below) Backmatter: pp. 475–488 (= ff. 236–242) The Arabic pagination is consistent. The Coptic foliation, however, has a number of errors, with numbers either repeated or omitted. Thus: Copt. 2–5 Copt. 5bis Copt. 6–47 Copt. 47bis Copt. 48–88 Copt. 88bis Copt. 89–128 [Copt. 128bis]

= pp. 1–8 = pp. 9–10 = pp. 11–94 = pp. 95–96 = pp. 97–178 = pp. 179–180 = pp. 181–260 = pp. 261–262

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Copt. 129–131 [no Copt. 132] Copt. 133–137 [no Copt. 138] Copt. 139–145 Copt. 145bis Copt. 146–206 Copt. 206bis Copt. 207–216 [no Copt. 217] Copt. 218–235

119

= pp. 263–268 = pp. 269–278 = pp. 279–292 = pp. 293–294 = pp. 295–416 = pp. 417–418 = pp. 419–438 = pp. 439–474

The Coptic cursive numerals (probably the work of the scribe) are in the upper left-hand corner of each recto. The Arabic page numbers (added later in pencil) are in the lower left-hand corner of each recto. The manuscript consists of 24 complete quinions: f. viii + 237 numbered leaves (pp. 1–473, [474]) + ff. 236–237. The quire sewing can be plainly seen at the fold of pp. 9, 29, 49, etc., through 449. Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 22 × 16 cm Area of writing: 17.5 × 11.5–12 cm Lines per page: 14–15 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Modern black cloth cover on pasteboard, with leather (or perhaps faux-leather) wrapping on the spine and at the corners. The spine is ribbed, with five resulting flat areas that contain, from the top: a blue Le Sphinx sticker with the library number; the contents in gilt script with gilt lines above and below; a modern sticker with the library number, also taped; the number 8, gilt with lines above and below; and waqf Dayr al-Sayyidah bi-l-Suryān in gilt script. The cover is somewhat worn at the edges. The manuscript itself is well bound and in good condition. At some point (when the binding was renewed) the pages were straight cut and “dappled.”

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. The frontmatter consists of the front flyleaf, 6 modern leaves, Insertions one old leaf (f. viii). 2. The backmatter consists of 2 old leaves, 4 modern leaves, and the back flyleaf.

120

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Readers’ insertions: 1. The manuscript has been well used. Especially in the early chapters, there are extensive underlinings and marginal notes in pencil, mostly corrections of the orthography or grammar, or glosses on difficult or archaic words.

121

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 20 (= MS 173) Old number(s): 73 Lāhūt

Contents

John Climacus, The Spiritual Ladder 1. John Climacus, The Spiritual Ladder: ff. 4–138 (= Copt.). The title page has been lost, but on f. 3b there is a note: “This book concerns John Climacus (Yūḥannā al-Darajī).” ‫هذا الكتاب يختص يوحنا الدرجي‬ The introduction, table of contents, and beginning of the first chapter are lost. Each chapter is called a maymar in its title, but often at its end it is designated as a qawl (“saying”). Maymar/Saying 1, [Leaving the world]: ff. 4a–9b (incomplete at beginning). [‫]الخروج من العالم‬ Maymar/Saying 2, On detachment from things: ff. 9b–12a. ‫على الزهد في الاشياء‬ Maymar/Saying 3, On estrangement/exile: ff. 12a–16b. ‫على الغربة‬ Maymar/Saying 4, On ever-praiseworthy obedience: ff. 16b–40b. ‫على الطاعة الفاضلة الممدوحة في كل زمان‬ Maymar/Saying 5, On repentance: ff. 40b–48a. ‫على التوبة‬ Maymar/Saying 6, On the remembrance of death: ff. 48a–50b. ‫على ذكر الموت‬ Maymar/Saying 7, On the mourning that begets joy and gladness: ff. 50b–57a. ‫على النوح الحقاني والد الفرح السرور‬ Maymar/Saying 8, On rage: ff. 57a–60b. ‫على الغضب‬ Maymar/Saying 9, On resentment: ff. 60b–61b. ‫على الحقد‬ Maymar/Saying 10, On slander and judgment: ff. 61b–63a. ‫على الوقيعة والدينونة‬

122

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Maymar/Saying 11, On silence: ff. 63b–64a. ‫على الصمت‬ Maymar/Saying 12, On falsehood: ff. 64a–65a. ‫على الكذب‬ Maymar/Saying 13, On discontent: ff. 65a–66a. ‫على الضجر‬ Maymar/Saying 14, On the desire of the stomach: ff. 66b–69b. ‫على رغبة البطن‬ Maymar/Saying 15, On combatting fornication: ff. 69b–78b. ‫على قتال الزناء‬ Maymar/Saying 16, On contentment and the love of money: ff. 78b–79b. ‫على القناعة وحب الفضة‬ Maymar/Saying 17, On poverty: ff. 79b–80a. ‫على المسكنة‬ Maymar/Saying 18, On hardness of heart, which is the death of the intellect before the death of the body: ff. 80b–82a. ‫على قساوة القلب التي هي موت العقل قبل موت الجسد‬ Maymar/Saying 19, On sleep and prayer: f. 82a–b. ‫على النوم والصلاة‬ Maymar/Saying 20, On watchfulness: ff. 82b–84a. ‫على السهر‬ Maymar/Saying 21, On cowardice: ff. 84b–85a. ‫على الجبن‬ Maymar/Saying 22, On pride and self-admiration: ff. 85a–92a. ‫على العظمة والاعتجاب‬ Heading on f. 89b: “On pride.” ‫هدا مفصول من اليوناني علي العظمة‬ Maymar/Saying 23, On thoughts of blasphemy: ff. 92a–94a. ‫على افكار التجديف‬

123

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Maymar/Saying 24, On simplicity of heart: ff. 94a–95b. ‫على سهولة القلب‬ Maymar/Saying 25, On exalted humility of thought and the destroyer of all the passions: ff. 95b–102a. ‫من اتضاع الفكرة المتعالي ومتلف جميع الاوجاع‬ Maymar/Saying 26, On the discernment/distinction of thoughts, passions, and virtues: ff. 102a–117b. ‫من اجل افراز الافكار والاوجاع والفضائل‬ Maymar/Saying 27, On righteous stillness, the stillness of soul and body: ff. 117b–124b. ‫من اجل السكوت البار سكوت النفس والجسد‬ Maymar/Saying 28, On holy, blessed prayer, which is the mother of all the virtues: ff. 124b–129a. ‫على الصلاة القديسة المغبوطة التي هي ام الفضائل كلها‬ Maymar/Saying 29, On victory over the passions, the consummation, and the resurrection of the soul that precedes the general resurrection: ff. 129a–130b. ‫من اجل غلبة الاوجاع والكمال وقيامة النفس التي هي قبل القيامة العامية‬ Maymar/Saying 30, On love, hope, and faith: ff. 131a–133b. ‫على الحب والرجاء والامانة‬ Maymar/Saying 31, On the shepherd: ff. 133b–138b (incomplete at end). ‫من اجل الراعي‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: not indicated. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with red ink used for chapter headings. The medium-scale naskhī hand is a bit cramped in spacing, with one word running into the next. The manuscript appears to be written more for personal use than as a professional production. The scribe has not ruled his pages, with resulting variation in line count as well as a certain amount of drift in each line, e.g. a “sagging” in which the mid-point of a line is lower on the page than its end points. Dots for the pointing of letters are frequently missing. Kāf is sometimes written without its upper stroke. The lām-alaf is sometimes written with an

124

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

upsilon shape and a backwards stroke that often cuts through the previous letter. Material: Paper. Middle Eastern stock with clear laid and chain lines but without watermarks. The modern paper in the front- and backmatter, which has turned brown, has shield with man-in-themoon and Andrea Galvani [Pordenone] watermarks. Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of the scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: none Colophons: none Endowments (waqf-statements): f. 3b: a waqf-statement endowing the MS to the Monastery of the Virgin (Dayr al-Sitt al-sayyidah al-’adhrā’), which the writer also associates with Saints George (Mārī Jirjis) and Samuel (Samū’īl). It is not certain whether this endowment originally pertained to Dayr al-Suryān or to another monastic foundation named for the Virgin. The writer includes a warning that whoever removes the manuscript from the “door/gate of the monastery” (bāb al-dayr) will be like Judas Iscariot.

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–v Numbered folia: ff. 2–140 (= Copt. [2–3], 4–138, [139–140]) Backmatter: ff. 141–145 The Coptic cursive folio numbers (probably the work of the scribe) are in the upper left-hand corner of the recto. The Arabic folio numbers, added in a modern pen, are next to them (above, to the left, or below, depending on the space). The systems match them throughout, although folia 2–3 and 139–140 are replacement leaves, consisting of reused paper added in a later restoration: they are foliated with only Arabic numbering. The manuscript originally consisted of 14 quinions. The first two leaves of the first quire were lost and have been replaced with reused, replacement pages. The final quire has only seven of its original leaves, with two replacement leaves having been added. The quire sewing can be plainly seen at the fold between ff. 6b and 7a.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

125

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 20.5 × 14 cm Area of writing: 17 × 11-11.5 cm Lines per page: 14-18 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Modern black cloth cover on pasteboard, with leather (or fauxleather) wrapping on the spine and at the corners. The spine is ribbed; the five resulting flat areas contain, from the top: a blue Le Sphinx sticker with the library number; the contents in gilt script with gilt lines above and below; a blank area (from which a sticker has been lost); the number 13, gilt with lines above and below; and waqf Dayr al-Sayyidah bi-l-Suryān in gilt script with gilt decoration at the bottom edge of the spine. The cover is somewhat worn at the corners. The manuscript has been restored, and some pages at the beginning and end have been reinforced with strips of paper along their edges or at the fold. The pages were then straight cut, creating very narrow margins for some pages. The manuscript was rebound and the outer edges of the pages were “dappled” in red. While the binding remains in good condition, the paper has suffered over time. It is brown and discolored, and there is some water damage. In some places, the ink has smeared and there are holes from insects or worms. Folia 2–3 and 139–140, which were added in the restoration, appear to contain records of accounts. These pages were folded in the middle, apparently in an effort to create columns.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ Insertions Readers’ insertions:

126

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 21 (= MS 174) Old number(s): 11 Mayāmir; 14-ⲗⲃ

Contents

Miscellaneous Apocryphal Works and Mayāmir; Evagrius Ponticus, Ascetic Writings; and the Life of Evagrius [Part One] 1. Lectionary readings from the Gospels of Matthew (or Luke), John, and Mark for the month Amshīr (ⲙⲉⲭⲓⲣ): ff. 6a–9b (= Copt. pp. 534–528, running in reverse order from the Arabic foliation). 2. Excerpt from the Book of Tobias (Tūbyā): f. 11a–b (= Copt.). 3. 1 and 2 Esdras: ff. 12a–38a (= Copt.). Book 1: ff. 12a–26a. Book 2: ff. 26b–38a. 4. The Book of the Brahmans (al-Barakhmānisiyyīn): ff. 38b–51a (= Copt.): ‫قيل من اجل البرخمانسيين انها امه صنعت الزهد وليس ذلك‬ ‫من قريحتها ولا من ذاتها مثل الرهبان بل نالوا هذا الحظ من فوق‬ ‫من احكام ا﷽ وهكذا هم يعيشون وعلى نهر عغكيس‬ Graf, GCAL, 1:545–546. This is a story about a group of ascetics (the gymnosophistoi) who meet the Emperor Alexander the Great: cf. Ps.-Callisthenes, Alexander Romance. 5. Life of St. Zosimus: ff. 51b–66b (= Copt.). ‫خبر القديس الجليل والقسيس الفاضل انبا زوسيما‬ 6. Jacob of Sarug, Maymar about Abraham and how God and his angels came to his house and proclaimed to him and his wife about [his son] Isaac: ff. 66b–71a (= Copt.). 7. Jacob of Sarug, Maymar about Abraham when he brought his son Isaac for the sacrifice: ff. 71b–83b (= Copt.). 8. Jacob of Sarug, Maymar about Jonah the prophet, the repentance of the people of the city of Nineveh and their salvation: ff. 84a–113a (= Copt.).

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

127

9. Elias of Nisibis, Letter on the virtue of abstinence for everyone to his brother Manṣūr Ibn ‘Īsā: ff. 113b–120b (= Copt.). The end of the letter is missing. 10. Maymar said by some of the saints to be read on the evening of the first Sunday of the Fast: ff. 124a–129b (= Copt. 134a– 139b). 11. Commandment[s] said by some of the saints to be read on the second Friday at dawn: ff. 140a–146b (= Copt.). 12. (Ps.-)Athanasius of Alexandria, The Death of the Patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob [= The Testament of the Patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob]: ff. 147a–206b. Full title: “The translation of the holy fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and their exit from their bodies on 28 Misrā [… including their ascent to the heavens], which the holy father Athanasius the patriarch of Alexandria revealed through the [hand]writing of the holy apostolic fathers, and which was found in the treasury/library of the sciences.” a. The death of [our] father Abraham: ff. 147a–194a (= Copt.). b. The death of [our] father Isaac: ff. 194b–201b (= Copt.). c. The death of our father Jacob, who was called Israel: ff. 202a–206b (= Copt.). The ending of this work is missing. [Part Two] 1. Eulogius (Lūkiyūs), Letter to Evagrius: f. 32b. 2. Evagrius [Ponticus], [Prologue to his] Letter in response to Eulogius: ff. 32b–42a. 3. Evagrius [Ponticus], Edifying Discourse written for Eulogius the Ascetic: ff. 42a–1332b (= Copt.). ‫كلام منفعة للقديس انبا وغري كتبه للقديس انبا لوكيوس الناسك‬ 35 chapters. This is a composite work containing the rest of Evagrius’ Letter to Eulogius, and [parts of] his treatises On Prayer, Praktikos (excerpt from Part 2), Antirrhetikos, and On the Eight Spirits of Wickedness.

128

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

[Evagrius, Letter responding to Eulogius: ff. 42a–272a.] Chapter 1, On estrangement/exile [from the world]: ff. 42a–52b. ‫على الغربة‬ 2

2

Chapter 2, On vainglory: ff. 5 b–6 a. ‫على المجد البطال‬ 2

2

Chapter 3, On humility: ff. 6 a–7 a. ‫على الاتضاع‬ 2

Chapter 4, On living in peace: f. 7 a. ‫على السكن بسلام‬ 2

Chapter 5, On peace and wellbeing: ff. 7 a–92a. ‫على الصلح والسلامة‬ Chapter 6, On patience: f. 92a–b. ‫على الصبر‬ Chapter 7, On vigilance and anxiety of heart: ff. 92b–102b. ‫على السهر وقلق القلب‬ Chapter 8, On meekness, anger, love, and the fear of God: ff. 102b–112a. ﷽‫على الدعة والغضب والمحبة وخوف ا‬ Chapter 9, On living in poverty: f. 112a. ‫على العيش بمسكة‬ Chapter 10, On rejection [of the world] and thoughts: ff. 112b–132a. ‫على الرفض والأفكار‬ 2

2

Chapter 11, On repentance: ff. 13 a–14 b. ‫على التوبة‬ Chapter 12, On the fact that it is prohibited to judge your teacher: ff. 142b–152a. ‫على أنه لا يجب أن تدين معلمك‬ Chapter 13, On the fact that one should not speak with slander: ff. 152a–182a. ‫على أنه لا يتحدث في الوقيعة‬

129

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Chapter 14, On patience and humility: f. 182a–b. ‫على الصبر الاتضاع‬ Chapter 15, On the reading during the nights of the vigil and [on] vigilance: ff. 182b–272a. ‫على القراءة في ليالي السهر والسهر‬ [Evagrius, On Vices opposed to Virtues: ff. 272a–322a.] Chapter 16, On the humility of the soul: ff. 272a–322a. ‫على اتضاع النفس‬ In this chapter Evagrius enumerates the eight vices (gluttony, fornication, love of money, melancholy, anger, anxiety, vainglory, pride) and the eight virtues (asceticism, self-control, poverty, joy, leisure, patience, hatred of glory, humility). [Evagrius, On Prayer: ff. 322a–562a.] Chapter 17, On withdrawal and the pure prayer, which is the speech/conversation of God: ff. 322a–562a. ﷽‫التفرد والصلاح الطاهرة التي هي مخاطبة ا‬ Includes the following headings: f. 472b: The first explanation of the enumeration. ‫أول شرح الاحصاء‬ f. 502b: The eight thoughts again. ‫أيضا‬ ً ‫الثمانية أفكار‬ [Evagrius, Praktikos (excerpt from Part 2): ff. 562a–622a.] Chapter 18, On what happens to us in sleep: ff. 562a–622a. ‫على ما يحدث لنا في النوم‬ [Evagrius, Antirrhetikos: ff. 622b–1132a.] Chapter 19, On the weapons against the eight thoughts: ff. 622b–642a. ‫على حوارب الثمانية أفكار‬ Chapter 20, On thoughts of gluttony: ff. 642a–702b. ‫على أفكار البطنة‬ Chapter 21, On the thought of fornication: ff. 702b–772b. ‫على فكر الزناء‬

130

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Chapter 22, On the thought of the love of money: ff. 772b–832b. ‫على فكر محبة الفضة‬ Chapter 23, On melancholy: ff. 832b–902b. ‫على الكآبة‬ 2

2

Chapter 24, On thoughts of anger: ff. 90 b–96 b. ‫على أفكار الغضب‬ Chapter 25, On thoughts of anxiety: ff. 972a–1022b. ‫على أفكار القلق‬ Chapter 26, On the thought of vainglory: ff. 1022b–1072a. ‫على فكر الافتخار‬ Chapter 27, On the thought of pride: ff. 1072a–1132a. ‫على فكر الكبرياء‬ [Evagrius, On the Eight Spirits of Wickedness: ff. 1132a–1332b.] Chapter 28, On gluttony again: ff. 1132a–1152a. ‫أيضا‬ ً ‫على البطنة‬ Chapter 29, On fornication: ff. 1152a–1172b. ‫على الزناء‬ Chapter 30, On the love of money: ff. 1172b–1192a. ‫على محبة الفضة‬ Chapter 31, On anger: ff. 1192a–1202a. ‫على الغضب‬ 2

2

Chapter 32, On melancholy: ff. 120 a–121 b. ‫على الكآبة‬ Chapter 33, On anxiety: ff. 1212b–1232a. ‫على القلق‬ 2

2

Chapter 34, On vainglory: ff. 123 a–124 a. ‫على الافتخار‬ 2

2

Chapter 35, On pride: ff. 124 a–133 b. ‫على الكبرياء‬ 2

Includes the following heading on f. 126 b: “The founders of the religion.” ‫الأولين الدين‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

131

4. Evagrius [Ponticus], In Imitation of Ecclesiastes, the Song of Songs, and Proverbs: ff. 1342a–1352b. a. [In Imitation of] Ecclesiastes: f. 1342a–b. ‫من قول الكنائس‬ b. In Imitation of the Song of Songs: ff. 1342b–1352a. ‫من الذي قاله يشبه قول نشيد الأنشاد‬ c. In Imitation of the Proverbs of Solomon: f. 1352a–b. ‫من أمثال سليمان‬ 5. Life of Evagrius: ff. 1362a–1432b. ‫سيرة ابونا القديس الطوباني‬ ‫انبا وغري المجاهد العظيم في القديسين‬ The ending of this work is missing. Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: none indicated, but the presence of a reader’s note by Yūḥannā [ibn Ḥizqiyāl] (f. 32a), who is known from to have been active circa 1473/74 CE (see under “Readers’ insertions”), gives evidence that part two of the manuscript dates from at least as early as the late fifteenth century (and probably a century or two earlier). Language and script: Arabic (except for ff. 6a–9b, which are reused folia with Coptic text). The manuscript contains evidence for 9 scribal hands (6 in Part One, and 3 hands in Part Two): Hand 1: ff. 11a–48a, 206a–b Hand 2: ff. 48b–113a, 148a–150b, 160a–b, 191a–205b Hand 3: ff. 113b–120b Hand 4: ff. 124a–125b, 146a–b (= Copt. 134a–135b, 146a–b) Hand 5: ff. 126a–129b, 140a–145b (= Copt. 136a–145b) Hand 6: f. 147a–b Hand 7: ff. 32b–1292b, 1312a–1422b Hand 8: f. 1302a–b Hand 9: f. 1432a–b In Part One, hands 1 and 2 seem to be primary, hand 3 is secondary, hand 5 is tertiary, and hands 4 and 6 supply selected replacement pages. In Part Two, hand 7 seems to be primary, while hands 8 and 9 supply replacement pages. Below, I provide descriptions of the orthography for hands 1, 2, and 7.

132

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Hand 1: Black ink with titles/headings in red (no dots/ punctuation). Small rounded letters written neatly and legibly. Hand 2: Black ink with titles/headings and dots/punctuation in red (but the red dots/punctuation break off after folio 56a). Larger script with more extended line flourishes. Hand 7: Black ink with titles, headings, Coptic cursive numerical references, and punctuation in red ink. Script is medium-to-large in scale with thick, heavy strokes. Legible but not especially consistent. Material: Paper. Thick Middle Eastern stock with no visible watermarks. Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

Scribe: Shinūdah ibn Sulmān al-Darajāwī ibn Mattā (f. 51a), responsible for copying The Book of the Brahmans. Patron/owner: Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī (f. 10b). Restorer: probably Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī in his role as the muhtamm (f. 10b).

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: f. 10b: a table of contents written in a non-scribal hand, including the contents of both parts (Parts One and Two). Colophons: f. 51a: colophon after The Book of the Brahmans (Kitāb al-barakhmānisiyīn) providing the name of the scribe (Shinūdah ibn Sulmān al-Darajāwī ibn Mattā). f. 113a: colophon after Jacob of Sarug’s maymar on Jonah with a short blessing. f. 194a: colophon after the work on Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob attributed to Athanasius, with a prayer petition to Abraham, Jesus, and the saints. Endowments (waqf-statements): f. 10b: waqf-statement endowing the manuscript to Dayr al-Suryān and identifying the muhtamm as Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Pages, Numbering

133

Frontmatter: f. i Numbered folia: Part One: ff. 6–120, 124–129, 140–150, 160, 191–206 (= Copt. [6–10], 11–120, 134–146, [147], 148–150, 160, 191–206) Part Two: ff. 22–1432 (= Copt. [22], 32–982, [992], 1002–1192, [1202], 1212–1292, [1302], 1312–1352, [1362–1432]) Backmatter: none The manuscript consists of what were originally two different manuscripts bound together in one cover. a. Part One starts with folia 6–10: these were originally leaves from a Coptic liturgical text. They were inserted in reverse order, as evidenced by their original Coptic uncial foliation (Copt. pp. 534–528). They were meant to function as frontmatter in the binding process, but the later Arabic foliator included them in his reckoning. The original Coptic cursive foliation was rendered in dark black ink. The Arabic foliation, also written in black pen was meant to match the Coptic cursive, and indeed, from folio 11 to folio 120 the two systems run in parallel. Copt. 114/f. 114 is a replacement folio, although a later hand has added the correct foliation in both Coptic cursive and Arabic. Starting with folio 121, pages with a different scribal hand are inserted, with Coptic cursive numbering resuming with 134–139 and the Arabic with 124–129, a misreading of the Coptic cursive, which is corrected starting at Copt. 140. The corrections take the form of overwritten numbers in blue (and sometimes black) ballpoint pen. From folio 140–150, 160, 191–206, the two systems coincide again. There are also selected folia that bear Arabic numbers written in thick red pencil in the upper left hand corner of the recto: see ff. 94a (= red number 200), 114a (red number 180), and 147a (red number 160). This sequence of numbers runs in the opposite direction as the folia numbering may have been an attempt to count the leaves of the manuscript from left to right in increments of ten. It should be noted that folio 147 originally bore the number 144 before the above-referenced process of overwriting/correction changed it to 147, so this may indicate that these red numbers were applied before that correction took place (f. 144 would have followed in the sequence established by ff. 94 and 114).

134

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

b. Part Two of the manuscript starts with folio 22, which also bears the number 207 (this represents a continuation of the foliation from the first half, which is not maintained beyond that page). While folio 22 only has an Arabic number, from folio 32 the Arabic and Coptic cursive systems coincide except for replaced or restored pages (ff. 992, 1202, 1302, 1362–1422) and on the final folio (f. 1432), where only the Arabic foliation is preserved. Quires contain 10 folia (apart from the first quire, which contains 6) and are numbered in Arabic lettering on the first folio of each quire. In the first half of the manuscript, these indications are visible on folia 21a (thālithah), 31a (rābi‘ah), 51a (sādisah), 61a (sābi‘ah), 71a (thāminah), 81a (tāsi‘ah), 91a (‘āshirah), 101a (ḥādī ‘asharah), and 111a (thānī ‘asharah). In the second half, they are visible on folia 112a (thāniyah), 212a (thālithah), 312a (rābi‘ah), 412a (khāmisah), 512a (sādisah), 612a (sābi‘ah), 712a (thāminah), 812a (tāsi‘ah), 912a (‘āshirah), 1012a (ḥādī ‘asharah), and 1212a (thālith ‘asharah). Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 26 × 17.5 cm Area of writing: Hand 1: 21 × 12.5 cm; 20 lines/page Hand 2: 21.5 × 13 cm; 19–20 lines/page Hand 7: 20 × 13 cm; 17 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Brown leather cover tooled with a double-lined rectangular border bisected by an X. Well worn with abrasions and some fraying at the edges. The binding is loose with significant separation at the spine inside both the front and back boards and between quires. Many pages are yellowed with some stains at their edges. Some also have internal tears or are now loose. There are pages missing in the pagination. Evidence for an attempt at restoration includes the use of strips of paper to reinforce pages at the edges and at the spine. A number of these strips have Arabic handwriting or print on them. Some have become partially detached. The manuscript is in need of conservation.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. Folio 10a is blank. Insertions 2. Folio 22a contains the title, Kitāb Anbā Ūghrīs (“The Book of Father Evagrius”).

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

135

3. Folio 1152b is blank. 4. On folio 1942b, above the Arabic blessing, the following is written in Coptic: ⲥⲱⲧⲏⲣ ϭⲟⲥ ⲡⲛⲟⲩϯ (“Savior Lord God”). Readers’ insertions: 1. The paper on the inside front board and the restorer’s strip of paper on f. ia contain accounts written in Arabic. 2. Folio 71a contains a poem addressed to the scribe after the end of the Maymar attributed to Jacob of Sarug. 3. Folio 32a contains two petitions written by different readers. The first is addressed to Jesus Christ with a request for the forgiveness of the sins of “your servant John” (‘abdika Yūḥannā). The handwriting is the same as that of Yūḥannā ibn Ḥizqiyāl in DS Arabic Ascetic 3 (f. 192b), who was active in the late fifteenth century CE (ca. 1473/74 CE). The second petition on f. 32a takes up the lower two-thirds of the page. It is written in a much larger hand and requests prayers from the reader on behalf of the (unnamed) writer.

136

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 22 (= MS 175) Old number(s): 14 Mayāmir; 3-ⲗⲃ

Contents

Evagrius Ponticus, Ascetic Writings; with Collections of Monastic Sayings and Stories 1. Eulogius, Letter to Evagrius: f. 1a (= Copt. 2a). ‫رسالة القديس لوكيوس الى القديس انبا وغري‬ 2. Evagrius [Ponticus], [Prologue to his] Letter in response to Eulogius: f. 1a–b (= Copt. 2a–b). ‫جواب رسالة القديس لوكيوس من القديس انبا وغري‬ 3. Evagrius [Ponticus], Edifying Discourse written for Eulogius the Ascetic: ff. 1b–131b (= Copt. 2b–132b). ‫كلام منفعة للقديس انبا وغري كتبه للقديس انبا لوكيوس الناسك‬ In 35 chapters. This is a composite work containing the rest of Evagrius’ Letter to Eulogius, and [parts of] his treatises On Vices opposed to Virtues, On Prayer, Praktikos (excerpt from Part 2), Antirrhetikos, and On the Eight Spirits of Wickedness. For detailed contents, see DS Arabic Ascetic 21 (= MS 174). 4. Evagrius [Ponticus], In Imitation of Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, and Proverbs: ff. 131b–133b (= Copt. 132b–134b). a. [In Imitation of] Ecclesiastes: ff. 131b–132b (= Copt. 132b–133b). b. In Imitation of the Song of Songs: ff. 132b–133a (= Copt. 133b–134a). c. [In Imitation of] the Proverbs of Solomon: f. 133a–b (= Copt. 134a–b). 5. Sayings of the Elders, collected by Gregory of Nyssa, brother of Basil the Great: ff. 134a–139b (= Copt. 135a–140b). ‫من كلام الأباء القديسين الشيوخ منفعة وتعليم وتعزية‬ 6. Garden of the Monks: ff. 140a–238a (= Copt. 12–952, [96–99]). ‫بستان الرهبان‬ 7. Acts of the Apostles (excerpt, 11:2–13:39): ff. 240a–244b.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Date, Language, Script, Material

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

137

Date: 1484 CE (f. 133b; = Copt. 134b). Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with headings, dots/ punctuation, and section labels in red ink. Letters are written in a medium-to-large scale with a skilled hand. The final section with the excerpt from Acts was written in a larger, less practiced hand with thicker black lines and with punctuation and section labels in red. Material: Paper. Medium-to-thick Middle Eastern stock. Replacement pages bear the Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) watermark. Scribe: Mūsā, a monk at Dayr al-Suryān (f. 133b). Originally from Lebanon, Mūsā is known from other sources to have been active as a scribe in the monastic library from 1484 until 1501. He is known to have produced at least one other manuscript dated to 1484, as well as five other volumes in the years 1489, 1490, 1493, 1499, and 1501 (Evelyn White, Monasteries, vol. 2, 451–452; Leroy, “Un témoignage inédit,” 12–13; on Mūsā, see also Bigoul, “The Manuscript Collection,” 286). Owners/patrons: Quriyāqūs, al-āb, the metropolitan and head of Dayr al-Suryān at the time of the manuscript’s endowment, is identified as one who gave permission for the production of the manuscript (f. 133b; = Copt. 134b). In the Dayr al-Suryān collection, he also endowed DS Arabic Biblical 1, 11, and 44 (= MSS 10, 28, 54), DS Arabic Ascetic 31 (= MS 184, endowed in 1493 CE), as well as MS 260 in the Mayāmir section of the library. There is also evidence for the production of multiple manuscripts for him during his time as abbot (including a copy of the Gospel of John in 1481 CE, and two more identified volumes in 1492 and 1493 CE), and it is known that he bequeathed his personal library to the monastery in 1516 CE. On Quriyāqus, see Evelyn White, Monasteries, vol. 2, 451–452; Leroy, “Un témoignage inédit,” 12–13; Wright, Catalogue of Syriac Manuscripts in the British Museum, I.315 (MS 399, ff. 64b–65a; 1492 CE), and III.1199–1200 (MS 1033; 1493 CE); and Bigoul, “The Manuscript Collection,” 286. Two monks from Dayr al-Suryān — al-qiss Ghubriyāl, and al-qiss Dāwūd from the city of Mārdīn [in Syria] and [originally] from Qal‘at

138

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Diyār Bakr [in what is now modern Turkey] — also endowed the MS to the monastery after its restoration near the end of the eighteenth century (f. 238b). Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Restorer: not identified. Tables of contents: f. ia–b: two pieces of lined paper glued to the recto and verso contain a table of contents written in red felt-tip pen, with additions in red ballpoint pen. The table of contents begins with a section labeled 18. This suggests that a first page of contents is now missing from the MS. Colophons: f. 133b (= Copt. 134b): information about the production of the manuscript, including the patron (the Metropolitan Quriyāqūs), date (1484 CE), and the probable name of the scribe (Mūsā) is given as part of a waqf-statement on this folio. On the recording of the date, see below under “Endowments.” f. 139b (= Copt. 140b): a scribal prayer for mercy and forgiveness is written on behalf of the patron, reader, hearer, and scribe/ translator, through the intercession of the saints mentioned in the Sayings of the Elders. Endowments (waqf-statements): f. 133b (= Copt. 134b): a waqf-statement endowing the MS to the Monastery of the Virgin (i.e. Dayr al-Suryān). It indicates that the manuscript was written with the permission of “our Father, the Metropolitan Quriyāqūs, the head of the monastery” (Abūnā al-Muṭrān Quryāqūs ra’īs al-dayr). It then provides the year of the manuscript’s copying as AM 1484 (li-l-shuhadā; i.e. anno martyrum), but this reference to the era of the martyrs is probably in error. Instead, given the fact that Quriyāqūs is a known historical figure, an anno domini date seems to have been intended (1484 CE). Finally, it mentions the fact that “a brother named Mūsā came up to Dayr al-Suryān and took up residence there when there were at the aforementioned monastery eleven brothers, among them five monks and the rest laymen.”

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

139

[‫كتب بالمطران قرياقوس رئيس الدير المذكور بتاريخ بسنت اللف ]كذا‬ ‫واربع ماية أربعة وثمانين للشهدا الاطهار ]كذا[ طلع اخ امسه موسى الى دير‬ ‫السريان وتوطن فيه وكان يومئذ بالدير المذكور احدى عشر اخ منهم خمسة‬ ‫رهبان والباقي علمانين‬ An additional seven lines of text were originally written at the bottom left, probably in the same hand, but this section was latter crossed out with ink and is no longer legible. f. 237b (margin): a waqf-statement endowing the MS to Dayr al-Suryān written by the same hand as the colophon on folio 238b, but the place where the name of the writer would have been is cut off. f. 238b: a waqf-statement written on this replacement page contains the date for the completion of the restoration of the MS (Saturday, 10 Hatūr, AM 1515 [= 1798 CE]), and the name of two monks at Dayr al-Suryān, al-qiss Ghubriyāl and al-qiss Dāwūd from Mārdīn and Qal‘at Diyār Bakr (Turkey), who (re-)endowed the manuscript to the monastery after its restoration. ‫وكان الفراغ من مرمت هذه الكتاب المبارك يوم السبت‬ ‫المبارك عشرة في شهر هتور المبارك سنت الف وخمسماية‬ ‫وخمست عشر الى الشهدا الاطهار السعدا الابرار رزقنا‬ ‫ا﷽ بركت صلاتهم وشفاعتاهم ]كذا[ امين‬ ‫اوقف هذه الكتاب الابهات بدير السريان وهم القس‬ ‫غبريال والقس داوود من مدينة اسمها ماردين وهو من‬ ‫بلد تسما قلعت ديار بكر الرب يسوع ينيح نفوسهم اجمعين‬ ‫عوض يا رب من له تعب في ملاكوت السموات‬ The restoration of this blessed book was completed on the blessed Saturday, the 10th day of the blessed month Hatūr, in the year 1515 belonging to the [era of] the pure, happy and righteous martyrs [= 1798 CE]. May God bestow upon us the blessing of their prayer and intercession. Amen. The fathers of the Dayr al-Suryān endowed this book — namely, the priest Gabriel (Ghubriyāl) and the priest David (Dāwūd) from the city named Mārdīn. (The latter is [originally] from the city named Qal‘at Diyār Bakr.) May the Lord Jesus give rest to their souls entirely. O Lord, help whoever had labor[ed] in the kingdom of heaven.

140 Pages, Numbering

Dimensions, Layout Cover, Condition

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Frontmatter: ff. i–vi Numbered folia: ff. 2–139, 140–238, 239, 240–244 (= Copt. 1– 140, 12–952, [96–99], [blank], 33–[73]) Backmatter: f. 245 The flyleaves (ff. i and 245) are thin, lightweight modern pieces of paper, with the other halves glued to the inside of the boards. Folio i remains intact and attached to its other half; folio 245 has become separated from its other half because of the complete separation of the pages from the spine at the back of the manuscript. Folia iii–vi are labeled with Arabic letters jīm, dāl, hēʼ, and wāw, which according to the Abjad alphabetic numerical system match up with numbers iii–vi. The next folio after wāw is labeled with the Arabic number 2 and the Coptic cursive number 1 (f. 2 = Copt. 1), and the two numbering systems continue to have a discrepancy of one digit up through folio 139 (= Copt. 140). The folio labeled with the Arabic number 140 (f. 140) marks the beginning of a second MS, written in the same hand, as evidenced by the Coptic cursive foliation which begins again with the number 1 (= Copt. 12). The Coptic cursive numbering continues up through folio 234 (= Copt. 95). After that the Coptic cursive foliation is lacking due to reinforcement of edges with strips of paper (ff. 235–237) or the use of replacement pages (f. 238). Folia 240–244 come from a third MS containing an excerpt from the Acts of the Apostles: the first three bear Coptic cursive numbers (Copt. 33, 43, 53); the fourth lacks a number (= Copt. [63]); the fifth has the traces of the number 7 (= Copt. 73). Dimensions: 26 × 18 cm Area of writing: 20 × 12 cm 17 lines/page The cover is of brown leather, somewhat worn with abrasions at the corners and edges. There is a thick double line rectangular incised border, bisected by a thick incised X. There are deep medallion stamps at the corners and middle of the rectangular lined border, with four more on the arms of the X and one at its center, adding up to 13 in all. The spine is incised with two X’s within rectangular borders, and an incised line down the middle. The manuscript leaves are yellowed/discolored. The edges of

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

141

folia near the front of the manuscript are somewhat tattered. Some have page edges and spines reinforced with strips of paper reused from other MSS. The first quire/quinion (10 folia) consists of replacement pages (ff. vi, 1–9; = Copt. 1–10). Folia 238 and 239 are also replacement pages. There is complete separation at the spine at the back of the MS: only the front flyleaf remains attached. The volume is in need of conservation and rebinding. Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. Folia i (beneath the paper with the table of contents), ii, iii, Insertions and iv are reused leaves from a liturgical manuscript containing readings from Acts, Gospel of John, Gospel of Matthew, Gospel of Mark, Romans, 1 John, Acts, Gospel of John, Gospel of Mark, Gospel of John, and prayers from the Thursday and Friday from the second week of Eastertide (yawm al-khamīs min al-jum‘ah al-thāniyah min al-khamsīn; yawm al-jum‘ah min al-jum‘ah al-thāniyah min al-khamsīn). 2. Folio wāw is blank, apart from the monastery stamp. 3. Folio 239 is blank. Readers’ insertions: 1. Folio 223a contains a request for prayer by Mar Gregorius on behalf of Philoxenos of Cyprus, written in large, ornamental Syriac script. This Mar Gregorius is almost certainly the Metropolitan of Jerusalem who visited the monastery in 1516 CE and gifted books to the library during that visit (Evelyn White, Monasteries, vol. 2, 452; Leroy, “Un témoignage inédit,” 13; Wright, Catalogue of Syriac Manuscripts in the British Museum, I.315 (MS Choral no. 399, f. 65b); Brock and Van Rompay, Catalogue of the Syriac Manuscripts, xv–xvi, xxi, 58, 234, 367, 424–425.

142

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 23 (= MS 176) Old number(s): 85 Mayāmir; 181 Musalsal; 9-ⲗⲃ/86

Contents

Evagrius Ponticus, Ascetic Writings; Selected Prayers 1. Eulogius, Letter to Evagrius: Copt. [1a–2a]. ‫رسالة القديس لوكيوس الى القديس انبا وغري‬ 2. Evagrius [Ponticus], [Prologue to his] Letter in response to Eulogius: Copt. 2a–3a. ‫جواب رسالة القديس لوكيوس من القديس انبا وغري‬ 3. Evagrius [Ponticus], Edifying Discourse written for Eulogius the Ascetic: Copt. 3a–248a. ‫كلام منفعة للقديس انبا وغري للقديس انبا لوكيوس الناسك‬ 35 numbered chapters, plus an added unlabeled section. Chapter 31 is mislabeled as chapter 21 (Copt. 218b). This is a composite work containing the rest of Evagrius’ Letter to Eulogius, and [parts of] his treatises On Vices opposed to Virtues, On Prayer, Praktikos (excerpt from Part 2), Antirrhetikos, and On the Eight Spirits of Wickedness. For detailed contents, see DS Arabic Ascetic 21 (= MS 174). 4. Evagrius [Ponticus], In Imitation of Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, and Proverbs: Copt. 248a–251a. a. [In Imitation of] Ecclesiastes: Copt. 248a–249a. b. In Imitation of the Song of Songs: Copt. 249a–250a. c. [In Imitation of] the Proverbs of Solomon: Copt. 250b–251a. 5. Evagrius, Untitled Work: Copt. 251b–[260]b. ‫وأيضا له‬ ً Incipit: ... ‫ميراث ﷲ هو أن تسمع كلام ﷲ‬ 6. Prayer of St. Ephrem (Mār Ifrām): ff. 262a–265a. 7. Prayer/Petition to the Virgin Mary: f. 265a–b.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Date, Language, Script, Material

143

Date: none indicated. Language and script: Arabic. The primary hand is written in black ink, with headings, section markers, and dots/punctuation in red ink. The script is written in a medium scale with some variation in size and spacing. Lettering is fairly clear, although not highly practiced. The replacement folia are written in a small, somewhat squarish script in black ink with section markers in red. Material: Paper. Rather thick Middle Eastern stock, with no watermarks. The replacement folia bear the Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) watermark.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

Scribe: not identified.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: none

Patron/owner and restorer: Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī (f. 261a).

Colophons: none Endowments (waqf-statements): f. 261a: Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī identifies himself as the muhtamm responsible for the restoration of the MS and endows the MS to Dayr al-Suryān.

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: none Numbered folia: Copt. [1–10], 11–258, ff. 259–260, [blank unnumbered page], 261, [two blank unnumbered pages], 262–265. Backmatter: none The first quire of ten folia consists of later replacement pages, which do not have any foliation, but the folia they replace would have originally been labeled 1–10 in Coptic cursive numbering. The original folia begin at the second quire (Copt. 11), which is labeled (thānī), and continue through the twenty-sixth quire, which consists of only 8 folia (Copt. 251–258). The final ten folia are replacement pages that comprise a final quire (ff. 259–260, [one blank unnumbered folio], 261, [two blank unnumbered folia], 262–265).

144

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 17.5 × 12 cm (replacement pages = 16.5 × 12 cm) Area of writing: 13 × 9 cm (replacement pages = 12–12.5 × 8.5–9 cm) 12–13 lines/page (replacement pages = 12 lines/page)

Cover, Condition

Dark brown leather cover, very worn with abrasions at the corners and edges, and a perforation in the leather on the spine. There is a thick double line rectangular tooled border, bisected by a thick-lined tooled X, and deep medallion stamps at the corners and in the middle of the rectangular lined border, with four more on the arms of the X and one at its center, adding up to 13 in all. The folia show considerable water/moisture damage, especially toward the beginning of the volume, where one finds significant discoloration of pages, washed out script (see esp. ff. [1–10]), leaves that now adhere together and cannot be separated without incurring further damage (esp. Copt. 12–13, 14–15, 20–21, 22–23), and possible signs of mold inside the front board. The internal layers of some of the pages also show signs of splitting. The binding of the MS is loose with significant separation at the spine inside the front board and between different quires, with the stitching clearly visible. This is most notable between the eighth and ninth quires (between ff. 180 and 181), where the separation is almost complete. Folia 176 and 177 are also almost completely detached (they are connected by a single thread). Folio 179 is completely detached. The MS is in need of conservation. Copt. 61 and the final folia (ff. 259–260, one blank unnumbered folia, 261, two blank unnumbered folia, 262–265) are replacement pages. On the inside of the front and back boards, reused Coptic manuscripts have been pasted sideways and upside down as part of the binding process. Inside the front board there is evidence of more than one page used as lining.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ Readers’ insertions: Insertions

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

145

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 24 (= MS 177) Old number: 86 Lāhūt

Contents

John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Chapters of Knowledge; Evagrius Ponticus, Chapters of Knowledge 1. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder (al-Shaykh al-rūḥānī), Chapters of Knowledge (Ru’ūs al-ma‘rifah), ch. 3–7: ff. 1b–55a.(= Copt.). Treatise 3: ff. 1b–13b. Treatise 4: ff. 13b–24b. Treatise 5: ff. 24b–37b. Treatise 6: ff. 37b–51b. Treatise 7: ff. 51b–55a. 2. Evagrius [Ponticus] (Mār Ūghrīs), Chapters of Knowledge (Ru’ūs al-ma‘rifah) [= Kephalaia Gnostika]: ff. 57b, 57bisa–b, 58a–60b, 60bisa, 60terb, 61a–115b (= Copt. 54b–55b, [56a–59a, 60b], 61a–115b). First Hundred: ff. 57b–65b. Second Hundred: ff. 65b–73b. Third Hundred: ff. 73b–81a. Fourth Hundred: ff. 81a–88b. Fifth Hundred: ff. 89a–96a. Sixth Hundred: ff. 96b–104a. Supplemental material to the Chapters of Knowledge drawn from Evagrius’ Reflections (Skemmata), On Thoughts, Disciples of Evagrius, and On Perfection: ff. 104a–115b. 3. Basil of Caesarea, On praying to the East: f. 119a–b (= Copt.). 4. Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Maymar on silence: ff. 121b–131a (= Copt.). 5. On the Economy of Our Lord Jesus Christ in the Salvation of Adam from the Captivity of Satan: ff. 132a–136a (= Copt. 132a– [136a]). ‫في تدبير سيدنا يسوع المسيح في خلاص أدم من أسر الشيطان‬

Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: none indicated, but in light of Metropolitan Sāwīrus’ endowment, the volume must date to the sixteenth century CE or earlier. Language and script: Arabic. Works 1, 2, and 4 seem to be by the same hand. Black ink with headings, dots/punctuation (relatively

146

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

rare), and occasional marginal notes/commentary are in red. The letters are small-to-medium in scale with bold, thick strokes, although the hand is inconsistent and cramped at times. Work 3 is written in a different hand with thicker, smudgier, lighter black ink (no red) and slightly smaller letters. Work 5 is written in a third hand, with dark black ink (no red): it is characterized by bold, thick strokes and even smaller, cramped letters rendered in closely spaced lines. Material: Paper. Medium-to-thick Middle Eastern stock. Replacement folia 1–2 have Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) watermarks. Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

Scribe: not identified. Patron/owner: Metropolitan Sāwīrus, who served as head of the monastery in the sixteenth century CE (f. 121a); al-qissīs Yūḥānnā al-Fayyūmī (f. 56b). Restorer: al-qissīs Yūḥānnā al-Fayyūmī (f. 56b).

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Table of contents: f. 1a: modern table of contents in ballpoint pen. Colophon: ff. 55a–56b: a colophon containing an extended scribal lesson/ blessing following chapter 7 of the first work. In it, the scribe addresses the author Yūḥannā (John Saba) in the 2nd-person singular and refers to a saying/story in the Apophthegmata about children and the end of Scetis. The statement concludes with a petition to the reader to remember “the one who translated it from Syriac into Arabic.” ‫كلمن قرأ يذكر الذي نقله من‬ ‫السرياني إلى العربي أن يحمله الرب بجميع‬ ‫المواهب بشفاعة القديسين أمين‬ ‫ولربنا المجد دائما أبدً ا سرمد ًيا‬ “Whoever has read [this text], may he remember the one who translated it from Syriac to Arabic, that the Lord may bear him up in all [spiritual] gifts through the intercession of the saints. Amen. To our Lord be the glory, forever and ever, world without end.”

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

147

Endowment (waqf-statement): f. 57a: a waqf-statement endowing the MS to Dayr al-Suryān (the waqf is only partially preserved but it follows a recognizable formula). f. 121a: a waqf-statement written by Metropolitan Sāwīrus, endowing the MS to Dayr al-Suryān and containing a warning against removing it by invoking Judas Iscariot’s fate. Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–iv Numbered folia: ff. 1–57, 57bis, 58–61, 61bis, 61ter, 62–119, 121– 144 (= Copt. 1–56, 542–552, [5 folia no Copt.], 61–119, 121–134, [8 folia no Copt.]) Backmatter: none (note: the pages used for backmatter are all numbered in Arabic; for a detailed description, see comments below) The Arabic foliation includes the repetition of a number (57, 57bis) at the place where the second work in the MS begins. This is the result of the combination of folia from two separate manuscripts. The Coptic cursive foliation diverges from the Arabic after Copt. 54, due to a repetition of numbers (f. 57 = Copt. 54bis; f. 57bis = Copt. 55bis; f. 58 = no Copt.; f. 59 = no Copt; f. 60 = no Copt.). After this, there are three folios labelled 61 in the Arabic foliation (61 = no Copt.; 61bis = no Copt.; 61ter = Copt. 61). The Arabic and Coptic cursive numbering systems then remain in sync from 62 to 134, but both skip the number 120. After that, there is no more Coptic cursive numbering. The Arabic numbering continues through to the end of the MS, including the page glued to the inside of the back cover.

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 16 × 12 cm Area of writing: 12.5–13 × 9–9.5 cm (works 1, 2, 4); 14–14.5 × 11–11.5 cm (work 3); 14.5–15.5 × 11–11.5 cm (work 5). 14–18 lines/page (works 1, 2, 4); 15–18 line/page (work 3); 19–21 lines/page (work 5).

Cover, Condition

Old brown leather cover, very worn with abrasions at the corners and edges. It features a thick, double-lined, rectangular, tooled border, bisected by a thick-lined tooled X, with deep medallion

148

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

stamps at the corners and along the sides of the rectangular lined border, four more on the arms of the X, and one at its center, adding up to 13 in all. The front inside board is lined with a page reused from an earlier Arabic manuscript, and glued upside down in relation to the MS: the page contains part of the parable of The Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11–32, at vss. 16–24). The frontmatter (ff. i–iv) consists of reused MS pages from a copy of the Book of Acts (the heading “Chapter 27” is on folio iib); these pages are oriented sideways/perpendicular to the pages of the MS. Folia 1–2 are replacement pages. Starting at f. 137, the folia are MS pages reused for binding the volume. Folia 137 and 140 seem to derive from the same MS as the one used inside the front board containing the excerpt from the Gospel of Luke, although here they are right side up and contain an excerpt from the Gospel of John (8:1b–19a), the story of the woman caught in adultery and Jesus’ teaching about himself as the light of the world. Folia 138 and 139 seem to derive from the same manuscript as folia i–iv: they likewise derive from a copy of the Book of Acts and are likewise oriented sideways/perpendicular to the pages of the MS. Folio 138b contains the heading “Chapter 37”. Folio 144a is in fact the flyleaf pasted to the back board (and thus only the recto is visible), but it has been numbered as part of the Arabic foliation. It is a reused leaf that contains an excerpt from the Gospel of Luke (13:25–30), Jesus’ teaching about the narrow door. It derives from the same MS as the pages used for the front inside flyleaf and folia 137 and 140. The manuscript binding is fairly loose with some separation at the spine inside the boards and between quires, with stitching visible. Some pages are stained, and there is evidence for attempts to reinforce page edges near the spine with small strips of paper and glue. Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. On f. 1b, the incipit for chapter three of the first work notes Insertions that it was excerpted, abridged, and translated by “the saint and most excellent priest, the hermit, Anbā John” (al-qiddīs al-qiss al-fāḍl al-ḥabīs Anbā Yūḥannā, i.e. John Saba) from the Syriac.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

149

2. On f. 10b, there is a marginal comment in red ink. 3. Folia 116–118 are blank. 4. At the top of f. 119a, the following is written in Coptic: ⲫⲁⲡϬ⳰Ⲥ ⲫⲁⲡⲓⲉⲙⲓ “The one who belongs to the Lord is the one who belongs to knowledge.”

5. Folio 131b is blank. 6. Folio 141a contains verses from the letters of Paul in praise of Christ and headed by the following Coptic blessing: ϧⲉⲛⲫⲣⲁⲛ ⲛ̇ϯⲑⲣⲓⲁⲥ ⲉⲐ⳰Ⲩ⳱ ⲟⲩⲛⲟⲩϯ ⲛⲟⲩⲱⲧ “In the name of the divine Trinity, one God.”

Readers’ insertions: 1. Folia 61bisb–61tera contain writings by a later hand (not the original scribe) that interrupt the text of Evagrius’ Chapters of Knowledge. The writing on folio 61bisb runs vertically from the top to the bottom of the page and includes various quotes/ excerpts from the Old and New Testaments. The writing on folio 61tera is horizontal in orientation, with the beginnings and endings of lines obscured by a later attempt to reinforce the page edges and spine with strips of paper. The contents seem to be a text with ascetic themes, as yet unidentified.

150

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 25 (= MS 178) Old number(s): 85 Lāhūt Mayāmir; 12-ⲕⲝ/296

Contents

Evagrius Ponticus, Ascetic Writings; Miscellaneous Homilies and Sayings; Hermes the Wise, Letter on the Rebuke of the Soul 1. Eulogius, Letter to Evagrius: f. 2a–b (no Copt.). ‫رسالة القديس لوكيوس الى القديس انبا وغري‬ 2. Evagrius [Ponticus], [Prologue to his] Letter in response to Eulogius: ff. 3a–4a (no Copt.). ‫جواب رسالة القديس لوكيوس من القديس انبا وغري‬ 3. Evagrius [Ponticus], Edifying Discourse written for Eulogius the Ascetic: ff. 4b–100a (8 folia no Copt.; 12a–100a). ‫كلام منفعة للقديس انبا وغري كتبه للقديس انبا لوكيوس الناسك‬ 35 chapters. This is a composite work containing the rest of Evagrius’ Letter to Eulogius, and [parts of] his treatises On Vices opposed to Virtues, On Prayer, Praktikos (excerpt from Part 2), Antirrhetikos, and On the Eight Spirits of Wickedness. For detailed contents, see DS Arabic Ascetic 21 (MS 174). 4. [John] Cassian, On the Eight Evil Thoughts: ff. 100b–130a (= Copt.). ‫ميمر وضعه القديس أنبا قسيان وأرسله إلى أسقف رومة من أجل الثمانية‬ ‫أفكار الشريرة‬ Full title (f. 100b): “A maymar that Saint Cassian composed and sent to the bishop of Rome on account of the eight evil thoughts.” 5. [Homilies and Sayings]: ff. 130b–150b. a. [John Saba]/the [Spiritual] Elder, Homily on the apprenticing brothers (al-ikhwa al-mubtadiʼīn): ff. 130b–133b. b. Evagrius [Ponticus], Maymar: ff. 133b–136b. c. Dorotheus (Dūrtāʼūs), Maymar: ff. 136b–147a. d. Dorotheus (Dūrtāʼūs), Another Maymar: ff. 147a–149b. e. John the Little, Maymar: ff. 149b–150a. f. [Philoxenos of Mabbug] (Yūsuf), Maymar: f. 150a–b.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

151

6. Hermes the Wise, Letter [on the Rebuke of the Soul]: ff. 151a–160b. ‫رسالة كتبها الحكيم الفاضل هرمس فيها اداب رياضات وهي تلتة عشر فصلا‬ In 13 chapters. Full title (f. 151a): “A letter that the most excellent Hermes the Wise wrote, in which are ethical rules of [spiritual] exercises, in thirteen chapters.” Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: none indicated. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with headings/section labels and dots/punctuation in red. The primary hand is small and somewhat cramped in style, with thick, semi-practiced strokes. The hand on the replacement folia 8–10 is written with medium-scale, squarish letters. Material: Paper. Fairly thick Middle Eastern stock. Front- and backmatter, and the replacement folia 8–10 have Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) watermarks. Folio 163 has the letter W visible in its watermark.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: f. 1a–b: modern table of contents in blue ballpoint pen. Colophons: f. 130a: short blessing after the text by John Cassian. f. 150b: short blessing after the section of Homilies and Sayings. Endowments (waqf-statements): none.

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–iii Numbered folia: 1–160 (= Copt. [1–11], 12–160) Backmatter: f. 161–163 The Coptic cursive numbering begins on folio 12 and remains in sync with the Arabic throughout the rest of the MS. The quires/ quinions contain ten folia each, and the folia are labeled on the verso of the first folio of each quire beginning at the third quire (f. 21, 31, etc.).

152

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 17 × 13.5 cm Area of writing: 13.5–4 × 9–9.5 cm 15 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Light brown leather cover, slightly worn with abrasions at the corners and edges. It is tooled with a thick, double-lined rectangular border, which is bisected by a thick-lined, tooled X. There are deep medallion stamps at the corners and along the sides of the rectangular lined border, with four more on the arms of the X and one at its center, adding up to 13 in all. The spine is tooled with two X’s within rectangular borders. Manuscript pages are in reasonably good shape, and the binding is intact, although there is some cracking of the leather on the spine.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. Some marginal notes and corrections are evident. Some are Insertions in the scribe’s hand; others are in a later hand. Reader’s insertions: 1. On folio 1a, there is a reader’s note, which reads as follows: ‫القلب الذي في ا﷽ هو يطلب ان يعطى النفس‬ “The heart that is in God requests to be given the soul.”

153

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 26 (= MS 179) Old number(s): 79 Lāhūt; 21-ⲕⲝ/79

Contents

Philoxenos of Mabbug, Letter on the Three Degrees of the Monastic Life, with Miscellaneous Ascetic Discourses attributed to Shenoute of Atripe, Basil of Caesarea, Gregory Nazianzen, and John Chrysostom [Part One: Philoxenos, Letter on the Three Degrees of the Monastic Life] 1. Philoxenos [of Mabbug] (Anbā Yūsif Fīluksīnūs), Letter to some of his disciples on the three degrees of the monastic life, related to the body, soul, and spirit: Copt. 1a–65b, [66a–67b] (= ff. 1a–67b). ‫رسالة الأب ابنا يوسف فيلكسينوس الذي كتبها لبعض تلاميذه منجل‬ ‫رتب الرهبنية الثلثة الجسدانية والنفسانية والروحانية‬ [Part Two: Miscellaneous Ascetic Writings] 2. Untitled ascetic discourse on the reconciliation of a monk to his colleague/brother: Copt. 165a–171b (= ff. 70a–b, 70bisa– b, 71a–76b). The beginning of the text is missing. 3. Shenoute of Atripe, Testament (waṣiyyah) read to the monks when one of them has passed away: Copt. 172a–173a (= ff. 77a–78a). ‫وصية تقرى على الرهبان اذا تنيح احدهم من قول القديس أبو شنوده‬ 4. Testament (waṣiyyah) on repentance: Copt. 173a–174b (= ff. 78a–79b). ‫وصية للتوبة‬ 5. Another testament on repentance: Copt. 174b–175b (= ff. 79b–80b). ‫وصية اخرى للتوبة‬ 6. Untitled ascetic discourse: Copt. 177a–180a (= ff. 81a–84a). The first folio of the text (Copt. 176) is missing. 7. Basil of Caesarea, Discourse/Teaching on repentance: Copt. 180a–181b (= ff. 84a–85b). ‫من تعليم القديس باسيليوس‬

154

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

8. Basil of Caesarea, Discourse in response to a book received by him: Copt. 181b–185b (= ff. 85b–89b). ‫من كلام القديس باسيليوس جواب كتاب ورد عليه‬ 9. Gregory Nazianzen (“the Theologian”), Discourse: Copt. 185b–188a (= ff. 89b–92a). ‫من كلام القديس اعريغوريوس الثاولوغس‬ 10. Basil of Caesarea, Discourse: Copt. 188a–190a (= ff. 92a– 94a). ‫من كلام القديس باسيليوس‬ 11. John Chrysostom, Discourses/Sayings: Copt. 190a–202b (= ff. 94a–106b). ‫من أقوال القديس يوحنا فم الذهب‬ 12. John Chrysostom, Maymar on Psalm 50: Copt. 202b–215b (= ff. 106b–119b). ‫ميمر قاله الاب القديس يوحنا فم الذهب على مزمور خمسين‬ 13. John Chrysostom, Maymar on repentance: Copt. 215b–227a (= ff. 119b–127b, 130a–b, 129a–b, 30a–b, 131a). ‫ميمر قاله الاب القديس يوحنا فم الذهب على التوبة‬ 14. John Chrysostom, Maymar on those who withdraw from this world: Copt. 227a–233b (= ff. 131a–137b). ‫ميمر قاله الاب القديس يوحنا فم الذهب على الذين ينصرفون من هذه الدنيا‬ 15. Maymar on repentance and renunciation with respect to what does not endure: Copt. 233b–238a (= ff. 137b–142a). ‫ميمر قاله الاب القديس يوحنا فم الذهب على التوبة والزهد فيما لا يبقى‬ 16. John Chrysostom, Maymar on the Interpretation of Psalm 6: Copt. 238a–251b (= ff. 142a–155b). ‫ميمر قاله الاب القديس يوحنا فم الذهب على تفسير المزمور السادس‬ 17. Ephrem the Syrian, Maymar on love, faithfulness, and the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ: Copt. 252a–263a (= ff. 156a–163b, 170a–b, 165a–167a). ‫ميمر لابينا القديس مار افرام قاله عن المحبة والامانة وعن إتيان ربنا يسوع‬ ‫المسيح الثاني‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

155

18. (Ps.-)Ephrem the Syrian, Question and answer on repentance: Copt. 263a–266b (= ff. 167a–170b). ‫قاىلا يا سيدي اريني بماذا اطلب التوبة فاجبه‬ ٔ ‫سأل انسان القديس مار افرام‬ ‫قاىلا‬ ٔ 19. Ephrem the Syrian, Maymar on the end of the world and the coming of the Antichrist: Copt. 266b–277a (= ff. 170b–181a). ‫ميمر للقديس مار افرام عن انقضى العالم وعن اتيان ضد المسيح‬ 20. Maymar on the word that Christ spoke in the Gospel, “Pray that it not happen to you in winter or on the Sabbath” (Matt. 20:24): Copt. 277a–282a (= ff. 181a–186a). ‫ميمر قاله القديس مار افرام عن الكلمة التي قالها المسيح في الانجيل‬ ‫صلوا لا يكون هو بكم في ستا ولا في سبت‬ 21. Ephrem the Syrian, Teaching on the question of the disciples to the Lord, “Teach us, when will your coming take place?” (cf. Matt. 24:3): Copt. 282b–286a (= ff. 186b–190a). 22. John Chrysostom, Maymar on hatred/malice (ḥiqd): Copt. 286a–290b (= ff. 190a–194b). The end of this text is missing. ‫ميمر قاله الاب القديس يوحنا فم الذهب من اجل الحقد‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: none indicated. The date of its restoration, however, is recorded as 10 Kiyahk, AM 1515 [= 1798 CE] (f. 68a). Language and Arabic. Black ink with red headings. There are three hands in evidence. The first scribal hand on Copt. 1–64 is a large, rounded naskh script. The second main scribal hand (Copt. 165–290; = ff. 70–194) features rounded letters of a small-to-medium scale. The third hand appears on replacement folia (ff. 65–69) and is characterized by small-to-medium square lettering. Material: Paper. Folia 1–64 consist of a heavy/thick Middle Eastern stock, light brown in shading with no watermarks. Folia 70–194 (Copt. 165–290) consist of a medium-weight Middle Eastern stock, tan in shading with no visible watermarks. Front- and backmatter have Andrea Galvani Pordenone watermarks. Folia 65–69 are replacement pages with Tre Lune watermarks.

156 Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

No identification of the scribe or patron/owner. Restorer: f. 68a: An anonymous restorer’s note indicates that the restoration of the MS was completed on the Monday, 10 Kiyahk, AM 1515 [= 1798 CE]. The date and hand indicate almost assuredly that this was the work of Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: A modern table of contents is written on the front flyleaf and f. ia (black ballpoint pen). Colophons: none. Endowments (waqf-statements). f. 68a: waqf-statement endowing the MS to Dayr al-Suryān, including warnings against taking the book out of the library that invoke the fate of Diocletian, Judas Iscariot, and Simon Magus.

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–iii Numbered folia: Copt. 1–64, [65–69] (= ff. 1–69); Copt. 165– 175, 177–290 (= Ar.1 70, 70bis, 71–127, 130, 129, 302, 131–163, 170, 164–1702, 171–194; = Ar.2 1652–1752, 1772–2902) Backmatter: ff. 195–199 (= Copt./Ar.2 [291–295]) There in fact are four foliation systems, two in Coptic cursive and two in Arabic. The two Coptic cursive sequences (Copt. 1– 64 and Copt. 165–175, 177–290) originally belonged to two different MSS. These two sections were united in this volume, and one of the Arabic foliations was an attempt to establish an unbroken sequence of folio numbers after the two parts were bound together. That attempt was not fully successful: this system of folio numbering only appears intermittently on the verso sides between f. 70 and f. 194, and there are several irregularities. For example, number 70 is repeated (ff. 70, 70bis); what should be f. 128 is numbered 130; what should be f. 130 is numbered 30 (= f. 302); what should be f. 164 is numbered 170. The second Arabic foliation sequence only appears in the second part of the manuscript and mirrors the Coptic cursive there, starting with f. 165 and continuing to f. 290. The sequence skips from number 175 to 177: number 176 is missing because the original folio with this number was lost. Even though it appears

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

157

later in the volume, it was probably the earlier of the two Arabic foliation systems, most likely applied before the two parts were unified. These foliation systems correspond as follows: Section 1: Copt. 1–64, [65–69] = ff. 1–69 Section 2

Copt./Ar.2 165–175 Copt./Ar.2 177–290

= ff. 70, 70bis, 72–80 = ff. 81–194 (but see below)

The quires consist of ten folia each and are labeled on the recto of the first folio in each quire (f. 1, first; f. 11, second; f. 21, third; etc., up through f. 61, seventh). Thereafter, the quires are not labeled. Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 24 × 15.5 cm Area of writing and lines/page: ff. 1–64: 19.5 × 12.5 cm, 15 lines/page ff. 65–69: 19 × 12.5 cm, 17–19 lines/page ff. 165–290: 20.5 × 11.5 cm, 19–20 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Well-worn red leather cover with abrasions at the corners, edges, surface, and spine. Separation of the spine from the pages at the back, and between Copt. 61 and 62. Stitching is visible in both places. A number of pages in the first section of the MS have been reinforced with strips of paper along the edges and spine. Some of these strips contain fragments of Arabic and Ethiopic script.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ Readers’ insertions: Insertions

158

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 27 (= MS 180) Old number(s): 15-ⲕⲝ/316

Contents

Philoxenos of Mabbug, Letter on the Three Degrees of the Monastic Life; Correspondence between Marqus al-Mashriqī and Jirjis al-Qibṭī; and Three Doctrinal Works 1. Prayer/Litany of the Virgin Mary: ff. 1a–16a. ‫طلبة ستنا السيدة العذرى مرتمريم‬ 2. Philoxenos [of Mabbug] (Anbā Yūsif Fīluksīnūs), Letter to some of his disciples on the three degrees of monasticism, related to the body, soul, and spirit: ff. 32a–1082b (= Copt. 3–108). ‫رسالة الأب ابنا يوسف فيلكسينوس‬ ‫الذي كتبها لبعض تلاميذه منجل رتب‬ ‫الرهبنية الثلثة الجسدانية والنفسانية‬ ‫والروحانية‬ 3. Marquṣ al-Mashriqī, Correspondence with Jirjis al-Qibṭī, consisting of two Discourses/Letters from Jirjis al-Qibṭī, who shared doctrinal beliefs with “the monks of Europe,” and a Letter in reply from Marquṣ: ff. 1112b–1262b (no Copt.). ‫صورة خطاب حضر من انسان قبطي كان اعتقد مع رهبان الافرنج خطابه الى‬ ‫الحقير مرقص مشرقي الملوي كي يتبعه ذلك اول مرة وثاني مره فلما حضر له‬ ‫الجواب الثاني الى مرقص المذكور استعان با﷽ وصلاوات الابا روسا الكهنة‬ ‫والقديسين والكهنة وكتب له جواب الخطابين‬ “A copy of a discourse composed by a Copt who shared doctrinal beliefs with the monks of Europe to Mark the Poor of eastern Malawi (Marquṣ al-ḥaqīr mashriqī al-Malawī), in order that the latter might follow him. [He did so] a first time and a second time, so that after he composed his second letter to the aforementioned Mark, he [i.e. Mark] requested help from God and from the prayers of the fathers, the archbishops, saints, and priests and wrote to him his letter in response to those two discourses.”

The heading to the first letter from Jirjis reads as follows: ‫الخطاب الاول من جرجس الفقير‬ “The first discourse by George the Poor (Jirgis al-faqīr).”

159

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

4. On Faith in the [Divine] Substance/Essence (amānat al-gawhar), from the saying(s) of the Syriac fathers: ff. 1272a–1392a (no Copt.). ‫امانة جوهر من قول ابهاتنا السريان‬ 5. An Oath to the Only[-Begotten] Son, to be said at any time [in Coptic]: ff. 1412b–1402a (no Copt.). ‫قسمة الابن الوحيد تقال في كل وقت‬ The text is in Coptic and thus goes from left to right, starting on folio 1412b and ending on folio 1402a. The title in Arabic is at the top of folio 1412b. 6. On Faith in His [i.e. the Son’s] Resurrection: f. 1422a–b. ‫في امانة قيامته‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: No date indicated, but Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī’s patronage of its production means that it dates to the late eighteenth century or first decade of the nineteenth century. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with red headings. The first scribal hand (ff. 1–17, 12–1082) is characterized by medium-scale lettering written with thick, sometimes inelegant, strokes. The second scribal hand (ff. 1112–1262) is very small in scale, written with thin, somewhat cramped strokes. The third scribal hand is also small in scale: while the script it is somewhat larger than hand 2, it has a similar cramped style and may have been written by the same scribe. Material: Paper. Medium-weight European stock, with Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) watermarks visible.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

No identification of scribe or restorer. Patron/owner: Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī (f. 22a) identifies himself as the patron of the MS, the one who financed its production. Tables of contents: Front flyleaf: a modern table of contents is written in blue-black ballpoint pen. Colophons: none.

160

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Endowments (waqf-statements): f. 22a: written by the patron Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī, who endows it to Dayr al-Suryān. Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: none Numbered folia: 1–7 (no Copt.), 12–1442 (= Copt. 1–108, [109–144]) Backmatter: none The first section of the MS has Arabic foliation from 1 to 17, with no Coptic cursive equivalents. The second section begins the numbering again in both Coptic cursive and in Arabic from 12 to 1442. Intermittently, someone wrote folio numbers in the second section equivalent to the continuation of the first section’s numbering. These are written in pencil and mostly mark every ten folia, except for the first and last instances: see ff. 22–32 (= ff. 19–20), 132 (= f. 30), 232 (= f. 40), 332 (= f. 50), 432 (= f. 60), 532 (= f. 70), 632 (= f. 80), 732 (= f. 90), 832 (= f. 100), 932 (= f. 110), 1032 (= f. 120), 1082–1112 (= ff. 125–128), 1132 (= f. 130), 1232 (= f. 140), 1332 (= f. 150), 1392 (= f. 156). Folia 16, 12, and 1092–1112 are blank.

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 16.5 × 11.5 cm Area of writing and lines/page: ff. 1–17, 12–1082: 12.5 × 8.5 cm, 12 lines/page ff. 1112–1262: 13.5 × 9 cm, 18 lines/page ff. 1272–1392: 13 × 8.5 cm, 15 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Brown leather cover with an overlayer of red leather around the spine and one-half to two-thirds of each face (probably applied to reinforce the cover’s physical integrity). The edges and corners of the original brown cover are worn through at different places, and there are signs of cracking in places. There is a hole — perhaps the result of burning — through the reinforced section of the front cover, which exposes an inner layer. Two paper library stamps are glued to the spine. Another paper has been glued to the back cover: the writing on it (identifying the contents and library number) is upside-down relative to the textual contents of the MS.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

161

There is some separation at the spine inside the front board and between folia 1392 and 1412, with the stitching clearly visible. As a result, folio 1402 is now detached from the spine. The folia are in decent condition, with more wear evident on their edges toward the beginning of the MS. Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ Readers’ insertions: Insertions 1. Folio 1432b contains a prayer beginning with Udhkur yā rabb ‘abdaka (“Remember, O Lord, your servant.”). It is written in an Arabic orthography partially without ligatures, either because the writer was not accustomed to writing or because he was writing it in a way meant to be more cryptic. The latter may be a more likely explanation, due to the appearance of writing in the same hand but with ligatures on the next MS leaf (see below). 2. Folio 1442a–b contains a text in the same reader’s hand but using conventional ligatures, which shows more facility in handwriting. The content involves the listing of the twelve names of months in the Coptic calendar and commentary on them.

162

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 28 (= MS 181) Old number(s): 13-ⲗ/93

Contents

Philoxenos of Mabbug, Letter on the Three Degrees of the Monastic Life; with Commandments, Sayings, and Mayāmir associated with Macarius the Great, Isaiah of Scetis, and Ephrem the Syrian 1. Commandments given by the Virgin Mary to Saint Macarius at Scetis (Jabal Shīhāt) on account of the building up of the brothers: ff. 1bisa–7b. The ending to the text seems to be missing. ‫الوصايا التي سلمتهم سيدتنا كلنا والدت الاله الطاهرة مرتمريم العذرى‬ ‫الى ابينا القديس العظيم مقاريوس بجبل شيهاة لأجل بنيان الاخوة‬ 2. Philoxenos [of Mabbug], Letter (abridged) written to his disciples with regard to the degrees of the monastic life: ff. 8a–67a. ‫نبتدي باختصار رسالة الفاضل فلكسانيوس التي كتبها الى بعض تلاميذه من‬ ‫اجل رتب الرهبانية‬ 3. Sayings attributed to Saint Isaiah [of Scetis] the Egyptian: ff. 68a–169a. ‫أقو]ا[ل القديس العظيم انبا اشعيا المصري‬ a. Commandments to apprenticing monks: ff. 68a–99b. ‫  وصايا للرهبان المبتدين الذين يزهدون في هذا الدنيا الزايلة‬ b. Additional sayings/commandments: ff. 99b–169a. ‫وايضا للقديس انبا اشعيا‬ 4. Ephrem the Syrian, Maymar on death and the soul’s departure from the body: ff. 169b–177b. The ending to this work is missing. ‫ميمر قاله القديس ماري افرام السر]ي [اني على الموت وخروج النفس من‬ ‫الجسد‬

Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: AM 1557 [1840/41 CE] (f. 66b). Language and script: Arabic. Black with faded red headings. Two scribal hands are in evidence. The first, belonging to the scribe Bishārah, is found on folia 1a–67a: it is small-to-medium

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

163

in scale with square letter forms. The second, an anonymous hand, is found on folia 68a–177b: it is large in scale with thick, somewhat rounded letter forms. Material: Paper. Medium European stock with Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) watermarks. The front- and backmatter feature Andrea Galvani Pordenone watermarks with a shield motif. Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

Scribe: Bishārah, priest (qiss) and servant (khādim) at Dayr al-Suryān (ff. 66b–67a), who copied the MS at the Monastery of Barāmūs (“Barāmūs, the Monastery of the Romans, Maximus and Domadius”; al-Barāmūs Dayr al-Rūm Maksīmūs wa Dūmādiyūs). Patron/owner: Bishārah, priest (qiss) and servant (khādim) at Dayr al-Suryān (ff. 66b–67a), who identifies himself as al-muhtamm. Restorer: none identified.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: f. ia: a modern table of contents is written blue ballpoint pen. Colophons: ff. 66b–67a: a colophon beginning with a prayer for remembrance on behalf of the scribe, who identifies himself as Bishārah and provides the date as AM 1557 [= 1840/41 CE]. He indicates that this manuscript was copied from an older one dating to AM 957 [= 1240/41 CE], which itself was copied from a manuscript translated from Syriac into Arabic. Endowments (waqf-statements): none.

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–v Numbered folia: ff. 1, 1bis, 2–177 Backmatter: ff. 178–186 The first and last folia (ff. i, 186) in the front- and backmatter are blue paper, matching the flyleaves. Folio vi (the leaf immediately prior to f. 1) is marked as folio 1a.

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 15.5 × 10.5 cm Area of writing and lines per page: ff. 1bisa–67a: 13.5 × 7 cm; 11 lines/page ff. 68a–177b: 13 × 7.5 cm; 11 lines/page

164 Cover, Condition

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Black cloth cover with dark burgundy/black faux leather binding and corners. The volume is in good condition, apart from abrasions at the corners and edges of the spine. The manuscript leaves are in good condition as well.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ Readers’ insertions: Insertions 1. On f. iiia, ⲫ ٧١ has been written at the top in pencil. 2. On f. 1a, there are readers’ insertions in various hands. Here are five examples: ‫تا امنومان سا اولوجي مان تا اوخارس‬

Transliteration: tā amanū mān sā ūlūjī mān tā ūkhāris ‫(ل الراهب‬..)‫هذا الكتاب ي‬ ‫من يو الثلاث‬ This book […] the monk Tuesday. ‫( بشنس‬..) ‫احد‬ ‫يوم الا‬ 1 Bashans […]day ‫لانه الاربع‬ ‫الاربع‬ Because it is Thursday Thursday ‫بسم الاب والابن والروح‬ In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Spirit.

3. On f. vib, a reader has written a list of houses of the zodiac and planet names. ‫حمل تور جوزه سرطان‬ ‫والزهره وعطارد‬ ‫ترابي هوايين‬ ‫اسد سنبله ميزان عقرب‬ ‫وعطارد والزهره والمريخ‬ ‫ترابي برابي‬ ‫قوص جدي دالي حوت‬

165

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

‫والمشتري زحل زحل والمشتري‬ ‫ترابي هاوهيين مايين‬ Taurus, Gemini, Cancer Venus, Mercury Earthly being, aerial beings Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio Mercury, Venus, Mars, Earthly being, earthly being Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius, Pisces Jupiter, Saturn, Saturn, Jupiter Earthly being, aerial beings, watery beings

4. f. 67b: Another list of houses of the zodiac and planets. ... ‫برج الحمل برج التور برج الجوزه السرطان‬ Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer

166

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 29 (= MS 182) Old number(s): 103 Qawānīn

Contents

Basil of Caesarea, Rules; Antony, Letters and Teachings; with Sayings by Antony and Isaac the Syrian 1. Basil of Caesarea, Rules addressed to communal and solitary ascetics: Copt. 4a–88a (= pp. 1–169). ‫قوانين قالها القديس باسليوس أسقف قيسارية قبادوقية لجميع النساك‬ ‫المجتمعين والمنفردين فيما ينبغي أن يعملوه‬ a. On contending in prayer: Copt. 5b–11a (= pp. 4–15). ‫من أجل انه ينبغي ان يكون لنا اجتهاد في الصلاة كل حين‬ b. On guarding one’s thoughts: Copt. 11a–14a (= pp. 15–21). ‫من اجل حراسة الافكار من ان تفكر فيما لا ينبغي ان الجسد ليس هو‬ ‫علة الشر كما تعتقد قوم‬ c. On what we must be mindful of with respect to congregating with women: Copt. 14a–16b (= pp. 21–26). ‫في انه ينبغي لنا ان نتحفظ من الاجتماع بانسا ومن الفكر في معناهن‬ d. On the fact that an ascetic’s heart must [not] meditate on or incline toward derisive/mocking speech: Copt. 16b–17b (= pp. 26–28). ‫من اجل انه ينبغي للناسك ان ]لا[ يتامل او يميل قلبه الى كلام الهزوء‬ e. On understanding the heart: Copt. 17b (= p. 28). ‫من اجل فهم القلب‬ f. On trust/faith and hope: Copt. 17b–18a (= pp. 28–29). ‫من اجل الامانة والرجا‬ g. On humility: Copt. 18a (= p. 29). ‫من اجل التواضع‬ h. On the fact that evil thoughts are in the soul of humankind in many forms: Copt. 18a–19b (= pp. 29–32). ‫من اجل ان الافكار الردية تكون في نفس الانسان بانواع كثيرة‬ i. Chapter by Saint Basil, bishop of Caesarea at Cappadocia on asceticism in the congregation/assembly: Copt. 19b–26a (= pp. 32–45).

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

167

‫وايضا رأس للقديس باسيليوس اسقف قيسارية قبادوقية وضعه لاجل‬ ‫النسك في المجمع‬ Includes sections with questions and answers. j. On his love of the neighbor/close relative: Copt. 26a–27a (= pp. 45–47). ‫من اجل محبته القريب‬ k. On the fact that the soul should not concern itself with earthly things: Copt. 27a–33a (= pp. 47–59). ‫من اجل انه يجب للنفس ان تشغل بالارضيات‬ Includes sections with questions and answers. l. On the fact that a person must reject all his money/ possessions and after that progress in virtue: Copt. 33a– 39b (= pp. 59–72). ‫من اجل انه يجب ان يرفض الانسان كل ماله وبعد هذا يتقدم الى‬ ‫الفضيلة‬ Includes sections with questions and answers. m. On the deacons: Copt. 39b–63b (= pp. 72–120). ‫من اجل الدياقونيين‬ Includes sections with questions and answers. n. Other matters/questions attributed to Saint Basil: Copt. 63b–88a (= pp. 120–169). ‫مسائل اخرى للقديس باسليوس‬ Includes sections with questions and answers. 2. Canon/Rule of the monastery that was lost/destroyed a long time ago: Copt. 89a–101b (= pp. 171–[196]). ‫قديما‬ ‫قانون الديارة التي عدمة‬ ً Organized in 26 canons. The heading for the first chapter (Copt. 89b; = p. [172]): “Chapter on leadership:” ‫فصل الرياسة‬ 3. Antony, Letters: Copt. 103a–178b. ‫كتب عشرين رسالة للاب القديس العظيم انبا انطونيوس اب جميع الرهبان‬ ‫تعليما وتثبي ًتا‬ ‫كتبها لاولاده الرهبان الذين تبعوا سيرته‬ ً

168

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

20 letters. Letter 1, on two degrees [of the monastic life]: Copt. 103a– 107a. ‫الرتبة الاول ]و[ الرتبة الثاني‬ Letter 2, on the prescription of the law and the incarnation of God the Word: Copt. 107a–109b. ‫في اشتراع الناموس وتجسد الاه الكلمة‬ Letter 3, on performing the sayings of the Gospel and the Apostle: Copt. 109b–112b. ‫على العمل باقوال من الانجيل والرسول‬ Letter 4, on the fact that slavery in the law is not slavery, but rather the prophecy of freedom: Copt. 112b– 113b. ‫أن العبوجية بناموس الفضيلة ليست عبودية بل نبوة الحرية‬ Letter 5, on imitating the saints: Copt. 114a–115b. ‫على التشبه بالقديسين‬ Letter 6, to the monks living in the Fayyum telling them about the battles of the demons: Copt. 116a–121a. ‫لاولاده ابرهبان المقيمين بالفيوم يعرفهم فيها قتلات الشياطين‬ Letter 7, on the fact that our salvation is not by means of angels or humans but by means of God the incarnate Word: Copt. 121b–125b. ‫أن خلاصنا ليس بملاك ولا بانسان بل بالاله الكلمة المتجسدة‬ Letter 8, on the [monastic] struggle so that they might receive the Holy Spirit: Copt. 125b–128a. ‫على الجهاد لكيما يقبلوا الروح القدس‬ Letter 9, on the extent of God’s action among the saints: Copt. 128a–129b. ‫مقدار فعل قوة ا﷽ في القديسين‬ Letter 10, on idle glory and its battles: Copt. 130a–131a. ‫بسبب المجد البطال وقتالاته‬ Letter 11, on discernment: Copt. 131a–133a. ‫على الافراز‬

169

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Letter 12, on love: Copt. 133a–134b. ‫على المحبة‬ Letter 13, on obtaining joy: Copt. 134b–136a. ‫على اقتنا الفرح‬ Letter 14, on perfecting obedience: Copt. 136a–138a. ‫على تكميل الطاعة‬ Letter 15, on the fact that fasting and the rest of the virtues are living [and] intelligible fruits: Copt. 138a–139b. ‫ثمارا حية ناطقة‬ ‫أن الصوم وبقية الفضايل‬ ً Letter 16, on status and humility: Copt. 139b–147b. ‫من أجل المسكنة والاتضاع‬ Letter 17, on the fact that true humility does not happen except after a vision of the theoria — that is, the vision of God: Copt. 148a–157a. ﷽‫أن الاتضاع الحقيقي لا يحصل الا بعد نظر الثاوريا هي نظر ا‬ Letter 18, on the fact that if they attain divine visions and revelations they should guard against Satanic/demonic visions: Copt. 157b–162a. ‫أنهم اذا بلغوا إلى المناظر الالهية والاعلانات ان يتحرزوا من المناظر‬ ‫الشيطانية‬ Letter 19, on the fact that with respect to those who have reached perfection and received the Holy Spirit it is necessary that more difficult battles than at first will come upon them: Copt. 162a–166b. ‫أن الذين وصلوا الكمال وقبلوا روح القدس لا بد لهم أن يطلق عليهم‬ ‫قتلات أصعب من الاولى‬ Letter 20, on the fact that [the monks] should establish themselves in their places and not migrate from them: Copt. 167a–178b. ‫أن يثبتوا في اماكنهم ولا ينتقلوا منها‬ 4. Antony, Spiritual teaching and holy commandments on the fine virtues, tranquility, self-control, listening, and obedience: Copt. 178b–184a.

170

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

‫تعليم روحاني ووصايا مقدسة من قول القديس العظيم اب جميع الرهبان‬ ‫واول من سكن البرية الكوباني انبا انظونيوس بركاته تحفظ جميعنا امين‬ ‫من اجل الفضيلة الحسنة والهدو والتحفظ والاستماع والطاعة في كل‬ ‫شي وما يختص بالرهبنة بسلام الرب امين‬ 5. Antony, Teachings: Copt. 184b–198a. ‫تعاليم لابينا القديس انبا انطونيوس مرتبة عشرون فصلا‬ 20 chapters. Chapter 1, on guarding the heart: Copt. 184b. ‫من اجل حفظ القلب‬ Chapter 2, on the fear of the Lord: Copt. 184b–185a. ‫من اجل مخافة الرب‬ Chapter 3, on the power [or long-suffering] of the Spirit: Copt. 185a–b. ‫من اجل طول الروح‬ Chapter 4, on lack of deception: Copt. 185b–186a. ‫من اجل قلة المكر‬ Chapter 5, on humility: Copt. 186a–187a. ‫من اجل الاتضاع‬ Chapter 6, on purity: Copt. 187a–188a. ‫من اجل الطهارة‬ Chapter 7, on well-being: Copt. 188a–189a. ‫من اجل السلامة‬ Chapter 8, on silence: Copt. 189a–b. ‫من اجل السكوت‬ Chapter 9, on the salvation [of the monk] and his no longer remaining in sin: Copt. 189b–190a. ‫من اجل خلاصه ولا يدوم في خطاياه‬ Chapter 10, on the necessity of guarding our tongues: Copt. 190a–191a. ‫أنه يجب علينا أن نتحفظ من ألسنتنا جدا‬ Chapter 11, on wisdom [and] understanding: Copt. 191a–192a. ‫من اجل الحكمة الفهم‬

171

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Chapter 12, on modesty/shame: Copt. 192a–b. ‫من اجل الحشمة‬ Chapter 13, on vainglory: Copt. 192b–193a. ‫من اجل المجد البطال‬ Chapter 14, on pride and patience: Copt. 193a–b. ‫من اجل الافتخار والصبر‬ Chapter 15, on understanding: Copt. 194a–b. ‫من اجل الفهم‬ Chapter 16, on innate disposition: Copt. 194b–195b. ‫من اجل القريحة‬ Chapter 17, on worship/piety and virginity: Copt. 195b–196a. ‫من اجل العبادة والبتولية‬ Chapter 18, that we should flee from evils and draw close to the good: Copt. 196b. ‫أن نبتعد من الشرور ونقترب الى الخير‬ Chapter 19, on holding [one’s] tongue: Copt. 196b–197a. ‫من اجل مسك اللسان‬ Chapter 20, on deceit: Copt. 197a–198a. ‫من اجل الغش‬ 6. Antony, Rules and commandments to the monks at the Monastery of Naqlūn: Copt. 198a–224b. ‫قوانين ووصايا من قول القديس العظيم انبا انطونيوس لاولاده الرهبان بدير‬ ‫النقلون‬ 7. Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Saying(s) on those who suffer from lassitude: Copt. 224b–230a. ‫من قول القديس ماري اسحق لاجل المسترخيين‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: Friday, 17 Misrā, AM 1494 [= 1778 CE] (Copt. 101b–102a; = pp. [196–197]). Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with red headings. The scribal hand features a medium-scale naskh script with rounded, consistent letter forms.

172

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Material: Paper. European stock. Original leaves have Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) watermarks. Front- and backmatter pages are manila in color with no watermarks. Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

Scribe: not identified. Patron/owner: the monk Jirjis al-Sharqāwī (Copt. 102b; = p. [198]); Yūḥannā (al-Fayyūmī) (Copt. 230b; = p. [454]). Restorer: Not identified, but probably Yūḥannā (al-Fayyūmī) in his self-identified role as al-muhtamm (Copt. 230b; = p. [454]).

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: none Colophons: Copt. 88a (= p. 169): colophon after Basil’s Rules, which indicates that this collection of nusukiyyāt was copied at the Monastery of St. Anthony. ‫كمل نسخ نسكيات القديس الكبير باسيليوس اسقف قيسارية قباجوقية بدير‬ ‫العظيم في القديسين انبا انظونيوس ببرية العربة بسلام من الرب امين‬ Copt. 101b–102a (= pp. [196–197]): colophon after the Canon/ Rule of the monastery that was lost/destroyed a long time ago, which provides the date as Friday, 17 Misrā, AM 1494 [= 1778 CE], and indicates that the text was copied from an older MS dated to 8 Amshīr, AM 1298 [= 1582 CE]. Copt. 184a: colophon after Antony’s Spiritual teaching and holy commandments, indicating that the work was translated from Coptic (al-lisān al-ṣa‘īdī) into Arabic (al-lisān al-‘arabī) at the end of the year AM 986 [= 1270 CE] in the Monastery of St. Antony (bi-dayrihi al-ma‘rūf bi-bariyyat al-‘Arabah). The scribe indicates that it was made from two copies, which did not differ substantially from one another, and that the translation conveyed the meaning of the original Coptic version. It concludes with a prayer/petition for remembrance, mercy, and compassion on behalf of the patron (illadhī ihtamma bi-dhālika), the translator (illadhī tarjamahā qibṭiyyan wa illadhī basaṭahā ‘arabiyyan), and the scribe (illadhī nasakhahā). Endowments (waqf-statements): Copt. ia (= p. i) waqf-statement endowing the volume Dayr al-Suryān, written in pink/fuscia pencil.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

173

Copt. 102b (= p. [198]): waqf-statement endowing the volume to Dayr al-Suryān, with warnings against removing it from the collection, invoking the fate of unbelievers; the monk Jirjis al-Sharqāwī is identified as the muhtamm of the MS, in this case probably an intermediate patron/owner of the volume. The handwriting is that of Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī. Copt. 230b (= p. [454]): waqf-statement endowing the volume Dayr al-Suryān, written by Yūḥannā [al-Fayyūmī], who identifies himself as the muhtamm of the MS. Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: Copt. i–iv (= pp. i–viii) Numbered folia: Copt. 4–230 (= pp. 1–171, [172–454]) Backmatter: Copt. 231–235 (= pp. [455–464]) The Coptic cursive numbering starts at f. 4 and continues through f. 230. The Arabic pagination starts at p. 1 (Copt. 4a) and continues through p. 171 (Copt. 89a); after that, it leaves off and only the Coptic cursive foliation is present.

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 22 × 15 cm Area of writing: 17 × 12 cm Lines per page: 16 lines/pages

Cover, Condition

Red leather cover, soft in texture, with a distressed look. It is in fairly good shape except for some abrasions and a diagonal cut along the spine that has been partially repaired by someone who tried to sew it closed with a thin thread. Part of the cut remains open and the internal stitching is visible. The leaves of the MS are in decent shape, but there is separation at the spine before folio 1, as well as at the end of the MS. At the beginning of the volume, there is evidence of attempts to reinforce pages along the spine with strips of paper and clear tape.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ Readers’ insertions: Insertions 1. On Copt. 88b (p. 170), a reader has written bism al-ab (“In the name of the Father”) in a thick felt-tip pen. 2. On Copt. 232b, a reader named Arsenios, a monk at Dayr al-Suryān, wrote the following in gray-black ink:

174

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

‫ ق‬١٢٩٤ [‫صار تمام نسخ هذا الكتاب بس]نة‬ ‫ ق‬١٦٥٤ [‫ ميلادية وس]نة‬١٩٣٨ [‫وقد تقلت عنه نسخة لنفسي خاصة س]نة‬ ‫ولربنا الشكر الدائم امين‬ The copying of this book was completed in the year AM 1294 [sic]. From it, I transcribed a copy for myself to own in the year AD 1938, or AM 1654. Thanks be to God forever, Amen. Ⲁⲣⲥⲉⲛⲓⲟⲥ ⲉⲗϧⲉⲣⲏ ⲉⲗⲥⲟⲣⲓⲁⲛⲓ [= al-khayrī al-suryānī] Arsenios the benevolent one of Dayr al-Suryān

175

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 30 (= MS 183) Old number(s): Lāhūt 38; Lāhūt 24

Contents

Teaching(s) of the Fathers Skilled in Knowledge 1. Teaching(s) of the Fathers Skilled in Knowledge: pp. 1–359 (Copt. vib–399a). ‫تعليم الابا الحاذقين بالمعرفة‬ a. Evagrius [Ponticus], Maymar: pp. 1–2 (Copt. vib–4a). ‫ميمر لاب اوغريس‬ b. Isaac the Syrian, Four Books: pp. 2–40 (Copt. 4a–23a). This work lacks a unified title but is identified in the secondary scribal table of contents on p. 1 (Copt. vib). c. Philoxenos [of Mabbug], Discourse (abridged) on the cultivation of virtue: pp. 42–75 (Copt. 242a–258b). ‫كلام مقتصر من تعليم القديس فيلكسينوس في تدبير الفضيلة‬ d. Philoxenos [of Mabbug], Letter on the pains of the soul in response to a question asked by Saint Baṭrīq al-Rahāwī [the Edessan]: pp. 76–114 (Copt. 259a–278a). ‫جواب مسئلة سٸل القديس فيلكسينوس من بطريق القديس الرهاوي‬ ‫على الام النفس‬ e. John of the Thebaid (Yūḥannā al-Tabā’isī) [= John of Lycopolis], Teaching(s): pp. 114–232 (Copt. 278a–337a). ‫من تعليم القديس العظيم يوحنا التبايسي‬ Includes letters and mayāmir. f. Isaiah [of Scetis], Teaching(s): pp. 232–274 (Copt. 337a– 357a). ‫تعليم لانبا اشعيا‬ Includes mayāmir and his interpretation of a saying by a disciple of Saint Isaac [the Syrian]. g. Diadochus, Teaching(s): pp. 275–302 (Copt. 357b–374a). ‫من تعليم القديس ديادوخس‬ h. Gregory of Cyprus, Teaching(s): pp. 303–359 (Copt. 374b– 399a). ‫من تعليم القديس اغريغوريوس معلم متوحدين قبرص‬

176 Date, Language, Script, Material

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Date: Friday, 18 Ba’ūnah, AM 1177 [= 1461 CE], equivalent to the year 1828 according to the calendar of Alexander the Greek (p. 359; Copt. 399b). Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with red headings, subheadings, and punctuation/dots. The primary scribal hand is small in scale, rendered in bold/thick short strokes, with closely spaced words and lines. A second hand occupies most of page 358 (Copt. 399a): it features a medium-scale script with thinner strokes. A third hand, that of the restorer responsible for the replacement pages, is small in scale with thick, closely-packed, rather cramped strokes. Material: Paper. The original folia are of medium-weight Middle Eastern stock with no watermarks visible. Replacement pages feature Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) watermarks with “Mezana” lettering. Front- and backmatter have Andrea Galvani Pordenone and shield with man-in-the-moon watermarks.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

Scribe: the monk Īwannīs al-Manṣūrī al-Mashriqī al-Suryānī (p. 359; Copt. 399b). Patron/owner: no identification of original patron/owner, but Yūḥannā (al-Fayyūmī) is identified as the muhtamm responsible for the volume’s restoration (see below). Restorer: Yūḥannā (al-Fayyūmī), khādim at Dayr al-Suryān is identified as being responsible for the restoration (tarmīm) of the manuscript (p. 360; Copt. [400a]).

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: Two lined notebook pages taped to the front of folia i: table of contents written in black ink on the front sides of these sheets; the back sides of these pages are blank. p. 1 (Copt. vib): table of contents written on a replacement page. This indicates that the disrupted foliation was part of the manuscript as it was transmitted. Colophons: p. 302 (Copt. 374a): a colophon at the end of the teachings of Diadochus contains the scribe’s requests for blessings from the saint.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

177

p. 359 (Copt. 399b): a combined colophon and waqf written by the scribe, providing the date as Friday, 18 Ba’ūnah, AM 1177 [= 1461 CE], equivalent to the year 1827 according to the calendar of Alexander the Greek. The writer identifies himself as the monk Īwannīs al-Manṣūrī al-Mashriqī al-Suryānī and references in particular the book of Mār Isaac (Isḥaq). He then goes on to recognize his father and teacher, the priest Ya‘qūb al-Suryānī, as the one responsible for collecting the works in this volume in Syriac and translating them into Garshuni for his own benefit. The writer pens an extended prayer and apologizes for his lack of fluent Arabic and his unfamiliarity with texts translated from Syriac to Arabic. The combined colophon/endowment breaks off at the end of the page: its ending is missing. (The text on the following page is a separate restorer’s note: see under “Reader’ insertions.”) Endowments (waqf-statements): f. ia: waqf-statement written in pink/red ink endowing the MS to Dayr al-Suryān. p. 359 (Copt. 399b): the waqf-statement endowing the MS to Dayr al-Suryān is written by the scribe and is presented as the continuation of the colophon at the end of the volume. Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: pp. i–xi (= Copt. i–via) Numbered folia: pp. 1–361 (= Copt. vib, 4–22, [23], 242–399, [400]) Backmatter: pp. 362–371 (= Copt. 401–405) Copt. 8 (pp. 10–11) is also labeled as Copt. 135. Copt. vi, 23, [398], 399, and [400] (pp. xi–1, 40–41, 356–361) are replacement leaves. Most of Copt. 399a (p. 358) features a second scribal hand, but the last line is added by a third hand, that of the restorer responsible for the rest of the replacement pages. The table of contents written on p. 1 (one of the replacement leaves) indicates that the disrupted Coptic cursive foliation was part of the manuscript as it was transmitted. The quires consist of ten folia each and are marked on the recto of the first folio in each quire, beginning with p. 60 (Copt. 251a), which is labeled as the sixteenth quire, and ending with p. 342 (Copt. 391a), which is labeled as the fortieth quire.

178

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 29 × 22 cm Area of writing/lines per page: Original folia and replacement pages: 23.5 × 17 cm; 25 lines/page Secondary hand on p. 358 (Copt. 399a): 24.5 × 18.5 cm; 22 lines/page (with one more line [= 1 cm] added by the restorer)

Cover, Condition

Red leather cover, well worn with abrasions and cracking along the edges and corners. There is significant separation at the spine in the front and back of the MS. The manuscript leaves have become slightly browned with age. Folia v and vi (pp. xi–xii) are detached from the spine, but still attached to each other. Folia 8, 340, and 401 (= pp. 10–11, 238–239, and 361–362) are also separated from the spine. Throughout the MS, there is evidence of extensive attempts to reinforce folia by using adhesive strips of paper along page edges and at the spine. Some of these strips have fragments of Arabic text on them.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. p. 359 (Copt. 399b): the secondary hand has written two Insertions notes/comments in the right margin, from top to bottom. The first (in black ink) notes the absence of text in the copy with which he was working. The second (in red ink) notes that he copied the date from the original book because its pages had become damaged/destroyed. ‫عدم في النسخة باقي الكلام لم وجد‬ ‫نقل هذا التاريخ من الكتاب الاصل لان ورقته عدمت والرب يعوض من له تعب امين‬ “There is a lacuna in this copy. The rest of the discourse is not found. This date was copied from the original book because the page [of this volume] was missing. May the Lord grant recompense to whoever has labor[ed], Amen.”

Readers’ insertions: 1. p. 360 (Copt. [400]a): on this replacement folio, a note records the manuscript’s date of restoration as 22 Bābah, AM 1520 [= 1803 CE], as well as the manuscript’s original date (AM 1177). The writer observes that from its copying to its time of restoration 343 years have passed. The same hand identifies the muhtamm as Yūḥannā (al-Fayyūmī), khādim of Dayr al-Suryān. Finally, it requests special blessings from Christ, from the saints recorded in the manuscript, and especially from Mār Isaac (Isḥaq).

179

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 31 (= MS 184) Old number(s): 17 Mayāmir; 67 Mayāmir; 4-ⲗⲃ

Contents

Miscellaneous Ascetic Discourses, including the Garden of the Monks; John Saba, Chapters of Knowledge; Evagrius Ponticus, Chapters of Knowledge 1. Isaiah [of Scetis], Teachings/Sayings: ff. 1a–44b (Copt. [2a]– 45b). a. Isaiah [of Scetis], Commandments to apprenticing monks: ff. 1a–14a (Copt. [2a]–[15a]). ‫من قول القديس البار انبا اشعيا … وصايا للرهبان المبتدين‬ b. Isaiah [of Scetis], Saying [on the fact] … that a person is not able to be preserved from sin: ff. 14a–16b (Copt. [15a]– 17b). ‫وايضا للقديس انبا اشعيا … قال ان الانسان لا يستطيع ان ينحفظ من‬ ‫الخطية‬ c. Isaiah [of Scetis], Saying on silence: ff. 16b–39a (Copt. 17b–40a). … ‫وايضا للقديس البار انبا اشعيا … قال السكوت هو‬ d. Isaiah [of Scetis], Saying reproaching himself: ff. 39a–44b (Copt. 40a–45b). ‫وقال مبك ًتا لنفسه‬ 2. John of the Thebaid (Yūḥannā al-Tabā’īsī) [= John of Lycopolis], Discourse: ff. 45a–47a (Copt. 46a–48a). ‫من كلام القديس يوحنا التبايسي‬ 3. Stephen of the Thebaid (Iṣṭifān al-Tabā’isī), Discourse: ff. 47a–51a (Copt. 48a–52a). ‫من كلام القديس انبا اصطفان التبايسي‬ 4. Isaac [the Syrian], Discourse: ff. 51a–56b (Copt. 52a–57b). ‫من كلام القديس مار اسحق‬ 5. Macarius the Great, Letters, Sayings, and Teachings of Saint Macarius the Great: ff. 56b–72b (Copt. 57b–73b).

180

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

a. Macarius the Great, Letters: ff. 56b–62b (Copt. 57b–63b). ‫من رسايل القديس مقاريوس الكبير‬ b. Macarius the Great, Sayings and Teachings: ff. 63a–72b (Copt. 64a–73b). ‫من اقوال القديس مقاريوس الكبير وتعاليمه‬ 6. The Garden [of the Monks], an abridged collection of stories: ff. 73b–115b (Copt. [12b]–432b). ‫مختصر من اخبار الابا الرهبان المسمى البستان‬ a. John of the Thebaid (Yūḥannā al-Tabā’īsī) [= John of Lycopolis], Discourse: ff. 74b–76a (Copt. 22b–42a). b. Stephen of the Thebaid (Iṣṭifān al-Tabā’isī), Discourse: ff. 76a–78b (Copt. 42a–62b). c. Isaiah [of Scetis]: Sayings and Teachings: ff. 79a–80b (Copt. 72a–82b). d. Isaac [the Syrian]: Discourse: ff. 80b–84b (Copt. 82b–122b). e. Macarius the Great, Letters: ff. 84b–88b (Copt. 122b–162b). f. Antony, Commandments to the monks at the Monastery of Naqlūn: ff. 89a–90a (Copt. 172a–182a). g. Barsanuphius (Barṣanūfiyūs), Saying(s): f. 90a–b (Copt. 182a–b). h. Simeon Stylites (Sim‘ān al-‘Amūdī), Saying(s): f. 90b (Copt. 182b). i. [John Saba]/The [Spiritual] Elder (al-Shaykh): Saying/ Discourse: ff. 90b–92b (Copt. 182b–202b). j. Questions and Answers, Stories, and Sayings of the Holy Fathers: ff. 92b–115b (Copt. 202b–432b). This section includes sayings by Palladius, Pachomius, Barsanuphius, Macarius, Ephrem, Anthony, Isaiah, and Serapion, among other anonymous teachings. 7. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder (al-Shaykh al-rūḥānī), Chapters of Knowledge, Treatises 3–7: ff. 116a–148a (Copt. 1913a– 2233a). ‫رؤوس المعرفة في المقالة الثالثة وغيرها من كتاب الشيخ الروحاني مما‬ ‫أخرجه الاب القديس القس الفاضل الحبيس انبا يوحنا من السرياني الى‬ ‫العربي الذي بيد الياس‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

181

Full title (f. 116a): Chapters of Knowledge in the third treatise and other treatises from the book of the Spiritual Elder, from what holy father, the most excellent priest, the hermit Anbā John [Saba] translated from Syriac to Arabic, [the former of] which was by the hand of Elias [of Nisibis]. Treatise 3: ff. 116a–122b (Copt. 1913a–1973b). Treatise 4: ff. 122b–129b (Copt. 1973b–2043b). Treatise 5: ff. 129b–137a (Copt. 2043b–2123a). Treatise 6: ff. 137a–145b (Copt. 2123a–2203b). Treatise 7: ff. 145b–148a (Copt. 2203b–2233a). 8. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Correspondence with his brother who was at the Coenobion Monastery: ff. 148a–150a (Copt. 2233a–2253a). a. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Letter to his brother in the body who was at the Coenobion Monastery (Dayr Kanūbiyūn): f. 148a–b (Copt. 2233a–b). ‫رسالة الشيخ الى عند اخيه الجسداني الذي كان في دير كنوبيون‬ b. The apology of the saint’s brother: ff. 148b–150a (Copt. 2233b–2253a). ‫اعتذار اخو القديس الجسداني كتبه ليعرف كيف صار سبب هذا‬ 9. Evagrius Ponticus, Chapters of Knowledge [= Kephalaia Gnostika]: ff. 150b–183b (Copt. 2253b–2583b). ‫رؤوس المعرفة الذي للقديس انبا اوغريس‬ First Hundred (al-mā’ah al-ūlā): ff. 150b–156b (Copt. 2253b– 2313b). Second Hundred (al-mā’ah al-thāniyyah): ff. 156b–161b (Copt. 2313b–2363b). Third Hundred (al-mā’ah al-thālīthah): ff. 161b–166b (Copt. 2363b–2413b). Fourth Hundred (al-mā’ah al-rābi‘ah): ff. 166b–171b (Copt. 2413b–2463b). Fifth Hundred (al-mā’ah al-khāmīsah): ff. 171b–175b (Copt. 2463b–2503b). Sixth Hundred (al-mā’ah al-sādīsah): ff. 176a–180b (Copt. 2513a–2553b).

182

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Supplemental material to the Chapters of Knowledge drawn from Evagrius’ Reflections (Skemnata), On Thoughts, Disciples of Evagrius, and On Perfection (ending missing): ff. 180b–184b (Copt. 2553b–2593b). ‫ وايضا للقديس انبا اوغريس على رؤوس المعرفة‬:‫ ب‬١٨٠ ‫ف‬ ‫ وله ايضا على الكمال‬:‫ أ‬١٨٤ ‫ف‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: None indicated, but the earliest waqf-statement dates to the month Abīb, AM 1204 [= 1484 CE] (f. 73a), so the original copying of the manuscript was prior to that. Language and script: Arabic. Blank ink, with red headings. One or two scribal hands are in evidence, plus the replacement hand of a restorer (probably Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī). The first scribal hand (ff. 8–115) is medium in scale but is somewhat variable: letters are clearly rendered with rounded well-spaced strokes toward the beginning of the MS; their forms become more rushed and cramped midway through and then returns to being more fluidly shaped toward the later folia. The second scribal hand (ff. 116–184), also medium in scale, could possibly be by the same scribe, but probably is not, since the letter shapes are more vertically oriented with more abundant use of red ink for headings, punctuation/dots, reference markers, and marginal commentary (especially in the final section with Evagrius’ Chapters of Knowledge). The replacement hand (ff. 1–7) is small-to-medium in scale with squarer letter forms. Material: Paper. The original folia consist of thick, Middle Eastern stock with no visible watermarks. The replacement folia (ff. 1–7) feature Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) watermarks. The front- and backmatter, respectively, have Andrea Galvani Pordenone and shield with man-in-the-moon watermarks.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

Scribe: none identified. Patron/owner: the original owner of the first part of the manuscript was Yūḥannā, a monk from the Monastery of St. Macarius; it was then transferred into the possession of the priest Ibrāhīm al-Suryānī al-Mashriqī (AM 1204; = 1484 CE], before coming into the possession of Qiryāqus, the abbot of Dayr al-Suryān,

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

183

nine years later [AM 1209/ = 1493 CE] (f. 73a; = Copt. [12a]). The final part of the manuscript belonged to the Church of the Martyr Marī Jirjis at al-Maḥallah al-Kubrā before being endowed to Dayr al-Suryān (f. 150a). Restorer: None identified by name, but the method of restoration and the style of the replacement hand indicate that it was Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī. Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: f. ivb: a lined piece of notebook paper has been glued to the verso of f. iv; it contains a modern table of contents written in red felt-tip pen. It identifies the contents as the Garden of the Monks (Bustān al-ruhbān), and the author as Palladius (Balādiyūs). Colophons: none. Endowments (waqf-statements): p. 72b (Copt. 73b): the monk Yūḥannā, a khādim at the Monastery of Saint Macarius, identifies himself as the one who endowed (part of) the manuscript to the monk Ibrāhīm al-Suryānī. In the right margin he adds the date: the month Abīb in the year AM 1204 [= 1484 CE]. f. 73a (Copt. [12a]): indicates that (part of) the manuscript was transferred from its owner [see the note by Yūḥannā above] into the possession of the priest Ibrāhīm al-Suryānī al-Mashriqī. f. 73a (Copt. [12a]): a waqf-statement written by Qiryāqus, khādim at Dayr al-Syrian indicating the manuscript’s endowment to that monastery from al-qummuṣ Ibrāhīm al-Rūmānī [= Mashriqī] after his death. The statement includes a warning against taking it out of the monastery on threat of a fate like Judas Iscariot. The waqf-statement is dated to 20 Baramūdah, AM 1209 (1493 CE). A later reader interpreted the date incorrectly and wrote the year 1203 in ballpoint pen above the Coptic numerals. f. 150a (Copt. 2253a): endowment of the [third section] of the manuscript to the Church of the Martyr Marī Jirjis at al-Maḥallah al-Kubrā. Includes warnings against taking it from the church, invoking the fate of Simon Magus and Diocletian. f. 150a (Copt. 2253a): a second endowment on the same page confirms that the whole volume was subsequently endowed to Dayr al-Suryān.

184 Pages, Numbering

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Frontmatter: ff. i–iv Numbered folia: ff. 1–72 (= Copt. [2–6], 7–[73]), ff. 73–115 (= Copt. 12–432), ff. 116–184 (= Copt. 1913–2593) Backmatter: ff. 185–189 The manuscript features three different Coptic cursive foliation sequences. The first originally ran up to folio 73. The second sequence started again at 12 and continued through 432. The third began at 1913 and continued through 2593. A modern Arabic foliation schema bridges these three and provides a continuous sequence from 1 to 184. Folia 1–7 (Copt. [2–6], 7–8) are replacement pages. The secondary hand is smaller in scale and more closely packed than the original scribal hand. As a result, the contents of the replacement pages at the beginning of the manuscript take up one fewer folio (7 in total) than the original number of folia (8), now lost. This is part of the reason for the discrepancy in the foliation between the Coptic cursive and Arabic numbering, but the restorer contributed to this confusion by providing mismatched Coptic cursive numbers for folia 6–7 (= Copt. 7–8): he matched them with what followed rather than with what preceded. In the first part of the manuscript (ff. 1–72), quires of ten folia each are labeled on the recto of the first folio in the quire, beginning with folio 10a (= Copt. 11a), which is labeled as the second quire (al-thāniyyah), and continuing through the seventh quire (f. 60a; = Copt. 61a). The second part of the manuscript (ff. 73–115), written in a different hand, does not have quire labels. The third part (ff. 116–184) occasionally shows evidence of quire labels on every tenth folio, but they are not fully preserved since the pages were apparently cut down to size to match the dimensions of the folia in the first part of the MS.

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 24.5 × 16 cm Area of writing: ff. 8–115: 19.5 × 12 cm ff. 116–184: 20 × 12.5 cm

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

185

Lines per page: ff. 8–72: 15 lines/page ff. 73–115: 16 lines/page ff. 116–184: 17 lines/page Cover, Condition

Red leather cover, well worn, completely detached from the spine/pages. Significant looseness/separation between quires, with various loose pages. An early modern restoration involved use of clear tape and strips of paper used to reinforce pages along their edges at the spine. Some of these strips of paper have remnants of writing. Others were used to provide space for replacement writing: on folio 14a (Copt. 15a), a restorer has pasted a paper over the top 9.5 cm of the page and rewritten the textual contents on it. The manuscript is in need of conservation.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. f. 62b (Copt. 63b): after the letters of Macarius the Great, Insertions the scribe appends a petition to the reader and to God for remembrance. 2. f. 72b (Copt. 73b): after the sayings and teachings of Macarius the Great, the scribe appends a petition for remembrance. Readers’ insertions: 1. f. 20a (Copt. 21a): a reader has written a prayer for remembrance in the top margin. Part of it has been erased and only the first three words remain: Udhkur yā rabb ‘abdaka (“Remember, O Lord, your servant”). 2. f. 62b (Copt. 63b): a reader has written a note on “the illnesses of sin” (‘ilal al-khaṭiyyah) and lists twelve great sins. 3. ff. 143a–145a (Copt. 2183a–2203a): a reader has written several notes and corrections into the text in graphite pencil.

186

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 32 (= MS 185) Old number(s): 60 Lāhūt; 7-ⲕⲏ/164

Contents

Philoxenos of Mabbug, Letter on the Three Grades of the Monastic Life; Miscellaneous Ascetic Discourses and Teachings 1. Philoxenos [of Mabbug] (Yūsif Fīluksīnūs), Letter on the three grades of the monastic life: pp. 1–120 (Copt. 1b–122a). ‫رسالت الاب انبا يوسف فيلكسينوس الذي كتبها البعض تلاميذه منجل‬ ‫رتب الرهبنة الثلثة الجسدانية والنفسانية والرحانية‬ 2. Antony, Rules/Canons established for the monks at the Monastery of Naqlūn: pp. 121–125 (Copt. 122b–124b). ‫القوانين التي وضعها القديس انطونيوس لاولاده الرهبان بدير النقلون‬ 3. Pachomius, Teaching(s): pp. 125–143 (Copt. 124b–134b). ‫تعليم القديس اب المجامع انبا بخوم‬ 4. Rules/Canons of Clement (Iklīmādūs), for those entering the monastic life: pp. 144–148 (Copt. 135a–137a). ‫القوانين التي قالها اكليمادوس للداخلين في الرهبنة‬ 5. John of the Thebaid (al-Tabā’isī) [= John of Lycopolis], Letter (ṣaḥīfah): pp. 148–158 (Copt. 137a–142a). ‫صحيفة القديس يوحنا التبايسي‬ 6. Isaiah [of Scetis], Teachings: pp. 158–173 (Copt. 142a–149b). ‫اشعيا‬

‫قلاىل من تعاليم الاب القدير‬ ‫رؤوس‬ ٔ

7. Untitled ascetic discourse on repentance and sin: pp. 174– 194 (Copt. 151a–174a). The first folio with the title is missing. The text has headings in red addressing an intelligent person, and on topics such as repentance, taking account of one’s soul, sin (which is compared to fire), and guarding one’s tongue. 8. Theodore [of Tabennese], Letter: pp. 194–196 (Copt. 174a– 175a). ‫رسالة من الاب تادرس تلميذ القديس بخوميوس‬

187

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

9. Sayings of the Holy Fathers: pp. 197–248 (Copt. 165b–191a). ‫من اقوال الابا القديسين‬ 10. Isaiah [of Scetis], Commandments to the monks: pp. 249– 278 (Copt. 191b–206a). ‫من تعاليم القديس انبا اشعيا وصايا للرهبان‬ 11. Evagrius Ponticus, Book/Letter written to Eulogius: pp. 279– 300 (Copt. 206b–217a). ‫من كتاب انبا وغري المتوحد الذي كتبه الى انبا اولاجيوس عندما‬ ‫كتب اليه يسأله ان يكتب له‬ 12. Canons of the Holy Father Anbā Shenoute: pp. 301–318 (Copt. 217b–226a). ‫قوانين الاب القديس انبا شنودي الذي وضعها لاولاده الرهبان‬ 13. Saying(s) of Some Monks: pp. 319–326 (Copt. 226b–230a). ‫من قول بعض الرهبان‬ 14. Isaiah [of Scetis], Sayings: pp. 326–353 (Copt. 230a–243b). ‫تعاليم القديس انبا )ا(شعيا‬ 15. [John] Cassian, Sayings: pp. 354–373 (Copt. 244a–253b). ‫كتب اقوال القديس انبا قيسان … كتاب الافراز‬ 16. Isaiah [of Scetis], Sayings: pp. 374–376 (Copt. 254a–255a). ‫من قول انبا اشعيا ايضا‬ 17. Antony, Sayings: pp. 376–388 (Copt. 255a–261a). ‫من أقوال العظيم الاب انطونيوس‬ 18. John Chrysostom, On Envy: pp. 388–392 (Copt. 261a–263a). ‫للقديس يوحنا الذهب على الحسد‬ 19. Stephen of the Thebaid, [Teachings]: pp. 393–394 (Copt. 263b–264a). ‫للقديس استافنوس التبايسي‬ 20. Pachomius, [Teachings]: pp. 394–395 (Copt. 264a–b). ‫للقديس انبا بخوم الكبير‬

188

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

21. Saying(s) of the Elder Fathers on detachment/isolation for the benefit of the soul: pp. 395–402 (Copt. 264b–268a). ‫من قول الابا الشيوخ على الافراز لمنفعة النفس‬ 22. Jacob of Sarug, Maymar/Saying: pp. 403–445 (Copt. 268b– 289b). ‫ميمر من قول الاب مار يعقوب اسقف سروج‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: no date indicated. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink, with red headings and punctuation/dots. The scribal hand is small-to-medium in scale and rendered in bold, short strokes with closely spaced words. Material: Paper. Thick/heavy Middle Eastern stock with no watermarks. Front- and backmatter consist of modern textured paper with no watermarks. Folia ii (pp. iii–iv) and 292 (pp. 450– 451) are clear plastic sheets bound into the volume as part of its more recent, modern conservation by Elizabeth Sobczynski and her team from the Levantine Foundation.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe or patron/owner.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents:

Restorer: Elizabeth Sobczynski and her team from the Levantine Foundation. p. ix (Copt. 1a): modern table of contents written in red and blue ballpoint pen. Colophons: p. 318 (Copt. 226a): the scribe has written the following after the Canons of St. Shenoute: ‫كمل ما جمعه باختصار من‬ ‫قوانين الاب القديس انبا شنوده‬ ‫المشرق بحال الانبيا القائل انه‬ ‫ما يتكلم من عنده بل المسيح المتكلم من فمه‬ Completed is what has been collected in abridged form from the Canons of [our] holy father Anbā Shenoute, the one illuminated by the condition of the prophets and about whom it was said that he would not speak with those with him apart from Christ speaking from his mouth.

Endowments (waqf-statements): none.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Pages, Numbering

189

Frontmatter: pp. i–viii (Copt. i–iv) Numbered folia: pp. ix, 1–445 (Copt. 1–3, [4], 5, 7, [8–9], 10, [7]1–289) Backmatter: pp. 446–453 (Copt. 290–293) The Arabic foliation is consistent, although it is modern and rendered in pencil. It begins with page 1 on the verso of the first folio. For the purposes of this catalogue, its unnumbered recto is referred to as p. ix (continuing the numbering system for the leaves of the frontmatter). Due to the fact that the original beginning of the manuscript does not survive, the Coptic cursive numbering for the first quire does not match up with the numbering of the subsequent quires. The first three folia are replacement quires and have the Coptic cursive foliation added (Copt. 1–3; = pp. ix, 1–5). The next five folia are original, but their foliation is unclear. The folio number for Copt. 4 (pp. 6–7) does not survive, but the number for Copt. 5 (pp. 8–9) does survive. The subsequent folio is labeled as Copt. 7 (pp. 10–11), although there are possible traces of a tens digit, in which case (with an eye toward the numbering of the subsequent quires) this may have originally been folio 67. No folio numbers survive for the next two folia (Copt. [8–9]; pp. 12–15). After this, there is a single (more recent) replacement page labeled Copt. 10 (pp. 16– 17): it functions as the last folio in the first quire. The second quire, consisting of original folia, begins with Copt. 71 and proceeds consistently from then on. It is not clear how to explain this confusion in foliation numbers. If pp. 10–11 were originally labeled as Copt. 67, it would match up in sequence with the second quire that follows. But this does not explain what comes before. The labeling of the replacement leaf with Copt. 10 may have been the result of the partial survival of the folio number for Copt. 67, where only the number 7 survives: in this case, Copt. 10 would fall into sequence, but it wouldn’t explain the subsequent jump into the seventies or the absence of a Copt. folio 6. In any event, as a result, this catalogue uses the Arabic pagination as its primary system of reference. Copt. 130 and 150–151 are missing from the MS. The Arabic pagination simply continues uninterrupted across those gaps (from p. 125 to p. 126; and from p. 173 to p. 174).

190

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

The first quire is an eight-folio quaternion. The subsequent quires each consist of ten folia and are labeled on the recto of the first folio in each quire, beginning with the second quire on p. 18 (Copt. [7]1a). This quire system, however, proves to be secondary, as evidenced by the marking of the third quire (thālith) on p. 38 (Copt. 81a), where the original quire numbering (the ninth quire, tāsi‘) has been erased but is still partially visible. These quire sequences continue in parallel up through the final quire, which is labeled as both the twenty-ninth (according to the original quire labelling) and the twenty-third quire (according to the more recent quire organization for the manuscript in its present form). Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 22.5 × 15 cm Area of writing: 18 × 12 cm Lines per page: 16 lines/page

Cover, Condition

New modern brown leather cover, tooled on front and back with a double rectangular lined border and a bisecting X marked by four cruciform medallion stamps at the corners and five in the form of an X at its center. The new binding has two leather buttons and matching leather loops. On the insides of the front and back boards, the earlier (original?) cover has been pasted/ preserved. It was also of (heavily worn) dark brown leather with the same tooled and stamped pattern. As part of its modern conservation, the MS was bound with new front- and backmatter, including clear plastic pages in the second (pp. iii–iv; f. ii) and second-to-last (pp. 450–451; f. 292) positions.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. p. 248 (Copt. 191a): the (unnamed) scribe has penned a prayer Insertions for forgiveness. Readers’ insertions: 1. p. 248 (Copt. 191a): below the scribal prayer, another hand has written the following reflection on death and mortality: ‫عجبت لمن طلب الدنيا والموت طالبه‬ ‫وعجبت لمن بنا القصور والقبر منازله‬ ‫كاسا وكل الناس شاربه‬ ‫الموت‬ ً ‫والقبر با ًبا وكل الناس داخله‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

191

“I wondered at the one who demanded the world, and death demanded him back. And I wondered at the one who built castles/ palaces, and the grave became his home. Death is a cup and all people drink of it. Death is a door/gate and all people enter it.”

192

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 33 (= MS 186) Old number(s): 20 ⲕⲝ/47

Contents

Miscellaneous Ascetic Discourses, including Works by John Cassian, Evagrius Ponticus, and ‘Amr Ibn Mattā [Part 1: Miscellaneous Ascetic Discourses, including Evagrius Ponticus.] 1. Warnings against the vicissitudes of time: f. 1a–b. ‫التحذيرات من نوائب الزمان‬ 2. Isaac [the Syrian], Discourse: f. 2a. ‫من كلام القديس مار اسحق‬ 3. [John] Cassian, On the Eight Evil Thoughts, written to Castor, bishop of Rome: ff. 2b–23a (Copt. [3b]–24a). ‫ميمر وضعه انبا قسيان وأرسل به الى قسطرا أسقف رومية على الثمنية‬ ‫الافكار الشرير‬ Identified at the end of the work as being on the subject of “the eight pains (awjā‘) of the soul.” 4. Andrīyānūs, Treatises: ff. 23b–65b (Copt. 24b–66b). a. Andrīyānūs, On good thoughts: ff. 23b–30b (Copt. 24b–31b). ‫المقالة التي لانبا اندريانوس الأسقف الفاضل الأنيس … منجل تقويم‬ ‫الافكار الصالحة‬ The text begins with reflections on Moses the Egyptian as an example/model (mithāl) of Christ. b. Andrīyānūs, Treatise 3, On knowledge of the Scriptures and their meaning and on the piety of the soul: ff. 30b–42b (Copt. 31b–43b). c. Andrīyānūs, Treatise 4, On the purity of the soul and piety of the body: ff. 42b–64b (Copt. 43b–65b). d. Andrīyānūs, On the Interpretation of the Lord’s Prayer: ff. 64b–65b (Copt. 65b–66b). 8. Evagrius [Ponticus], Discourse/Letter to Eulogius: ff. 66a–73b (Copt. 67a–74b). ‫من كلام القديس انبا وغري الذي كتبه‬ ‫الى انبا اولوجيوس‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

193

Includes sections on the six innermost compunctions (ḍamā’ir). 9. Evagrius [Ponticus], Discourse/Saying: ff. 73b–74a (Copt. 74b–75a). ‫لانبا وغري الناسك ايضا‬ 10. Evagrius [Ponticus], On the Interpretation of the Lord’s Prayer: ff. 74a–75a (Copt. 75a–76a). ‫لانبا وغري ايضا تفسير ابونا الذي في السموات‬ 11. Evagrius [Ponticus], Discourse/Saying: ff. 75a–76a (Copt. 76a–77a). ‫لانبا وغري ايضا‬ 12. John of the Thebaid [= John of Lycopolis], Letter: ff. 76b–79a (Copt. 77b–80a). ‫صحيفة يوحنا التبائسي عظة ومنفعة للنفس‬ 13. The Garden [of the Monks]: ff. 79a–b, 81a–82b (Copt. 80a– 82b). ‫من البستان‬ 14. Stephen of the Thebaid, Discourse: ff. 82b–91b, 91bisa–b (Copt. 82b–90b, 94a–b, 97a–b). ‫من كلام ابينا القديس انبا اصطفان التبائسي‬ The work is fragmentary, with the ending missing. [Part 2: ‘Amr Ibn Mattā, Book of the Tower (Kitāb al-majdal).] 15. ‘Amr Ibn Mattā, Book of the Tower (Kitāb al-majdal): ff. 92a–183b (Copt. 922a–992b, 1012a–1192b, [1482b]–[2122b]). Chapter 3: ff. 92a–104b (Copt. 922a–992b, 1012a–1052b). The beginning of the chapter is missing, but a note/waqfstatement written in the margin at its end identifying it and indicating that it was translated from Syriac into Arabic (f. 104b; Copt. 1052b): ‫بدؤ كتاب الجزؤ الثالث من كتاب الجدل تأليف عمر ابن متا مما استخرج‬ ‫من الـ)ل(سان السرياني إلى العربي‬

194

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Chapter 5, Sections 5–7: ff. 104b–128b (Copt. 1052b– 1192b, [1482a–b], 1492a–1572b). Chapter 5, Section 5, Ordinances and Canons of the Apostles: ff. 104b–118b (Copt. 1052b–1192b). Incomplete. Ending missing. ‫الفصل الخامس من الباب الخامس أخذ الفروض والستر والقوانيي من‬ ‫الرسل الاصفيا والابا التابعين‬ Chapter 5, Section 6, No title preserved: f. 119a (Copt. [1482a]). Incomplete. Only six lines on the secondto-last page of this chapter is preserved since only the lower third of f. 119 survives. Chapter 5, Section 7, The Company of Christianity from the Books of the Old and New Testaments: ff. 119a–128b (Copt. [1482b], 1492a–1572b). ‫الفصل السابع من الباب الخامس جمع النصرانية من كتب العتيقة‬ ‫والحديثة‬ Chapter 6, Sections 1–4: ff. 129a–153a (Copt. 1572b–1832a). [Chapter 6,] Section 1, Worship of the Divine Creator as the superintendent (al-mushrif) of the new law (sunnah) and the first act of creation: ff. 129a–135a (Copt. 1572b–1642a). ‫الفصل الأول السجود ﷽ الخالق المعبود نحو المشرف على السنة‬ ‫الحديثة فعل أول الخلائق‬ Chapter 6, Section 2: On Sunday: ff. 135a–138a (Copt. 1642a–1672a). ‫الفصل الثاني من الباب السادس الحجة في يوم الاحد واظهار فضله‬ ‫القديم والمجدد‬ Chapter 6, Section 3, On the girding of waists with belts, the lighting of lamps, and the smoke/incense of the deacons, and the singing of psalms: ff. 138b–146a (Copt. 1672b–1752a). ‫الفصل الثالث من الباب السادس الموجب شد الاوساط بالزنانير‬ ‫والهاب القناديل وبخور التشمسة والتزمير‬ Chapter 6, Section 4: On the acceptance of repentance and awareness of the sinner: ff. 146a–153a (Copt. 1752a–1832a). ‫الفصل الرابع من الباب السادس استشعار قبول التوبة وإدراك الخاطئ‬ ‫بالابائة نجاح القربة‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

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Chapter 7, Sections 1–4, The Gardens (al-Ḥadā’iq): ff. 153b– 183b (Copt. 1832b–[2122b]). Chapter 7, Section 1, On leaving behind and dispensing with circumcision: ff. 153b–162a (Copt. 1832b–1912a). ‫الباب السابع الحدائق اربعة فصول الفصل الأول ترك الختانة والاستغنا‬ ‫عنها بصحة الامانة‬ Chapter 7, Section 2, On the New Testament’s abrogation of work on the Sabbath: ff. 162a–167a (Copt. 1912a–1962a). ‫الفصل الثاني من الباب السابع حل الحديثة العمل يوم السبت وموجب‬ ‫امساكه في متقدم الوقت‬ Chapter 7, Section 3, On freedom from what is dangerous/ forbidden with respect to foods: ff. 167a–172b (Copt. 1962a–2012b). ‫الفصل الثالث من الباب السابع إطلاق ما خطر المااكل ووجوب‬ ‫حلها لكل أكل‬ Chapter 7, Section 4, On rebuking the Jews: ff. 172b–183b (Copt. 2012b–[2122b]). ‫الفصل الرابع من الباب السابع توبيخ اليهود على ما يبتدعونه واظهارتهم‬ ‫فيما يدعونه‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: AM 1050 [= 1333/34 CE; for the second half of the MS (Part 2)]. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with red headings and dots/punctuation. The first half of the MS (Part 1) features a large, bold, rounded script. The second half (Part 2) features a medium-scale, more vertical script with thinner, lighter, more elegant strokes. Material: Paper. The first half of the manuscript (Part 1) features a medium-weight Middle Eastern stock, with no watermarks. The paper is slightly brown in shade. The second half of the manuscript (Part 2) features slightly thicker Middle Eastern stock, with no watermarks. The paper is lighter in shade. The final folio (f. 184; = pp. 196–[197]) functions as backmatter and features a Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) watermark. The frontmatter (f. i) probably is of the same stock, but because of the paper with the table of contents glued/taped to it, it is not possible to determine the presence or absence of a watermark.

196 Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Scribe: Mūsā al-miskīn (Moses the Poor) is the scribe of Part 1 (f. 1b); the scribe for Part 2 remains anonymous. Patron/owner: Mīkhā’īl, also known as Barakāt ibn Kātib, who received it as a gift from Isaac (Īṣāāk), the bishop of al-Bahnasah and al-Qays, on 14 Ba’ūnah, 1204 [= 1488 CE] (f. 183b; = Copt. [2122b]); Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī (ff. 1b, 2a) later identified himself as the muhtamm responsible for the volume’s restoration (see below). Restorer: Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī (ff. 1b, 2a).

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: f. ia: a lined sheet of notebook paper has been glued/taped to the recto of the only folio in the frontmatter, and it contains a modern table of contents in red and black felt-tip pen and black ballpoint pen. This table of contents only pertains to the first half of the manuscript (up to the work by Stephen of the Thebaid). Colophons: f. 1b: The “Warnings against the vicissitudes of time” is followed by its title (as transcribed above in the Contents section), and by a prayer in Coptic: ⲁⲣⲓⲫⲙⲁⲩⲓ ⲡⲟⲥ ⲡⲁⲕⲟⲕ ⲡⲓϩⲁϫⲓ ⲙⲱⲓⲥⲏⲥ ⲛⲉⲛⲓⲟϯ ⲉⲑⲩ ⲁⲃⲣⲁⲁⲙⲛⲉⲙ ⲓⲁⲥⲁⲁⲕ ⲛⲉⲙⲓⲁⲕⲱⲃ “Remember me, O Lord, [and] my completion [of this work], Moses the Poor (Mūsā al-miskīn), [through the intercession of] our fathers [belonging] to God, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.”

f. 65b (Copt. 66b): at the end of the treatises by Hadrian (Adriyānūs), the scribe requests prayers of remembrance from the reader. f. 183b (Copt. [2122b]): at the end of ‘Amr Ibn Mattā’s Kitāb al-mijdal, the second scribe writes a prayer for remembrance and God’s assistance on behalf of the reader, and provides a date, which is difficult to discern but appears to be AM 1050 [= 1333/1334 CE]. Endowments (waqf-statements): f. 1b: waqf-statement written by Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī endowing the MS to Dayr al-Suryān, accompanied by warnings against

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

197

removing the book invoking the fate of Judas Iscariot and Simon Magus and by a prayer for remembrance for “your servant, the priest, Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī” (‘abdaka al-qiss Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī). f. 2a: waqf-statement, again written by Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī, endowing the MS to Dayr al-Suryān. f. 104b (Copt. 1052b): waqf-statement identifying the preceding work as ‘Amr Ibn Mattā’s Book of the Tower (Kitāb al-majdal), endowing the manuscript to Dayr al-Suryān (Dayr al-sayyidah bi-l-Suryān), and noting that the text had been translated from Syriac to Arabic. f. 183b (Copt. [2122b]): an endowment written by one of the manuscript’s owners, named Mikhā’īl, also known as Barakāt Ibn Kātib, who refers to the book as a formal gift (hibbah shara‘iyyah) from the bishop Isaac (Īṣāāk), bishop of Bahnasa and al-Qays, and provides the date 14 Ba’ūnah, 1204 [= 1488 CE]. Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: f. i Numbered folia: ff. 1–90, 91, 91bis, 92–118, 119–151, [unnumbered folio], 152–155, 157–182, 183–184 (= Copt. [2]–90, 94, 97, 922–992, 1012–1192, [1482], 1492–1802, 1812, 1822–1852, 1862–2112, [2122–2132]) See the notes below on complications related to the Coptic cursive and partial Arabic pagination systems. This includes the bifurcation of Arabic numbering into parallel foliation and pagination systems (ff. 172–184 = pp. 172–197, [198]). Backmatter: none The Arabic foliation system is used as the primary reference here. The Coptic cursive foliation only begins to be visible at the beginning of the second quire (f. 10a; = Copt. 11a) and in relation to the Arabic it remains off by one up to Copt. 80 (f. 79). At that point, the Arabic foliation skips number 80 and the two systems correspond beginning with f. 81 (Copt. 81), remaining in sync up through folio 90 (Copt. 90). At that point the Coptic cursive numbering skips to Copt. 94 (= f. 91). A loose leaf from later in the same work (Copt. 97) survives in the manuscript, and the present cataloguer has labeled it f. 91bis, since the folio following it belongs to a different work and a different hand and resumes with f. 92. In the second half of the manuscript the

198

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Arabic and Coptic cursive foliations initially match each other (ff. 92–99; = Copt. 922–992), but then the Coptic cursive foliation skips number 100 and two systems become off by one up through folio 118 (ff. 100–118 = Copt. 1012–1192). Only the bottom 10 cm of folio 119 is preserved, so it lacks a Coptic cursive foliation, but it would have been Copt. 1202. It is the final folio in the quire beginning on f. 110 (Copt. 1112), which is labeled as the twelfth quire (thānī ‘ashar). The subsequent folio (f. 120 in the Arabic foliation) marks the beginning of a quire labeled as the fifteenth (khāmis ‘ashar) and has the Coptic cursive foliation number 1492, which indicates that three quires are missing between f. 119 (Copt. 1202) and f. 120 (Copt. 1492). The two foliation systems continue to be 29 apart up through folio 151 (Copt. 1802), at which point the Arabic system skips a page (Copt. folio 1812 does not bear an Arabic foliation number), before resuming with folio 152 (Copt. 1822). The two systems remain 30 apart through f. 155 (= Copt. 1852), when the Arabic system skips a number, with the result that Copt. 1862 is marked as f. 157. The systems remain 29 apart up through the final Coptic cursive folio (Copt. 2112; = f. 182). Thus, the final two folia (ff. 183–184) are equivalent to Copt. [2122–2132]. To complicate matters, however, at folio 172, the Arabic numbering system bifurcates into both foliation and pagination, such that Copt. 201a2 equals p. 172 and Copt. 201b2 equals p. 173, etc., up through the end of the manuscript, where f. 184a (Copt. [2132a]) equals p. 196. Folio 184 (pp. 196–[197]) was originally a single leaf of backmatter, but was subsequently numbered according to the Arabic foliation and pagination systems and therefore is counted as one of the “Numbered folia” above. Quires consisting of twelve folia each are labeled on the upper left corner of the recto on the first folio of each quire, beginning with the “second quire” (al-thāniyyah) on f. 10a (Copt. 11a), and continuing through the ninth quire (al-tāsi‘ah) on f. 80a (Copt. 81a). Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 25.5 × 17 cm Area of writing/lines per page: First scribal hand (ff. 1–91): 19 × 13 cm; 17 lines/page Second scribal hand (ff. 92–194): 20 × 12.5 cm; 17 lines/page

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Cover, Condition

199

Heavily worn/wrinkled brown leather cover with leather patches. Its corners, edges, and spine have considerable abrasions. There is a double rectangular lined tooled border with a tooled X bisecting the middle and cruciform stamped medallions at the corners (4) and in an X (5) at the center. Two pieces of paper (now fragmentary) are glued to the front cover. The earlier of the two contains several lines of writing in black ink, now blurred and illegible. The later of the two (which partly overlaps the earlier) has the name, al-qiss Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī, who is (incorrectly) identified as the scribe. His name was later crossed out. There is significant separation at the spine at the front and back of the MS, and between quires. Evidence for an early modern restoration effort (by Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī) consists of strips of paper glued at the spine and edges for reinforcement. Loose folia are in evidence, including the entire “ninth quire” (ff. 81– 90; = Copt. 81–90). The MS is in need of conservation.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ Readers’ insertions: Insertions 1. On f. 1b, there is a prayer for remembrance on behalf of “your servant, the priest Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī (‘abdaka al-qiss Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī). 2. On f. 183b (Copt. [2122b]), a mostly illegible reader’s note in the left margin ends with the date AM 1135 [= 1418/1419 CE]. 3. On f. 183b (Copt. [2122b]), another reader’s note in the bottom right corner is illegible apart from a couple references to a certain “father.”

200

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 34 (= MS 187) Old number(s): 126 Lāhūt; 13; 17 ⲕⲇ/126

Contents

Miscellaneous Theological and Moral Teachings by Gregory Nazianzen, John Chrysostom, and Others; Ascetic Letters, Rules/Canons, and Teachings by Antony the Great [Part One: Miscellaneous Theological and Ethical Teachings by Gregory of Nazianzen, John Chrysostom, and Others] The first part of the MS consists of a collection of theological teachings, which originally seem to have contained twenty-five works but which are transmitted here in an fragmentary and disordered form. Only twenty-two of the twenty-five are extant: Teachings 1–2 and 15 are missing. The surviving works are preserved in the following order: Teachings 3, 8–11, 4–7, 12–14, 16–25. 1. Third Teaching, On Prayer, Its Classifications and Meanings: ff. 1a–7a. ‫القول في الصلاة واقسامها ومعانيها‬ 2. Eighth Teaching, Gregory [Nazianzen], On the Division/ Schism of the Faithful: ff. 7b–16a. ‫من اقوال الاب القديس اغريغوريوس التالوغس في انقسام المؤمنين بعد‬ ‫سماع تعاليم الحياة‬ 3. Ninth Teaching, On the Commandments of the Faithful, from the sayings of the pure apostles: f. 16b. ‫اقوال الابا الرسل الاطهار في وصايا المؤمنين‬ 4. Tenth Teaching, On the Correction/Education of Women, from the sayings of the pure apostles: ff. 17a–20a. ‫من اقوال الابا الرسل الاطهار في تهذيب نساء المؤمنين ورياضاتهم‬ 5. Eleventh Teaching, Gregory [Nazianzen], Exhortation on Repentance (abridged): ff. 20b–24b. ‫مختصر لاغريغوريوس التالوغس الحث على التوبة والمسارعة الى الولادة‬ ‫من المآ والروح‬ 6. Fourth Teaching, On the Meanings of Fasting: ff. 24b–30b. ‫القول في معاني الصوم المقدس مجموع من الاقوال البيعية‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

201

7. Fifth Teaching, On the Meanings of Almsgiving and Its Classifications: ff. 31a–35b. ‫القول في معاني الصدقة واقسامها مجموع من القوانين المقدسة وغيرها‬ ‫من اسفار الشريعة‬ 8. Sixth Teaching, Gregory [Nazianzen], On the Meanings of the Holy Sacraments/Mysteries (abridged): ff. 36a–37b. ‫من اقوال الانبيا الطاهر القديس اغريغوريوس التالوغس ومن تعاليم الرسل‬ ‫الاطهار في معاني السرائر المقدسة‬ 9. Seventh Teaching, John Chrysostom, On the Clarification of the Meanings of Gospel Prayer (abridged): ff. 38a–47a. [‫ إيضاح‬:‫مختصر من اقوال القديس يوحنا فم الذهب في ايطاح ]لازم‬ ‫معاني الصلاة الانجيلية‬ 10. Twelfth Teaching, An Exhortation on the Avoidance of Things that Preoccupy and Distract, attributed to Solomon the Wise, son of David: ff. 47b–52b. ‫الحث على الاعراض عن العانيات والالتفات الى الباقيات من اقوال سليمن‬ ‫بن داوود الحكيم‬ 11. Thirteenth Teaching, Gregory [Nazianzen] the Theologian, On the Meanings of the New Body (abridged): ff. 53a–58a. ‫مختصر لاغريغوريوس التالوغس في معاني الجسد الجديد‬ 12. Fourteenth Teaching, Chapter on Repentance and the Return to God: ff. 58b–60b. ﷽‫ نظم[ الخطب في التوبة والرجوع الى ا‬:‫من فصل نضم ]لازم‬ 13. Sixteenth Teaching, John Chrysostom, Exhortation on the Imitation/Emulation of the Lord’s Footsteps: ff. 61a–66b. ‫من اقوال القديس يوحنا فم الذهب يتضمن الحث على الاقتدا بالاثار‬ ‫السيدية في القتالات الشيطانية‬ 14. Seventeenth Teaching, John Chrysostom, Exhortation on Avoiding Things that Preoccupy and Holding Fast to Things that Endure: ff. 67a–69b. ‫من اقوال القديس يوحنا فم الذهب يتضمن الحث على الاعراض عن‬ ‫العانيات والتمسك بالباقيات‬

202

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

15. Eighteenth Teaching, John Chrysostom, Sermon on the Favor of the Lord of the Vineyard Mentioned in the Noble Gospel: ff. 70a–72b. ‫من اقوال القديس يوحنا فم الذهب يتضمن الوعظ على فضل رب الكرم‬ ‫المقول في الانجيل الشريف‬ 16. Nineteenth Teaching, John Chrysostom, Exhortation on Repentance [which is] Commanded on the Day of the Resurrection: ff. 73a–75a. ‫من اقوال القديس يوحنا فم الذهب يتضمن الحث على التوبة اشار بيوم‬ ‫القيامة‬ 17. Twentieth Teaching, Correction/Instruction, [Spiritual] Exercise, and Awakening for the Souls of the Priests, from the sayings of the pure apostles: ff. 75b–79a. ‫من اقوال الرسل الحواريون الاطهار يتضمن تهذيب نفوس الكهنة ورياضتهم‬ ‫وايقاظهم‬ 18. Twenty-first Teaching, Isaac [the Syrian], Chapters on Repentance and Trust [in God]: ff. 79b–84b. ‫من اقوال القديس الجليل ماري اسحق المتوحد يشتمل على فصول التوبة‬ ‫والتوكل وغيره‬ 19. Twenty-second Teaching, Admonition/Warning against [Bad] Deeds, Awakening [People] from Moral Failings, and the Rebuking of Depraved Fornication, from the tongue of some patriarchs: ff. 85a–88a. ‫عن لسان بعض البطاركة يتضمن التنبيه من الفعلات والايقاظ من‬ ‫السقطات وتوبيخ الزناة الفسقة‬ 20. Twenty-third Teaching, Sermon on the Dead: ff. 88b–91a. ‫الوعظ‬

‫من عظة تقال على الاموات على سبيل الخطب‬

21. Twenty-fourth Teaching: John Chrysostom, The Spiritual Exercise of Human Souls: ff. 91b–97b. ‫من اقوال القديس يوحنا فم الذهب يتضمن رياضته النفوس البشرية لتكون‬ ‫صابرة على المجرنات‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

203

22. Twenty-fifth Teaching: John Chrysostom, Exhortation on the Repudiation of Bodily Affairs and Worldly Desires — The Struggle for Happiness that Does Not Pass Away: ff. 98a–131b. Incomplete (ending missing). ‫من اقوال القديس يوحنا فم الذهب يتضمن الحث على الاطراح بالامور‬ ‫البدنية والشهوات العالمية الاجتهاد في السعادة التي لا تزول‬ [Part Two: Antony the Great, Letters, Canons, and Teachings, with a Saying by Isaac the Syrian] 23. Antony the Great, Letters, Rules/Canons and Teachings: ff. 132a–156b. Beginning missing. ‫رسائل وقوانين وتعاليم انبا انطونيوس‬ 24. Isaac [the Syrian], Saying: f. 156b. ‫من قول مار اسحق‬ 25. (Ps.-)Antony the Great, Letter to the Monks (Letters 4, 7–20): ff. 157a–212b. ‫]رسالة[ لأولاده الرهبان‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: none indicated. Language and script: Arabic. First part of the manuscript: black ink with red headings, but no punctuation/dots; medium-to-large script with rounded letter forms rendered in a fairly clear hand. Second part of the manuscript: black script with red headings and ample punctuation/dotting in red; larger script with rounded letter forms that are slightly more vertical in orientation. Material: Paper. First half of the manuscript: medium-weight Middle Eastern stock with no watermarks. Second half of the manuscript: heavy/thick Middle Eastern stock with no watermarks. Front- and backmatter consist of European stock featuring shield with man-in-the-moon watermarks. Folia i and 217 are blue pages.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

Scribe: not identified. Patron/owner: not identified, but the manuscript may have been in the possession of the monk Mikhā’īl who inscribed several prayers on its pages (ff. 6b, 30b, 37b, 88a). Restorer: not identified.

204 Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Tables of contents: Inside flyleaf and continuing on f. ia: modern table of contents. Colophons: none Endowments (waqf-statements): none

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–ii Numbered folia: ff. 1–131 (no Copt.); ff. 132–158, 160–172, 173–212 (Copt. [101]–[127], 212–332a/[34]\2b, 35–[752]) Backmatter: ff. 213–217 Folia 1–131 have only Arabic foliation. The second half of the MS contains older folia with signs of Coptic cursive foliation, which is partially preserved and intermittently visible. Folia 132–133 are equivalent to Copt. [101]–102. After folio 158 (= Copt. [127]), there are two missing folia, as evidenced by fragments preserved along the spine: these would have been Copt. 128 and 129 (now lost). After this lacuna, a different Coptic cursive foliation begins with Copt. 212 (= f. 160) and continues, intermittently preserved, to the end of the manuscript (Copt. [752]; = f. 212). This final sequence of Coptic cursive foliation is accompanied by quire markings. Folio 160 (Copt. 212) is marked as the beginning of the “third quire” (thālithah), and these quire markings continue to be visible up to folio 199 (Copt. 612), the beginning of the “seventh quire” (al-sābi‘ah). The discrepancy in the beginning of the quire numbers is caused by the fact that Copt. 332 and 342 are glued together, so that only Copt. 332a and 342b are visible (and together are labeled as folio 172). This results in the fact that the “fourth folio” is marked on folio 170 (Copt. 312) and the “fifth folio” is marked on folio 179 (Copt. [412]).

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 22.7 × 14.9 cm Area of writing/lines per page: ff. 1–131: 18.5 × 11 cm; 18 lines/page ff. 132–212: 20 × 12 cm; 16 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Black cloth cover with black/dark burgundy faux leather spine with gilded gold lines, lettering (al-ṣalāh wa-aqsāmuhā wa-ma‘ānīhā; “Goodness, Its Classifications and Meanings”), and the number 13.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

205

Folia 1–131 are more recent (replacement) folia and are in fine condition. Folia 132–212 are older folia and in very poor condition, with significant portions of pages eaten away, perhaps by insects, and evidence of extensive water damage. There are signs of attempts to apply Japanese paper to edges, with little success. In the backmatter, folia 213–214 have not been cut. The manuscript is in serious need of conservation. Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. ff. 6b–7a: both pages are only halfway filled, with each section Insertions ending in amīn (“Amen”). Readers’ insertions: 1. f. 6b: on the second half of the page, a reader has written a prayer for remembrance with udhkur yā rabb (“Remember, O Lord”) repeated multiple times. The writer identifies himself as “the monk Mikhā’īl.” The alif is omitted in the spelling of rāhib. That, along with the uncertain handwriting, suggests that the writer was not well-practiced. The reader’s insertion ends with a prayer in Coptic. 2. f. 30b: a reader’s prayer for remembrance has been written in red ink. The writer refrains from mentioning his name but the hand looks like it could be that of the monk Mikhā’īl, who penned the prayer on f. 6b. 3. f. 37b: the monk Mikhā’īl has written another short prayer for remembrance in black ink. 4. f. 88a: the monk Mikhā’īl has written two short prayers for remembrance in black ink.

206

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 35 (= MS 188) Old number(s): 3 Lāhūt; 1-ⲕⲁ/2

Contents

The Conjurer/Collector of Virtues (Ḥāwī al-faḍā’il) 1. The Conjurer/Collector of Virtues (Ḥāwī al-faḍā’il): f. 12b–408a. ‫وصايا الرب وتفاسيرها‬ Full Title: “Commandments of the Lord and their Interpretations.” This work contains florilegia of patristic citations. Organized in 63 treatises (maqālāt). Introduction/Table of Contents: ff. 5a–12a. Treatise 1: ff. 12b–15a. Treatise 2: ff. 15a–30a. Treatise 3: ff. 30a–34a. Treatise 4: ff. 34a–46a. Treatise 5: ff. 46a–47b. Treatise 6: ff. 47b–53a. Treatise 7: ff. 53a–57a. Treatise 8: ff. 57a–67b. Treatise 9: ff. 67b–71b. Treatise 10: ff. 71b–77b. Treatise 11: ff. 77b–80b. Treatise 12: ff. 81a–89b. Treatise 13: ff. 89b–96a. Treatise 14: ff. 96a–101b. Treatise 15: ff. 101b–115b. Treatise 16: ff. 115b–119a. Treatise 17: ff. 119b–127a. Treatise 18: ff. 127a–134a. Treatise 19: ff. 134a–135b. Treatise 20: ff. 135b–147a. Treatise 21: ff. 147a–151b. Treatise 22: ff. 151b–157a. Treatise 23: ff. 157a–161a. Treatise 24: ff. 161a–166b. Treatise 25: ff. 166b–168b. Treatise 26: ff. 169b–173b. Treatise 27: ff. 173b–175b. Treatise 28: ff. 175b–179b.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Treatise Date, Language, Script, Material

29: 30: 31: 32: 33: 34: 35: 36: 37: 38: 39: 40: 41: 42: 43: 44: 45: 46: 47: 48: 49: 50: 51: 52: 53: 54: 55: 56: 57: 58: 59: 60: 61: 62: 63:

ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff. ff.

207

179b–188b. 188b–192b. 192b–197a. 197a–211b. 211b–215b. 215b–220a. 220a–230a. 230a–238a. 238a–242b. 242b–245a. 245a–253a. 253a–258a. 258a–263b. 263b–266b. 266b–282a. 282a–290b. 290b–296a. 296a–299b. 299b–303a. 303a–305a. 305a–317a. 317a–327a. 327a–336a. 336a–352b. 352b–357b. 357b–359b. 359b–363b. 363b–368a. 368a–379a. 379a–385b. 385b–389b. 389b–392b. 392b–395a. 395a–398b. 398b–408a.

Date: not indicated. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with red headings and occasional punctuation. Letters are written in a small, consistent (although not especially neat) hand, with thick, short, rounded strokes.

208

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Material: Paper. Medium-weight Middle Eastern stock with no watermarks. Folia are slightly yellowed/browned. Front- and backmatter have Andrea Galvani Pordenone and shield with man-in-the-moon watermarks. Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: f. vb: modern table of contents written in blue and red ballpoint pen. ff. 5a–12a: original table of contents (internal to the MS), covering treatises 11–63. Colophons: none. Endowments (waqf-statements): f. 12a: a waqf-statement endowing the MS to Dayr al-Suryān; it mentions Saint John Kame’s presence in Scetis and gives warnings about taking the book out of the monastery. f. 306b, 307b, 308b: a three-part waqf-statement extending across the versos of three consecutive folia referring to the judgments against Judas, Nestorius, Arius, and Eutyches, and then invoking against them the three Councils of Ephesus, Nicaea, and Constantinople (in that order). Finally, it confirms the waqf and warns against removing the volume under threat of the fate of Simon Magus and Diocletian. ff. 313b–314a: a waqf-statement extending across two folia (perhaps an extension of that recorded above) endowing the MS to Dayr al-Suryān.

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–v Numbered folia: ff. 5–330, 330bis, 331–339, 341–408 (= Copt. [5–10], 11–339, 341–401, 403–408, [409]) Backmatter: ff. 409–413 In the left upper corners of the rectos, the Arabic and Coptic cursive foliations match each other until folio 401. One exception is the insertion of a replacement folio in between ff. 169 and 170, which is labeled f. 169bis: there is no Coptic cursive numeration of this folio and therefore the sequence continues in

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

209

sync. Folia 329 and 330 are replacement folia written in a larger script that required two folia to substitute for the missing Copt. 329. Folio 330bis is in fact the original Copt. 330. The same thing happens with ff. 335 and 336, which are replacement folia that substitute for the original Copt. 335, and the sequence resumes with folio 336bis (= Copt. 336). The two systems thus continue to match until the Coptic cursive system skips number 402 near the end of the MS: the original Copt. 402 is missing and the next folio (Copt. 403) is numbered folio 402 in Arabic. After that there is a discrepancy of one between the two foliation systems. There is also a second Arabic foliation in the bottom left corner of the rectos, which starts with f. 12 (= f. 5; Copt. 5). This second Arabic foliation skips over folio 32 (f. 31 = f. 272; f. 33 = f. 282), repeats numbers to account for the first three replacement folia (1652/1652bis = f. 169bis–170; 1662/1662bis = f. 170bis–171; 1672/1672bis = f. 171bis–172), and continues its sequence of numbering through both sets of doubled replacement folia (ff. 329–330, 330bis = ff. 3242–3252, 3362; ff. 335–336, 336bis = ff. 3312–3322, 3332). Thus, this second Arabic foliation ends up being three off from the first Arabic foliation till the end of the MS. The manuscript consists of ten-page quires, which are labeled beginning with the second quire (thāniyah) on f. 11a. This labelling is in evidence up through the forty-first quire (ḥādiyah wa-arba‘ūn) on f. 401a. Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 33.5 × 24.5 cm Area of writing: 28.5 × 19.5, in two columns (each 9 cm wide with a 1.5 cm gap in between). 27 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Black cloth cover with black/dark burgundy faux leather spine and corners. It is well worn at the edges and corners with the inner boards visible at different places. There is complete separation at the spine at the front and back of the MSS (folia i–iv are still connected to the front cover but are separated from folia v and following). Folio v is bent and partially ripped. Folia 169bis, 170bis, and 171bis are replacement pages (on modern lined paper). Folio 349 has two strips of paper glued to the recto and one to the verso with replacement texts. Folio 408 is a replacement

210

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

page. Folio 409 (the first folio in the backmatter) is fully detached. There is evidence for an attempt to restore the folia in the text through use of strips of paper applied to page edges and along the spine, especially in the front and back of the volume. Folia toward the center of the manuscript are in somewhat better shape, although there are still signs of rips/damage and interventions by the restorer. Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ f. 12a: at the end of the Introduction/Table of Contents, the Insertions scribe identifies the Patriarch Gabriel as original translator of the work from Greek to Arabic and a monk named Antiochus (Anṭiyākhūs) of Jerusalem as the collector. The identification of Gabriel reads as follows: ﷽‫والاب انبا غبريال البطريرك رزقنا ا‬ ‫صلاته غير الكلمات الرومية التي كانت‬ ... ‫في هذا الكتاب وكتبها باللغة المتعارفة‬ May God grant recompense to the prayers of [our] Father Anbā Gabriel the Patriarch. He changed [i.e. translated] the Greek words that were in this book and he wrote them in the common language [i.e. Arabic]…”

Readers’ insertions: 1. Marginal comments on the text are written in black and red ink in different hands on various folia throughout the volume. In some cases, these comments are fairly extensive. For selected examples, see ff. 26b, 34b, 56b, 57b, 89a, 156a, 211b, 250b, 325a, 339b, 340b, 349b, 350a, 362b, 370a, 377a, 380b, 391a, 396b, 398b, and 404b. 2. On f. 27b, a marginal note has been written by one or two readers in black and red ink (3 lines and 2 lines respectively). The second line may preserve the name Ezekiel ([Ḥaz]qiyāl). The fourth and fifth lines contain the name Micah the prophet (Ar. Mikhā al-nabi; Copt. ⲙⲓⲭⲉ).

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Cat. No. Contents

211

DS Arabic Ascetic 36 (= MS 189) Old number(s): 93 Lāhūt; 5-ⲕⲝ/173 An Exhortation regarding Religion, Morals, Prayers, and Asceticism in the Form of Questions and Answers, and Containing Letters of the Monastic Brothers Living at the Enaton Monastery 1. An Exhortation collecting various meanings regarding religion, morals in the holy church, the seven prayers, asceticism in the monastic life, and other matters, [in the form of] questions and answers and [containing] letters of the monastic brothers living at the Enaton Monastery (Dayr al-Hābiṭūn): ff. 1a–286b (Copt. 1a–[287b]). ‫موعظة جامعة معاني شتى في الدين الاداب في البيعة المقدسة والصلوات‬ ‫ورساىل الاخوة‬ ‫ومساىل‬ ‫السبعة والنسك في الرهبنة وغير ذلك وهي جواب‬ ٔ ٔ ‫الرهبان المقيمون بدير الهابطون‬

Date, Language, Script, Material

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

The text is not subdivided by subheadings. Date: 15 Ba’ūnah, AM 1458 [= 1742 CE] (f. 1a, 287a). Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with red headings and punctuation/dotting. The scribal hand is medium-to-large in scale, somewhat variable in size, and occasionally cramped in spacing, with overlapping lines. The margins of the text (both vertical and horizontal) are somewhat variable even thought the writing area is consistent in size. Material: Paper. Medium-weight European stock with Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) watermarks in the main folia and backmatter. Frontmatter folia also have watermarks: a “W” is visible on one; and a steeple-shaped image is visible on the other. Scribe: al-qummuṣ Makramallāh (f. 286b). Patron/owner: al-qummuṣ Buṭrus, head of Dayr al-Suryān; al-mu‘allim Ibrāhīm the scribe; and an unnamed qummuṣ (f. 286b). On a small piece of paper glued to the front cover of the manuscript, Ibrāhīm has been identified as the scribe of the MS, but this is probably mistaken, given the contents of the waqf-statement on f. 286b, where his identification as “the scribe” (al-nāsikh) is probably referring more generally to his reputation as a copyist of texts. Restorer: not indicated.

212 Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Tables of contents: none. Colophons: none. Endowments (waqf-statements): f. 1a (Copt. 1a): waqf-statement endowing the MS to the monks at the “Dependency of Dayr al-Suryān in Cairo in the lane of al-Izbakiyyah” (‘alā ruhbān ‘izbat Dayr al-Sayyidah bi-l-Suryān bi-miṣr bi-khaṭṭ al-Izbakiyyah), and supplying the year AM 1458 [= 1741/1742 CE]. f. 286b: endowment to the monks of the dependency (‘izbah) of Dayr al-Suryān in Cairo: ‫هذا الكتاب وقف على رهبان العزبة المعروفة لدير السيدة بالسريان بمصر‬ ‫وذلك على يد كاتبه الحقير الحقير مكرم ا﷽ بالاسم قمص وعلى يد القمص‬ ‫بطرس رايس دير السيدة المذكور وعلى يد الابن المبارك المعلم ابراهيم‬ ‫الناسخ‬ “This book was endowed to the monks at the dependency/estate familiar to the Monastery of the Virgin belonging to the Syrians in Old Cairo. This [was written] by the hand of its poor writer, the poor one honored by God with the name al-qummuṣ, and by the hand of al-qummuṣ Buṭrus, the head of the aforementioned Monastery of the Virgin, and by the hand of the blessed son, al-mu‘allim Ibrāhīm the scribe.”

f. 287a: endowment to the monks of the Dependency (‘izbah) of Dayr al-Suryān in Cairo (using the same language as above; it also provides the date of 15 Ba’ūnah, AM 1458 [= 1742 CE]. Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–ii Numbered folia: ff. 1–287 (= Copt. 1–145, 147–280, [281–288]) Backmatter: ff. 288–290 The Arabic and Coptic cursive foliation corresponds through folio 145. The Coptic cursive numbering then skips 146. Thus, starting with folio 146 (= Copt. 147), the two systems are one off. The Coptic cursive foliation stops at Copt. 280 (= f. 279). At the end of the volume, a parallel system of Arabic foliation continues the Coptic cursive sequence of numbers, and as a result each folio bears two different Arabic numbers, separated by one digit.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

213

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 22.5 × 16 cm Area of writing: 16.5 × 10.5 cm 15 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Red leather cover, soft in texture and considerably worn, with abrasions at the corners and along the edges and spine. There is a rip on the front that has been repaired with stitching. Some separation from the spine is evident inside the front board and between folia 286 and 287, but it has been partially reinforced by stitching.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. Throughout the text there are brief marginal comments by the Insertions scribe, written in black and red ink. 2. On f. 251b, there is a red heading containing the following text: ‫وكان بعد اسلام السيد المسيح له المجد بنفسه‬ “And it happened after Christ the Lord (to him be the glory) relinquished/surrendered his soul.”

Readers’ insertions: 1. Inner front flyleaf: a summarized version of the title/contents is written in blue-black ballpoint pen.

214

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 37 (= MS 190) Old number(s): 2-ⲗⲃ/95

Contents

Collection of Monastic Sayings 1. Sayings and teachings of our holy fathers: Copt. 6a, 9a– 13a. ‫اقوال وتعاليم اباينا القديسين‬ 2. Antony the Great, Rules/Canons and commandments: Copt. 13a–18a. ‫من قوانين ووصايا القديس انطونيوس‬ 3. The Book of Paradise, collected sayings of the holy monks: Copt. 18a–34b. ‫مجموع من كتاب الفردوس اقوال الرهبان القديسين‬ 4. The Garden of the Fathers, book of exercises/devotions: Copt. 35a–97a. ‫كتاب رياضة بستان الابا الرهبان وادابهم وتعليمهم الحسنة‬ 5. [John Saba/]The Spiritual Elder (al-Shaykh al-rūḥānī), Sayings: Copt. 97b–98b.

Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: none indicated. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with red headings and dots/punctuation. The primary hand is small-to-medium in scale, with variations in size and in the boldness of ink strokes. At times, the scribe’s writing seems hurried and less careful. The secondary hand, which has added the additional sayings on folia 97b–98b, is larger and less practiced. Material: Paper. Medium-weight European stock with Tre Lune watermarks in the main text and in the front- and backmatter.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

Scribe: probably a certain Victor (Ar. Buqṭur; Copt. ⲃⲱⲕⲧⲱⲣ), whose name is recorded in relation to one of the colophons (f. 34b). No identification of patron/owner or restorer.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

215

Tables of contents: Inside front board: modern table of contents (fihris), which only generally summarizes the nature of the contents without providing folio numbers. Colophons: f. 34b: after the Book of Paradise, the scribe has requested a prayer for remembrance on the part of his readers. While he remains anonymous in the prayer, below it, he or another reader supplies the name Victor in both Arabic and Coptic: ‫( بقطر‬Buqṭur); ⲃⲱⲕⲧⲱⲣ (Bōktōr). Endowments (waqf-statements): none, apart from the purple stamps of Dayr al-Suryān inside the front and back boards.

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: f. i Numbered folia: Copt. 6, 10–19, [20–21], 22–98 (= ff. [6, 10–20], 21–98) Backmatter: none The Coptic cursive foliation begins with folio 6, skips numbers 7–9, and resumes with folio 10. It is consistent throughout, except for the fact that Copt. [20–21] do not bear numbers. The Arabic foliation only begins on folio 21.

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 16 × 11 cm. Area of writing: 13 × 7.5 cm 12 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Brown leather cover with a layer of brown faux leather around the spine and along the edges. Very worn with perforations and punctures penetrating deep into the inner board. A paper has been glued to the front of the volume with the title written upside down in relation to the contents of the text. It reads: “A collection from the sayings of the fathers” (majmū‘ah min aqwāl al-abā’). There is significant separation along the inner back board and some at the bottom of the spine between Copt. 11 and 12. In general, the folia are in fair shape, but the edges of the first several folia are ragged. Copt. 12 has a rip at the bottom. There are signs of water damage on the bottom of some leaves. At one

216

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

point, Copt. 93–98 became detached and were reattached by the application of brown tape between Copt. 92 and 93 and between Copt. 97 and 98. Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. On f. 34b, below the colophon/prayer, the scribe (or Insertions alternatively, another reader) supplies the name Victor in both Arabic and Coptic: ‫( بقطر‬Buqṭur); ⲃⲱⲕⲧⲱⲣ (Bōktōr). Readers’ insertions: 1. f. ia: The recto of this folio contains writing by at least three readers’ hands. One hand was practicing the writing of Coptic cursive numerals. Another wrote two prayers/ blessings to the Trinity. Another just scribbled on the page. 2. f. ib: The verso of this folio features at least five readers’ hands, who pen prayers of remembrance or of praise. One of them, in addition to writing a prayer praising Jesus, draws two strange figures with big eyes, resembling wingless owls. Another writes two phrases: “maymar on the brothers” (maymar ‘alā al-ikhwah) and “maymar on the novice brothers” (maymar ‘alā al-ikhwah al-mubtada’īn). 3. On f. 34b, if not written by the scribe, the name Victor written in both Coptic and Arabic below the scribal colophon/prayer may have been written by a later reader (see also under “Scribal practice” above). 4. f. 97a: at the end of the Garden of the Fathers, a reader has written the phrase, “forever, amen” (abadan amīn).

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 38 (= MS 191) Old number(s): 41 Muqaddasah

Contents

Gospel of John and Sayings of the Monastic Fathers

217

1. Gospel of John: ff. 2a–3b, 5a–76b. ‫بشارة يوحنا‬ The text is incomplete, ending at John 21:23a (“yet Jesus did not say that he would not die, but…”). [2. Lives and Sayings/Discourse of the Monastic Fathers: ff. 12a– 632a.] a. Lives of the Holy Fathers: ff. 12a–32b. ‫سير الأبهات القديسين‬ b. Sayings/Discourse of the Holy Elder Fathers: ff. 42a–632a. ‫كلام الإباء القديسين الشيوخ‬ ff. 52b–7a2: Pachomius, Saying(s) on speech (al-kalām). ff. 72a–112b: Stephen of the Thebaid, Saying(s). ff. 112b–122a: Ananias (Anāniyyah), Saying(s). ff. 122a–172b: Saying(s) of some fathers. ff. 172b–282b: Antony the Great, Saying(s) and stories. ff. 282b–462b: Arsenius (Arsāniyūs), Saying(s). ff. 462b–632a: Macarius the Great, Saying(s). Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: none indicated. Language and script: Arabic. There are three hands in evidence. In the first half of the manuscript (the Gospel of John), the scribal hand is of medium-to-large scale with a fair amount of variation in size, thinness/thickness, and boldness of the script, which is rendered in black ink with headings in red. Most of the second half of the manuscript contains a medium-to-large scale script with much thicker and less practiced strokes in darker black ink, with some headings and punctuation dots in red. However, at folio 612a and continuing through folio 632a, the script becomes smaller with thinner, less bold strokes, probably a third hand. Material: Paper. Medium-weight European stock with probable traces of the Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) watermark. The first five and last five folia in the front- and backmatter

218

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

(ff. i–v, 692–732) bear traces of a watermark that appears to be the corner of a shield (associated with the man-in-the-moon image). Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: Inside front board: modern table of contents in black ballpoint pen. Colophons: none. Endowments (waqf-statements): f. 632b: endowment to the church (al-bī‘ah) at Dayr al-Suryān, invoking the fellowship of John Kame and Macarius [the Great], with warnings against taking the volume out of the monastery invoking the fates of Simon Magus, Diocletian, and Judas Iscariot.

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–v Numbered folia: ff. 2–3, 5–77, 12–632 (= Copt. 3–77, 12–632) Backmatter: ff. 64–73 Folia i and 73 consist of blue sheets of paper. Folio 77 is blank. The second half of the manuscript begins with a new foliation system. In the first half of the manuscript, the quires are not labeled. In the second half, the first five ten-folio quires are labeled on the recto of the first folio in each quire (f. 12a, 112a, 212a, 312a, 412a, 512a).

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 15.5 × 10.5 cm Area of writing: 12 × 7.5 cm (both halves) 12 lines/page (both halves)

Cover, Condition

Black cloth cover with dark burgundy faux-leather corners and spine, with mild abrasions at the corners. The binding and pages of the MS are in good shape, although some leaves have discolorations associated with water damage.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ Readers’ insertions: Insertions

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

219

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 39 (= MS 192) Old number: 28 Lāhūt

Contents

[Diego d’Estella Scala (= Didacus Stella),] Book on the Vanities of the World (Kitāb abāṭīl al-‘ālam), Part One 1. [Diego d’Estella Scala (= Didacus Stella),] Book on the Vanities of the World (Kitāb abāṭīl al-‘ālam), Part One: 1a–248a. ‫كتاب اباطيل العالم‬ See Graf, GCAL IV: 184. This is a translation of Part 1 of Vanidad del Mundo by the Spanish Franciscan mystic Diego de Estella (Didacus Stella, 1524–1578), translated by Raphael Ventayol (active in the Holy Land from 1710). Graf notes a Copto-Arabic copy of this first part: Cairo 320 (1759 CE). The entire four-volume work was published by Dayr al-Shuwayr in 1739/40 and in Jerusalem in 1860, under the title, Iḥtiqār abāṭīl al-‘ālam (“Scorn for the Vanities of the World”). 100 chapters. Chapter 1, That we must detest the vanities of the world, in order to attain God and be victorious in Him: ff. 1a–3a. ‫في انه ينبغي لنا احتقار اباطيل العالم لكيما يقتني ا﷽ ونفوز به‬ Chapter 2, On the peace and rest of the heart: ff. 3a–5b. ‫في سلامة القلب وراحته‬ Chapter 3, That the Life of Jesus Christ profoundly elucidates the vanities of the world: ff. 5b–8a. ‫في ان حيوت سيدنا يسوع المسيح توضح اباطيل العالم بابلغ بيان‬ Chapter 4, Explaining vanity, that it contains matters of the world: ff. 8a–9b. ‫الكاىنة فيه امور العالم‬ ‫في بيان الباطل‬ ٔ Chapter 5, On disdain and scorn for the world: ff. 10a–13b. ‫في احتقار الدنيا والتهاون بها‬ Chapter 6, On the consequences of matters of the world: ff. 13b–15b. ‫في عاقبة امور العالم‬ Chapter 7, Reflection on the consequences of vain, worldly matters, and a warning (?) against them: ff. 15b–18a. ‫في تامل عاقبة الامور العالميه الباطلة والهديد بها‬

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Chapter 8, On the vanities of people’s talk and conversation: ff. 18a–20a. ‫في اباطيل كلام الناس واحاديثهم‬ Chapter 9, On making light of what people say, and giving little attention to it: ff. 20a–21b. ‫في الاستخفاف باقوال الناس وقلت الالتفات اليها‬ Chapter 10, On the vanities of those who plot against and disparage the elect: ff. 21b–24a. ‫في اباطيل الدين يمحلون بالاخيار ويدمونهم‬ Chapter 11, On the vanities of those who stray from goodness because of the sayings of the world: ff. 24a–26b. ‫في اباطيل المتحرفين )؟( عن الخير من اجل اقاويل العالم‬ Chapter 12, On the vanities of those who make light of their reputation and honor: ff. 26b–29b. ‫في اباطيل الذين يتهاونون بصيتهم واعراضهم‬ Chapter 13, On the vanities of those who pride themselves on the evil and the bad things they do: ff. 29b–31b. ‫في اباطيل الذين يتباهون بالشرور والاسواء التي يفعلونها‬ Chapter 14, On the vanities of judging people: ff. 31b–35a. ‫في اباطيل دينونة الناس‬ Chapter 15, On the vanities of human companionship: ff. 35a–38a. ‫في اباطيل الصحبة الانسانية‬ Chapter 16, On true friendship: ff. 38a–40b. ‫في الصداقة الحقيقية‬ Chapter 17, On the vanities of the praises of people: ff. 40b–42b. ‫مداىح الناس‬ ‫في اباطيل‬ ٔ Chapter 18, On vainglory: ff. 42b–45a. ‫في المجد الباطل‬ Chapter 19, On detesting vainglory: ff. 45a–47a. ‫في احتقار المجد الباطل‬ Chapter 20, On the censure of self-praise: ff. 47a–50a. ‫في تبكيت الذين يمتدحون انفمهم بدواتهم‬

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221

Chapter 21, On the vanities of those who aspire to gratify people: ff. 50a–52b. ‫في اباطيل الذين يتوخون مرضات الناس‬ Chapter 22, On those who make justifications for their sins: ff. 52b–54b. ‫في الذين يتعللون لخطاياهم‬ Chapter 23, On the vanities of those who seek to be great and honored in this world: ff. 54b–57a. ‫في اباطيل الذين يطلبون ان يكونوا عظماء واشرا ًفا في هذه الدنيا‬ Chapter 24, On the vanities of dominion in the world: ff. 57a–59b. ‫في اباطيل سلطنة العالم‬ Chapter 25, On the vanities of those who seek positions of dignity and leadership: ff. 59b–63a. ‫في اباطيل الذين يطلبون المناصب والرئاسات‬ Chapter 26, On the patterns and models of people in leadership: ff. 63b–66b. ‫في نموذجات الرؤسا ومتالاتهم‬ Chapter 27, On the necessary attributes of people in leadership: ff. 66b–69a. ‫في اللوازم المنسوبة للرؤساء‬ Chapter 28, On the vanities of those who are at ease, yearning for the greatness and authority of the world: ff. 69a–72a. ‫في اباطيل الذين يرتاحون شو ًقا الى عظمة الدنيا وساطنتها‬ Chapter 29, On the vanities of those who put their trust in themselves: ff. 72a–74a. ‫في اباطيل الذين يتوكلون على انفسهم‬ Chapter 30, On the vanities of those who take pride in their learning: ff. 74a–77a. ‫في اباطيل الذين يفتخرون بعلمهم‬ Chapter 31, On the necessity that those who teach others yoke their learning to a good way of life: ff. 77a–80a. ‫في انه ينبغي للذين يعلمون غيرهم ان يقرنوا العلم بالسيرة الصالحة‬

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S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Chapter 32, On the vanities of those who take pride in their power and strength of fortitude: ff. 80a–82b. ‫في اباطيل الذين يتباهون بقوتهم وشدت بأسهم‬ Chapter 33, On the vanities of those who seek revenge and to take vengeance for offences: ff. 82b–84b. ‫في اباطيل الذين يطلبون الانتقام واخد التار عن الاسايا‬ Chapter 34, On the necessity for us to pardon offenses and shortcomings: ff. 84b–87a. ‫في انه ينبغي لنا ان نصفح عن الاسا والمتالب‬ Chapter 35, On lofty edifices and imposing palaces: ff. 87a–90a. ‫في البنايات الشامخة والقصور المشيدة‬ Chapter 36, On the vanities of those who seek a lasting reputation in the world: ff. 90a–92a. ‫في اباطيل الدين يطلبون دوام الذكر في الدنيا‬ Chapter 37, On the estrangement/exile of this world: ff. 92a–94b. ‫في غربة هذه الدنيا‬ Chapter 38, On the vanities of bodily beauty and attractiveness: ff. 94b–96b. ‫في اباطيل حسن الجسد وجماله‬ Chapter 39, Explaining the nobility of true beauty: ff. 96b–99a. ‫في بيان شرف الجمال الحقيقي‬ Chapter 40, Explaining the vanities of the adornment of sumptuous clothing: ff. 99a–101b. ‫في بيان اباطيل زينة التياب الفاخرة‬ Chapter 41, Explaining the vanities of nobility of lineage: ff. 101b–104b. ‫في بيان اباطيل شرف الجنس‬ Chapter 42, Explaining the true nobility: ff. 105a–107b. ‫في بيان الشرف الحقيقي‬ Chapter 43, Explaining the vanities of worldly wealth: ff. 108a–109b. ‫في بيان اباطيل الغني العالمي‬

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ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Chapter 44, Explaining the worthlessness of transient wealth: ff. 109b–112b. ‫في بيان عدم قيمة الغني الزمني‬ Chapter 45, Explaining the poverty of earthly wealth: ff. 112b–114a. ‫في بيان فقر الغني الارضي‬ Chapter 46, Explaining the love of the vanities of earthly wealth: ff. 114a–117a. ‫في بيان محبة اباطيل الغني الارضي‬ Chapter 47, On the harms produced by the possession of earthly wealth: ff. 117a–119b. ‫في الضرر الذي ينشيه امتلاك الغني الارضي‬ Chapter 48, On the virtue of contempt for earthly wealth: ff. 119b–122a. ‫في فضيلة احتقار الغين الارضي‬ Chapter 49, On the vanities of those who store up treasures in this world: ff. 122a–125a. ‫كنوزا في هذا العالم‬ ‫في اباطيل الذين يكنزون‬ ً Chapter 50, On how it is necessary for us to store up treasure in heaven: ff. 125a–127b. ‫في كيف ينبغي لنا ان نكنز في السماء‬ Chapter 51, Explaining the nobility of the virtue of almsgiving (al-ṣadaqah): ff. 127b–131a. ‫في بيان شرف فضيلة الصدقة‬ Chapter 52, On the vanities of those who examine the condition of the poor person in order to give alms: ff. 131a–133b. ‫في اباطيل الذين يتفحصون عن حال الفقير لاجل اعطاء الصدقه‬ Chapter 53, On the vanities of those who present the wretched from requesting alms: ff. 133b–135b. ‫في اباطيل الذين يمنعون المساكين عن التماس الصدقة‬ Chapter 54, On the vanities of those who spend more than they possess: ff. 135b–139b. ‫في اباطيل الذين ينفقون اكثر مما يملكون‬

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Chapter 55, Explaining the vanities of the pride and splendor of the world: ff. 139b–142a. ‫في بيان اباطيل عظمة العالم وبهائه‬ Chapter 56, Explaining the vanities of the world’s merriment and songstresses: ff. 142a–144b. ‫في بيان اباطيل فرح العالم ومطرباته‬ Chapter 57, Explaining that in which it is necessary for a human being to rejoice: ff. 144b–146b. ‫في بيان الشي الذى ينبغي للانسان ان يفرح به‬ Chapter 58, On the vanities of worldly laughter: ff. 146b–149a. ‫في اباطيل الضحك الدنيوي‬ Chapter 59, Explaining the virtue of weeping and praiseworthy remorse: ff. 149a–151b. ‫في بيان فضيلة البكاء والندامة الحميدة‬ Chapter 60, That tears wash away offenses and purify sins: ff. 151b–154a. ‫في ان الدموع تغسل الاثام وتنقي الخطايا‬ Chapter 61, That the sorrows of the righteous lead to rejoicing and gladness: ff. 154a–156a. ‫في ان احزان الصديقين تؤول الى افراح ومسرات‬ Chapter 62, Explaining the vanities of worldly delights: ff. 156a–159a. ‫في بيان اباطيل اللذات الدنيوية‬ Chapter 63, Explaining the vanities of banquets, worldly invitations, amusement, and entertainment: ff. 159a–161b. ‫في بيان اباطيل الولائم والدعوات العالمية واللهو والطرب‬ Chapter 64, Explaining the harm resulting from excess in eating and drinking: ff. 161b–164a. ‫في بيان الضرر الناتج من التفريط في الاكل والشرب‬ Chapter 65, Contains a censure of the vanities of dance, entertainment, and worldly places of amusement: ff. 164a–166a. ‫يشتمل على دم اباطيل الزفن والطرب والملاهي العالمية‬

225

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Chapter 66, On avoiding worldly songs and pieces of music: ff. 166a–168a. ‫في اجتناب الاغاني والموسيقات الدنيوية‬ Chapter 67, Includes the benefit of spiritual hymns and songs: ff. 168a–170a. ‫يتضمن فضل التسابيح والنشائد الروحية‬ Chapter 68, On the vanities of unclean worldly books: ff. 170a–172a. ‫في اباطيل الكتب الدنيوية النجس‬ Chapter 69, Explaining the benefit of reading the scriptures: ff. 172a–174a. ‫في بيان منفعة قرات الكتب المقدسة‬ Chapter 70, Explaining the vanities of worldly honors and those who bestow them: ff. 174b–176b. ‫في بيان اباطيل الكراماة العالمية ومعاطيها‬ Chapter 71, Explaining the dangers of worldly honors and those who bestow them: ff. 176b–179a. [‫ ومعاطيها‬:‫في بيان اخطار الكرامات العالمية ومعاطيها ]لازم‬ Chapter 72, Explaining the brevity of worldly honors: ff. 179a–182a. ‫في بيان قصر الكرامات العالمية‬ Chapter 73, On how we acquire honor in this world and in heaven: ff. 182a–184a. ‫في انه كيف تقتني الكرامة في هذه الدنيا وفي السماء‬ Chapter 74, Explaining the vanities of those who seek stability in their social status by associating with evil people and showing them preference: ff. 184a–187a. ‫في بيان اباطيل الذين يقصدون الثبات في درجاتهم بجايتهم الاشرار والتفضل‬ ‫عليه‬ Chapter 75, Explaining the vanity of those who seek to make themselves masters of others and who oppress their neighbor: ff. 187a–188b. ‫في بيان اباطيل الذين يبتغون الاستيلا على غيرهم ويظلمون قريبهم‬

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S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Chapter 76, Contains the explanation of the vanities of success and a good condition in the world: ff. 188b–190b. ‫يشتمل على بيان اباطيل نجاح الدنيا وحسن حالها‬ Chapter 77, Explaining the benefit arising from exile and abasement: ff. 190b–193a. ‫في بيان المنفعة الحاصلة من الطرد والهوان‬ Chapter 78, Explaining the vanities of human favors and gifts: ff. 193a–195b. ‫في بيان اباطيل النعم والهبات الانسانية‬ Chapter 79, Explaining the benefit of misfortunes and calamities: ff. 195b–198a. ‫في بيان المنفعة من المصايب والشدائد‬ Chapter 80, Explaining the benefit coming from bodily illnesses and diseases: ff. 198a–201a. ‫في بيان المنفعة الصادرة من العلل والامراض الجسدية‬ Chapter 81, Explaining the way in which we should cure bodily diseases and illnesses: ff. 201a–203b. ‫في بيان باي نوع ينبغي لنا ان نشفي الامراض والاوصاب الجسمية‬ Chapter 82, That God disciplines those he loves: ff. 203b–206b. ‫في ان ا﷽ تعالى يؤدب من يحبه‬ Chapter 83, That the Creator strengthens those he disciplines: ff. 206b–209a. ‫في ان البارئ تعالي يعزي الذين يؤدبهم‬ Chapter 84, Explaining the concern of the people of the world, and their vain desire: ff. 209a–211b. ‫في بيان اهتمام اهل العالم وحرصهم الباطل‬ Chapter 85, Explaining the ignorance of worldly wisdom, and its vanities: ff. 211b–213b. ‫في بيان جهالة الحكمة العالمية واباطيلها‬ Chapter 86, Elucidating the exaltedness and sublimity of the wisdom of Our Lord Jesus Christ: ff. 213b–215b. ‫في ايضاح علو حكمة سيدنا يسوع المسيح وشرفها‬

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227

Chapter 87, On how it is necessary for us to seek the true wisdom: ff. 215b–217a. ‫في انه كيف ينبغي لنا ان نطلب الحكمة الحقيقية‬ Chapter 88, On the vanities of those who mourn excessively at the death of one of the people of virtue: ff. 217a–220b. ‫في اباطيل الذين يحزنون حزنًا زايدً ا على موت اهل الفضيلة‬ Chapter 89, Explaining the vanities of imposing tombs and elevated funeral thrones in the world: ff. 220b–223b. ‫في بيان اباطيل فخامة القبور واسرة التنجيز وشرفها في الدنيا‬ Chapter 90, Contains the mention of the vanities of those who desire an extended life and long lifespan: ff. 223b–226b. ‫يشتمل على ذكر ابانطيل الذين يشتهون الحيوة المديدة والعمر الطويل‬ Chapter 91, Explaining the brevity of human life: ff. 226b–229a. ‫في بيان قصر حيوت الانسان‬ Chapter 92, Explaining the cause but not its solution (Did God will that our life be short?): ff. 229a–231a. ‫في بيان العلة التي لا حلها اراد ا﷽ سبحانه ان تكون حياتنا قصيرة‬ Chapter 93, Explaining the dangers coming upon human life in this world: ff. 231a–233a. ‫في بيان الاخطار العارضة لحيوت الانسان في هذه الدنيا‬ Chapter 94, That the remembrance of death detaches a person from the vanities of the world: ff. 233a–235a. ‫في ان ذكر الموت يزهد الانسان في اباطيل العالم‬ Chapter 95, That reflection and contemplation on the Mother of Christ detaches us from the vanities of the world: ff. 235a–236b. ‫في ان التأمل والهذيذ في الام المسيح يزهدنا في اباطيل العالم‬ Chapter 96, On the censure of those who put off repentance to another time; the greatness of their ignorance: ff. 236b–239a. ‫في دم الذين يؤخرون توبتهم الى زمان وكترت جهلهم‬ Chapter 97, That it is necessary for us to hasten to repentance with the greatest eagerness: ff. 239a–242a. ‫في انه ينبغي لنا ان نسارع الى التوبة باوفر نشاط‬

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Chapter 98, Explaining the virtue of repentance: ff. 242a–244a. ‫في بيان فضيلة التوبة‬ Chapter 99, Explaining that repentance at the time of death usually avails nothing: ff. 244a–246b. ‫شيا‬ ‫في بيان ان التوبة وقت الموت‬ ً ‫غالبا لا تفيد‬ ً Chapter 100, Explaining the hope of the people of [this] vain world: ff. 246b–248a. ‫في بيان رجاء اهل العالم الباطل‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: no date indicated, but before 1886 CE (f. 248b). Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with red ink used for titles and subtitles, as well as for pause dots. The hand is characterized by a reasonably clear naskhī script, of medium scale, neatly written on ruled paper, following straight lines and margins. The lettering is rendered with fairly thick lines, especially on horizontal strokes. Teeth are sometimes quite small (and occasionally omitted or added unnecessarily). Letters with small loops tend to have those loops filled in (especially fāʼ, qāf, mīm). Some letters are quite distinctive (or perhaps, characteristic of the monastery’s nineteenth-century hands): e.g., the narrow and deep fishhook-shaped final lām, and the median or final kāf with a short diagonal stroke followed by a long, narrow rectangle open to the left. The scribe regularly places a fatḥa-like sign over letters such as ḥāʼ, ṣād, ṭaʼ, ‘ayn to indicate the absence of a dot, and a pair of lines over sīn to distinguish it from shīn. Material: Paper. European stock with two different watermarks: Tre Lune (triple crescent moon), and a crown on a shield bearing three stars (two five-pointed stars over a six-pointed one).

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: none

Patron/owner: al-qummuṣ Mīkhā’īl al-Munyataynī (f. 248b).

Colophons: none Endowments (waqf-statements): ff. ia and 1a (upper margin): two brief waqf-statements endowing the MS to Dayr al-Suryān (Dayr al-Sayyidah bi-l-Suryān).

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

229

ff. 1a, 92b, and 197b: old blue-green waqf stamps related to Dayr al-Suryān. f. 248b: a waqf-statement indicating that the manuscript was the property of al-qummuṣ Mīkhā’īl al-Munyataynī. He endows it “from now” (min al-ān) to Dayr al-Suryān (Dayr al-Sayyidah bi-l-Suryān) and warns that anyone who removes the book (or the statement of waqf) will be excommunicated by God, by qummuṣ Mīkhā’īl himself, and by al-qiss Ghubriyāl al-Fashnī, known as Shārūnī. The notice is dated 19 Bashans, AM 1602 [= 1886 CE]. Underneath this there are several library stamps: the old blue-green waqf stamp and (twice) the modern blue library stamp. Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–vii Numbered folia: ff. 1–248 Backmatter: ff. 249–251 The manuscript consists of quinions: the first has had leaves removed in the front matter, but the remaining 25 quires (ff. 1–248, 249–250) are preserved intact.

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 31.5 × 23.5 cm Area of writing: 24.5 × 15.5–16 cm 21 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Red leather cover on pasteboard, decorated on front and back with a tooled rectangular frame with diagonal lines. Cruciform floral stamps fill the space created by the parallel lines of the frame, while in the center, the four areas created by the diagonal lines each contain groups of four stamps in a cross pattern, the four groups in turn creating a cross-shaped pattern at the center of the cover. On the back cover there is also a stamp at the intersection of the diagonal lines. This cover is now worn at the edges. The modern Le Sphinx sticker on the spine identifies the volume; an older sticker in the upper area of the front cover also gives identifying information, as well as the old library number. The text block is in good condition, although the binding is weak in places. Several quires beginning from f. 161 have pulled away from the back cover.

230

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. References to biblical texts in the volume were originally Insertions written in black Arabic numerals, but the scribe later went back and spelled out many of these numerals in red ink. 2. The title page (f. 1a) has an ornamental headpiece in dark red and yellow: the Christian bismillāh is contained in a frame with a pattern of links above the calligraphy and a woven pattern underneath. The rectangular panel then has fleur-delis patterns at the corner and on top, as well as two birds on either side of a central fleur-de-lis. Readers’ insertions: 1. Folio ia has several notes written on it, as well as two brief waqf-statements (see above) and some readers’ notes. The most extensive is written by the monk Mūsā al-Suryānī, who expresses his appreciation for the book.

231

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 40 (= MS 193) Old number: 29 Lāhūt

Contents

[Diego d’Estella Scala (= Didacus Stella),] Book on the Vanities of the World (Kitāb abāṭīl al-‘ālam), Part Two 1. [Diego d’Estella Scala (= Didacus Stella),] Book on the Vanities of the World (Kitāb abāṭīl al-‘ālam), Part Two. Copt. 4a–269b (Copt.) (= 6 unpaginated pages; pp. 1–519). ‫الجزو الثانى المشتمل على الزهد فى الاباطيل العالمية يبين شجايا العالم‬ ‫وعشوشة وهو مائة فصل‬ Full Title: “Part Two, comprised of [a treatise] On Ascetic Renunication of Worldly Vanities, which makes plain the griefs of the world and its deceits. 100 chapters (faṣl).” 100 chapters. Chapter 1, On the natures and conditions of the world: Copt. 7a–8b (= pp. 1–4). ‫في كيفيات الدنيا واحوالها‬ Chapter 2, On explaining the deception of this world and his ambushes: Copt. 8b–11a (= pp. 4–9). ‫في بيان غرور هذه الدنيا ومكامنها‬ Chapter 3, On the trickery and slander/untruthfulness that exists in the world: Copt. 11a–12b (= pp. 9–12). ‫في المكر والبهتان الموجود في العالم‬ Chapter 4, On the false promises of the world: Copt. 12b– 14b (= pp. 12–16). ‫في مواعيد الدنيا الكاذبة‬ Chapter 5, On the fact that the Creator (may he be exalted) grants more than he promises: Copt. 14b–16b (= pp. 16–20). ‫في ان البارئ تعالى يعطي اكثر مما يوعد به‬ Chapter 6, On association with the world and its snares: Copt. 16b–19a (= pp. 20–25). ‫في بيان اشراك الدنيا وفخاخها‬ Chapter 7, On the vicissitudes of the world and its lack of permanence: Copt. 19a–21b (= pp. 25–30). ‫في تقلبات الدنيا وعدم ثباتها‬

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Chapter 8, On the swiftness of the passing away of the world and its influence: Copt. 21b–23a (= pp. 30–33). ‫في سرعة مرور الدنيا ونفوذها‬ Chapter 9, On the fact that the world forgets those things that belong it (or, “its characteristics”) and those who love it: Copt. 23a–26a (= pp. 33–39). ‫في انّ الدنيا تنسا خواصها ومحبيها‬ Chapter 10, On the fact that the world does not know its friends and those who belong to it (or, “its characteristics”): Copt. 26a–27b (= pp. 39–42). ‫في ان الدنيا لا تعرف اصدقاها وخواصها‬ Chapter 11, On the swiftness of the world’s rejection of those who belong to it and [the swiftness of] its repudiation of them: Copt. 27b–30a (= pp. 42–47). ‫في سرعة رفض الدنيا لخواصها واطراحها اياهم‬ Chapter 12, On the fact that the world follows the powerful one who possesses victory: Copt. 30a–32a (= pp. 47–51). ‫في ان الدنيا تتبع القوي ذا الغلبة‬ Chapter 13, On the fact that God (may he be exalted) sees the poor and the wretched: Copt. 32a–35a (= pp. 51–57). ‫في ان ا﷽ تعالى يعين المساكين والبائسين‬ Chapter 14, On explaining the removal of the yoke of the world and its difficulty: Copt. 35a–38a (= pp. 57–63). ‫في بيان تقل نير الدنيا وصعوبته‬ Chapter 15, On the sweetness of Christ’s yoke for a tranquil period of time: Copt. 38a–40b (= pp. 63–68). ‫في حلاوة نير المسيح ولمدة نعيمة‬ Chapter 16, On the pains and hardships that the world brings upon those who love it: Copt. 40b–42b (= pp. 68–72). ‫في الالام والمشقات التي تجلبها الدنيا على محبيها‬ Chapter 17, On the harms/disadvantages that the world brings upon our souls: Copt. 42b–45a (= pp. 72–77). ‫في المضرات التي تجلبها الدنيا لنفوسنا‬

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Chapter 18, Including the harms/disadvantages that the world brings upon the body: Copt. 45a–47a (= pp. 77–81). ‫تشتمل على المضرات التي تجلبها الدنيا للجسد‬ Chapter 19, On the fact that the world locks the doors on the inspiration of the Creator (great and exalted be he): Copt. 47a–49b (= pp. 81–86). ‫في ان الدنيا تغلق الابواب عن الهام البارئ عز وجل‬ Chapter 20, On the fact that the world does not cease persecuting the best and most excellent people: Copt. 49b–52a (= pp. 86–91). ‫في ان الدنيا لم تزل تضطهد اخيار الناس وافاضلهم‬ Chapter 21, On the fact that the world destroys itself through its persecution of the righteous: Copt. 52a–54a (= pp. 91–95). ‫في ان الدنيا تهدم ذاتها باضطهادها الصالحين‬ Chapter 22, On explaining the good that our persecutors do to us: Copt. 54a–56a (= pp. 95–99). ‫في بيان الخير الذى يفعله بنا مضطهدونا‬ Chapter 23, On patience and endurance in the face of hardships and tribulation: Copt. 56a–59a (= pp. 99–105). ‫في الصبر والتجلد على الشدائد والمحن‬ Chapter 24, On the fact that the world sets us at a far distance from God: Copt. 59b–62a (= pp. 106–111). ‫في ان الدنيا تبعدنا من ا﷽ بعد‬ Chapter 25, On the fact that the world causes the Creator to be exiled from us and rebels against him with respect to our souls: Copt. 62a–64b (= pp. 111–116). ‫في ان الدنيا تهزم البارئ عنا وتعصيه من نفوسنا‬ Chapter 26, Explaining that the greatest thing that God hates is sin, and he despises it: Copt. 64b–64bisa–b, 65a–b (= pp. 116–120). ‫يبين ما اكثر ما يبغض ا﷽ الخطية ويشنأها‬ Chapter 27, Including the misery of the world and its vileness: Copt. 65b–67b (= pp. 120–124). ‫يشتمل على شقوة الدنيا ودناتها‬

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Chapter 28, On the fact that you should not fear the world at all: Copt. 67b–69b, 71a (= pp. 124–129). ‫في انه لا ينبغى ان تتق بالدنيا البتة‬ Chapter 29, On explaining the weakness of the world and its lack of power: Copt. 71a–73a (= pp. 129–133). ‫في بيان ضعف الدنيا وعدم قواها‬ Chapter 30, On explaining the weakness of the power of those who love the world and their cowardice: Copt. 73a–75b (= pp. 133–138). ‫في بيان ضعف قوى محبي العالم وجبانتهم‬ Chapter 31, On the bravery of those who resist and the strength of their courage: Copt. 75b–79a (= pp. 138–145). ‫في بيان شجاعة الصديدين وشدة باسهم‬ Chapter 32, On defining the essence of the world: Copt. 79a– 81b (= pp. 145–150). ‫في تعريف ماهية الدنيا‬ Chapter 33, On explaining the weights and measures of the world: Copt. 82a–84b (= pp. 151–156). ‫في بيان اوزان العالم وموازينه‬ Chapter 34, On worldly fanaticisms/bigotries and schisms: Copt. 84b–87a (= pp. 156–161). ‫في التعصبات الدنياوية والاشتقاقات‬ Chapter 35, On explaining the good that derives from integrity and agreement: Copt. 87a–89b (= pp. 161–166). ‫في بيان الخير الناجم من السلامة والاتفاق‬ Chapter 36, On the fact that the Creator (may he be exalted) loves integrity and agreement in the extreme: Copt. 89b–92a (= pp. 166–171). ‫في ان البارئ تعالى يحب السلامة والاتفاق فى الغاية القصوى‬ Chapter 37, On explaining the first and last worldly matters: Copt. 92a–94a (= pp. 171–175). ‫في بيان اوائل الامور العالمية واواخرها‬ Chapter 38, On the fact that between God and the world is a great difference and heterogeneity: Copt. 94a–97a (= pp. 175–181). ‫في ان بين ا﷽ والعالم اختلاف عظيم وتغاير‬

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235

Chapter 39, On explaining the essence of love of the world: Copt. 97a–99b (= pp. 181–182, 182bis, 182ter, 183–184). ‫في بيان ماهية محبة العالم‬ Chapter 40, On the removal and separation of creatures: Copt. 99b–101a (= pp. 184–187). ‫في الابعاد عن المخلوقات والانفصال عنها‬ Chapter 41, On how we should die to the world: Copt. 101a–103b (= pp. 187–192). ‫في انه كيف ينبغي لنا ان نموة ]لازم نموت[ عن العالم‬ Chapter 42, On the danger in which the people of the world live: Copt. 103b–106b (= pp. 192–198). ‫في بيان الخطر العايش فيه اهل العالم‬ Chapter 43, On the negligence and neglect in which the people of the world live: Copt. 106b–109a (= pp. 198–203). ‫في التواني والتغافل العايش فيه اهل العالم‬ Chapter 44, On explaining the concern and aspiration of the righteous and the ardor of their struggle: Copt. 109a–111b (= pp. 203–208). ‫في بيان اهتمام الصديقين وحرصهم وحرارة اجتهادهم‬ Chapter 45, On the fact that worldly matters are not our defining attribute nor what specially pertains to us: Copt. 111b–113b (= pp. 208–212). ‫ سيمائنا؟[ ولا مختصة بنا‬:‫في ان الامور العالمية ليسة من سيمنا ]لازم‬ Chapter 46, On explaining the hypocrisy and deceitfulness of the people of the world: Copt. 113b–117b (= pp. 212–220). ‫في بيان رياء اهل العالم ومكرهم‬ Chapter 47, On the dissimulating/false slumbers of the people of the world: Copt. 117b–120a (= pp. 220–225). ‫في منامات اهل العالم الغاشة‬ Chapter 48, On the disobedience of the people of the world: Copt. 120a–122b (= pp. 225–230). ‫في بيان عصيان اهل العالم‬ Chapter 49, On the unseemly enslavement of the people of the world: Copt. 122b–125a (= pp. 230–235). ‫في بيان عبودية اهل العالم الغير لائقة‬

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Chapter 50, On the fact that we should seek help with God, and not with the world, in the circumstance of our hardships: Copt. 125a–127b (= pp. 235–240). ‫في انه ينبغي لنا ان نستعين با﷽ فى حال شدايدنا لا بالدنيا‬ Chapter 51, On censuring the hate, rage, and anger which is [found] among the people of the world: Copt. 127b–129b (= pp. 240–244). ‫في ذم البغضة والحنق والغضب الذي بين اهل العالم‬ Chapter 52, On explaining the power of patience and its virtue: Copt. 129b–133a (= pp. 244–251). ‫في بيان قوة الصبر وفضيلته‬ Chapter 53, On the fact that the people of the world complain in/among themselves out of envy toward the goodness of others: Copt. 133a–135b (= pp. 251–256). ‫في ان اهل العالم يتألمون في ذواتهم حسد لخير غيرهم‬ Chapter 54, On explaining the lack of provisions belonging to the people of the world: Copt. 136a–139a (= pp. 257– 263). ‫في بيان عدم موافات اهل العالم‬ Chapter 55, On explaining the provisions of the righteous and their thankfulness for gracious benefits: Copt. 139a–142a (= pp. 263–269). ‫في بيان موافات الصديقين وشكرهم على النعم‬ Chapter 56, On explaining the confusion of the world and its lack of order: Copt. 142a–144b (= pp. 269–274). ‫في بيان اختلاط الدنيا وعدم ترتيبها‬ Chapter 57, On explaining the ignorance and madness of the people of the world: Copt. 144b–146b (= pp. 274–278). ‫في بيان جهل اهل العالم وجنونهم‬ Chapter 58, On explaining the lies and murders of the world: Copt. 146b–148b (= pp. 278–282). ‫في بيان اكاذيب العالم واغتيالاته‬ Chapter 59, On explaining the nobility and esteem of the truth: Copt. 148b–151b (= pp. 282–288). ‫في بيان شرف الحق وتفضيله‬

237

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Chapter 60, Explaining that the people of world hate the truth: Copt. 151b–154a (= pp. 288–293). ‫يبين ان اهل العالم يبغضون الحق‬ Chapter 61, On explaining the anxiety and worries of the people of the world: Copt. 154a–156b (= pp. 293–298). ‫في بيان قلق اهل العالم وهمومهم‬ Chapter 62, On the fact that worldly changes are full of bitterness: Copt. 156b–159a (= pp. 298–303). ‫في انّ التغيرات العالمية مملوة مرارة‬ Chapter 63, On explaining the joy, sweetness, comfort, and happiness that exists in God: Copt. 159a–162a (= pp. 303– 309). ‫في بيان الفرح الموجود فى ا﷽ والحلاوة والعزاء والسرور‬ Chapter 64, On explaining the stupidity of the people of the world and their ignorance/neglectfulness: Copt. 162a–165a (= pp. 309–315). ‫في بيان عمارة ]لازم غباوة[ اهل العالم وغفلتهم‬ Chapter 65, On explaining the seduction and debasements of the people of the world: Copt. 165a–168a (= pp. 315– 321). ‫في بيان غواية اهل العالم وغشوشهم‬ Chapter 66, On explaining the painful pains that afflict the people of the world: Copt. 168b–171a (= pp. 322–327). ‫في بيان الالام الموجعة التي تعتري اهل العالم‬ Chapter 67, On explaining the rewards that the world rewards its servants: Copt. 171a–173b (= pp. 327–332). ‫في بيان المكافاة التي تكافيها الدنيا لخدامها‬ Chapter 68: Including the escape and flight from the world: Copt. 174a–177a (= pp. 333–339). ‫يشتمل على الهرب والفرار من العالم‬ Chapter 69, On the fact that we should flee from the boundaries and pathways of the world: Copt. 177a–180b (= pp. 339– 346). ‫في انه ينبغي لنا ان نهرب من حدود العالم ومسالكها‬

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Chapter 70, On the fact that we should flee from the evils and malicious things of the world, even if they are pitiable: Copt. 180b–183b (= pp. 346–352). ‫في انه ينبغي لنا ان نهرب من شرور العالم وخبائثه ولو كانت حقيرة‬ Chapter 71, On the fact that we should flee from the people of the world: Copt. 183b–186a (= pp. 352–357). ‫في انه ينبغي لنا الفرار من اهل العالم‬ Chapter 72, On the fact that we should keep company with the people of virtue and associate closely with them: Copt. 186b– 188b (= pp. 358–362). ‫في انه ينبغي لنا ان نرافق اهل الفضيلة ونعاشرهم‬ Chapter 73, On explaining the ignorance and stupidity of the people of the world: Copt. 188b–192a (= pp. 362–369). ‫في بيان جهالت اهل العالم وغباوتهم‬ Chapter 74, On explaining the flatteries and wiles of the people of the world: Copt. 192a–195a (= pp. 369–375). ‫في بيان تمليقات اهل العالم ومخاتلاتهم‬ Chapter 75, On explaining the debasements of the delights and amusements of the world: Copt. 195a–197b (= pp. 375– 380). ‫في بيان غشوش مفرحات الدنيا ومطرباتها‬ Chapter 76, On the rejection of worldly consolation and its contempt: Copt. 197b–200a (= pp. 380–385). ‫في رفض التعزية العالمية واحتقارها‬ Chapter 77, On indifference to parents and relatives on account of Christ: Copt. 200b–203a (= pp. 386–391). ‫في التهاون بالوالدين والاقارب من اجل المسيح‬ Chapter 78, On what should be obligatory for whoever despises the world and complains about it: Copt. 203b–206b (= pp. 392–398). ‫فيما ينبغي عزمة اليه من يزدرى بالدنيا ويتهاون بها‬ Chapter 79, Explaining the fact that God (may he be exalted) regards the intent as more excellent that the deed: Copt. 206b– 208b (= pp. 398–402). ‫يبين ان ا﷽ تعالى ينظر الى النية أفضل من العمل‬

239

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Chapter 80, On the remembrance of death and meditation on it: Copt. 208b–211b (= pp. 402–408). ‫في ذكر الموت والهذيذ به‬ Chapter 81, Explaining that the hour of death is unknown: Copt. 211b–214a (= pp. 408–413). ‫يبين ان ساعة الموة غير معروفة‬ Chapter 82, Explaining why the Creator (may he be exalted) desires that we not know the time of death’s descent: Copt. 214b–216b (= pp. 414–418). ‫يبين لما اراد البارئ تعالى ان ما نعرف وقت حلول الموت‬ Chapter 83, On the fact that the servant of Christ should work tirelessly at contemplating and meditating on death, without slackening: Copt. 217a–220b (= pp. 419–426). ‫في انه ينبغي لعبد يسوع ان يواصل التامل والهذيذ بالموت بلا فتور‬ Chapter 84, On the fact that the Christian servant should be broken by the pains of Christ and should fell them in his heart: Copt. 220b–224a (= pp. 426–433). ‫في انه ينبغي للعبد المسيحي ان يتفطر بالالام المسيح ويحس بها فى قلبه‬ Chapter 85, On the three types [of struggle] through which the world struggles with you in most matters: Copt. 224a–b, 226a–b, 228a–b (pp. 433–438). ‫في الصنوف الثلثة التي تقاتلك الدنيا بها فى غالب الامور‬ Chapter 86, On resistance in opposition to the world: Copt. 228b–232a (= pp. 438–445) (but note discrepancies in foliation below). ‫في المقاومة بازاء العالم‬ Chapter 87, On explaining the first of the three types, which is pride: Copt. 232a–235b (= pp. 445–452). ‫في بيان الصنف الاول من الصنوف الثلثة وهو الكبرياء‬ Chapter 88, On the fact that God (may he be exalted) brings low the proud and humbles their haughtiness: Copt. 236a–239a (= pp. 453–459). ‫في ان ا﷽ تعالى يذل المتكبرين ويخضع تجبرهم‬

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Chapter 89, On the healing medicine for pride: Copt. 239a–242a (= pp. 459–465). ‫في الدوى الشافي للكبريا‬ Chapter 90, On explaining the virtue of humility: Copt. 242a– 245b (= pp. 465–472). ‫في بيان فضيلة التواضع‬ Chapter 91, On the fact that God (may he be praised) raises up the humble: Copt. 245b–248a (= pp. 472–477). ‫في ان ا﷽ سبحانه يرفع المتواضعين‬ Chapter 92, On explaining the people of humility and its source: Copt. 248a–251b (= pp. 477–484). ‫في بيان اهل التواضع وينبوعه‬ Chapter 93, On the fact that [God] (may he be exalted) reveals his secrets to the humble: Copt. 251b–254a (= pp. 484–489). ‫في انه تعالى يكشف اسراره للمتواضعين‬ Chapter 94, On explaining the second of the three types, which is greed: Copt. 254a–256b (= pp. 489–494). ‫في شرح الصنف الثاني من الصنوف الثلثة وهو الشح‬ Chapter 95, On explaining the healing medicine for avarice/ stinginess: Copt. 256b–258b (= pp. 494–498). ‫في شرح الدوى الشافي للبخل‬ Chapter 96, On explaining the nobility of the virtue of magnanimity and generosity: Copt. 259a–260b (= pp. 499– 502). ‫في بيان شرف فضيلة الكرم والسخاء‬ Chapter 97, On explaining the third of the three types, which is fornication: Copt. 260b–262b (= pp. 502–506). ‫في شرح الصنف الثالث من الصنوف الثلثة وهو الزناء‬ Chapter 98, On the healing medicine for the sin of fornication: Copt. 262b–265a (= pp. 506–511). ‫في الدوى الشافي لخطيت الزناء‬ Chapter 99, On explaining of the nobility of the virtue of abstinence: Copt. 265a–267b (= pp. 511–516). ‫في بيان شرف فضيلت العفة‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

241

Chapter 100, On explaining the good(ness) that lovers of the world lose: Copt. 267b–269b (= pp. 516–520). ‫في بيان الخير الذي يفقده محبو العالم‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: AM 1564 [= 1847/48 CE] (Copt. 269b; = p. 520). Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with red used in chapter titles and pause dots, including sets of four dots arranged in a cross shape to bracket chapter headings or at the end of a chapter. The hand is a medium-scale naskhī hand, characterized by broad pen strokes, especially the horizontal ones, and by small teeth. For the most part, the scribe uses the “modern” form of the letter kāf, but can sometimes use the squarer kāf with a pronounced rectangular element. He also employs a single fatḥa-like sign over the sīn to distinguish it from shīn. His thin, deep fishhook final lām and diagonal-tail final mīm fit with other nineteenthcentury hands evidenced in the collection. Material: Paper. Heavy European stock featuring shield with man-in-the-moon and VG watermarks. The modern paper used in the front- and backmatter has shield with man-in-the-moon and Andrea Galvani Pordenone watermarks.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

Scribe: Abshāy Mattā (Copt. 173b, 200a, 235b; = pp. 332, 385, 452). Patron/owner: Rafā’īl Malaṭī (Abū Ru’ūs al-Asyūṭī) (Copt. 203a, 269b–270a; = pp. 391, 520–521). Restorer: not identified.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: Copt. 4a–6b: original scribal table of contents with the Arabic page numbers added later in pen. Colophons: Copt. 269b–270a (= pp. 520–521): colophon indicating that the copying of the manuscript was completed on Tuesday, 24 Ṭūbah, AM 1564 [= February 1, 1848 CE]. The patron (al-muhtamm) is identified as Rāfāʼīl Malaṭī, called Abū l-Ruʼūs al-Asyūṭī. He is also identified by the term “writer” (kātib): ‫وكان المهتم بهذا الكتاب المقدس كاتب الحقير رفائيل ملطي‬

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This phrasing raises the possibility that Rafāʼīl also contributed to the MS as a scribe, but it is more likely a reference to his work as a scribe in other contexts. The book is said to be among “a group of books” (jumlat kutub) that came to Dayr al-Suryān. Endowments (waqf-statements): Copt. 6b, 94a, 150b, 269b: the green-blue waqf seal of Dayr al-Suryān has been stamped on various folia. Copt. 270a (= pp. 521): a waqf-statement indicating that the muhtamm Rafāʼīl endowed the MS to Dayr al-Suryān. The writer threatens anyone who would remove it from the library (khizānat al-kutub), referencing the fate of Simon Magus (Sīmūn al-sāḥir) and Judas Iscariot (Yahūdā al-Iskhariyūṭī). Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–vii Numbered folia: Copt. 4–270 (= ff. 4–6, pp. 1–522); see below for details of discrepancies Backmatter: Copt. [271]–[275] The frontmatter at the beginning of the manuscript is arranged as follows: f. i: flyleaf ff. ii–v: 4 modern leaves ff. vi–vii: 2 blank leaves, part of the first quire of the original MS The first three numbered leaves contain the table of contents: they are numbered with Coptic cursive foliation (Copt. 4–6) and with the Arabic equivalents written alongside (ff. 4–6). This system of Arabic foliation continues through Copt. 10 (= f. 10). On Copt. 226, there is also an Arabic folio number written (f. 225), with a discrepancy of one digit from the Coptic cursive foliation. Starting with Copt. 7, a pagination system in Arabic numerals begins in the upper, outer corners of each page. From p. 34 on, these page numbers appear only in the upper righthand corner of each verso. In various places, but especially from p. 426 on, these page numbers have been corrected by writing in black ink over the original blue.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

243

Discrepancies in the foliation and pagination in the main block of text, between the Coptic cursive folio numbers and the Arabic page numbers, can be summarized as follows: Copt. 4–6 Copt. 7–10 Copt. 11–64 Copt. 64bis Copt. 65–69 [no Copt. 70] Copt. 71–97 Copt. 98 ff. 99–224 [no Copt. 225] Copt. 226 [no Copt. 227] Copt. 228–270

= Ar. ff. 4–6; no pagination = Ar. ff. 7–10; = Ar. pp. 1–8 = pp. 9–116 = pp. 117–118 = pp. 119–128 = pp. 129–182 = pp. 182bis–182ter = pp. 183–434 = Ar. f. 225; = pp. 435–436 = pp. 437–522

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 29 × 21 cm Area of writing: 22.5–24 × 15–16 cm 18–19 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Black cloth cover on pasteboard with leather (or faux-leather) reinforcement on the spine and the corners. The spine is ribbed with gilt lettering in the areas marked off by the ribs: a Le Sphinx sticker in the top area, the title between parallel horizontal gilt lines in the second area, the word qalam in the third area, the number 1 between parallel gilt lines in the fourth area, and waqf Dayr al-Suryān in the bottom area. Blue paper has been used for the end papers and flyleaves. The cover is somewhat worn at the corners. At some stage, the volume underwent an attempt at restoration: the first and last quires, in particular, have leaves that have been reinforced with glued paper at the folds and the quires resewn. There is some discoloration from glue and moisture on f. 4a. The leaves have been straight cut and the edges dappled. The manuscript as we have it now is in reasonable condition. The binding is tight, so that the sewing of the quires (quinions) is not always readily visible.

244

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. Biblical references are placed in the margins, with book, Insertions chapter, and sometimes verse (in black ink, without the use of red that we see in DS Arabic Ascetic 39 (= MS 192). 2. In three places at the end of chapters, when there is room at the bottom of a page and the next chapter will begin at the top of the next page, the scribe supplies a prayer for the reader to pray: e.g., with language such as, “I am the sinner, the reader of these letters” (anā al-khāṭi’ qāri’ hādhihi al-aḥruf). The prayer prompts readers to ask for mercy not only for themselves but also for the kātib, Abshāy Mattā (end of ch. 67: Copt. 173b; = p. 332; end of ch. 76, Copt. 200a; = p. 385) and for the muhtamm, Rafāʼīl (end of ch. 77: Copt. 203a; = p. 391). 3. At the end of ch. 81 (Copt. 214a; = p. 413) there is a standard prayer for forgiveness for the kātib and the muhtamm, without names. 4. At the end of ch. 87, there is a prayer is for the reader and the kātib Abshāy Mattā (Copt. 235b; = p. 452). Readers’ insertions: 1. A reader’s note has been written in the top margin of Copt. 98a (p. 183): a monk named Buṭrus from Dayr al-Suryān prays to be remembered by the Lord.

245

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 41 (= MS 194) Old number(s): 56 Lāhūt; 14-ⲕⲇ2 138

Contents

Thomas à Kempis, The Imitation of Christ 1. Thomas à Kempis, The Imitation of Christ: ff. 2a–227a. ‫كتاب الاقتداء بالمسيح لتوما الكمبيسي‬ 4 books, 114 chapters. Introduction: ff. 2a–5b. Book One: Useful Pieces of Advice for Someone Seeking the Spiritual Life: ff. 6a–58a. ‫نصائح مفيدة لطالب الحياة الروحانية‬ 25 chapters. Book Two: Honorable and Captivating Pieces of Advice for Mystical and Spiritual Matters: ff. 58b–84b. ‫نصائح شريفة جاذبة إلى الأمور الباطنة الروحانية‬ 12 chapters. Book Three: Spiritual and Mystical Consolation: ff. 85a–186b. ‫التسلية الروحانية الباطنة‬ 59 chapters. In the title of the book, Thomas à Kempis is described as “the canonical priest who became a monk under the rule of the venerable St. Augustine” (al-qiss al-qānūnī al-mutarahhib taḥt qānūn al-qiddīs al-jalīl Ūghusṭīnūs). Book Four: The Praises of the Holy Eucharistic Offering and Pieces of Advice for Approaching It with Purity and Worthiness: ff. 187a–227a. ‫مدائح القربان المقدس ونصائح الى التقدم إليه بالطهارة والاستحقاق‬ Introduction and 18 Chapters.

Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: 8 Misrā, AM 1580 [= 1864 CE]. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with titles and headings in red and blue ink, and (some) numerical references and punctuation in red ink. The script is written in a clear and elegant scribal hand. Early in the manuscript the letters are fairly large, but they become medium-sized later on. Some of the script in the tables of contents is smaller in scale. Replacement folia 225–226 are written in a large squarish script with bold horizontal and vertical lines.

246

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Material: Paper. Medium-weight European stock showing slight discoloration from use. Shield with man-in-the-moon watermarks are visible on the main pages of text as well as in the front- and backmattter (identical stock). Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

Scribe: Buṭrūs, a monk from the Monastery of St. Paul the Hermit [at the Red Sea] (ff. 84b, 186b, 227a). The illuminator of the MS is identified as Marqus al-Sawādī, priest (qiss) and “servant” (khādim) at Dayr al-Suryān (f. 84b). No identification of patron/owner or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: ff. 6a–7a: table of contents for Book 1, listing 25 chapters. ff. 58b–59a: table of contents for Book 2, listing 12 chapters. ff. 85a–87a: table of contents for Book 3, listing 59 chapters. Colophons: f. 58a: colophon after Book 1, containing a short blessing. f. 84b: colophon after Book 2, containing a short blessing and providing the name of the scribe (Buṭrūs, a monk from the Monastery of St. Paul the Hermit) and the illustrator (Marqus al-Sawādī, priest and “servant” at Dayr al-Suryān). f. 186b: colophon after Book 3, containing a short blessing and providing the name of the scribe (Buṭrūs, a monk from the Monastery of St. Paul the Hermit). f. 227a: colophon after Book 4, at the end of the work, providing the name of the scribe (Buṭrūs, identified as a priest and monk from the Monastery of St. Paul the Hermit, who lived at one time at the Monastery of Baramous) and the illustrator (Marqus al-Sawādī, priest and “servant” at Dayr al-Suryān). Endowments (waqf-statements): f. 226b: waqf-statement endowing the MS to Dayr al-Suryān with a warning against anyone who would try to remove it. f. 227a: waqf-statement after the colophon at the end of Book 4, in a hand different from that of the scribe, endowing the MS to “the aforementioned monastery” (al-dayr al-madhkūr), almost certainly in this case Dayr al-Suryān, and offering a warning to anyone who tries to remove it.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

247

f. 227b: waqf-statement in a hand different from both that of the scribe and the hand that penned the previous waqf-statement, endowing the manuscript to “the Church of St. Ephrem the Syrian in the desert of Scetis at the Monastery of the Pure Lady Virgin Mary.” At the end of the waqf-statement there is a combination of Arabic and Coptic elements that may provide a date or other numerical information, but at present they elude clear interpretation. Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–v Numbered folia: ff. 2–227 (= Copt. [2], 3–224, [two folia no Copt.], 225) Backmatter: ff. 228–234 The Coptic cursive numbering starts on folio 3 and matches the Arabic numbering up through folio 224. Arabic numbered folia 225–226 are replacement pages inserted after folio 224 and contain the end of the work (ff. 225a–226a) and a secondary waqf-statement (f. 226b). The folio numbered 227 in Arabic bears the Coptic cursive number 225. Thus, Copt. 225 (= f. 227) was originally the final folio of the MS, following immediately upon Copt. 224 (= f. 224). Arabic-numbered folia 225–226 seem to have been added for two purposes: first, to provide a full(er) ending to the work (f. 225 actually contains the same text as Copt. 225, lines 1–4, beginning with same word, but then continues with more text onto folio 226b); and second, to provide a more definitive waqf-statement than those found on Copt. 225a–b (= f. 227a–b).

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 24 × 16.5 cm Area of writing: 17.5 × 11 cm (replacement ff. 225–226: 17.5– 18.5 × 11.5 cm) 15 lines/page (replacement ff. 225–226: 15–16 lines/page)

Cover, Condition

Dark red/burgundy leather cover, very worn with significant abrasions. The edges and spine are worn through, showing the inner board. Front and back covers are almost completely separated from the spine: they are held on only by the leather cover. The paper is discolored, with wax stains on the pages near the front and back. The final two folia (ff. 233–234) have wax stains and a burn marks (there is a hole burned through f. 234).

248

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. f. 2a: There is an ornamental brocaded table/header rendered Insertions in blue and glossy red (and incorporating the background page color) above the Trinitarian blessing. Throughout the MS, the chapter titles are flanked by floral medallions like four-leaf clovers in blue and red. Readers’ insertions: 1. f. 228b: a reader has written a short note upside down on the page regarding the status of deacons, making reference to two verses in 1 Timothy 3: ‫أ لم تعلموا أن الشماس هو نصف قس لأن الكتاب يقول إنه درجة حسنة وثقة‬ ‫كثيرة في في ]كذا[ المسيح يسوع وقبل هذا يقول يختبروا أو ًلا ثم يتشمسوا‬ “Do you not know that the deacon is half a priest, for the Bible says that it [i.e. the diaconate] [has] a good rank and [has] much trust in Christ Jesus [cf. 1 Timothy 3:13], and earlier it says that they are tested first and then are made deacons [cf. 1 Timothy 3:10].”

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 42 (= MS 195) Old number(s): 90 Lāhūt; 80 Lāhūt

Contents

[Joseph of Reuilly,] The Trumpet of Heaven (Būq al-samāʼ)

249

1. [Joseph of Reuilly,] The Trumpet of Heaven (Būq al-samāʼ): ff. 5a–83a. A book on the necessity of repentance, in three parts (aqsām). Introduction: f. 3a. Beginning missing. Part One, On the reason for the sinner’s repentance (lit. “return”): ff. 3b–83a. ‫القسم الأول في سبب رجوع الخاطئ‬ 40 subsections (faṣl), stressing to the sinner the necessity for repentance, which alone offers deliverance from damnation and hope for eternal life. Part Two, On sinners’ refraining from repentance: ff. 83b–138a. ‫القسم الثاني يتضمن على امتناء رجوع الخطاة‬ 34 subsections (faṣl), on the things that keep people from God (the devil, evil company, the world) and the difficulty of turning to God, and on the fact that repentance is urgent and should not be put off. Part Three, On the means for sinners’ repentance: ff. 138b–208a. ‫القسم الثالث في مواسطات رجوع الخطاة‬ 43 subsections (faṣl), stressing that God is merciful and that repentance is not impossible — with humility and obedience, prayer and fasting, and the practice of confession. The title of the final faṣl provides a final warning: “Perseverance in repentance throughout one’s lifetime is necessary for us to live up to the divine justice.” ‫في أنه ينبغي مداومة التوبة كل مدة الحياة لنوفي العدل الالهي‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: 10 Misrā, AM 1448 [= August 16, 1832 CE]. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with red for titles and subtitles. The script is very small and written with a fine line: on each page, a great amount of text is squeezed into a small

250

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

area, while maintaining neatness and legibility. The rather squarish nature of the script helps make it suitable for compression in terms of space. Material: Paper. European stock bearing shield with man-in-themoon watermarks. Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: ff. 4a–b: table of contents for Part One ff. 83b–84a: table of contents for Part Two ff. 138b–139b: table of contents for Part Three Colophons: f. 208a: the scribal colophon gives the date, Thursday, 10 Misrā, AM 1448 [= August 16, 1832 CE]. Endowments (waqf-statements): f. 238a: modern statement of waqf to Dayr al-Suryān, in pencil.

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: none Numbered folia: ff. 3–208 Backmatter: f. 209 The folia are numbered with Arabic numerals in the upper left-hand corner of the recto pages.

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 15.7 × 10.6 cm Area of writing: 12.5 × 7.4 cm 20 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Dark brown leather cover, reinforced with additional brown leather at the spine. Both the front and back cover are decorated, with a tooled rectangular double border enclosing an elaborate stamped cruciform design in the center. This design takes the form of a vertically elongated “mandorla” with four leaf-shaped elements emanating from each side. Each one of these elements has internal vegetal patterning. The Le Sphinx sticker at the top of the spine gives the current shelf number (195 Nusukiyyāt), while an older paper sticker on the front cover gives the title and date of the work. The manuscript is incomplete at the beginning,

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

251

where it has lost the beginning of the first quire, which originally consisted of 10 leaves. The volume as a whole is composed of quires of different sizes (8, 10 or 12 leaves). Apart from the loss of its first pages and the looseness of the remaining pages of the first quire, the manuscript is well bound and in good condition. Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. The scribe has written biblical references in the outer margins. Insertions Readers’ insertions:

252

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 43 (= MS 196) Old number(s): none

Contents

John Eusebius Nieremberg, The Book of Jesus the Beloved and the Book of Mary the Beloved 1. John Eusebius [Nieremberg], The Book of Jesus the Beloved and the Book of Mary the Beloved. a. Introduction and Table of Contents: ff. 1b–5a. ff. 1b–2a: “The original [version] of Jesus the Beloved was written by al-anbā Yūḥannā Ūsābiyūs Nīrāmbirk al-Yasū‘ī [Johannes Eusebius Nieremberg, SJ; = Father John Eusebius the Jesuit]. Father (al-bādirī; = padre) Buṭrus Quzmān al-Yasū‘ī translated this work, as well as [the Book of] Mary the Beloved, from French into Arabic. This took place in Aleppo in 1737 of the Christian era (masīḥiyyah).” b. John Eusebius [Nieremberg], The Book of Jesus the Beloved (Kitāb Yasū‘ al-ḥabīb), which comprises the greatness of the love of our Lord Jesus Christ for humanity, and how we must love him: ff. 5a–58a. ‫كتاب يسوع الحبيب يشتمل على عظمة محبة سيدنا يسوع المسيح‬ ‫نحو البشر وكيف يجب علينا ان نحبه تعالى‬ 22 short chapters (fuṣūl). Chapter 1, On how much we must love Christ the Lord and his most holy humanity: ff. 5a–8b. ‫فى كم يجب علينا ان نحب السيد المسيح وناسوته الاقدس‬ Chapter 2, That the eternal Father has taught us by example how we must love Christ the Lord: ff. 8b–10a. ‫فى ان الاب الازلي علمنا بمثاله كيف يجب علينا ان نحب السيد‬ ‫المسيح‬ Chapter 3, On the love of Mary love towards our Lord Jesus Christ: ff. 10a–12b. ‫فى محبة مريم نحو سيدنا يسوع المسيح‬ Chapter 4, On the love of the angels towards our Lord Jesus Christ: ff. 12b–14b. ‫فى محبة الملئكة ]كذا[ نحو سيدنا يسوع المسيح‬

253

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Chapter 5, On the burning yearnings of the Old Testament patriarchs and prophets towards our Lord Jesus Christ: ff. 14b–16b. ‫فى اشواق آباء العهد القديم وانبيائه المضطرمة نحو سيدنا يسوع المسيح‬ Chapter 6, On the love of the apostles to Christ the Lord: ff. 16b–18a. ‫فى محبة الرسل للسيد المسيح‬ Chapter 7, On the arguments that rouse us to the love of our Lord Jesus Christ: ff. 18a–19b. ‫فى الحجج التي تحرضنا على محبة سيدنا يسوع المسيح‬ Chapter 8, On how we must love Christ the Lord, because of the evils from which he has saved us: ff. 20a–22a. ‫فى انه يلزمنا ان نحب السيد المسيح من جرى الشرور التي خلصنا منها‬ Chapter 9, On how much we must love Jesus, because of the good things that come to us through his generosity: ff. 22a–24b. ‫فى كم يجب علينا ان نحب يسوع لاجل الخيرات الواصلة الينا من‬ ‫كرمه‬ Chapter 10, On how Jesus’ exceeding love to us demands from us that we love him too: ff. 24b–27b. ‫ايضا‬ ً ‫فى ان افراط محبة يسوع لنا يقتضي منا ان نحبه‬ Chapter 11, On how we must love our Lord Jesus Christ, because of the trials and pains involved in his shrewd action on our behalf: ff. 27b–29b. ‫فى انه يلزمنا ان نحب سيدنا يسوع المسيح لاجل ماكائده لاجلنا من‬ ‫الاتعاب والاوجاع‬ Chapter 12, On how much Christ the Lord longs for us to love him, and to be loved, and how great the extent to which he goes to makes that one beloved: ff. 29b–32b. ‫فى كم يشتهي السيد المسيح ان نحبه ونحب وفي كم مقدار ما يصيره‬ ‫هذا محبو ًبا‬ Chapter 13, On how Christ our Lord deserves our love, because of his bodily beauty as well: ff. 32b–36a. ‫ايضا‬ ً ‫فى ان سيدنا المسيح يستحق محبتنا لاجل جماله الجسمي‬

254

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Chapter 14, On the splendor of the soul of our Lord Jesus Christ: ff. 36a–38b. ‫فى بهاء نفس سيدنا يسوع المسيح‬ Chapter 15, On how our Lord Jesus Christ deserves our love, because of his holiness: ff. 38b–40b. ‫فى ان سيدنا يسوع المسيح يستحق محبتنا لاجل قدوسيته‬ Chapter 16, On how Christ the Lord deserves our love, because of his meekness, humility, and liberality: ff. 40b–42a. ‫فى ان السيد المسيح يستحق محبتنا لاجل دعته وتواضعه وسخائه‬ Chapter 17, On how we must love Christ the Lord, because he is the crown of our race and the true circumcision: ff. 42b–45a. ‫فى انه يلزمنا ان نحب السيد المسيح لانه هامة جنسنا وختننا الحقيقي‬ Chapter 18, On how we must ponder well the glory of Christ the Lord and his prerogatives: ff. 45a–47b. ‫فى انه يجب علينا ان نعقل جيدً ا عزة السيد المسيح واستحقاقاته‬ Chapter 19, On how we must love our Lord Jesus Christ: ff. 47b–51b. ‫فى كيف ينبغي لنا ان نحب سيدنا يسوع المسيح‬ Chapter 20, On how the one who loves Christ the Lord must imitate him: ff. 51b–53b. ‫فى انه يجب على من يحب السيد المسيح ان يقتدي به‬ Chapter 21, On how we must inwardly conform to the heart of Christ the Lord: ff. 54a–55a. ‫فى انه ينبغي لنا ان نتشبه بقلب السيد المسيح باط ًنا‬ Chapter 22, On how the knowledge and love of Christ the Lord spur us greatly to the love of [his] divinity: ff. 55a–58a. ‫فى ان المعرفة بالسيد المسيح وحبه يحتاننا جدً ا على محبة اللاهوت‬ c. John Eusebius [Nieremberg], The Book of Mary the Beloved (Kitāb Maryam al-Ḥabīb), which includes the necessity of venerating Mary the Virgin, the Mother of God, and the need to love her: ff. 59b–128b (incomplete at end). ‫كتاب مريم الحبيب يتضمن وجوب اكرام مريم العذراء والدة ا﷽ ولزوم‬ ‫محبتها‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

255

17 short chapters (fuṣūl). Chapter 1, On how much we must love God, because he greatly longs that we honor and love the one who bears him [i.e. the God-bearer/Theotokos]: ff. 59b–62b. ‫فى كم يجب علينا ان نحب ا﷽ تعالى من اجل انه يشتهى جدً ا ان‬ ‫نكرم والدته ونحبها‬ Chapter 2, On how much God desires that we honor and love the Virgin: ff. 62b–65b. ‫فى كم يرغب ا﷽ تعالى ان نكرم العذراء ونحبها‬ Chapter 3, On the reason that God greatly longs for us to honor and love the Virgin: ff. 65b–69a. ‫فى السبب الذي لاجله يشتهي ا﷽ جدً ا ان نكرم العذراء ونحبها‬ Chapter 4, On other arguments for why God wills that we love the exalted Virgin: ff. 69a–71a. ‫فى حجج اخر يريد ا﷽ تعالى من اجلها ان نحب العذراء الجليلة‬ Chapter 5, On the love of the angels towards the Virgin, and how we must be like them: ff. 71a–73b. ‫فى محبة الملئكة ]كذا[ نحو العذراء وفى كيف يجب علينا ان نماثلهم‬ Chapter 6, On the abundant love and respect of the apostles and disciples of Christ the Lord towards the Virgin: ff. 73b–77b. ‫فى جزيل محبة الرسل وتلاميذ السيد المسيح نحو العذراء واحترامهم اياها‬ Chapter 7, On the love of the other saints towards the God-bearer [i.e. Theotokos]: ff. 77b–82a. ﷽‫فى محبة القديسين الاخرين نحو والدة ا‬ Chapter 8, On the benefits of the Virgin to us, and how that moves us to love her: ff. 82a–86a. ‫فى احسانات العذراء الينا وفى كيف ان هذا يحركنا الى محبتها‬ Chapter 9, On how we must honor and love the Virgin, because the gift of our election to eternal glory depends on her: ff. 86a–91a. ‫فى انه يجب علينا ان نكرم العذراء ونحبها من اجل ان موهبة انتخابنا‬ ‫للمجد الابدي هى متعلقة بها‬

256

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Chapter 10, On how we must love the God-bearer [i.e. Theotokos], because she truly loves us greatly: ff. 91b–96a. ً ‫فى انه يجب ان نحب والدة ا﷽ لانها‬ ‫حقا تحبنا جدً ا‬ Chapter 11, On how must love the Virgin, because of the pains that she bore on our behalf: ff. 96a–99b. ‫فى انه يجب علينا ان نحب العذراء من اجل الالام التى احتملتها من‬ ‫اجلنا‬ Chapter 12, On how we must love the Virgin, because of the exaltedness of her glory and goodness: ff. 99b–104b. ‫فى انه ينبغي لنا ان نحب العذراء لاجل عظم سمو عزتها وجودتها‬ Chapter 13, On how we must love the Virgin, because of the abundance of her splendor: ff. 104b–107b. ‫فى انه يجب علينا ان نحب العذراء لاجل جزيل بهائها‬ Chapter 14, On how the beauty of the soul of the Virgin urges us to love her: ff. 107b–110a. ‫فى كيف ان جمال نفس العدراء يغرينا على محبتها‬ Chapter 15, On how we must love the Virgin, because she is our queen and mother and the God-bearer [i.e. Theotokos], greatly beloved by him: ff. 110b–114a. ﷽‫فى انه يلزمنا ان نحب العذراء لاجل كونها ملكتنا وا ّمنا ووالدة ا‬ ‫ومحبوبة منه تعالى جدً ا‬ Chapter 16, On how we must honor and love the God-bearer [i.e. Theotokos]: ff. 114a–117b. ‫فى كيف يجب علينا ان نكرم والدة ا﷽ ونحبها‬ Chapter 17, On the angelic salutation of peace; how we must recite the rosary; and other admonitions: f. 117b–128b (incomplete at end). ‫فى السلام الملئكي ]كذا[ وفى كيف يجب ان نتلو المسبحة الوردية‬ ‫وفى نصايح اخر‬ Subheadings in red: f. 123a: An exalted prayer to the Virgin Mary, through which the believer asks that she set his love for her on fire, and give him the spirit of devotion to her.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

257

‫صلوة جليلة لمريم العذراء بها يطلب المؤمن منها ان تضرم فيه‬ ‫محبتها وتهبه روح التعبد لها‬ f. 126a: Admonition. ‫تنبيه‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: 1737 CE (f. 58a). Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with red used for titles and subtitles, and occasionally for words at the beginning of a subsection, or final punctuation. The text is written in a small-scale naskhī script with a thin-nibbed pen by a very accomplished scribe, who has created a beautiful book. Letters are clearly and elegantly formed; vertical strokes lean slightly to the left. The writing adheres to the ruling of the paper, following straight lines and margins. Material: Paper. High quality Middle Eastern stock, with clear laid and chain lines but no visible watermarks.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: ff. 2a–3b: table of contents (fihris) for the Book of Jesus the Beloved (Kitāb Yasū‘ al-ḥabīb). ff. 3b–5a: table of contents (fihris) for the Book of Mary the Beloved (Kitāb Maryam al-ḥabīb). Colophons: f. 58a: colophon indicating that the Book of Jesus the Beloved was completed, in Aleppo, on 21 Tishrīn al-Awwal [October], 1737 CE. This date probably refers to the copying of the manuscript. But in this case, the scribal act of copying the text followed closely on the heels of the text’s translation into Arabic, which according to a note in the Introduction/Table of Contents (ff. 1b–2a) would have taken place earlier during the same year. Endowments (waqf-statements): none

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: none Numbered folia: ff. 1–128 Backmatter: none

258

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

The folia are numbered in Arabic numerals, in blue pen, in the upper right-hand corner of the verso side of each leaf (ff. 1b, 2b, 3b, etc). Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 15.5 × 9.5 cm Area of writing/lines per page: 11.5 × 5.75 cm 17 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Black leather cover on pasteboard; the spine has been reinforced with another leather strip. The cover, now worn at its edges, is decorated on both front and back with geometrical tooling: a set of horizontal, vertical, and additional slanted lines create a rectangular frame with a six-sided central area, in the center of which a set of five floral stamps creates a central cross, while corner squares in the outer frame contain a floral pattern. The spine is ribbed; a blue Le Sphinx sticker (placed on the spine upside down) gives the library number. A double red sticker (modern) on the front of the cover is blank. The manuscript itself is in fair condition, although the block of text from ff. 1–15 has detached from the binding. At some point black ink was spilled on the upper corner and upper outer edge, but this has not penetrated through to the text. The leaves at the beginning and end of the manuscript are quite worn. Some have been marred by pencil markings (ff. 15–16, 62, 128) or blue ink (ff. 92–99, 125). The paper is now somewhat brittle. In some cases the acidity of the black ink in heavy ink strokes has eaten through the paper. This is the case in certain chapter headings (al-faṣl al-[…]) that appear before the chapter titles in red: see, for example, f. 69a, where the whole area between the alif and the lām in the word al-faṣl (al-rābi‘) has fallen out.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. Throughout the manuscript, Mary is referred to as al-ḥabīb Insertions rather than as al-ḥabībah. 2. The scribe makes note of biblical citations in the margin. Writing perpendicularly to the main text (with the edge of the page at the bottom), he gives the references in four short rows: name of book (in black), chapter number (in red), verse (‘adad, in black), verse number (in red). Readers’ insertions:

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 44 (= MS 197) Old number(s): 23 Lāhūt; 15/3-ⲕⲇ

Contents

John Chrysostom, The Choice Pearl (Homilies)

259

1. John Chrysostom, The Choice Pearl (al-Durr al-muntakhab): Homilies (ff. 2a–277b). Introduction (muqaddimah): ff. 2a–4a (Copt. 5a–7a). Table of Contents (fihris): ff. 4b–6b (Copt. 7b–9b). Homily 1, Exhortation on the teaching of the fathers to their children and their disciplining of them: ff. 7a–17a (Copt. 10a– 20a). ‫المقالة الاولى تتضمن الحث على تربية الاباء لاولادهم وتأديبهم‬ Homily 2, Counsel of those who are afraid of the beauty of women: ff. 17a–22a (Copt. 20a–25a). ‫المقالة الثانية تشتمل على نصح الذين يرعبون في حسن النساء‬ Homily 3, Exhortation on the fact that we do not meditate and we scorn the church of Christ and the rest of the mysteries/ sacraments: ff. 22a–31a (Copt. 25a–34a). ‫المقالة الثالثة تتضمن الحث على اننا لا نتامل ونحتقر كنيسة المسيح وباقى‬ ‫الاسرار‬ Homily 4, Related to the saying of David the prophet, Do not fear if a person has become rich and if the glory of his house increases: ff. 31a–48a (Copt. 34a–51a). ‫المقالة الرابعة مرتبة على قوله داوود النبي لا تخف اذا استغنا الانسان‬ ‫واذا كثر مجد بيته‬ Homily 5, On exhorbitance [of lifestyle?]: ff. 48a–52a (Copt. 51a–55a). ‫المقالة الخامسة مرتبة على الاستكثار‬ Homily 6, On impure pride and vainglory: ff. 52a–56a (Copt. 55a–59a). ‫المقالة السادسة مرتبة الكبرياء النجسة والمجد القارغ‬ Homily 7, Containing the prophetic saying, It is vanity that every living person be troubled, and on almsgiving: ff. 56a–61a (Copt. 59a–64a). ‫المقالة السابعة تتضمن القول النبوي القائل اذا باطل هو ان يضطرب كل‬ ‫انسان حي وفي الصدقة‬

260

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Homily 8, On the coming judgment and the punishment of hell, which has no end for those who do not believe in the existence of that punishment: ff. 61a–72a (Copt. 64a–75a). ‫المقالة الثامنة في الدينونة المزمعة وفي عذاب الحجيم الذي لا نهاية له‬ ‫للذين لا يؤمنون بوجود هذا العذاب‬ Homily 9, On confession and repentance: ff. 72a–82b (Copt. 75a–85b). ‫المقالة التاسعة في العتراف والتوبة‬ Homily 10, On envy and hatred: ff. 82b–86b (Copt. 85b– 89b). ‫المقالة العاشرة في الحسد والبغضة‬ Homily 11, On malice and enmity: ff. 86b–90b (Copt. 89b– 93b). ‫المقالة الحادية عشر في الحقد والعداوة‬ Homily 12, On the remembrance of evil and on the failure to remember it: ff. 90b–94b (Copt. 93b–97b). ‫المقالة الثانية عشر في تذكرة الشر وعدم تذكرته‬ Homily 13, On common/general love and brotherly love: ff. 94b–102b (Copt. 97b–105b). ‫المقالة الثالثة عشر في محبة العامة والمحبة الاخوية‬ Homily 14, On almsgiving/charity: ff. 102b–126b (Copt. 105b– 109b, 111a–130b). ‫المقالة الرابعة عشر في الصدقة‬ Homily 15, On the divine appearance/manifestation, on those who leave the church before the end of the divine liturgy, and on those who partake of the fearsome sacraments without worthiness and are similar to Judas the cursed one: ff. 126b– 137b (Copt. 130b–141b). ‫المقالة الخامسة عشر على الظهور الالهي وعلى اوليك الذين يمضون من‬ ‫الكنيسة قبل الفراغ من القداس الالهي وعلى الذين يتناولون الاسرار‬ ‫الرهيبة بعدم الاستحقاق ويماثلون يوضاس اللعين‬ Homily 16, Containing [teaching on] prayer: ff. 137b–148a (Copt. 141b–152a). ‫المقالة السادسة عشر تتضمن الصلوة‬

261

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Homily 17, On virtue and vice: ff. 148b–159b (Copt. 152b– 163b). ‫المقالة السابعة عشر في الفضيلة والرذيلة‬ Homily 18, On swearing oaths: ff. 160a–164b (Copt. 164a– 168b). ‫المقالة الثامنة عشر في القسم‬ Homily 19, On repentance, on those who attend/partake in the meeting in the church, and on the holy table in judgment: ff. 164b–167b (Copt. 168b–171b). ‫المقالة التاسعة عشر في التوبة وعلى الذين يتأخذون عن الاجتماع في البيعة‬ ‫ايضا‬ ً ‫وعلى المائدة المقدسة في الدينونة‬ Homily 20, On perpetual admonition: ff. 167b–179b (Copt. 171b–183b). ‫المقالة العشرون في الوعظ الدائم‬ Homily 21, On death and the end of the world: ff. 179b–187b (Copt. 183b–191b). ‫المقالة الحادية والعشرون في الموت وانتهاء العالم‬ Homily 22, On humility and justice: ff. 187b–191b (Copt. 191b– 195b). ‫المقالة الثانية والعشرون في التواضع والعدل‬ Homily 23, On the soul and hope: ff. 191b–195a (Copt. 195b– 199a). ‫المقالة الثالثة والعشرون في النفس والرجاء‬ Homily 24, On eternal punishment with no end of terrifying, just judgment: ff. 195a–199a (Copt. 199a–203a). ‫المقالة الرابعة والعشرون في العقاب الابدي الغير متناهي الدينونة العادلة‬ ‫المرهوبة‬ Homily 25, On wealth and poverty: ff. 199a–207a (Copt. 203a– 209b, 211a–212a). ‫المقالة الخامسة والعشرون في الغناء والفقر‬ Homily 26, On the rest of God’s knowledge and providence: ff. 207a–213a (Copt. 212a–218a). ‫المقالة السادسة والعشرون في سائر معرفة ا﷽ وعنايته‬

262

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Homily 27, On repentance and on King David with regard to the wife of Uriah: ff. 213b–217b (Copt. 218b–222b). ‫المقالة السابعة والعشرون في توبة وفي داوود الملك من اجل امراة اوريا‬ Homily 28, On repentance and fasting, and on Jonah the prophet and Daniel with the three youths: ff. 218a–225b (Copt. 223a–228b, 228bisa–b, 229b). ‫المقالة الثامنة والعشرون في التوبة والصوم وفي يونان النبي ودانيال مع الثلثة فتية‬ Homily 29, On repentance: ff. 225b–232b (Copt. 229b–[236]b). ‫المقالة التاسعة والعشرون في التوبة‬ Homily 30, On prayer and supplication: ff. 232b–242a (Copt. [236]b–246a). ‫المقالة الثلثون في الصلوة والابتهال‬ Homily 31, On true repentance spoken about on the first [or Sunday] of Shrovetide: ff. 242a–251a (Copt. 246a–255a). ‫المقالة الحادية والثلثون في التوبة الصدقة يقال في أحد مرفع الجبن‬ Homily 32, On the sick and on doctors/physicians: ff. 251a–255a (Copt. 255a–259a). ‫المقالة الثانية والثلثون في الامراض والاطباء‬ Homily 33, On the ten virgins spoken about on the great Tuesday: ff. 255a–260b (Copt. 259a–264b). ‫المقالة الثالثة والثلثون مرتبة على العشر عذاري تقال يوم الثلثاء العظيمة‬ Homily 34, On false prophets and wandering/lost heretics and on the signs of the end of this age spoken about when it was determined that Saint John Chrysostom would be translated from this body and depart from this world; this is the last of his homilies: ff. 260b–273b (Copt. 264b–277b). ‫المقالة الرابعة والثلثون في الانبياء الكذبة والاراطقة الضالين وفي علامات‬ ‫انتهاء هذا الدهر قيلت لما ازمع القديس فم الذهب ان ينتقل من هذا‬ ‫الجسد ويفارق العالم وهي اخر مقولاته‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: no date indicated, but before 1785/86 CE, when the manuscript was endowed to Dayr al-Suryān (f. 274a). Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with red headings and dots/punctuation. Medium-to-large scale script (approx. 10 mm in height), written in a clear hand.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

263

Material: Paper. Medium-to-heavy European stock with a watermark featuring man-in-the-moon set within a floral crest. The first two folia of the frontmatter are modern pages without watermarks. They match the paper glued to the inside of the back board, which was probably originally one of the folia used for backmatter. Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

Scribe: Yuḥannā ibn Qultah al-Jāwilī (f. 274a = Copt. 278a). Patron/owner: Peter (Petros), bishop of Manfalūt (f. 274a = Copt. 278a), who bought the manuscript from the scribe Yuḥannā Ibn Qultah al-Jāwilī and donated it to Dayr al-Suryān (f. 6b); al-qummuṣ Tā’ufīlus (Theophilus), who (later) marks the manuscript’s endowment to the same monastery (f. iia) Restorer: none indicated.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: ff. 4b–6b: the original scribal table of contents (fihris). Colophons: f. 6b: colophon with a prayer written by the scribe, in which he petitions the Lord for forgiveness and refers to himself as al-muhtamm. Endowments (waqf-statements): f. iia: waqf-statement written by al-qummuṣ Tā’ufīlus (Theophilus) marking the manuscript’s endowment to Dayr al-Suryān, with warnings against anyone who would remove the text from the monastery. It includes a prayer for remembrance on behalf of the writer in the kingdom of heaven and in paradise with the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. f. iia: second waqf-statement on the same page by the same writer (Tā’ufīlus), marking the manuscript’s endowment to Dayr al-Suryān, with warnings against anyone who would remove the text from the library and appeal for protection from Christ and the saints. f. 274a: original waqf-statement by Peter, bishop of Manfalūt (see the Coptic text of his “signature” below). He identifies the scribe as the monk Yuḥannā Ibn Qultah al-Jāwilī (village near Asyūt) and indicates that he bought the manuscript from him for 344 borrowed pieces of silver. Finally, he endows the volume to

264

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Dayr al-Suryān and provides the date of his inscription according to both the AM and AH calendrical systems (between which there is a slight discrepancy): AM 1502 (Coptic) (= 1785/1786 CE); AH 1199 (Arabic) (= 1784 CE). ⲡϩⲏϫⲓ ⲡⲉⲧⲣⲟⲥ ⲡⲉⲡⲓⲥⲕⲟⲡⲟⲥ ⲡⲑⲣⲟⲛⲟⲥ ⲙⲁⲛⲫⲁⲗⲱⲑ “The poor one, Peter, the bishop, the see of Manfalūt.”

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: ff. i–iii Numbered folia: ff. 1–274 (= Copt. [4], 5–278) Backmatter: none The Arabic foliation is written on the bottom right corner of each verso, beginning with f. 1. The Coptic cursive foliation is written on the upper left corner of each recto, beginning with Copt. 5 (= f. 2). There is a second Arabic system meant to match the Coptic cursive written in upper left corner of each recto over the first two quires starting with 4 (= Copt. [4]) and ending with 20 (= Copt. 20). The Coptic cursive foliation skips a number on two occasions: first, it skips from Copt. 109 (= f. 106) to Copt. 111 (= f. 107); second, it skips from Copt. 209 (= f. 205) to Copt. 211 (= f. 206). The Coptic cursive foliation repeats the number 228 twice (f. 223 = Copt. 228; f. 224 = Copt. 228bis). Coptic cursive folio numbers are missing from ff. 230–232 (= Copt. [234–236]).

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 30.5 × 22 cm Area of writing: 24–24.5 × 13.5–14 cm 20 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Red leather binding, well worn with abrasions on the edges. Two small pieces of paper glued to the outside front cover identify author and contents; two stamps on the spine indicate the MS number. There is significant separation at the spine in front and back with stitching and inner lining clearly visible. Folia iii and 273–274 have been subject to attempts to reinforce the leaves along the spine with glued strips of paper. Folio 5 is detached from the spine. The manuscript is in need of conservation.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

265

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. ff. 4b: illuminated title page with a blessing in a rectangular Insertions frame rendered in brown, yellow, and red ink with non-figural geometric designs as well as small birds and one (block-like) human figure within the frame. The text reads as follows: ‫كتاب الدر المنتخب ليوحنا فم الذهب‬ ‫بركاته علينا امين‬ ‫بسم ا﷽ الحي الناطق‬ The Book of the Choice Pearl, by John Chrysostom. May his blessings be upon us, amen. In the name of the living, rational God.

2. f. 5a: illuminated rectangular page headpiece in brown, yellow, and red ink, with the blessing, “In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, one God” (bismi-l-ab wa-l-ibn wa-l-rūḥ al-qudus al-ilāh al-wāḥid). In the left and bottom margins, the scribe has drawn six large birds (3 to the left and 3 below). 3. f. 274a: the scribe concludes the text with the blessing, “In the name of God the merciful and beneficent” (bismillāh al-ru’ūf al-raḥīm). Readers’ insertions: 1. f. iia: a reader’s note written by al-qummuṣ Tā’ufīlus from Dayr al-Suryān (his titles and name are repeated in consecutive lines and followed by two waqf-statements by him).

266

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 45 (= MS 689) Old number(s): none

Contents

Basil of Caesarea and Antony the Great, Ascetic Discourses and Rules/Canons 1. Basil the Great, Asketikon: Copt. 53a–60b, 62a–69a. ‫نسكيات باسيليوس الكبير‬ Incomplete (beginning missing). Organized in terms of questions and answers. 2. Basil the Great, Rules/Canons: Copt. 69b, 72a–79b, 81a–99b, 101a–151b, 153a–159a. ‫قوانين قالها القديس باسيليوس اسقف قيسارية قبادوقية بجميع النساك‬ ‫المتجمعين والمتفردين‬ Incomplete (selected folia missing). Organized in terms of topical sections (e.g. guarding thoughts, avoiding vainglory, disciplined speech, etc.), with some questions and answers. 3. Antony the Great, Letters: Copt. 159b. ‫[ انبا انطونيوس‬...]‫عشرين رسالة للاب القديس ال‬ 20 letters. Letter 1: Copt. 159b, 161a–164a. Letter 2: Copt. 164a–166b. Letter 3: Copt. 166b–169a. Letter 4: Copt. 169b–170b. Letter 5: Copt. 170b, 172a–b. Letter 6: Copt. 172b–178a. Letter 7: Copt. 178b–182b. Letter 8: Copt. 182b–185b. Letter 9: Copt. 185b–186b. Letter 10: Copt. 187a–189a. Letter 11: Copt. 189a–191a. Letter 12: Copt. 191a–192b. Letter 13: Copt. 192b–194a. Letter 14: Copt. 194a–196a. Letter 15: Copt. 196a–197b. Letter 16: Copt. 197b–200b, 202a–206a. Letter 17: Copt. 206a–208b, 211a–215b. Letter 18: Copt. 215b–220b.

267

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Letter 19: Copt. 220b–221b, 225a. Letter 20: Copt. 225b–226b, 230a–235a. 4. Antony the Great, Spiritual Teaching and Holy Commandments: Copt. 235a–b, 238a–243a. ‫تعليم روحاني ووصايا مقدسة من قول القديس العظيم اب جميع الرهبان‬ ‫واول من سكن البرية الطوباني انبا انطونيوس … من اجل الفضيلة الحسنة‬ ‫والهدوء والتحفظ والاستماع والطاعة في كل شيء وما تختص بالرهبنة‬ 5. Antony the Great, Teachings: Copt. 243a–257a. ‫تعاليم لابينا القديس انبا انطونيوس‬ Organized in 20 chapters. 6. Saint Antony, Rules/Canons and Commandments for his monastic children at the Monastery of Naqlūn: Copt. 257a–259b, 250bisa–b (sic, ~ 260a–b), 261a–279b. ‫قوانين ووصايا من قول القديس انبا انطونيوس لأولاده الرهبان بدير النقلون‬ Organized as a dialogue between Antony and the monks, with sections containing questions and answers. Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: none indicated. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with headings and punctuation in red. The hand is medium-to-large in scale (6–8 mm in height) with clear, legible, fluid strokes indicating some scribal skill. Material: Paper. Medium-to-heavy Middle Eastern stock, with no watermarks.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of Contents: none. Colophons: none. Endowments (waqf-statements): Copt. 55b–56a, 60a, 65b–66a, 69b, 75b–76a, etc.: informal waqf-statements to the Monastery of the St. Bishoi (Dayr Anbā Bishāy) have been written across the top of various pages

268

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

throughout the manuscript. They are written in a later, rather sloppy hand. The waqfs are variants on the following wording: ‫وقف لدير القديس انبا بيشاي بوادي الاطرون‬ Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: none Numbered folia: Copt. 53–60, 62–69, 72–79, 81–99, 101–151, 153–159, 161–170, 172–200, 202–208, 211–221, 225–226, 230–235, 238–259, 250bis, 261–279, plus one unnumbered stray page Backmatter: Copt. [280–282] The folio numbers are written in Coptic cursive on the recto of each leaf, with the exception of one unnumbered stray page that cannot be placed even though it is clearly written in the same hand. In the foliation sequence, the number 250, once at the proper place (Copt. 250), and the other time in place of number 260 where it is written in error (Copt. 250bis). The manuscript was originally composed of quires, each of which was ten folia in length. Portions of quires 6–28 survive. The quires are labeled/numbered on the recto of the first folio in each quire, although many of the first (and last) folia in the quires have been lost. Surviving examples include: Copt. 81a (quire 9), 91a (quire 10), 101a (quire 11), 111a (quire 12), 121a (quire 13), 131a (quire 14), 141a (quire 15), 151a (quire 16), 161a (quire 17), 181a (quire 19), 191a (quire 20), 211a (quire 22), 221a (quire 23), 231a (quire 24), 241a (quire 25), 251a (quire 26), 261a (quire 27), and 271a (quire 28).

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 26 × 17.5 cm Area of writing: 21 × 11.8 cm 16 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Dark brown or deep burgundy leather cover. The surface is distressed with many lines/wrinkles. The corners have been worn away and the undersurface is now visible. The folia of the MS are completely detached from the cover, which still has traces of its threads. The front endpaper now only partially adheres to the inside of the board. Because the endpapers are partially detached, the inside of the front and back boards is exposed and in both places Arabic script is visible.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

269

The folia of the MS are browned with some evidence of moisture damage. The page edges are frayed in varying degrees. Some of the folia show evidence of greater damage, with dirt caked on the surface of the pages and perforations. The volume is in need of conservation. Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. Copt. 53b, 62b, 67b, 78a–b, etc.: the scribe has written a Insertions number of brief comments/notes in the margins throughout the MS. 2. Copt. 255a is blank, and the scribe has written the word ‫سهو‬ (“omitted”) there in large letters in red ink. Readers’ insertions: 1. Copt. 130b: a later reader has written a marginal note in tiny letters written in blank ink: “+ But if…” ‫ وأما اذا‬+ 2. Copt. 212a: a later reader has written the word ‫“( نحن‬we”) in the margin in black ink (perhaps ballpoint pen).

270

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 46 (= MS 743) Old number(s): none

Contents

Evagrius Ponticus, Ascetic Discourses 1. Eulogius (Lūkiyūs), Letter to Evagrius: pp. 1–2. The title section on p. 1 is mostly obscured by water damage, but its ending is reconstructable: ... ‫[ الى القديس انبا وغري‬..]‫ رسالة من القديس لوكيوس ال‬... :١ ‫ص‬ 2. Evagrius [Ponticus], Letter in response to Eulogius (Lūkiyūs): pp. 2–3. ‫ جوابه رسالة القديس انبا لوكيوس من القديس انبا وغري‬:٢ ‫ص‬ 3. Evagrius [Ponticus], Edifying Discourse written for Eulogius (Lūkiyūs): pp. 3–26. ‫ كلام منفعة للقديس انبا وغري كتبه للقديس انبا لوكيوس الناسك‬:٣ ‫ص‬ Incomplete. Chapters 12–35 are missing at the end. Chapter 1, On virtuous estrangement/exile: pp. 3–6. ‫من اجل الغربة الفاضلة‬ Chapter 2, On vainglory: pp. 6–8. ‫من اجل المجد الباطل‬ Chapter 3, On humility: pp. 8–9. ‫من اجل الاتضاع‬ Chapter 4, On dwelling in peace: pp. 9–10. ‫من اجل السكن بسلام‬ Chapter 5, On reconciliation and peace: pp. 10–15. ‫من اجل الصلح والسلام‬ Chapter 6, On patience: pp. 15–16. ‫من اجل الصبر‬ Chapter 7, On vigilance and anxiety of heart: pp. 16–18. ‫من اجل السهر وقلق القلب‬ Chapter 8, On meekness, anger, love, and the heart of God: pp. 18–20. ﷽‫من اجل الدعة والغضب والمحبة وجوف ا‬

271

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Chapter 9, On living in poverty: p. 20. ‫من اجل العيشة بمسكنة‬ Chapter 10, On rejection [of the world] and thoughts٧: pp. 20–26. ‫من اجل الرفض والأفكار‬ Chapter 11, On repentance (al-tawbah): p. 26. Incomplete. ‫من اجل التوبة‬ The text ends with the following line: “Do not think on your imperfections. You should bear witness to them…” ... ‫لا تفكر في مناقصك وتشهد عليهم‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: not indicated. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with red headings and section numbering. The lettering is small in scale (3–5 mm in height), written in a cramped, somewhat unpracticed style, with rather thick ink strokes. Material: Paper. Light-to-medium-weight Middle Eastern stock, with no sign of chain or laid lines and no watermarks. Fine quality.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of Contents: none.

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: pp. i–x Numbered folia: pp. [1–2], 3–26 Backmatter: pp. 27–36

Colophons: none. Endowments (waqf-statements): no waqf apart from the purple stamps belonging to Dayr al-Suryān on pp. 1, 12, and 26.

The pages are marked with Arabic numerals between parentheses centered in the upper margin. This style of pagination perhaps suggests a fairly recent date. Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 16.3 × 11.5 cm Area of writing: 12.5 × 7.5 cm 20–21 lines/page

272 Cover, Condition

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Modern cloth cover with a soft leather/faux suede texture. The manuscript has been conserved recently, and as a result, the cover, binding, and front- and backmatter are in good shape. The pages show evidence of water stains, especially at the beginning of the MS (pp. [1–2] and 3–4), but also at the end (p. 26), and as a result sections of ink have bled and become illegible. There are also drips of candle wax on pp. 1, 4, and 5. The pages show signs of an earlier attempt at restoration, with the use of tape to reinforce their connection to the binding between pages 20 and 25. Page 23, however, is now detached.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. In the Edifying Discourse, the chapter numbers are Insertions sporadically noted, but when they are present they are consistent in numerical sequence. In addition, the work has sections numbered in red, which are different from the chapter numbering. The first 82 sections survive. Readers’ insertions:

273

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 47 (= MS 750) Old number(s): none

Contents

Diego d’Estella Scala (= Didacus Stella), Book on the Renunciation of Worldly Vanities, Part Two 1. [Diego d’Estella Scala (= Didacus Stella)], Book on the Renunciation of Worldly Vanities, Part Two: pp. 1–748. ‫الجزء الثاني من الكتاب المشتمل على الزهد في الأباطيل العلمية‬ 100 chapters. For a comparison of contents, see also DS Arabic Ascetic 40 (= MS 193). Table of Contents: pp. 1–7. ‫فهرسة الكتاب‬ Chapter 1, On the natures and conditions of the world: pp. 8–14. ‫في كيفيات الدنيا واحوالها‬ Chapter 2, On explaining the deception of this world and his ambushes: pp. 14–22. ‫في بيان غرور هذه الدنيا ومكامنها‬ Chapter 3, On the trickery and slander/untruthfulness that exists in the world: pp. 22–27. ‫في المكر والبهتان الموجود فى العالم‬ Chapter 4, On the false promises of the world: pp. 27–33. ‫في مواعيد الدنيا الكاذبة‬ Chapter 5, On the fact that the Creator (may he be exalted) grants more than he promises: pp. 33–40. ‫في ان البارئ تعالى يعطي أكثر مما يوعد به‬ Chapter 6, On association with the world and its snares: pp. 40–47. ‫في بيان اشراك الدنيا وفخاخها‬ Chapter 7, On the vicissitudes of the world and its lack of permanence: pp. 47–55. ‫في تقلبات الدنيا وعدم ثباتها‬ Chapter 8, On the swiftness of the passing away of the world and its influence: pp. 55–61. ‫في سرعة مرور الدنيا ونفوذها‬

274

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Chapter 9, On the fact that the world forgets those things that belong it and those who love it: pp. 62–71. ‫في انّ الدنيا تنسا خواصها ومحبيها‬ Chapter 10, On the fact that the world does not know its friends and those who belong to it: pp. 71–76. ‫في ان الدنيا لا تعرف اصدقاها وخواصها‬ Chapter 11, On the swiftness of the world’s rejection of the world of those who belong to it and [the swiftness of] its repudiation of them: pp. 76–83. ‫في سرعة رفض الدنيا لخواصها واطراحها اياهم‬ Chapter 12, On the fact that the world follows the powerful one who possesses victory: pp. 84–91. ‫في ان الدنيا تتبع القوي ذا الغلبة‬ Chapter 13, On the fact that God (may he be exalted) sees the poor and the wretched: pp. 91–100. ‫في ان ا﷽ تعالى يعين المساكين والبائسين‬ Chapter 14, On explaining the removal of the yoke of the world and its difficulty: pp. 100–109. ‫في بيان تقل نير الدنيا وصعوبته‬ Chapter 15, On the sweetness of Christ’s yoke for a tranquil period of time: pp. 109–117. ‫في حلاوة نير المسيح ولمدة نعيمة‬ Chapter 16, On the pains and hardships that the world brings upon those who love it: pp. 117–123. ‫في الالام والمشقات التي تجلبها الدنيا على محبيها‬ Chapter 17, On the harms/disadvantages that the world brings upon our souls: pp. 123–130. ‫في المضرات التي تجلبها الدنيا لنفوسنا‬ Chapter 18, Including the harms/disadvantages that the world brings upon the body: pp. 130–136. ‫تشتمل على المضرات التي تجلبها الدنيا للجسد‬ Chapter 19, On the fact that the world locks the doors on the inspiration of the Creator (great and exalted be he): pp. 136–143. ‫في ان الدنيا تغلق الابواب عن الهام البارئ عز وجل‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

275

Chapter 20, On the fact that the world does not cease persecuting the best and most excellent people: pp. 143–150. ‫في ان الدنيا لم تزل تضطهد اخيار الناس وافاضلهم‬ Chapter 21, On the fact that the world destroys itself through its persecution of the righteous: pp. 151–156. ‫في ان الدنيا تهدم ذاتها باضطهادها الصالحين‬ Chapter 22, On explaining the good that our persecutors do to us: pp. 157–162. ‫في بيان الخير الذي يفعله بنا مضطهدونا‬ Chapter 23, On patience and endurance in the face of hardships and tribulation: pp. 163–172. ‫في الصبر والتجلد على الشدائد والمحن‬ Chapter 24, On the fact that the world sets us at a far distance from God: pp. 172–180. ‫في ان الدنيا تبعدنا من ا﷽ بعد‬ Chapter 25, On the fact that the world causes the Creator to be exiled from us and rebels against him with respect to our souls: pp. 180–187. ‫في ان الدنيا تهزم البارئ عنا وتعصيه من نفوسنا‬ Chapter 26, Explaining that the greatest thing that God hates is sin, and he despises it: pp. 187–192. ‫يبين ما اكثر ما يبغض ا﷽ الخطية ويشنأها‬ Chapter 27, Including the misery of the world and its vileness: pp. 192–198. ‫يشتمل على شقوة الدنيا ودناتها‬ Chapter 28, On the fact that you should not fear the world at all: pp. 198–205. ‫في انه لا ينبغى ان تتق بالدنيا البتة‬ Chapter 29, On explaining the weakness of the world and its lack of power: pp. 205–210. ‫في بيان ضعف الدنيا وعدم قواها‬ Chapter 30, On explaining the weakness of the power of those who love the world and their cowardice: pp. 210–217. ‫في بيان ضعف قوى محبي العالم وجبانتهم‬

276

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Chapter 31, On the bravery of those who resist and the strength of their courage: pp. 217–227. ‫في بيان شجاعة الصديدين وشدة باسهم‬ Chapter 32, On defining the essence of the world: pp. 227–234. ‫في تعريف ماهية الدنيا‬ Chapter 33, On explaining the weights and measures of the world: pp. 234–241. ‫في بيان اوزان العالم وموازينه‬ Chapter 34, On worldly fanaticisms/bigotries and schisms: pp. 241–248. ‫في التعصبات الدنياوية والاشتقاقات‬ Chapter 35, On explaining the good that derives from integrity and agreement: pp. 248–255. ‫في بيان الخير الناجم من السلامة والاتفاق‬ Chapter 36, On the fact that the Creator (may he be exalted) loves integrity and agreement in the extreme: pp. 255–261. ‫في ان البارئ تعالى يحب السلامة والاتفاق فى الغاية القصوى‬ Chapter 37, On explaining the first and last worldly matters: pp. 261–266. ‫في بيان اوائل الامور العالمية واواخرها‬ Chapter 38, On the fact that between God and the world there exists a great difference and heterogeneity: pp. 266–274. ‫في ان بين ا﷽ والعالم اختلاف عظيم وتغاير‬ Chapter 39, On explaining the essence of love of the world: pp. 274–280. ‫في بيان ماهية محبة العالم‬ Chapter 40, On the removal and separation of creatures: pp. 281–286. ‫في الابعاد عن المخلوقات والانفصال عنها‬ Chapter 41, On how we should die to the world: pp. 286–293. ‫ نموت[ عن العالم‬:‫في انه كيف ينبغي لنا ان نموة ]لازم‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

277

Chapter 42, On the danger in which the people of the world live: pp. 293–300. ‫في بيان الخطر العايش فيه اهل العالم‬ Chapter 43, On the negligence and neglect in which the people of the world live: pp. 300–308. ‫في التواني والتغافل العايش فيه اهل العالم‬ Chapter 44, On explaining the concern and aspiration of the righteous and the ardor of their struggle: pp. 308–315. ‫في بيان اهتمام الصديقين وحرصهم وحرارة اجتهادهم‬ Chapter 45, On the fact that worldly matters are not our defining attribute nor what specially pertains to us: pp. 315–320. ‫ سيمائنا[ ولا مختصة بنا‬:‫في ان الامور العالمية ليسة من سيمنا ]لازم‬ Chapter 46, On explaining the hypocrisy and deceitfulness of the people of the world: pp. 320–331. ‫في بيان رياء اهل العالم ومكرهم‬ Chapter 47, On the dissimulating/false slumbers of the people of the world: pp. 331–338. ‫في منامات اهل العالم الغاشة‬ Chapter 48, On the disobedience of the people of the world: pp. 338–346. ‫في بيان عصيان اهل العالم‬ Chapter 49, On the unseemly enslavement of the people of the world: pp. 346–352. ‫في بيان عبودية اهل العالم الغير لائقة‬ Chapter 50, On the fact that we should seek help with God, and not with the world, in the circumstance of our hardships: pp. 353–360. ‫في انه ينبغي لنا ان نستعين با﷽ فى حال شدايدنا لا بالدنيا‬ Chapter 51, On censuring the hate, rage, and anger which is [found] among the people of the world: pp. 360–366. ‫في ذم البغضة والحنق والغضب الذي بين اهل العالم‬ Chapter 52, On explaining the power of patience and its virtue: pp. 367–376. ‫في بيان قوة الصبر وفضيلته‬

278

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Chapter 53, On the fact that the people of the world complain in/among themselves out of envy toward the goodness of others: pp. 376–384. ‫في ان اهل العالم يتألمون في ذواتهم حسد لخير غيرهم‬ Chapter 54, On explaining the lack of provisions belonging to the people of the world: pp. 384–394. ‫في بيان عدم موافات اهل العالم‬ Chapter 55, On explaining the provisions of the righteous and their thankfulness for gracious benefits: pp. 394–402. ‫في بيان موافات الصديقين وشكرهم على النعم‬ Chapter 56, On explaining the confusion of the world and its lack of order: pp. 402–408. ‫في بيان اختلاط الدنيا وعدم ترتيبها‬ Chapter 57, On explaining the ignorance and madness of the people of the world: pp. 408–414. ‫في بيان جهل اهل العالم وجنونهم‬ Chapter 58, On explaining the lies and murders of the world: pp. 414–421. ‫في بيان اكاذيب العالم واغتيالاته‬ Chapter 59, On explaining the nobility and esteem of the truth: pp. 421–429. ‫في بيان شرف الحق وتفضيله‬ Chapter 60, Explaining that the people of world hate the truth: pp. 429–436. ‫يبين ان اهل العالم يبغضون الحق‬ Chapter 61, On explaining the anxiety and worries of the people of the world: pp. 436–442. ‫في بيان قلق اهل العالم وهمومهم‬ Chapter 62, On the fact that worldly changes are full of bitterness: pp. 442–448. ‫في انّ التغيرات العالمية مملوة مرارة‬ Chapter 63, On explaining the joy, sweetness, comfort, and happiness that exists in God: pp. 448–457. ‫في بيان الفرح الموجود في ا﷽ والحلاوة والعزاء والسرور‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

279

Chapter 64, On explaining the stupidity of the people of the world and their ignorance/neglectfulness: pp. 457–464. ‫في بيان غماوة اهل العالم وغفلتهم‬ Chapter 65, On explaining the seduction and debasements of the people of the world: pp. 464–471. ‫في بيان غواية اهل العالم وغشوشهم‬ Chapter 66, On explaining the painful pains that afflict the people of the world: pp. 472–478. ‫في بيان الالام الموجعة التي تعتري اهل العالم‬ Chapter 67, On explaining the rewards with which the world rewards its servants: pp. 478–485. ‫في بيان المكافاة التي تكافيها الدنيا لخدامها‬ Chapter 68, Comprising escape and flight from the world: pp. 485–491. ‫يشتمل على الهرب والفرار من العالم‬ Chapter 69, On the fact that we should flee from the boundaries and pathways of the world: pp. 493–502. ‫في انه ينبغي لنا ان نهرب من حدود العالم ومسالكها‬ Chapter 70, On the fact that we should flee from the evils and malicious things of the world, even if they are pitiable: pp. 502–510. ‫في انه ينبغي لنا ان نهرب من شرور العالم وخبائثه ولو كانت حقيرة‬ Chapter 71, On the fact that we should flee from the people of the world: pp. 510–517. ‫في انه ينبغي لنا الفرار من اهل العالم‬ Chapter 72, On the fact that we should keep company with the people of virtue and associate closely with them: pp. 517–523. ‫في انه ينبغي لنا ان نرافق اهل الفضيلة ونعاشرهم‬ Chapter 73, On explaining the ignorance and stupidity of the people of the world: pp. 523–532. ‫في بيان جهالت اهل العالم وغباوتهم‬ Chapter 74, On explaining the flatteries and wiles of the people of the world: pp. 532–540. ‫في بيان تمليقات اهل العالم ومخاتلاتهم‬

280

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Chapter 75, On explaining the debasements of the delights and amusements of the world: pp. 540–547. ‫في بيان غشوش مفرحات الدنيا ومطرباتها‬ Chapter 76, On the rejection of worldly consolation and its contempt: pp. 547–555. ‫في رفض التعزية العالمية واحتقارها‬ Chapter 77, On indifference to parents and relatives on account of Christ: pp. 555–563. ‫في التهاون بالوالدين والاقارب من اجل المسيح‬ Chapter 78, On what should be obligatory for whoever despises the world and complains about it: pp. 563–572. ‫فيما ينبغي عزمة اليه من يزدرى بالدنيا ويتهاون بها‬ Chapter 79, Explaining the fact that God (may he be exalted) regards the intent as more excellent that the deed: pp. 572–577. ‫يبين ان ا﷽ تعالى ينظر الى النية أفضل من العمل‬ Chapter 80, On the remembrance of death and meditation on it: pp. 577–585. ‫في ذكر الموت والهذيذ به‬ Chapter 81, Explaining that the hour of death is unknown: pp. 585–592. ‫يبين ان ساعة الموة غير معروفة‬ Chapter 82, Explaining why the Creator (may he be exalted) desires that we not know the time of death’s descent: pp. 592–597. ‫يبين لما اراد البارئ تعالى ان ما نعرف وقت حلول الموت‬ Chapter 83, On the fact that the servant of Christ should work tirelessly at contemplating and meditating on death, without slackening: pp. 597–605. ‫في انه ينبغي لعبد يسوع ان يواصل التامل والهذيذ بالموت بلا فتور‬ Chapter 84, On the fact that the Christian servant should be broken by the pains of Christ and should feel them in his heart: pp. 605–613. ‫في انه ينبغي للعبد المسيحي ان يتفطر بالالام المسيح ويحس بها فى قلبه‬

281

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Chapter 85, On the three types [of struggle] through which the world struggles with you in most matters: pp. 613–620. ‫في الصنوف الثلثة التي تقاتلك الدنيا بها فى غالب الامور‬ Chapter 86, On resistance in opposition to the world: pp. 620–629. ‫في المقاومة بازاء العالم‬ Chapter 87, On explaining the first of the three types, which is pride: pp. 629–640. ‫في بيان الصنف الاول من الصنوف الثلثة وهو الكبرياء‬ Chapter 88, On the fact that God (may he be exalted) brings low the proud and humbles their haughtiness: pp. 640–649. ‫في ان ا﷽ تعالى يذل المتكبرين ويخضع تجبرهم‬ Chapter 89, On the healing medicine for pride: pp. 649–658. ‫في الدوى الشافى للكبرياء‬ Chapter 90, On explaining the virtue of humility: pp. 658–668. ‫في بيان فضيلة التواضع‬ Chapter 91, On the fact that God (may he be praised) raises up the humble: pp. 668–677. ‫في ان ا﷽ سبحانه يرفع المتواضعين‬ Chapter 92, On explaining the people of humility and its source: pp. 677–686. ‫في بيان اهل التواضع وينبوعه‬ Chapter 93, On the fact that [God] (may he be exalted) reveals his secrets to the humble: pp. 686–694. ‫في انه تعالى يكشف اسراره للمتواضعين‬ Chapter 94, On explaining the second of the three types, which is greed: pp. 694–703. ‫في شرح الصنف الثاني من الصنوف الثلثة وهو الشح‬ Chapter 95, On explaining the healing medicine for avarice/ stinginess: pp. 703–710. ‫في شرح الدوى الشافي للبخل‬

282

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Chapter 96, On explaining the nobility of the virtue of magnanimity and generosity: pp. 710–716. ‫في بيان شرف فضيلة الكرم والسخاء‬ Chapter 97, On explaining the third of the three types, which is fornication: pp. 716–722. ‫في شرح الصنف الثالث من الصنوف الثلثة وهو الزناء‬ Chapter 98, On the healing medicine for the sin of fornication: pp. 722–731. ‫في الدوى الشافي لخطيت الزناء‬ Chapter 99, On explaining of the nobility of the virtue of abstinence: pp. 731–738. ‫في بيان شرف فضيلت العفة‬ Chapter 100, On explaining the good(ness) that lovers of the world lose: pp. 738–746. ‫في بيان الخير الذي يفقده محبو العالم‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: Wednesday, 22 Barmūdah, AM 1581 [= 1865 CE] (p. 746). Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with red headings and punctuation. The hand is neat and consistent. Lettering is small-tomedium in scale (4–6 mm) and written with bold but contained ink strokes. Material: Paper. European stock of medium weight, bearing shield with man-in-the-moon watermarks.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

Scribe: Dūs Filtāwūs (p. 747). Patron/owner: al-arkhan al-mu‘allim ‘Abd al-Shahīd Qusṭūr, from the area of Dūwayr ‘Ābid (p. 746). Restorer: none identified.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: pp. 1–7: original, internal table of contents of the work, outlining the 100 chapters contained therein. Colophons: pp. 746–748: a colophon written in different blocked sections, the first of which has an internal design that looks like an

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

283

inverted V with undulating sides. The scribe indicates the date of completion as Wednesday, 22 Barmūdah, AM 1581 [= 1865 CE] (p. 746). He also identifies the muhtamm as al-arkhan al-mu‘allim ‘Abd al-Shahīd Qusṭūr, from the area of Dūwayr ‘Ābid, indicating that the latter paid for the MS out of his own funds (p. 746) and comparing him to Joseph, James, Mark, Cornelius, and Paul (p. 747). Then the scribe identifies himself (after a series of rhetorical gestures expressing humility) as Dūs Filtāwūs (p. 747), but he does not reveal where he is from (“a district not to be mentioned”; al-naḥiyyah al-mun‘adam al-dhikr ‘anhā). Finally, he concludes with a prayer for forgiveness (p. 748) and warnings against anyone who would try to cut out pages of the book under threat of the fate that befell Simon Magus, Diocletian the Unbeliever, and Judas [Iscariot]. Endowments (waqf-statements): Throughout the MS: there are purple waqf stamps on various pages endowing the volume to Dayr al-Suryān (Dayr al-Sayyidah al-‘Adhrā’ [al-Suryān]). p. iii: Bishop Matā’us has documented the gifting of the book to Dayr al-Suryān by Brother Maged (al-akh Mājid) from Old Cairo (Miṣr al-qadīmah) on January 7, 2003. This waqf is written in the bishop’s hand. Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: pp. i–xviii Numbered folia: pp. 1–748 Backmatter: pp. 749–764

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 24 × 16.5 cm Area of writing: 19.5 × 11.5 cm 16 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Modern cover of burgundy faux leather, in excellent shape. The front- and backmatter are pristine. The flyleaves and endpapers are dappled in tan with cream-colored spots. The original folia are in good condition, although there is some browning from use and signs of moisture toward the front and back of the MS. The leaf containing pages 15–16 has been cut down slightly: it is only 15 cm in width.

284

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. The scribe has written a double-lined rectangular border in Insertions red ink around the area of writing on each page. 2. The scribe has provided biblical references in the margins as commentary on the content of the main text. 3. The text cuts off about a third of the way down p. 491, and the scribe leaves the subsequent page (p. 492) blank, before resuming at the top of p. 493. Readers’ insertions: 1. On p. xvii, a reader named ‘Abd al-Shahīd Ḥannā al-Minyāwī has written a note (in a rather sloppy hand) recording his name in bold purple ink. 2. On p. xviii, a reader has drawn a cross (which is labelled, al-ṣalīb) that fills most of the page. Within the outline of the cross and its base, the writer has written a text that begins with the following: ‫طوبى للطالبين‬ ‫الحق المبين‬ ‫في الحداثة‬ ‫بعد مأثمة‬ ً‫طريق‬ ‫حيا لا ينكر‬ ‫لهم الكتاب المقدس يظهر المسيح‬ ً ‫ا‬ Blessing to those who seek the clear truth after [making] a mistake. To them the Bible reveals Christ as the living way not to be denied.

3. On a loose slip of modern paper in the manuscript, a reader (probably the monastic librarian) notes that the text was taken/copied from a book printed in Jerusalem in 1861 by a Franciscan author named Diego d’Estella Scala (= Didacus Stella), written in Arabic as ‫ديدكس ستالة‬.

285

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 48 (= MS 771) Old number(s): none

Contents

Rules/Canons of Saint Mīsās; John Cassian, The Eight Passions 1. Rules/Canons of Saint Mīsās, head of the solitaries at Jabal Afāth (excerpt): pp. 446–504 (= Copt. 1a–30a). ‫جزوا يسير من قوانين ابينا القديس انبا ميساس رئيس المتوحدين لجبل افاث‬ a. On those who reject the world and merit the life of monasticism: pp. 446–452 (= Copt. 1a–4a). ‫من اجل الذين رفضوا العالم واستحقوا سيرة الرهبنة‬ b. On those who desire the offering and who set their work in order: pp. 452–504 (= Copt. 4a–30a). ‫من اجل الذين يريدون التقدمة ويرتبون الاشغال‬ 2. [John] Cassian, On the Eight Passions [= On the Eight Evil Thoughts], a maymar sent to Castor, Pope of Rome: pp. 504–555 (see below for Copt. equivalents). ‫ ميمر وضعه انبا قيسيان وارسله الى قسطرا بابا رومية‬:٥٠٤ ‫ص‬ ‫ الثمانية اوجاع‬:٥٥٥ ‫ص‬ Organized in eight sayings (aqwāl). Saying 1, On the desire of the body: pp. 504–508 (= Copt. 30a– 32a). ‫القول الاول في رغبة البطن‬ Saying 2, On fornication: pp. 508–515 (= Copt. 32a–35b). ‫القول الثاني في الزنا قد صار لنا ثاني في العادة‬ Saying 3, On the love of money: pp. 515–525, 526–527 (out of order) (= Copt. 35b–39b, [no Copt.], 41a–b). ‫القول الثالث في حب الفضة‬ Saying 4, On the demon of wrath and his spirit: pp. 527, 528–529 (out of order), 530–539 (= Copt. 41b, 42a–b, 43a– 46b, [47a–b]). ‫القول الرابع على شيطان الغضب وروحه‬ Saying 5, On the spirit of sadness and its darkness: pp. 539– 542 (= Copt. [47b], after which there is no Copt.). ‫القول الخامس على روح الحزن وظلمته‬

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S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Saying 6, On discontent and its combat: pp. 543–547 (no Copt.). ‫القول السادس على الضجر وقتاله‬ Saying 7, On the demon of self-inflation and vainglory, and its subtlety: pp. 548–551 (no Copt.). ‫القول السابع على شيطان النفخ والسبح الباطل ودقته‬ Saying 8, On the demon of pride and its [power of] destruction: pp. 551–555 (no Copt.). ‫القول الثامن على شيطان العظمة وهلاكه‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: none indicated. Language and script: Arabic. The original scribal hand used black ink with bright red for headings and punctuation. His hand is charactered by its very small lettering (3–5 mm in height): the ink strokes are in bold but very constrained with minimal flourishes. The secondary, replacement hand used black ink, with a more sparing use of red (only for headings): there is no dotting/punctuation and the red ink has faded to a muted silver. The replacement scribe wrote in a medium-sized script (~ 5–8 mm in height): the letters are angular, bold, and vertical in orientation with a slight tilt to the right. Material: Paper. The original leaves are of a fairly heavy Middle Eastern stock with no watermarks. The replacement leaves are of a thinner European stock with Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) watermarks. The front- and backmatter consist of modern European paper (grayish manila) with no watermarks.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of Contents: none. Colophons: p. 555 (no Copt.): final blessing after John Cassian’s On the Eight Passions. Endowments (waqf-statements): no waqfs apart from the purple stamps marking the volume as belonging to Dayr al-Suryān.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Pages, Numbering

287

Frontmatter: pp. i–vi Numbered folia: pp. 446–523, 524–525, 528–529, 526–527, 530– 537, 538–539, 540–555, [556–557] (= Copt. ff. 1–39, [one leaf no Copt.], 42, 41, 43–46, [47], [eight leaves no Copt.]) Backmatter: pp. 558–563 The Arabic pagination numbers are written in pencil in the center of the upper margin on each page, along with their European counterparts at the upper right. There is also an original series of Coptic cursive folio numbers beginning with Copt. 1 (= p. 446) and continuing through Copt. 39, until the sequence is disrupted due to the fact that the leaves were disordered at some point in the history of the MS and then rebound out of order. Pages 524–525, 540–555, and [556–557] are replacement folia and lack the original Coptic cursive foliation. On the final one, there is also a single secondary Coptic cursive foliation written on p. [556] (= Copt.2 130a). The correspondence of these different systems is as follows: pp. 446–523 = Copt. 1–39 pp. 524–525 = no Copt. (replaced Copt. 40) pp. 528–529 = Copt. 42 pp. 526–527 = Copt. 41 pp. 530–537 = Copt. 43–46 pp. 538–539 = [Copt. 47] pp. 540–555 = no Copt. (replaced Copt. 48–56) pp. [556–557] = Copt.2 130 (no equivalent in the original) The manuscript is organized into quires of 10 folia each, with five quires surviving. Four are complete; the last is missing its original final three folia (Copt. 48–50). There would have been at least one additional (sixth) folio containing these works, but it has been lost and subsequently replaced by a leaf supplied by the secondary scribe. There are two systems of quire labeling in evidence, both indicated on the upper left corner of the recto on the first folio in each surviving quire. The first (Q1) corresponds to the original Coptic cursive foliation. It was later crossed out and replaced by the second system (Q2), which is closer but not exact in its correspondence to the pagination system.

288

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Ar. pag.

Copt. fol.

Q1

Q2

p. 446 p. 466 p. 486 p. 506 p. 526

Copt. 1a Copt. 11a Copt. 21a Copt. 31a Copt. 41a

quire 1 quire 2 quire 3 quire 4 quire 5

quire 24 quire 25 quire 26 quire 27 quire 28

Thus, the folia in this MS seem to have gone through several different stages. During the first stage, the leaves were still in their proper order and were numbered Copt. 1–56. The surviving original quire labels (Q1) confirm that these leaves were placed at the beginning of a larger manuscript. During the second stage, some leaves were damaged and lost (Copt. 40, 48–56), and some lost their original Coptic cursive foliation numbers due to wear (Copt. 47). This led to the third stage, which involved the replacement of certain leaves and their rebinding as quires 24–28 in a larger manuscript. This rebinding is also probably reflected in the secondary system of modern pagination (despite the fact that it does not line up exactly with the secondary quire system). At some point, during stage four, this manuscript subsequently came apart or was disassembled, and the leaves again found themselves in need of conservation/rebinding. Finally, in stage five, these leaves were conserved and rebound in their current modern binding. In the process, some of the leaves became displaced (ff. 526–527 and 528–529; = Copt. 41 and 42) and were bound out of order. Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 22.3 × 15.3 cm Area of writing: Original scribal hand (pp. 446–523, 526–539): 17 × 11 cm; 16–20 lines/page Replacement hand (pp. 524–525, 540–555, Copt.2 f. 130): 17.5 × 12.5 cm; 15–17 lines/page

Cover, Condition

Modern brown leather cover with an incised double-lined rectangular border bisected by a single-lined X and populated by nine medallion stamps (four at the corners and five at the center of the X’s intersection and arms). The front- and backmatter are in pristine condition and the binding is strong.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

289

The leaves of the MS are in good shape, with relatively minimal discoloration. One of the replacement folia (pp. 540–541) has been cut down slightly (it is only 14 cm in width). In addition to the recent binding, there is evidence for a professional conservation of some of the page edges in a few places. Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. On p. 453, the scribe has crossed out a phrase with four thin Insertions red horizontal lines: “Because our father Anbā Shenoute said…” ... ‫لان ابينا انبا شنوده قد قال‬ 2. On p. 487, the scribe has written a phrase insertion/correction above one of the lines in red script: “Or they blame the tourist/traveler who is on it.” ‫او يلومون السياح الذي عليه‬ Readers’ insertions:

290

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 49 (= MS 820) Old number(s): none

Contents

Isaac the Syrian, Maymar on Spiritual Rest 1. Isaac [the Syrian], Maymar on spiritual rest. Chapter 1 (end of section 4; beginning of section 5, On fasting): Copt. 27a–29b. ‫ الفصل الخامس في الصوم‬:‫أ‬٢٧ ‫ف‬ Chapter 3 (excerpts): Copt. 52a–58b, 61a–62b, 72a–79b, 84a–b, 87a–b, 94a. ‫ الباب الثالث في الراحة الروحانية‬:‫أ‬٥٢ ‫ف‬ Chapter 4ff. (excerpts; beginning with section 1, On the ordering of the soul through the types of virtues): Copt. 94a–b, 97a–b, 102a–103b, 108a–111b, 113a–b, 123a–129b, 159a–b, 165a–b, 202a–203b, 205a–206b, 208a–209b. ‫ الفصل الاول من الباب الرابع في ترتيب النفس بانواع الفضائل‬:‫أ‬٩٤ ‫ف‬

Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: none. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with headings in red. The hand is characterized by small lettering (5 mm or less in height), rendered with fairly consistent, clear, compact strokes. Material: Paper. Light-to-medium weight Middle Eastern stock with no watermarks.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: none

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: none Numbered folia: Copt. 27a–29b, 52a–58b, 61a–62b, 72a–79b, 84a–b, 87a–b, 94a–b, 97a–b, 102a–103b, 108a–111b, 113a–b, 123a–129b, 159a–b, 165a–b, 202a–203b, 205a–206b, 208a–209b Backmatter: none

Colophons: none Endowments (waqf-statements): none

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

291

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 15.5 × 11.5 cm Area of writing/lines per page: 11 × 8.5 cm 12 lines/page

Cover, Condition

No cover. The manuscript survives as a set of loose folia showing signs of significant wear at the edges, including pages that are only partially preserved. There is evidence of water damage and at least one example of a burnt spot (Copt. 29; perhaps from candle wax?).

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ Readers’ insertions: Insertions

292

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 50 (= MS 821) Old number(s): none

Contents

Isaac the Syrian, Discourses/Mayāmir 1. Isaac [the Syrian], Mayāmir. Fragmentary collection, probably originally containing 40 numbered mayāmir. Only parts of Mayāmir 5–8, [one maymar lacking a title and number], 24–29, 32–34, 37–38, 36–37, and 39 survive, with sections out of order. Maymar 5 (end): Copt. 73a. Incomplete; final three lines only. Maymar 6, On the different types of lethal attacks that come from demons in opposition to those who walk in the narrow way: Copt. 73a–b. ‫ الميمر السادس عن فرق انواع القتلات التي تكون من الشياطين‬:‫أ‬٧٣ ‫ف‬ ‫مقابل الذين يسلكون في الطريق الضيقة‬ Incomplete; ending missing. Maymar 7: Copt. 78a. Incomplete; final three lines only. Maymar 8, On the lethal attack of Saint and his ilk: Copt. 78a–b. ‫ الميمر الثامن على قتال الشيطان ونوعه‬:‫أ‬٧٨ ‫ف‬ Incomplete; ending missing. Maymar lacking a title and number: Copt. 112a–b. Incomplete. Maymar 24 (end): Copt. 130a–b, 132a. Incomplete; only final sections preserved. Maymar 25, On silence: Copt. 132a–b. ‫ الميمر الخامس العشرون على السكوت‬:‫أ‬١٣٢ ‫ف‬ Maymar 26, On the movement of the body: Copt. 132b–133b, 135a–b. ‫ الميمر السادس والعشرين عن حركة الجسد‬:‫أ‬١٣٣-‫ب‬١٣٢ ‫ف‬ Incomplete; middle missing. Maymar 27, On the types of different sorrows: Copt. 135b–136b. ‫ الميمر السابع وعشرين عن انواع اختلاف الاحزان‬:‫ب‬١٣٥ ‫ف‬ Incomplete; ending missing.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

293

Maymar 28: Copt. 141a–142b. Incomplete; beginning missing. Maymar 29: Copt. 142b. Incomplete; ending missing. Maymar 32: Copt. 149a. Incomplete; only last three lines preserved. Maymar 33: Copt. 149a–150b, 152a. Incomplete; middle missing. Maymar 34: Copt. 152a–b. Incomplete; ending missing. Maymar 37: Copt. 155a–156a. Incomplete; beginning missing. Maymar 38: Copt. 156a–b, 159a–161b, 163a–b. Incomplete; sections missing. Maymar 36: Copt. 163b–164b. Maymar 37: Copt. 164b, 167a–174b. Incomplete. The latter sequence of folia may belong to Maymar 38, given the fact that two folia are missing (Copt. 165–166). Maymar 39: Copt. 174b–179b, 182a–b. Incomplete. The final folio may belong to a different maymar, given the fact that two folia are missing (Copt. 180–181). 2. Isaac [the Syrian], [Miscellaneous Teachings/Sayings, Letters, and Mayāmir.] a. Teaching/Saying: Copt. 182b–183b. ‫ تعليم من قول القديس مار اسحق‬:‫ب‬١٨٣ ‫ف‬ b. [Maymar] On spiritual contemplation: Copt. 183b–204b. ‫ للقديس على التااوريا الروحانية‬:‫ب‬١٨٣ ‫ف‬ c. Letter to a brother who loved silence: Copt. 204b–210b, 212a–217a. ‫ رسالة من قول القديس مار اسحق الى اخ كان يحب السكوت‬:‫ب‬٢٠٤‫ف‬ See also DS Arabic Ascetic 3 and 4. d. [Maymar] On spiritual love: Copt. 217a–b, 219a. ‫ايضا على الحب الروحاني‬ ً ‫ للقديس‬:‫أ‬٢١٧ ‫ف‬

294

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

e. Teaching/Saying: Copt. 219b, 222a–223a. ‫ للقديس مار اسحق‬:‫ب‬٢١٩ ‫ف‬ f. Teaching/Saying: Copt. 223a–226b. ‫ايضا‬ ً ‫ للقديس مار اسحق‬:‫أ‬٢٢٣ ‫ف‬ g. [Teaching/Saying]: Copt. 226b. ‫ايضا‬ ً ‫ للقديس‬:‫ب‬٢٢٦ ‫ف‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: none indicated. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink, with headings and dots/ punctuation in red. The clear, consistent hand is characterized by medium-scale lettering (approx. 7 mm in height), rendered with semi-thick, bold ink strokes. Material: Paper. Light-to-medium weight Middle Eastern stock with no watermarks.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe, patron/owner, and restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: none

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: none Numbered folia: Copt. 73a–b, 78a–b, 112a–b, 130a–b, 132a–133b, 135a–136b, 141a–142b, 149a–150b, 152a–b, 155a–156b, 159a–161b, 163a–164b, 167a–179b, 182a–210b, 212a–217b, 219a–b, 222a–226b Backmatter: none

Colophons: none Endowments (waqf-statements): none

The Coptic cursive and Arabic folio numbers match throughout. Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 17.5 × 13.3 cm Area of writing/lines per page: 13 × 9 cm 13 lines/page

Cover, Condition

No cover. The manuscript survives in loose folia showing signs of wear at the edges. There is evidenc of some water damage and a couple examples of spots burned by wax (Copt. 160–161, 182). Some pages are also wrinkled with small rips.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. The scribe has added some comments in the margins: see, Insertions e.g. Copt. 125a and 174a. Readers’ insertions:

295

296

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 51 (= MS 822) Old number(s): none

Contents

Miscellaneous Mayāmir/Sayings by Monastic Elders The leaves in this volume seem to derive from two different manuscripts. They probably constitute fragments from the well-known monastic collection entitled The Garden of the Monks (Bustān al-ruḥbān). [Part 1: Sayings by monastic elders.] a. [Copt. 1–13]: The first thirteen folia are unnumbered. The first folio ([Copt. 1]) begins as follows: [Copt. 1a]: “Mār Antony on this question and his response, saying…” … ‫ مار انطونيوس عن هذه المسئلة فاجابه قاي ًلا‬:[‫أ‬١] ‫ف‬ Headings include: [Copt. 2a]: “… on the extent of the judgment.” ‫ ]…[ في حد الدينونة‬:[‫أ‬٢] ‫ف‬ [Copt. 5a]: “Also from the saying(s) of Saint Anbā Isaiah on silence.” ‫ وايضا من قول القديس انبا اشعيا على السكوت‬:[‫أ‬٥] ‫ف‬ [Copt. 5b]: “He also said…” ‫ وقال أيضا‬:[‫ب‬٥] ‫ف‬ [Copt. 9b]: “The teaching of Anbā Isaiah.” ‫ تعليم لانباشعيا‬:[‫ب‬٩] ‫ف‬ b. Copt. 48a–50b: More assorted sayings by monastic elders. c. The next 8 folia are unnumbered. They include the following headings: “The accounts/stories of Barsanuphius the great saint.” ‫اخبار برصنوفيوس القديس الكبير‬ “Dorotheus.” ‫دورتاوس‬ “Saint Barsanuphius said.” ‫قال القديس برصنوفيوس‬

297

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

“A maymar that Saint Anbā Evagrius said.” ‫ميمر قاله القديس انبا وغري‬ “Saint Dorotheus.” ‫للقديس دورتاوس‬

d. Copt. 180a–181b, 184a–187b, 223a–b, 225a–226b, 231a–240b, 242a–252b, 254a–269b: More sayings, with headings including: Copt. 180a: “From the saying(s) of Anbā Isaiah.” ‫ من قول انباشعيا‬:‫أ‬١٨٠ ‫ف‬ Copt. 181b: “From the discourse of Saint Mār Isaac.” ‫ من كلام القديس ماري إسحاق‬:‫ب‬١٨١ ‫ف‬ Copt. 185a: “From the letters of Saint Macarius the Great and from his sayings and accounts/stories.” ‫ من رسائل القديس مقاريوس الكبير ومن اقواله واخباره‬:‫أ‬١٨٥ ‫ف‬ Copt. 226b: “From the sayings of Anbā Isaiah.” ‫ من اقوال انباشعيا‬:‫ب‬٢٢٦ ‫ف‬ Copt. 231b: “From the discourse of Saint John Chrysostom, On trials/tribulations.” ‫ من كلام القديس فم الذهب في المحن‬:‫ب‬٢٣١ ‫ف‬ Copt. 243a: “Collection from the Book of the Paradise, Sayings of our Holy Fathers.” ‫ مجموع من كتاب الفردوس اقوال ابهاتنا القديس‬:‫أ‬٢٤٣ ‫ف‬ [Part 2: More sayings by monastic elders.] a. Copt. 1032a–1082b, 1102a–1122b, 1212a–1302b, 1682a–b, 1722a–b, 1792a–b, 1812a–1882b, 2032a–b, 2082a–b, 2112a–2192b, 2312a–2402b, 2412a–b, 2552a–2562b, 2822a–b: More sayings, organized in terms of questions and responses by elders. Headings with named figures include: Copt. 1122a: “Saint Abū Macarius said…” ‫ قال القديس ابو مقار‬:‫أ‬١١٢ ‫ف‬

298

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Copt. 1212b: “Anbā Isaiah said…” ‫ قال انبا اشعيا‬:‫ب‬١٢١ ‫ف‬ 2

Copt. 124 a: “This is a commandment from the saying(s) of Anbā John.” ‫ هذه وصية من قول انبا يوحنا‬:‫أ‬١٢٤ ‫ف‬ 2

Copt. 129 b: “Anbā Gerasimus met…” ‫ لقي انبا جراسيموس‬:‫ب‬١٢٩ ‫ف‬ Copt. 1722a: “Saint Barsanuphius said…” ‫ قال القديس برسنوفيوس‬:‫أ‬١٧٢ ‫ف‬ Copt. 1792a: “Anbā Ephrem said…” ‫ قال انبا افرام‬:‫أ‬١٧٩ ‫ف‬ Copt. 2552a: “A maymar… that Saint Anbā Cassian [said/wrote] and he sent it to Castor.” ‫ ميمر )…(ه القديس انبا قسيان وارسله الى قسطر‬:‫أ‬٢٥٥ ‫ف‬ This is probably an excerpt from Cassian’s On the Eight Evil Thoughts. Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: none. Language and script: Arabic. Both manuscripts feature black ink with headings and dots/punctuation in red. The first MS: medium-scale script (approx. 7–8 mm in height). The second MS: medium-scale script (approx. 6–7 mm in height). In both cases, the scribes wrote in clear, fairly consistent hands. Material: Paper. Light-to-medium weight Middle Eastern stock with no watermarks (same for both MSS).

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: none Colophons: none Endowments (waqf-statements): none

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Pages, Numbering

299

Frontmatter: none Numbered folia: Part 1: [13 unnumbered folia], Copt. 48a–50b, [8 unnumbered folia], 180a–181b, 184a–187b, 223a–b, 225a–226b, 231a–240b, 242a–252b, 254a–269b Part 2: Copt. 1032a–1082b, 1102a–1122b, 1212a–1302b, 1682a–b, 1722a–b, 1792a–b, 1812a–1882b, 2032a–b, 2082a–b, 2112a–2192b, 2312a–2402b, 2412a–b, 2552a–2562b, 2822a–b Backmatter: none The Arabic foliation matches the Coptic cursive, although the former is not always supplied. Part 1 has quire labels on the recto of the first folio in some of the surviving quires: the last one in evidence is for quire 27 (on Copt. 261a). The same applies to Part 2, where the final quire label in evidence is quire 25 (on Copt. 2412a).

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: Part 1: 25.7 × 17.9 cm Part 2: 25.5 × 16.5 cm Area of writing/lines per page: Part 1: 20.5 × 11.7 cm, 17 lines/page Part 2: 21 × 11.5 cm, 19 lines/page

Cover, Condition

No cover. The manuscript survives as a set of loose folia in poor condition. Water damage has obscured the text in places and there are signs of mildew. The edges of the leaves have become tattered and some have holes and/or tears. Someone has attempted to repair rips with clear tape. Some pages in Part 1 have been reinforced along the spine with strips of paper.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. The scribe occasionally provides marginal glosses in black or Insertions red ink. One example occurs on Copt. 262b, where he writes ‫ يعني ملانة‬/ ⲙⲉⲗⲁⲛⲉ (“that is, Melania” [Ar. yu‘nī Milānah]; “Melania” [Copt. Melane]) in the right margin next to the Arabic name ‫“( املانيون القديسة‬Saint Melania” [Ar. Imlāniyūn al-qiddīsah]) which appears in the main text.

300

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Readers’ insertions: 1. Copt. 185a: a later hand has written a note in the top margin: “Learn the sciences, O ignorant one.” ‫تعلم العلوم يا جاهل‬

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 52 (= MS 823) Old number(s): none

Contents

Antony the Great, Letters, Rules/Canons, and Teachings

301

1. Antony the Great, Letters to the monks: Copt. 54a–60b, 62a– 72b, 73b–86b, 88a–89b, 94a–95b, 99a–103a, 104a–110b, 112a–b. 20 letters. Letter 1: Copt. 54a–55a. Incomplete; beginning missing. Letter 2, On the giving of the law and the incarnation of God the Word, and their exhortation to do the commandments: Copt. 55a–57a. ‫الرسالة الثانية لاولاده الرهبان في اشتراع الناموس وتجسد الاله الكلمة‬ ‫وحثهم على العمل بالوصايا‬ Letter 3, Exhortation on doing the words of the Gospel and Apostles: Copt. 57a–59a. ‫الرسالة الثالثة لاولاده الرهبان يحثهم على العمل باقوال من الانجيل والرسول‬ Letter 4, Teaching that slavery to the law of virtue is not slavery but rather the sonship of freedom: Copt. 59b–60b. ‫الرسالة الرابعة لاولاده الرهبان يعلمهم فيها العبودية بناموس الفضيلة ليست‬ ‫عبودية بل بنوة الحرية‬ Letter 5, On emulating the saints: Copt. 60b, 62a. ‫الرسالة الخامسة لاولاده الرهبان يحرضهم على التشبه بالقديسين‬ Incomplete; middle missing. Letter 6, On the lethal attacks of the demons … and an exhortation on patience: Copt. 62a–66b. ‫الرسالة السادسة لاولاده الرهبان المقيمين بالفيوم يعرفهم فيها قتالات‬ ‫الشياطين ومعونات القوات المقدمين ويحثهم على الصبر وتكميل ما‬ ‫خرجوا اليه بسلام الرب امين‬ Letter 7, On the fact that our salvation is not through angels or humankind but by God the Word: Copt. 66b–69b. ‫الرسالة السابع لاولاده الرهبان يعرفهم فيها ان خلاصنا ليس بملاك ولا‬ ‫بانسان بل بالاله الكلمة المتجسدة ويحثهم فيها ان يجاهدوا بمقتضى‬ ‫الجهاد لينالوا الخلاص‬

‫‪S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON‬‬

‫‪Letter 8, Exhortation on the struggle so that they may receive‬‬ ‫‪the Holy Spirit: Copt. 69b–71b.‬‬ ‫الرسالة الثامنة لاولاده الرهبان يحثهم على الجهاد لكيما يقبلوا الروح‬ ‫القدس الناري ها هنا ويجتمعون هناك ويذكرهم بجهاد ذاته ويعرفهم بما‬ ‫حصل له لينشطهم بذلك ويجب ان يقرا يوم نياحته‬ ‫‪Letter 9, On the extent of the activity of God’s power in the‬‬ ‫‪saints and exhortation on obtaining [that power]: Copt. 71b–72b.‬‬ ‫الرسالة الثالثة لاولاده الرهبان يعرفهم مقدار فعل قوة ا﷽ في القديسين‬ ‫ويحثهم على اقتناها لينالوا الملكوت الدهرية‬ ‫‪Letter 10, On account of vainglory and its lethal attacks:‬‬ ‫‪Copt. 73b–75a.‬‬ ‫الرسالة الثالثة لاولاده الرهبان بسبب المجد البطال وقتالاته ويعرفهم كيف‬ ‫يجاهدون ليخلصوا منه بسلام الرب امين‬ ‫‪Letter 11, On discernment: Copt. 75a–76b.‬‬ ‫الرسالة الحادية عشر لاولاده الرهبان على الافراز ويحثهم على اقتناه لانه‬ ‫هو الكمال‬ ‫‪Letter 12, On love: Copt. 76b–77b.‬‬ ‫الرسالة الثانية عشر لاولاده الرهبان على المحبة وانه يشتهى ان يراهم ويتعزوا‬ ‫جميعا بما يعرفه لهم شفاها‬ ‫ً‬ ‫‪Letter 13, On obtaining joy: Copt. 77b–78b.‬‬ ‫الرسالة الثالثة عشر لاولاده الرهبان يحثهم على اقتنا الفرح الذي ينالوه‬ ‫المجاهدين وكيف يحكموان يوم الدين على اهل جيلهم المتوانيين‬ ‫‪Letter 14, On perfecting obedience: Copt. 78b–80a.‬‬ ‫الرسالة الرابعة عشر لاولاده الرهبان يحثهم على تكميل الطاعة لتحل عليهم‬ ‫بركات اباهم‬ ‫‪Letter 15, On fasting and the rest of the virtues: Copt. 80a–82a.‬‬ ‫الرسالة الخامسة عشر لاولاده الرهبان يعرفهم ان الصوم وبقية الفضائل ثمار‬ ‫حية ناطقة وان المجد البطال وراحة الجسد يفسدونهن ويجعلونهن ثما ًرا‬ ‫مايتة ردئة يحثهم على الهروب من هذه واستعمال تلك بسلام الرب امين‬ ‫‪Letter 16, On poverty and humility: Copt. 82a–86b, 88a–89b.‬‬ ‫‪Incomplete; sections missing, including ending.‬‬ ‫الرسالة السادسة عشر لاولاده الرهبان من اجل المسكبة والاتضاع بشهادات‬ ‫من العتيقة والحديثة ويؤكد عليهم ان يقتنوا ذلك ليفوز بالملكوت‬

‫‪302‬‬

‫‪303‬‬

‫‪ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES‬‬

‫‪Letter [17]: Copt. 94a–95b.‬‬ ‫‪Incomplete; beginning missing.‬‬ ‫‪Letter 18, On attaining divine insights: Copt. 95b, 99a.‬‬ ‫الرسالة الثامنة عشر لاولاده الرهبان يعرفهم انهم اذا بلغوا الى المناظر‬ ‫الالهية والاعلانات ان يتحززوا من المناظر الشيطانية لئلا يضلوا بفناطسهم‬ ‫الكاذبة وتتعظم قلوبهم ويحثهم على الدوام في الطاعة بسلام من الرب‬ ‫امين‬ ‫‪Incomplete; middle missing.‬‬ ‫‪Letter 19, On those who achieve perfection and receive the‬‬ ‫‪Holy Spirit: Copt. 99a–102b.‬‬ ‫الرسالة التاسعة عشر لاولاده الرهبان يعرفهم ان الذين وصلوا الكمال وقبلوا‬ ‫روح القدس لابد يطلق عليهم قتالات أصعب من الاولى لتتحفظ عليهم‬ ‫النعمة ويزدادون في كمالهم وينالون البركة الاخيرة بسلام الرب امين‬ ‫‪Letter 20, Exhortation for the monks to remain in their places‬‬ ‫‪[of residence] and not to travel from them so that they may‬‬ ‫‪receive the ultimate blessing: Copt. 102b–103a, 104a–110b,‬‬ ‫‪112a–b.‬‬ ‫رساىل كتبها لتلميذه الحبيب ببنوده الذي‬ ‫الرسالة العشرينية وهي كمال‬ ‫ٔ‬ ‫رئيسا على اولاده الرهبان ولكل من تحت طاعته ولكل من طلب‬ ‫جعله‬ ‫ً‬ ‫طريق الرب ويوكد عليهم يلبثوا في اماكنهم ولا ينتقلوا منها لينالوا البركة‬ ‫الاخيرة ويعرفهم فيها انواع قتالات الشياطين وانواع معونة الرب لمن‬ ‫يصبر سلام الرب امين‬ ‫‪Incomplete; sections missing.‬‬ ‫–‪2. Antony the Great, Spiritual Teaching: Copt. 112a–b, 114a‬‬ ‫‪117a.‬‬ ‫تعليم روحاني ووصايا مقدسة من قول القديس العظيم اب جميع الرهبان‬ ‫جميعا امين‬ ‫واول من سكن البرية الطوباني انبا انطونيوس بركاته تحفظنا‬ ‫ً‬ ‫من اجل الفضيلة الحسنة والهدو والتحفظ والاستماع والطاعة في كل شي‬ ‫وما يختص بالرهبنة سلام الرب امين‬ ‫‪3. Antony the Great, Teachings: Copt. 117b, [118a–119b],‬‬ ‫‪120a–121b, 121bisa–b, [122a–b], 123a–124b, [125a–128b]).‬‬ ‫ً‬ ‫فصلا‬ ‫تعاليم لابينا القديس انبا انطونيوس مرتبة عشرون‬

304

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

20 sections. Section 1, On preserving/guarding the heart: f. 117b. ‫الاول من اجل حفظ القلب‬ Section 2, On the fear of the Lord: ff. 117b–118a. ‫الثاني من اجل مخافة الرب‬ Section 3, On the perserverance/forebearance of the spirit: f. 118a. ‫الثالث من اجل طول الروح‬ Section 4, On lack of deceit: ff. 118a–119a. ‫الرابع من اجل قلة المكر‬ Section 5, On humility: f. 119a–b. ‫الخامس من اجل الاتضاع‬ Section 6, On purity: ff. 119b–120a. ‫السادس من اجل الطهارة‬ Section 7, On well-being/tranquility: ff. 120a–121bisa. ‫السابع من اجل السلامة‬ Section 8, On silence: f. 121bisa–b. ‫الثامن من اجل السكوت‬ Section 9, On [the fact that] everyone who worships on account of his salvation will not remain in his sins: ff. 121bisb–122a. ‫التاسع يعزي فيه كل من يتعبد من اجل خلاصه ولا يدوم في خطاياه‬ Section 10, On the fact that it is necessary for us to guard ourselves against our tongues a great deal: f. 122a–b. ‫العاشر من اجل انه يجب علينا ان نتحفظ من ألسنتنا جدً ا‬ Section 11, On wisdom and understanding: ff. 122b–123b. ‫الحادي عشر من اجل الحكمة والفهم‬ Section 12, On modesty/shame: ff. 123b–124a. ‫الثاني عشر من اجل الحشمة‬ Section 13, On vainglory: f. 124a–b. ‫الثالث عشر من اجل المجد البطال‬

305

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Section 14, On trial/testing and patience: ff. 124b–125a. ‫الرابع عشر من اجل الامتحان والصبر‬ Section 15, On understanding: f. 125a–b. ‫الخامس عشر من اجل الفهم‬ Section 16, On [marital] union/the wife: ff. 125b–126b. ‫السادس عشر من اجل القرينة‬ Section 17, On worship and virginity: ff. 126b–127a. ‫السابع عشر من اجل العبادة والبتولية‬ Section 18, In which it is commanded that we flee from evils and draw near to the good and do it: f. 127a–b. ‫الثامن عشر امر فيه ان نبتعد من الشرور ونقترب من الخير ونصنعه‬ Section 19, On control of the tongue: ff. 127b–128a. ‫التاسع عشر من اجل مسك اللسان‬ Section 20, On corruption/deceit: f. 128a–b. ‫العشرون من اجل الغش‬ 4. Antony the Great, Rules/Canons and commandments to the monks at the Monastery of Naqlūn: Copt. 128b. ‫قوانين ووصايا من قول القديس انبا انطونيوس لاولاده الرهبان بدير النقلون‬ ‫لما سألوه عن ذلك بسلام الرب امين‬ Incomplete (ending missing). 5. Untitled ascetic discourse on evil thoughts and renunciation: Copt. [two unnumbered folia that cannot be placed]. The text on these two folia features the following headings: ‫من اجل ما يهيج الافكار السو‬ “On account of what awakens/stirs evil thoughts.” ‫على الزهد وترك الفضة وان نبتعد الشرة والرغبة‬ “On renunciation and leaving money behind and fleeing evil and desire.” ‫خبروا عن انبا انطونيوس‬ “They told about Anbā Antony.”

306 Date, Language, Script, Material

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Date: AM 986 [= 1270 CE], if the Arabic translator and the scribe are one and the same person (see under “Colophons” below). Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with red headings and dots/punctuation. The hand is characterized by a medium-scale script (7–8 mm in height), which is legible but which has inconsistent pointing. Material: Paper. Medium-weight Middle Eastern stock with no watermarks.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

Scribe: an anonymous monk from the Monastery of ‘Arabah (i.e. the Monastery of St. Antony at the Red Sea) (f. 117a).

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: none.

No identification of patron/owner or restorer.

Colophons: Copt. 117a: colophon attesting to the fact that the Letters and Teachings of Saint Antony were translated from two Sahidic Coptic copies of the text into Arabic at the end of the year AM 986 [= 1270 CE] at the Monastery of ‘Arabah. The scribe asks for prayers of remembrance on behalf of the muhtamm, the person who translated the text [from Greek] into Coptic, the “simplifier” of the text into Arabic, and the scribe/copyist. The latter two in this list seem to be self-referential — namely, they probably refer to the scribe himself, who translated it from Coptic to Arabic and made this copy. ‫ نقلت هذه الرسايل والتعليم التي للقديس العظيم انبا انطونيوس من‬:‫أ‬١١٧ ‫ف‬ ‫اللسان الصعيدي الى اللسان العربي في اخر سنة ستة وثمنين وتسع ماية للشهدا‬ ‫الابرار بديره المعروف بدير العربة وكان ذلك من نسختين فما كان زايدً ا في‬ ‫احدتين كتب منها وما كان غير بسيط في معناه في الواحدة احد من الاخرى‬ ‫متاخرا في القبطي بمقتضى نسق الكلام العربي لتتطابق المعانى‬ ‫وقدم ما كان‬ ً ‫العربي لمن يقراها فبالحب الروحاني ايها الناظر فيه اذكر الذي اهتم بذلك والذي‬ ‫عربيا والذي نسخها يد ًيا وقل يا يسوع المسيح‬ ‫قبطيا والذي بسطها‬ ‫ترجمها‬ ً ً ‫اعطهم رحمة ورافة في ذلك اليوم الرهيب وعوض ما تقوله يعوضك عنه اضعافه‬ ‫موجودا من تعاليمه ووصاياه متفر ًقا في الكتب العربي ليبقا‬ ‫وتلينا ذلك بما كان‬ ً ً ‫دايما وعلينا رحمته امين‬ ً ﷽ ‫كتاب واحد مخصوصا به صلاته تحفظنا امين والسبح‬ Endowments (waqf-statements): none.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Pages, Numbering

307

Frontmatter: none Numbered folia: Copt. 54–60, 62–86, 88–89, 94–95, 99–110b, 112, 114–117, [118–119], 120–121, 121bis, [122], 123–124, [125–128], [two unnumbered folia] Backmatter: none The Coptic cursive and Arabic foliations systems match up where present, although the Arabic numbering is absent from some folia (e.g. Copt. 58–60). Folio 73a is blank apart from the Coptic cursive and Arabic folio numbers. Folio 103b is blank apart from the word ‫“( سهٯ‬omitted”) and a reader’s note.

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 25.5 × 16.5 cm Area of writing/lines per page: 21 × 11.5 cm 19 lines/page

Cover, Condition

No cover. The manuscript survives as a set of loose folia in fairly poor condition. The edges of various pages have become tattered, and some have been cut down a bit to mitigate that damage. At one point, someone attempted to repair and reinforce the leaves with clear tape and strips of paper. The leaves are in need of conservation.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ Readers’ insertions: Insertions 1. Copt. 103b: an anonymous reader has written a note containing a petition for rememberance and prayer of thanksgiving on this otherwise blank folio. The initial mention of “the spiritual one” is probably a reference to Saint Antony. ‫واحب الروحاني ايها القاري اذكر حقارة وعدم طهارة كانت الاحرف المسكين‬ ‫دايما ابد ًيا امين‬ ‫شيا فله امثاله اضعافًا و﷽ الشكر‬ ً ً ‫الحقير من قال‬ “I love the spiritual one. O reader, remember the wretchedness and impurity [of] the most wretched, poor, pathetic person. As for whoever says something [in remembrance], may there be many like him. Thanks be to God forever and ever. Amen.”

308

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 53 (= MS 824) Old number(s): none

Contents

John Saba/The Spiritual Elder (al-Shaykh al-rūḥānī), Mayāmir and Letters 1. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder (al-Shaykh al-rūḥānī), Mayāmir: ff. 6a–11b, 19a–21b, 23a–28b, 31a–51b, 60a–61b, 63a–114b (= Copt.). Incomplete; sections missing. See also DS Arabic Ascetic 7– 13 (= MSS 159–162, 164–166). Headings in evidence: [Maymar 3, On the visitation of the spirit that is granted to the solitaries]. [‫]ميمر على زيارة الروح التي تعطى المتوحدين‬ f. 6b: “The middle degree/stage, which is that of the soul.” ‫ الدرجة الوسطا التي هي النفسانية‬:‫ب‬٦ ‫ف‬ f. 7b: “On the degree/stage of perfection.” ‫ على درجة الكمال‬:‫ب‬٧ ‫ف‬ [Maymar 6]: On annoyance and rashness, and on pridefulness: f. 25a. ‫ ميمر على الحرد وعلى الطياشة وعلى الكبرياء‬:‫أ‬٢٥ ‫ف‬ [Maymar 7,] On the love that the pure angels show among those who are active/industrious…: f. 26b. … ‫ ميمر على المحبة التي تظهرها الملائكة الاطهار عند النشطا‬:‫ب‬٢٦ ‫ف‬ [Maymar 8,] On definitive/ultimate contemplation: f. 28b. ‫ على الثاؤريا القاطعة‬:‫ب‬٢٨ ‫ف‬ [Maymar 9,] On the fact that no one should reproach the fathers when they speak imperfectly for the sake of the capacity of the knowledge of the listeners: f. 33a. ‫ ميمر على انه لا ينبغي لاحد ان يلوم الابا القديسين إذا تكلموا‬:‫أ‬٣٣ ‫ف‬ ‫بانقص كقدر معرفة السامعين‬ [Maymar 10,] On the heretical brothers: f. 35a. ‫ ميمر على الاخرة المبتديين‬:‫أ‬٣٥ ‫ف‬

309

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

[Maymar 11,] On prayer and the powers of the spiritual natures, on the knowledge of God [and] many discernments: f. 37b. ‫ ميمر على الصلاة وعلى قوات الطبايع الروحانية وعلى معرفة‬:‫ب‬٣٧ ‫ف‬ ‫ا﷽ وعلى افرازات كيرة‬ [Maymar 14,] On preserving internal and external senses: f. 44b. ‫ ميمر على حفظ الحواس الخارجة والداخلة وبماذا يتحفظوا‬:‫ب‬٤٤ ‫ف‬ [Maymar 15,] On voluntary death, which is from the world: f. 49a. ‫ ميمر على الموت الارادي الذي من العالم‬:‫أ‬٤٩ ‫ف‬ [Maymar 16,] Question asked, “Why does one of our fathers say that the souls after their translation ascend to heaven?”: f. 49b. ‫ مس)ئ(لة سأل لماذا من اباينا من يقول ان الانفس بعد انتقالها‬:‫ب‬٤٩ ‫ف‬ ... ‫ترتفع الى السما‬ [Maymar 17,] On boldness: f. 51a. ‫ ميمر على الدالة‬:‫أ‬٥١ ‫ف‬ [Maymar 23,] On the gifts that are from the Spirit: f. 60a. ‫ ميمر على العطايا التي من الروح‬:‫أ‬٦٠ ‫ف‬ [Maymar 24,] On intimate bliss: f. 66a. ‫ ميمر على اللذة الانيسة‬:‫أ‬٦٦ ‫ف‬ [Maymar 25,] On flight from the world and withdrawal from [worldly] familiarity: f. 71b. ‫ ميمر على الفرار من العالم والانقطاع من الدالة‬:‫ب‬٧١ ‫ف‬ [Maymar 26,] Warnings and counsels on pure repentance: f. 74a. ‫ تحذيرات ومنشورات على التوبة الطاهرة‬:‫أ‬٧٤ ‫ف‬ [Maymar 27,] On the announcement/disclosure of the appearance of Christ: f. 76b. ‫ ميمر على استعلان ظهور المسيح ربنا‬:‫ب‬٧٦ ‫ف‬ [Maymar 28,] [A maymar] also attributed to him: f. 79b. ‫ وايضا له‬:‫ب‬٧٩ ‫ف‬

310

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

[Maymar 29 (?),] A maymar/letter to his brother who requested that he show him how repentance was possible: ff. 80b–81a. ‫ ميمر رسالة الى عند اخيه الذي كان طلب منه ان يوريه‬:‫أ‬٨١-‫ب‬٨٠ ‫ف‬ ‫كيف تقدر التوبة ان تطهر وتجلي النفس التي خرجت وتنجست باخطايا‬ ‫من بعد ميلاد المعمودية المقدسة‬ [Maymar 30,] A vision revealed by God when he came forward to sanctify the divine mysteries for humankind: ff. 86b–87a. ‫ رؤيا اورى لانسان من ا﷽ لما تقدم ليقدس الاسرار الالهية‬:‫أ‬٨٧-‫ب‬٨٦ ‫ف‬ [Maymar 31,] [A maymar] belonging to the saint on the meaning [that the brother who was from of old … spoke of the glorified vision that he had on the holy mysteries]: f. 88a. ‫ إنه قال‬... ‫ وللقديس ايضا في المعنى ]الأخ الذي من قديم‬:‫أ‬٨٨ ‫ف‬ [‫الرؤيا الممجدة الذي له على الأسرار القديسة‬ [Maymar 32,] On how much rest/tranquility is beneficial to those who are active and how much exhaustion is made for the labor of the monastic life: f. 88b. ‫ ميمر على انه كم ينفع الهدو للنشطا وكم يضيغ الانحلال‬:‫ب‬٨٨ ‫ف‬ ‫لتعب الرهبنة‬ [Maymar 33,] On love and the love of God: f. 90a. ﷽‫ ميمر على الحب وعلى محبة ا‬:‫أ‬٩٠ ‫ف‬ [Maymar 34,] On meditation on the economy of our Lord: f. 97b. ‫ ميمر على الهذ في تدبير ربنا‬:‫ب‬٩٧ ‫ف‬ [Maymar 35,] The vision/discernment of God: f. 101b. ﷽‫ ميمر على نظر ا‬:‫ب‬١٠١ ‫ف‬ [Maymar 36,] Maymar belonging to the saint on the remembrance of meditating on God and focusing [one’s attention] on him: f. 110b. ‫ ميمر على ذكر الهذيذ با﷽ والاهتمام به‬:‫ب‬١١٠ ‫ف‬ 2. John Saba/The Spiritual Elder (al-Shaykh al-rūḥānī), Letters: ff. 115a–160b. ‫رساىل للشيخ بعث بهم لانسان انسان من احباه‬ ٔ

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

311

Incomplete. Only Letters 1–25 and 33–39 survive, some only in part. Letter 1: ff. 115a–116b. Letter 2: ff. 116b–118a. Letter 3: f. 118a. Letter 4: ff. 118a–120b. Letter 5: ff. 120b–122a (incomplete; ending missing). Letter 6: ff. 122a–123a (incomplete; beginning missing). Letter 7: ff. 123a–124a (incomplete; part of beginning missing). Letter 8: f. 124a. Letter 9: f. 124a–b. Letter 10: ff. 124b–126b. Letter 11: ff. 126b–129a. Letter 12: f. 129a–b. Letter 13: ff. 129b–130a. Letter 14: ff. 130a–133a. Letter 15: f. 133a–b. Letter 16: ff. 133b–134b. Letter 17: ff. 134b–136a. Letter 18: ff. 136b–138b. Letter 19: ff. 138b–139a. Letter 20: f. 139a–b. Letter 21: ff. 139b–140b. Letter 22: ff. 140b–141b. Letter 23: ff. 141b–142b. Letter 24: f. 142b. Letter 25: f. 142b (incomplete; ending missing). Letter 33: f. 149a–b (incomplete; beginning missing). Letter 34: ff. 149b–151a. Letter 35: ff. 151a–152b (incomplete; ending missing). Letter 36: f. 159a–b (incomplete; beginning missing). Letter 37: ff. 159b–160a. Letter 38: f. 160a–b. Letter 39: f. 160b (incomplete; ending missing). Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: none indicated. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with headers and occasional dotting/punctuation in red. The hand is medium in

312

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

scale (approx. 7–8 mm high), with closely spaced lines and characters, but the letters are rendered clearly and skillfully. Material: Paper. Medium-to-heavy weight Middle Eastern stock with no watermarks. Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of contents: none.

Patron/owner: perhaps Bishop Peter (Petros) (f. 114b); see under “Endowments” and “Readers’ insertions” below.

Colophons: none. Endowments (waqf-statements): f. 114b: What seems to be a waqf-statement was written at the end of the mayāmir section of the MS, but then later scratched out (perhaps because it was connected with a different monastery?). It was probably written by Bishop Peter, whose name is inscribed (and still survives) above the Arabic waqf: ⲡⲓϩⲏϫ ⲡⲉⲧⲣⲟⲥ ⲉⲡⲓⲥ/ ⲕⲟⲡⲟⲥ (“The poor one, Peter the bishop”).

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: none Numbered folia: ff. 6–11, 19–21, 23–28, 31–51, 60–61, 63–101, 103–142, 149–152, 159–160 Backmatter: none Coptic cursive and Arabic folio numbering match throughout (where both are present). There are traces of the labeling of quires on the recto of the first leaf in every quire: the final example is the label for quire 16 on f. 151a.

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 24.5 × 17 cm Area of writing/lines per page: 21 × 11–12 cm 17 lines/page

Cover, Condition

No cover. The leaves are loose with some rips and a few edges torn away. There is a burn mark at the spine between folia 19 and 20. Many pages are discolored and the letters smudged. Some water stains are in evidence as well.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

313

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ Readers’ insertions: Insertions 1. Throughout the MS, there are extensive notes and glosses written in a very small hand in the margins in black ink throughout the MS by a later reader of the text. 2. f. 20a: a marginal note in a second reader’s hand (much larger than the extensive insertions by the first reader indicated above). On ff. 38a–39a, both hands are in evidence. 3. f. 64b: a note in a third reader’s hand, written in a lighter/ faded ink that now appears light gray or brown. See also ff. 66a and 127b. 4. f. 114b: a certain Bishop Peter (Petros) has inscribed his name below the conclusion of the mayāmir: ⲡⲓϩⲏϫ ⲡⲉⲧⲣⲟⲥ ⲉⲡⲓⲥ/ⲕⲟⲡⲟⲥ (“The poor one, Peter the bishop”). He was probably the writer of the waqf below his signature, which was subsequently erased/scratched away.

314

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 54 (= MS 978) Old number(s): none

Contents

Fragments of an Ascetic Discourse 1. Untitled ascetic discourse on prayer, almsgiving, and trials: Copt. 134a–137b, 139a–b. Copt. 134a: End of Chapter 41 (?). The surviving text ends as follows: ‫ ولا يبطل في يوم السبت الى اخره بل يعملوا فيه عملا خفيفا ويكون‬... ‫ايضا فيه القداس مستمرا لا ينقطع‬ Copt. 134a–136a: Chapter 42, On prayer. ‫القول الثاني والأربعين في الصلوات وهو ثلثة فصول‬ The surviving text begins as follows: ‫اما المتوحدين فيصلون دائما في حال قيامهن وقعادهم واكلهم وشربهم‬ ... ‫وفي كل حركاتهم كقول الرب صلوا في كل حين‬ Copt. 136a–137b (incomplete at end?): Chapter 43, On almsgiving. ‫القول الثالث والأربعين في الصدقات التي تذكر‬ The surviving text begins as follows: ‫اما الصدقة فهي لازمه لكل أحد من الناس غنيا كان او فقيرا راهب او‬ ... ‫علماني صديق او خاطي‬ Copt. 139a–b: If it belongs to this manuscript, Copt. 139 would be part of Chapter 43 (see above) or Chapter 44, On trials (?). The surviving text begins as follows: ‫فنحتبس فاذا ينبغي لنا ان يكون لنا زمان هذه المحن امرين‬ ... ‫متضاددين‬ The text ends as follows (at what appears to be at the end of the chapter): ‫ وهذه نفسها علامة نجاح الانسان بمعونة ا﷽ الذي له السبح‬... ‫دايما ابدا‬ ً

Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: none indicated. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink, with red ink for title headings (see Copt. 134a and 136a). Red pause dots only appear on Copt. 139. The naskhī script gives the impression of haste. The scribe crowds his words, which overlap one another. Bowls

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

315

tend to be wide, denticles small, and the counters of fā᾿, ῾ayn, mīm, etc. closed. The scribe does not fully point his letters. Material: Paper. Middle Eastern stock with laid lines, but with no watermarks observable. Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of Contents: none

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: none Numbered folia: Copt. 134–137, 139 Backmatter: none

Colophons: none Endowments (waqf-statements): none

The leaves are numbered in the upper left-hand corner of the recto in Coptic cursive numerals. On Copt. 134–137, these are interpreted in Arabic numerals, written in pencil just below the Coptic cursive. The surviving leaves are remnants of the fourteenth quire of a manuscript, including the two central sheets (Copt. 134–137). There is some doubt as to whether or not Copt. 139 belongs to this manuscript; it has red pause dots not used elsewhere. Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 17.5 × 13 cm Area of writing: 13.5 × 9.5 cm 13 lines/page

Cover, Condition

There is no cover. The leaves are fairly well preserved, given the fragmentary state of the manuscript. There is some discoloration from moisture (esp. on Copt. 134 and 137). Copt. 139 has been folded and is a bit brittle along the folds.

Scribal Practice and Readers’ Insertions

Scribal practice: 1. There are faint traces of a ruling board, although the scribe treats the ruled lines with some freedom. He generally tries to left-justify his text, sometimes stretching out letters in the final words of lines. Readers’ insertions:

316

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 55 (= MS 979) Old number(s):

Contents

Letters of John Saba/the Spiritual Elder (al-Shaykh al-Rūḥānī) 1. John Saba/the Spiritual Elder (al-Shaykh al-Rūḥānī), Letters (Rasā’il): Copt. 143a–[148]b. Incomplete. Only [parts of] Letters 42–44 survive. Letter 42: Copt. 143a–b (incomplete). The text ends as follows: ‫ واهدي واسكت الان لان ليس من يقدر ان يخبر على روياتك يا‬... ‫ناظر الكل السبح من كل يا مكلل محبيه الى ابد الابدين امين‬ Letter 43: Copt. 143b–[148a]. ‫الرسالة الثالثة والاربعون‬ The text begins as follows: ‫طلبت يا اخي ان اكتب اليك ليس هو لنا نحن الكسالى والملولين‬ ... ﷽‫الالام ليك الذي من اجل نشاطهم وحرص عقولهم المعجب ا‬ Letter 44: Copt. [148]a–b (incomplete). ‫الرسالة الرابعة والاربعون‬ The text begins as follows: ‫قرات السر الذي كان مخفي في رسالتك ايها الاخ النشيط واملت‬ ... ‫نفسي فرح وابتهال لا ينطق به‬

Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: none indicated. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink. The naskhī script is simple in style without serifs or other showy features. Vertical strokes are quite broad. The scribe crowds his words, which sometimes overlap one another. Bowls tend to be wide and deep, the denticles on sīn small, and the counters of fā’, ‘ayn, mīm, etc. frequently closed. The letter fī is sometimes written with the tail of the ya’ turned back horizontally. The scribe does not fully point his text. Material: Paper. Middle Eastern stock with laid lines, but with no watermarks observable.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of Contents: none

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: none Numbered folia: Copt. 143–145, [146–148] Backmatter: none

317

Colophons: none Endowments (waqf-statements): none

Copt. 143–145 are numbered in the upper left-hand corner of the recto in Coptic cursive numerals. These are interpreted in Arabic numerals in pencil just below. The next three folia (Copt. [146– 148]) are not numbered, but share folded sheets with Copt. 145, 144, and 143 respectively. These leaves are remnants of the fifteenth quire of a manuscript: they originally constituted its three central sheets. Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 17.5 × 13 cm Area of writing: 13 × 9 cm 13 lines/page

Cover, Condition

There is no cover. The leaves are fairly well preserved, given the fragmentary state of the manuscript. There is some discoloration from moisture at the top edge, and these leaves have been folded at some point.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. There are faint traces of a ruling board. The scribe observes Insertions the left-hand margin, sometimes by stretching out the final word in the line. Occasionally he writes the final letter(s) of a word deep in the margin, separated by a space from the rest of the word. 2. The scribe sometimes makes use of a long fatḥah-like sign to distinguish a letter without dots from its counterpart with a dot, and especially to distinguish sīn from shīn. Readers’ insertions:

318

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 56 (= MS 980) Old number(s): none

Contents

Isaac the Syrian, Sayings; and a Fragment from a Monastic Anecdote 1. Isaac [the Syrian] (Mār Isḥāq), Sayings (Akhbār): ff. [1]a–[7]b. Chapter 37: ff. [1]a–[3]a). Incomplete at the beginning. The preserved section begins as follows: ‫افلي اليك الطريق يقال لانقلت له يا اخي انا اريد من ثمرة هذا‬ ... ‫الروضة‬ It ends as follows: ‫ ويكفينا مناصب العدو اللعين وتجاحه المنضوبه امين‬... Chapter 38: ff. [3]a–[7]b. Incomplete at the end. ‫ قال اسحق اسقف‬... ‫الخبر الثامن والثلاثين لماري اسحق أسقف نينوي‬ ‫نينوي يتضمن وصايا ومواعض على خلاص النفس من الخطية امين قال‬ ...] ‫القديس ماري اسحق ان من اربعة خصال تولد كل خطية وهن هولا‬ The preserved text ends as follows: ‫ ويذكر ان الرب يسوع المسيح يفتقد ضميره ويطلع على سريرته‬... ‫ويعرف خطايا قلبه‬ 2. A monastic anecdote (fragment): f. [8]a–b. The fragment begins: ‫وسمعته بأذني واهممت ]كذا[ بالرهبان وما يغاتاتوا به وجعلته من‬ ‫اتواما من نفر‬ ‫اهتمامي ولم يكن بعد ايام قلايل حتي اتي الى الدير‬ ً ... ‫الاسكندرية ومعهم كتا ًبا مكتو ًبا باسم هذا الولد المبارك‬

Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: not indicated. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink, with red ink used for title headings and the introduction on f. [3]a. The script is rather small and cramped, with some striking letters, such as the wide kūfī-style kāf, or wide bowls of final letters. In general, vertical strokes are thin, while horizontal ones are thick. The points on letters are more like tiny apostrophes than dots. Material: Paper. European stock of medium weight, with thin six-pointed-star and fleur-de-lis watermarks.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No mention of scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of Contents: none

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: none Numbered folia: ff. [1–7], [8] Backmatter: none

319

Colophons: none Endowments (waqf-statements): none

This fragment consists of 8 unnumbered leaves. The first seven appear to be from the same quire, the middle three sheets plus one: xx1234567x The final leaf, f. [8], is an orphan, which may be from a very different part of the manuscript (or a different manuscript altogether). Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 20.5 × 15 cm Area of writing: 16 × 10.5 cm 18–19 lines/page (except for f. [8]: 15 lines/page)

Cover, Condition

There is no cover. The leaves of the manuscript are detached from their original context.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. The scribe provides catchwords, which allowed for the Insertions collation of f. [7] with the preceding sequence of folia (ff. [1–6]). 2. The scribe uses a small fatḥah-like sign over letters that need to be distinguished from their counterparts with a dot over them, and a pair of these marks over sīn to distinguish it from shīn. 3. The scribe has made the outer margin about 2 cm wider than the inner one. Readers’ insertions:

320

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 57 (= MS 981) Old number(s): none

Contents

Isaac the Syrian, Mayāmir 1. Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥāq), Discourses/Mayāmir: ff. [1]a– [21]b. These leaves appear to be from one of the standard collections of mayāmir by Mār Isḥāq. The first four items correspond to material from chapters 10, 12, 14, and 15 in the Egyptian printed edition: Nusukiyyāt wa-mayāmir Mār Isḥāq al-Suryānī, ed. Tādurus al-Suryānī (Wādī al-Naṭrūn: Maktabat Dayr al-Suryān al-‘āmir, 2016). NOTE: The 21 leaves of this manuscript are unnumbered and possibly out of order. Spaces left for the addition of titles in red ink have been left empty. In the order in which these leaves have been preserved, the following headings marking the beginning of treatises or chapters are in evidence:

a. Maymar 15: f. [6]b. ﷽‫ في انه لا ينبغي لعبد ا‬،‫الميمر الخامس عشر للقديس ماري اسحق‬ ... ‫الذي قد أبغض العالم وافتقر منه وجرح يطلب ا﷽ بكل قوته‬ b. [No title]: f. [8]b. Text begins: ‫قد يكون رجا با﷽ في امانه في القلب ثابتة ويكون حس ًنا بافرازه‬ ‫وامانته ومعرفته‬ c. [No title]: f. [10]a. Text begins: ‫لا تظن ايها الانسان ان في ساير اعمال الرهبانيه شي أكبر من تدبير‬ ‫سهر الليل‬ d. [No title]: f. [13]a. Text begins: ‫الى ان يبغض الانسان بالحقيقة علل الخطية من كل قلبه فمن لذه‬ ‫فعلها ما ينعتق هذا هو الجهاد‬ e. [No title]: f. [20]b. Text begins: ‫دايما في هذه‬ ‫ان كنت وحدك في القلاية فاقرا‬ ً

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

321

f. [No title]: f. [21]a. Text begins: ‫وديعا ساك ًنا لان الضرورة‬ ‫الانسان الكثير الاهتمام ما يستطيع ان يكون‬ ً ‫تدعوه الى الامور التي فيها الشقا‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: none indicated. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink, with with red ink used for the title heading at f. [6]b. The hand is a neat naskhī script that follows the scribe’s ruled lines closely and provides sufficient spacing for letters. Denticles are clearly written. Kāf can have a wide S-form, final lām can be quite wide, and final ῾ayn is boldly written with a long descender that slopes to the right. Material: Paper. Middle Eastern stock; no watermarks observable.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No mention of scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of Contents: none

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: none Numbered folia: ff. [1–21] Backmatter: none

Colophons: none Endowments (waqf-statements): none

This fragment consists of 21 unnumbered leaves, which come from various quires: f. [7] has the quire signature for Quire 10; f. [9] has the quire signature for Quire 11. Folia 11–12 are one sheet. The leaves are possibly out of order. A few leaves have small Coptic cursive numerals in the upper right-hand corner — the meaning of which is obscure: f. f. f. f.

[1]a: 3/5 [2]a: 21/5 [11]a: 8/4 [14]a: 3/4

322

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 18 × 13.5 cm Area of writing: 14.5 × 9.5 cm 13 lines/page

Cover, Condition

There is no cover. The leaves are in fair condition. There is some discoloration from moisture in the upper left-hand corners, and some leaves are slightly folded and weather-beaten.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. Traces of a ruling board are clearly visible. The scribe has Insertions written carefully within the spaces provided (except in the occasional case where the final letter of the line is written well into the margin, separated from its word). 2. The scribe does not provide catchwords, which does not help facilitate the collation of unnumbered pages. 3. The scribe uses fatḥah-like symbols for a variety of reasons, including distinguishing letters from their counterparts with dots over them. Sīn is distinguished from shīn by a symbol like a small v, or a small v with the fatḥah-like stroke over it. Readers’ insertions: 1. In the top margin of f. [16]a, someone has written Mār Ifrām (“St. Ephrem”) in pencil.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 58 (= MS 982) Old number(s): none

Contents

An Ascetic Century and Assorted Apophthegmata

323

1. An Ascetic Century: ff. 230a–236b, 238a–242b, 244a–b. Incomplete. Beginning and intermediate parts missing. The title is provided in the upper margin of folia: ‫مائة رأس‬ The following chapters are preserved: [5]–45; [50]–[84], [92]–100. Chapter 5: the surviving text begins in the middle of the chapter as follows (f. 230a): ‫[ر والمهلكة ولا تجهل الموهبة الالهية التي معي‬...]‫وافكار ال‬ Chapter 6: this is the first complete chapter, which begins as follows (f. 230b): ‫الافكار الردية التي تشعلها فينا الاعداء الشياطين الارجاس هي تجلب‬ ‫الاوجاع النجسة‬ Chapter 100: the final chapter ends as follows, with references to Saints Antony, Macarius, Pachomius, Sarapamon, and John [the Little] (f. 244b): ‫مثل انطونيوس ومقاريوس وبخوميوس وسرابامون ويوحنا الذين صارو‬ ‫مسكنا لروح القدس المعزي الذي عزاهم وهو يعزي ايضا من يعمل مثل‬ ‫ الذي له المجد مع الاب والبن الى دهر الداهرين‬،‫اعمالهم برحمته ورافته‬ ‫امين كملت المائة رأس بعون ا﷽ سبحانه‬ 2. Assorted Apophthegmata: ff. 244b, 246a–249b. Incomplete (ending missing). The surviving text begins as follows with a teaching by Saint Antony comparing a monk’s being outside his cell to a fish’s being out of water (f. 244b): ‫قال انبا انطونيوس كما ان ان ]كذا[ السمك اذا خرج من الما يموت هكذا‬ ‫الراهب الذي يبطر خارج عن قلايته يموت‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: not indicated. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink (which has faded to brown), with red ink used for Coptic cursive folio numerals. The script is an informal naskh written with fairly broad strokes

324

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

without serifs or other ornamentation. Letters for the most part are clearly written (e.g., denticles are clearly rendered), although alif-lām are sometimes connected (so that al- looks like li-l-), and the pointing is incomplete. The scribe sometimes stretches out a final lām, kāf, nūn, or other letters to “underline” the two or three words that follow. Material: Paper. Middle Eastern stock with laid lines and no visible watermarks. Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of Contents: none

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: none Numbered folia: ff. 230–236, 238–242, 244, 246–249 (= Copt.) Backmatter: none

Colophons: none Endowments (waqf-statements): none

The folia are numbered in the upper left-hand corner of the recto, at a diagonal slant, in Coptic cursive numerals in red ink. Many of these have been partly or almost completely lost because of wear to the manuscript, but enough remains to be able to reconstruct the sequence. In a modern, fine-tipped pen, the Arabic equivalents of the Coptic cursive numerals have been added next to them. 17 leaves are preserved from three quires of a manuscript. Folia 231–232 and 241–242 were the central sheets of quires. The distribution of folia within these quires was as follows: Quire (1): x x x 230–236 Quire (2): x 238–242 x 244 x 246 Quire (3): 247–249 x x x x x x x Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 17.5 × 13 cm Area of writing: 15.5 × 11.5 cm 16–17 lines/page

Cover, Condition

There is no cover. The manuscript is in a very fragile condition. Material has worn away from page edges, which are now in a

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

325

brittle state. In spite of this, little text has been lost from these leaves, and the text remains legible. At some point in the past, the manuscript was restored (or was in the process of restoration). Folio 248 has been reinforced at the fold with glued-on paper. Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. The scribe leaves little in the way of margins (although part of Insertions the margins may have been lost during an earlier restoration of the MS). 2. The scribe does not provide catchwords. 3. A fatḥah-like sign is used to distinguish letters from their equivalents with a dot over them, or sīn from shīn. 4. The scribe uses a pair of small slanted strokes as a pause marker. 5. In the Ascetic Century, the scribe introduces each chapter with a Coptic cursive numeral. Readers’ insertions: 1. In the upper margins of a number of pages (starting at f. 238b), the author is identified as Anbā Isaiah (Sha‘yā); but someone has crossed out these additions as if to correct a misidentification.

326

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 59 (= MS 983) Old number(s):

Contents

A Collection of Monastic Sayings and Anecdotes 1. A Collection of Monastic Sayings and Anecdotes (fragmentary): Copt. 32a–b, 41a–42b, 48a–b, 50a–b, 52a–b, 60a–b, 72a–b, 75a–76b. The preserved text begins as follows (Copt. 32a): ‫من الناس والبهايم والطير وسمك البحر وعلى الشياطين ايضا‬ Later on the same page (Copt. 32a), the following is written in red ink: ‫قيل ما هي الصلاة قال تفرغ العقل من جميع امور الدنيا ويرده بنظر العقل‬ ‫الى شوق الرجاء المعد‬ In the course of the sayings, a number of monastic names are written in red ink: Anbā Sha‘yā (= Isaiah) (Copt. 41b); Anbā Tādurus (= Theodore) (Copt. 42b); Anbā Ya‘qūb (= Jacob) (Copt. 48a); Anbā Zakariyā and Anbā Bīmin (= Zachariah and Poemen) (Copt. 52a); Balādiyūs (= Palladius) (Copt. 60a); Anbā Bīmin (= Poemen) (Copt. 60b). On Copt. 60a–b, the main figure is an elder (shaykh) who is questioned by a brother (akh).

Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: not indicated. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink, with red ink used for introductions of anecdotes, proper names, and pause dots. The script is a plain, legible naskh with fairly broad pen strokes. Alif and initial lām often have a serif. The letters have a rather square appearance. Some have long vertical ascenders, while other letters follow the baseline rather closely. Bowls and tails are written with thick horizontal strokes. Material: Paper. European stock with the Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) watermark.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of Contents: none

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: none Numbered folia: Copt. 32, 41–42, 48, 50, 52, 60, 72, 75–76 Backmatter: none

327

Colophons: none Endowments (waqf-statements): none

The leaves are numbered in Coptic cursive numerals in the upper left-hand corner of the recto. On some sheets, these have been translated into Arabic numerals, which are written in modern pen beneath the Coptic cursive numeral. Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 20.5 × 15.5 cm Area of writing: 16 × 11 cm 14 lines/page There is no cover. Only ten folia survive, and the leaves that remain of this (once handsome) manuscript have been exposed to the elements and suffer from water damage. Copt. 41 is badly crumpled. Copt. 75–76 suffer from mildew, and as a result some text has been lost.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. While the scribe did not rule his paper, he still maintains Insertions generally straight lines and margins. 2. The scribe generally supplies catchwords, at the bottom of the verso, indented one word’s length from the left-hand margin. 3. The scribe regularly uses a small fatḥah-like sign to distinguish letters from their counterparts with a dot over them. Sīn is distinguished from shīn by a shaddah-like sign with a line over it, which often looks like a pair of lines. 4. Ends of sections are marked by four red dots arranged in the form of a cross. Readers’ insertions:

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S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 60 (= MS 984) Old number(s):

Contents

An Ascetic Century 1. An Ascetic Century: Copt. 39a–47b. Incomplete at the beginning and end. Chapters 5–44 are preserved. This identification is made through comparison with DS Arabic Ascetic 58 (= MS 982), where the collection of 100 short sayings has the following title: ‫مائة رأس‬ Chapter 5 (beginning missing): the surviving text begins as follows (Copt. 39a): ‫اسال ا﷽ ان يعينك ولا يسلمك في ايدي ذوى اللحم ولا في ايدي‬ ‫الارواح النجسة الدنسة المفزعة لك ّنه يحرسك بيمينه‬ Chapter 6: the first complete chapter begins as follows (Copt. 39a): ‫الافكار الردية التي تشعلها فينا الاعدا الشياطين الارجاس هي تجلب‬ ‫الاوجاع النجسة لكن قوة الرب الكاينة لنا من اجل دموعنا هى تميت‬ ‫الاوجاع وتبيدها‬ The text ends with Chapter 44 and the very beginning of Chapter 45 (Copt. 47b): ‫دسما تفرح شفتاي حين‬ ‫شحما‬ ‫ارفع يدي واعترف لان نفسي قد امتلت‬ ً ً ‫عظيما ان ادعى لك اب ًنا كما قال اشعيا النبي اب‬ ‫اسبحك لان هذا لي‬ ً ‫الدهر الاتي‬ ...] ‫الرب انا اعطي‬ ‫[ قال‬٤٥] ّ

Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: None supplied. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink, with red for dots/ punctuation. The hand is characterized by a clear naskhī script in which letters are sometimes rather elegantly written. For example, the alif regularly has a tiny serif. In the lām-alif combination, it can slope downwards in a thick stroke which then curves and shades into a much thinner stroke, paralleling but not touching the bottom of the lām, which is written with a small foot. Final bowls can be quite wide, curving under the following word.

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

329

Material: Paper. European stock with a watermark in the shape of a hand. Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of Contents: none

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: none Numbered folia: Copt. 39–47 Backmatter: none

Colophons: none Endowments (waqf-statements): none

This fragment consists of 9 leaves from two consecutive manuscript quires (Copt. 39–40, 41–47). The leaves are numbered with Coptic cursive numerals written in the upper left-hand corner of the recto, close to the left-hand text margin, allowing space to their left for a “translation” into Arabic numerals (rendered in modern black pen). Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 21 × 15 cm Area of writing: 16 × 10 cm 16 lines/page

Cover, Condition

There is no cover. The leaves are worn and have suffered some water damage at the upper right corner (with the water damage extending across the top margin). Copt. 40b has been marred by ink scribbles. Copt. 40–47 are still held together by bits of thread.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ 1. There are faint traces indicating that the scribe used a Insertions ruling board. 2. The scribe added catchwords below the last line of each verso page, very close to the left-hand margin. 3. The scribe uses a small fatḥah-like sign over letters to distinguish them from their counterparts with dots over them. Sīn is distinguised from shīn by such a sign, or by the combination of this sign with with a small v under it.

330

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

4. The end of each chapter is marked by four red dots in the shape of a cross. The number of the new chapter is indicated in the outer margin, in Coptic cursive. Readers’ insertions: 1. On Copt. 39a, under the folio numerals, an addition in pencil identifies the genre of the work: “Teachings in the monastic life” (ta‘ālīm fī al-rahbanah).

331

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 61 (= MS 985) Old number(s): none

Contents

Miscellaneous Ascetic Discourses 1. Miscellaneous Ascetic Discourses: ff. 85a–89b, 107a–109b, 112a–113b, 95a–100b. Fragmentary and out of sequence. The following headings are preserved: f. 87a: From the teachings of St. Pachomius when one of the brothers asked him to exhort him in the presence of great assembly of elders (may their blessings be upon us). ‫ من تعاليم الاب القديس انبا بخوم عندما سأله واحدا من‬:‫أ‬٨٧ ‫ف‬ ‫الاخوه ان يعظيه بحضرة حماعة كبيره من الشيوخ بركاتهم علينا‬ f. 113a: The first level of the soul. ‫ اول الدرجه النفسانيه‬:‫أ‬١١٣ ‫ف‬

Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: none indicated. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with red ink used for headings and dots/punctuation. The scribal hand is medium in scale, with clearly rendered, vertically oriented letter forms, which show a slight rightward tilt. Material: Paper. Medium-weight Middle Eastern stock with no watermarks.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of Contents: none

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: none Numbered folia: ff. 85–89, 107–109, 112–113, 95–100 Backmatter: none

Colophons: none Endowments (waqf-statements): none

The folia have been preserved out of sequence. The Arabic folio numbers are marked in thick pencil in the upper left corner of

332

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

each recto. Along with manuscript wear, the strips of paper used to restore the edges of folia obscure most of the original Coptic cursive foliation, but those numbers are partially preserved on folia 107–109, 112–113, and 95–97. Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 25 × 17 cm Area of writing: 18.5 × 12 cm 17 lines/page

Cover, Condition

No cover. The folia have been glued together at the spine by a later restorer, but the order of the folia as recorded in the folio numbers is out of sequence. A number of the pages have strips of paper glued to their edges, which may have been part of the same restoration effort.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ Readers’ insertions: Insertions

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

Cat. No.

DS Arabic Ascetic 62 (= MS 986) Old number(s): none

Contents

Miscellaneous Ascetic Discourses

333

1. Miscellaneous Ascetic Discourses: Copt. 68a–b, 73a–b, 77a–b, 83a–b, 92a–99b, 112a–b, 227a–b, plus four unnumbered folia. The following headings are preserved: Copt. 68a: The Seventeenth Letter, To his children the monks, informing them that true humility does not take place except after the vision of contemplation, which is the vision of God, and clarifying their degrees as three [in number] — the first one, the middle one, and the perfect one, through the testimonies of the Old and New Testaments, and exhorting them toward the perfection of this [path] through God’s help. ‫ الرسالة السابعة عشره لأولاده الرهبان يعرفهم ان الاتضاع‬:‫أ‬٦٨ ‫ف‬ ‫الحقيقي لا يحصل الا بعد نظر التاوريا التي هي نظر ا﷽ ويبين رتبها‬ ‫الثلاث الاولى والوسطا والكمات بشهادات من العتيقه والحديثه‬ ‫ويحرصهم على تكميل ذلك بمعونة الرب‬ After the heading, the text begins as follows: “Know, my brothers, that the ascetic is not someone who is fixated on anything [of this world], nor is he the one who clings to anything. This is in opposition to virtue. If the ascetic is prideful with regard to virtue, then indeed there is much evil in opposition to it. For the one who wants to become perfect in asceticism does not become devoted to anything evil.” ‫اعلموا يا احباي ان ليس الثابت في شي واحد هو الناسك ولا‬ ‫المتمسك بشي واحد هو مضادد للفضيله وان كان النسك هو‬ ‫فخر للفضيله فان كثير من الشر مضادد لها فالذي يريد يصير‬ ً ... ‫كاملا بالنسك فلا يتعبد لشي من الشر‬ The three orders of progress toward perfection and the language of contemplation (theōria), divine vision, and “opposition” to virtue (or to God) are reminiscent of Evagrius Ponticus’ discourse.

334

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Copt. 92a: Saying(s) of some of the saints reproaching the soul. ‫ من قول بعض القديسين تبكيت للنفس‬:‫أ‬٩٢ ‫ف‬ Copt. 93b: Ephrem the Syrian, Story of the entrance of Abraham and his wife Sarah into the land of Egypt. ‫ خبر دخول ابراهيم وساره زوجته الى ارض مصر ومن قول‬:‫ب‬٩٣ ‫ف‬ ‫القديس ماري افرام السرياني‬ Copt. 99b: [John Saba/The Spiritual] Elder, Maymar on the human bliss that becomes mixed in with those who love God in their vision of his glory. ‫ميمر على اللذة الانسية التي تمتزج بمحبين ا﷽ في نظرهم لمجده‬ ‫من قول ابينا الشيخ‬ Copt. 112b: Maymar on living the life of silence. ‫ ميمر على سيرة السكوت‬:‫ب‬١١٢ ‫ف‬ Copt. [?]a (the recto of the first unnumbered folio): Ephrem the Syrian, Maymar on the holy fast. ‫ ميمر من قول ابينا القديس مار افرام السرياني على الصوم المقدس‬:‫]؟[أ‬ Date, Language, Script, Material

Date: none. Language and script: Arabic. Black ink with red headings and punctuation dots. The scribal hand is of medium scale, with clearly rendered, fairly standard naskhī script. Material: Paper. Medium- to heavy-weight Middle Eastern stock with no watermarks.

Scribe, Patron/Owner, Restorer

No identification of scribe, patron/owner, or restorer.

Tables of Contents, Colophons, Endowments

Tables of Contents: none

Pages, Numbering

Frontmatter: none Numbered folia: Copt. 68, 73, 77, 83, 92–99, 112, 227, plus four unnumbered folia Backmatter: none

Colophons: none Endowments (waqf-statements): non

ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES

335

The primary Coptic cursive and secondary Arabic folio numbers are variably attested, but where both are present they match each other. It was not possible to place the four unnumbered folia codicologically in relation to the numbered folia. They are now at the end of the surviving leaves. Dimensions, Layout

Dimensions: 25.5 × 17 cm Area of writing: 19 × 11.5 cm 17 lines/page

Cover, Condition

No cover. The surviving folia are loose, with significantly ripped and tattered edges in places. There are clear signs of an earlier attempt at restoration/consolidation through the application of strips of paper to page edges. Several of the folia show water damage with sections of text faded and hard to read.

Scribal Practice Scribal practice: and Readers’ Readers’ insertions: Insertions 1. In the upper margin of f. 93a, someone has written Mār Ifrām (“Mār Ephrem”) in pencil.

ALBUM OF FIGURES

LIST OF FIGURES ARABIC ASCETIC DISCOURSES DS Arabic Ascetic 1, ff. 3b–4a DS Arabic Ascetic 2, f. 79a DS Arabic Ascetic 3, f. 147a DS Arabic Ascetic 4, f. 315b DS Arabic Ascetic 5, f. 174b DS Arabic Ascetic 6, f. 155b DS Arabic Ascetic 7, f. 1b–2a DS Arabic Ascetic 8, Copt. 3b–4a DS Arabic Ascetic 9, f. 3a DS Arabic Ascetic 9, ff. 182b–183a DS Arabic Ascetic 10, f. 155b DS Arabic Ascetic 11, f. 1a DS Arabic Ascetic 12, f. 176b DS Arabic Ascetic 13, f. 5a DS Arabic Ascetic 14, f. 13b DS Arabic Ascetic 14, f. 38a DS Arabic Ascetic 14, f. 94b DS Arabic Ascetic 15, Copt. 2a (= f. 1a) DS Arabic Ascetic 16, 180b–181a DS Arabic Ascetic 18, f. 2a DS Arabic Ascetic 19, pp. 472–473 DS Arabic Ascetic 20, f. 3b DS Arabic Ascetic 21, f. 38b DS Arabic Ascetic 21, f. 51a DS Arabic Ascetic 21, f. 322a DS Arabic Ascetic 21, f. 1342a DS Arabic Ascetic 22, ff. 133b–134a DS Arabic Ascetic 22, f. 223a DS Arabic Ascetic 23, f. 250b DS Arabic Ascetic 24, f. 57b DS Arabic Ascetic 25, f. 151a DS Arabic Ascetic 26, f. 1a DS Arabic Ascetic 26, f. 172a DS Arabic Ascetic 27, f. 1412b DS Arabic Ascetic 27, f. 1432b DS Arabic Ascetic 28, f. 169b DS Arabic Ascetic 29, f. 103a DS Arabic Ascetic 30, p. 359 DS Arabic Ascetic 31, f. 54a DS Arabic Ascetic 31, f. 150b

340 DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Arabic Ascetic 32, p. 301 Arabic Ascetic 32, p. 318 Arabic Ascetic 33, f. 66a Arabic Ascetic 34, f. 88b Arabic Ascetic 35, f. 12a Arabic Ascetic 36, f. 1a Arabic Ascetic 37, f. ib Arabic Ascetic 37, f. 18a Arabic Ascetic 38, f. 2a Arabic Ascetic 39, f. 1a Arabic Ascetic 40, f. 4a Arabic Ascetic 41, f. 2a Arabic Ascetic 41, f. 228b Arabic Ascetic 42, f. 5a Arabic Ascetic 43, f. 59b Arabic Ascetic 45, f. 69b Arabic Ascetic 46, pp. 2–3 Arabic Ascetic 47, pp. xviii–1 Arabic Ascetic 48, p. 446 Arabic Ascetic 49, f. 94a Arabic Ascetic 50, f. 73a Arabic Ascetic 51, f. 262b Arabic Ascetic 52, f. 62a Arabic Ascetic 53, f. 115a Arabic Ascetic 62, f. 68a

DS Arabic Ascetic 1, ff. 3b–4a The Title heading and beginning of Isaac the Syrian, Mayāmir/Chapters, in four books.

ALBUM OF FIGURES

341

342

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 2, f. 79a Colophon at the end of the collection of Mayāmir by Isaac the Syrian, mislabeling the text as the Apocalypse of St. Gregory (Ru’yā al-āb al-qiddīs Ighrighūriyūs). A waqf-statement written in faded red-brown ink at the bottom of the page endows the manuscript to Dayr al-Suryān and includes a prayer for remembrance on behalf of the muhtamm, Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī. Between the colophon and the waqf, a reader named ‘Abd al-Masīḥ al-Kharrāṭ al-Jirjāwī (‘Abd al-Masīḥ, the turner from Jirjā) has written another prayer for remembrance and forgiveness in dark black ink, identifying himself as an eighteenth-century visitor to the monastery.

ALBUM OF FIGURES

343

DS Arabic Ascetic 3, f. 147a A colophon after the Maymar on the way of silence providing the date as 11 Bashans, AM 1060 [= 1344 CE] and giving the provenance as the Monastery of St. John the Hegoumen in the desert of Scetis (Dayr al-Qiddīs al-‘aẓīm Abū Yaḥnis al-aghūmanus bi-bariyyat Shīhāt), i.e. the Monastery of John the Little.

344

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 4, f. 315b Folio containing the title heading of a Letter of Mār Isḥaq to a brother who loved silence. At the top and bottom at the spine, the page has been reinforced with glued pieces of paper reused from a Coptic manuscript.

ALBUM OF FIGURES

345

DS Arabic Ascetic 5, f. 174b A colophon after the Spiritual Teachings by Isaiah of Scetis, indicating that the manuscript was copied by a monk in the Monastery of St. Antony, and providing the date as Wednesday, the last day of the month Amshīr (30 Amshīr), AM 976 [= 1260 CE].

346

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 6, f. 155b A colophon identifying the contents of the volume as “the book of Anbā Isḥaq, some mayāmir from the book of the Spiritual Elder (al-Shaykh al-Rūḥānī), and the teaching from the saying(s) of Anbā [I]saiah.” It gives the date of completion as 20 Bashans, AM 1510 [= 1794 CE].

DS Arabic Ascetic 7, f. 1b–2a Title heading and beginning of John Saba/The Spiritual Elder’s Mayāmir. The first folio is a replacement leaf written by a secondary hand. The second folio is original and written in the primary scribal hand.

ALBUM OF FIGURES

347

DS Arabic Ascetic 8, Copt. 3b–4a End of the scribal table of contents and the beginning of John Saba/The Spiritual Elder’s Mayāmir. The leaves were reinforced by the application of strips of paper along the edges, one of which was reused from an Ethiopic manuscript.

348 S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

ALBUM OF FIGURES

349

DS Arabic Ascetic 9, f. 3a A waqf-statement mentioning that the volume was given by al-qiss Yūsif ibn Sa‘m (?) to al-qiss Ibrāhīm al-Suryānī, and that he died in the monastery and had told the head of the monastery that he wanted to endow all his books the Monastery of the Virgin bi-l-Suryān. The statement concludes with warnings that no one has the authority to remove it from the monastery.

DS Arabic Ascetic 9, ff. 182b–183a Title heading and beginning of John Saba/The Spiritual Elder’s Chapters of Knowledge (Ru’ūs al-ma‘rifah).

350 S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

ALBUM OF FIGURES

351

DS Arabic Ascetic 10, f. 155b Colophon after the correspondence between John Saba/The Spiritual Elder and his brother, in which the scribe (identified elsewhere as al-qummuṣ Mūsā, a priest at the Church of the Virgin at Ḥārat al-Zuwaylah al-Kubrā) provides the date of his completion of the manuscript as Thursday, 10 Abīb, AM 1494 [= 1778 CE].

352

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 11, f. 1a Initial blessings and beginning of John Saba/The Spiritual Elder’s collection of Mayāmir.

ALBUM OF FIGURES

DS Arabic Ascetic 12, f. 176b Folio containing writing in Garshuni, Coptic, and Arabic. The Garshuni text contains Trinitarian reflections on the nature of divine vision, and it characterizes internal (hidden) insight as a “portion of the kingdom [of God]” (juz’ al-malakūt). The Coptic and Arabic texts contain a prayer for remembrance written by a certain by a certain John (Copt. Iōannēs; Ar. Yūḥannā).

353

354

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 13, f. 5a A waqf-statement written in the same hand, endowing the manuscript to Dayr al-Suryān, with warnings against taking the book from the monastery that invoke the fate of Simon Magus and Diocletian. The page also contains the purple waqf-stamp of the monastery.

ALBUM OF FIGURES

355

DS Arabic Ascetic 14, f. 13b Folio containing the title heading for a Letter on the Rebuke of the Soul by Hermes the Wise.

356

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 14, f. 38a Folio containing the title heading for a John Climacus’ Spiritual Ladder. The leaf has been reinforced along its edge with a strip of paper reused from a Coptic manuscript.

ALBUM OF FIGURES

357

DS Arabic Ascetic 14, f. 94b A reader’s note in the margin was written by the book’s owner, who identifies himself as al-mu‘allim Yūḥannā, “a teacher of children” (muʼaddib aṭfāl) in Ḥarat al-Zuwaylah, and explains that he brought the volume with him (to Dayr al-Suryān?) when he explored the possibility of becoming a monk. When he decided not to become a monk, he left the manuscript with one of the brothers.

358

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 15, Copt. 2a (= f. 1a) Title heading for John Climacus’ Spiritual Ladder. In the margins, several reader’s notes have been added, one of which contains the date AM 1168 [= 1451 CE].

DS Arabic Ascetic 16, 180b–181a Title heading for John Cassian’s treatise On the Eight Evil Thoughts. The previous, facing page contains a waqf-statement written by the restorer Yūḥannā al-Fayyūmī, endowing the volume to Dayr al-Suryān.

ALBUM OF FIGURES

359

360

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 18, f. 2a Title heading for John Climacus’ Spiritual Ladder. In the upper left corner, the scribe has written the folio number in Coptic cursive (Copt. 2) and has also marked it as the initial leaf in the “first quire” (awwal kurrās).

DS Arabic Ascetic 19, pp. 472–473 Two pages containing the end of John Cassian’s On the Eight Evil Thoughts and a colophon providing the date of completion as the month of Tūt, AM 1573 [= 1856 CE] and identifying the muhtamm as al-qiss Bākhūm, a monk at Dayr al-Suryān, who “commissioned it to be written from his own resources.” The pages also contain two different waqf-statements endowing the manuscript to Dayr al-Suryān.

ALBUM OF FIGURES

361

362

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 20, f. 3b A waqf-statement written in red ink endowing the manuscript to the “Monastery of the Virgin” (Dayr al-Sitt al-sayyidah al-’adhrā’), which the writer also associates with Saints George (Mārī Jirjis) and Samuel (Samū’īl). The writer includes a warning that whoever removes the manuscript from the “door/gate of the monastery” (bāb al-dayr) will be like Judas Iscariot.

ALBUM OF FIGURES

DS Arabic Ascetic 21, f. 38b Title heading for the Book of the Brahmans (al-Barakhmānisiyyīn).

363

364

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 21, f. 51a Colophon after the Book of the Brahmans (al-Barakhmānisiyyīn), in which the scribe identifies himself as Shinūdah ibn Sulmān al-Darajāwī ibn Mattā.

ALBUM OF FIGURES

DS Arabic Ascetic 21, f. 322a Title heading for Evagrius Ponticus, On Prayer.

365

DS Arabic Ascetic 21, f. 1342a Title heading for Evagrius Ponticus, [In Imitation of] Ecclesiastes.

366 S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 22, ff. 133b–134a Title heading for the Garden of the Monks (Bustān al-ruhbān). The previous, facing page contains a waqf-statement endowing the manuscript to Dayr al-Suryān, with the permission of “our Father, the Metropolitan Quriyāqūs, the head of the monastery,” and a reader’s note by a certain Mūsā, dated to AM 1484 [= 1767/68 CE], when he came to Dayr al-Suryān as part of a group of 11 “brothers,” five of whom were monks and the rest laypersons (‘almāniyyīn).

ALBUM OF FIGURES

367

368

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 22, f. 223a Request for prayer written in Syriac by Mar Gregorius on behalf of Philoxenos of Cyprus.

ALBUM OF FIGURES

DS Arabic Ascetic 23, f. 250b Title heading for Evagrius Ponticus, [In Imitation of] Proverbs.

369

370

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 24, f. 57b Title heading for Evagrius Ponticus, Chapters of Knowledge (Ru’ūs al-ma‘rifah) [= Kephalaia Gnostika].

ALBUM OF FIGURES

DS Arabic Ascetic 25, f. 151a Title heading for Hermes the Wise, Letter [on the Rebuke of the Soul].

371

372

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 26, f. 1a Title heading for Philoxenos [of Mabbug], Letter on the Three Degrees of the Monastic Life.

ALBUM OF FIGURES

DS Arabic Ascetic 26, f. 172a Title heading for Shenoute of Atripe, Testament read to the monks when one of them has passed away.

373

374

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 27, f. 1412b A Coptic Oath to the Only[-Begotten] Son, to be said at any time.

ALBUM OF FIGURES

DS Arabic Ascetic 27, f. 1432b An anonymous reader’s prayer for remembrance, written in an Arabic orthography partially without ligatures.

375

376

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 28, f. 169b Title heading for Ephrem the Syrian, Maymar on death and the soul’s departure from the body.

ALBUM OF FIGURES

DS Arabic Ascetic 29, f. 103a Title heading for Antony the Great, Letters.

377

378

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 30, p. 359 A colophon in which the scribe identifies himself as the monk Īwannīs al-Manṣūrī al-Mashriqī al-Suryānī and indicates the date of completion as Friday, 18 Ba’ūnah, AM 1177 [= 1461 CE]. On the same page, a secondary hand pens an extended prayer, apologizes for his lack of fluent Arabic and his unfamiliarity with texts translated from Syriac to Arabic, and notes his dependence on his father and teacher, the priest Ya‘qūb al-Suryānī, who transferred and collected the works in this volume from Syriac into Garshuni.

ALBUM OF FIGURES

DS Arabic Ascetic 31, f. 54a Title heading for John of the Thebaid (Yūḥannā al-Tabā’īsī) [= John of Lycopolis], Discourse.

379

380

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 31, f. 150b Title heading for Evagrius Ponticus, Chapters of Knowledge (Ru’ūs al-ma‘rifah) [= Kephalaia Gnostika].

ALBUM OF FIGURES

DS Arabic Ascetic 32, p. 301 Title heading for the Canons of the Holy Father Anbā Shenoute.

381

382

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 32, p. 318 Final page of the Canons of the Holy Father Anbā Shenoute.

ALBUM OF FIGURES

DS Arabic Ascetic 33, f. 66a Title heading for Evagrius [Ponticus], Discourse/Letter to Eulogius.

383

384

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 34, f. 88b Title heading for a Sermon on the Dead.

ALBUM OF FIGURES

385

DS Arabic Ascetic 35, f. 12a A waqf-statement endowing the manuscript to Dayr al-Suryān. It mentions Saint John Kame’s presence in Scetis and gives warnings against taking the book out of the monastery.

386

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 36, f. 1a Title heading for an Exhortation collecting various teachings regarding religion, morals in the holy church, the seven prayers, asceticism in the monastic life, and other matters, [in the form of] questions and answers and [containing] letters of the monastic brothers living at the Enaton Monastery (Dayr al-Hābiṭūn). A waqf-statement in the left margin endows the manuscript to the monks at the “Dependency of Dayr al-Suryān in Cairo in the lane of al-Izbakiyyah” and indicates the year as AM 1458 [= 1741/1742 CE].

ALBUM OF FIGURES

387

DS Arabic Ascetic 37, f. ib A folio featuring at least five readers’ hands, who pen prayers of remembrance or of praise. One of the hands draws two strange figures with big eyes, resembling wingless owls.

388

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 37, f. 18a Title heading for the Book of Paradise (Kitāb al-Firdaws).

ALBUM OF FIGURES

DS Arabic Ascetic 38, f. 2a Title heading for the Gospel of John (Bishārat Yūḥannā).

389

390

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 39, f. 1a Title heading for the Book of the Vanities of the World (Kitāb abāṭīl al-‘ālam), Part One. The page features an ornamental headpiece in dark red and yellow with a Christian bismillāh, a woven pattern underneath, fleur-de-lis patterns at the corner and on top, and two birds on either side of a central fleur-de-lis.

ALBUM OF FIGURES

DS Arabic Ascetic 40, f. 4a Title heading and the beginning of the table of contents for the Book of the Vanities of the World (Kitāb abāṭīl al-‘ālam), Part Two. The page shows discolorations from glue and moisture.

391

392

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 41, f. 2a Title heading for Thomas à Kempis, The Imitation of Christ.

ALBUM OF FIGURES

393

DS Arabic Ascetic 41, f. 228b A reader’s note (written upside down relative to the page) commenting on the status of deacons and making reference to 1 Timothy 3:10 and 3:13.

394

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 42, f. 5a Title heading for The Trumpet of Heaven (Būq al-samāʼ).

ALBUM OF FIGURES

DS Arabic Ascetic 43, f. 59b Title heading for The Book of Mary the Beloved (Kitāb Maryam al-Ḥabīb).

395

DS Arabic Ascetic 45, f. 69b Title heading for Basil the Great, Rules/Canons.

396 S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 46, pp. 2–3 Folia containing the title headings for Evagrius of Ponticus’ Letter in Response to Eulogius and his Edifying Discourse written for Eulogius.

ALBUM OF FIGURES

397

DS Arabic Ascetic 47, pp. xviii–1 The title heading for the Book on the Renunciation of Worldly Vanities, Part Two. On the facing, preceding page, a reader has drawn the outline of a cross and within it has written a “Blessing to those who seek the clear truth after [making] a mistake.”

398 S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

ALBUM OF FIGURES

399

DS Arabic Ascetic 48, p. 446 Title heading for the Rules/Canons of Saint Mīsās, head of the solitaries at Jabal Afāth.

400

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 49, f. 94a Folio containing the title heading for Chapter 4, Section 1 in Isaac the Syrian’s Maymar on Spiritual Rest, on the ordering of the soul through the types of virtues.

ALBUM OF FIGURES

401

DS Arabic Ascetic 50, f. 73a Title heading for Isaac the Syrian’s Maymar 6, on the different types of lethal attacks that come from demons in opposition to those who walk in the narrow way.

402

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 51, f. 262b Folio on which the scribe has written a marginal comment in Coptic and Arabic on Saint Melania.

ALBUM OF FIGURES

403

DS Arabic Ascetic 52, f. 62a Folio containing the heading for Antony the Great, Letter 6 (to the monks of the Fayyūm), on the lethal attacks of the demons … and an exhortation on patience.

404

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Arabic Ascetic 53, f. 115a The title heading for John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Letters.

ALBUM OF FIGURES

405

DS Arabic Ascetic 62, f. 68a Title heading for the Seventeenth Letter in a fragmentary collection of ascetic discourses. The letter is written “to his children the monks, informing them that true humility does not take place except after the vision of contemplation, which is the vision of God, and clarifying their degrees as three [in number].”

APPENDIX A

MANUSCRIPTS, NUMBERING SYSTEMS, AND CONTENTS KEY TO ARABIC TERMS Lāhūt Muqaddasah Musalsal Mutanawwi‘āt Silsilah Ṭaqs

= = = = = =

Theology Holy [Bible] Continuous Numbering Miscellaneous Series Liturgy DS ARABIC THEOLOGY

DS Cat. No. Current Reg.

Old Reg.

Date

Contents

DS Arabic Ascetic 1

MS 153

8[2] Lāhūt

Isaac the Syrian, Discourses/ Mayāmir, in four books

DS Arabic Ascetic 2

MS 154

114 Lāhūt

[no date, but before 1687 CE]

Isaac the Syrian, Discourses/ Mayāmir

DS Arabic Ascetic 3

MS 155

47 Lāhūt; 9-ⲕⲏ/50

1344 CE

Isaac the Syrian, Discourses/ Mayāmir

DS Arabic Ascetic 4

MS 156

4-ⲕⲑ/67 or 17

DS Arabic Ascetic 5

MS 157

125 Lāhūt; 20-ⲕⲑ/288

1260 CE

Isaac the Syrian, Mayāmir; Isaiah of Scetis, Spiritual Teaching

DS Arabic Ascetic 6

MS 158

81 Lāhūt; 21-ⲕⲑ/294

1794 CE

Isaac the Syrian, Mayāmir; Isaiah of Scetis, Spiritual Teaching

DS Arabic Ascetic 7

MS 159

41 Lāhūt [Matḥaf]; 65/14-ⲕⲏ

1317 CE

John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Mayāmir, Letters, and Chapters of Knowledge

DS Arabic Ascetic 8

MS 160

31/11-ⲕⲏ

DS Arabic Ascetic 9

MS 161

43 Lāhūt; 43/12-ⲕⲏ

Isaac the Syrian, Discourses/ Mayāmir

John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Mayāmir, Letters, and Chapters of Knowledge [no date, but before 1798 CE]

John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Mayāmir, Letters, and Chapters of Knowledge

408

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Cat. No. Current Reg.

Old Reg.

Date 1778 CE

Contents

DS Arabic Ascetic 10

MS 162

25 Lāhūt [Matḥaf]; 19/7-ⲕⲏ

DS Arabic Ascetic 11

MS 164

43 Lāhūt; 289/18-ⲕⲏ

John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Mayāmir, Letters, and Chapters of Knowledge

DS Arabic Ascetic 12

MS 165

44 Lāhūt

John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Mayāmir, Letters, and Chapters of Knowledge

DS Arabic Ascetic 13

MS 166

53 Lāhūt; 71/5-ⲕⲑ

[no date, but before 1805 CE]

John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Mayāmir, Letters, and Chapters of Knowledge

DS Arabic Ascetic 14

MS 167

49 Lāhūt

1281 CE

John Climacus, The Spiritual Ladder; John Cassian, The Eight Evil Thoughts; and Hermes the Wise, The Rebuke of the Soul

DS Arabic Ascetic 15

MS 168

50 Lāhūt; 52 Lāhūt; Musalsal 173

[no date, but before 1451 CE]

John Climacus, The Spiritual Ladder

DS Arabic Ascetic 16

MS 169

78 Lāhūt

John Climacus, The Spiritual Ladder; John Cassian, The Eight Evil Thoughts

DS Arabic Ascetic 17

MS 170

169 Lāhūt; 12-ⲕⲑ

John Climacus, The Spiritual Ladder, with a Fragment from a Patristic Collection

DS Arabic Ascetic 18

MS 171

52 Lāhūt; 10-ⲕⲑ

John Climacus, The Spiritual Ladder

DS Arabic Ascetic 19

MS 172

57 Lāhūt

DS Arabic Ascetic 20

MS 173

73 Lāhūt

DS Arabic Ascetic 21

MS 174

11 Mayāmir; 14-ⲗⲃ

1856 CE

John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Mayāmir, Letters, and Chapters of Knowledge

John Climacus, The Spiritual Ladder; and John Cassian, The Eight Thoughts John Climacus, The Spiritual Ladder

[no date, but part two of the MS is late 15th century or earlier]

Miscellaneous Apocryphal Works and Mayāmir; Evagrius Ponticus, Ascetic Writings; and the Life of Evagrius

409

APPENDIX

DS Cat. No. Current Reg.

Old Reg.

Date 1484 CE

Contents

DS Arabic Ascetic 22

MS 175

14 Mayāmir; 3-ⲗⲃ

Evagrius Ponticus, Ascetic Writings; with Collections of Monastic Sayings and Stories

DS Arabic Ascetic 23

MS 176

85 Mayāmir; 181 Musalsal; 9-ⲗⲃ/86

DS Arabic Ascetic 24

MS 177

86 Lāhūt

DS Arabic Ascetic 25

MS 178

85 Lāhūt Mayāmir; 12-ⲕⲝ/296

Evagrius Ponticus, Ascetic Writings; John Cassian, On the Eight Evil Thoughts; Miscellaneous Homilies and Sayings; Hermes the Wise, Letter [on the Rebuke of the Soul]

DS Arabic Ascetic 26

MS 179

79 Lāhūt; 21-ⲕⲝ/79

Philoxenos of Mabbug, Letter on the Three Grades of Monasticism, with Miscellaneous Ascetic Discourses attributed to Shenoute of Atripe, Basil of Caesarea, Gregory Nazianzen, and John Chrysostom

DS Arabic Ascetic 27

MS 180

15-ⲕⲝ/316

Philoxenos of Mabbug, Letter on the Three Degrees of the Monastic Life; Marqus al-Mashriqī, Correspondence with Jirjis al-Qibṭī; and Three Doctrinal Works

DS Arabic Ascetic 28

MS 181

13-ⲗ/93

1840/41 CE

Philoxenos of Mabbug, Letter on the Three Degrees of the Monastic Life; with Commandments, Sayings, and Mayāmir associated with Macarius the Great, Isaiah of Scetis, and Ephrem the Syrian

DS Arabic Ascetic 29

MS 182

103 Qawānīn

1778 CE

Basil of Caesarea, Rules; Antony, Letters and Teachings; with Sayings by Antony and Isaac the Syrian

Evagrius Ponticus, Ascetic Writings; Selected Prayers [no date, but John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, 16th century CE Chapters of Knowledge; Evaor earlier] grius Ponticus, Chapters of Knowledge

410

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Cat. No. Current Reg.

Old Reg.

Date

Contents

DS Arabic Ascetic 30

MS 183

Lāhūt 38; Lāhūt 24

1461 CE

Teaching(s) of the Fathers Skilled in Knowledge (Evagrius Ponticus, Isaac the Syrian, Philoxenos of Mabbug, John of the Thebaid, Isaiah of Scetis, Diadochus, and Gregory of Cyprus)

DS Arabic Ascetic 31

MS 184

17 Mayāmir; 67 Mayāmir; 4-ⲗⲃ

[no date, but before 1484 CE]

Miscellaneous Ascetic Discourses, including the Garden of the Monks; John Saba, Chapters of Knowledge; Evagrius Ponticus, Chapters of Knowledge

DS Arabic Ascetic 32

MS 185

60 Lāhūt; 7-ⲕⲏ/164

DS Arabic Ascetic 33

MS 186

20 ⲕⲝ/47

DS Arabic Ascetic 34

MS 187

126 Lāhūt; 13; 17 ⲕⲇ/126

Miscellaneous Theological and Moral Teachings by Gregory Nazianzen, John Chrysostom, and Others; Ascetic Letters, Rules/Canons, and Teachings by Antony the Great

DS Arabic Ascetic 35

MS 188

3 Lāhūt; 1-ⲕⲁ/2

The Conjurer/Collector of Virtues (Ḥāwī al-faḍā’il)

DS Arabic Ascetic 36

MS 189

93 Lāhūt; 5-ⲕⲝ/173

DS Arabic Ascetic 37

MS 190

2-ⲗⲃ/95

Collection of Monastic Sayings

DS Arabic Ascetic 38

MS 191

41 Muqaddasah

Gospel of John and Sayings of the Monastic Fathers

Philoxenos of Mabbug, Letter on the Three Grades of the Monastic Life, and Miscellaneous Ascetic Discourses and Teachings 1333/34 CE (Part 2)

1742 CE

Miscellaneous Ascetic Discourses, including Works by John Cassian, Evagrius Ponticus, and ‘Amr Ibn Mattā

An Exhortation regarding Religion, Morals, Prayers, and Asceticism in the Form of Questions and Answers, and Containing Letters of the Monastic Brothers Living at the Enaton Monastery

411

APPENDIX

DS Cat. No. Current Reg.

Old Reg.

Date

Contents

DS Arabic Ascetic 39

MS 192

28 Lāhūt

[no date, but before 1886 CE]

[Diego d’Estella Scala (= Didacus Stella),] Book on the Vanities of the World (Kitāb abāṭīl al-‘ālam), Part One

DS Arabic Ascetic 40

MS 193

29 Lāhūt

1847/48 CE

[Diego d’Estella Scala (= Didacus Stella),] Book on the Vanities of the World (Kitāb abāṭīl al-‘ālam), Part Two

DS Arabic Ascetic 41

MS 194

56 Lāhūt; 14-ⲕⲇ2 138

1864 CE

Thomas à Kempis, The Imitation of Christ

DS Arabic Ascetic 42

MS 195

90 Lāhūt; 80 Lāhūt

1832 CE

[Joseph of Reuilly,] The Trumpet of Heaven (Būq al-samāʼ)

DS Arabic Ascetic 43

MS 196

1737 CE

John Eusebius [Nieremberg], The Book of Jesus the Beloved and the Book of Mary the Beloved

DS Arabic Ascetic 44

MS 197

[no date, but before 1785/86 CE]

John Chrysostom, The Choice Pearl (Homilies)

DS Arabic Ascetic 45

MS 689

Basil of Caesarea and Antony the Great, Ascetic Discourses and Rules/Canons

DS Arabic Ascetic 46

MS 743

Evagrius Ponticus, Ascetic Discourses

DS Arabic Ascetic 47

MS 750

DS Arabic Ascetic 48

MS 771

Rules/Canons of Saint Mīsās; John Cassian, The Eight Passions

DS Arabic Ascetic 49

MS 820

Isaac the Syrian, Maymar on Spiritual Rest

DS Arabic Ascetic 50

MS 821

Isaac the Syrian, Discourses/ Mayāmir

DS Arabic Ascetic 51

MS 822

Miscellaneous Mayāmir/Sayings by Monastic Elders

DS Arabic Ascetic 52

MS 823

23 Lāhūt; 15/3-ⲕⲇ

1865 CE

1270 CE

Diego d’Estella Scala (= Didacus Stella), Book on the Renunciation of Worldly Vanities, Part Two

Antony the Great, Letters, Rules/Canons, and Teachings

412

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

DS Cat. No. Current Reg.

Old Reg.

Date

Contents

DS Arabic Ascetic 53

MS 824

John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Mayāmir and Letters

DS Arabic Ascetic 54

MS 978

Fragments of an Ascetic Discourse

DS Arabic Ascetic 55

MS 979

John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Letters

DS Arabic Ascetic 56

MS 980

Isaac the Syrian, Sayings

DS Arabic Ascetic 57

MS 981

Isaac the Syrian, Mayāmir

DS Arabic Ascetic 58

MS 982

An Ascetic Century and Assorted Apophthegmata

DS Arabic Ascetic 59

MS 983

A Collection of Monastic Sayings and Anecdotes

DS Arabic Ascetic 60

MS 984

An Ascetic Century

DS Arabic Ascetic 61

MS 985

Miscellaneous Ascetic Discourses

DS Arabic Ascetic 62

MS 986

Miscellaneous Ascetic Discourses

APPENDIX B

TEXTUAL ATTESTATIONS, WITH SELECT BIBLIOGRAPHY 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.

Biblical Books (as freestanding texts) Biblical Books (as subjects of commentary) Commentaries (on biblical books and other texts) Canons Theological Treatises Ascetic Treatises Mayāmir (saints’ lives and sermons) Liturgical Texts Other Works ABBREVIATIONS

CMR-BH David Thomas et al., Christian-Muslim Relations: A Bibliographical History, Volumes 1–6 (History of Christian-Muslim Relations 11, 14, 15, 17, 20, and 22; Leiden: Brill, 2009–2014). CPC Tito Orlandi, Clavis Patrum Copticorum, available at http://www.cmcl.it/~cmcl/ chiam_clavis.html. CPG Mauritius Geerard, Clavis Patrum Graecorum, Volumes 1–6 (Turnhout: Brepols, 1974–1998). CPL Eligius Dekkers, Clavis Patrum Latinorum, Third edition (Steenbrugis: In Abbatia Sancti Petri, 1995). Corpus Scriptorum Christianorum Orientalium (Louvain, CorpusSCO/Peeters, 1903–). CSCO GCAL Georg Graf, Geschichte der christlichen arabischen Literatur, Volumes 1–5 (Studi e Testi 118, 133, 146, 147, 172; Vatican City: Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana, 1944– 1953). GCS Die griechischen christlichen Schriftsteller der ersten drei Jahrhunderte (Leipzig: J. C. Hinrichs; Berlin: Akademie Verlag, 1897–). MṬK Athanāsiyūs al-Maqārī, Maṣādir ṭuqūs al-kanīsah [Sources for the Liturgies of the Churches], Volumes 1.1–14 (Cairo: Dār Nūbār, 2000–2010). PO Patrologia Orientalis (Paris: Firmin-Didot, 1907–). 1. BIBLICAL BOOKS (AS Hebrew Bible/Old Testament Deuterocanonical Books 1 and 2 Esdras: DS Arabic Ascetic 21 GCAL 1, 112–113.

FREESTANDING TEXTS)

414

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Tobias (Tobit): DS Arabic Ascetic 21 GCAL 1, 113, 114.

New Testament John: DS Arabic Ascetic 38 On the NT Gospels in Arabic: GCAL 1, 142–170; H. Kashouh, The Arabic Versions of the Gospels: The Manuscripts and Their Families (Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 2012); S. H. Griffith, The Bible in Arabic (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2013), 114–120, 132–133; S. Moawad, ed., al-Anājīl al-arba‘ah tarjamat al-As‘ad Abī al-Faraj Hibatallah Ibn al-‘Assāl (Cairo: Madrasat al-Iskandariyyah/Alexandrian School, 2014).

Acts of the Apostles: DS Arabic Ascetic 22 (1484 CE) On the Acts of the Apostles, the Pauline Epistles, and the Catholic Epistles in Arabic: GCAL 1, 170– 181; M. D. Gibson, An Arabic Version of the Acts of the Apostles and the Seven Catholic Epistles (Studia Sinaitica 7; London: C. J. Clay and Sons, 1899); H. Staal, Mt. Sinai Arabic Codex 151, 4 vols. (CSCO 452–453, 462–463; Louvain: Peeters, 1983–1984); Griffith, The Bible in Arabic, 133– 135.

Romans: DS Arabic Ascetic 14 (1281 CE) On the Acts of the Apostles, the Pauline Epistles, and the Catholic Epistles in Arabic: GCAL 1, 170–181; M. D. Gibson, An Arabic Version of the Acts of the Apostles and the Seven Catholic Epistles (Studia Sinaitica 7; London: C. J. Clay and Sons, 1899); H. Staal, Mt. Sinai Arabic Codex 151, 4 vols. (CSCO 452–453, 462–463; Louvain: Peeters, 1983–1984); Griffith, The Bible in Arabic, 133–135.

Pseudepigrapha and Apocryphal Texts The Testament of the Patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob: DS Arabic Ascetic 21 CPG 2183; GCAL 1, 204 (#3); MṬK 1.6, 260–261; Tito Orlandi, “Bibliographie copte,” 0203–0204 (https://www.coptica.ch/Orlandi-Bibliographie.pdf). For an edition of the Coptic text, see Ignazio Guidi, “Il testo copto del Testamento di Abramo. Il Testamento di Isaaco e il Testamento di Giacobbe,” Rendiconti della Reale Accademia dei Lincei 9 (1900), 157–180, 223–264.

2. BIBLICAL BOOKS (AS SUBJECTS OF

COMMENTARY)

3. COMMENTARIES (ON BIBLICAL BOOKS AND OTHER TEXTS) 4. CANONS (CONCILIAR ACTS AND CHURCH ORDERS) Unidentified canonical text: DS Arabic Ascetic 16 5. THEOLOGICAL TREATISES ‘Amr Ibn Mattā, Book of the Tower (Kitāb al-majdal): DS Arabic Ascetic 33 (1333/34 CE) GCAL 2, 216–217.

Andriyānūs, Treatises: DS Arabic Ascetic 33 Andriyānūs, On good thoughts: DS Arabic Ascetic 33 Andriyānūs, On the Interpretation of the Lord’s Prayer: DS Arabic Ascetic 33 [Andriyānūs,] On knowledge of the Scriptures and their meaning and on the piety of the soul (= Treatise 3): DS Arabic Ascetic 33

APPENDIX

415

[Andriyānūs,] On the purity of the soul and piety of the body (= Treatise 4): DS Arabic Ascetic 33 Commandments of the Lord and their Interpretations: see below under The Conjurer/Collector of Virtues The Conjurer/Collector of Virtues (Ḥāwī al-faḍā’il): DS Arabic Ascetic 35 Correspondence between Marquṣ al-Mashriqī and Jirjis al-Qibṭī: see under Marquṣ al-Mashriqī, Correspondence with Jirjis al-Qibṭī Jirjis al-Qibṭī (George the Copt), Letter to Marquṣ al-Mashriqī: see under Marquṣ al-Mashriqī, Correspondence with Jirjis al-Qibṭī John Eusebius [Nieremberg], The Book of Jesus the Beloved (Kitāb Yasū‘ al-ḥabīb): DS Arabic Ascetic 43 (1737 CE) GCAL 4, 228.

John Eusebius [Nieremberg], The Book of Mary the Beloved (Kitāb Maryam al-Ḥabīb): DS Arabic Ascetic 43 (1737 CE) GCAL 4, 228.

Marquṣ al-Mashriqī, Correspondence with Jirjis al-Qibṭī, consisting of two Discourses/Letters from Jirjis al-Qibṭī, who shared doctrinal beliefs with “the monks of Europe,” and a Letter in reply from Marquṣ: DS Arabic Ascetic 27 GCAL 4, 137 (#12); MṬK 1.9, 900.

On the Economy of Our Lord Jesus Christ in the Salvation of Adam from the Captivity of Satan: DS Arabic Ascetic 24 On Faith in the [Divine] Substance/Essence (al-gawhar), from the saying(s) of the Syriac fathers: DS Arabic Ascetic 27 On Faith in His [i.e. the Son’s] Resurrection: DS Arabic Ascetic 27 6. ASCETIC DISCOURSES (TREATISES, LETTERS, RULES, TEACHINGS) Antony the Great, Letter to the Monks: see under (Ps.-)Antony the Great, Letter to the Monks Antony the Great, Letters: DS Arabic Ascetic 29 (1778 CE), 34, 45, 52 (1270 CE) CPG 2330 and 2349 (2); CPC 0023; GCAL 1, 456–459, at 456–457; MṬK 1.6, 328–340, at 330–337; MṬK 1.7, 127–130, at 128–130. For editions of the Arabic collection of Antony’s letters, see Kitāb rawḍat al-nafs fī rasā’il al-qiddīs Anṭūniyūs (Cairo: n.p., 1899); and Bishop Matā’us, ed., Nusukiyyāt al-Anbā Anṭūniyūs (Wādī al-Naṭrūn: Maktabat Dayr al-Suryān, 2009; second edition, 2015). The latter edition is based on manuscript contents at Dayr al-Suryān. For an English translation, see Samuel Rubenson, The Letters of St. Antony: Monasticism and the Making of a Saint (Minneapolis: Fortress, 1995).

Antony the Great, Rules/Canons, Teachings, and Commandments: see under Rule/Canons, Teachings, and Commandments of St. Antony Apology by the [Spiritual] Elder’s brother: see John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Correspondence with his brother at the Coenobion Monastery An Ascetic Century: DS Arabic Ascetic 58, 60 Barsanuphius the Great [of Gaza], Selected Discourse and Questions on the Monastic Life: DS Arabic Ascetic 14 (1281 CE) Graf, GCAL 1: 406.

Basil of Caesarea, Asketikon: DS Arabic Ascetic 45 CPG 2875; GCAL 1, 319–320 (#2).

Basil of Caesarea, Discourses: See under “Mayāmir”

416

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Basil of Caesarea, Rules/Canons addressed to communal and solitary ascetics: DS Arabic Ascetic 29 (1778 CE), 45; see also Basil of Caesarea, Asketikon (?) CPG 2875 or 2895 (?); GCAL 1, 319–320 (#2?).

Canons of the Holy Father Anbā Shenoute: DS Arabic Ascetic 32 Cf. GCAL 1, 461–464; MṬK 1.7, 215–266. For a critical edition and translation of this text, see Stephen J. Davis, “The Arabic Canons of the Holy Father Anbā Shenoute: Introduction, Text, and Translation.”

Diego d’Estella Scala (= Didacus Stella), Book on the Renunciation of Worldly Vanities: see under Diego d’Estella Scala (= Didacus Stella), Book on the Vanities of the World (Kitāb abāṭīl al-‘ālam) Diego d’Estella Scala (= Didacus Stella), Book on the Vanities of the World (Kitāb abāṭīl al-‘ālam), Part One: DS Arabic Ascetic 39 (no date, but before 1886 CE) GCAL 4.184–185 (#2b).

Diego d’Estella Scala (= Didacus Stella), Book on the Vanities of the World (Kitāb abāṭīl al-‘ālam), Part Two: DS Arabic Ascetic 40 (1847/48 CE), 47 (1865 CE) GCAL 4.184–185 (#2b).

Elias of Nisibis, Letter on the virtue of abstinence for everyone to his brother Manṣūr Ibn ‘Īsā: DS Arabic Ascetic 21 Graf, GCAL, 2, 184–185.

Eulogius, Letter to Evagrius: DS Arabic Ascetic 21, 22 (1484 CE), 23, 25, 46 See CPG 2447; GCAL 1, 397–398 (#1). The Arabic text from DS Arabic Ascetic 21 (= MS 174) has been published by Bishop Samuel in Mayāmir Mār Ughrīs (Cairo: al-Na‘ām li-l-Ṭibā‘ah wal-lTawrīdāt, 1986), 1.

Evagrius Ponticus, Antirrhetikos: DS Arabic Ascetic 21, 22 (1484 CE), 23, 25 CPG 2434. The Arabic text from DS Arabic Ascetic 21 (= MS 174) has been published by Bishop Samuel in Mayāmir Mār Ughrīs (Cairo: al-Na‘ām li-l-Ṭibā‘ah wa-l-Tawrīdāt, 1986), 74–149. For studies of Evagrius’ works in Arabic, see Samir Khalil Samir, “Évagre le Pontique dans la tradition arabo-copte,” in Actes du IVe congrès copte; Louvain-la-Neuve, 5–10 septembre 1988, ed. M. RassartDebergh and J. Ries (Louvain-la-Neuve: Institut Orientaliste, 1992), 125–153; Paul Géhin, “La tradition arabe d’Évagre le Pontique,” Collectanea Christiana Orientalia 3 (2006), 83–104; and Stephen J. Davis, “Evagrius Ponticus at the Monastery of the Syrians: Newly Documented Evidence for an Arabic Reception History,” in Heirs of the Apostles: Studies on Arabic Christianity in Honor of Sidney H. Griffith, ed. D. Bertaina, S. T. Keatin, M. N. Swanson, and A. Treiger (Leiden: Brill, 2019), 349–394.

Evagrius Ponticus, Chapters of Knowledge (Ru’ūs al-ma‘rifah; = Kephalaia Gnostika): DS Arabic Ascetic 24, 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE) CPG 2432; GCAL 1, 398 (#2). For studies of Evagrius’ works in Arabic, see also Samir, “Évagre le Pontique dans la tradition arabo-copte,” 125–153; Géhin, “La tradition arabe d’Évagre le Pontique,” 83–104; and Davis, “Evagrius Ponticus at the Monastery of the Syrians,” 349–394.

Evagrius Ponticus, Correspondence with Eulogius: see under Eulogius, Letter to Evagrius; Evagrius, [Prologue to his] Letter responding to Eulogius; and Evagrius, Letter responding to Eulogius Evagrius Ponticus, Disciples of Evagrius: DS Arabic Ascetic 24, 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE) CPG 2483; ed. and trans. J. Muyldermans, “Évagre le Pontique. Les Capita cognoscitive dans les versions syriaque et arménienne,” Le Muséon 47 (1934), 89–93; see also P. Géhin, SC 514 (Paris: Cerf, 2007), 23, 277–280.

Evagrius Ponticus, Edifying Discourse written for Eulogius the Ascetic: DS Arabic Ascetic 21, 22 (1484 CE), 23, 25, 33 (?), 46: see also under Evagrius Ponticus, Letter in response to Eulogius; Evagrius Ponticus, On Prayer; Evagrius Ponticus, Praktikos; Evagrius Ponticus, Antirrhetikos; and Evagrius Ponticus, On the Eight Spirits of Wickedness

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GCAL 1, 397–398 (#1). The Arabic text from DS Arabic Ascetic 21 (= MS 174) has been published by Bishop Samuel in Mayāmir Mār Ughrīs (Cairo: al-Na‘ām li-l-Ṭibā‘ah wa-l-Tawrīdāt, 1986), 2–172; see also Bishop Matā’us, ed., Ta‘ālīm Mār Ūghrīs ‘an afkār wa ḥayl al-shayāṭīn (Wādī al-Naṭrūn: Maktabat Dayr al-Suryān, 2008; second edition, 2017), which is also based on manuscript contents at Dayr al-Suryān. For studies of Evagrius’ works in Arabic, see also Samir, “Évagre le Pontique dans la tradition arabo-copte,” 125–153; Géhin, “La tradition arabe d’Évagre le Pontique,” 83–104; and Davis, “Evagrius Ponticus at the Monastery of the Syrians,” 349–394.

Evagrius Ponticus, In Imitation of Ecclesiastes, the Song of Songs, and Proverbs: DS Arabic Ascetic 21, 22 (1484 CE), 23 CPG 2463, 2464, 2464a. Arabic text edited by Paul Géhin, “Evagriana d’un manuscrit basilien (Vaticanus gr. 2028; olim Basilianus 67),” Le Muséon 109 (1996), 59–85. The part of this work on Ecclesiastes from DS Arabic Ascetic 21 (= MS 174) has also been published by Bishop Samuel in Mayāmir Mār Ughrīs (Cairo: al-Na‘ām li-l-Ṭibā‘ah wa-l-Tawrīdāt, 1986), 172–173. For a recent study, see Stephen J. Davis, “Arabic Evagriana: Three Works in Imitation of Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, and Proverbs,” paper presented at the North American Patristics Society Annual Meeting (May 2018). For studies of Evagrius’ works in Arabic, see also Samir, “Évagre le Pontique dans la tradition arabocopte,” 125–153; Géhin, “La tradition arabe d’Évagre le Pontique,” 83–104; and Davis, “Evagrius Ponticus at the Monastery of the Syrians,” 349–394.

Evagrius Ponticus, In Imitation of Ecclesiastes: DS Arabic Ascetic 21, 22 (1484 CE), 23 Evagrius Ponticus, In Imitation of Proverbs: DS Arabic Ascetic 21, 22 (1484 CE), 23 Evagrius Ponticus, In Imitation of the Song of Songs: DS Arabic Ascetic 21, 22 (1484 CE), 23 Evagrius Ponticus, Kephalaia Gnostika: see under Evagrius Ponticus, Chapters of Knowledge Evagrius Ponticus, Letter in response to Eulogius the Ascetic: DS Arabic Ascetic 21, 22 (1484 CE), 23, 25, 32, 33, 46; see also under Evagrius Ponticus, [Prologue to his] Letter in response to Eulogius; and Evagrius Ponticus, Edifying Discourse to Eulogius the Ascetic CPG 2447; GCAL 1, 397–398 (#1). The Arabic text from DS Arabic Ascetic 21 (= MS 174) has been published by Bishop Samuel in Mayāmir Mār Ughrīs (Cairo: al-Na‘ām li-l-Ṭibā‘ah wa-l-Tawrīdāt, 1986), 2–38. For studies of Evagrius’ works in Arabic, see also Samir, “Évagre le Pontique dans la tradition arabo-copte,” 125–153; Géhin, “La tradition arabe d’Évagre le Pontique,” 83–104; and Davis, “Evagrius Ponticus at the Monastery of the Syrians,” 349–394.

Evagrius Ponticus, Praktikos (excerpt from Part 2): DS Arabic Ascetic 21, 22 (1484 CE), 23, 25; see also under Evagrius Ponticus, Edifying Discourse to Eulogius the Ascetic CPG 2430; GCAL 1, 397–398 (#1). The Arabic text from DS Arabic Ascetic 21 (= MS 174) has been published by Bishop Samuel in Mayāmir Mār Ughrīs (Cairo: al-Na‘ām li-l-Ṭibā‘ah wa-l-Tawrīdāt, 1986), 66–74. For studies of Evagrius’ works in Arabic, see also Samir, “Évagre le Pontique dans la tradition arabo-copte,” 125–153; Géhin, “La tradition arabe d’Évagre le Pontique,” 83–104; and Davis, “Evagrius Ponticus at the Monastery of the Syrians,” 349–394.

Evagrius Ponticus, On the Eight Spirits of Wickedness: DS Arabic Ascetic 21, 22 (1484 CE), 23, 25; see also under Evagrius Ponticus, Edifying Discourse to Eulogius the Ascetic CPG 2451; GCAL 1, 399–400 (under Nilus [of Ancyra]). The Arabic text from DS Arabic Ascetic 21 (= MS 174) has been published by Bishop Samuel in Mayāmir Mār Ughrīs (Cairo: al-Na‘ām li-lṬibā‘ah wa-l-Tawrīdāt, 1986), 150–172. For studies of Evagrius’ works in Arabic, see also Samir, “Évagre le Pontique dans la tradition arabo-copte,” 125–153; Géhin, “La tradition arabe d’Évagre le Pontique,” 83–104; and Davis, “Evagrius Ponticus at the Monastery of the Syrians,” 349–394.

Evagrius Ponticus, On Perfection: DS Arabic Ascetic 24, 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE) CPG 2476 [= P]; ed. and trans. J. Muyldermans, “Évagre le Pontique. Les Capita cognoscitive dans les versions syriaque et arménienne,” Le Muséon 47 (1934), 97–106.

Evagrius Ponticus, On Prayer: DS Arabic Ascetic 21, 22 (1484 CE), 23, 25; see also under Evagrius Ponticus, Edifying Discourse to Eulogius the Ascetic

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CPG 2452; GCAL 1, 397–398 (#1). Arabic text edited by Irénée Hausherr, “Le ‘De Oratione’ d’Évagre le Pontique en syriaque et en arabe,” Orientalia Christiana Periodica 128 (1939), 7–71. The Arabic text from DS Arabic Ascetic 21 (= MS 174) has also been published by Bishop Samuel in Mayāmir Mār Ughrīs (Cairo: al-Na‘ām li-l-Ṭibā‘ah wa-l-Tawrīdāt, 1986), 38–66. For a study of the transmission of this work in Arabic, see Paul Géhin, “Les versions syriaques et arabes des Chapitres sur la prière d’Évagre le Pontique: quelques données nouvelles,” Patrimoine 9 (2005), 178–197. For studies of Evagrius’ works in Arabic, see also Samir, “Évagre le Pontique dans la tradition arabo-copte,” 125–153; Géhin, “La tradition arabe d’Évagre le Pontique,” 83–104; and Davis, “Evagrius Ponticus at the Monastery of the Syrians,” 349–394.

Evagrius Ponticus, On Thoughts: DS Arabic Ascetic 24, 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE) CPG 2450 [= T]; ed. Antoine Guillaumont, Claire Guillaumont, and Paul Géhin, SC 438 (Paris: Cerf, 1998), 28–33; trans. R. E. Sinkewicz, Evagrius of Pontus: The Greek Ascetic Corpus (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003), 136–182.

Evagrius Ponticus, [Prologue to his] Letter in response to Eulogius: DS Arabic Ascetic 21, 22 (1484 CE), 23, 25, 32, 46; see also under Evagrius Ponticus, Edifying Discourse to Eulogius the Ascetic; and Evagrius Ponticus, Letter responding to Eulogius See CPG 2447; GCAL 1, 397–398 (#1). The Arabic text from DS Arabic Ascetic 21 (= MS 174) has been published by Bishop Samuel in Mayāmir Mār Ughrīs (Cairo: al-Na‘ām li-l-Ṭibā‘ah wal-Tawrīdāt, 1986), 1–2. For studies of Evagrius’ works in Arabic, see also Samir, “Évagre le Pontique dans la tradition arabo-copte,” 125–153; Géhin, “La tradition arabe d’Évagre le Pontique,” 83–104; and Davis, “Evagrius Ponticus at the Monastery of the Syrians,” 349–394.

Evagrius Ponticus, Reflections (Skemmata): DS Arabic Ascetic 24, 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE) CPG 2433 [= R]; ed. J. Muyldermans, Evagriana, Extrait de la revue Le Muséon 44, augmenté de: Nouveaux fragments grecs inédits (Paris: Paul Geuthner, 1931), 369–383; trans. R. E. Sinkewicz, Evagrius of Pontus: The Greek Ascetic Corpus (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003), 210–216.

Evagrius, Untitled Work: DS Arabic Ascetic 23 An Exhortation collecting various meanings regarding religion, morals in the holy church, the seven prayers, asceticism in the monastic life, and other matters, [in the form of] questions and answers and [containing] letters of the monastic brothers living at the Enaton Monastery (Dayr al-Hābiṭūn): DS Arabic Ascetic 36 (1742 CE) Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Discourses/Mayāmir: DS Arabic Ascetic 1, 2, 3 (1344 CE), 4, 5 (1260 CE), 29, 30 (1461 CE), 34, 49, 50, 57; see also under Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Letters; and “Mayāmir” (under Isaac the Syrian, Mayāmir/Chapters/Sayings/Teachings/ Sermons) GCAL 1.436–442.

Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Chapters: see Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Discourses; and “Mayāmir” (under Isaac the Syrian, Mayāmir/Chapters/Sayings/Teachings/Sermons). Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Letters: DS Arabic Ascetic 3 (1344 CE), 50 On works by Isaac the Syrian preserved in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 436–442, esp. 442.

Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Letter to a monk who loved silence: DS Arabic Ascetic 3 (1344 CE), 4, 50 Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Letter to Father Simeon: DS Arabic Ascetic 3 (1344 CE) GCAL 1, 442 (#4).

Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Treatises: see Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Discourses; and “Mayāmir” (under Isaac the Syrian, Mayāmir/Chapters/Sayings/Teachings/Sermons) Isaiah of Scetis, Commandments to apprenticing monks: DS Arabic Ascetic 28 (1840/41 CE), 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE), 32; see also under Isaiah of Scetis, Spiritual Teaching [= Ascetikon]; and under “Mayāmir”

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CPG 5555; CPC 0217; GCAL 1, 402–403; MṬK 1.7, 170–171. For an English translation of Isaiah’s writings on the basis of the Greek, see John Chryssavgis, ed., Abba Isaiah of Scetis: Ascetic Discourses (Cistercian Studies 150; Kalamazoo, MI: Cistercian Publications, 2002).

Isaiah of Scetis, Spiritual Teaching [= Asketikon]: DS Arabic Ascetic 5 (1260 CE), 6 (1794 CE); see also under Isaiah of Scetis, Commandments to apprenticing monks; and under “Mayāmir” CPG 5555; CPC 0217; GCAL 1, 402–403; MṬK 1.7, 170–171. For an English translation of Isaiah’s writings on the basis of the Greek, see John Chryssavgis, ed., Abba Isaiah of Scetis: Ascetic Discourses (Cistercian Studies 150; Kalamazoo, MI: Cistercian Publications, 2002).

[John] Cassian, On the Eight Evil Thoughts [= De institutis coenobiorum, part two (books 5– 12)]: DS Arabic Ascetic 14 (1281 CE), 16, 19, 25, 33, 48, 51 CPL 0513; GCAL 1, 401. For an English translation of the Institutes on the basis of the Latin, see B. Ramsey, ed., John Cassian: The Institutes (Ancient Christian Writers 58; New York and Mahwah, NJ: Newman Press, 2000).

[John] Cassian, On the Eight Passions: see under [John] Cassian, On the Eight Evil Thoughts John Climacus (Yūḥannā al-Darajī; Yūḥannā Iqlimīs), The Spiritual Ladder: DS Arabic Ascetic 14 (1281 CE), 15 (no date, but before 1451 CE), 16, 17, 18, 19, 20 CPG 7852; GCAL 1, 409–410.

John of Dalyatha: see under John Saba/The Spiritual Elder John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Chapters of Knowledge (Ru’ūs al-ma‘rifah): DS Arabic Ascetic 7 (1317 CE), 8, 9 (1798 CE), 10 (1778 CE), 11, 12, 13, 24, 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE) GCAL 1, 434–436.

John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Correspondence with his brother at the Coenobion Monastery: DS Arabic Ascetic 7 (1317 CE), 8, 9 (1798 CE), 10 (1778 CE), 12, 13, 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE) GCAL 1, 434–436.

John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Discourse: DS Arabic Ascetic 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE); see also under Garden of the Monks GCAL 1, 434–436.

John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Letter to his brother: see John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Correspondence with his brother at the Coenobion Monastery John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Letters (Rasā’il): DS Arabic Ascetic 7 (1317 CE), 8, 9 (1798 CE), 10 (1778 CE), 11, 12, 13, 53, 55; see also under John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Correspondence with his brother at the Coenobion Monastery GCAL 1, 434–436.

John of the Thebaid (Yūḥannā al-Tabā’isī) [= John of Lycopolis], Discourse: DS Arabic Ascetic 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE) GCAL 1, 395–396.

John of the Thebaid [= John of Lycopolis], Letter: DS Arabic Ascetic 32, 33 GCAL 1, 395–396.

John of the Thebaid (Yūḥannā al-Tabā’isī) [= John of Lycopolis], Teaching(s) (Letters/Mayāmir): DS Arabic Ascetic 30 (1461 CE) GCAL 1, 395–396.

[Joseph of Reuilly,] The Trumpet of Heaven (Būq al-samāʼ): DS Arabic Ascetic 42 (1832 CE) GCAL 4, 203.

Macarius the Great, Letters: DS Arabic Ascetic 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE), 51; see also under “Mayāmir: Garden of the Monks”

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CPG 2415; MṬK 1.7, 377–382. On writings and teachings attributed to Macarius the Great preserved in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 389–395; MṬK 1.7, 384–385.

Miscellaneous Ascetic Discourses: DS Arabic Ascetic 61, 62 Pachomius, Teaching(s): DS Arabic Ascetic 32, 61 CPG 2354; GCAL 1, 459–461, at 460 (#1); MṬK 1.6, 349–356, at 352–353; on Coptic writing attributed to Pachomius, see also MṬK 1.7, 134–147. For an edition of Pachomius’ “teachings” (ta‘ālīm) in Arabic based on manuscript contents at Dayr al-Suryān, see Bishop Matā’us, ed., Sīrat wa-ta‘ālīm al-Qiddīs al-Anbā Bākhūmiyūs (Wādī al-Naṭrūn: Maktabat Dayr al-Suryān, 2009; third edition, 2015), esp. 152ff.

Philoxenos [of Mabbug] (al-Qiddīs Fīluksīnūs), Letter on the pains of the soul in response to a question asked by Saint Baṭrīq al-Rahāwī [the Edessan]: DS Arabic Ascetic 30 (1461 CE) Philoxenos [of Mabbug] (Anbā Yūsif Fīluksīnūs), Letter on the three degrees of the monastic life: DS Arabic Ascetic 26, 27, 28 (1840/41 CE), 32 GCAL 1.453 (#3); Robert A. Kitchen, ed., The Discourses of Philoxenos of Mabbug (Cistercian Studies 235; Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2013), xliii.

(Ps.-)Antony the Great, Letter to the Monks: DS Arabic Ascetic 34, 52; see also under Antony the Great, Letters CPG 2436; GCAL 1, 456–457; MṬK 1.6, 338.

Rule/Canon of the monastery that was lost/destroyed a long time ago: DS Arabic Ascetic 29 (1778 CE) Rules/Canons of Clement (Iklīmādūs), for those entering the monastic life: DS Arabic Ascetic 32 For examples of canonical literature associated with Clement’s name, see GCAL 1, 580–584.

Rules/Canons of Saint Mīsās, head of the solitaries at Jabal Afāth: DS Arabic Ascetic 48 Rules/Canons, Teachings, and Commandments of St. Antony: DS Arabic Ascetic 29 (1778 CE), 31 (no date but before 1484 CE), 32, 34, 45, 52 (1270 CE) CPG 2349 (2); GCAL 1, 457–459; MṬK 1.6, 340.

Antony the Great, Rules/Canons and commandments to the monks at the Monastery of Naqlūn: DS Arabic Ascetic 29 (1778 CE), 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE), 32, 34 (?), 37, 45, 52 (1270 CE) GCAL 1, 456–459, at 457–458 (#4); MṬK 1.6, 340. For an edition of the Arabic text based on manuscript contents at Dayr al-Suryān, see Bishop Matā’us, ed., Nusukiyyāt al-Anbā Anṭūniyūs (Wādī al-Naṭrūn: Maktabat Dayr al-Suryān, 2009; second edition, 2015), 293–297.

Antony the Great, Spiritual Teaching and Holy Commandments: DS Arabic Ascetic 29 (1778 CE), 45, 52 (1270 CE) GCAL 1, 456–459, at 457 (#2). For an edition of the Arabic text based on manuscript contents at Dayr al-Suryān, see Bishop Matā’us, ed., Nusukiyyāt al-Anbā Anṭūniyūs (Wādī al-Naṭrūn: Maktabat Dayr al-Suryān, 2009; second edition, 2015), 256–292.

Antony the Great, Teachings/Sayings: DS Arabic Ascetic 29 (1778 CE), 32, 34, 45, 52 (1270 CE) CPG 2333; GCAL 1, 456–459, at 457 (#3); MṬK 1.6, 337.

Seventeenth Letter: DS Arabic Ascetic 62 Shenoute of Atripe, Canons: see under Canons of the Holy Father Anbā Shenoute Shenoute of Atripe, Testament (waṣiyyah) read to the monks when one of them has passed away: DS Arabic Ascetic 26 Cf. GCAL 1, 461–464; MṬK 1.7, 215–266.

Stephen of the Thebaid, Discourses/Teachings: DS Arabic Ascetic 31 (no date but before 1484 CE), 32, 33; see also under “Mayāmir” GCAL 1, 413.

Teaching(s) of the Fathers Skilled in Knowledge: DS Arabic Ascetic 30 (1461 CE)

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Testament on repentance (1): DS Arabic Ascetic 26 Testament on repentance (2): DS Arabic Ascetic 26 Theodore [of Tabennese], Letter: DS Arabic Ascetic 32 Thomas à Kempis, The Imitation of Christ: DS Arabic Ascetic 41 (1864 CE) Untitled ascetic discourses: DS Arabic Ascetic 26 Untitled ascetic discourse on evil thoughts and renunciation: DS Arabic Ascetic 52 (1270 CE) Untitled ascetic discourse on prayer, almsgiving, and trials: DS Arabic Ascetic 54 Untitled ascetic discourse on the reconciliation of a monk to his colleague/brother: DS Arabic Ascetic 26 Untitled ascetic discourse on repentance and sin: DS Arabic Ascetic 32 7. MAYĀMIR: MONASTIC SAYINGS, SAINTS’

LIVES AND SERMONS

Admonition/Warning against [Bad] Deeds, Awakening [People] from Moral Failings, and the Rebuking of Depraved Fornication, from the tongue of some patriarchs: DS Arabic Ascetic 34 Assorted Apophthegmata: DS Arabic Ascetic 58 On collections of apophthegmata in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 380–388.

Basil of Caesarea, Discourses: DS Arabic Ascetic 26; see also under Mayāmir/Sayings/Teachings attributed to various figures On Homilies/Mayāmir by Basil of Caesarea preserved in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 321–324 (#4 and 5).

Basil of Caesarea, On praying to the East: DS Arabic Ascetic 24; see also under Mayāmir/ Sayings/Teachings attributed to various figures On Homilies/Mayāmir by Basil of Caesarea preserved in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 321–324 (#4 and 5).

The Book of Paradise (Kitāb al-firdaws), collected sayings of the holy monks: DS Arabic Ascetic 37, 51 On collections of apophthegmata in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 380–388, but esp. 383–385 (#4). For a Syriac edition and English translations, see E. A. W. Budge, Book of Paradise, 2 volumes (London: Printed for Lady Meux by W. Drugulin, 1904); for another English translation by the same author, see E. A. W. Budge, Paradise or Garden of the Holy Fathers, 2 volumes (London: Chatto & Windus, 1907). For a more recent study of its transmission in Arabic, see J.-M. Sauget, Une traduction arabe de la collection d’Apophthegmata partum de ‘Enānīšō‘ (CSCO 495; Louvain: Peeters, 1987).

A Collection of Monastic Sayings and Anecdotes: DS Arabic Ascetic 59 On collections of apophthegmata in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 380–388.

Commandment(s) said by some of the saints to be read on the second Friday at dawn: DS Arabic Ascetic 21; see also under Liturgy Commandments given by the Virgin Mary to Saint Macarius at Scetis (Jabal Shīhāt) on account of the building up of the brothers: DS Arabic Ascetic 28 (1840/41 CE) Correction/Instruction, [Spiritual] Exercise, and Awakening for the Souls of the Priests, from the sayings of the pure apostles: DS Arabic Ascetic 34 Diadochus, Teachings: DS Arabic Ascetic 30 (1461 CE) GCAL 1, 401.

Ephrem the Syrian, Mayāmir/Sermons/Teachings: DS Arabic Ascetic 26, 28 (1840/41 CE), 62 Ephrem the Syrian, Maymar on death and the soul’s departure from the body: DS Arabic Ascetic 28 (1840/41 CE); see also under Mayāmir/Sayings/Teachings attributed to various figures GCAL 1, 427–428 (#4); cf. CPG 4044.

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Ephrem the Syrian, Maymar on the end of the world and the coming of the Antichrist: DS Arabic Ascetic 26; see also under Mayāmir/Sayings/Teachings attributed to various figures GCAL 1, 428 (#4).

Ephrem the Syrian, Maymar on the holy fast: DS Arabic Ascetic 62; see also under Mayāmir/ Sayings/Teachings attributed to various figures On Ephrem’s homilies/mayāmir on the days of the Great Fast and on the practice of fasting, see GCAL 1, 424–425, 429–430.

Ephrem the Syrian, Maymar on love, faithfulness, and the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ: DS Arabic Ascetic 26; see also under Mayāmir/Sayings/Teachings attributed to various figures GCAL 1, (#4). Multiple homilies/mayāmir related to the second coming of Jesus Christ have been attributed to Ephrem: see CPG 3920, 3944, 3945, 3946, 3948, 4016, 4029, and 4043.

Ephrem the Syrian, Story (Homily/Maymar) on the entrance of Abraham and his wife Sarah into the land of Egypt: DS Arabic Ascetic 62 CPG 4160 (#1); GCAL 1, 426 (#2).

Ephrem the Syrian, Teaching on the question of the disciples to the Lord, “Teach us, when will your coming take place?” (cf. Matt. 24:3): DS Arabic Ascetic 26 On Ephrem’s homilies/mayāmir on biblical themes, see GCAL 1, 426–427 (#2). On Ephrem’s homilies/mayāmir on eschatological themes, see GCAL 1, 427–429 (#4).

Evagrius Ponticus, Mayāmir/Discourses/Sayings: DS Arabic Ascetic 25, 30 (1461 CE), 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE), 33, 51; see also under Mayāmir/Sayings/Teachings attributed to various figures On works by Evagrius Ponticus preserved in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 397–399.

Evagrius Ponticus: On the Interpretation of the Lord’s Prayer: DS Arabic Ascetic 33; see also under Evagrius Ponticus, Maymar/Discourse/Saying; and Mayāmir/Sayings/ Teachings attributed to various figures On works by Evagrius Ponticus preserved in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 397–399.

Evagrius Ponticus, On Perfection: DS Arabic Ascetic 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE); see also under Evagrius Ponticus, Maymar/Discourse/Saying; and Mayāmir/Sayings/ Teachings attributed to various figures On works by Evagrius Ponticus preserved in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 397–399.

An Exhortation on the Avoidance of Things that Preoccupy and Distract, attributed to Solomon the Wise, son of David: DS Arabic Ascetic 34 The Garden of the Monks (Bustān al-ruhbān): DS Arabic Ascetic 22 (1484 CE), 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE), 37, 51 (?); see also The Gardens [of the Monks] (al-Ḥadā’iq) On collections of apophthegmata in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 380–388, but esp. 384–386. For two recent uncritical editions of the Garden of the Monks based on manuscripts in monastic libraries and published by the Coptic Orthodox Church in Egypt, see Bustān al-ruhbān li-ābā’ al-kanīsah al-qibṭiyyah (Beni Suef, 1977); and Bishop Epiphanius, ed., Bustān al-ruhbān (Wādī al-Naṭrūn, 2013). A third, three-volume published in Egypt, represents a modern expansion on this historical source edited by an anonymous monk from Wādī al-Naṭrūn: Firdaws al-ābā’ (Bustān al-ruhbān al-muwassa‘), 3 volumes (Wādī al-Naṭrūn, 2005–2007).

The Gardens [of the Monks] (al-Ḥadā’iq): DS Arabic Ascetic 33; see also The Garden of the Monks (Bustān al-ruhbān) Gregory of Cyprus, Teachings: DS Arabic Ascetic 30 (1461 CE) Gregory Nazianzen (“the Theologian”), Mayāmir/Discourses/Homilies: DS Arabic Ascetic 26, 34 On works by Gregory Nazianzen preserved in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 330–332.

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Gregory [Nazianzen], Exhortation on Repentance (abridged): DS Arabic Ascetic 34 On works by Gregory Nazianzen preserved in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 330–332.

Gregory [Nazianzen], On the Division/Schism of the Faithful: DS Arabic Ascetic 34 On works by Gregory Nazianzen preserved in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 330–332.

Gregory [Nazianzen], On the Meanings of the Holy Sacraments/Mysteries (abridged): DS Arabic Ascetic 34 On works by Gregory Nazianzen preserved in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 330–332.

Gregory [Nazianzen] the Theologian, On the Meanings of the New Body (abridged): DS Arabic Ascetic 34 On works by Gregory Nazianzen preserved in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 330–332.

Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Mayāmir/Chapters/Sayings/Teachings/Sermons: DS Arabic Ascetic 1, 2, 3 (1344 CE), 4, 5 (1260 CE), 6 (1794 CE), 29, 30 (1461 CE), 34, 49, 50, 57 GCAL 1.436–442.

Isaac [the Syrian] (Mār Isḥaq), Chapters/Sermons on Repentance and Trust [in God]: DS Arabic Ascetic 34; see also under “Mayāmir” GCAL 1, 441 (under #3).

Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Chapters of Knowledge (Ru’ūs al-ma‘rifah): DS Arabic Ascetic 1, 3 (1344 CE); see above under Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Mayāmir/Chapters, in four books (= Book 4) Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Mayāmir (24 in number): DS Arabic Ascetic 2, 5 (1260 CE) (?), 6 (1794 CE) (?) Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Mayāmir (40 in number): DS Arabic Ascetic 4, 50 (?) GCAL, 1.438–439, #1.

Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Mayāmir (57 in number): DS Arabic Ascetic 5 (1260 CE), 6 (1794 CE) Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Mayāmir/Chapters, in four books: DS Arabic Ascetic 1, 30 (1461 CE), 57 GCAL 1, 439–440 (#2); see also under CPG 7868. For an edition of Isaac the Syrian’s ascetic works in Arabic, see Tādurus al-Suryānī, ed., Nusukiyyāt wa-mayāmir Mār Isḥāq al-Suryānī (Wādī al-Naṭrūn: Maktabat Dayr al-Suryān, 2016).

Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Mayāmir, Book 1: DS Arabic Ascetic 1, 34 GCAL 1, 439–440 (#2, I).

Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Mayāmir, Book 2: DS Arabic Ascetic 1 GCAL 1, 439–440 (#2, II).

Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Mayāmir, Book 3 (in 35 chapters): DS Arabic Ascetic 1, 2, 3 (1344 CE) GCAL 1, 439–440 (#2, III).

Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Mayāmir, Book 4 (= Chapters of Knowledge; Ru’ūs alma‘rifah): DS Arabic Ascetic 1, 3 (1344 CE) GCAL 1, 439–440 (#2, IV).

Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Mayāmir/Sayings: DS Arabic Ascetic 1, 2, 3 (1344 CE), 4, 24, 29, 34, 49, 50; see under Mayāmir and Chapters/Treatises, in four books (= Book 1) On works by Isaac the Syrian preserved in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 436–442.

Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Maymar on blessed prayer: DS Arabic Ascetic 4; see also under Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Mayāmir GCAL 1, 441 and 442 (under #3 and 4).

Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Maymar on fasting: DS Arabic Ascetic 2; see also under Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Mayāmir GCAL 1, 441 (under #3).

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Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Maymar on spiritual love: DS Arabic Ascetic 4, 50; see also under Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Mayāmir Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Maymar on spiritual rest: DS Arabic Ascetic 49; see also under Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Mayāmir Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Maymar on spiritual vision (theoria): DS Arabic Ascetic 50; see also under Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Mayāmir Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Maymar on [the way of] silence: DS Arabic Ascetic 2, 3 (1344 CE), 4, 24; see also under Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Mayāmir GCAL 1, 441.

Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Saying(s) on the ordering of the monastic life and on withdrawal from the world: DS Arabic Ascetic 3 (1344 CE); see also under Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥaq), Sayings GCAL 1, 441.

Isaac the Syrian, Saying(s) on those who suffer from lassitude: DS Arabic Ascetic 29 (1778 CE) GCAL 1, 441 (?).

Isaiah of Scetis, Teachings/Sayings: DS Arabic Ascetic 30 (1461 CE), 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE), 32 GCAL 1, 403; CPC 0217; GCAL 1, 402–403; MṬK 1.7, 170–171. For an English translation of Isaiah’s writings on the basis of the Greek, see John Chryssavgis, ed., Abba Isaiah of Scetis: Ascetic Discourses (Cistercian Studies 150; Kalamazoo, MI: Cistercian Publications, 2002).

Isaiah of Scetis, Saying [on the fact]… that a person is not able to be preserved from sin: DS Arabic Ascetic 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE); see also under Isaiah of Scetis, Sayings Isaiah of Scetis, Saying on silence: DS Arabic Ascetic 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE); see also under Isaiah of Scetis, Sayings Isaiah of Scetis, Saying reproaching himself: DS Arabic Ascetic 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE); see also under Isaiah of Scetis, Sayings Jacob of Sarug, Mayāmir/Homilies: DS Arabic Ascetic 21 On the writings of Jacob of Sarug preserved in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 444–452; and Aaron Michael Butts, “Diversity in the Christian Arabic Reception of Jacob of Serugh (d. 521),” in Patristic Literature in Arabic Translations, ed. B. Roggema and A. Treiger (Arabic Christianity: Texts and Studies 2; Leiden: Brill, 2020), 89–128.

Jacob of Sarug, Maymar about Abraham and how God and his angels came to his house and proclaimed to him and his wife about [his son] Isaac: DS Arabic Ascetic 21 GCAL 1, 446 (under #1).

Jacob of Sarug, Maymar about Abraham when he brought his son Isaac for the sacrifice: DS Arabic Ascetic 21 GCAL 1, 449 (under #3b).

Jacob of Sarug, Maymar about Jonah the prophet, the repentance of the people of the city of Nineveh and their salvation: DS Arabic Ascetic 21 GCAL 1, 449 (under #3b).

[John] Cassian, Sayings: DS Arabic Ascetic 32, 51; see also under Mayāmir/Sayings/Teachings attributed to various figures John Chrysostom, Mayāmir, Discourses, Exhortations, and Sermons: DS Arabic Ascetic 26, 32, 34, 44 (no date, but before 1785/86 CE) On works by John Chrysostom preserved in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 337–354, esp. 340–352. For an edition of John Chrysostom’s sermons in Arabic, see al-Qummuṣ Ughusṭīnūs al-Baramūsī, ed., ‘Iẓāt

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al-Qiddīs Yūḥannā-l-Dhahabī-l-Fam, 3 volumes (Silsilat kunūz makhṭūtāt al-Baramūs 12–14; Wādī al-Naṭrūn: Dayr al-Baramūs, 2010–2012; second edition of volume 1, 2016).

John Chrysostom, The Choice Pearl (Homilies): DS Arabic Ascetic 44 (no date, but before 1785/86 CE) GCAL 1, 340–341, at 341 (under #3b). For an Arabic edition, see Yūḥannā Fam al-Dhahab, al-Durr al-muntakhab (Cairo: Maṭba‘at al-waṭan, 1888); see also al-Qummuṣ Ughusṭīnūs al-Baramūsī, ed., ‘Iẓāt al-Qiddīs Yūḥannā-l-Dhahabī-l-Fam, 3 volumes (Silsilat kunūz makhṭūtāt al-Baramūs 12– 14; Wādī al-Naṭrūn: Dayr al-Baramūs, 2010–2012; second edition of Vol. 1, 2016).

John Chrysostom, Discourses/Sayings: DS Arabic Ascetic 26 On works by John Chrysostom preserved in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 337–354.

John Chrysostom, Exhortation on Avoiding Things that Preoccupy and Holding Fast to Things that Endure: DS Arabic Ascetic 34 John Chrysostom, Exhortation on the Imitation/Emulation of the Lord’s Footsteps: DS Arabic Ascetic 34 John Chrysostom, Exhortation on Repentance [which is] Commanded on the Day of the Resurrection: DS Arabic Ascetic 34 For examples of sermons on repentance/penance by John Chrysostom preserved in Arabic, see GCAL, 1, 351–352.

John Chrysostom, Exhortation on the Repudiation of Bodily Affairs and Worldly Desires — The Struggle for Happiness that Does Not Pass Away: DS Arabic Ascetic 34 John Chrysostom, Maymar on Psalm 50: DS Ascetic 26 John Chrysostom, Maymar on the Interpretation of Psalm 6: DS Ascetic 26 GCAL 1, 349 (under section b: Biblische Homilien).

John Chrysostom, On the Clarification of the Meanings of Gospel Prayer (abridged): DS Arabic Ascetic 34 For examples of sermons on prayer by John Chrysostom preserved in Arabic, see GCAL, 1, 351.

John Chrysostom, On Envy: DS Arabic Ascetic 32 John Chrysostom, Sermon on the Favor of the Lord of the Vineyard Mentioned in the Noble Gospel: DS Arabic Ascetic 34 John Chrysostom, The Spiritual Exercise of Human Souls: DS Arabic Ascetic 34 John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Homily on the apprenticing brothers: DS Arabic Ascetic 25; see also under John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Mayāmir GCAL 1, 434–436.

John Saba/The Spiritual Elder, Mayāmir: DS Arabic Ascetic 7 (1317 CE), 8, 9 (1798 CE), 10 (1778 CE), 11, 12, 13, 25, 37, 53, 62; see also under “Mayāmir attributed to various figures” GCAL 1, 434–436.

[John Saba/The Spiritual] Elder, Maymar on the human bliss that becomes mixed in with those who love God in their vision of his glory: DS Arabic Ascetic 62; see also under John Saba/ The Spiritual Elder, Mayāmir GCAL 1, 434–436.

Life of Barsanuphius: see under A Selected Discourse and Questions on the Monastic Life from the Book of Father Barsanuphius the Great Life of Evagrius: DS Arabic Ascetic 21 GCAL 1, 399 (#4). Based on a version of the Coptic Life of Evagrius: ed. É. Amélineau, De Historia Lausiaca quaenam sit huius ad Monachorum Aegyptiorum historiam scribendam utilitas (Paris: Leroux, 1887), 92–104; A. de Vogüé, “Les fragments coptes de l’Histoire Lausiaque: l’édition d’Amélineau et le manuscrit,” Orientalia 58.3 (1989), 326–332; French trans. G. Bunge and A. de Vogüé, Quatre ermites égyptiens. D’après les fragments coptes de l’histoire lausiaque (Bégrolles-en-Mauges:

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Abbaye de Bellefontaine, 1994); English trans. T. Vivian, Four Desert Fathers: Pambo, Evagrius, Macarius of Egypt, and Macarius of Alexandria (Crestwood, NY: St Vladimir’s Seminary Press, 2004), 69–92.

Life of Zosimus: DS Arabic Ascetic 21 Lives of the Holy Fathers: DS Arabic Ascetic 38 Macarius the Great, Sayings and Teachings: DS Arabic Ascetic 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE) GCAL 1, 389–395, at 389–393 (#1); MṬK 1.7, 384–385.

Mayāmir attributed to various figures: On collections of apophthegmata in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 380–388.

Ananias (Anāniyyah): DS Arabic Ascetic 38 Antony: DS Arabic Ascetic 29 (1778 CE), 32, 38, 51 CPG 2333; GCAL 1, 456–459, at 459; MṬK 1.6, 328–340, at 337; MṬK 1.7, 127–130, at 128–130. For an edition of Antony’s “sayings” (aqwāl) based on manuscript contents at Dayr al-Suryān, see Bishop Matā’us, ed., Nusukiyyāt al-Anbā Anṭūniyūs (Wādī al-Naṭrūn: Maktabat Dayr al-Suryān, 2009; second edition 2015), 298–302.

Arsenius (Arsāniyūs): DS Arabic Ascetic 38 GCAL 1, 401–402; MṬK 1.6, 389–393, at 393.

Barsanuphius the Great: DS Arabic Ascetic 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE), 51 GCAL 1, 406.

Basil of Caesarea: DS Arabic Ascetic 24, 26 Dorotheus (Dūrtāʼūs): DS Arabic Ascetic 25, 51 GCAL 1, 405–406.

Ephrem the Syrian: DS Arabic Ascetic 26, 51, 62 Evagrius Ponticus: DS Arabic Ascetic 25, 30 (1461 CE), 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE), 33, 51 Gerasimus: DS Arabic Ascetic 51 GCAL 1, 386 (under #5c).

Isaac the Syrian: DS Arabic Ascetic 1, 2, 3 (1344 CE), 4, 5 (1260 CE), 6 (1794 CE), 29, 30 (1461 CE), 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE), 34, 49, 50, 51, 57; see also under Garden of the Monks Isaiah of Scetis: 30 (1461 CE), 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE), 32, 51; see also under Garden of the Monks GCAL 1, 402–403; MṬK 1.7, 170–171.

Jacob of Sarug: DS Arabic Ascetic 32 John Cassian: DS Arabic Ascetic 32, 51 GCAL 1, 401.

John Chrysostom: DS Arabic Ascetic 26, 51 On works by John Chrysostom preserved in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 337–354.

John the Little: DS Arabic Ascetic 25, 51 (?) GCAL 1, 534. Teachings attributed to John the Little were also transmitted as part of his vita, authored by Zacharias of Sakhā: for the Coptic text and its translation, along with an English translation of the Syriac text, see Maged S. A. Mikhail and Tim Vivian, ed. and trans. (with Rowan A. Greer, trans.), The Holy Workshop of Virtue: The Life of John the Little by Zacharias of Sakhā (Cistercian Studies 234; Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2010); for the Arabic text and its translation, see Stephen J. Davis (ed. and trans.), The Arabic Life of St. John the Little by Zacharias of Sakhā (Coptica 7; Los Angeles: Saint Mark Foundation and Saint Shenouda the Archimandrite Coptic Society, 2008).

John Saba/The Spiritual Elder: DS Arabic Ascetic 7 (1317 CE), 8, 9 (1798 CE), 10 (1778 CE), 11, 12, 13, 25, 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE), 37, 53, 62

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John of the Thebaid: DS Arabic Ascetic 30 (1461 CE), 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE); see also under Garden of the Monks GCAL 1, 395–396.

Joseph (Yūsuf) [Philoxenos]: see under Philoxenos of Mabbug Macarius the Great: DS Arabic Ascetic 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE), 38, 51 GCAL 1, 389–395, at 389–393 (#1); MṬK 1.7, 384–385.

Pachomius, Saying(s): DS Arabic Ascetic 38 CPG 2356; GCAL 1, 459–461, at 460 (under #1); MṬK 1.6, 353; see also MṬK 1.7, 134–147. For an edition of Pachomius’ “teachings” (ta‘ālīm) in Arabic based on manuscript contents at Dayr al-Suryān, see Bishop Matā’us, ed., Sīrat wa-ta‘ālīm al-Qiddīs al-Anbā Bākhūmiyūs (Wādī al-Naṭrūn: Maktabat Dayr al-Suryān, 2009; third edition, 2015), esp. 152ff.

Philoxenos of Mabbug: DS Arabic Ascetic 25 GCAL 1, 385 (under #4) and 453 (#5).

Simeon Stylites: DS Arabic Ascetic 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE) On sayings attributed to Simeon Stylites the Elder in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 389–395. On sayings attributed to Simeon Stylites the Younger in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 404–405. For an edition of Simeon’s “sayings” (aqwāl) in Arabic, see Bishop Mat’ā’us, Manārat al-ṣalāh: Sīrat al-Qiddīs Sim‘ān al-‘Amūdī wa-aqwālihi (Wādī al-Naṭrūn: Maktabat Dayr al-Suryān, 2017), esp. 176– 203.

Stephen of the Thebaid: DS Arabic Ascetic 31 (no date but before 1484 CE), 32, 38; see also under Garden of the Monks GCAL 1, 413.

Mayāmir on specific themes: Maymar on living the life of silence: DS Arabic Ascetic 62 Maymar on repentance and renunciation with respect to what does not endure: DS Arabic Ascetic 26 Maymar on the word that Christ spoke in the Gospel, “Pray that it not happen to you in winter or on the Sabbath” (Matt. 20:24): DS Arabic Ascetic 26 A Monastic Anecdote: DS Arabic Ascetic 56 On the Commandments of the Faithful, from the sayings of the pure apostles: DS Arabic Ascetic 34 On the Correction/Education of Women, from the sayings of the pure apostles: DS Arabic Ascetic 34 On the Meanings of Almsgiving and Its Classifications: DS Arabic Ascetic 34 On the Meanings of Fasting: DS Arabic Ascetic 34 On Prayer, Its Classifications and Meanings: DS Arabic Ascetic 34 On Repentance and the Return to God: DS Arabic Ascetic 34 Pachomius, Saying(s) on speech: DS Arabic Ascetic 38 CPG 2356; GCAL 1, 459–461, at 460 (under #1); MṬK 1.6, 353; see also MṬK 1.7, 134–147. For an edition of Pachomius’ “teachings” (ta‘ālīm) in Arabic based on manuscript contents at Dayr al-Suryān, see Bishop Matā’us, ed., Sīrat wa-ta‘ālīm al-Qiddīs al-Anbā Bākhūmiyūs (Wādī al-Naṭrūn: Maktabat Dayr al-Suryān, 2009; third edition, 2015), esp. 152ff.

Paradise of the Fathers: see under The Book of Paradise (Kitāb al-firdaws) (Ps.-)Athanasius of Alexandria, The Death of the Patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob: DS Arabic Ascetic 21; see under “Biblical Books (freestanding texts): Pseudepigraphal and Apocryphal Texts: Testament of the Patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob” (Ps.-)Ephrem the Syrian, Question and answer on repentance: DS Arabic Ascetic 26 GCAL 1, 432–433 (#7d). Graf lists this among spurious works attributed to Ephrem, but it may bear a relationship to CPG 3969.

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Questions and Answers, Stories, and Sayings of the Holy Fathers: DS Arabic Ascetic 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE); see also under Garden of the Monks On collections of apophthegmata attributed to the desert fathers in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 380–388.

Sayings of the Elders, collected by Gregory of Nyssa: DS Arabic Ascetic 22 (1484 CE) On collections of apophthegmata attributed to the desert fathers in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 380–388. On one associated with Gregory of Nyssa’s name: see GCAL 1, 333–334.

Saying(s) of the Elder Fathers on detachment/isolation for the benefit of the soul: DS Arabic Ascetic 32 On collections of apophthegmata attributed to the desert fathers in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 380–388.

Sayings of the Holy Fathers: DS Arabic Ascetic 32, 51 (?) On collections of apophthegmata attributed to the desert fathers in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 380–388.

Saying(s) of some fathers: DS Arabic Ascetic 38, 51 (?) On collections of apophthegmata attributed to the desert fathers in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 380–388.

Sayings and Teachings of the Our Fathers: DS Arabic Ascetic 37, 51 (?) On collections of apophthegmata attributed to the desert fathers in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 380–388.

Sayings/Discourse of the Holy Elder Fathers: DS Arabic Ascetic 38, 51 (?); see also under Mayāmir/Sayings/Teachings attributed to various figures On collections of apophthegmata attributed to the desert fathers in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 380–388.

Sayings of Some Monks: DS Arabic Ascetic 32, 51 (?) On collections of apophthegmata attributed to the desert fathers in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 380–388.

Saying(s) of Some of the Saints reproaching the soul: DS Arabic Ascetic 62 On collections of apophthegmata attributed to the desert fathers in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 380–388.

Sermon on the Dead: DS Arabic Ascetic 34 Story of an Elder from the Monastery of St. Antony: DS Arabic Ascetic 14 (1281 CE) On collections of apophthegmata and stories attributed to the desert fathers in Arabic, see GCAL 1, 380–388.

8. LITURGICAL TEXTS Commandment(s) said by some of the saints to be read on the second Friday at dawn: DS Arabic Ascetic 21; see also under “Mayāmir” Lectionary readings from the Gospels for the month Amshīr: DS Arabic Ascetic 21 An Oath to the Only[-Begotten] Son, to be said at any time [in Coptic]: DS Arabic Ascetic 27 Prayer of St. Ephrem: DS Arabic Ascetic 23 Prayer/Litany of the Virgin Mary: DS Arabic Ascetic 27 Prayer/Petition to the Virgin Mary: DS Arabic Ascetic 23 9. OTHER WORKS Book of the Brahmans (al-Barakhmānisiyyīn): DS Arabic Ascetic 21 GCAL, 1, 545–546. For studies of this text, see Adel Sidarus, “Alexandre le Grand chez les Coptes (recherches récentes et perspectives nouvelles),” in Orientalia Christiana: Festschrift für Hubert Kaufhold zum 70. Geburtstag, ed. P. Bruns and H. O. Luthe (Eichstätter Beiträge zum Christlichen Orient 3; Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 2013), 477–495, esp. 494–495; Mark N. Swanson, “Alexander the Great among Medieval Copts: Some Comments on the Uses of Alexander-Materials in CoptoArabic Literature,” Coptica 15 (2016), 81–88; Mark N. Swanson, “The Church and the Mosque in Wisdom’s Shade: On the Story of ‘Alexander and the Hermit Prince,” in Heirs of the Apostles, ed. D. Bertaina, et al. (Leiden: Brill, 2019), 284–309.

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Collection of Proverbs/Wise Sayings: DS Arabic Ascetic 14 (1281 CE) Fragment from a collection of patristic anecdotes and sayings: DS Arabic Ascetic 17 Hermes the Wise, Letter on the Rebuke of the Soul (Risālah fī mu‘ātabat al-nafs): DS Arabic Ascetic 14 (1281 CE), 25 On the figure of Hermes the Wise in Arabic literature, see Kevin van Bladel, The Arabic Hermes: From Pagan Sage to Prophet of Science (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009), 226–229.

Ps.-Callisthenes, Alexander Romance: see under Book of the Brahmans Warnings against the vicissitudes of time: DS Arabic Ascetic 33

APPENDIX C

DATED AND UNDATED MANUSCRIPTS 1. MANUSCRIPTS

BY

DATE

1260 CE: DS Arabic Ascetic 5 1270 CE: DS Arabic Ascetic 52 1281 CE: DS Arabic Ascetic 14 1317 CE: DS Arabic Ascetic 7 1333/34 CE: DS Arabic Ascetic 33 (Part B) 1344 CE: DS Arabic Ascetic 3 1461 CE: DS Arabic Ascetic 30 1484 CE: DS Arabic Ascetic 22 1742 CE: DS Arabic Ascetic 36 1773 CE: DS Arabic Ascetic 43 1778 CE: DS Arabic Ascetic 10 1778 CE: DS Arabic Ascetic 29 1794 CE: DS Arabic Ascetic 6 1832 CE: DS Arabic Ascetic 42 1840/41 CE: DS Arabic Ascetic 28 1847/48 CE: DS Arabic Ascetic 40 1856 CE: DS Arabic Ascetic 19 1864 CE: DS Arabic Ascetic 41 1865 CE: DS Arabic Ascetic 47 2. UNDATED MANUSCRIPTS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS

Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic

Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic

1 2 [no date, but before 1687 CE] 4 8 9 [no date, but before 1798 CE] 11 12 13 [no date, but before 1805 CE] 15 [no date, but before 1451 CE] 16 17 18 20 21 23 24 [no date, but sixteenth century CE or earlier]

432 DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS

Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic

25 26 27 31 32 34 35 37 38 39 44 45 46 48 49 50 51 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62

[no date, but before 1798 CE] [no date, but probably late eighteenth or early nineteenth century CE] [no date, but before 1484 CE]

[no date, but before 1886 CE] [no date, but before 1785/86 CE]

APPENDIX D

PARCHMENT, PAPER, AND WATERMARKS (WITH DATES) 1. PARCHMENT (MAIN TEXT) 2. MIDDLE EASTERN PAPER, WITHOUT WATERMARKS (MAIN TEXT) DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS

Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic

Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic

1 2 3 (1344 CE) 4 5 (1260 CE) 7 (1317 CE) 8 9 (no date, but before 1798 CE) 11 12 13 (no date, but before 1805 CE) 14 (1281 CE) 15 (no date, but before 1451 CE) 16 17 18 19 (1856 CE) 20 21 22 (1484 CE) 23 24 (no date, but sixteenth century CE or earlier) 25 26 30 (1461 CE) 31 (no date, but before 1484 CE) 32 33 (Part 2: 1333/34 CE) 34 35 43 (1773 CE) 45 46 48 49 50

434 DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS

Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic

S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic

51 52 (1270 CE) 53 54 55 57 58 61 62 3. EUROPEAN PAPER,

WITH WATERMARKS (MAIN TEXT)

DS Arabic Ascetic 6 (1794 CE): no watermarks visible DS Arabic Ascetic 10 (1778 CE): Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) DS Arabic Ascetic 27 (no date, but probably late eighteenth or early nineteenth century CE): Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) DS Arabic Ascetic 28 (1840/41 CE): Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) DS Arabic Ascetic 29 (1778 CE): Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) DS Arabic Ascetic 36 (1742 CE): Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) DS Arabic Ascetic 37: Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) DS Arabic Ascetic 38: Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) DS Arabic Ascetic 39 (no date, but before 1886 CE): Tre Lune (triple crescent moon); Crown on a shield with three stars DS Arabic Ascetic 40 (1847/48 CE): Shield with man-in-the-moon; VG DS Arabic Ascetic 41 (1864 CE): Shield with man-in-the-moon DS Arabic Ascetic 42 (1832 CE): Shield with man-in-the-moon DS Arabic Ascetic 44 (no date, but before 1785/86 CE): Floral crest with man-in-the-moon DS Arabic Ascetic 47 (1865 CE): Shield with man-in-the-moon DS Arabic Ascetic 56: Star (six-pointed); Fleur-de-lis DS Arabic Ascetic 59: Tre Lune ([triple] crescent moon) DS Arabic Ascetic 60: Hand 4. REUSED MIDDLE EASTERN PAPER (FRONT-/BACKMATTER), WITH COPTIC OR ARABIC 5. EUROPEAN PAPER (FRONT-/BACKMATTER DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS DS

Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic

Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic Ascetic

SCRIPT

AND/OR REPLACEMENT LEAVES), WITH WATERMARKS

2: Andrea Galvani Pordenone; Shield with man-in-the-moon 3: Andrea Galvani Pordenone; Shield with man-in-the-moon 4: Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) 5: [Shield with] man-in-the-moon (?); Andrea Galvani Pordenone 6: Shield with man-in-the-moon; Andrea Galvani Pordenone 7: Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) 8: Andrea Galvani Pordenone; [Shield with] man-in-the-moon 9: Andrea Galvani Pordenone; [Shield with] man-in-the-moon 11: Tre Lune (triple crescent moon); W 12: Tre Lune (triple crescent moon); W

APPENDIX

435

DS Arabic Ascetic 13: Tre Lune (triple crescent moon); W; forearm/hand with sword DS Arabic Ascetic 19: Shield with man-in-the-moon DS Arabic Ascetic 20: Shield with man-in-the-moon; Andrea Galvani [Pordenone] DS Arabic Ascetic 22: Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) DS Arabic Ascetic 23: Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) DS Arabic Ascetic 24: Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) DS Arabic Ascetic 25: Tre Lune (triple crescent moon); W DS Arabic Ascetic 26: Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) DS Arabic Ascetic 30: Tre Lune (triple crescent moon); Mezana; Andrea Galvani Pordenone, Shield with man-in-the-moon DS Arabic Ascetic 31: Tre Lune (triple crescent moon); Andrea Galvani Pordenone, Shield with man-in-the-moon DS Arabic Ascetic 33: Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) DS Arabic Ascetic 34: Shield with man-in-the-moon DS Arabic Ascetic 35: Shield with man-in-the-moon DS Arabic Ascetic 36: W; Steeple DS Arabic Ascetic 37: Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) DS Arabic Ascetic 38: Shield with man-in-the-moon DS Arabic Ascetic 40 (1847/48 CE): Shield with man-in-the-moon; VG DS Arabic Ascetic 41 (1864 CE): Shield with man-in-the-moon DS Arabic Ascetic 42 (1832 CE): Shield with man-in-the-moon DS Arabic Ascetic 48: Tre Lune (triple crescent moon) 6. WATERMARKS (MAIN TEXT) AG: see Andrea Galvani Pordenone Andrea Galvani Pordenone (= AG): see also Shield with man-in-the-moon Crest (floral), with man-in-the-moon: DS Arabic Ascetic 44 (no date, but before 1785/86 CE); see also Shield with man-in-the-moon (?) Fleur-de-lis: DS Arabic Ascetic 56 Hand: DS Arabic Ascetic 60 Shield with man-in-the-moon: DS Arabic Ascetic 41 (1864 CE), 42 (1832 CE); 47 (1865 CE) see also Crest (floral) with man-in-the-moon Star (six-pointed): DS Arabic Ascetic 56 Tre Lune: DS Arabic Ascetic 10 (1778 CE), 27 (no date, but probably late eighteenth or early nineteenth century CE), 28 (1840/41 CE), 29 (1778 CE), 36 (1742 CE), 37, 38, 39 (no date, but before 1886 CE), 40 (1847/48 CE), 59 VG: DS Arabic Ascetic 40 (1847/48 CE) 7. WATERMARKS (FRONT-/BACKMATTER

AND/OR REPLACEMENT LEAVES)

AG: see Andrea Galvani Pordenone Andrea Galvani Pordenone: DS Arabic Ascetic 2, 5, 6, 8, 9, 20, 30, 31, 40; see also Shield with man-in-the-moon Crest (elaborate floral or medallion motif): see also Tre Lune Crown on a shield with three stars: DS Arabic Ascetic 39 (no date, but before 1886 CE)

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S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Forearm/hand with sword: DS Arabic Ascetic 13 Mezana: DS Arabic Ascetic 30 Shield with man-in-the-moon: DS Arabic Ascetic 2, 5 (?), 6, 8, 9, 19, 20, 30, 31, 34, 35, 38, 40, 41 (1864 CE); see also Andrea Galvani Pordenone Steeple: DS Arabic Ascetic 36 Tre Lune (triple crescent moon): DS Arabic Ascetic 4, 7, 11, 12, 13, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 30, 31, 33, 37, 48 W: DS Arabic Ascetic 11, 12, 13, 25, 36

APPENDIX E

PROSOPOGRAPHY OF SCRIBES, PATRONS/OWNERS, RESTORERS, ILLUSTRATORS, READERS, AND OTHER NAMED FIGURES KEY TO ARABIC TERMS ab arkhan khādim (al-dayr) mu‘allim mutanayyah muṭrān rāhib qiss / qissīs qummuṣ ra’īs shammās shaykh usquf

father (monk) archon, lay notable servant (of the monastery) teacher, learned one (honorific term of respect) late, deceased metropolitan, archbishop monk priest abbot or an ordained monk of high status head, leader (honorific term of respect) deacon elder (honorific term of respect) bishop 1. SCRIBES (NUSSĀKH,

KUTTĀB, NUQQĀL)

Abshāy Mattā: DS Arabic Ascetic 40 (1847/48 CE) An anonymous monk from the Monastery of ‘Arabah: see under “An anonymous monk from the Monastery of St. Antony” An anonymous monk from the Monastery of St. Antony: DS Arabic Ascetic 5 (1260 CE), 52 (1270 CE) Bishārah, priest (qiss) and “servant” (khādim) at Dayr al-Suryān: DS Arabic Ascetic 16 (replacement hand), 28 (1840/41 CE) Buṭrūs, a monk from the Monastery of St. Paul the Hermit [at the Red Sea]: DS Arabic Ascetic 41 (1864 CE) Dūs Filtāwūs: DS Arabic Ascetic 47 (1865 CE) Ghubriyāl, monk: DS Arabic Ascetic 1 Īwannīs al-Manṣūrī al-Mashriqī al-Suryānī: DS Arabic Ascetic 30 (1461 CE) Jirjis al-Sharqāwī, monk: DS Arabic Ascetic 29 (1778 CE) (?) Makramallāh, al-qummuṣ: DS Arabic Ascetic 36 (1742 CE) Marqus ibn Ṣalīb, monk who worked at the Monastery of St. Antony: DS Arabic Ascetic 14 (1281 CE) Matā’us, bishop and head of Dayr al-Suryān: DS Arabic Ascetic 47 (2003 CE) Mūsā, monk at Dayr al-Suryān: DS Arabic Ascetic 22 (1484 CE) Mūsā, al-qummuṣ, a priest (kāhin) and “servant” (khādim) of [the Church of] the Virgin at Ḥārat al-Zuwaylah al-Kubrā: DS Arabic Ascetic 10 Mūsā al-miskīn: DS Arabic Ascetic 33

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S.J. DAVIS AND M.N. SWANSON

Shinūdah ibn Sulmān al-Darajāwī ibn Mattā: DS Arabic Ascetic 21 Victor (Copt. Bōktōr; Ar. Buqṭur): DS Arabic Ascetic 37 (?) Yuḥannā ibn Qultah al-Jāwilī: DS Arabic Ascetic 44 (no date, but before 1785/86 CE) 2. PATRONS/OWNERS (MUHTAMMŪN) ‘Abd al-Shahīd Qusṭūr, al-arkhan al-mu‘allim, from the area of Dūwayr ‘Ābid: DS Arabic Ascetic 47 (1865 CE) ‘Abd al-Quddūs, al-qummuṣ, monk: DS Arabic Ascetic 10 An anonymous qummuṣ: DS Arabic Ascetic 36 (1741/42 CE) Antiochus (Anṭiyākhūs) of Jerusalem, monk: DS Arabic Ascetic 35 (?) Bākhūm, qiss, a monk at Dayr al-Suryān: DS Arabi Ascetic 19 Bishārah, priest (qiss) and “servant” (khādim) at Dayr al-Suryān: DS Arabic Ascetic 28 (1840/ 41 CE) [B]isṭ[aw]rās, monk and priest: DS Arabic Ascetic 3 Buṭrus, al-qummuṣ, head of Dayr al-Suryān: DS Arabic Ascetic 36 (1741/42 CE) Dāwūd, qiss and monk at Dayr al-Suryān, from Mārdīn [in Syria], and [originally] from Qal‘at Diyār Bakr [in what is now modern Turkey]: DS Arabic Ascetic 22 (1484 CE) Ghubriyāl, priest and servant of the Church of the Virgin at Ḥarat al-Zuwaylah: DS Arabic Ascetic 2 Ghubriyāl, qiss and monk at Dayr al-Suryān: DS Arabic Ascetic 22 (1484 CE) Ibrāhīm, al-mu‘allim and scribe (al-nāsikh): DS Arabic Ascetic 36 (1741/42 CE) Ibrāhīm al-Rūmānī: DS Arabic Ascetic 31 (1493 CE) Ibrāhīm al-Suryānī, al-qiss, monk at Dayr al-Suryān: DS Arabic Ascetic 9 Ibrāhīm al-Suryānī al-Mashriqī, monk at Dayr al-Suryān: DS Arabic Ascetic 31 (1484 CE) Īlyās Abū Wāsif, a layperson (archan) and a deacon (shammās) living in Old Cairo: DS Arabic Ascetic 10 Maged, brother, from Old Cairo: DS Arabic Ascetic 47 (2003 CE) Mīkhā’īl, monk: DS Arabic Ascetic 34 (?) Mīkhā’īl, also known as Barakāt ibn Kātib: DS Arabic Ascetic 33 Mīkhā’īl al-Munyataynī, al-qummuṣ: DS Arabic Ascetic 39 (no date but before 1886 CE) Peter (Petros), bishop: DS Arabic Ascetic 53 Peter (Petros), bishop of Manfalūt: DS Arabic Ascetic 44 (1785/86 CE) Quriyāqūs, al-āb, the metropolitan and head of Dayr al-Suryān: DS Arabic Ascetic 22 (1484 CE), 31 (1493 CE) Rafā’īl Malaṭī (Abū Ru’ūs al-Asyūṭī): DS Arabic Ascetic 40 Sāwīrus, the metropolitan (muṭrān) and head of Dayr al-Suryān: DS Arabic Ascetic 24 Tā’ufīlus (Theophilus), al-qummuṣ: DS Arabic Ascetic 44 Yūḥannā, monk and “servant” (khādim) at the Monastery of St. Macarius: DS Arabic Ascetic 31 (1484 CE) Yūḥannā [ibn Ṣalīb] al-Fayyūmī, al-qiss, monk at Dayr al-Suryān: DS Arabic Ascetic 8, 11, 16, 21, 23, 24, 27, 29, 30, 33 Yūḥannā ibn Naṣrallah, mu‘allim and teacher of children (muʼaddib aṭfāl) in Ḥarat al-Zuwaylah: DS Arabic Ascetic 14 (1281 CE) Yūsif ibn Sa‘m (?), al-qiss: DS Arabic Ascetic 9

439

APPENDIX

3. RESTORERS (MURAMMIMŪN) Elizabeth Sobczynski and her team of conservators from the Levantine Foundation: DS Arabic Ascetic 32 Yūḥannā [ibn Ṣalīb] al-Fayyūmī, al-qiss[īs], monk at Dayr al-Suryān: DS Arabic Ascetic 2, 9 (?), 11, 13 (?), 14 (?), 16, 21 (?), 23, 24, 26 (?), 29 (?), 30 (1803 CE), 31, 33 4. ILLUMINATORS Marqus al-Sawādī, priest (qiss) and “servant” (khādim) at Dayr al-Suryān: DS Arabic Ascetic 41 5. READERS ‘Abd al-Masīḥ al-Kharrāṭ al-Jirjāwī, a turner from Jirjā and visitor to Dayr al-Suryān: DS Arabic Ascetic 2 (1687 CE) ‘Abd al-Shahīd Ḥannā al-Minyāwī: DS Arabic Ascetic 47 Gregorius, Mar: DS Arabic Ascetic 22 (1516 CE) Īsḥaq: DS Arabic Ascetic 5 Mikhā’īl, also known as Barakāt Ibn Kātib: DS Arabic Ascetic 33 (1488 CE) Mikhā’īl, monk: DS Arabic Ascetic 34 Mūsā: DS Arabic Ascetic 5 Mūsā al-Suryānī: DS Arabic Ascetic 39 Peter (Petros), bishop: DS Arabic Ascetic 53 Victor (Copt. Bōktōr; Ar. Buqṭur): DS Arabic Ascetic 37 (?) Yūḥannā: DS Arabic Ascetic 12 Yūḥannā ibn Ḥizqiyāl, a monk probably from the Monastery of Moses (Dayr Mūsā): DS Arabic Ascetic 3 (1473/74 CE), 21 Yūḥannā ibn al-Miṣrī (who became Pope John XIII, 1484–1524 CE): DS Arabic Ascetic 3 6. OTHER NAMED FIGURES (NOT

INCLUDING JESUS AND THE

VIRGIN MARY)

‘Abd al-Masīḥ Salīb al-Baramūsī, al-qummuṣ: DS Arabic Ascetic 8 (reader’s note, 1916 CE) ‘Abdallah Ibn al-Faḍl Ibn ‘Abdallah, al-shammās (deacon) and translator: DS Arabic Ascetic 2, 3 Abī Ḥasan Sim‘ān: DS Arabic Ascetic 2, 3 Abī-l-Khayr Mīkhā’īl: DS Arabic Ascetic 2, 3 Abraham, biblical patriarch: DS Arabic Ascetic 7, 33, 44 Abū Naṣr Nīkīfūr Ibn Buṭrus al-Qabqalīs: DS Arabic Ascetic 2, 3 Alexander [the Great]: DS Arabic Ascetic 30 Antiochus (Anṭiyākhūs) of Jerusalem, monk: DS Arabic Ascetic 35 Antony the Great, monk and saint: DS Arabic Ascetic 52, 58 Arius: DS Arabic Ascetic 35 Arsenios, monk at Dayr al-Suryān: DS Arabic Ascetic 29 Buṭrus Quzmān al-Yasū‘ī, father/priest (al-bādirī = padre) and translator: DS Arabic Ascetic 43 (1737 CE) Cornelius, biblical saint: DS Arabic Ascetic 47

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Diocletian, emperor: DS Arabic Ascetic 4, 5, 7, 9, 13, 18, 19, 26, 27, 31, 35, 38, 47 Ephrem, saint: DS Arabic Ascetic 57, 62 Eutyches: DS Arabic Ascetic 35 Evagrius [Ponticus], monk and saint: DS Arabic Ascetic 62 Ezekiel, prophet: DS Arabic Ascetic 35 (?) George (Mārī Jirjis), martyr and saint: DS Arabic Ascetic 20 Gabriel (Ghubriyāl), patriarch: DS Arabic Ascetic 35 Ghubriyāl al-Fashnī, al-qiss, known as Shārūnī: DS Arabic Ascetic 39 Gregory of Nazianzus: DS Arabic Ascetic 2 (?) Isaac, biblical patriarch: DS Arabic Ascetic 7, 33, 44 Isaac (Īṣāāk), bishop of Bahnasa and al-Qīs: DS Arabic Ascetic 33 (1488 CE) Isaac the Syrian (Mār Isḥāq): DS Arabic Ascetic 9 Isaiah [of Scetis], saint: DS Arabic Ascetic 58, 59 Jacob, biblical patriarch: DS Arabic Ascetic 7, 30, 33, 44 Jacob, monk and saint: DS Arabic Ascetic 59 James, apostle and saint: DS Arabic Ascetic 47 John of Dalyatha: see under John Saba/The Spiritual Elder John Kame, monk and saint: DS Arabic Ascetic 35, 38 John [the Little], monk and saint: DS Arabic Ascetic 58 John Saba/The Spiritual Elder (al-Shaykh al-rūḥānī): DS Arabic Ascetic 8 Joseph, saint: DS Arabic Ascetic 47 Judas Iscariot: DS Arabic Ascetic 2, 4, 5, 9, 14, 18, 19, 20, 24, 26, 27, 33, 35, 38, 40, 47 Macarius the Great, saint: DS Arabic Ascetic 38, 58 Mark, evangelist and saint: DS Arabic Ascetic 47 Melania, saint: DS Arabic Ascetic 51 Micah, prophet: DS Arabic Ascetic 35 Michael, archangel: DS Arabic Ascetic 10 Nestorius: DS Arabic Ascetic 35 Pachomius, monk and saint: DS Arabic Ascetic 58, 61 Palladius: DS Arabic Ascetic 31, 59 Paul, apostle: DS Arabic Ascetic 47 Philoxenos of Cyprus: DS Arabic Ascetic 22 Poemen: DS Arabic Ascetic 59 Samuel, monk and saint: DS Arabic Ascetic 20 Sarapamon, monk and saint: DS Arabic Ascetic 58 Shenoute, monk and saint: DS Arabic Ascetic 48 Simon Magus: DS Arabic Ascetic 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 13, 14, 18, 19, 26, 27, 31, 33, 35, 38, 40, 47 Theodore (Tādurus), monk and saint: DS Arabic Ascetic 59 Ya‘qūb al-Suryānī: DS Arabic Ascetic 30 Yūḥannā al-Dalyātī (John of Dalyatha): see under John Saba/The Spiritual Elder Yūḥannā al-Sifīr: DS Arabic Ascetic 14 Zachariah, monk and saint: DS Arabic Ascetic 59 7. OTHER MONASTERIES AND CHURCHES Church of the Martyr Marī Jirjis at al-Maḥallah al-Kubrā: DS Arabic Ascetic 31 Church of St. Ephrem the Syrian in the desert of Scetis at the Monastery of the Pure Lady Virgin Mary: DS Arabic Ascetic 41

APPENDIX

441

Coenobion Monastery: DS Arabic Ascetic 7, 8, 9, 10, 12 Dependency (‘izbah) of Dayr al-Suryān in Izbakiyyah, Cairo: DS Arabic Ascetic 36 Monastery of St. Antony: DS Arabic Ascetic 5 (1260 CE), 14 (1281 CE), 29 (1778 CE), 52 (1770 CE) Monastery of St. Bishoi (Dayr Anbā Bishāy): DS Arabic Ascetic 45 Monastery of St. John the Hegoumen in the desert of Scetis (Dayr al-Qiddīs al-‘aẓīm Abū Yaḥnis al-aghūmanus bi-bariyyat Shīhāt): see under Monastery of John the Little Monastery of St. John Kame: DS Arabic Ascetic 10 Monastery of St. John the Little: DS Arabic Ascetic 3 (1344 CE) Monastery of St. Macarius: DS Arabic Ascetic 9 Monastery of [St.] Moses (Dayr Mūsā): DS Arabic Ascetic 3, 21 Monastery of St. Paul the Hermit [at the Red Sea]: DS Arabic Ascetic 41 (1864 CE) 8. COUNCILS AND SYNODS Council of Constantinople: DS Arabic Ascetic 35 Council of Ephesus: DS Arabic Ascetic 35 Council of Nicaea: DS Arabic Ascetic 35

CONTENTS INTRODUCTION .

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GUIDE TO DAYR AL-SURYĀN LIBRARY NUMBERS AND CATALOGUE NUMBERS .

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Appendix A: Manuscripts, Numbering Systems, and Contents . . . . . Appendix B: Textual Attestations, with Select Bibliography . . . . . Appendix C: Dated and Undated Manuscripts . . . . . . . . . . Appendix D: Parchment, Paper, and Watermarks (with Dates) . . . . . Appendix E: Prosopography of Scribes, Patrons/Owners, Restorers, Illustrators, Readers, and Other Named Figures . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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