Itinerarium Egeriae
Edited by Erik Alder
Memoria
- ...[they] were pointed out according to the scriptures.
- Meanwhile, we arrived walking to a certain place
- where, however (Egeria's use of "tamen" and other illative conjunctions, like many other Latin authors of her time, is heavily attenuated, so much so, that most translators don't even translate it)), the 1Egeria's use of the demonstrative adjectives "illus" and “is” will be rendered as "the" as most scholars have commented on the overabundance of the demonstrative in vulgar Latin as a precursor if … Continue reading mountains amidst which we were going opened themselves
- and made a valley infinite, hugely, most flatly 2"ingens" and "planissima" are both nominative and are difficult to explain even amongst experts. Here I treat them as adverbs, either modifying "faciebant," "infinitam" or "pulchram", but others have … Continue reading, and exceedingly beautiful
- and across the valley the holy mountain of God Sinai appeared.
- moreover, this place where the mountains opened themselves
- is next to the place
- where are the memories of the desiring. 3A reference to Kibroth Hattaavah in Numbers 11:34 where Israelites are killed and buried for craving quail.
- Thus, when one comes 4the passive use of "venio" during this time period is understood to be impersonal on that place
- as nevertheless the holy guides who were with us admonished saying:
- It is the custom
- to make prayer here
- by they who come
- when the mountain of God is first seen from this place.
- And we did just that.
- Moreover, there were 5habere during this time is already taking on the impersonal quantitative from that place toward the mountain of God perhaps four whole 6mostly like adverbial accusative miles through the valley 7the use of the ablative here is unusual but not out of the question during this time period.
- which I said immense.
- And the valley itself is exceedingly large
- lying under the wide mountain of God, which has perhaps
- as far as we could determine seeing
- or they themselves were saying
- in length perhaps sixteen miles, and in width they said it was four miles.
- Therefore, we had to cross the valley
- so that we could arrive at the mountain.
- Moreover this is the huge and flat valley,
- in which the children of Israel stayed during the days,
- when holy Moses ascended into the mountain of God
- and was there for forty days and forty nights.
- Moreover this was the valley,
- in which the calf has been made,
- which place is shown until today;
- for a large stone stands fixed there in the place itself.
- Therefore, this is the very valley,
- in whose head is the place,
- where holy Moses, when he was feeding the flocks of his father-in-law,
- God spoke to him a second time from the bush on fire.
- And since therefore the journey was ours
- to ascend first the mountain of God
- which here appears,
- because from where we were coming
- it was better to climb,
- and thence we were to descend once again to that main valley
- where the bush was
- because the descent down the mountain of God was better from there:
- then therefore it was determined
- that everything having been seen which we desired,
- descending the mountain of God in order to come where the bush is,
- and thence all through the midst of the valley in which it lies in length,
- we return to our journey with the people of God,
- who showed us every place which was written through the valley
- and just so it was done.
- Therefore, going from the place where coming from Pharan we had made prayer
- the journey thus was
- that we cross through the middle of the head of the valley
- and so we arrived to the mountain of God.
- Now, the mountain seems to be a single one through the same circle
- But within when you enter
- there are more
- but the whole thing is called the mountain of God
- However, the specific one, on whose summit is the place
- in which descended the majesty of God
- as it has been written
- is in the center of all of them.
- And although all these which circle it are so tall
- as I never think I have seen,
- nevertheless the center in which descended the majesty of God
- is so much taller than them all
- that, when we had ascended it,
- straight through all those mountains, which we had seen tall,
- were so beneath us
- as if they were just little hills.
- That truly is sufficiently amazing
- and I think it is not without the grace of God
- that, when the middle is taller than all,
- to which specifically it is said Sinai,
- it is on which descended the majesty of the Lord,
- but it cannot be seen
- unless you are come to the very root of it,
- though before before you ascend it;
- for after the wish having been completed you be descended thence
- and you see it from the other side
- which before you ascend,
- one cannot do.
- But this, before we arrived to the mountain of God,
- we had already learned by the brethren reporting,
- and after I arrived there,
- such I knew it was clearly.
- Therefore, we entered the mountain late on Saturday
- and arriving to certain cells 8Egeria uses the plural as a collection of cells, in which the community lived, but was not organized into a single building as a monastery today the monks received us there kindly enough,
- who dwelled there together, showing us all hospitality;
- for there also a church there with a priest.9one apparently predating Saint Catherine's Monastery, the oldest continuously inhabited monastery in the world
- Therefore we stayed there that night,
- and from there earlier on the Lord's Day with the priest himself and the monks who lived there,
- we started to ascend each of the mountains.
- Which mountains are ascended with infinite labor,
- since you don't go up them very slowly by going around
- as we say in a snail <shell>,
- but you go up all directly as if by a wall
- and it is necessary to descend straight down each of the mountains
- until you arrive to the very root of the middle one,
- which is specifically Sinai.
- Therefore, in this way with bidding of Christ Our God and helped by the prayers of the holy ones which attended [us],
- and thus with great labor, because it was necessary for me to ascend by foot
- (because it was entirely impossible to ascend on the saddle
- but the labor itself was not felt
- but the labor was in part not felt
- because I saw that the desire I had, was being fulfilled by God's will):
- Therefore, at the fourth hour we arrived at the summit of the Holy God Sinai
- where was given the law
- that is, in the place
- where descended the majesty of the Lord on that day
- in which the mountain smoked.
- In that place there is now a church, not large,
- since also the place itself, that is, the top of the mountain,
- is not big enough,
- which church, however, has about itself great grace.
- Therefore, when by God's bidding we had reached the summit
- and had arrived to the door of the church,
- and behold, a presbyter coming met us out of his own cell,
- who was appointed to that church,
- a healthy old man and monk from his early life, as they say here, an ascetic, and what more?
- --one such as is worthy to be in that place.
- Likewise also other presbyters met [us],
- not to mention furthermore also all the monks, who were staying there close to the mountain,
- that is, however, who either not prevented by age or weakness.
- However, truly none stay on the summit of that central mountain; 10it was a custom that no one spend the night on the mountain. See Caner History and Hagiography 20-21, 63-66
- For nothing else is there except the lone church and the cave
- where holy Moses was.
- Therefore, all from the Book of Moses having been read and the oblation been made in its order, thus having received communion, as we left the church 11Egeria's use of the subjunctive here is challening, and I have not been able to find commentary. Some translators have treated it as part of a cum clause, seeing the prior ablative of absolute as … Continue reading
- the presbyters of the place gave us eulogiae 12literally "blessings" in Greek, a customary gift or food either in connection with the liturgy or given to pilgrims
- that is, of fruit that grow on the mountain.
- For although the Holy Mountain Sinai is all rocky
- so that it has no bushes,
- yet down near the base of the mountain, that is either around the middle one
- or around those nearby
- there is a modest bit of land.
- Constantly, the holy monks plant shrubs by their diligence
- and set up little orchards or plots and near to their monastic cells;
- as if they take some fruit from the land of the mountain
- which nevertheless they may seem to elaborate by their own hands.
- Therefore, after we had partaken of Communion here
- and those holy men had given us eugoliae,
- and we departed outside door of the church,
- then I began to praye them
- that they would show us various places.
- Then, immediately the holy men deigned to show each one.
- For they showed us that cave,
- where holy Moses was,
- when he had ascended again to the Mountain of God
- as he received the tablets a second time,
- after he had broken the earlier ones because of the sinful people;
- and the rest of the places wheresoever we desired
- or that they knew better
- they deigned to show us.
Diplomatic Transcription
Edition Notes
This is a literal translation of Egeria's original Latin text.
Miscellaneous Works by Egeria
Posted
22 February 2024
Last Updated
9 May 2024
References
↑1 | Egeria's use of the demonstrative adjectives "illus" and “is” will be rendered as "the" as most scholars have commented on the overabundance of the demonstrative in vulgar Latin as a precursor if not the first appearance of the definite article |
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↑2 | "ingens" and "planissima" are both nominative and are difficult to explain even amongst experts. Here I treat them as adverbs, either modifying "faciebant," "infinitam" or "pulchram", but others have treated "planissima" as a scribal error that should be accusative |
↑3 | A reference to Kibroth Hattaavah in Numbers 11:34 where Israelites are killed and buried for craving quail. |
↑4 | the passive use of "venio" during this time period is understood to be impersonal |
↑5 | habere during this time is already taking on the impersonal quantitative |
↑6 | mostly like adverbial accusative |
↑7 | the use of the ablative here is unusual but not out of the question during this time period |
↑8 | Egeria uses the plural as a collection of cells, in which the community lived, but was not organized into a single building as a monastery today |
↑9 | one apparently predating Saint Catherine's Monastery, the oldest continuously inhabited monastery in the world |
↑10 | it was a custom that no one spend the night on the mountain. See Caner History and Hagiography 20-21, 63-66 |
↑11 | Egeria's use of the subjunctive here is challening, and I have not been able to find commentary. Some translators have treated it as part of a cum clause, seeing the prior ablative of absolute as implying such. However, the prior "sic" implies the "ut" forming part of a result clause, but this doesn't seem to be her sense. |
↑12 | literally "blessings" in Greek, a customary gift or food either in connection with the liturgy or given to pilgrims |
↑13 | The period here is apparently an error on the Latin Library website or possibly a lacuna from the original manuscipt. |