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Of the Manichaeans

Alexander of Lycopolis

Chapter 10

About this work

Author: Alexander of Lycopolis

Chapter X.—The Mythology Respecting the Gods; The Dogmas of the Manichæans Resemble This: the Homeric Allegory of the Battle of the Gods; Envy and Emulation Existing In God According to the Manichæan Opinion; These Vices are to Be Found in No Good Man, and are to Be Accounted Disgraceful.

Moreover, they far surpass the mythologists in fables,

‹ Chapter 9 Chapter 11 ›

those

,

namely

,

who

either

make

Coelus

suffer

mutilation

,

or

idly

tell

of

the

plots

laid

for

Saturn

by

his

son

,

in

order

that

that

son

might

attain

the

sovereignty

;

or

those

again

who

make

Saturn

devour

his

sons

and

to

have

been

cheated

of

his

purpose

by

the

image

of

a

stone

that

was

presented

to

him

.

For

how

are

these

things

which

they

put

forward

dissimilar

to

those

?

When

they

speak

openly

of

the

war

between

God

and

matter

,

and

say

not

these

things

either

in

a

mythological

sense

,

as

Homer

in

the

Iliad

;

when

he

makes

Jupiter

to

rejoice

in

the

strife

and

war

of

the

gods

with

each

other

,

thus

obscurely

signifying

that

the

world

is

formed

of

unequal

elements

,

fitted

one

into

another

,

and

either

conquering

or

submitting

to

a

conqueror

.

And

this

has

been

advanced

by

me

,

because

I

know

that

people

of

this

sort

,

when

they

are

at

a

loss

for

demonstration

,

bring

together

from

all

sides

passages

from

poems

,

and

seek

from

them

a

support

for

their

own

opinions

.

Which

would

not

be

the

case

with

them

if

they

had

only

read

what

they

fell

in

with

some

reflection

.

But

,

when

all

evil

is

banished

from

the

company

of

the

gods

,

surely

emulation

and

envy

ought

especially

to

have

been

got

rid

of

.

Yet

these

men

leave

these

things

with

God

,

when

they

say

that

God

formed

designs

against

matter

,

because

it

felt

a

desire

for

good

.

But

with

which

of

those

things

which

God

possessed

could

He

have

wished

to

take

vengeance

on

matter

?

In

truth

,

I

think

it

to

be

more

accurate

doctrine

to

say

that

God

is

of

a

simple

nature

,

than

what

they

advance

.

Nor

,

indeed

,

as

in

the

other

things

,

is

the

enunciation

of

this

fancy

easy

.

For

neither

is

it

possible

to

demonstrate

it

simply

and

with

words

merely

,

but

with

much

instruction

and

labour

.

But

we

all

know

this

,

that

anger

and

rage

,

and

the

desire

of

revenge

upon

matter

,

are

passions

in

him

who

is

so

agitated

.

And

of

such

a

sort

,

indeed

,

as

it

could

never

happen

to

a

good

man

to

be

harassed

by

them

,

much

less

then

can

it

be

that

they

are

connected

with

the

Absolute

Good

.

Notes

1
Hom., Il., xx. 23–54.