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Against the Valentinians

Tertullian

Chapter 15

About this work

Author: Tertullian

Chapter XV.—Strange Account of the Origin of Matter, from the Various Affections of Achamoth. The Waters from Her Tears; Light from Her Smile.

Well, now, the Pythagoreans may learn, the Stoics

‹ Chapter 14 Chapter 16 ›

may

know

,

Plato

himself

(

may

discover

)

,

whence

Matter

,

which

they

will

have

to

be

unborn

,

derived

both

its

origin

and

substance

for

all

this

pile

of

the

world

—

(

a

mystery

)

which

not

even

the

renowned

Mercurius

Trismegistus

,

master

(

as

he

was

)

of

all

physical

philosophy

,

thought

out

.

You

have

just

heard

of

“

Conversion

,

”

one

element

in

the

“

Passion

”

(

we

have

so

often

mentioned

)

.

Out

of

this

the

whole

life

of

the

world

,

and

even

that

of

the

Demiurge

himself

,

our

God

,

is

said

to

have

had

its

being

.

Again

,

you

have

heard

of

“

sorrow

”

and

“

fear

.

”

From

these

all

other

created

things

took

their

beginning

.

For

from

her

tears

flowed

the

entire

mass

of

waters

.

From

this

circumstance

one

may

form

an

idea

of

the

calamity

which

she

encountered

,

so

vast

were

the

kinds

of

the

tears

wherewith

she

overflowed

.

She

had

salt

tear

-

drops

,

she

had

bitter

,

and

sweet

,

and

warm

,

and

cold

,

and

bituminous

,

and

ferruginous

,

and

sulphurous

,

and

even

poisonous

,

so

that

the

Nonacris

exuded

therefrom

which

killed

Alexander

;

and

the

river

of

the

Lyncestæ

flowed

from

the

same

source

,

which

produces

drunkenness

;

and

the

Salmacis

was

derived

from

the

same

source

,

which

renders

men

effeminate

.

The

rains

of

heaven

Achamoth

whimpered

forth

,

and

we

on

our

part

are

anxiously

employed

in

saving

up

in

our

cisterns

the

very

wails

and

tears

of

another

.

In

like

manner

,

from

the

“

consternation

”

and

“

alarm

”

(

of

which

we

have

also

heard

)

,

bodily

elements

were

derived

.

And

yet

amidst

so

many

circumstances

of

solitude

,

in

this

vast

prospect

of

destitution

,

she

occasionally

smiled

at

the

recollection

of

the

sight

of

Christ

,

and

from

this

smile

of

joy

light

flashed

forth

.

How

great

was

this

beneficence

of

Providence

,

which

induced

her

to

smile

,

and

all

that

we

might

not

linger

for

ever

in

the

dark

!

Nor

need

you

feel

astonished

how

from

her

joy

so

splendid

an

element

could

have

beamed

upon

the

world

,

when

from

her

sadness

even

so

necessary

a

provision

flowed

forth

for

man

.

O

illuminating

smile

!

O

irrigating

tear

!

And

yet

it

might

now

have

acted

as

some

alleviation

amidst

the

horror

of

her

situation

;

for

she

might

have

shaken

off

all

the

obscurity

thereof

as

often

as

she

had

a

mind

to

smile

,

even

not

to

be

obliged

to

turn

suppliant

to

those

who

had

deserted

her

.

Notes

1
Ille.
2
Recogitavit.
3
“Omnis anima hujus mundi” may, however, mean “every living soul.” So Bp. Kaye, On Tertullian, p. 487.
4
Cetera.
5
Achamoth’s.
6
Exitum.
7
Utique.
8
These two rivers, with their peculiar qualities, are mentioned by Pliny, H. N. ii. 103; [and the latter by Milton against Salmasius.]
9
Ovid. Metam. iv. 286.
10
Pipiavit.
11
Qui.
12
As light.
13
Instrumentum: water is meant.
14
Christ and the Holy Spirit. Oehler.