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ELIAS THE MONK, FRIEND OF PSELLOS George T. Dennis
Some years ago Nikos Oikonomides showed me an early fifteenth centu-ry Greek text he was preparing for publication, a scurrilous bit of writ-ing, very earthy and very amuswrit-ing, directed against an individual whose name was downgraded from Katablattas to Skatablattas. Professor Oikonomides believed that, if we are to understand the Byzantine people, we should read more than their religious, literary, or legal writings. We should find out what made them angry and, perhaps more important, what made them laugh. And so, the slanderous little pamphlet was pub-lished, together with a French translation and commentary.1In the course of our conversation I referred to some letters of Michael Psellos which featured a wandering monk named Elias and which, albeit under a more pedantic veneer, were also very earthy and amusing. He strongly encour-aged me to translate and publish them. And that is exactly what I present in these pages, although I regret that it is in a memorial volume rather than a living Festschrift.
Of the letters of Psellos presented below, nine mention the monk Elias by name; the tenth portrays an unnamed friend who so resembles the wandering monk that it seems reasonable to include it. Since older edi-tions of the Letters are still available and a new, critical edition is in the first stages of preparation, I have not, with the exception of Letter 10, reprinted the Greek text here.2Limitations of space also had to be con-sidered. Still, I have read through the manuscripts again and have made a few, minor changes, to be noted suo loco. Translating these letters, written in the eleventh century of our era but in an idiom dating to fifteen hundred years before that, can be daunting. I think I have more or less correctly rendered his often convoluted thought and expression into pre-sentable English, but I am still uncertain about several passages.3I have appended some notes to aid the reader in understanding the letters, but I have left a more extended commentary to a future publication of his entire correspondence. In the meantime, though, I think it important, as
1 Canivet and Oikonomidès (1982-3).
2 About a projected new edition, see Papaioannou (1998).
3 I am indebted to Professors E. Papaioannou and P. Magdalino for their helpful sugges-tions concerning the translation.
44 GEORGE T.DENNIS
did Professor Oikonomides, that these few letters be made available to scholars and to everyone interested in the civilization we refer to as Byzantine.
The central figure in these letters is a monk, Elias, probably his monastic name. All that we know about him is contained in these letters.
His surname seems to have been Kroustalas (Krystalas), which is rare in the extant sources. It is found, coincidentally, as the family name of another monk, John Kroustalas, a popular public reader for whom Psellos has the highest praise, but there is no indication that the two were relat-e d .4In reading any work of Psellos, of course, we must always be aware of his love of hyperbole and his subordination of fact to literary eff e c t . This is obviously the case with his presentation of Elias. Nonetheless, this monk is not a fictitious character.5 He is clearly a real person for whom Psellos has a great deal of affection and whose company he gen-uinely enjoys. The letters must be read with that in mind; we must, as it were, stand next to the addresees as they received these letters, presum-a b l y, from the hpresum-ands of Elipresum-as himself.
Psellos does not name the monastery, if any, in which Elias was ton-sured and to which community he belonged. He was, simply put, a wan-dering monk with no fixed abode, of which there were not a few in Byzantium. He wandered, so these letters tell us, to Syria, through A s i a Minor and down into Greece and the Peloponnesos, as well as the streets of Constantinople. The purpose of his journeys, so it seems, was to raise money to support himself, his mother, and a large number of relatives. To assist him Psellos wrote letters of introduction commending him to important personages, particularly several thematic judges. In exchange for a financial contribution, they will, so Psellos assures them, be great-ly entertained by this gifted monk, a talented musician, comedian, and mimic with a very broad and diversified repertoire.
Psellos cannot resist comparing this Elias with his biblical namesake.6 The fiery chariot conveyed the prophet to heaven, whereas this Elias can-not get off the ground, so strong are his earthly ties. This Elias does can-not appear to be running away from some Jezabel and he dines more bounti-fully than the widow with her oil and barley meal. In fact, he does not seem to be imitating the prophet at all. Moreover, his understanding and practice of the monastic virtues, especially chastity, greatly amuse Psellos and, presumably, those to whom he addressed these letters. It has been pointed out that the prime characteristic of Elias is earthiness and
4 Gautier (1980-82). Psellos also wrote to a protonotary named Elias, but there is no con-nection with our Elias: Karpozilos (1980).
5 Ljubarskij (1978) 74-79.
6 1 Kings: 17 - 2 Kings: 2.
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ELIAS THE MONK
he has been called a Rabelaisian monk.7How much of what Psellos wrote about Elias is based on fact and how much on talk is not clear, but it does make for an interesting and, despite some exaggeration, credible story.
Elias, however, was much more than a convivial extrovert and con-noisseur of bordellos. Psellos valued his scribal skills; he could write rapidly and beautifully as well as correctly. One would expect him, like all known friends of Psellos, to have been well educated. He could hard-ly have copied the letters, much less understood them, with their classi-cal allusions and literary affectations, had he not received some educa-tion. Still, in Letter 9, Psellos recalls that he employed circumlocutions in dictating the letter so that Elias would not understand what he was saying.
The dating of these letters can only be approximate. If Letter 1 was written about 1067 or soon thereafter, we can assert that the monk was well into his wandering career at that time, but that is about all we can assert. More thorough research on all the letters and their addressees is needed before we can propose any dates.
Our knowledge of the men to whom these letters were addressed is also limited.
Letter 1 is addressed to the judge of Thrakesion. In the eleventh cen-tury the chief administrative officer of a theme (province) was the judge, but the extent of his authority is not clear; apparently it was concerned with civilian matters, not military.8The judges to whom Psellos wrote were, like himself, well educated members of the civil aristocracy.
Thrakesion was a very prosperous theme in Western Asia Minor, named after a body of troops from Thrace settled there.9 Its capital and, pre-s u m a b l y, repre-sidence of the judge may have been Chonai, perhappre-s Ephepre-supre-s.
Letter 1 gives Sergios as the name of the judge. Letter 5, also addressed to the judge of Thrakesion, does not give a name. Other letters sent to that official, although no name is given, are K-D 61, 66, 150, 151, 248, and one ed. by Karpozilos (see n. 4). In two letters (Sathas 47, 51) the name of the judge is recorded as Xeros.
The Lower or Southern Themes (tå Katvtikã) included the themes of the Peloponnesos and Hellas, as is clear from other letters (Sathas 32, K-D 154).1 0Other letters sent to that official are Sathas 26, 32, 33, 34, 134, 135, 141, 147, K-D 55, 69, 70, 74, 86, 93, 154. Letter 4 was addressed to Nikephoros, who held the high dignity of sebastophoros, but who cannot be identified any more closely.
7 Ljubarskij (1978) 79.
8 ODB 1078.
9 De Thematibus 124-6; ODB 2080.
10 Eustathii Thess., 316.10; LBG (2001), s.v.
46 GEORGE T.DENNIS
The judge of Opsikion was the recipient of Letters 7 and 8. Opsikion, whose name is derived from Latin o b s e q u i u m, was one of the four orig-inal themes set up in Asia Minor, but subsequently limited to the north-western area with its capital at Nicaea.11Two letters (Sathas 29, 190) give the name of the judge as Zoma (Zvmç, Zvm∞). Other letters sent to the judge of Opsikion are: Sathas 29, 43, 77, 190, K-D 81, 99, 100, 107, 108, 116-120, 140, 142-144, 155, 187, 200, 243, 258.
Two versions of Letter 9 are preserved in the Barberini manuscript (cod. Vat. Barb. gr. 240). The first is addressed to a frequent correspon-dent of Psellos, the Caesar John Doukas, brother of the emperor Constantine X Doukas (1059-67).1 2The second was dictated by Psellos and written down by Elias who, so it seems, personally handed it to the sebastos Constantine, the nephew of the patriarch (Michael Keroularios) and a close friend and correspondent of Psellos.1 3 Constantine held a number of influential offices as well as prestigious titles: droungarios, megas droungarios, proedros, protoproedros, magistros, sakellarios, epi ton kriseon, sebastos, genikos. Letters addressed to him are: Sathas 1, 45, 46, 83-86, 117, 157, 174, 184, 186, K-D 31, 211, 214.
The anonymous addressee of Letter 10 was obviously a close friend of Psellos who entertains him with an account of the conversation, or monologue, provided by a mutual friend, perhaps the monk Elias. Since the vocabulary may be of some interest, the Greek text is presented in an A p p e n d i x .
EDITIONS.
Kurtz and Drexl (1941) = K-D: Letters 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10.
Sathas (1876) = Sathas: Letters 2, 3.
Westerink (1951) 43-5 = Westerink: Letter 1.
Gautier (1986) = Gautier: Letter 1.
11 De Thematibus 127-30; ODB, s.v.
12 See Polemis (1968) 34-41.
13 See Ljubarskij (1978) 62-69.
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ELIAS THE MONK
TRANSLATION
1 . To Lord Sergios, Judge of T h r a k e s i o n .
This new Elias, my most illustrious and beloved brother, is not being sent on a journey up to heaven. For he is not so reckless as to try the fiery chariots, but he does travel around every place under heaven in hopes of finding repose for his soul.1He has divided the whole inhab-ited world into two parts. By his reckoning, half of it consists of mountains, caves, and deserts. The rest contains groves, meadows, pleasant gardens, and open spaces for riding horses. He first tried out the first half. But, since he did not feel comfortable there, he moved to the other half. Still, he did not get there without a struggle. Even here he had to pass over the wooded glens and first descend into deep chasms but, with his eyes fixed upon his goal, he paid no heed to whatever stood in his way. He has left behind the villages cowering in fear after experiencing the weapons of the enemy or, rather, which barbarian hands had plundered.2He makes his way to Thrakesion, not yet under siege. It is not so much your Eden that he loves as you who cultivate and protect it. Neither is it the beauty and gracefulness of Thrakesion that he prizes, for the man is not a lover of graceful objects but of those made of gold.
If the summer were somehow suddenly to sprout gold, then show the crop to the man so he might reap his beloved harvest. But if this cannot be done, then open up your golden soul to him. It is indeed pure gold and has never sounded a false note as if mixed with baser metal; it has been rubbed alongside many gold testing stones and has always been proven pure, very pure.3
This much I enjoin upon you — a teacher has the right to give orders to his student — do not accord him special reverential treat-ment because of his habit. If, however, he maintains his self respect, you in turn would not be wrong in accommodating yourself to his grave demeanor. But if he should change his behavior, then you should change your tune. Do not be afraid of this Elias. He cannot call down fire from heaven or, after pouring on water, can he miraculous-ly ignite a fire, even though he may himself be cheerfulmiraculous-ly consumed by another sort of fire.4
1 Elias is said to have been taken up to heaven in a fiery chariot: 2 Kings 2: 11. ‘Repose’
recalls Matthew 1: 29 and 12: 43.
2 This probably refers to Turkish raids in eastern Asia Minor in 1067: Psell.Chron. 7.67;
7.Eud.6-7.
3 See Herodotus 7.10.1.
4 See 1 Kings 18: 31-38; 2 Kings 1: 10.
48 GEORGE T.DENNIS
I swear by your holy soul that he is very clever and can do any-thing, more noble deeds as well as worse ones. He is not totally sunny nor is he totally cloudy. But he gives the impression of being both. He is a man with two faces. He can be Dorian and Phrygian at the same time, diatonic and enharmonic.5He can be Greek and barbarian, a real gentleman and, at the same time, quite indecorous. Right now he chants the songs of David, but on the flip side he may suddenly take up the flute of Ti m o t h y.6He speaks with every voice, in keeping with the riddle of the Sphinx, and he changes into every shape as did Proteus the Pharian.7 He is a creature who assumes every kind of form, more complicated than Ty p h o n .8He is an enchanting melody, adapting himself to the times and the events. At one moment he is a lion who has relaxed his shaggy frown; at another he dances off with the apes. At one time he will cast his eyes down like Heraclitus and bewail human vanity; at another he will pretend to laugh like D e m o c r i t u s .9And, if you ask him, he will alter the appearance of his garments and transform himself into any shape at all.
This great good fortune, then, is yours. The man for whom you would have gone about hunting and searching has invited himself and you now have him with you. For my sake get to know this multifac-eted man.Human nature is not unrelenting and untiring in facing every trial, but it requires some cheer and playfulness. Indeed, when you feel the need to come down to this level, you ought not to cast about for the players of the lyre or the flute, but before all else enjoy this multiform man. If you pay a little something as a harbor fee, you will find anchorage for the ship of your soul and, after a nice rest, you may once again put out to sea.
[Ed. Westerink (1951) 8; Gautier (1986) 27; from cod. Laur. San Marc o 303, f. 209v- 2 1 0 ] .
5 Dorian and Phrygian were types of flute music. From one to the other was a proverbial expression for change of tone.
6 The songs of David are the Psalms, which monks were obliged to recite daily. Timothy, a favorite of Alexander the Great, was a famous flutist and composer of secular songs.
7 The Sphinx asked travelers: What creature first uses four feet, then two feet, then three feet? Oedipus gave the correct answer: man. The legendary Proteus was noted for his ability to change shape.
8 Typhon was the hundred-headed giant struck by a thunder bolt from Zeus: Iliad 2.782.
9 Heraclitus despised the body and human activity. Democritus was noted for laughing at human frivolity.
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ELIAS THE MONK
2 . To the Judge of the Lower T h e m e s .
This monk Elias had no desire to possess any earthly thing or to be concerned about such, just as his namesake also owned nothing.1T h i s Elias wanted to liberate himself from the practical virtues, to pass through the whole rational universe and to journey through the air to God and to find anchorage in the ineffable harbors. This is what our Elias wanted and he struggled very hard for it. But there was the body he was tied to. There was his heavy burden. There was his earthly tab-ernacle.There was the weight he was dragging. No matter how many times he started up, they held him down. When he flew up they forced him down again. When he jumped up they dragged him back down.
Twice he attempted it, many times in fact, but the same constraints pulled him down. His ascent to heaven is not easy. But neither is he able to maintain himself on earth. For he does not have only himself to support — that would be a simple enough problem for him — but he has his mother who relies on him and a whole tribe of relatives.
This is what motivates him to undertake long journeys. Now he heads up north. Now he heads down south. He is split between the ris-ing of the sun and its settris-ing. His purpose is not to learn how far T h u l e is from the British Isles or how the fabled Ocean flows around the earth, or which Ethiopians dwell to the east and which ones are off to the west.2But his goal is to find safe anchorage in your harbor and there perhaps to obtain some provisions. His life is that of a rover. Let me also add a philosophical note. Plato is reported to have taken the measure of Charybdis three times and to have sailed that many times through the narrow strait of Sicily.3But Plato ended up encountering the Dionysiuses. He not only purchased nothing with his philosophy, but barely escaped being sold himself and was ransomed by A n n i k e r i s of A e g i n a .4May our wanderer not meet up with that sort of hospitali-ty but with such as Odysseus received among the Phaeacians.5May he return bearing in his hands guarantees from your hand so his mother may be brought back to life and the throng of his relatives may join in the festive dance.
[Ed. Sathas 153; from cod. Paris. gr. 1182, f. 223v(P); a shorter and less reliable version is found in cod. Laur. gr. 57-40, f. 44v-45 (L); but the title of the addressee is found in L, not in P].
1 Cf. 2 Kings 1: 5 et alibi.
2 See Strabo, Geographica 1.4.2.6.
3 Philostratus, Vita Apollonii 1.35.5-7.
4 Cf. Diogenes Laertius, Vitae philosophorum 2.86 and 3.20.
5 Homer, Odyssey 5.35 ff.
50 GEORGE T.DENNIS
3 . < U n t i t l e d . >
Our Elias does not come down from the sky or go up to the sky.1H e does not come to you from Mount Carmel, but from a stage prop, rough and ready, wearing the tunic of a rower or a slave. Only he would know whether he might be running away from some Jezabel.2 At any rate, up to now he has given the impression of fleeing from some horrible Erinys and heading for the furthest reaches of the e a r t h .3
He took my advice about which people he should visit first and what guides he should follow to the ends of the earth. And so he comes to you. At the same time, he will see Coele-Syria and indeed your holy self governing it.4You know what you will do. As long as you have the man with you, hold on to him, as Aeolus did to the man from Ithaca.5Then, after sewing up the western winds in a bag and presenting them to him, send him off to Libya or A s i a .
Because you are busy with very serious tasks, you need some relaxation such as he provides. Let me describe the man to you in a more philosophical vein. There are two extremes of virtue and of wickedness. The first is characterized by the monastic life, I mean the monastic life which is the solitary life at its best. At the other extreme
Because you are busy with very serious tasks, you need some relaxation such as he provides. Let me describe the man to you in a more philosophical vein. There are two extremes of virtue and of wickedness. The first is characterized by the monastic life, I mean the monastic life which is the solitary life at its best. At the other extreme