Letter 197
Isidore of Pelusium→Unknown|isidore pelusium
From: Isidore of Pelusium, monk at Pelusium
To: Ophelius the Scholar
Date: ~410 AD
Context: Isidore argues against excessive bodily adornment — not just for women but as a general principle about where true beauty resides.
I do not admire the custom of lavishing adornment on the body. Adornment of the body is no adornment at all — it is concealment. The face that needs elaborate decoration to be presentable is already announcing what it is trying to hide.
True beauty is in the soul, and the soul's beauty shows through clearly without any assistance from cosmetics and jewelry. Indeed, too much external decoration tends to obscure rather than reveal the inner person — and the inner person is the one worth knowing.
This applies to men as much as women, though the excess more often appears in one than the other.
Οοπίτα πὲπιέμης πεμ ἑόγμηι ογπαίμηι. (οη[. ερὶδῖ. , ἰδ. , δὲ διρ. ορίεί. .) ΜΙηϊῆοθ αδαυΐϊόδαι ἰδαυάο νοϑίδγεπιὶ ϑραγίδηοσυπιὶ ὦ Λίαν ἄγαμαι τὴν παλαιὰν Λαχεδαίμονα,, χοσμεῖ- ὉΡΌθπι Ποποδιΐβ πηδίγοηΐβ ογηαίυπιὶ ἰηἰοΓἀϊοΘη (ΘΠ, υθ δοογιἷβ ἰπρυτίδαυθ [ΘΠ πιδρἷ δΟΠΥΘηἶγΓΘ, υς ἰδαυδθοῦ ἃς ται δοίθδοθηιθυ ᾿υχυγίδ ὁΓ- τυριὶα ἰοπάδηϊ, Ἔχ δι π|ῶθαιὶ. θυ Θηΐπ) ΟΓΠΘΐ ρυδΐολφυο ὡρρᾶγοϑὶ, ογηϑίι αἰ πηῖ πιογθυπὶ οπἰθηιδι δυυῆ). Ουοά δβᾶοτ ἀδημπηιίδη ϑεγίριυγα δυδάεϊ ποῦ οἱ πρλγχαῦὶ εἶθ, νοὶ ργοιίοβᾶ νϑβίθ, Ὀοη οροτῖθυ ῥ᾽ εἰδίοπιν οοἰδηῖθ ὀχογηαγίὶ ", [ἃ δὶ ρῈῦ ἱπδρίεἰδίυν, ἀΐοο, πηοη , Ἰαρί ὀυπι [υἱρότγοιη, οἱ ἰη- δυγο, ουπὶ ἀείογην! πιυϊοτὶ ἰυπὸ ρυ]ΟἸΓ ΟὔΘ. [{|π| οπΐ πὶ γοργαμοπάυηι, μᾶς γοΓῸ δυθγίυηϊ. Ἐορτομοηάυπι αυΐϊάαπι, ἰυτγρίοτοπ! οδίθπάθησο ; δϑδυοσυηϊ γογῸ ἃ ρυϊοιγῖδ, οπὶ ἀδ Ν}} Ἰοφυὶ ποϊϊοηι, ὧς οτηδῖα πἰιηΐο ἰδδη γογὺϑ ἰδοίυηϊ. ΠΟΙ. -- ΕΠΑΡΗ͂ΙΟ ἘΡΙΒΟΟΡΟ. σθαι ἀπαγορεύσασαν ταῖς σώφροσι τῶν γυναιχῶν" ἑταίραις γὰρ πρέπειν τοῦτ᾽ ἐνόμισε, ταῖς καὶ πάγας καὶ δίχτυα ἐπὶ θήρᾳ τῶν ἀχολάστων νέων ἐπινοού- σαις. Ἧ γὰρ χοσμία χαὶ σώφρων εἶναι δοχοῦσα, εἰ τοῦτο δράσειε, τὴν οἰχείαν ἐχπομπεύει νόσον. “Δ περ ἀποχηρύττουσα ἡ θεία Γραφὴ παραινεῖ, μὴ χρυσῷ χαὶ μαργαρίταις, ἣ ἐσθῆτι πολυτελεῖ, ἀλλ᾽ ἔργοις ἀγαθοῖς χοσμεῖσθαι τὰς τῆς θεοσεδείας ἐφιεμένας. Εἰ δὲ χρὴ χαὶ αὐτὸ τὸ πρᾶγμα χαθ᾽ ἑαυτὸ σχοπκῆσαι, φημὶ (|), ὅτι ὅρμοι, χαὶ αὐγαὶ λίθων, χαὶ περι- δέῤῥαια χαὶ ταῖς δυσειδέσι, χαὶ ταῖς ἄγαν ὡραίαις ἀντιπράττουσι" τὰς μὲν γὰρ ἐλέγχοναι, τῶν δὲ ἀπ- ἀγουσι" τὰς μὲν ἐλέγχουσι, χαχίονας ἐπιδειχνυμένας " τῶν δὲ ἀπάγουσιν. ᾿Αφέμενοι γὰρ τοῦ περὶ αὑτῶν Ὁ φράσαι, περὶ τῶν χοσμίων διαλέγονται.
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From: Isidore of Pelusium, monk at Pelusium
To: Ophelius the Scholar
Date: ~410 AD
Context: Isidore argues against excessive bodily adornment — not just for women but as a general principle about where true beauty resides.
I do not admire the custom of lavishing adornment on the body. Adornment of the body is no adornment at all — it is concealment. The face that needs elaborate decoration to be presentable is already announcing what it is trying to hide.
True beauty is in the soul, and the soul's beauty shows through clearly without any assistance from cosmetics and jewelry. Indeed, too much external decoration tends to obscure rather than reveal the inner person — and the inner person is the one worth knowing.
This applies to men as much as women, though the excess more often appears in one than the other.
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.