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Water also is one of the four elements, the most beautiful of God's
creations. It is both wet and cold, heavy, and with a tendency to
descend, and flows with great readiness. It is this the Holy
Scripture has in view when it says, And darkness was upon the face of
the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
For the deep is nothing else than a huge quantity of water whose limit
man cannot comprehend. In the beginning, indeed, the water lay all
over the surface of the earth. And first God created the firmament to
divide the water above the firmament from the water below the
firmament. For in the midst of the sea of waters the firmament was
established at the Master's decree. And out of it God bade the
firmament arise, and it arose. Now for what reason was it that God
placed water above the firmament? It was because of the intense
burning heat of the sun and ether. For immediately under the firmament
is spread out the ether, and the sun and moon and stars are in the
firmament, and so if water had not been put above it the firmament
would have been consumed by the heat.
Next, God bade the waters be gathered together into one mass. But
when the Scripture speaks of one mass it evidently does not mean that
they were gathered together into one place: for immediately it goes on
to say, And the gatherings of the waters He called seas: but the
words signify that the waters were separated off in a body from the
earth into distinct groups. Thus the waters were gathered together
into their special collections and the dry land was brought to view.
And hence arose the two seas that surround Egypt, for it lies between
two seas. These collections contain various seas and mountains, and
islands, and promontories, and harbours, and surround various bays
and beaches, and coastlands. For the word beach is used when the
nature of the tract is sandy, while coastland signifies that it is
rocky and deep close into shore, getting deep all on a sudden In like
manner arose also the sea that lies where the sun rises, the name of
which is the Indian Sea: also the northern sea called the Caspian.
The lakes also were formed in the same manner.
The ocean, then, is like a river encircling the whole earth, and I
think it is concerning it that the divine Scripture says, A river
went ant of Paradise. The water of the ocean is sweet and potable.
It is it that furnishes the seas with water which, because it stays a
long time in the seas and stands unmoved, becomes bitter: for the sun
and the waterspouts draw up always the finer parts. Thus it is that
clouds are formed and showers take place, because the filtration makes
the water sweet.
This is parted into four first divisions, that is to say, into four
rivers. The name of the first is Pheison, which is the Indian
Ganges; the name of the second is Geon, which is the Nile flowing
from Ethiopia down to Egypt: the name of the third is Tigris, and
the name of the fourth is Euphrates. There are also very many other
mighty rivers of which some empty themselves into the sea and others are
used up in the earth. Thus the whole earth is bored through and
mined, and has, so to speak, certain veins through which it sends up
in springs the water it has received from the sea. The water of the
spring thus depends for its character on the quality of the earth. For
the sea water is filtered and strained through the earth and thus
becomes sweet. But if the place from which the spring arises is bitter
or briny, so also is the water that is sent up. Moreover, it often
happens that water which has been closely pent up bursts through with
violence, and thus it becomes warm. And this is why they send forth
waters that are naturally warm.
By the divine decree hollow places are made in the earth, and so into
these the waters are gathered. And this is how mountains are formed.
God, then, bade the first water produce living breath, since it was
to be by water and the Holy Spirit that moved upon the waters in the
beginning, that man was to be renewed. For this is what the divine
Basilius said: Therefore it produced living creatures, small and
big; whales and dragons, fish that swim in the waters, and feathered
fowl. The birds form a link between water and earth and air: for they
have their origin in the water, they live on the earth and they fly in
the air. Water, then, is the most beautiful element and rich in
usefulness, and purifies from all filth, and not only from the filth
of the body but from that of the soul, if it should have received the
grace of the Spirit.
The AEgean Sea is received by the Hellespont, which ends at
Abydos and Sestus: next, the Propontis, which ends at Chalcedon
and Byzantium: here are the straits where the Pontus arises. Next,
the lake of Maeotis.
Again, from the beginning of Europe and Libya it is the Iberian
Sea, which extends from the pillars of Hercules to the Pyrenees
mountain. Then the Ligurian Sea as far as the borders of Etruria.
Next, the Sardinian Sea, which is above Sardinia and inclines
downwards to Libya. Then the Etrurian Sea, which begins at the
extreme limits of Liguria and ends at Sicily. Then the Libyan
Sea. Then the Cretan, and Sicilian, and Ionian, and Adriatic
Seas, the last of which is poured out of the Sicilian Sea, which is
called the Corinthian Gulf, or the Alcyonian Sea. The Saronic
Sea is surrounded by the Sunian and Scylaean Seas. Next is the
Myrtoan Sea and the Icarian Sea, in which are also the Cyclades.
Then the Carpathian, and Pamphylian, and Egyptian Seas: and,
thereafter, above the Icarian Sea, the AEgean Sea pours itself
out. There is also the coast of Europe from the mouth of the Tanais
River to the Pillars of Hercules, 609,709 stadia: and that
of Libya from the Tigris, as far as the mouth of the Canobus,
209,252 stadia: and lastly, that of Asia from the Canobus to
the Tanais, which, including the Gulf, is 4,111 stadia. And
so the full extent of the seaboard of the world that we inhabit with the
gulfs is 1,309,072 stadia.
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