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   THE TEMPTATION
   OF
   ST. ANTONY

   OR,

   _A REVELATION OF THE SOUL_

   BY
   GUSTAVE FLAUBERT

   _VOLUME VII._


   SIMON P. MAGEE
   PUBLISHER
   CHICAGO, ILL.




   COPYRIGHT, 1904, BY
   M. WALTER DUNNE

   _Entered at Stationers' Hall, London_




   CONTENTS

   THE TEMPTATION OF ST. ANTONY


   CHAPTER I.                                                       PAGE

   A HOLY SAINT                                                        1

   CHAPTER II.

   THE TEMPTATION OF LOVE AND POWER                                   16

   CHAPTER III.

   THE DISCIPLE, HILARION                                             40

   CHAPTER IV.

   THE FIERY TRIAL                                                    48

   CHAPTER V.

   ALL GODS, ALL RELIGIONS                                            99

   CHAPTER VI.

   THE MYSTERY OF SPACE                                              143

   CHAPTER VII.

   THE CHIMERA AND THE SPHINX                                        151




   ILLUSTRATIONS


   TEMPTATION OF SAINT ANTONY

                                                             FACING PAGE

   "DO NOT RESIST, I AM OMNIPOTENT!" (See page 157)        _Frontispiece_

   HE LETS GO THE TORCH IN ORDER TO EMBRACE THE HEAP                  26




The Temptation _of_ Saint Antony


[Illustration]




CHAPTER I.

A HOLY SAINT.


It is in the Thebaid, on the heights of a mountain, where a platform,
shaped like a crescent, is surrounded by huge stones.

The Hermit's cell occupies the background. It is built of mud and reeds,
flat-roofed and doorless. Inside are seen a pitcher and a loaf of black
bread; in the centre, on a wooden support, a large book; on the ground,
here and there, bits of rush-work, a mat or two, a basket and a knife.

Some ten paces or so from the cell a tall cross is planted in the
ground; and, at the other end of the platform, a gnarled old palm-tree
leans over the abyss, for the side of the mountain is scarped; and at
the bottom of the cliff the Nile swells, as it were, into a lake.

To right and left, the view is bounded by the enclosing rocks; but, on
the side of the desert, immense undulations of a yellowish ash-colour
rise, one above and one beyond the other, like the lines of a sea-coast;
while, far off, beyond the sands, the mountains of the Libyan range form
a wall of chalk-like whiteness faintly shaded with violet haze. In
front, the sun is going down. Towards the north, the sky has a
pearl-grey tint; while, at the zenith, purple clouds, like the tufts of
a gigantic mane, stretch over the blue vault. These purple streaks grow
browner; the patches of blue assume the paleness of mother-of-pearl. The
bushes, the pebbles, the earth, now wear the hard colour of bronze, and
through space floats a golden dust so fine that it is scarcely
distinguishable from the vibrations of light.

Saint Antony, who has a long beard, unshorn locks, and a tunic of
goatskin, is seated, cross-legged, engaged in making mats. No sooner has
the sun disappeared than he heaves a deep sigh, and gazing towards the
horizon:

"Another day! Another day gone! I was not so miserable in former times
as I am now! Before the night was over, I used to begin my prayers; then
I would go down to the river to fetch water, and would reascend the
rough mountain pathway, singing a hymn, with the water-bottle on my
shoulder. After that, I used to amuse myself by arranging everything in
my cell. I used to take up my tools, and examine the mats, to see
whether they were evenly cut, and the baskets, to see whether they were
light; for it seemed to me then that even my most trifling acts were
duties which I performed with ease. At regulated hours I left off my
work and prayed, with my two arms extended. I felt as if a fountain of
mercy were flowing from Heaven above into my heart. But now it is dried
up. Why is this?..."

He proceeds slowly into the rocky enclosure.

"When I left home, everyone found fault with me. My mother sank into a
dying state; my sister, from a distance, made signs to me to come back;
and the other one wept, Ammonaria, that child whom I used to meet every
evening, beside the cistern, as she was leading away her cattle. She ran
after me. The rings on her feet glittered in the dust, and her tunic,
open at the hips, fluttered in the wind. The old ascetic who hurried me
from the spot addressed her, as we fled, in loud and menacing tones.
Then our two camels kept galloping continuously, till at length every
familiar object had vanished from my sight.

"At first, I selected for my abode the tomb of one of the Pharaohs. But
some enchantment surrounds those subterranean palaces, amid whose gloom
the air is stifled with the decayed odour of aromatics. From the depths
of the sarcophagi I heard a mournful voice arise, that called me by
name--or rather, as it seemed to me, all the fearful pictures on the
walls started into hideous life. Then I fled to the borders of the Red
Sea into a citadel in ruins. There I had for companions the scorpions
that crawled amongst the stones, and, overhead, the eagles who were
continually whirling across the azure sky. At night, I was torn by
talons, bitten by beaks, or brushed with light wings; and horrible
demons, yelling in my ears, hurled me to the earth. At last, the drivers
of a caravan, which was journeying towards Alexandria, rescued me, and
carried me along with them.

"After this, I became a pupil of the venerable Didymus. Though he was
blind, no one equalled him in knowledge of the Scriptures. When our
lesson was ended, he used to take my arm, and, with my aid, ascend the
Panium, from whose summit could be seen the Pharos and the open sea.
Then we would return home, passing along the quays, where we brushed
against men of every nation, including the Cimmerians, clad in bearskin,
and the Gymnosophists of the Ganges, who smear their bodies with
cow-dung. There were continual conflicts in the streets, some of which
were caused by the Jews' refusal to pay taxes, and others by the
attempts of the seditious to drive out the Romans. Besides, the city is
filled with heretics, the followers of Manes, of Valentinus, of
Basilides, and of Arius, all of them eagerly striving to discuss with
you points of doctrine and to convert you to their views.

"Their discourses sometimes come back to my memory; and, though I try
not to dwell upon them, they haunt my thoughts.

"I next took refuge in Colzin, and, when I had undergone a severe
penance, I no longer feared the wrath of God. Many persons gathered
around me, offering to become anchorites. I imposed on them a rule of
life in antagonism to the vagaries of Gnosticism and the sophistries of
the philosophers. Communications now reached me from every quarter, and
people came a great distance to see me.

"Meanwhile, the populace continued to torture the confessors; and I was
led back to Alexandria by an ardent thirst for martyrdom. I found on my
arrival that the persecution had ceased three days before. Just as I was
returning, my path was blocked by a great crowd in front of the Temple
of Serapis. I was told that the Governor was about to make one final
example. In the centre of the portico, in the broad light of day, a
naked woman was fastened to a pillar, while two soldiers were scourging
her. At each stroke her entire frame writhed. Suddenly, she cast a wild
look around, her trembling lips parted; and, above the heads of the
multitude, her figure wrapped, as it were, in her flowing hair,
methought I recognised Ammonaria.... Yet this one was taller--and
beautiful, exceedingly!"

He draws his hand across his brow.

"No! no! I must not think upon it!

"On another occasion, Athanasius asked me to assist him against the
Arians. At that time, they had confined themselves to attacking him with
invectives and ridicule. Since then, however, he has been calumniated,
deprived of his see, and banished. Where is he now? I know not! People
concern themselves so little about bringing me any news! All my
disciples have abandoned me, Hilarion like the rest.

"He was, perhaps, fifteen years of age when he came to me, and his mind
was so much filled with curiosity that every moment he was asking me
questions. Then he would listen with a pensive air; and, without a
murmur, he would run to fetch whatever I wanted--more nimble than a kid,
and gay enough, moreover, to make even a patriarch laugh. He was a son
to me!"

The sky is red; the earth completely dark. Agitated by the wind, clouds
of sand rise, like winding-sheets, and then fall again. All at once, in
a clear space in the heavens, a flock of birds flits by, forming a kind
of triangular battalion, resembling a piece of metal with its edges
alone vibrating.

Antony glances at them.

"Ah! how I should like to follow them! How often, too, have I not
wistfully gazed at the long boats with their sails resembling wings,
especially when they bore away those who had been my guests! What happy
times I used to have with them! What outpourings! None of them
interested me more than Ammon. He described to me his journey to Rome,
the Catacombs, the Coliseum, the piety of illustrious women, and a
thousand other things. And yet I was unwilling to go away with him! How
came I to be so obstinate in clinging to this solitary life? It might
have been better for me had I stayed with the monks of Nitria when they
besought me to do so. They occupy separate cells, and yet communicate
with one another. On Sunday the trumpet calls them to the church, where
you may see three whips hung up, which are reserved for the punishment
of thieves and intruders, for they maintain very severe discipline.

"Nevertheless, they do not stand in need of gifts, for the faithful
bring them eggs, fruit, and even instruments for removing thorns from
their feet. There are vineyards around Pisperi, and those of Pabenum
have a raft, in which they go forth to seek provisions.

"But I should have served my brethren more effectually by being a simple
priest. I might succour the poor, administer the sacraments, and guard
the purity of domestic life. Besides, all the laity are not lost, and
there was nothing to prevent me from being, for example, a grammarian or
a philosopher. I should have had in my room a sphere made of reeds,
tablets always in my hand, young people around me, and a crown of laurel
suspended as an emblem over my door.

"But there is too much pride in such triumphs! Better be a soldier. I
was strong and courageous enough to manage engines of war, to traverse
gloomy forests, or, with helmet on head, to enter smoking cities. More
than this, there would be nothing to hinder me from purchasing with my
earnings the office of toll-keeper of some bridge, and travellers would
relate to me their histories, pointing out to me heaps of curious
objects which they had stowed away in their baggage.

"On festival days the merchants of Alexandria sail along the Canopic
branch of the Nile and drink wine from cups of lotus, to the sound of
tambourines, which make all the taverns near the river shake. Beyond,
trees, cut cone-fashion, protect the peaceful farmsteads against the
south wind. The roof of each house rests on slender columns running
close to one another, like the framework of a lattice, and, through
these spaces, the owner, stretched on a long seat, can gaze out upon his
grounds and watch his servants thrashing corn or gathering in the
vintage, and the cattle trampling on the straw. His children play along
the grass; his wife bends forward to kiss him."

Through the deepening shadows of the night pointed snouts reveal
themselves here and there with ears erect and glittering eyes.