E01877: Gregory of Nyssa in his Life of *Makrina (ascetic S00899), composed in the early 380s, reports a dream vision he experienced, in which he was carrying relics of martyrs in his hands, a premonition of the death of his sister, Makrina. Written in Greek in Cappadocia (central Asia Minor).

Gregory of Nyssa, Life of *Makrina (CPG 3166, BHG 1012)

For the context of this passage, see E01660

15.12-22
ἐπειδὴ τοίνυν τὸ πολὺ τῆς ὁδοῦ διανύσας μιᾶς ἡμέρας ἀπεῖχον ὁδόν, ὄψις τις ἡμῖν ἐξ ἐνυπνίου φανεῖσα φοβερὰς ἐποίει τὰς ἐλπίδας τοῦ μέλλοντος. ἐδόκουν γὰρ λείψανα μαρτύρων διὰ χειρὸς φέρειν, εἶναι δὲ ἀπ᾽ αὐτῶν αὐγὴν οἵα ἐκ καθαροῦ γίνεται κατόπτρου, ὅταν πρὸς τὸν ἥλιον τεθῇ ἀντιπρόσωπον, ὥστε μοι τὰς ὄψεις πρὸς τὴν μαρμαρυγὴν τῆς λαμπηδόνος ἀμβλύνεσθαι. καὶ τῆς αὐτῆς μοι νυκτὸς εἰς τρὶς γενομένης τῆς τοιαύτης ὄψεως συμβαλεῖν μὲν οὐκ εἶχον καθαρῶς τοῦ ἐνυπνίου τὸ αἴνιγμα, λύπην δέ τινα τῇ ψυχῇ προεώρων καὶ ἐπετήρουν τῇ ἐκβάσει κρῖναι τὴν φαντασίαν.

‘Now, as I had covered most of the distance and was one day’s journey away, a certain vision appeared to us in a dream, filling us with dreadful forebodings of what was about to happen. I saw that I was carrying in my hands relics of martyrs, and that a radiance shone from them, as from a pure mirror facing the sun, so that my eyes were dazzled by the brilliance of the flash. I had that vision three times in that very night, and, although I could not resolve the riddle of the dream with clarity, I foresaw grief for my soul and was alert to interpret the dream by events.’

Text: Maraval 1971. Translation: Silvas 2008, modified.