St. Athanasius: The Paradise of the Holy Fathers

[Stone]

CHAPTER XXXVI

OF PIAMON THE VIRGIN

PIAMON was a virgin who lived all her days with her mother, and she spent her nights in constant vigil, and she ate food at the time of evening, and she laboured at the [weaving of] linen; and she was held to be worthy of the gift of knowing what was going to happen before it happened. Now it happened on a time that there was in Upper Egypt a certain village which was fighting with another village, for the villages quarrelled with each other concerning the division of the waters [of the Nile], and they fought so violently that frequently murders were committed, and men were beaten to death. And the village which was stronger than the village of this virgin rose up against it in fierce wrath, and there came against the inhabitants of her village a crowd of boastful and violent men carrying staves and spears to kill them; and the angel of the Lord appeared unto her, and revealed unto her the craft of those who were ready to fall upon them secretly. Then she sent and called the elders of the church of her village, and said unto them, “Go ye forth to meet the inhabitants of that village, for behold they are coming against you, lest peradventure ye and the village perish; and make entreaty unto them that perhaps they may be turned aside from their daring attack, and they may spare the village.”

Now the elders of the village were afraid, and they fell down at her feet and made supplication unto her, saying, “We do not dare to go forth to meet them, for we are well acquainted with their miserable nature and their arrogance; but if thou wishest to spare the village and thine own house, do thou thyself go forth to meet them.” And the virgin would not undertake to go forth, but she went up upon the roof, and stood up there in prayer the whole night long, without once kneeling down, and she made bowings and entreaties unto God, saying, “O Lord, Thou Judge of the earth, Who hast no pleasure in whatever is iniquitous, O my Lord, when the prayer which Thine handmaiden prayeth and her supplication reach Thee, let Thy power transfix [the enemy] in the spot wherein they are”; and straightway, on that very day, at a distance of three miles from the village they became fettered, and stood still, being unable to move [from] the spot. And it was revealed unto them also that they were hindered from moving by the supplication of that woman, and thereupon they sent to the inhabitants of the village, and made peace with them, and became reconciled unto them, and they also sent a message unto them, saying, “Give ye grateful thanks unto God, for it was the prayers of Piamon which prevented us [from coming to you].”