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第33章

confessio amantis-第33章

小说: confessio amantis 字数: 每页4000字

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Who that the vices wolde eschuie;
He mot be resoun thanne suie
The vertus; for be thilke weie
He mai the vices don aweie;
For thei togedre mai noght duelle:
For as the water of a welle   3170
Of fyr abateth the malice;
Riht so vertu fordoth the vice。
Ayein Envie is Charite;
Which is the Moder of Pite;
That makth a mannes herte tendre;
That it mai no malice engendre
In him that is enclin therto。
For his corage is tempred so;
That thogh he mihte himself relieve;
Yit wolde he noght an other grieve;    3180
Bot rather forto do plesance
He berth himselven the grevance;
So fain he wolde an other ese。
Wherof; mi Sone; for thin ese
Now herkne a tale which I rede;
And understond it wel; I rede。
Among the bokes of latin
I finde write of Constantin
The worthi Emperour of Rome;
Suche infortunes to him come;    3190
Whan he was in his lusti age;
The lepre cawhte in his visage
And so forth overal aboute;
That he ne mihte ryden oute:
So lefte he bothe Schield and spere;
As he that mihte him noght bestere;
And hield him in his chambre clos。
Thurgh al the world the fame aros;
The grete clerkes ben asent
And come at his comandement   3200
To trete upon this lordes hele。
So longe thei togedre dele;
That thei upon this medicine
Apointen hem; and determine
That in the maner as it stod
Thei wolde him bathe in childes blod
Withinne sevene wynter age:
For; as thei sein; that scholde assuage
The lepre and al the violence;
Which that thei knewe of Accidence     3210
And noght be weie of kinde is falle。
And therto thei acorden alle
As for final conclusioun;
And tolden here opinioun
To themperour: and he anon
His conseil tok; and therupon
With lettres and with seales oute
Thei sende in every lond aboute
The yonge children forto seche;
Whos blod; thei seiden; schal be leche    3220
For themperoures maladie。
Ther was ynowh to wepe and crie
Among the Modres; whan thei herde
Hou wofully this cause ferde;
Bot natheles thei moten bowe;
And thus wommen ther come ynowhe
With children soukende on the Tete。
Tho was ther manye teres lete;
Bot were hem lieve or were hem lothe;
The wommen and the children bothe   3230
Into the Paleis forth be broght
With many a sory hertes thoght
Of hem whiche of here bodi bore
The children hadde; and so forlore
Withinne a while scholden se。
The Modres wepe in here degre;
And manye of hem aswoune falle;
The yonge babes criden alle:
This noyse aros; the lord it herde;
And loked out; and how it ferde     3240
He sih; and as who seith abreide
Out of his slep; and thus he seide:
〃O thou divine pourveance;
Which every man in the balance
Of kinde hast formed to be liche;
The povere is bore as is the riche
And deieth in the same wise;
Upon the fol; upon the wise
Siknesse and hele entrecomune;
Mai non eschuie that fortune         3250
Which kinde hath in hire lawe set;
Hire strengthe and beaute ben beset
To every man aliche fre;
That sche preferreth no degre
As in the disposicioun
Of bodili complexioun:
And ek of Soule resonable
The povere child is bore als able
To vertu as the kinges Sone;
For every man his oghne wone     3260
After the lust of his assay
The vice or vertu chese may。
Thus stonden alle men franchised;
Bot in astat thei ben divised;
To some worschipe and richesse;
To some poverte and distresse;
On lordeth and an other serveth;
Bot yit as every man deserveth
The world yifth noght his yiftes hiere。
Bot certes he hath gret matiere     3270
To ben of good condicioun;
Which hath in his subjeccioun
The men that ben of his semblance。〃
And ek he tok a remembrance
How he that made lawe of kinde
Wolde every man to lawe binde;
And bad a man; such as he wolde
Toward himself; riht such he scholde
Toward an other don also。
And thus this worthi lord as tho    3280
Sette in balance his oghne astat
And with himself stod in debat;
And thoghte hou that it was noght good
To se so mochel mannes blod
Be spilt for cause of him alone。
He sih also the grete mone;
Of that the Modres were unglade;
And of the wo the children made;
Wherof that al his herte tendreth;
And such pite withinne engendreth;     3290
That him was levere forto chese
His oghne bodi forto lese;
Than se so gret a moerdre wroght
Upon the blod which gulteth noght。
Thus for the pite which he tok
Alle othre leches he forsok;
And put him out of aventure
Al only into goddes cure;
And seith; 〃Who that woll maister be;
He mot be servant to pite。〃   3300
So ferforth he was overcome
With charite; that he hath nome
His conseil and hise officers;
And bad unto hise tresorers
That thei his tresour al aboute
Departe among the povere route
Of wommen and of children bothe;
Wherof thei mihte hem fede and clothe
And saufli tornen hom ayein
Withoute lost of eny grein。   3310
Thurgh charite thus he despendeth
His good; wherof that he amendeth
The povere poeple; and contrevaileth
The harm; that he hem so travaileth:
And thus the woful nyhtes sorwe
To joie is torned on the morwe;
Al was thonkinge; al was blessinge;
Which erst was wepinge and cursinge;
Thes wommen gon hom glade ynowh;
Echon for joie on other lowh;    3320
And preiden for this lordes hele;
Which hath relessed the querele;
And hath his oghne will forsake
In charite for goddes sake。
Bot now hierafter thou schalt hiere
What god hath wroght in this matiere;
As he which doth al equite。
To him that wroghte charite
He was ayeinward charitous;
And to pite he was pitous:    3330
For it was nevere knowe yit
That charite goth unaquit。
The nyht; whan he was leid to slepe;
The hihe god; which wolde him kepe;
Seint Peter and seint Poul him sende;
Be whom he wolde his lepre amende。
Thei tuo to him slepende appiere
Fro god; and seide in this manere:
〃O Constantin; for thou hast served
Pite; thou hast pite deserved:   3340
Forthi thou schalt such pite have
That god thurgh pite woll thee save。
So schalt thou double hele finde;
Ferst for thi bodiliche kinde;
And for thi wofull Soule also;
Thou schalt ben hol of bothe tuo。
And for thou schalt thee noght despeire;
Thi lepre schal nomore empeire
Til thou wolt sende therupon
Unto the Mont of Celion;   3350
Wher that Silvestre and his clergie
Togedre duelle in compaignie
For drede of thee; which many day
Hast ben a fo to Cristes lay;
And hast destruid to mochel schame
The prechours of his holy name。
Bot now thou hast somdiel appesed
Thi god; and with good dede plesed;
That thou thi pite hast bewared
Upon the blod which thou hast spared。     3360
Forthi to thi salvacion
Thou schalt have enformacioun;
Such as Silvestre schal the teche:
The nedeth of non other leche。〃
This Emperour; which al this herde;
〃Grant merci lordes;〃 he ansuerde;
〃I wol do so as ye me seie。
Bot of o thing I wolde preie:
What schal I telle unto Silvestre
Or of youre name or of youre estre?〃   3370
And thei him tolden what thei hihte;
And forth withal out of his sihte
Thei passen up into the hevene。
And he awok out of his swevene;
And clepeth; and men come anon:
He tolde his drem; and therupon
In such a wise as he hem telleth
The Mont wher that Silvestre duelleth
Thei have in alle haste soght;
And founde he was and with hem broght     3380
To themperour; which to him tolde
His swevene and elles what he wolde。
And whan Silvestre hath herd the king;
He was riht joiful of this thing;
And him began with al his wit
To techen upon holi writ
Ferst how mankinde was forlore;
And how the hihe god therfore
His Sone sende from above;
Which bore was for mannes love;     3390
And after of his oghne chois
He tok his deth upon the crois;
And how in grave he was beloke;
And how that he hath helle broke;
And tok hem out that were him lieve;
And forto make ous full believe
That he was verrai goddes Sone;
Ayein the kinde of mannes wone
Fro dethe he ros the thridde day;
And whanne he wolde; as he wel may;    3400
He styh up to his fader evene
With fleissh and blod into the hevene;
And riht so in the same forme
In fleissh and blod he schal reforme;
Whan time comth; the qwike and dede
At thilke woful dai of drede;
Where every man schal take his dom;
Als wel the Maister as the grom。
The mihti kinges retenue
That dai may stonde of no val

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