Cursor mundi (The cursur o the world). A Northumbrian poem of the XIVth century in four versions. Ed. by the Rev. Richard Morris ...

Here bigines of þe trinite and of þe making of all þe worlde

Alle men aue þat lauerd drede, þat mirthes settis man to mede, þat euer was and ay sal be, Line 273 Widuten ende in trinite. He þat lauerd, bath godd and man, Anekines thing of him bigan, Line 276 þou he bigan all oþer thing, Himself had neuer biginyng; Of him can all, in him Is al, All haldis he vp fra dunefall; Line 280 He haldis heuen and erde stedfast; Widuten him may na thing last. þis lauerd þat es sua mekil of might Puruaid all in his aun sight, Line 284 And þat he ordained wid his witt He multeplijs and gouernis itt, þar for es he cald þe trinite, For he es an-fold god in thre; Line 288 And if þu wenis it may noght be, Bihald þe sune, þan may þu se, In þe sune þat schines clere Es a thing and thre thinges sere, Line 292 A bodi round, hote, and light, þir thre we find all at a sight; þir thinges thre wid nankin arte Ne may noght be fra oþer part, Line 296 For if þu take þe light away þe erd it has na sune parfay; And if þe hete away be tan [folio 3b:1] Sune forsoth ne has þu nan, Line 300 On ilk a maner ilk man wate, It es þe kind of sune be hate.

þe sunes bodi þat i neuen Bi-takins þe fader self of heuen, Line 304 And bi þe light þat es lastand It es þe sone þu vnderstand, And bi þe hete þu vnderstand so, þe hali gast comes of þaim to. Line 308 And fader es he calde forþi, For he es welle þat neuer is drey; And ouyr þat him seluen wroght Line 311 All thinges quen þat þai war noght. His sun is wisdam þat all thing wate, For all þe werld he haldis in state; He haldis all thinges fra misfare, þat þai noght turne to soru and care. þe hali gast es þat goddhed, Line 317 He giues þe lijf and mas onede. Minning es þe fadir cald, þe sune es vnderstanden tald, Line 320 þe hali gast es þat wille, þe fadir and sune bath fulfille. þis lauerd þat i bi-fore of said, First in his wit he all puruaid, Line 324 His werk vs dos a sotil wright, And siþen he raises it in sight. For-þi is gode as seis scripture Non elder þan his creature, Line 328 Eldir of time ne is noght he, Bot ellis more in dignite. þis writh þat i speke of here, Line 331 Ouerall oþer he is prines [[read prinse]] widuten pere, For oþer writhes bos oþer tymber take, Bot þis him self can tymber make; For of him self he toke his euen, Line 335 þat he made bath of erde and heuen. Bot þu sal noght vnþerstand [folio 3b:2] þat he wrog[t] al his werke wid hand,

Bot said wid word, and als sone All his comandment was done, Line 340 Smartlier þan eie may winck, Or ani manes hert may thinck. And als clerkes seis þat er wise, He wroght noght first with partis, Bot he þat made all of noght, Line 345 All þis werld to-gider he wroght, To be sett in lenth and brede. þe mater first þar-of i rede, Line 348 þat es þe elementis to say, þat first schaples all samen lay; He delt þaim fin [[read siÞen]] in sex dais In partis als þe scripture sais; Line 352 þe elementis first in dais thrin, Thre thinges þaim es widin; þir elementis þat all thing bindes, Foure þar er as clerkes findes, Line 356 þe lauest þan es water and erde, þe thrid es ayr, and fyre þe ferde. Ayder say we þat he þus bigan, As austin sais, þat hali man, Line 360 Als we in his bokis find. First þan wroght he angel kind, þe world, and tyme, þis thinges thre Bifore all oþer thing wroght he. Line 364 þe world i calle wid min ententis þe mater of foure elementis, þat ȝeit [[read ȝett]] was þan of forme vnschapin, Quare-of was siþen serenes schapin; All schaples was it noght for-þi, Line 369 For it of schap had sum parti, Bot þar-for schaples was it hou, For it had nogh[t] as it has nou. Line 372 He wroght apon þe toþer day þe firmament, þat es to say,

þe sky wid sterris gret and small, [folio 4a:1] wid watir schinand als cristall, Line 376 þat es on hey, þat es vnder, In þis he soundid al to wonder. þe thrid day godd did thoru his grace þe watris draue intill a place, Line 380 And bad a dri place suld be: þe watris all he calid þe se. þe drey he calid erd, þat lauerd king, And bad it griss and fruit forth bring. All thinges waxand þare Line 385 þat in þaim selff þair sedis bare.

Þe feird he bad and was done, Bath war mad sune and mone, Line 388 Aiþer wid [his] sere light, To part þe dai fra þe night, In takinyng of tydis to stand, Dais and ȝeris bath duelland; Line 392 And þe sternis grett & smale, þat we may se widuten tale. In þe heiest element of all, þar in þe fire has his stall. Line 396 þe fijfte day þat faylis noght, Of water foul and fiss he wroght, þe fiss to water als we finde, þe foul he bitok to þe wind. Line 400

All gangand bestis þe sexte day, And adam als he made of clay, He was last made als lauerþing, To be maistir ouerall thing. Line 404 In a dale he wroght adam, þat ebron hate in ebreu nam. þir sex dais he wroght his will, þe seuend of werk he held him still; Him self vs gaf ensample þare Line 409 þat we suld hald it euermare.