Robert Henryson's Orpheus and Eurydice

Moralitas Fabule Sequitur

Lines 415 through 515

Lo worthy folk boece that senature Line 415 To wryte this feynit fable tuke in cure Line 416 In his gay buke of consolacion Line 417 For oure doctryne and gude instruction Line 418 Quhilk in the self suppose it fenyeit be Line 419 And hid vnder the cloke of poesie Line 420

Line 420 Yit maister trowit doctour nicholas Line 421 Quhilk in his tyme a noble theolog was Line 422 Applyis it to gude moralitee Line 423 Rycht full of frute and seriositee Line 424 Faire phebus is the god of sapience Line 425 Caliopee his wyf is eloquence Line 426 Thir twa maryit gat orpheus belyve Line 427 Quhilk callit is the part intellectiue Line 428 Of mannis saule and vnder standing free Line 429 And separate fra sensualitee Line 430 Erudices is oure affection Line 431 Be fantasy oft movit vp and doun Line 432 Quhile to reson it castis the delyte Line 433 Quhile to the flesch settis the appetite Line 434 Arestyus this hird that coud persewe Line 435 Erudices is noucht bot gude vertewe Line 436 Quhilk besy is ay to kepe oure myndis clene Line 437 Bot quhen we flee out throu the medow grene Line 438 Fra vertu to this warldis wayn plesance Line 439 Myngit wyth care and full of variance Line 440 The serpent stangis that is dedely syn Line 441 That poysons the saule wyth-out and in Line 442 And than is dede and eke oppressit doun Line 443 To warldly lust all oure affection Line 444 Than parfyte reson wepis wondir sare Line 445 Seand oure appetite thusgate mys-fare Line 446 And passis vp to the hevyn belyue Line 447 Schawand till vs the lyf contemplatyve Line 448 The parfyte will and als the feruent lufe Line 449 We suld haue alway to the hevyn abufe Line 450 Bot seldyn thare oure appetite is found Line 451 It is so fast in to the body bound Line 452

Line 452 Thar-for dounwart we cast oure myndis ee Line 453 Blyndit wyth lust and may noucht vpward flee Line 454 Suld oure desyre be soucht vp in the speris Line 455 Quhen it is tederit on this warldis breris Line 456 Quhile on the flesch quhile on this warldis wrak Line 457 And to the hevyn small entent we tak Line 458 Sir orpheus thou sekis all in vayn Line 459 Thy wyf so hie thar-for cum doun agayn Line 460 And pas vnto yone monstir meruailus Line 461 With thre hedis that we call cerberus Line 462 Quhilk feynit is to haue sa mony hedis Line 463 For to betakyn thre manir of dedis Line 464 The first is in the tender yong barnage Line 465 The secund dede is in the medill age Line 466 The thrid is in grete elde quhen men ar tane Line 467 Thus cerberus to swelly sparis nane Line 468 Bot quhen our mynd is myngit with sapience Line 469 And plais apon the harp of eloquence Line 470 That is to say makis persuasioun Line 471 To draw oure will and oure affection Line 472 In ewiry elde fra syn and foule delyte Line 473 This dog oure saule has no power to byte Line 474 The secund monstris ar the sisteris thre Line 475 Alecto megera and thesiphone Line 476 Ar noucht ellis in bukis as we rede Line 477 Bot wickit thoucht evill word and frawart dede Line 478 Alecto is the bolnyng of the hert Line 479 Megera is the wikkit word outwert Line 480 Thesiphone is operacion Line 481 That makis fynal execucion Line 482 Of dedly syn and thir thre turnis ay Line 483 Ane vgly quhele quhilk is noucht ellis to say Line 484

Line 484 Bot wardly men sum tyme ar castin hie Line 485 Apon the quhele in grete prosperitee Line 486 And wyth a quhirl vnwarly or thai wait Line 487 Ar thravin doun to pure and law estate Line 488 Of ixione that in the quhele was spred Line 489 I sall the tell sum part as i haue red Line 490 He was on lyve brukle and lecherouse Line 491 And in that craft hardy and curageouse Line 492 That he wald noucht lufe in na lawar place Line 493 Bot iuno quene of nature and goddace Line 494 And on a day he went vp in the sky Line 495 Sekand iuno thinkand with hir to ly Line 496 Scho saw hym cum and knew his full entent Line 497 A rany cloud doun fra the firmament Line 498 Scho gert descend and kest betuene thaim two Line 499 And in that cloud his nature yede hym fro Line 500 Of quhilk was generit the centauris Line 501 Half man half horse apon a ferly wyse Line 502 Than for the inward crabbing and offense Line 503 That iuno tuke for his grete violence Line 504 Scho send hym doun vnto the sisteris thre Line 505 Apon thair quhele ay turnyt for to be Line 506 Bot quhen reson and perfyte sapience Line 507 Playis apon the harp of conscience Line 508 And persuadis our fleschly appetyte Line 509 To leif the thocht of this warldly delyte Line 510 Than seisis of our hert the wicket will Line 511 Fra frawart language than the tong is still Line 512 Our synfull deidis fallis doun on sleip Line 513 Thane exione out of the quheill gan creip Line 514 That is to say the grete sollicitude Line 515

Lines 516 through 633

Quhile vp quhile doun to wyn this warldis gud Line 516 Cessis furthwith and oure complexion Line 517 Waxis quiete in contemplacion Line 518

Line 518 This tantalus of quham i spak of are Line 519 Quhill he lyvit he was a gay hostlare Line 520 And on a nycht come traualand thare by Line 521 The god of riches and tuke herbery Line 522 Wyth tantalus and he to the soupere Line 523 Slewe his awin sone that was hym lef and dere Line 524 In till a sewe wyth spicis sodyn wele Line 525 And gert the god ete vp his flesch ilk dele Line 526 For this despyte quhen he was dede anone Line 527 Was dampnyt in the flude of acheron Line 528 To suffer hunger thrist nakit and cald Line 529 Rycht wo begone as i before haue tald Line 530 This hungry man and thristy tantalus Line 531 Betakenis men gredy and couatouse Line 532 The god of riches that ar ay redy Line 533 For to ressaue and call in herbery Line 534 And to him sethe thair sone in pecis smale Line 535 That is thair flesch and blude wyth grete trauale Line 536 To fill the bag and newir fynd in thair hart Line 537 Apon thame self to spend na tak thair part Line 538 Allace in erd quhare is thare mare foly Line 539 Than for to want and haue haboundantly Line 540 To haue distresse on bak and bed and burde Line 541 And spare till othir men of gold a hurde Line 542 And in the nycht slepe soundly may thai noucht Line 543 To gader gere sa gredy is thair thoucht Line 544 Bot quhen that reson and intelligence Line 545 Playis apon the harp of eloquence Line 546 Schawand to ws quhat perrell on ilk syd Line 547 That thai incur quhay will trest or confyd Line 548 Into this warldis vane prosperitie Line 549 Quhilk hes thir sory properteis thre Line 550

Line 550 That is to say gottyn with grete laboure Line 551 Kepit with drede and tynt is with doloure Line 552 This auarice be grace quha vnder-stud Line 553 I trow suld leve thair grete solicitude Line 554 And ithand thouchtis and thair besynes Line 555 To gader gold and syne lyve in distres Line 556 Bot he suld drink ineuch quhen ewir hym list Line 557 Of couatise to slake the birnand thrist Line 558 This titius lay nailit on the bent Line 559 And wyth the grype his bowelllis ryvin and rent Line 560 Quhill he lyvit sett his entencion Line 561 To fynd the craft of diuinacion Line 562 And lerit it vnto the spamen all Line 563 To tell before sik thingis as wald fall Line 564 Quhat lyf quhat dede quhat destyny and werd Line 565 Previdit were to ewery man in erde Line 566 Apollo than for his abusion Line 567 Quhilk is the god of diuinacion Line 568 For he vsurpit in his facultee Line 569 Put hym till hell and thare remanis he Line 570 Ilk man that heiris this conclusioun Line 571 Suld dreid to sers be constillatioun Line 572 Thingis to fall vndir the firmament Line 573 Till ze or na quhilk ar indefferent Line 574 Without profixit causis and certane Line 575 Quhilk nane in erd may knaw bot god allane Line 576 Quhen orpheus vpoun his harp can play Line 577 That is our vndirstanding for to say Line 578 Cryis o man recleme thi folich harte Line 579 Will thow be god and tak on the his parte Line 580 To tell thingis to cum that neuir wilbe Line 581

Line 581 Quhilk god hes kepit in his preuetie Line 582 Thow ma no mair offend to god of micht Line 583 Na with thi spaying reif fra him his richt Line 584 This perfyte wisdome with his melody Line 585 Fleyis the spreit of fenzeid profecy Line 586 And drawis vpwart our affectioun Line 587 Fra wichcraft spaying and sorsery Line 588 And superstitioun of astrolegy Line 589 Saif allanerly sic maner of thingis Line 590 Quhilk vpoun trew and certane causis hingis Line 591 The quhilk mone cum to thair causis indure Line 592 On verry fors and nocht throw avanture Line 593 As is the clippis and the coniunctioun Line 594 Of sone and mone be calculatioun Line 595 The quhilk ar fundin in trew astronomy Line 596 Be moving of the speiris in the sky Line 597 All thir to speik it may be tollerable Line 598 And none vdir quhilk no causis stable Line 599 This vgly way this myrk and dully streit Line 600 Is nocht ellis bot blinding of the spreit Line 601 With myrk cluddis and myst of ignorance Line 602 Affetterrit in this warldis vane plesance Line 603 And bissines of temporalite Line 604 To kene the self a styme it may nocht se Line 605 For stammeris on eftir effectioun Line 606 Fra ill to war ale thus to hell gois doun Line 607 That is wan howp throw lang hanting of syn Line 608 And fowll dispair that mony fallis in Line 609 Than orpheus our ressoun is full wo Line 610 And twichis on his harp and biddis ho Line 611 Till our desyre and fulich appetyte Line 612 Bidis leif this warldis full delyte Line 613

Line 613 Than pluto god and quene of hellis fyre Line 614 Mone grant to ressoun on fors the desyre Line 615 Than orpheus has won erudices Line 616 Quhen oure desire wyth reson makis pes Line 617 And sekis vp to contemplacion Line 618 Off syn detestand the abusion Line 619 Bot ilk man suld be war and wisely see Line 620 That he bakwart cast noucht his myndis ee Line 621 Gevand consent and dilectation Line 622 Off fleschly lust for the affection Line 623 For than gois bakwart to the syn agayn Line 624 Oure appetite as it before was slayn Line 625 In warldly lust and sensualitee Line 626 And makis reson wedow for to be Line 627 Now pray we god sen oure affection Line 628 Is alway prompt and redy to fall doun Line 629 That he wald vndirput his haly hand Line 630 Of manetemance and geve vs grace to stand Line 631 In parfyte lufe as he is glorius Line 632 And thus endis the tale of orpheus Line 633