Scala perfectionis

¶How a man shall knowe how moche couetyse is hyd in his herte / Caplm̄ lxxi.

LIfte wel vp this ymage & loke wel aboute / and thou shalt mowe see couetyse and loue of erthly thynges occupye a grete partye of this ymage. though it seme lytyl Thou hast forsaken rychesse and moche ho¦nour of this worlde / and arte spered in a dongeon / but hast thou forsaken clenly the loue of al this / I hope not yet / It is lesse maystry for to forsake worldly good than to forsake the loue of it / Parauenture thou hast not for saken thy couetyse / but thou hast chaunged it fro grete thynges in to smale / as fro a pownde vnto a peny / and fro a syluer pece vnto a dysshe of an halfpeny This is a symple chaunge / thou art no good marchaunt / Thyse ensamples arne chyldysshe / neuertheles they betoken more / If thou trowe not me assay thyself / If thou haue loue & delyte in the hauyng & holdynge of ony thynge y^t thou hast suche as it is / with y^e whiche loue thou fedest thyn herte for a tyme. Or yf thou haue desyre & yernīg for to haue som̄ thyng y^t thou hast not / with whiche desy¦rethyn herte is traueyled & strouble•• by v••skylful besy¦nesse that the clene desyre of vertu & of god may not rest therin / this is a token y^t there is couetyse in this ymage And yf thou wolte assay better / loke yf ony thynge that thou hast be taken awaye fro the by maystry or by boro¦wyng / or by ony other wyse. & thou may not gete it ayē & for thy thou arte disesed angred & trowbled in thyne hert bothe for thou wātest y^t thyng y^t thou woldest haue

& may not haue it / & also ayenst hym y^t hath it thou arte styred for to stryue & chyde with hym for he myght resto¦re y^e ayen & wyl not / this is a token y^t thou louest world¦ly goodes / For thus done worldly men / whan her good & her rychesse is taken fro hē they arn heuy sory angry & chyding & stryusg ayēst hē y^t haue it opēly by worde & by dede / but thou doost al this in thyn hert pryuely where god seeth & yet thou art in more defawte than a worldly man. For thou hast forsaken in lyknes y^e loue of world∣ly thinges / But a worldly mā hath not do so / & therfore he is excused thoughe he stryue & pursue for his goodes by lawful wayes for to haue hem ayē / But now sayest thou y^t the behoueth for to haue thy necessaryes of suche thynges as lōgen to y^t as wel as a worldly mā / I graūt wel therto / but thou sholde not loue it for it self / ne lykin¦ge haue in the holdyng ne in y^e kepyng / ne sorowe ne he¦uynesse fele in y^e lesyng or in y^e withdrawynge of it / For as saynt gregory sayth / Asmoche sorow as thou hast in lesyng of a thyng. so moche loue haddest thou ī y^e kepyn¦ge / And therfore yf thyn herte were made hoole / & thou haddest sothfastly felt desyre of ghostly thynges / & had there with al a syght of the leest ghostly thyng y^t is. all y^e loue & the lykyng of ony▪ erthly thyng thou sholdest sette it at nought / it sholde not cleue vpon the / For to loue & for to haue more than y^e nedeth skylfully oonly for luste & lykyng it is a defawte / Also for to fetchen thy loue vp¦on y^t thynge that the nedeth for it selfe / it is defawte but not so grete. But for to haue & vsen that thyng y^t the ne¦deth withouten loue of it more than kynde or nede aske¦th withoutē whiche the thyng may not be vsed / it is no defawte / Sothly in this poynt as I trowe many y^t I ha¦ue y^e state & y^e lyknesse of pouerte arn moche letted & hyn¦dred fro y^e loue of god I ne accuse no mā ne no state repro¦ue

/ for in eche astate some arn good & some arne other / But one thyng I saye to euery man or woman that ha¦th taken the state of wilful pouerte whither he be relygi¦ous or seculer or what degree he be in / as long as his lo¦ue & his affeccyon is bounden & fastened. and as it were glewed with the loue of ony erthly thynge that he hath or wolde haue / he may not haue ne fele sothfastli y^t clene loue & the clere syght of ghostly thynges / For saynt Au¦styn sayd to our lorde thus Lorde he loueth y^e but lytyl that louyth ony thynge with the / that he loueth not for the / For the more loue & couetyse of ony erthly thyng is with the / the lesse is the loue of god in thyn herte / For though it be so that this loue of erthly thyng putteth hē not out of charite but yf it be so moche that it strangle y^e loue of god & of her euen crysten / sothely it hyndreth hē and letteth hem fro the feruour of charyte / & also fro y^e specyal mede whiche they sholde haue in the blysse of he¦uen for perfyte pouerte / and that is a grete losse yf they myght se it / For who so myght know ghostly mede how good how precyous and how worthy it is / for it is aye lastyng / he wolde not for the loue of al erthly Ioye or ha¦uour of al erthly thyng eyf he myght haue it withouten synne lette ne lesse y^e lest mede of the blysse of heuē whi∣che he myght haue yf that he wolde / I speke ferther thā I doo. But I praye the doo thus as I saye by the grace of god yf thon maye or ony other man who soo wyll / For that were a comforte to my herte that yf I may not haue it in myselfe as I saye. that I myghte haue it in y^e / Or in ony other creature whiche hathe receyued more plente of his grace than I / But see nowe thenne syth couetyse in the naked grounde letteth a man or a wo∣man soo moche fro the ghostely felynge of y^e loue of god howe moche more thenne it letteth and combrethe

wordly men & wym̄en the whiche by al her wyttes & bo¦dely besynes nyghte & daye studye & traueyle how they myght gete ryches & plente of worldly good / They can none other delyte haue but in worldly thynges / ne they wyl not for they seche it not / I say no more of hē at this tyme: for in this wrytyng I speke not to hem / But this I saye / yf they myght see & wolde see what they do / they sholde not do so /

Notes

• Greg.
• Aug{us}.