TUM EGO VERA INQUAM. — Prosa 4
Thanne seide I thus: "O norysshe of alle vertues, thou
seist ful sooth; ne I mai noght forsake the ryght swyfte cours
of my prosperite (that is to seyn, that prosperite ne be comen
to me wonder swyftli and sone); but this is a thyng that greetly
smerteth me whan it remembreth me. For in alle adversites of
fortune the moost unzeely kynde of contrarious fortune is to han
ben weleful."
"But that thow," quod sche, "abyest thus the
torment of thi false opynioun, that maistow nat ryghtfully blamen
ne aretten to
thynges. (As who seith, for thow hast yit
manye
habundances of thynges.) Textus. For al be it so that the
ydel name of aventuros welefulnesse moeveth the now, it is
leveful that thow rekne with me of how many grete thynges thow
hast yit plente. And therfore yif that thilke thyng that thow
haddest for moost precyous in al thy rychesse of fortune be kept
to the yit by the grace of God unwemmed and undefouled, maistow
thanne pleyne ryghtfully upon the mescheef of Fortune, syn thow
hast yit thi beste thynges? Certes yit lyveth in good poynt
thilke precyous
honour of mankynde, Symacus, thi wyves fader,
whiche
that is a man maked al of sapience and of vertu, the whiche man
thow woldest byen redyly with the pris of thyn owene lif. He
bywayleth the wronges that men don to the, and nat for hymself;
for he lyveth in sikernesse of anye sentences put ayens hym. And
yit lyveth thi wyf, that is atempre of wyt and passynge othere
wommen in clennesse of chastete; and, for I wol closen schortly
hir bountes, sche is lyk to hir fadir. I telle the wel
that sche lyveth, loth of this lyf, and kepeth to the oonly hir
goost, and is al maat and overcomen by wepynge and sorwe for
desir of the; in the whiche thyng oonly I moot graunten that thi
welefulnesse is amenused. What schal I seyn eek of thi two sones
conseylours, of whiche, as of children of hir age, ther shyneth
the liknesse of the wit of hir fadir or of hir eldefader! And syn
the sovereyne cure of al mortel folk is to saven hir owene lyves,
O how weleful artow, if thow knowe thy goodes! For yit ben ther
thynges dwelled to the-ward that no man douteth that they ne be
more derworthe to the than thyn owene lif. And forthy drye thi
teeris, for yit nys nat every fortune al hateful to the-ward, ne
overgreet tempest hath nat yit fallen upon the, whan that thyne
ancres clyven faste, that neither wolen suffren the counfort of
this tyme present ne the hope of tyme comyng to passen ne to
faylen."
"And I preie," quod I, "that faste mote thei
halden; for, whiles that thei halden, how so evere that thynges
been, I shal wel fleetyn forth and escapyn: but thou mayst wel
seen how grete apparailes and array that me lakketh, that ben
passed awey fro me."
"I have somwhat avaunced and forthred the," quod
sche,
"yif that thow anoye nat, or forthynke nat of al thy fortune.
(As who seith, I have somwhat conforted
the, so that
thou tempeste the nat thus with al thy fortune, syn thow hast yit
thy beste thynges.) But I mai nat suffren thi delices, that
pleynest the so wepynge and angwysschous for that ther lakketh
somwhat to thy welefulnesse. For what man is so sad or of so
parfite welefulnesse, that he ne stryveth and pleyneth on some
halfe
ayen the qualite of his estat? Forwhy ful anguysschous thing is
the condicioun of mannes goodes; for eyther it cometh nat
altogidre to a wyght, or elles it ne last nat perpetuel. For som
man hath gret rychesse, but he is aschamed of his ungentil
lynage; and som man is renomyd of noblesse of kynrede, but he is
enclosed in so greet angwyssche of nede of thynges that hym were
levere that he were unknowe; and som man haboundeth bothe in
rychesse and noblesse, but yit he bewayleth his chaste lyf, for
he ne hath no wyf; and som man is wel and zelily ymaried, but he
hath no children, and norissheth his rychesses to the eyres of
straunge folk; and som man is gladed with children, but he wepeth
ful sory for the trespas of his sone or of his doughter. And for
this ther ne accordeth no wyght lyghtly to the condicioun of his
fortune; for alwey to every man ther is in somwhat that,
unassayed, he ne woot nat, or elles he dredeth that he hath
assaied. And adde this also, that every weleful man hath a ful
delicaat feelynge; so that, but yif alle thynges byfalle at his
owene wil, for he is inpacient or is nat used to have noon
adversite, anoon he is throwen adoun for every litil thyng. And
ful litel thynges ben tho that withdrawen the somme or the
perfeccioun of blisfulnesse fro hem that been most fortunat. How
manye men trowestow wolde demen hemself to ben almoste in hevene,
yif thei myghten atayne to the leste partye of the remenaunt of
thi fortune? This same place that thow clepest exil is contre to
hem that enhabiten here, and forthi nothyng [is] wrecchide but
whan thou wenest it. (As who seith, thow
thiself ne
no wyght elles nis a wrecche but whanne he weneth hymself a
wrecche by reputacion of his corage.) And ayenward, alle
fortune is blisful to a man by the aggreablete or by the egalyte
of hym that
suffreth it. What man is that that is so weleful that nolde
chaunge his estat whan he hath lost pacience? The swetnesse of
mannes welefulnesse is spraynd with many bitternesses; the whiche
welefulnesse although it seme
swete and joieful to
hym that useth it, yit mai it nat ben withholden that it ne goth
awey whan it wole. Thanne is it wele seene how wrecchid is the
blisfulnesse of mortel thynges, that neyther it dureth perpetuel
with hem that every fortune resceyven agreablely or egaly, ne it
deliteth nat in al to hem that ben angwyssous.
O ye mortel folk, what seeke ye thanne blisfulnesse out of
yourself whiche that is put in yowrself? Errour and folie
confoundeth yow. I schal schewe the schortly the poynt of
soverayn blisfulnesse. Is there anythyng more precyous to the
than thiself? Thow wolt answere, 'nay.' Thanne,
yif it so be that thow art myghty over thyself (that
is to seyn, by tranquillite of thi soule), than hastow thyng
in thi powere that thow noldest nevere leesn, ne Fortune may nat
bynymen it the. And that thow mayst knowe that blisfulnesse ne
mai nat standen in thynges that ben fortunous and temporel, now
undirstond and gadere it togidre thus: yif blisfulnesse be the
soverayn good of nature that lyveth by resoun, ne thilke thyng
nys nat soverayn good that may ben taken awey in any wise (for
more worthy thyng and more dygne is thilke thyng that mai nat ben
take awey); than scheweth it wel that the unstablenesse of
fortune may nat atayne to resceyven verray blisfulnesse. And yit
more over, what man that this towmblynge welefulnesse ledeth,
eyther he woot that it is chaungeable, or elles he woot it nat.
And yif he woot it nat, what blisful fortune may ther ben in the
blyndnesse of ignoraunce? And yif he woot that it is chaungeable,
he mot alwey ben adrad that he ne lese that thyng that he ne
douteth nat but that he may leesen it (as
who seith
he mot bien alwey agast lest he lese that he woot wel he may lese
it); for whiche the contynuel drede that he hath ne suffreth
hym nat to ben weleful — or elles yif he lese it he weneth to
ben
despised and forleten. Certes eek that is a ful litel good that
is born with evene herte whan it es lost (that is
to seyn, that men do no more force of the lost than of the
havynge).
And for as moche as thow thiself art he to whom it hath be
[sewed] and proved by ful many demonstracyons, as I woot wele
that the soules of men ne mowen nat deyen in no wyse; and ek syn
it es cleer and certeyn that fortunous welefulnesse endeth by the
deth of the body; it mai nat be douted that, yif that deth may
take awey blisfulnesse, that al the kynde of mortel thyng ne
descendeth into wrecchidnesse by the ende of the deth. And syn
we knowe wel that many a man hath sought the fruyt of
blysfulnesse, nat oonly with suffrynge of deeth, but eek with
suffrynge of peynes and tormentz, how myghte thanne this present
lif make men blisful, syn that whanne thilke selve lif es ended
it ne maketh folk no wrechches?
