University of Virginia Library

Þe voice answ[e]rd and said ogayne
þat no spirite þat dwelles in paine
ne none of fendes þat er in hell
may haue no power forto tell
ne any thing to man at neuyn
þat toches to preuetes of heuyn,
bot it [be] thurgh goddes sufrance,
or oþer angels þam tell thurgh chance;
and vnto me þai tell no thing,
þarfore I may noght haue knawyng
of heuinly blis how it es þare;
ne in hell how þe fendes fare.
bot saules þat þare sall suffer pyne,
þaire penance es wele more þan mine;
for I haue hope to cum till blis,
and þareof sall þai euer mis.
þarfore es no liknes to tell
bitwix me and þe paines of hell”.
Þan said þe Prior: “I pray þe now,
tell me in what stede ertou”.
Þe voice answerd and sayd in hy:
“I am here in purgatori”.
Þan said þe Prior: “proued þou hase
þat purgari es in þis place;
for if þat þou be pyned here
þan may so oþer saules in fere;
and þare whare saules be purged sall,
purgatori men may þare call.
þarfore by þir saues þat þou sais
purgatori es þare always”.
Þan said þe voice on þis manere:
“Sir, þare er purgatories sere:
Ane es comun to more and les,
and departabill anoþer es”.
Þe prior said: “now se I wele
þat þou ert fals in ilkadele.
a saul may noght in a time ga
forto be pyned in places twa,
for whils he sall be in þe tane,
of þe toþer he may haue nane.
In a stede bihoues him suffer paine”.
Þan said þe voice: “þis es sertayne.
I am now (pined, þis) es na fabill,
in purgatory departabill
ilka day, als god vowches saue;
bot oþer paynes byhoues me haue,
for ilka night bihoues me
in comun purgatory pined be,
forto suffer paynes sare
with oþer sawles þat dwelles þare”.
Þe pryor sayd þan: “can þou ges
in what stede comun purgatory es
whare paine es [to] saules puruaide?”
Þe spirite answerd þan and said:
“in middes of al þe erth ful right
es comun purgatori dyght,
and þare es pain ordand for vs”.
And þe Prior answerd þus:
he said, “me think bi alkins ways
it may noght be suth þat þou says.
þe middes of erth es a sertaine space,
and þe purgatori a noþer place,
and twa stedes may noght be in ane.
þarfore me think þou has mistane;
if purgatori whare sawles dwelles
war in middes erth als þou telles,
twa stedes in ane þan bud be þare,
and þat saltou se neuermare.
þarfore so es it noght arrayd”.
Þe voyce þan answerd sune and said
þat places er ordand ful rathe
bodily and gastly bathe.
“a saul es gastly, and forþi
it ocupies no stede bodily,
þat es to say by it allane,
when mans bodi þarfro es tane.
þis ilk how[s] als þou may se
haldes both þi saul and þe,
and ȝit here er noght stede(s twa).
and hereby may þou se als(wa)
how haile and raine & sle(t & snaw)
er in þe ayre klerely to (knaw),
and ilkone has his cours [OMITTED]
so es þat place whare [OMITTED]”
Þe Prior said: “tell vs (now mare)
whi þat þou ert pin(ed þare)
more þan in anoþer (stede),
sen þe tyme (þat þou was dede)”.
Þe voice answ(erd [OMITTED]:
“for in þis [OMITTED]
[OMITTED] I gan me [OMITTED]
(& made no) penance in mi liue;
þarfore here sall I penance haue
for þat sin till I be saue”.