University of Virginia Library

Of the myddes of a mans lyfe.

Homo nihil aliud est quoth Sperma [illeg.] vermium

Saynt Bernarde wytnesseth, as the boke telles
That a man in this lyfe, is nothynge elles
But a foule slyme, horryble to all men
And is a foule lake, of stynkynge fen
And also wormes meate, that they wyll haue
When that he is deade, and layde in graue
But some men and women, fayre they semeth
To syght without, as men it demeth
And sheweth nothynge, but the whyte skynne
But who that myght openly loke therin
A fouler caryon, myght there neuer be
Than men shulde on them than se
Therfore who that had a sharpe insyght
And had as clere eyen, and also as bryght
As hath a beest, that Lux men calles
That may se throughe thycke stone walles
Than lytell lykynge shulde a man haue
To beholde a woman, or after her craue
Than myght he se, without any doubte
As well within, as he doth with out
For yf a man myght se her within aryght
It were full dredefull, to euery mannes syght
And so foule euery man within is
As the boke telles, and wytnesseth all this
And therfore, I holde a man nothynge wyse
That maketh hym selfe, of to moche pryse
Syth he may euery day, both here and se
What that he is here, and what he shall be
But a proude man, of this taketh no hede
For hym fayleth reason, that shulde hym lede
When that he is yonge, and loueth playinge
Other hath welth at his lykynge
Other that he be brought, in to great worshype
Than he of hym selfe, taketh he no kepe
For hym selfe than he knoweth all there leest
And fareth than as vnreasonable beest
That foloweth his owne wyll, and nothynge elles
As saynt Dauid wytnesseth, and telles.

Homo cum in honore esset non intellegit comparatus est in mentis insipientibus.

He sayeth, when a man in worshyp is brought
Ryght good vnderstandynge, hath he nought
Therfore he may be lykened, both in flesshe and bone
To beestes that reason and wyt can none
Therfore euery man, that hath wyt and mynde
Oft shulde thynke, on his wretched kynde
And that with fylthe he is all ynome
As he may se euery day from his body come
Both at nose and at mouth, and byneth also
All maner corrupcyon, cōmeth hym fro
And howe foule it is to euery mannes syght
Saynt Bernarde wytnesseth to vs full ryght.

[illeg.] diligenter consideres quid per os quid per nares ceterosque meatus corporis tui egreditur: vilius stet qui [illeg.] quoth videres.

He sayeth man, wylt thou inwardly se
And beholde, what thynge cōmeth from the
Throughe nose and mouth, contynually
And throughe other places of thy body
A fouler dunghyll, sawe thou neuer none
Than is a man, made in flesshe and in bone
For in all that tyme, that a man here lyueth
His owne kynde, no good fruyte gyueth
Whyther that he lyue shorte tyme, other longe
But thynges that stynketh, wonder stronge
And foule fylthed, and nothynge elles
As Innocent the great clarcke, in a boke telles.

Herbas inquit & arbores diligenter iuuestiga, ille de se producunt flores & frondes & fructus: & tu de [illeg.]. Ille autem de se effundunt oleum & vinū, & tu de te, sputum, vrinam, & stercus. Ille de se spirant suauitatem: & in abhominationem stercoris.

This Clarcke telleth thus in his boke
Thou man he sayeth, beholde well and loke
Herbes and trees, that in earth doth sprynge
Take thou good hede, what they forth brynge
Herbes bryngeth floures, and maketh sede
And trees fruyte, and braunches sprede
And thou bryngest forth, of thy selfe here
Both nyttes, and lyse, and other vermyne yfere
Of herbes and trees, spryngeth bawme good
Both oyle and wyne, in helpe of mannes fode
And that cōmeth from the, doth foule stynke
As dounge and pysse, and spatlynge
Of herbes and trees, cōmeth good sauoure
And of the man, foule breth and soure
For suche as the tre, beareth with the bowes
Suche is the same fruyte, that theron growes
For a man is as a tre, that standeth nat harde
Of whom the crop is tourned downwarde
And the rote is an hye, towarde the fyrmament
As wytnesseth in this boke, the clarcke Innocent.

Quid est homo secūdum formam nisi quedam arbor euersa cuius radicis sunt crines trinicus est caput cum collo, stipes est pectus cum alno, rami et vlne cum tibiis frōdes st. digiti cum artil. hoc est folium quod a vento rapiter, & stipula que a sole siccatur.

He sayeth what is a man, but in shape as a tre
Tourned vp so downe, as men may se
Of the whiche the rote, that therto belongeth
Is the heere on thyne heade, that theron hangeth
Than is the stocke nexte the rote growynge
That is thyne heade, with thy necke shewynge
The body of the tree, that is sette therto
Is thy brest, with thy wombe also
The bowes be thyne armes with thy handes
And the legges with thy fete, that thou on standes
Men may them braunches, by reason call
The toes, and the fete, with thy fynges all
Lyfe is the lefe, that hangeth nat fast
That wyll away, with the wyndes blast
And a man that is both yonge and lyght
Thoughe he be neuer so hardy in fyght
And comely of shape, and louely of chere
Yet syckenes and anger may hym dere
And his myght and fayrenes abate
And brynge hym soone, in to lowe state
And soone chaunge his fayre coloure
And make hym fade, as doth the floure
For a flour, that is fayre to mannes syght
Throughe stormes it fadeth, and leseth his myght
Angres and euylles, and myschyfes both
Ofte cōmeth to a man, that be hym loth
As feuers and dropsye, and Iaundyse also
[illeg.] and the gowte, and other euylles mo
That maketh his fayrenes, away for to wende
As stormes doth theyr floures shende
This shulde be euer ensample to vs
Therfore saynt Iob, in his boke sayeth thus.

Homo quasi flos egreditur & contritur & fugit velud vmbra, & num quoth in eod. &c.

Man he sayeth, as flour is bryght
When it cōmeth fyrste to earthly syght
And soone is broke, and passeth away
As doth the shadowe, in sōmers day
And neuer in the same state dwelleth
But euermore passeth as Iob telleth
Of this the Prophete wytnesseth ywys
In a psalme of the Psalter that sayeth this.

Mane sicut herba transeat mane floreat & transeat vespere descidat. &c.

The Prophete sayeth thus, in that case
A man passeth away, as doth the grasse
Early begynnynge of the day
He floureth, and soone passeth away
And at euen, it is downe brought
That fadeth and wexeth all to nought
In the begynnynge of man, hym was gyue
Nyne hundred yeare, in earth to lyue
As Clarckes in bokes, beareth wytnes
And sayeth, that mannes lyfe is drawe to shortnes
For God wolde, that it shulde so be
And God sayde hym selfe, so vnto Noe.

Non permanebit spiritus meus in homine [illeg.] caro est: erunt enim dies illius centum viginti anni.

My Ghoste he sayeth, shall nat euer dwell
In man that is made of flesshe and fell
His dayes shall be to lyue in here
An hundred, and also twentye yere
But so great age, may no man bere
For death wyll hym, in shorter tyme dere
For the complexyon of euery man
Is nowe more febler, than it was than
Therfore mannes lyfe, myght shorter be
For nowe it is feblest, all for to se
For the longer, that a man shall lyfe
To more sorowe, he shall be dryfe
And lesse thynke, that this lyfe is swete
As in the psalter, wytnesseth the Prophete.

Si in potentatibus octoginta anni amplius eorum labor et dolor. &c.

If in strenghthes foure score yere, myght befall
The more is theyr trauayle, and sorowe with all
But nowe moche shorter be mannes dayes
As Iob the good man openly sayes.

Nun quid non paucitas dierum meorum finietur breui.

Nowe he sayeth my shorte dayes that fewe were
Shall come to ende, in lytell tyme here
And when a man waxeth to be olde
Than begynneth his kynde, to be feable and colde
And than chaungeth his complexyon
And his maners tourne vp so downe
Than waveth his herte, full heuy and harde
And his heade feble, and euer downwarde
Than reueleth his face, euermore and more
And fouler waxeth, than it was before
His wyt is short when he ought thynketh
His nose droppeth, his onde stynketh
His syght waxeth dym, he loketh vnder the browe
His backe is croked, he stopeth full lowe
His eares waxeth death, and harde to here
And his tongue to speake, is nothynge clere
Soone he is wroth, and waxeth all frowarde
To tourne hym from wrath, it is harde
He is couytous, and fast holdynge
And heuy of chere, and euer lourynge
He prayseth olde men, and holdeth them wyse
And yonge men hym lysteth to dyspyse
And often is sycke, and begynneth to grone
And often angrye, and playneth hym soone
All these thynges, to an olde man befalleth
That Clarckes propertyes of age calleth
Thus men may se, that rede can
The condycyons, that be in an olde man.