Then answered Wisdom to him and said, that his scholars had thus torn him, when they endeavoured to possess themselves of him entirely. But they gather much folly by presumption, and by arrogance, unless any of them to their amendment return.

§ II. Then began Wisdom to grieve for the frailty of the Mind, and began to sing, and thus said: Alas! into how unfathomable gulf the Mind rushes when the troubles of this world agitate it. If it then forget its own light, which is eternal joy, and rush into the outer darkness, which are the cares of this world, as this Mind now does, now it knows nothing else but lamentations.

§ III. When Wisdom and Reason had sung this lay, then began he again to speak, and said to the Mind: I see that there is now more need to thee of comfort, than of bewailing.

§ IV. Therefore, if thou wilt be ashamed of thine error, then will I soon begin to bear thee up, and will bring thee with me to the heavens. Then answered the sorrowful Mind to him, and said: What! O, what! are these now the goods, and the reward, which thou always promisedst to the men. who would obey thee? Is this now the saying, which thou formerly toldest me that the wise Plato said, that was, that no power was right without right manners? Seest thou now, that the virtuous are hated and oppressed, because they would follow thy will: and the wicked are exalted through their crimes and through their self-love? That they may the better accomplish their wicked purpose they are promoted with gifts and with riches. Wherefore I will now earnestly call upon God. He then began to sing, and thus singing said:

CHAPTER IV.

O THOU Creator of heaven and earth! thou who reignest on the eternal seat! thou who turnest the heaven in a swift course! thou makest the stars obedient to thee: and thou makest the sun, that she with her bright splendour dispels the darkness of the swarthy night. So does also the moon with his pale light, which obscures the bright stars in the

eac hpilum þa runnan heope leohter bepearap ponne he betpux ur hipe pуnp. ze eac hpilum pone beophtan steoppan þe pe hatap morgensteoppa. pone ilcan pe hatap oppe naman æfenrreoppa. pu pe pam pintendagum selest scoɲte tida þæs Jumeɲer dahum langpan. þu pe pa tɲeopa puɲh pone steaɲcan pind noppan eastan on hæpfest tid heopa leafa beɲeafast. J eft on lencten oppu leaf rellert. puph pone mýltan suþan pertepinan pind. Ppar pe ealle gercearta heoprumiap pa zeretnerra pinɲa bebosa healdap. butan men anum re de ofepheopo. Eala du ælmihtiza scippens and pihtend eallpa gercearta. help nu pinum eapmum moncynne. Ppy pu la Drihten ærne poldert reo pýnd гpa hрýpfan гceolde. heo preap þa unscıldızan nauht ne preap þam rcildizum. sittaþ manfulle on heahrerlum. 7 halize unden heopa foʊum þрýcap. sticiap gehydde beophte cɲæftar. J pa unɲihtpiran tælað pa pihtpiran. nauht ne depezap monnum mane apar. ne p leare lot pe beop mid þam pɲencum beppizen. Foppam pent nu Fulneah eall moncyn on tpeonunga zif seo pýnd spa hpeoɲfan mot on yfelpa manna gepill. J þu heope nelt stiɲan. Eala min Dɲihten. pu pe ealle gercearta ofeprihrt. hapa nu mildelice on par eapman eopðan. and eac on eall moncýn. Foppam hit nu eall pinp on dam ýðum dirre populde:.

CAPUT V.e

§ I. DA Mos pa pillic rap cpepende pær. þir leop sinzende pær. re Firbom pa reo Lerceabpirner him blipum eazum on locude.1 he fop þær Moder geomeɲunze2 nær nauht gedrefed. ac cpap to pam Mode. Sona spa ic pe ænest on disse unpornesse zereah ður munciende.3 ic ongeat du pæne utafapen1 of piner fæden epele. r of minum lapum. pæn du him fope of da pu dine færτpædпerre fоplete. J penSert reo peops par populo pende heope azener poncer buton Loder zepeahte. hir parunze.6 monna zepyphtum. Ic piste þþu utafanen pæne. ac ic nyste hu feop. æp þu pe relf hit me zenehtest mid pinum sancpidum. Ac peah þu nu fieɲ rie ponne pu pæne. ne eant pu peah ealler of pam eande aspiren. peah pu dap on zespolode. ne zebɲohte de eac

3 Cott. munc

Boet. lib. i. prosa 5.-Hæc ubi continuato dolore, &c. 1 Bod. eahum on locodon. 2 Cott. geompunga. 5 Cott. rio pуnd. • Cott. gebarunga

niende.

4 Cott. uzadɲifen.

7 Bod. Fyn reo.

heaven: and sometimes bereaves the sun of her light, when he is betwixt us and her; and sometimes the bright star which we call the morning star; the same we call by another name, the evening star. Thou, who to the winter days givest short times, and to the summer's days, longer! Thou, who the trees, by the stark north-east wind in harvest-time, of their leaves bereavest; and again in spring, other leaves givest, through the mild south-west wind! What! do all creatures obey thee, and keep the institutions of thy commandments, except man alone, who is disobedient? Ŏ, thou almighty maker and governor of all creatures, help now thy miserable mankind. Wherefore, O Lord, ever wouldest thou, that fortune should so vary? She afflicts the innocent, and afflicts not the guilty. The wicked sit on high seats, and trample the holy under their feet. Bright virtues lie hid, and the wicked deride the virtuous. Wicked oaths in no wise injure men, nor the false lot which is with fraud concealed. Therefore almost all mankind will now proceed in doubt, if fortune may thus vary according to the will of evil men, and thou wilt not control her. O, my Lord, thou who overseest all creatures, look now mercifully on this miserable earth, and also on all mankind: because it now all struggles in the waves of this world,

CHAPTER V.

§ I. WHILST the Mind was uttering such sorrow, and was singing this lay, Wisdom and Reason looked on him with cheerful eyes; and he was nothing disturbed on account of the Mind's lamentation, but said to the Mind: As soon as I first saw thee in this trouble, thus complaining, I perceived that thou wast departed from thy father's country, that is from my precepts. Thou departedst therefrom when thou didst abandon thy fixed state of mind, and thoughtest that Fortune governed this world according to her own pleasure, without God's counsel, and his permission, and men's deserts. I knew that thou wast departed, but I knew not how far, until thou thyself toldest it to me, by thy lamentations. But though thou art now farther than thou wast, thou art not nevertheless entirely driven from the country; though thou hast wandered therein. Nor, moreover, could any other

nan open man on þam zespolan butan þe rýlfum. puph pine azene zemelerte.1 ne rceolde pe eac nan man rpelcer to zeleran pæn du zemunan poldert hpýlcna zebynda þu pæne 7 hpýlena bupgpapa fop populde. oppe eft gastlice hpilces zeferrciper du pape on ðinum Mose. J on pinne gerceadpisnesse. † is pu eant an papa pihtpirenna pana pihtpillenópa. pa beop pæne heofencundan Iepuralem bungpape. of þæɲe næƑɲe nan. buton3 he relf polde. ne peapp adɲifen. is of his godan pilla. pæpe pæn he pæne. rimle he hærde pone mid him. ponne he pone mis him hæfde. pæɲe þæp he pæne. ponne pær1 he mid hr agnum cynne. j mis hir agnum buphpapum on his agnum eapde ponne he pær on pape pýhtpireɲa zemanan. Spa hpa ponne rpa þær pуppe bip he on heopa deopsome beon mot. ponne bio he on pam hehrtan freodome. Ne onrcunize ic no þær neopepan and þær unclænan stope, zif ic þe zepadne zemere. Ne me na5 ne lýst mid glase zepophta paza ne heahretla mid zolde mid zimmum gepenedɲa. ne boca mid golde appitenɲa me spa sуpe ne lýst. spa me lyre on pe pihter pillan. Ne rece ic no hep pa bec. ac pppa bec forstent pæt ic pins gepit spipe nihte. pu seofodest pa ponpуnd9 æzpæn ze on papa unpihtpirpa anpealda heanerre. ze on minpe unpuppnesse and fopereupenesse. ze on papa manfulɲa foppfoplætenerse on par populs spesa. Ac foppon pe pe ir rpipe micel unpotness nu gecenze.il ze of ðinum ÿppe. ze of ðinum12 znopnunza. ic de ne maz nu zet zeandpýrdan ær don dær tid13 pýɲd:·

10

§ II. Foppan eallmon untidlice onginp.14 næfð hit no æltæpne15 ende. Donne pæne runnan reima on Augustus monpe hatart seinp. ponne dyrezap re pe ponne pile hpile ras opfærtan þam Spium16 fupum. spa dep eac re pintezum pedenum pile blorman17 recan. Ne miht pu pin prinzan on midne pinter.18 deah de pel lýste pearmes mustes:·

de

§ III. Da clipode re Firdom cpæp. Mor ic nu cunnian hpon pinnel9 færtrædnesse. þæt ic panon20 ongiton maze hponan ic pin tilian jcýle hu. Ɖa andpynde † Mod I cpæð. J f Boet. lib. i. metrum 6.-Cum Phœbi radiis grave, &c. g Boet. lib. i. prosa 6.-Primum igitur paterisne, &c. 1 Cott. giemelieste. 2 Bod. pinne.

3 Bod. buta.

4 Bod. pæne. 8 Cott.

5 Cott. no. 6 Bod. gephtpa heahretla. 7 Bod. fopbent.

bat ir bin.

9 Cott. poonpynd.

13 Cott. tud.

16 Cott. Spygum.

12 Cott. þinne.
ælτæne.
on medde pintep.

19 Bod. þın.

10 Cott. rpa. 11 Cott. get gerenze. 14 Cott. untidlice ongýnð. 15 Bod. 17 Cott. bloreman. 18 Bod. ppingan 21 Cott. hponon.

20 Cott. bonan.

man lead thee into error, except thyself, through thine own negligence. Nor could any one thus believe it of thee, when thou wouldest call to mind, of what families thou wast, and of what citizens, as to the world: or again, spiritually, of what society thou wast in thy mind, and in thy reason: that is that thou art one of the just, and of those who will rightly, who are the citizens of the heavenly Jerusalem. Thence no one was ever driven against his own will, that is from his right will. Wheresoever he might be, he had this always with him; when he had this with him, wheresoever he might be, he was with his own kin, and with his own citizens, in his own land, when he was in the company of the just. Whosoever, then, is worthy of this, that he may be in their service, he is in the highest freedom. I shun not this inferior, and this unclean place, if I find thee well instructed. I am not desirous of walls wrought with glass, or of thrones ornamented with gold and with jewels; nor am I so desirous of books written with gold, as I am desirous of a right will in thee. I seek not here books, but that which books are profitable for, that I may make thy mind perfectly right. Thou complainedest of evil fortune, both on account of the height of unjust power, and on account of my meanness and dishonour; and also on account of the uncontrolled license of the wicked, with respect to these worldly goods. But as very great trouble has now come upon thee, both from thine anger and from thy sorrow, I may not yet answer thee, before the time for it arrives.

§ II. For whatsoever any one begins out of season, has no good end. When the sun's brightness in the month of August hottest shines; then does he foolishly, who will at that time sow any seed in the dry furrows. So also does he, who will seek flowers in the storms of winter. Nor canst thou press wine at mid-winter, though thou be desirous of warm must.

§ III. Then spake Wisdom, and said: May I now inquire a little concerning the fixedness of thy mind, that I may thereby discover whence and how I may effect thy cure? Then answered the Mind, and said: Inquire as thou wilt.