ANCRENE WISSE, PART TWO: FOOTNOTES

1 Her biginneth . . . the fif wittes, Here begins the second part, concerning the heart's guarding (i.e., protecting the heart) through the five senses (lit., wits).

2 Omni custodia . . . procedit, "With all watchfulness preserve your heart, for from it life comes forth" (Proverbs 4:23).

2-4 With alles cunnes . . . wel i-loket, "With all watchfulness (lit., watchfulness of every kind), protect well your heart, for the soul's life is in her (i.e., the heart)" - if she is well looked after.

4-5 The heorte wardeins . . . euch limes felunge, The heart's guardians are the five senses: sight, and hearing, tasting, and smelling, and each limb's feeling (i.e., touch).

5-7 Ant we schulen . . . his sawle heale, And we shall speak of all [of them], for whosoever guards (wit = reduced form of witeth) these well, he does Solomon's commandment: he guards well his heart and his soul's well-being (or, salvation).

7 The heorte is a . . . moni liht lupe, The heart is a very wild beast and makes many a wanton leap.

8 Nichil corde fugatius, "Nothing is more fleeting than the heart" (Gregory, Pastoral Care, 3.14); "Na thing ne etflith . . . heorte," "Nothing flees from a person sooner than his own heart."

9 Davith (spelled Davið in Corpus), Godes prophete . . . etsteart him, David, God's prophet, complained at a certain time that she (i.e., the heart) had started away from him.

9-10 Cor meum dereliquit me, "My heart has abandoned me" (Psalm 39:13).

10 is edflohe me, has escaped (lit., fled away from) me.

10-11 eft he blisseth him . . . i-cumen ham, again he rejoices (reflex.) and says that she had come home.

11 Invenit . . . suum, "Your servant has found his heart" (2 Samuel 7:27).

11-12 Laverd . . . habbe i-funden, "Lord," he says, "my heart has come back again. I have found her."

12-13 Hwen-se . . . carien, When a man so holy, so wise, and so vigilant allowed her to escape, another (i.e., an average person) may worry intensely about her (i.e., the heart's) flight.

13-14 Ant hwer edbrec ha ut . . . Hwer? And where did she break out from David the holy king, God's prophet? Where?

14-15 Godd wat . . . as ye schulen efter i-heren, God knows, at his eye-hole (i.e., the window of his eye), through a sight that he saw through an [act of] beholding, as you will hear after[wards] (i.e., in a moment).

16 For-thi mine leove sustren . . . ower thurles, Therefore, my dear sisters love your windows (lit., holes) as little as you possibly can, (lit., the least that you ever may).

16-17 Alle beon . . . nearewest, [Let them] all be small, [and let] the parlor's [window be the] least (i.e., smallest) and narrowest.

17-20 The clath in ham . . . gleames of his grace, Let the cloth in them be of two kinds (lit., twofold): the cloth black, the cross white within and without (i.e., inside and outside). The black cloth symbolizes that you are black and worthless to the world outside (lit., without), that the (te = reduced form of the) true sun has charred you on the outside and has thus made you unlovely on the outside as you are, through the gleams of His grace.

21 The hwite cros limpeth to ow . . . blac ant hwit, The white cross relates to you, for [there] are three crosses: red and black and white.

21-23 The reade limpeth . . . the martirs weren, The red [cross] relates to those who are, for God's love, made ruddy and reddened with the shedding of their blood (lit., with their bloodshedding), as the martyrs were.

23-24 The blake cros . . . for ladliche sunnen, The black cross relates to those who make in the world their penance for loathsome sins.

24-25 The hwite limpeth . . . to understonden, The white [cross] relates rightly to white virginity (lit., maidenhead) and to chastity, which is much pain (or, trouble) to hold well. Pain (i.e., hardship) is everywhere through [the symbol of the] cross to be understood (lit., made to be understood [passive inf.]).

26 Thus bitacneth hwit cros . . . to biwitene, Thus the white cross symbolizes the protection of white chastity, which is a great pain (or, hardship) to protect well.

27-29 The blake clath alswa . . . for other-hwet, The black cloth also, besides [its] symbolism, does less harm to the eyes and is thicker against the wind and harder (lit., worse) to see through and holds (halt = reduced form of haldeth) its color better against (lit., before) wind and against other things (lit., other what).

29-31 Lokith thet . . . se heo is ute, Look that the curtain (lit., cloth) in the parlor be always on both sides secured and well attached, and defend there your eyes lest the heart escape and go out, as with David, and [lest] your soul sicken as soon as she (i.e., the heart) is out (i.e., gone).

31-34 Ich write muchel . . . uncundeliche makieth, I write much for others that not at all touches you, my dear sisters, for you do not have the name (or, reputation) - nor will [you] have, through the grace of God! - of peeper-anchoresses, nor of [making] enticing looks, or expressions which some at times make - alas! - unnaturally.

34-35 For ayein cunde . . . thurh sunne, For it is against nature and an incredibly strange wonder (lit., immeasurably marvelous wonder), that the dead [should] dote (or, become silly) and go mad with living world-men (i.e., men living in the world) through sin.

36 "Me leove sire . . . ut-wart?" "But dear sir," says some[ne] "and is it so over (i.e., completely, excessively) evil to gaze outward?"

36-39 Ye hit, leove suster . . . to werien ham with, Yes it [is], dear sister, for the evil which comes from it (lit., there-of), it is evil and excessively evil to each [and] every anchoress, namely to the young, and to the old for the reason that they give to the younger [ones] a bad example and a shield (i.e., an excuse) to defend themselves with.

39-41 For yef ei edwit ham . . . hwet ha haveth to donne, For if anyone criticize them, then they say at once (lit., anon), "But sir, she does [it] also, who is better than I am and knows better than I what she has (i.e., ought) to do."

41 Leove yunge ancre . . . ful wac cnif! My dear young anchoress, often a very expert smith forges (lit., smiths) a very shoddy (lit., weak) knife!

42 The wise folhe . . . i folie, Follow (imper.) the wise in wisdom, and not in folly.

42-43 An ald ancre . . . ne mei ower nowther, An old anchoress may do well that which you do inappropriately (lit., evilly). But to gaze out without evil can neither of you do.

43-44 Nim nu yeme . . . of totunge, Pay (lit., take) attention now what evil has come from gazing (or, looking).

44-45 Nawt an uvel . . . lo her preove, Not one evil, nor two, but all the woe that now is and ever yet was, and ever shall be - all [of it] came from sight. That it be true, lo, here [is the] proof.

46-47 Lucifer, thurh thet he seh . . . eatelich deovel, Lucifer, because he saw and beheld in himself his own fairness (or, beauty), leapt into pride and from an angel became a horrible devil.

47-48 Of Eve, ure alde moder . . . of hire eh-sihthe, Of Eve, our ancient mother, [it] is written, [that] first of all sin entered into her from her eyesight.

48-50 Vidit igitur . . . viro suo, "The woman, therefore, saw that the tree was good for eating and appealing to the eyes, delicious in aspect, and took of its fruit and ate it, and gave it to her husband" (Genesis 3:6).

50-52 Eve biheold . . . yef hire laverd, "Eve looked on the forbidden apple and saw it (lit., him; hine = old accusative form) [to be] fair and began to delight in the beholding (i.e., looking), and took her delight in it (lit., there toward), and took and ate of it, and gave [it] to her lord (i.e., husband).

52-53 Low, hu Hali Writ . . . hu sunne bigon, Look how Holy Writ speaks and how inwardly (i.e., insightfully) it tells how sin began.

53-54 Thus eode sihthe . . . al mon-cun i-feleth, So sight went before (i.e., ahead) and made way to evil desire, and [then] the deed came thereafter which all mankind [still] feels.

55 Thes eappel . . . ant delit of sunne, This apple, dear sister, symbolizes all the things which belong to (lit., fall to) desire and delight in sin.

56 Hwen thu bihaldest . . . o the eappel, When you look [on] a man (lit., the man) you are in Eve's state (or, situation) - you look on the apple.

56-58 Hwa-se hefde i-seid to Eve . . . o thi death! Whosoever had said to Eve, when she first cast her eye on it (lit., there-on), "O, Eve! Turn away (reflex.)! You cast an eye (i.e., you are looking on) your death!"

58-60 Hwet hefde ha i-ondsweret . . . nawt to bihalden, What [would] she have (lit., had) answered? "But dear sir, you are wrong (lit., have wrong). Of what do you accuse me? The apple that I look on is forbidden for me to eat, and not to behold (i.e., look on)."

60 Thus walde Eve . . . i-ondsweret, Thus would Eve readily enough have answered.

60-62 O mine leove sustren . . . thah ich loki on him? O my dear sisters, Eve (as not translated) has many daughters who follow their mother, who answer in this way: "But do you expect," says some[one], "that I will leap on him [even] though I [simply] look on him?"

62-63 Godd wat . . . wunder i-lomp, God knows, dear sister, stranger things have happened (lit., a greater wonder happened).

63-66 Eve, thi moder, leop . . . to death withuten ende, Eve, your mother, leapt after (i.e., according to) her eyes - from the eye to the apple in paradise, down to the earth, from the earth to hell, where she lay in prison four thousand years and more, she and her man (i.e., husband) both, and judged (i.e., condemned) all her offspring to leap all [together] after her to death without end.

66-67 Biginnunge ant rote . . . liht sihthe, The beginning and root of all this same sorrow was a careless (or, wanton) look.

67 Thus ofte . . . muchel waxeth, Thus, often, as is said (lit., as one says), from little grows much (i.e., great things come from small).

67-69 Habbe thenne muche dred . . . al the world overspreadde, Let each feeble woman, then, have much dread, when she who was right there (i.e., immediately, directly) wrought (i.e., made) with God's hands was deceived through a look and brought into broad (i.e., boundless) sin which spread over all the world.

70 Egressa est Dyna . . . cetera, "Dinah, the daughter of Jacob, went out that she might see the foreign women, and so on" (adapted from Genesis 34:1).

70-72 A meiden, Dyna het . . . biheold wepmen, "A maiden, named Dinah, Jacob's daughter," as it tells in Genesis, "went out to behold (or, look upon) unknown women" - yet it does not say that she beheld men (lit., males).

72-73 Ant hwet come . . . wes i-maket hore, What came, do you expect, of that beholding (i.e., looking)? She lost her maidenhead (i.e., virginity) and was made a whore.

73-76 Th'refter of thet ilke . . . utlahen i-makede, Afterwards from that same [act], oaths were broken by high patriarchs, and a great city burned down, and the king and his son, and the citizens (lit., burg-men) slain, the women led away [into captivity], her father and her brothers, as noble princes as they were, made outlaws.

76 Thus eode ut hire sihthe, Thus [it] went out from her sight (i.e., all this happened because of her looking).

76-77 Al thullich . . . of hare fol ehnen, All such [things] the Holy Ghost had (i.e., caused to be) written in the book in order to (lit., for to) warn women of their foolish eyes.

77-80 Ant nim ther-of yeme . . . sare hire unthonkes, Pay (lit., take) attention to this (lit., thereof), that this evil came from Dinah - not because (lit., of that) she saw Sichem, Hamor's son, whom she sinned with, but [it] happened (lit., did) because she let him lay eyes on her, for that which he did to her was in the beginning very much against her will (see unthonkes in glossary).

81-82 Alswa Bersabee . . . Godes prophete, Likewise Bathsheba, because she uncovered herself in David's sight, she made him sin with her, as holy a king as he was and God's prophet.

82-86 Nu kimeth forth a feble mon . . . for his wide sleven, Now comes forth a feeble man, thinks (lit., holds; halt = reduced form of haldeth) himself nevertheless substantial if he has a wide hood and a clasped cowl (i.e., is a friar), and wants to see young anchoresses, and [must] needs stare as a stone [to see] how her beauty pleases him, who has not burnt up her face in the sun, and says, she may boldly see holy men - indeed, such as he is, for his wide sleeves.

86-91 Me surquide sire . . . deadliche sunnen, But proud sir, have you not heard (lit., hear you not) that David, God's own darling, of whom he himself said "I have found a man according to my heart" (Acts 13:22) - "I have found," said he, "a man after my heart" - [have you not heard that] this [man] whom God himself declared (lit., said) with this precious pronouncement king and prophet, chosen over all, this [man] through a glance (lit., eye-throw) at a woman as she washed herself let out his heart and forgot himself, so that he committed (lit., did) three especially cardinal and deadly sins.

91-92 o Bersabees . . . Urie, hire laverd, 1) with (lit., on) Bathsheba, adultery - the lady that he looked on; 2) treason and 3) manslaughter on his loyal knight, Uriah, her lord (or, husband).

92-93 Ant tu, a sunful mon . . . up-o yung wummon! And you, a sinful man, are so very brave (lit., hardy) to cast foolish eyes upon young women!

93-94 Ye, mine leove sustren . . . leveth him the leasse, Indeed (lit., yea), my dear sisters, if any[one] is insistent to see you, never expect good of it (lit., there), but trust him the less.

94-95 Nulle ich . . . spetiale leave, I do not want any[one] to see you, unless he have from your director (or, teacher) special permission.

95-98 For alle the threo . . . fallen in sunne, For all the three sins which I spoke of last, and all the evil of Dinah that I spoke of above (lit., higher), all [of it] came not because the women looked foolishly on men (i.e., males), but // because they uncovered themselves in man's eye-sight and did (i.e., acted) whereby they might fall into sin.

99-100 For-thi wes i-haten . . . hit schulde yelden, Therefore, [it] was commanded in God's law that a pit was always [to be] covered, and if any were uncovered and a beast fell into it, he who uncovered the pit should pay for it (i.e., the beast).

101 swithe dredful word, a very terrifying word; thet schaweth hire to wepmones echne, who reveals herself to a man's eye.

101-03 Heo is bitacned . . . in his echye-sihthe, She is symbolized by the one (fem.) who uncovers the pit - the pit is her fair face, her white neck, her bright (or, wanton) eyes, [her] hand, if she holds [it] out in his eye-sight.

103-04 Yet beoth . . . the bet i-set, Even (lit., yet) her words are a pit, unless they are the better (i.e., very carefully) composed.

104-06 Al yet the feayeth hire . . . druncni in sunne, Still, everything to which she allies (lit., joins) herself, whatsoever it be, through which foolish love might the sooner awaken, all [of this] our Lord calls a "pit" - this pit, he commands that [it] be covered, [so] that a beast not fall in it and drown in sin.

107-09 Best is the beastlich mon . . . yef he hit open fint, The beast is the beastly man who does not think about God, nor [does he] use his mind (or, reason) as a person ought to do, but tries to fall in this pit that I spoke of, if he finds (fint = reduced form of findeth) it open.

109 Ach the dom . . . unlideth, But the judgment is very severe (lit., strong) for her who uncovers (lit., unlids) the pit.

109-12 For heo schal yelde . . . other yeld thenne hire-seolven, For she must pay for the beast which has fallen in it: she is guilty of his death before our Lord and must answer for his soul on Doomsday, and pay for the beast's loss when she does not have [any] other payment than herself.

112 Strong yeld is her mid alle! Here is a severe payment indeed!

112-13 Godes dom is . . . thet hit adrong inne, God's judgment and His command is that she pay for it always (i.e., forever) because she uncovered the pit which it drowned in.

114-15 Thu . . . swithe, You (sing.) who uncover this pit, you who do any thing through which a man is by you bodily (i.e., carnally) tempted - though you do not know it - dread (imper.) this judgment very much.

115-18 Ant yef he is i-fonded . . . beo al siker of the dom, And if he is tempted so that he sin mortally in any way - though it is not with you but with desire toward you, or if he seeks to fulfill on some other [woman] the temptation which arose (lit., awoke) from you, through your deed - be (imper.) completely sure (i.e., you can be sure) of the judgment.

118-19 Thu schalt yelde the best . . . acorien his sunne, You must pay for the beast because of the opening of the pit (lit., pit's opening), and unless you are confessed of that (lit., thereof), [you must] pay for his sin.

119-20 Hund wule in . . . fint open, A dog will [blunder] happily into whatever he finds open (lit., A dog will [go] in blithely wheresoever he finds [it] open) (fint = reduced form of findeth).

121 Inpudicus . . . est nuncius (Augustinus), "A lewd eye is the messenger of a lewd heart" (from the Augustinian Rule, based on a letter of Augustine, Letters, 211).

121-22 "Thet the muth . . . heorte," "What the mouth cannot [speak] for shame, the wanton eye speaks it, and is as a message bearer of the wanton heart."

123-24 Ach nu is sum wummon . . . of hire i-fondet, But now [here] is some woman who would not for any thing desire filth with a man, and nevertheless she might not be concerned (rochte = past subj.) though he thought about her and would be (lit., were) tempted by her.

124-25 Ant nu deth Sein Austin . . . beon i-wilned, And now St. Augustine makes (lit., does) both these two into a couple: "to desire and to have the urge (lit., will) to be desired."

125-26 Non solum . . . criminosum, "Not only to desire but to want to be desired [is] criminal" (from the Augustinian Rule, based on a letter of Augustine, Letters, 211).

126-27 "Yirni mon . . . is haved sunne," "To yearn [for a] man or to have the desire to be yearned for by a man, both are (lit., is) a capital sin."

127 Oculi . . . adultere, "The eyes are the first darts of the adulteress" (Hugh of Folieto, Concerning the Enclosed Spirit 1.4).

127-28 "The echnen . . . of lecheries prickes," "The eyes are the first arrows of lechery's pricks."

128-32 Alswa ase men worreth . . . thet is, Godes spuse, Just as men war (i.e., make war) with three kinds of weapons (with shooting, and with spear's point, and with sword's edge), just so with those weapons (that is, with shot of eye, with spear of wounding word, with sword of deadly hand) lechery, the stinking whore, wars (i.e., makes war) upon the lady's chastity, who is God's spouse (or, bride).

132-34 Earest scheot the arewen . . . yeveth speres wunde, First [lechery] shoots (scheot = reduced form of scheoteth) the arrows from the wanton eyes, which fly lightly forth as a shaft which is feathered and sticks in the heart (ther = inflected def. art.); afterwards, [she] shakes her spear and closes in (lit., approaches) upon her, and with an agitating (lit., shaking) word, gives the wound of the spear.

135-37 Sweordes dunt [is] . . . other i-fele other, A sword's blow - that is, [human] touching - comes straight down (lit., is downright), for a sword smites from near-by and gives death's blow; and it is, alas, nearly finished (lit., done) for those who come so close together, who either handle [each] other or touch (lit., feel) each other.

137-38 Hwa-se is wis . . . wite hire echnen, Whosoever is wise and innocent, [should] protect herself against the shot (or, blow) - that is, protect her eyes.

138-39 For al thet uvel . . . of th'echne arewen, For all that evil comes afterwards from the eye's arrows.

139-40 Ant nis ha muche chang . . . assailleth the castel? And is not she very crazy or too foolhardy who holds (hald = reduced form of haldeth) her head boldly out of the open battlement while people assail the castle from the outside with blunt-headed arrows?

140-42 Sikerliche ure fa . . . beoth hire hus-thurles, Surely our foe, the warrior of hell, he shoots (scheot = reduced form of scheoteth), as I expect, more bolts at an anchoress than at fifty-seven ladies in the world: the battlements of the castle are her house-windows (lit., -holes).

143-44 Bernardus: sicut mors . . . in mentem, Bernard: "As death [entered] through sin into the world, so through these windows (i.e., the eyes) it enters into the mind" (Bernard, The Steps of Humility and Pride 10.28).

144 com, came; thorch sunne, through sin.

144-45 asswa death . . . saule, just so death through these eye-holes (i.e., windows or, eyes) has entrance into the soul.

145 Laverd, Lord.

145-47 men walden . . . death of saule! men would block up securely each window (lit., hole) in their house provided they could shut out death from there (lit., there-out), and an anchoress does not [even] want to shut her window "pane" (lit., eil-thurl "pain-hole," a pun on ei-thurl "eye-hole or window" - approximated here by a pun on pane/pain) against the death of the soul!

147-48 Ant mid good richt . . . to moni ancre, And with good right they may be called "panes" (lit., pain-holes) for they have done much pain to many an anchoress.

149 [Al holi writ . . . of eie], All Holy Writ is full of warning[s] about the eye.

149-50 David: averte oculos . . . vanitatem, David: "Turn away my eyes, lest they see vanity" (Psalm 118:37).

150 "Laverd . . . from the worldes dweole," "Lord," he says, David, "turn away my eyes from the world's error (or, folly)."

151 Job: pepigi fedus . . . de virgine, Job: "I have made a pact with my eyes, lest I think of a maiden" (Job 31:1).

151-52 "Ich'abbe . . . misthenche," "I have made an agreement," says Job, "with my eyes that I not misthink (i.e., think wrongly)."

152-53 Hu dele! . . . mid echye? Hey, look! Does one think with the eye?

153-54 God hit wat . . . ther-efter the dede, God knows (lit., God knows it), he says well, for after the eye comes the thought and after that the deed.

154-55 Thet wiste wel Jeremie . . . i-robbed al min saule, Jeremiah knew that well, who lamented (lit., moaned): "Alas!" he says, "my eye has robbed all my soul" (Lamentations 3:51).

155-57 Hwenne Godes prophete . . . sorege of heore echye? When God's prophet made such a lament (lit., moan) about the eye, what kind of lament [is it], do you expect, that has come to many a man and woman - sorrow from their eyes?

157-58 The wise askith . . . deth hire echye, The wise ask (i.e., Solomon, here believed to be the writer of Ecclesiasticus) whether any thing harms a woman more than does her eye.

158 Oculo quid nequius . . . faciet quoniam vidit, "What is more evil than the eye? It will cause the entire face to weep since it has seen [something]" (Ecclesiasticus 31:15).

158-59 "Al the leor . . . the ehe-sichthe ane," "All the face," he says, "will (or, must) flow with tears, because of the eyesight alone."

159-60 This is nu of this wit . . . her-of more, This is now enough said about this sense to warn the innocent. We shall nevertheless soon hereafter speak more of this (lit., here of).

161-72 Ore pur ceo . . . qi regarde la . . . , Now therefore, all the openings of all your windows, just as they have been closed to the view of men before, so they should be closed hereafter. And if they can be the more securely [closed], [then let them] be the more securely closed. The general rule is, all those who close them well, God [will] protect them well. And all those who . . . so that they sin . . . fall likewise . . . to sin either with the foolish eye, or with the mouth, or with the hand and . . . these with more and many such things, disgraceful and unnatural for an anchoress above all. They never would have happened, if she had firmly blocked her window. And if anyone contradicts this, I call her conscience itself in testimony against her, that [should] she linger at her window with eye, or mouth, or [should she] receive a hand or a foolish word, she is falsely bedecked and painted with false holiness. Oh, treacherous traitor! "God, I would not do it to you for any evil, nor for any filthiness," says he or she [as an excuse]. But these very people dirty themselves, and their accursed eyes enrage God, who sees the . . .

172 traisun in-with the gale heorte, treason (or, betrayal) within the bitter heart.

172-74 Nawt ane euch fleschlich hondlunge . . . bitweone mon ant ancre, Not only each carnal touching, but also each bitter word is loathsome (or, hateful) villainy and worthy of God's wrath, [even] though it does not grow (i.e., proceed) [any] further between man and anchoress.

174-75 Nu, thurh riht . . . into thet fule sunne, Now, by God's just vengeance, it goes further and further and often turns (lit., becomes) - and before one least expects - into that foul sin (or: Now, by right, God's vengeance [will come], [should] it go further and further . . .).

175-76 We hit habbeth . . . inohe, We have, alas, heard of it [often] enough.

176-77 Ne leve na-mon . . . hire-seolven, [Let] no one trust an anchoress who lets in man's eye to reveal herself.

177-78 Over al thet ye habbeth . . . best i-halden, Above all that you have written in your rule of external things, this point - this clause (i.e., item in a rule) of being well enclosed - I wish to be best kept.

178-79 To wummon . . . o Godes half, To a woman who desires it, reveal (lit., open) yourself, for God's sake (i.e., by all means).

179-80 Yef ha ne speketh nawt th'rof . . . beo i-scandlet, If she does not speak of it (i.e., ask you to open up), let it be, unless you fear that she be scandalized (see glossary) afterwards.

180-81 Of hire ahne suster . . . i-temptet, By her own sister has an anchoress (lit., some) [sometimes] been tempted.

181 In toward ower weoved . . . bihalden, Do not offer (i.e., invite) any man to look in toward your altar.

181-83 Ah yef his devotiun . . . hete-veste, But if his devotion asks it (bit = reduced form of biddeth) and gains permission (i.e., you allow it), draw yourself well inward and [draw] the veil down toward your breast, and immediately [afterwards] replace (lit., do) the cloth (i.e., curtain) again and fasten [it] quickly.

183-85 Yef he loketh toward bed . . . haldeth ow stille, If he looks toward [your] bed or asks where you lie [down], answer quickly (lit., lightly), "Sir, I am fortunate with respect to that" (lit., "[it] may prosper well with respect to that"; White: "I am well provided for in that"), and hold (or, keep) yourself still.

185-87 Yef bisch[o]p kimeth . . . ant doth to alle othre, If the bishop comes to see you, hasten (lit., hie) immediately towards him, but sweetly beseech him, if he asks to see you, that you may, with respect to that, hold yourself (i.e., behave) towards him as you have done and [continue to] do to all others.

187-88 Yef he wule allegate . . . draheth ow bihinden, If he wants nevertheless to have a look, see that it be very short - [pull] the veil down soon, and draw yourself behind (i.e., well back).

188-90 An ancre wearnde . . . to nan other, An anchoress humbly denied St. Martin the sight of her (lit., her sight), and he therefore did her the honor that he never did to any other.

190-91 Ant her-vore . . . Hali Chirche, And for this reason (lit., here-for), her word (or, reputation) is up to the present day (lit., until come this day) preserved in Holy Church.

191-92 For as we redeth of hire . . . with the gode, For as we read of her, "whosoever wishes to protect her windows well against evil (lit., the evil), she must also [protect it] against the good" (Sulpicius Severus, Dialogues II.12).

192-93 Hwen-se ye moten . . . ne his in, Whenever (lit., when so) you must give (lit., entrust) anything to any man, [do not let] the hand come out [of the window] - neither yours out nor his in.

193-94 Ant yef hit mot cumen in . . . nowther other, And if it must come in, [let] neither touch the other.

194-95 "Heo is siker . . . schal fallen," "She is safe," says Holy Writ, "who draws herself far [away] from snares, and (i.e., but) she who loves peril, in[to] peril she will fall."

195-96 Qui caret laqueis . . . in illud, "Whoever watches out for snares is safe," (Proverbs 11:5, paraphrased) "and whoever loves danger shall fall into it" (Ecclesiasticus 3:27).

196-97 The deofles grune . . . least weneth, The devil's snare is often spread (i.e., set) where one least expects.

197-98 Nis nan thet nis dredful . . . with him hire-seolven, There is not anyone (lit., none) who is not fearful that will not be caught (i.e., whoever feels safe will be caught), for God does not want to protect anyone (lit., none) who is so foolhardy that she does not warily protect herself against him (i.e., the devil, or his snare).

198-99 This is nu of this wit . . . then seli, This is now enough said about this sense at this time to warn the innocent.

199 We schulen thah . . . her-of mare, We will nevertheless soon hereafter speak of this (lit., hereof) more.

200-02 Spellunge ant smechunge . . . togederes, Talking and tasting are both in the mouth as sight is in the eye, but we shall leave taste until we speak of your food, and speak now about talking, and thereafter about hearing, about both together at a certain time (White: in due course), since they go together.

203-04 On alre earst . . . thet beo i-cumen, First of all, when you must [go] to your parlor's window find out (lit., know; imper.) from your servant (lit., maiden) who it is that has come.

204 For swuch hit mei beon . . . essinien ow, For it may be such [a person] that you must excuse yourself.

204-06 Hwen ye alles moten forth . . . mid Godes dred, When you must [come] forth (i.e., appear) at all, cross very carefully mouth, eyes and ears, and the breast as well, and go forth with God's dread (i.e., the fear of God).

206-07 To preost on earst . . . ah to seggen, To the priest [say] at first "I confess," and after that [comes] "Let us bless [the Lord]" - which he ought to say.

207-09 Hercnith hise wordes . . . lastin ne preisin, Listen to his words and keep yourself completely still, so that when he parts from you he does not know of your good or of your evil either, nor does [he] know [enough] to either blame or praise you.

209-12 Sum is se wel i-learet . . . with wise i-cuththet ant i-cnawen, A certain one (lit., some) is so well taught or so gifted with words (lit., so wisely worded), that she would [that] he knew it, who sits (sit contracted form of sitteth) and speaks to her, and pays him word for word, and is deformed (or, transformed) into a teacher (or, scholar) who should be an anchoress, and teaches him who has come to (lit., for to) teach her, would by her speech be immediately acknowledged and known [to be] among the wise.

212-14 I-cnawen ha is . . . kecheth lastunge, Known she is, for by that very [behavior for] which she expects to be held wise, he (i.e., the priest) understands (understont = reduced form of understondeth) that she is foolish, for she hunts after respect and catches blame.

214-15 For ed te alre leaste . . . muche speche, For in the end (lit., at the last of all), when he has gone away, this anchoress, he will say, is a great talker (lit., of much speech).

215-17 Eve heold i parais . . . of hire forlorenesse, Eve held in paradise a long tale (or, conversation) with the serpent, told him all the lesson which God had read to her and Adam about the apple, and so the fiend through her words understood immediately her weakness and found a way to her for her damnation.

218 Ure Leafdi . . . wise, Our Lady acted (lit., did) in a completely other way.

218-19 Ne talde ha then engel . . . thet ha ne cuthe, She held no conversation with the angel (lit., told no tale), but asked him shortly the things which she did not know.

219-20 Ye, mine leove sustren . . . te cakele Eve, Indeed, my dear sisters, follow our Lady and not the cackling Eve.

220-21 For-thi, ancre . . . henne cunde, Therefore, an anchoress, whatsoever she be, as (lit., how) much as ever she can, [should] keep herself still, and [should] not have a hen's nature.

221-22 The hen, hwen ha haveth i-leid . . . biyet ha th'rof? The hen, when she has laid, can [do nothing] but cackle, but what does she profit from that (lit., thereof)?

222-23 Kimeth the kaue . . . briddes, Immediately the crow (or, jackdaw - see glossary) comes and steals from her her eggs and gobbles from what should bring forth living birds.

223-25 Al riht alswa . . . nere i-cakelet, Exactly so, the fierce (or nimble - see note) devil steals (lit., bears away) from cackling anchoresses and swallows up all the good which they have brought forth, which should, like birds, bear them up towards heaven, if it were not cackled away.

226-27 The wrecche povre peoddere . . . i-seid her-efter, The wretched poor peddler - more racket he makes to cry up (i.e., advertise) his soap than the rich cloth merchant all his expensive (lit., precious) wares, as is said hereafter.

227-29 To sum gastelich mon . . . toyeines fondunges, From some spiritual (lit., ghostly) man whom you trust (lit., who you are trusty upon), since you may [trust] few, [it] is good that you ask (i.e., seek) advice and remedies which he [might] teach you against temptations.

229-31 Ant i schrift . . . ow in his bonen, And in confession show (imper.) him, if he wants to hear, your greatest (or, most wicked) and most hateful sins, to the end that he may pity you (lit., that [it may] grieve him for you) and through the pity inwardly cry to Christ for mercy for you and have you in his prayers.

231-32 Set multi veniunt . . . lupi rapaces, "For many shall come to you in sheep's clothing. Inside, however, they are ravening wolves" (Matthew 7:15).

232-34 "Ah witeth ow . . . wulves," "But protect yourselves]and be wary," he says, our Lord, "for many will come to you dressed with lambs' fleece and are maddened wolves."

234-35 Worltliche leveth . . . hare cuththunge, Trust (imper.) the worldly (i.e., secular) little, the religious still less, nor desire (imper.) too much their acquaintance.

235 neddre, serpent.

235-36 Ure Leafdi wes offearet, Our Lady was frightened.

236-37 Ure freres prechurs . . . towart te wude lehe, Our preaching friars (i.e., the Dominicans) and friars minor (i.e., the Franciscans) are of such an order that all people might be amazed if any of them "turned an eye to the shelter of the wood" (an allusion to popular song - see explanatory note to 2.569-70).

238-39 For-thi . . . he parti Mea culpa, Therefore, at each time that any of them in charity comes to teach you and to comfort [you] in God, if he is a priest, say before he [de]parts, "The fault is mine" (formula of confession).

239-41 Ich schrive me . . . to mine schrift-feaderes, "I confess myself to you (lit., thee), that I, as I fear, never was completely repentant for my greatest sins that I have shown to my confessors (lit., confession-fathers)."

241-43 Ant tah min entente . . . ant nempnin, "And though my intent is to atone for them in this, I do it so poorly and sin in other [matters] daily since I was last confessed, and that was then, and with that [person]" - and name (i.e., give the name).

243-45 Ich habbe thus . . . th'rof, "I have sinned thus." And say in what way, as it is written for you in your book of confession, toward the end of it.

245 aleast, at last, at the end; "This ant muche mare, Confiteor," "This and much more, 'I confess.'"

245-46 bide him undervo . . . his god, and ask him to accept you specially into his good [will].

246-47 ant thonke him . . . for the, and thank him for his stopping by (lit., turning in) and beseech him in the end to greet this [person] and that, and that they [should] pray for you.

248 other of wepmon . . . i-heren, or of a man who can hear you.

248-49 ne speoke ye . . . schrift, do not speak with any man (or, anyone) often or long, even though it is concerning confession.

249-50 Allegate i the ilke hus . . . trukie, Always in the same house, or where he can look toward you, let the third [one] sit, except if another place is lacking for this aforementioned third [person].

251-53 This nis nawt . . . witnesse, This is not said for you, dear sisters, nor for others such [as you are]; nevertheless, the faithful [person] is often mistrusted and the faultless lied about, as Joseph [was] in Genesis by the bitter lady, for lack of witness.

253-54 Me leveth . . . gode, People believe the bad immediately (or, evil is believed immediately), and the wicked happily lie about the good.

254-55 Sum unseli haveth . . . nomeliche, A certain unhappy one has, when she said she confessed herself, confessed herself in a very strange way indeed. Therefore, the good ought to have a witness always - for two reasons particularly.

255-58 The an is . . . seide, The first (lit., one) is that the envious cannot lie about them without the witness proving them false (lit., so that the witness would not prove them false). The second is to give the others an example and to deprive the evil anchoress of that same unholy guile that I spoke of (see gloss to 2.36-39 above).

259-61 Ut thurh . . . twa thurles, Out through the church window (i.e., the window facing into the church) hold no conversation with anyone (or, any man), but show honor to it for the holy sacrament which you see through it, and use (lit., take) sometimes the house's window for your women, and for other [people] the parlor [window]. You ought not to speak except at these two windows.

262 Silence eaver . . . over alle, Silence always at meals (lit., at the food). If other religious (i.e., those in orders) do it, as you know, you ought to above all.

263 Yef ei haveth . . . feire, If anyone has a cherished guest, let her have her maidens, as if in her place, entertain her fairly.

263-65 Ant heo schal . . . chere, And she will have permission to unblock her window once or twice and make signs toward her (i.e., the guest) of a fair welcoming.

265-66 Summes curteisie . . . bitweonen, The courtesy of an anchoress (lit., some) is [sometimes] turned to evil for her. Under the semblance of good is a sin often covered. There ought to be much [difference] between an anchoress and a lady of a house.

267 bute hit beo duble feaste, unless it be a double feast; tenne, then (= reduced form of thenne after preceding -t).

268 Advenz, Advent [time]; Umbri-wiken, Ember weeks; lenten, Lent.

268-69 threo dahes, three days.

269 swiing-wike, holy week (i.e., the week before Easter - lit., silence week); athet non . . . even, until Nones on Easter evening.

269-71 To ower . . . easkunges, To your women you may nevertheless tell with a few words whatever you want. If any good man has come from afar, hear his speech and answer with a few words to his questionings.

272-73 Muche fol . . . the hweate, He would be a great fool [indeed] who might for his good grind [either] chaff or wheat, whichever he wanted, if he would grind the chaff and leave the wheat.

274-75 Heo grint . . . cleappe, She who chatters grinds chaff (grint = reduced form of grindeth). The two cheeks are the two grindstones. The tongue is the clapper.

275-77 Lokith, leove . . . speche, Look [to it], dear sisters, that your cheeks never grind [anything] but soul's food, nor your ear ever drink [anything] but the soul's health, and not only your ear, but close [also] your eye-window (i.e., the window of your eye) against idle speech.

277-78 To ow . . . worlde, Let no tale come to you, nor news of the world.

279-80 Ye ne schule . . . wise, You should not for any reason curse or swear, unless you say "certainly" or "surely," or [speak] in some other such way.

280-81 Ne preachi . . . preachin, Do not preach to any man (or, anyone), nor [should] a man ask you for]counsel or tell [it] to you. Advise women only. St. Paul forbade women to preach.

282 Mulieres non . . . docere, "I do not allow women to teach" (1 Timothy 2:12).

282-83 Na wepmon . . . over-cuthre, Do not chastise any man nor reproach him for his fault unless he be to you entirely more familiar (lit, more over-known).

283-84 Halie alde ancres . . . yunge, Holy old anchoresses may do [it] in some way, but it is not a certain thing, nor does it belong to the young.

284-85 Hit is hare meoster . . . larewes, It is their job who are set over others and have [the duty] to guard them as Holy Church's teachers.

285-86 Ancre naveth . . . othres, An anchoress has nothing [to do] but to watch out for herself and her servants. Let each keep her own job and not steal it from others.

286-89 Moni weneth to do wel . . . muche weorre, Many [a person] thinks to do well who does everything marvelously wrong, for as I said before, under the semblant of good, sin is often hidden. By such correction (i.e., of men) many an anchoress (lit., some anchoress) has [sometimes] raised up between herself and her priest either a deceptive (or, treacherous) love or a great war.

290 Seneca . . . pauciloquas, Seneca: "Foremost I want you to be seldom of speech, and [even] then of few words" (untraced).

291 ich chulle, I wish, desire.

292-94 Moni punt . . . hare cleappe, Many dam up their words (punt = reduced form of pundeth) to let more out [later], as one does water at a mill. So did Job's friends who had come to comfort him, sat still [for a] week (lit., seven nights), but when they had began to speak everything, then they could never shut their traps (lit., stop their clapper[s]).

294-95 Gregorius: Censura . . . verbi, Gregory: "The severity of silence is a nourisher of words" (Gregory, Homilies on Ezechiel 1.11 -commenting on Ezechiel 3:16 [PL 76.907]).

295-96 Swa hit is . . . chaffle, So it is with many, as St. Gregory says, "Silence is the fosterer (or, nurse) of words and brings forth chattering."

296 On other half, On the other side.

296-97 Juge silentium . . . meditari, "Perpetual silence compels one to meditate on celestial things" (Gregory, Letters 28.3).

297-98 "Long silence . . . heovene," "Long and well-directed silence forces thoughts up towards heaven."

298-302 Alswa as ye mahe seon . . . chaffle, Just as you can see water when one dams it (punt = reduced form of pundeth) and stops it in front of the well[head], so that it cannot [go] downward, then is it forced to climb again upwards - so (lit., and) you, completely this way dam up (imper.) your words, stop up your thoughts, as you wish that they may climb and rise towards heaven, and not fall downward and float away through the world as much chattering does.

302-03 Hwen ye nede moten . . . adun sone, When you needs must, loosen up your mouth's flood-gates a little bit, as one does at the mill, and let [it] down immediately.

304 Ma sleath . . . sweord, The word slays more than the sword; Mors . . . lingue, "Death and life [are] in the hands of the tongue" (Proverbs 18:21).

305 i tunge honden, in the tongue's hands; Qui custodit os suum . . . suam, "He who guards his mouth, guards his soul" (Proverbs 13:3).

305-06 Hwa-se witeth, Whoever protects.

306-08 Sicut urbs patens . . . mentis, "As a city open and lacking a circuit of walls, in this way, so . . . ," etc. (Proverbs 25:28); "Whoever does not have the wall of silence, opens the city of his mind to the darts of the enemy" (Gregory, Pastoral Care 3.14).

308-09 Hwa-se ne withhalt . . . over al, "Whosoever does not withhold his words," says Solomon the wise, "he is as the castle without a wall which an army may [enter] from any side (lit., over all)."

309 feond, enemy, fiend; mid his ferd, with his army; wend, goes (reduced form of wendeth).

310 thurh-ut te tutel . . . open, throughout the gate which is always open;Vitas Patrum, The Lives of the [Desert] Fathers; hit teleth thet, it tells what.

311 tha me preisede . . . speche, when one praised a group of brothers whom he had heard [to be] of much talk (i.e., very talkative).

311-13 Boni utique sunt . . . solvit, "They are by all means good, but their lodging has no door; whoever wants to goes in and unties the ass" (The Lives of the Desert Fathers 5.4).

313 ha beoth, they are.

313-14 ah hare wununge . . . asse, but their dwelling does not have any gate. Their mouths chatter continuously. Whosoever wants to, may go in and lead away their ass.

315 hare, their.

315-16 Si quis putat . . . religio, "If someone believes himself to be religious (or, professed), not restraining his tongue but leading his heart astray, his religion is empty" (James 1:26).

317 yef eni weneth, if anyone thinks; ne bridli nawt his tunge, does not bridle his tongue.

318 gileth, beguiles, tricks; swithe, very, exceedingly.

318-19 Bridel nis nawt ane, A bridle is not only.

319 ah sit sum . . . earen, but sits (sit = reduced form of sitteth) some up on [top of] the eyes, and goes around the ears.

319-20 For alle threo . . . i-bridlet, For all three there is great need that they be bridled.

320-21 Ah i the muth . . . eornen, But the iron [bit] sits in the mouth (sit = reduced form of sitteth) and on the loose tongue, for there is greatest need for restraint when the tongue is in a trot (lit., run) and is about to (lit., has fallen into) run [wild].

322 thencheth, think, intend; hwen we foth on, when we begin (compare German anfangen).

322-24 for-te speoke . . . into monie, to speak few and well-framed words, but the tongue is slippery, because she wades in wetness and slides (slit = reduced form of slideth) carelessly away from few words into many.

324 Ant tenne, And then (= reduced form of thenne after preceding -t); In multiloquio . . . peccatum, "In talkativeness sin is not lacking" (Proverbs 10:19).

325 "Ne mei nawt muche speche . . . sunne," "Much speech may not" - [even if] it begins ever so well - "be without sin."

326 from soth . . . unimete, from truth it slides (slit = reduced form of slideth) to falsehood, out of good into some evil, from moderation (lit., measure) into excess (i.e., immoderation).

327 waxeth, grows; muche flod . . . sawle, a great flood which drowns the soul.

327-28 fleotinde word . . . heorte, wandering (lit., floating) word the heart floats away.

328-29 swa thet longe . . . togederes, so that long thereafter it (lit., she, the heart) cannot be rightly gathered together.

329-30 Et os nostrum . . . locutione, "And our mouth is further from God, the closer [it is] to the world; it is heard the less in prayer the more fully it is defiled in speech" (Gregory, Dialogues 3.15).

331 This beoth . . . Dyaloge, These are St. Gregory's words in his Dialogue; neh, nigh, near; worldlich, worldly.

332 ase feor he is . . . eani bone, just as far as it (lit., he, the mouth) is to God, when it speaks toward Him and asks (bit = reduced form of biddeth) Him any request.

332-35 For-thi is . . . chafle, Therefore [it] is that we cry out to Him often and He withdraws Himself away from our voice, does not want to hear her, for she stinks to Him of the world's chatter and of her prattle.

335-36 Hwa-se wule thenne . . . hire i-here, Whosoever wants then that God's ear be near to her tongue, [should] withdraw herself from the world, else she may long cry out before God hear her.

336 ant seith, and [God] says.

336-38 Cum extenderitis manus vestras . . . vos, "When you (pl.) extend your hands, I shall turn My eyes from you, and when you multiply your prayers, I shall not hear you" (Isaiah 1:15).

338-40 makien moni-falde . . . honden, though you make manifold (i.e., numerous) your requests towards Me, you who play with the world, I will not hear you, but I will turn Myself away when you lift up your hands high toward Me.

341 Ure deore-wurthe Leafdi, Our dear Lady.

341-43 the ah . . . mihte, who ought to all women to be an example, was of so little speech, that nowhere in Holy Writ do we find that she spoke but four times, but for such (lit., so) seldom speech, her words were heavy (i.e., weighty) and had much power.

343-46 Bernardus ad Mariam . . . divinum, Bernard to Mary: "In the eternal word of God we all are made and indeed we are dying. In your short answer we are to be remade so that we may be recalled to life. Give a word and receive a word; give yours and bring forth the divine" (Bernard, Concerning the Praises of the Virgin Mother 4.8).

346-47 Hire forme wordes . . . engel, Her first words that we read about were those [which] she answered to Gabriel the angel.

347-49 ant teo weren se mihtie . . . bicom mon, and they were so mighty, that when (lit., with that) she said, "Behold, [I am] the handservant of the Lord; let it be done to me according to your word" (Luke 1:38) - at this word - God's son and true God became man (i.e., human).

349-50 ant te Laverd . . . meidnes wombe, and the Lord which all the world could not grasp (or, seize), enclosed himself inside her virgin's womb (or, belly).

350-51 Hire othre wordes . . . mehe, Her second words were when she came and greeted Elizabeth, her kinswoman.

351 Ant hwet mihte . . . wordes? And what power was made known by these words?

352 thet a child . . . moder wombe, that a child began to play (or, move around) in answer to (lit., towards) them: that was St. John in his mother's womb.

353 Idem: Vox eius . . . in utero, The same [chapter]: "Her voice made John jump for joy in the womb" (loose rendering of Luke 1:44).

353-54 The thridde time . . . wine, The third time that she spoke, that was at the wedding [at Cana] and there (ter = reduced form of ther) through her request water was turned into wine.

355 tha ha hefde i-mist hire sune . . . i-funde, when she had missed her son and [had] found him again.

355-56 hu muche wunder . . . theose wordes! and how great a wonder followed these words!

356-57 Thet Godd almihti . . . ha walden, [It happened] that God almighty bowed to man, to Mary and Joseph, to a handworker (lit., smith) and to a woman, and followed them as theirs (i.e., as if He were theirs), wherever they wanted.

357-58 Neometh nu her yeme . . . muche strengthe, Now pay (lit., take) attention here and learn eagerly from this how infrequent (lit., seldom) speech has much strength.

359 Vir linguosus . . . terra, "A wordy man will not be set straight in this world" (Psalm 139:12).

359-60 "Feole i-wordet mon . . . eorthe," "A many worded man," says the Psalmist (lit., Psalm-wright), "will never lead an upright life on earth."

360-61 Dixi custodiam . . . lingua mea, "I said I shall keep my ways so that I shall not let down [my guard] with my tongue" (Psalm 38:2).

361 Ypallage, a rhetorical figure in which the attributes of one element are exchanged with those of another.

361-62 Ich chulle . . . warde, I will protect my ways with the guarding of the tongue.

362-63 Wite ich wel . . . heovene, [If] I protect my tongue well, I can hold well the way toward heaven.

363 Cultus justicie, silentium, "Silence is the cultivation of justice" (Isaiah 32:17).

363-64 tilunge of rihtwisnesse, cultivation (lit., tilling) of righteousness.

364 tileth hire, cultivates it (lit., her justice).

364-65 ant heo i-tilet . . . witneth, and she (i.e., justice), cultivated, brings forth the soul's eternal food, for she is immortal, as Solomon witnesses.

365 Justicia inmortalis est, "Justice is immortal" (Wisdom 1:15).

365-67 For-thi feieth Ysaie . . . strengthe, Therefore Isaiah joins hope and silence both together and says [that] in them will stand spiritual (lit., ghostly) strength.

367 In silentio . . . fortitudo vestra, "In silence and hope will be your strength" (Isaiah 30:15).

368-70 Neometh yeme . . . hire i-here, Pay (lit., take) attention how well he says [this], for whoever is very still and keeps silence for a long time, she may hope securely that when she speaks to God that He [will] hear her.

370 Ha mei ec hopien, She may also hope; sweteliche, sweetly.

371-72 This is nu . . . togederes, This is now the reason of the joining, why Isaiah joins hope and silence and couples both together.

372 Teke thet, he seith . . . auctorite, Besides that, he says in the same authority (i.e., book); ure, our.

373 toyein the deofles turnes ant his fondunges, against the devil's tricks and his temptations.

373-75 Ah lokith . . . drinketh, But look for what reason: hope is a sweet spice inside the heart which sweetens all the bitterness which the body drinks.

375 Ah hwa-se, But whoever.

375-78 ha schal tunen . . . strengthe, she must close her mouth, [so] that the sweet breath and strength of it remain within. But she who opens her mouth with much chattering and breaks [her] silence, she spits (spit = reduced form of spiteth) hope out entirely and the sweetness of it with worldly words, and loses spiritual strength against the fiend.

379-80 ant ine fondunges . . . mede, in [the midst of] temptations to endure pain, to wrestle stalwartly against the devil's blows, but hope of high reward?

380 halt te heorte hal, keeps the heart whole (or healthy).

380-81 hwet-se the flesch drehe . . . tobreke, whatever the body may suffer - as they say, "if there were not hope, the heart would break apart."

381 A, Jesu, thin are! Ah, Jesus, [give me] Thy mercy!

381-83 Hu stont ham . . . bersten? How does it go with them (lit., how stands [it to] them) who are where all woe and misery is without hope of escape (lit., out-com[ing]), and [whose] hearts cannot burst?

383-85 For-thi as ye wulleth halden . . . yeoniende tuteles, For this reason, as you want to hold within you hope and the sweet breath of that (lit., her hope) which gives power to the soul, chew her (i.e., hope) with mouth shut inside your heart, do not blow her out with chattering mouths, with yawning chops.

385-86 Non habeatis . . . prurientes, "Do not have itching tongue or ears" (Jerome, Letters 52.14).

386-88 nabben yicchinde . . . worltlich speche, do not have either an itching tongue or ears. That is to say, that you [should] not want either to speak, nor hear worldly speech.

388 Hider-to is i-seid . . . seltsene, Hitherto [up to this point] the topic has been (lit., is said) of your silence and how your speech must be seldom.

389 Contrariorum eadem est disciplina, "The same teaching is [made] of opposites."

389-90 Of silence ant of speche . . . togederes, Concerning silence and concerning speech [there] is but one teaching, and therefore in writing they run both together.

390-92 Nu we schulen sum-hwet speoken . . . ower thurles, Now we shall speak somewhat of your hearing of (i.e., listening to) evil speech, so that you shut your ears against it (lit., there against), and if need be, block your windows.

393 For al uvel speche, Before (i.e., in the presence of) all evil speech.

393-94 stoppith ower earen . . . atter, stop your ears and have disgust for the mouth that spews (or, vomits) out poison.

394 De omni verbo otioso, et cetera, "For every idle word, etc." (condensed reference to Matthew 12:36: "Every idle word which they may say, men will give an account of it on the Day of Judgment"); Uvel, Evil.

395 threo-fald, threefold; attri, ful, ant idel, venomous, foul, and idle (or, vain).

396-97 Idel is ant unnet . . . lustnede, Idle and useless is everything from which no good comes, and of such speech, says our Lord, each word will be reckoned, and justified (lit., given a reason), why the one said it and the other listened to it.

398 thah thet leaste . . . uveles, nevertheless the least evil of the three evils.

398-399 Hwet, hu thenne . . . wurste? What, how then will one give a reason for (or, justify) the worse? What, how for the worst?

399-400 Nawt ane thet . . . hercneth, Not only who speaks it, but who listens (lit., hearkens) to it.

400-01 Ful speche is . . . other-hwiles, Foul speech is for example about lechery and other filths that unwashed mouths speak sometimes.

401-02 Theose beoth . . . ancre riwle, Let all these be scraped out (i.e., erased) of the anchorite's rule.

402-03 The swuch fulthe . . . fustes, Whoever spits out such filth (spit = reduced form of spiteth) into any anchorite's ear, they should shut his mouth, not with sharp murmurings (i.e., useless words), but with hard fists.

404 Attri, Venemous; thweart-over . . . fikelunge, perverse (or, antagonistic) lying, backbiting and flattery.

405 thonc, thanks; ne rixleth nawt, does not reign, have sway.

405-07 Leasunge is se uvel thing . . . lihen, Lying is so evil a thing that St. Augustine says that [even] to shield your father from death, you should not lie.

407 Godd seolf . . . leas? God Himself says that He is truth, and what is more against the truth than a lie?

408 Diabolus mendax . . . ejus, "The devil is lying and the father of lies" (condensed from John 8:44).

408-10 The ilke thenne . . . nurrice, The same [one] then who stirs her tongue in lying, she makes of her tongue a cradle to the devil's child and rocks it attentively as its nurse.

411 fikelunge ant eggunge to don uvel, flattery and egging on (i.e., incitement) to do evil.

411-12 ne beoth nawt . . . stevene, are not a man's speech, but are the devil's blowings (i.e., breath) and his own voice.

412-13 Yef ha ahen . . . i-heren? If they ought to be far from all worldly men, what, how ought anchoresses to hate and shun them, [so] that they do not hear (or, listen to) them?

413-14 I-heren, ich segge . . . nawt ancre, I say "hear," for whoever speaks them, she is no anchoress.

414-15 Salomon: Si mordet . . . occulto, "If the serpent bites in silence, [he is] nothing less who tears down [a person] in secret" (Ecclesiastes 10:11).

415 neddre, serpent.

416 ant theo the speketh . . . betere, and she who speaks behind (i.e., in secret) what she does not wish [to speak] before (i.e., in the open) is not at all the better.

417 Herst tu . . . neddre? Do you hear how Solomon compares the backbiter to a stinging serpent?

417-18 Swa hit is . . . the tunge, So it is indeed she is the serpent's offspring, and she who speaks evil bears venom in the tongue.

419 "The fikelere . . . fikeleth," "The flatterer blinds a person whom he flatters against and puts a spike in his eye (him . . . i the ehe = "in his eye")."

419-20 Gregorius: Adulator . . . figit, Gregory: "A flatterer of someone when he has a word with him, [it is] as if he puts a pin (or, spike) in his eye" (Gregory, Moral Discourses on Job 14.52.61 [PL 75.1071]).

421 i Fridei, (i.e., when one ought to abstain from meat).

421-22 beaketh with his blake . . . helle, pecks with his black bill on living corpses as one that is the raven of the devil of hell.

422-23 Salomon: Noli esse . . . et cetera, Solomon: "Do not be at their banquets, etc., who gather meat to eat, etc." (Proverbs 23:20).

423-27 Yef he walde pilewin . . . ine Godd, If he wanted to strip and tear apart with his bill [only] rotted, stinking flesh, as is the raven's nature, that is, [if] he would say evil about no other but about those who utterly rot and stink in the filth of their sin, it would be less strange, but [he] lights upon living flesh, dismembers (lit., delimbs) and rips it apart - that is, speaks falsely about such [a one] who is alive in God.

427-28 He is to yiver . . . mid alle, He is too gluttonous a raven and too bold besides.

428-29 On other half . . . deovel of helle, On the other side (i.e., at the same time), pay attention to what two kinds of jobs (i.e., the two occupations with which) these two ministers (i.e., the flatterer and backbiter) serve their lord, the devil of hell.

429-30 Ful hit is . . . allegate, It is nasty to talk about, but nastier to be it, and so it [will] always be.

430-33 Ne videatur . . . detrahentem, Lest this moralization seem less decent [than it ought], one should recall that in Esdra (i.e., the book of the Bible also known as Nehemiah), Melchias, [the son of Rechab,] builds a gate [out] of shit (see 2 Esdras - i.e., Nehemiah - 3:14). But "Melchias" is interpreted [to mean] "North-west wind to the Lord"; "son of Rechab," that is (or, means) "of a gentle father." "For the north wind disperses the rains, and the sad face [disperses] the disparaging tongue" (Proverbs 25:23).

433-34 Ha beoth . . . gong-hus, They are this devil's toilet-men (lit., "going"-men) and are ever in his toilet house.

434 The fikeleres meoster . . . gong-thurl, The flatterer's job is to cover the toilet hole.

434-36 Thet he deth . . . ne stinketh, That he does as often as he with his flattery and praising hides [from a] man [his] sin, which nothing stinks nastier [than]. And he hides it and covers [it], so that he (i.e., the person flattered) does not smell it.

436-38 The bac-bitere unlideth . . . her-abuten, The backbiter uncovers it and opens that filth in such a way that it stinks widely (i.e., far and wide). Thus they are always employed (lit., busy) in this nasty occupation, and the one strives (or, competes) with the other in this (lit., here about).

438-39 Thulliche men stinketh . . . nahith, Such men stink of their stinking occupation and bring each place into a stink that they near (or, come near) to.

439-40 Ure Laverd schilde . . . ow neaver, [May] our Lord defend [you] (or, God forbid), [so] that the breath (te = reduced form of the) of their stinking throats [may] never come near you.

440-41 Other spechen fuleth . . . te heorte, Other [kinds of] speech corrupt, but these poison (or, envenom) both the ears and the heart.

441-43 Thet ye bet i-cnawen ham . . . beoth wurst, So that you know them better, if any [of them] comes toward you, look, here [are] their types (lit., molds). Flatters are of three kinds: the first are evil enough, the second are yet worse, the third though are the worst.

443-46 Ve illis qui . . . pervenit, "Woe unto those who place pillows [under the elbow and pillows under the head]," etc. (Ezekiel 13:18). "Woe unto those who call good evil and evil good, regarding light [as] darkness, and darkness light" (Isaiah 5:20). This of course holds true for backbiters and flatterers.

446-47 The forme . . . he beo, The first [kind of flatterer], if a man is good, praises him before himself (i.e., in his presence) and quickly makes him [out to be] even better than he is.

447-48 Ant yef . . . over-herunge, And if he speaks well or acts well, [he] exalts it too high up with over-praise.

448-50 The other . . . uvel leasse, The second [kind of flatterer], if a man is evil, and says and does so much wrong that it is so (i.e., such) an open sin that he cannot in any way deny it completely, he nevertheless in front of the man himself makes his evil [seem] less.

450-52 Nis hit nawt nu . . . feren, "Now, it is not," he says, "so excessively (lit., over) evil as people make it. You are not (nart = ne art) the first in this thing nor the last - you have many comrades."

452-53 Let i-wurthe . . . wurse, Let it be (i.e., do not worry), good man, you do not walk alone - many [a one] does much worse.

453-56 The thridde cunne . . . croppeth ofte, The third kind of flatterer is the worst, as I said, for he praises the evil [person] and his evil deed, just as [he] who says to the knight who robs his poor men, "Ah, Sir, (as untranslated) you do well (i.e., you are doing right), for one must rob (lit., pluck) and strip the peasant (thene = declined def. art.), for he is like the willow which sprouts out the better because (lit., that) one crops it often."

456-58 Laudatur peccator . . . in peccatis, "A sinner is praised in the desires of his spirit and an evil [one] is blessed" (Psalm 9:24). Augustine: "The tongue of flattering binds a man in sin" (Augustine, Commentaries on the Psalms 9.21 [PL 36.126]).

458-60 Thus thes false fikeleres . . . unselhthe, Thus these false flatterers blind [those] who listen to them, as I said before, and cover their filth, so that they cannot smell it, and that is to their great misery.

460-61 For yef ha hit stunken . . . th'refter, For if they smelled it, [it] would disgust them on that account (lit., there-with), and [they would] run to confession and vomit (lit., spew) it out there, and shun (or, avoid) it after that.

461-63 Clemens: Homicidarum tria . . . qui invidet, Clement: "[There are] three kinds of murderers, said Blessed Peter, and he wanted their punishment to be equal, [he] who kills bodily, and [he] who slanders a brother, and [he] who envies" (Pseudo-Clement, Decretal Letters 1 [PG 1.480]).

464-65 Bac-biteres . . . wurse, Backbiters, who bite others behind the back, are of two kinds, but the latter is worse.

465-67 The earre kimeth . . . the tunge, The former (lit., earlier) comes all openly and says evil about another, and vomits out his venom, as much as ever comes to his mouth (lit., comes him to the mouth), and spits out everything together that the venemous heart sends up to the tongue (sent = reduced form of sendeth).

467-70 Ah the leatere . . . i-levet, But the latter comes forward completely in another way - a worse fiend (or, enemy) than the other is - and under a friend's cloak (i.e., under the cover of friendship) casts down the head, begins (see German fängt an) to sigh before he says anything (lit., aught), and makes a droopy (i.e., downcast) face, offers excuses about it [for a] long [time], [in order] to be better believed.

470 Hwen hit alles . . . yeolow atter, When it finally (lit., in all) comes out, then it is yellow venom (or, bile); "Weila," ha seith, "Alas (or, too bad)," she says.

471 other heo habbeth swuch word i-caht, or she has caught such a reputation.

471-72 Inoh ich wes abuten . . . bote, I was trying hard enough (lit., I was enough about [it]), but [it] did me no good (lit., did not help me) to try to fix things (lit., to make a remedy of that).

472-73 Yare is . . . i-uppet, [It] is a long time (lit., yore) that I knew about it, but still it would not ever [have been] mentioned by me.

473-74 Ah nu hit is . . . withsaken, But it is now so widely spread about (lit., brought forth) by others, that I cannot fight against (or, counter) it.

474 Uvel me seith . . . wurse, They say (lit., one says) that it is bad, but yet it is worse; Sorhful, Sorrowful, sad.

475 thet ich hit schal seggen, that I have to say it.

475-77 ah for sothe swa hit is . . . werien, but truly (lit., forsooth) that is the way it is (lit., so it is), and that is a great pity (lit., sorrow), for in many other things he or she is much to [be] praised (passive inf.), but in this thing - woe is me (i.e., I am afraid) - no one can protect them from it (lit., there before).

477 This beoth, These are; neddren, serpents, vipers; the, which, that.

478-79 Ure Laverd . . . as ich seide, [May] our Lord through His grace keep (lit., hold) your ears far [from] their venemous tongues, nor allow you ever to smell that nasty (lit., foul) pit which they uncover, which (lit., as) the flatterers cover and hide, as I said.

480-81 Unwreon hit to ham-seolven . . . thet fulthe, To uncover it to [the people] themselves, those to whom it applies, and to hide it from others, that is a great virtue, not [to uncover it] to those who would smell and hate that filth (i.e., third parties).

482-83 thet is thus threo-vald . . . eare, which is threefold thus - idle, nasty (lit., foul), and venemous - keep (imper.) your ear far away.

483-85 Me seith upon ancren . . . bisahe, They say (lit., one says) against anchoresses that most every one has an old crone (lit., quean) to feed her ears, a gossip (or, blabberer) who chatters to her all the tales of the land, a magpie who cackles all that she sees and hears, so that they say in a proverb.

485-86 "From mulne . . . bringeth," "News comes (lit., people bring tidings) from mill, from market (lit., bargaining), from smithy and from anchor-house."

486 Wat Crist, Christ knows (an exclamation).

486-88 this is a sari sahe . . . chaffle, this is a sorry saying, that the anchor-house, which should be the most solitary place of all, must be linked to the very three places which there is the most jawing (lit., most of jawing) in.

488-89 Ah ase cwite . . . hit uthe, But [may] our Lord grant that all others were as free (lit., acquitted) as you are of such [things], dear sisters.

490 Nu ich habbe . . . threo limen, Now I have spoken separately of these three limbs.

491-93 Of eare is al this leaste . . . hire eare, All this last [section] is about the ear, for the profit of anchoresses, for it is not an attractive (lit., lovely) thing that an anchoress [should] have (lit., bear) such a mouth, but one may much fear that that she [might] sometimes bend her ear (i.e., listen) to such mouths.

493-94 Of sihthe . . . i-meane, Of sight, of speech, of hearing [something] is said (i.e., has now been said) separately about each one in a row (i.e., one after the other). [Let us] come now back again and speak of [them] all together.

495 Zelatus sum . . . Zacharia, "I am jealous of Zion with great jealousy" (in the prophet Zachariah [8:2]).

495-96 Understond, ancre . . . lates Understand (imper.), anchoress, whose spouse (or, bride) you are and how He is jealous of all your ways.

496 Ego sum . . . Exodo, "I am a jealous God" (in Exodus [simplified rendition of 20:5]).

497 bi him-seolf, about, concerning Himself.

498 of the, Syon, mi leofman, of you, Zion, my leman (or, lover).

498-99 Thuhte him . . . ther-to, [It] seemed to Him not enough said that He is jealous of you, but He said in addition (lit., there-to).

499 Auris zeli audit omnia, "The ear of the jealous one hears all things" (Wisdom 1:10).

500 Ubi amor, ibi oculus, "Where [there is] love, there [is the] eye (i.e., love is vigilant)" (a proverb); Wite the nu ful wel, Protect yourself (i.e., look after yourself) now very well.

501-02 His ehe aa bihalt te . . . untheawes, His eye always beholds you [to see] if you make any expression, any love-looks at vices (lit., un-virtues).

502 Syon, thet is "schawere," Zion, that is (i.e., means) "mirror."

502-03 He cleopeth the . . . in Canticis, He calls you his mirror, as his which is [the property] of no other (i.e., belongs to no one else), therefore he says in the Canticles (i.e., Song of Songs).

503-04 Ostende michi fatiem tuam, "Show your face to me" (Song of Songs 2:14).

504 neb, face.

504-05 yef thu wult . . . ehnen, if you want to have bright sight with your heart's eyes.

505-06 Bihald in-ward . . . thin heorte, Look inward where I am and do not seek me outside your heart.

506-07 Ich am wohere scheomeful . . . dearne, I am a bashful wooer, and I will not embrace my beloved anywhere (lit., nowhere) but in a secret place.

507 O thulli wise ure Laverd, In such a way our Lord.

507-10 Ne thunche hire neaver . . . Godes chambre, [It should not] ever seem to her strange if she is (lit., is not) much alone, though he avoids her, and thus [she is] alone [so] that she [might] put each worldly commotion, and each earthly noise (or, racket) out of her heart, for she (i.e., the heart or the anchoress) is God's chamber (or private room).

510-11 Nurth ne kimeth . . . i-felet, Noise does not come into the heart except from something which one has either seen or heard, tasted or smelled, and felt from the outside.

511-12 Ant thet witeth to sothe . . . wendeth in-ward, And know this for a truth, that always as (lit., as ever) these senses (lit., wits) are scattered (or, dispersed) outward more, so they turn inward the less.

513-14 Eaver se recluse toteth . . . of the othre, Always as the recluse gazes more outward, so she has less light from our Lord inside and also [less] from the other [senses].

514-15 Qui exteriori oculo . . . cecatur, "The person who negligently uses the outer eye, is blinded in the inner eye by the just judgment of God" (Gregory, Moral Discourses on Job 21.8, 13 [PL 76.197]).

515-18 Hwa-se yemelesliche wit hire uttre ehnen . . . alle thing luvien, Whosoever carelessly damages (wit = reduced form of witeth) her outer eyes, through God's righteous judgment she goes blind in the inner [eyes], so that she cannot see God with spiritual (lit., ghostly) sight, nor through such sight know [Him], and through the knowing (lit., knowledging) love [Him] over all things.

518-19 For efter thet me cnaweth . . . mare other leasse, For according as one knows His great goodness, and according as one feels His sweet sweetness, [so] according to these (lit., that) one loves Him more or less.

520-22 For-thi, mine leove . . . him luvien, Therefore, my dear sisters, be (imper.) blind without (i.e., to things on the outside), as was the holy Jacob and Tobias the good, and God will, as He gave them, give you light within, to see and know Him and through the knowledge love Him over all things.

522-23 Thenne schule ye i-seon . . . fals, Then you will see how all the world is nothing, how her (i.e., the world's) comfort is false.

523-24 Thurh thet sihthe . . . wrecches, Through that sight you will see all the devil's wiles, how he fools [miserable] wretches.

524-25 Ye schulen i-seon . . . sunnen, You will see in yourself what still is (i.e., remains) to atone (or, be atoned) for your own sins.

525-26 Ye schulen bihalde . . . ham frommard, You must look (lit., behold) sometimes towards the pain of hell, [so] that [it may] horrify you with them (i.e., so that they may horrify you) and [you may] flee the more quickly from them.

526 gasteliche i-seon, spiritually (lit., ghostly) see.

527 the ontenden ower heorte . . . toward, which [will] kindle your heart to hasten (lit., hie) toward them.

527-29 Ye schulen . . . hare alre crune, You will see as in a mirror our Lady with her maidens, all the host of angels, all the retinue of saints (lit., holy [ones]), and Him over all of them who gladdens them all, and is the crown of them all.

529 sihthe, sight.

530 schal frovrin . . . wortlich sihthe, will comfort you more than any worldly sight could (lit., might).

530-31 Hali men witen wel . . . her-toyeines, Holy men who have experienced it know well that each earthly gladness is worthless in comparison to it (lit., there-against).

531-32 Manna absconditum est . . . accipit, "It is hidden manna," etc. "A new name which no one knows unless he receives [it]" (adapted from Revelation 2:17).

532-34 "Hit is a dearne healewi . . . i-smecchet," "It is a secret medicine which no one knows who has not tasted it."

534-37 This smech . . . fleschliche sihthen, This taste and this knowing comes from spiritual (lit., ghostly) sight, from spiritual hearing, from spiritual speech, which they will have who for God's love forgo worldly hearings (i.e., listenings), earthly speech, bodily sights.

537 Videamus enim quasi per speculum in enigmate, "However we see as if through a mirror in mystery (or, obscurity)" (1 Corinthians 13:12).

537-39 Ant efter thet sihthe . . . bivore the othre, And after that sight which is now dusky (i.e., dark, obscure) here, you will have up there the bright sight of God's face which is of all the gladness in the bliss of heaven much above the others (i.e., is the greatest joy of heaven).

539-41 For the rihtwise Godd . . . eadmodliche tholieth, For the righteous God has judged it so that each one's reward there (i.e., in heaven) [will] correspond to the labor, and to the aggravation which they humbly suffer here for His love.

541-42 For-thi hit is semlich . . . of a briht sihthe, Therefore it is seemly that anchoresses have these two morning gifts (i.e., bridal gifts given the morning after the wedding, dowries) before others do: swiftness, and the light of a bright sight.

543-44 Swiftnes ayeines thet ha beoth nu swa bipinnet . . . beon i-sehene, Swiftness in compensation for the fact that (lit., against that, or, for that) they are now so penned in. Light of bright sight, in compensation for the fact that they now darken themselves here, nor [do they] want to see a man nor be seen by a man.

545-46 Alle theo in heovene . . . the ehe openeth, All those will be in heaven as swift as is now man's thought, as is the sun beam which smites from east to west, as the eye opens (i.e., in the twinkling of an eye).

546-49 Ah ancres, bisperret her . . . in an hond-hwile, But anchoresses, locked in here will be there, if any may, both lighter and swifter, and [will] play (or, dance) in such "roomy shackles" - as they say - in heaven's large pastures, that the body will be wheresoever the spirit wishes in an instant (lit., hand-while).

549 an marhe-yeove, the one (or, first) morning gift.

550 The other is of sihthe, The second [gift] is of sight.

550-51 Gregorius . . . omnia sciunt, Gregory: "For what do they not know, where they know Him who knows all things" (Gregory, Moral Discourses on Job 2.3.3 [PL 75.556]).

551-53 Alle theo in heovene seoth . . . ne with ehe, All those in heaven see in God all things, and anchoresses will see more brightly, for (i.e., because of) their falling blind here, and [will] understand there God's secret whispers and His fierce judgments, who now does not care to know of things without (i.e., external things), with ear nor with eye.

554-55 yef ei mon bit to seon ow . . . mahte lihten, if any man asks (bit = reduced form of biddeth) to see you, ask him what good may come (lit., light, descend) from that.

555 For moni uvel . . . nane biheve, For I see many evils in that, and no advantage; Yef, If; meadles, persistent (or, immoderate).

555-56 leveth him the wurse, believe him [to be] the worse (or, trust him the less).

556-57 Yef ei wurtheth . . . i-wurthen, If anyone is (or, becomes) so mad that he throw[s] [his] hand out towards the window cloth (or, curtain), right then swiftly shut that window completely up, and let him be.

557-60 Alswa, sone se eaver . . . mahe i-heren, Also, [as] soon as any[one] ever falls into any wicked speech that tends (lit., falls) toward love, bar the window right away, nor answer him at all, but turn away with this verse, so that he may hear it.

560-61 Declinate a me . . . lex tua, "Depart from me, cursed [ones], and I shall examine the commands of my God" (Psalm 118:115). "The wicked have told me fables, Lord, but [that is] not as your law" (Psalm 118:85).

561-62 Ant gath bivoren . . . Miserere, And go before your altar with the "Miserere" ([Lord] have mercy - Psalm 50).

562-64 Ne chastie ye . . . acwikien, Do not chastise such a man ever in [any] other way, for during the chastisement he may so answer, and blow so lightly, that some spark may spring to life.

564-66 Na wohlech nis se culvert . . . mot te, No wooing is so treacherous as [that which is] in the manner of a complaint, as if someone said the following: "I would not, to suffer death, think filth about you" - and [he] swears deep oaths - "but [even] though I had sworn [against] it, I must love you."

566 Hwa is wurse then me? For whom is it worse than for me?

566-68 Moni slep hit binimeth me . . . stonde, Much (lit., many) sleep it deprives me of. Now woe is me (i.e., I am sorry) that you know it, but forgive me now that I have told it to you. Though I will go (lit., become) mad, you will never more know how [it] stands [with] me (i.e., I will not burden you with knowledge of me.)

568-70 Ha hit foryeveth him . . . i the earre speche, She forgives him for it (lit., forgives it him), for he speaks so graciously, [then they] speak of other things. But the eye is always [directed] "to the shelter of the wood" (see note). The heart is always [dwelling] on the earlier speech.

570-71 Yet, hwen he is forthe . . . yeornliche yemen, Yet when he is gone, she often turns [over] (went = reduced form of wendeth) in her thought[s] such words, when she should eagerly mind (or, attend to) something else (lit., other-what).

572-73 He eft secheth . . . se wurse, He again seeks his opportunity to break his agreement, swears he must needs [do so], and so, that woe grows the longer so the worse (i.e., grows the worse, the longer it goes on).

573 For na feondschipe . . . fals freondschipe, For no hostility is so evil as is false friendship.

574-76 Feond the thuncheth . . . ase cancre, An enemy who seems [to be] a friend is a traitor over all [others]. Therefore, my dear sisters, do not give to such a man any entry to speak. For as Holy Writ says, "their speech spreads as a cancer" (2 Titus 2:17).

576-77 Ah for alle ondsweres . . . o nane wise, But before all (i.e., any of his) answers, turn yourself away from him, just as I said above (lit., there-up). Save yourself - you cannot defeat him (lit., mate him - chess term) better in any other way.

578-79 Lokith nu hu propreliche . . . seggen, Look now how properly the lady, God's dear spouse, in the Canticles (i.e., the Song of Songs) teaches you by her saying how you should speak (lit., say).

579-80 En dilectus meus . . . amica mea, et cetera, "Behold, my beloved speaks to me: 'Arise, my own friend,'" etc. (Song of Songs 2:10).

580-82 "Low," ha seith . . . with thes wordes, "Lo," she says, "listen, I hear my beloved speak. He calls me; I must go." And do you go right away to your dear lover (lit., leman), and complain (reflex.) in his ears, who lovingly calls you to him with these words.

582-84 Surge propera amica mea . . . in auribus meis, "Arise my own friend, my dove, my beautiful [one], and come" (Song of Songs 2:10). "Show to me your face. Let your voice sound in my ears" (Song of Songs 2:13-14).

584-85 hihe the heone-wart . . . mi schene spuse, hasten yourself here (lit., hence-ward) and come to me, my lover, my dove, my fair and my beautiful spouse.

585 thi leove neb, your (lit., thy) beloved face.

586 ant ti lufsume leor . . . from othre, and your lovely countenance, turn yourself from others.

586-88 Sei hwa haveth i-do the . . . ne speoke bute to me, Say who has done [anything to] you, who has hurt my dear - sing in my ears. Because you do not wish [anything] but to see my beauty, do not speak [to anyone] but me.

588-89 Thi stevene is me swete . . . schene, Your voice is sweet to me and your beauty shining (lit., beautiful).

589 Unde et subditur vox tua . . . decora, At this point is added: "your sweet voice and your face seemly" (Song of Songs 2:14).

589-90 This beoth nu twa thinges . . . schene wlite, These are now two things which are loved powerfully: sweet speech and shining beauty.

590-91 Hwa-se ham haveth togederes . . . to spuse, Whosoever has them together, such [a one] Jesus Christ chooses for [His] lover and for [His] spouse (or, bride).

591-95 Yef thu wult swuch beon . . . schenre then the sunne, If you want to be such [a one], do not show any man (or, anyone) your beauty, nor let [him] happily hear your speech, but turn them both to Jesus Christ, to your dear spouse, as he bids you above (i.e., in the text), since you desire that your speech may seem sweet to Him, and your beauty shining (lit., beautiful), and [that you may] have Him as a lover who is thousand-fold brighter (lit., more beautiful) than the sun.

596-99 Hercnith nu yeornliche . . . with tunge, Hear now carefully, my dear sisters, a completely different speech (lit., a completely other speech), and contrary to this earlier [one]. Listen now how Jesus Christ speaks as in wrath, and speaks as if in grim spite and scorn to the anchoress who ought to be His lover and seeks nevertheless pleasure and comfort outside, with eye or with tongue.

599-601 In Canticis: Si ignoras te . . . juxta tabernacula pastorum, In the Canticles: "If you do not know yourself, O beautiful among women, go out and depart to the remnants of your flocks and feed your kids by the dwellings of the shepherds" (Song of Songs 1:7).

601-03 This beoth the wordes . . . ant of leaves, These are the words: "if you do not know yourself, you fair among women, depart (lit., turn out) and go after the goatherds, and pasture your kids by the herd-men's (i.e., shepherds') shelters [made] of branches and leaves.

603 mid alle, as well, in addition.

604 as o grome . . . speokele ancres, as in anger and in scorn to peering, and to curious (lit., desiring-to-hear), and to gabbing anchoresses.

604-05 Hit is bileppet . . . unvalden, It is swaddled (or, wrapped) and hidden, but I will unfold (i.e., reveal) it.

606 neometh nu gode yeme, now pay (lit., take) good attention.

606-08 yef thu nast hwas spuse thu art . . . he seith, "if you do not know (nast = ne wast) whose spouse you are, that you are queen, provided that you are true to me as a spouse ought to be, if you have forgotten this and [if you] care too little for this (lit., hereof), depart and go!" he says.

608-09 Hwider? . . . heorde of geat? Where to (lit., whither)? Out of the high place of this great honor, "and follow herds of goats," he says. What are "herds of goats"?

610 Thet beoth flesches lustes . . . ure Laverd, Those are the lusts of the flesh, which stink as goats do before our Lord.

610-12 "Yef thu havest foryete . . . flesches lustes," "If you have forgotten now your worthy ladyship, go and follow these goats - follow the flesh's lusts."

612-14 Nu kimeth th'refter . . . with softe felunge, Now comes after that, "and pasture your kids" - that is, as he said, "feed your eyes with gazing out, your tongue with chattering, your ears with tales (or, gossip, news), your nose with smelling, your flesh (or, body) with soft feeling."

614-17 Theos fif wittes . . . a ful sunne, These five senses (lit., wits) he calls "kids," for just as from a kid, which has sweet flesh, comes a stinking goat or a foul buck, in the same way (lit., completely just so) from a young, sweet glance (lit., looking) or from a sweet hearing, or from a soft feeling grows a stinking lust and a foul sin.

617-18 Hwether ei totilde ancre . . . brid i cage? Has any prying anchoress who is always sticking her beak out like an untame bird in a cage ever experienced this (i.e., the following)?

618-22 Hwether the cat of helle . . . ec the heovene, Has the cat of hell ever snatched at her, and snatched with sharp claws (lit., cleavers) her heart's head (i.e., the head, the most important part of her heart)? Yes indeed, and drew (or, enticed) the entire body out afterwards with clutches of treacherous and sharp temptations, and made her lose both God and man with broad (i.e., immense) shame and sin, and robbed her at one clap (i.e., stroke) of the earth and also of heaven.

622 Inoh sari lure! A sad enough loss!; To wrather heale . . . ancre, To [her] destruction an anchoress always poked her beak out in this way.

622-25 Egredere . . . i sar ant i sorhe, "Go out," he says in anger: "go out, as did Dinah, Jacob's daughter, with miserable luck (?), to her destruction," that is to say, "leave me and my comfort that is within your breast, and go seek without (i.e., outside) the world's fragile comfort, which will always end in pain and sorrow.

625-28 Tac ther-to, ant leaf me . . . habbe togederes, Take to it (i.e., go on), and leave me, if (lit., when) it is so preferable to you, for you will [in] no way have these same two comforts together - mine and the world's, the joy of the Holy Spirit and also the comfort of the flesh (or, body).

628 Cheos nu an, Now choose one; leten, leave, give up.

628-29 O pulcra inter mulieres, "O beautiful among women" (Song of Songs 1:7).

629-31 Yef thu ne . . . bimong engles, "If you do not know yourself, you beautiful among women," says our Lord, "You beautiful among women, yes, now do here what must [be done] for this (lit., there-to) (i.e., behave here on earth as you ought to), and you will be very beautiful elsewhere, not only among women but among angels."

631-32 Thu, mi wurthli spuse . . . flesches lustes, "You, my worthy spouse," says our Lord, "will you follow in this way goats in the field?" - which are the flesh's lusts.

632-35 Feld is willes breade . . . oris sui, The "field" is [the full] extent (lit., breadth) of the will (or, one's desires). "Will you follow in this way goats in the field, who ought in your heart's bower beseech (i.e., beg) me for kisses, as my lover who says to me in that love-book: 'Let him kiss me with the kiss of his mouth'?" (Song of Songs 1:1).

635 leofmon, lover (lit., leman); coss, kiss.

635-36 muthene swetest, the sweetest of mouths (muthene = genitive pl.; compare ancrene).

636-37 swa unimete swete . . . ther-toyeines, so immeasurably sweet, that each savor (or, taste) of the world is bitter in comparison to it (lit., there-against).

638 cusseth, kisses.

638-39 na sawle the luveth . . . to habben, any soul which loves anything but Him, and those same things for Him (i.e., for His sake), which help to have Him (i.e., no soul which loves anything but Him, and loves things in this world only because of Him, in order to gain Him).

639-41 Ant tu, thenne . . . yef thu ut wendest, And you, then, God's spouse (or, bride), who could hear up above (i.e., in the text), how sweetly your spouse (or, bridegroom) speaks and calls you to Him so lovingly, [and could hear] after that how He changes course (lit., turns the spar; see lof in the glossary), and speaks very grimly if you go (lit., wend) out[wards] (or, leave).

641-43 Hald te i thi chambre . . . ehe ant eare, Keep (lit., hold) yourself in your private room. Do not feed kids outside your gate, but keep your hearing within [on the inside], your speech and your sight, and shut fast (i.e., securely) their gates - mouth and eye and ear.

643-44 For nawt ha beoth bilokene . . . liveneth of sawle, For nothing they are locked inside the wall who open these gates, unless [they open them] for God's message, and for the sustenance of the soul.

644-45 Omni custodia custodi cor tuum, "With all care guard your heart" (Proverbs 4:23).

645 thing, things (pl.); the leareth, teaches you.

645-46 ant ich seide . . . this dale, and I said far before in the beginning of this part (or, section).

646 "witeth ower heorte," "protect your hearts."

647 i-loket, looked after; ehe, eye; wisliche beon i-lokene, are wisely locked.

647-49 For heo, as ich seide ther . . . uvele, For they, as I said there, are the heart's guardians (lit., wardens), and if the guardians go out (or, leave), the home is badly (lit., evilly) looked after.

649 This beoth nu . . . i-speken of, These are now three senses which I have spoken of.

649-51 Speoke we nu scheortliche . . . beon i muthe, Let us speak now briefly of the other two. However, speech is not the mouth's sense, but taste is, [even] though both are in the mouth.

652 Smeal of nease, Smell[ing] of the nose.

652-53 De odoribus . . . non requiro, "Concerning smells I do not trouble myself exceedingly. When they are present I do not spit them out (or, reject them). When they are absent I do not need (i.e., have to have) [them]" (Augustine, Confessions 10.32 [PL 32.799]).

654 ne fondi ich nawt mucheles, I do not trouble [myself] much at all.

654-55 Yef ha beoth neh . . . me ne recche, "If they are near (lit., nigh) - for God's sake - [or] if far [away], [it does] not concern me."

655-56 Ure Laverd thah . . . fleschliche smealles, Our Lord though through Isaiah threatens them with hell's stench who have delight here in carnal smells.

656 Erit pro suavi odore fetor, "There will be a stench instead of a sweet smell" (Isaiah 3:24).

656-59 Ther-toyeines ha schulen habben . . . i nease, In compensation for that (lit., there-against), they will have heavenly smells who have here [tasted] from iron's sweat (i.e., from mailshirts worn as penance), or from hairs (i.e., hair shirts) that they wear, or from sweaty clothes or from close air in their house, and molding things, smells sometimes and strong stench (lit., breath) in [their] nose.

660-65 Ther-of beoth i-warnet . . . leapen into prude, Be warned of that, my dear sisters, that at times the enemy (lit., fiend) makes something stink which you should use (or, make use of), because he [would] want you to shun it. At other times, the sorcerer (i.e., the devil) makes a sweet smell come from some secret thing that you cannot see, [such] as powder from secret seeds, as though it were from heaven, for you should (i.e., are supposed to) think that God because of your holy [way of] life sends you His strength, and [then you are supposed to] think [too] well of yourself and leap into pride.

665-66 Smeal the kimeth . . . the nease, The smell which comes from God's side comforts the heart more than [it comforts] the nose.

666-67 Theos ant othre truiles . . . the hali rode-taken, This and other tricks [with] which he tricks many will be brought to nothing with holy water and with the Holy Rood-token (i.e., the sign of the Holy Cross, or, perhaps, a Crucifix).

667-68 Hwa-se thohte . . . thuldeliche tholien, Whoever would think how God Himself was tortured in this sense, she would suffer the torture in that [sense] patiently.

669-70 I the munt . . . stunken swithe stronge, On the mount of Calvary, where our Lord hung, was the death-place (i.e., place of execution) where often rotted corpses lay above the earth and stank exceedingly strong.

670-71 mahte habben hare breath . . . his nease, could have their stench (lit., breath) with all His other suffering, right under (lit., amid) His nose.

672-74 Alswa as he wes i-dervet . . . leafden him ane, Just as He was tortured in His other senses - in His sight, when He saw His dear mother's tears and St. John's, the evangelist, and the other Marys' [tears], and when He saw how His dear disciples all fled from Him and left Him alone.

674-77 He weop him-seolve . . . brihte sihthe of heovene, He wept Himself three times with His fair eyes. When His eyes were thus shamefully (lit., in shame, humiliation) blindfolded, He allowed quite patiently that they blindfolded Him, in order to (lit., for to) give the anchoress the bright sight of heaven.

677-78 Thah thu thine ehnen . . . na muche wunder, Though you blindfold your eyes for His love and in remembrance of that, on earth to bear Him fellowship (or, company), [it] is no great wonder.

679-80 Amid the muth . . . ut of hire witte! They (lit., one) struck (or, pummeled) Him on the mouth at times readily enough as they beat His cheeks and spat [on] Him in scorn, and an anchoress is out of her wits because of a word!

680-83 Hwen he tholede . . . dute with thine lippen, Since (lit., when) He patiently allowed the Jews to shut, as they buffeted Him, His precious mouth with their cruel (perhaps, bloody) fists, then (lit., and) you for the love of Him, and for your own great good (lit., behoove), [should] shut your jabbering mouth with your lips.

683-84 Teke thet he smahte galle . . . swa unorne, Besides that, He tasted gall on His tongue, in order to teach the anchoress that she [should] not complain (lit., grouch) ever more about any food or about any drink, be it [ever] so poor.

685-86 Yef ha hit mei eoten . . . sechen estfulre, If she can eat it, let her eat and thank God eagerly. If she cannot, [let her] be sorry that she must seek more delicate [food].

686-87 Ah ear then . . . in hire meoseise, But before that request (lit., bidding) raise up any scandal (see glossary) - before [that], [let her] die a martyr in her discomfort (lit., mis-ease).

687-88 Death me ah for-te fleon . . . heaved sunne, One ought to flee death as far as one can without sin, but one must sooner die than do any capital sin (lit., head sin).

688-90 Ant nis hit muche sunne . . . erveth for-te paien, And is it not a great sin to make that they say (i.e., make them say), "Picky (or, pleasure-seeking) is this anchoress. Much [it] is that she asks for." Yet [it] is worse if they say that she is a grouchy woman and ill mannered, standoffish, and difficult to please.

690-91 Were ha i-mid te world . . . mid wurse, Were she (or, [if] she were) in the world, she [would] sometimes have to be pleased readily enough with less, and [with] worse.

691-94 Muchel hofles hit is . . . i the worlde, It is a great folly (i.e., it is very unreasonable) to come into an anchor-house, into God's prison, ready and willing (lit., willing and wanting - willes ant waldes is a set phrase like willy nilly), to a place of discomfort (lit., mis-ease), in order to seek ease there and authority (lit., mastery) and ladyship, more than she might have had readily enough in the world.

694-95 Thenc, ancre . . . i thi biclusunge, Think, anchoress, what you sought when you forsook the world in your enclosure.

695-96 Biwepen thine ahne ant othres sunnen . . . eche lif of heovene, Cry for (lit., beweep) your own and others' sins, and abandon all the joys of this life, in order to embrace joyfully your joyful lover (lit., leman) in the eternal life of heaven.

697 Jeremie, Jeremiah; Quomodo obscuratum . . . et cetera, "How dull has the best gold become," etc. (Lamentations 4:1).

697-98 "O wei-la-wei . . . forweolewet!" "O alas, alas, how gold has darkened! How has the fairest color turned and faded (lit., withered)!"

699 to swucche grimliche as o wreaththe, to such [ones] grimly as if in anger.

699-700 Quis vos fascinavit . . . consummamini? "Who has bewitched you? etc., that you began with the spirit [but] have ended in the flesh?" (Galatians 3:1, 3).

700-01 "Me hwuch unseli gast . . . endin?" "But which unholy spirit has so bewitched you that you began in the spirit and will (or, want to) end in the flesh?"

702 gastelich, spiritual (lit., ghostly).

702-05 beoth bicumene al fleschliche . . . tobollen, has become completely carnal, turned completely carnal: laughing, loosely behaved, [at] one time loosely worded (i.e., given to frivolous talk), [at] another wickedly worded (i.e., given to evil talk), pleasure seeking (or, luxurious), and touchy, grouchy, complaining and - what is still worse - cursing and scolding, bitter and venemous, with a heart swollen up [in pride].

705-08 Bihofde nawt . . . leafdi of hames! [It would] not behoove (i.e., it would not be fitting) that such [a one] were lady of a castle. A mockery and an unreasonable thing [it] is, that an anointed (lit., smeared) anchoress and an anchoress buried - for what is the anchor-house but her burial? - that (lit., and) she will be more greatly swollen up, thought of as more a lady, than a lady of homes (i.e., a lady of the manor)!

708-10 Yef ha maketh hire wrath . . . stevene, If she makes her wrath against (i.e., gets angry about) the guilt of sin, she should arrange her words so evenly that they do not seem overly emotional (lit., over-stirred), nor pushed beyond reason (lit., led beyond 'skill'), but [that they seem] inwardly and truly without haste and exaltation (or, arrogance) in a soft voice.

710-11 Filia fatua in deminoratione erit, "The foolish daughter will be made smaller (lit., in lessening)" (adapted from Ecclesiaticus 22:3).

711 sahe, saying (lit., saw).

711-12 Thet hit limpe . . . ne leve neaver, That it [should] apply to any of you, may God never allow.

712-13 Cang dohter . . . se wurse, "A foolish daughter is like the moon in [its] waning" - [she] thrives like the fool, the longer the worse.

713-15 Ye, as ye wulleth waxen . . . swa ye moten alle, You, as you want to grow and not regress (lit., turn backward, hind[er]ward), surely you must row against the stream, with much work break away, and stir your spiritual arms stalwartly - and so must you all.

715-16 For alle we beoth . . . bereth adun monie, For we are all in this stream, in the world's mad (i.e., raging) water which bears many down (i.e., pulls many under).

716-19 Sone se we eaver . . . i flesch endith, As soon as we ever weary (or, grow weary) and rest ourselves in sloth, our boat goes backwards, and we are the foolish daughter who goes waning (i.e., like the moon), the lukewarm [one] whom God spews out - as is written hereafter - who began in the spirit, and ends in the flesh.

719 Nai, nai, No, no; ah, but.

719-21 the delveth efter golt-hord . . . athet he hit finde, whoever digs for a gold-hoard, always the more he nears it, so his heart's gladness makes him more lusty (i.e., energetic), and fresher to dig and delve deeper and deeper, until he find[s] it.

721-24 Ower heorte nis nawt on eorthe . . . is in heovene, Your heart is not on earth; therefore you need not dig downward, but [you need to] lift the heart upward, for that is the rowing up against this world's stream, [you need to] drive her (i.e., the boat/heart) against it (i.e., against the current) to dig the gold-hoard that is up in heaven.

724 delvunge, digging.

724-25 Yeornful sechinde thoht . . . the delvunge, An eager mind (lit., thought) seeking where it [might] be, what it [might] be, how one [might] find it - this is digging.

725-29 Beon bisiliche ant yeornfulliche . . . tholien, Be (imper.) always busily and eagerly about (i.e., occupied with) this, with single-minded yearning, with the heat of a hungry heart, wade up from vices, crawl (lit., creep) out of [your] body, break out over her (i.e., the body), climb upon (or, up over) yourself with high thought towards heaven - [which is] so much the more needful that (i.e., since) your feeble, tender body cannot suffer [anything] hard.

729-33 Nu thenne, ther-ayein . . . scarneth, Now then, in return (lit., there-again[st]) give God your heart, in softness, in sweetness, in meekness of every kind, and softest humility - [she must] not, groan and fret now, raise [her] voice afterwards, enrage herself unbecomingly, punctuate her words with gestures, wrench (i.e., turn violently) away, turn [her] shoulder (i.e., shrug her shoulders), toss [her] head, so that God hates her and man scorns her.

733-34 Nai, nai! Ripe wordes . . . to ancre, No, no! Ripe (i.e., mature) words, ripe behavior and actions belong to (or, are fitting for) an anchoress.

734-35 Hwen wordes beoth eadmodliche . . . riht understonden, When words are said humbly and fixed in truth, not ill-mannerly or childishly (lit., babyishly), then they have the importance (lit., burden, weight) to be correctly understood.

735-37 Nu is this al i-seid . . . as he wes th'rin i-dervet, Now all this is said [so] that you may - after (i.e., imitating) Jesus Christ, whom they struck in the mouth and gave gall to drink - guard yourself against the sin of the mouth, and suffer some torture in that sense as He was tortured in it.

738-39 In his eare . . . us for-te learen, In His ear, He, the heavenly Lord, had all the insult and upbraiding, all the scorn and all the shame that ear may hear, and in order to to teach us He says [the following] about Himself.

739-40 Et factus sum . . . suo redargutiones, "And I was made as a man not hearing (i.e., a deaf man) and not having insults in his mouth" (Psalm 37:15).

740-42 "Ich heold me . . . missegge," "I kept myself" He said, "quiet as a dumb and deaf [person] does who has no answer, though they mistreat (lit., mis-do) or slander (lit., mis-say) Him."

742-43 This is thi leofmonnes sahe . . . seggen, This is your lover's saying (lit., saw), and you, happy anchoress, who are His beloved bride, learn it eagerly from Him [so] that you know it and can say [it] truly (i.e., by heart).

744-45 Nu ich habbe i-speken . . . eani weane, Now I have spoken of your four senses, and of God's comfort, how He through His [senses] comforts you as often as you feel in yours any woes (lit., any of woes, weane = genitive).

745-47 Nu hercnith . . . yef hit swa turneth, Now hear about the fifth [sense] which is in greatest need of strength, for the pain is greatest in it - that is, in [the sense of] feeling - and the pleasure too, if it turns [out] that way.

748-49 This ilke an wit . . . to habben best warde, This same one sense is in all the others, and throughout all the body, and therefore it is need (i.e., there is need) to have best vigilance.

749-52 Ure Laverd wiste hit wel . . . mare then in othre, Our Lord knew it well, and therefore He wanted to suffer most in that sense, in order to comfort us completely if we suffer pain in it (lit., therein), and in order to turn us away from the pleasure that the desire of the body demands, especially in [the sense of] feeling more than in the others.

753-54 Ure Laverd i this wit . . . his seli sawle, Our Lord in this sense did not have in one place, but had pain overall (i.e., everywhere), not only throughout all His body, but had [it] even in His blessed soul.

754-56 In hire he felde . . . to the heorte, In her (i.e., the soul) He felt the sting (compare German Stich) of painful and sorrowful sadness that made Him sigh sorely. The sting was threefold, which like three spears smote (or, struck) Him to the heart.

756-59 The an wes his modres wop . . . leafden him as fremede, The one (or, first) was His mother's weeping and [that of] the other Marys, who flowed in tears. The second [sting was], that His own dear disciples did not believe Him any more, nor did [they] hold [Him] for God, because He did not help Himself in His great pain, and everyone fled from Him and left Him as [one would a] stranger.

759-61 The thridde wes . . . he swonc on eorthe, The third [sting] was the great pain and the grief that He had within Himself [because] of their perdition (i.e., because they were lost) who put (lit., drew) Him to death, that He saw with respect to them all His labor lost that He labored on earth.

761-63 Theos ilke threo stichen . . . deathes swat sweatte, These very three stings were in His soul. In His body, each limb, as St. Augustine says, suffered separate pains, and [each limb] throughout His whole body died, and He, before, throughout His whole body sweated death's blood (lit., sweat; compare OE s~wt 'blood, fluid').

763-64 Ant her seith Sein Beornard . . . alle his limen, And here says St. Bernard that "He did not weep only with His eyes, but did so with all His limbs."

764-65 Quasi inquit . . . videtur, "It seems," he says, "as if He had wept with all His members" (Bernard, Sermon for Palm Sunday 3 [PL 183.262]).

765-67 For se ful of angoisse . . . thuhte read blod, For so full of anguish was that same sweat of distress (lit., distress-sweat) which dropped (lit., lighted) from His body in anticipation of (lit., against) the anguishing death that He would suffer, so that it seemed red blood.

767 Factus est sudor . . . in terram, "His sweat was made like drops of blood running down into the ground" (Luke 22:44).

767-69 On other half . . . to ther eorthe, On the other side (i.e., at the same time), "so freely, and so rapidly that some bloody fluid (lit., sweat) flowed from His blissful body, that the streams ran down to the ground" (ther = an inflected def. art., fem.).

769-70 Swuch grure hefde . . . hit schulde drehen, Such horror His manly (or, human) flesh had in anticipation of (lit., against) the torturous pains that it would suffer.

770-71 Thet nes na feorlich wunder . . . te hurt is sarre, That is no great wonder (lit., strange miracle), for always as the flesh is more alive, so the sensation (i.e., sense of feeling) of it and the pain is more excruciating (lit., sorer).

771-72 A lutel hurt i the ehe . . . is deaddre, A little wound in the eye tortures more than does a great [one] in the heel, for the flesh [of the heel] is deader.

772-75 Euch monnes flesch . . . th'rinne, Each man's flesh is dead flesh - against that (i.e., in contrast to that), God's flesh was like that which was taken from the tender maiden (i.e., His mother), and [there] was never anything in it (lit., therein) which deadened it, but always [it] was constantly (lit., alike) alive from (i.e., because of) the living Godhead which dwelled therein.

775-76 For-thi in his flesch . . . tholede, Therefore in His flesh was the pain sorer (i.e., more excruciating) than ever any man suffered in his flesh.

776-78 Thet his flesch wes cwic . . . the seke, [To prove] that His flesh was alive above all flesh (lit., over all of flesh) - look what kind of example [follows]: A man because of the evil (i.e., malady) which he has, does]not let blood (i.e., have blood let) [from] himself on the sick side (lit., half), but does so on the healthy (lit., whole) [side], to heal the sick [side].

778 Ah, But.

778-81 the wes o the fevre . . . wittes hefden awakenet, which was on the fever (i.e., had the fever), [there] was not among all mankind one healthy part found [from] which blood might be let, except for God's body alone, who let His own blood (lit., let blood from Himself, dat. of possession) on the Cross, not in the arm alone, but did [so] in five places (lit., sides) in order to heal mankind of the sickness that the five senses had spread (lit., awakened).

781-82 Thus, lo, the hale half . . . swa the seke, Thus, indeed, the healthy side and the living part drew that evil (or, diseased) blood out away from the unhealthy [part], and thus healed the sick [part].

782-83 Thurh blod is in Hali Writ . . . sutelliche i-schawet, Sin is symbolized in Holy Writ through (or, by) blood. The reasons why are after[wards] clearly revealed.

783-86 Ah ther-of neometh yeme . . . hwuch wes his diete, But pay (lit., take) attention, my dear sisters, that your precious bridegroom, the loveworthy Lord, the Savior of heaven, Jesus God, God's son, the wielder of all the world, when He was thus let blood (i.e., had His blood let), understand that day what His diet was.

786-89 I the ilke blodletunge . . . ah duden bitter galle, In the same bloodletting so baleful and bitter, these same [people] that He bled for did not bring to Him as a offering (i.e., did not offer him) either wine, or ale, or water, even when He said, "I thirst" (John 19:28) and complained (lit., moaned), as He bled, of thirst on the Cross, then [they] brought (lit., did) bitter gall.

789 Hwer wes eaver i-yeven . . . povre pitance? Where was so poor a pittance (or, ration) ever given to any [one] blood-let (i.e., who has had blood let)?

789-92 Ant tah ne gruchede he nawt . . . he hit notie ne mahte, And nevertheless He did not complain, but received it humbly in order to (lit., for to) teach His [own]. And yet He did [so] more as an example to us, put (lit., did) His mouth to it and tasted of it (lit., thereof), though He could not make use of it (or, did not need it).

792-93 Hwa is thenne efter this . . . efter hire eise? Who is [there] then, after this, and which anchoress especially (lit., indeed and indeed!) who [dares to] complain if she does not have anything, either food or drink, according to her liking (lit., ease)?

793-95 Ant siker hwa-se gruccheth . . . of sur galle, And surely whosoever complains, she offers again to our Lord His wretched ration, as the Jews did then, and [she] is the Jews' companion to offer Him in His thirst a drink of sour gall.

795-97 His thurst nis bute yirnunge . . . wes tha the galle, His thirst is [nothing] but yearning for our soul's salvation (lit., healing), and the complaint of a bitter and sour heart is to Him sourer and bitterer now than the gall was then.

797-800 Ant tu, his deore spuse . . . with healewi of heovene, And you, His dear spouse, do not be (lit., be thou not) the Jew's mate in order to serve Him a drink in this way, but bear Him fellowship, and drink with Him happily (lit., blithely) everything that seems sour or bitter to your flesh - that is, pain and woes and all discomforts - and He will repay it to you as His true companion with the balm (i.e., healing liquid) of heaven.

801-03 Thus wes Jesu Crist . . . othre, Thus was Jesus Christ, the almighty God, cruelly pained in all His five senses, and especially in this last [sense] - that is, in feeling - because His flesh was completely alive as is the tender eye. And you, protect (imper.) this sense - that is, the flesh's feeling - over (or, better than) all the others.

804 i-neilet, nailed.

804-05 Thurh the ilke neiles . . . in-with ower thurles, Through (or, by) these nails I implore you anchoresses - not you, but [I] do [implore] others, for it is no need (i.e., there is no need), my dear sisters [to implore you] - keep your hands inside your windows.

806-09 Hondlunge other ei felunge . . . thet ful is to etscene, Holding (or, touching) or any feeling between man and anchoress is a thing so uncomely (i.e., unseemly), and a deed so shameful and so naked a sin, to all the world so horrific and so great a scandal, that [there] is no need to speak or write against it (lit., there-against), for [even] without writing that foulness (or, nastiness) is [all] too evident.

809-11 Godd hit wat . . . swa as ich meane, God knows it (i.e., God knows!), [it] were (or, would be) to me preferable (as not translated) that I see you all three, my dear sisters, women to me most dear, hung on a gibbet, to escape (lit., bow away from) sin, than [that] I might see one of you give a single kiss to any man on earth so as (i.e., in the way) I mean.

811-12 Ich am stille of thet mare, I am silent about any more.

812-13 Nawt ane monglin honden . . . of his eorre, Not only to intertwine (i.e., hold or touch) hands, but to put the hand outward, unless it be for necessity, is wooing of God's fury and courting of His ire (or, anger).

813-15 Hire-seolf bihalden hire ahne . . . the beoth for-idlet, For herself to behold (i.e., look at) her own white hands does harm to many an anchoress, who has (or, keeps) them too fair, as those [hands] which are ruined by idleness (lit., idled away; i.e., lack of activity).

815-16 Ha schulden schrapien . . . rotien in, They (i.e., the hands) should scrape each day the earth up from their grave (lit., pit) that they will rot in.

816 Godd hit wat . . . moni ancre, God knows, the grave does much good for many an anchoress.

817 Memorare novissima . . . peccabis, "Remember your last [end] in eternity (i.e., your death) and you will not sin" (Ecclesiasticus 7:40).

817-22 Theo the haveth eaver . . . with hire fif wittes, She who always has her death, which the pit reminds of, before her eyes, if she thinks well on the judgment of Judgment Day (lit., doom of Doomsday), where the angels will quake, and [on] the eternal and the horrible pains of hell, and over all and [above] all on Jesus Christ's passion, how He was tortured - as has been discussed a great deal (lit., as is said some deal) - in all His five senses, she will not lightly follow the pleasure of the flesh after the desire of [her] will, nor [will she] draw in towards her (i.e., embrace) any deadly sin with her five senses.

822-23 This is nu inoh i-seid . . . sawle lif is inne, This is now enough said of the five senses, which are as an external guard (lit., warden) of the heart, in which the life of the soul is.

823-24 As we seiden th'ruppe . . . Salomon seide, As we said above (i.e., earlier in this book - see 2.2-4) at first what Solomon said.

824-25 Omni custodia custodi . . . ex ipso vita procedit, "With all watchfulness preserve your heart, for from it life comes forth" (Proverbs 4:23).

825-26 Nu beoth . . . up-o the thridde, Now are, Christ have thanks, two parts (i.e., books) gotten through (or, accomplished). Let us go (lit., go we) now with His help into the third.

 

ANCRENE WISSE, PART TWO: EXPLANATORY NOTES

    Part Two is in some ways the most complex section of AW: it moves by a logic that is not always obvious. In general, this section deals with the guarding of the five senses, each of which is treated in sequence, but this description alone is inadequate to understand some of its sharper twists and turns. In fact, Part Two conceives of the senses not only in terms of the traditional five (sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch), but re-imagines them as sites on the body (eyes, ears, nose, mouth, and hands), and this can make for complications when, for example, the mouth is conceived of as the site not only of the sense of taste but also of speech. In "The Five Wits and Their Structural Significance in Part II of Ancrene Wisse," Alexandra Barratt links this tendency to mix the senses with the organs that produce them to penitential treatises and formulas of the late twelfth and early thirteenth centuries (pp. 19-20). It is almost as if the body parts associated with the five senses function as a sort of mnemonic device and organizing principle, in much the same way that the concept of the seven deadly sins helped the penitent to discover or remember sins in the confessional. Both act as a sort of heuristic device.
    The controlling image established early on in Part Two by a complex series of comparisons is that of the leaping or escaping heart, and the organs associated with the five senses become dangerous sites because they are the portals through which the heart may leap out or evil leap in. Much of Part Two is concerned with closing these windows (or at least restricting them as much as possible). Thus, in the midst of some reasonably complex theorizing about sin and how it begins come several practical pieces of advice about the anchoress' window which forms part of the outer rule (in fact, this section is mentioned in Part Eight as a kind of companion piece: see 8.7 ff.) - injunctions against touching hands at the window, for maintaining silence at meals, deciding when and to whom to talk, never talking at the altar window, not swearing, etc. On a deeper level, however, the anchoress' window begins to take on the metaphorical significance of an eye and comes to stand for the dangers of the senses in general. Thus, the practical advice gradually collects a deeper significance. In fact, Part Two touches on almost all the main themes of the entire AW, including the idea of the temptation of the senses (Part Four), the best way to make one's confession (Part Five), the value of suffering (Part Six), and Christ as lover (Part Seven).
    The main sources for this section, as Savage and Watson point out (p. 347n1), are Gregory the Great's Pastoral Care, Moral Discourses on Job, and Homilies on Ezechiel, as well as Bernard's The Steps of Humility and Pride.
    The following outline attempts to draw a reasonably clear picture of the complicated structure of Part Two. For a fuller analysis, the reader should consult the two best commentators on this section, Barratt ("The Five Wits") and Grayson (Structure and Imagery, chapter 2).

Outline

    Introduction to the Five Senses (2.1-15). Part Two begins with a conventional list of the five senses (2.4-5) and then establishes a central image - that of the fleeing or leaping heart (2.7-15).
    Sight/Eyes (2.16-199). Since David's heart leapt through his eye, sight is the first sense to be discussed, with the negative examples of Lucifer, Eve, Dinah, and Bathsheba, followed by advice about who may see an anchoress. Sight is dangerous in both the active and passive senses, both in looking and in being seen.
    Taste/Mouth (2.200-392). A treatment of speech, not really one of the five senses, follows because it, like taste, is located in the mouth. This section begins with practical instructions about when the anchoress should talk and to whom (to which visitors or spiritual advisors, what to say at confession, etc.) and even when she should not talk.
    Hearing/Ears (2.393-489). Hearing comes next and is colored by the preceding discussion of active speech. It is dominated by a discussion of evil speech which the anchoress might hear, and includes idle, poisonous (heretical, lying, flattering, and backbiting), and filthy speech.
    Inner Senses: The First Three Senses/Organs Together (2.490-651). At this point, instead of proceeding to the next "sense," the author says that he wants to treat these first three (i.e., sight, speech, and hearing) together. The digression which follows is perhaps the most clearly mystical section of AW, where the author discusses how inner, spiritual senses compensate for the loss of the outer senses. Jesus appears first as a jealous lover watching his beloved (sight), and the section looks forward to Part Seven in that it paints a picture of a spiritual romance with Christ which the outer senses impair. To compensate for the loss of the physical senses, the anchoress receives spiritual sight, spiritual hearing, spiritual speech, and even spiritual taste, culminating in a mystical union with God.
    Smell/Nose (2.652-71). Next, the text returns to its analysis of the senses with a discussion of smell, though still very much under the spell of the preceding digression on the spiritual senses: the main emphasis is on the heavenly smells which compensate the anchoress for all the evil smells she has in her anchorhold. Christ also suffered in His sense of smell, and this thought leads to another detour, an extensive discussion of how Christ suffered in the other four senses (2.672-743), though this section actually paints a detailed picture of how Christ suffered in the organs of the senses: His eyes, mouth, tongue, hands, ears. In the context of Christ's sufferings, the fleshly, grouchy, pleasure-loving anchoress seems almost a monstrous creature.
    Feeling (2.744-825). Finally, the author comes to discuss the last sense, feeling, and how Christ suffered in this sense more than in the others and then turns with some disgust to abuses of the sense of touch, saying that he would rather see his three charges hung on a gallows than exchange a fleshly kiss with a man or touch a man's hands through her window, etc. (2.809-11). Instead, the anchoress should in a sense crucify her body with sufferings which mirror Christ's sufferings.

2 Omni custodia serva cor tuum. Bernard cites this verse at the beginning of his discussion of pride and the steps that lead up to it in The Steps of Humility and Pride. See Explanatory Note to 2.52.

7 The heorte is a ful wilde beast. Savage and Watson note that the "instability of the heart was a favorite theme with twelfth-century spiritual writers" and offer Baldwin of Ford's similar treatment of a slippery and greasy heart which eludes the grasp of its owner (p. 347n2).

Seint Gregoire. Pope Gregory the Great (c. 540-604) is one of the most frequently cited authors in AW, which quotes extensively from his Pastoral Care (a handbook on the duties of bishops), Moral Discourses on Job (a running commentary on the book of Job), and Dialogues (a collection of miracles, anecdotes, and sayings of various Italian saints).

11 In some modern Bibles, the two books of Samuel are called I and II Kings, while I and II Kings become III and IV Kings.

16-17 Alle beon ha lutle, the parlurs least ant nearewest. It is not exactly clear what parlur means here and in 2.29. As the MED points out, the word can refer either to a separate room or to a simple grate set in a wall (see glossary) - both reserved for consultation and talking (see OF parler "to talk"). Though the MED suggests that parlur refers to a grate in AW, the syntax of this sentence, which describes the "parlor's window," makes sense only if the parlur is a separate chamber since the "grate's window" is difficult to understand. For a discussion of the architectural arrangements of the anchorhold, see the Introduction (pp. 9 ff.).

52 Low, hu Hali Writ speketh. As Savage and Watson explain, much of this section is based on Bernard's early work, The Steps of Humility and Pride (p. 349n8). Bernard imagines the ascent to pride as a ladder with a number of rungs or steps, the first being curiosity. Under this heading, he treats the sins of Satan, Eve, and Dinah, as well as those who follow after goats (see 2.601 ff.). For an English version of Bernard's text, see M. Ambrose Conway's translation. Barratt notes that Adam of Dryburgh (a Carthusian) has a similar treatment of Dinah ("Anchoritic Aspects," p. 43).

63 ff. Eve, thi moder, leop efter hire ehnen. R. E. Kaske connects this series of leaps to the medieval exegesis of Song of Songs 2:8 (where the bridegroom leaps on mountains), a passage expounded on at some length in 6.392 ff. Kaske believes that the questionable humor and "surface inconsequentiality" (p. 23) of Eve's leaps are redeemed by the ironic reference to the Song of Songs. However, Eve's leaps seem to fit logically into a series of leaps or falls caused by sight (an important metaphor in Part Two).

67 of lutel muchel waxeth. Proverbial. See B. J. Whiting's Proverbs, Sentences and Proverbial Phrases, L402.

70 ff. Elizabeth Robertson analyzes this interpretation of Dinah, observing that it tends to de-emphasize matters of theological theory and stress the practical ("The Rule of the Body," pp. 118 ff.).

97 o wepmen, ah. At this point, two leaves are missing from the Corpus MS. See the textual note to this line for a fuller explanation.

99 ff. Concerning the interpretation of the pit (see Exodus 21:33-34), Savage and Watson observe that the infuriating sexism which modern readers may detect in this passage (that is, that sin is "always the woman's fault") is somewhat blunted by the fact that "male responsibility is mostly irrelevant here - though it is dealt with satirically in the next paragraph" (p. 349n13).

119-20 Hund wule in bluthelich hwar-se he fint open. Proverbial. See Whiting, H568.

128 ff. lecheries prickes. Millett (Hali Meiðhad, pp. 230-31) traces the imagery of lechery's arrows to Hugh of Folieto's De Claustro Animae ("On the Enclosed Spirit") I.4 (PL 176, cols. 1026-27). Savage and Watson believe that the rest of the paragraph may depend on Hugh as well (p. 350n17).

161 Ore pur ceo. See the Textual Note to this line.

178 ff. There are some general resemblances between AW's warnings about seeing men and Aelred's discussion of whom an anchoress should or should not see - both, for example, refer to the anchoress who refused to allow St. Martin to see her. Aelred writes, "Let me now indicate the people to whom you may speak. Happy is the recluse who is unwilling to see or speak with a man, who has never admitted Martin. . . . Never must she let him touch or stroke her hand, for the evil within our bodies is always to be feared; it can so often arouse and unman even the oldest. Never must there be any reference to thinness of face and arms or roughness of skin, lest in seeking a remedy you run a greater risk. . . . Avoid all conversation with young men or with people of doubtful character; never permit them to speak to you unless there is a real need and then only in the presence of the priest who is acting as your spiritual father. And, without his permission and express command, you should not speak to chance comers except it be a bishop, abbot, or well-known prior" (chapters 6-7, p. 52). Savage and Watson (pp. 350-51n21) think that the more immediate source is Sulpicius Severus' Dialogues 2.12 (PL 22, cols. 209-10).

223-24 cave deovel. Literally, this phrase could either mean "impudent devil" or "crow-devil," or perhaps both by way of a pun on cave (from OE caf "bold") and kaue "crow, jackdaw" (from OF cauwe), a distinct possibility since the MS uses u for both u and v and so represents these words as caue and kaue. Diensberg ("Ancrene Wisse/Riwle," p. 80), arguing for "crow-devil," cites the later dogge-deovel (4.1385) as a parallel.

234 Worltliche leveth lut. Baldwin ("Some Difficult Words," p. 285) argues that the author is thinking not so much of worldly people in general as secular clergy - i.e., priests. Religious are monks or friars in orders.

236 The admiring mention of the Dominicans and Franciscans is an addition to the original text and strongly suggests that AW was written at some point not long after the arrival of the friars (the Dominicans arrived in England in 1221, the Franciscans in 1224). The enthusiasm for the friars, who took a leading role in the new penitential system as confessors, gave way quickly to cynicism. See Penn Szittya's The Antifraternal Tradition in Medieval Literature. For another added reference to the friars, see 8.66.

237 wende ehe towart te wude lehe. See Explanatory Note to 2.569-70.

248 ff. Aelred also recommends that interviews with men be witnessed by a third party: "If someone well-known and held in high esteem - an abbot perhaps or a prior - should wish to speak to you, he should only do so in the presence of a third person" (chapter 7, p. 52).

269 Aelred's guidelines for silence are considerably more strict: "From Easter until the Exaltation of the Holy Cross she should observe silence from compline until dawn. When the office of prime has been said she may speak with her attendant; if there are visitors with whom she should speak she may do so between none and vespers. After vespers she may again make whatever arrangements are necessary with her attendants until collation" (chapter 9, p. 54).

310 Vitas Patrum. The Lives of the Desert Fathers (see PL 73-74) was a very popular compilation of several originally separate texts (saints' lives, monastic histories, collections of sayings, etc.), almost all of which were translated from Greek into Latin. The AW author has a particular fondness for a section called the Verba Seniorum ("The Sayings of the Elders" - books 3-7 of the Vitas Patrum, PL 73, cols. 739 ff.) which is organized by theme in the Latin version though alphabetized by name of the speaker in the Greek. For a partial translation of the Latin text, see Helen Waddell's The Desert Fathers (London: Constable, 1960). Benedicta Ward's The Sayings of the Desert Fathers is a translation of the Greek text which served as the basis of the Verba Seniorum. Similarly, Norman Russell's The Lives of the Desert Fathers is a translation of the Greek text of the History of the Monks in Egypt (Book 2 of the Latin Vitas Patrum - see PL 73, cols. 707 ff.). In an important sense, the title The Lives of the Desert Fathers is misleading since the stories and sayings of the desert mothers are also recounted. Though the Vitas Patrum might seem to be particularly appropriate for recluses (and indeed it is), it is important to realize that the collection was known from Anglo-Saxon times and was used extensively in popular preaching. In fact, it served as an early exempla collection before the rapid multiplication of such reference works in the early thirteenth century. See J. Welter's L'Exemplum dans la littérature religieuse et didactique du moyen âge (pp. 14 ff.).

352 ff. For an account of the birth of John the Baptist, see Luke 1:39 ff.

361 Ypallage. As noted in the gloss, ypallage refers to a kind of chiasmus in which two elements are reversed. In the following translation of this verse, the AW author exchanges "protect my ways" and "hold my tongue" so that in the next clause they read "hold my way" and "protect my tongue."

374 hope is a swete spice. Barratt thinks that there may be "a Latin pun on spes 'hope' and species 'spices': 'hope is a sweet spice' would be a fairly close translation of 'species, id est spes,' which might suggest the use of a distinctio collection" ("The Five Wits," p. 24n42). Barratt traces other motifs in this section of Part Two - see her careful notes in "The Five Wits." For more on distinctiones, see Explanatory Note to Pref.131.

403 with scharpe sneateres. See Cecily Clark's article, "'Wið Scharpe Sneateres': Some Aspects of Colloquialism in 'Ancrene Wisse,'" which argues that AW as well as medieval sermons may preserve something like real colloquial speech in simulated dialogues. It is in fact very difficult to give the full colloquial force of sneateres, translated in the bottom glosses as "sharp murmurings" (see the gloss as well as the glossary).

420 ff. Barratt notes that in De Naturis Rerum Alexander Neckham describes how crows eat corpses, though the allegorical interpretation of this fact is different ("The Five Wits," p. 24n46). Interestingly, though, Neckham does devote two consecutive paragraphs to flatterers (de adulatoribus) and backbiters (de detractoribus) (Wright, pp. 111, 316-21).

430-33 Ne videatur . . . tristis linguam detrahentem. The author drops into Latin to describe a possibly distasteful interpretation (a practice followed well into the twentieth century by editors of the classics). This excerpt welds together biblical verses with glosses, probably from the Glossa Ordinaria (see Explanatory Note to 6.126) or Isidore's Etymologies. Savage and Watson note that the "method of interpretation here, which may seem strained, involves translating (often mistakenly) the Hebrew names in a passage and then building a tropological (moral) commentary on the result (in this case, loosely)" (p. 354n50).

464 ff. Bac-biteres, the biteth bihinde bac othre. This passage, as Savage and Watson point out (p. 354n54), is based on Bernard's widely known Sermons on the Song of Songs 24 (PL 183, col. 869).

483 ff. Compare Aelred: "They think it enough to confine the body behind walls; while the mind roams at random, grows dissolute and distracted by cares, disquieted by impure desires. The tongue too runs about all day through towns and villages, market-place and square, prying into other people's lives and behavior and into such affairs as are not only idle but often shameful. How seldom nowadays will you find a recluse alone. At her window will be seated some garrulous old gossip pouring idle tales into her ears, feeding her with scandal and gossip" (chapter 2, p. 46). For a similar complaint, see Jerome's letter to Eustochius (chapter 2, p. 22).

485 rikelot. It seems easiest to derive this word from medieval Latin rikelota "magpie" (see R. E. Latham, ed., Revised Medieval Latin Word-List from British and Irish Sources). Zettersten discusses several possibilities for the word's origin but finally derives it from OF rik-, an imitative root for "chatter" and -ote, a double diminutive suffix, found also in gigelot (see glossary). This derivation, if correct, explains why rikelota could come to mean "magpie," a chattering bird. Zettersten would define AW's rikelot as "a chattering woman," a translation of Aelred's nugigerula mulier "garrulous old gossip" (Middle English Word Studies, pp. 13-15). See Explanatory Note to 2.483 ff.

485-86 "From mulne ant from chepinge, from smiththe ant from ancre-hus me tidinge bringeth." Proverbial. See Whiting, M552.

520 ff. For further notes on the intellectual sources and background of the following passage, see Savage and Watson (pp. 355 ff.).

569-70 "eaver is the ehe to the wude lehe." Apparently a fragment of a popular song or poem which also occurs in 2.237 - the Latin version quotes the phrase in English: "Iuxta illud Anglice: Euere is þe eye to þe wode lye" (D'Evelyn, p. 28), and the Nero version adds a second verse: "þerinne is þet ich luuie" (wherein is what I love). In his collection of fables, Odo of Cheriton (d. 1247) cites a similar phrase to describe corrupt clergy - even though a wolf were hooded as a priest, "evere beth his geres to the grove-ward" (his inclinations are always [tending] toward the [wild] grove). See Whiting's review of Carleton Brown's English Lyrics of the Thirteenth Century (p. 219), Zettersten (Studies, p. 198), as well as Whiting, E207. There are some intriguing clues about this song in Cleo., where Scribe A has interlarded (at random intervals and apparently with no sense for the meaning of the existing text) several metrical snatches. A bit like Dr. Frankenstein, Dobson stitches these fragments together and animates them: "I incline to think that the three additions in C[leo.], and the Nero addition . . . are fragments of a humorous poem describing a woman thinking of an assignation in a woodland clearing (to which, perhaps, she had on a former occasion followed a lame he-goat and there met a lover, possibly an outlaw) while attempting to do household accounts; her excuse to get out of the house; and a discovery in flagrante delicto" (Origins, p. 77).

Eauer is þe ehe to þe wudelehe,
Ant þe halte bucke climbeð þeruppe
Twa ant þreo, hu feole beoð þeo?
Þreo halpenes makeð a peni - amen . . .
Eauer is þe ehe to þe wudelehe,
Þerinne is þet ich luuie.
- - -
Ant swa ich habbe a nede ernde
Dun in þe tun; þah hit reine arewen,
Ich habbe a nede ernde.
- - -
Lokede blind hors, ant wudemonnes ehe
Orn al ut. (Dobson, The English Text, p. 77)

["The eye (i.e., my eye) always [glances] to the woodland clearing/ and the lame buck (i.e., he-goat) climbs up there./ Two and three, how many are they?/ Three ha'pennies make a penny - Amen . . . /My eye is always [glancing] at the woodland clearing/ wherein is what I love. . . . / And so I have an urgent errand/ Down in the town, though it rain arrows (i.e., even though there may be serious obstacles, I must go there),/ I have an urgent errand. . . . / A blind horse looked, and a woodman's eyes popped right out" (presumably as they catch the lovers in the act).]

It is difficult to know what to make of Dobson's perhaps overingenious reconstruction, but it does seem likely that the fragments in Cleo. are from some kind of poem or popular song, perhaps from several. All that can be said for certain is that the phrase cited in Corpus "The eye is always [glancing] to the woodland clearing" must mean something like "The eye always looks longingly towards forbidden pleasures."

599 The following interpretation of Song of Songs 1:7 is largely dependent on Bernard. See Explanatory Note to 2.52.

617 totilde ancre. Literally, this phrase translates as "peeperess anchorite" (i.e., a female peeper) since totilde comes from totin "to peep" and -ild (feminine doer).

691-94 Muchel hofles hit is . . . the worlde. The Corpus version adds this passage.

712 ff. For sources and analogues to the images and comparisons within this passage, see Savage and Watson's helpful notes (pp. 358 ff.).

786 blodletunge. See 8.170-74, which describes how those who have had blood let should be treated.

801 ff. Dobson points out that the Moralities on the Gospels (pp. 131-32), in its discussion of Christ's sufferings, comments on the particular tenderness of Christ's flesh.

815 ff. Ha schulden schrapien euche dei the eorthe up of hare put. Savage and Watson comment, "The grave dug in the anchorhouse floor here is of course metaphorical, part of the complex of images in which the anchorhouse is itself seen as a grave. The ending of part II is harsh to an extent that has sometimes occasioned disapproving comment. But for the author of Ancrene Wisse the sins associated with touch, especially lechery, can only be dealt with in crude terms, sufficient to make the body flinch from them" (p. 359n89).

 

ANCRENE WISSE, PART TWO: TEXTUAL NOTES

8 etflith. MS: etflið. In Tolkien this appears mistakenly as etflid.

20 swa withuten. MS: swa wið(u)/ ten. Missing u supplied by a different hand.

29 te parlures [clath] beo. MS: te parlures beo. As it stands, the sense of the text is, "the parlor's [gen.] is." Tolkien (p. 30, fol. 13r, lines 12-13) argues that a singular noun is understood or omitted, probably in the archetype. In Cleo. it is inserted by a corrector, while Corpus and Nero omit it, the latter attempting to make sense of the text by construing parlurs as a plural form rather than a singular possessive (see the pl. verb beon). Cleo.'s reading is adopted here. [Cleo.: þe parlures (clað) beo; Titus: te parlurs clað beo; Nero: te parlurs beon; Vernon: þe parlors cloþ. euer ben; Pepys: scheteþ wel 3oure wyndowes and 3oure dores; Caius (lacking); Vitellius: louerture del parler soit; Trinity: le drap du parlour; Lat. (lacking).]

48 in hire sunne in-yong of hire eh-sihthe. MS: in hire sunne in3ong of hire ehsihðe. Tolkien argues that a verb has fallen out between sunne "sin" and in3ong "entrance" (p. 31, fol. 13b, line 12), but it seems best, following the MED (see inyongen), to take in3ong as a past-tense verb: "sin entered into her through her eyesight." [Cleo.: in hire sunne in3eong; Titus: in hire sunne. in3ong; Nero: in hire neowe in3ong; Vernon: of hire synne in3ong; Pepys (recast); Caius (lacking); Vitellius: lentree de son pecchee; Trinity: prist primes entre en soen pecchee; Lat.: peccatum in eam ingressum habuit.]

53 Thus eode sihthe bivoren. MS: þus eode sunne biuoren. Tolkien points out that the scribe has inadvertently replaced sihðe "sight" with sunne "sin," mistakenly repeated from the previous line (p. 31, fol. 13v, line 19). This suggestion, fully supported by other MSS, is adopted here. [Cleo.: Þus heode sichðe biuoren; Titus: Þus eode sihðe bifore; Nero: þus eode sihðe biuoren; Vernon: þus eode siht biforen; Pepys (recast): how first si3th bigan . . . þus 3ede it first bifore; Caius (lacking); Vitellius: Issi ala vewe deuant; Trinity: Issi ala li regard deuant; Lat. (recast): ex aspectu sequebatur affectus.]

55 alle the thing thet lust falleth to. MS: al þe wa (þing) þet lust falleð to. In the MS, wa is canceled, with þing written in the left margin to replace it, a correction borne out by the MS tradition, though the original reading makes perfectly good sense in its own right. [Cleo.: alle þe þing þet lust falleð to; Titus: euch þing þet lust falles to; Nero: alle þe þing þet lust falleð to; Vernon: al þe þing þat lust falleþ to; Pepys: al þing þat lust falleþ to; Caius (lacking); Vitellius: toutes celes choses la ou chiet desir; Trinity: checune chose ou desir e delit est depecche; Lat.: omne delectabile in quo est peccatum.]

97 lokeden cangliche o wepmen, ah. MS: lokeden cangliche o wepmen; ah . . . Two leaves are missing from the Corpus MS after the word ah. The lost text is supplied mainly from Cleo. (the version most closely related to Corpus), which was heavily edited and expanded by a second scribe (Scribe B), perhaps the AW author (see Dobson, pp. xciii ff.). Scribe B's corrections and expansions are silently accepted where they seem to represent the best readings, as corroborated by other versions. In cases where B's corrections or expansions seem themselves in error in some way, a note is supplied. See Dobson's edition of Cleo. for an exhaustive account of B's editorial activities. Nero, though an authoritative MS with a much cleaner text, tends to simplify difficult passages and thus is less useful than Cleo. for restoring Corpus.

104 Al yet the feayeth hire, hwet-se hit eaver beo. MS: Al 3et (B: þet) þe fea3eð hire. hwt se hit eauer beo. Dobson: Scribe B struck through the word 3et "and wrote þet above it, to give the sense 'all that which makes her beautiful . . . '. This is a meaningful but unnecessary change (since [Scribe] A's text is supported by F, Nero, Vernon, and Titus and is presumably correct) . . . . it is therefore revision rather than correction" (p. 48, fol. 24v, note c). [Titus: al 3et þet feahes ow; Nero: al 3et þet falleð to hire; Vernon: Al 3it þer feleþ hire; Pepys: al þat falleþ to hir; Caius (lacking); Vitellius: tout ceo ensement qe la . . . ; Trinity: E quanke vus vus atiffez; Lat. (recast).]

112 Strong yeld is her. MS: strong 3eld his her. The h is canceled (according to Dobson, by Scribe A) to indicate a change from his to is: "here is a stiff payment!" [Titus: strong 3eld is her; Nero: strong 3eld is her; Vernon: strong 3eld is her; Pepys: stronge 3elde is þis; Caius (lacking); Vitellius: Ici est tresforte soute; Trinity: fort guerdon cia; Lat.: Difficilis reddicio.]

114-15 Thu thet unwrisd this put, thu thet dest ani thing thurch hwet mon is of fleschliche i-fonded. MS: þu þet dest ani þing þurch þet mon is þorch þe fleschliche ifonded. Scribe A muddled the text here and has attempted to patch it, causing a syntactical problem by canceling þe and thus recasting the sentence, though not the sense. Dobson comments, "[Scribe] A's exemplar . . . must have had the true text, which is þurh hwet mon is of þe fleschliche ifondet (so Titus, Vernon, F); but after writing þurch, A subpuncted it, to continue in the next line with his own modification of the text . . . . The þe erased, obviously by the same hand as made previous erasure, to give the sense 'which man is physically tempted by'" (Cleo., p. 49nn3 and 4). The text is restored according to Dobson's reconstruction. [Titus: þu þet dest eni þing hwar of þet mon is fleschsliche ivonded of ðe; Nero: þu þet dos ani þing þurh hwat mon is of þe fleschliche ifondet; Vernon: þou þat deest eny þing. þorwh what mon is of þe. fleschliche i.fondet; Pepys: Þou þat vnhiles þe putt. and doos any þing whar þorou3 þat man is any þing of þe atempted fleschlich; Caius (lacking); Vitellius: Vous qe fetes nule rien par quey nul homme est de vous charnelement tempte; Trinity: Vus ke fetes aucune chose par quei homme charnelement est temptez; Lat.: contra eum qui aliquid facit per quod alius carnaliter temptatur.]

117-18 the fondunge thet of the, thurch thi dede, awacnede. MS: A: þe fondunge hwer þurch þe dede awakenede; with B's alterations: þe fondunge þe þurch þe ant et þe awacnede. Scribe B has again rewritten A's text, by means of several erasures and insertions, to make it more comprehensible. Dobson describes these as follows: "B strikes through hwer and writes þe above . . . . B strikes through dede and writes ant et þe above. He thus produces the text (words retained from A in brackets): . . . {þe fondunge} þe {þurch þe} ant et þe {awacnede}, which has the same sense and balance, but not the wording, of the original, which is þe fondunge þe of þe, þurh þi dede, awacnede (so F, Titus, Vernon). B has turned A's definite article before dede into the pronoun 'thee'; he apparently did not notice . . . that A had originally written þurch þi dede . . . which in it itself was correct" (Cleo., p. 49, notes c and d). Here the text is restored according to Titus, perhaps the most comprehensible of the many versions. [Titus: þe fondinge þet of þe þurh þi dede wacnede; Nero: þe vondunge of ðe þet þuruh þine dede is awakened; Vernon: þe fondynge. þat of þe. þorw þi dede awakenede; Pepys (recast): for þe fondynge aros first of þe þorou3 þi dede; Caius (lacking); Vitellius: la temptacion qe de vous par vostre fait esueilla; Trinity: la temptacion ke par uostre ouere comenca; Lat. (lacking).]

129 with sweordes egge. MS: wið sweordes ech3e. Dobson: "So MS., for egge 'edge'" (p. 50, fol. 25r, note 10). [Titus: wið swordes egge; Nero: mid sweordes egge; Vernon: wiþ swerdes egge; Pepys (recast): wiþ sweerd; Caius (lacking).]

130 with spere [of] wundinde word. MS: A: wið spere wundunges word; B: wið spere wundinde word. Scribe B has corrected A's wundunges "woundings" (a noun) to wundinde "wounding" (an adj.) but has not supplied the necessary of (which is restored here) before the corrected word. (See Dobson, p. 50, fol. 25r, note g.) [Titus: wið spere of wundinde word; Nero: mid spere of wundinde word; Vernon: wiþ spere of woundynde word; Pepys: wiþ spere of woundynge woorde; Caius (lacking); Vitellius: od lance de parole naufrante; Trinity: ou gleiue de naufrant parole; Lat. (recast): verbo vibrante cor quasi lancea uulnerat.]

135 Sweordes dunt [is] dun-richt. MS: Sweordes dunt dun richt. The verb is, necessary to complete the sense, is supplied here. [Titus: Sweordes dunt is dunriht; Nero: sweordes dunt is adun riht; Vernon: Swerdes dunt doun riht; Pepys: þe swerd of dedlich hondelynge smyteþ deþes dynt; Caius (lacking); Vitellius: Cop despee dreit en valant cest la manere; Trinity: E en par coup del espee fiert dreit ius; Lat.: Ictus gladij est tactus quia gladius de prope ferit et ictum mortis infert.]

145-46 as men walden steoke feste uh thurl [of hire hus]. MS: as vh mon walde steoke feste vh þurl. As Dobson notes, the original reading here was probably plural (see the pl. verbs which follow). This suggestion is adopted by deleting vh, changing mon to men, and adding a plural n to walde, following Titus, Nero, and Vernon. Note B's clarifying addition of his hus inserted after þurl, which helps to make the comparison clearer. Here it is emended to its plural form [Royal: of hire house]. [Titus: swa men walden steke faste euch þurl; Nero: ase men wolden steken veste euerich þurl; Vernon: as men wolden. steken faste uche þurl; Pepys: what vuche man wolde scheten fast her wyndewes; Caius (lacking); Vitellius: come gent clorreient ferm chascune ouerture; Trinity: com lem uoudreit fermement ueroiller e barrer checun huis e checun fenestre; Lat.: Sed quam sedulo clauderet homo fenestram.]

146 heo machten bisteoken death th'rute. MS: heo machten bisteoken deað þrute. Dobson: "Both minims of final n subpuncted [i.e., canceled] by B (certainly not by A himself). This accords with his evident intention to change to the singular throughout; but heo should also have been altered to he, and is not" (p. 52, fol. 26r, note e). [Titus: þet he muhten steke deaþ þer ute; Nero: þet heo muhtten bisteken deað þer vte; Vernon: þat me mou3te steken deþ ther oute; Pepys: and hij my3tten scheten out deþ; Caius (lacking); Vitellius: issi qil puissent forclore la mort; Trinity: quei ke lem peust for clore la mort; Lat.: ut mortem excluderet.]

148-49 moni ancre.¶ [Al holi writ is ful of warningge of eie.] David: averte oculos meos. MS: moni ancre. Dauid auerte oculos meos. A sentence which occurs in all of the other versions between moni ancre and David is supplied here. [Titus: moni anker. Al hali writ is ful of warninge of ehe. Dauid. Auerte oculos meos; Nero: monion ancre. Al holi writ is ful of warningge of eie. Dauid seide. auerte oculos meos; Vernon: Al holy writ. is ful of wardynge of ei3e. Dauid Auerte oculos meos; Pepys (recast): Þorou3 al holy wrytt it is techynge and warnynge of kepynge of ei3en Auerte oculos meos; Caius (lacking); Vitellius: (text lost) (p)leine de gard (text lost); Trinity: meinte recluse . . . Tote seinte escripture en mouz de lius en parout. e nus en garnit des regarz de nos euz. kar daui li seint homme dit issint . . . Auerte oculos meos; Lat.: multis. Tota sacra scriptura custodiam suadet oculorum. Psalmista: Auerte oculos meos.]

155 Hwenne. MS: Wenne. Apparently a mistake for hwenne (see Dobson, p. 52). [Titus: Hwen; Nero: hwon; Vernon: Whon; Pepys: whan; Caius (lacking).]

156 beo i-cumen to moni mon ant [to moni wumman]. MS: beo icumen to moni mon. The following phrase ant to moni wumman "and to many [a] woman," seems to have dropped out after to moni mon "to many a man" and is supplied from Nero. [Titus: is to moni mon and to moni wummon; Nero: is to moni mon. oþer to moni wummon icumen; Vernon: is to mony men i.comen. and to mony wommon; Pepys (recast): þan may a synful man make for his oiþer a womman; Caius (lacking); Vitellius: est avenue a meinte homme et a meinte femme; Trinity: deut meint homme e meinte femme fere; Lat.: prouenit hominibus seu mulieribus.]

157 The wise askith. MS: Þe hwise askið. Apparently a mistake for wise. [Titus: Þe wise askes; Nero: þe wise askeð; Vernon: þe wyse mon askeþ; Pepys: Þe wise man askeþ; Caius (lacking); Vitellius: Li sage demande; Trinity: li sages hom en eclesiastice en quiert e demande; Lat.: queritur.]

158 Oculo quid nequius. MS: Oculo quid nequicius. MS: nequicius (a non-existent word) should read nequius, as Dobson points out (p. 53, fol. 26v, note 1). [Titus: Oculo quid nequius; Nero: oculo quid nequius; Vernon: Oculo quid nequius; Pepys: Oculo quid nequius; Caius (lacking); Vitellius: Oculo quid nequius; Trinity: oculo inquid quid nequius; Lat.: Nequius oculo quid creatum est.]

159 teres. MS: terres. On the form terres, Dobson comments: "Abbreviated t'res, with mark for er above t; doubling of r probably not consciously intended" (Cleo., p. 53n2). [Titus: teares; Nero: teares; Vernon: teres; Pepys: þe teres; Caius (lacking).]

for the ehe-sichthe. MS: for (þe ehe)/ þech3e sichðe. Dobson: "At the end of line B adds þe ehe (correct form of AB language), but omits to delete þech3e at beginning of next line" (p. 53, fol. 26v, note b).

160 MS: to warni þe seli. After this sentence, most of the other versions add a further comment which may be authorial, though it does not appear in Cleo. [Titus: to werne þe seli. we schulen þah sone her after speke mare her of; Nero: to warnie þeo selie. we schulen þauh sone her efter speken herof more; Vernon: to warne þe sely ¶ We schulle þei3 sone herafter speken her of more; Pepys (recast): now we haue spoken of þe ei3en. speke we now of þe oþer wyttes; Caius (lacking); Vitellius: pur garnir li benure. Ci en apres tost parlerum de ceo plus.]

161 ff. At this point, the French version of the AR contained in the damaged Vitellius preserves an authorial addition, not found in any other version, and clearly part of the lost portion of Corpus. The text is supplied from Vitellius - see the glosses for a translation. Ellipsis marks indicate that the damaged text is unreadable at that point.
    Note also that after this sentence in Cleo., Scribe B ends his or her regular emendation of the text until fol. 124v, and has noted in the margin, Hider to is amendet "corrected up to this point."

185 bisch[o]p. MS: bischp. As Tolkien notes (p. 34, fol. 15r, line 20), an o has inadvertently dropped out of this form.

204 essinien. MS: essinieien. Tolkien notes, "sic clearly; probably essinien written for essuinien/essunien (the forms natural to this text) with dittography [i.e., accidental repetition] of ie" (p. 35, fol. 15v, line 21). The word, derived from French essoinier "to excuse," is typically spelled with a- in earlier texts, while the spelling with e- is first attested (MED) in 1464. Nevertheless, the best course seems to accept the first part of Tolkien's suggestion, that ie has been inadvertently repeated. Thus, the word is emended to essinien. The MED represents the word in Corpus as essunien without comment. [Cleo.: asonien; Titus: aseinen; Nero: asunien; Vernon: asoynen; Pepys (lacking); Caius (lacking).]

269 ant al the swiing-wike athet non on Easter even. MS: al þe swiing wike aðet non (on easter) antfrom non efter mete aðet euen. The original text was muddled here, and a scribe has attempted to correct it. Tolkien describes the problem: "In pencil, from to aðet expuncted, and in right margin, rubbed, on easter, joined by line to first non. MS. error apparently due to reading aðet non on e(a)ster euen as aðet non . . . efter euen, and supplying ant from and mete aðet in attempt to make sense" (p. 38, fol. 17v, lines 7-8). Before being corrected, the text read, "[Hold silence] all Holy Week until None and from None after the meal until evening." The text as it appears in this edition incorporates the scribe's corrections, but (following Cleo.) omits the ant after easter. [Cleo.: þe swi(3en) wike. oðet non an ester euen; Titus: al þe swihende wike. ai til non of ester euen; Nero: al þe swiðwike uort non; of ester euen; Vernon: and al þe passion wike. riht to noon of after euen; Pepys: And in al þe suei3eng week. And on Ester Euen to 3oure seruaunt 3e may speke; Caius (lacking); Vitellius: et toute la symeyne penouse. et deske. noune de la veille de paske; Trinity: e tote la semeine penuse deske la ueille de paske; Lat. (lacking).]

277 ower eh-thur[l] sperreth to. MS: ower ehþurhsperreð to. Tolkien: "ehþurhsperreð for ehþurl sperreð" (p. 3, fol. 17v, line 20). The missing l is supplied. Given the variety of readings here, it seems likely that there was a problem early on in the textual transmission. [Cleo.: spareð ower ech þurles; Titus: owre eheþurl sperres; Nero: ower eie þurles tuneð; Vernon: ac oure e3e siht .i.sperret to; Pepys (lacking); Caius (lacking); Vitellius: [le]s ouertures de voz oilz cloez; Trinity: le oil du pertuis de uostre fenestre enserrez; Lat.: nec solum claudende sunt aures sed et fenestre.]

285-86 Ancre naveth for-te loken bute hire ant hire meidnes. MS: Ancre naueð forte (loken)/ (bute) hire ane ant hire meidnes. The text has been heavily corrected: Tolkien explains the mistakes and insertions: "the MS. now reads naueð forte loken bute hire; in a different, slightly larger, hand loken added at the end of [line] 4 . . . , bute at the beginning of 5 . . . ; ane expuncted. The main hand probably wrote forte/wite hire ane, mistakenly omitting bute after wite" (p. 39, fol. 18r, lines 4-5). The scribe's corrected text is reproduced here. [Cleo.: Ancre naueð to lokin buten hire seluen ant hire meiden; Titus (lacking); Nero: ancre naueð to witene buten hire ant hire meidenes; Vernon: Ancre ne haueþ to loken; but hire. and hire maydens; Pepys (lacking); Caius (lacking).]

329 MS: longinqum. As Tolkien points out (p. 41, fol. 19r, line 15), longinquum is the standard form, though the spelling with one u seems to have been acceptable to other scribes, and thus it is allowed to stand. [Cleo.: longinquum; Titus: longinqum; Nero: longius; Vernon: longinquum; Pepys: longinqum; Caius (lacking); Vitellius: longinqum; Trinity: longinqum; Lat.: longinquum.]

353 The thridde time. MS: þet þridde time. Tolkien argues that þet ("that third time") should be Þe ("the third time") (p. 42, fol. 19v, line 22). [Cleo.: hire oðere wordes (a later scribe added the number 3 in the margin); Titus: Þe þridde time; Nero: þe þridde time; Vernon: þe þridde tyme; Pepys: Þe þridde word; Caius (lacking); Vitellius: La tierce foiz; Trinity: La quinte foiz; Lat.: Tercium verbum.]

353-54 thet ha spec, thet wes ed te neoces. MS: þet ha spec þet ha spec wes ed te neoces. The scribe inadvertently repeated ha spec (see Tolkien, p. 42, fol. 19v, line 23). This edition differs from Tolkien in retaining the second þet (attested in a number of the other versions). [Cleo.: þet ha spec þoa ha wes ed þe neoces; Titus: þet ha spek þet was ad te neoces; Nero: þet heo spec; þet was ette neoces; Vernon: þat heo spek; þat was atte neoces; Pepys (recast); Caius (lacking); Vitellius: qele parla ceo fut a les noeces; Trinity: ke ele parla; ceo fu as noces; Lat.: fuit in nupcijs.]

361 Ypallage. MS: ywallage. As Tolkien points out (p. 42, fol. 20r, line 6), the scribe has confused runic wynn (the normal way of representing w in Corpus) with a p - an easy mistake since the letters are very similar. The scribe seems to have particular problems with rhetorical terminology - see Textual Note to Pref.18. [Cleo.: Ypallage; Titus: Ypallage; Nero (lacking); Vernon: I.pallage; Pepys (lacking); Caius (lacking); Vitellius: ypallage; Trinity (lacking); Lat. (lacking).]

372-73 schal beon ure strengthe i Godes servise. MS: schal beon ure strengðe in godes strengðe. The second occurrence of strengðe is apparently a mistaken repetition replacing the original seruise. [Cleo.: in godes servise; Titus: schal beon owre strengðe i godes seruise; Nero: schal beon vre strencðe ine godes seruise; Vernon: schal ben ure strengþe in godes seruice; Pepys (recast); Caius (lacking); Vitellius: serra nostre force en la seruise dieu; Trinity: esterra nostre force en seruice deu; Lat. (recast).]

393 MS: For al uuel speche mine leoue sustren stoppið ower earen. Though other versions read From at the beginning of this sentence, it seems likely on the evidence of Cleo. (where the insertions were added much later by Scribe D) and Vitellius that the original reading was For, which makes sense if it means "before, in the presence of." Thus it is retained here. [Cleo.: F(r)or(m) al uuele speche; Titus: For alle uuele speches; Nero: Vrom al vuel speche; Vernon: From alle vuel speche; Pepys (lacking); Caius (lacking); Vitellius: Pur toutes males paroles; Trinity: pur totes mauueises paroles; Lat.: Ab omni auditu malo.]

402-03 dutten his muth. MS: dutten his mud. As Tolkien points out (p. 44, fol. 21r, line 8), mud is a clear mistake for muð.

431 MS: corus domino. This phrase, "north-west wind of (lit., to) the Lord," seems to be acceptable, though Tolkien, in an attempt to regularize the Latin, marks it down as a mistake (p. 45, fol. 21v, line 24), presumably for Chorus. [Cleo. (lacking); Titus: corus domino; Nero (lacking); Vernon: coram domino; Pepys: chorus domino; Caius (lacking); Vitellius (lacking); Trinity: thorus domino; Lat. (lacking).]

451 Nart tu nawt i this thing the forme ne the leaste. MS: nart tu nawt te ane i þis þis þing þe forme ne þe leaste. As Tolkien indicates (p. 46, fol. 22r, lines 24-25), there seem to be two copying errors here. The scribe has mistakenly supplied te ane from the following line (ne geast tu nawt te ane) and has inadvertently repeated the word þis. [Cleo.: nart þu naut þe forme ne þe leste; Titus: Art tu nawt i þis þing þe forme ne þe laste; Nero: nert tu nout i þisse þinge; þe uorme ne þe laste; Vernon: Nart þu nou3t in þis þing; þe furste ne þe laste; Pepys: ne artou nou3th in þis þe first. ne þou ne schalt nou3th be þe last; Caius (lacking); Vitellius: Vous nestes pas en ceste chose le primers. ne le derain ne serrez; Trinity: Vus ne estes le primers; ne li dereins ne serrez; Lat.: Non es tu primus qui sic egit nec eris vltimus.]

458 her[c]nith. MS: her/nið. The scribe has dropped a c at the end of the line, as Tolkien notes (p. 46, fol. 22v, line 6). The word should read hercnið. [Cleo.: hercnið; Titus: hercnen; Nero: hercneð; Vernon: herkneþ; Pepys (lacking); Caius (lacking); Vitellius: esco[utent]; Trinity: escoutont; Lat. (lacking).]

484 to feden hire earen. MS: to feden hire ehnen earen. The scribe first wrote ehnen "eyes" and then canceled it with a stroke through the word.

556-57 MS: toward te þurl clað. Though Tolkien (p. 51, fol. 25r, line 12) favors Cleo.'s reading ("toward you through the cloth"), Corpus' toward te þurl-clað ("toward the window-cloth") makes good sense and is supported by Vitellius, Vernon, Titus, and Nero. Thus, we retain the MS reading here. [Cleo.: towart þe þurch þe clað; Titus: toward te þurl clað; Nero: touward ðe þurl cloð; Vernon: to þe þurl cloþ; Pepys (lacking); Caius (lacking); Vitellius: vers le drap de la fenestre; Trinity: uers le drapel du pertuis de uostre fenestre ou uers vus; Lat.: manum porrigat.]

608 ant telest her[-of] to lutel. MS: ant telest her to lutel. It seems likely that this phrase as it stands ("you care here too little") is corrupt in some way and that it was an early mistake since most of the versions find different alternatives. The simplest solution is to emend the text to telest her[-of] to lutel "if you care for this too little." [Cleo.: ant tellest þer/ of lutell; Titus: ant tellest her to lutel; Nero: ant tellest herto lutel; Vernon: and tellest herto luytel; Pepys: and litel letest þere of; Caius: and tellest herto lutel; Vitellius: et poi en tenez; Trinity: e pou de force en facez; Lat. (lacking).]

612 thet is, as he seide. MS: þet is as ich seide. Tolkien suggests that this phrase should read þet is as þah he seide "that is as though he said . . . " (p. 54, fol. 26v, line 10), although the other MSS (with the exception of Caius) do not support þah. This edition emends the phrase to read þet is as he seide. [Cleo.: þet is as he seide; Titus: þet is. as he seide; Nero: þet is ase he seide; Vernon: þat is as he seyde; Pepys: he seiþ; Caius: as þah he seide; Vitellius: ceo est ausi come il deist; Trinity: Cest ausi com il deist; Lat. (recast).]

617 MS: stincinde lust. Tolkien (p. 54, fol. 26v, line 17) apparently objects to the spelling of stincinde "stinking" with a c instead of a k, the usual spelling in Corpus. The original spelling is retained here on the chance that it may represent an OE spelling. [Cleo.: stinkinde lust; Titus: stinkende lust; Nero: stinkinde lust; Vernon: a stynkynde lust; Pepys: stynkande likyng; Caius: stinkinde lust.]

619 MS: lahte wið his cleaures hire heorte heved. Tolkien (p. 54, fol. 26v, line 20) claims that hire heorte heved "her heart's head" is a mistake, but Dobson refers to a gaffe in Cleo. which is right in Vitellius which has le chief de son queor "the head of her heart." It seems best to retain the MS reading here (on the authority of Vitellius, Nero, and Titus) and to translate "and snatched with sharp claws her heart's head." [Cleo.: lahte eauer hire wið his cleaures hire heorte he haueð; Titus: lahte wið his clokes hire herte heaued; Nero: cauhte mid his cleafres hire heorte heaued; Pepys: lau3t hym in her cloches; Vernon: cauhte hire with his claures. hire herte heued; Caius: clachte eauer toward hire heorte heaued; Vitellius: hapa od ses vngles le chief de son queor; Trinity: en lassasf . . . le cheitif quer de son uentre. Lat.: vngulis capud cordis sic rostrantis aliquociens apprehendit.]

623-24 MS: to himmere heile. hire to wraðer heale. All other MSS except Cleo. lack the phrase to himmere heile, which Tolkien thinks is a mistaken form (p. 54, fol. 26v, line 26). Salu notes that the "meaning of himmere is unknown" (p. 44). It seems likely that the form himmere is muddled in some way. The MED makes a brave attempt to understand it: "?Error for unmere; c.p. OE unmære. Excrescent initial h is rare in Ancr., rare in the pref[ix] un- in ME generally. Inglorious, miserable." Dobson thinks that to himmere heile might represent a place name, Dinah's destination, Salem Sichimorum (Genesis 33:18), while Morton suggests emending himmere to grimmere "with bad (or, worse) luck" (for these last two possibilities, see Zettersten, pp. 97-98). The phrase is allowed to stand here (especially since it is corroborated by Cleo.). What does seem clear, however, is that the -ere of himmere is an old adjectival ending (see to wrather heale) and that the heile may come from or have been influenced by ON heill "luck." The phrase should be considered doubtful, though; perhaps it is a confused anticipation of hire to wraðer heale. [Cleo.: Iacobes dochter to himmereheale. þet is . . . ; Titus: Iacobes dohter. to wraðerheale þet is . . . ; Nero: iacobes douhter. to wroðere hele. þet is . . . ; Vernon: to wroþehele; Pepys (recast); Caius: Iacobes dochter to uwelleer hele. þat is . . . ; Vitellius: la fille iacob a malhoure de soen. cest . . . ; Trinity: la filie iacob; sei a male eure. Cest . . . ; Lat. (lacking).]

694 i-haved i the worlde. MS: ihaued i / i þe worlde. The scribe has inadvertently re-peated the preposition i due to the line break (Tolkien, p. 57, fol. 28v, lines 16-17).

697 Sein Jeremie. MS: sein ierome. As Tolkien points out, ierome should read ieremie (p. 57, fol. 28v, line 21), since the quotation comes from Lamentations 4:1. [Vernon: O. seiþ Ieremye; Vitellius: Dit li prophete Jeremie.]

Only two other versions (Vernon and Vitellius) contain the addition beginning with Quomodo obscuratum and continuing to 2.737, and each places it differently (Vernon at the end of the entire text, as an addendum [fol. 392r]; Vitellius, much earlier in Part Two [at 2.198]). It seems likely that the addition appeared at one time on a separate leaf inserted at the appropriate place and that it subsequently became detached.

702-03 MS: beoð bicumene al fleschliche. al fleschliche iwurðen lahinde. There seems to be an inadvertent repetition here of the same thought. But it is retained on the chance (perhaps rather slim) that it may represent a rhetorical repetition. [Vernon: Beoþ bicomen al fleschlich¶ lau3whinge; Vitellius: estes deuenues toutes charneles riantes.]

708-09 Yef ha maketh hire wrath ayeines gult of sunne, ha [shulde] setten hire wordes. MS: 3ef ha makeð hire wrað a3eines gult of sunne. 3ef ha setteð hire wordes swa efne. This sentence seems to be incomplete or faulty as it stands since it consists of two if clauses with no main clause. The second 3ef may be a mistaken repetition. Removing it and altering the verb in the second clause (following Vernon) gives a sentence which reads, "If she makes her[self] angry against the guilt of sin, she should set (or, arrange) her words so evenly . . . " [Vernon: yif heo make hire wroþ a3eynes gult of sunne; heo schal setten hir wordes so euene; Vitellius: Si ele se fet corouce encontre trespas de pecche ele deit asseer ses paroles si owelement quele napierge trop moeuee; others lack this section.]

714 gasteliche earmes. MS: gasteliche earmðes. This phrase should probably read gasteliche earmes "spiritual arms" rather than gasteliche earmðes "spiritual miseries" (see Tolkien, p. 58, fol. 29r, line 18). [Vernon: gostliche armes; Vitellius: les braz espiritals; other versions lack this section.]

744 of Godes fowre. MS: of godes froure. Tolkien suggests emending froure "comfort" to fowre "four," and indeed the immediate context (the four ways in which Christ suffered in His senses) as well as the readings in Nero, Vernon, and Vitellius support the change. The current reading was probably influenced by the presence of "froureð" in the next line. [Cleo.: godes froure; Titus: Godes fowere; Nero: godes foure; Vernon: Godes foure; Pepys (lacking); Caius (lacking); Vitellius: des quatre sens nostre seignour; Trinity: du confort dampne . . . ; Lat. (recast).]

765 ful of angoisse. MS: ful of angosse. Angosse is apparently a misspelling of angoisse "anguish," the usual spelling in Corpus (see Tolkien, p. 60, fol. 30v, line 6). [Cleo.: ful of anguise; Titus: ful of angoisse; Nero: ful of anguise; Vernon: ful of anguysse; Pepys: his Anguisch; Caius (lacking); Vitellius: plein dangois; Trinity: pleine de angoisse; Lat.: anxius.]

787 MS: (ne) brohten (ha) him to present. ne win, with na and ha inserted. The text reads slightly differently in some versions, though it seems best to retain the corrected MS reading here. [Cleo.: ne brochten ha him to Present ne win (with to altered to no by Scribe D); Titus: ne brohten him na present. ne win; Nero: ne brouhten heo him to presente ne win; Vernon: ne brou3ten heo him no present. nouþer wyn; Pepys (recast); Caius (lacking); Vitellius: ne li porterent pas present ne de vin; Trinity: ne lui apporterent point de present ne vin; Lat.: non optulerunt vinum.]

815-16 ha schulen rotien in. MS: ha schulien rotien in. Schulien may be a confused spelling of the the usual form schulen. Tolkien sees the mistake as an inadvertent anticipation of the -ien in rotien (p. 62, fol. 31v, line 24). Many of the other versions have the past subjunctive form schulden, but here Cleo.'s reading is preferable. [Cleo.: ha schule rotien inne; Titus: ho schulden rotien inne; Nero: heo schulden rotien in; Vernon: þat heo schulden roten in; Pepys (recast); Caius (lacking); Vitellius: eles punirunt (sic, for purri- or puru-?) dedenz; Trinity: eles purrirunt; Lat.: putrescent.]

826 up-o the thridde. MS: o þe þe þridde. The inadvertent repetition of þe (see Tolkien, p. 63, fol. 32r, line 11) is removed here.