Confessio Amantis | Page 6

ther is an helle,?Which unto mannes sinne is due,?And bidden ous therfore eschue?That wikkid is, and do the goode.?Who that here wordes understode, 460?It thenkth thei wolden do the same;?Bot yet betwen ernest and game?Ful ofte it torneth other wise.?With holy tales thei devise?How meritoire is thilke dede?Of charite, to clothe and fede?The povere folk and forto parte?The worldes good, bot thei departe?Ne thenken noght fro that thei have.?Also thei sein, good is to save 470?With penance and with abstinence?Of chastite the continence;?Bot pleinly forto speke of that,?I not how thilke body fat,?Which thei with deynte metes kepe?And leyn it softe forto slepe,?Whan it hath elles al his wille,?With chastite schal stonde stille:?And natheles I can noght seie,?In aunter if that I misseye. 480?Touchende of this, how evere it stonde,?I here and wol noght understonde,?For therof have I noght to done:?Bot he that made ferst the Mone,?The hyhe god, of his goodnesse,?If ther be cause, he it redresce.?Bot what as eny man accuse,?This mai reson of trowthe excuse;?The vice of hem that ben ungoode?Is no reproef unto the goode: 490?For every man hise oghne werkes?Schal bere, and thus as of the clerkes?The goode men ben to comende,?And alle these othre god amende:?For thei ben to the worldes ije?The Mirour of ensamplerie,?To reulen and to taken hiede?Betwen the men and the godhiede.?Now forto speke of the comune,?It is to drede of that fortune 500?Which hath befalle in sondri londes:?Bot often for defalte of bondes?Al sodeinliche, er it be wist,?A Tonne, whanne his lye arist,?Tobrekth and renneth al aboute,?Which elles scholde noght gon oute;?And ek fulofte a litel Skar?Upon a Banke, er men be war,?Let in the Strem, which with gret peine,?If evere man it schal restreigne. 510?Wher lawe lacketh, errour groweth,?He is noght wys who that ne troweth,?For it hath proeved ofte er this;?And thus the comun clamour is?In every lond wher poeple dwelleth,?And eche in his compleignte telleth?How that the world is al miswent,?And ther upon his jugement?Yifth every man in sondry wise.?Bot what man wolde himself avise, 520?His conscience and noght misuse,?He may wel ate ferste excuse?His god, which evere stant in on:?In him ther is defalte non,?So moste it stonde upon ousselve?Nought only upon ten ne twelve,?Bot plenerliche upon ous alle,?For man is cause of that schal falle.?And natheles yet som men wryte?And sein that fortune is to wyte, 530?And som men holde oppinion?That it is constellacion,?Which causeth al that a man doth:?God wot of bothe which is soth.?The world as of his propre kynde?Was evere untrewe, and as the blynde?Improprelich he demeth fame,?He blameth that is noght to blame?And preiseth that is noght to preise:?Thus whan he schal the thinges peise, 540?Ther is deceipte in his balance,?And al is that the variance?Of ous, that scholde ous betre avise;?For after that we falle and rise,?The world arist and falth withal,?So that the man is overal?His oghne cause of wel and wo.?That we fortune clepe so?Out of the man himself it groweth;?And who that other wise troweth, 550?Behold the poeple of Irael:?For evere whil thei deden wel,?Fortune was hem debonaire,?And whan thei deden the contraire,?Fortune was contrariende.?So that it proeveth wel at ende?Why that the world is wonderfull?And may no while stonde full,?Though that it seme wel besein;?For every worldes thing is vein, 560?And evere goth the whiel aboute,?And evere stant a man in doute,?Fortune stant no while stille,?So hath ther noman al his wille.?Als fer as evere a man may knowe,?Ther lasteth nothing bot a throwe;?The world stant evere upon debat,?So may be seker non astat,?Now hier now ther, now to now fro,?Now up now down, this world goth so, 570?And evere hath don and evere schal:?Wherof I finde in special?A tale writen in the Bible,?Which moste nedes be credible;?And that as in conclusioun?Seith that upon divisioun?Stant, why no worldes thing mai laste,?Til it be drive to the laste.?And fro the ferste regne of alle?Into this day, hou so befalle, 580?Of that the regnes be muable?The man himself hath be coupable,?Which of his propre governance?Fortuneth al the worldes chance.?The hyhe almyhti pourveance,?In whos eterne remembrance?Fro ferst was every thing present,?He hath his prophecie sent,?In such a wise as thou schalt hiere,?To Daniel of this matiere, 590?Hou that this world schal torne and wende,?Till it be falle to his ende;?Wherof the tale telle I schal,?In which it is betokned al.?As Nabugodonosor slepte,?A swevene him tok, the which he kepte?Til on the morwe he was arise,?For he therof was sore agrise.?To Daniel his drem he tolde,?And preide him faire that he wolde 600?Arede what it tokne may;?And seide: "Abedde wher I lay,?Me thoghte I syh upon a Stage?Wher stod a wonder strange ymage.?His hed with al the necke also?Thei were of fin gold bothe tuo;?His brest, his schuldres and his armes?Were al of selver, bot the tharmes,?The wombe and al