Metrical Epilogue to
the Pastoral Care
[Original text in
Anglo-Saxon]
ðis is nu se wæterscipe
ðe us wereda god
to frofre gehet
foldbuendum.
He cwæð ðæt he wolde ðæt on worulde forð
of ðæm innoðum
a libbendu
wætru fleowen,
ðe wel on hine
gelifden under lyfte. Is hit lytel tweo
ðæt ðæs wæterscipes welsprynge is
on hefonrice, ðæt is halig gæst.
ðonan hine hlodan halge and gecorene,
siððan hine gierdon
ða ðe gode herdon
ðurh halga bec hider on eorðan
geond manna mod missenlice.
Sume hine weriað on gewitlocan,
wisdomes stream, welerum gehæftað,
ðæt he on unnyt ut ne tofloweð.
Ac se wæl wunað on weres breostum
ðurh dryhtnes giefe diop and stille.
Sume hine lætað ofer landscare
riðum torinnan; nis ðæt rædlic ðing,
gif swa hlutor wæter, hlud and undiop,
tofloweð æfter feldum oð hit to fenne
werð.
Ac hladað iow nu drincan, nu iow dryhten
geaf
ðæt iow Gregorius gegiered hafað
to durum iowrum dryhtnes welle.
Fylle nu his fætels, se ðe fæstne hider
kylle brohte, cume eft hræðe.
Gif her ðegna hwelc ðyrelne kylle
brohte to ðys burnan, bete hine georne,
ðy læs he forsceade scirost wætra,
oððe him lifes drync forloren weorðe.
[Translation into
modern English by Maurice Riordan]
King Alfred’s
Epilogue to the Pastoral Care
of Gregory the Great
Here is the water
which the Lord of all
Pledged for the
well-being of His people.
He said it was His
wish that water
Should flow forever
into this world
Out of the minds of
generous men,
Those who serve Him
beneath the sky.
But none should
doubt the water’s source
In Heaven, the home
of the Holy Ghost.
It is drawn from
there by a chosen few
Who make sacred
books their study.
They seek out the
tidings they contain,
Then spread the word
among mankind.
But some retain it
in their hearts.
They never let it
pass their lips
Lest it should go to
waste in the world.
By this means it
stays pure and clear,
A pool within each
man’s breast.
Others pour it
freely over all the land,
Though care must be
taken lest it flow
Too loud and fast
across the fields,
Transforming them to
bogs and fens.
Gather round now
with your drinking cups,
Gregory has brought
the water to your door.
Fill up, and return
again for refills.
If you have come
with cups that leak
You must hurry to
repair and patch them,
Or else you’ll
squander the rarest gift,
And the drink of
life will be lost to you.
Source
of the text – The
Word Exchange: Anglo-Saxon Poems in Translation, edited by Greg Delanty and Michael Matto. New
York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2011, p. 426-427.
TJB: Instream flow. From a dark age of metaphor, this extended metaphor-parable instructs us to avoid flood irrigation & store it in reservoirs.
TJB: Instream flow. From a dark age of metaphor, this extended metaphor-parable instructs us to avoid flood irrigation & store it in reservoirs.
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