'To thilke verray welefulnesse,' quod she, 'of whiche thyn herte dremeth; but for as moche as thy sighte is ocupied and distorbed by imaginacioun _of erthely thinges_, thou mayst nat yit seen thilke selve welefulnesse.'
'Do,' quod I, 'and shewe me what is thilke verray welefulnesse, 30 I preye thee, with-oute taryinge.'
'That wole I gladly don,' quod she, 'for the cause of thee; but I wol first marken thee by wordes and I wol enforcen me to enformen thee thilke _false_ cause _of blisfulnesse_ that thou more knowest; so that, whan thou hast fully bi-holden thilke false 35 goodes, and torned thyn eyen to that other syde, thou mowe knowe the cleernesse of verray blisfulnesse.
PR. I. 3. C. streyhte; Ed. streyght. 5. C angwissos. 7. C. weyhte; Ed. weight. // C. sentenses; Ed. sentences. 8. C. vnparygal; Ed. vnperegall. 10. C. deffende; Ed. defende. 11. C. hir-; Ed. here-. 12. C. desiros; Ed. desyrous. 17. C. Ed. had. 21. C. resseyued. 22. C. wit; Ed. with. 23. C. woldesthow; Ed. woldest thou. 26. C. thynge (!); Ed. thyn; Lat. _tuus_. 28. C. herthely; Ed. erthly. 31. C. tarynge; Ed. taryeng; Lat. _cunctatione_. 33. C. the (_for_ thee); Ed. _om._
Who-so wole sowe a feeld plentivous, lat him first delivere it fro thornes, and kerve asunder with his hook the busshes and the fern, so that the corn may comen hevy of eres and of greynes. Hony is the more swete, yif mouthes han first tasted savoures that ben wikkid. The sterres shynen more agreably whan the wind 5 Nothus leteth his ploungy blastes; and after that Lucifer the day-sterre hath chased awey the derke night, the day the fairere ledeth the rosene hors _of the sonne_. And right so thou, bi-holdinge first the false goodes, bigin to with-drawen thy nekke fro the yok _of erthely affecciouns_; and after-ward the verray goodes 10 shollen entren in-to thy corage.'
ME. I. 1. A. of (_for_ fro). 2. A. bushes; Ed. busshes; C. bosses. 3. C. heres; A. eres. 5. A. wikke. // C. agreablely. 7. C. dirke; A. derke. 8. A. _om._ And. 10. C. verre; A. verrey.
Tho fastnede she a litel the sighte of hir eyen, and with-drow hir right as it were in-to the streite sete of hir thought; and bigan to speke right thus: 'Alle the cures,' quod she, 'of mortal folk, whiche that travaylen hem in many maner studies, goon certes by diverse weyes, but natheles they enforcen hem alle to comen only 5 to oon ende of blisfulnesse. And blisfulnesse is swiche a good, that who-so that hath geten it, he ne may, over that, no-thing more desyre. And this thing is forsothe the sovereyn good that conteyneth in him-self alle maner goodes; to the whiche good yif ther failede any thing, it mighte nat ben cleped sovereyn good: 10 for thanne were ther som good, out of this ilke sovereyn good, that mighte ben desired. Now is it cleer and certein thanne, that blisfulnesse is a parfit estat by the congregacioun of alle goodes; the whiche blisfulnesse, as I have seyd, alle mortal folk enforcen hem to geten by diverse weyes. For-why the coveitise of verray 15 good is naturelly y-plaunted in the hertes of men; but the miswandringe errour mis-ledeth hem in-to false goodes. Of the whiche men, som of hem wenen that sovereyn good be to liven with-oute nede of any thing, and travaylen hem to be haboundaunt of richesses. And som other men demen that sovereyn good be, 20 for to ben right digne of reverence; and enforcen hem to ben reverenced among hir neighbours by the honours that they han y-geten. And some folk ther ben that holden, that right heigh power be sovereyn good, and enforcen hem for to regnen, or elles to ioignen hem to hem that regnen. And it semeth to some other 25 folk, that noblesse of renoun be the sovereyn good; and hasten hem to geten glorious name by the arts of werre and of pees. And many folk mesuren and gessen that sovereyn good be Ioye and gladnesse, and wenen that it be right blisful thing to ploungen hem in voluptuous delyt. And ther ben folk that entrechaungen 30 the causes and the endes of thise forseyde goodes, as they that desiren richesses to han power and delytes; or elles they desiren power for to han moneye, or for cause of renoun. In thise thinges, and in swiche othre thinges, is torned alle the entencioun of desiringes and of werkes of men; as thus: noblesse and favour 35 of people, whiche that yeveth to men, as it semeth hem, a maner cleernesse of renoun; and wyf and children, that men desiren for cause of delyt and of merinesse. But forsothe, frendes ne sholden nat be rekned a-mong the godes of fortune, but of vertu; for it is a ful holy maner thing. Alle thise othre thinges, forsothe, ben 40 taken for cause of power or elles for cause of delyt.