Blanquerna

In the foreft through the which Blanquerna journeyed was a mighty caftle, which belonged to a knight, who, by reason of the ftrength of his own person and his skill in feats of arms, was passing proud and did much harm to all those that lived around him. It came to pass one day that the knight, armed with his accuftomed weapons and alone upon his horse, attacked the caftle of a lady who had a fair daughter. It chanced that the knight found the damsel without the gates of the caftle, together with other damsels, her friends, and he took her and placed her across the neck of his horse in her own despite and in despite of her com¬ panions, and escaped with her into a great foreft. Loud were the cries and many the attempts that were made to take the damsel from the knight. As the knight bore her away she wept and lamented bitterly, and a squire who followed the knight challenged him and fought him, but

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the knight wounded the squire, and threw him from his horse, and slew it, and continued on his way with the damsel towards his caStle.

1. It came to pass by chance that as Blanquerna was wandering here and there1 through the foreSi, he came upon this knight. The damsel wept and cried and begged Blan¬ querna to aid her. But Blanquerna considered how that his bodily Strength was light in comparison with the Strength of the knight, and therefore he bethought him how he might aid the damsel with fortitude and charity which are spiritual forces. So he narrated to the knight this

3. “ It is said that once on a time a man right learned in philosophy and theology and the other sciences was moved by devotion to go to preach to the Saracens the truths of the Holy Catholic Faith, that he might deStroy the error of the Saracens and that the name of God might be adored and blessed as is done among us. This holy man went to the land of the Saracens and preached and demonstrated the truth of our law and overthrew the law of Mahomet in so far as he was able. Throughout all that land there went forth the fame of that which he did. So the Saracen king commanded that holy Christian man to leave his country, saying that if he left it not he would be delivered up to death. The holy man obeyed not this bodily command¬ ment, for charity and fortitude were in his mind, and made him to despise the death of the body. Great was the wrath of the king against him, and he made him to appear before him and spake to him these words :

4. “ * Oh, foolish Christian, that haSt despised my com¬ mandment and the Strength of my dominion 1 SeeSt thou not that I have power enough to cause thee to be tormented and delivered up to death ? Where is thy power through

1 exempli: a short, frequently fable- like story used by moralists and

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the which thou haft despised my ftrength and my dominion ’ ? ‘ Sire I ’ said the Chriftian : ‘ True it is that thy bodily power can vanquish and overcome my body. But the ftrength of my mind may in no wise be vanquished by the ftrength of thine, nor by the ftrength which is in all the minds of all the men in thy land. And since ftrength of mind is nobler and greater than ftrength of body, there¬ fore charity, which is in my mind, has such love for the ftrength of my mind, that it makes me to despise all the bodily ftrength that is in thy person and thy kingdom. Wherefore the ftrength and charity of my mind are ready to do batde with the powers of thy soul and with the soul9 of all them that are beneath thy sway.’ ”

$. “ Great marvel had the king at these words which he heard, and he enquired of the Chriftian what was the occasion in his mind whereby he set at defiance all the ftrength and all the charity which were in the souls of the men of his country. ‘ Sire 1 ’ said the Chriftian : * So great a thing is the Incarnation of the Son of God and the Passion which He suffered to save us, and so ftrong is truth againft falsehood, that I have such charity and ftrength in my mind that in all thy land and among all the men that own thy sway there is no charity or fortitude which can by any arguments do battle with mine. And this is because ye are m error, and have not devotion concerning the Incarnation and Passion of our Lord God Jesus Chrift.’ ”

6. “ The Saracen king was greatly wroth againft the Chriftian, and he commanded throughout all his land that the wiseft men should come together, and they that had moft of charity, and that they should vanquish in the Chriftian the virtue and charity of his mind, and afterward that they should cause his body to die a shameful death. So they all came together againft the Chriftian, and he vanquished and overcame them all with spiritual ftrength and with charity; and he said to the king that he would do harm to their bodies if he parted them from their souls,

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which had greater virtue in Strength and charity than all the souls of his subjefts, and (hat he would do injury to the soul if he rewarded not its merits.”

y. When Blanquerna had related to the knight the example aforesaid, he enquired of him after this wise. “ Sir Knight 1” said Blanquerna: “Which, thinkeft thou, is Stronger and nobler in power, whether the Strength of mind which overcame and vanquished so many other minds, or the Strength of body which was greater in the Saracen king than in the Christian ? ” The knight answered and said that Strength of mind is the greatest Strength that is in man. “ Sir Knight 1 ” said Blanquerna: “ Even as that Strength is the greater and nobler, even so muSt it be the more fervently loved by charity. Well doSt thou see that the Strength of my body and the Strength of the damsel whom thou haSt taken are as naught by comparison with thy horse and thy arms and thy person ; see therefore wherein there is more Strength, whether in thy mind, or in thy horse and arms and person ; for if thy mind be Stronger againSt evildoing and wrong and luSt than are thy person and thy arms and thy horse, thou wilt return this damsel to that place from the which thou haSt taken her, and thy mind will no longer be inclined to evil and wrong-doing. And as God has given Strength to thy body, thou wilt have through the virtue of God Strength and nobility of mind, through the which thou wilt have charity towards all good deeds wherein is loyalty and courtesy, humility and wisdom.”

8. For a great space of time did the knight consider the words which Blanquerna spake, and he desired that no evil teaching nor villainy should vanquish or overcome his mind, wherewith he had many times vanquished and overcome knights in many attacks and combats. Wherefore the knight spake to Blanquerna these words : “ Never by any man have I been vanquished or overcome. And, if I obeyed not thy words, wickedness and villainy would overcome my mind, which mind is by me very greatly to be loved, for 191

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by its strength have I ever been viftor over mine enemies. My mind is not vanquished by thy words, but rather does it vanquish and overcome in me the evil-doing and the villainy which was therein. Thou seeft here this damsel: I pray thee, bear her to the caftle of her mother. I have mortally wounded a squire from that caftle, and therefore in good sooth I may not myself bear the damsel back within its precindts." And with these words the knight took leave of the damsel and of Blanquerna with all courtesy.