Blanquerna

OF THE STRIFE THAT WAS BETWEEN NATANA AND NASTASIA

After Blanquerna had left Natana, she was ever wrapt in thought concerning the words which Blanquerna had spoken to her, and she thought upon the Passion of Jesus Chrift, and upon the trials and deaths of Saint Catherine, Saint Eulalia and Saint Margaret, which they endured in this world for the love of God.

2. By the virtue of God, and by the nature of cogitation, which inclines the will toward that upon which man thinks, Natana conceived an ardent desire to forsake the world and to enter the eftate of religion.

3. Naftasia observed that her daughter was all the day long deep in thought, and changed completely from her former condition. Therefore, supposing her to be enam¬ oured of Blanquerna, she spake to Natana in these words : “ Beloved daughter 1 Wherefore art thou sad and whereon doft thou think so deeply? It seems to me that thou haft remembrance of Blanquerna. Now if thou wouldft have Blanquerna for thy spouse, desire it no longer, for Blanquerna is gone to be a hermit all the days of his life, as thou knoweft. If thou wouldft wed, an honeft burgess has a son that is ftill young, and him thou canft wed, for thy dowry is great and thou comeft of honoured lineage. Further, thou art fair in person and of good upbringing; therefore canft thou seek out rom a the city the beSt and moft honourable man yet unwed and him canft thou have for thy spouse.”

4. Natana enquired of Naftasia if she knew any man in 96 WaS fairer’ noblcr and more powerful than

STRIFE BETWEEN NATANA AND NASTASIA all other men that are in the world, and if that man would be her spouse ; for she felt herself to be so rich and so noble in her mind that she would not from the city alone choose the fitteft man to be her spouse, but from the whole world would she choose a man, and that man, come what might, she would have for her husband and her spouse. “ Daughter 1 ” said Naftasia, “ The beft man in the world — who could choose him or know him ? Nor art thou so rich or so nobly born that kings and emperors and other princes would give thee one of their sons in marriage.” Said Natana: “ If I lack the riches or honour or noble breeding needful to fit me to be the wife of a king’s son, can there be no king’s son that thou knowefl who would humble himself to be my spouse ? ” Naftasia answered and said that she knew no son of a king or of a prince who had humility so great that he would lower himself by taking her

5. Then Natana spake to Naftasia and asked her if she had never heard men speak of Jesus Chrift, Who is the Son of the King of Heaven and Earth and of all that is, the which Jesus Chrift is the noblest and the faireft and the wiseft and the moft truly to be loved of all men that ever were. In Him (she said) is such humility that His Divine Nature was pleased to humble Itself to be a person with human nature. Such courtesy and humility has this Jesus Chrift that pity and love made Him humble Himself to be poor, to be tor¬ mented and to be killed, so that sinners who could not be saved or receive the blessing of God should come to eternal life and escape the torments of hell which are likewise everlaying. “ Mother 1 ” said Natana. “ It is this Jesus Christ Whom I will have for my Husband and Spouse, and I pray thee to grant Him to me so soon as thou canS, for greatly do I desire Him. And fear thou not concerning Him be¬ cause He has so much honour and power, for oftentimes already has He humbled Himself as much as I ask or

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6 Greatly was Naftasia displeased when she knew that her daughter had conceived a love for religion,1 and she spake ill to her of the religious life, extolling the estate of matrimony. So there was a dispute between Natana and Na£iasia as to which was the worthier, whether the life of religion or the life of matrimony. Naflasia extolled the eSafe of matrimony, saying that it was made by God in Paradise; and that by it is the world governed, for if all were in religion, the world in a short time would be with¬ out men; and that religion comes through matrimony, and matrimony can exist without religion. Natana answered and said that as God made the order of matrimony after the body, even so after the spirit by the light of grace did He make the mind of man to conceive the order of religion. And if matrimony is an effate whereby men come into the world, religion is an eSate whereby men come to glory. And although the fruit cannot exift without the tree, it follows not that the tree is better than the fruit, since God created the tree for the sake of the fruit.

7. While Natana and NaSasia disputed concerning the eSates of religion and matrimony, NaSasia said to Natana that she herself had desired to enter the religious life, but certain religious and certain dames of a religious order had dissuaded her and counselled her to take a husband, and therefore she thought that there are trials in the religious life which are grievous to bear, while in the life of matri¬ mony there are pleasures which are agreeable exceedingly.

8. Mother 1 said Natana, “The men and women who are in the ftate of religion are of diverse wills • and so noble a thing is the religious life that it permits not’any evil sou to e iftained with vain concupiscence. Wherefore the , e|* ,ef ,! ( at man can have in the religious life is when that hfe displeases him and he desires the vanities of this world; and the greateft pleasure that a man can have in

“ok, by “ religion ” is n

STRIFE BETWEEN NATANA AND N ASTASIA this world is that of a religious who loves his order and considers that he has escaped from the perils and vanities of this world, and in his mind has ever God and His honours.”

9. “ Daughter 1 ” said Naftasia to Natana. “ In this city lives a noble youth of right good upbringing, and as I have heard from his mother and from other persons he would fain have thee to wife, for he is deeply enamoured of thee.” “ Mother 1 ” said Natana, “ This youth, is he so powerful that he can forgive my sins ? If I am sick, can he heal me ? Or can he give me heavenly glory ? Or if there is famine upon earth, can he give generous abundance of temporal possessions ? ” When Natana had vanquished and overborne Naftasia thus with her arguments, as is set forth above, Naftasia ended her words, left Natana should be yet more ftrongly confirmed in her devotion, intending at another season to extol the order of matrimony. So she rose from the place where she was seated, and went to the window to look out at the people who passed along the ftreet.

10. While Naftasia was at the window a damsel with a great company of people passed by, on her way to pray to God in the church, for on the morrow she was to be a bride. Right fair was she and nobly clad, and she rode upon a palfrey. Many honourable men followed her and many noble ladies; jeftcrs and tumblers who sang and played inftruments of music, and men who danced, did honour to this damsel. Naftasia called Natana to come and ftand with her at the window. So Natana went to the window. “ Daughter ! ” said Naftasia, “ Thou seeft how fair a sight is yonder damsel, and the great company that attends her.” While Naftasia spake thus, there passed a corpse that was carried to the church for burial. The grief and the tears of the wife of the dead man, who could express them ? “ Mother I ” said Natana, “ Seeft thou how great is the sorrow of yonder woman that has loft her husband ? ” Naftasia answered not these words, but rose from the

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window that Natana might also depart and gaze no longer upon the grief and tears of this woman.

11. While Naftasia and Natana were Still in the room, a servant came to them weeping, and enquired of Naftasia if she desired to go and do honour to a woman that had died in childbed, and whose body they had opened to take from it the living child. “ Mother 1 ” said Natana, “ Doft thou hear these words?” Naftasia made no answer, but went from the house to the woman, who was to be buried on that day. While Naftasia was without the house, Natana thought upon her mother’s words, and how she had tempted her to embrace the eftate of matrimony. Natana feared the devil, and the lightness of the mind of woman which so easily is swayed, and she feared left her mother by some skilful art should take from her the devotion which she had to religion. Wherefore Natana sent a secret message to the abbess of a convent of good fame that she should send two dames of the order to fetch her on the morrow when her mother would be at Mass, for she wished to visit her that she might speak with her certain words.

12. When Natana had sent this message, she returned to the window to see the woman who wept for the death of her husband come back from the burial. While Natana was at the window, she heard a crier proclaiming that all should come to see juftice wrought upon the son of a burgess who was to suffer the penalty for having killed a man. This man who was being led to execution passed before Natana ; his father and his mother and a great company of his kinsfolk followed him. The lamentation which they made, who could recount it? While Natana was at the window and saw all these things, she beheld Naftasia coming. And Nastasia, meeting the man that was being led to execution, r* e ^rrow °f the woman that was bewailing her

fWkhen ^asia was more in the house Natana and that \ * * perceive that thou haft wept,

ioo Hy hCart HaS been moved t0 devotion. Haft thou

HOW NATANA ENTERED A RELIGIOUS HOUSE had contrition of heart, and does thy conscience reproach thee because thou hail chidden me for the holy devotion which God has put into my soul ? ” " Daughter ! ” said

Naftasia, 11 Speak to me no more such words as these, nor conceive of any eftate save that of marriage; for if thou doft so, thou wilt be disinherited and likewise beaten, and thou haft kinsfolk whom I will cause to give thee many ftrokes and blows.” “ Mother 1 ” said Natana, “ Thou wouldft have me resemble those holy women, the saints who bore many trials in this world for their Spouse Jesus Chrift, Who Himself endured a grievous Passion and Death that He might give them glory without end. Threaten me not, then, with that which I fain would have ; rather do I pray thee to give me to endure that which my will desires.”

13. All that night Naftasia thought deeply how she might give to her daughter a husband, who should be to her as a son, and whom she might adopt, bellowing on him the great riches which her husband had left to Natana her daughter, of the which riches she would bewail the loss if her daughter entered the religious life. But Natana thought all that night how she might enter a religious order. On the morrow early, when Naftasia went to Mass, the abbess sent to Natana two nuns to give her escort to the convent. When Natana left the house, she told the servant that she purposed to go to the convent, and commanded her to tell this to Naftasia, that she might not think she had gone to some place of ill repute.