Alms-giving, Pharaoh, Lords Prayer I

(More smaller poems from the Exeter Book)

Almsgiving

            It will turn out well for the earl, cruel minded man,

            who inside him has a roomy heart;

            Before the world, that will be for him the greatest of honors (lit., honor-memorials)

            and before our Lord the greatest of glories/judgments.

5          Even as he might extinguish a welling flame

            with water, so that it can no longer ravage,

            bright (and) burning, the boroughs/cities,

            so he with alms-giving completely pushes aside

            the wound of sins, and cures souls (his soul?).

 Pharaoh 

            “Tell me what there would be of all the hosts

            in Pharaoh’s army, when they began to persecute

            God’s folk through (their) hatred?”

                 “I don’t know at all, but I guess thus:

5          that there were, declared by number,

            six hundred fine chariots of the weapon-wielders;

            that the sudden-swipe of waves destroyed (them) all

            by ferocious fate in the world-kingdom.

Lord’s Prayer I

            … [hol]y Father, you who live in the heavens,

            honored by the joy of glory. Let your name be hallowed

            by the children of men for your works; you are the Savior of men.

            May your kingdom come far and wide, and your counsel-firm will

5          be raised under the sky’s roof, (and) also on the spacious earth.

            Give us today, glory-firm Splendor,

            our loaf, Helper of men,

            perpetual (bread), truth-firm Measurer.

            Do not let temptations strike us too powerfully,

            but give us freedom, Wielder of peoples,

            from every evil, for ever and ever.

Descending into Hell

Descent into Hell

(Exeter Book)

            Noble-born women prepared themselves in the predawn

            for a journey; an assembly of men knew

            the atheling’s body (was; lit., to be) buried in its earth-grave.

            Weary women wished to bemoan with weeping

5          the atheling’s death for a time,

            the sad (ones wished) to mourn. (His) bed/grave had grown cold

            his departure had been hard; the heroes/angels? were bold,

            those they found happy at the mound.

            Mourning Mary came at day-red:

10       she asked another (to go) with the earl’s daughter.

            That sorrowful pair sought the victory-child of God

            alone in the earth-grave where they knew

            that the men of Judea had hidden him before.

            (They) thought that he would remain in that mound,

15       alone on Easter-night. Oh, the women discovered

            something (altogether) different when they turned onto the path.

                 A force of angels had come there before dawn:

            the joy of these throngs surrounded the Savior’s sepulchre (lit., hill)

            The earth-grave was open, the atheling’s body

20       received the spirit of life: the earth shuddered,

            hell-dwellers laughed. The young warrior awoke,

            gallant from the ground,  that Glory-might arose

            victory-firm and wise. John spoke,

            the hero to the hell-dwellers, laughing said,

25       the brave one to the many, concerning his kinsman’s journey:

            “Our Savior had assured me,

            when he wanted to send me on this journey,

            that he would seek me out within six months

            that Prince of all people. Now that period has passed.

30       I expect very strongly and reckon assuredly

            that today our Lord will seek

            us out  himself, the victory-child of God.”

                  He impelled himself on the journey, Lord of mankind,

            the Protector of the heavens wanted  to shatter

35       and bring down the walls of hell, (wanted) to start,

            fiercest of all Kings, plundering the glory of that fortress.

He did not care for helmet-bearers/soldiers in that battle,

nor did he want to bring mailed-warriors

to the city-gates, but (nevertheless) the locks fell,

40       bars from the fort; the King, in his attack,

            the Prince of all people rushed forth,

            the glory-giver of hosts. The exiles swarmed

            (to find out) which of them could see that Victory-Child—

            Adam and Abraham, Issac and Jacob,

45       many a proud earl, Moses and Dqvid,

            Isaiah and Zacharias,

            many high-fathers, likewise a crowd of men as well,

            a host of prophets, a throng of women,

            many females, an innumerable/vast folk.

50       Then John saw the Victory-Child of God

            coming to hell among this regal-throng,

            sad-minded, (he) perceived then God’s own journey. ??

            He saw hell’s doors shining brightly

            those which long before had been locked,

55       covered in darkness; the thane was joyful.

                Then the first of the city-dwellers addressed boldy,

            brave before the multitude, and spoke to his kinsman

            and greeted the welcome guest with words.

            “Thanks be to you for this, our Prince,

60       that you wanted seek us out, (us) sorrowing (ones),

            now (that) we in these fetters have had to wait,

            since [the devil] bound many a brotherless

            outcast—he is everywhere an enemy.

            Not at all is [every sinner here] so narrowly

65       or so bitterly bound below in a torture-cell, in harm-manacles,

            that he cannot the more easily gain courage

            when he trusts in his Lord’s grace,

            that (He) wants to free him from (his) fetters.[1]

            Thus we all trust to you alone,

70       my Lord so dear. I have suffered much

            since you ventured finally in to me,

            when you gave me sword and mail-coat,

            helmet and battle-sharp (i.e. sword)—I have held it always, even now—

            and you made known to me, Joy of royal-glories??,

75       that you were my protector.

                  Oh Gabriel, how wise you are and sharp,

            mild and mindful and humane (lit., man-gentle)

            wise in your wits and sagacious in your words!

            You made that known to us when you brought that boy

80       to us in Bethlehem. We had waited a long time for that,

            sunken in sorrows, longing for peace,

            happiness, and hope, when we might hear

            the word of God pronounced from his own mouth.

                  Oh, Mary, how you gave birth to a brave king

85       for us, when you brought that boy to us

            in Bethlehem! In bonds we had

            to wait for that, trembling violently

            under the doors of hell. The devil (lit., slayer) delighted in (our) agony.

            Our ancient-enemies were all elated

90       when they heard how we, grieving,

            moaned, mourning our kin-city (i.e., lineage),

            until you sought us out, Victory-Lord God,

            mixed [among us], bravest of all kings.

            […]                              now you have been given generously

95       to us from our young. We in our greedy hearts

            deceived ourselves: therefore we had delivered

            into the hands of the slayer the sins from our hearts;

            (we) also had to beg for piece from our enemies.

                 Oh Jerusalem in Judea,

100     how quietly you have remained in that place.

            No earth dwellers were allowed to pass through you,

            no living ones at all, those who sing (your) praises.

                  Oh, Jordan in Judea

            how quietly you have remained in that place.

105     Not at all do you flow over (all) earth-dwellers,

            (yet) they were allowed to enjoy your waters happily.

                   Now I call on you, our Savior

            deep in difficulties—you are the Lord Christ!—

            that you have mercy on us, Creator of men.

110     You yourself sought out your mother’s womb

            for the love of men, Victory-Lord God,

            not at all for (any) need of yours, Wielder of nations,

            but for the mercies which you have shown

            mankind so often, when it (most) needed grace.

115     You can embrace the habitations of all peoples,

            likewise you can clear away, powerful Lord

            (all) the sand-grains of the sea, best of all kings!

            So, I call on you, our Savior,

            by your childhood, best of kings,

120     and by your wound, Lord of hosts,

            and by your resurrection, joy of nobles,

            and by your mother Mary’s name,

            whom all hell-dwellers praise and exalt;

            and by those angels that stand around you,

125     those whom you allow to sit at (your) right hand,

            since you wished to seek us out, Lord of hosts,

            on this exile-journey by your self’s own might.;

            and by Jerusalem in Judea—

            that city must now await nevertheless,

130     beloved Prince, your return;

            and by the Jordan in Judea—

            we two both bathed together in that brook/river

                 Pour over with those waters, Lord of hosts,

            all the hell-dwellers (lit., city-dwellers), (now) happy in heart,

135     --just as you two inspired John in the Jordan

            beautifully by baptism—

            (and) all this middle earth. Thanks be always to the Measurer.”

The Harrowing of Hell from the Tiberius Psalter

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[1] This passage, starting with l. 62, is apparently corrupt. Muir thinks that there “are too many problems with these three verses to warrant reconstruction” (638), and goes on to endorse Bradley’s translation of the text that we have: “Although the traitorous devil—he is an enemy abroad—ensnares many a brotherless exile, that man is not bound so closely beneath oppressive locks nor so cruelly beneath painful fetters”  (Bradley, 393).

You're fired. Resignation, second part 2

Though I haven't been posting for the last few days (the new semester has bitten down on my ankle like  a Rottweiler), I have been a-translating fairly steadily. So let me catch up a bit with the rest of "Resignation" or "Contrition A and B" (if you prefer).

Resignation / Contrition A

                                           Allow the angels to take me away

50       afterwards into your presence, Savior Prince,

            Measurer, in your mercy.  Even though I committed

            many crimes in (my) days, nevertheless do not ever let the devil

            take your right arm (lit., limb; offspring?) on a hateful journey,

            for fear that they may rejoice in the thought

55       by which they seemed to themselves better

            --those over-reaching (lit., proud) angels--than eternal Christ.

            They lied to themselves in this belief; therefore they long must

            suffer torment, those cursed creatures.

            Stand by me and steer my spirit, when any storm

60       may come against it; help then,

            mighty Lord, my soul;

            Defend her and keep her, Father of mankind,

            safe--my soul--anxiously determined,

            Measurer powerful in might. My heart is

65       now stained with sins and for my soul

            I am sometimes terrified, even though you have granted me many

            favors on this earth. Thanks be to You for everything,

            for the gifts and graces that you have given me.

            Not at all were any merits

70       in (me?)…

Contrition B?

            …nevertheless I want to have courage in myself for everything

            and to laugh and to trust in myself,

            to decorate/equip myself for (my) departure and

            to test myself on that journey which I must undertake,

75       to prepare my spirit, and to suffer everything for God,

            happy in heart, now (that) I am fettered

            fast in my spirit.  Indeed, Lord, guard me

            from certain sins which I myself cannot

            remember (lit., perceive) clearly. I have enraged

80       God, Prince of mankind; therefore, I was so bitterly

            blamed for this world, since my faults were

            great before men, so that I suffered

            a profound martyrdom. I am not a just judge,

            wise before the throng; therefore I speak these words

85       eager in spirit, because in the beginning troubles

            came to me over the earth, so that I was always experiencing,

            every year—thanks God for everything!—

            more than others (did), mind-sufferings,

            frights among the folk. Therefore I, miserable,

90       am ready (to go) from my homeland. Thus the alone-thinker/recluse cannot,

            deprived of folk-joys live for long.

            The friendless outcast—the Measurer is angry with him—

            mourns among the young warriors,

            and each time men help him,

95       they increase his miseries. And all that he puts up with,

            the sorrow-talk of men, and in his heart is always sad,

            the mind morning-sick. I tell this sorrow-tale

            about myself most intensely/for my own sake entirely and speak about my departure,

            eager with longing, and think about the ocean,

100     my *****/mind?? does not *****/know??

            how I could buy a boat on the sea,

            ship on the shore; I don’t have much gold (myself),

            nor indeed any friend’s (riches) which might assist me

            on that journey, now that I my self cannot

105     accomplish my desires because of my poverty. 

            Forests can grow to themselves, await their fate,

            sprout with sprigs—I, for shame, cannot

            love any of mankind in (my) heart/mind,

            any nobleman in his homeland.  Oh, my Lord,

110     mighty Protector, how sick I am at heart,

            bitterly burning in anger. After life, any atonement/remedy

            depends (solely) on you. I cannot live in the light

            in any way, without sufferings

            on the earth, a destitute man;

115     If I had friendship from strangers,

            comforting kinship, I would always have fear

            for my loves as a reward/in return, just as I have now admitted.

            It is still best, when a man cannot turn away

            from his fate, that he then/at least suffer it well.

Further thoughts about poetic compounds

Poetic compounds in OE are almost always woven into the metrical fabric.

The quick version: each line of OE poetry consists of two half lines, separated by a caesura or (in print) extra spaces. The first stressed syllable of the SECOND half line sets the alliteration for the entire line, and ONE stressed syllable in the first half line normally must alliterate with it, though two stressed syllables (double alliteration) can. (Remember that any stressed syllable beginning with a vowel can "alliterate"--assonate?--with any other such syllable). Since OE is a Germanic language, stressed syllables are usually the first ones, though prefixes can complicate this rule a bit. 

A few examples, with stressed syllables in all caps:

          HALges HEOFon-cyninges       HYLdo getilge (Resignation 36)

          WYRda WALdend        in þinne WULdor-dream (Resignation 44)

           SAR-cwida SECga,      ond him bið a SEFa geomor (Resignation 95)

The best sign that a compound isn´t a poetic one but just an everyday word is probably that it doesn´t fit into the scheme of alliteration. See for example the compound "mankind," which does not contribute to the f-alliteration of the following line:

          

           geFREOÞa hyra ond geFEORma hy        FÆDer mon-cynnes (l. 62)

The upshot?  The first element in most poetic compounds almost aways carries the alliteration of the line. I've been trying as hard as I can to make it fit into my rough approximation of the alliterative line. 

A CAVEAT: so far in these translations, I haven´t been following the formal metrical scheme outlined above but have been trying to suggest the alliteration where possible. Some lines do come close to  classic OE meter:

            he drove, dreary-hearted,       those two from the dwellings (Genesis A, l. 2805)

              

Quite frankly, though, I´ve been cheating. That is, I´ll sometimes include alliteration that´s not in the first syllable but buried somewhere further in the words: see the following italicized sounds/letters:

            the tribe in the fortress with a death-attack (Genesis, l. 2509)

and I also sometimes continue the alliterative scheme over the line barrier. Other lines have no alliteration at all to give a clearer sense of the literal text.

One side effect is that all this alliteration is infiltrating my conversation and writing. Yikes.

Resigning

No. I 'm not giving up on the project. But the last few days have been pretty hectic here, getting some new colleagues moved in and tidying an untidy house for a departmental party. I did get the chance to linger in the Exeter Book in the region of "Homiletic Fragment II," and thought I'd next take on the poems leading up to it. "Resignation" caught my eye, so here are the first 45 lines. In his edition, Bernard Muir suggests renaming this piece "Contrition (A) and (B)," since the argument has been made that it consists of two separate poems, both of an intense penitential nature.

Resignation / Contrition A 

            Own/Possess me, almighty God,

            help me holy Lord! You created heaven and earth

            and every miracle, my Marvel-King,

            which are in them, eternal Lord,

5          magnificent and manifold (ones). Illustrious God, I offer

            you my soul and my very body,

            and my words and my works, wise Lord,

            and all my limbs, shepherd of light,

            and my many meditations.

10       Show me, shepherd of stars,

            where it would be best for my soul

            to mark the Measurer’s will,

            so that I may serve you in every thing,

            and in myself, truth-firm King,

15       raise up a remedy. Do not allow an outright thief / (rain-thief??)

            to scathe/harm (me) in the shadow, even though I obeyed you,

            Creator, Glory-King, more cowardly,

*          powerful Lord, than was my plan/ advisable for me.

            Grant me peace, living God,

20       from my bitter brute-deed. I then remember the remedy,

            Glory of kings: let me come to it if I may.

                   Grant me, my Lord, time and understanding,

            and patience and mindfulness of all things

            that you wish to send me, truth-firm King,

25       as a test. You know now (that) in me (are)

            many crime-deeds, cherish me nevertheless,

            Measurer, in your mercy, even though I committed more

            grim guilts than God allowed me;

            I have (great) need then to seek (lit., that I should seek) your

30       grace, holy Heaven-king, to aspire (to it)

            in (these) dying days, to see and seek

            another way of life, so that afterwards

            gracious God may grant me eternal joy,

            give me life, even though I confessed more slowly

35       my evil-deeds than the commands of the holy heaven-force

            required.  Indeed, you have given me here

            many *****.   (I) set my hope in you,

            fearful fore-thoughts, that they may

            stand firmly established. Raise my thought,

40       good King of souls, in ready wisdom.

            Now I will rush forth to you, Father of mankind,

            from this world, now that I know I must,

            very close to this time (i.e., very soon); support me then,

            Wielder of fates, in your glory-joy

45       and let me die, Lord of loved ones--

            help my spirit. When too many enemies

            are given to hatred, I will have then

            consolation from the Lord, even though formerly I earned honors

               in too short a time.

More Homiletic Fragmentation

Though of course really quite unrelated, "Homiletic Fragment I" from the Vercelli Book and "Homiletic Fragment II" from the Exeter Book make natural companions nevertheless. Bradley resists the title of the Exeter Book poem by observing that it is a "complex, compact, and surely complete little poem" (397). So is it really a fragment? I think I agree with Bradley that it isn't. He's also right about the unusual compactness of the poetic language. What I find most surprising is the  image, startlingly concrete, of trees covering the earth in darkness (l. 14). The compounds are also very lively and suggestive: compare for example "hoard-chest" (l. 3) for "heart" and "hoard-vat" (l. 18) for "womb." The poem ends by celebrating the Incarnation through the lens of Marian devotion.

Homiletic Fragment II 

            Take now into your soul and accept as consoler

            your Lord,  and lift up your judgment/glory,

            guard (your) hoard-chest, bind tightly (your) thoughts

            along with your heart-mind. Many a true companion

5          is untried (lit., unknown), will sometimes grow tired,

            waver in (his) word-vow; so goes this world,

            stirs up in storms and finds its fate.

            One faith there is, one Living,

            one baptism there is and one eternal Father,

10        one Prince of people there is, who shaped this earth,

            (its) prosperity and joys. Glory grew then,

            even though this loaned/temporary creation stood for a long time

            hidden in the dark, obscured under cover,

            topped well by trees, wrapped over with twilight.

15        Afterwards a young girl grew up,

            mind-bold among mankind;

            there it pleased Him to create life

            in that hoard-vat, through (the) Holy Spirit.

            The beautiful boy shone, bright in (her) breast,

20        He was the starting point of all light.

Conclusion to "Soul and Body I"

Here are the remaining lines of "Soul and Body I":

130                                     With joy (she) seeks out

            willingly that clay-container (i.e., the body) that she wore long before.

            Then spirits speak God’s word,

            wise, victory-firm, and (she) thus greets

            (her) body faithfully and happily:

135     “Dearest friend, although worms continually attack

            you greedily, now your spirit has come,

            beautifully adorned, from my Father’s kingdom,

            enveloped in grace. Oh, my Lord,

            were I allowed to lead you with me

140     we two would see all the angels,

            the heavens’ glory, just as you meted out/deserved for me here.

            You fasted on earth and filled me

            with God’s body, with drink of the spirit.

            If you lived in poverty, you gave me a wealth of desirable (things).

145     Therfore you will have no need to be ashamed

            of what you gave me, when the sinners and saintly

            are separated on that illustrious day,

            nor need you lament here in this life

            all the great (things) you gave me

150     in the meeting-place of men and angels.

                  You redeemed yourself before men (lit., heroes) and raised me up into eternal joy.

            For it is constantly troubling to me, truest of men,

            misereably in my mind, ever since I knew you (suffered; to be) under these humiliations

            as food for worms, but God willed

155     that you thus would always seek out (this) revolting sick-bed (i.e., grave).

            I wanted to disclose (this) to you, so that you would not suffer,

            for we two will be joined at God’s judgment.

            Then, afterwards, we will be allowed to commune together??

            and have high-rank in heaven.

160     We will have no need to be anxious about the Lord’s coming,

            nor have any horrible sorrow in our hearts

            about (our) answer, but we ourselves will be able,

            there at Doomsday, to boast of our deeds,

            of such merits as were ours.

165     I know that you were wonderfully virtuous

            in the world-kingdom of this….