MANY men there ben that, with eeres openly sprad, so
moche swalowen the deliciousnesse of jestes and of ryme, by queynt knitting
coloures, that of the goodnesse or of the badnesse of the sentence take
they litel hed or els non.
Soothly, dul wit and a thoughtful soule so sore have
myned and graffed in my spirites, that suche craft of endyting wol not
ben of myn acqueyntaunce. And, for rude wordes and boystous percen the
herte of the herer to the in[ne]rest point, and planten there the sentence
of thinges, so that with litel helpe it is able to springe; this book,
that nothing hath of the greet flode of wit ne of semelich colours, is
dolven with rude wordes and boystous, and so drawe togider, to maken the
cacchers therof ben the more redy to hente sentence.
Some men there ben that peynten with colours riche, and
some with vers, as with red inke, and some with coles and chalke; and yet
is there good matere to the leude people of thilke chalky purtreyture,
as hem thinketh for the tyme; and afterward the sight of the better colours
yeven to hem more joye for the first leudnesse. So, sothly, this leude
clowdy occupacion is not to prayse but by the leude; for comunly leude
leudnesse commendeth. Eke it shal yeve sight, that other precious thinges
shal be the more in reverence. In Latin and French hath many soverayne
wittes had greet delyt to endyte, and have many noble thinges fulfild;
but certes, there ben some that speken their poysye-mater in Frenche, of
whiche speche the Frenche men have as good a fantasye as we have in hering
of Frenche mennes English. And many termes there ben in English, [of] whiche
unneth we Englishmen connen declare the knowleginge. How shulde than a
Frenche man born suche termes conne jumpere in his mater, but as the jay
chatereth English? Right so, trewly, the understanding of Englishmen wol
not strecche to the privy termes in Frenche, what-so-ever we bosten of
straunge langage. Let than clerkes endyten in Latin, for they have the
propertee of science, and the knowinge in that facultee; and let Frenchmen
in their Frenche also endyten their queynt termes, for it is kyndely to
their mouthes; and let us shewe our fantasyes in suche wordes as we lerneden
of our dames tonge.
And although this book be litel thank-worthy for the
leudnesse in travaile, yet suche wrytinges excyten men to thilke thinges
that ben necessarie; for every man therby may, as by a perpetual mirrour,
seen the vyces or vertues of other, in whiche thing lightly may be conceyved
to eschewe perils, and necessaries to cacche, after as aventures have fallen
to other people or persons.
Certes, [perfeccion is] the soveraynest thing of desyre,
and moste *creatures resonable have, or els shulde have, ful appetyte to
their perfeccion; unresonable beestes mowen not, sith reson hath in hem
no werking. Than resonable that wol not is comparisoned to unresonable,
and made lyke hem. For-sothe, the most soverayne and fynal perfeccion of
man is in knowing of a sothe, withouten any entent disceyvable, and in
love of oon very god that is inchaungeable; that is, to knowe and love
his creatour.
Now, principally, the mene to bringe in knowleging and
loving his creatour is the consideracion of thinges made by the creatour,
wherthrough, by thilke thinges that ben made understonding here to our
wittes, arn the unsene privitees of god made to us sightful and knowing,
in our contemplacion and understonding. These thinges than, forsoth, moche
bringen us to the ful knowleginge [of] sothe, and to the parfit love of
the maker of hevenly thinges. Lo, David sayth, "thou hast delyted
me in makinge," as who sayth, to have delyt in the tune, how god hath
lent me in consideracion of thy makinge.
Wherof Aristotle, in the boke de Animalibus, saith
to naturel philosophers: "it is a greet lyking in love of knowinge
their creatour; and also in knowinge of causes in kyndely thinges."
Considred, forsoth, the formes of kyndly thinges and the shap, a greet
kindely love me shulde have to the werkman that hem made. The crafte of
a werkman is shewed in the werke. Herfore, truly, the philosophers, with
a lyvely studie, many noble thinges right precious and worthy to memory
writen; and by a greet swetande travayle to us leften of causes [of] the
propertees in natures of thinges. To whiche (therfore) philosophers it
was more joy, more lykinge, more herty lust, in kyndely vertues and maters
of reson, the perfeccion by busy study to knowe, than to have had al the
tresour, al the richesse, al the vainglory that the passed emperours, princes,
or kinges hadden. Therfore the names of hem, in the boke of perpetual memory,
in vertue and pees arn writen; and in the contrarye, that is to sayne,
in Styx, the foule pitte of helle, arn thilke pressed that suche goodnesse
hated. And bycause this book shal be of love, and the pryme causes of steringe
in that doinge, with passions and diseses for wantinge of desyre, I wil
that this book be cleped THE TESTAMENT OF LOVE.
But now, thou reder, who is thilke that wil not in scorne
laughe, to here a dwarfe, or els halfe a man, say he wil rende out the
swerde of Hercules handes, and also he shuld sette Hercules Gades a myle
yet ferther; and over that, he had power of strengthe to pulle up the spere,
that Alisander the noble might never wagge? And that, passing al thinge,
to ben mayster of Fraunce by might, there-as the noble gracious Edward
the thirde, for al his greet prowesse in victories, ne might al yet conquere?
Certes, I wot wel, ther shal be mad more scorne and jape
of me, that I, so unworthily clothed al togider in the cloudy cloude of
unconninge, wil putten me in prees to speke of love, or els of the causes
in that matter, sithen al the grettest clerkes han had ynough to don, and
(as who sayth) *gadered up clene toforn hem, and with their sharpe sythes
of conning al mowen, and mad therof grete rekes and noble, ful of al plentees,
to fede me and many another. Envye, forsothe, commendeth nought his reson
that he hath in hayne, be it never so trusty. And al-though these noble
repers, as good workmen and worthy their hyre, han al drawe and bounde
up in the sheves, and mad many shockes, yet have I ensample to gadere the
smale crommes, and fullen my walet of tho that fallen from the borde among
the smale houndes, notwithstandinge the travayle of the almoigner, that
hath drawe up in the cloth al the remissailes, as trenchours, and the relief,
to bere to the almesse.
Yet also have I leve of the noble husbande Boëce,
al-though I be a straunger of conninge, to come after his doctrine, and
these grete workmen, and glene my handfuls of the shedinge after their
handes; and, if me faile ought of my ful, to encrese my porcion with that
I shal drawe by privitees out of the shocke. A slye servaunt in his owne
helpe is often moche commended; knowing of trouth in causes of thinges
was more hardyer in the first sechers (and so sayth Aristotle), and lighter
in us that han folowed after. For their passing *studies han fresshed our
wittes, and our understandinge han excyted, in consideracion of trouth,
by sharpnesse of their resons. Utterly these thinges be no dremes ne japes,
to throwe to hogges; it is lyflich mete for children of trouthe; and as
they me betiden, whan I pilgrimaged out of my kith in winter; whan the
*weder out of mesure was boystous, and the wylde wind Boreas, as his kind
asketh, with dryinge coldes maked the wawes of the occian-see so to aryse
unkyndely over the commune bankes, that it was in poynte to spille al the
erthe.
Thus endeth the Prologue; and here-after foloweth the
first book of the Testament of Love.