To be continued -- still under construction
Return to Old French Language PageGo to Old French Literature Index
Get your own Free Home Page
I Good was the world in the ancient times,
For faith and justice and love there were, Old French
Indeed there was trust, of which there is now none;
All has changed, has lost its allure:
It will never again be as it was for our ancestors.
II At the time of Noah, and of Abraham
And of David, whom God so much loved,
The world was good, never will it again be so worthy,
It has become old and infirm, all is in decline.
Every good thing has grown bad and is disappearing.
III After that time when God came to save us
Our ancestors received Christianity.
Among these there was one lord from the city of Rome--
He was a rich man, a great noble.
I tell you this because I am going to speak about one of his sons.
IV Eufemiiens, the father was called thus by name,
Was the count of Rome-the most distinguished of any who was there.
The emperor loved him above all of his peers.
Then he took a worthy and honored wife
From among the finest people of the country.
V Then they lived together for a long time,
They had no child, and it grieved them so. Old French
Both, calling on God (as is fitting), prayed:
"Oh, king of heaven, if it be thy will,
Give us a child who will be pleasing in thy sight."
VI They prayed so much and with so great humility,
That He gave the woman fertility.
He gave* them a son, and they were grateful to Him for this.
They had him given new life through the baptism,
And they gave him a fine name, as Christianity demands.
VII He was baptised; thus he was called Alexis by name.
She who bore him nursed him with gladness.
Then, the good father sent him to school;
So much did he learn that he was well prepared.
The child entered* into the service of the emperor.
VIII When the father saw that he was going to have no more children,
Save for this one whom he loved so much,
He therefore thought about the future.
He wished* him to take a wife while he himself still lived;
So he bought a wife from a noble Frank.
IX There was a maid, of the very highest noble stock--
Daughter of a count of the city of Rome
Who had* no other child; he wants to honor this one
So the two fathers talked* about it:
They wanted* to bring their two children together.
X They named the terms of their union.
When it came time, they did it properly; Old French
Lord Alexis married her as is fitting.
He wanted* not at all such an arrangement;
His affections were completely turned toward God.
XI When the day came to an end and it became night,
The father said this: "now, go to bed with
Your wife, as God in heaven commands it."
The boy did not wish to anger his father:
He went into the room with his noble wife.
XII As he saw the bed and looked at the maiden,
He then remembered* his heavenly Lord,
Whom he valued* more than anything thing on Earth.
"Oh, God," he said, "Strong sin threatens me indeed.
If I flee not now, I should greatly risk losing you."
XIII When they were left all alone in the room,
Lord Alexis began by calling her to his side, and
Then by cursing his mortal existence;
He explained to her the truth of heavenly life,
All the while wishing that he had already fled.
XIV "Do you understand me, maiden?
Take He who redeemed us with His holy blood as your spouse.
For in this world, there is no perfect love;
Life is fragile, nothing is eternal.
See, already this joy is turning into great sadness."
XV When he had thus expressed with words all that weighed on his mind,
He then conferred unto her the buckles of his sword, Old French
And the ring by which they were wed.
Then he went away, out of his father's room,
fleeing from the country in the middle of the night.
XVI Then he proceeded directly to the sea.
The ship in which he had to enter was* ready.
He paid the fare and he departed from them.
They put up their sail, and set out to sea.
They took ground wherever God wanted them to go.
XVII Straight to Laodicea, that was a very beautiful city,
There the boat arrived safely.
Then lord Alexis came out onto the land,
But he was not able to stay there a long time.
Wherever he was, he did not cease to serve God.
XVIII Then he went to the city of Edessa,
Because of an image that he had heard about,
Which the angels made speak, by the command of God,
The name of the Virgin who brings salvation:
Holy Mary, who gave* birth to the lord God.
XVIX He brought all that he owned; he it carried with him.
Until there was none of it left,
In the city of Edessa he gave
Great alms to the poor wherever he could find them.
He did not want to be burdened by any item.
XX When he had distributed all his goods to them,
Lord Alexis sat down among the poor. Old French
He received alms when God gave them to him,
He kept only enough to cover his body.
If anything was left to him, he gave it to the poor.
XXI Now I will return to his mother and father
And to his wife, who was left alone.
When they learned that he had fled,
They showed great grief because of it,
And great lament there was throughout the country.
XXII Thus said his father: "My dear son, how I have lost you!"
His mother said: "Alas! What has happened?"
His wife said this: "Sin has taken him away from me.
Friend, dear lord, I have had you only a little (while)!
Now I am so sorrowful that I cannot be anymore."
XXIII Then the father took his best squires
And had them look for his child in many lands.
Two of them went as far as Edessa at once.
They found lord Alexis sitting,
But they knew not his face nor his appearance.
XXIV Thus the child had changed his tender flesh,
The two squires of his father did not recognize him:
They gave alms to him himself.
He received it as his brothers (did).
They didn't recognize him; they returned immediately.
XXV They did not recognize him, nor did they discern him.
Lord Alexis praised God in heaven Old French
Because of the servants of his (house)
From whom he has become an alms-taker.
He was their lord, now he is their receiver of alms.
I cannot tell you how much he considered himself satisfied.
XXVI They went back to Rome the city,
And announced to the father that they could not find him.
Thus he was mournful.
The good mother began to grieve
And to bewail her dear son often.
XXVII "Alexis, my son, why did your mother bear you?
You have fled me, I am left suffering because of it.
I do not know the place or the country
Where I should go to look for you; I have been completely led astray.
Never shall I be joyful, my son, nor shall your father.
XXVIII She went* into the room, full of affliction.
She striped* it until there remained nothing of silk;
There remained not a single adornment.
She turned her mind to sadness;
From this day forward she never behaved joyfully.
XXIX "Room", she said,
"Never has joy been known in you."
She so destroyed it as if as an army had taken it to plunder.
She had a bag hanged there, and torn rags.
She turned her great honor into great grief.
XXX The mother sits on the floor from grief.
Thus said the wife of lord Alexis to this person: Old French
"Lady", she said, "I have had a great loss.
From now on I shall live like like a turtle dove.
Since I no longer have your son, I wish to be together with you."
XXXI The mother answered*: "Since you wish to stay with me,
So shall I keep you, because of the love of Alexis.
You will never have any kind of evil; from this I can keep you.
We will lament the grief of our dear friend together,
You for your spouse, I for my son".
XXXII It could* not be otherwise, they resigned themselves to it,
But they cannot forget the sorrow.
Lord Alexis in the city of Edessa
Serves his lord with good will.
His enemies can never deceive him.
XXXIII For seventeen years, he didn't complain,
Torturing his body in the service of the lord God.
Neither for friendship of male or female
Nor for the goods that had been handed over to him
Did he want to turn away from it as long as he had to live.
XXXIV When he has affirmed in all his heart
That he will never leave the city,
God made the image talk, because of his love.
To the servant who served at the altar,
This he commanded him: "Call the man of God."
XXXV Thus said the image: "Have the man of God come hither,
For he has served God well and gratefully Old French
And he is worthy to enter into heaven.
He goes, as is wanted, but he cannot find him,
This holy man about whom the image spoke*.
XXXVI The sexton returned to the image in the monastery.
"Indeed," he said, "I wouldn't know whom to ask for."
The image responded*, "He who sits beyond the door,
He is near God and the kingdom of heaven.
In no way does he want to go away."
XXXVII He goes, looks for him, had him come (called)to the monastery;
The news is known throughout the land
That this image spoke on account of Alexis.
Everyone honored him, both big and small,
And all prayed that he would have mercy on them.
XXXVIII When he saw this, and how much they wanted to honor him,
He said, "To be sure, I must not stay here any longer;
I do not wish to be burdened with these honors."
In the middle of the night he flees the city.
Straight to Laodicea his voyage takes him.
XXXIX Lord Alexis entered* a ship.
They had the wind, set out fast on the sea.
Straight to Tarsus he hoped to arrive,
But this was* not to be; he had to go elsewhere:
The winds carried* them straight to Rome.
XL At one of the ports which is close to Rome
There arrived the ship of that holy man.
When he saw its kingdom, he was greatly afraid,
On account of his family; they could recognize him
and burden him with the honors of the world.
To be continued -- still under construction
Return to Old French Language Page
Go to Old French Literature Index
This page hosted by
Get your own Free Home Page
