rerum habundancia eterna dampnacionis sunt indicia ¶ He sayth contynuall hele and worldly wele As to moche ruches and goodes fele Be tokens as in boke wryten is Of hell dampnacyon endles ywys And to these wordes that some men mysspeaketh Accordeth saynt Gregory and thus he sayeth ¶ Continuus successus rerum temperasium eterne dampnacioâ—â— est iudicium ¶ He sayeth that contynuall hap coÌ„mynge Of worldly goodes is a tokenynge Of dampnacyon that at the last shall be Before God that then shall fall without pyte But the worlde prayseth none men onely But them that to the worlde be happy And vpon wordly thynges setteâ—â— theyr herte And euer flyeth the symple state of pouerte Suche men be besy and gathereth fast And fareth as theyr lufe shulde euermore last To them the worlde is queynt and fauourable Iâ— all thynge that thynketh them profytable And can moche of worldly queyâ—tyse The worlde calleth them good men and wyse And to them falleth ryches many folde But it is theyr dampnacyon as I haue tolde For in heauen may no man haue an home That foloweth the worlde and his wysoome And suche wysdome sayeth a wyse clarcke and 〈◊〉 That before God it is holde but foly ¶ Sapiencia huâ—u◠〈…〉 ¶ But many to the worlde mothe lystetâ— And he is nat wyse that theron trusteth For it ledeth a man with wrynches and wyles And at the last hym it begyles A man may be calde both wytty and wyse That setteth the worlde at lytell pryse And hateth the thynges that the worlde loueth moste And thynketh to blysse to brynge his ghoste And to the worlde trusteth ryght nought But euer in that other worlde setteth his thought For no sure dwellynge shall we here fynde As the apostell Paule wytnesseth thus sayende ¶ Non manentem ciuitatem hiâ— habemus set futuram inquitimus ¶ He sayeth no sure dwellynge here haue wâ— But seke we another that euer shall be And as geâ—â—â—s haue our soâ—â—urne A lytell tyme tyll we hence tourne And that may fall rather than we wenâ— For man is here but as an alyaâ—e To trauayle here in way all tymes To wende in to our countre as doth pylgryines Therfore the Prophete vnto God speaketh thus As Dauid in the Psalter telleth to vs. ¶ 〈…〉 aduena ego sum apud te 〈…〉 vt omnes patres mei c. ¶ Be thou styll Lorde sayeth he For why I am coÌ„mynge towarde the And a pylgryme as all my fathers were Thus may euery man se that lyueth here That is to say Lorde be thou nat styll That 〈◊〉 make me here knowe thy wyll And 〈…〉 to my soule thou gyue That may make her both glad and blyue And say thus therto I am thy saluacyon For thou arte my pylgryme trowe in deuocyon ¶ Of two wayes in this worlde TWo wayes there be in this worlde full ryfe One is way of death another of lyfe This worlde is the way and also passage Throughe the whiche lyeth our pylgrymagâ— By this way all we must nedes go And eche man beloueth that it is so In this worlde be two wayes of kynde Who that wyll assay the soth he may fynde One is the way of death here tolde And that other is the way of lyfe holde But the way of death semeth large and easy For that may vs lede euen and lyghtly To the horryble lande of darckenes Where sorowe and payne is and wretchydnes But the way of lyfe semeth narowe and harde That ledeth vs euen to our countre warde And that is the kyngdome of heauen bryght Where we shall be in Goddes syght And as Goddes sones there ben ytolde If we do well both yonge and olde For the way of the worlde is here vnstable And our lyfe also well chaungeable As often is sene in many maner wyse Through tempest of wethers that maketh men anguyse For the worlde and the worldly lyfe yfere Chaungeth full ofte and in dyuers manere And in her state dwelleth but a whyle Unneth the space of a lytell myle And for the worlde is so vnstedfast For all thynge theron soone is ouercast Of the vnstedfastnes of this worlde GOd ordeyned as it was his wyll Uaryaunce of the season to fulfyll And dyuers wethers and other seasones In token of the false worldes condycyones That so vnstable be to mannes hande That lytell tyme in theyr state may stande For God wyll that men throughe tokens may knowe Howe vnstable the worlde is in euery throwe So that men theron the lesse shulde trust And for no welth theron to moche haue lust The tymes chaungeth often and be nat in one state For nowe is the morenynge and nowe it is late And nowe it is day and nowe it is nyght And nowe it is darcke and nowe it is lyght And nowe is there colde and nowe great hete And nowe it is drye and nowe it is wete And nowe it is hayle and snowe full stronge And nowe fayre wether and Sonne shyne amonge And nowe is the wether clere and fayre with all And nowe it is darcke and rayne doth downe fall By all the varyaunce men may vnderstande Are tokens of the worlde that is varyande â—et there be mo tokens that we may lere Of the vnstablenes of this worlde here For nowe is great myrth and nowe mournynge And nowe is laughter and nowe wepynge And nowe men be well and nowe be wo And nowe is a man frende and nowe is fo And nowe is a man lyght and nowe is heuy And nowe is a man glad and nowe is drery And nowe haue we ioy and nowe haue we pyne And nowe haue we cattayle and nowe we it tyne And nowe we be ryche and nowe we be poore And nowe we haue lytell and nowe we haue more And nowe we haue rest and nowe we haue trauayle And nowe fynde we our strength what it may auayle And nowe we be great and nowe we be bare And nowe we be well and nowe we be in care And nowe we be lyght and nowe we be slowe And nowe we be hye and nowe we be lowe Nowe loue nowe hate nowe peace and stryfe All these be the maners of mannes lyfe That euer betokeneth moche vnstedfastnes Of this worldes welth that so chaungeable is And as this lyfe is euer away passynge So is the worlde euery day apparynge For the worlde to her ende draweth fast As clarckes by many thynges can cast Therfore the worlde as clarckes hath me tolde Is as moche to mene as the worlde that is olde For two earthly worldes to this lyfe befalleth As tolde is before as clarckes it calleth But the more worlde and also the lesse Full chaungeable be and away doth passe The more worlde is this worlde longe and brode But the lesse worlde is lykened to manhode ¶ Howe the rowndenes of this worlde is lykened to a man ANd as the more worlde is rownde yset So is the lesse as a man that is mer For in y â— brede of a man
befall The more is theyr trauayle and sorowe with all But nowe moche shorter be mannes dayes As Iob the good man openly sayes ¶ 〈◊〉 quid non paucitas diâ—rum meorum finietur breu◠¶ Nowe he sayeth my shorte dayes that fewe were Shall come to ende in lytell tyme here And when a man waxeth to be olde Than begynneth his kynde to be feable and colde And than chaungeth his complexyon And his maners tourne vp so downe Than waxeth his herte full heuy and harde And his heade feble and euer downwarde Than reueleth his face euermore and more And fouler waxeth than it was before His wyt is short when he ought thynketh â—is nose droppeth his onde stynketh His syght waxeth dym he loketh vnder the browe His barke is croked he stopeth full lowe His eares waxeth death and hearde to here And his tongue to speake is nothynge clere Soone he is wroth and waxeth all frowarde To tourne hym from wrath it is harde He is couytous and fast holdynge And heuy of chere and euer lourynge He prayseth olde men and holdeth them wyse And yonge men hym lysteth to dyspyse And often is sycke and begynneth to grone And often angrye and playneth hym soone An these thynges to an olde man befalleth That Clarckes propertyes of age calleth Thus men may se that rede can The condycyons that be in an olde man ¶ Here ye may here of the ende of a mannes lyfe ☜ THe last ende of mannes lyfe is harde When that he draweth to deathwarde For when he is sycke in any wyse So feable that he may nat aryse Than be men in doubte and vncertayne Whyther he shall euer recouer agayne And yet can some men that be sley Knowe whyther he shall lyfe or dye Throughe certayne tokens in pounce and breath That falleth to a man that draweth to death For than begynneth his front downewarde to fall And his browes waxeth heuy with all And the lefte eye of hym shall seme lasse And nerer than that other eye was And his nose before shall sharpe become And his chyne than downe shall be nome And his pounce shall haue no meuynge His fete waxe colde and his wombe doth clynge And yf a yonge man nere his death be Euer he is wakynge for slepe may nat he And yf an olde man drawe towarde death He shall nat from slepe kepe hym vnneth Clarckes telleth that these tokens echone Be in a man when he shall dye soone For when a man lyueth he is lyke a man But whan he is blodeles and becoÌ„meth wan Than may a man his lykenes there se And all chaunged as neuer had ben he And when his lyfe is brought to the ende Than shall he hence in this maner wende Both poore and naked as he hyther come When from his mothers wombe he was nome For he brought with hym nothynge that day And so he shall hence passe away But it be onely a wyndynge cloth That shall aboute hym be wrapped forsoth For when the lyfe wyndeâ—h from hym away Than is he but foule earth and clay That tourneth to more corrupcyon aboute Than any caryon that lyeth there oute For the corrupcyon of hym in euery syde If it lye aboue grounde longe in any tyde It myght than the eyre so corrupte make So that men shulde theyr death therof take So soule stynkynge it is and so vyolent And so wytnesseth the clarcke Innocent ¶ Quid enim fetidius humano cadauâ—râ— Quid 〈◊〉 homine mortuo c. ¶ He sayeth what thynge may fouler be Than a deade mannes body is for to se And what is more horryble in any place Than is to behelde a deade mannes face And when it is in earth by wounde Wormes wyll do eate it in a lytell stounde Tyll that foule flessâ—e away be ybyte And thus I fynde in holy boke ywryte ¶ â—um autem moritur homo hereditabit â—erpenteâ— verines ¶ The boke sayeth that when a man shall dye As his kynde herytage he taketh the way To wormes and adders that foule be of syght For to them falleth mannes flesshe by ryght Therfore shall euery man after earth slepe Amonge foule wormes that on them shall crepe And they shall gnawe his foule â—arkayes And so sayeth holy wryt and speaketh this wayes ¶ Omnes enim in puâ—uere doimienâ— verâ—es operient 〈◊〉 ¶ That is in earth shall slepe euery man And wormes shall eare them from the â—oe to the pan For in this worlde so wytty man is none Neyther so fayre in flesshe ne bone Neyther Emperour Kynge ne Ceaseâ— Ne none other Lorde what state he haue here Neyther ryche ne poore ne bonde ne fre Learned ne lewde what euer he be That he ne shall tourne after his last day To earth and to powdre and to foule clay Therfore in my thought I haue moche wonder 〈…〉 That no man in earth vnneth wyll it se What he was and is and what he shall be But who that wyll here in his herte cast What he fyrste was and shall be at the last And also what he is whyle he lyueth here He shulde than fynde full lytell matâ—ere To make any myrth here whyle he dwelleth As a wyse vereyfyour in his verse telleth ¶ Si quie sentuet quo tendet vnde veniret Numê™ gauderet set in omni tempore fleret ¶ He sayeth who that wyll fele and se Whence he coÌ„meth and whyther shall he All maner myrthes he shulde forsake And euer wepe and sorowe make For who that of a man had than a syght When wormes had gnawen hym out ryght And eaten his flesshe in to the harde bone So horryble a syght sawe he neuer none As he myght se in that carkayes As saynt Bernarde wytnesseth and sayes ¶ Post hominem vermis post vermen fetor horror Et sic in non hominem vertitur omnis homo ¶ He sayeth after death man is worme become And after wormes to stenche he is nome And so euery man here tourned shall he be Fro man in to no man as it were nat he Thus may mense as it is wryte Howe that a man in his mother is behyght And of this matter more myght I tell But no lenger theron thynke I to dwell ¶ Here begynneth the seconde parte of this boke that speaketh of the worlde ALl this worlde here both longe and brode God it made for mannes gode And al other thyngê as clarckes can proue He made onely for mannes byhoue If a man loue any thyng more by any way Than he doth God that in heuen is on hye Than is that man to God vnkynde That so lytell on hym setteth his mynde For God is more worthye loued to be Than any creature that men may se Syth he is the begynnynge of all maner thynge And of all thynge make shall an endynge And thus I say by them that gyueth them ofte To the worldes lykynge that thynketh them lofte And loueth all thynge that therto falleth And suche men worldely men me calleth
dolore doso tristicia plenus ¶ He sayth that the worlde is nothynge elles But an harde exyle that a man in dwelles Both darcke and dym and a dolefull dale That is full of sorowe and eke of bale And a place full of all wretchydnes Of anger and trauayle and all besynes Of sorowe and synne and of all folye Of shendshyp also and eke vylonye Of flyttynge also and of moche taxyinge Of moche greuaunce also and moche mournynge Of all maner of fylth and corrupcyon Of moche wrath and extorcyon And fill of gyle and of falshed Of great debate and contynuall dred So that in this worlde is nought man to auaunce But moche sorowe and harde myschaunce And pompe and pryde with foule couytyse With vayne glorye and slouth that men ofte vse The worlde to hym draweth all men And so dysceyueth his louers then And to many is greuous and to fewe auayleth For his louers he dysceyueth and fayleth And all that despyseth hym he awayteth fast And thynketh them soone in to myschyfe cast For them that he loueth he wyll socour And make them ryche and great of honour And to begyle them he thynketh ar the last And into great myschyfe he wyll them cast Therfore worldly worshyp may be tolde I vanyte that dysceyueth both yonge and olde And worldly rychesse howe so it come I holde nought elles but as fantome The worlde hath many a man with vanyte defyled And with pompe and pryde ofte them begyled Therfore an holy man as ye may here Speaketh vnto the worlde in this manere ¶ O munde inmunde vtinam ita inmaundus esses vt me non tangeres aut ita mundus esses vt me non conquares ¶ And that is in englyshe thus moche for to meâ—â— O thou worlde he sayth that euer arte vnclene Why myght thou nat euer so vnclene be That thou shuldest neuer nyghe me Other be so clene in thy werkes all That thou make me in to no synne fall ¶ Howe the worlde may be lykened vnto the see ☜ THe worlde may by many encheason Be lykened to foure thynges by good reason Fyrste may the worlde be lykened ywys Most proprely to the see that long brode is For the see after her owne certayne tyde Ebbeth and floweth and may nat abyde And throughe stormes waxeth kene and blowes And than ryseth tempestes and stronge wawes â–ª So fareth the worlde with his fauour Bryngeth a man in to ryches and to honour But afterwarde than he casteth hym a downe In to moche pouerte and trybulacyown And those be the great stormes and kene That bryngeth a man in sorowe and tene ¶ Howe the worlde may be lykened vnto a wyldernes YEt may the worlde that is brode and wyde Be lykened to a wyldernes in euery syde That is full of bestes that be wylde As Lyons Lybardes and Wolfes vnmylde That wyll strangle men and dystroye And slee theyr beestes and sore them noye So is this worlde full of mysdoers all aboute Of many tyrauntes that bryngeth men in doute That euer be besy both nyght and day Men to annoye in all that they may ¶ Howe the worlde maya be lykened vnto a Forest. ☜ ALso the worlde lykened may be To a forest that standeth in a wylde couÌ„tre That is full of theues wylde our lawes That often tymes to suche forest drawes HauÌ„teth theyr hyre passe robbeth reueth Both men and women and nothynge leueth So fareth this worlde that we in dwell Is full of theues that be deuylles of hell That vs awayteth and euer be besy 〈◊〉 to â—obbe and reue our goodes ghostly ¶ Howe the worlde may be lykened to a battell in a felde ANd yet is this worlde as ye shall here May thus be lykened in the fourth manere To a fayre felde full of dyuers battayles Of straunge ennemyes y â— eche day vs assayles For here we be brought in great doute And set with ennemyes all harde aboute And pryncypally with these ennemyes thre But agaynst them well armed we mught be That is the worlde the fende and thy flesshe That eche day assayleth vs lyke freshe Therfore vs behoueth both day and nyght For to be redy agaynst them to fyght THe worlde as clarckes doth vs to vnderstande Agaynst vs fyghteth euer with double hande Both with the ryght hande and the left also That euer yet hath yben our flesshe fo And welth the ryghthande may ben tolde And the left hande is hap and angers colde For the ryght hande assayleth men some whyle With welth of the worlde them to begyle And that is welth without anger and dolour Of worldly ryches and great treasour And with the left hande he assayleth estsoone And maketh men sory often and grone And that is anger and trybulacyon And also pouerte and moche persecucyon Suche thynges Clarckes the left hande calleth That in this worlde amonges men falleth And with the worlde coÌ„meth dame fortune soone That eyther hande chaungeth as the newe moone For euer he tourneth aboute her whele Somtyme in to wo and somtyme to wele And when she letteth the whele aboute go Somtyme she tourneth from well in to wo And eftsones agayne form wo in to blysse And thus tourned her whele often is And that whele Clarckes nought els calleth But hap or chaunce that sodaynly falleth And suche hap men holdeth nothynge elles But wrath or haâ—e that in men dwelles Therfore worldly wleth is euer more in doubte Whyle dame fortune tourneth her whele aboute Wherfore perfyte men that good lyfe lede The welth of the worlde sore they drede For welth draweth a man from the ryght way And ledeth hym from God both nyght and day Thus may eche man drede welth who that can And so sayth saynt Ierome the good holy man The more he sayth that a man waxeth vp ryght In welth other in any worldly myght The more he shulde haue drede in thought That from the blysse he ne fall nought ¶ Quanto magis in virtutibus crescimus can to 〈◊〉 â—mere debemuâ—nt sublimius corruâ—mus ¶ To this accordeth a clarcke SEneca the wyse That counceyleth vs the worlde to despyse ¶ Tune salubre consiliuÌ„ adâ—oca cuÌ„ tibi affuduÌ„t muÌ„di despera ¶ Seneca sayeth and gyueth good counceyll When this worlde maketh his merucyll Than seche thy wyt and after counceyllâ—all That moche welth make the nat fall For welthynes is but a shadowe somdele darcke And so sayth saynt Gregory the noble clarcke ¶ 〈◊〉 fortunis timenda est magis 〈◊〉 prospera ê™ adnersa ¶ Saynt Gregory sayeth in this maâ—er That yf euery hap be for to drede here yet is hap of welth to drede more Thaâ— any 〈◊〉 sorowe thoughe it greue sore For anger manâ—es lyfe cleâ—seth and proueth And welth to synne a man soone moueth And so may man his soule lyghtly spyll Throughe welthes that men haue at theyr wyll And so coÌ„meth afterwarde to endles payne And so wytnesseth the doctour saynâ— Auâ—ayne ¶ Sanitas continuâ—â— et
begynne And thus we may acompte reâ—en and rede An hondred synnes agaynst one good dede The thyrde cause is for to shewe amonge For oft tymes our dedes be done with wronge And nat in good maner as they ought to be And perchaunce they be done out of charyte And therfore our good dedes pure good are nought But saynt Austyne sayth our euyl pure euyl are wrought â–ª ¶ Omnes iniusticie nostre quasi pannus menstruatus ¶ He sayeth our good dedes may be sene As a cloth defouled with thynge vnclene Therfore for certayne knoweth no maner man Howe he shall fare when he his way take can But we shall byleue without any maner drede That euery man shall haue after his owne dede But therof be we nat syker in our lyfe dayes As wytnesseth an holy man and in this maner sayes â–ª ¶ Nescit homo vtrum sit dignus pro actibus suis amore vel odio ¶ He sayeth for certayne a man knoweth nought Thoughe he haue here neuer sâ— moche good wrought Whyther that he be worthy after his dede To haue the loue of God other els hatred And also Isodore as the boke telleth vs Accordeth well therto and sayeth all thus ¶ Seruu dei dum bonum agit vtrum sit ei ad bonum incertus est c. ¶ He sayeth the man that is Goddes seruaunt That to all goodnes maketh his haunt yet is he nothynge certayne in thought Whyther it be good to hym other it be nought Wherfore our lyuynge is here full harde As wytnesseth the holy man saynt Bernarde ¶ Quis potest hic vitam suam ducere sine tribulatione dolore ¶ He sayeth who may here this lyfe lede Without trybulacyon anger and drede Therfore saynt Bernarde sayeth thus here And speaketh of mannes lyfe in this manere ¶ Terret me tota vita mea que diligentur discussa apperet michi aut peccatum aut sterilitas aut res sunilata et imperfecta c. ¶ Saynt Bernarde the holy man sayeth this All my lyfe here sore greueth me ywis For yf it well and euen dyscussed be Nothynge elles it semeth to me But synne that the soule moste dereth Other barayne thynge that no fruyte bereth And yf any fruyte myght theron seme It must thus be sayde ryghtly to deme Other a faynynge thynge to shewe in syght Other a thynge that is done nought by all ryght So it may for nothynge ben forth brought To please almyghty God that made vs all of nought So that all a mannes lyfe is with sorowe lad Therfore no wonder thoughe a man selde be glad What may a synfull man say therto Syth he that was an holy man of lyfe euermo Coulde no maner fruyte in hym selfe se Than may another man drede and sory be Of this lyfe here that euer is so vnclene In the whiche there may no fruyte be sene ¶ Of the fourth encheason why men dredeth death THe fourth encheason is and the last to tell Why men dredeth death y t is so bytter fell Is for a maÌ„ knoweth nat whyther to wende To ioy other to payne after his lyfes ende For so wyse a man was neuer yet none That wyst when to death he shulde gone Ne whyther he shulde from hence fare To ioy without ende or els to care For when deuylles and the Aungelles bryght Hath desputed our lyfe aryght Whyther that God wyll vs dampne or saue For than our dome we shall haue And whyther that we shall to ioy or payne And therfore in certayne putteth vs saynt Austayne ¶ Bene de die nouissiino vnusquisque pensare debet quia vnumquemque in eodem statu quo inuenerunt eum suus nouissimus dies talis eum dominus iudi cabit in nouissimo iudicio c. ¶ Euery man he sayeth that hence shall away Shulde haue drede of his last day For in what maner state that he than be founde In suche he shall be demed in a lytell stounde Therfore the last day that may vs befall Our day of dome we may well call But at our last day when Goddes sone shall come Than with our bodyes vp we shall be nome Before our Lorde God that almyghty kynge is That all thynge shall deme that day ywis For all bodyes shall wende in to that place Where soules shall be demed throughe Goddes grace And other they shall haue full ioy yfere Other full payne when they be there And afterwarde they shall both togyther dwell Whyther that they wende to heauen other to hell But here in earth shall the bodyes all Abyde tyll the day of dome shall fall And that day shall be full streyght and harde As this boke telleth sonne hereafterwarde But the synfull soule goeth than to hell There without ende in payne for to dwell But the good soule than goeth full euen Without any lettynge in to the blysse of heauen But many a soule that God wyll saue He graunteth them mercye that it wyll craue For in the blysse of heauen may no soule be se But he for his synnes penytent before he Other here doth penaunce as Clarckes telleth With a contryte herte who God forgyueth And when manues soule is clensed well Of all deedly synnes and also of venyell Throughe penaunce here done and also almysdede Aungelles full soone to heauen shall hym lede Or els when it is passed from the body away Into the payne of hell that shall last ay Therfore euery man that can wysdome Shulde here beware or that death come And make hym all redy and clense hym clene Of all maner of synnes that none be sene So that death hym fynde clene of all When the body and soule departe shall And euermore thynke vpon his lyfes ende Whyle that he lyueth here or he hence wende And so he may hym kepe from the deuylles seruyse And thus teacheth vs all Salomon the wyse ¶ In omnibus operibus tuis memorare nouissimâ— tua ¶ He sayeth thynke euery man on thyne endynge day If that thou thynkest almyghty God to pay Euer when thou thynkest any thynge begynne Than shalt thou nat fall in to any maner synne And thynke that thou shalt dye and knowest neuer whan Nother in what state thou myght be than Therfore vpon the morne when thou seest lyght Thynke that thou mayest dye longe or it be nyght And when thou goest to bed yf thou be wyse Thynke that thou shalt dye haply or thou aryse For saynt Austyne the holy man sayth thus in his boke Let euer thyne herte thyne last day loke ¶ Nowe haue ye harde this treatyse yrade And this in your conscyence openly sprade For the loue of our lorde Iesu Pray for hym that this boke drewe And for hym also that redeth it here Whyther so be that he go ferre other nere As for the moste synfull man that lyueth by breade That God forgyue hym his synnes or he be deade And that God saue them both from all wyckednes And mayntayne theyr lyues in all goodnes And brynge them both to that ioyfull place To endles ioyes in syght of Goddes face Unto that same ioy he vs brynge That for our loue maked al thynge Sende vs to that ioy that is fayre and bryght Where euermore is day and neuer nyght Amen FINIS ¶ Imprynted by me Robert wyer dwellynge in saynt Martyns parysshe at the sygne of saynt IohnÌ„ Euangelyst besyde Charynge Crosse. ☜ Ad imprimendum solum