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Chapter 33
OF THE GOODNESS OF THE FOLK OF THE ISLE OF BRAGMAN. OF KING
ALEXANDER. AND WHEREFORE THE EMPEROR OF IND IS CLEPT PRESTER JOHN
AND beyond that isle is another isle, great and good and plenteous,
where that be good folk and true, and of good living after their
belief and of good faith. And albeit that they be not christened,
ne have no perfect law, yet, natheles, of kindly law they be full
of all virtue, and they eschew all vices and all malices and all
sins. For they be not proud, ne covetous, ne envious, ne wrathful,
ne gluttons, ne lecherous. Ne they do to any man otherwise than
they would that other men did to them, and in this point they
fulfil the ten commandments of God, and give no charge of avoir, ne
of riches. And they lie not, ne they swear not for none occasion,
but they say simply, yea and nay; for they say, he that sweareth
will deceive his neighbour, and therefore, all that they do, they
do it without oath.
And men clepe that isle the Isle of Bragman, and some men clepe it
the Land of Faith. And through that land runneth a great river
that is clept Thebe. And, in general, all the men of those isles
and of all the marches thereabout be more true than in any other
countries thereabout, and more rightfull than others in all things.
In that isle, is no thief, ne murderer, ne common woman, ne poor
beggar, ne never was man slain in that country. And they be so
chaste, and lead so good life, as that they were religious men, and
they fast all days. And because they be so true and so rightfull,
and so full of all good conditions, they were never grieved with
tempests, ne with thunder, ne with light, ne with hail, ne with
pestilence, ne with war, ne with hunger, ne with none other
tribulation, as we be, many times, amongst us, for our sins.
Wherefore, it seemeth well, that God loveth them and is pleased
with their creaunce for their good deeds. They believe well in
God, that made all things, and him they worship. And they prize
none earthly riches; and so they be all rightfull. And they live
full ordinately, and so soberly in meat and drink, that they live
right long. And the most part of them die without sickness, when
nature faileth them, for eld.
And it befell in King Alexander's time, that he purposed him to
conquer that isle and to make them to hold of him. And when they
of the country heard it, they sent messengers to him with letters,
that said thus; What may be enough to that man to whom all the
world is insufficient? Thou shalt find nothing in us, that may
cause thee to war against us. For we have no riches, ne none we
covet, and all the goods of our country be in common. Our meat,
that we sustain withal our bodies, is our riches. And, instead of
treasure of gold and silver, we make our treasure of accord and
peace, and for to love every man other. And for to apparel with
our bodies we use a silly little clout for to wrap in our carrion.
Our wives ne be not arrayed for to make no man pleasance, but only
convenable array for to eschew folly. When men pain them to array
the body for to make it seem fairer than God made it, they do great
sin. For man should not devise ne ask greater beauty, than God
hath ordained man to be at his birth. The earth ministereth to us
two things, - our livelihood, that cometh of the earth that we live
by, and our sepulture after our death. We have been in perpetual
peace till now, that thou come to disinherit us. And also we have
a king, not only for to do justice to every man, for he shall find
no forfeit among us; but for to keep noblesse, and for to shew that
we be obeissant, we have a king. For justice ne hath not among us
no place, for we do to no man otherwise than we desire that men do
to us. So that righteousness ne vengeance have nought to do among
us. So that nothing thou may take from us, but our good peace,
that always hath dured among us.
And when King Alexander had read these letters, he thought that he
should do great sin, for to trouble them. And then he sent them
sureties, that they should not be afeard of him, and that they
should keep their good manners and their good peace, as they had
used before, of custom. And so he let them alone.
Another isle there is, that men clepe Oxidrate, and another isle,
that men clepe Gynosophe, where there is also good folk, and full
of good faith. And they hold, for the most part, the good
conditions and customs and good manners, as men of the country
abovesaid; but they go all naked.
Into that isle entered King Alexander, to see the manner. And when
he saw their great faith, and their truth that was amongst them, he
said that he would not grieve them, and bade them ask of him what
that they would have of him, riches or anything else, and they
should have it, with good will. And they answered, that he was
rich enough that had meat and drink to sustain the body with, for
the riches of this world, that is transitory, is not worth; but if
it were in his power to make them immortal, thereof would they pray
him, and thank him. And Alexander answered them that it was not in
his power to do it, because he was mortal, as they were. And then
they asked him why he was so proud and so fierce, and so busy for
to put all the world under his subjection, right as thou were a
God, and hast no term of this life, neither day ne hour, and
willest to have all the world at thy commandment, that shall leave
thee without fail, or thou leave it. And right as it hath been to
other men before thee, right so it shall be to other after thee.
And from hence shalt thou bear nothing; but as thou were born
naked, right so all naked shall thy body be turned into earth that
thou were made of. Wherefore thou shouldest think and impress it
in thy mind, that nothing is immortal, but only God, that made the
thing. By the which answer Alexander was greatly astonished and
abashed, and all confused and departed from them.
And albeit that these folk have not the articles of our faith as we
have, natheles, for their good faith natural, and for their good
intent, I trow fully, that God loveth them, and that God take their
service to gree, right as he did of Job, that was a paynim, and
held him for his true servant. And therefore, albeit that there be
many diverse laws in the world, yet I trow, that God loveth always
them that love him, and serve him meekly in truth, and namely them
that despise the vain glory of this world, as this folk do and as
Job did also.
And therefore said our Lord by the mouth of Hosea the prophet,
PONAM EIS MULTIPLICES LEGES MEAS; and also in another place, QUI
TOTUM ORBEM SUBDIT SUIS LEGIBUS. And also our Lord saith in the
Gospel, ALIAS OVES HABEO, QUE NON SUNT EX HOC OVILI, that is to
say, that he had other servants than those that be under Christian
law. And to that accordeth the avision that Saint Peter saw at
Jaffa, how the angel came from heaven, and brought before him
diverse beasts, as serpents and other creeping beasts of the earth,
and of other also, great plenty, and bade him take and eat. And
Saint Peter answered; I eat never, quoth he, of unclean beasts.
And then said the angel, NON DICAS IMMUNDA, QUE DEUS MUNDAVIT. And
that was in token that no man should have in despite none earthly
man for their diverse laws, for we know not whom God loveth, ne
whom God hateth. And for that example, when men say, DE PROFUNDIS,
they say it in common and in general, with the Christian, PRO
ANIMABUS OMNIUM DEFUNCTORUM, PRO QUIBUS SIT ORANDUM.
And therefore say I of this folk, that be so true and so faithful,
that God loveth them. For he hath amongst them many of the
prophets, and alway hath had. And in those isles, they prophesied
the Incarnation of Lord Jesu Christ, how he should be born of a
maiden, three thousand year or more or our Lord was born of the
Virgin Mary. And they believe well it, the Incarnation, and that
full perfectly, but they know not the manner, how he suffered his
passion and death for us.
And beyond these isles there is another isle that is clept Pytan.
The folk of that country ne till not, ne labour not the earth, for
they eat no manner thing. And they be of good colour and of fair
shape, after their greatness. But the small be as dwarfs, but not
so little as be the Pigmies. These men live by the smell of wild
apples. And when they go any far way, they bear the apples with
them; for if they had lost the savour of the apples, they should
die anon. They ne be not full reasonable, but they be simple and
bestial.
After that is another isle, where the folk be all skinned rough
hair, as a rough beast, save only the face and the palm of the
hand. These folk go as well under the water of the sea, as they do
above the land all dry. And they eat both flesh and fish all raw.
In this isle is a great river that is well a two mile and an half
of breadth that is clept Beaumare.
And from that river a fifteen journeys in length, going by the
deserts of the tother side of the river - whoso might go it, for I
was not there, but it was told us of them of the country, that
within those deserts were the trees of the sun and of the moon,
that spake to King Alexander, and warned him of his death. And men
say that the folk that keep those trees, and eat of the fruit and
of the balm that groweth there, live well four hundred year or five
hundred year, by virtue of the fruit and of the balm. For men say
that balm groweth there in great plenty and nowhere else, save only
at Babylon, as I have told you before. We would have gone toward
the trees full gladly if we had might. But I trow that 100,000 men
of arms might not pass those deserts safely, for the great
multitude of wild beasts and of great dragons and of great serpents
that there be, that slay and devour all that come anent them. In
that country be many white elephants without number, and of
unicorns and of lions of many manners, and many of such beasts that
I have told before, and of many other hideous beasts without
number.
Many other isles there be in the land of Prester John, and many
great marvels, that were too long to tell all, both of his riches
and of his noblesse and of the great plenty also of precious stones
that he hath. I trow that ye know well enough, and have heard say,
wherefore this emperor is clept Prester John. But, natheles, for
them that know not, I shall say you the cause.
It was sometime an emperor there, that was a worthy and a full
noble prince, that had Christian knights in his company, as he hath
that is now. So it befell, that he had great list for to see the
service in the church among Christian men. And then dured
Christendom beyond the sea, all Turkey, Syria, Tartary, Jerusalem,
Palestine, Arabia, Aleppo and all the land of Egypt. And so it
befell that this emperor came with a Christian knight with him into
a church in Egypt. And it was the Saturday in Whitsun-week. And
the bishop made orders. And he beheld, and listened the service
full tentively. And he asked the Christian knight what men of
degree they should be that the prelate had before him. And the
knight answered and said that they should be priests. And then the
emperor said that he would no longer be clept king ne emperor, but
priest, and that he would have the name of the first priest that
went out of the church, and his name was John. And so ever-more
sithens, he is clept Prester John.
In his land be many Christian men of good faith and of good law,
and namely of them of the same country, and have commonly their
priests, that sing the Mass, and make the sacrament of the altar,
of bread, right as the Greeks do; but they say not so many things
at the Mass as men do here. For they say not but only that that
the apostles said, as our Lord taught them, right as Saint Peter
and Saint Thomas and the other apostles sung the Mass, saying the
PATER NOSTER and the words of the sacrament. But we have many more
additions that divers popes have made, that they ne know not of.
Chapter 31 | Index | Chapter 33