The Booke of Thenseygnementes and Techynge that the Knyght of the Towre made to his Doughters/Chapter 31
YET OF THE SAME.
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AME, ye ben moche beholdynge to god, and to his swete moder, whiche wylle not haue yow dampned, ne the perdícion of youre sowle. But they shewe to yow youre perylle and youre saluacion. First,they haue shewed to yow youre fader and moder. And youre moder said to yow, 'Fayre doughter, see the breestes of whiche thou hast taken thyn noreture. Loue & honoure thy husbond, lyke as thou hast done these brestes. That is to vnderstonde, ye ought to loue & fere hym, like as ye loued the pappes of youre moder, & ther ye took youre norysshynge. And like as the childe leueth alle thynges for love of the tete, & for the swetenes of the mylke whero he taketh his foode, ryght so ought euery good woman, next god and his hooly lawe, loue her husbond aboue al other, and leue all other loues for hymn: in lyke wyse as oure lord saith with his hooly mouthe, that a man shold leue fader & moder, suster & broder, & abyde with his wyf, & with wyf her husbonde, and that they be not tweyne but one flessh, & y god hath ioyned man may not departe. & also where ye said that youre moder saide ye tooke youre noreture in her pappes & your welthe, that is to say, yf ye loue youre husbond aboue al other, thenne shall your noreture growe & encrece from day to day, like as the child groweth by his noreture of the pappe, & by the swetenes of the mylke, which signyfyeth the grete swetenes, the ioye, the loue, that ouzt to be in trewe mariage, & the grace of god duelleth in them. After your fader said, "Faire dougter, why hast thou more ter loue & plaisauce to other than to thyn husbond? Beholde the pitte that is beside the, & knowe thou verily, yf thou fall in the pitte with grete hete, that thou shalt be lost therein; that is to saye, that if thou loue more another than thy lord, thou shalt fall into the cyt, where ye shall be brent & broiled for the delyte of evil plaisauce & euyil hete." And therfore he shewed to yow the pytte of fire & of hete, and the vengeaūce & the pugnycion that behoueth to ensue for this delite & the hete of the folissh plaisauce. After, he shewed to you the prestes in white, & said that ye had reuested them, whereof he thaked you. That signefiace is, that ye haue do reuestid prestes, & done said masses for them, & in like maner pray they for you. & they ben sory when they see them that done good for them ben sent to perdicio, as ye may wel apperceyue that they were sory of the tēptacion that ye had in the foule plaisauce in which ye were in the wey for to be lost, & therfor they cam for to socour you, for love of the good dedes of the masses & almesses that ye haue done for them. After, ye saw thymage of our lady, that held a cote & a shirte, & said, " This cote & this shirt haue kept the fro fallyng in to the pytte; for thou hast defouled my hous & mocked it;" that is saye, that yehaue ben in the chirch in gretter loue of another than of hym. They werethefolisshe regardes & the folisshe plaisires ý ye toke hym fer whom ye emprised & toke the journeye. & also the vois said to you, Ý (you) haue fouled & mocked his hous, Ÿ is, his chirch; for all they that come thyder for ony other playsaunce but for the deuocion of hooly place, & doo not the seruyse of god, but come for their plaisire and worldly delyte, they mocke the chirche and the hows of god, after ye defowled it when ye synned there, lyke as the voys said to yow: that was when ye hadde youre herte sette more in the plaisire of folye than on the dyuyne seruyse. And of that trespas god hath wylled to shewe to you youre defaulte, and hath sente to yow this grete euylle and sekeness that ye haue now felt. And this grace and chastysement is comen to yow for the seruyse & good dede that ye dyde to two poure wymmen, of whiche ye gaf to one a Cote, & to that other a smok. And the voys said to yow, that the Cote and smock haue kepte you fro fallyng in to the pytte; that is to say, that the good deede and thalmesse that ye haue done for goddes sake haue kept you fro perysshynge. For yf ye hadde fallen in to the folye and fowle playsyre where ye had set youre herte in, ye had ben vtterly loste and perysshed, wherfore ye ought to gyue grete thankyng & seruyse to god, that he hath vouchedsauf to shewe yow youre errour. Now ought ye from hens forth to kepe yow from fallynge in suche perylle as for to lose all honoure and youre sowle, and not to haue plaisire to loue none so moche as youre lord youre husbond, to whome ye haue promysed feith and trouthe, and ye ought not to chaunge for better ne werse. And yf she chaunge and loue another, than she lyeth and periured her feithe and trouthe. Now haue ye here, god be thanked, a faire myroure all lyke as the wyse man shewed yow the aduysyon." And thus he confessid and taugt her the best wyse he couthe. & the lady wexed al hole, and thanked god and lefte all her folysshe plaisaunce. Thenne it happed aboute half yere after, that the squyer that loued her peramours, cam froin a vyage and from an armee where he had ben, and cam to her queynt and Jolye, and began to bourde and jape and speke suche langage as he had to fore other tymes vsed. And he fonde her all straunge. Thenne was he all abasshed and admerueyled, and demaunded her and said, "Madame, at what playe haue I lost the good tyme, the lyf, and the hope that I haue had to lyue with you joiously?" And she answered to hym that all that tyme was passid. "For neuer as long as I lyue," sayd she, " i purpose to loue ne haue plaisaunce with none, sauf with my lord my husbonde." And thenne she told to hyin the aduenture that happed her in the chirch. And he thought and supposed wel to haue torned her, but he myght not.' And when he sawe that she was ferme and constaunt, he lefte her, and after sayd and tolde to many other the constance and stedfastnes of her, whereof he moche preysed and honoured her the more. And therfore here is a good Ensample how me ought not to go to hooly pylgremages for no foolysshe playsaunces, but only for the dyuyne seruyse and for the loue of god, and how good it is for to praye and to doo saye masses for the soules of fader, moder, and other frendes, for in lyke wyse they praye and empetre grace for them that ben alyue that remembre them and doo good for them as ye haue herde. And also it is good to gyue almesse for god's sake, for the almesses geten grace of god to them that gyue them, lyke as ye haue herd. And now I shalle telle yow another ensample that happed in a Chirche, whiche was called oure lady of Bealem.