Read The Life of Saint Enimie. A 13th c text by Bertran de Marseille. Original Translation by Karena Akhavein. A reader's companion for the adventure novel Translatio Page 8

passed,

  1786.The good man was tormented

  1787.At night in his bed, noiselessly

  1788.When the others were all sleeping

  1789.He would not sleep at all, he was wakeful,

  1790.And remained in prayer

  1791.And when he had prayed as usual

  1792.To God and Madam Saint Mary,

  1793.He remained for a long time awake

  1794.And thinking about many things

  1795.As the good man had already done many times.

  1796.It was not about worldly things

  1797.So he thought about the matter

  1798.Of God and His mother

  1799.And how he could all his life

  1800.Do what the Scriptures said

  1801.And how all his faults

  1802.He could cleanse through saintly orations.

  1803.About all this and more he reflected

  1804.The good man, while he was awake.

  1805.But foremost in his thoughts

  1806.He had that one, the most pressing one,

  1807.And he thought in his inner being

  1808.About all the parts, on all the seams,

  1809.About what the angel had told him

  1810.About the body of Sainte Enimie:

  1811.He did not know how

  1812.Could be possible

  1813.The vision he had seen

  1814.Two times through the messenger of Christ.

  1815.Then he said softly, for he did not dare to say it loud:

  1816.“What can this thing be

  1817.Which came to me twice during the night?

  1818.Will I never know?

  1819.For I have been quite excessively

  1820.Day and night in profound reflection

  1821.And it told me that it was the angel of God

  1822.But I do not know how I could believe it

  1823.For I have seen many things

  1824.At night, imaginary things

  1825.Which came to me in the appearance

  1826.Of an angel or another creature,

  1827.And of this vision

  1828.Neither good nor evil came to me.

  1829.Everywhere I have also heard it be said

  1830.That we must not ponder

  1831.Nor concern ourselves

  1832.With things we see at night

  1833.For it is a dream and it goes away quickly,

  1834.As fast as it came.

  1835.Now can I then speak reasonably

  1836.Said this one, of this vision

  1837.Which can in no way

  1838.A dream or my imagination,

  1839.For twice in the same appearance

  1840.I saw it while wakeful in my bed;

  1841.And if I had been sleeping, then I would think

  1842.That this image was a dream

  1843.But I was really awake,

  1844.As I am now,

  1845.For this reason I believe that it is the truth

  1846.And not a dream nor a false thing.

  1847.And why then would I not say it

  1848.Tomorrow, when I have risen?

  1849.So I will do it, and hidden nevermore

  1850.Will I hold it from the convent.

  1851.And what am I saying? Why would I not consider it an illusion,

  1852.That which I have heard,

  1853.For the virgin, as they say,

  1854.Is in the church of Saint Denis

  1855.And for this reason, if I say

  1856.That I take this vision seriously,

  1857.They will say that it is a dream,

  1858.For it cannot be anything else.

  1859.And I believe that, may God help me,

  1860.That I should stop dwelling on this,

  1861.And that I should get up

  1862.And that I should no longer lose myself in these thoughts and reflections.”

  1863.So spoke the good man,

  1864.Arguing and quarrelling with himself.

  1865.But when he had tormented himself enough,

  1866.He prepared to sleep,

  1867.But he had hardly fallen asleep

  1868.When he heard a sudden noise

  1869.And was frightened and had a great fear

  1870.Then he stuck his head out (of the sheets)

  1871.To listen for what had made the racket.

  1872.As soon as he had lifted his head

  1873.He saw a blinding light

  1874.Similar to daylight on the road

  1875.So he was completely amazed

  1876.And tangled himself in his sheets,

  1877.Terrified and confounded.

  1878.At this moment the angel arrived

  1879.And said to him proudly:

  1880.“Jean! Jean! Hey! Are you sleeping?”

  1881.Jean remained there, he does not wish to answer,

  1882.He was primarily concentrating on hiding.

  1883.The angel said to him a second time:

  1884.“Jean, Jean, how are you?

  1885.Are you sleeping or awake? Answer me!”

  1886.So he rose from his pillow

  1887.And responds with great pride:

  1888.“In the name of the Father, who are you?

  1889.If you are an evil thing, go away!

  1890.If good, say nicely

  1891.Who you are, what you want, and what you ask of me.”

  1892.“I am truly the angel of God,

  1893.This said the vision to him,

  1894.And I find it very irritating

  1895.That so many times you made me return,

  1896.For you did not wish to manifest

  1897.That which I informed you of

  1898.Two time by God’s will.”

  1899.Jean responds: “Can I believe you

  1900.That you are the angel of God?”

  1901.The angel says: “You can well believe me.”

  1902.Jean responds: “Lord, thank you!

  1903.For I did not believe that was

  1904.Real the vision;

  1905.But, Lord, consider me guilty,

  1906.For I forgot that

  1907.And I will tell you why I did it:

  1908.For the body of Sainte Enimie,

  1909.They say that it is at Saint Denis,

  1910.And for this reason I was defiant.”

  1911.The angel responds: “No longer believe

  1912.That she is there, she is here instead

  1913.But Dagobert the king, her brother,

  1914.When he came to this place,

  1915.And thought he had his sister,

  1916.Left with the god-daughter

  1917.Who was called Enimie

  1918.As was she, when she was baptized.

  1919.But you, when day comes,

  1920.Just as I have shown it to you,

  1921.Manifest this to the convent.”

  1922.So said the angel, then left.

  1923.So, when daylight arrived on the morrow,

  1924.The good man did not delay

  1925.And had the convent come

  1926.And told them entirely

  1927.The vision of Jesus Christ

  1928.As he had seen it at night

  1929.And he let them know

  1930.How it had come three times

  1931.As well as how he deserves a reproach

  1932.For he had not repeated it.

  1933.When the monks heard this,

  1934.They praised God, and all together

  1935.They went into that place immediately

  1936.To find the place where the tomb was;

  1937.And they did, to ask for the bishop,

  1938.Run to the city of Mende

  1939.So that he come with them quickly

  1940.And they called the other members of the church,

  1941.The lay people and the clergy,

  1942.For found is the virgin

  1943.Sainte Enimie in truth.

  1944.So the
y all come without delay

  1945.The bishop and the other barons

  1946.To see the precious gift.

  1947.When the bishop and the other people

  1948.Had arrived and were present there,

  1949.The good man entered the church

  1950.He to whom God revealed it,

  1951.And showed the spot where was the tomb

  1952.In which the saintly virgin lay.

  1953.The bishop and the clerics who were there

  1954.When they saw the spot, rejoiced,

  1955.And sang an antiphon

  1956.In honor of the virgin

  1957.Then the dug in the ground nicely

  1958.And found the monument

  1959.And exhumed it from the ground

  1960.Where the saintly virgin was.

  1961.They opened the casket, they found the body,

  1962.And took it and pulled it out

  1963.Then they smelled a scent

  1964.Which was there, really the best that exists,

  1965.It was neither clove, nor coxcomb, nor mint,

  1966.Nor balms nor other spices,

  1967.So that those who were present

  1968.Believed that they were in heaven.

  1969.Another miracle then happened

  1970.That all the monks saw, that was saintly and beautiful,

  1971.For while they were being awed

  1972.By the saintly odor with which she was filled,

  1973.A blinding light came to their eyes

  1974.From the sky: It was votive candles;

  1975.And I tell you that in this place

  1976.They could not see each other

  1977.So much light was there

  1978.And then when she had begun on the path,

  1979.The candles that had blown out

  1980.Created light themselves

  1981.So when they saw the miracle,

  1982.All praised the holy virgin.

  1983.By me will not be recounted

  1984.All the miracles that were performed there,

  1985.For by the mere odor that issued forth

  1986.Did they find health that day

  1987.The sick, blind, paralyzed, lame,

  1988.Deaf, lepers, and too many others to recount.

  1989.But when she had come out of the vault

  1990.And that she had performed all these miracles,

  1991.They carried her with beautiful chants

  1992.To the new church which had been built

  1993.And placed her nicely

  1994.In a silver sarcophagus

  1995.Where God performs miracles through her

  1996.For her, miracles and marvels.

  1997.Now did they all pray, lay people and clergy,

  1998.That God in the name of this virgin

  1999.About whom I have made this story

  2000.Place our souls in heaven with his saints.

  AMEN

 
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