Of the Caldeus lo in this wise Stant the believe out of assisse: Bot in Egipte worst of alle The feith is fals, hou so it falle; 790 For thei diverse bestes there Honoure, as thogh thei goddes were: And natheles yit forth withal Thre goddes most in special Thei have, forth with a goddesse, In whom is al here sikernesse. Tho goddes be yit cleped thus, Orus, Typhon and Isirus: Thei were brethren alle thre, And the goddesse in hir degre 800 Here Soster was and Ysis hyhte, Whom Isirus forlai be nyhte And hield hire after as his wif. So it befell that upon strif Typhon hath Isre his brother slain, Which hadde a child to Sone Orayn, And he his fader deth to herte So tok, that it mai noght asterte That he Typhon after ne slowh, Whan he was ripe of age ynowh. 810 Bot yit thegipcienes trowe For al this errour, which thei knowe, That these brethren ben of myht To sette and kepe Egipte upriht, And overthrowe, if that hem like. Bot Ysis, as seith the Cronique, Fro Grece into Egipte cam, And sche thanne upon honde nam To teche hem forto sowe and eere, Which noman knew tofore there. 820 And whan thegipcienes syhe The fieldes fulle afore here yhe, And that the lond began to greine, Which whilom hadde be bareigne,— For therthe bar after the kinde His due charge,—this I finde, That sche of berthe the goddesse Is cleped, so that in destresse The wommen there upon childinge To hire clepe, and here offringe 830 Thei beren, whan that thei ben lyhte. Lo, hou Egipte al out of syhte Fro resoun stant in misbelieve For lacke of lore, as I believe. Among the Greks, out of the weie As thei that reson putte aweie, Ther was, as the Cronique seith, Of misbelieve an other feith, That thei here goddes and goddesses, As who seith, token al to gesses 840 Of suche as weren full of vice, To whom thei made here sacrifice. The hihe god, so as thei seide, To whom thei most worschipe leide, Saturnus hihte, and king of Crete He hadde be; bot of his sete He was put doun, as he which stod In frenesie, and was so wod, That fro his wif, which Rea hihte, Hise oghne children he to plihte, 850 And eet hem of his comun wone. Bot Jupiter, which was his Sone And of full age, his fader bond And kutte of with his oghne hond Hise genitals, whiche als so faste Into the depe See he caste; Wherof the Greks afferme and seie, Thus whan thei were caste aweie, Cam Venus forth be weie of kinde. And of Saturne also I finde 860 How afterward into an yle This Jupiter him dede exile, Wher that he stod in gret meschief. Lo, which a god thei maden chief! And sithen that such on was he, Which stod most hihe in his degre Among the goddes, thou miht knowe, These othre, that ben more lowe, Ben litel worth, as it is founde.