Literature, Medieval -- Translations into English; Tales
Some time dwelt in Rome a mighty emperor, named Anselm, who had married
the king's daughter of Jerusalem, a fair lady, and gracious in the sight
of every man, but she was long time with the emperor ere she bare him
any child; wherefore the nobles of the empire were very sorrowful,
because their lord had no heir of his own body begotten: till at last it
befell, that this Anselm walked after supper, in an evening, into his
garden, and bethought himself that he had no heir, and how the king of
Ampluy warred on him continually, for so much as he had no son to make
defence in his absence; therefore he was sorrowful, and went to his
chamber and slept. Then he thought he saw a vision in his sleep, that
the morning was more clear than it was wont to be, and that the moon was
much paler on the one side than on the other. And after he saw a bird of
two colours, and by that bird stood two beasts, which fed that little
bird with their heat. And after that came more beasts, and bowing their
breasts toward the bird, went their way. Then came there divers birds
that sung sweetly and pleasantly: with that the emperor awaked.
In the morning early this Anselm remembered his vision, and wondered
much what it might signify; wherefore he called to him his philosophers,
and all the states of the empire, and told them his dream, charging them
to tell him the signification thereof on pain of death, and if they
told him the true interpretation thereof, he promised them good reward.
Then said they, "Dear lord, tell us your dream, and we shall declare to
you what it betokens." Then the emperor told them from the beginning to
the ending, as is aforesaid. When the philosophers heard this, with glad
cheer they answered, and said, "Sir, the vision that you saw betokeneth
good, for the empire shall be clearer than it is.
"The moon that is more pale on the one side than on the other, betokeneth
the empress, that hath lost part of her colour, through the conception
of a son that she hath conceived. The little bird betokeneth the son
that she shall bare. The two beasts that fed this bird betoken the wise
and rich men of the empire which shall obey the son. These other beasts
that bowed their breasts to the bird betoken many other nations that
shall do him homage. The bird that sang so sweetly to this little bird
betokeneth the Romans, who shall rejoice and sing because of his birth.
This is the very interpretation of your dream."
When the emperor heard this, he was right joyful. Soon after that, the
empress travailed in childbirth, and was delivered of a fair son, at
whose birth there was great and wonderful joy made.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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