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    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 7
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    wish to take our lady away from us!

      1562.And you should never permit

      1563.That someone wish to take her away;

      1564.So why then do you wish to do it?

      1565.Lord, have pity on us!”

      1566.Then they threw themselves on their knees

      1567.And asked him, by God’s mercy

      1568.That he wish to do it for nothing on earth.

      1569.But he told them at last

      1570.That would not stay in the church

      1571.The body in any way

      1572.And that she was required to go with him:

      1573.“Should I not then carry my sister

      1574.There where she should have the most honor?

      1575.Yes, I will do it, know this in truth.

      1576.Lead me to the monument and show it to me!”

      1577.Immediately he entered the church

      1578.And with him all his knights

      1579.And the saintly nuns with them.

      1580.They pulled and damaged their veils

      1581.And rudely demanded of them

      1582.For the king the location of the monument

      1583.Where his sister was buried.

      1584.But the one who responded cried:

      1585.“King, never will you learn it from us;

      1586.Look for it, you will find it.”

      1587.With time, the king looked so much

      1588.That he found the monument

      1589.But he did not at all recognize which one it was

      1590.For there were two monuments:

      1591.The one of his sister, the one below,

      1592.And that of her goddaughter, the one above.

      1593.But after he had been there for a while,

      1594.And on the one above he saw written

      1595.ENIMIE and in this way thought

      1596.That the body of his sister was there.

      1597.And listen about this name, why it was

      1598.On this grave and not on the other:

      1599.When Sainte Enimie passed

      1600.From this world, and she commanded

      1601.That her god-daughter be buried

      1602.In the higher casket and that they write

      1603.The name of Enimie on it

      1604.She had indeed had her name put on it

      1605.For she had known

      1606.Since she was the good friend of God

      1607.That the king, her brother Dagobert,

      1608.Was surely to come soon

      1609.From France, from the royal land,

      1610.Into this deep valley

      1611.To demand and take away her body;

      1612.And for this reason she wanted to command

      1613.That her coffin remain without writing

      1614.As I have told it to you,

      1615.And that on the one of her god-daughter

      1616.That they put the name on the flat stone

      1617.So that, when he would see the name

      1618.Of Enimie on the tomb,

      1619.He would take the body that was in it

      1620.And hers would be left underneath

      1621.For not at all from the place where God for her

      1622.Performed so many miracles, night and day,

      1623.She wanted for nothing on earth to leave

      1624.After her death to be elsewhere.

      1625.And not at all in this manner did she sin

      1626.In requesting this

      1627.For likewise did they call

      1628.The goddaughter by her name.

      1629.–Barons, noblemen, now see

      1630.You who have gone into this valley

      1631.Men and women, cleric and layperson,

      1632.If you well owe to this virgin that

      1633.You give her good and dignified honor,

      1634.For she did not wish that her person

      1635.Be carried away from it into another place,

      1636.For the large and wide valley

      1637.Bore no fruit

      1638.Then, and this we all know it,

      1639.Nor anything on which one can sustain one’s self,

      1640.So wild was this valley,

      1641.But since she had been there,

      1642.It bore wine and grains and fruit.

      1643.And all that grew in truth was

      1644.By her, and you can see it;

      1645.For there are many people

      1646.In all more than two hundred

      1647.And there are well a hundred and twenty hearths

      1648.Full and well fed in this place.-- (*)

      1649.Now let us return to our matter

      1650.And to our initial story.

      1651.When Dagobert had well read

      1652.The name written on the tomb,

      1653.He was happy and threw himself on it,

      1654.For he thought that it was her,

      1655.And cried so excessively hard

      1656.Him and all his knights.

      1657.And when he had gotten up from the tomb,

      1658.And that he had cried and sniveled enough,

      1659.He commanded that all nicely

      1660.They break the monument.

      1661.Immediately the knights

      1662.Began to open the tomb.

      1663.The nuns, when they saw this,

      1664.It seemed good in their hearts

      1665.When they saw that he believed he had

      1666.The body of his sister in truth.

      1667.But they made no sign and no noise at all

      1668.So that he not be informed

      1669.And so they pretended that they were sad:

      1670.“Miserable ones, what bad things have we done,

      1671.So that our treasure is taken away from us!

      1672.What will we do from now on in this abyss?

      1673.Miserable ones, and what can we do

      1674.About the fact that someone wishes to steal from us thus?”

      1675.All this they said while crying

      1676.So that the king believed all the better

      1677.That the body in this monument

      1678.Was truly that of his sister.

      1679.Dagobert, when he heard them cry,

      1680.Said to them nicely and courteously:

      1681.“Ladies, and why are you crying?

      1682.I will always be good to you.

      1683.I will give you lands and honors

      1684.Of which you can have great succor.” (*)

      1685.The ladies responded to the king

      1686.Pretending that it pained them:

      1687.“Hey, Lord, know in truth

      1688.That never will we desire other riches

      1689.Nor other lands nor honors

      1690.Other than the saintly body of your sister.

      1691.For she is for us a beautiful treasure,

      1692.Much more great than silver or gold.

      1693.But Lord, since it is thus,

      1694.And that you are taking her away, remember

      1695.That this religious monastery,

      1696.That it be good and charitable!”

      1697.The king responds that willingly

      1698.Will always be good this monastery;

      1699.Then he takes the body without delay

      1700.Which, we have already explained it,

      1701.Was not the one of his sister

      1702.But that of the god-daughter who was above

      1703.For by the name and by the writing

      1704.He was deceived and duped.

      1705.When the king and the knights

      1706.Had placed on a stretcher

      1707.The body, all together they saluted

      1708.The whole church and the convent

      1709.And they returned to their country

      1710.Directly to the church of saint Denis

      1711.Where the king put in a very ornate way

      1712.The body in a silver vessel;

      1713.In which they well believe they still have

      1714.The true Sainte Enimie

      17
    15.But they are deceived in their thoughts

      1716.And since they believe everything thus,

      1717.She remains here in truth

      1718.Near the mount where she died

      1719.Where still God performs for her

      1720.Great miracles, as I know it.

      1721.Now, I will tell you without hesitation

      1722.How and by which miracle

      1723.The body of Sainte Enimie was found

      1724.And by which vision,

      1725.And listen well to this

      1726.Which I will tell you completely.

      1727.After Dagobert the king

      1728.Had carried the body himself

      1729.Of the god-daughter of his sister,

      1730.And many years and many days

      1731.Had passed, and the abbey

      1732.That had built Madam Sainte Enimie

      1733.Had no more nuns due to its decrepitude,

      1734.Was built higher up another church

      1735.Close to there, on a hill

      1736.With new monks in truth

      1737.In honor of Sainte Enimie

      1738.Where she was praised night and day.

      1739.When the monastery was built,

      1740.It was the will of the Holy Spirit

      1741.That the body of his bride,

      1742.Enimie the glorious,

      1743.Would be discovered, which was no longer

      1744.Known by the people of the land;

      1745.For they thought certainly

      1746.That it was at Saint Denis in France

      1747.For they had heard it be told

      1748.That by king Dagobert her brother

      1749.She had been taken to his country;

      1750.But nothing of this was true,

      1751.For she was still in the beautiful church

      1752.Which she had first built

      1753.And for this god wanted to show

      1754.Her body and reveal it.

      1755.It happened again

      1756.That the monastery was well built

      1757.And the convent was religious

      1758.And enthusiastic to serve God.

      1759.And amongst the monks of which I have spoken to you,

      1760.There was, by the will of God,

      1761.A monk full of sanctity

      1762.Who was called Jean,

      1763.To whom the son of Saint Mary

      1764.Revealed where the body was lying

      1765.Of Enimie, His virgin,

      1766.And he showed him by this proof

      1767.Certainly and in which way

      1768.Was the vision true.

      1769.The voice of our Lord

      1770.Came to him when he was in bed in the dormitory.

      1771.The good man, when came the next day,

      1772.Reflected on the vision

      1773.And stayed deep in thought

      1774.And then did not think of it again.

      1775.But when he had remained thus,

      1776.I do not know how many days, without worries,

      1777.The angel came to him in a vision,

      1778.And spoke to him with reason

      1779.But the good man despite all these words

      1780.Did not want to listen

      1781.But nevertheless had doubts

      1782.For thus he would toss and turn in his bed

      1783.And was in deep thought

      1784.Night and day, for he did not know what to say.

      1785.But when a season had


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