The Faerie Queene (35 page)

But onely womanish fine forgery,

Your stubborne hart t'affect with fraile infirmity.

29
To which when she your courage hath inclind

Through foolish pitty, then her guilefull bayt

She will embosome deeper in your mind,

And for your ruine at the last awayt.

The knight was ruled, and the Boateman strayt

Held on his course with stayed stedfastnesse,

Ne euer shruncke, ne euer sought to bayt

His tyred armes for toylesome wearinesse,

But with his oares did sweepe the watry wildernesse.

30
And now they nigh approched to the sted,

Where as those Mermayds dwelt: it was a still

And calmy bay, on th'one side sheltered

With the brode shadow of an hoarie hill,

On th'other side an high rocke toured still,

That twixt them both a pleasaunt port they made,

And did like an halfe Theatre fulfill:

There those fiue sisters had continuall trade,

And vsd to bath themselues in that deceiptfull shade.

31
They were faire Ladies, till they fondly striu'd

With th'
Heliconian
maides for maistery;

Of whom they ouer-comen, were depriu'd

Of their proud beautie, and th'one moyity

Transform'd to fish, for their bold surquedry,

But th'vpper halfe their hew retained still,

And their sweet skill in wonted melody;

Which euer after they abusd to ill,

T'allure weake trauellers, whom gotten they did kill.

32
So now to
Guyon,
as he passed by,

Their pleasaunt tunes they sweetly thus applide;

O thou faire sonne of gentle Faery,

Thou art in mighty armes most magnifide

Aboue all knights, that euer battell tride,

O turne thy rudder hither-ward a while:

Here may thy storme-bet vessell safely ride;

This is the Port of rest from troublous toyle,

The worlds sweet In, from paine & wearisome turmoyle.

33
With that the rolling sea resounding soft,

In his big base them fitly answered,

And on the rocke the waues breaking aloft,

A solemne Meane vnto them measured,

The whiles sweet
Zephirus
lowd whisteled

His treble, a straunge kinde of harmony;

Which
Guyons
senses softly tickeled,

That he the boateman bad row easily,

And let him heare some part of their rare melody.

34
But him the Palmer from that vanity,

With temperate aduice discounselled,

That they it past, and shortly gan descry

The land, to which their course they leueled;

When suddeinly a grosse fog ouerspred

With his dull vapour all that desert has,

And heauens chearefull face enueloped,

That all things one, and one as nothing was,

And this great Vniuerse seemd one confused mas.

35
Thereat they greatly were dismayd, ne wist

How to direct their way in darkenesse wide,

But feard to wander in that wastfull mist,

For tombling into mischiefe vnespide.

Worse is the daunger hidden, then descride.

Suddeinly an innumerable flight

Of harmefull fowles about them fluttering, cride,

And with their wicked wings them oft did smight,

And sore annoyed, groping in that griesly night.

36
Euen all the nation of vnfortunate

And fatall birds about them flocked were,

Such as by nature men abhorre and hate,

The ill-faste Owle, deaths dreadfull messengere,

The hoars Night-rauen, trump of dolefull drere,

The lether-winged Bat, dayes enimy,

The ruefull Strich, still waiting on the bere,

The Whistler shrill, that who so heares, doth dy,

The hellish Harpies, prophets of sad destiny.

37
All those, and all that else does horrour breed,

About them flew, and fild their sayles with feare:

Yet stayd they not, but forward did proceed,

Whiles th'one did row, and th'other stifly steare;

Till that at last the weather gan to cleare,

And the faire land it selfe did plainly show.

Said then the Palmer, Lo where does appeare

The sacred soile, where all our perils grow;

Therefore, Sir knight, your ready armes about you throw.

38
He hearkned, and his armes about him tooke,

The whiles the nimble boate so well her sped,

That with her crooked keele the land she strooke,

Then forth the noble
Guyon
sallied,

And his sage Palmer, that him gouerned;

But th'other by his boate behind did stay.

They marched fairly forth, of nought ydred,

Both firmely armd for euery hard assay,

With constancy and care, gainst daunger and dismay.

39
Ere long they heard an hideous bellowing

Of many beasts, that roard outrageously,

As if that hungers point, or
Venus
sting

Had them enraged with fell surquedry;

Yet nought they feard, but past on hardily,

Vntill they came in view of those wild beasts:

Who all attonce, gaping full greedily,

And rearing fiercely their vpstarting crests,

Ran towards, to deuoure those vnexpected guests.

40
But soone as they approcht with deadly threat,

The Palmer ouer them his staffe vpheld,

His mighty staffe, that could all charmes defeat:

Eftsoones their stubborne courages were queld,

And high aduaunced crests downe meekely feld,

In stead of fraying, they them selues did feare,

And trembled, as them passing they beheld:

Such wondrous powre did in that staffe appeare,

All monsters to subdew to him, that did it beare.

41
Of that same wood it fram'd was cunningly,

Of which
Caduceus
whilome was made,

Caduceus
the rod of
Mercury,

With which he wonts the
Stygian
reahnes inuade,

Through ghastly horrour, and eternall shade;

Th'infernall feends with it he can asswage,

And
Orcus
tame, whom nothing can perswade,

And rule the
Furyes,
when they most do rage:

Such vertue in his staffe had eke this Palmer sage.

42
Thence passing forth, they shortly do arriue,

Whereas the Bowre
of Blisse
was situate;

A place pickt out by choice of best aliue,

That natures worke by art can imitate:

In which what euer in this worldly state

Is sweet, and pleasing vnto liuing sense,

Or that may dayntiest fantasie aggrate,

Was poured forth with plentifull dispence,

And made there to abound with lauish affluence.

43
Goodly it was enclosed round about,

Aswell their entred guestes to keepe within,

As those vnruly beasts to hold without;

Yet was the fence thereof but weake and thin;

Nought feard their force, that fortilage to win,

But wisedomes powre, and temperaunces might.

By which the mightiest things efforced bin:

And eke the gate was wrought of substaunce light,

Rather for pleasure, then for battery or fight

44
Yt framed was of precious yuory,

That seemd a worke of admirable wit;

And therein all the famous history

O
f Iason
and
Medœa
was ywrit;

Her mighty charmes, her furious louing fit,

His goodly conquest of the golden fleece,

His falsed faith, and loue too lightly flit,

The wondred
Argo,
which in venturous peece

First through the
Euxine
seas bore all the flowr of
Greece.

45
Ye might haue seene the frothy billowes fry

Vnder the ship, as thorough them she went,

That seemd the waues were into yuory,

Or yuory into the waues were sent;

And other where the snowy substaunce sprent

With vermeil, like the boyes bloud therein shed,

A piteous spectacle did represent,

And otherwhiles with gold besprinkeled;

Yt seemd th'enchaunted flame, which did
Creüsa
wed.

46
All this, and more might in that goodly gate

Be red; that euer open stood to all,

Which thither came: but in the Porch there sate

A comely personage of stature tall,

And semblaunce pleasing, more then naturall,

That trauellers to him seemd to entize;

His looser garment to the ground did fall,

And flew about his heeles in wanton wize,

Not fit for speedy pace, or manly exercize.

47
They in that place him
Genius
did call:

Not that celestiall powre, to whom the care

Of life, and generation of all

That liues, pertaines in charge particulare,

Who wondrous things concerning our welfare,

And straunge phantomes doth let vs oft forsee,

And oft of secret ill bids vs beware:

That is our Selfe, whom though we do not see,

Yet each doth in him selfe it well perceiue to bee.

48
Therefore a God him sage Antiquity

Did wisely make, and good
Agdistes
call:

But this same was to that quite contrary,

The foe of life, that good enuyes to all,

That secretly doth vs procure to fall,

Through guilefull semblaunts, which he makes vs see.

He of this Gardin had the gouernall,

And Pleasures porter was deuizd to bee,

Holding a staffe in hand for more formalitee.

49
With diuerse flowres he daintily was deckt,

And strowed round about, and by bis side

A mighty Mazer bowle of wine was set,

As if it had to him bene sacrifide;

Wherewith all new-come guests he gratifide:

So did he eke Sir
Guyon
passing by:

But he his idle curtesie defide,

And ouerthrew his bowle disdainfully;

And broke his staffe, with which he charmed semblants sly.

50
Thus being entred, they behold around

A large and spacious plaine, on euery side

Strowed with pleasauns, whose faire grassy ground

Mantled with greene, and goodly beautifide

With all the ornaments
of Floraes
pride,

Wherewith her mother Art, as halfe in scorne

Of niggard Nature, like a pompous bride

Did decke her, and too lauishly adorne,

When forth from virgin bowre she comes in th'early morne.

51
Thereto the Heauens alwayes Iouiall,

Lookt on them louely, still in stedfast state,

Ne suffred storme nor frost on them to fall,

Their tender buds or leaues to violate,

Nor scorching heat, nor cold intemperate

T'afflict the creatures, which therein did dwell,

But the milde aire with season moderate

Gently attempred, and disposd so well,

That still it breathed forth sweet spirit & holesome smell.

52
More sweet and holesome, then the pleasaunt hill

Of Rhodope,
on which the Nimphe, that bore

A gyaunt babe, her selfe for griefe did kill;

Or the Thessalian
Tempe,
where of yore

Faire
Daphne Phoebus
hart with loue did gore;

Or
Ida,
where the Gods lou'd to repaire,

When euer they their heauenly bowres forlore;

Or sweet
Parnasse,
the haunt of Muses faire;

Or
Eden
selfe, if ought with
Eden
mote compaire.

53
Much wondred
Guyon
at the faire aspect

Of that sweet place, yet suffred no delight

To sincke into his sence, nor mind affect,

But passed forth, and lookt still forward right,

Bridling his will, and maistering his might:

Till that he came vnto another gate,

No gate, but like one, being goodly dight

With boughes and braunches, which did broad dilate

Their clasping armes, in wanton wreathings intricate.

54
So fashioned a Porch with rare deuice,

Archt ouer head with an embracing vine,

Whose bounches hanging downe, seemed to entice

All passers by, to tast their lushious wine,

And did themselues into their hands incline,

As freely offering to be gathered:

Some deepe empurpled as the
Hyacint,

Some as the Rubine, laughing sweetly red,

Some like faire Emeraudes, not yet well ripened.

55
And them amongst, some were of burnisht gold,

So made by art, to beautifie the rest,

Which did themselues emongst the leaues enfold,

As lurking from the vew of couetous guest,

That the weake bowes, with so rich load opprest,

Did bow adowne, as ouer-burdened.

Vnder that Porch a comely dame did rest,

Clad in faire weedes, but fowle disordered,

And garments loose, that seemd vnmeet for womanhed.

56
In her left hand a Cup of gold she held,

And with her right the riper fruit did reach,

Whole sappy liquor, that with fulnesse sweld,

Into her cup she scruzd, with daintie breach

Of her fine fingers, without fowle empeach,

That so faire wine-presse made the wine more sweet:

Thereof she vsd to giue to drinke to each,

Whom passing by she happened to meet:

It was her guise, all Straungers goodly so to greet.

57
So she to
Guyon
offred it to tast;