The Faerie Queene (97 page)

54
Nath'lesse,
Diana,
full of indignation,

Thence-forth abandond her delicious brooke;

In whose sweet streame, before that bad occasion,

So much delight to bathe her limbes she tooke:

Ne onely her, but also quite forsooke

All those faire forrests about
Arlo
hid,

And all that Mountaine, which doth over-looke

The richest champian that may else be rid,

And the faire
Shure,
in which are thousand Salmons bred.

55
Them all, and all that she so deare did way,

Thence-forth she left; and parting from the place,

There-on an heauy haplesse curse did lay,

To weet, that Wolues, where she was wont to space,

Should harbour'd be, and all those Woods deface,

And Thieues should rob and spoile that Coast around.

Since which, those Woods, and all that goodly Chase,

Doth to this day with Wolues and Thieues abound:

Which too-too true that lands in-dwellers since haue found.

Pealing, from Ioue, to
Natur's
Bar,
   bold
Alteration
pleades
Large Euidence: but
Nature
soone
   her righteous Doome areads.

1
Ah! whither doost thou now thou greater Muse

Me from these woods & pleasing forrests bring?

And my fraile spirit (that dooth oft refuse

This too high flight, vnfit for her weake wing)

Lift vp aloft, to tell of heauens King

(Thy soueraine Sire) his fortunate successe,

And victory, in bigger noates to sing,

Which he obtain'd against that
Titanesse,

That him of heauens Empire sought to dispossesse.

2
Yet sith I needs must follow thy behest,

Doe thou my weaker wit with skill inspire,

Fit for this turne; and in my sable brest

Kindle fresh sparks of that immortall fire,

Which learned minds inflameth with desire

Of heauenly things: for, who but thou alone,

That art yborne of heauen and heauenly Sire,

Can tell things doen in heauen so long ygone;

So farre past memory of man that may be knowne.

3
Now, at the time that was before agreed,

The Gods assembled all on
Arlo
hill;

As well those that are sprung of heauenly seed,

As those that all the other world doe fill,

And rule both sea and land vnto their will:

Onely th'infernall Powers might not appeare;

Aswell for horror of their count'naunce ill,

As for th'vnruly fiends which they did feare;

Yet
Pluto
and
Proserpina
were present there.

4
And thither also came all other creatures,

What-euer life or motion doe retaine,

According to their sundry kinds of features;

That
Arlo
scarsly could them all containe;

So full they filled euery hill and Plaine:

And had not
Natures
Sergeant (that is
Order)

Them well disposed by his busie paine,

And raunged farre abroad in euery border,

They would haue caused much confusion and disorder.

5
Then forth issewed (great goddesse) great dame
Nature,

With goodly port and gracious Maiesty;

Being far greater and more tall of stature

Then any of the gods or Powers on hie:

Yet certes by her face and physnomy.

Whether she man or woman inly were,

That could not any creature well descry:

For, with a veile that wimpled euery where,

Her head and face was hid, that mote to none appeare.

6
That some doe say was so by skill deuized,

To hide the terror of her vncouth hew,

From mortall eyes that should be sore agrized;

For that her face did like a Lion shew,

That eye of wight could not indure to view:

But others tell that it so beautious was,

And round about such beames of splendor threw,

That it the Sunne a thousand times did pass,

Ne could be seene, but like an image in a glass.

7
That well may seemen true: for, well I weene

That this same day, when she on
Arlo
sat,

Her garment was so bright and wondrous sheene,

That my fraile wit cannot deuize to what

It to compare, nor finde like stuffe to that,

As those three sacred
Saints,
though else most wise,

Yet on mount
Thabor
quite their wits forgat,

When they their glorious Lord in strange disguise

Transfigur'd sawe; his garments so did daze their eyes.

8
In a fayre Plaine vpon an equall Hill,

She placed was in a pauilion;

Not such as Craftes-men by their idle skill

Are wont for Princes states to fashion:

But th'earth her self of her owne motion,

Out of her fruitfull bosome made to growe

Most dainty trees; that, shooting vp anon,

Did seeme to bow their bloosming heads full lowe,

For homage vnto her, and like a throne did shew.

9
So heard it is for any liuing wight,

All her array and vestiments to tell,

That old
Dan Geffrey
(in whose gentle spright

The pure well head of Poesie did dwell)

In his
Foules parley
durst not with it mel,

But it transferd to
Alane,
who he thought

Had in his
Plaint of kindes
describ'd it well:

Which who will read set forth so as it ought,

Go seek he out that
Alane
where he may be sought.

10
And all the earth far vnderneath her feete

Was dight with flowres, that voluntary grew

Out of the ground, and sent forth odours sweet;

Tenne thousand mores of sundry sent and hew,

That might delight the smell, or please the view:

The which, the Nymphes, from all the brooks thereby

Had gathered, which they at her foot-stoole threw;

That richer seem'd then any tapestry,

That Princes bowres adorne with painted imagery.

11
And
Mole
himselfe, to honour her the more,

Did deck himself in freshest faire attire,

And his high head, that seemeth alwaies hore

With hardned frosts of former winters ire,

He with an Oaken girlond now did tire,

As if the loue of some new Nymph late seene,

Had in him kindled youthfull fresh desire,

And made him change his gray attire to greene;

Ah gentle
Mole!
such ioyance hath thee well beseene.

12
Was neuer so great ioyance since the day,

That all the gods whylome assembled were,

On
Hœtnus
hill in their diuine array,

To celebrate the solemne bridall cheare,

Twixt
Peleus,
and dame
Thetis
pointed there;

Where
Phoebus
self, that god of Poets hight,

They say did sing the spousall hymne full cleere,

That all the gods were rauisht with delight

Of his celestiall song, & Musicks wondrous might.

13
This great Grandmother of all creatures bred

Great
Nature,
euer young yet full of eld,

Still moouing, yet vnmoued from her sted;

Vnseene of any, yet of all beheld;

Thus sitting in her throne as I haue teld,

Before her came dame
Mutabilitie;

And being lowe before her presence feld,

With meek obaysance and humilitie,

Thus gan her plaintif Plea, with words to amplifie;

14
To thee ô greatest goddesse, onely great,

An humble suppliant loe, I lowely fly

Seeking for Right, which I of thee entreat;

Who Right to all dost deale indifferently,

Damning all Wrong and tortious Iniurie,

Which any of thy creatures doe to other

(Oppressing them with power, vnequally)

Sith of them all thou art the equall mother,

And knittest each to'each, as brother vnto brother.

15
To thee therefore of this same
Ioue
I plaine,

And of his fellow gods that faine to be,

That challenge to themselues the whole worlds raign;

Of which, the greatest part is due to me,

And heauen it selfe by heritage in Fee:

For, heauen and earth I both alike do deeme,

Sith heauen and earth are both alike to thee;

And, gods no more then men thou doest esteeme:

For, euen the gods to thee, as men to gods do seeme.

16
Then weigh, ô soueraigne goddesse, by what right

These gods do claime the worlds whole souerainty;

And that is onely dew vnto thy might

Arrogate to themselues ambitiously:

As for the gods owne principality,

Which
Ioue
vsurpes vniustly; that to be

My heritage,
Ioue's
self cannot deny,

From my great Grandsire
Titan,
vnto mee,

Deriv'd by dew descent; as is well knowen to thee.

17
Yet mauger
Ioue,
and all his gods beside,

I doe possesse the worlds most regiment;

As, if ye please it into parts diuide,

And euery parts inholders to conuent,

Shall to your eyes appeare incontinent.

And first, the Earth (great mother of vs all)

That only seems vnmov'd and permanent,

And vnto
Mutability
not thrall;

Yet is she chang'd in part, and eeke in generall.

18
For, all that from her springs, and is ybredde,

How-euer feyre it flourish for a time,

Yet see we soone decay; and, being dead,

To turne again vnto their earthly slime:

Yet, out of their decay and mortall crime,

We daily see new creatures to arize;

And of their Winter spring another Prime,

Vnlike in forme, and chang'd by strange disguise:

So turne they still about, and change in restlesse wise.

19
As for her tenants; that is, man and beasts,

The beasts we daily see massacred dy,

As thralls and vassalls vnto mens beheasts:

And men themselues doe change continually,

From youth to eld, from wealth to pouerty,

From good to bad, from bad to worst of all.

Ne doe their bodies only flit and fly:

But eeke their minds (which they immortall call)

Still change and vary thoughts, as new occasions fall.

20
Ne is the water in more constant case;

Whether those same on high, or these belowe.

For, th'Ocean moueth stil, from place to place;

And euery Riuer still doth ebbe and flowe:

Ne any Lake, that seems most still and slowe,

Ne Poole so small, that can his smoothnesse holde,

When any winde doth vnder heauen blowe;

With which, the clouds are also tost and roll'd;

Now like great Hills; &, streight, like sluces, them vnfold.

21
So likewise are all watry h'uing wights

Still tost, and turned, with continuall change,

Neuer abyding in their stedfast plights.

The fish, still floting, doc at randon range,

And neuer rest; but euermore exchange

Their dwelling places, as the streames them carrie:

Ne haue the watry foules a certaine grange,

Wherein to rest, ne in one stead do tarry;

But flitting still doe flie, and still their places vary.

22
Next is the Ayre: which who feeles not by sense

(For, of all sense it is the middle meane)

To flit still? and, with subtill influence

Of his thin spirit, all creatures to maintaine,

In state of life? O weake life! that does leane

On thing so tickle as th'vnsteady ayre;

Which euery howre is chang'd, and altred cleane

With euery blast that bloweth fowle or faire:

The faire doth it prolong; the fowle doth it impaire.

23
Therein the changes infinite beholde,

Which to her creatures euery minute chaunce;

Now, boyling hot: streight, friezing deadly cold:

Now, faire sun-shine, that makes all skip and daunce:

Streight, bitter storms and balefull countenance,

That makes them all to shiuer and to shake:

Rayne, hayle, and snowe do pay them sad penance,

And dreadfull thunder-claps (that make them quake)

With flames & flashing lights that thousand changes make.

24
Last is the fire: which, though it liue for euer,

Ne can be quenched quite; yet, euery day,

Wee see his parts, so soone as they do seuer,

To lose their heat, and shortly to decay;

So, makes himself his owne consuming pray.

Ne any liuing creatures doth he breed:

But all, that are of others bredd, doth slay;

And, with their death, his cruell life dooth feed;

Nought leauing, but their barren ashes, without seede.

25
Thus, all these fower (the which the ground-work bee

Of all the world, and of all liuing wights)

To thousand sorts of
Change
we subiect see:

Yet are they chang'd (by other wondrous slights)

Into themselues, and lose their natiue mights;

The Fire to Aire, and th'Ayre to Water sheere,

And Water into Earth: yet Water fights

With Fire, and Aire with Earth approaching neere:

Yet all are in one body, and as one appeare.

26
So, in them all raignes
Mutabilitie;

How-euer these, that Gods themselues do'call,

Of them doe claime the rule and souerainty:

As,
Vesta,
of the fire æthereall;

Vulcan,
of this, with vs so vsuall;

Ops,
of the earth; and
Iuno
of the Ayre;

Neptune,
of Seas; and Nymphes, of Riuers all.

For, all those Riuers to me subiect are:

And all the rest, which they vsurp, be all my share.

27
Which to approuen true, as I haue told,

Vouchsafe, ô goddesse, to thy presence call

The rest which doe the world in being hold:

As, times and seasons of the yeare that fall:

Of all the which, demand in generall,

Or iudge thy selfe, by verdit of thine eye,

Whether to me they are not subiect alL

Nature
did yeeld thereto; and by-and-by,

Bade
Order
call them all, before her Maiesty.

28
So, forth issew'd the Seasons of the yeare;

First, lusty
Spring,
all dight in leaues of flowres