William Dunbar: In May as that Aurora did vpspring,


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101	1	In May as that Aurora did vpspring,
	2	With cristall ene chasing the cluddis sable,
	3	I hard a merle with mirry notis sing
	4	A sang of lufe with voce rycht confortable,
	5	Agane the orient bemis amiable,
	6	Vpone a blisfull brenche of lawry grene.
	7	This wes hir sentens sueit and delectable:
	8	‘A lusty lyfe in luves seruice bene.’
	9	Vndir this brench ran doun a revir bricht,
	10	Of balmy liquour cristallyne of hew,
	11	Agane the hevinly aisur skyis licht,
	12	Quhair did vpone the tother syd persew
	13	A nychtingall with suggerit notis new,
	14	Quhois angell fedderis as the pacock schone.
	15	This wes hir song and of a sentens trew:
	16	‘All luve is lost bot vpone God allone.’
	17	With notis glaid and glorius armony
	18	This ioyfull merle so salust scho the day,
	19	Quhill rong the widdis of hir melody,
	20	Saying, ‘Awalk, #e luvaris, o this May!
	21	Lo, fresche Flora hes flurest every spray,
	22	As Natur hes hir taucht, the noble quene.
	23	The feild bene clothit in a new array.
	24	A lusty lyfe in luvis seruice bene.’
	25	Nevir suetar noys wes hard with levand man
	26	Na maid this mirry gentill nychtingaill.
	27	Hir sound went with the rever as it ran,
	28	Outthrow the fresche and flureist lusty vaill. 
102	29	‘O merle’, quod scho, ‘O fule, stynt of thy taill,
	30	For in thy song gud sentens is thair none;
	31	For boith is tynt the tyme and the travaill
	32	Of every luve bot vpone God allone.’
	33	‘Seis’, quod the merle, ‘thy preching, nychtingale!
	34	Sall folk thair #ewth spend in to holines?
	35	Of #ung sanctis growis auld feyndis, but faill.
	36	Fy, ypocreit in #eiris tendirnes,
	37	Agane the law of kynd thow gois expres,
	38	That crukit aige makis on with #ewth serene,
	39	Quhome Natur of conditionis maid dyvers.
	40	A lusty lyfe in luves seruice bene.’
	40	The nychtingaill said, ‘Fule, remembir the
	41	That both in #ewth and eild and every hour
	42	The luve of God most deir to man suld be,
	43	That him of nocht wrocht lyk his awin figour,
	44	And deit him self, fro deid him to succour.
	45	O quhithir wes kythit thair trew lufe or none?
	46	He is most trew and steidfast paramour.
	47	All luve is lost bot vpone him allone.’
	48	The merle said, ‘Quhy put God so grit bewte
	49	In ladeis with sic womanly having,
	50	Bot gife he wald that thay suld luvit be?
	51	To luve eik Natur gaif thame inclynnyng,
	52	And he, of Natur that wirker wes and king,
	53	Wald no thing frustir put nor lat be sene
	54	In to his creature of his awin making.
	55	A lusty lyfe in luves seruice bene.’
	56	The nychtingall said, ‘Nocht to that behufe
	57	Put God sic bewty in a ladeis face
	58	That scho suld haif the thank thairfoir or lufe,
	59	Bot he, the wirker, that put in hir sic grace.
	60	Off bewty, bontie, riches, tyme or space,
	61	And every gudnes that bene to cum or gone,
	62	The thank redoundis to him in every place.
	63	All luve is lost bot vpone God allone.’
	64	‘O nychtingall, it wer a story nyce,
	65	That luve suld nocht depend on cherite,
	66	And gife that vertew contrair be to vyce,
	67	Than lufe mon be a vertew, as thinkis me,
	68	For ay to lufe invy mone contrair be.
	69	God bad eik lufe thy nychtbour fro the splene,
	70	And quho than ladeis suetar nuchtbouris be?
	71	A lusty lyfe in lufes seruice bene.’
	72	The nychtingaill said, ‘Bird, quhy dois thow raif?
	73	Ane man may in his lady tak sic delyt
	74	Him to for#et that hir sic bewtie gaif,
	75	And for his hevin rassaif hir cullour quhyt.
	76	Hir goldin tressit hairis redomyt,
	77	Lyk to Appollois bemis thocht thay schone,
	78	Suld nocht him blind fro lufe that is perfyt.
	79	All lufe is lost vpone God allone.’
	80	The merle said, ‘Lufe is caus of honour ay,
	81	Luve makis cowardis manheid to purchas,
	82	Luve makis knychtis hardy at assey,
	83	Luve makis wrechis full of lergenes,
	84	Luve makis sueir folkis full of bissines,
	85	Luve makis sluggirdis fresche and weill besene,
	86	Luve changis vyce in vertewis nobilnes.
	87	A lusty lyfe in luves seruice bene.’
103	88	The nychtingaill said, ‘Trew is the contrary!
	89	Sic frustir luve it blindis men so far,
	90	In to thair myndis it makis thame to vary.
	91	In fals vane glory thai so drunkin ar,
	92	Thair wit is went, of wo thai ar nocht war
	93	Quhill that all wirchip away be fro thame gone,
	94	Fame, guddis, and strenth – quhairfoir weill say I dar,
	95	All luve is lost bot vpone God allone.’
	96	Than said the merle, ‘Myn errour I confes.
	97	This frustir luve all is bot vanite.
	98	Blind ignorance me gaif sic hardines
	99	To argone so agane the varite.
	100	Quhairfoir I counsall every man that he
	101	With lufe nocht in the feindis net be tone,
	102	Bot luve the luve that did for his lufe de.
	103	All luve is lost bot vpone God allone.’
	104	Than sang thay both with vocis lowd and clair.
	105	The merle sang, ‘Man, lufe God that hes the wrocht’,
	106	The nychtingall sang, ‘Man, lufe the lord most deir
	107	That the and all this warld hes maid of nocht’.
	108	The merle said, ‘Luve him that thy lufe hes socht
	109	Fra hevin to erd and heir tuk flesche and bone’.
	110	The nychtingall sang, ‘And with his deid the bocht.
	111	All luve is lost bot vpone God allone.’
	112	Thane flaw thir birdis our the bewis schene,
	113	Singing of lufe amang the levis small,
	114	Quhois ythand pleid in to my thocht is grene,
104	115	Bothe sleping, walking, in rest and in travall.
	116	Me to reconfort most I dois awaill,
	117	Agane for lufe quhen lufe I can find none,
	118	To think how song this merle and nychtingaill:
	119	All luve is lost bot vpone God allone.’


