Nor grudged they aught of their labour: then they knelt by the streamlet's flow,905And the roots and the herbs they washed there, and no laughter their lips might know.Then their hands they washed, and the yew-boughs Parzival together boundAnd bare them unto his charger ere the cavern again he found;Then the twain by the fireside sat them, nor further might food be brought,Nor on roast nor on boiled they fed them, nor found in their kitchen aught.910Yet so true was the love and the honour Parzival to the hermit bareThat he deemed he enough had eaten, and no better had been his fareWith Gurnemanz of Graharz, or e'en in Monsalväsch hall,When the maidens passed fair before him and the Grail fed them each and all.Then his kindly host quoth, 'Nephew, despise not this food, for know915Lightly thou shalt not find one who shall favour and kindness show,Of true heart, without fear of evil, as fain would I show to thee.'And Parzival quoth, 'May God's favour henceforward ne'er light on meIf food ever better pleased me, or I ate with a better willWhat a host ever set before me, such fare doth content me still.'920Their hands they need not wash them for such food as before them lay,'Twas no fish, that their eyes had harmèd as men oft are wont to say.And were I or hawk or falcon I had lent me to the chase,Nor stooped to the lure unwilling, nor fled from my master's face,But an they no better fed me than at noontide they fed, these twain,925I had spread my wings right swiftly, nor come to their call again!Why mock at this folk so faithful? 'Twas ever my way of old—Yet ye know why, forsaking riches, they chose to them want and cold,And the lack of all things joyful, such sorrow and grief of heartThey bare of true heart, God-fearing, nor had they in falsehood part;And thus from the hand of the Highest they won payment for grief and woe,930And alike should the twain God's favour, as of old, so hereafter know.Then up stood they again, and they gat them, Parzival and the holy man,To the steed in its rocky stable, and full sadly the host beganAs he spake to the noble charger, 'Woe is me for thy scanty fare,935For the sake of the saddle upon thee and the token I see thee bear!'When their care for the horse was ended, then sorrow sprang forth anew,Quoth Parzival, 'Host and uncle, my folly I needs must rue,And fain would I tell the story if for shame I the word may speak;Forgive me, I pray, of thy kindness, since in thee do I comfort seek,940For sorely, I ween, have I sinnèd; if thou canst no comfort findNo peace may be mine, but for ever the chains of remorse shall bind.Of true heart shalt thou mourn my folly—He who to Monsalväsch rode,He who saw Anfortas' sorrow, he who spake not the healing word,'Twas I, child and heir of misfortune, 'twas I, Parzival, alone,945Ill have I wrought, and I know not how I may for such ill atone!'Spake the hermit, 'Alas! my nephew, thou speakest the words of woe,Vanished our joy, and sorrow henceforth must we grasp and know,Since folly of bliss betrayed thee: senses five did God give to thee,And methinks, in the hour of thy testing, their counsel should better be.950Why guarded they not thine honour, and thy love as a man to men,In the hour that thou satst by Anfortas? Of a truth hadst thou spoken then!''Nor would I deny thee counsel; mourn not for thy fault too sore,Thou shalt, in a fitting measure, bewail thee, and grief give o'er.For strange are the ways, and fitful, of mankind, oft is youth too wise955And old age turneth back to folly, and darkened are wisdom's eyes,And the fruit of a life lieth forfeit, while green youth doth wax old and fade—Not in this wise true worth shall be rooted, and payment in praise be paid.Thine youth would I see fresh blooming, and thine heart waxing strong and bold,While thou winnest anew thine honour, nor dost homage from God withhold.960For thus might it chance unto thee to win for thyself such fameAs shall make amends for thy sorrow, and God thee, as His knight, shall claim!''Thro' my mouth would God teach thee wisdom; now say, didst thou see the spear,In that wondrous Burg of Monsalväsch? As ever the time draws nearWhen Saturn his journey endeth—(that time by the wound we know,965And yet by another token, by the fall of the summer snow)Then sorely the frost doth pain him, thy king and uncle dear,And deep in the wound empoisoned once more do they plunge the spear,One woe shall help the other, the spear cure the frost's sharp pain,And crimson it grows with his life-blood ere men draw it forth again!'970'When the stars return in their orbit, then the wailing it waxeth sore,When they stand in opposition, or each to the other draw.And the moon, in its waxing and waning, it causeth him bitter pain—In the time that I erst have told thee then the king little rest may gain;His flesh thro' the frost it groweth colder than e'en the snow,975But men know that the spear sharp-pointed doth with fiery venom glow,And upon the wound they lay it, and the frost from his flesh so coldIt draweth, and lo! as crystals of glass to the spear doth hold,And as ice to the iron it clingeth, and none looseth it from the blade.Then Trebuchet the smith bethought him, in his wisdom two knives he made,980Of silver fair he wrought them, and sharp was the edge and keen—(A spell on the king's sword written had taught him such skill I ween,)Tho' no flame on earth can kindle Asbestos, as men do tell,And never a fire may harm it, if these crystals upon it fellThen the flame would leap and kindle and burn with a fiery glow985Till th' Asbestos lay in ashes, such power doth this poison know!''The king, he rideth never, nor yet may he walk, or lie,And he sitteth not, but, reclining, in tears his sad days pass by.And the moon's changes work him evil—To a lake they call BrimbaneThey bear him full oft for fishing that the breezes may soothe his pain.990This he calleth his day for hunting, tho' what booty shall be his share,And he vex himself to gain it, for his host 'twould be meagre fare!And from this there sprang the story that he should but a Fisher be,Tho little he recked the fable, no merchant I ween was heOf salmon or aye of lamprey, he had chosen far other game995Were he freed from the load of sorrow and the burden of bitter pain.'Quoth Parzival, 'So I found him; the king's skiff at anchor lay,And for pastime, e'en as a fisher, the even he wore away;And many a mile had I ridden that day, since from PelrapärWhen the sun stood high in the heaven, at noontide I forth must fare;1000And at even I much bethought me where my shelter that night might be,Then my uncle did fair entreat me, and my host for a space was he.''A perilous way didst thou ride there,' spake the host, 'one that well they guardThose Templars, nor strength nor cunning brings a traveller thro' their ward,For danger full oft besets him, and oft he his life shall lose,1005Life against life is their penance, all quarter these knights refuse.''Yet scatheless I passed that woodland in the day that I found the kingBy the lake,' quoth the knight, 'and at even his palace with grief did ring,And sure, as they mourned, I think me, no folk ever mourned before!In the hall rose the voice of wailing as a squire sprang within the door,1010And a spear in his hand he carried, and to each of the walls he stept,Red with blood was the spear, as they saw it, the people they mourned and wept.'Then answered the host, 'Far sorer than before was the monarch's pain,In this wise did he learn the tidings that Saturn drew near again,And the star with a sharp frost cometh, and it helpeth no whit to lay1015The spear on the sore as aforetime, in the wound must it plunge alway!When that star standeth high in heaven the wound shall its coming knowAfore, tho' the earth shall heed not, nor token of frost shall show.But the cold it came, and the snow-flakes fell thick in the following nightTho' the season was spring, and the winter was vanquished by summer's might.1020As the frost to the king brought sorrow and pain, so his people trueWere of joy bereft, as the moment of his anguish thus nearer drew.'And Trevrezent quoth, 'In sorrow that folk hath both lot and part,When the spear thro' the king's wound pierceth, it pierceth each faithful heart.And their love to their lord, and their sorrow, such tears from their eyelids drew1025That, methinks, in those bitter waters had they been baptized anew.'Spake Parzival unto the hermit, 'Five-and-twenty they were, the maidsI saw stand before the monarch, and courteous their part they played.'And the host spake, 'By God's high counsel such maidens alone availFor the care of this wondrous mystery, and do service before the Grail.1030And the Grail, It chooseth strictly, and Its knights must be chaste and pure,—When the star standeth high in the heaven then grief must that folk endure,And the young they mourn as the aged, and God's wrath it lasts for aýe,And ne'er to their supplication doth He hearken and answer "Yea."''And, nephew, this thing would I tell thee, and my word shalt thou well believe,1035They who to the Grail do service, they take, and again they give.For they take to them tittle children, noble of birth and race—If a land be without a ruler, and its people shall seek God's FaceAnd crave of His Hand a monarch, then He hearkeneth to their prayer,And a knight, from the Grail host chosen, as king to that land doth fare.1040And well shall he rule that people, and happy shall be that land,For the blessing of God goeth with him and God's wisdom doth guide his hand.''God sendeth themenin secret, but themaidensin light of dayAre given unto their husbands; thus none spake to his wooing, Nay,When King Kastis wooed Herzeleide, but joyful our sister gave,1045Yet ne'er might her love rejoice him for Death dug at his feet a grave.But in life had he given thy mother both Norgals and fair Waleis,Those kingdoms twain and their cities, Kingrivals and Kanvoleis.'Twas a fair gift, and known of all men—Then they rode on their homeward way,But Death met them upon their journey, and he made of the king his prey,1050And over both Waleis and Norgals Herzeleide, as queen, did reign,Till Gamuret's right hand valiant won the maid, and her kingdoms twain.''Thus the Grail Its maidens giveth, in the day, and the sight of men,But It sendeth Its knights in the silence and their children It claims again,—To the host of the Grail are they counted, Grail servants they all shall be,1055So the will of God standeth written on the Grail for all men to see.''He who would to the Grail do service, he shall women's love forswear:A wife shall none have save the Grail king, and his wife a pure heart must bear,And those others whom God's Hand sendeth, as king, to a kingless land—But little I recked such counsel, to love's service I vowed my hand,1060As the pride of my youth constrained me, and the beauty of woman's eyes,And I rode full oft in her service, and I battled for knighthood's prize.Fain was I for wild adventure, on jousting no more I thought,So fair shone the love-light on me ever fiercer the strife I sought.And thro' far-off lands and distant, in the service of love I fared,1065And to win sweet love's rewarding right valiant the deeds I dared.If heathen my foe or Christian, what mattered it unto me?The fiercer the strife that beset me, the fairer my prize should be!''And thus, for the love of woman, in three parts of the earth I fought,In Europe, and far-off Asia, and in Afric' I honour sought.1070If for gallant jousting I lusted I fought before Gaurivon;By the mystic Mount of Fay-Morgan I many a joust have run.And I fought by the Mount Agremontin, where are fiery men and fierce,Yet the other side they burn not tho' their spears thro' the shield can pierce.In Rohas I sought for ventures, and Slavs were my foemen then,1075With lances they came against me and I trow they were gallant men!''From Seville I took my journey, and I sailed o'er the tideless seaUnto Sicily, since thro' Friant and Aquilea should my journey be.Alas! alas! woe is me, for I met with thy father there,I found him, and looked upon him, ere I from Seville must fare.1080For e'en as I came to the city he there for a space abode,And my heart shall be sore for his journey, since thence to Bagdad he rode,And there, as thyself hast spoken, in a knightly joust he fell,And for ever my heart must mourn him, and my tongue of his praises tell!''A rich man shall be my brother, nor silver nor gold would spare1085When in secret I forth from Monsalväsch at his will and his word did fare;For I took me his royal signet, and to Karkobra I came,Where Plimizöl to the wide sea floweth, and the land, Barbigöl, they name.And the Burg-grave he knew the token, ere I rode from the town againOf horses and squires, as failed me, he raised me a gallant train,1090And we rode thence to wild adventures, and to many a knightly deed,For nothing had he begrudged me of aught that might serve my need.Alone came I unto the city, and there at my journey's endDid I leave those who had fared thence with me, and alone to Monsalväsch wend.''Now hearken to me, my nephew, when thy father first saw my face1095Of old in Seville's fair city, there did he such likeness traceTo his wife, fair Herzeleide, that he would me as brother claim,Tho' never before had he seen me, and secret I held my name.And in sooth was I fair to look on, as ever a man might be,And my face by no beard was hidden; and sweetly he spake to me,1100When he sought me within my dwelling—Yet many an oath I sworeAnd many a word of denial, yet ever he pressed me moreTill in secret at last I told him, his kinsman was I in truth,And greatly did he rejoice him when he knew that his words were sooth!''A jewel he gave unto me, and I gave to him at his will;1105Thou sawest my shrine, green shall grass be, yet that shineth greener still,'Twas wrought from the stone he gave me—and a better gift he gave,For his nephew as squire he left me, Prince Ither, the true and brave.His heart such lore had taught him that falsehood his face did flee,The King of Cumberland was he, who, thou sayest, was slain by thee.1110Then no longer might we delay us, but we parted, alas! for aye.He rode to the land of Baruch, unto Rohas I took my way.'In Celli three weeks I battled, and I deemed 'twas enough for fame,From Rohas I took my journey and unto Gandein I came,('Twas that town from which first thy grandsire, his name of Gandein did take,)1115And many a deed did Ither, and men of his prowess spake.And the town lieth near the river, where Graien and Drave they meet,And the waters I ween are golden,—there Ither found guerdon sweet,For thine aunt, Lamire, she loved him, she was queen of that fair land,Gandein of Anjou, her father, he gave it unto her hand.1120And Lamire was her name, but her country shall be Styria to this day—And many a land must he traverse who seeketh for knightly fray.''It grieveth me sore for my red squire, men honoured me for his sake,And Ither was thy near kinsman tho' ofthatthou small heed didst take!Yet GodHehath not forgotten, and thy deed shall He count for sin,1125And I wot thou shalt first do penance ere thou to His peace shalt win.And, weeping, this truth I tell thee, two mortal sins shall lieOn thine heart, thou hast slain thy kinsman, and thy mother, thro' thee, must die.And in sooth shalt thou sore bewail her; in the day thou didst leave her side,So great was her love, and faithful, that for grief at thy loss she died.1130Now do thou as here I rede thee, repent thee and pay sin's cost,That thy conflict on earth well ended thy soul be not ever lost.'Then the host he quoth full kindly, 'Nephew, now say the word,Whence hast thou yon gallant charger? Not yet I the tale have heard!''In a joust, Sir Host, did I win it, when I rode from Siguné's cell1135In a gallop I smote the rider and he from the saddle fell,And the steed was mine, I rode hence,—from Monsalväsch he came, the knight.'Quoth the host, 'Is the man yet living who thus with thee did fight?''Yea, I saw him fly before me, and beside me stood his steed.''Nay, if thou in such wise dost bear thee thou art scant of wit indeed!1140The Grail-knights dost thou rob, and thinkest their friendship thereby to win?''Nay, my uncle, in strife I won it, and he who shall count it sinLet him ask how the thing hath chanced thus, 'twas a fair fight we fought, we twain,Nor was it for naught that I took it, for first had my steed been slain!'Quoth Parzival, 'Who was the maiden who the Grail in her hands did bear,1145Her mantle, that eve, she lent me?'—Quoth the hermit, 'That lady fairIs thine aunt, if her robe she lent thee of the loan shalt thou not be vain,For surely she deemed that hereafter thou shouldst there as monarch reign.And the Grail, and herself, yea and I too, should honour thee as our lord:And a gift didst thou take from thine uncle, for he gave thee, I ween, a sword,1150And sin hast thou won in the wearing, since thy lips, which to speak are fain,There spake not the mystic question which had loosened his sorrow's chain,And that sin shalt thou count to the other, for 'tis time that we lay us down.Nor couches nor cushions had they, but they laid them upon the ground,And for bedding the rushes served them—too humble, I ween, such bed1155For men of a race so noble, yet they deemed they were not ill-sped.Then twice seven days he abode there, with the hermit his lot did share,And the herb of the ground was his portion—yet he sought not for better fare,Right gladly he bare such hardness that should bring to him food so sweet,For as priest did his host absolve him, and as knight gave him counsel meet!1160Quoth Parzival to the hermit, 'Say who shall he be, who layBefore the Grail? grey was he, yet his face it was as the day!'Spake the host, 'Titurel thou sawest, and he shall grandsire beTo thy mother, first king and ruler of the Grail and Its knights was he.But a sickness hath fallen on him, and he lieth, nor findeth cure,1165Yet his face on the Grail yet looketh, by Its power shall his life endure!Nor his countenance changeth colour, and his counsel shall aye be wise—In his youth he rode far and jousted, and won to him valour's prize.''An thou wouldst that thy life be adornèd with true worth as thy crown of fame,Then ne'er mayst thou hate a woman, but shall honour, as knight, her name,1170For women and priests, thou knowest, unarmèd shall be their hand,Yet the blessing of God watcheth o'er them, and as shield round the priest doth stand;For the priest, he careth for thee, that thine end may be free from ill,So treat thou no priest as a foeman, but serve him with right good will.For naught on the earth thou seest that is like to his office high,1175For he speaketh that word unto us which our peace and our life did buy;And his hand hath been blest for the holding of the pledge on the altar laid,To assure us of sin's forgiveness, and the price for our pardon paid.And a priest who from sin doth guard him, and who to his Lord shall givePure heart and pure hand for His service, say, what man shall holier live?'1180Now this day was their day of parting—Trevrezent to our hero spake,'Leave thou here thy sins behind thee, God shall me for thy surety take,And do thou as I have shown thee, be steadfast and true of heart!'Think ye with what grief and sorrow the twain did asunder part.
Nor grudged they aught of their labour: then they knelt by the streamlet's flow,905And the roots and the herbs they washed there, and no laughter their lips might know.Then their hands they washed, and the yew-boughs Parzival together boundAnd bare them unto his charger ere the cavern again he found;Then the twain by the fireside sat them, nor further might food be brought,Nor on roast nor on boiled they fed them, nor found in their kitchen aught.910Yet so true was the love and the honour Parzival to the hermit bareThat he deemed he enough had eaten, and no better had been his fareWith Gurnemanz of Graharz, or e'en in Monsalväsch hall,When the maidens passed fair before him and the Grail fed them each and all.
Then his kindly host quoth, 'Nephew, despise not this food, for know915Lightly thou shalt not find one who shall favour and kindness show,Of true heart, without fear of evil, as fain would I show to thee.'And Parzival quoth, 'May God's favour henceforward ne'er light on meIf food ever better pleased me, or I ate with a better willWhat a host ever set before me, such fare doth content me still.'920
Their hands they need not wash them for such food as before them lay,'Twas no fish, that their eyes had harmèd as men oft are wont to say.And were I or hawk or falcon I had lent me to the chase,Nor stooped to the lure unwilling, nor fled from my master's face,But an they no better fed me than at noontide they fed, these twain,925I had spread my wings right swiftly, nor come to their call again!Why mock at this folk so faithful? 'Twas ever my way of old—Yet ye know why, forsaking riches, they chose to them want and cold,And the lack of all things joyful, such sorrow and grief of heartThey bare of true heart, God-fearing, nor had they in falsehood part;And thus from the hand of the Highest they won payment for grief and woe,930And alike should the twain God's favour, as of old, so hereafter know.
Then up stood they again, and they gat them, Parzival and the holy man,To the steed in its rocky stable, and full sadly the host beganAs he spake to the noble charger, 'Woe is me for thy scanty fare,935For the sake of the saddle upon thee and the token I see thee bear!'
When their care for the horse was ended, then sorrow sprang forth anew,Quoth Parzival, 'Host and uncle, my folly I needs must rue,And fain would I tell the story if for shame I the word may speak;Forgive me, I pray, of thy kindness, since in thee do I comfort seek,940For sorely, I ween, have I sinnèd; if thou canst no comfort findNo peace may be mine, but for ever the chains of remorse shall bind.Of true heart shalt thou mourn my folly—He who to Monsalväsch rode,He who saw Anfortas' sorrow, he who spake not the healing word,'Twas I, child and heir of misfortune, 'twas I, Parzival, alone,945Ill have I wrought, and I know not how I may for such ill atone!'
Spake the hermit, 'Alas! my nephew, thou speakest the words of woe,Vanished our joy, and sorrow henceforth must we grasp and know,Since folly of bliss betrayed thee: senses five did God give to thee,And methinks, in the hour of thy testing, their counsel should better be.950Why guarded they not thine honour, and thy love as a man to men,In the hour that thou satst by Anfortas? Of a truth hadst thou spoken then!'
'Nor would I deny thee counsel; mourn not for thy fault too sore,Thou shalt, in a fitting measure, bewail thee, and grief give o'er.For strange are the ways, and fitful, of mankind, oft is youth too wise955And old age turneth back to folly, and darkened are wisdom's eyes,And the fruit of a life lieth forfeit, while green youth doth wax old and fade—Not in this wise true worth shall be rooted, and payment in praise be paid.Thine youth would I see fresh blooming, and thine heart waxing strong and bold,While thou winnest anew thine honour, nor dost homage from God withhold.960For thus might it chance unto thee to win for thyself such fameAs shall make amends for thy sorrow, and God thee, as His knight, shall claim!'
'Thro' my mouth would God teach thee wisdom; now say, didst thou see the spear,In that wondrous Burg of Monsalväsch? As ever the time draws nearWhen Saturn his journey endeth—(that time by the wound we know,965And yet by another token, by the fall of the summer snow)Then sorely the frost doth pain him, thy king and uncle dear,And deep in the wound empoisoned once more do they plunge the spear,One woe shall help the other, the spear cure the frost's sharp pain,And crimson it grows with his life-blood ere men draw it forth again!'970
'When the stars return in their orbit, then the wailing it waxeth sore,When they stand in opposition, or each to the other draw.And the moon, in its waxing and waning, it causeth him bitter pain—In the time that I erst have told thee then the king little rest may gain;His flesh thro' the frost it groweth colder than e'en the snow,975But men know that the spear sharp-pointed doth with fiery venom glow,And upon the wound they lay it, and the frost from his flesh so coldIt draweth, and lo! as crystals of glass to the spear doth hold,And as ice to the iron it clingeth, and none looseth it from the blade.Then Trebuchet the smith bethought him, in his wisdom two knives he made,980Of silver fair he wrought them, and sharp was the edge and keen—(A spell on the king's sword written had taught him such skill I ween,)Tho' no flame on earth can kindle Asbestos, as men do tell,And never a fire may harm it, if these crystals upon it fellThen the flame would leap and kindle and burn with a fiery glow985Till th' Asbestos lay in ashes, such power doth this poison know!'
'The king, he rideth never, nor yet may he walk, or lie,And he sitteth not, but, reclining, in tears his sad days pass by.And the moon's changes work him evil—To a lake they call BrimbaneThey bear him full oft for fishing that the breezes may soothe his pain.990This he calleth his day for hunting, tho' what booty shall be his share,And he vex himself to gain it, for his host 'twould be meagre fare!And from this there sprang the story that he should but a Fisher be,Tho little he recked the fable, no merchant I ween was heOf salmon or aye of lamprey, he had chosen far other game995Were he freed from the load of sorrow and the burden of bitter pain.'
Quoth Parzival, 'So I found him; the king's skiff at anchor lay,And for pastime, e'en as a fisher, the even he wore away;And many a mile had I ridden that day, since from PelrapärWhen the sun stood high in the heaven, at noontide I forth must fare;1000And at even I much bethought me where my shelter that night might be,Then my uncle did fair entreat me, and my host for a space was he.'
'A perilous way didst thou ride there,' spake the host, 'one that well they guardThose Templars, nor strength nor cunning brings a traveller thro' their ward,For danger full oft besets him, and oft he his life shall lose,1005Life against life is their penance, all quarter these knights refuse.'
'Yet scatheless I passed that woodland in the day that I found the kingBy the lake,' quoth the knight, 'and at even his palace with grief did ring,And sure, as they mourned, I think me, no folk ever mourned before!In the hall rose the voice of wailing as a squire sprang within the door,1010And a spear in his hand he carried, and to each of the walls he stept,Red with blood was the spear, as they saw it, the people they mourned and wept.'
Then answered the host, 'Far sorer than before was the monarch's pain,In this wise did he learn the tidings that Saturn drew near again,And the star with a sharp frost cometh, and it helpeth no whit to lay1015The spear on the sore as aforetime, in the wound must it plunge alway!When that star standeth high in heaven the wound shall its coming knowAfore, tho' the earth shall heed not, nor token of frost shall show.But the cold it came, and the snow-flakes fell thick in the following nightTho' the season was spring, and the winter was vanquished by summer's might.1020As the frost to the king brought sorrow and pain, so his people trueWere of joy bereft, as the moment of his anguish thus nearer drew.'
And Trevrezent quoth, 'In sorrow that folk hath both lot and part,When the spear thro' the king's wound pierceth, it pierceth each faithful heart.And their love to their lord, and their sorrow, such tears from their eyelids drew1025That, methinks, in those bitter waters had they been baptized anew.'
Spake Parzival unto the hermit, 'Five-and-twenty they were, the maidsI saw stand before the monarch, and courteous their part they played.'And the host spake, 'By God's high counsel such maidens alone availFor the care of this wondrous mystery, and do service before the Grail.1030And the Grail, It chooseth strictly, and Its knights must be chaste and pure,—When the star standeth high in the heaven then grief must that folk endure,And the young they mourn as the aged, and God's wrath it lasts for aýe,And ne'er to their supplication doth He hearken and answer "Yea."'
'And, nephew, this thing would I tell thee, and my word shalt thou well believe,1035They who to the Grail do service, they take, and again they give.For they take to them tittle children, noble of birth and race—If a land be without a ruler, and its people shall seek God's FaceAnd crave of His Hand a monarch, then He hearkeneth to their prayer,And a knight, from the Grail host chosen, as king to that land doth fare.1040And well shall he rule that people, and happy shall be that land,For the blessing of God goeth with him and God's wisdom doth guide his hand.'
'God sendeth themenin secret, but themaidensin light of dayAre given unto their husbands; thus none spake to his wooing, Nay,When King Kastis wooed Herzeleide, but joyful our sister gave,1045Yet ne'er might her love rejoice him for Death dug at his feet a grave.But in life had he given thy mother both Norgals and fair Waleis,Those kingdoms twain and their cities, Kingrivals and Kanvoleis.'Twas a fair gift, and known of all men—Then they rode on their homeward way,But Death met them upon their journey, and he made of the king his prey,1050And over both Waleis and Norgals Herzeleide, as queen, did reign,Till Gamuret's right hand valiant won the maid, and her kingdoms twain.'
'Thus the Grail Its maidens giveth, in the day, and the sight of men,But It sendeth Its knights in the silence and their children It claims again,—To the host of the Grail are they counted, Grail servants they all shall be,1055So the will of God standeth written on the Grail for all men to see.'
'He who would to the Grail do service, he shall women's love forswear:A wife shall none have save the Grail king, and his wife a pure heart must bear,And those others whom God's Hand sendeth, as king, to a kingless land—But little I recked such counsel, to love's service I vowed my hand,1060As the pride of my youth constrained me, and the beauty of woman's eyes,And I rode full oft in her service, and I battled for knighthood's prize.Fain was I for wild adventure, on jousting no more I thought,So fair shone the love-light on me ever fiercer the strife I sought.And thro' far-off lands and distant, in the service of love I fared,1065And to win sweet love's rewarding right valiant the deeds I dared.If heathen my foe or Christian, what mattered it unto me?The fiercer the strife that beset me, the fairer my prize should be!'
'And thus, for the love of woman, in three parts of the earth I fought,In Europe, and far-off Asia, and in Afric' I honour sought.1070If for gallant jousting I lusted I fought before Gaurivon;By the mystic Mount of Fay-Morgan I many a joust have run.And I fought by the Mount Agremontin, where are fiery men and fierce,Yet the other side they burn not tho' their spears thro' the shield can pierce.In Rohas I sought for ventures, and Slavs were my foemen then,1075With lances they came against me and I trow they were gallant men!'
'From Seville I took my journey, and I sailed o'er the tideless seaUnto Sicily, since thro' Friant and Aquilea should my journey be.Alas! alas! woe is me, for I met with thy father there,I found him, and looked upon him, ere I from Seville must fare.1080For e'en as I came to the city he there for a space abode,And my heart shall be sore for his journey, since thence to Bagdad he rode,And there, as thyself hast spoken, in a knightly joust he fell,And for ever my heart must mourn him, and my tongue of his praises tell!''A rich man shall be my brother, nor silver nor gold would spare1085When in secret I forth from Monsalväsch at his will and his word did fare;For I took me his royal signet, and to Karkobra I came,Where Plimizöl to the wide sea floweth, and the land, Barbigöl, they name.And the Burg-grave he knew the token, ere I rode from the town againOf horses and squires, as failed me, he raised me a gallant train,1090And we rode thence to wild adventures, and to many a knightly deed,For nothing had he begrudged me of aught that might serve my need.Alone came I unto the city, and there at my journey's endDid I leave those who had fared thence with me, and alone to Monsalväsch wend.'
'Now hearken to me, my nephew, when thy father first saw my face1095Of old in Seville's fair city, there did he such likeness traceTo his wife, fair Herzeleide, that he would me as brother claim,Tho' never before had he seen me, and secret I held my name.And in sooth was I fair to look on, as ever a man might be,And my face by no beard was hidden; and sweetly he spake to me,1100When he sought me within my dwelling—Yet many an oath I sworeAnd many a word of denial, yet ever he pressed me moreTill in secret at last I told him, his kinsman was I in truth,And greatly did he rejoice him when he knew that his words were sooth!'
'A jewel he gave unto me, and I gave to him at his will;1105Thou sawest my shrine, green shall grass be, yet that shineth greener still,'Twas wrought from the stone he gave me—and a better gift he gave,For his nephew as squire he left me, Prince Ither, the true and brave.His heart such lore had taught him that falsehood his face did flee,The King of Cumberland was he, who, thou sayest, was slain by thee.1110Then no longer might we delay us, but we parted, alas! for aye.He rode to the land of Baruch, unto Rohas I took my way.
'In Celli three weeks I battled, and I deemed 'twas enough for fame,From Rohas I took my journey and unto Gandein I came,('Twas that town from which first thy grandsire, his name of Gandein did take,)1115And many a deed did Ither, and men of his prowess spake.And the town lieth near the river, where Graien and Drave they meet,And the waters I ween are golden,—there Ither found guerdon sweet,For thine aunt, Lamire, she loved him, she was queen of that fair land,Gandein of Anjou, her father, he gave it unto her hand.1120And Lamire was her name, but her country shall be Styria to this day—And many a land must he traverse who seeketh for knightly fray.'
'It grieveth me sore for my red squire, men honoured me for his sake,And Ither was thy near kinsman tho' ofthatthou small heed didst take!Yet GodHehath not forgotten, and thy deed shall He count for sin,1125And I wot thou shalt first do penance ere thou to His peace shalt win.And, weeping, this truth I tell thee, two mortal sins shall lieOn thine heart, thou hast slain thy kinsman, and thy mother, thro' thee, must die.And in sooth shalt thou sore bewail her; in the day thou didst leave her side,So great was her love, and faithful, that for grief at thy loss she died.1130Now do thou as here I rede thee, repent thee and pay sin's cost,That thy conflict on earth well ended thy soul be not ever lost.'
Then the host he quoth full kindly, 'Nephew, now say the word,Whence hast thou yon gallant charger? Not yet I the tale have heard!''In a joust, Sir Host, did I win it, when I rode from Siguné's cell1135In a gallop I smote the rider and he from the saddle fell,And the steed was mine, I rode hence,—from Monsalväsch he came, the knight.'Quoth the host, 'Is the man yet living who thus with thee did fight?''Yea, I saw him fly before me, and beside me stood his steed.''Nay, if thou in such wise dost bear thee thou art scant of wit indeed!1140The Grail-knights dost thou rob, and thinkest their friendship thereby to win?''Nay, my uncle, in strife I won it, and he who shall count it sinLet him ask how the thing hath chanced thus, 'twas a fair fight we fought, we twain,Nor was it for naught that I took it, for first had my steed been slain!'
Quoth Parzival, 'Who was the maiden who the Grail in her hands did bear,1145Her mantle, that eve, she lent me?'—Quoth the hermit, 'That lady fairIs thine aunt, if her robe she lent thee of the loan shalt thou not be vain,For surely she deemed that hereafter thou shouldst there as monarch reign.And the Grail, and herself, yea and I too, should honour thee as our lord:And a gift didst thou take from thine uncle, for he gave thee, I ween, a sword,1150And sin hast thou won in the wearing, since thy lips, which to speak are fain,There spake not the mystic question which had loosened his sorrow's chain,And that sin shalt thou count to the other, for 'tis time that we lay us down.Nor couches nor cushions had they, but they laid them upon the ground,And for bedding the rushes served them—too humble, I ween, such bed1155For men of a race so noble, yet they deemed they were not ill-sped.
Then twice seven days he abode there, with the hermit his lot did share,And the herb of the ground was his portion—yet he sought not for better fare,Right gladly he bare such hardness that should bring to him food so sweet,For as priest did his host absolve him, and as knight gave him counsel meet!1160
Quoth Parzival to the hermit, 'Say who shall he be, who layBefore the Grail? grey was he, yet his face it was as the day!'Spake the host, 'Titurel thou sawest, and he shall grandsire beTo thy mother, first king and ruler of the Grail and Its knights was he.But a sickness hath fallen on him, and he lieth, nor findeth cure,1165Yet his face on the Grail yet looketh, by Its power shall his life endure!Nor his countenance changeth colour, and his counsel shall aye be wise—In his youth he rode far and jousted, and won to him valour's prize.'
'An thou wouldst that thy life be adornèd with true worth as thy crown of fame,Then ne'er mayst thou hate a woman, but shall honour, as knight, her name,1170For women and priests, thou knowest, unarmèd shall be their hand,Yet the blessing of God watcheth o'er them, and as shield round the priest doth stand;For the priest, he careth for thee, that thine end may be free from ill,So treat thou no priest as a foeman, but serve him with right good will.For naught on the earth thou seest that is like to his office high,1175For he speaketh that word unto us which our peace and our life did buy;And his hand hath been blest for the holding of the pledge on the altar laid,To assure us of sin's forgiveness, and the price for our pardon paid.And a priest who from sin doth guard him, and who to his Lord shall givePure heart and pure hand for His service, say, what man shall holier live?'1180
Now this day was their day of parting—Trevrezent to our hero spake,'Leave thou here thy sins behind thee, God shall me for thy surety take,And do thou as I have shown thee, be steadfast and true of heart!'Think ye with what grief and sorrow the twain did asunder part.