(Version according toLas Cantigas, No. 15)Emperor Julian had to pass thru Caesarea, where, angered by San Basilio, he promised to return and destroy the city after the conquest of Persia. After much prayer and fasting by the entire city San Basilio had a vision in which he saw the Virgin appear and order San Mercurio, whose tomb and armor were in that church, to avenge her and her son of the evil emperor. Upon awaking an excited fellow priest hastened to report that the arms of San Mercurio had disappeared. San Basilio then called together the people to tell them the news and together they went to examine the tomb. To their surprise the arms were again in their place red with blood. While they were still gazing, astonished, at the bloody weapons,Libano de Sur rushed in and confirmed the news of the emperor’s death.
(Version according toLas Cantigas, No. 15)
Emperor Julian had to pass thru Caesarea, where, angered by San Basilio, he promised to return and destroy the city after the conquest of Persia. After much prayer and fasting by the entire city San Basilio had a vision in which he saw the Virgin appear and order San Mercurio, whose tomb and armor were in that church, to avenge her and her son of the evil emperor. Upon awaking an excited fellow priest hastened to report that the arms of San Mercurio had disappeared. San Basilio then called together the people to tell them the news and together they went to examine the tomb. To their surprise the arms were again in their place red with blood. While they were still gazing, astonished, at the bloody weapons,Libano de Sur rushed in and confirmed the news of the emperor’s death.
(Version in thePrimera Crónica General, p. 201)Emperor Julian, on setting out to conquer Persia, promised to sacrifice to his gods if they would give him victory all the Christians, especially all the bishops, he should find. As he was returning victoriously from the East he was about to lose many of his host thru lack of water. Against the advice of his counselors he took as a guide one of the men of the country and, unaccompanied, went with him in search of water. Suddenly a strange knight appeared before the two, killed the emperor and instantly disappeared. As he expired the emperor took some of his blood in his hand and throwing it heavenward as tho throwing it in the face of someone cried out “Ya uenciste, Galileo, ya uenciste.” (He always referred to Jesus as Galileo). The compilers add that some histories say the emperor was killed by one of the enemy knights but in reality it was San Mercurio, for in the church where his body lay it was noticed that his shield and sword disappeared that very day and hour and that they were back in place the next day stained with blood. Because of this it was known that the strange knight was none other than San Mercurio who had killed the great enemy of the faith.
(Version in thePrimera Crónica General, p. 201)
Emperor Julian, on setting out to conquer Persia, promised to sacrifice to his gods if they would give him victory all the Christians, especially all the bishops, he should find. As he was returning victoriously from the East he was about to lose many of his host thru lack of water. Against the advice of his counselors he took as a guide one of the men of the country and, unaccompanied, went with him in search of water. Suddenly a strange knight appeared before the two, killed the emperor and instantly disappeared. As he expired the emperor took some of his blood in his hand and throwing it heavenward as tho throwing it in the face of someone cried out “Ya uenciste, Galileo, ya uenciste.” (He always referred to Jesus as Galileo). The compilers add that some histories say the emperor was killed by one of the enemy knights but in reality it was San Mercurio, for in the church where his body lay it was noticed that his shield and sword disappeared that very day and hour and that they were back in place the next day stained with blood. Because of this it was known that the strange knight was none other than San Mercurio who had killed the great enemy of the faith.
In this last version the vision motif is entirely lacking.
At other times the vision takes on a kind of symbolic or mystic feature, its purpose being to strengthen the faith of the one concerned. One in which the acts of Saint Mary astonish us is that experienced by some nuns commissioned by a religious and devout king (probably Alfonso himself altho he was too modest to say so) to pray for him. They saw the Virgin calling for the king on Easter morning, saying she would grant anything he asked if he would come. He entered the church and as he did so the image kneeled before him and kissed his hand. He immediately fell on his face in humility. She, thru her image, bade him rise for, she said, “You have always honored me and my Son and when you die you will come to us.” After witnessing such magnanimous acts the vision passed and the nuns hastened to tell the king what they had seen. He was devout before, but this greatly increased his devotion (No. 295).
The line between experiences having the mystical element usually considered essential in visions proper, or in dream-visions, and those experiences which some few persons undergo while in full control of all their faculties is so fine as to be at times almost undistinguishable. The following (No. 365) has, indeed, all the marks of a vision but on the other hand the friar manifests none of those emotions usually supposed to accompany such cases. This clerk, contaminated with the Albigensien heresy, did not believe in the immortality of the soul and therefore was about to flee from the convent to a life of pleasure, when he saw the Virgin descend from heaven with a host of angels and return with the soul of a poor, humble, but believing man. This convinced him of his error and he passed the rest of his life in the convent full of holy hope.
The rôle of a saint who admonishes and warns is quite common for the Blessed Mother. She is indeed in many respects like a mother who carefully watches over her children, ready to offer a word of comfort here or one of criticism there. Just like a school boy who tires of histask and is ready to flee before its completion was a friar of Burgos who began a garment of prayers for the Virgin, but was persuaded by the Devil to leave the monastic life with his task half finished. She, however, appeared to him holding in her hand a dress far too short, and told him to return and finish the work, adding that she wanted him, too, for he was going to die within one year, but that she would come again before the final day. 364 days later she did return and he died on the day following (No. 274)[49].
Another picture, so very human and so child-like, is that of a doctor who became a friar, but, not liking the poor food, complained considerably. To cure him of this the Virgin appeared with a dish of delicious food and, treating the whole community as so many children, gave some to each one except the complaining clerk. He acknowledged and accepted the lesson (No. 88).
Various methods besides that of the vision are employed to warn the delinquent. These can be best illustrated by giving a brief résumé of three miracles which need no comment.
A gambler, losing heavily (No. 154) curses God and the Virgin and in defiance of their power picks up abow and shoots an arrow into the sky, shouting “D’aquesta uegada ou a Deus ou a sa Madre darei mui gran saetada”. Having thus given vent to his feelings he returns to play. A few moments later the arrow, wet with blood, falls on the table around which they are seated. Thinking someone has been wounded, each hastily examines himself. When each is found whole the true significance dawns on them and they become terrified indeed. So great is the effect that the blasphemer repents and enters an austere order—and, it is said, gained heaven.
In No. 196 a gentile[50]priest who hated everything connected with Christianity prepared a mold for an image which he expected would answer all his questions. When it came out it had a form quite different from what he had anticipated, so he asked his fellows what it was. They could not help him. Finally some of his Christian acquaintances told him that it was the form of the Virgin, and to prove their assertion took him to the church where he could see for himself. This experience convinced him of his error and he was converted.
The Bishop of Siena (No. 219) had several images made for the church, all in white. Among them was one of the Devil and one of Santa María. As this color did not make Satan look as vile as he really was the Virgin turned the figure black. The prelate, hearing of the change, thought it was some trick and ordered the image washed and scraped, but without result. It was blackthru and thru. He then recognized his sin and prayed for forgiveness.
The hope of reward has ever been one of the strongest arguments offered by any religion. The Mohammedans, the greatest rivals of the Christians at that time, offered thru their faith attractive rewards in the next life, as did Christianity also. But for the peasant and also for the man of the middle class as well as occasionally even for the noble, the future life was something afar off; reward in the present life was much more attractive and it was this that the Virgin granted from time to time to a chosen few. The first miracle recorded in the collection (No. 2) is the old and even then well-known legend of the mantle the Virgin gave to San Ildefonso for his service and which at his death his successor in office, Don Siagrio, dared to appropriate, dying as the result of his sacrilege[51].
Usually the favor was in return for some special service. In No. 141 it is an answer to the eternal desire to grow young and is bestowed upon a certain very devout friar who always fell on his knees when he heard the name of the Virgin. When very old the abbot assigned two monks to accompany and care for him, but one day when left alone for a few moments he fell and could not rise. He called on the Saint, who appeared and led him by the hand before her altar, where she told him to kiss it and become young. To his great surprise he found himself again a young man of about twenty years.
No. 63 is especially interesting, not only because of its contents but also of its similarity to the story found in the second part ofLa Primera Crónica General(p. 426). A knight, the constant companion of the Count D. García in his campaigns against the Moors, was extremely conscientious in his devotions and always stayed until Mass was entirely over before leaving. One day, due to this, he was late in arriving on the field of battle, tho no one had missed him. As he rode up the Count met and embraced him and bade him have his wounds dressed, congratulating him at the same time, saying that it had been his skill and valor that had saved the day. Shamefacedly the knight glanced at his armor and was surprised beyond words to see it full of holes and bloody. He then realized that some divine messenger had taken his place; and all rejoiced in the miracle.[52]
In another instance (No. 105) the reward is the gift of healing, tho this time it is not, as is so often the case, by means of a mantle. The Blessed Virgin appeared to a young girl early in life and told her if she wished to gain heaven she must remain a virgin. The child promised, but her parents married her against her will. She repelled her husband for over a year until, beside himself, he wounded her with a knife. About this time the people of the community began to fall ill with leprosy. She too took the disease and, still suffering from her wound, went to the altar of Santa María. While there, asleepfrom exhaustion, she was visited in a dream by the Holy Mother who appeared in her dream, cured her, and gave her the power of healing all lepers with her kiss.
There are also a few accounts of the faithful being taken to heaven when life has become intolerable (Nos. 384, 56, etc.).
Just as Santa María, when answering prayer, is not limited in her power to curing bodily ills but may also protect from harm, so in bestowing rewards she does not confine her mercies to those who are suffering. In fact she much more frequently protects them from such harm. Naturally, miracles of this type, all in return for faithful service, cover a large variety of cases such as: the congregation miraculously saved from harm when a heavy beam fell during a sermon (No. 266), a pilgrim saved on falling into the sea (No. 33), a wife saved from an angry husband because she spent too much time at devotions (No. 314), a boy freed after capture by the Moors (No. 359), a clerk who lost his position because he could say only one Mass ordered reenstated (No. 32), and one that reminds us of Coleridge’s “Ancient Mariner,” the story of a hermit captured by pirates after they had sacked the surrounding country and were ready to sail away. They started with him on board but each night some mysterious power brought their ships back to where they had been the day before. At last the admiral decided to release the hermit, Count Abran of Germany, and in addition offered him great riches of which he selected only one glass to keep as a reminder of the favor he had received at divine hands (No. 95).
Quite often Saint Mary protects her own from unjust punishment. A confidential adviser of a certain lord was falsely accused by his enemies. Because of his devotion to Santa María she caused the truth to be brought out at the trial so that he was freed while his maligner was burned. She proves equal to the occasion when her followers are submitted to the ordeal of trial by fire[53]. A married woman’s mother-in-law accused her before her husband of unfaithfulness. The wife and the Moor with whom she was accused and who had agreed to act as an accomplice of the mother-in-law were taken to the public square to be burned. The Moor perished immediately but the woman was unharmed, and furthermore the Virgin was seen beside her in the fire (No. 186).
The motherly characteristic of Santa María again comes to the front in No. 47 when she rewards a good priest who has always been punctual in his duties but givesway once and, yielding to temptation, becomes thoroly drunk. This she does by caring for him on his way home, when the Devil in the form of a bull, a frightful black man, and a lion torments him. She protects him even to the point of striking the lion with a stick, then she tells him to go and sin no more.[54]At another time she rewards a faithful servant by keeping his wife from harm while he is away in the wars. During his absence a gallant courts her and sends her a pair of shoes. She puts one on to try it and to her dismay is unable to remove it. In fact no one could do so until her husband returned, when he took it off with ease (No. 64).
Santa María is particular about vows that have been made to her and is careful to see that they are conscientiously fulfilled. A woman (No. 117) promised never to work on Saturday, that day being dedicated to the Mother of Christ. When she forgot her vow she was stricken with paralysis. Another mother who forgot her vow made while praying that she might have a child, was punished by having it die before reaching maturity (No. 347).
The conception of “The Bride of Christ” on taking the vows of a nun remains even to the present time. In the Middle Ages, when the cult of the Virgin was at its zenith, the vow of celibacy on the part of men seems to have had a similar appeal with respect to consecration to the worship and love of the Virgin whileshe is constantly represented as being extremely jealous of those who have thus dedicated themselves to her. One young man made the vow either under the inspiration of the moment or perhaps even partly in jest, but this did not make it any the less binding. As he was about to begin to play ball he removed the ring of his fiancée from his finger for fear of damaging it, and as he happened to be standing near an image of the Virgin he slipped it on its finger saying as he did so that he would never love another woman. To his surprise and great fear the image bent its finger so the ring could not be removed. His friends advised a monastic life but he did not heed them, shortly afterwards forgetting all about the incident and preparing to marry. But the Virgin appeared to him in two successive dreams and in her anger so disturbed the youth that he wandered aimlessly for a month and then entered a monastery (No. 42). She was a little more lenient at times with young nuns who violated their promise. In fact nearly all those miracles termed unmoral are cases where the Blessed Mother out of pity shielded these same girls from what was considered their just punishment.
As well as being jealous of those who have consecrated themselves to her, the Virgin guards with the greatest care her shrines, her own images and those of her Son, her feast days, and the special customs, etc., that grew up around her individual sanctuaries. She protected her church of Monsarás (Portugal) from an avalanche (No. 113), and the one in Murcia from the political wiles of man by making it impossible to remove as much as one nail (No. 169). Later she saved this same churchwhen even Alfonso X himself consented to its destruction, and still later against the ravages of the Moors. During this period of constant war she frequently had occasion to guard her images against the Mohammedans (Nos. 99, 183, etc.), or against sacrilegious acts of supposed Christians (Nos. 136, 293, etc.). This might be accomplished by causing the images to remain intact amid general destruction of all other objects (No. 99), or to pass thru a severe fire unharmed (No. 39). The occupation of the offenders might be brought to a standstill (No. 183), the offender himself might be physically harmed (No. 293), or the image might put up its arm to protect itself (No. 136). Santa María de Ribila would allow nothing but olive oil to be burned before her shrine (No. 304).
Neither will she tolerate the making and maltreatment of effigies of her Son.[55]A heavenly voice at Mass warns the congregation, “The Jews who are killing my Son do not desire to be at peace with Him”. The Christians rush to the Jewish quarter and find the Jews engaged in beating and spitting upon an effigy of Jesus which they are preparing to crucify. All the Jews perish on the rack for the deed (No. 12). In No. 215 in a little town near Martos a Moor attempts to stab an image but wounds himself instead; stones it but it remains unharmed; puts it in the fire for two days but it is not affected; ties a stone around its neck and then throws it in the river but it does not sink. The King of Granada then sends it to the king of Castile,who is at Segovia; he receives it with great joy and orders it put in his chapel.[56]
It is necessary to approach the church of the Virgin with due humility and in a penitent state of mind. Wilful sinners can not force an entry until they have duly and earnestly repented (Nos. 98, 217, etc.), neither are Moors allowed to enter for unholy purposes, but are struck blind and paralyzed, etc. (No. 229). Acts of violence committed in the church are always fittingly punished with disease, paralysis, or death. Sometimes such punishment is accompanied by significant acts by the image of María, sometimes not. In No. 164, because of the affront offered by the Infante D. Fernando in arresting a prior before the altar on the charge of counterfeiting money, the image of the Virgin separated itself from that of the Son and lost its color. After the repentance of the Infante the form of the mother went back to that of the Son but never regained its color.
No. 38 has the added element, by no means uncommon, of the Devil or of demons acting as the agents of God in killing the offenders. This time it was the Conde de Poitiers who with his men entered and desecrated the sanctuary, one going so far as to maltreat the image of theVirgin with the Child in her arms by striking it, thereby breaking one of the arms. To his surprise and horror, blood flowed freely from the wound. Demons killed the guilty person, and hearing of it the Count vindicated himself by punishing all those implicated. So particular is the Virgin about the sacredness of her shrines that some pilgrims at Santa María de Terena after becoming engaged in a terrible fight among themselves during the night, were awe-struck, on going out to collect the dead and wounded, to find them all well and reconciled, altho their armor was battered and broken. The Blessed Mother would not tolerate Christian blood shed by Christians in front of her church (No. 198).
Those legends which have to do with the earthly life of the Mother of Jesus are very rare, and when we do find them it almost startles us to think she was ever considered as a person, human in all respects as they were and living on this earth. We learn, however (No. 27), that in the time of the apostles, the Christians had bought a synagogue intending to convert it into a church. When the Jews hear of their intention they reclaim it and carry the matter before Caesar. The Christians go to Mary, who is then living at Mount Sion and ask her advice. She tells them not to fear, for she will help them at the trial. When the day arrives the case is called in the church building. As Peter takes his place beside the altar an image of Mary appears on the altar cloth. This is too much for the Jews, who refuse to carry the trial further. Tradition has it that this was the first church dedicated to Santa María. Some time later EmperorJulian ordered the Jews to take away the image of the Virgin, but it frowned on them in such a manner that they feared to touch it.[57]
Since the image of the Virgin was intended to be a representation of the Divine Mother, it often, especially in the mind of the peasant, attracted to itself all her attributes. The result was that in a number of cases it was the image and not the Virgin that performed the deed. Often, also when the miracle was attributed to Santa María it was not simply to the saint, Mary the mother of Jesus, who lived in the distant past, far away in the Holy Land, nor to Mary, the most powerful of all the saints in heaven, but it was to the very present, and very local saint, Santa María de Salas, or Santa María del Puerto, as the case might be. There is little doubt that in the mind of the common folk there were as many different Saints Mary as there were shrines, and yet, at the same time, these all had a definite connection with the Mother of Christ in some mysterious way which the plain people did not trouble themselves to explain. Just as the mystery of the Trinity did not perturb them nearly as much as it did the Anglo-Saxonsof the North, so this particular problem caused them little concern.
As might be expected, most of the miracles attributed to the image of the Virgin are of the same nature as those performed by the saint herself. The image cures the diseased (No. 349), it bows over a man and thanks him for a hymn of praise he has composed (No. 202), saves a naughty child from punishment (No. 303), protects a man’s property from threatened storm (No. 161), restores to health queen Beatriz, mother of Alfonso el Sabio, when the doctors had pronounced her illness incurable (No. 256), restrains a rich libertine knight of Catalonia from committing an immoral act in its presence (No. 312), protects a city from capture by the Moors even after the latter had learned from a prisoner that there were but fifteen men remaining to defend it (No. 185), protects its altar from fire by removing a veil from its head and spreading it over the fire, thereby instantly extinguishing the flames (No. 332), and lastly even pours milk from its sacred breasts as a final argument to convince and convert a Moor (No. 44). The story of No. 321 differs somewhat from this, reminding us of a similar cure attributed to the Child Jesus while on the flight into Egypt.[58]A child was suffering from a swelling in the neck and was pronounced incurable. A friend advised that the patient be taken to the king, adding that all Christian kings had the power of healing. This was done, but the king told them to take it before the image of the Virgin,wash the image in pure water, and then give the child this water to drink for as many days as there are letters in the nameM-a-r-í-a. On the fourth day the child was healed. In two instances the power is extended a little farther and in No. 123 a young friar on dying turned black and ugly. His brethren took a candle from the altar and put it in his hand, which caused his natural color to be restored. Later he returned and appearing to the two friars told them that the reason he became black at death was that he saw Devils, but that the light of the Virgin drove them promptly away. In No. 209 Alfonso was very ill and when the doctors could not give him relief he called for the unfinished manuscript[59]ofLas Cantigasand by applying it to the affected part of his body he was healed.
Because of the very high esteem in which the Virgin was held it is common to find instances in which a person swears by her or by her name or image, while she on her part is rightly conscientious in seeing that such oaths are not taken lightly. One young shepherd developed the habit of stealing and was finally caught, but cleared himself by swearing by Godand the Virginthat he was innocent. A little later he was caught again, and convicted. This time the Virgin allowed him to be hanged, because he had sworn by her falsely (No. 392). Another man (No. 239) perjured himself before her image by adjuring that he had never received a certain article in trust.Even before leaving the church he was overtaken by a severe illness which caused his death within three days. So high and so sacred was this oath before the image of the Virgin held to be, that in one instance a wife, being accused of unfaithfulness by her jealous husband, offered to submit to the ordeal by fire to prove her innocence, but her husband demanded instead that she swear before the altar of Nuestra Señora. Then he added that she could further clear herself by jumping from a high rock. She passed both tests safely and her husband, penitent, begged forgiveness on his knees (No. 341). In other cases the image of the Virginspeaks, as, for example, when called upon to bear witness in a difference between a Jew and a Christian over the payment of a debt (No. 25).
The very name of María was one to conjure with.[60]Two miracles (Nos. 194 and 254) are attributed to the power of the mere sound of the name; and once (No. 195) a girl is saved because her name is María. In No. 194 a villainous host sends in pursuit of his departing guests some thugs to rob them, but the bandits, on hearing their intended victims call on the name of Santa María for help, become powerless and speechless. In No. 254, the image of the Virgin saves some monks who, while recuperating on the banks of a river from the rigors of convent life, transgress the bounds of what is proper for men of their order. Seeing some devils in the form ofmen, coming down the river in a boat, the monks, terrified, call on the Virgin for aid. “She alone has saved you,” shout the devils as they continue on their way. A girl (No. 195) who had been sold by her father to a knight on his way to a tournament was saved from harm when she told him her name was Mary and that that particular day was one especially consecrated to the Saint’s worship. On learning that, the knight sent her for safekeeping to an abbey, while he continued on his journey. At the tournament he was killed and buried in the open prairie.[61]The Virgin appeared to the girl and told her of his fate demanding that she and the abbess go and give the man a worthy burial, telling them they would be able easily to identify the body, for it would have a rose in its mouth.
* * *
There now remains a group of fifteen poems that do not seem to have any particular purpose other than to produce an atmosphere of mystery; but this very sentiment of the mystical played an important part in the religious worship of the time. The very architecture of the churches tended to produce it, the processions, the ritual, all inspired the same feeling. Herewith are summarized only four poems of this group, which will give a sufficient idea of the emotions aroused by them.
A young girl, a religious fanatic, died very early inlife as the result of self-imposed hardships. Her parents, suspecting poison, ordered an autopsy, and on the heart of the dead girl was found an image of the Virgin (No. 188). In No. 361, Alfonso is said to have given a beautiful image of the Virgin to the monastery of Las Huelgas de Burgos. On Christmas night the strange idea of putting the image to bed occurred to the pious nuns. Almost immediately they saw it change color and turn from side to side. No. 79, of the codex of Toledo (a poem which does not appear in the codex of the Escorial), relates an incident that took place weekly in the church at Constantinople. In this church was a beautiful image of the Holy Mother, covered with a veil. Every Friday an angel descended from heaven to lift the veil, which remained suspended in the air until Saturday evening, (the day on which the faithful came to worship), when the angel would return and lower the veil again. Cantiga No. 226 narrates a legend entirely foreign to Spanish thought and one which must have caused some surprise in its unwonted environment. The incident is said to have happened in “Gran Britaña”. The account runs briefly as follows: A company of friars were in their convent saying Mass on Easter morning, when the entire monastery was swallowed up by the earth—the ground closing above it and leaving no trace whatever. For just a year the monks continued in this enforced seclusion, without lack of anything needful; they were even lighted by a marvellous sun. On the next Easter morning all was restored to its former natural state. It can be seen at a glance that this legend is entirely different from anything that hasbeen mentioned in this collection; and I have found no parallel to it in anything else of the period.
In closing this chapter attention should be called to two miracles which emphasize the great importance attached to confession.[62]No. 124 is the story of a man condemned to be stoned because he had broken a law of the Moors in whose land he was living. While undergoing this punishment, he begged permission of the Virgin to make his confession; from that moment his executioners could not harm him. Astonished that their missiles suddenly ceased to have any effect they allowed him to confess, after which he died praising the Blessed Mother. In No. 96 a sinner was unwilling to do penance, altho devoted to Santa María. He was beheaded by robbers, without opportunity for confession. Four days later two friars, on arriving at the spot, were surprised to hear the head plead for the privilege of confession. They summoned a crowd; the head attached itself to the body, confessed, and then became separated again from the body.[63]
His Satanic Majesty is and always has been one of the most interesting of personages. The tracing of his development from the beginning of religion in the dim mythical past to his latest rôle as the prince of evil spirits and “controls” as depicted by Sir Conan Doyle, Sir Oliver Lodge, and others of similar faith, is fascinating work. Satan as we find him in the period with which we are concerned is far from being a dull and lifeless character. He is referred to as one who had been as holy and perfect as any, but who, because of his sin and treason, became the lowest of all.[64]As such, having become the arch-enemy of God, it is his aim to drag down to Hell as many as possible. At the same time, the nearer he comes to localities especially dedicated to his Enemy, God, the more difficult it is for him to exercise his powers. InLas Siete Partidasit is stated as a fact that the Devil cannotharm the souls of those interred in holy ground as easily as of those buried elsewhere.[65]He is subject to conjuring[66]and can never face the Virgin. In fact, the mere sound of her name is often sufficient to drive him away (No. 254). To our surprise he takes on one hellish attribute which we do not customarily connect with Spain of this period, but rather with the Orient. This is illustrated inLas CantigasNo. 82, where it is related that a monk on his bed saw some devils in the form of swine approach, but they dared not touch him because of his holiness. Shortly afterwards a black man appeared who said he was going to destroy the monk, whereupon the latter, in desperation, appealed to the Virgin. As she hastened to him the devils disappearedin a cloud of smoke.
Demoniac possession is quite common and has only the well-known New Testament characteristics. The incidents as recorded could easily have taken place in the time of Jesus in the Holy Land. But the humorous element manifests itself at rare intervals even here, as we see in No. 343 ofLas Cantigaswhere we find that a girl, possessed, is able, on seeing a person, to tell what his secret sin is and has a mania for divulging this in public. Needless to say, she is soon shunned by all. Even the priest to whom she was first taken was mocked by her, the holy water did not protect him, and he was notable to face her. However she was finally cured before the altar at Rocamador.
The compilers of thePrimera Crónica General[67]saw nothing in the visions of Mohammed but demoniac possession.
Not infrequently Satan resorts to taking on other forms than his own to attain his ends. One story (well known long before Alfonso’s time) which found its way intoLas Cantigasis that the Devil, taking on the form of an apostle, ordered a pilgrim to so mutilate himself, as penance for his sin, that he died, after which Satan prepared to carry away his soul but was prevented by Santiago (St. James) who rescued it.[68]At another time, when he wished to take vengeance on a philanthropic Christian who had established a hospital, he entered the corpse of a handsome young man, becoming the good man’s servant, hoping thus to have an opportunity to assassinate him, but was prevented from doing so because his master prayed every day. At last, the bishop made a visit to the hospital and the Devil, fearing to appear before him, pleaded illness. The kind prelate, solicitous for his welfare, requests to be allowed to see him. Immediately upon coming into his presence he notes his actions and, suspecting something, conjures him in the name of God. The Devil confesses and flees leaving the dead body of the young man at the feet of the bishop and philanthropist (No. 67). While thus taking on other forms he is at times distinctlymischievous, and we can see almost the sparkle of his eyes when, finding that the Virgin has made a certain innocent man invisible in order that he may escape his foes who accuse him falsely, Satan himself takes the form of this man and plays practical jokes with his pursuers (No. 213).
The familiar “Devil Pact” is to be found in its simplicity when a Jew sells his soul to the Devil, and later on repenting and praying most earnestly to the Virgin, finds that she hears his prayer and impels the Devil to return the contract.[69]
This simple, and even then conventional, plot does not seem to have satisfied the demands of the time, since we find it occasionally introduced with variations. One man (in No. 281) to gain his lost wealth promises the Devil he will deny God and the Church, but refuses to deny a certain one of the saints, and that is the Virgin. Diabolus hesitates, but remarks
“ ... Pois negasteDeus, non mi á ren que fazerde esa Madre non negares.”
“ ... Pois negasteDeus, non mi á ren que fazerde esa Madre non negares.”
“ ... Pois negasteDeus, non mi á ren que fazerde esa Madre non negares.”
Time passes and he prospers, until one day he is called upon to attend the king on a public function during which, accidentally, the monarch enters a church. The knight refuses to accompany him, saying it is forbidden him to do so. With that the image of the Virgin beckons to him, and upon being thus reassured he enters and confesses all. This act has such an effect on the king thathe adds a fortune to the visible protection of Santa María (No. 281). Another illustration is that of the man who barters his wife to the Devil, but the Blessed Mother does not allow the bargain to be carried out.[70]
Aside from the above-mentioned traits, that are to be found almost wherever the Devil himself is present, we notice a few others that are rare.
There is the threat of bottling the imps later mentioned on page 116.
ThePrimera Crónica Generalcontains a legend in which the devils appear almost like human beings holding a general conference. Antidio, archbishop of Vesentine, on crossing the bridge of the river of Duero, sees a group of devils in the field. Apparently without fear, the archbishop approaches to see what it is all about. As he draws near his attention is attracted by the report of one of the imps to the effect that after seven years he has been successful in making the Pope sin. The clergyman immediately demands as proof that the devil take him to the Vatican on his back that he may verify the statement. This is done and the report found to be correct. After making the Pope do penance, the archbishop, by conjuring in the name of God and Santa Cruz, now requires the diminutive devil, whom he has kept waiting all this time, to carry him back to his diocese.[71]
Very often the Devil appears as a servant of God—as a sort of scavenger whose business it is to do the disagreeablework. The Vandal king, Gunderico, after sacking Seville, attempts to enter the church by force to plunder it also. As he approaches the door he is met by the Devil and is killed for his sacrilege.[72]InLas CantigasNo. 34 the Devil kills a Jew for robbing an image of the Virgin, while in No. 192 he so torments an imprisoned Moor for two nights in succession that the Moor is glad to become a Christian.[73]
Hell, the abode of the Devil, is miserably slighted by the pen of Alfonso el Sabio. Numerous references are made to “el fuego dell inferno”; a little more graphic is
“D’ esto direy un miragreque fezo a Uírgen santa,Madre de Deus grorïosa,que nos faz mercée tanta,que nos dá saud’ e sisoet äo demo quebrantaque nos quer äo infernoleuar, en que nos afume.” (No. 338.)
“D’ esto direy un miragreque fezo a Uírgen santa,Madre de Deus grorïosa,que nos faz mercée tanta,que nos dá saud’ e sisoet äo demo quebrantaque nos quer äo infernoleuar, en que nos afume.” (No. 338.)
“D’ esto direy un miragreque fezo a Uírgen santa,Madre de Deus grorïosa,que nos faz mercée tanta,que nos dá saud’ e sisoet äo demo quebrantaque nos quer äo infernoleuar, en que nos afume.” (No. 338.)
But no attempts are made to describe the familiar place.[74]
Altho there can be no doubt that enchantment was known and practiced, as evidenced by the laws against it,[75]it is strange that there is but one instance of it in thePrimera Crónica General, and that, the story of Simon Magus, the enchanter, is in the narration of the history of events in the time of Christ. InLas Cantigas, where we would naturally look to find records of this nature, there are only such cases as the threat of the clerk to bottle the devils (No. 125), occasional accusations of the practice of enchantment (No. 8), or a reference to the fact that medicine, enchantment, and prayers were all of no avail in the attempt to cure a case of rabies until at last Santa María de Terena was approached (No. 319). The motif furnished by this practice was not developed, nor did it become popular in literature, until the Books of Chivalry.[76]
The love of the mysterious found its greatest development in Spain in the study of divination, in omens and in auguries. In the practice of this art Spain excelled all other countries of Europe in the Middle Ages. Gaston Paris makes the following significant statement in speaking of the episode of the journey of the seven sons of Lara going to visit their uncle Ruy Velázquez, the quarrel and reconciliation:
“Tout cet épisode est fort beau et d’un caractère bien original; il n’y a rien de pareil dans notre épopée; on sait au contraire le grand rôle que jouait, dans le haut moyen âge espagnol, et surtout dans la vie des aventuriers qui faisaient la force et la terreur de la Castille, l’ inspection du vol des oiseaux; le Cid lui-même “vivait à augure.”[77]
“Tout cet épisode est fort beau et d’un caractère bien original; il n’y a rien de pareil dans notre épopée; on sait au contraire le grand rôle que jouait, dans le haut moyen âge espagnol, et surtout dans la vie des aventuriers qui faisaient la force et la terreur de la Castille, l’ inspection du vol des oiseaux; le Cid lui-même “vivait à augure.”[77]
The Spanish at this time, in spite of the intermixtures of other races, were essentially a Roman people and this was one of the characteristics of the old Roman civilizationthat had not been materially changed by time or religion. It is true that such practices in all cases except by means of astrology, were forbidden by law,[78]but the fact that the law was so full and explicit implies that divination and the study of omens and auguries not only existed but must have been quite common. Such customs are usually mentioned merely in passing, as in the miracle of the Host mentioned on page 118 or in such statements as the one to the effect that king Herod died according to the prognostications of a Greek augur,[79]or the simple statement that a certain person foretold that certain events would come to pass without giving any clue as to how this information was received[80]. Another indication that divining was quite common is that when Tiberius expelled from Rome all who practiced black magic the chronicler considered the event of such minor importance that he gives it only two lines: