The third head of the beast is hate. But thou shalt know that there is
one hate, which is virtue, which the good man hath against evil;
another, which is very great sin, that is fierceness of heart, wherefrom
come many boughs, and chiefly four, (which) are the four wars that the
felon hath. The first is with himself, for when man bears (him) hate to
the torment (_read_ of) soul and body, so that man cannot sleep nor have
any rest, sometimes it deprives him of meat and drink and makes him fall
into a fever, or into such sorrow that he receives death. That is a fire
that wastes all the goods of the house. The second war that the felon
hath is with God. For wrath and felony so support and seize sometimes
the heart of the fierce one, because of some temporal adversity, or
sickness, or death of friends, or some misfortune, when his will is not
done, that he murmurs against our Lord, and thanks God ill and His
saints, and swears and blasphemes against God and His saints. The third
war that the wrathful hath is with those that are under him, that is,
with his wife and with his household; for the man is sometimes so out of
his wits that he beats and smites both wife and children and household,
and breaks pots and cups as if he were out of his wits; and so he is.
The fourth is war outside with his neighbours and with his nearest, that
are all about him. And from this bough grow seven small boughs. For when
wrath arises between two men there is first chiding, and then wrath that
remains in the heart, afterwards wrath, afterwards strife often comes,
afterwards desire of vengeance, afterwards sometimes manslaughter, and
afterwards sometimes deadly war between the friends, whereof often comes
too much evil, and perils that cannot be amended. For when there is war
between two men, it often befalls that there are many people dead who
have no guilt, churches broken down, towns burnt up, abbeys, priories,
barns destroyed, and men and women and children disinherited and exiled,
and lands destroyed, and too much other harm, which is done by reason of
those who are bound to amend what this brings, both the lord and all
those that are helping him (them), and (concerned) in such a business,
and therefore they are in great peril of their health of soul, for they
may not be able to amend or give up the harm that they have done, and it
behoves them to give it up or to be hanged.