_Of the holy communication of an abbot to Sir Bors, and how the abbot
counselled him._
And that night was Sir Bors served richly, and on the morn early he
heard mass, and the abbot came to him and bad him good morrow, and Bors
to him again. And then he told him he was a fellow of the quest of the
Sancgreal, and how he had charge of the holy man to eat bread and
water. Then [said the abbot] our Lord Jesu Christ shewed Him unto you,
in the likeness of a soul that suffered great anguish for us since He
was put upon the cross, and bled His heart blood for mankind: there was
the token and the likeness of the Sancgreal that appeared afore you,
for the blood that the great fowl bled revived the chickens from death
to life. And by the bare tree is betokened the world, which is naked
and without fruit, but if it come of our Lord. Also the lady for whom
ye fought for, and king Aniause, which was lord there tofore,
betokeneth Jesu Christ, which is the King of the world; and that ye
fought with the champion for the lady, this it betokeneth: for when ye
took the battle for the lady, by her ye shall understand the new law of
Jesu Christ and holy Church; and by the other lady ye shall understand
the old law and the fiend, which all day warreth against holy Church,
therefore ye did your battle with right. For ye be Jesu Christ’s
knights, therefore ye ought to be defenders of holy Church. And by the
black bird might ye understand the holy Church, which saith I am black,
but he is fair. And by the white bird might men understand the fiend.
And I shall tell you how the swan is white without forth, and black
within; it is hypocrisy which is without yellow or pale, and seemeth
without forth the servants of Jesu Christ, but they be within so
horrible of filth and sin, and beguile the world evil. Also when the
fiend appeared to thee in likeness of a man of religion, and blamed
thee that thou left thy brother for a lady, so led thee where thou
seemed thy brother was slain, but he is yet on live, and all was for to
put thee in error, and bring thee unto vain hope and lechery, for he
knew thou were tender hearted, and all was for thou shouldest not find
the blessed adventure of the Sancgreal. And the third fowl betokeneth
the strong battle against the fair ladies which were all devils. Also
the dry tree, and the white lily:—the dry tree betokeneth thy brother
Sir Lionel, which is dry without virtue, and therefore many men ought
to call him the rotten tree, and the worm-eaten tree, for he is a
murderer and doth contrary to the order of knighthood. And the two
white flowers signify two maidens, the one is a knight which was
wounded the other day, and the other is the gentlewoman which ye
rescued; and why the other flower drew nigh the other, that was the
knight which would have dishonoured her, and himself both. And, Sir
Bors, ye had been a great fool, and in great peril, to have seen those
two flowers perish for to succour the rotten tree, for and they had
sinned together they had been damned: and for that ye rescued them
both, men might call you a very knight and servant of Jesu Christ.