§ 58. Thanne comth the sinne that men clepen _Tarditas_, as whan a man is
to latrede or taryinge, er he wole turne to god; and [616] certes, that is
a greet folye. He is lyk to him that falleth in the dich, and wol nat
aryse. / And this vyce comth of a fals hope, that he thinketh that he shal
live longe; but that hope faileth ful ofte. /
718. Cm. Pt. Ln. Hl. so (_for_ to). E. Cm. laterede; Hl. Seld.
latrede; Pt. lattred; Ln. latred.
§ 59. Thanne comth Lachesse; that is he, that whan he biginneth any good
werk, anon he shal forleten it and stinten; as doon they that han any wight
to governe, and ne taken of him na-more kepe, anon as they finden any
contrarie or any anoy. /720 Thise been the newe shepherdes, that leten hir
sheep witingly go renne to the wolf that is in the breres, or do no fors of
hir owene governaunce. / Of this comth poverte and destruccioun, bothe of
spirituel and temporel thinges. Thanne comth a manere coldnesse, that
freseth al the herte of man. / Thanne comth undevocioun, thurgh which a man
is so blent, as seith Seint Bernard, and hath swiche langour in soule, that
he may neither rede ne singe in holy chirche, ne here ne thinke of no
devocioun, ne travaille with hise handes in no good werk, that it nis him
unsavory and al apalled. / Thanne wexeth he slow and slombry, and sone wol
be wrooth, and sone is enclyned to hate and to envye. / Thanne comth the
sinne of worldly sorwe, swich as is cleped _tristicia_, that sleeth man, as
seint Paul seith. /725 For certes, swich sorwe werketh to the deeth of the
soule and of the body also; for ther-of comth, that a man is anoyed of his
owene lyf. / Wherfore swich sorwe shorteth ful ofte the lyf of a man, er
that his tyme be come by wey of kinde. /
722. E. spiritueel; temporeel. E. Pt. of a man. 723. E. _om._ so.
blent] Ln. blonte; Hl. blunt. 724. E. slough (for slow). 725. Cm.
swich as; Hl. such as; E. which as.
=Remedium contra peccatum Accidie.=
§ 60. Agayns this horrible sinne of Accidie, and the branches of the same,
ther is a vertu that is called _Fortitudo_ or Strengthe; that is, an
affeccioun thurgh which a man despyseth anoyous thinges. / This vertu is so
mighty and so vigorous, that it dar withstonde mightily and wysely kepen
him-self fro perils that been wikked, and wrastle agayn the assautes of the
devel. / For it enhaunceth and enforceth the soule, right as Accidie
abateth it and maketh it feble. For this _Fortitudo_ may endure by long
suffraunce the travailles that been covenable. /730
727. E. Cm. of man; Seld. of men; _rest_ of a man. 728. E. anoyouse;
Cm. noyouse; _rest_ noyous. 729. E. Cm. vigerous. 730. E. fieble.
Hl. conuenables.
[617]
§ 61. This vertu hath manye speces; and the firste is cleped Magnanimitee,
that is to seyn, greet corage. For certes, ther bihoveth greet corage
agains Accidie, lest that it ne swolwe the soule by the sinne of sorwe, or
destroye it by wanhope. / This vertu maketh folk to undertake harde thinges
and grevouse thinges, by hir owene wil, wysely and resonably. / And for as
muchel as the devel fighteth agayns a man more by queyntise and by sleighte
than by strengthe, therfore men shal withstonden him by wit and by resoun
and by discrecioun. / Thanne arn ther the vertues of feith, and hope in god
and in hise seintes, to acheve and acomplice the gode werkes in the whiche
he purposeth fermely to continue. / Thanne comth seuretee or sikernesse;
and that is, whan a man ne douteth no travaille in tyme cominge of the gode
werkes that a man hath bigonne. /735 Thanne comth Magnificence, that is to
seyn, whan a man dooth and perfourneth grete werkes of goodnesse that he
hath bigonne; and that is the ende why that men sholde do gode werkes; for
in the acomplissinge of grete goode werkes lyth the grete guerdoun. /
Thanne is ther Constaunce, that is, stablenesse of corage; and this sholde
been in herte by stedefast feith, and in mouth, and in beringe, and in
chere and in dede. / Eke ther been mo speciale remedies agains Accidie, in
diverse werkes, and in consideracioun of the peynes of helle, and of the
Ioyes of hevene, and in trust of the grace of the holy goost, that wole
yeve him might to perfourne his gode entente. /
731. E. Magnificence (_by error; with_ Of Magnanimitee _in the
margin_). 732. E. wesely (_for_ wysely). 736. E. _om._ that he hath
bigonne. E. gerdo_u_n. 737. E. chiere.
=Sequitur de Auaricia.=
§ 62. After Accidie wol I speke of Avarice and of Coveitise, of which sinne
seith seint Paule, that ‘the rote of alle harmes is Coveitise’: _Ad
Timotheum, sexto capitulo_. / For soothly, whan the herte of a man is
confounded in it-self and troubled, and that the soule hath lost the
confort of god, thanne seketh he an ydel solas of worldly thinges. /740