Folio 44r - the ostrich, continued. De vulturibus; Of vultures
seize on the sins of others even when they are hidden.
The text continues: 'When the time comes, the ostrich spreads its wings.' What are we to understand by the wings of the ostrich, if not the thoughts of the hypocrite, confined by considerations of the present, like wings tightly folded together? When the time comes, the ostrich raises its wings high, because it has found an opportunity to display them with pride. To spread the wings on high is to reveal your thoughts through unbridled pride. Now, because the hypocrite represents himself as holy, he keeps his thoughts to himself, as if folding his wings against his body in humility. Let the hypocrite go, therefore, now to seek praise, then to criticize the life of his neighbours, let him at any time occupy himself in deriding his creator, and he will be plunged into torments whose severity will match his own vainglorious thoughts.
It follows then that 'the ostrich forgets that a foot may crush its eggs or a beast of the field trample on them'.
The foot crushes the eggs and the beast of the field tramples on them when they are left in the earth as, clearly, the hearts of men, when they devote themselves constantly to thoughts of earthly things and the basest deeds, fling themselves down to be crushed by the hooves of the beast of the field, that is, the Devil, so that, when they have long been degraded by base thoughts, they may at some time be destroyed by committing serious crimes.
The text continues: 'The ostrich treats its young harshly as if they were not its own'. The hypocrite regards his young as if they were not his own, when he finds them living otherwise than he had taught them. And, with increasing fury, he threatens them with terror and sets himself to torment them; fired by the burning brands of hatred, the hypocrite, who made no effort to ensure that his young should live, makes every effort to ensure that they die.
The hypocrite, therefore, whom we take to be represented by the ostrich, is characterised as follows: he cares for no-one but himself, but glorifies himself in all he does and attributes to himself alone, beyond all others, the good that he does.
Of vultures
The vulture, it is thought, gets its name because it flies slowly. The fact is, it cannot fly swiftly because of the large size of its body.
Vultures, like eagles, perceive corpses even beyond the sea. Indeed, flying at a great height, they see from on high many things which are hidden by the shadows of the mountains.
It is said that vultures do not indulge in copulation and
- Commentary
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Commentary
Text
The ostrich spreads its wings. The vulture flies slowly and sees corpses from a great distance.
Comment
Folio mark of four superimposed chevrons in top right corner. Initial type 2.
Folio Attributes
- Transcription and Translation
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Transcription
occulta etiam aliena delicta, deprehendunt. Sequitur: Cum tem\ pus fuerit, in altum alas erigit. Quid enim alas huius strucionis\ accipimus, nisi pressas hoc tempore quasi complicitas [PL, complicatas] ypocrite cogita\ tiones? Quas cum tempus fuerit in altum elevat, quia oportunita\ te comperta eas superbiendo manifestat. Alas in altum erigere est,\ per effrenatam superbiam cogitationes aperire. Nunc autem quia sanctum\ se simulat quia in semetipso stringit que cogitat, quasi alas in\ corpore per humilitatem plicat. Eat igitur ypocrita et nunc suas lau\ des appetat, postmodum vitam proximorum premat, et quandoque se in ir\ risione sui conditoris exerceat, ut quo elatiora semper excogitat,\ eo se suppliciis attrocioribus immergat. Unde subditur: Obliviscitur\ quod pes conculcet ea, et bestia agri conterat. Tunc ova\ pes calcat,\ et bestia agri conterit cum in terra deseruntur, quia videlicet humana cor\ da dum semper terrena cogitare, semper que ima sunt agere appe\ tunt, ad conterendum se agri bestie, id est diabolo sternunt, ut cum\ diu infima cogitatione abiecta sunt, quandoque maiorum criminum\ perpetratione frangantur. Sequitur: Ducatur [PL, Induratur] ad filios qui quasi non sunt\ sui. Quasi non suos respicit, quos aliter vivere quam docuit, ipsa\ deprehendit. Et durescente sevicia terrores admonet, seque in eorum\ cruciatibus exercet, atque invidie facibus inflammata quibus non\ laboravit ut possent vivere, laborat ut debeant interire.\ Ypocrite ergo qui per strucionem intelligitur consuetudo talis esse perhi\ betur, ut de nullo alio curam habeat, sed de his que agit in se glorietur,\ et sibi soli bonum quod agit, pre ceteris asscribat.\ De vulturibus Vultur a volato tardo nominatus putatur. Magnitudine\ quippe corporis precipites volatus non habet. Vultures autem\ sicut et aquile etiam ultra maria cadavera sentiunt. Alcius quippe\ volantes multaque [multa que] montium obscuritate celantur, ex alto illi con\ spiciunt. Negantur enim vultures indulgere concubitui, et coniugali\Translation
seize on the sins of others even when they are hidden. The text continues: 'When the time comes, the ostrich spreads its wings.' What are we to understand by the wings of the ostrich, if not the thoughts of the hypocrite, confined by considerations of the present, like wings tightly folded together? When the time comes, the ostrich raises its wings high, because it has found an opportunity to display them with pride. To spread the wings on high is to reveal your thoughts through unbridled pride. Now, because the hypocrite represents himself as holy, he keeps his thoughts to himself, as if folding his wings against his body in humility. Let the hypocrite go, therefore, now to seek praise, then to criticize the life of his neighbours, let him at any time occupy himself in deriding his creator, and he will be plunged into torments whose severity will match his own vainglorious thoughts. It follows then that 'the ostrich forgets that a foot may crush its eggs or a beast of the field trample on them'. The foot crushes the eggs and the beast of the field tramples on them when they are left in the earth as, clearly, the hearts of men, when they devote themselves constantly to thoughts of earthly things and the basest deeds, fling themselves down to be crushed by the hooves of the beast of the field, that is, the Devil, so that, when they have long been degraded by base thoughts, they may at some time be destroyed by committing serious crimes. The text continues: 'The ostrich treats its young harshly as if they were not its own'. The hypocrite regards his young as if they were not his own, when he finds them living otherwise than he had taught them. And, with increasing fury, he threatens them with terror and sets himself to torment them; fired by the burning brands of hatred, the hypocrite, who made no effort to ensure that his young should live, makes every effort to ensure that they die. The hypocrite, therefore, whom we take to be represented by the ostrich, is characterised as follows: he cares for no-one but himself, but glorifies himself in all he does and attributes to himself alone, beyond all others, the good that he does. Of vultures The vulture, it is thought, gets its name because it flies slowly. The fact is, it cannot fly swiftly because of the large size of its body. Vultures, like eagles, perceive corpses even beyond the sea. Indeed, flying at a great height, they see from on high many things which are hidden by the shadows of the mountains. It is said that vultures do not indulge in copulation and
