‘Tomorrow morning, when you are all assembled, a light will appear to you, bringing with it a letter. Give the letter to Petrus, and bid him go wherever he thinks best: I shall not forget him. Then ask him to tell you truly where his heart is directing him, and he will tell you that he intends to go into the West, to the vales of Avalon. Tell him that at his destination he should await the son of Alain, and that he cannot pass from life to death until the one has come who will read him the letter and explain the power of your vessel; and the one who comes will bring him news of you. When he has seen and heard these things, he will die and pass on to eternal glory. When you have told him all this, send for your other nephews and repeat it to them.’
With that the voice departed, and Joseph came to Alain and told him all that had been said. He was entirely convinced, and filled with the grace of the Holy Spirit. Then Joseph said to him: ‘My dear, sweet nephew, you must be good indeed, for Our Lord to grant you so much grace.’
And Joseph took him back to his father and said: ‘Bron, this son shall be guardian on Earth of his brothers and sisters. They must trust in him and take his advice in all matters that trouble them; if they believe in him, it will be to their advantage. Give him your blessing in their sight and they will trust him and love him the more; he will lead them well for as long as they are willing to believe in him.’
The next day they all came to the service, and the light did indeed appear to them and brought them the letter. When they saw it they rose, and Joseph took it and called to Petrus and said: ‘Dear friend, Jesus Christ Our Father, who redeemed us from the pains of Hell, has chosen you as a messenger to carry this letter wherever you wish.’
Hearing this, Petrus said: ‘I never thought I was such that He would entrust a message to me without instruction.’
‘He knows you better than you know yourself,’ said Joseph. ‘But in the name of love and companionship, we beg you to tell us where your heart directs you to go.’
‘I know very well,’ he replied. ‘You never saw a message more surely entrusted than this. I shall go to the vales of Avalon, a lonely place in the West. And there I shall await my Saviour’s mercy. I beg you all now, pray to Our Lord to grant me neither the strength nor the desire to do anything against His will, and that the Enemy may never deceive me into losing His love.’
‘May He guard you from it, Petrus,’ they replied, ‘as He truly can.’
Then they all went together to Bron’s house and spoke to his children, and Bron summoned them and said: ‘You are all my sons and my daughters in law. Unless we’re obedient, neither you nor I can gain the joy of Paradise. So I want you to be obedient to one of our number. All I can give that is of worth or grace I bestow upon my son Alain, with my prayer that he keep you all in God’s name. And I command you to obey him and take his advice in all your troubles, and he will give you guidance. Be sure to undertake nothing against his will.’
With that the children left their father’s house, knowing they had a protector. And Alain led them into strange lands; and wherever he went, and to all the worthy men and women he met, he recounted the story of the death of Jesus Christ. Alain was blessed with so much of God’s grace that no man could have more.
And so it was that they took their leave; but I do not wish to speak more about them until the right point in my story. When they were gone, Petrus summoned Joseph and all the other companions and said: ‘Sirs, it is time for me to go at Christ’s command.’
They were all of one mind, begging Petrus to stay, and he said: ‘I have no desire to do so, but for love of you I shall stay today and until tomorrow’s service is over.’
So Petrus stayed, and Our Lord, who had arranged how everything was to be, sent his messenger to Joseph saying:
‘Joseph, do not be afraid. You must do the will of Jesus Christ: tell Petrus of the love there has been between you, and then let him go. Do you know why you all felt so eager to keep him here for another day? Our Lord willed it so, so that He could explain the reason for his going; for he will see that your vessel, and everything else you have, will have an end as well as a beginning. Our Lord knows that Bron is a worthy servant, and He wants him to be guardian of the vessel after you. Tell him how to behave as its keeper, and tell him of the love between you and Christ, and everything you have learned in your life of Christ’s deeds, so that you confirm him in his faith. And tell him how Christ came to you in the dungeon and brought you His vessel. The words He taught you when He spoke to you there are the holy words of the sacrament of the Grail. When you have told Bron all this, commend the vessel into his keeping thenceforth; and all who hear tell of him will call him the rich Fisher King because of the fish he caught. 12 There is no other way than this: just as the world is and always will be moving towards night, so must Bron and his people move towards the setting sun – into the West. As soon as the Fisher King has the vessel and grace bestowed upon him, he must journey westward, wherever his heart leads him. And where he comes to rest, there he must await the coming of his son’s son, and when the time is right to do so, pass on to him the vessel and the grace that he will have received from you. Between you then you will have completed a sign of the Trinity, which is in three parts. As for the third of you, what befalls him will be determined by Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all.
‘When you have bequeathed the vessel and grace to Bron and are relieved of them, Petrus will go and report that he has witnessed their bestowal upon the rich Fisher King. This is the reason for his staying until tomorrow. Petrus will go as soon as he has witnessed it. And the Rich Fisher, once he has received the vessel, will travel with it over land and sea, and the Keeper of all good things will watch over him. And you, Joseph, when you have done all this, will leave this earthly life and come to everlasting joy, while your sister’s line will be exalted forever. And all those who tell of them will be loved and cherished by all worthy men and women.’
Joseph did as Christ’s messenger commanded. The next day everyone gathered for the service, and Joseph related to Bron and Petrus everything he had learned from the Holy Spirit – except for the words given to him by Jesus Christ in prison, which he entrusted to the Rich Fisher privately,13 in writing. When the others learned that Joseph would be leaving them, they were deeply dismayed. But once Petrus had heard that Joseph was relieved of the Grail, and had seen him bequeath his grace and entrust his commandments to Bron the rich Fisher King, he took his leave and, when everyone rose from the service, he departed. At his leave-taking there was much lamentation and sighing and shedding of humble tears; and they prayed for Petrus, that God might guide him according to his will and pleasure.
Joseph remained in the company of the rich Fisher King for three days and three nights. Then Bron said to Joseph: ‘Sir, a great desire to leave has come upon me; is it your will that I should go?’
‘It is indeed,’ Joseph replied, ‘since it is the will of Our Lord. You are well aware of what you will be taking with you, and who will be watching over you; no-one knows as well as you and I. Go when you will – and I will go too, as my heavenly Father commands.’
So departed the rich Fisher King – of whom many words have since been spoken – while Joseph stayed behind, and ended his days in the land and country of his birth.
And now anyone who wants to hear the full story will need to know what became of Alain, the son of Bron, and where he had gone and where he was to be found; and know, too, what can be truly told about the fate of Moyse; and where the Rich Fisher went; and how he was to be found by the one who was to come to him. These four parts need to be brought together. I will tie all four strands together again, as surely as I have drawn them apart. But in this, as in all things, God is all-powerful.
But now I must leave these four and tell of the fifth part, until I return to each of them in turn. Were I to do otherwise, you would not understand what became of them, or why I am dealing with them separately.
Notes
1 The Modena manuscript reads �
�belief’. This seems to be a scribal misreading of creance for grace (as suggested by the verse Joseph v. 192).
2 i. e. in the Garden of Eden.
3 i. e. the cross.
4 Curious syntax in the Modena manuscript could suggest that Christ wanted Joseph to be given His body because of His affection for him. I’ve opted for the more likely reading.
5 Literally ‘lord of the Law’.
6 Literally ‘placed in a strong house’.
7 Arithmetic suggests an accidental omission.
8 The manuscript reads ‘me’.
9 The third canonical hour: nine o’clock in the morning.
10 An untranslatable play on words runs through this passage, linking the name graal to the verb agreer (‘to delight’).
11 The manuscript reads ‘dare’ (oses) rather than the more likely ‘know’ (ses).
12 Above, see here.
13 The manuscript reads premierement (‘firstly’) rather than the more likely priveement suggested by the verse Joseph (v. 3420).
Merlin
THE Enemy was filled with rage when Our Lord descended into Hell and freed Adam and Eve and as many more as He pleased. When the demons realised what had happened they were bewildered, and gathered together and said:
‘Who is this man who has broken into our fastness? Nothing we’ve hidden is safe from him: he does whatever he pleases! We thought any man of woman born would be ours; but this one is defeating and tormenting us! How was he born of woman without any involvement with earthly pleasure? He’s outwitting us as we’ve outwitted other men and women!’
Then one of the demons replied, saying: ‘Our own power has been turned against us. Do you remember how the prophets spoke and said that the son of God would come to Earth to save the sinners Eve and Adam and as many more as he pleased? We seized those who said this and tormented them more than the other sinners, but they seemed to be untroubled by our tortures, and comforted the other sinners, saying that the one who was coming to Earth would save them from the pains of Hell. And what the prophets predicted has now happened! He’s robbed us of all we had – we can keep nothing from him! He’s rescued all who believed in his nativity – though by what power we just don’t know.’
‘Don’t you know, then,’ said another, ‘that he has them baptised in water in his name? They cleanse themselves in water in the name of the Father and of the Mother so that we can no longer take them as ours; it’s infuriating – we used to take them wherever we found them! Now they’re lost to us because of this washing! We have no power over them – until they return to us by their own sinful deeds. Thus our power diminishes while his increases. What’s more, he’s left ministers on Earth to save the people – however much they may have been inclined to our work – if they’ll repent and abandon our ways and do as these ministers command. So we’ve lost them all! Great is the spiritual work of Our Lord, who to save mankind came to Earth and was born of woman and suffered earthly torments. And he came without our knowledge and without any involvement with human pleasure. We tested him with every possible temptation; but after we’d tempted him and found in him none of our works, he was willing to die to save mankind. He loves man dearly, willing as he is to endure such pain to rescue him from our bonds. Now we must strive to win man back! He’s taken from us what should be ours! We must find a way to bring men back to doing our works, to such a degree that they could never repent or even speak to those who might grant them forgiveness.’
‘We’ve lost everything,’ they all cried together, ‘for they can be forgiven even mortal sins! If Our Lord finds them willing to repent and turn to his ways, they’re safe. So we’ve lost them all!’
Then the demons spoke amongst themselves, saying: ‘Those who said so most are the prophets: they are the cause of all our troubles! The more they spoke of him, the more we tormented them, and now it seems he hurried to their aid, to rescue them from the tortures we were inflicting. So, then, how can we find a man who’d speak to others on our behalf and tell them of our total knowledge of all things past? If we had such a man, he could converse with the people on Earth and help us greatly to deceive men and women alike, just as the prophets worked against us when we had them here.’ Then they said: ‘It would be a great deed to create such a man, for they would all believe in him.’
Then one of them said: ‘I can’t make seed or conceive a child in a woman, but there’s one among you who could, and I know a woman who’s somewhat in my power. Let the one who can take the shape of a man do so in utmost secrecy.’
And so the demons plotted to conceive a man who would work to deceive others. They were foolish indeed to think Our Lord would not know of their plan! Then one of the demons said he would devote all his thought and wit to deceiving followers of Christ; you may clearly see the Devil’s folly, if he imagines he can work such deception.
Their gathering broke up with this plan agreed. And the one who claimed to have the power to lie with a woman made no delay, but came straight to her and found her most amenable. She yielded entirely to the Enemy. She was the wife of a wealthy man, who owned great herds and fine estates and other riches, and she had a son and three daughters. The demon did not neglect his task but went into the fields and contemplated how he could deceive the woman. One day he came to her and asked her how he could trick her husband. And she replied that he would be mightily angry ‘if you took our possessions’. So the demon went and slaughtered a great many of the good man’s flocks. When the shepherds saw their sheep dying in the open fields they were amazed and said they would report it to their lord, and they went and told him that his animals were dying in the middle of the fields. He was shocked and enraged, and said: ‘Is this true?’
‘Yes,’ they replied; and he wondered what could be wrong with them to make them die so.
‘Do you know what could be causing their deaths?’ he asked the shepherds; but they said they had no idea. So matters stayed that day. And when the demon saw the worthy man was angered by so little, he realised that if he did him greater harm he would make him enraged indeed, and by so doing, bring him into his power. So he returned to where the livestock was kept and came upon two beautiful horses in the rich man’s stable; and he killed them both in the same night. When the good man saw the ill fortune that had befallen him he was filled with rage, and his fury drove him to a foolish utterance: that he gave everything that remained to him to the Devil.
The demon was delighted to hear of this gift, and began to assail the man mercilessly to cause him further misery, leaving him none of his animals at all. Such were the good man’s grief and wrath that he shunned all human company. Seeing this, the demon knew for certain that the man was in his power. He came to the rich man’s handsome son and strangled him in his bed. In the morning the child was found dead. And when the worthy man knew he had lost his son he gave way to despair and abandoned his faith. Knowing the man had lost his faith filled the demon with delight, and he went to the wife – thanks to whom he had achieved all this – and made her climb on to a box in her cellar and put a rope around her neck and then pushed her off and strangled her: she was found hanging there. When the worthy man realised he had lost his wife as well as his son in such a manner he was overcome with grief so great that he fell ill and died. This is how the Devil works with those he can bring into his power.
Having done all this the demon was elated, and pondered on how he could deceive the three daughters who remained. He knew he could not unless he worked in a way that would please them. There was a young man in the town who was much inclined towards him, so he took him to the girls and had him begin to court one of them. Such were the youth’s deeds and words that she was utterly deceived, to the demon’s delight; and he did not want his conquest kept secret: he wanted it known openly to cause the greater shame. So the demon ensured that word was spread until it was common knowledge. At this time it was the custom that if a woman was taken in adultery, she should either give herself to all men or be put to death.
The Devil, ever eager to bring disgrace upon those who come to him, made the matter known to the judges: the young man fled, but the girl was seized and led before them.
When the judges saw her, they felt great pity for her worthy father, and said: ‘It’s amazing that so much ill has befallen him in so little time: only a short while ago he was one of the wealthiest men in the land.’
And they discussed what to do and what sentence to pass, and they all agreed to bury her alive one night; and that is what they did.
Now in that land there was a worthy man who was a good confessor, and hearing of these strange events he came to the other two sisters, the eldest and the youngest, and began to give them comfort, and asked them how this misfortune had befallen them.
‘We don’t know, sir,’ they replied, ‘but we think God must hate us, to let us suffer this torment.’
‘You’re wrong to say so,’ said the good man. ‘God hates no-one; rather, it grieves him deeply when a sinner hates himself. I’m certain your misfortune is the work of a demon. As for your sister, whom you’ve lost in such a shameful way, do you know the truth about what she did?’
‘No, sir,’ they replied.
‘Beware of wicked deeds,’ he said, ‘for they lead sinners to a woeful end.’
The good man gave them fine advice, if they were willing to heed it. The eldest daughter listened well and delighted in the good man’s words. He taught her all about his faith and the powers of Jesus Christ, and she listened diligently.
‘If you believe my words,’ he said, ‘great good will come to you; and you shall be my God-daughter, and whenever a great task or need confronts you, if you ask for my support I’ll give you aid and advice with the help of Our Lord. Never fear,’ he said, ‘for Our Lord will assist you if you’re true to Him; and come to me often, for I shan’t be far from here.’
Merlin and the Grail Page 7