Folio 53v - the goose, continued. [De ardea] ; Of the heron
the discerning brother sees evidence of negligence, his warning voice serves to repel the old enemy, the Devil. The cackling of the goose saved the city of Rome from enemy attack; the warning voice of the discerning brother guards the life of his community from disruption by the wicked.
Divine providence would not, perhaps, have revealed to us the characteristics of birds, if it had not wanted the knowledge to be of some benefit to us.
[Of the heron]
It is called heron, ardea, as if from ardua, meaning 'high', because of its capacity to fly high in the sky; it fears rain and flies above the clouds to avoid experiencing the storms they bring. A heron taking wing shows a storm is coming.
Many people call the heron Tantalus, after the king who betrayed the secrets of the gods. Rabanus says on this subject: 'This bird can signify the souls of the elect, who fear the disorder of this world, lest they be caught up by chance in the storms of persecution stirred up by the Devil, and raise their minds, reaching above all worldly things to the tranquility of their home in heaven, where the countenance of God is forever to be seen.
Although the heron seeks its food in water, nevertheless it builds its nest in woodland, in tall trees, as the righteous man, whose sustenance is uncertain and transitory, places his hope in splendid and exalted things.
The soul of man sustained by transitory things, rejoices in the eternal.
The heron tries with its beak to prevent its nestlings from being seized by other birds. So the righteous man lashes with his tongue those who, to his knowledge, are evilly inclined to deceive the gullible.
Some herons are white, some grey, but both colours can be taken in a good sense, if white signifies purity, grey, penitence. To the same kind
- Commentary
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Commentary
Text
Herons. The white feathers signify purity.
Illustration
A portrait of three herons, the one on the right holding an especially characteristic pose.
Comment
The tail feathers are more like those of a crane. The rubric is missing. Initial type 2.
Folio Attributes
- Transcription and Translation
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Transcription
negligentias viderit clamor discreti fratris hostem repel\ lit antiquum. Clamor anseris urbem Romanam ab im\ petu hostium servavit immunem, clamor discreti fratris\ ne turbetur a perversis custodit vitam communem. Forsi\ tan divina providentia naturas volucrum nobis non propo\ neret, nisi eas nobis in aliquo forte prodesse vellet.\ [De ardea] \ Ardea vocata, quasi ar\ dua, propter altos vola\ tus, formidat imbres, et super\ nubes evolat, ut procellas nu\ bium sentire non possit. Cum\ autem volaverit, significat\ tempestatem. Hanc multi\ Tantalum vocant. Unde Ra\ banus: Hec avis potest signi\ ficare animas electorum, que formidantes perturbationem\ huius seculi, ne forte procellis persecutionum instigante diabo\ lo involvantur, intentionem suam super omnia tempora\ lia ad serenitatem patrie celesti[s]s ubi assidue vultus dei\ conspicitur, mentes suas elevant. Licet ardea cibos in aquis\ querat, in silvis tamen et in altis arboribus nidum locat,\ quia iustus qui rebus labentibus et transitoriis seipsum pascit,\ in raris sublimibusque spem ponit. Et cuius sustentatur\ transitoriis, eius anima delectatur eternis. Ardea pullos in\ nido rostro defendere nititur, ne ab aliis avibus rapiantur.\ Eodem modo iustus forti invectione percutit, quos perversos ad\ decipiendum subiectos novit. Quedam vero earum habent\ colorem album, quedam cinericium, uterque tamen color\ in bonam partem ponitur, si per album mundicia, per cineri\ cium penitentia designetur. Eiusdem enim generis sunt\Translation
the discerning brother sees evidence of negligence, his warning voice serves to repel the old enemy, the Devil. The cackling of the goose saved the city of Rome from enemy attack; the warning voice of the discerning brother guards the life of his community from disruption by the wicked. Divine providence would not, perhaps, have revealed to us the characteristics of birds, if it had not wanted the knowledge to be of some benefit to us. [Of the heron] It is called heron, ardea, as if from ardua, meaning 'high', because of its capacity to fly high in the sky; it fears rain and flies above the clouds to avoid experiencing the storms they bring. A heron taking wing shows a storm is coming. Many people call the heron Tantalus, after the king who betrayed the secrets of the gods. Rabanus says on this subject: 'This bird can signify the souls of the elect, who fear the disorder of this world, lest they be caught up by chance in the storms of persecution stirred up by the Devil, and raise their minds, reaching above all worldly things to the tranquility of their home in heaven, where the countenance of God is forever to be seen. Although the heron seeks its food in water, nevertheless it builds its nest in woodland, in tall trees, as the righteous man, whose sustenance is uncertain and transitory, places his hope in splendid and exalted things. The soul of man sustained by transitory things, rejoices in the eternal. The heron tries with its beak to prevent its nestlings from being seized by other birds. So the righteous man lashes with his tongue those who, to his knowledge, are evilly inclined to deceive the gullible. Some herons are white, some grey, but both colours can be taken in a good sense, if white signifies purity, grey, penitence. To the same kind
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