Middle English Physiologus:

-Anonymous, ca. 1250

Modern Translation by Mary Allyson Armistead

1. The Lion categories of interpretation:

2. The Eagle
3. The Serpent 1- literal
4. The Ant 2- allegorical
5. The Hart
6. The Fox -rhetorical
7. The Spider - OT to NT
8. The Whale
9. The Siren
3- tropological
10. The Elephant - trope: to turn (R)
11. The Turtle-Dove
- moral
12. The Panther
13. The Dove 4- anagogical (above/beyond this world)

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 The First Nature of the Lion

1 The lion stands on a hill, and when he hears a man hunting,

Or scents a man approaching,
By whatever way he will go down to the valley. literal
All his footprints he fills up after him;
5 He drags dust with his tail wherever he steps down — meaning
Either dust or dew so that he cannot be found —
And hastens down to his den, where he may take refuge.

The lion has another characteristic: when he is born,

The lion lies still; he stirs not from sleep
10 Until the sun has shone thrice around him;
Then his father rouses him with his cry.

The lion has a third characteristic: when he lies sleeping,

He never closes the lids of his eyes.
The Significance of the First Characteristic
Very high is that hill, which is heaven's kingdom;
15 Our Lord Christ is the lion, who lives above.
Oh! When it pleased our Lord to come down here to earth,
The devil did not know, though he hunts stealthily,

The Significance of the First Characteristic

Very high is that hill, which is heaven's kingdom;

15 Our Lord Christ is the lion, who lives above.
Oh! When it pleased our Lord to come down here to earth,
The devil did not know, though he hunts stealthily,
How he descended, nor how he sought shelter in that humble maiden,
Mary, who bore him for the salvation of all mankind. story of mary

2&3

20 When our lord was dead and buried, as was his will,
He lay still in the stone tomb until the third day. tropological &
Then his father helped him rise from the dead so that anagogical meaning
He might give us life.
He keeps watch –this is his will – as a shepherd for his flock.
25 He is the shepherd, we are the sheep; he will protect us—
If we obey his word—so that we do not go astray.

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The Nature of the Eagle

I will speak of the nature of the eagle,

As I have read of it in books:
How he renews his youth,
30 How he escapes old age,
When his limbs are weak,
When his beak is completely twisted,
When his flight is feeble,
And his eyes are dim.
35 Hear how he renews himself:
He seeks a well that always springs
Both by night and day.
He flies above it and up he goes
Until he sees heaven;
40 Through whatever clouds may chance to come his way
He reaches heaven,
And hovers as straight in front
Of the sun as he can.
The sun singes his wings,
45 And clears his eyes;
His feathers fall off from the heat,
And he —down into the water—
Falls to the bottom of the well,

Where he would become healthy and sound

50 And emerge anew
If his beak was not still crooked.
But his beak is still twisted in the front,
And even though his limbs are strong
And he may not procure food
55 Of any benefit to himself.
He then goes to a stone
And he strikes on it;
He strikes until his beak
Is no longer crooked.
60 When his bill is right,
He takes food whenever he wishes.
The Significance
As is man, so is the eagle.
Listen now:
He is old in his innate sins
65 Before he becomes Christian.
Thus man renews himself
When he goes to church.
But before he considered it,

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 His eyes were dim.
70 He renounces Satan
And each sinful deed;
He devotes himself to Jesus Christ,
For Christ shall be his reward.
He believes in our Lord Christ,
75 And learns the teaching of priests;
The mist of his eyes fades away
While he remains there.
His hope is all toward God,
And he learns that God's love
80 Is surely the sun;
Thus his sight is restored.
Then he falls naked in the font
And emerges all anew,
Except for a little thing - and what is that?
85 His mouth is still crooked.
His mouth is still completely unacquainted
With Our Father and the Creed.
He may travel north or he may travel south,
But he will learn what is necessary for himself:
90 He shall ask a request of God,
And thus his mouth will be right;
Procure the food of the soul
Through the grace of our Lord.

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The First Nature of the Serpent

A worm is in the world — man knows it well.

95 Serpent is its name, and he renews himself in this way:
When he is broken, made monstrous, and in his old age all enfeebled,
He fasts ten full days until his skin grows loose on him,
So that he is emaciated and weak and can scarcely crawl.
He crawls forth lamely, and his skill he thus exercises:
100 He seeks a stone with a hole in it,
And forces himself to be narrow, but goes through with difficulty,
For his skin he leaves behind there, and his flesh crawl forth.
He moves toward the water where he will drink,
But before he does he spews out all the venom
105 That has bred in his breast since his birth-time.
Then he drinks a great deal and thus renews himself.

If the serpent is bare of skin and of the venom in his breast

And he sees a naked man, he will not approach him,
But will flee from him, as he flees from fire.
110 If he sees a clothed man, he grows fierce,
For he assumes an upright position, ready to inflict injury;
To injure or to kill—if he may achieve it.
But what if the man were capable and became aware of him
And fights against this serpent and attacks him?
115 Then this serpent, since he is in need,
Makes a shield of his body and protects his head.
He cares little about his limbs, so long as he protects his life.

The Significance

Know, Christian man, what Christ promised you

At the church-door, where you were christened;
120 You promised to believe in him and love his laws,
To practice with sincerity the precepts of the holy church.
If you have failed to obey, then you are corrupted;
You are lost and withering as far as the attainment of eternal life is concerned.
You have failed to attain eternal bliss, as the worm of this world has.
125 Renew yourself, for that reason, as the serpent does: it is your need.
Confirm yourself in steadfastness and full virtue,
And help the poor men who wander from place to place.
Do not deem yourself so worthy that you dare look
Up toward heaven,
130 But walk with the people of the earth, humbly among men;
Do not have pride — as pride is an evil feature of man —
But stop sinning
And always ask for forgiveness, both by night and by day,

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 So that you may have forgiveness for your sins.
135 This life symbolizes the path by which the serpent moves,
As Christ is the hole in the stone that you must go through.
Cast your filth from you, as the serpent does his skin;
Go then to God's house to listen to the Gospel:
That is the soul's drink, and sin's quenching.
140 But before you confess your sins to the priest,
Cleanse yourself of the impurity in your breast and confirm
Firmly in your heart what you promised foremost:
Thus you are young and renewed; from now on be true.
The Devil will not oppress you, for he cannot inflict injury on you,
145 But he will flee from you, as the serpent from a naked man.
Towards the clothed man the serpent is fierce & the Devil highly skilled in seizing
sins.
He will always beset the sinful
And towards all mankind have malice and animosity.
But what happens if he has permission from our Lord of Heaven
150 To harm us, as he did our ancestors before us?
Then let us subject the body to the sufferings of the world and protect the soul —
Which is equal to the serpent’s head — and hold it in high esteem.

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The Nature of the Ant

The ant is strong: greatly she toils,

In summer and in mild weather, as we have often seen.
155 In the autumn she moves about vigorously
And runs hurriedly and seldom rests
And fetches her food wherever she may find it.
She gathers seed of every kind, both from trees and plants,
From grain and grass, so that she may have bounty.
160 She then drags to her hole that which helps her:
There she will meet winter.
She has a cave to crawl into, so that winter does not injure her,
And food in her shelter so that she might remain alive.
Thus she procures while she has the opportunity, as it says here.
165 But if she could find wheat —grain that is pleasing to her —
She will always abandon this other seed that I described before.
She does not wish to carry barley from place to place,
But avoids it and moves on, as if it were something to be ashamed of.
Yet there is another marvel concerning this insect — greater than one expects:
170 The grain that she carries to the cave, all of it she bites in two,
So that it does not perish, so that she does not lose it, before she eats it.

The Significance

The ant admonishes us to procure food —

Long-lasting provisions for the little time we are in this world —
For when we die, it is our winter.
175 We shall have hunger and severe attacks of pain, unless we are prudent here:
Let us for that reason, then, be strong like this creature
On that Day of Judgment, so that it will not grieve us severely.
Let us seek our life's provisions, so that we are safe there,
As this insect is in winter, when she labors no more.
180 The ant shuns barley when she finds wheat —
The old law we ought to shun, the new we must have.
The grain that she carries to her cave, all of it she bites in two —
The law teaches us to do what is good and to forsake sin;
It offers us the teachings of this world and shows us the spiritual,
185 It feeds the body and the spirit, but not equally.
Our Lord Christ grants us the law that will feed us,
Now and on Doomsday and when we have need.

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The Nature of the Hart

The hart has two characteristics

And allegorical interpretations as well:
190 Thus it is set down in a book
By that man called 'Physiologus.'
The hart drags the serpent from the stone
Up by his nose at once,
From a tree trunk or from a stone,
195 For it will go under
And swallow it very quickly:
Then because of it he burns himself.
From that venomous creature
He has burning pain inside.
200 He rushes then with great dexterity:
He is thirsty for fresh water.
And so he drinks water greedily
Until he is completely full:
That venom does not have the power
205 To injure him any more then. 5
Then he casts off his horns
On a tree or on thorn bushes
And thus this wild creature rejuvenates himself,
As you have now learned here.

The First Significance

210 All of us draw venom from our ancestors,

Who failed to obey the word of the Lord through the serpent.
Because of this, mankind has
Both malice and animosity,
Lechery and covetousness,
215 Gluttony and concupiscence,
Pride and presumption,
Such venom together.
Often we burn in anger
And we become as though we were mad;
220 When we thus burn,
It is fitting for us to run
To Christ's living well,
So that we do not go to hell.
Let us drink his guidance:
225 It extinguishes every act of sinning;
Let us cast off pride completely,
As the hart does his horns;
Let us be rejuvenated thus in God

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 And take heed from now on.

The Second Nature

230 The hart has another characteristic

That ought to be in all our minds:
All are of one mind,
For, if they fetch food far away
And they go over water,
235 They will not desert another in distress,
But one swims in front
And all the others follow.
Whether he swims or he wades,
He does not abandon the other in distress.
240 But places his chin
On the other's haunch.
If that one in front happens to grow tired,
All the others with him will come and help to drag him,
And carry him from the bottom of the river
245 Up to the land all healthy and sound
And provide for his needs.
This practice they have among them
Even if a hundred of them are together.

The Second Significance

The habits of the hart we ought to consider:

250 Do not shun others
But let everyone love each other,
As if he were his brother;
Let us becomes steadfast toward his friend,
Let us relieve him of his burden;
255 Let us help him in his time of need;
God therefore gives a reward:
We shall have the kingdom of heaven
If we are helpful amongst ourselves.
Thus is the Lord's law lovingly observed;
260 Concerning this we have great need, so we should not be slothful about it.

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The Nature of the Fox

A wild creature that is full of many wiles:

The Fox is named for her wickedness.
Householders hate her for her harmful acts:
She steals the cock and capon from the farm-yard,
265 And snatches the gander and the goose, by the neck and by the nose.
She drags them to her hole, and for that reason men hate her;
Both men and birds hate her and chase her away with shouting.
Hear now about a wondrous method whereby this creature satisfies its hunger:
She goes to a furrow in a field and falls into it,
270 Either in ploughed land or in a crevice in the ground to deceive birds.
She does not stir from that place for a good many days,
But lies still and does not breathe as though she were dead.
The raven —who is always alert —believes that she is rotting,
And the other birds along with it come down to her to obtain food.
275 Without hesitation, without doubt, they think that she is dead.
They desire the fox’s flesh and she perceives it completely:
So she leaps up quickly and prevents them at once,
And rewards their pecking with injury,
And pulls and tears them to pieces with her sharp teeth;
280 She eats her fill and then goes where she will.

The Significance

Twofold are the allegorical interpretations of this creature,

And to benefit we must find them:
They are prudence and wisdom
Against the devil and evil man
285 The devil harms stealthily:
He pretends he will not deceive us,
He pretends that he will not do us any harm
And then he drives us to sin and there he slays us.
He bids us to do the will of our belly,
290 To eat and drink excessively,
And in our enjoyment
He does at once the fox's trick.
He who pecks on the fox's skin
Tells idle stories,
295 And he who tears into flesh
Feeds on sin;
May the devil reward such pecking
With shame and with disgrace,
And for his sinful behavior
300 May he lead man to dark hell.

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The Significance

The Devil is thus like the fox,

With his evil tricks and treachery,
And men, like the fox’s name,
Are deserving of shame
305 For whoever says good to another
And thinks evil things in his mind
Is a fox and a fiend indeed —
The Book does not speak falsely of this.
In the same way Herod was a fox and a deceiver:
310 When Christ came into this world
He said he would believe in him
And thought how he would kill him.

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The Nature of the Spider

Creatures created by our Creator are evident in the world —

Hideous and horrible —and we believe that
315 Many different kinds of creatures are for man's guidance.
The spider quickly weaves her web,
By fastening her threads at the roof of a house,
On a roof or on eaves, as if she were on a hill,
And thus casts her web and weaves it in her habit.
320 When she has it all ready, from that place she hastens,
And hides herself in her hole, but always watches it
Until flies come and become trapped in it,
Who struggle in that web and wish to get out.
Then she runs quickly, for she is always prepared:
325 She goes at once to the net and seizes them there.
Fiercely she bites them and here becomes a murderer,
She kills and drinks their blood, she does herself no other kindness,
Except eat her fill and then sit still.

The Significance

This insect symbolizes the man who deceives another,

330 Anywhere, at any time,
In meeting or in market, or in any other way.
He bites him when he inflicts pain
And drinks his blood when he vexes him
And devours him when he works evil upon him.

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The Nature of the Whale

335 The whale is a fish,

The largest in the water.
You would say, moreover,
If you saw it when it floated,
That it was an island
340 That sat on the bottom of the sea.
When this enormous fish
Is hungry, he opens his mouth wide.
Out of his throat rushes a breath,
The sweetest thing that is on the earth.
345 Therefore other fish are drawn to him.
When they feel it, they are glad.
They come and linger in his mouth;
But of his treacherous intent they are unaware.
This whale then closes his jaws,
350 And the fish are all sucked in.
The small he will thus deceive;
The big he may not seize.
This fish dwells on the bottom of the sea
And lives there all the time healthy and sound
355 Until the time comes
When the storm stirs all the sea,
When summer and winter contend:
He may not dwell therein,
So turbid is the bottom of the sea,
360 That he cannot dwell there at that time
But must move up and hovers motionless
While the weather is bad.
The ships that are on the sea are tossed about by wind or waves,
Hateful to them is death, and life to live;
365 They look around and see this fish:
And think it is an island.
Because of this they are very glad
And with all their might they move toward it
And the ships moor on it
370 And all go up to it.
From stone and steel in the tinder
A blazing fire they kindle on this marvel,
And warm themselves thoroughly and eat and drink.
Then he feels the fire and sinks them,
375 For at once he dives down to the bottom
And he drowns them all without wound.

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The Significance

This devil is great with deceit and power,

As witches are in their sorcery.
He makes men feel hunger and thirst
380 And many other sinful desires.
He entices men to him with his breath:
Whoever follows him, will find disgrace.
Those who are small, are weak in faith;
The large he is unable to draw to him —
385 By large, I mean the steadfast,
Those who are right in faith with flesh and spirit.
Whoever listens to the devil's lore,
In the end shall grieve bitterly:
Whoever puts trust in him,
390 Shall follow him to dark hell.

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The Nature of the Mermaid

In the sea there are many marvels.

The mermaid is like a maiden:
In breast and body she is thus joined:
From the navel downward she is not like a maid
395 But a fish very certainly with sprouted fins.
This marvel dwells in an unstable place where the water subsides.
She sinks ships and causes suffering,
She sings sweetly —this siren—and has many voices,
Many and resonant, but they are very dangerous.
400 Sailors forget their steering because of her singing;
They slumber and sleep and wake too late,
And the ships sink in a whirlpool and cannot surface anymore.
But wise and wary men and are able to return;
Often they escape with all the strength they have.
405 They have said of this siren, that she is so grotesque,
Half maid and half fish: something is meant by this.

The Significance

Many men have the sign

Of this thing that is given as an example:
Outside they wear a sheep's skin;
410 Inside they are all wolves.
They speak piously
And their deeds are wicked.
Their behavior is different
From that which is spoken from their mouth.
415 Twofold are they in mind:
They swear by the Cross,
By the sun and by the moon,
And they soon deceive themselves.
Meanwhile with their words and with their song
420 They betray you:
Your possessions with deceit
The soul with lying.

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The Nature of the Elephant

Elephants are abundant in India,

And are big in body like mountains.
425 They wander together over the world,
Like sheep that come out of an enclosure,
And come together in the rear
When they beget another.
But they are so cold by nature
430 That no lechery is in their minds
Until they eat from a plant,
By the name of mandrake.
Then they beget one
And for two years they carry it.
435 Even if for three hundred years
They dwelled here in this world,
They do not beget ever again—
So cold is their blood and bone.
When she shall give birth to her young one
440 She will stand in water—
In water to the middle of her side—
So that when her hard time happens,
She will not fall down.
That is foremost in her mind,
445 For they do not have any joints
That they might rise themselves up with.
As to how this creature rests himself
After walking a great distance,
Listen to what is said here:
450 Because he is always unwieldy,
A tree he seeks—to full certainty—
That is both strong and firmly rooted
And leans himself confidently against it
When he is weary from walking.
455 The hunter has observed this,
Who will trap him
Wherever the best opportunity arises
To do his will.
He saws through this tree and props it up
460 In a way that might be better
And conceals it well, so that the elephant is not aware of it
When he goes to that place.
Then the hunter sits himself down and watches alone,
As to whether his trap succeeds in any respect.
465 Then comes the unwieldy elephant
And leans himself up on his side.

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 As he sleeps by the tree in the shade
They both collapse together.
If there is no man, when he falls,
470 He roars and calls for help.
He cries out pitifully in his way,
Hoping he shall rise through help.
Then there comes one walking,
And the elephant hopes that he will help him stand up.
475 He struggles and tries with all his might;
He cannot achieve it,
Nor can the other,
But he cries out with his brother.
Many and great come walking there,
480 And expect to put him back on his feet,
But in spite of the help from them all
He is not able to get back on his feet.
Then they all utter a cry
Like a horn's blast or a bell's sound.
485 Then, because of their great roaring,
A young one comes running:
At once he bends down to him,
And puts his snout under him
And with the help of them all,
490 They put this elephant back on his feet,
And thus he escapes this hunter's trap
In the way that I have just said.

The Significance

Thus Adam fell by means of a tree—

Our first father, from whom we fell.
495 Moses wished to raise him,
But it was not achieved,
And after him all the prophets
Could not put him back on his feet—
On his feet, I say, where he stood before,
500 To have the reward of the Kingdom of Heaven.
They sighed and grieved and were anxious
As to how they might help him at all.
Then they all cried out in one voice,
All loudly up to the heavens.
505 Because of their distress and their cries,
Christ, the King of Heaven, came to them.
He, who is forever great in heaven,
Became a man and thus was small:
He suffered tribulation in our human form

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510 And thus he died for Adam,
And raised himself up and all of mankind,
Who had fallen into dark hell.

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The Nature of the Turtle Dove

In books the life of the turtle dove is written in rhymed verse,

How she is faithful in love her entire life:
515 Once she has a mate, from him she will not part —
Admonish, women, her life, I advise you!
At night she sits by her mate, at day she flies;
Whoever says that they part, I say that he is lying.
But if her mate dies and she is a widow,
520 Then she flies alone and wanders—no other will she take again.
So alone she goes and alone she sits and waits for her old loved one:
She has him in her heart night and day, as though he were alive forever.

The Significance

Listen to this, every pious man, and take heed:

Our soul at the church-door chooses Christ as its mate.
525 He is our soul spouse, so let us love him fervently
And never go away from him by day nor by night.
Although he wanders from our sight, let us be true to him:
Believe in no other lord, nor a new loved one.
Believe that he lives forever on high in the kingdom of heaven
530 And from that place he shall come again and be helpful to us all,
In order to judge all men, but not equally:
His foes shall go to hell, his beloved to his kingdom.

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The Panther

The panther is a wild creature;

There is none more beautiful in this world.
535 He is as black as the back of a whale
And created with white spots—
White and rounded like a wheel—
And it suits him very well.
Wherever he dwells this panther
540 Feeds on all the other creatures.
From those he will choose
And feed well until he is satisfied.
In his hole without moving,
He will then sleep for three days,
545 And after the third day
He rises and roars as loud as he can.
When he cries forth in every direction,
A smell emerges from his throat
That surpasses sweet healing liquid—
550 A fragrance, I say to you,
And all that ever smelled sweet,
Be it dry or be it wet.
Because of the sweetness of his breath,
Wherever he walks on land,
555 Wherever he journeys or wherever he dwells,
Each creature who hears him comes to him
And follows him on the earth
Because of the sweetness that I have described to you.
Only the dragons do not stir
560 While the panther cries out
But lie still in their pit
As if they were frightened to death.

The Significance

Christ is symbolized by this creature—

Whose nature we have described to you here—
565 For he is fair above all men
Like the evening star over the dirt of the earth.
Full well he showed his love to man
When through the Gospel Christ redeemed him
And for a long time lay there in the hole —
570 May good fortune befall him who would suffer it.
For three days he slept continuously
When he was dead in blood and bone.
Then up he rose and cried out

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 Of hell's torment, of heaven's bliss
575 And ascended to heaven's highest,
Where he dwelled with the Father and the Holy Ghost.
A sweet smell among men
He let from his Gospel,
Through which we may follow him
580 Into his perfect divine nature.
And wherever God's word is sound,
That serpent— our enemy—
Dares not stir, nor harm any man,
While his law and love are obeyed and cherished.

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The Nature and Significance of the Dove

585 The dove has good habits:

They should always be in mind.
There are seven habits in her nature,
And all of them ought to be in our thoughts.
She has no malice in her—
590 Honest and gentle we all should be.
She does not live by snatching –
Let us abandon robbing without hesitation.
The worm she leaves and lives on seed –
We have need of Christ’s teaching.
595 To other birds she acts like a mother –
So ought everyone do with others.
Her song is like lamentation and wailing –
Let us lament: we have sinned.
In the water she is aware of the hawk’s approach –
600 And we in the book of the devil's seizing.
In the hole of a stone she makes her nest –
In Christ's forgiveness our hope is greatest.

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