Page:King Alfred's Old English version of St. Augustine's Soliloquies - Hargrove - 1902.djvu/123

Rh ālǣtan. Gyf ðū nū þis gemynst and þises gelīfest, ðonne wāst ðū būton twēon þæt þū æart and simle bist and simle lifast and simle hwæthwugu wāst, þēah þū æall nyte þæt ðū witan woldest. Nū þū wāst be ðām þrēom þingum þe ðū æfter ācsodest, þæt is (1) hweðer þū ā wēre; (2) hweðer ðū ā hwæthwugu wisse; (3) hweðer ðū æfter þæs līchaman gedāle and þǣre sāwle māre wisse þonne ðū nū wāst, þe lǣsse. Æfter ðām fēorðan wit sceolon gȳet spurian, nū þū þā ðrēo wāst, oð ðū ǣac þæt wite.

A. Swīðe endebyrdlice þū hyt recst, ac ic þē wille secgan gēt þēah hwæs [ic] þǣr fæstlice gelȳfe [and] ymb hwæt ic þǣr gȳt twēoge. Ne getwēoge ic nāwuht be Godes ǣcnesse and be hys ælmihtihnesse, forðām hyt ne meg nū hū ælles bēon be þǣre ðrīnnesse and be ðāre ānnesse, ðē būtan fruman wæs and būtan ænde is. Forðī ic ne mæg nā hū ælles gelȳfan, forþām he swā micla and swā manega , and swā wundorlice gesewena gesceafta gesceapen hæfð; and þām æallum stīorð and hī æalle gemetgað, and oððre hwīle gegiereð myd ðām winsumestum wlitum, ōðre hwīle eft ongiereð and geungewlitegað. He wealt þāra kynninga de mǣstne ānweald hæbbað þisse myddangeardes, ðā bēoð eallum mannum gelīce ācende, and ǣac ōðrum mannum gelīce sweltað. Þā [hē] lǣt rīcsian ðā hwīle þe hē wyle. For swilcum and for manegum swilcum ic nāt hū ic twēogan mage hys ǣcnesse; nē ǣac be ūre sāwle līfe ic nū ðon mā nāwuht ne twēoge. Ac ic twēoge gȳt be heora ēcnesse, hweðer hī ā lybbende sien.

G. Ymb hwæt twēost ðū þǣr? Hū ne sint æalle hālga bēc ful nēah fulle be undēadlycnesse þære sāwle? Ac mē þincð nū þæt tō lang æall tō rīmande, and ðē tō ælenge tō gehȳranne.

A. Ic hys hæbbe goodne dǣl gehȳred, and ic hys eac gelīfe; ac mē lyste hyt nū bet tō witanne þonne to gelȳfanne.

G. Ic wundrige hwī ðū swā swīðe georne and swā gewislic [wilnodest] þæt tō witanne, þætte nēfre nān man of