As when the flashing levin haps to light
Uppon two stubborne oakes, which stand so neare
That way betwixt them none appeares in fight;
The engin fiercely flying forth, doth teare
Th'one from the earth, and through the aire doth beare;
The other it with force doth overthrow
Uppon one fide, and from his rootes doth reare:
So did the championeffe those two there ftrow,
And to their fire their carcaffes left to beftow.
Britomart comes to Ifis church,
Where fhee ftrange vifions fees:
She fights with Radigund, her flaies,
And Artegall thence frees,
OUGHT is on earth more facred or divine,
That gods and men doe equally adore,
Then this fame vertue that doth right define:
For th❜hevens themselves, whence mortal men implore
Right in their wrongs, are rul'd by righteous lore
Of highest love, who doth true iuftice deale
To his inferiour gods, and evermore
Therewith containes his heavenly common-weale:
The skill whereof to princes hearts he doth reveale.
Well therefore did the antique world invent
That Iuftice was a god of foveraine grace,
And altars unto him and temples lent,
And heavenly honours in the highest place;
Calling him
great Ofyris, of the race
Of th' old Aegyptian kings that whylome were,
With fayned colours fhading a true cafe;
For that Ofyris whileft he lived here,
The iufteft man alive and trueft did appeare,
His wife was Ifis, whom they likewife made
A goddeffe of great powre and foverainty,
And in her perfon cunningly did shade
That part of iuftice which is equity,
Whereof I have to treat here presently :
Unto whose temple whenas Britomart
Arrived, fhee with great humility
Did enter in, ne would that night depart;
But Talus mote not be admitted to her part.
IV.
There the received was in goodly wize
Of many priests, which duely did attend
Uppon the rites and daily facrifize,
All clad in linnen robes with filver hemd;
And on their heads with long locks comely kemd
They wore rich mitres shaped like the moone,
To fhew that Ifis doth the moone portend;
Like as Ofyris fignifies the funne:
For that they both like race in equall iuftice runne.
The championeffe them greeting, as fhe could,
Was thence by them into the temple led;
Whofe goodly building when she did behold
Borne uppon ftately pillours, all dispred
With fhining gold, and arched over hed,
She wondred at the workmans paffing skill,
Whofe like before she never faw nor red;
And thereuppon long while stood gazing still,
But thought that the thereon could never gaze her fill.
Thenceforth unto the idoll they her brought;
The which was framed all of filver fine,
So well as could with cunning hand be wrought,
And clothed all in garments made of line,
Hemd all about with fringe of filver twine:
Uppon her head she wore a crowne of gold;
To fhew that she had powre in things divine:
And at her feete a crocodile was rold,
That with her wreathed taile her middle did enfold.
Therefore they mote not taste of fleshly food,
Ne feed on ought the which doth bloud containe,
Ne drinke of wine; for wine they say is blood,
Even the bloud of gyants, which were flaine
By thundring love in the Phlegrean plaine :
For which the Earth (as they the story tell).
Wroth with the gods, which to perpetuall paine
Had damn'd her fonnes which gainst them did rebell,
With inward griefe and malice did against them fwell:
And of their vitall bloud, the which was thed
Into her pregnant bofome, forth fhe brought
The fruitfull vine; whofe liquor blouddy red,
Having the mindes of men with fury fraught,
Mote in them ftirre up old rebellious thought
To make new warre against the gods againe :
Such is the powre of that fame fruit, that nought
The fell contagion may thereof reftraine,
Ne within reasons rule her madding mood containe.
XII.
There did the warlike maide herselfe repofe,
Under the wings of Ifis all that night;
And with sweete reft her heavy-eyes did clofe,
After that long daies toile and weary plight :
Where whileft her earthly parts with foft delight
Of fenceleffe fleepe did deeply drowned lie,
There did appeare unto her heavenly spright
A wondrous vifion, which did close implie
The course of all her fortune and pofteritie.
XIII.
Her feem'd as she was doing facrifize
To Ifis, deckt with mitre on her hed
And linnen stole after those priestes guize,
All fodainely she saw transfigured
Her linnen stole to robe of fcarlet red,
And moone-like mitre to a crowne of gold;
That even she herfelfe much wondered
At fuch a chaunge, and ioyed to behold
Herfelfe adorn'd with gems and iewels manifold.
XIV.
And in the midst of her felicity
An hideous tempeft feemed from below
To rife through all the temple fodainely,
That from the altar all about did blow
The holy fire, and all the embers ftrow
Uppon the ground; which kindled privily
Into outragious flames unwares did
That all the temple put in ieopardy
Of flaming, and herselfe in great perplexity.
With that the crocodile, which fleeping lay
Under the idols feete in fearelesse bowre,
Seem'd to awake in horrible difmay,
As being troubled with that stormy stowre;
And gaping greedy wide did ftreight devoure
Both flames and tempeft: with which growen great,
And swolne with pride of his owne peereleffe powre,
He gan to threaten her likewise to eat ;
But that the goddeffe with her rod him backe did beat.
XVI.
Tho turning all his pride to humbleffe meeke
Himselfe before her feete he lowly threw,
And gan for grace and love of her to feeke:
Which the accepting, he fo neare her drew
That of his she
game The foone enwombed grew,
And forth did bring a lion of great might,
That shortly did all other beasts subdew:
With that the waked full of fearefull fright,
And doubtfully dismayd through that so uncouth fight.
So thereuppon long while the mufing lay,
With thousand thoughts feeding her fantafie;
Untill she spide the lampe of lightsome day
Up-lifted in the porch of heaven hie:
Then up she rose fraught with melancholy,
And forth into the lower parts did pas,
Whereas the priestes she found full bufily
About their holy things for morrow mas;
Whom the faluting faire, faire resaluted was:
XVIII.
But by the change of her unchearefull looke
They might perceive she was not well in plight,
Or that some penfiveness to heart she tooke:
Therefore thus one of them, who seem'd in fight
To be the greatest and the graveft wight,
To her befpake; Sir knight, it feemes to me
That thorough evill reft of this last night
Or ill apayd or much difmayd ye be;
That by your change of cheare is eafie for to fee.
VOL. II.
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