Aldhelm Riddle 64: Columba
ALEXANDRAREIDER
Date: Thu 14 Apr 2022Cum Deus infandas iam plecteret aequore noxas
Ablueretque simul scelerum contagia limphis,
Prima praecepti complevi iussa parentis
Portendens fructu terris venisse salutem.
Mitia quapropter semper praecordia gesto
Et felix praepes nigro sine felle manebo.
When God then punished unspeakable offences with the sea
And at the same time washed away the contagions of sins with waters,
I fulfilled the first decrees of the parent’s command,
Indicating with fruit that well-being had come to the earth.
On this account I always have a gentle heart
And I shall remain a happy bird without black bile.
Notes:
This edition is based on Rudolf Ehwald, ed. Aldhelmi Opera Omnia. Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Auctores Antiquissimi, 15. Berlin: Weidmann, 1919, pages 59-150. Available online here.
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