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Chapter 77LlullArbreAmor.1.77

Accidents d'amor: 3. Còm l'amic fo jutjat a mort per amor

The Beloved Seeks to Sentence the Lover to Death

The Beloved intends to kill the Lover for love, but the lady of love pleads for his life, and the Beloved appoints the life of love and the death of love as advocates.

The Beloved wanted to sentence the Lover to death for love; but the lady of love, fearing that if her son and lover died she wouldn't find1 one2 another lover as good, begged the Beloved to give the Lover the life of love, to be his advocate, so that it might plead the rights by which the Lover ought not to die. The Beloved gave the life of love to the Lover to be his advocate, and the death of love took on the role of his advocate, recounting the rights the Beloved had to kill the Lover.3

The Advocates Argue by the Conditions of Love

Life of Love and Death of Love each cite conditions from the book of love's rights to argue whether the Lover should live or die.

2. The rights of love are the roots of love, and the book in which they are written is of love. In that book the life of love read, and pleaded for the Lover, and said that that love is good and great which lasts long, for by such love the Beloved has a good, great, and lasting lover; and for that reason the Beloved ought not to kill the Lover for love in his youth, but in his old age.4 The death of love pleaded, and said that that is good and great love which through greater love makes the Lover die for his Beloved; and for that reason, if the Lover does not die as soon as he loves his Beloved for love, the love is not of great goodness, and it is accompanied by littleness and contrariety of love, which sustain the Lover so that he does not die for love, and make him commit deceits and betrayals against love and his Beloved; just as the Lover who fled from the physician of love and went to stay in56 one7 grove, so that he would neither love nor remember love nor his Beloved; and furthermore, that in the battle, when he fled, he helped to oppose and diminish against uniting and magnifying.8 Therefore, Beloved, said the death of love, the Lover is worthy of dying for all these reasons, and for many others. 3. "Beloved," said Life of Love, "in the rubric of good love, where the conditions of love are, there is9 1.10 condition of love, at the 10th11 chapter, which says: 'Without concord between lover and beloved, no love can be good'; and if you, Beloved, kill your lover for love, there will be no concord between you and him; for between the one who kills and the one who dies there can be no concord; and since without concord between lover and beloved love cannot be good, therefore you must not go against good love, seeing that you are a good Beloved."1213 Death of Love alleged, and said that in that same rubric, at the14 14th.15 In the chapter, there is 1. A condition of love that says: “Good love is the end and rest of a good lover.” And you, Beloved, said Death of Love, you know that the Friend sent you humility, patience, and hope as messengers, who told you that he didn't want to live, because he didn't want to bear the hardships of love; by which you can know that he does not have good love, for if he had it, he would have rest in bearing hardships for love; and since he does not have good love, he is not worthy to live, and by right he ought to die. 4. Beloved, said Love's Life: in the second chapter, under the rubric of great love, it says the first condition of love: "A power that cannot do anything by love cannot be great"; and if you kill the lover, there will be no power that can act by love, and love's power will remain small and not great; and therefore, if you kill the lover, you will wrong and sin against love's power, which is great through the lover's life; for while the lover lives, he makes love's power produce great desires, loves, sighs, and tears, which the lover bears for love. Beloved, said Love's Death: by that same condition I want the lover judged on whether he should die or not; for if he dies for love, love's power can do much more if it makes Love kill the lover than if it cannot have him killed; and therefore right and reason require that the lover die for love, so that love's power may do great works of love, which it does when it makes Love kill its servants. 5. Beloved, the life of love said: in the first chapter of the section on the duration of love, it is written.16 i. condition of love that says: "Love that does not last cannot have the power to love"; and therefore, if the lover dies, love will die; for love, once it can no longer love, will not be able to live, nor can love love without a lover; and therefore, if you kill the lover, you will kill love, against which you will do wrong and sin, for through her you have had many a good lover. Beloved, said the death of love: in the ii.17 chapter, under that same rubric, one reads: "No love can last in a will that grows weary of loving"; and since the lover grew weary of loving—and that was clear then, when he fled from love's physician, who makes medicines by which he multiplies loves—his love cannot last; and it is worth far more that he die while love still lasts in him than if he died without love.18 6. Beloved, said the life of love: under the heading of the power of love, in the twelfth chapter, one reads: "Greater power of love makes a greater lover"; and for that reason, when the lover is so tormented by love that according to the course of nature he cannot live or bear the hardships, then love has great power if it makes him live above nature; so it is right and reasonable that you, Beloved, make the lover live, so that through you love may have great power in the lover, and may make him a very great and strong lover in loving, honoring, and serving you.1920 Beloved, said the death of love: the life of love thinks she is pleading by the rights of love, and she turns those rights against the lover; for love has much greater and stronger power if it kills the lover, and neither nature nor anything above the course of nature can keep the lover from dying, than it has if the lover has a defense against love through something that resists love so that it cannot kill its friend.2122 7. Beloved, said the life of love: in the rubric of wisdom and love, at the . vij. chapter, one reads: «Every wise lover is opposed to the enemies of love»; and since your lover is wise, inasmuch as for a long time he has been opposed to gluttony, lust, avarice, and pride, and to the other enemies of love, you ought to want your lover to live, so that he may help love against its adversaries. Beloved, said the death of love: the life of love is not telling the truth; for when the lover was fleeing, he was against Concord and Magnifying, who are pages and messengers of love, and he was helping Contrariety and Diminishing, who are messengers of false love; therefore it is fitting that the lover die for love at once, immediately.23

The Beloved Consults the Roots of Love and Pronounces Judgment

After hearing many arguments, the Beloved takes counsel with the roots of love and sentences the Lover to die for love.

8. Love's Life and Love's Death alleged many other conditions, the one24 against the other, which would take too long to recount; and the Beloved took counsel about the allegations of love he had heard, because without counsel he would not give judgment. 9. The Beloved consulted the roots of love and asked which of them advised him to let the lover live, and which advised that the lover should die.25 Contrariety and Minority of love came forward and told the Beloved that the lover should not die, and that the life of love had proven this very truly through many authorities of love.2627 All the other roots of love told the Beloved that the lover should die for love, because the death of love had proven this very well through the conditions of love. The Beloved knew that the lover had remained friends with Minority and Contrariety of love against him and against the other roots of love, and for that reason he sentenced the lover to die for love.28

Read the original Catalan

'AMAT volc jutjar lamic a mort per amor; mas la dona damor, qui avia paor que si son fill e amic moria, que atrobàs . j. altre tan bo amador, pregà lamat que a lamic donàs vida damor, que fos son avocat, per so que aulegàs los drets per que lamic no devia morir. Donà l amat vida damor al amic per ésser son avocat, e la mort damor pres per ésser son avocat e que recontàs los drets que lamat avia en ausir lamic.

2. Los drets damor son les rails damor, e lo libre en que son escrits, es damor. En aquel libre legi vida damor, e aulegà per lamic, e dix que aquela amor es bona e gran qui molt dura, car per aytal amor ha lamat bo gran e durable amador; e per aysò lamat no devia ausjure lamic per amor en sa juventut, mas en sa veillea. Aulegà mort damor, e dix que aquela es bona e gran amor qui per major amor fa lamic morir per son amat; e per aysò, si lamic no mor, encontinent que ama son amat, per amor, no es lamor de gran bonea, e es acompanyada ab menoritat e contrarietat damor, qui sostenen lamic que no muyra per amor, e fan li fer engans e tracions contra amor e son afnat; axí com lamic qui fugi al metge damor, e anava estar en . j. boscatge, per so que no amàs ni membràs amor ni son amat; e encara, que en la batayla, con fugia, ajudava a contrariar e menorificar contra concordar e majorificar. Per que, amat, dix la mort damor, lamic es digne de morir per totes aquestes raons, e per moltes d altres.

3. Amat, dix vida damor: en la rúbrica de bona amor, on son les condicions damor, ha . j. condició damor, al . x. capítol, qui diu: «Sens concordansa d amic e damat neguna amor pot ésser bona»; e si vos, amat, auseíts vostre amic per amor, no serà enfre vos e él concordansa; car enfre aquel qui ausiu e aquel qui mor no pot ésser concordat; e car sens concordansa d amic e d amat, amor no pot ésser bona, per aysò no deuets ésser contra bona amor, pus que sots bo amat. Aulegà mort damor, e dix que en aquela metexa rúbrica, al . xiiij.

capítol, ha . j. condició' damor qui diu; «Bona amor es fi e repòs de bon amador». E vos, amat, dix mort damor, sabets que l amic vos tramès humilitat paciència e esperansa per missatges, qui us dixeren que él no volia viure, car no volia los trebayls damor sostenir; per que podets conèxer que él no ha bona amor, car si ho avia, àuria repòs en sostenir trebals per amor; e pus que no ha bona amor, no es digne de viure, e deu per dret murir.

4. Amat, dix vida damor: al . ij. capítol, en la rúbrica de gran amor, diu . j. condició damor que «poder qui no pot damor fer nuyla res, no pot ésser gran»; e si l amic auseíts no serà poder qui pusca damor, e romandrà lo poder damor poc e no gran; e per aysò, si lamic auseíts, farets tort e peccat al poder damor, qui per la vida del amic es gran; car lamic dementre viu, fa lo poder damor grans desirs amors suspirs e plors, los quals sosté lamic per amor. Amat, dix la mort damor: per aquela condició metexa vuyl que lamic sia jutjat si deu morir o no; car si mor per amor, lo poder damor pot molt mes si fa a lamor ausiure lamic, que si no li pot fer auciure; e per aysò requer dret e raó que lamic muyra per amor, per so que lo poder damor pusca fer grans coses damor, les quals fa con fa a lamor ausiure sos servidors.

5. Amat, dix vida damor: a la rúbrica de duració e damor, al primer capítol, se lig . j. condició damor qui diu: «Amor sens durar no pot aver poder damar»; e per aysò, si mor lamic, morrà lamor; car amor, pus que no pusca amar, no poirà viure, ni, sens amic, amor no pot amar; e per aysò, si auseiets lamic, ausiurets lamor, contra la qual farets tort e peccat, car per ela avets ahut mant bon amador. Amat, dix mort damor: en lo Jij. capítol, sots aquela metexa rúbrica, se lig: «Neguna amor pot durar en volentat quis huja damar»; e car lamic se uya damar,' e parec o bé adones con fugi al metge damor qui fa medicines ab que montiplica amors, no pot durar sa amor; e val molt més que muyra dementrc que en él dura amor, que si moria sens amor.

6. Amat, dix la vida damor: a la rúbrica de poder damor, al . xij. capítol, se lig: «Major poder damor fa major amador»; e per aysò con lamic es tant turmentat per a'mor, que segons cors de natura no pot viure niïs trebayls sostenir, adones amor ha gran poder si sobre natura lo fa viure; per que es dret e raó que vos, amat, fassats viure lamic, per so que amor aja per vos gran poder en lamic, e quel fassa molt gran e forts amador en vos amar honrar e servir. Amat, dix mort damor: vida damor cuyda aulegar per los drets damor,e aulega aquels contra lamic; car molt major e pus forts poder ha amor si ausiu lamic, e que natura ni neguna res sobre cors de natura no pusca defendre lamic a morir, que no ha sil amic ha defensió contra amor per alcuna cosa qui contrast a lamor que son amic no pusca ausir.

7. Amat, dix vida damor: a la rúbrica de saviea e amor, al . vij. capítol, se lig: «Tot amic savi es contrari als enemics damor»; e car vostre amic es savi, en quant lonc temps ha es estat contrari a gola lucxuria avaricia erguyl, e als altres enemics damor, deuets voler que vostre amic viva, per so que ajut a lamor contra sos contraris. Amat, dix la mort damor: no diu ver vida damor; car lamic, con fugia, era contra concordar e majorificar, qui son donzels e missatges damor, e ajudava a contrariar e menorificar, qui son missatges de falsa amor; per ques tayn que lamic adés encontinent muyra per amor.

8. Moltes d altres condicions aulegaren vida damor e mort damor, la . j. contra lautra, qui serien longues a recomtar; e lamat ac conseil sobre les aulegacions damor que avia oídes, car sens consel no volc donar judici.

9. Conseilàs lamat ab les rails damor, e demanà quals deies conseilaven que jutjàs lamic a viure, ni quals conselaven que degués morir. Adenantarense contrarietat e menoritat damor, e dixeren a lamat que lamic no devia morir, e que vida damor ho avia, per moltes actoritats damor, molt vertaderament provat. Totes les altres rails damor dixeren al amat que lamic devia morir per amor, car la mort damor ho avia molt be provat per les condicions damor. Conec lamat que lamic avia ahuda amistat ab menoritat e contrarietat damor contra él e contra les altres rails damor, e per aysò jutjà lamic a morir per amor.

Notes

  1. 1 ↩Source clause is truncated mid-verb phrase at 'atrobàs'; the sense continues through s2–s3. The negation 'not' is supplied for the fear construction (paor que… atrobàs), which otherwise reads oddly as fearing that she would find another equally good lover; intended sense is almost certainly that she feared she would not find another as good.
  2. 2 ↩Standalone 'j.' is almost certainly the medieval abbreviation '.j.' for 'un' (one/a), bridging 'atrobàs' (s1) and 'altre tan bo amador' (s3): 'atrobàs .j. altre tan bo amador'.
  3. 3 ↩Parallel courtroom allegory: Life of Love advocates for the Lover; Death of Love advocates for the Beloved's right to kill him. 'Son avocat' with Death of Love is read as the Beloved's advocate, given the following clause about the Beloved's rights 'en ausir l'amic'.
  4. 4 ↩Source 'ausjure' is almost certainly corrupt for 'ausir' (to kill), parallel to 'ausir lamic' in 1.77.1.s4 and 'auseíts' in 1.77.3; translated as 'kill'.
  5. 5 ↩Source 'afnat' is almost certainly a corruption of 'amat' (Beloved), parallel to 'son amat' earlier in the same sentence; translated as 'Beloved'.
  6. 6 ↩'menoritat' and 'contrarietat' are Llullian Art terms: love's lesser degree and opposition to love; rendered as 'littleness' and 'contrariety', matching prior Accident chapters.
  7. 7 ↩Standalone 'j.' is the medieval abbreviation '.j.' for 'un' (one/a), bridging 'anava estar en' (s4) and 'boscatge' (s6): 'anava estar en .j. boscatge'.
  8. 8 ↩'contrariar e menorificar' / 'concordar e majorificar' are Llullian Art verb-pairs (oppose and lessen vs. unite and magnify), treated as opposing operations of false and true love; cf. 1.77.7.
  9. 9 ↩Sentence is cut before the Roman numeral that continues in s3–s5; reconstructed reading is ‘there is the 1st condition of love, at the 10th chapter…’.
  10. 10 ↩Printed ‘j.’ is the Roman numeral 1, continuing ‘ha .j. condició damor’ from the previous sentence.
  11. 11 ↩Printed ‘x.’ is the Roman numeral 10 in ‘al .x. capítol’ (‘at the 10th chapter’).
  12. 12 ↩Catalan ‘concordansa’ / ‘concordat’ rendered as ‘concord,’ keeping Llull’s technical sense of mutual accord rather than mere friendliness.
  13. 13 ↩‘amic’ / ‘amat’ rendered as Lover / Beloved, the standard Llullian pair; ‘auseíts’ / ‘ausiu’ from auciure, ‘to kill.’
  14. 14 ↩‘Aulegà’ rendered ‘alleged’ in the forensic sense (to cite/plead in argument), fitting the chapter’s judgment scene.
  15. 15 ↩Printed ‘xiiij.’ is the Roman numeral 14 in ‘al .xiiij. capítol’ (‘at the 14th chapter’), completed in the following section.
  16. 16 ↩Source reads «duració e damor»; rendered as the rubric on the duration of love (duració d'amor), matching the chapter’s lasting-love conditions cited next.
  17. 17 ↩Source «Jij» read as roman «ij.» (ii), parallel to neighboring chapter-number citations.
  18. 18 ↩«dementrc» corrected to «dementre» (while); «parec o bé» taken as «parec-ho bé» (it was clear); «quis huja» / «se uya» read as wearying of love (ujar-se d'amar).
  19. 19 ↩Source has "per a'mor"; translated as "by love" (per amor).
  20. 20 ↩"niïs trebayls" read as "ni els treballs" (nor the hardships/labors).
  21. 21 ↩"aulegar/aulega" taken as al·legar: plead/allege; "cuyda aulegar" as thinks she is pleading.
  22. 22 ↩Dense comparative: love's power in killing without possible natural defense vs. lesser power when the lover has a resisting defense.
  23. 23 ↩Concordar, majorificar, contrariar, and menorificar are personified Llullian operators rendered here as Concord, Magnifying, Contrariety, and Diminishing — attendants/messengers of true or false love.
  24. 24 ↩Reading 'j.' with the flanking fragments as Old Catalan 'la .j. contra lautra' = 'the one against the other' (Roman numeral j. for 'una').
  25. 25 ↩Source rails is Old Catalan arrels ('roots'), the tree-principles of love in Llull's allegory.
  26. 26 ↩Personified Lullian principles of love; capitalized as named figures in the allegory.
  27. 27 ↩actoritats read as autoritats ('authorities').
  28. 28 ↩Conec read as narrative past Conegué ('knew'); ahuda as haguda ('had').

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