The Ship of Fools, Volume 1

by Sebastian Brant

Of them that wyllynge and knowyngly put them self in ieopardy and peryll.

He is a fole that wyll purchace and desyre
His owne deth or putteth hym selfe in ieopardy
Lepynge in a well, or in a flamynge fyre
And where he myght lyue so dyeth wyllyngly
Suche suffer theyr destruccyon worthely
And if that they be drowned outher brent
It is to late them after to repent.

I fynde mo folys yet. whome I shall note

Suche ar they whiche pray both day and nyght

To god and his sayntes cryeng with open throte

O glorious god helpe me by thy great myght

That I may clens my herte and clere my syght

Wherby all foly and synne may fro me fall

But yet this fole it leuyth nat at all

Suche folys oft pray for theyr amendement

Unto our lorde with syghynges sore and depe

But yet to synne contynually they assent

And after the same often complayne and wepe

Than say they playne that god hath had no kepe

Unto theyr prayer and taken of it no hede

But theyr owne foly is cause of theyr lewde dede

They se the peryll before theyr faces playne

That god hath ordeyned, for foly and for synne

They pray for helpe, and yet ar they full fayne

After the folys hode alway to ren

And besely laboure the same alone to wyn

So vnto god for helpe they cry and call

But they them selfe wyll helpe no thynge at all

Than thynke they theyr prayers to god nat acceptable

Bycause (anone) they haue nat all theyr wyll

And for that god is nat sone agreable

To here theyr cry and it graunt and fulfyll

These folys in theyr vyce contynue styll

And put theyr selfe in wylfull ieopardy

And where they myght they fynde no remedy

But these folys vnstabyll as the wynde

Prayeth vnto god and to his sayntis aboue

Nat knowynge what may content theyr folysshe mynde

Nor whether theyr askynge be for theyr behoue

But sothly this dare I both say and proue

And it auowe after my sympyll skyll

That neuer man shall syn without his wyll

If that one with his owne wyll doth fall

Into a well to assay the ieopardy

Whan he is there. if he lowde crye and call

Bothe on god and man for helpe and remedy

He sekyth that peryll, and dyeth worthely

So were it foly to gyue hym corde or trayne

Or other engyne to helpe hym vp agayne

Whan suche folys ar sure vpon the grounde

Without all daunger, peryll hurt or fere

They lepe in the wel and yet fere to be drowned

Empedocles though he right myghty were

With suche lyke foly hym selfe so sore dyd dere

That knowyngly and with his owne consent

Hymself he lost and by fyers fyre was brent

He lept hedelynge into the flamynge fyre

Of a brennynge hyll whiche callyd is Ethnay

To knowe the trouth, and nature to enquyre

Whether that same flame were very fyre or nay

So with his deth the trouth he dyd assay

But who that wolde hym drawen out of that hyll

Had ben a fole, syns it was his owne wyll

For why his mynde was blyndyd so certayne

That thoughe a man had hym delyuered than

The same peryll wolde he haue proued agayne

As mad as he forsoth is euery man

That is at eas, and hym nat so holde can

And also he that putteth hymselfe in drede

Or fere and peryll, where as he hath no nede

So he that prayeth to god that he may get

The blysse of heuen, and scape infernall payne

He is a fole his herte or mynde to set

On frayle ryches, welth and ioy mundayne

On stedfast fortune, on lucre or on gayne

For certaynly these thynges of worldly welth

Oft man deuydeth away from heuenly helth

Thus he that prayeth for welth or for ryches

Or in this worlde hym selfe to magnyfy

Prayeth for his hurt and cause of viciousnes

For worldly welth doth vyce oft multyply

So seke men theyr owne peryll wyllyngly

But who that prayeth, and can nat as he ought

He bloweth in the wynde, and shall nat haue his thought

And who that to honour couetyse to ascende

Or to lyue in damnable voluptuosyte

He seketh his peryll for if that he descende

From welth and worshyp to payne and pouerte

It is but worthy, and let hym pacyent be

It to endure with mynde demure and meke

He is worthy sorowe that wyll it alway seke

The enuoy of Barklay to the Folys.

Ye that fayne wolde escape all ieopardy

Auoyde suche thynges the whiche myght cause the same

To proue a peryll, is foly certaynly

Whether it be done in ernest or in game

They that so doth may theyr owne madnes blame

For he that is sure, and to a fray wyll ren

May fortune come home agayne, nosles or lame

And so were it better for to haue byd within

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