A young girl, a religious fanatic, died very early in life as the result of self-imposed hardships. Her parents, suspecting poison, ordered an autopsy, and on the heart of the dead girl was found an image of the Virgin (No. 188). In No. 361, Alfonso is said to have given a beautiful image of the Virgin to the monastery of Las Huelgas de Burgos. On Christmas night the strange idea of putting the image to bed occurred to the pious nuns. Almost immediately they saw it change color and turn from side to side. No. 79, of the codex of Toledo (a poem which does not appear in the codex of the Escorial), relates an incident that took place weekly in the church at Constantinople. In this church was a beautiful image of the Holy Mother, covered with a veil. Every Friday an angel descended from heaven to lift the veil, which remained suspended in the air until Saturday evening, (the day on which the faithful came to worship), when the angel would return and lower the veil again. Cantiga No. 226 narrates a legend entirely foreign to Spanish thought and one which must have caused some surprise in its unwonted environment. The incident is said to have happened in “Gran Britaña”. The account runs briefly as follows: A company of friars were in their convent saying Mass on Easter morning, when the entire monastery was swallowed up by the earth—the ground closing above it and leaving no trace whatever. For just a year the monks continued in this enforced seclusion, without lack of anything needful; they were even lighted by a marvellous sun. On the next Easter morning all was restored to its former natural state. It can be seen at a glance that this legend is entirely different from anything that has been mentioned in this collection; and I have found no parallel to it in anything else of the period.
In closing this chapter attention should be called to two miracles which emphasize the great importance attached to confession.[62] No. 124 is the story of a man condemned to be stoned because he had broken a law of the Moors in whose land he was living. While undergoing this punishment, he begged permission of the Virgin to make his confession; from that moment his executioners could not harm him. Astonished that their missiles suddenly ceased to have any effect they allowed him to confess, after which he died praising the Blessed Mother. In No. 96 a sinner was unwilling to do penance, altho devoted to Santa María. He was beheaded by robbers, without opportunity for confession. Four days later two friars, on arriving at the spot, were surprised to hear the head plead for the privilege of confession. They summoned a crowd; the head attached itself to the body, confessed, and then became separated again from the body.[63]
CHAPTER V
“The Devil and all His Works”
His Satanic Majesty is and always has been one of the most interesting of personages. The tracing of his development from the beginning of religion in the dim mythical past to his latest rôle as the prince of evil spirits and “controls” as depicted by Sir Conan Doyle, Sir Oliver Lodge, and others of similar faith, is fascinating work. Satan as we find him in the period with which we are concerned is far from being a dull and lifeless character. He is referred to as one who had been as holy and perfect as any, but who, because of his sin and treason, became the lowest of all.[64] As such, having become the arch-enemy of God, it is his aim to drag down to Hell as many as possible. At the same time, the nearer he comes to localities especially dedicated to his Enemy, God, the more difficult it is for him to exercise his powers. In Las Siete Partidas it is stated as a fact that the Devil cannot harm the souls of those interred in holy ground as easily as of those buried elsewhere.[65] He is subject to conjuring[66] and can never face the Virgin. In fact, the mere sound of her name is often sufficient to drive him away (No. 254). To our surprise he takes on one hellish attribute which we do not customarily connect with Spain of this period, but rather with the Orient. This is illustrated in Las Cantigas No. 82, where it is related that a monk on his bed saw some devils in the form of swine approach, but they dared not touch him because of his holiness. Shortly afterwards a black man appeared who said he was going to destroy the monk, whereupon the latter, in desperation, appealed to the Virgin. As she hastened to him the devils disappeared in a cloud of smoke.
Demoniac possession is quite common and has only the well-known New Testament characteristics. The incidents as recorded could easily have taken place in the time of Jesus in the Holy Land. But the humorous element manifests itself at rare intervals even here, as we see in No. 343 of Las Cantigas where we find that a girl, possessed, is able, on seeing a person, to tell what his secret sin is and has a mania for divulging this in public. Needless to say, she is soon shunned by all. Even the priest to whom she was first taken was mocked by her, the holy water did not protect him, and he was not able to face her. However she was finally cured before the altar at Rocamador.
The compilers of the Primera Crónica General[67] saw nothing in the visions of Mohammed but demoniac possession.
Not infrequently Satan resorts to taking on other forms than his own to attain his ends. One story (well known long before Alfonso’s time) which found its way into Las Cantigas is that the Devil, taking on the form of an apostle, ordered a pilgrim to so mutilate himself, as penance for his sin, that he died, after which Satan prepared to carry away his soul but was prevented by Santiago (St. James) who rescued it.[68] At another time, when he wished to take vengeance on a philanthropic Christian who had established a hospital, he entered the corpse of a handsome young man, becoming the good man’s servant, hoping thus to have an opportunity to assassinate him, but was prevented from doing so because his master prayed every day. At last, the bishop made a visit to the hospital and the Devil, fearing to appear before him, pleaded illness. The kind prelate, solicitous for his welfare, requests to be allowed to see him. Immediately upon coming into his presence he notes his actions and, suspecting something, conjures him in the name of God. The Devil confesses and flees leaving the dead body of the young man at the feet of the bishop and philanthropist (No. 67). While thus taking on other forms he is at times distinctly mischievous, and we can see almost the sparkle of his eyes when, finding that the Virgin has made a certain innocent man invisible in order that he may escape his foes who accuse him falsely, Satan himself takes the form of this man and plays practical jokes with his pursuers (No. 213).
The familiar “Devil Pact” is to be found in its simplicity when a Jew sells his soul to the Devil, and later on repenting and praying most earnestly to the Virgin, finds that she hears his prayer and impels the Devil to return the contract.[69]
This simple, and even then conventional, plot does not seem to have satisfied the demands of the time, since we find it occasionally introduced with variations. One man (in No. 281) to gain his lost wealth promises the Devil he will deny God and the Church, but refuses to deny a certain one of the saints, and that is the Virgin. Diabolus hesitates, but remarks
“ ... Pois negaste
Deus, non mi á ren que fazer
de esa Madre non negares.”