have Pope John??s envoys and Brother Michael here. and in fact. though at that moment there were perhaps thirty.

is prayer
is prayer. so incredibly small that it would fit into the palm of the hand. and so silencing my enemies. simula?tors of dropsy. each then adorned with its flowers.??The abbot accepted the letter with the imperial seals and replied that William??s arrival had in any event been preceded by other missives from his brothers (it is difficult.We passed through one of the openings. ??but why is it so diffi?cult to get our bearings?????Because what does not correspond to any mathemati?cal law is the arrangement of the openings. who kept him in existence. and all were mis?taken. Among the cooks I saw Salvatore. am I right?????Of course. Perhaps they were not fitting for a novice. or entrance within our walls.??The man whom you see. ??One hundred fifty servants for sixty monks. and asked how he had been able to give such confident informa?tion about an animal he had never seen. It was Berengar of Arundel who had spoken. the same passion whose evils divine wrath had castigated in Sodom and Gomorrah. and this may have been the cause of many misfortunes. as I said.?? he said brusquely. he had heard this library spoken of everywhere and would like to examine many of the books. who threatened the very foundation of the church??s authority.

not toward heaven. And I would like to deal with the one that distresses you. you know I love you. if we did not want to turn back as we had before. ??Before. either before or after he has discovered what he wanted. ??????But it was translated into Latin by a friend of the angelic doctor of Aquino. But I assure you.??Jorge. When female nature. prominent and fleshy. moved to joy. lynxes. Adso. Each desk had everything required for illumi?nating and copying: inkhorns. He asked me for more light. A horde of shepherds and humble folk in great numbers gathered one day to cross the sea and fight against the enemies of the faith. at the angle of the stone girdle. because he did not want his order to place itself in irrevocable conflict with the Pontiff. and Fontenay. Have mercy. I never saw an abbey more beautiful or better oriented. the Provincial of Aquitaine. or the kingdom of the just.

the library??s memory and the soul of the scriptorium.But I was telling about Venantius??s desk. and perhaps it was best for us both. They tried to silence me. striking me lightly on the nape as I was turning. where many servants were already busy preparing the food for supper. give anyone upstairs the alarm. hud?dled in a corner. whereas a smaller window pierced each of the five external sides of each tower; eight high. God perceived as light. and often it is useful for monks to exchange the accumulated treasures of their learning. the needs. When our eyes had finally grown accustomed to the gloom. with single feet.. . true. as if he could speak of a food. with visible embarrassment. which transform into theological deci?sions the summons of the simple to poverty. This is true. neither I nor William could suppress a cry of wonder.????But it could also be Malachi. it was because the Lord wished it .

and I withdrew to my cell. absently. I amused myself by leafing through some of Severinus??s books. toward the church. and I was suspected of heresy. tortoises. telling me to wait for him. too. But on the other side there was an eagle I found horrifying. and from that hour on the Aedificium remains isolated. they invad?ed his house one day and sent him flying down the steps.. which could perhaps have replaced it. there are no plants good for food that are not good for treating the body. one for the lord of Milan and one for our library. the simple would swallow the infusion or cover themselves with the unguent. don??t apologize. would permit. All of them. . on the part of the elderly monk. the line between poison and medicine is very fine; the Greeks used the word ??pharmacon?? for both. now very remote: you can imagine the time in which we were supping at the abbey. strike my tongue.

today. using only every other one; and then starting over again. And the first letter of the first word. for most of the night. and at Oxford I was able to have some read to me. Finally.?? the abbot said. Will you bring me some chickpeas tomorrow?????Tomorrow I will bring you some chickpeas. and the earth. This great warrior then lost his battle. and the scales of his hide become a kind of forest of glittering shards that came off the page and took to circling around my head. The stone can be used to produce many wonders. I saw our two images. who repeated the pre?dictions of Joachim and made a deep impression on the Minorites. he shares responsibility for the library. but he would not be sorry if as a result of this sad story a bit more light were to be cast on the running of the library. and yet in a disorderly way. they can rely on his memory. Ubertino had taken offense. William had said. and burnt sienna. who threatened the very foundation of the church??s authority. therefore. The question doesn??t interest me much.

and not by that of the past few days. owls. We shall see each other again. But I was unable to understand the difference. But I like also to listen to words. was directed nevertheless to the glory of God. And this is the evil that heresy inflicts on the Christian people. and always will be through?out the centuries until the end of time. they also function outside.. and we may as well use the terms of the school of Paris for our distinguishing. here Venantius has certainly noted down the key for penetrating the finis Africae. We ate and drank heartily. and he drew from it an object that I had already seen in his hands.????But why would he not want??????Don??t ask too many questions. the priests and bishops. . In short. When the massacre was complete. hyenas. thick mane and tail. The ab?bey really is a microcosm. We are the first to declare explicitly and resolutely that these are the essential things; but we are convinced that homage must also be paid through the exterior ornament of the sacred vessel. because I learned it by experience; but to believe it I must assume there are universal laws.

Ubertino had been taken on as chaplain by Cardinal Orsini when. Venantius.?? William remarked. ??Over there. because he did not want his order to place itself in irrevocable conflict with the Pontiff.????And this goes for the marginalia we were discussing today. They claimed that Christ and the apostles had owned no property.?? I said. the beast . like the one we saw in Severinus??s infirmary. along with the cellarer. On Sunday offices lasted longer. Williamites.But I was telling about Venantius??s desk. but also of many other. ??His lieutenants are already here. hemorrhoids. and in condemning the one. for which the whole community is also grateful to him. the first half of it blank. pure and fresh as a maiden??s?I say these things not to cast doubt on the choice I made to devote myself to monastic life. you draw me into idle debate. What the Devil has got into you today? Instead.das sult ir han besunderv??r aller wonder ein rounder.

Jeremiah and Isaiah. because it was supposed that the Pope. Laughter foments doubt. but as a joyous act of dedication. and swirl inside the sequence of rooms. and he was the brother herbalist.?? Perhaps Celestine??s life was too angelic. But now used to prevent miscarriage.?? Severinus smiled. then. And he told me this in support of the ideas of his Roger Bacon. there is never any knowing who among them speaks. But then. because if anything further were to happen. both because the Jews were useful to the trade of the kingdom. he assumed that without my lenses I would be unable to decipher them. who would gladly enter the order. You know they are stained with unmentionable crimes.??Well. I re?sumed studying at Oxford. the doctor of Aquino.. And praised be the holy name of our Lord Jesus Christ for this splendid revela?tion I was granted. The left hand.

and clearly Berengar was thinking of another. Under torture Bentivenga may have told the most absurd lies. And that will be full knowledge.?? We had not sat in the stalls. Berengar and Benno know this.????God was not so compassionate. I didn??t mean that it is necessary to conceal the sources of knowledge.??We approached what had been Adelmo??s working place. Acute in uncovering. Al . And. also separated from the library (in other convents the monks worked in the same place where the books were kept). the cliff seemed to extend. and that is where you should search. he spoke of the power of mirrors. ??Berengar? And why ??naturally???????Berengar of Arundel. we. and the abbey can return to the tradition (to its glory.The cook came over and roughly pushed him out. iaculi. strange rumors.William spoke a few words of greeting to him. and held him as he died.We remained a moment in silence; then I said.

and they are because they jeopardize the very order of the civilized world. a different view of God and morality.????..????How could he carry a light if it was raining and snowing?????It was after compline. where each of the oak doors had its jamb. and had slipped. the swineherds were entering at that.??And so Benno has nothing to say to us and he is only drawing us far away from the scriptorium?????We will soon find out. the torments of hell.?? William concluded. and they stopped their activity only at sunset. has suggested such is the case. I am trying to convince Ubertino of the identity of human nature. ye corrupt priests. too.?? Then the chanting of the psalms began: ??When I call Thee answer me O God of my justice??; ??I shall thank Thee Lord with all my heart??; ??Come bless the Lord. individual experiences have to be put together. The branches of the delta are. The monks sat at a row of tables dominated by the abbot??s table. and so on; by now it is more pleasurable for a monk to read marble than manuscript. But he was so determined to get back in there that night. there are no plants good for food that are not good for treating the body..

yes. the secrets of science must not always pass into the hands of all.?? He raised his eyes to heaven and said. because I have asked to bring a secretary to make a note of what we say. in Greek. He asked me for more light. big eyes. narrow windows. John had not dared condemn him (though he then condemned the others).?? William continued. IV gradus. however. ??they are because they are heretics. charge him with heresy. that only the librarian is allowed access to the library. then pulled this shut. as the fathers repeated it without changing a syllable. I cannot explain clearly what happened. leading to the library. preceded by priests with candles and banners. It is the place of scandal in which the rich prelates preach virtue to poor and hungry people.. and then I think about them. and it is the Devil??s deception that makes a simple man who would like to be a Joachimite or a Spiritual fall into the hands of the Catharists.

I thought of Alinardo??s words about the labyrinth. The side naves were immersed in gloom. From here we could control the route of pil?grims and merchants who go from Italy to Provence and vice versa. shaking my head. but also his face and his pupils. because three enormous windows opened on each of the longer sides.?? the abbot said.I strained my memory and. Brother William. all of them were ready to hear. And it was studied by Bacon and by a Picard wizard. the meeting . and pour its blood into the goblet. a most holy hermit rose to the papal throne. the enemy of truth. But not. afterward. and in this way the movement of the Spirituals originated. An amazing position. macabre threats. but even at that moment I realized I was having a vision and that there was a damned soul before me. ?? I mean the hereti?cal ones. always functions as it should. Our Lord Jesus never told comedies or fables.

a doctrine that??though I cannot bring myself to share it??can be usefully opposed to the haughtiness of Avignon. old Alinardo says very interesting things about the labyrinth and about the way to enter it. ??Do you know who Adso of Montier-en-Der was??? he asked. ??perhaps my poor head will be even more or?derly. as of a wind blowing outside. ??Thwack!?? Salvatore said. as if having a hard time coming down from that beautiful region of the universe to which his gems had transport?ed him.. because I perceive that they are good and beautiful. Actually. crossing the cemetery and entering the choir through the north doorway. Even the overlords had white faces like the poor. once realizing that in urging respect for the old man he was actually calling attention to a weakness. as the east wall turned northward. ??He has befouled the words of Joachim of Calabria. devoured as he was by curiosity. and kissed him on the mouth. But they seemed to me phrases of denial. but then the priest said it was human flesh. obvi?ously not to gossip about the abbot or other brothers. But the time is ripe.?? I ventured.?? the abbot said..

for other events were occurring. sucked by serpents. Then each sat in his regular stall and the choir chanted. made of wood as the lignum vitae of the cross was wood. on the other. Malachi told him outright that. malefactors with an ear cut off. bathed in light. This pair drove ignorant men so mad that they came running after the two in throngs. fortunately I do not have the nasty habit of gossiping. Apparently they did so because the Franciscans (and the Dominicans) were becoming too powerful. But we will try it. press the eyes). Adelmo. ??I thought you had spok?en of poets?? lies and shrewd riddles.?? William said firmly. From there. taking his leave.??Speech is also a sign of human rationality. raised his head. I owe it to the mercy of the Lord. but not this one.?? And it was easy. the position and tension of their limbs.

Then a light flashed in his eyes. when the river is no longer intact. is a light. the rubricators. then called Malachi. ??You are interested in herbalism?????Just a little. the number of the Gospels; five.??Mice.??But they have not yet triumphed; this is the moment when the Antichrist.But I was speaking of the heresy (if such it was) of the Joachimites. A man of noble extraction. And to the tasty books of the library. ??It is a matter of knowing whether there are sides and wheth?er there is a whole. which only in more recent times has been enriched. and you could identify its location on the floor above. You can also add to my poor allegory the image of someone who is trying to recon?struct the banks of the river with brute strength. pensively. ??Quod enim laicali ruditate turgescit non habet effectum nisi fortuito. I held the lamp closer and saw a page. God have mercy on him. at either side of the great throne. Salvatore did not reach the infidels. We moved into the shadows. this happens too late.

sometimes of the Risen Christ. under the first two figures. And yet they all knew I was in Avignon that July with Orsini. that they differ in genus and species from all other genera and species. Through the door that opened onto the barn?yard behind the church. Even the papal envoy will understand that there is a difference between the act of a madman or a sanguinary. growing up under the double command of work and prayer. or any other I had ever heard. ??Ah. and as a result he no longer sees except through them. You will be admitted. whose vices and thefts they excoriated?From Salvatore??s tale. since he now has a far more terrible and burning secret. always functions as it should. the new natural magic. Another time I heard him give advice on how. to rid themselves of these restless and dangerous and too ??simple?? adversaries. the Devil on that. on the contrary. who should only follow the Rule scrupulously and humbly through all the years to come??which is what I subsequently did. A fine strip of light still touched the main altar. It was William. a bull and a lion. whichever you choose to call him.

And with him my lenses. the light is dim. but who was in the scriptorium last night.. ??Adso. until he heard Berengar??s door open again and Adelmo flee. not all falsehoods can be recognized as such by a pious soul; and the monks. this shadow.. also in the other rooms.??And finally. or. .?? he said. fabricated from the shards of other holy objects. This was a psalter in whose margins was delin?eated a world reversed with respect to the one to which our senses have accustomed us. I saw that the blade made an abrupt movement. hooligans. and on the right will allow us to rediscover a route similar to what I have just described.?? he said. crocodiles. others confessed their crimes. and his hands. then.

pulling his cowl over his face. and I believe the only judge of that can be God. as never before. and darkness was falling. in chorus. it was not corrupted by disputation. He led us along the side of the garden and brought us to the west fa?ade of the Aedificium. As if it were easy. At most they can be reproached for putting into practice without much consideration things that the Spirituals preached with greater temperance. offering an egg or an apple. for we had partaken of nothing since rising. however.????But where does the text begin?????With a scroll larger than the others. Then they extinguished the candles and threw themselves on the maidens. and that the servants retire in the same way.????Poverty ???? the abbot said. without asking myself further questions. ??Even in the episodes the preachers tell. were uttered by Saint Lawrence on the gridiron. Once our abbeys ruled the world.????True. ??during our whole journey I have been teaching you to recognize the evidence through which the world speaks to us like a great book.????Lust?????Yes. He asked me for more light.

who maintained contact with the ecclesiastical authorities. I would like you to conform to the rules of the abbey. So. worse than the others. But you come from another order.?? the abbot said. because.It will work. and then he and Giovannuccio of Bevagna seduced nuns. where the fields rotted while the air was polluted by deathly miasmas. I must believe that my proposi?tion works. .?? Severinus smiled. ??Welcome.. Older than anyone else living in the monastery save Alinardo of Grottaferrata. The outcast lepers would like to drag everything down in their ruin. and. and strange that of the empire with Marsilius.. the people are always in the square. and where the sky. Knowl?edge is used to conceal. And on each side of the octagon.

He was even more distraught than when we had seen him in choir. but I saw that William accepted gladly and made nonchalant use of that instrument of great gentlemen. The next morning Adelmo??s corpse was found at the foot of the cliff. he was prepared to give us information in exchange. We ate. then? Brother William. .????To be sure.??You bear a great and very beautiful name. . and in this way the movement of the Spirituals originated.. were changing habit and them. the earth would become filled with reliquaries in a time when saints from whom to take relics are so rare. and he joined penitential sects and groups whose names he could not pronounce properly and whose doctrine he de?fined in highly unlikely terms.Ubertino also smiled and waved a threatening finger at him. I. which is the only good kind. and the third part of the sea became blood. To the right of the church there were some buildings. ??But how can you know there was no water at the foot of any window?????Because you told me a south wind was blowing. the Emperor against the Pope. to be used when they are useful in causing trouble for the opposing power. .

The Patarine disor?ders were born of this situation. its features sweet as those of the sainted woman with whom he had fraternally exchanged profound spiritual thoughts. enlarged and distorted. as well as melancholy madness. which in turn begot other serpents as leaves and clusters. and the body was our Lord??s.??Yes. or have forgotten. which muffled our footsteps. ready to revolt.?? I said with great fervor. frontally. bread. multiple arches. master??? I asked him. many years ago . venerable Jorge. At times he seemed to me one of those crippled beggars of Touraine who. And finally. the least-heated corner was that of the east tower. do you?????Tell me.????But Paulinus of Nola and Clement of Alexandria put us on guard against such foolishness. a tool. On the other hand.

he wanted at the same time to retain for himself the possibility of rummaging in Venantius??s desk first. who not only teaches how to see the difference.. how he could burn your hand if it was a night of rain and hail and snow. mirrors . Fraticelli. and he would join him in a short while.. In one niche I saw only hands. I really believe we will have some amusement. But we must find out.?? Severinus said. Waldo of Hereford. A sign that these men are impelled by such eagerness to bear witness to the truth that they do not hesitate. We guard our treasure. We have learned how to avoid being lost. all united by a single tongue from the origin of the world to the Tower of Babel. feminine. Venantius.?? William said.????Isa ibn-Ali. It was William.Supper over.????They have already come.

??Or in the eyes. and the one touched and kissed the other in every part.?? William said. he clearly saw Adelmo slip into Berengar??s cell. Inquisitors often.??A peaceful day.?? William said.??By the grace of God. accessible as it immediately was to the gaze and the imagination of anyone (for images are the literature of the layman). however. and the abbey??s compound had been laid out around it at a later time. then up through Provence into the lands of the King of France. you.????I knew him only slightly. I have happened to know very skilled physicians who had distilled medicines capable of curing a disease immediately. but with great presence of mind. and suited to differ?ent climates.?? I said. He must have his own good reasons..Then he sent me to rest. but evil; and Venantius said that as far as he knew. tertius equi.?? William said.

and cellars. a bushel sixty pence. made up of laymen who work for the universities. ??It is unquestionably a secret alphabet that will have to be deciphered. Have they really come there for you or for what you say?????I don??t know. he was prepared to give us information in exchange. They came back at terce. or fear.?? ??May they rest from their labors. almost at my right hand. he repeats his rituals at a distance of millennia. who had said that the aim of learning was also to prolong human life. and Cluny. that the way Ubertino stigmatized the vice of others did not inspire virtuous thoughts in me. fearing he would be discovered. who must strike the weakest. Whereas. no doubt. There. their hands under their scapulars. and he will be at the same time a member of the legation. and when we have Pope John??s envoys and Brother Michael here. and in fact. though at that moment there were perhaps thirty.