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But as a man to whom a dreadful loss
And after King Arthur had gone forth from the palace, Gwenhwyvar [Guinevere] awoke, and called to her maidens, and apparelled herself.
"Maidens," said she, "I had leave last night to go and see the hunt. Go one of you to the stable, and order hither a horse such as a woman may ride." And one of them went, and she found but two horses in the stable, and Gwenhwyvar and one of her maidens mounted them, and went through the Usk, and followed the track of the men and the horses. And as they rode thus, they heard a loud and rushing sound; and they looked behind them, and beheld a knight upon a hunter foal of mighty size; and the rider was a fair-haired youth, bare-legged, and of princely mien, and a golden-hilted sword was at his side, and a robe and a surcoat of satin were upon him, and two low shoes of leather upon his feet; and around him was a scarf of blue purple, at each corner of which was a golden apple. And his horse stepped stately, and swift, and proud; and he overtook Gwenhwyvar, and saluted her.
"Heaven prosper thee, Geraint," said she, "I knew thee when first I
saw thee just now. And the welcome of Heaven be unto thee. And why
didst thou not go with thy lord to hunt?" "Because I knew not when he went," said he.
"I marvel, too," said she, "how he could go unknown to me." "Indeed, lady," said he.
"I was asleep, and knew not when he went; but thou, O young man, art the most agreeable companion I could have in the whole kingdom; and it may be, that I shall be more amused with the hunting than they; for we shall hear the horns when they sound, and we shall hear the dogs when they are let loose, and begin to cry." So they went to the edge of the Forest, and there they stood.
"From this place," said she, "we shall hear when the dogs are let loose." And thereupon, they heard a loud noise, and they looked towards the spot whence it came, and they beheld a dwarf riding upon a horse, stately, and foaming, and prancing, and strong, and spirited. |
Geraint Wounded, Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale
(1872-1945), from: Idylls of the King, Hodder and
Stoughton, London, 1911 |
Then fearlessly and
unhesitatingly Geraint dashed forward into the mist. And on leaving the
mist, he came to a large orchard; and in the orchard he saw an open space,
wherein was a tent of red satin; and the door of the tent was open, and an
apple-tree stood in front of the door of the tent; and on a branch of the
apple-tree hung a large hunting-horn. Then he dismounted, and went into
the tent; and there was no one in the tent save one maiden sitting in a
golden chair, and another chair was opposite to her, empty. And Geraint
went to the empty chair, and sat down therein. "Ah! chieftain,"
said the maiden, "I would not counsel thee to sit in that
chair." "Wherefore?" said Geraint. "The man to whom
that chair belongs has never suffered another to sit in it." "I
care not," said Geraint, "though it displease him that I sit in
the chair." And thereupon they heard a mighty tumult around the tent.
And Geraint looked to see what was the cause of the tumult. And he beheld
without a knight mounted upon a warhorse, proudly snorting, highly-mettled,
and large of bone; and a robe of honour in two parts was upon him and upon
his horse, and beneath it was plenty of armour. "Tell me,
chieftain," said he to Geraint, "who was it that bade thee to
sit there?" "Myself," answered he. "It was wrong of
thee to do me this shame and disgrace. Arise and do me satisfaction for
thine insolence." Then Geraint arose; and they encountered
immediately; and they broke a set of lances, and a second set, and a
third; and they gave each other fierce and frequent strokes; and at last
Geraint became enraged, and he urged on his horse, and rushed upon him,
and gave him a thrust on the centre of his shield, so that it was split,
and so that the head of the lance went through his armour, and his girths
were broken, and he himself was borne headlong to the ground the length of
Geraint's lance and arm, over his horse's crupper. "Oh, my
Lord!" said he, "thy mercy, and thou shalt have what thou
wilt." "I only desire," said Geraint, "that this game
shall no longer exist here, nor the hedge of mist, nor magic, nor
enchantment."
From The
Mabinogion
Before Geraint, the terror of the foe,
I saw steeds fatigued with the toil of battle,
And after the shout was given, bow dreadful was the onset.
At Llongborth I saw the tumult,
And the slain drenched in gore,
And red-stained warriors from the assault of the foe.
Before Geraint, the scourge of the enemy,
I saw steeds white with foam,
And after the shout of battle, a fearful torrent.
At Llongborth I saw the raging of slaughter,
And an excessive carnage,
And warriors blood-stained from the assault of Geraint.
At Llongborth was Geraint slain,
A valiant warrior from the woodlands of Devon,
Slaughtering his foes as he fell.
From the 'Elegy to St Geraint', by Llywarch Hen
Near here on the road to San Pedro Sula ... are certain ruins vestiges of a grand population and magnificent buildings constructed with such a skill that it seems that they could never have been made by people as coarse as the inhabitants of this province.
Don Diego de Palacios on Copán, in a letter to the Spanish king Felipe II (March 1576). Mayan King
'19-Rabbit' dedicated the ball court at Copán on January 10, 738 CE
Perhaps the sentiments contained in the following pages, are not yet sufficiently fashionable to procure them general favor; a long habit of not thinking a thing wrong, gives it a superficial appearance of being right, and raises at first a formidable outcry in defence of custom.
Thomas Paine, American revolutionist, who published Common Sense on January 10, 1776; opening lines of the
'Introduction'
Society in every state is a blessing, but government even in its best state is but a necessary evil in its worst state an in tolerable one; for when we suffer, or are exposed to the same miseries by a government, which we might expect in a country without government, our calamities is heightened by reflecting that we furnish the means by which we suffer!
Thomas Paine; from Common Sense
More quotes by Thomas Paine
Government even in its best state is but a necessary evil.
Common Sense, 1776, 'Of the origin and design of government
in general, with concise remarks on the English Constitution'
The strength of one man is so unequal to his wants, and his mind so unfitted for perpetual solitude, that he is soon obliged to seek assistance and relief of another.
Ibid
Nothing but heaven is impregnable to vice.
Ibid
Oppression is often the consequence, but seldom or never the means of riches; and though avarice will preserve a man from being necessitously poor, it generally makes him too timorous to be wealthy.
Ibid, 'Of monarchy and hereditary succession'
For all men being originally equals, no one by birth could have a right to set up his own family in perpetual preference to all others for ever.
Ibid
Of more worth is one honest man to society and in the sight of God, than all the crowned ruffians that every lived.
Ibid
Youth is the seed time of good habits, as well in nations as in individuals.
Common Sense, 1776, 'Of the present ability of America, with
some miscellaneous reflexions'
As to religion, I hold it to be the indispensable duty of all government, to protect all conscientious professors thereof, and I know of no other business which government hath to do therewith.
Ibid
Suspicion is the companion of mean souls, and the bane of all good society.
Ibid
These are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of men and women.
The Crisis, 1776, 'Introduction'
A thing moderately good is not so good as it ought to be. Moderation in temper is always a virtue, but moderation in principle is always a vice.
Thomas Paine, The Rights of Man, 1792
Better fare hard with good men than feast it with bad.
The real man smiles in trouble, gathers strength from distress, and grows brave by reflection.
The world is my country, all mankind are my brethren, and to do good is my religion.
When we are planning for posterity, we ought to remember that virtue is not hereditary.
Give me liberty, or give me death.
More Tom Paine
quotes
Common sense is the collection of prejudices acquired by age eighteen.
Albert Einstein
Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power
corrupts absolutely.
Lord Acton, English statesman, born on January 10, 1834
Great men are almost always bad men.
Lord Acton
The one pervading evil of democracy is the tyranny
of the majority, or rather of that party, not always the majority, that
succeeds, by force or fraud, in carrying elections.
Lord Acton
The issue which has swept down the centuries and which will have to be
fought sooner or later is the people versus the banks.
Lord Acton
I wish I knew what I know now before.
Rod Stewart, born on January 10, 1945
A show is like having a climax. It's like having an incredible, natural climax. And then suddenly it's all finished, and you don't know what to do next.
Rod Stewart
I'm a rock star because I couldn't be a soccer star.
Rod Stewart
I want to go out at the top, but the secret is knowing when you're at the top, it's so difficult in this business, your career fluctuates all the time, up and down, like a pair of trousers.
Rod Stewart
Half the battle is selling music, not singing it. It's the image, not what you sing.
Rod Stewart
January 10 is the 10th
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calendar, with 355
days remaining (356 in leap years).
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Feast day of St
Geraint
Truth is, we know very little about Geraint ab Erbin (son of Erbin), and some scholars doubt he ever existed, but he might have been a 5th-Century Welsh bard, the Blue Bard of Wales, as well as a naval commander who fell fighting valiantly against the Saxons in the Battle of Llongborth (possibly c. 501). This battle was fought over the old Roman Saxon shore fort of Portchester, against British forces led, apparently, by King Arthur.
Geraint is said to be a prince of Dyvnaint, or Damnonia (Devon). He and his wife Enid (as in this painting by Arthur Hughes) were the subjects of romantic legends and we read of Geraint's exploits here in the Mabinogion. Who he was is hazy: there is another King St Gerontius of Cornwall, who died in 596, a St Gerontius who was a 2nd-Century martyr of Numidia, and another martyred Gerontius, Bishop of Cervia, Italy.
Geraint ab Erbin was
immortalized in ancient Welsh literature
through the elegy composed about him by the venerable king and bard, Llywarch Hen.
"Geraint ab Erbin may be a composite figure based on the Gerontius who rebelled against Constantine in the early fifth century, a sixth-century Geraint in The Gododdin, and the later Geraint/Geruntius of Devon who fought the West Saxons in 710. The Welsh text is as edited and annotated by AOH Jarman in the Llyfr Du Caerfyrddin." Source
From
Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
The Mabinogion is a
collection of stories based on the oral tradition of the Welsh bards. Its
name comes from a misunderstanding made by the Mabinogion's
first English translator, Lady Charlotte Guest: she found in one
story the Welsh word mabynogyon and assumed it
was the plural form of the Welsh mabinogi. The word mabinogi
itself is something of a puzzle, although it is clearly related to the
Welsh mab or 'son, boy'. Professor Eric P Hamp
suggests that mabinogi derives from the name of the Celtic deity Maponos,
and refers to the materials pertaining to the god Maponos.
The
Mabinogion proper
consists of four stories, also called in its manuscripts, 'The Four
Branches of the Mabinogi'. These stories are:
Feast day of goddess Securitas, ancient Rome
