How the blog works

The poems on this blog are mostly written on the basis of my historical reading and are intended to be both educational and entertaining.
Recently I have also begun posting some of my work with Anglo-Saxon charms. This work is somewhat speculative and is conducted as an amateur researcher and keen Pagan historian.

Please feel free to use anything on this site as a resource if you think that it may be relevant to your needs.

Monday 7 April 2014

Lacnunga CV - A puzzle Solved?

A puzzle Solved?
Here is an untranslated incantation from a healing charm in an Anglo-Saxon medical manuscript:

Lacnunga CV
Ecce dolgula medit dudum beðegunda breðegunda
elecunda eleuacha mottem mee renum orþa fueþa
letaues noeues terre dolge drore uhic alleluia
Singe man þis gebed on þæt se man drincan wille, nygan siþan, 
& pater noster nigan siþan.

Translation of lines 4 and 5 From Old English
Let one sing this prayer over that which a man is about to drink, nine times, and the Paternoster nine times.

The first 3 lines
The considered opinion over this charm (lines 1-3) is that it was written in a Latin like way, to give authority, starting and ending with actual Latin words but with pseudo Latin within. To this was added some Old Irish, as was sometimes used as a way to add extra energy to a charm. Some words are used for their tonal qualities and associations with known language of the time. The intent was to evoke a sense of magic. This Anglo-Saxon charm contains both rhythm and alliteration. The charm was therefore written in a pseudo language without obvious meaning but played on relevant words of power and healing and was not intended to be translated, however we can find some hidden meaning:

The first 3 lines yield up the following:
See (here)! Banish (this) little injury, eats? salve abounding, abounding,
healing-abounding, mote of my kidneys, formulate a charm,
letaues noeues (no meaning found) let sorrowful suffering fail, alleluia.

So a free flowing possible meaning:
Attention! consume (this) decoction (to) banish (this) little injury, abounding abounding!
Healing-abounding charm formulated to reduce (the toxin to expel from) my kidneys,
Abracadabra, let (this) sorrowful suffering fail, alleluia.

So the charm appears to be used to expel toxins.

I now intend to produce a poetic version of this with the intent of reproducing the feel of the original charm with hidden meaning, rhythm and alliteration.

Acknowledgement
I wish to thank Dr Clive Tolley for his kind help in supplying me with some useful information with regards to the understanding of this charm.


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