Concerning Death

CONCERNING DEATH

BY HOVHANNES TULKOURANTZI

(1450-1525)

O EVIL man, with passions fraught,
How long wilt thou strive after sin
Enough the ill that thou hast wrought:
Repent,--a holier life begin.

From Adam's time until this day,
No soul hath had immortal breath;
Thou heed’st not what the Scriptures say--
The sinner's punishment is death.

He that had palaces of gold,
And brilliant cities, fortress-bound,
Hath left behind his wealth untold,
And lies beneath the sodden ground.

Who loved to quaff the spicy wine,
And spent his life in ribaldry,
I saw him like a swollen swine,--
A loathsome corpse, unsavoury.

The man that rode an arch-necked steed
And flashed his sword around to slay,
I saw him penitent indeed:--
Between two wooden planks he lay.

p. 120

And evil wenches, women fair,
Who dress in robes of gaudy dye,
Who love to curl and braid their hair--
Their brightness with the sun might vie:

They swing about, and turn, and sway,
And are beloved of every man;
But hateful when Death comes are they,
To all who would their features scan.

Christ sits upon the throne of Light,
Rewarding those who loved His Word,
Crowning the just with glory bright
And penitents His voice that heard.

Ah, Hovhannes Tulkourantzi,
Listen with open heart and ear;
Seek out some way diligently
To win the crown of glory there.