Johannes Eriugena's Poetry (Notes)

Reading John J. O'Meara's Eriugena, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1988.

Chapter 10 is on the Poetry of Eriugena:

1) historical context
Poetry in Latin was an important element in the Carolingian Renaissance. This poetry was political and inspired by Virgil, especially by his Aeneid. Louis the Pious reacted against this, Charles the Bald revived it.

Prevalent themes are the praise of the holy Cross, hagiography and moral didacticism. The focus of the poetry is Charles the Bald himself. Almost every poem of Eriugena praises and prays for him.

Irishmen had a great influence in promoting theological debates at that time.

Poets in Charles' time had an interest in parody, for example Sedulius Scotus's poem on the ram.

2) Eriugena's poetry

In the Edition of L. Traube in the MGH (Monumenta germaniae historica: poetae latini aevi Carolini, 3) one can find lists of Greek words in Greek script.. There are some pieces composed altogether in Greek written in Greek script. There is one in Greek but transliterated into Latin script. There are poems in Greek (in Greek script) followed by a word-for-word translation in Latin. Many of the poems have Greek words introduced here and there, sometimes few, sometimes many. About half of the poems are written in elegiac couplets and half in dactylic hexameter (p. 178-179).

His poems derive from a collection formed during his lifetime and probably by the author himself. They were written between 850 and 877. The extant poems come mainly form MSS Vat. Reg. 1587 and 1709.


3) Interpretation
One of the more interesting poems is Aulae siderae. Madame Viellard-Troiekouroff thought it describes the Church of St. Mary of Compiègne. Her evidence is verse 87 where the word 'hundred' is mentioned, and took it to be an allusion to the numbers of clerics this church was built for. But P. Dutton and É. Jeauneau thought together with Y. Christe that this number can be biblical (one hundred cubits in the temple of Ezekiel).

For Viellard-Troiekouroff the poem clearly indicates the octagonal character of the church built by Charles the Bald, but it does not clearly indicate that it has a cupola.

Foussard offers a metaphysical interpretation.


4) Content of Aulae siderae
The poem centres in its earlier part around the numbers four and eight. Four itself, as the poems tells us, is the number of the seasons which are headed by Aries, Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn which mark the equinoxes and solstices. These constellations mark also the conception of Christ (Aries, 25 March), the birth of John the Baptist (Cancer, 24 June), the conception of the Baptist (Libra, 24 September), and the birth of Christ (Capricorn, 25 December).

Eight is an important number in relation to Christ and the reintegration of all things in the end. Christ was born on the eighth day before the kalends of January, was conceived on the eighth day before the kalends of April, was circumcised on the eighth day after his birth, and rose from the dead on the eighth day of the week. The universe will end in its eighth age.

The main theme is the birth of Christ and the return of man which it makes possible.

The poem ends with a prayer for Charles to Christ and to Mary. For Mary Charles is building a church which is therupon described in some detail Charles is shown as seated on a throne in the church looking out upon all, wearing on his head a diadem and holding sceptres in his hands.

It contains one hundred hexameters which is followed by one line of acclamation.

The Aulae siderae can be considered as an instance of Eriugena's interest in art and as conveying his approach to it - his philosophy of art.

In his poems generally he manifests an interest in objets d'art and speaks of the robes encrusted with jewels that the queen, Ermentrude, weaves for Charles; of the golden vases and broad hangings that furnish a church built by Charles; and of gold and gems burning like flames. He speaks of the purple vestments of the ministers of the altar and shows a lively consciousness of things artistic.

The prosody of this poems is acceptable but the verses have little of the harmonious movement of Virgil's. This is partly due to the total avoidance of elision and synapheia. The result is inevitalbe staccato. But it has still some possibly Virgilian echoes (v. 54) for example

Salve sancta domus, panis ditissima patrum

cf. Virgil's Aeneid 5.80:

Salve, sancte parens, iterum salvete, recpti
nequiquam cineres

or in his Georgics, 2.173:

Salve, magna parens frugum, Saturnia tellus.

Also cf. Statius' Silvae 3.3.208

Salve supremum, senior mitissime patrum

5) Usage of Greek

M. Lapidge believes that Eriugena derived this practice of incorporating Greek words and verses in his poems not from his forbears in Irland (though there are some phrases in Greek in the Book of Armagh, written in 807), nor from Ausonius, who was not much read in the Carolingian period, but, possibly from Martianus Capella. However it is more probable that the practice originated with Eriugena himself.

6) Influence on his contemporaries

Martin the Irishman collected the Greek words that were in the verses of Johannes Scottus (Laon MS 444). Hincmar of Laon, Heiric and Remi of Auxerre all followed him in this practise of using Greek words. And especially Odon of Fleury.