The Perilous Fountain with the Charter of Love

In my bed recently sleeping,
My head low beside the pillow,
Heavy with sadness and weary slumbering,
Through tears, sighs, and long wakefulness;
Eyes closed a long time without waking,
By a dream I was carried away,
At which I marveled greatly,
Because of the wonders that I saw there.
original: "rauy." This term implies being "ravished" or "transported" into a spiritual or supernatural state, common in visionary literature.

¶ All that I saw and heard
Seemed to me seen quite clearly;
Too vainly I rejoiced in it,
For I truly believed I was seeing,
Visible and heard by the senses,
Fictions seen and heard;
But when I truly awoke,
Soon they were vanished.
The poet explores the paradox of the dream: it feels more "sensible" (perceived by the senses) than reality while it lasts, only to disappear upon waking.

¶ Through the voice of another I made a record,
Reciting the whole story,
Of the dream put into writing,
To preserve a long memory of it;
For often the dark and black night
Shows to many, in a hidden way,
Things which afterward are well known,
And which one learns openly.
The "voice of another" may suggest the poet is acting as a scribe for a divine or external source of inspiration. He argues that dreams are often prophetic, revealing hidden truths that eventually become "notoire" (notorious or well-known) in the waking world.

¶ It seemed to me at first
That I was in a beautiful ship.
original: "nef." The ship is a powerful allegory for the soul’s journey or the beginning of a quest through the turbulent waters of life and love.