Testimonies concerning John Scotus Eriugena.

...for he might have offended his companion, but the King rebuked him politely and said, "What separates a Sot original: Sottum; a fool or drunkard from a Scot?" He turned the solemn banquet back upon its author and replied: "Only a table." The King had asked about the difference in their characters, but John replied regarding the physical distance between their seats. Yet the King was not moved to anger, for he was so captured by the miracle of the man's knowledge that he would not say a word against the "Master," as he usually called him.

Likewise, when a servant offered a platter to the King at dinner containing two very large fishes and one tiny one, the King gave it to the Master to share with the two clerics sitting next to him. These men were of giant stature, while John himself was very small of body. Then, as he always found some clever way to stir the joy of the guests, he kept the two large fishes for himself and distributed the one small fish between the other two. When the King argued against the unfairness of the portioning, John replied, "No, I have done well and fairly; for here is one small one," speaking of himself, and touching the two large fishes. Then, turning to the others, he said, "And here are two great, immense clerics," while touching the one tiny fish.

At the request of Charles Charles the Bald, King of West Francia, he translated the Hierarchy of Dionysius the Areopagite from Greek into Latin, word for word. The result is that the Latin text can hardly be understood, as it is constructed more with Greek fluidity than according to our own word order. He also composed a book titled Peri physion Merismou Greek: Περὶ φύσεων μερισμοῦ, meaning "On the Division of Nature", which is very useful for resolving certain complex questions—provided he is forgiven for certain points where he deviated from the path of the Latins while keeping his eyes fixed too sharply upon the Greeks. For this reason, he was even thought a heretic, and a certain Florus wrote against him; for there are indeed many things in the book On the Division of Nature which, unless discussed diligently, seem abhorrent to the Catholic faith. Pope Nicholas is known to have shared this opinion, saying in a letter to Charles:

It has been reported to our Apostleship that a certain man, John of the Scottish race, has recently translated into Latin the work of the Blessed Dionysius the Areopagite, which he wrote in the Greek tongue concerning the divine names or celestial orders. According to custom, this should have been sent to us and approved by our judgment, especially since the same John, though he is said to be a man of great knowledge, has for some time been rumored not to think soundly on certain matters.

Because of this ill-repute, I believe he grew weary of France and came to King Alfred Alfred the Great of England. Enticed by the King's generosity and his high esteem—as I have understood from the King's own writings—he settled at Malmesbury original: Melduni. There, after some years, he was stabbed to death with the writing-pens term: graphiis — sharp metal styluses used for writing on wax tablets of the boys he was teaching. He gave up his soul in great and bitter torment; as the boys' wickedness was strong and their hands weak, they struck him often and fruitlessly so that he died a lingering death. He lay for some time in an honorable tomb in the Church of Saint Lawrence, which had been the witness to this unspeakable slaughter. But when divine favor granted a fiery light over him for many nights, the Monks were warned; they translated him into the greater Church and, placing him to the left of the altar, proclaimed his martyrdom with these verses:

In this tomb is buried the holy Sage John,
Who, while living, was enriched with wondrous teaching;
At last he earned the right to ascend to Christ's kingdom by martyrdom,
Where all the saints reign forever.