25 June 2015

VNRJUCHT & WANSIN ~ unright & vainsense

Great injustice leads to madness.

The Oera Linda Book has one explicit mention of insanity* and it is indeed caused by the worst injustice (in my opinion) described in the whole manuscript: the abuse of Friso's children by the kakistocrat Demetrius.
(*adjective WAN.SINNICH, from noun WAN.SIN)

Taken from text by Ljudgért, ca. 300 BCE, pages 120-130 of the original manuscript (pp. 165-179 in the translations of Ottema & Sandbach). The translations below are adapted by me.

[126/01] to [127/28]

FRISO THÉR KÉNING WÉR OVIR.A FLÁTE.
HÉDE EN SVN ÀND EN TOGHATER TUS
Friso in Hamconius (1620)
SÁ BJUSTRE FRES
AS JEF HJA PÁS UT FRYA.S LAND WÉI KVMEN 5WÉREN
ÀND SÁ WONDER SKÉN AS NIMMAN MOCHT HÜGJA.
THJV HROP THÉRVR GVNG WR ALLE KRÉKA.LANDA
ÀND KÉM IN THA ÁRA FON DEMÉTRIUS.
DEMÉTRIUS WÉRE WL ÀND VNSÉD.LIK
ÀND HI THOGTE 10THÀT.IM ELLA FRY STVNDE.
HI LÉT THIU TOGHATER AVBÉR SKÁKJA.

Friso, die koning was over de vloot,
had een zoon en een dochter thuis,
zo bijster fris [kennelijk: raszuiver],
alsof zij pas uit Fryasland gekomen waren,
en zo wonderschoon als niemand kon heugen.
De roep daarover ging over alle Krékalanden
en kwam in de oren van Demétrius.
Demétrius was vuil [bedorven] en onzedelijk,
en hij dacht dat hem alles vrij stond.
Hij liet de dochter openlijk schaken.

Friso, who was king over the fleet,
had a son and a daughter at home,
so remarkably fresh [i.e. racially pure],
as if they had just come out of Fryasland,
and so wonderfully shining as no one could remember (ever having seen).
The fame of this went over all the Krékalands,
and came to the ears of Demétrius.
Demétrius was foul and immoral,
and he thought that all stood him free [he could do as he pleased].
He had the daughter kidnapped publicly.


[...] THRVCHDAM HJU HJRA MAN NAVT WACHTJA THURADE.
GVNG HJU 20MITH HJRA SVNE NÉI DEMÉTRIUS
AND BAD HI SKOLDE HJA HJRA TOGHATER WITHER JÉVA.
MEN AS DEMÉTRIUS HIRA SVN SA.
LÉT.ER THAM NÉI SINRA HOVE FORA.
ÀND DÉDE ALÉN MITH HIM
25AS.ER MITH THAMHIS SUSTER DÉN HÉDE.
ANDA MODER SAND HI EN BUDA GOLD.
THACH HJU STIRT.ET IN SÉ.

[...] Omdat zij (de moeder) niet op haar man durfde wachten,
ging zij met haar zoon naar Demétrius,
en bad opdat hij haar de dochter terug zou geven.
Maar als Demétrius haar zoon zag,
liet hij hem naar zijn hof voeren,
en deed hetzelfde met hem,
als hij met zijn zuster gedaan had.
Aan de moeder zond hij een buidel goud,
doch zij stortte het in zee.

[...] As she (the mother) dared not wait for her husband's return,
she went with her son to Demétrius,
and begged him to give back her daughter.
But when Demétrius saw her son
he had him taken to his palace,
and did the same to him
as he had done to his sister.
To the mother he sent a bag of gold,
but she dumped it into the sea.


AS HJU T.US KÉM WARTH HJU WAN.SINNICH.
ALLERWÉIKES RUN HJU WRA STRÉTE
N.AST MIN KINDAR 30NAVT SJAN. O WÁCH.
LÉT.IK TO JOW SKUL SÉKA.
WAND MIN JOI WIL MI DÉJA
FOR THA.K SINA KINDAR WÉI.BROCH HÀV.

Toen ze thuis kwam, werd ze waanzinnig.
Allerwege liep ze over straat (roepende):
"Heeft u mijn kinderen niet gezien? O wách!
Laat me bij u een schuilplaats zoeken,
want mijn man wil me doden,
omdat ik zijn kinderen verloren heb."

When she came home, she turned mad.
Everywhere she ran about the streets (calling):
"Have you not seen my children? O Wách!
Let me find a place to hide with you,
for my husband will kill me
because I have lost his children."


Marble bust of
Demetrius I Poliorcetes.
{127} 1THÁ DEMÉTRIUS FORNOM THÀT FRISO TO HONK WÉRE.
SAND.I EN BODJA TO HIM SEZANDE
THÀT HI SINA BERN TO HIM NOMEN HÉDE
VMBERA TO FORA TO.N HÁGE STÁT.
VMBE 5TO LÁNJA HIM TOFARA SINA THJANESTA.

Toen Demétrius vernam dat Friso thuis was,
zond hij hem een bode zeggende,
dat hij zijn kinderen bij zich genomen had
om hen te voeren tot een hoge status,
om hem te belonen voor zijn diensten.

When Demétrius heard that Friso was home,
he sent a messenger to him saying
that he had taken his children to him
to raise them to a high status,
to reward him for his services.


MEN FRISO THÉR STOLTE ÀND HERD.FOCHTICH WÉRE
SAND EN BODJA MITH.EN BRÉVE NÉI SINUM BERN THA.
THÉR IN MÁNDER HI HJAM
HJA SKOLDE DEMÉTRIUS TO WILLA WÉSA
VR10.MITHIS THAM HJARA LUK JÉRDE.
THACH THENE BODJA HÉDE JETA.N ÔRA BRÉVE MITH FENIN.
THÉRMÉI BIFÁL.ER HJA SKOLDE THÀT INNIMMA

Maar Friso, die trots en hardvochtig (koelbloedig) was,
zond een bode met een brief naar zijn kinderen toe,
daarin maande hij hen,
dat ze Demétrius ter wille zouden zijn,
vermits deze hun geluk begeerde.
Doch de bode had nog een andere brief met venijn (gif),
daarmee beval hij hen dat in te nemen.

But Friso, who was proud and cold-blooded,
sent a messenger with a letter to his children,
in which he recommended them
to accept the will of Demétrius,
as he desired their happiness (luck).
But the messenger had yet another letter with poison,
which he ordered them to take.


HWAND SÉID.ER.
VNWILLING.LIK IS THIN LIF BIWLLAD.
THAT NE SKIL JOW NAVT TO RÉK15.NED NI WRDE.
THACH SÁHWERSA JOW JOWE SÉLE BIWLLATH
SA NE SKIL JOW NIMMERTHE TO WAL.HÁLLA NE KVMA.
JOW SÉLE SKIL THÀN OVER JRTHA OMME.WÁRA.
SVNDER A THET LJUCHT SJA TO MVGANDE.
20LIK THA FLÁRA.MUSA ÀND NACHT.ULA
SKILSTV ALRA DYSTIK IN THINA HOLA SKULA.
THES NACHT.IS UTKVMA.
THEN VP VSA GRÀVA GRÁJA ÀND HULA.
THAHWILA FRYA HJRA HAVED FON JOW OFWEN25.DA MOT.

"Want", zei hij,
"onvrijwillig is je lijf bevuild -
dat zal jou niet toegerekend worden.
Doch indien je jouw ziel bevuilt,
dan zul je nimmer in Walhálla komen.
Jouw ziel zal dan over de aarde omzwerven,
zonder het licht te kunnen zien.
Gelijk de vleermuizen en nachtuilen
zul je steeds bij dag in je hol schuilen
en er 's nachts uitkomen,
om op onze graven te schreien (schreeuwen, grienen) en huilen,
terwijl Frya haar hoofd van je afwenden moet."

"Because", said he,
"against your will, your body was defiled -
for that you can not be blamed.
But if you defile your soul,
you shall never come into Walhálla.
Your soul shall then wander over the earth
without being able to see the light.
Like the bats and night-owls
you shall hide by day in your hole,
and come out by night
to cry and howl upon our graves,
while Frya must turn her head away from you."


THA BERN DÉDE LIK.RA BIFÁLEN WARTH.
DEMÉTRIUS LÉT RA LIKKA IN SÉ WERPA
ÀND TO THA MÀNNISKA WRDE SÉID
THÀT HJA FLJUCHT WÉRON.

School of Marcantonio Raimondi,
Italy, ca.1500–1550
De kinderen deden zoals hun bevolen werd.
Demétrius liet hun lijken in zee werpen
en aan de mensen werd gezegd
dat ze gevlucht waren.

The children did as they were ordered.
Demétrius had their corpses thrown into the sea
and to the people was said
that they had fled.

~ ~ ~

Versions of the word WAN.SINNICH in some modern languages:
waansin / -nich - Frisian
waansin / -nig - Afrikaans
waanzin / -nig - Dutch
wahnsinn / -ig - German
vansinne / vansinnig - Swedish

~ ~ ~

The main question here is: Was Demétrius objectively evil, or did he – in his own integrity – actually mean well? Was he raised in a culture where what he did was morally acceptable? Was it an ultimate clash of fundamentally oposed cultures? Talmudic ethics for example include values that would be utterly repulsive to well raised gentiles, if they knew of them. Cultures can be very dissimilar. Mixing them (by force) is not without risk. Clashes can have huge consequences on the long term, as this example in the OLB demonstrates.

~ ~ ~

From Plutarch (46-120 CE), The Life of Demetrius (337–283 BC):
But Demetrius (...) filled the acropolis with such wanton treatment of free-born youth and native Athenian women that the place was then thought to be particularly pure when he shared his dissolute life there with Chrysis and Lamia and Demo and Anticyra, the well-known prostitutes.

(...) Democles (...) was still a young boy, and (...) he was called Democles the Beautiful. But he yielded to none of the many who sought to win him by prayers or gifts or threats, and finally, shunning the palaestras and the gymnasium, used to go for his bath to a private bathing-room. Here Demetrius, who had watched his opportunity, came upon him when he was alone. And the boy, when he saw that he was quite alone and in dire straits, took off the lid of the cauldron and jumped into the boiling water, thus destroying himself, and suffering a fate that was unworthy of him, but showing a spirit that was worthy of his country and of his beauty.