Fáelchú Bán

Fáelchú Bán is an ancient Ioannan poem written in manuscript by a monk who lived at the Abbey Chinon. It was never published by the monk, whose identity remains a mystery, and was only discovered during the restoration of the abbey buried in a vault containing old manuscripts from the Bosworthian era. The name Fáelchú Bán means "White Wolf-dog" in Ioannan and was the pet and hunting companion of the monk living at the abbey. In eight verses of four lines each, the author compares the dog's happy hunting with his own scholarly pursuits.

Poem of Fáelchú Bán

1. I and Fáelchú Bán, my dog
'Tis alike we sit in the fog;
Hunting hares is his delight,
Hunting words I sit all night.
2. Better far than praise of men
'Tis to sit with book and pen;
Pangur bears me no ill-will,
He, too, plies his simple skill.
3. 'Tis a merry thing to see
At our tasks how glad are we,
When at home we sit and find
Entertainment to our mind.
4. Oftentimes a hare will stray
In the hero Pangur's way;
Oftentimes my keen thought set
Takes a meaning in its net.
5. 'Gainst the wall he sets his eye
Full and fierce and sharp and sly;
'Gainst the wall of knowledge I
All my little wisdom try.
6. When a hare darts from its den,
O! how glad is Pangur then;
O! what gladness do I prove
When I solve the doubts I love.
7. So in peace our task we ply,
Fáelchú Bán, my dog and I;
In our arts we find our bliss,
I have mine, and he has his.
8. Practice every day has made
Pangur perfect in his trade;
I get wisdom day and night,
Turning darkness into light.