Part IV : How to give thanks to the Mother of God : Chapter 8 : § 2.8 St Casimir’s Hymn 1-5

Chapter 8 : Honour – a seventh feature of the gratitude we owe the Mother of God

Continuing our translation of the 1845 reprint of Fr François Poiré’s Triple Crown of the Mother of God (1643 French edition).

Notre Dame des Grâces, Cotignac (Poggi, 2020)

§ 2. Second sign of honour : singing her praises

St Casimir’s Hymn

[Translator’s note: The following Hymn was translated from St Casimir’s Latin into French verse by Fr Poiré. What follows is my English verse translation which follows the metre, rhyming scheme and imagery of the French. There are seventeen verses which will be published over the next few days]

(1)

My heart...

Let naught by night and naught by day

Take up thy feelings and thy thought 

Save only her whose love they say

Wants ev’ry soul to Heaven brought.

May all thy tender love’s desire

And all to which thou dost aspire

Give highest honour, perfect praise,

To Mary who with sweetest grace

Doth Heaven’s Angels all amaze

When nestled in her love’s embrace.

(2)

Her face so radiant and so bright

Doth not allow nor cloud nor shade

To hide from our astonished sight

The noble beauty there displayed.

And ev’ryone doth realise 

That there is nothing in the skies,

Nor on the earth, nor on the sea,

To match her peerless beauty fair,

And never worldly eye did see see  

A comeliness so sweet and rare.

(3)

There may be some who will deride

My overweening plan’s assumption 

For rooted being in foolish pride

And falling foul of vain presumption

Unless I can at least succeed 

In satisfying people’s need

Through heartfelt efforts with my quill

To bring to life her gracious features;

Her splendours truly fire my will,

For she is purest of all creatures.

(4)

Consider how the finest minds

When musing on her holy name

Do struggle with the choice of lines 

Befitting her celestial fame;

Their doubts at last when rent asunder,

Replacéd are by words of wonder;

Just so, when I do hesitate

And hold my tongue in timid fear,

Let not my lack of trust dictate

The way I sing her praises here.

(5)

With thou in combat at man’s side,

Oh Lady, Star of th’azure main,

His foes find they are soon denied

And Vict’ry sings her sweet refrain;

Death’s plans he this way doth frustrate,

And blesséd is with wondrous fate:

Despite the anger and the rage 

Of demons venting furious spleen,

A virtuous life he’ll now engage

Protected by his Heavenly Queen.

 

© Peter Bloor 2025 

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The Virgin of Tenderness. >12th century.

SUB tuum præsidium confugimus, Sancta Dei Genitrix. Nostras deprecationes ne despicias in necessitatibus, sed a periculis cunctis libera nos semper, Virgo gloriosa et benedicta. Amen. 

 

Totus tuus ego sum

Et omnia mea tua sunt;

Tecum semper tutus sum:

Ad Jesum per Mariam.

He that hearkeneth to me, shall not be confounded: and they that work by me, shall not sin. They that explain me shall have life everlasting. Ecclesiasticus (Sirach) xxiv. 30-31.