Peg, There's a much less "Christian" version in the notes to the Oxford Book of Carols version. Reckoned to be the earliest version, it is in the Hill MS (c 1500) and is as follows:

Lully, Lulley, Lully, Lulley!
The falcon hath borne my make away.

He bare him up, He bare him down,
He bare him to an orchard brown.

In that orchard there was a hall,
That was hanged with purple and pall.

And in that hall there was a bed,
It was hanged with gold so red.

And in that bed there lieth a knight,
His wounds bleeding day and night.

By that bed's side there kneeleth a may,
And she weepeth night and day.

And by that bed's side there standeth a stone,
Corpus Christi written thereon.

This is the abbreviated version that Desert Dancer referred to above, and both seem to me to be Christian adaptations of something far earlier.

Bearing in mind that this is what the Oxford Book of Carols refers to as a "general" carol, with relevance to both Christmas and to the Feast of Corpus Christi, I wonder if it was originally referring to the Winter and Summer Solstices. For, if we add on the extra days that were "lost" when the calendar was changed (as some still refer to January 6th as "Old Christmas Day"), then the Feast of "Corpus Christi" comes suspiciously close to the date of the Summer Solstice.

Desert Dancer's "hern" / heron further adds to the rich symbolism, since the heron is a symbol of the morning / creation / new beginnings, and the Falcon is a symbol of the Sun.

However, I still can't work out why the falcon should bear away a "make" / mate... and who's mate? The moon, perhaps, as mentioned in the Oxford Book versions:

Over that bed the moon shines bright,
Denoting our Saviour was born this night.

I agree with Dicho - use the verses that feel most appropriate for you.

Jenny

HTML line breaks added. --JoeClone, 5-Jun-02.