ORIENTIS PARTIBUS
anon. medieval carol

Orientis partibus
adventavit asinus,
pulcher et fortissimus,
Sarcinis aptissimus.
Hez, Sir Asnes, hez!

From the East the donkey came,
Stout and strong as twenty men;
Ears like wings and eyes like flame,
Striding into Bethlehem.
Heh! Sir Ass, oh heh!

Faster than the deer he leapt,
With his burden on his back;
Though all other creatures slept,
Still the ass kept on his track.
Heh! Sir Ass, oh heh!

Still he draws his heavy load,
Fed on barley and rough hay;
Pulling on along the road --
Donkey, pull our sins away!
Heh! Sir Ass, oh heh!

Wrap him now in cloth of gold;
All rejoice who see him pass;
Mirth inhabit young and old
On this feast day of the ass.
Heh! Sir Ass, oh heh!

@ Christmas
from The Christmas Revels Songbook, Revels Inc., Cambridge
see also The Friendly Beasts

MT

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