The Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan Every Child Can Read
no murder," no, not to another man's person; much more, then, are we
forbidden to take his advice to kill ourselves. Besides, he that kills
another can but commit murder upon his body; but for one to kill himself
is to kill body and soul at once. And, moreover, my brother, thou
talkest of ease in the grave; but hast thou forgotten the hell, whither,
for certain, the murderers go? for "no murderer hath eternal life." And
let us consider again, that all the law is not in the hand of Giant
Despair: others, so far as I can understand, have been taken by him as
well as we, and yet have escaped out of his hand. Who knows but that
God, who made the world, may cause that Giant Despair may die? or that,
at some time or other, he may forget to lock us in? or that he may, in a
short time, have another of his fits before us, and he may lose the use
of his limbs? and if ever that should come to pass again, for my part, I
am resolved to pluck up the heart of a man, and try to my utmost to get
from under his hand. I was a fool that I did not try to do it before.
But however, my brother, let us be patient, and endure awhile: the time
may come that may give us a happy release; but let us not be our own
murderers.
With these words, Hopeful at present did calm the mind of his brother;
so they continued together in the dark that day, in their sad and
doleful condition.
Well, towards evening, the giant goes down into the dungeon again, to
see if his prisoners had taken his counsel. But, when he came there, he
found them alive; and truly, alive was all; for now, what for want of
bread and water, and by reason of the wounds they received when he beat
them, they could do little but breathe. But, I say, he found them alive;
at which he fell into a grievous rage, and told them that, seeing they
had disobeyed his counsel, it should be worse with them than if they had
never been born.
At this they trembled greatly, and I think that Christian fell into a
swoon; but, coming a little to himself again, they renewed their
discourse about the giant's advice and whether yet they had best to take
it or no. Now, Christian again seemed for doing it; but Hopeful made his
second reply as followeth:
HOPE. "My brother," said he, "rememberest thou not how valiant thou hast
been heretofore? Apollyon could not crush thee, nor could all that thou
didst hear, or see, or feel in the Valley of the Shadow of Death. What
hardship, terror, and amazement hast thou already gone through! and art
thou now nothing but fear? Thou seest that I am in the dungeon with
thee, a far weaker man by nature than thou art; also this giant has
wounded me as well as thee, and hath also cut off the bread and water
from my mouth; and, with thee, I mourn without the light. But let us
have a little more patience. Remember how thou showedst thyself the man
at Vanity Fair, and wast neither afraid of the chain, nor cage, nor yet
of bloody death. Wherefore, let us (at least to avoid the shame that it
becomes not a Christian to be found in) bear up with patience as well as
we can."
Now, night being come again, and the giant and his wife being in bed,
she asked him concerning the prisoners, and if they had taken his
advice: to which he replied, "They are sturdy rogues; they choose rather
to bear all hardship than to make away with themselves." Then said she,
"Take them unto the castle-yard to-morrow, and show them the bones and
skulls of those that thou hast already killed; and make them believe,
ere a week comes to an end, thou wilt tear them also in pieces, as thou
hast done their fellows before them."
So when the morning was come, the giant goes to them again, and takes
them into the castle-yard and shows them as his wife had bidden him.
"These," said he, "were pilgrims, as you are, once, and they trespassed
in my grounds as you have done; and when I thought fit, I tore them in
pieces; and so within ten days I will do you. Go, get you down to your
den again." And, with that, he beat them all the way thither. They lay,
therefore, all day on Saturday in a lamentable case, as before. Now,
when night was come, and when Mrs. Diffidence and her husband, the giant
were got to bed, they began to renew their talking of their prisoners;
and withal, the old giant wondered that he could neither by his blows
nor counsel bring them to an end. And, with that, his wife replied, "I
fear," said she, "that they live in hope that some will come to relieve
them; or that they have picklocks about them, by the means of which they
hope to escape." "And sayest thou so, my dear?" said the giant: "I will
therefore search them in the morning."
[Sidenote: THE PILGRIMS ESCAPE]
Well, on Saturday about midnight, they began to pray, and continued in
prayer till almost break of day.
Now, a little before it was day, good Christian, as one half amazed,
brake out into this earnest speech: "What a fool," quoth he, "am I to
lie in a foul-smelling dungeon, when I may as well walk at liberty! I
have a key in my bosom called Promise, that will, I am sure, open any
lock in Doubting Castle." Then said Hopeful, "That is good news, good
brother: pluck it out of thy bosom, and try."
Then Christian pulled it out of his bosom, and began to try at the
dungeon door, whose bolt, as he turned the key, gave back, and the door
flew open with ease, and Christian and Hopeful both came out. Then he
went to the outward door that leads into the castle-yard, and with his
key opened that door also. After, he went to the iron gate, for that
must be opened too; but that lock went exceedingly hard, yet the key did
open it. Then they thrust open the gate to make their escape with speed;
but that gate, as it opened, made such a creaking, that it waked Giant
Despair who, hastily rising to pursue his prisoners, felt his limbs to
fail; for his fits took him again, so that he could by no means go after
them. Then they went on, and came to the King's highway again, and so
were safe because they were out of Giant Despair's rule.
Now, when they were gone over the stile, they began to contrive with
themselves what they should do at that stile to prevent those that
should come after from falling into the hands of Giant Despair. So they
agreed to build there a pillar, and to engrave upon the side thereof
this sentence: "Over this stile is the way to Doubting Castle, which is
kept by Giant Despair, who despiseth the King of the Celestial Country,
and seeks to destroy His holy pilgrims." Many, therefore, that followed
after, read what was written, and escaped the danger. This done, they
sang as follows:
"Out of the way we went, and then we found
What 'twas to tread upon forbidden ground:
And let them that come after have a care,
Lest heedlessness make them as we to fare;
Lest they for trespassing his prisoners are
Whose Castle's Doubting, and whose name's Despair."
CHAPTER VIII.
[Sidenote: THE DELECTABLE MOUNTAINS]
They went then till they came to the Delectable[5] Mountains, which
mountains belong to the Lord of that hill of which we have spoken
before. So they went up to the mountains to behold the gardens and
orchards, the vineyards and fountains of water, where also they drank
and washed themselves, and did freely eat of the vineyards. Now there
were on the tops of these mountains shepherds feeding their flocks, and
they stood by the highway-side. The pilgrims, therefore, went to them,
and leaning upon their staves (as is common with weary pilgrims when
they stand to talk with any by the way), they asked, "Whose delightful
mountains are these, and whose be the sheep that feed upon them?"
[5] This word means "pleasant," or "delightful."
SHEP. These mountains are Immanuel's Land, and they are within sight of
His city; and the sheep also are His, and He laid down His life for
them.
CHRIS. Is this the way to the Celestial City?
SHEP. You are just in your way.
CHRIS. How far is it thither?
SHEP. Too far for any but those who shall get thither indeed.
CHRIS. Is the way safe or dangerous?
SHEP. Safe for those for whom it is to be safe; but sinners shall fall
therein.
CHRIS. Is there in this place any relief for pilgrims that are weary and
faint in the way?
SHEP. The Lord of these mountains hath given us a charge not to be
forgetful to care for strangers; therefore the good of the place is
before you.
I saw also in my dream that when the shepherds perceived that they were
wayfaring men, they also put questions to them (to which they made
answer as in other places), as, "Whence came you?" and "How got you into
the way?" and, "By what means have you so persevered therein? for but
few of them that begin to come hither do show their faces on these
mountains." But when the shepherds heard their answers, being pleased
therewith they looked very lovingly upon them, and said, "Welcome to the
Delectable Mountains!"
The shepherds, I say, whose names were Knowledge, Experience, Watchful,
and Sincere, took them by the hand and took them to their tents, and
made them partake of what was ready at present. They said moreover, "We
would that you should stay here awhile, to be acquainted with us, and
yet more to cheer yourselves with the good of these Delectable
Mountains." They then told them that they were content to stay. So they
went to rest that night, because it was very late.
[Sidenote: THE SHEPHERDS CONDUCT THEM]
Then I saw in my dream that in the morning the shepherds called up
Christian and Hopeful to walk with them upon the mountains. So they
went forth with them and walked a while, having a pleasant prospect on
every side. Then said the shepherds one to another, "Shall we show these
pilgrims some wonders?" So, when they had concluded to do it, they had
them first to the top of the hill called Error, which was very steep on
the farthest side, and bid them look down to the bottom. So Christian
and Hopeful looked down, and saw at the bottom several men dashed all to
pieces by a fall they had had from the top. Then said Christian, "What
meaneth this?" Then the shepherds answered, "Have you not heard of them
that were made to err, by hearkening to Hymeneus and Philetus, as
concerning the faith of the rising from the dead?" They answered, "Yes."
Then said the shepherds, "Those you see lie dashed to pieces at the
bottom of this mountain are they; and they have continued to this day
unburied, as you see, for an example to others to take heed how they
clamber too high, or how they come too near the brink of this mountain."
Then I saw that they had them to the top of another mountain, and the
name of that is Caution and bid them look afar off; and when they did,
they perceived, as they thought, several men walking up and down among
the tombs that were there; and they perceived that the men were blind,
because they stumbled sometimes upon the tombs, and because they could
not get out from among them. Then said Christian, "What means this?"
The shepherds then answered, "Did you not see a little below these
mountains a stile that led into a meadow on the left hand side of this
way?" They answered, "Yes." Then said the shepherds, "From that stile
there goes a path that leads directly to Doubting Castle, which is kept
by Giant Despair; and these men" (pointing to them among the tombs)
"came once on pilgrimage, as you do now, even until they came to that
same stile. And because the right way was rough in that place, they
chose to go out of it into that meadow, and there were taken by Giant
Despair, and cast into Doubting Castle, where, after they had been kept
a while in the dungeon, he at last did put out their eyes, and led them
among those tombs, where he has left them to wander to this very day,
that the saying of the Wise Man might be fulfilled, 'He that wandereth