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Pangur Ban–A gorgeous and delightful bit of marginalia

By Anita Mathias

Pangur Ban–A Gorgeous and delightful bit of marginalia

Scribbled by a 9th century Irish monk, bored of his labours on the margin of St. Paul’s Epistles.



Translated By Robin Flower:

I and Pangur Ban my cat,
‘Tis a like task we are at:
Hunting mice is his delight,
Hunting words I sit all night.

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.

‘Tis a merry task to see
At our tasks how glad are we,
When at home we sit and find
Entertainment to our mind.

Oftentimes a mouse will stray
In the hero Pangur’s way;
Oftentimes my keen thought set
Takes a meaning in its net.

‘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.

When a mouse darts from its den,
O how glad is Pangur then!
O what gladness do I prove
When I solve the doubts I love!

        So in peace our task we ply,

Pangur Ban, my cat, and I;
In our arts we find our bliss,
I have mine and he has his.

Practice every day has made
Pangur perfect in his trade;
I get wisdom day and night
Turning darkness into light.


Read my new memoir: Rosaries, Reading, Secrets: A Catholic Childhood in India (US) or UK.
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My Books

Rosaries, Reading, Secrets: A Catholic Childhood in India

Rosaries, Reading Secrets, B&N
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Wandering Between Two Worlds: Essays on Faith and Art

Wandering Between Two Worlds
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Francesco, Artist of Florence: The Man Who Gave Too Much

Francesco, Artist of Florence
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UK

The Story of Dirk Willems

The Story of Dirk Willems
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What I’m Reading


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The Long Loneliness:
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Dorothy Day

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The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry:
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