the iĄaculty oÍ' Graduate Ątudies April, L96[ - MSpace at the ...

Lþ9 '
lines r+Ïrich relate that Paracelsusl works l.rere stu-died
Èìrn-¡nrrohlrr -in Orcier tO eS'tablish Whethef 01. nOL he had
vr¡V¿ vq¿ir¡¿J ¡I¡
liad any knor,uledge of Holy Scrlpture; there v¡as some
doubb as to lrrhether his art was from the devil, irut the
possibility of this was ali'eady firnly implanted-' The
concluding lines redeem Paracelsus by claiming his having
been an enemy of the black art and that he had acfually
succeeded i-n rnaking the Philosopherrs Sione. fn a final
turn which lightl¡r suggests the endearing o,u.alities of
the rnan, the lasb line asks Goo to grant the great doctor
eternal }ife.
Å" farcical poeüÌ appeari-ng in L9L2 (see appendix C )
while very mucir a jocular spoof'¡ Yet illuminaies the
lively aitraction of Paracelsus in ih.e popular ima.ginatÍon"
It noi only suggests his short-cornings but at the same
time raps the mentality of humanity at' large. The poem
speaics of the olcL genuine elixir of life its deepest
sources as being old i3avarian beer (altbayrisch Bier)
to Paracelsu-sr spirit" Wiih lively beer-hall huroour,
it rela'ües Paracelsusl emptying oui the last liter of
hells breur (ilöl}enbräu) at rnidnight, and with froih
'l-r:rl-,1^,'lin+ ^È 1-ri c Iìnq hagr-i*^' +1^^ *"^-i^ nf 'rhe snhOrel
fjUOUIJ-Ilg aU Ilr¡ rr-lrÐ, r¡Eq.r ¿1J.È; trIIç ulL{Þ¿L/ Ur L,11ç ÈPuçr EÐ
in his delj-rium" The concluding lines strain at point-
ing a noral to the rollicking narrative by aclding that
Paracelsus v,'as fetched a\,ra.y by the d-evil because he was