Lilies on the River

Ah, to see
The lilies on the river
In summer and in spring


Who can say
Where the lilies came from
In the summer and the spring


The lilies tend to flutter
In the water and the gutter
Of nature's floral city
In the summer and the spring


Who can say their purpose?
But darling, this I know
No matter what else they may do
The lilies, peace they bring.
Alfred Lawrence

Purpose

Lilies on the River is a famous poem composed by the Archpoet Lawrence in his early years of writing. Written originally as both a statement of love to his husband, Jian Konâ, and as a spellpoem to aid the memory, Lawrence was astonished when upon the poem's completion several scars he had sustained over the years disappeared spontaneously. The poem was soon discovered to have healing properties, and became one of the first Ailmentwrits - and the most popular.

Document Structure

Publication Status

When the healing properties of the text were confirmed, Lawrence was quick to disseminate copies of the text to friends and family. From there, they spread, even after several attempts by various state entities and other groups to control access to the text so as to give themselves power and influence over those with minor or moderate ailments.

Historical Details

Background

As one of the first useful Ailmentwrits, and indeed the first by an already known author, Lilies on the River is an incredibly significant text. It changed the nature of medicine and of spellwriting forever, and indeed almost single-handedly created a new field of spellwriting devoted to trying to create Ailmentwrits.
The document itself has been hotly contested over the intervening years between its creation and the present day. After Lawrence sent out copies to family and friends he was quickly imprisoned by a local lord who desired to gain power over his people and expand his territory through the use and non-use of the poem. Lawrence refused to give over his copy of the poem and in anger the lord burnt his home to the ground, causing countless works to be lost, and tortured Lawrence. Lawrence escaped after 3 days, but died less than a month later in a fall on the coast of Lavinica.
The pursuit of the poem didn't stop there. The family members and friends also rushed to disseminate the poem, and as each revealed the existence of their copy they were hunted down and were bribed, tortured, and persuaded in the hopes of them giving up their and all other copies of the poem. Gangs, sheriffs, kings and queens, and even the Notorious Kales were rumoured to have attempted to procure the document for their exclusive ownership. However, Lawrence's family and friends remained one step ahead and the poem spread exponentially throughout the lands, to the point where all the interested parties realised that it had become common knowledge and these attacks ceased.

History

The document has been hotly contested over the intervening years between its creation and the present day. After Lawrence sent out copies to family and friends he was quickly imprisoned by a local lord who desired to gain power over his people and expand his territory through the use and non-use of the poem. Lawrence refused to give over his copy of the poem and in anger the lord burnt his home to the ground, causing countless works to be lost, and tortured Lawrence. Lawrence escaped after 3 days, but died less than a month later in a fall on the coast of Lavinica. The pursuit of the poem didn't stop there. The family members and friends also rushed to disseminate the poem, and as each revealed the existence of their copy they were hunted down and were bribed, tortured, and persuaded in the hopes of them giving up their and all other copies of the poem. Gangs, sheriffs, kings and queens, and even the Notorious Kales were rumoured to have attempted to procure the document for their exclusive ownership. However, Lawrence's family and friends remained one step ahead and the poem spread exponentially throughout the lands, to the point where all the interested parties realised that it had become common knowledge and these attacks ceased.

Legacy

Apart from its obvious medical and literary repercussions, Lilies on the River set the precedent that exclusive ownership of a document was something that could only be accomplished if an agreement was entered into by the author and any interested parties beforehand. This was due to the obviously rapid nature of the poem's distribution and the realisation by all that it was unfeasible to prevent this spread without first having an agreement with the author. Ever since, nearly everyone in a position of power has either acquired or gone to great lengths to attempt to acquire a personal spellwriter, in order to have the chance of gaining a powerful new spellwrit.

Type

Manual, Magical / Occult

Medium

Paper

Authoring Date

Late 1st century, c.90