ears a voice. He stands
astonished, for he heard the name with which in times long past his
mother had called her hearts-blood; it is the one thing he knows. The
beauties disappear. The voice takes on form. It is Kundry, no longer
of repulsive, savage appearance, but as a "lightly draped woman of
superb beauty." She explains to him his name:

"Thee, foolish innocent, I called Fal parsi--
Thee, innocent fool, Parsifal!"

She tells him of his mother's love, of his mother's death. What he, a
giddy fool, has thus far done in life, suddenly overwhelms him as
well as the thought that despair at his loss has even killed his
mother. He sinks deeply wounded at the feet of the seductive woman; it
is the first soul-despair in his life. She, however, with diabolic
persuasiveness, avails herself of this to overcome his manly heart by
her only way, the painful, longing sensation for his mother, and
offers him the consolation which love gives, "as a blessing, the
mother's last greeting, the first kiss of love." At this he rises
quickly in great alarm and presses his hands against his heart.
"Amfortas! the wound burns in my heart!" The miracle of knowledge has
happened to him, and in a moment has changed his whole nature. It is
regeneration by grace, recognized from the earliest time as the sense
of all religion. He now experiences the trembling of guilty desires
that burn within our breasts, and understands also the mystery of
salvation which he can now obtain for the unhappy King of the Grail.
Out of the depths of his soul he hears the supplications of the Grail:

"Redeem me, save me
From hands defiled by sin!"

The evil demon of voluptuousness displays all its charms. Astonishment
gives way more and more to passion for this pure one, but he
sinks into deep and deeper reverie until a second long, burning
kiss suddenly and completely awakens him. Then, having gained
"world-knowledge," he sees into the deep abyss of this being full of
guilt and penitence, and impetuously repulses the temptress. She
herself, however, is now overpowered by the passion which she has
sought by all the means of temptation to instil into the innocent
youth, and fancies she sees in him again the Savior whom she had once
laughed at. She tells him with heartrending truth her inextinguishable
suffering, her eternal sorrow, her lamentation full of the laughter of
derision, the whole wide emptiness of her misery, and implores him
to be me