D

The city of Vienna has always been popular for its famous physicians. Around the year 1482 one such well-known physician was Dr. Paul Urssenbeck. His fame came from his ability to predict with certainty whether a patient would recover his or her health or would die. He thus became known as the doctor of death.

In his earlier years, he followed the trade of a poor but honest weaver in the town of Deckendorf near Straudigen in Bavaria. It was a time of famine(饥荒), and he, his wife, and their eleven children were in great need. Then a twelfth child was born, and they could find no one to serve as its godparent. As a last chance, the poor weaver walked to a nearby village and asked an old friend to serve as godfather, but met only rejection. Disappointed and frustrated, the poor man made his way back to his family. While walking sorrowfully through the dense forest toward his home, he said, “If only I could die.” Suddenly a tall figure dressed in a dark cloak(斗篷) appeared before him, saying, “You called me. I am Death. What can I do for you?” As much as the man had previously wanted to die, he now wanted to live. “I am seeking a godfather for my youngest child. But I cannot find anyone who will serve as his godparent,” answered the weaver sadly. “I will accept this responsibility,” said Death. And thus it happened.

Following the baptism(洗礼), the mysterious godfather took the father aside and said, “Since I own neither gold nor silver to give to your child as a baptism present, I will make you into the most famous doctor of all times. Whenever you are called to a sick person, I—invisible to others—will seat myself either to the head or to the feet of the patient. If I am seated at the head, then this will show you that hope for recovery exists. If I am seated at the feet, then the patient will die.” Through this gift, the weaver was able to cure many illnesses, for he knew whether the patient who had sought his treatment would be helped by medications, or whether he would die. Soon the previously poor weaver became a wealthy and respected physician. However, his increased wealth made him ever-more greedy.

One day, a very wealthy man fell seriously ill, but when Dr. Urssenbeck was called in, and he saw that Death was already seated at the patient’s feet. Upon hearing the diagnosis, the relatives could not be comforted, and they offered the physician a fortune if he could heal the man. Then Urssenbeck resorted to trickery. He quickly had the patient’s bed turned around, so that Death was now seated at his head. Thus the man was rescued from Death, and he regained his health. On the physician’s way home, Death suddenly appeared before him. “You unfortunate one, why have you deceived me? In return for the life that you have given back to the rich man, you yourself must now die.” Death spoke with a threatening voice, and disappeared.

Dr. Urssenbeck suddenly found himself in a large room where thousands of candles were burning. Death said to him, “Each of these candles represents someone’s life. This tiny stump that is about to go out is yours.” Terrified, Dr. Urssenbeck reached for a taller candle, wanting to take some wax(蜡) from it to fill his stump, but in doing so he touched his own candle, and it went out, and he fell to the floor dead. That evening his body was found in a valley. He was buried in the graveyard of Saint Stephen’s Cathedral.