The religious fervor of the Italian poet and mystic Jacopone da Todi (ca. 1236-1306) found expression in his "Laudario," a collection of personal religious poetry unique in early Italian literature.

Few facts are known concerning the life of Jacopone da Todi. He was born in Todi of the noble Benedetti family. By profession he was an attorney. His wife is said to have been Vanna di Bernardino di Guidone; according to tradition she shared her husband's worldly life until she died about 1268 in the collapse of a building during a dancing feast. Jacopone found that she was wearing a hair shirt under her festive dress, and this discovery determined his conversion to a religious life. For 10 years he lived in seclusion as a penitent before joining the Franciscan order. At the time, the order was divided in a struggle between the Conventuals, who favored a relaxed monastic rule...