FABLE VIII.TheAnemoneand thePassion Flower.
I.“BRIGHTflow’r renown’d in ancient times,“Amidst the Cyprian shades;“The theme of wonder and of praise“To soft Sidonian maids.II.“Hail! Goddess-born! hail! thou produc’d“From the bright mingled flood“OfVenus’tears, as bards have sung,“And herAdonis’blood.III.“Rich are thy blossoms in each hue“That can inchant the fight;“And strike at once the ravish’d eye“With wonder and delight.IV.“Hail! sacred Plant, born but to shew“Adonis’yearly wound;“By gentleVenustaught to bloom,“With heav’nly beauties crown’d.”V.I said; when lo; an awful formUpon my orgies broke;And, like some bright cœlestial pow’r,In lofty accents spoke:VI.“Hence, thou profane; nor wound me thus“With thy unhallow’d song;“But turn, and see, who blossoms here,“To whom thy strains belong.VII.“The Tyrian Boy, andVenus’self;“Before my face shall fly;“Their beauty gone, their lustre lost,“And all their charms shall die.VIII.“I am the only flow’r on earth,“With signs divine adorn’d;“By me, of Heav’n thus favour’d high,“All Pagan Gods are scorn’d.IX.“The purple ring, the bloody crown,“The nails, and guilty spear,“That slew the Lord of Life, behold“In my symbolic sphere.X.“Deep to Lethéan shades my root“Still downward seems to tend;“As from the Cross’s sacred base,“To Hell it would descend.XI.“Then here thy mis-plac’d rev’rence shew,“And bow before this shrine;“Where Angel Hosts themselves might pray,“And own the Plant divine.”XII.She said;Adonis’flow’ret bow’d,As to superior pow’r;My conscious heart was struck with dread;Before the wond’rous flow’r.XIII.But whilst intent my rev’rence thereWith honour due to pay;The heav’ns withdrew their useful light,And clos’d the hours of day.XIV.I look’d;—no more those signs I saw,Which had my rev’rence drawn:For ever shut the mirrour stood[15],Which thus had grac’d the lawn.XV.A while I gaz’d; at length I cry’d,And artTHOUmortal too?Are allTHYsacred beauties fled,Or faded on the view?XVI.Vain then is all external awe,That images impart;AndHethat rules above is bestRecorded in theheart.
I.“BRIGHTflow’r renown’d in ancient times,“Amidst the Cyprian shades;“The theme of wonder and of praise“To soft Sidonian maids.II.“Hail! Goddess-born! hail! thou produc’d“From the bright mingled flood“OfVenus’tears, as bards have sung,“And herAdonis’blood.III.“Rich are thy blossoms in each hue“That can inchant the fight;“And strike at once the ravish’d eye“With wonder and delight.IV.“Hail! sacred Plant, born but to shew“Adonis’yearly wound;“By gentleVenustaught to bloom,“With heav’nly beauties crown’d.”V.I said; when lo; an awful formUpon my orgies broke;And, like some bright cœlestial pow’r,In lofty accents spoke:VI.“Hence, thou profane; nor wound me thus“With thy unhallow’d song;“But turn, and see, who blossoms here,“To whom thy strains belong.VII.“The Tyrian Boy, andVenus’self;“Before my face shall fly;“Their beauty gone, their lustre lost,“And all their charms shall die.VIII.“I am the only flow’r on earth,“With signs divine adorn’d;“By me, of Heav’n thus favour’d high,“All Pagan Gods are scorn’d.IX.“The purple ring, the bloody crown,“The nails, and guilty spear,“That slew the Lord of Life, behold“In my symbolic sphere.X.“Deep to Lethéan shades my root“Still downward seems to tend;“As from the Cross’s sacred base,“To Hell it would descend.XI.“Then here thy mis-plac’d rev’rence shew,“And bow before this shrine;“Where Angel Hosts themselves might pray,“And own the Plant divine.”XII.She said;Adonis’flow’ret bow’d,As to superior pow’r;My conscious heart was struck with dread;Before the wond’rous flow’r.XIII.But whilst intent my rev’rence thereWith honour due to pay;The heav’ns withdrew their useful light,And clos’d the hours of day.XIV.I look’d;—no more those signs I saw,Which had my rev’rence drawn:For ever shut the mirrour stood[15],Which thus had grac’d the lawn.XV.A while I gaz’d; at length I cry’d,And artTHOUmortal too?Are allTHYsacred beauties fled,Or faded on the view?XVI.Vain then is all external awe,That images impart;AndHethat rules above is bestRecorded in theheart.
I.“BRIGHTflow’r renown’d in ancient times,“Amidst the Cyprian shades;“The theme of wonder and of praise“To soft Sidonian maids.
I.
“BRIGHTflow’r renown’d in ancient times,
“Amidst the Cyprian shades;
“The theme of wonder and of praise
“To soft Sidonian maids.
II.“Hail! Goddess-born! hail! thou produc’d“From the bright mingled flood“OfVenus’tears, as bards have sung,“And herAdonis’blood.
II.
“Hail! Goddess-born! hail! thou produc’d
“From the bright mingled flood
“OfVenus’tears, as bards have sung,
“And herAdonis’blood.
III.“Rich are thy blossoms in each hue“That can inchant the fight;“And strike at once the ravish’d eye“With wonder and delight.
III.
“Rich are thy blossoms in each hue
“That can inchant the fight;
“And strike at once the ravish’d eye
“With wonder and delight.
IV.“Hail! sacred Plant, born but to shew“Adonis’yearly wound;“By gentleVenustaught to bloom,“With heav’nly beauties crown’d.”
IV.
“Hail! sacred Plant, born but to shew
“Adonis’yearly wound;
“By gentleVenustaught to bloom,
“With heav’nly beauties crown’d.”
V.I said; when lo; an awful formUpon my orgies broke;And, like some bright cœlestial pow’r,In lofty accents spoke:
V.
I said; when lo; an awful form
Upon my orgies broke;
And, like some bright cœlestial pow’r,
In lofty accents spoke:
VI.“Hence, thou profane; nor wound me thus“With thy unhallow’d song;“But turn, and see, who blossoms here,“To whom thy strains belong.
VI.
“Hence, thou profane; nor wound me thus
“With thy unhallow’d song;
“But turn, and see, who blossoms here,
“To whom thy strains belong.
VII.“The Tyrian Boy, andVenus’self;“Before my face shall fly;“Their beauty gone, their lustre lost,“And all their charms shall die.
VII.
“The Tyrian Boy, andVenus’self;
“Before my face shall fly;
“Their beauty gone, their lustre lost,
“And all their charms shall die.
VIII.“I am the only flow’r on earth,“With signs divine adorn’d;“By me, of Heav’n thus favour’d high,“All Pagan Gods are scorn’d.
VIII.
“I am the only flow’r on earth,
“With signs divine adorn’d;
“By me, of Heav’n thus favour’d high,
“All Pagan Gods are scorn’d.
IX.“The purple ring, the bloody crown,“The nails, and guilty spear,“That slew the Lord of Life, behold“In my symbolic sphere.
IX.
“The purple ring, the bloody crown,
“The nails, and guilty spear,
“That slew the Lord of Life, behold
“In my symbolic sphere.
X.“Deep to Lethéan shades my root“Still downward seems to tend;“As from the Cross’s sacred base,“To Hell it would descend.
X.
“Deep to Lethéan shades my root
“Still downward seems to tend;
“As from the Cross’s sacred base,
“To Hell it would descend.
XI.“Then here thy mis-plac’d rev’rence shew,“And bow before this shrine;“Where Angel Hosts themselves might pray,“And own the Plant divine.”
XI.
“Then here thy mis-plac’d rev’rence shew,
“And bow before this shrine;
“Where Angel Hosts themselves might pray,
“And own the Plant divine.”
XII.She said;Adonis’flow’ret bow’d,As to superior pow’r;My conscious heart was struck with dread;Before the wond’rous flow’r.
XII.
She said;Adonis’flow’ret bow’d,
As to superior pow’r;
My conscious heart was struck with dread;
Before the wond’rous flow’r.
XIII.But whilst intent my rev’rence thereWith honour due to pay;The heav’ns withdrew their useful light,And clos’d the hours of day.
XIII.
But whilst intent my rev’rence there
With honour due to pay;
The heav’ns withdrew their useful light,
And clos’d the hours of day.
XIV.I look’d;—no more those signs I saw,Which had my rev’rence drawn:For ever shut the mirrour stood[15],Which thus had grac’d the lawn.
XIV.
I look’d;—no more those signs I saw,
Which had my rev’rence drawn:
For ever shut the mirrour stood[15],
Which thus had grac’d the lawn.
XV.A while I gaz’d; at length I cry’d,And artTHOUmortal too?Are allTHYsacred beauties fled,Or faded on the view?
XV.
A while I gaz’d; at length I cry’d,
And artTHOUmortal too?
Are allTHYsacred beauties fled,
Or faded on the view?
XVI.Vain then is all external awe,That images impart;AndHethat rules above is bestRecorded in theheart.
XVI.
Vain then is all external awe,
That images impart;
AndHethat rules above is best
Recorded in theheart.
Fab. IX.The Lily & NarcissusFab. X.The Ivy & Sweet Briar
Fab. IX.
The Lily & Narcissus
Fab. X.
The Ivy & Sweet Briar