In Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament
Ecce panis Angelorum,Adoro te.
With all the powres my poor heart hathOf humble loue and loyall faith,Thus lowe (my hidden life!) I bow to TheeWhom too much loue hath bow'd more low for me.Down, down, proud Sense! discourses dy!Keep close, my soul's inquiring ey!Not touch, nor tast, must look for moreBut each sitt still in his own dore.
Your ports are all superfluous here,Saue that which lets in Faith, the eare.Faith is my skill: Faith can beleiueAs fast as Loue new lawes can giue.Faith is my force: Faith strength affordsTo keep pace with those powrfull words.And words more sure, more sweet then they,Loue could not think, Truth could not say.
O let Thy wretch find that releifeThou didst afford the faithful theife.Plead for me, Loue! alleage and showThat Faith has farther here to goeAnd lesse to lean on: because than thenThough hidd as God, wounds with Thee man:Thomas might touch, none but might seeAt least the suffring side of Thee;And that too was Thy self which Thee did couer,But here eu'n that's hid too which hides the other.
Sweet, consider then, that IThough allow'd nor hand nor eyeTo reach at Thy lou'd face; nor canTast Thee God, or touch Thee man,Both yet beleiue; and witnesse TheeMy Lord too and my God, as lowd as he.
And fill my portion in Thy peace:Giue loue for life; nor let my dayesGrow, but in new powres to Thy name and praise.
O dear memoriall of that DeathWhich liues still, and allowes vs breath!Rich, royall food! Bountyfull bread!Whose vse denyes vs to the dead;Whose vitall gust alone can giueThe same leaue both to eat and liue;Liue euer bread of loues, and beMy life, my soul, my surer-selfe to mee.
O soft self-wounding Pelican!Whose brest weepes balm for wounded man:Ah! this way bend Thy benign floudTo a bleeding heart that gaspes for blood.That blood, whose least drops soueraign beTo wash my worlds of sins from me.
Come Loue! come Lord! and that long dayFor which I languish, come away.When this dry soul those eyes shall see,And drink the vnseal'd sourse of Thee:When Glory's sun, Faith's shades shall chase,And for Thy veil giue me Thy face. Amen.
Words in this poem
- loyall a.
- Faithful to law; upholding the lawful authority; faithful and true to the lawful government; faithful to the prince or sovereign to whom one is subject; unswerving in allegiance. [F. loyal, OF. loial, leial, L. legalis, fr. lex, legis, law. See Legal, and cf. Leal.]
- sitt
- obs. 3d pers. sing. pres. of Sit, for sitteth.
- dore v. t.
- One who does; one performs or executes; one who is wont and ready to act; an actor; an agent. [From Do, v. t. & i.]
- didst
- , the 2d pers. sing. imp. of Do.
- memoriall a.
- Serving to preserve remembrance; commemorative; as, a memorial building. [F. mémorial, L. memorialis, fr. memoria. See Memory.]
- royall a.
- Kingly; pertaining to the crown or the sovereign; suitable for a king or queen; regal; as, royal power or prerogative; royal domains; the royal family; royal state. [OE. roial, riall, real, OF. roial. reial, F. royal, fr. L. regalis, fr. rex, regis, king. See Rich, and cf. regal, real a coin, Rial.]
- vitall a.
- Belonging or relating to life, either animal or vegetable; as, vital energies; vital functions; vital actions. [F., fr. L. vitalis, fr. vita life; akin to vivere to live. See Vivid.]
- languish v. i.
- To cause to dr Shak.
- shall v. i.
- To owe; to be under obligation for. [OE. shal, schal, imp. sholde, scholde, AS. scal, sceal, I am obliged, imp. scolde, sceolde, inf. sculan; akin to OS. skulan, pres. skal, imp. skolda, D. zullen,]
- amen interj.
- An expression used at the end of prayers, and meaning, So be it. At the end of a creed, it is a solemn asseveration of belief. [L. amen, Gr. am certainly, truly.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
In Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Complete Works of Richard Crashaw, Volume I, Project Gutenberg ebook #38549; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Richard Crashaw, In Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, in Steps to the Temple and Other Poems (1646–1652), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #38549, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/crashaw-poems/in-adoration-of-the-blessed-sacrament.html, id L12071.
Form and metre
In Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament is 57 lines in 9 verse paragraphs. It is in rhyming couplets, 67% of the lines: octosyllabic couplets. The metre is iambic tetrameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 84%). 97% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 8.2 syllables. 2 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 37% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in octosyllabic couplets, other poems in iambic tetrameter.
Measured by Laurel's pipeline, not copied from a handbook: how stress and metre are counted, how rhyme is lettered, how a drifted rhyme is found. Where the dictionary cannot confirm a rhyme the letter is withheld, not guessed.
Rhyme words, stanza by stanza
The word that ends each line, lettered by the rhyme it makes; a dash is a line whose rhyme the dictionary could not confirm.
- 2 --AA--BB hath · faith · theeA · meA · dy · ey · moreB · doreB
- 3 AA----BB hereA · eareA · beleiue · giue · affords · words · theyB · sayB
- 4 AABB--CC-- releifeA · theifeA · showB · goeB · then · man · seeC · theeC · couer · other
- 5 AABBCC iA · eyeA · canB · manB · theeC · heC
- 6 -AA peace · dayesA · praiseA
- 7 AABBCCDD deathA · breathA · breadB · deadB · giueC · liueC · beD · meeD
- 8 AA--BB pelicanA · manA · floud · blood · beB · meB
- 9 AABB-- dayA · awayA · seeB · theeB · chase · amen
Scansion, line by line
Each line with its syllable count and the stresses the words themselves fix: / stressed, ˘ unstressed, · a syllable the word leaves free and the metre decides. Read against iambic tetrameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| Ecce panis Angelorum, | 7 | ······· |
| Adoro te. | 4 | ···· |
| With all the powres my poor heart hath | 9 | ···/˘···· |
| Of humble loue and loyall faith, | 8 | ·/˘··/˘· |
| Thus lowe (my hidden life!) I bow to Thee | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Whom too much loue hath bow'd more low for me. | 10 | ·········· |
| Down, down, proud Sense! discourses dy! | 8 | ····˘/˘· |
| Keep close, my soul's inquiring ey! | 9 | ····˘/˘˘· |
| Not touch, nor tast, must look for more | 8 | ········ |
| But each sitt still in his own dore. | 8 | ········ |
| Your ports are all superfluous here, | 8 | ····/˘·· |
| Saue that which lets in Faith, the eare. | 8 | ········ |
| Faith is my skill: Faith can beleiue | 7 | ······· |
| As fast as Loue new lawes can giue. | 8 | ········ |
| Faith is my force: Faith strength affords | 8 | ······˘/ |
| To keep pace with those powrfull words. | 8 | ········ |
| And words more sure, more sweet then they, | 8 | ········ |
| Loue could not think, Truth could not say. | 8 | ········ |
| O let Thy wretch find that releife | 8 | ········ |
| Thou didst afford the faithful theife. | 8 | ··˘/·/˘· |
| Plead for me, Loue! alleage and show | 8 | ········ |
| That Faith has farther here to goe | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| And lesse to lean on: because than then | 9 | ········· |
| Though hidd as God, wounds with Thee man: | 8 | ········ |
| Thomas might touch, none but might see | 8 | /˘······ |
| At least the suffring side of Thee; | 9 | ···/˘˘··· |
| And that too was Thy self which Thee did couer, | 10 | ·········· |
| But here eu'n that's hid too which hides the other. | 11 | ·········/˘ |
| Sweet, consider then, that I | 7 | ·˘/˘··· |
| Though allow'd nor hand nor eye | 7 | ·˘/···· |
| To reach at Thy lou'd face; nor can | 8 | ········ |
| Tast Thee God, or touch Thee man, | 7 | ······· |
| Both yet beleiue; and witnesse Thee | 7 | ······· |
| My Lord too and my God, as lowd as he. | 10 | ·········· |
| And fill my portion in Thy peace: | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| Giue loue for life; nor let my dayes | 8 | ········ |
| Grow, but in new powres to Thy name and praise. | 10 | ····/····· |
| O dear memoriall of that Death | 9 | ··˘/˘˘··· |
| Which liues still, and allowes vs breath! | 9 | ····˘///· |
| Rich, royall food! Bountyfull bread! | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| Whose vse denyes vs to the dead; | 9 | ··˘///··· |
| Whose vitall gust alone can giue | 8 | ·/˘·˘/·· |
| The same leaue both to eat and liue; | 8 | ········ |
| Liue euer bread of loues, and be | 7 | ······· |
| My life, my soul, my surer-selfe to mee. | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| O soft self-wounding Pelican! | 8 | ···/˘/˘˘ |
| Whose brest weepes balm for wounded man: | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Ah! this way bend Thy benign floud | 8 | ·····˘/· |
| To a bleeding heart that gaspes for blood. | 9 | ··/˘····· |
| That blood, whose least drops soueraign be | 8 | ········ |
| To wash my worlds of sins from me. | 8 | ········ |
| Come Loue! come Lord! and that long day | 8 | ········ |
| For which I languish, come away. | 8 | ···/˘·˘/ |
| When this dry soul those eyes shall see, | 8 | ········ |
| And drink the vnseal'd sourse of Thee: | 7 | ······· |
| When Glory's sun, Faith's shades shall chase, | 8 | ·/˘····· |
| And for Thy veil giue me Thy face. Amen. | 10 | ········˘/ |
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