Hymn to the Night V

In ancient times an iron Fate lorded it, with dumb force, over thewidespread families of men. A gloomy oppression swathed their anxioussouls: the Earth was boundless, the abode of the gods and their home. Frometernal ages stood its mysterious structure. Beyond the red hills of themorning, in the sacred bosom of the sea, dwelt the sun, theall-enkindling, live luminary. An aged giant upbore the happy world.Prisoned beneath mountains lay the first-born sons of mother Earth,helpless in their destroying fury against the new, glorious race of gods,and their kindred, glad-hearted men. Ocean’s dusky, green abyss was thelap of a goddess. In the crystal grottoes revelled a wanton folk. Rivers,trees, flowers, and beasts had human wits. Sweeter tasted the wine, pouredout by youth impersonated; a god was in the grape-clusters; a loving,motherly goddess upgrew in the full golden sheaves; love’s sacred carousalwas a sweet worship of the fairest of the goddesses. Life revelled throughthe centuries like one spring-time, an ever-variegated festival of thechildren of heaven and the dwellers on the earth. All races childlikeadored the ethereal, thousandfold flame, as the one sublimest thing in theworld.

It was but a fancy, a horrible dream-shape--

That fearsome to the merry tables strode,And wrapt the spirit in wild consternation.The gods themselves here counsel knew nor showedTo fill the stifling heart with consolation.Mysterious was the monster’s pathless road,Whoose rage would heed no prayer and no oblation;Twas Death who broke the banquet up with fears,With anguish, with dire pain, and bitter tears.

Eternally from all things here dispartedThat sway the heart with pleasure’s joyous flow,Divided from the loved, whom, broken-hearted,Vain longing tosses and unceasing woe--In a dull dream to struggle, faint and thwarted,Smeemed all was granted to the dead below!Broke lay the merry wave of human gloryOn Death’s inevitable promontory.

With daring flight, aloft Thought’s pinions sweep;The horrid thing with beauty’s robe men cover:A gentle youth puts out his torch, to sleep;Sweet comes the end, like moaning lute of lover.Cool shadow-floods o’er melting memory creep:So sang the song, for Misery was the mover.Still undeciphered lay the endless Night--The solemn symbol of a far-off Might.

The old world began to decline. The pleasure-garden of the young racewithered away; up into opener regions and desolate, forsaking hischildhood, struggled the growing man. The gods vanished with theirretinue. Nature stood alone and lifeless. Dry Number and rigid Measurebound her with iron chains. As into dust and air the priceless blossoms oflife fell away in words obscure. Gone was wonder-working Faith, and theall-transforming, all-uniting angel-comrade, the Imagination. A cold northwind blew unkindly over the torpid plain, and the wonderland first froze,then evaporated into aether. The far depths of heaven filled with flashingworlds. Into the deeper sanctuary, into the more exalted region of themind, the soul of the world retired with all her powers, there to ruleuntil the dawn should break of the glory universal. No longer was theLight the abode of the gods, and the heavenly token of their presence:they cast over them the veil of the Night. The Night became the mightywomb of revelations; into it the gods went back, and fell asleep, to goabroad in new and more glorious shapes over the transfigured world. Amongthe people which, untimely ripe, was become of all the most scornful andinsolently hostile to the blessed innocence of youth, appeared the NewWorld, in guise never seen before, in the song-favouring hut of poverty, ason of the first maid and mother, the eternal fruit of mysterious embrace.The forseeing, rich-blossoming wisdom of the East at once recognized thebeginning of the new age; a star showed it the way to the lowly cradle ofthe king. In the name of the far-reaching future, they did him homage withlustre ond odour, the highest wonders of Nature. In solitude the heavenlyheart unfolded itself to a flower-chalice of almighty love, upturned tothe supreme face of the father, and resting on the bliss-boding bosom ofthe sweetly solemn mother. With deifying fervour the prophetic eye of theblooming child beheld the years to come, foresaw, untroubled over theearthly lot of his own days, the beloved offspring of his divine stem. Erelong the most childlike souls, by true love marvellously possessed,gathered about him. Like flowers sprang up a new strange life in hispresence. Words inexhaustible and tidings the most joyful fell like sparksof a divine spirit from his friendly lips. From a far shore came a singer,born under the clear sky of Hellas, to Palestine, and gave up his wholeheart to the marvellous child:--

The youth art thou who ages long hast stoodUpon our graves, lost in a maze of weening;Sign in the darkness of God’s tidings good,Whence hints of growth humanity is gleaning;For that we long, on that we sweetly broodWhich erst in woe had lost all life and meaning;In everlasting life death found its goal,For thou art Death, and thou first mak’st us whole.

Filled with joy, the singer went on to Indostan, his heart intoxicatedwith sweetest love, and poured it out in fiery songs under that tendersky, so that a thousand hearts bowed to him, and the good news sprang upwith a thousand branches. Soon after the singer’s departure, his preciouslife was made a sacrifice for the deep fall of man. He died in his youth,torn away from his loved world, from his weeping mother, and his tremblingfriends. His lovely mouth emptied the dark cup of unspeakable wrongs. Inhorrible anguish the birth of the new world drew near. Hard he wrestledwith the terrors of old Death; heavy lay the weight of the old world uponhim. Yet once more he looked kindly at his mother; then came the releasinghand of the Love eternal, and he fell asleep. Only a few days hung a deepveil over the roaring sea, over the quaking land; countless tears wept hisloved ones; the mystery was unsealed: heavenely spirits heaved the ancientstone from the gloomy grave. Angels sat by the sleeper, sweetly outbodiedfrom his dreams; awaked in new Godlike glory, he clomb the apex of thenew-born world, buried with his own hand the old corpse in the forsakencavity, and with hand almighty laid upon it the stone which no power shallagain upheave.

Yet weep thy loved ones over thy grave tears of joy, tears of emotion,tears of endless thanksgiving; ever afresh, with joyous start, see theerise again, and themselves with thee; behold thee weep with soft fervouron the blessed bosom of thy mother, walk in thoughtful communion with thyfriends, uttering words plucked as from the tree of life; see thee hasten,full of longing, into thy father’s arms, bearing with thee youthfulHumanity, and the inexhaustible cup of the golden Future. Soon the motherhastened after thee in heavenly triumph; she was the first with thee inthe new home. Since then, long ages have flowed past, and in splendourever increasing hath bestirred itself thy new creation, and thousandshave, out of pangs and tortures, followed thee, filled with faith andlonging and truth, and are walking about with thee and the heavenly virginin the kingdom of Love, minister in the temple of heavenly Death, and arefor ever thine.

Uplifted is the stone,And all mankind is risen;We all remain thine own,And vanished is our prison.All troubles flee awayBefore thy golden cup;For Earth nor Life can stayWhen with our Lord we sup.

To the marriage Death doth call;No virgin holdeth back;The lamps burn lustrous all;Of oil there is no lack.Would thy far feet were wakingThe echoes of our street!And that the stars were makingSignal with voices sweet!

To thee, O mother maiden,Ten thousand hearts aspire;In this life, sorrow-laden,Thee only they desire;In thee they hope for healing;In thee expect true rest,When thou, their safety sealing,Shalt clasp them to thy breast.

With disappointment burningWho made in hell their bed,At last from this world turningTo thee have looked and fled:Helpful thou hast appearedTo us in many a pain:Now to thy home we’re neared,Not to go out again!

Now at no grave are weepingSuch as do love and pray;The gift that Love is keepingFrom none is taken away.To soothe and quiet our longingNight comes, and stills the smart;Heaven’s children round us throngingNow watch and ward our heart.

Courage! for life is stridingTo endless life along;The Sense, in love abiding,Grows clearer and more strong.One day the stars, down dripping,Shall flow in golden wine:We, of that nectar sipping,As living stars shall shine!

Free, from the tomb emergesLove, to die never more;Fulfilled, life heaves and surgesA sea without a shore!All night! all blissful leisure!One jubilating ode!And the sun of all our pleasureThe countenance of God!