 | Poems |  |
I.
The Bible is a book worthy to read,
The life of those great Prophets is the life we need,
From all delusive seeming ever freed.
The life of those great Prophets is the life we need,
From all delusive seeming ever freed.
Be not afraid to utter what thou art,
'Tis no disgrace to keep an open heart;
A soul free, frank, and loving friends to aid,
Not even does this harm a gentle maid.
'Tis no disgrace to keep an open heart;
A soul free, frank, and loving friends to aid,
Not even does this harm a gentle maid.
Strive as thou canst, thou wilt not value o'er
Thy life;—thou standest on a lighted shore,
And from the depths of an unfathom'd sea
The noblest impulses flow tenderly to thee;
Feel them as they arise, and take them free.
Thy life;—thou standest on a lighted shore,
And from the depths of an unfathom'd sea
The noblest impulses flow tenderly to thee;
Feel them as they arise, and take them free.
37
Better live unknown,
No heart but thy own
Beating ever near,
To no mortal dear
In thy hemisphere,
Poor and wanting bread
Steeped in poverty,
Than to be in dread,
Than to be afraid
From thyself to flee.
For it is not living,
To a soul believing,
To change each noble joy
Which our strength employs,
For a state half rotten,
And a life of toys;
Better be forgotten
Than lose equipoise.
No heart but thy own
Beating ever near,
To no mortal dear
In thy hemisphere,
Poor and wanting bread
Steeped in poverty,
Than to be in dread,
Than to be afraid
From thyself to flee.
For it is not living,
To a soul believing,
To change each noble joy
Which our strength employs,
For a state half rotten,
And a life of toys;
Better be forgotten
Than lose equipoise.
How shall I live? In earnestness.
What shall I do? Work earnestly.
What shall I give? A willingness.
What shall I gain? Tranquillity.
But do you mean a quietness
In which I act, and no man bless?
Flash out in action, infinite and free,
Action conjoined with deep tranquillity,
Resting upon the soul's true utterance,
And life shall flow as merry as a dance.
What shall I do? Work earnestly.
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What shall I gain? Tranquillity.
But do you mean a quietness
In which I act, and no man bless?
Flash out in action, infinite and free,
Action conjoined with deep tranquillity,
Resting upon the soul's true utterance,
And life shall flow as merry as a dance.
Being,—not seeming,
Thinking,—not dreaming,
Heavenward tending,
To all nature bending,
In transport unending;
Then shalt thou follow
The flight of the swallow;—
In a green flowery spring
Thy life's on the wing.
Thinking,—not dreaming,
Heavenward tending,
To all nature bending,
In transport unending;
Then shalt thou follow
The flight of the swallow;—
In a green flowery spring
Thy life's on the wing.
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