 | Poems |  |
178
XII.TO THE MUSICIAN.
Music transcends conception; God in heaven
Is the musician's father. Wond'rous child!
Instinct above the intellect is given
To him the wordless and unlearned: wild
Fancies of heart are his realities,
And over them as o'er firm ground he flies
Towards absorption in the unknown skies
Of spirit-land.
Is the musician's father. Wond'rous child!
Instinct above the intellect is given
To him the wordless and unlearned: wild
Fancies of heart are his realities,
And over them as o'er firm ground he flies
Towards absorption in the unknown skies
Of spirit-land.
Alas! within the maze
Of the actual world, hills, cattle, ships, and town,
Knowledge accumulative, mace and gown,
Wealth, science, law, he like a blind man strays.
Yet be thou proud, poor child! be not cast down,
Men hear thee like the voice of the dead risen,
And feel they are immortal, souls in prison!
Of the actual world, hills, cattle, ships, and town,
Knowledge accumulative, mace and gown,
Wealth, science, law, he like a blind man strays.
Yet be thou proud, poor child! be not cast down,
Men hear thee like the voice of the dead risen,
And feel they are immortal, souls in prison!
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