 | Idyls and Songs |  |
56
XXI. THE SCULPTOR.
I
Part of the all-pervading Whole,Spirit of Life, descend before me;
Art, breathe thyself within my soul,
Fling thine halo radiance o'er me:
So thou wouldst embodied be,
Thou must yield thyself to me.
II
Thou art Spirit, thou art Thought,Unalloy'd aethereal Life:
All thy notes to concord wrought,
Harmony condensed from strife;
Circling orb, that knows no pause,
Self restrain'd by inborn laws.
III
I am framed of mortal mould,Yet my soul in thee has part;
Let this flesh thy spirit enfold:
Man thee with a human heart;
—Would he fain on earth descend,
Man with men the God must blend.
IV
Be my hand's sure guiding nerve;I will image forth thy soul:
All unconsciously the curve
'Neath the steel will bend and roll:
Till the godlike form conceal'd
From the block stand forth reveal'd.
57
V
In that form shall I, delighted,See thee with myself combined:
See thy fleeting soul united
To the work of human mind.
Art and Man for aye will bide
In that perfect Form allied.
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