The poetical works of Thomas Traherne faithfully reprinted from the author's original manuscript together with Poems of Felicity reprinted from the Burney manuscript and Poems from Various Sources: Edited with preface and notes by Gladys I. Wade |
 | 1. |
| I. |
| II. |
| III. |
| IV. |
| 2. |
|
Bells. |
|
| I. |
| II. |
|
| I. |
| II. |
| 3. |
| 1. |
| I. |
| II. |
| III. |
| IV. |
| V. |
| VI. |
| VII. |
| 2. |
| I. |
| II. |
| III. |
| 3. |
| I. |
| II. |
| III. |
| IV. |
| V. |
| VI. |
| VII. |
| 4. |
|
| I. |
| II. |
| 5. |
| 1. |
| 2. |
| 3. |
| 4. |
| 5. |
| 6. |
 | The poetical works of Thomas Traherne |  |
Bells.
I.
Hark! hark, my Soul! the Bells do ring,
And with a louder voice
Call many Families to sing
His publick Praises, and rejoice:
Their shriller Sound doth wound the Air,
Their grosser Strokes affect the Ear,
That we might thither all repair
And more Divine ones hear.
If Lifeless Earth
Can make such Mirth,
What then shall Souls abov the starry Sphere!
And with a louder voice
Call many Families to sing
His publick Praises, and rejoice:
Their shriller Sound doth wound the Air,
Their grosser Strokes affect the Ear,
That we might thither all repair
And more Divine ones hear.
140
Can make such Mirth,
What then shall Souls abov the starry Sphere!
Bells are but Clay that men refine
And rais from duller Ore;
Yet now, as if they were divine,
They call whole Cities to adore;
Exalted into Steeples they
Disperse their Sound, and from on high
Chime-in our Souls; they ev'ry way
Speak to us throu the Sky:
Their iron Tongues
Do utter Songs,
And shall our stony Hearts make no Reply!
And rais from duller Ore;
Yet now, as if they were divine,
They call whole Cities to adore;
Exalted into Steeples they
Disperse their Sound, and from on high
Chime-in our Souls; they ev'ry way
Speak to us throu the Sky:
Their iron Tongues
Do utter Songs,
And shall our stony Hearts make no Reply!
From darker Mines and earthy Caves
At last let Souls awake,
And leaving their obscurer Graves
From lifeless Bells example take;
Lifted abov all earthly Cares,
Let them (like these) rais'd up on high,
Forsaking all the baser Wares
Of dull Mortality,
His Praises sing,
Tunably ring,
In a less Distance from the peaceful Sky.
At last let Souls awake,
And leaving their obscurer Graves
From lifeless Bells example take;
Lifted abov all earthly Cares,
Let them (like these) rais'd up on high,
Forsaking all the baser Wares
Of dull Mortality,
His Praises sing,
Tunably ring,
In a less Distance from the peaceful Sky.
II.
From Clay, and Mire, and Dirt, my Soul,
From vile and common Ore,
Thou must ascend; taught by the Toll
In what fit place thou mayst adore;
Refin'd by fire, thou shalt a Bell
Of Prais becom, in Mettal pure;
In Purity thou must excell,
No Soil or Grit endure.
Refin'd by Lov,
Thou still abov
Like them must dwell, and other Souls allure.
From vile and common Ore,
Thou must ascend; taught by the Toll
In what fit place thou mayst adore;
141
Of Prais becom, in Mettal pure;
In Purity thou must excell,
No Soil or Grit endure.
Refin'd by Lov,
Thou still abov
Like them must dwell, and other Souls allure.
Doth not each trembling Sound I hear
Make all my Spirits dance?
Each Stroak's a Message to my Ear
That casts my Soul into a Trance
Of Joy: They're us'd to notify
Religious Triumphs, and proclaim
The Peace of Christianity,
In Jesus holy Name.
Authorities
And Victories
Protect, increas, enrich, adorn the same.
Make all my Spirits dance?
Each Stroak's a Message to my Ear
That casts my Soul into a Trance
Of Joy: They're us'd to notify
Religious Triumphs, and proclaim
The Peace of Christianity,
In Jesus holy Name.
Authorities
And Victories
Protect, increas, enrich, adorn the same.
Kings, O my Soul, and Princes now
Do prais His holy Name,
Their golden Crowns and Scepters bow
In Honor of my Lord: His Fame
Is gon throu-out the World, who dy'd
Upon the Cross for me: And He
That once was basely crucify'd
Is own'd a Deity.
The Higher Pow'rs
Hav built these Tow'rs
Which here aspiring to the Sky we see.
Do prais His holy Name,
Their golden Crowns and Scepters bow
In Honor of my Lord: His Fame
Is gon throu-out the World, who dy'd
Upon the Cross for me: And He
That once was basely crucify'd
Is own'd a Deity.
The Higher Pow'rs
Hav built these Tow'rs
Which here aspiring to the Sky we see.
Those Bells are of a piece, and sound,
Whose wider mouths declare
Our Duty to us: Being round
And smooth and whole, no Splinters are
In them, no Cracks, nor holes, nor flaws
That may let out the Spirits thence
Too soon; that would harsh jarring caus
And lose their Influence.
We must unite
If we Delight
Would yield or feel, or any Excellence.
Whose wider mouths declare
Our Duty to us: Being round
And smooth and whole, no Splinters are
142
That may let out the Spirits thence
Too soon; that would harsh jarring caus
And lose their Influence.
We must unite
If we Delight
Would yield or feel, or any Excellence.
| The poetical works of Thomas Traherne | |