 | An Ode to Astronomy and other poems |  |
LINES.
Oh! seek not mortal heart too much of love
To lavish upon aught while here below,
Lest, meeting, in this cold and selfish world,
Ingratitude and scorn for thy reward,
Thy love become a serpent, which will turn
And wound the breast wherein it late reposed.
To lavish upon aught while here below,
Lest, meeting, in this cold and selfish world,
Ingratitude and scorn for thy reward,
Thy love become a serpent, which will turn
And wound the breast wherein it late reposed.
There once was one who wandered through the world
Seeking seme heart responsive to his own,
Some being upon whom his eyes might gaze
With love and worship, till his very soul,
Breathed out in rapturous longing, should be absorbed,
Made one with it. In vain. His youth went by
In unproductive seeking, and the prime
Of manhood passed and left him pale and wan,
Consumed with an unquenchable desire
Not ever to be satisfied. He died,
And his pale corpse, neglected and untombed,
Became a banquet for the carrion bird.
Seeking seme heart responsive to his own,
Some being upon whom his eyes might gaze
With love and worship, till his very soul,
Breathed out in rapturous longing, should be absorbed,
Made one with it. In vain. His youth went by
In unproductive seeking, and the prime
Of manhood passed and left him pale and wan,
Consumed with an unquenchable desire
Not ever to be satisfied. He died,
And his pale corpse, neglected and untombed,
Became a banquet for the carrion bird.
| An Ode to Astronomy and other poems | |