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Page 1 of 41906 · PDF PAGE 146
THE SWORD OF SONG CALLED BY CHRISTIANS THE BOOK OF THE BEAST 1904 TO MY OLD FRIEND AND COMRADE IN THE ART BHIKKHU ANANDA METTEYA AND TO THOSE FOOLS WHO BY THEIR SHORT-SIGHTED STUPIDITY IN ATTEMPTING TO BOYCOTT THIS BOOK HAVE WITLESSLY AIDED THE CAUSE OF TRUTH I DEDICATE THESE MY BEST WORDS [This book is so full of recondite knowledge of various kinds that it seems quite ineffective to annotate every obscure passage, this has been done.} ‘“You are sad!” the Knight said, in an anxious tone; ‘‘let me sing you a song to comfort you.” * ‘*Ts it very…
1906 · PDF PAGE 111
…— JASON. Indeed these toils and dangerous pursuits, Labours and journeys, go to make one mad. Well were it to beguile our weariness With song. MEDEA. And here is the sole king of song.| ORPHEUS. My song breaks baffled on the rocks of time If thy bewitching beauty be the theme. MEDEA. Sing me thy song, sweet poet, of the sea, That song of swimming when thy love lost sense Before the passion of the Infinite. JASON. The more so as my master warns me oft Of late how near that island is, where dwell The alluring daughters of Melpomene. 1 The ‘‘ fabl…
1906 · PDF PAGE 112
… And hills and springs are void of my Apollo— The Sea herself my tune and my desire ! The Sun himself my lover and my lyre! CHORUS. This song is sweeter than the honeycomb. MEDEA. Nearly as sweet as good friends quarrelling. JASON. Look, friends, methinks I see a silvern shape Like faint mist floating on the farthest sea. MEDEA. I see a barren rock above the tides. JASON. I hear a sound like water whispering. MEDEA. I hear a harsh noise like some ancient crone Muttering curses. JASON. Now [I hear a song. "Tis like some shape of sleep that moans…
1906 · PDF PAGE 115
…QUARTUS 109 ORPHEWUS. The hearts of Greeks with sharper flames Burn than with one fire of all fire, We have the Races and the Games, The song, the chisel, and the lyre ; We have the altar, we the shrine, . And ours the joy of love and wine. Why take one pleasure, put aside The myriad bliss of life diverse? Unchanging joy will soon divide Into the likeness of a curse. Have we no maidens, slender, strong, Daughters of tender-throated song? I swear by Aphrodite’s eyes Our Grecian maids are fairer far ! What love as sweet as theirs is lies In Sun o…
1906 · PDF PAGE 117
… know not what hath passed: I seem asleep Still, with the dream yet racing in my brain. THESEUS. There was a sweetness: whether sight or song I know not, JASON. But my veins grew strony and swollen And madness came upon me. MEDEA. You are here, Let that suffice. Jemember not ! The pleasant portals. CHORUS. Here is home at last. ORPHEUS. The sunset comes: the mist is lifted now To let the last kiss of the daylight fall Once ere night whisper. ‘‘ Sleep !” JASON. And see ! the ship Glides between walls of purple. MEDEA. The green land Cools the ti…
1906 · PDF PAGE 147
…shone ; Numberless aeons brought us hither ; Niumberless aeons beckon us on. The world is old, and I am strong— Awake, awake, O Sword of Song! Here, in the Dusk of Gods, I linger; The world awaits a Word of Truth. Kindle, O lyre, beneath my finger ! Evoke the age’s awful youth! To arms against the inveterate wrong ! Awake, awake, O Sword of Song! Sand-founded reels the House of Faith ; Up screams the howl of ruining sect ; Out from the shrine flits the lost Wraith ; ‘God hath forsaken Ilis elect !” Confusion sweeps upon the throng— Awake, awake…
1906 · PDF PAGE 98
…s of Heroes. Chorus of Shipbuilders. SCENE: 472 open place near Lolchus. CHORUS OF SHIPBUILDERS. THE sound of the hammer and steel ! The song of the level and line! The whirr of the whistling wheel ! The ring of the axe on the pine! The joy of the ended labour, As the good ship plunges free By sound of pipe and tabor To front the sparkling sea ! The mystery-woven spell ! _ The voyage of golden gain! The free full sails that swell On the swell of the splendid main ! The song of the axe and the wedge! The clang of the hammer and chain ! Keen whis…
1906 · PDF PAGE 152
146 THE SWORD OF SONG His achieve- ment. Plan of poem ‘* Conspuez Dieu!" Apology for manner of poem. A chance for Tibet. Hopes. Iden- tity of poet. Attention drawn to my highly decora- tive cover. Shields? Be they paper, paint, lath? They shall cover Well as they may, the big heart of a lover! Swords? Let the lightning of Truth strike the fortress Frowning of God! _ I will sever one more tress Off the White Beard ” with his son’s blood besprinkled, Carve one more gash in the forehead * hate-wrinkled :— So, using little arms, earn one day better…
1906 · PDF PAGE 172
166 THE SWORD OF SONG The philo- sophical im- passe. Practi- cal advice. Advice to poet's fat friend. He taught me A, he taught me’B, He stopped my baccy ¥ and my tea. He taught me Y, he taught me Z, He made strange noises in my head. He taught me that, he taught me this, He spoke of knowledge, life, and bliss. He taught me this, he taught me that, He grew me mangoes in his hat.!8 I brought him corn: he made good grist of it :— And here, my Christian friend, ’s the gist of it ! First, here’s philosophy’s despair, The cynic scorn of self. I thin…
1906 · PDF PAGE 12
…insult our Queen? The flame-tongue of passion Is lambent and strong; In mystical fashion Sucks sweetness from shade, As the voice of thy song Give me the golden trumpet In the halls of the dead, Blown at the judgment-day, Closing the gate of mercy Over the Cast Away. Melt me its gold to money, Coin me that small, small ring Stamped with the Hoof of Satan, Bearing the name of King. Then, in the murky midnight, Silently lead me down, Down into Hell’s dark portals, Far in the West of Town. Then to the shrieks of devils Writhing in torments keen, S…
1906 · PDF PAGE 87
… Il. The worst has happened. Time must now discover . What love had hidden from the wittol’s! eyes (What hate may tell him if he read my song, If he be subtle : not if he be wise). In our despair came laughter to my lover : ‘* All’s well as yet. I calculated wrong.” THE FORTY-FIRST DAY. ‘*T am sick.” Antony and Cleopatra. How things are changed since Alice was so ill ! I, being in high fever, lay in bed, While my love smoothed the pillows for my head: Her calm looks christened me with dew to still All chance of fever to the soul, and fill My he…
1906 · PDF PAGE 6
CONTENTS Vil THE SWORD OF SONG PRELIMINARY INVOCATION— NOTHUNG . . INTRODUCTION TO ‘‘ ASCENSION DAY AND PENTECOST ” ASCENSION Day. PENTECOST . . . . NOTES TO ASCENSION DAY AND PENTECOST— NOTE TO INTRODUCTION NOTES ‘}O ASCENSION DAY. NOTES TO PENTECOST. AMBROSII MAGI HORTUS RO- SARUM PAGE 140 141 141 144 164 185 190 203 212 THE THREE CHARACTERISTICS— I. IT, Ill, IV. V. VI. VI. VITl. IX. X. XI. XII. XIII. 225 226 226 226 227 227 227 228 228 229 230 231 231 nMwvsxia— AN ESSAY IN ONTOLOGY . SCIENCE AND BUDDHISM-- I. IT. ITT. IV. V. VI. VII. VITI. I…
1906 · PDF PAGE 190
184 THE SWORD OF SONG Christian mystics not true Christians, What think ye of Crowley? His interlo- cutor dis- missed, not with a jest, but with a warning. Poet yawns. cum ! Now who dares Call me no Christian? And, who cares? Read ; you will find the Master of Balliol, Discarding Berkeley, Locke, and Paley, ’Il Resume such thoughts and label clear “My Christianity lies here !” With such religion who finds fault? Stay, it seems foolish to exalt Religion to such heights as these, Refine the actual agonies To nothings, lest the mystic jeer ‘‘ So l…
1906 · PDF PAGE 204
198 THE SWORD OF SONG all the maddest, fiercest vices that the mind of fiends ever brought up from the pit. But always to the very end his power is un- exhausted, immense, terrible. His delirium does not amuse; it appals! A man whocould conceive as he did must himself have had some glorious chord in his heart vibrating to the eternal principle of Boundless Love, That this love was wrecked is for me, in some sort a relative of his, a real and bitter sorrow. He might have been so great! He missed Heaven! ‘Think kindly of him! 169. Correctly rhyme…
1906 · PDF PAGE 109
…ECOND MESSENGER, The hero is at hand. CHORUS. O happy of mortals! O fronter of fear, The impassable portals ! Ye heavens, give ear ! Our song shall be rolled in the praise of the gold, and its glory be told where the heavenly fold rejoices to hold the stars in its sphere. O hero Tolchian ! Warrior king ! From the kingdom Colchian The Fleece dos bring ! Our song shall be sung and its melody flung where the Lyre and the Tongue are fervid and young, all islands among where the Sirens sing. Thou bearest, strong shoulder, The sunbright fleece ! Glow…
1906 · PDF PAGE 20
…e raving spectres reel; I see beyond my Circe’s eyes no shape Save vague cloud-measures that escape the dance’s whirling witchery. Their song is in my ears, that burn with their melodious wickedness ; But in her heart my sorceress has songs more sinful, that I learn As she sings slowly all their shame, and makes me tingle with delight At new debaucheries, whose might rekindles blood and bone to flame. The circle gathers. Negresses howl in the naked dance, and wheel On poniard-blades of poisoned steel, and weep out blood in agonies ; Strange bea…
1906 · PDF PAGE 44
…the khans! Each slave Circassian like a moon Sits smiling, burning with young bloom Of dawn, and weaves an airy tune Like a white bird’s song bright and bold That dips a fiery plume. So the song lulled, lazily rolled In tubes of silver, lutes of gold ;
1906 · PDF PAGE 38
…lture fire Cyclopean, that is dead, now, as a man’s desire. 1 Called by the Spaniards Orizaba. The drowsy cries of night birds, then the song Lovely and lovelorn in the listening vale, So wild and tender, swooping down in long Notes of despair, then lifting the low tale In golden notes to skyward in one throng Of clustered silver, so the nightingale Tunes the wild flute, as dryads he would gather To roof with music in the palace of the weather, With love despairing, dying as music dies ; With lost souls’ weeping, and the bitter muse Of such as …
1906 · PDF PAGE 28
…f strength, exalted In the Ram’s horns! O ruler of the vaulted Heavenly hollow ! Send out thy rays majestic, and the torrid Light of thy song! thy countenance most splendid Bend to the suppliant on his face extended ! Tlear me, Apollo ! Let thy fierce fingers sweep the lyre forgotten ! Recall the ancient glory of thy chanted Music that thrilled the hearts of men, and haunted Life to adore thee ! Cleanse thou our market-places misbegotten ! Fire in my heart and music to my pzan Lend, that my song bow, past the empyrean, Phoebus, before thee ! Al…
1906 · PDF PAGE 62
…nd rended, Thus only the great peaks change That their image is moulded and blended Into all that a fancy may range ; And the silence my song could refigure To the note of a bird did I will, Of glory or rigour, of passion or vigour— The change were to ill! For silence is better than singing Though a Shelley wove songs in the sky, And hovering is sweeter than winging; To live is less good than to die. The secret of secrets is hidden Not in lives nor in loves, but in wills That are free and unchidden, that wander unbidden To home in the hills. A …