VI

“What! you had vision? mountains, comets, seas,

Wild storm, wild beauty, wild embattled flames,

You harnessed to your tongues with hackneyed ease.

Tamers of splendour! those familiar names

Troubled you not, less kingly, more remote

Than gain and ease, your god, your man-made grail.

Not nature’ s giants, not cosmic menace smote

Your souls with awe, or thrust you down the scale.

No, nor the thoughts your thoughts could not embrace,

A God’ s intention, void, sublime, or strange,

The birth or death of time, the bourn of space,

Nor unimaginable colours’ range,

Nor the continuous eastward roll of earth,

Half, in the energy of day aware;

Half, where the sweeping shadow curves its girth,

Within night’ s darkened temple cowled in prayer.

No deep misgivings, no mysterious faith;

Your very god was passed from hand to hand;

You had no inkling of the nobler breath

Blown on the spark you could not understand.