Author: liza.blake

¹

Birds from the cedars tall do² take a flight
On stretchèd wings, to bear their bodies light.
As ships do sail over the ocean wide,
So birds do³ sail, and through the air do⁴ glide.
Their bodies are⁵ the keel; feet, cable rope;⁶                             5
The head, the steersman⁷ which doth guide the poop.
Their wings, as sails, with wind are stretched out wide,
But hard it is⁸ to fly against the tide.
For when the clouds do flow⁹ against their breast,
They¹⁰ weary grow, and on a bough¹¹ do¹² rest.                      10

¹
The mind’s a merchant, trafficking about
The ocean of the brain to find² opinions out.
Remembrance is the warehouse where are laid³
Goods, by imagination’s ships conveyed,⁴
Which every⁵ tradesman of belief still buys,                   5
Gaining by truth, but losing all⁶ by lies.
Thoughts, as the journeymen and prentice boys,
Do help to sort the wares and sell the toys.

¹
Once at imagination’s windows I,²
Standing, a prospect in the mind did spy,³
Shutting the ignorant eye as close may be,⁴
Because the eye of knowledge clear might see,⁵
Drawing a circle round of fine conceits,⁶                            5
Speeches extravagant contracting straight.⁷
The more I viewed, my eye the farther went,
Till understanding’s sight was almost spent.
An aisle of thoughts within a church I viewed;⁸⁹
Filled full of fancy’s light to me it showed.¹⁰                      10
Pillars of judgments thick stood on a row,
And in this aisle Motion walked to and fro.
Fear, love, humility kneeled down to pray;
Desires begged¹¹ of all that passed that way;
Poor doubts did shake as if they had some harm,¹²         15
Yet mantles of good hope did keep them warm.¹³
Generous¹⁴ Faith seemed bountiful and free;
She gave to all that asked her charity.
All sorts of sects¹⁵ in pulpits seemed to preach;
Fables for truth, no doubt, did many teach.¹⁶                    20
Not that I heard¹⁷ what their opinions were,
For prospect’s in the eye, not in the ear.¹⁸

¹

Standing upon² a hill of fancies high,
And viewing round³ with curiosities eye,
Under my thoughts saw⁴ several landscapes lie.⁵

Some champains⁶ of delights⁷ I saw,⁸ did feed
Pleasures, as wethers fat, and ewes to breed.                         5
And cows of probability, which went⁹
In hope’s green pastures, gave milk of content.¹⁰
Some fields, though plowed with care, unsowed did lie,
Wanting the fruitful seed of industry;¹¹
In other fields, full crops of joys there growed,                      10
Where some ripe joys¹² fruition down had mowed;¹³
Some blasted with ill accidents looked black,¹⁴
Others, blown down with sorrow strong, lay flat.¹⁵¹⁶

Then I enclosures viewed, which close did¹⁷ lie,
Hearts hedged about with thoughts of secrecy.                      15
Meadows of youth did pleasant show, and green;¹⁸
Innocency, as cowslips, grew therein.
Some ready with old age to cut for hay,
Some hay cocked high for Death to take away.
Clear rivulets of health ran here and there;                            20
No sign¹⁹ of sickness in them did appear;
No stones or gravel stopped their passage free,
No weeds of pain, or slimy gouts could see.
Woods did present my view on the left side,
With²⁰ trees of high ambition and²¹ great pride.                   25
There shades of envy were made of dark spite,
Which did eclipse the fame of honor’s light.
Faults stood so close, that but few²² beams of praise
Could enter in; spite²³ stopped up all the ways.
But leaves of prattling tongues, which ne’er lie still,²⁴         30
Sometimes speak truth, although most lies they tell.²⁵

Then did I²⁶ a garden of²⁷ beauty view,
Where sweet complexions,²⁸ rose and lily,²⁹ grew.
And on the banks of breasts most perfect there³⁰
Did violets of azure veins appear;³¹                                          35
Lips of fresh gillyflowers grew up high,
Which oft the sun did kiss as he passed by;
Hands of narcissus showed most perfect white,³²
Whose palms,³³ fine tulips, were streaked with delight.³⁴

Close by this gard’n³⁵ a lovely orchard stood,                         40
Wherein grew³⁶ fruit of pleasure rare and good.
All colored eyes grew there, as bullace gray,
And damsons black, which do taste best, some say.
Others there were of the pure bluest grape,
And pear-plum faces, of an oval shape,                                    45
And cheeks³⁷ of apricots made red with heat,
And cherry lips, which most delight to eat.
When I had³⁸ viewed this landscape round about,
I fell from³⁹ fancy’s hill, and so wit’s⁴⁰ sight went out.

¹

Thoughts as a pen do write upon the brain.
The letters which wise thoughts do write, are plain.
Fools scribble, scrabble, and² make many a blot,
Which makes them nonsense³ speak—they know not what.
Some⁴ thoughts, like pencils, draw still to the life,⁵                  5
And fancies mixed, as colors, give delight.
The sadder⁶ thoughts are for the⁷ shadows placed,
By which the lighter fancies are more graced.
Like as⁸ through dark⁹ and wat’ry clouds,¹⁰ more bright
The sun breaks forth with his resplendent light,                      10
Or like to¹¹ night’s black mantle, where each star
Doth clearer seem, so lighter fancies are.
Some like to¹² rainbows various colors show;
So round the brain fantastic fancies grow.

¹

Imaginations high like cedars show,
Where leaves of new invention² thick do grow,
Which thoughts, as gentle winds, do blow about,
And contemplation makes those leaves to sprout,³
And pleasures,⁴ with delight, as birds, do sing                     5
On every bough, to think what fame they bring.

¹

The sea’s like deserts, which² are wide and long,
Where ships as horses run, whose breath is strong.
The sternman holds the reins, thereby to guide
The sturdy steed on foamy seas to ride.
The wind’s his whip, to make³ it forward run,⁴                5
And on each⁵ side, as⁶ stirrups, serves a⁷ gun.
The sails, as saddles, spread upon the back;
The ropes, as girts, which in a storm will crack;
The pump, the breech, where excrements come out;
The needle, as the eye, guides it about.                               10

¹

The waves like ridges of plowed land are² high,
Whereat the ship³ oft stumbling⁴ down doth lie.
But in a calm, level as meadows seem,⁵
And by⁶ its saltness makes it look as green.
When ships thereon a slow, soft pace do⁷ walk,                   5
Then mariners, as shepherds, sing and talk.
Some whistle, and some on their pipes do play,
And thus with mirth they⁸ pass their time away.
And every mast is like a maypole high,
Round which they dance, though not so merrily                 10
As shepherds do when they their lasses bring
Garlands to maypoles,⁹ tied with silken string.¹⁰
Instead of garlands, they hang on their mast¹¹
Huge sails, and ropes to tie these¹² garlands fast;¹³
Instead of lasses they do dance with Death,                          15
And for their music they have Boreas’s breath;
Instead of wine and wassails, drink salt tears,
And for their meat they feed on nought but fears.
For flocks of sheep, great shoals of herrings swim;
The whales as ravenous wolves¹⁴ do feed on them.            20
As sportful kids skip over hillocks green,
So dancing dolphins on the waves are seen.
The porpoise, like their watchful dog, espies,
And gives them warning when great winds will rise.
Instead of barking, he his head doth¹⁵ show                         25
Above the waters when they roughly¹⁶ flow,
And like as men in time of show’ring rain¹⁷
And wind do not in open fields remain,¹⁸
But quickly run for shelter to a tree,¹⁹
So ships at anchor lie upon the sea.                                         30

¹

Thus the rough seas, which boist’rous² winds enrage,
Assault a ship, and in fierce war engage.
Just³ like rude multitudes, whom⁴ factions swell
With⁵ rankled spleen, which makes them to⁶ rebel
Against their governor,⁷ thronging about,                           5
With hideous noise to throw his⁸ power out.
And if their power gets the upper hand,
They’ll⁹ make him sink, and then in triumph stand,
Foaming at mouth, as if great deeds they’d done,
When they were multitudes, and he but one.                     10
So seas do foam and froth about a ship,¹⁰
And both do¹¹ strive which shall the better get.
But¹² wisdom, like skilled mariners, through wide¹³
And gaping jaws of Death the ship doth guide,¹⁴
And to a haven safe will bring her in,¹⁵                               15
Although through many dangers she did swim.¹⁶

¹

The head of man is like the world made round,
And² all the elements are in it³ found.
The brain’s the⁴ earth from whence all plants do spring,
And from the womb it doth all creatures bring.
Forehead and nose are⁵ hills that⁶ do rise high,                       5
And⁷ overtop the dales that level lie.
The hair, like⁸ trees which long⁹ in length do grow,
And like their¹⁰ leaves, which¹¹ wind waves¹² to and fro.
Wit, like to several creatures, wild doth run¹³
On several subjects, which¹⁴ each other shun.¹⁵                      10
The blood, as seas, doth through the veins run round,
The sweat, as springs by which fresh water’s found.
As winds, which from the hollow caves do blow,
So through the mouth the winded breath doth go.
The eyes are like the sun, and do give¹⁶ light;                           15
When senses are asleep, it is dark night.
And¹⁷ after sleep half open are the eyes,
Like¹⁸ dawning light, when first the sun doth rise.
When they do drowsy grow, then sets the sun,¹⁹
And when the lids are shut it is quite gone.²⁰                            20
When heavy they’re and dull, like mist it seems,²¹
Or a dark cloud which hides the sun’s bright beams,²²
Which shows that there some²³ shower of tears will fall,
Where cheeks, as flow’ry banks, grow moist²⁴ withal.
As twinkling stars show in dark clouds most²⁵ clear,              25
So fancies quick do in the brain appear.
Imaginations like the orbs move round,²⁶
Whereof some²⁷ quick, others are slower found.²⁸
And²⁹ solid thoughts, like³⁰ the twelve signs, do prove,³¹
And round³² the zodiac of wisdom move,³³                               30
Where they as constantly in wisdom run,
As in the line ecliptic doth the sun.

I to th’ecliptic³⁴ line the head compare;
The illustrious³⁵ wit, to³⁶ the sun’s bright sphere.
The brain I liken to³⁷ the solid Earth,                                          35
From whence all wisdom hath its life and birth,³⁸
And³⁹ as the Earth, so is the⁴⁰ head’s round ball,
For it is⁴¹ crowned with orbs celestial⁴²
And thus the⁴³ head and world as one agree,
For Nature made⁴⁴ the head a world to be.                                40