John Donne Selected Poems-8
Where, if heaven would distil
The mystery, the sign, you must not touch ;
As twas humility
That since you would have none of me, I bury some of you.
For younger lovers, dost my gifts thus disproportion.
To your eyes, ears, and taste, and every part ;
Both these were monsters ; since there must reside
Of moral counsels I to Bedlam give ;
Whateer she meant by it, bury it with me,
And, woman, whom this flower doth represent,
Nor question much,
First into five, women may take us all.
To invent, and practise this one way, to annihilate all three.
UPON THE HILL, ON WHICH IT IS SITUATE.
Whom Ive watchd six or seven days,
My faith I give to Roman Catholics ;
My ingenuity and openness,
And thinkst by hovering here to get a part
If into other hands these relics came.
Thou, Love, taughtst me, by making me
That thou to-morrow, ere the sun doth wake,
Little thinkst thou, poor heart,
Thou, Love, by making me adore
Can tie those parts, and make me one of all,
Ten is the farthest number ; if half ten
That which love worst endures, discretion
In a forbidden or forbidding tree,
A naked thinking heart, that makes no show,
All thought of sex, and think to move
Yet know I not, which flower
Belongs 9９ｌib•neｔto each woman, then
Gave to thy growth, thee to this height to raise,
To women, or the sea, my tears ;
Mine eyes to Argus, if mine eyes can see ;
I walk to find a true love ; and I see
Only to give to such as have an incapacity.
And hopest her stiffness by long siege to bow,
Subtle to plague thyself, wilt say,
With scorn and shame, that him it nourishd not ;
Love her who doth neglect both me and thee,
Or—if this will not serve their turn—since all
So tis some bravery,
Conveyd by this, ah ! what doth it avail,
My brazen medals unto them which live
My sickness to physicians, or excess ;
Must with the sun and me a journey take.
I give my physic books ; my written rolls
At what, and when, and how, and where I choose.
Taughtst me to make, as though I gave, when I do but restore.
LITTLE thinkst thou, poor flower,
And now, as other falconers use,
Her, who begot this love in me before,
Than if I had stayd still with her and thee.
That subtle wreath of hair, which crowns my arm ;
Thou, Love, taughtst me by making me
I will give you
Me fresher and more fat, by being with men,
To schoolmen I bequeath my doubtfulness ;
Above one sigh a day I allowd him not,
That I should give 九九藏书网to none, but such as had too much before.
Give it a diet, made it feed upon
Well then, stay here ; but know,
Loves martyr, it might breed idolatry,
Know thee for one?
By making me serve her who had twenty more,
To him for whom the passing-bell next tolls,
THE FUNERAL.
Through every part
To love there, where no love received can be,
To Jesuits ; to buffoons my pensiveness ;
If then your body go, what need your heart?
Here lies my business, and here I will stay
Twas neither very sound, nor meant to me.
For eyes, which roll towards all, weep not, but sweat.
Though, Love, by making me love one
Viceroy to that, which then to heaven being gone,
Whatever he would dictate I writ that,
And all your graces no more use shall have,
The world by dying, because love dies too.
Who thinks her friendship a fit portion
My heart to study her, and not to love.
Only to give to those that count my gifts indignity.
But burnt her letters when she writ to me ;
WHOEVER comes to shroud me, do not harm,
And courtship to an University ;
For should my true-love less than woman be,
Little thinkst thou
Thou, Love, taughtst me, by appointing me
But take my word, she doth not know a heart.九-九-藏-书-网
My silence to any, who abroad hath been ;
Those hairs which upward grew, and strength and art
And keep these limbs, her provinces, from dissolution.
TO what a cumbersome unwieldiness
To nature all that I in rhyme have writ ;
As glad to have my body as my mind.
By this should know my pain,
And burdenous corpulence my love had grown,
How shall she know my heart ; or having none,
To be the fortieth name in an entail?"
If he wrung from me a tear, I brined it so
Various content
My patience let gamesters share :
I wish ; a six, or four ;
If he suckd hers, I let him know
To afford to it all that a soul can do,
THE BLOSSOM.
But that I did, to make it less,
BEFORE I sigh my last gasp, let me breathe,
But thou, which lovest to be
And the game killd, or lost, go talk or sleep.
Therefore Ill give no more, but Ill undo
As the small stars do in the sky ;
And if sometimes by stealth he got
And keep it in proportion,
THE PRIMROSE, BEING AT MONTGOMERY CASTLE
And thought to feast upon that, I let him see
All foreigners, mine English tongue :
I said, "If any title be
That tis not a mere woman, that is she,
Love her that holds my love disparity,
Meet me in London, then,九-九-藏-书-网
Each woman may take half us men ;
LOVES DIET.
And where their form, and their infinity
Than gold in mines, where none doth draw it forth ;
But must or more or less than woman be.
Falsehood in woman, I could more abide,
And seen thy birth, and seen what every hour
When thou hast stayd and done thy most,
She were scarce anything ; and then, should she
You go to friends, whose love and means present
My constancy I to the planets give ;
There to another friend, whom we shall find
With thy true number five ;
UPON this Primrose hill,
Be more than woman, she would get above
Thou, Love, hast taught me heretofore
For Gods sake, if you can, be you so too ;
Than a sun-dial in a grave :
As prisoners then are manacled, when theyre condemnd to die.
Live, primrose, then, and thrive
Will leave this to control
All my good works unto the Schismatics
Practice may make her know some other part ;
I give my reputation to those
To his own primrose, and grow manna so ;
That labourest yet to nestle thee,
And if that favour made him fat,
For since I am
Can better do t ; except she meant that I
In want of bread ; to them which pass among
Of which my fortune, and my faults had part ;
Twenty da99ｌｉｂ•nｅtys hence, and thou shalt see
I spring a mistress, swear, write, sigh, and weep ;
Twas not a tear which he had got ;
Little thinkst thou,
A shower of rain, each several drop might go
Have from a better brain,
My modesty I give to soldiers bare ;
Then all your beauties will be no more worth
Thus I reclaimd my buzzard love, to fly
Great Love, some legacies ; I here bequeath
THE WILL.
Is to a woman but a kind of ghost.
A she sigh from my mistress heart,
Which were my friends ; mine industry to foes ;
His drink was counterfeit, as was his meat ;
For tis my outward soul,
For if the sinewy thread my brain lets fall
Make a terrestrial galaxy,
And to my company my wit :
If they be blind, then, Love, I give them thee ;
My truth to them who at the court do live ;
That it will freeze anon, and that I shall
With this mysterious number be content ;
My money to a Capuchin :
Numbers are odd, or even, and they fall
Now negligent of sports I lie,
To-morrow find thee fallen, or not at all.
And now dost laugh and triumph on this bough,
Alas ! if you must go, whats that to me?
Of Amsterdam ; my best civility
She were by art, than nature falsified.
My tongue to Fame ; to ambassadors mine ears ;