John Donne Selected Poems-9
[D.]
If that be simply perfectest,
If our loves faint, and westerwardly decline,
Will he not let us alone,
Or like the heat which fire in solid matter
As yet my ease and comfort is,
But thou wilt lose the style of conqueror,
Marriage rings are not of this stuff ;
Till all consume.
THE COMPUTATION.
Since so, my mind
SO, so, break off this last lamenting kiss,
And pleasure in your conquest have,
So her disdains can neer offend,
Which on an eye, cheek, lip, can prey ;
I thought there was some deity in love,
To knit our loves in the fantastic strain
No more than guardian angels do ;
The morning shadows wear away,
With name of chaste ;
Go ; and if that word have not quite killed thee,
But that my fire doth with my fuel grow.
A thousand, I did neither think nor do,
He can neither —
Or, if it have, let my word work on me,
Figure our loves ? except in thy name thou have bid it say,
NO lover saith, I love, nor any other
I will vent that humour then
Here dead men speak their last, and so do I ;
Blindly admire, and with such worship woo ;
Poor victories ; but if you dare be brave,
Take heed of hating me,
O let me live, yet love and hate me too.
And work on them as me, and so prefer
By children, than the thing which lovers so
Or that my easeless thoughts may sleep and rest ;
And we were mutual elements to us,
You sell desire.
Circle this fingers top, which didst her thumb ;
[D.]
And when he list refuse ;
And hate with hate again retaliate ;
Your murder to the name of massacre,
Why should our clay
Why bar you love of private end,
If any who deciphers best,
And, since at such time miracles are sought,
And strives against it still,
A kind of sorrowing dulness to the mind.
For when we miss
Within the writings which thou hast addressd.
After such pleasures, unless wise
And think that there a loving couple lies,
And when I come where moving beauties be,
But O ! loves day is short, if love decay.
This death, hath with my store
Each others sight,
Nor half so brittle as her heart, thou art ;
Worship ; as atheists at their dying hour
Our desires give them fashion, and so
To make their souls at the last busy day
Then, lest thy love by my death frustrate b藏书网e,
All measure, and all language, I should pass,
My use increased.
Or in a thousand more, forgot that too.
Of our affection, that, as thats round and plain,
And let ourselves benight our happiest day.
For sense and understanding may
For he loves against his will ;
I NEVER stoopd so low, as they
My body then doth hers involve,
Receive more, and spend more, and soonest break,
And I to thee mine actions shall disguise.
Turn, thou ghost, that way, and let me turn this,
Of breath and blood, upon thy sighs and tears,
Her heart, that weeps to hear of others moan,
Within, shes worth no more.
Perchance might kiss, but not between those meals ;
Whose foreign conquest treasure brings,
This wonder to the vulgar prove,
She, to my loss, doth by her death repair.
But near worn out by loves security,
We die but once, and who loved last did die,
Love me, that I may die the gentler way ;
Kill me as woman, let me die
As ignorantly did I crave.
To make us relics ; then
Except it be too late, to kill me so,
TAKE heed of loving me ;
When the lifes light is set,
Love with excess of heat, more young than old,
But by their feet ;
Hate me, because thy loves too great for me ;
To have no part,
And those things whereof I consist hereby
So should our loves meet in simplicity ;
O give no way to grief,
Even then our souls shall kiss ;
Lest thou thy love and hate, and me undo,
Some second guest to entertain,
Absence denies
Which sucks two souls, and vapours both away ;
And raging breed ;
THE RELIC.
Tis love breeds love in me, and cold disdain
To show our thoughts should rest in the same hold ;
Send me some honey, to make sweet my hive,
And like a Goth and Vandal rise,
Or not divide, all being one thought of you ;
We do those shadows tread,
I would have that age by this paper taught
Not that I shall be mine own officer,
No, nor the corals, which thy wrist enfold,
These three hours that we have spent,
Of new-touchd youth ; nor ring to show the stands
Your passive valour, and you shall find then,
Nor witty lines, which are most copious,
But swear thou thinkst I love thee, and no more.
To be to more than one a bed—
Of your own arts and triumphs over men,
Who99lib•net this way would a lover prove,
THE TOKEN.
If thou hate me, take heed of hating me.
Send me nor this nor that, to increase my score,
I cannot say I loved, for who can say
Canicular.
For such by all are sought ;
And let th enchantress Honour, next be slain ;
That any loves but he ;
Oh, why should ought less precious, or less tough
Then he that digs us up will bring
For forty more I fed on favours past,
WHEN my grave is broke up again
If I know yet what I would have.
And so is mine ; so should yours be.
If thou love me, take heed of loving me.
Disguises did, and shadows, flow
Since I must leave myself with thee,
Our bodies, not we move.
Love is not love, but given free ;
To me thou, falsely, thine
Deface records and histories
Each place can afford shadows ; if all fail,
My love, though silly, is more brave ;
You think a sudden damp of love
Kills that again,
[W.]
For his judgement then is nought ;
WHILST yet to prove
Yet stay with me since thou art come,
Tears drownd one hundred, and sighs blew out two ;
You do not love,
Where mass-devotion doth command,
Who can of love more rich gift make,
Whom I may freely prove?
Let not thy wit beweep
We ask none leave to love ; nor will we owe
Will work upon ourselves, and blind our eyes.
Though I admire their greatness, shun their heat.
Laced up together in congruity,
To all, which all love, I say no.
From us and our cares ; but now tis not so.
He that saith, twice, doth lie ;
Us to the bishop or the king,
A gentler cure.
Our hands neer touchd the seals,
A frown may be sometimes for physic good,
Seldom to them which soar no higher
Nor he which is all his own,
Being double dead, going, and bidding, "Go."
That in my passions I may hope the best.
Mine epitaph and tomb ;
Meet at this grave, and make a little stay?
For though he seem to move, and stir a while,
First kill th enormous giant, your Disdain ;
A something else thereby ;
A LECTURE UPON THE SHADOW.
Ease me with death, by bidding me go too.
As water causeth fire to fret and fume,
Thus when
And cannot pleasure choose ;
And nourish not, but smother.
Nor a fool when others —
Nor roast in fiery eyes, which always are
九九藏书Nor he that can for foul ones care,
FOR my first twenty years, since yesterday,
Tis but applying worm-seed to the tail.
Know what gives fuel to their fire ;
Fools have no means to meet,
Such life is like the light which bideth yet
And without such advantage kill me then,
Love is a growing, or full constant light,
The sport,
Leaves behind, two hours after.
Will outstrip hers ; as bullets flown before
Which can by no way be expressd
But let belief
And a just office on a murderer do.
Yet love and hate me too ;
Things not yet known are coveted by men,
He thinks that else none can or will agree,
[W.]
It doth the sense beguile.
When others change to light ;
—For graves have learnd that woman-head,
Say her disdainings justly must be graced
Water of tears, and earthly sad despair,
A DIALOGUE BETWEEN SIR HENRY WOTTON AND
And made of one another.
A latter bullet may oertake, the powder being more.
THE EXPIRATION.
THOU art not so black as my heart,
As a mere man ; do you but try
Be justly proud, and gladly safe, that thou dost dwell with me ;
Unless self-love take private end.
Not that I shall repair my unthrifty waste
Over our spirits so much sway,
Her eyes, that weep a strangers eyes to see,
To their first elements resolve ;
THE DISSOLUTION.
Will make me his jest or slave ;
Nor he that hath wit, for he
For when that hope gives fuel to the fire,
Or let these two, themselves, not me, decay ;
Which is still diligent lest others see.
Ah cannot we,
Of mutual love
Which my materials be,
O give no way to grief, &c.
Though I speed not, I cannot miss.
Others, these which come behind
Which never should to public tend?
WHEN I am dead, and doctors know not why,
May show his patience, not his love.
Any so cheap a death as saying, "Go."
Because that other curse of being short,
As men do when the summers sun
SEND me some tokens, that my hope may live
Coming and going we
So did I reverence, and gave
SELF-LOVE.
But these I neither look for nor profess ;
Joy to wound me.
But not for food ;
THE PROHIBITION.
Am, by being dead, immortal ; can ghosts die ?
And to brave clearness all things are reduced.
Nor he that loves none but fair,
Shall not desire what no man else can find ;
Diminisheth the length of life a day—
Difference of sex we never knew,
And that she frowns lest longing should exceed,
Thou shalt be a Mary Magdalen, and I
Then, lest my being nothing lessen thee,
A lecture, Love, in Loves philosophy.
Eager, desires to raise posterity.
SONG.
NEGATIVE LOVE.
To tie us to that way?
If this fall in a time, or land,
"—Im cheap, and nought but fashion ; fling me away."
Who thought that this device might be some way
In me abundant grow, and burdenous,
And only for a minute made to be
But these grow longer all the day ;
Once I loved and died ; and am now become
These miracles we did ; but now alas !
Naked you have odds enough of any man.
Never shall my fancy move,
This ; as she would man should despise
For she is thralld therefore ;
In mine own self-love.
To mine is stone.
A JET RING SENT.
MR. DONNE.
FAREWELL TO LOVE.
And for that raging humour there is sure
—Nothing more endless, nothing sooner broke?
Can judge a perfect lover ;
And thence,
To pursue things which had endamaged me ;
Yet call not this long life ; but think that I
By being to thee then what to me thou wast ;
Should I tell what a miracle she was.
When I am caught he can be gone,
Than virtue, or the mind to admire.
When they shall find your picture in my heart,
And makes to us a constant night,
A bracelet of bright hair about the bone,
Is not less cared for after three days
HE that cannot choose but love,
Or too much triumph in the victory ;
Nor he that pays, not, for he says
THE PARADOX.
Ill never dig in quarry of an heart
THE DAMP.
But, now the sun is just above our head,
My fire of passion, sighs of air,
What wouldst thou say ? shall both our properties by thee be spoke,
At least remember, I forbade it thee ;
Will thorough all their senses move,
Love-slain, lo ! here I die.
Yet I so well affect each part,
As—caused by them—I love my smart.
And carry thee with me—
Will have me cut up to survey each part,
And most desired, cause tis like th99lib.nete best
So whilst our infant loves did grow,
So these extremes shall neer their office do ;
And he that digs it, spies
But so great joy our life at once outwears.
Nature decreed—since each such act, they say,
Ill no more dote and run
First we loved well and faithfully,
That to Loves self for loves own sake?
And my friends curiosity
For may I miss, wheneer I crave,
What we know not—ourselves—can know,
And his short minute, after noon, is night.
And you alone,
Yet knew not what we loved, nor why ;
Now, as those active kings
Words but sense deep ;
—Which cannot be,
As they wax lesser, fall, as they size, grow.
SOULS joy, now I am gone,
We shall new shadows make the other way.
And forty on hopes that thou wouldst they might last ;
Which nature, injured by late law, sets free.
But, from late fair,
So shall I live thy stage, not triumph be.
My giants, and my witches too,
I beg nor ribbon wrought with thine own hands,
IF her disdain least change in you can move,
Except our loves at this noon stay,
Along with us, which we ourselves produced.
What before pleased them all, takes but one sense,
Which are vast Constancy and Secretness ;
I scarce believed thou couldst be gone away ;
Being had, enjoying it decays ;
Is there then no kind of men
But negatives, my love is so.
That love hath not attaind the highest degree,
And that so lamely, as it leaves behind
STAND still, and I will read to thee
Call, what they cannot name, an unknown power,
And so my soul, more earnestly released,
Walking here, two shadows went
She that, O ! broke her faith, would soon break thee.
His highness sitting in a golden chair,
Nor he that still his mistress prays,
Death kills with too much cold ;
Yet when unto our eyes
All women shall adore us, and some men.
As the first were made to blind
And I might live long wretched so,
He was killd yesterday.
For I could muster up, as well as you,
What miracles we harmless lovers wrought.
No, nor thy picture, though most gracious,
Grows great,
By distance our hopes joining bliss,
If I, thy conquest, perish by thy hate.
This —which I am amazed that I can speak—
SHEs dead ; and all which die
As well as cocks and lions, jocund be
Let him teach me that nothing. This