Satan Sometimes towards Heaven and the full-blazing upbraids Sun, himself Which now sat high in his meridian tower :
Then, much revolving, thus in sighs began :
‘O thou that, with surpassing glory crowned, Look'st from thy sole dominion like the god Of this new World-at whose sight all the stars Hide their diminished heads-to thee I call, But with no friendly voice, and add thy name, O Sun, to tell thee how I hate thy beams, That bring to my remembrance from what state I fell, how glorious once above thy sphere, Till pride and worse ambition threw me down, 40 Warring in Heaven against Heaven's matchless King!
Ah, wherefore? He deserved no such return From me, whom he created what I was
In that bright eminence, and with his good Upbraided none; nor was his service hard. What could be less than to afford him praise, The easiest recompense, and pay him thanks, How due! Yet all his good proved ill in me, And wrought but malice. Lifted up so high, I sdained subjection, and thought one step higher Would set me highest, and in a moment quit 51 The debt immense of endless gratitude, So burdensome, still paying, still to owe; Forgetful what from him I still received; And understood not that a grateful mind By owing owes not, but still pays, at once Indebted and discharged-what burden then? Oh, had his powerful destiny ordained Me some inferior Angel, I had stood
Then happy; no unbounded hope had raised 60
Yet why not? Some other Power but As great might have aspired, and me, though disdain
Drawn to his part. But other Powers as great sion Fell not, but stand unshaken, from within Or from without to all temptations armed! Hadst thou the same free will and power to stand?
Thou hadst. Whom hast thou then, or what,
But Heaven's free love dealt equally to all? Be then his love accursed, since, love or hate To me alike it deals eternal woe.
Nay, cursed be thou; since against his thy will Chose freely what it now so justly rues. Me miserable! which way shall I fly Infinite wrath and infinite despair? Which way I fly is Hell; myself am Hell; And, in the lowest deep, a lower deep Still threatening to devour me opens wide, To which the Hell I suffer seems a Heaven. O, then, at last relent! Is there no place Left for repentance, none for pardon left? None left but by submission; and that word Disdain forbids me, and my dread of shame Among the Spirits beneath, whom I seduced With other promises and other vaunts Than to submit, boasting I could subdue The Omnipotent. Ay me! they little know How dearly I abide that boast so vain, Under what torments inwardly I
While they adore me on the throne of Hell, With diadem and sceptre high advanced, The lower still I fall, only supreme
'Evil, In misery: such joy ambition finds! be thou But say I could repent, and could obtain, my Good' By act of grace, my former state; how soon Would highth recal high thoughts, how soon
What feigned submission swore ! Ease would
Vows made in pain, as violent and void (For never can true reconcilement grow Where wounds of deadly hate have pierced so deep);
Which would but lead me to a worse relapse xor And heavier fall: so should I purchase dear Short intermission, bought with double smart. This knows my Punisher; therefore as far From granting he, as I from begging, peace. All hope excluded thus, behold, instead Of us, outcast, exiled, his new delight, Mankind, created, and for him this World! So farewell hope, and, with hope, farewell fear, Farewell remorse! All good to me is lost; Evil, be thou my Good: by thee at least Divided empire with Heaven's King I hold, By thee, and more than half perhaps will reign; As Man ere long, and this new World, shall know.'
Thus while he spake, each passion dimmed his face,
Thrice changed with pale-ire, envy, and despair ;
Which marred his borrowed visage, and betrayed Him counterfeit, if any eye beheld:
For Heavenly minds from such distempers foul Are ever clear. Whereof he soon aware
Each perturbation smoothed with outward calm, So on Artificer of fraud; and was the first
That practised falsehood under saintly show, Deep malice to conceal, couched with revenge : Yet not enough had practised to deceive Uriel, once warned; whose eye pursued him down The way he went, and on the Assyrian mount Saw him disfigured, more than could befal Spirit of happy sort: his gestures fierce He marked and mad demeanour, then alone, As he supposed, all unobserved, unseen.
So on he fares, and to the border comes Of Eden, where delicious Paradise, Now nearer, crowns with her enclosure green, As with a rural mound, the champain head Of a steep wilderness, whose hairy sides With thicket overgrown, grotesque and wild, Access denied; and overhead up-grew Insuperable highth of loftiest shade, Cedar, and pine, and fir, and branching palm, A sylvan scene, and, as the ranks ascend Shade above shade, a woody theatre Of stateliest view. Yet higher than their tops The verdurous wall of Paradise up-sprung; Which to our general sire gave prospect large Into his nether empire neighbouring round. And higher than that wall a circling row Of goodliest trees, loaden with fairest fruit, Blossoms and fruits at once of golden hue, Appeared, with gay enamelled colours mixed; On which the sun more glad impressed his beams Than in fair evening cloud, or humid bow, 151 When God hath showered the earth: so lovely seemed
The That landskip. And of pure now purer air sweet Meets his approach, and to the heart inspires odours Vernal delight and joy, able to drive
Garden All sadness but despair. Now gentle gales, Fanning their odoriferous wings, dispense
Native perfumes, and whisper whence they stole Those balmy spoils. As, when to them who sail Beyond the Cape of Hope, and now are past 160 Mozambic, off at sea north-east winds blow Sabean odours from the spicy shore Of Araby the Blest, with such delay Well pleased they slack their course, and many a league
Cheered with the grateful smell old Ocean smiles;
So entertained those odorous sweets the Fiend Who came their bane, though with them better pleased
Than Asmodeus with the fishy fume
That drove him, though enamoured, from the
Of Tobit's son, and with a vengeance sent From Media post to Egypt, there fast bound. Now to the ascent of that steep savage hill Satan had journeyed on, pensive and slow; But further way found none; so thick entwined. As one continued brake, the undergrowth Of shrubs and tangling bushes had perplexed All path of man or beast that passed that way. One gate there only was, and that looked east On the other side. Which when the Arch- Felon saw,
Due entrance he disdained, and, in contempt, 180 At one slight bound high overleaped all bound
« PreviousContinue » |