O Thou, whose stern command and precepts pure (Tho' agony in every vein should start, And slowly drain the blood-drops from the heart) Have bade the patient spirit still endure; Thou, who to sorrow hast a beauty lent, On the dark brow, with resolution clad, Illumining the dreary traces sad, Like the cold taper on a monument; O firm Philosophy! display the tide Of human misery, and oft relate How silent sinking in the storms of fate, The brave and good have bow'd their head and died. So taught by Thee, some solace I may find, Remembering the sorrows of mankind. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...THE SIFTING OF PETER by HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW JEWISH HYMN IN BABYLON by HENRY HART MILMAN MOLLY PITCHER [JUNE 28, 1778] by LAURA ELIZABETH HOWE RICHARDS GIRL TO SOLDIER ON LEAVE by ISAAC ROSENBERG QUATRAIN: OMAR KHAYYAM (AFTER FITZGERALD) by THOMAS BAILEY ALDRICH |