Song Of The Peri

A poem by Violet Nicolson, Lawrence Hope, Adela Florence Cory Nicolson (1865 – 1904)

Beauty, the Gift of Gifts, I give to thee.

Pleasure and love shall spring around thy feet

As through the lake the lotuses arise

Pinkly transparent and divinely sweet.

I give thee eyes aglow like morning stars,

Delicate brows, a mist of sable tresses,

That all the journey of thy lie may be

Lit up by love and softened by caresses.

For those who once were proud and softly bred

Shall, kneeling, wait thee as thou passest by,

They who were pure shall stretch forth eager hands

Crying, “Thy pity, Lord, before we die!”

And one shall murmur, “If the sun at dawn

Shall open and caress a happy flower,

What blame to him, although the blossom fade

In the full splendour of his noontide power?”

And one, “If aloes close together grow

It well may chance a plant shall wounded be,

Pierced by the thorntips of another’s leaves,

Thus am I hurt unconsciously by thee.”

For some shall die and many more shall sin,

Suffering for thy sake till seven times seven,

Because of those most perfect lips of thine

Which held the power to make or mar their heaven.

And though thou givest back but cruelty,

Their love, persistent, shall not heed nor care,

All those whose ears are fed with blame of thee

Shall say, “It may be so, but he was fair.”

Ay, those who lost the whole of youth for thee,

Made early and for ever, shamed and sad,

Shall sigh, re-living some sweet memory,

“Ah, once it was his will to make me glad.”

Thy nights shall be as bright as summer days,

The sequence of thy sins shall seem as duty,

Since I have given thee, Oh, Gift of Gifts!–

The pale perfection of unrivalled beauty.

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Poems in English 

• The Leaden Echo And The Golden Echo poem – Gerard Manley Hopkins poems by Gerald Manley Hopkins
• The Lantern Out Of Doors poem – Gerard Manley Hopkins poems by Gerald Manley Hopkins
• The Handsome Heart poem – Gerard Manley Hopkins poems by Gerald Manley Hopkins
• The Half-way House poem – Gerard Manley Hopkins poems by Gerald Manley Hopkins
• The Habit Of Perfection poem – Gerard Manley Hopkins poems by Gerald Manley Hopkins
• The Furl of Fresh-Leaved Dogrose Down poem – Gerard Manley Hopkins poems by Gerald Manley Hopkins
• The Child Is Father To The Man poem – Gerard Manley Hopkins poems by Gerald Manley Hopkins
• The Candle Indoors poem – Gerard Manley Hopkins poems by Gerald Manley Hopkins
• The Caged Skylark poem – Gerard Manley Hopkins poems by Gerald Manley Hopkins
• The Bugler’s First Communion poem – Gerard Manley Hopkins poems by Gerald Manley Hopkins
• The Blessed Virgin Compared To The Air We Breathe poem – Gerard Manley Hopkins poems by Gerald Manley Hopkins
• The Alchemist in the City poem – Gerard Manley Hopkins poems by Gerald Manley Hopkins
• That Nature Is A Heraclitean Fire And Of The Comfort Of The Resurrection poem – Gerard Manley Hopkins poems by Gerald Manley Hopkins
• Summa poem – Gerard Manley Hopkins poems by Gerald Manley Hopkins
• Strike, Churl poem – Gerard Manley Hopkins poems by Gerald Manley Hopkins
• St. Winefred’s Well poem – Gerard Manley Hopkins poems by Gerald Manley Hopkins
• St. Alphonsus Rodriguez poem – Gerard Manley Hopkins poems by Gerald Manley Hopkins
• Spring & Fall: To A Young Child poem – Gerard Manley Hopkins poems by Gerald Manley Hopkins
• Spring poem – Gerard Manley Hopkins poems by Gerald Manley Hopkins
• Spelt From Sibyl’s Leaves poem – Gerard Manley Hopkins poems by Gerald Manley Hopkins

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