The Temple of Nature; or, the Origin of Society - Darwin Erasmus

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rude forgotten days design, And arts, or empires, live in every line. While chain'd reluctant on the marble ground, Indignant Time reclines, by Sculpture bound; 80 And sternly bending o'er a scroll unroll'd, Inscribes the future with his style of gold. —So erst, when Proteus on the briny shore, New forms assum'd of eagle, pard, or boar; The wise Atrides bound in sea-weed thongs The changeful god amid his scaly throngs; Till in deep tones his opening lips at last Reluctant told the future and the past.

      Here o'er piazza'd courts, and long arcades,

       The bowers of Pleasure root their waving shades; 90

       Shed o'er the pansied moss a checker'd gloom,

       Bend with new fruits, with flow'rs successive bloom.

       Pleas'd, their light limbs on beds of roses press'd,

       In slight undress recumbent Beauties rest;

       On tiptoe steps surrounding Graces move,

       And gay Desires expand their wings above.

      Here young Dione arms her quiver'd Loves,

       Schools her bright Nymphs, and practises her doves;

       Calls round her laughing eyes in playful turns,

       The glance that lightens, and the smile that burns; 100

       Her dimpling cheeks with transient blushes dies,

       Heaves her white bosom with seductive sighs;

       Or moulds with rosy lips the magic words,

       That bind the heart in adamantine cords.

      Behind in twilight gloom with scowling mien

       The demon Pain, convokes his court unseen;

       Whips, fetters, flames, pourtray'd on sculptur'd stone,

       In dread festoons, adorn his ebon throne;

       Each side a cohort of diseases stands,

       And shudd'ring Fever leads the ghastly bands; 110

       O'er all Despair expands his raven wings,

       And guilt-stain'd Conscience darts a thousand stings.

      Deep-whelm'd beneath, in vast sepulchral caves,

       Oblivion dwells amid unlabell'd graves;

       The storied tomb, the laurell'd bust o'erturns,

       And shakes their ashes from the mould'ring urns.—

       No vernal zephyr breathes, no sunbeams cheer,

       Nor song, nor simper, ever enters here;

       O'er the green floor, and round the dew-damp wall,

       The slimy snail, and bloated lizard crawl; 120

       While on white heaps of intermingled bones

       The muse of Melancholy sits and moans;

       Showers her cold tears o'er Beauty's early wreck,

       Spreads her pale arms, and bends her marble neck.

      So in rude rocks, beside the Ægean wave,

       Trophonius scoop'd his sorrow-sacred cave; Unbarr'd to pilgrim feet the brazen door, And the sad sage returning smil'd no more.

      Shrin'd in the midst majestic Nature stands,

       Extends o'er earth and sea her hundred hands; 130

       Tower upon tower her beamy forehead crests,

       And births unnumber'd milk her hundred breasts;

       Drawn round her brows a lucid veil depends,

       O'er her fine waist the purfled woof descends;

       Her stately limbs the gather'd folds surround,

       And spread their golden selvage on the ground.

      From this first altar fam'd Eleusis stole Her secret symbols and her mystic scroll; With pious fraud in after ages rear'd Her gorgeous temple, and the gods rever'd. 140 —First in dim pomp before the astonish'd throng, Silence, and Night, and Chaos, stalk'd along; Dread scenes of Death, in nodding sables dress'd, Froze the broad eye, and thrill'd the unbreathing breast. Then the young Spring, with winged Zephyr, leads The queen of Beauty to the blossom'd meads; Charm'd in her train admiring Hymen moves, And tiptoe Graces hand in hand with Loves. Next, while on pausing step the masked mimes Enact the triumphs of forgotten times, 150 Conceal from vulgar throngs the mystic truth, Or charm with Wisdom's lore the initiate youth; Each shifting scene, some patriot hero trod, Some sainted beauty, or some saviour god.

      III. Now rose in purple pomp the breezy dawn,

       And crimson dew-drops trembled on the lawn;

       Blaz'd high in air the temple's golden vanes,

       And dancing shadows veer'd upon the plains.—

       Long trains of virgins from the sacred grove,

       Pair after pair, in bright procession move, 160

       With flower-fill'd baskets round the altar throng,

       Or swing their censers, as they wind along.

       The fair Urania leads the blushing bands,

       Presents their offerings with unsullied hands;

       Pleas'd to their dazzled eyes in part unshrouds

       The goddess-form;—the rest is hid in clouds.

      "Priestess of Nature! while with pious awe

       Thy votary bends, the mystic veil withdraw;

       Charm after charm, succession bright, display,

       And give the Goddess to adoring day! 170

       So kneeling realms shall own the Power divine,

       And heaven and earth pour incense on her shrine.

      "Oh grant the Muse with pausing step to press

       Each sun-bright avenue, and green recess;

       Led by thy hand survey the trophied walls,

       The statued galleries, and the pictur'd halls; Scan the proud pyramid, and arch sublime, Earth-canker'd urn, medallion green with time, Stern busts of Gods, with helmed heroes mix'd, And Beauty's radiant forms, that smile betwixt. 180

      "Waked by thy voice, transmuted by thy wand,

       Their lips shall open, and their arms expand;

       The love-lost lady, and the warrior slain,

       Leap from their tombs, and sigh or fight again.

       —So when ill-fated Orpheus tuned to woe

       His potent lyre, and sought the realms below;

       Charm'd into life unreal forms respir'd,

       And list'ning shades the dulcet notes admir'd.—

      "Love led the Sage through Death's tremendous porch, Cheer'd with his smile, and lighted with his torch;—190 Hell's triple Dog his playful jaws expands, Fawns round the God, and licks his baby hands; In wondering groups the shadowy nations throng, And sigh or simper, as he steps along; Sad swains, and nymphs forlorn, on Lethe's brink, Hug their past sorrows, and refuse to drink; Night's dazzled Empress feels the golden flame Play round her breast, and melt her frozen frame; Charms with soft words, and sooths with amorous wiles, Her iron-hearted Lord—and Pluto smiles.— 200 His trembling Bride the Bard triumphant led From the pale mansions of the astonish'd dead; Gave the fair phantom to admiring light— Ah, soon again to tread irremeable night!"

      IV. Her snow-white arm, indulgent to my song,

       Waves the fair Hierophant, and moves along.—

       High plumes, that bending shade her amber hair,

       Nod, as she steps, their silver leaves in air;

       Bright chains of pearl, with golden buckles brac'd,

       Clasp her white neck, and zone her slender waist; 210

       Thin folds of silk in

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