The Annotated Milton: Complete English Poems
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Before the Angel, and of him to ask
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Chose4403 rather. He, she knew, would intermix
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Grateful4404 digressions, and solve high dispute
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With conjugal caresses: from his lip
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Not words alone pleased her. (O! when meet 4405 now
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Such pairs, in love and mutual honor joined?
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With goddess-like demeanor forth she went,
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Not unattended, for on her, as queen,
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A pomp4406 of winning graces waited still,
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And from about her shot darts of desire
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Into all eyes, to wish her still in sight.
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And Raphael now, to Adam’s doubt proposed,
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Benevolent and facile, 4407 thus replied:
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“To ask or search, I blame thee not, for Heav’n
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Is as the book of God before thee set,
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Wherein to read His wondrous works, and learn
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His seasons, hours, or days, or months, or years.
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This to attain,4408 whether Heav’n move or earth,
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Imports4409 not if 4410 thou reckon4411 right. The rest
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From man or Angel the great Architect
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Did wisely to conceal, and not divulge
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His secrets to be scanned4412 by them who ought
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Rather admire, 4413 or if they list 4414 to try
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Conjecture, He His fabric of the Heav’ns
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Hath left to their disputes, perhaps to move
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His laughter at their quaint4415 opinions wide4416
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Hereafter. When they come to model 4417 Heav’n
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And calculate the stars, how they will wield 4418
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The mighty frame, how build, unbuild, contrive
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To save4419 appearances,4420 how gird 4421 the sphere
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With centric4422 and eccentric4423 scribbled o’er,
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Cycle4424 and epicycle, 4425 orb4426 in orb.
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Already by thy reasoning this I guess,
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Who4427 art to lead thy offspring, and supposest
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That bodies bright and greater should not serve
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The less not bright, nor Heav’n such journeys run,
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Earth sitting still, when she alone receives
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The benefit.
“Consider, first, that great
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Or bright infers4428 not excellence. The earth,
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Though in comparison of Heav’n so small,
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Nor glistering, 4429 may of solid good contain
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More plenty than the sun that barren shines,
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Whose virtue4430 on itself works no effect,
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But in the fruitful earth, there first received,
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His beams, unactive4431 else, 4432 their vigor4433 find.
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Yet not to earth are those bright luminaries
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Officious,4434 but to thee, earth’s habitant.
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And for the Heav’n’s wide circuit, let it speak
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The Maker’s high magnificence, who built
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So spacious, and His line stretched out so far
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That man may know he dwells not in his own,
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An edifice too large for him to fill,
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Lodged in a small partition,4435 and the rest
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Ordained for uses to his Lord best known.
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The swiftness of those circles attribute, 4436
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Though numberless, to His Omnipotence,
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That to corporeal substances could add
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Speed almost spiritual. Me thou think’st not slow,
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Who since the morning-hour set out from Heav’n
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Where God resides, and ere mid-day arrived
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In Eden—distance inexpressible
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By numbers that have name. But this I urge, 4437
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Admitting4438 motion in the Heav’ns, to show
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Invalid that which thee to doubt it moved.4439
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Not that I so affirm,4440 though so it seem
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To thee who hast thy dwelling here on earth.
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God, to remove His ways from human sense,
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Placed Heav’n from earth so far, that earthly sight,
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If it presume, might err in things too high,
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And no advantage gain. What if the sun
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Be center to the world? and other stars,
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By his4441 attractive4442 virtue4443 and their own
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Incited, dance about him various rounds?
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Their wand’ring course now high, now low, then hid,
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Progressive, 4444 retrograde, 4445 or standing still,
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In six4446 thou see’st? And what if sev’nth to these
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The planet earth, so steadfast though she seem,
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Insensibly three different motions move,
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Which else to several spheres thou must ascribe,
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Moved contrary with thwart4447 obliquities,4448
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Or save the sun his labor, and that swift
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Nocturnal and diurnal rhomb4449 supposed,
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Invisible4450 else above all stars, the wheel
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Of day and night, which needs not thy belief
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If earth, industrious4451 of herself, fetch4452 day
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Travelling east, and with her part averse
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From the sun’s beam meet night, her other part
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Still luminous by his4453 ray? What if that light,
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Sent from her 4454 through the wide transpicuous4455 air,
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To the terrestrial moon be as a star,
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Enlight’ning her4456 by day, as she 4457 by night
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This earth, reciprocal, if land be there,
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Fields and inhabitants? Her spots thou see’st
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As clouds, and clouds may rain, and rain produce
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Fruits in her softened soil for some to eat
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Allotted 4458 there. And other suns perhaps,
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With their attendant moons, thou wilt descry,
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Communicating male and female light,4459
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Which two great sexes animate the world,
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Stored in each orb perhaps with some that live.
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For such vast room4460 in Nature unpossessed
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By living soul, desert 4461 and desolate,
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Only to shine, yet scarce to contr
ibute4462
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Each orb a glimpse of light, conveyed so far
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Down to this habitable, 4463 which returns
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Light back to them, is obvious to dispute. 4464
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But whether thus these things, or whether not—
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But whether the sun, predominant in Heav’n,
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Rise on the earth, or earth rise on the sun—
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He from the east his flaming road begin,
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Or she from west her silent course advance,
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With inoffensive4465 pace that spinning sleeps
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On her soft axle, while she paces ev’n,4466
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And bears thee soft with the smooth air along—
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Solicit4467 not thy thoughts with matters hid.
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Leave them to God above. Him serve, and fear!
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Of other creatures, as Him pleases best,
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Wherever placed, let Him dispose. Joy thou
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In what He gives to thee, this Paradise
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And thy fair Eve. Heav’n is for thee too high
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To know what passes there. Be lowly 4468 wise,
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Think only what concerns thee, and thy being.
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Dream not of other worlds, what creatures there
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Live, in what state, 4469 condition,4470 or degree,4471
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Contented that thus far hath been revealed
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Not of earth only, but of highest Heav’n.
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To whom thus Adam, cleared of doubt, replied:
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“How fully hast thou satisfied me, pure
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Intelligence of Heav’n, Angel serene!
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And, freed from intricacies,4472 taught to live
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The easiest way, nor with perplexing thoughts
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To interrupt the sweet of life, from which
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God hath bid dwell far off all anxious cares,
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And not molest4473 us, unless we ourselves
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Seek them with wand’ring thoughts, and notions vain.
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But apt the mind or fancy is to rove
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Unchecked, and of her roving is no end,
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Till warned, or by experience taught, she learn
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That not to know at large4474 of things remote
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From use, obscure and subtle, 4475 but to know
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That which before us lies in daily life,
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Is the prime wisdom. What is more, is fume4476
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Or emptiness, or fond 4477 impertinence, 4478
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And renders us, in things that most concern
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Unpractised, unprepared, and still to seek.
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Therefore from this high pitch4479 let us descend 4480
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A lower flight, and speak of things at hand
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Useful, whence haply, 4481 mention may arise
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Of something not unseasonable to ask,
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By sufferance, 4482 and thy wonted 4483 favor, deigned.
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“Thee I have heard relating what was done
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Ere my remembrance. Now, hear me relate
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My story, which perhaps thou hast not heard.
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And day is not yet spent—till then thou see’st
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How subtly to detain thee I devise,
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Inviting thee to hear while I relate.
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Fond! 4484 were it not in hope of thy reply,
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For while I sit with thee, I seem in Heav’n,
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And sweeter thy discourse is to my ear
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Than fruits of palm-tree pleasantest to thirst
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And hunger both, from4485 labor, at the hour
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Of sweet repast.4486 They satiate, 4487 and soon fill,
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Though pleasant, but thy words, with grace divine
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Imbued,4488 bring to their sweetness no satiety.”4489
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To whom thus Raphael answered, Heav’nly meek:4490
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“Nor are thy lips ungraceful, sire of men,
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Nor tongue ineloquent. For God on thee
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Abundantly His gifts hath also poured
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Inward and outward both, His image fair.
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Speaking or mute, 4491 all comeliness and grace
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Attends thee, and each word, each motion4492 forms.4493
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Nor less think we in Heav’n of thee on earth
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Than of our fellow-servant, and inquire
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Gladly into the ways of God with man,
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For God, we see, hath honored thee, and set
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On man His equal love. Say therefore on,
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For I that day was absent, as befell,4494
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Bound on a voyage uncouth4495 and obscure, 4496
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Far on excursion4497 toward the gates of Hell,
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Squared 4498 in full legion4499 (such command we had)
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To see that none thence issued forth a spy
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Or enemy, while God was in His work,
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Lest He, incensed at such eruption4500 bold,
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Destruction with creation might have mixed.
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Not that they durst without His leave attempt—
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But us He sends upon His high behests
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For state, as Sov’reign King, and to inure4501
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Our prompt obedience. 4502 Fast we found, fast shut,
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The dismal gates, and barricado’d 4503 strong,
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But long ere our approaching heard within
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Noise, other than the sound of dance or song,
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Torment, and loud lament, and furious rage.
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Glad we returned up to the coasts of light
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Ere sabbath-ev’ning: so we had in charge. 4504
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But thy relation4505 now, for I attend,4506
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Pleased with thy words no less than thou with mine.
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So spoke the godlike Power, and thus our sire:
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“For man to tell how human life began
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Is hard, for who himself beginning knew?
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Desire with thee still longer to converse
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Induced 4507 me. As new waked from soundest sleep,
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Soft on the flow’ry herb4508 I found me laid,
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In balmy4509 sweat, which with his beams the sun
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Soon dried, and on the reeking4510 moisture fed.
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Straight toward Heav’n my wond’ring eyes I turned,
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And gazed a whi
le the ample sky, till raised
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By quick instinctive motion, up I sprung,
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As thitherward endeavoring, and upright
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Stood on my feet. About me round I saw
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