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Thus I, presumptuous; and the vision bright,
As with a smile more brighten'd, thus replied.
"What call'st thou solitude? is not the earth
With various living creatures, and the air
Replenish'd, and all these, at thy command,
To come & play before thee? know'st thou not
Their language, and their ways? they also know,
And reason not contemptibly; with these
Find pastime, and bear rule; thy realm is large.'
So spake the universal Lord, and seem'd
So ordering; I, with leave of speech implored
And humble deprecation, thus replied:

"Let not my words offend thee, heavenly Power,
My Maker, be propitious while I speak.
Hast thou not made me here thy substitute,
And these inferior far beneath me set?
Among unequals, what society

Can sort, what harmony, or true delight?
Which must be mutual, in proportion due
Given, and received; but in disparity,
The one intense, the other still remiss,
Cannot well suit with either, but soon prove
Tedious alike. Of fellowship I speak,
Such as I seek, fit to participate
All rational delight, wherein the brute
Cannot be human consort: they rejoice
Each with their kind, lion and lioness;
So fitly them in pairs thou hast combined;
Much less can bird with beast, or fish with fowl,
So well converse, nor with the ox the ape:
Worse then can man with beast, & least of all.'
Whereto the Almighty answer'd, not displeas'd.

my

state?

"A nice and subtle happiness, I see,
Thou to thyself proposest, in the choice
Of thy associates, Adam, and wilt taste
No pleasure, though in pleasure, solitary.
What think'st thou then of me, & this
Seem I to thee sufficiently possess'd
Of happiness, or not? who am alone,
From all eternity; for none I know
Second to me, or like, equal much less.
How have I then with whom to hold convérse,
Save with the creatures which I made, & those
To me inferior, infinite descents
Beneath what other creatures are to thee?'

"He ceased, I lowly answer'd. 'To attain The height and depth of thy eternal ways,

N

All human thoughts come short, Supreme of things;
Thou in thyself art perfect, and in thee
Is no deficience found; not so is Man,
But in degree, the cause of his desire,
By conversation with his like, to help
Or solace his defects. No need that thou
Shouldst propagate, already infinite,
And through all numbers absolute, though one;
But Man by number is to manifest
His single imperfection, and beget
Like of his like, his image multiplied,
In unity defective; which requires
Collateral love, and dearest amity.
Thou in thy secresy, although alone,
Best with thyself accompanied, seek'st not
Social communication; yet, so pleased,
Canst raise thy creature to what height thou wilt
Of union or communion, deify'd ;

I, by conversing, cannot these erect

From prone, nor in their ways complacence find.' Thus I embolden'd spake, and freedom used, Permissive, and acceptance found; which gain'd This answer from the gracious voice divine:

"Thus far to try thee, Adam, I was pleased,
And find thee knowing, not of beasts alone,
Which thou hast rightly named, but of thyself,
Expressing well the spirit within thee, free,
My image, not imparted to the brute,

Whose fellowship, therefore unmeet for thee,
Good reason was thou freely shouldst dislike;
And be so minded still: I, ere thou spak'st,
Knew it not good for Man to be alone,
And no such company, as then thou saw'st
Intended thee; for trial only brought,
To see how thou couldst judge of fit & meet.
What next I bring, shall please thee, be assur'd;
Thy likeness, thy fit help, thy other self,
Thy wish, exactly to thy heart's desire.'

"He ended, or I heard no more; for now
My earthly, by his heavenly overpower'd,
Which it had long stood under, strain'd to the height,
In that celestial colloquy sublime,

As with an object that excels the sense,
Dazzled and spent, sunk down, and sought repair
Of sleep; which instantly fell on me, call'd
By nature as in aid, and closed mine eyes.
Mine eyes he closed, but open left the cell

Of fancy, my internal sight; by which
Abstract as in a trance, methought I saw,
Though sleeping, where I lay, and saw the shape
Still glorious before whom awake I stood:
Who stooping, open'd my left side, and took
From thence a rib, with cordial spirits warm,
And life-blood streaming fresh; wide was the wound,
But suddenly with flesh fill'd up, and heal'd:
The rib he form'd and fashion'd with his hands;
Under his forming hands a creature grew,
Manlike, but different sex; so lovely fair,
That what seem'd fair in all the world, seem'd now
Mean, or in her summ'd up, in her contain'd,
And in her looks, which from that time infused
Sweetness into my heart, unfelt before,
And into all things, from her air inspired
The spirit of love, and amorous delight.
She disappear'd, and left me dark; I waked
To find her, or for ever to deplore

Her loss, and other pleasures all abjure:
When out of hope, behold her, not far off,
Such as I saw her in my dream, adorn'd
With what all Earth or Heaven could bestow,
To make her amiable. On she came,
Led by her heavenly Maker, though unseen,
And guided by his voice; nor uninform'd
Of nuptial sanctity, and marriage rites;
Grace was in all her steps, Heaven in her eye,
In every gesture dignity and love.

I overjoy'd, could not forbear aloud.

666

This turn hath made amends; thou hast fulfill'd Thy words, Creator bounteous and benign! Giver of all things fair, but fairest this Of all thy gifts, nor enviest. I now see Bone of my bone, flesh of my flesh, myself Before me; Woman is her name, of Man Extracted for this cause he shall forego Father and mother, and to his wife adhere; And they shall be one flesh, one heart, one soul.' "She heard me thus; & though divinely brought, Yet innocence, and virgin modesty, Her virtue, and the conscience of her worth, That would be woo'd, and not unsought be won; Not obvious, not obstrusive, but retired, The more desirable, or, to say all, Nature herself, though pure of sinful thought, Wrought in her so, that, seeing me, she turn'd;

I follow'd her; she what was honour knew,
And, with obsequious majesty, approv'd
My pleaded reason. To the nuptial bower
I led her, blushing like the morn: all Heaven,
And happy constellations on that hour
Shed their selectest influence; the earth
Gave sign of gratulation, and each hill;
Joyous the birds; fresh gales, and gentle airs,
Whisper'd it to the woods, and from their wings
Flung rose, flung odours from the spicy shrub,
Disporting, till the amorous bird of night
Sung spousal, and bid haste the evening star,
On his hill top, to light the bridal lamp.

"Thus I have told thee all my state, and brought
My story to the sum of earthly bliss,
Which I enjoy; and must confess to find
In all things else delight indeed; but such
As, used or not, works in the mind no change,
Nor vehement desire; these delicacies

I mean of taste, sight, smell, herbs, fruits, & flowers,
Walks, and the melody of birds; but here
Far otherwise, transported I behold,
Transported touch; here passion first I felt,
Commotion strange, in all enjoyments else
Superior, and unmoved, here only weak,
Against the charm of beauty's powerful glance.
Or nature fail'd in me, and left some part
Not proof enough such object to sustain;
Or from my side subducting, took perhaps
More than enough; at least, on her bestow'd
Too much of ornament, in outward show
Elaborate, of inward less exact.

For well I understand, in the prime end
Of nature, her the inferior, in the mind,
And inward faculties, which most excel;
In outward also, her resembling less
His image who made both, and less expressing
The character of that dominion given
O'er other creatures; yet when I approach
Her loveliness, so absolute she seems,
And in herself complete, so well to know
Her own, that what she wills to do, or say,
Seems wisest, virtuousest, discreetest, best:
All higher knowledge in her presence, falls
Degraded; wisdom, in discourse with her,
Loses discountenanced, and like folly shows;
Authority and reason on her wait,

As one intended first, not after made
Occasionally; and, to consummate all,
Greatness of mind and nobleness their seat
Build in her, loveliest, and create an awe
About her, as a guard angelic placed."

To whom the Angel with contracted brow.
"Accuse not nature, she hath done her part;
Do thou but thine, and be not diffident
Of wisdom, she deserts thee not, if thou
Dismiss not her when most thou need'st her nigh,
By attributing overmuch to things
Less excellent, as thou thyself perceivest.
For what admirest thou, what transports thee so?
An outside? fair, no doubt, and worthy well
Thy cherishing, thy honouring, and thy love,
Not thy subjection: weigh with her thyself;
Then value. Oft-times nothing profits more
Than self-esteem, grounded on just and right,
Well managed; of that skill the more thou know'st
The more she will acknowledge thee her head,
And to realities yield all her shows:
Made so adorn, for thy delight the more;
So awful, that with honour thou may'st love
Thy mate, who sees, when thou art seen least wise.
But if the sense of touch, whereby mankind
Is propagated, seem such dear delight,
Beyond all other, think the same vouchsafed
To cattle & each beast; which would not be
To them made common & divulged, if aught
Therein enjoyed were worthy to subdue
The soul of man, or passion in him move.
What higher, in her society, thou find'st
Attractive, human, rational, love still;
In loving, thou dost well; in passion not,
Wherein true love consists not; love refines
The thoughts, & heart enlarges, hath his seat
In reason, and is judicious, is the scale
By which to heavenly love thou may'st ascend,
Not sunk in carnal pleasure; for which cause
Among the beasts, no mate for thee was found."

To whom thus, half abash'd, Adam reply'd: "Neither her outside, form'd so fair, nor aught In procreation, common to all kinds, Though higher of the genial bed by far, And with mysterious reverence, I deem, So much delights me, as those graceful acts, Those thousand decencies, that daily flow

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