Winter Poems - William Blake

 

Echo Summit, South Lake Tahoe, by Jared Manninen

To Winter

O Winter! bar thine adamantine doors:

The north is thine; there hast thou built thy dark

Deep-founded habitation. Shake not thy roofs,

Nor bend thy pillars with thine iron car.

He hears me not, but o'er the yawning deep

Rides heavy; his storms are unchain'd; sheathed

In ribbed steel, I dare not lift mine eyes;

For he hath rear'd his sceptre o'er the world.

Lo! now the direful monster, whose skin clings

To his strong bones, strides o'er the groaning rocks:

He withers all in silence, and his hand

Unclothes the earth, and freezes up frail life.

He takes his seat upon the cliffs, the mariner

Cries in vain. Poor little wretch! that deal'st

With storms; till heaven smiles, and the monster

Is drv'n yelling to his caves beneath mount Hecla.

Silent, Silent Night

Silent Silent Night

Quench the holy light

Of thy torches bright

For possessed of Day

Thousand spirits stray

That sweet joys betray

Why should joys be sweet

Used with deceit

Nor with sorrows meet

But an honest joy

Does itself destroy

For a harlot coy

Soft Snow

I walked abroad in a snowy day

I asked the soft snow with me to play

She playd & she melted in all her prime

And the winter calld it a dreadful crime

BIO: William Blake (1757-1827) was a poet, painter, engraver, and mystic. Born in London, he studied at the Royal Academy School. He became proficient at watercolors and often illustrated books for a living. A dreamer, he hated rationalism and materialism, which stressed science and acute awareness of the physical world. He believed in freedom of thought and inspiring the imagination. He published three books of poetry between 1783 and 1794. He also published several works of mystical writings -- The Book of Thel (1789), The Marriage of Heaven and Hell (1791), and The Song of Los (1795).

The New Jerusalem - William Blake

 

The New Jerusalem

And did those feet in ancient time

       Walk upon England's mountains green?

And was the holy Lamb of God

       On England's pleasant pastures seen?

And did the Countenance Divine

       Shine forth upon our clouded hills?

And was Jerusalem builded here

       Among these dark Satanic mills?

Bring me my bow of burning gold!

       Bring me my arrows of desire!

Bring me my spear! O clouds, unfold!

       Bring me my chariot of fire!

I will not cease from mental flight,

       Nor shall my sword sleep in my hand

Till we have built Jerusalem

       In England's green and pleasant land.

~ William Blake ~

Ah, Sunflower!

Ah, Sunflower! weary of time,

Who countest the steps of the Sun;

Seeking after that sweet golden clime,

Where the traveler's journey is done;

Where the Youth pined away with desire,

And the pale Virgin shrouded in snow,

Arise from their graves, and aspire

Where my Sunflower wishes to go!

~ William Blake ~

BIO: William Blake (1757-1827) was a poet, painter, engraver, and mystic. Born in London, he studied at the Royal Academy School. He became proficient at watercolors and often illustrated books for a living. A dreamer, he hated rationalism and materialism, which stressed science and acute awareness of the physical world. He believed in freedom of thought and inspiring the imagination. He published three books of poetry between 1783 and 1794. He also published several works of mystical writings -- The Book of Thel (1789), The Marriage of Heaven and Hell (1791), and The Song of Los (1795).

HAVE A HAPPY, SAFE, AND BLESSED THANKSGIVING 2021!

Dawn Pisturino

My Pretty Rose Tree and Other Poems by William Blake

My Pretty Rose Tree

A flower was offered to me;
Such a flower as May never bore.
But I said I've a Pretty Rose Tree;
And I passed the sweet flower o'er.

Then I went to my Pretty Rose Tree;
To tend her by day and by night.
But my Rose turned away with jealousy;
And her thorns were my only delight.

Ah! Sunflower

Ah Sunflower! weary of time,
Who countest the steps of the Sun:
Seeking after that sweet golden clime
Where the traveler's journey is done.

Where the Youth pined away with desire,
And the pale Virgin shrouded in snow:
Arise from their graves and aspire,
Where my Sunflower wishes to go.

The Lily

The modest Rose puts forth a thorn:
The humble Sheep, a threatening horn:
While the Lily white, shall in Love delight,
Nor a thorn nor a threat stain her beauty bright.

The Garden of Love

I went to the Garden of Love,
And saw what I never had seen:
A Chapel was built in the midst,
Where I used to play on the green.

And the gates of this Chapel were shut,
And Thou shalt not. writ over the door;
So I turn'd to the Garden of Love,
That so many sweet flowers bore.

And I saw it was filled with graves,
And tombstones where flowers should be:
And Priests in black gowns, were walking their rounds,
And binding with briars, my joys and desires.

ALL OF THESE POEMS BY WILLIAM BLAKE ARE FROM 

SONGS OF EXPERIENCE

William Blake (1757-1827) was an English poet, painter, engraver, and mystic. His book of poems, Songs of Experience (1794), contains some of his most beloved poems, including "The Tyger."

HAPPY EASTER! HAPPY SPRING!