Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, THE PROPHET (2), by ALEKSANDR SERGEYEVICH PUSHKIN


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THE PROPHET (2), by                 Poet Analysis     Poet's Biography
First Line: Athirst in spirit, through the gloom
Last Line: "kindle men's hearts with this, my word."
Alternate Author Name(s): Pushkin, Alexander; Poushkin, Aleksander Sergyevich
Subject(s): Prophecy & Prophets


Athirst in spirit, through the gloom
Of an unpeopled waste I blundered,
And saw a six-winged Seraph loom
Where the two pathways met and sundered.
He set his fingers on my eyes:
His touch lay soft as slumber lies --
And like an eagle's, scared and shaken,
Did my prophetic eyes awaken.
He touched my ears, and lo! they rang
With a reverberating clang:
I heard the spheres revolving, chiming,
The angels in their soaring sweep,
The monsters moving in the deep,
The vines low in the valley climbing.
And from my mouth the Seraph wrung
Forth by its roots my sinful tongue,
The idle tongue that slyly babbled,
The vain, malicious, the unchaste,
And the wise serpent's sting he placed
In my numb mouth with hand blood-dabbled;
And with a sword he clove my breast,
Drew forth the heart that shook with dread
And in my gaping bosom pressed
A glowing coal of fire instead.
Upon the wastes, a lifeless clod,
I lay, and heard the voice of God:
"Arise, O prophet, look and ponder:
Arise, charged with my will and spurred!
As over roads and seas you wander,
Kindle men's hearts with this, my Word."





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