O witness now the tyranny of flesh -- When manifest, it blinds the earthly sight; The sensuous nostril wavers in its light, The finely textured finger must enmesh Its elasticity, its firing curves; Voluptuous the thirsty lips that taste Of ecstasy while limbs are interlaced And hearts rave wildness that the ear preserves! How for each two and two the flesh is god, Flaming into wildest pagan innuendo, Closed in a world of intricate shadow, Where rules relentless reach from some high Rod. Subject and ruler follow lines of bliss, Where laws must end with each beginning kiss. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...THE RUBAIYAT, 1879 EDITION: 7 by OMAR KHAYYAM AN OLD BATTLE-FIELD by FRANK LEBBY STANTON LADY CLARA VERE DE VERE by ALFRED TENNYSON THE LAST MAN: A RUFFIAN by THOMAS LOVELL BEDDOES |