Saturday, October 27, 2012

Visions of the Daughters of Albion 6


This is the last plate of this series.

Red as the rosy morning, lustful as the first born beam,
Oothoon shall view his dear delight, nor e'er with jealous cloud
Come in the heavens of generous love; nor selfish blightings bring.
Does the sun walk in glorious raiment, on the secret floor (end of previous plate)


Where the cold miser spreads his gold? or does the bright cloud drop
On his stone threshold? does his eye behold the beam that brings
Expansion to the eye of pity? or will he bind himself
Beside the ox to thy hard furrow? does not that mild beam blot
The bat, the owl, the glowing tyger, and the king of night.
The sea fowl takes the wintry blast. for a cov'ring to her limbs:
And the wild snake, the pestilence to adorn him with gems & gold.
And trees. & birds. & beasts, & men. behold their eternal joy.
Arise you little glancing wings, and sing your infant joy!
Arise and drink your bliss. For everything that lives is holy!

Thus every morning wails Oothoon. but Theotormon sits
Upon the margind ocean conversing with shadows dire,

The Daughters of Albion hear her woes, & eccho back her sighs.

The End
Notes:

(The beautiful pictures all together were posted at Purdue)

first born beam
that mild beam

The first four lines offer options for the 'cold miser'.  Does the beam bring an outbreak
of generosity? or will he 'bind' himself like an oxen (oxen are used to plow).
It all works out right for everything that lives is holy!  These are the last words of
The Marriage of Heaven and Hell--or did MHH borrow it from Visions....?)

                                      Chorus

Let the Priests of the Raven of dawn, no longer in deadly black,
with hoarse note curse the sons of joy. Nor his accepted brethren,
whom. tyrant. he calls free: lay the bound or build the roof. Nor pale
religious letchery call that virginity. that wishes but acts not!
For every thing that lives is Holy.

*************************************************************************************************************************************

The last three lines of VDA summarize the poem, but there are many ways to interpret it:
It can be seen as a sequel of Thel who thought of plucking the flower but declined.
It is easily related to several of the myths discussed at the Blake Primer.
1. This poem is thought by some to be a sequence to Thel:
Thel and Oothoon were both invited to taste mortal life; Thel declined and Oothoon
accepted the invitation.  Thel returned to her Valley of Har, while Oothoon progressed
through Innocence and tasteded  Experience with all its bitterness.

 2. The Cave of the Nymphs
In the Arlington Tempera note especially the two nymphs (naiads) on the northern gate: 
one going down eagerly, the other going back up-- against the stream. Most of the naiads 
mean to experience mortal life, but one (like Thel has chosen not to.

3. The Myth of Persephone:
"Persephone (Prosepine). This fair maiden plucked a special flower and had the fortune to be 
abducted by Pluto to be queen of his Underworld."  
Two items in Persephone's career are reflected by Oothoon's:
    the flower plucked,
    the rape.

4. The Little Girl Lost (and Found)
One more instance of the cycle of life; this one with an obviously happy outcome.
In all these myths your imagination could suggest to you the presence of the two 
realms we've been discussing.
Study all of them and you may see how clearly they relate to
The Vision of the Daughters of Albion.

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