The Poems of John Donne, Volume 1 (of 2) / Edited from the Old Editions and Numerous Manuscripts

I LONG to talke with some old lovers ghost,

  Who dyed before the god of Love was borne:

I cannot thinke that hee, who then lov'd most,

Sunke so low, as to love one which did scorne.

  5But since this god produc'd a destinie,

And that vice-nature, custome, lets it be;

I must love her, that loves not mee.

Sure, they which made him god, meant not so much,

Nor he, in his young godhead practis'd it;

10But when an even flame two hearts did touch,

His office was indulgently to fit

Actives to passives. Correspondencie

Only his subject was; It cannot bee

Love, till I love her, that loves mee.

15But every moderne god will now extend

His vast prerogative, as far as Jove.

To rage, to lust, to write to, to commend,

All is the purlewe of the God of Love.

Oh were wee wak'ned by this Tyrannie

20To ungod this child againe, it could not bee

I should love her, who loves not mee.

Rebell and Atheist too, why murmure I,

As though I felt the worst that love could doe?

Love might make me leave loving, or might trie

25A deeper plague, to make her love mee too,

Which, since she loves before, I'am loth to see;

Falshood is worse then hate; and that must bee,

If shee whom I love, should love mee.

TO what a combersome unwieldinesse

 And burdenous corpulence my love had growne,

But that I did, to make it lesse,

And keepe it in proportion,

  5Give it a diet, made it feed upon

That which love worst endures, discretion.

Above one sigh a day I'allow'd him not,

Of which my fortune, and my faults had part;

And if sometimes by stealth he got

10A she sigh from my mistresse heart,

And thought to feast on that, I let him see

'Twas neither very sound, nor meant to mee.

If he wroung from mee'a teare, I brin'd it so

With scorne or shame, that him it nourish'd not;

15If he suck'd hers, I let him know

'Twas not a teare, which hee had got,

His drinke was counterfeit, as was his meat;

For, eyes which rowle towards all, weepe not, but sweat.

What ever he would dictate, I writ that,

20But burnt my letters; When she writ to me,

And that that favour made him fat,

I said, if any title bee

Convey'd by this, Ah, what doth it availe,

To be the fortieth name in an entaile?

25Thus I reclaim'd my buzard love, to flye

At what, and when, and how, and where I chuse;

Now negligent of sport I lye,

And now as other Fawkners use,

I spring a mistresse, sweare, write, sigh and weepe:

30And the game kill'd, or lost, goe talke, and sleepe.

My faith I give to Roman Catholiques;

20All my good works unto the Schismaticks

Of Amsterdam; my best civility

And Courtship, to an Universitie;

My modesty I give to souldiers bare;

My patience let gamesters share.

25Thou Love taughtst mee, by making mee

Love her that holds my love disparity,

Onely to give to those that count my gifts indignity.

I give my reputation to those

Which were my friends; Mine industrie to foes;

30To Schoolemen I bequeath my doubtfulnesse;

My sicknesse to Physitians, or excesse;

To Nature, all that I in Ryme have writ;

And to my company my wit.

Thou Love, by making mee adore

35Her, who begot this love in mee before,

Taughtst me to make, as though I gave, when I did but restore.

To him for whom the passing bell next tolls,

I give my physick bookes; my writen rowles

Of Morall counsels, I to Bedlam give;

40My brazen medals, unto them which live

In want of bread; To them which passe among

All forrainers, mine English tongue.

Thou, Love, by making mee love one

Who thinkes her friendship a fit portion

45For yonger lovers, dost my gifts thus disproportion.

Therefore I'll give no more; But I'll undoe

The world by dying; because love dies too.

Then all your beauties will bee no more worth

Then gold in Mines, where none doth draw it forth;

50And all your graces no more use shall have

Then a Sun dyall in a grave.

Thou Love taughtst mee, by making mee

Love her, who doth neglect both mee and thee,

To'invent, and practise this one way, to'annihilate all three.

What ere shee meant by'it, bury it with me,

For since I am

Loves martyr, it might breed idolatrie,

20If into others hands these Reliques came;

As'twas humility

To afford to it all that a Soule can doe,

So,'tis some bravery,

That since you would save none of mee, I bury some of you.

But thou which lov'st to bee

Subtile to plague thy selfe, wilt say,

Alas, if you must goe, what's that to mee?

20Here lyes my businesse, and here I will stay:

You goe to friends, whose love and meanes present

Various content

To your eyes, eares, and tongue, and every part.

If then your body goe, what need you a heart?

25Well then, stay here; but know,

When thou hast stayd and done thy most;

A naked thinking heart, that makes no show,

Is to a woman, but a kinde of Ghost;

How shall shee know my heart; or having none,

30Know thee for one?

Practise may make her know some other part,

But take my word, shee doth not know a Heart.

Meet mee at London, then,

Twenty dayes hence, and thou shalt see

35Mee fresher, and more fat, by being with men,

Then if I had staid still with her and thee.

For Gods sake, if you can, be you so too:

I would give you

There, to another friend, whom wee shall finde

40As glad to have my body, as my minde.

V PON this Primrose hill,

Where, if Heav'n would distill

A shoure of raine, each severall drop might goe

To his owne primrose, and grow Manna so;

  5And where their forme, and their infinitie

Make a terrestriall Galaxie,

As the small starres doe in the skie:

I walke to finde a true Love; and I see

That'tis not a mere woman, that is shee,

10But must, or more, or lesse then woman bee.

Yet know I not, which flower

I wish; a sixe, or foure;

For should my true-Love lesse then woman bee,

She were scarce any thing; and then, should she

15Be more then woman, shee would get above

All thought of sexe, and thinke to move

My heart to study her, and not to love;

Both these were monsters; Since there must reside

Falshood in woman, I could more abide,

20She were by art, then Nature falsify'd.

Live Primrose then, and thrive

With thy true number five;

And women, whom this flower doth represent,

With this mysterious number be content;

25Ten is the farthest number; if halfe ten

Belonge unto each woman, then

Each woman may take halfe us men;

Or if this will not serve their turne, Since all

Numbers are odde, or even, and they fall

30First into this, five, women may take us all.

All women shall adore us, and some men;

20And since at such time, miracles are sought,

I would have that age by this paper taught

What miracles wee harmelesse lovers wrought.

First, we lov'd well and faithfully,

Yet knew not what wee lov'd, nor why,

25Difference of sex no more wee knew,

Then our Guardian Angells doe;

Comming and going, wee

Perchance might kisse, but not between those meales;

Our hands ne'r toucht the seales,

30Which nature, injur'd by late law, sets free:

These miracles wee did; but now alas,

All measure, and all language, I would passe,

Should I tell what a miracle shee was.

Poore victories! But if you dare be brave,

10And pleasure in your conquest have,

First kill th'enormous Gyant, your Disdaine,

And let th'enchantresse Honor, next be slaine,

And like a Goth and Vandall rize,

Deface Records, and Histories

15Of your owne arts and triumphs over men,

And without such advantage kill me then.

For I could muster up as well as you

My Gyants, and my Witches too,

Which are vast Constancy, and Secretnesse,

20But these I neyther looke for, nor professe;

Kill mee as Woman, let mee die

As a meere man; doe you but try

Your passive valor, and you shall finde than,

In that you'have odds enough of any man.

My fire of Passion, sighes of ayre,

10Water of teares, and earthly sad despaire,

Which my materialls bee,

But neere worne out by loves securitie,

Shee, to my losse, doth by her death repaire,

And I might live long wretched so

15But that my fire doth with my fuell grow.

Now as those Active Kings

Whose foraine conquest treasure brings,

Receive more, and spend more, and soonest breake:

This (which I am amaz'd that I can speake)

20This death, hath with my store

My use encreas'd.

And so my soule more earnestly releas'd,

Will outstrip hers; As bullets flowen before

A latter bullet may o'rtake, the pouder being more.

Yet stay with mee since thou art come,

10Circle this fingers top, which did'st her thombe.

Be justly proud, and gladly safe, that thou dost dwell with me,

She that, Oh, broke her faith, would soon breake thee.

TAKE heed of loving mee,

At least remember, I forbade it thee;

Not that I shall repaire my'unthrifty wast

Of Breath and Blood, upon thy sighes, and teares,

  5By being to thee then what to me thou wast;

But, so great Joy, our life at once outweares,

Then, least thy love, by my death, frustrate bee,

If thou love mee, take heed of loving mee.

Take heed of hating mee,

10Or too much triumph in the Victorie.

Not that I shall be mine owne officer,

And hate with hate againe retaliate;

But thou wilt lose the stile of conquerour,

If I, thy conquest, perish by thy hate.

15Then, least my being nothing lessen thee,

If thou hate mee, take heed of hating mee.

Yet, love and hate mee too,

So, these extreames shall neithers office doe;

Love mee, that I may die the gentler way;

20Hate mee, because thy love is too great for mee;

Or let these two, themselves, not me decay;

So shall I, live, thy Stage, not triumph bee;

Lest thou thy love and hate and mee undoe,

To let mee live, O love and hate mee too.

FOR the first twenty yeares, since yesterday,

I scarce beleev'd, thou could'st be gone away,

For forty more, I fed on favours past,

And forty'on hopes, that thou would'st, they might last.

  5Teares drown'd one hundred, and sighes blew out two,

A thousand, I did neither thinke, nor doe,

Or not divide, all being one thought of you;

Or in a thousand more, forgot that too.

Yet call not this long life; But thinke that I

10Am, by being dead, Immortall; Can ghosts die?

Such life is like the light which bideth yet

When the lights life is set,

15Or like the heat, which fire in solid matter

Leaves behinde, two houres after.

Once I lov'd and dy'd; and am now become

Mine Epitaph and Tombe.

Here dead men speake their last, and so do I;

20Love-slaine, loe, here I lye.

Ah cannot wee,

As well as Cocks and Lyons jocund be,

After such pleasures? Unlesse wise

Nature decreed (since each such Act, they say,

25Diminisheth the length of life a day)

This, as shee would man should despise

The sport;

Because that other curse of being short,

And onely for a minute made to be,

30(Eagers desire) to raise posterity.

Since so, my minde

Shall not desire what no man else can finde,

I'll no more dote and runne

To pursue things which had indammag'd me.

35And when I come where moving beauties be,

As men doe when the summers Sunne

Growes great,

Though I admire their greatnesse, shun their heat;

Each place can afford shadowes. If all faile,

40'Tis but applying worme-seed to the Taile.

  5Along with us, which we our selves produc'd;

But, now the Sunne is just above our head,

We doe those shadowes tread;

And to brave clearnesse all things are reduc'd.

So whilst our infant loves did grow,

10Disguises did, and shadowes, flow,

From us, and our cares; but, now 'tis not so.

That love hath not attain'd the high'st degree,

Which is still diligent lest others see.

Except our loves at this noone stay,

15We shall new shadowes make the other way.

As the first were made to blinde

Others; these which come behinde

Will worke upon our selves, and blind our eyes.

If our loves faint, and westwardly decline;

20To me thou, falsly, thine,

And I to thee mine actions shall disguise.

The morning shadowes weare away,

But these grow longer all the day,

But oh, loves day is short, if love decay.

25Love is a growing, or full constant light;

And his first minute, after noone, is night.