All poems in English including sonnets, lyrical poems, narrative poems, and metrical experiments in various forms.
Poems
This volume consists of all poems in English including sonnets, lyrical poems, narrative poems, and metrical experiments in various forms. All such poems published by Sri Aurobindo during his lifetime are included here, as well as poems found among his manuscripts after his passing. Sri Aurobindo worked on these poems over the course of seven decades. The first one was published in 1883 when he was ten; a number of poems were written or revised more than sixty years later, in the late 1940s.
THEME/S
Nala, Nishadha's king, paced by a stream That sings to jasmine-bushes where they dream Dropping their petal kisses on the flood. A mountain purple-vague Wide-watching, half-reclined against the sky, The drowsy earth with its stone-lidded eye, Pressing upon the nearness blue and dense Its shoulder in a mighty indolence. The birds were silent on the unruffled trees; The spotted lizard in a dull-eyed ease Basked on his sentinel-stone; a lonely kite Circled above, half rusty-gold, half-white. Shrill and dissatisfied the wanderer's sky To an unlistening ear sailed shadowy-high. He saw with absent eyes the ripple-run Of waters curling in the noonday sun. His thoughts were with a face his dreams had seen, And like a floating charm it came between His vision and the jasmines' virgin glow, Warmer than clusterings of their moon-flaked snow. He listened to a name his dreams had heard Sweeter than passion of a crooning bird. In long and softly-wreathing sounds were twined The delicate syllables yearning through his mind; His beating heart was to their charm compelled. But now he raised his eyelids and beheld Possess the air in act to climb and seize
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Heaven's sapphire longing for earth's green unease, The summit self-uplifted to the sky With undecipherable charactery Of woods half-outlined in a passionate haze. Bright violently as if to force his gaze Broke from the blue-stoled secrecy of the hill Such radiance as when softly visible Breaks stealing from a purple-covered breast A lovely glint of whiteness. Now, increased, Like a snow-feathered arrow-head it flew Splintering the sapphire with its silvery hue. But before long there gleamed a flame-bright flock Flying like one and breasting with its shock Of faery speed the widenesses of noon. So rapidly the wonder travelled, soon He saw distinct the feathers proud and fine Not only with a splendour argentine, But shaken from the wings was shed a hail Of gold that left the sunbeam's glory pale. They flew not like the snowy cranes, a wreath Of flowers driven in the rainwind's breath, But ranked in lovely lines magnificent came Filling the eyes with silver and with flame. They over Nala's garden flying round Whirring descended with a far-heard sound, A gentle thunder falling sweetly slack As line by line they filled the slumbering lake. A hundred wonderful shapes in mystic crowd Covered the water like a living cloud. Next on the stream they spread their glorious bosoms And preening over the waves like curving blossoms Their long and delicate necks came floating on.
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