Category: PART III

’Tis strange men think so vain, and seem so sage,
And act so foolish in this latter²⁰ age.
Their brains are always working some design,
Which plots they dig, as miners in a²¹ mine.
Fancies are min’rals, and²² the mine’s²³ the head,                5
Some gold, some²⁴ silver, iron, tin, some²⁵ lead.
The furnace which ’tis melted in is great,
And motion quick doth give²⁶ a glowing heat.
The mouth’s the gutter where the ore doth run;²⁷
The hammer which the bars do beat’s²⁸ the tongue.          10
The ear’s the forge to shape and form it out,
And several merchants send it all about.
And as the metal’s worth, the price is set;
Scholars, which are the buyers, most²⁹ do get.
On gold and silver, which are fancies fine,                         15
Are poets stamped, as masters of that coin.
Hard iron of strong judgment’s³⁰ fit for use
In³¹ peace or war, to join up errors loose.
Though lead is dull, yet often use³² is made,
Like to translators in every language³³ trade.                    20
Tin is but³⁴ weak, and of small strength we see,
Yet, joined with silver wits, ’t makes³⁵ alchemy.
Half-witted men joined with strong wits might³⁶ grow
To be of use, and make a glist’ring show.

³⁷

The head of man’s a church, where reason preaches,
Directs the life, and every thought it teaches,
Persuades the mind to live in peace and quiet,
And not in fruitless contemplation’s³⁸ riot.
“For why,” says Reason, “you shall damnèd be                 5
From all content, for curiosity;³⁹
To seek about for what⁴⁰ you cannot find
Will⁴¹ be a torment to a restless mind.”

Nature most pleasure doth to poets give,
If pleasure⁴² in variety doth⁴³ live.
Each sense of theirs⁴⁴ by fancy new is fed,
Which fancy in a torrent brain is bred.
Contrary ’tis⁴⁵ to all that’s born on Earth,                                    5
For fancy is delighted most at’s birth.
Whatever else⁴⁶ is born with pain comes forth,⁴⁷
Hath neither beauty, strength, nor perfect growth.⁴⁸
But fancy needs not time to make it grow;⁴⁹
The brain’s⁵⁰ like gods, from whence all things do flow.         10

A garden they’ve, which⁵¹ Paradise we call,⁵²
Forbidden fruits, which tempt young lovers all,
Grow on the trees,⁵³ which in the midst doth stand,⁵⁴
Beauty on one, desire on th’other hand.⁵⁵
The devil,⁵⁶ self conceit, full⁵⁷ craftily                                       15
Doth⁵⁸ take the serpent’s shape of flattery,
For to deceive the female sex thereby,
Which made is⁵⁹ only of inconstancy.
The male, high credence, to the female sex⁶⁰
Yields fondly anything which they do⁶¹ ask.                            20
Two rivers round this garden run about;
The one is confidence, the other doubt.
Every⁶² bank is set with fancy’s flowers;
Wit raines upon them fine refreshing showers.
Truth is the lord and owner⁶³ of this place,                              25
But ignorance this garden out will⁶⁴ raze.

Then, from this garden,⁶⁵ to a forest goes,⁶⁶
Where many cedars of high knowledge grow,⁶⁷
Oaks of strong judgment, hazel wits⁶⁸—which tree
Bears nuts full of conceits, when cracked they be—              30
And smooth-tongued beech; kind-hearted willow⁶⁹ bows
And yields to all that honesty allows.
Here⁷⁰ birds of eloquence do sit and sing,
Build nests of logic, reasons forth to bring.⁷¹
Some birds of sophistry till hatched there lie;                         35
Winged with false principles, away they fly.
Here doth⁷² the poet hawk, hunt, run⁷³ a race,
Until he weary grows, then leaves this place.

Then⁷⁴ goes a-fishing to a river’s side,
Whose water clear doth flow with fancy’s tide;⁷⁵                   40
Angles with wit to catch the fish of fame,
To feed his mem’ry⁷⁶ and preserve his name.
Ships of ambition he builds,⁷⁷ swift and strong;
Sails of imaginations drive ’em along,⁷⁸
With winds of several praises fills them⁷⁹ full,                       45
Swims⁸⁰ on the salt sea brain,⁸¹ round the world’s skull.
The thoughts are mariners which, that they may⁸²
’Scape shipwrecks of dislike, work night and day.⁸³
Some⁸⁴ ships are cast⁸⁵ upon the sands of spite,
And rocks of malice sometimes split them quite.                   50
But merchant poets, whose shipmaster’s⁸⁶ mind,
Do compass take some unknown land to find.

I am the purest of all Nature’s works;
No dross nor sluggish moisture in me lurks.
I am within the bowels of the Earth;
None knows of what, or whence, I took my birth.
And as the sun, I shine in glory bright;                                   5
Only I want his beams to make a light.
And as the sun is chief of planets high,
So on the Earth the chiefest thing am I.
And as the sun rules there as lord and king,
So on the Earth I govern everything.                                      10
And as the sun doth run about the world,
So I about from man to man am⁸⁷ hurled.

⁸⁸

The spider’s housewif’ry no webs doth spin
To make her cloth, but ropes to hang flies in.
Her bowels are the shop where flax is found;
Her body is the wheel that goeth round.
A wall her⁸⁹ distaff, where she sticks thread on;⁹⁰                       5
The fingers are the feet that pull it long.⁹¹
She’s busy at all times, not idle lies;⁹²
A house she builds with nets to catch the flies.⁹³
Though it be not so strong as brick and stone,
Yet strong enough to bear light bodies on.                                  10
Within this house the female spider lies,
The whilst the male doth hunt abroad for flies.
Ne’er leaving⁹⁴ till he⁹⁵ flies gets in, which are⁹⁶
Entangled⁹⁷ soon⁹⁸ within his subtle snare,
Like treacherous hosts,⁹⁹ which do¹⁰⁰ much welcome make   15
Their guests, yet watch how they their lives¹⁰¹ may take.

¹⁰²

Some fancies, like small gnats, buzz in the brain,
And¹⁰³ by the hand of worldly cares are slain.
But they do sting so sore the poet’s head,
His mind is blistered, and his¹⁰⁴ thoughts turn¹⁰⁵ red.
Nought can take out this¹⁰⁶ burning heat and pain            5
But pen and ink, to write on paper plain.
Then¹⁰⁷ take the oil of fame, and ’noint¹⁰⁸ the mind,
And this will¹⁰⁹ be a perfect cure, you’ll find.

If thoughts be the mind’s creatures, as some say,
Then, like the rest,¹¹⁰ they on each other¹¹¹ prey,
Ambitious thoughts, like to a hawk, fly high,
In circles of desires mount the¹¹² sky.
And when a covey of young hopes up springs,¹¹³                             5
They strive to catch them with their swiftest wings.¹¹⁴
Thus as the hawk on partridges doth¹¹⁵ eat,
So hopeful thoughts are for ambitions¹¹⁶ meat.
Thoughts of self love do swim in self conceit.
Imaginary thoughts of¹¹⁷ praises bait,¹¹⁸                                               10
Which baits¹¹⁹ the thoughts of pride do catch and¹²⁰ eat,
Thinking it high and most¹²¹ delicious meat.
Thoughts of revenge are like to lions strong,
Which whet the appetite with thoughts of wrong.
With subtle thoughts they couch and leap for prey,¹²²                   15
But bloody thoughts carry the flesh away.¹²³
The¹²⁴ spiteful thoughts, like cats which¹²⁵ mice do catch,
At each¹²⁶ corner of imperfections watch.
When spite perceives detracting thoughts to¹²⁷ speak,
It straight leaps on, no other meat doth seek.                                 20
Suspicious thoughts like hounds do hunt about
To find and eat the hare¹²⁸ of timorous doubt.
Observing thoughts do smell¹²⁹ which way to trace,
And hateful thoughts do follow close the chase.
But thoughts of patience like to dormice live,                                 25
Eat little: sleep them¹³⁰ nourishment doth give.
And when they feed, they thoughts of sorrows crack,¹³¹
Which nuts being¹³² hard, their¹³³ teeth against them knack.¹³⁴
But¹³⁵ grateful thoughts on thoughts of thanks do feed,¹³⁶
And, by their industry, like ants they speed.¹³⁷                                30
But thoughts of love do live on several meat,
Of hopes, and fears, and jealousies they¹³⁸ eat,
And¹³⁹ like as bees do fly on several flowers¹⁴⁰
To suck out honey,¹⁴¹ so thoughts do of lovers.¹⁴²

¹¹⁵

The head of man just like a hive is made;
The brain is like a comb¹³³ exactly laid,
Where every thought, just like a bee, doth dwell,
Each by itself within a parted cell.
The soul doth govern all, as doth their¹⁴³ king,                        5
Employs each thought¹⁴⁴ upon each several thing.
Just as the¹⁴⁵ bees swarm in the hottest weather,
In great round heaps they do hang all together,¹⁴⁶
As if for counsel wise they all did meet,¹⁴⁷
For when they fly away, new hives they seek.¹⁴⁸                     10
So Men, when they have any great design,
Their thoughts do gather and¹⁴⁹ in heaps combine.¹⁵⁰
But when they are resolved,¹⁵¹ each one takes flight,
And strives¹⁵² which first shall on desire¹⁵³ light.
Thus¹⁵⁴ thoughts do meet¹⁵⁵ and fly about, till they               15
For their subsistence can find out a way.
But doubting thoughts, like drones, live on the rest
Of hoping¹⁵⁶ thoughts, which honey bring to nest.
For like as bees by their sting’s industry¹⁵⁷
Get¹⁵⁸ honey, which the stingless drones live by,¹⁵⁹                20
So men without ambition’s stings do live
Upon th’industrious stock their fathers give.
Or like to such that steals a¹⁶⁰ poet’s wit,
And dress it up in their¹⁶¹ own language fit.
But fancy into every garden flies,                                            25
And sucks the flowers sweet of¹⁶² lips and eyes.
But if they light¹⁶³ on those that are not fair,
Like bees on herbs that dry and withered are.¹⁶⁴
As¹⁶⁵ purest honey on sweet flowers lies,
So finest fancies from young beauties rise.                           30

¹⁶⁶

The head of man is like the world made round,
And¹⁶⁷ all the elements are in it¹⁶⁸ found.
The brain’s the¹⁶⁹ earth from whence all plants do spring,
And from the womb it doth all creatures bring.
Forehead and nose are¹⁷⁰ hills that¹⁷¹ do rise high,                       5
And¹⁷² overtop the dales that level lie.
The hair, like¹⁷³ trees which long¹⁷⁴ in length do grow,
And like their¹⁷⁵ leaves, which¹⁷⁶ wind waves¹⁷⁷ to and fro.
Wit, like to several creatures, wild doth run¹⁷⁸
On several subjects, which¹⁷⁹ each other shun.¹⁸⁰                      10
The blood, as seas, doth through the veins run round,
The sweat, as springs by which fresh water’s found.
As winds, which from the hollow caves do blow,
So through the mouth the winded breath doth go.
The eyes are like the sun, and do give¹⁸¹ light;                           15
When senses are asleep, it is dark night.
And¹⁸² after sleep half open are the eyes,
Like¹⁸³ dawning light, when first the sun doth rise.
When they do drowsy grow, then sets the sun,¹⁸⁴
And when the lids are shut it is quite gone.¹⁸⁵                            20
When heavy they’re and dull, like mist it seems,¹⁸⁶
Or a dark cloud which hides the sun’s bright beams,¹⁸⁷
Which shows that there some¹⁸⁸ shower of tears will fall,
Where cheeks, as flow’ry banks, grow moist¹⁸⁹ withal.
As twinkling stars show in dark clouds most¹⁹⁰ clear,              25
So fancies quick do in the brain appear.
Imaginations like the orbs move round,¹⁹¹
Whereof some¹⁹² quick, others are slower found.¹⁹³
And¹⁹⁴ solid thoughts, like¹⁹⁵ the twelve signs, do prove,¹⁹⁶
And round¹⁹⁷ the zodiac of wisdom move,¹⁹⁸                               30
Where they as constantly in wisdom run,
As in the line ecliptic doth the sun.

I to th’ecliptic¹⁹⁹ line the head compare;
The illustrious²⁰⁰ wit, to²⁰¹ the sun’s bright sphere.
The brain I liken to²⁰² the solid Earth,                                          35
From whence all wisdom hath its life and birth,²⁰³
And²⁰⁴ as the Earth, so is the²⁰⁵ head’s round ball,
For it is²⁰⁶ crowned with orbs celestial²⁰⁷
And thus the²⁰⁸ head and world as one agree,
For Nature made²⁰⁹ the head a world to be.                                40