A Psalm of Life poem by H.W. Longfellow

What the Heart of the Young Man said to the Psalmist.

Tell me not, in mournful numbers,

  Life is but an empty dream!

For the soul is dead that slumbers,

  And things are not what they seem.

Life is real! Life is earnest!

  And the grave is not its goal;

Dust thou art, to dust returnest,

  Was not spoken of the soul.

Not enjoyment, and not sorrow,

  Is our destined end or way;

But to act, that each to-morrow

  Find us farther than to-day.

Art is long, and Time is fleeting,

  And our hearts, though stout and brave,

Still, like muffled drums, are beating

  Funeral marches to the grave.

In the world's broad field of battle,

  In the bivouac of Life,

Be not like dumb, driven cattle!

  Be a hero in the strife!

Trust no Future, howe'er pleasant!

  Let the dead Past bury its dead!

Act, -- act in the living Present!

  Heart within, and God o'erhead!

Lives of great men all remind us

  We can make our lives sublime,

And, departing, leave behind us

  Footprints on the sands of time;

Footprints, that perhaps another,

  Sailing o'er life's solemn main,

A forlorn and shipwrecked brother,

  Seeing, shall take heart again.

Let us, then, be up and doing, 

  With a heart for any fate;

Still achieving, still pursuing,

  Learn to labor and to wait.

Summary of A Psalm of Life by H.W. Longfellow

       A Psalm of Life, a lyric of religious emotion was published in October 1838.  This poem is taken from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's first volume of poems.  A 'Psalm' is a sacred song, an invocation to mankind to follow the path of righteousness.  A Psalm of Life is a blow to the pessimistic attitude of taking life lightly.  The poet encourages his readers not to waste life, that life is short and is going to end soon.  The poem highlights the views of the poet about how to live life and that there is only one life and therefore, we should make a good use of it.

      The poem consists of nine stanzas, each containing four lines.  The poet begins the poem by asking us not to tell him in sorrowful verses that life is an empty, meaningless dream.  According to Longfellow, a person who spends his sleeping is already dead.  Such a worthless life misguides other human beings.  Finally, irresponsibility does not reflect the true human nature.

     The second stanza begins with two phrases, "Life is real!  Life is earnest!".  The poet uses an encouraging tone to say that life is real and serious.  Life should not be treated lightly.  Moreover, the poet says that death is not the ultimate goal; life does not end with death:  "Dust thou art, to dust returnest" is not applicable to the soul, this quotation is applicable only to the body.

       The third stanza of A Psalm of Life is about the way of living.  The poet tells us that our way of living should be only based on enjoyment or mourning.  The aim of life its to act wisely each day so that we can make a better life.

       Stanza four is about the work assigned to us and about the time which is flying, "Art is long, and Time is fleeting" means that the work given to us too long and time-consuming.  The poet encourages that under such situations, our hearts still remain stout and brave  and are beating funeral marches to the grave, like the drums covered with cloth. The message that the poet wants to convey through this stanza is that one should lose courage under any circumstances.

     In the fifth stanza, the poet compares the world to a battlefield as well as a temporary camp for troops.  The humans are compared with troops.  He asks all the people to live and fight their battles within the given period of time.  The poet asks us not to be like the dumb cattle which is driven by others, because of its lack of direction and determination.  

       The poet asks us to trust on the future even if it seems pleasant in the sixth stanza of A Psalm of Life.  The past incidents must be forgotten away.  The aim of life should be to act courageously at present and not to lose faith in God.

       Lives of great men remind us that we can make our lives noble and elevated that is we can reach great heights.  Finally, when we die, we can leave behind us our footprints [noble deeds] for others to follow our path.

      In the final stanza of A Psalm of Life, the poet asks us to begin at once with courage without thinking about the consequences of the actions.  He asks us to achieve our aim and learn to work hard and wait patiently for rewards.

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About the Poet:

H.W. Longfellow (February 27, 1807 - March 24, 1882) was an American poet and educator.  He taught at Bow din College   and Harvard University.  After retiring from Harvard University, he devoted himself completely to writing.  His best known poems are Songs of oft-liawathe, Evangeline  Hesperus, Excelsior and A Psalm of Life.

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The Dilemma of Choice

(Oliver Goldsmith 1728-1774)

       The world is constituted of three types of living beings – plant, animal and human.

       The plant kingdom ranges from banyan trees to creepers, flower-beds to weeds. They have a distinct character. They merely exist in the world at large exhibiting their nature. With no voluntary reaction to the world. No eyes to gaze at the environment around.

       Animals have a built-in programme to live their lives. They cannot tamper with their natural constitution. A tiger cannot become a vegetarian nor a cow a flesh-eater. Eating habits apart, the behavioural pattern of each species of animals is clearly defined by their basic nature, vasanas. The creatures of each species are constituted of the same vasanas. They possess a collective nature. All lions are ferocious. There can be no lion meek and mild. So are all deer soft and tender. And there can be no deer ferocious.

       The human species stands out distinct and different from all other creatures. The nature of each human being is singular. Each one is constituted of his individualistic nature, vasanas. No two humans possess the same vasanas. Consequently, each one expresses his or her own behavioural pattern. Hence human beings have to be treated individually, not collectively as in the case of other creatures.

       The behavioural pattern of animals follows their own nature. They have no choice to live apart from it. But humans are free to choose their course of life. All through life you are faced with the dilemma of choice. To get into business or profession, to marry or not to marry, to be a vegetarian or non-vegetarian etc. The problem lies not so much in making a choice but on what basis you make it. That requires a study of the forces that propel human action.

       Human actions emanate from either the mind or the intellect or a combination of both. The body executes action. But the body cannot act on its own. The actions of the body are driven by either:

1. Likes and dislikes, feelings, emotions, impulses of the mind.
                                                 or
2. Reason, discretion, judgement of the intellect.
                                                or
3. A combination of the above two.


       Here is an example of the above three possibilities arising from an action. Offer a sweet to a diabetic person who is fond of sweets. His mind wants to take it. His intellect decides against it knowing that he is diabetic. If his intellect is more powerful than his mind he will refuse it. If otherwise, his mind is strong and intellect weak, he would accept it. In a third possibility, if the person is not diabetic, his mind and intellect may concur and consume it.

       People the world over operate more on feeling and emotion rather than by reason and judgement. Sometimes even the reasoning of the intellect is overpowered by the mind’s emotion.

       In The Village Preacher, the poet Oliver Goldsmith shows how the human intellect should reign over the mind’s feeling and emotion. He describes the village preacher with a heart full of chaste emotions for his fellow-beings. But never does he let his emotions disturb his intellectual poise and judgement. His head rules over his heart. The poem concludes with this metaphor:

To them his heart, his love, his griefs were given,
But all his serious thoughts had rest in Heaven.
As some tall cliff that lifts its awful form,
Swells from the vale, and midway leaves the storm,
Though round its breast the rolling clouds are spread,
Eternal sunshine settles on its head.

       To have emotions is a virtue. But it would be a grievous error to let them interfere with your intellectual judgement. That would tantamount to human weakness. History reveals this intellectual weakness of human beings in letting their emotions overthrow discretion and judgement.

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Source: Abstract from 'The Fall of the Human Intellect' By Swami Parthasarathy
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THE BLIND MEN AND THE ELEPHANT

It was six men of Indostan
To learning much inclined,
Who went to see the elephant
(Though all of them were blind),
That each by observation
Might satisfy his mind.

The First approached the elephant,
And, happening to fall
Against his b road and sturdy side,
At once began to bawl:
“God bless me! But the elephant
Is nothing but a wall!”

The Second, feeling of the tusk,
Cried: “Ho! What have we here
So very round and smooth and sharp?
To me ‘tis mighty clear
This wonder of an elephant
Is very like a spear!”

The Third approached the animal,
And, happening to take
The squirming trunk within his hands,
Thus boldly up and spake:
“I see,” quoth he,” the elephant
Is very like a snake!”

The Fourth reached out his eager hand,
And felt about the knee:
“What most this wondrous beast is like
Is mighty plain,” quoth he;
“ ‘Tis clear enough the elephant
Is very like a tree!”

The Fifth, who chanced to touch the ear,
Said: “E’en the blindest man
Can tell what this resembles most;
Deny the fact who can,
This marvel of an elephant
Is very like a fan!”

The Sixth no sooner had begun
About the beast to grope,
Than, seizing on the swinging tail
That fell within his scope,
“I see,” quoth he, “the elephant
Is very like a rope!”

And so these men of Indostan
Disputed loud and long,
Each in his own opinion
Exceeding stiff and strong,
Though each was partly in the right,
And all were in the wrong!

So, oft in theologic wars
The disputants, I ween,
Rail on in utter ignorance
Of what each other mean,
And prate about an elephant
Not one of them has seen!

Poem by John Godrey Saxe.


COMMENTS:

The present custodians of religions are like the blind leading the blind. They try to convey their concept of God out of their fanatic beliefs. They are like the six blind men who described an elephant in a Poem by John Godfrey Saxe. These blind men wanted to know what an elephant was. They groped and felt the different parts of the animal. Arrived at different conclusions. That it was like a wall, a spear, snake, tree, fan and rope. And each declared authoritatively his own opinion of the elephant. All of them were right from their view point yet all of them were fundamentally wrong. The above poem convey the message.

Vedanta gives no such names to God as these blind men did to the elephant. Its approach to God is methodical. It systematically bridges the gulf between you and God. It provides you the philosophy to study, contemplate, assimilate and apply it in your life. For you to evolve spiritually. And reach the ultimate state of Self-realisation, God-realisation. The supreme godhead lies within you. It is your original nature. Your ignorance veils your supreme Self. Vedanta gives you the knowledge to discover your self.

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THE TURKEY AND THE ANT

John GAY 1685 - 1732

A Turkey, tired of common food,

Forsook the barn, and sought the wood,

Behind her ran an infant train

Collecting here and there a grain.

'Draw near, my birds', the mother cries,

'This hill delicious fare supplies.

Behold the busy negro race--

See. millions blacken all the place!

Fear not; like me with freedom eat;

An eat is most delightful meat,

How blest, how envied, were our life

Could we but 'scape the poulter's knife!

But man, cursed man, on turkey preys

And Christmas shortens all our days.

Sometimes with oysters we combine,

Sometimes assist the savoury chine,

From the low peasant to the Lord,

The turkey smokes on every board.

Some men for gluttony are curst,

Of the seven deadly sins the worst.

An ant, who climbed beyond her reach,

Thus answer'd from a neighbouring beech;

'Ere you remark another's sin,

Bid they own conscience look within;

Control thy more voracious bill,

Nor, for a breakfast nations kill.'

-- John Gay

COMMENTS:

In a simple poem, Gay has well brought out the difficulty of analysing oneself. In his poem there was a turkey living in a barn. The turkey was tired of eating grains. One day is left the barn in search of different food. The young ones followed the mother bird. Soon they reached a hill. the hill was full of black ants. The turkey started devouring them. It persuaded its little ones to eat freely. For a breakfast they consumed millions of ants. The turkey was quite unaware of it. But at the same time, it criticised the gluttony of men. It cursed man for consuming turkey for christmas. Herein lies the paradox. The turkey accused man for destroying a bird once a year, whereas it was killing a nation of ants for a breakfast. The turkey was committing the same fault, a million times graver, yet was ignorant of it. The poet tries to drive home this problem of recognising one's own iniquity.

Here is a practical suggestion. The moment you find a defect in another remember to look within yourself. Understand, behind every flaw that you recognise in another you have the same perhaps far more pronounced in your own personality. Do not consume all your life merely criticising the flaws and failings of others.

"Judge not others" cautioned Christ. The energy you waste in judging others is just what you need to make you live up to your own ideals. Observing a small blemish in a person what a strong tendency people have to overlook all his good traits! In the present society each member concentrates his attention on the faults of another. What defiles a person is not what goes into him but what comes out of him.

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EVEN THIS SHALL PASS AWAY

Once in Persia reigned a king,
Who upon his signet ring
Graved a maxim true and wise,
Which, if held before his eyes,
Gave him counsel at a glance
Fit for every change and chance.
Solemn words, and these are they;
“Even this shall pass away.”

Trains of camels through the sand
Brought him gems from Samarcand;
Fleets of galleys through the seas
Brought him pearls to match with these;
But he counted not his gain
Treasures of the mine or main;
“What is wealth?” the king would say;
“Even this shall pass away.”

‘Mid the revels of his court,
At the zenith of his sport,
When the palms of all his guests
Burned with clapping at his jests,
He, amid his figs and wine,
Cried, “O loving friends of mine;
Pleasures come, but not to stay;‘Even this shall pass away.’”

Lady, fairest ever seen,
Was the bride he crowned his queen.
Pillowed on his marriage bed,
Softly to his soul he said:
“Though no bridegroom ever pressed
Fairer bosom to his breast,
Mortal flesh must come to clay –
Even this shall pass away.”

Fighting on a furious field,
Once a javelin pierced his shield;
Soldiers, with a loud lament,
Bore him bleeding to his tent.
Groaning from his tortured side,
“Pain is hard to bear,” he cried;
“But with patience, day by day,Even this shall pass away.”

Towering in the public square,
Twenty cubits in the air,
Rose his statue, carved in stone.
Then the king, disguised, unknown,
Stood before his sculptured name,
Musing meekly: “What is fame?
Fame is but a slow decay;Even this shall pass away.”

Struck with palsy, sore and old,
Waiting at the Gates of Gold,
Said he with his dying breath,
“Life is done, but what is Death?”
Then, in answer to the king,
Fell a sunbeam on his ring,
Showing by a heavenly ray,
“Even this shall pass away.”

By Theodore Tilton

Commentary by Swami A Parthasarathy

Theodore Tilton presents the king of Persia as a picture of detachment.  The king carved a great maxim on his ring:  EVEN THIS SHALL PASS AWAY.  Rooted in the highest values of life, he lived a life of true renunciation.  He would not identify with the best or the worst of things that this world offered him.  The king was bountifully blessed with wealth and woman, name and fame.  He faced also the pangs of disease, decay and approaching death.  But all along he maintained his serenity and objectivity in life.

       The world is an admixture of fortune and misfortune, pleasure and pain, virtue and vice.  The inevitable pairs of opposites in life are inexhaustible.  Your mental equilibrium and intellectual equipoise should remain unaffected by these fluctuations.  You become established in that state by your attunement to higher values.

       The great king of Persia achieved that exalted state.

       Lessons we learn from this poem:

1]  Experience every aspects of your life fully.

2]  When you go on experiencing your life fully, thee is no lingering of past experiences.  This is called as sanyas or true meaning of detachment and this is ephemeral and goes away.  .