review
William Blake

 

 

Since sympathy for native birthplace did grip
   me, I gathered up the scattered branches and
   returned them to that shade, who was already
ghostly. From there, we at last came to the place
   where the second enclosure is divided from the
   third, hence th' horrific artistry of justice
is witnessed. To clarify unprecedented things, I
   mean that we arrived upon a shore which banished
   all plantlife from its basin. The dreary
woods are covered round about with garlands, like
   the sad ditch to get there; on the spot we narrowed
   our tracks, with baby steps. The vicinity was
a dried-up sand dune, quite compact, no different
   than the scene that Cato tended to, when he
   trampled such dust beneath his very feet.
Oh dear God's revenge, how must you be held
   in fear by every last person who reads of
   this scene that was revealed to my own eyes!
I saw a great many flock of naked spirits,
   so they could cry over everything, rather
   miserable in manner, who did seem stationed
there by incommensurate laws. People squatting on
   some land, some seated entirely reclined,
   as another band went on interminably.
The biggest group was th' one that stormed around,
   and that which lay there in torment, smaller -- though
   th' ones of looser tongue felt much more searing pain.
Atop the sand, with a dying fall, they cry
   over layers of flesh impasted by flaming,
   like some snow in the Alps with no wind to blow.[30
As Alexander of Macedon, too hotly,
   saw sparks of flame rain down upon those ranks
   of his, in India, with consistency,
so that he could anticipate good grounds
   for grazing, with his groups of soldiers, just
   so did the vaporous smoke shock me when I was
alone: thus was the eternal blaze mounting;
   & so the sand glowed hot, like a fuse upon
   the heated stone, for billowing grief's pain.
Yet the affair of their miserable hands
   was without respite, here now & there again,
   trying then to extend the fresh new burning heat.
I started off, "Master Vergil, you who master
   all things, apart from... evil demons, that tried
   to prevent our entry outside the gate, tell
me who is that big guy who seems imperturbable
   to the scorching, and is lying there in spite
   so crooked, that the precipitation
seems not to break him down?" And that very same shade,
   upon noting that I spoke of him to my guide,
   shouted: "What I was when alive, so were I now dead.
If Jupiter himself were to break his own crafty
   blacksmith down, Vulcan, who in a fury grabbed
   the darting thunderbolt, & whereby the final day
of light was smitten, or if he should wear down
   th' other accomplices one at a time,
   at the blackened forge in Mongibello, crying out,
'Dear Vulcan, help, help me!' -- as if they had
   made an advance to assault Phlegra, -- and shoots at me with
   all his arrows' force: he still could get no pleasure in revenge."[60
Then my instructor spoke up with such great
   forcefulness, that I never heard anyone
   so strong: "Oh Capaneus, you are penalized
all the more in relation to your arrogance,
   as it cannot be snuffed out: no torment could
   discharge the pain in your rage, aside from your own
wild fury." Then turned he towards me with a much
   kinder aspect, saying: "That man was one of the seven
   kings who besieged Thebes; he held God in contempt,
and seems to still -- looks like he took little notice; how-
   ever, as I told him, the curses from his mouth
   make for fitting decor upon his breast.
But come back with me now, and be sure not
   to step foot upon the scorching sand: rather
   keep your footsteps in line, towards the forest."
Keeping silent, we arrived at a place where
   a tiny rivulet apart from the forest does
   quicken, whose reddish hue still make me shiver.
As flows that stream from Bulicame, which the
   local prostitutes share out among their people,
   so does this brook stream down over the sand.
Its bed, and both the banks, were made of stone,
   as was either shore beside them; I noted
   that the passage was right there, through it.
"Out of all the rest of what I have shown you,
   since we entered by the gate whose threshold is
   denied to nobody, your eyesight has
been witness to not one thing so note-worthy
   as the present stream, which diminishes every
   last little bit of flaming above itself."[90
These were the statements of my guide; because of his words,
   I pleaded with him to serve me the main course,
   after so lavish of an appetizer.
"In the midst of the sea, there lies a wasted
   country," he then said, "which is known as Crete: when
   its king was in power, the world was still virtuous.
There used to be a mountain there, teeming with
   waters and foliage, which is known as Ida;
   nowadays it is abandoned like desert land.
Cybele once selected it as trusty cradle
   for Jupiter, her son, & to better abscond him,
   she made her people scream whenever he cried.
On the inside of the mountain is a great big
   old man, who stands up straight, with his back turned on
   Damietta, & he faces towards Rome like it
was his own mirror. His head is made purely of fine
   gold, and his arms and chest, of precious silver -- next he
   is molded in brasswork, on down to his waist;
from there on down, he's entirely high quality
   iron, except his right foot, of baked clay; he stands
   erect upon this footing more than th' other. Every
part of him, except the gold, is broken up by cracks
   that drip teardrops which penetrate the cavern
   when they collect in pools. Their course falls off
into this valley: they form the Acheron,
   Styx and Phlegethon rivers; then they run along
   a bay, down through this narrow conduit, unto the point
where there is no further falling off -- the waters
   form the Cocytus; and you will see of what sort is
   this pond, though there's no accounting for it here.[120
To him I replied, "If the present body of water is
   directed like so from within our world, why does it
   only appear at this borderline?" And to me, says he,
"You're aware the locale is elliptical; and although
   you've gone a long way, by heading solely to the left
   in coming down to rock bottom, you still have not
made a full turn, over th' entire circle; therefore, if some-
   thing should appear quite novel, you must not
   let it make a marvelous expression from your face."
And then I spoke: "Master where is the space between
   Plegethon and the Lethe located? -- since you're quiet
   about the one, and said th' other's made of raining tears. . . ."
His response: "In every last of your questions am I well
   pleased by you, but the broiling of ruby waters should
   settle the query you're working on. You'll see the river
Lethe, only it's out of this ditch: you'll view it
   up at the source, where the souls are going to be
   cleansed upon receipt of repentance at sin."
So then he advised, "It's time to get out of the woods;
   make sure you stay behind me: the by-ways form a path,
   which does not burn, as every last moist vapor
is extinguished over these individuals."