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<div style="background:#fff;border:#bbb dashed 1px;padding:5px"><a href="http://en.citatepedia.ro/comments.php?id=374515" style="color:#000;text-decoration:none"><div style="margin:10px 0"><strong>Visions of the worlds vanitie.</strong></div><div style="margin:10px 0">One day, whiles that my daylie cares did sleepe,<br>My spirit, shaking off her earthly prison,<br>Began to enter into meditation deepe<br>Of things exceeding reach of common reason;<br>Such as this age, in which all good is geason,<br>And all that humble is and meane debaced,<br>Hath brought forth in her last declining season,<br>Griefe of good mindes, to see goodnesse disgraced.<br>On which when as my thought was throghly placed,<br>Vnto my eyes strange showes presented were,<br>Picturing that, which I in minde embraced,<br>That yet those sights empassion me full nere.<br>Such as they were (faire Ladie) take in worth,<br>That when time serues, may bring things better forth.</div><div style="margin:10px 0">2</div><div style="margin:10px 0">In Summers day, when Phoebus fairly shone,<br>I saw a Bull as white as driuen snowe,<br>With gilden hornes embowed like the Moone,<br>In a fresh flowring meadow lying lowe:<br>Vp to his eares the verdant grasse did growe,<br>And the gay floures did offer to be eaten;<br>But he with fatnes so did ouerflowe,<br>That he all wallowed in the weedes downe beaten,<br>Ne car'd with them his daintie lips to sweeten:<br>Till that a Brize, a scorned little creature,<br>Through his faire hide his angrie sting did threaten,<br>And vext so sore, that all his goodly feature,<br>And all his plenteous pasture nought him pleased:<br>So by the small the great is oft diseased.</div><div style="margin:10px 0">3</div><div style="margin:10px 0">Beside the fruitfull shore of muddie Nile,<br>Vpon a sunnie banke outstretched lay<br>In monstrous length, a mightie Crocodile,<br>That cram'd with guiltles blood, and greedie pray<br>Of wretched people trauailing that way,<br>Thought all things lesse than his disdainfull pride.<br>I saw a little Bird, cal'd Tedula,<br>The least of thousands which on earth abide,<br>That forst this hideous beast to open wide<br>The greisly gates of his deuouring hell,<br>And let him feede, as Nature doth prouide,<br>Vpon his iawes, that with blacke venime swell.<br>Why then should greatest things the least disdaine,<br>Sith that so small so mighty can constraine?</div><div style="margin:10px 0">4</div><div style="margin:10px 0">The kingly Bird, that beares Ioues thunder-clap,<br>One day did scorne the simple Scarabee,<br>Proud of his highest seruice, and good hap,<br>That made all other Foules his thralls to bee:<br>The silly Flie, that no other redresse did see,<br>Spide where the Eagle built his towring nest,<br>And kindling fire within the hollow tree,<br>Burnt vp his yong ones, and himselfe distrest;<br>Ne suffred him in anie place to rest,<br>But droue in Ioues owne lap his egs to lay;<br>Where gathering also filth him to infest,<br>Forst with the filth his egs to fling away:<br>For which when as the Foule was wroth, said Ioue,<br>Lo how the least the greatest may reproue.</div><div style="margin:10px 0">5</div><div style="margin:10px 0">Toward the sea turning my troubled eye,<br>I saw the fish (if fish I may it cleepe)<br>That makes the sea before his face to flye,<br>And with his flaggie finnes doth seeme to sweepe<br>The fomie waues out of the dreadfull deep,<br>The huge Leuiathan, dame Natures wonder,<br>Making his sport, that manie makes to weep:<br>A sword-fish small him from the rest did sunder,<br>That in his throat him pricking softly vnder,<br>His wide Abysse him forced forth to spewe,<br>That all the sea did roare like heauens thunder,<br>And all the waues were stain'd with filthie hewe.<br>Hereby I learned haue, not to despise,<br>What euer thing seemes small in common eyes.</div><div style="margin:10px 0">6</div><div style="margin:10px 0">An hideous Dragon, dreadfull to behold,<br>Whose backe was arm'd against the dint of speare<br>With shields of brasse, that shone like burnisht golde,<br>And forkhed sting, that death in it did beare,<br>Stroue with a Spider his vnequall peare:<br>And bad defiance to his enemie.<br>The subtill vermin creeping closely neare,<br>Did in his drinke shed poyson priuily;<br>Which through his entrailes spredding diuersly,<br>Made him to swell, that nigh his bowells brust,<br>And him enforst to yeeld the victorie,<br>That did so much in his owne greatnesse trust.<br>O how great vainnesse is it then to scorne<br>The weake, that hath the strong so oft forlorne.</div><div style="margin:10px 0">7</div><div style="margin:10px 0">High on a hill a goodly Cedar grewe,<br>Of wondrous length, and streight proportion,<br>That farre abroad her daintie odours threwe;<br>Mongst all the daughters of proud Libanon,<br>Her match in beautie was not anie one.<br>Shortly within her inmost pith there bred<br>A litle wicked worme, perceiue'd of none,<br>That on her sap and vitall moysture fed:<br>Thenceforth her garland so much honoured<br>Began to die, (O great ruth for the same)<br>And her faire lockes fell from her loftie head,<br>That shortly balde, and bared she became.<br>I, which this sight beheld, was much dismayed,<br>To see so goodly thing so soone decayed.</div><div style="margin:10px 0">8</div><div style="margin:10px 0">Soone after this I saw an Elephant,<br>Adorn'd with bells and bosses gorgeouslie,<br>That on his backe did beare (as batteilant)<br>A gilden towre, which shone exceedinglie;<br>That he himselfe through foolish vanitie,<br>Both for his rich attire, and goodly forme,<br>Was puffed vp with passing surquedrie,<br>And shortly gan all other beasts to scorne,<br>Till that a little Ant, a silly worme,<br>Into his nosthrils creeping, so him pained,<br>That casting downe his towres, he did deforme<br>Both borrowed pride, and natiue beautie stained.<br>Let therefore nought that great is, therein glorie,<br>Sith so small thing his happines may varie.</div><div style="margin:10px 0">9</div><div style="margin:10px 0">Looking far foorth into the Ocean wide,<br>A goodly ship with banners brauely dight,<br>And flag in her top-gallant I espide,<br>Through the maine sea making her merry flight:<br>Faire blew the winde into her bosome right;<br>And th' heauens looked louely all the while,<br>That she did seeme to daunce, as in delight,<br>And at her owne felicitie did smile.<br>All sodainely there cloue vnto her keele<br>A little fish, that men call Remora,<br>Which stopt her course, and held her by the heele,<br>That winde nor tide could moue her thence away.<br>Straunge thing me seemeth, that so small a thing<br>Should able be so great an one to wring.</div><div style="margin:10px 0">10</div><div style="margin:10px 0">A mighty Lyon, Lord of all the wood,<br>Hauing his hunger throughly satisfide,<br>With pray of beasts, and spoyle of liuing blood,<br>Safe in his dreadles den him thought to hide:<br>His sternesse was his prayse, his strength his pride,<br>And all his glory in his cruell clawes.<br>I saw a wasp, that fiecely him defide,<br>And bad him battaile euen to his iawes;<br>Sore he him stong, that it the blood forth drawes,<br>And his proude heart is fild with fretting ire:<br>In vaine he threats his teeth, his tayle, his pawes,<br>And from his bloodie eyes doth sparkle fire;<br>That dead himselfe he wisheth for despight.<br>So weakest may anoy the most of might.</div><div style="margin:10px 0">11</div><div style="margin:10px 0">What time the Romaine Empire bore the raine<br>Of all the world, and florisht most in might,<br>The nations gan their soueraigntie disdaine,<br>And cast to quitt them from their bondage quight:<br>So when all shrouded were in silent night,<br>The Galles were, by corrupting of a mayde,<br>Possest nigh of the Capitol through slight,<br>Had not a Goose the treachery bewrayde.<br>If then a Goose great Rome from ruine stayde,<br>And Ioue himselfe, the patron of the place,<br>Preserud from being to his foes betrayde,<br>Why do vaine men mean things so much deface,<br>And in their might repose their most assurance,<br>Sith nought on earth can chalenge long endurance?</div><div style="margin:10px 0">12</div><div style="margin:10px 0">When these sad sights were ouerpast and gone,<br>My spright was greatly moued in her rest,<br>With inward ruth and deare affection,<br>To see so great things by so small distrest:<br>Thenceforth I gan in my engrieued brest<br>To scorne all difference of great and small,<br>Sith that the greatest often are opprest,<br>And vnawares doe into daunger fall.<br>And ye, that read these ruines tragicall<br>Learne by their losse to loue the low degree,<br>And if that fortune chaunce you vp to call<br>To honours seat, forget not what you be:<br>For he that of himselfe is most secure,<br>Shall finde his state most fickle and vnsure.</div><div style="margin:10px 0"><br /></a><br />poem by <a href="http://en.citatepedia.ro/by.php?a=Edmund+Spenser">Edmund Spenser</a><div class=q>
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<script type="text/javascript" src="//s7.addthis.com/js/300/addthis_widget.js#pubid=citatepedia" async="async"></script><div style="display:inline-block" class="addthis_sharing_toolbox" data-url="http://en.citatepedia.ro/comments.php?id=374515" data-title="Visions of the worlds vanitie. de Edmund Spenser" data-description="One day, whiles that my daylie cares did sleepe,
My spirit, shaking off her earthly prison,
Began to enter into meditation deepe
Of things exceeding reach of common reason;
Such as this age, in which all good is geason,
And all that humble is and ..."></div>
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