
Pleasure XXIV
Then a hermit, who visited the city once a year, came forth and said, "Speak to us of Pleasure."
And he answered, saying:
Pleasure is a freedom song,
But it is not freedom.
It is the blossoming of your desires,
But it is not their fruit.
It is a depth calling unto a height,
But it is not the deep nor the high.
It is the caged taking wing,
But it is not space encompassed.
Ay, in very truth, pleasure is a freedom-song.
And I fain would have you sing it with fullness of heart; yet I would not have you lose your hearts in the singing.
Some of your youth seek pleasure as if it were all, and they are judged and rebuked.
I would not judge nor rebuke them. I would have them seek.
For they shall find pleasure, but not her alone:
Seven are her sisters, and the least of them is more beautiful than pleasure.
Have you not heard of the man who was digging in the earth for roots and found a treasure?
And some of your elders remember pleasures with regret like wrongs committed in drunkenness.
But regret is the beclouding of the mind and not its chastisement.
They should remember their pleasures with gratitude, as they would the harvest of a summer.
Yet if it comforts them to regret, let them be comforted.
And there are among you those who are neither young to seek nor old to remember;
And in their fear of seeking and remembering they shun all pleasures, lest they neglect the spirit or offend against it.
But even in their foregoing is their pleasure.
And thus they too find a treasure though they dig for roots with quivering hands.
But tell me, who is he that can offend the spirit?
Shall the nightingale offend the stillness of the night, or the firefly the stars?
And shall your flame or your smoke burden the wind?
Think you the spirit is a still pool which you can trouble with a staff?
Oftentimes in denying yourself pleasure you do but store the desire in the recesses of your being.
Who knows but that which seems omitted today, waits for tomorrow?
Even your body knows its heritage and its rightful need and will not be deceived.
And your body is the harp of your soul,
And it is yours to bring forth sweet music from it or confused sounds.
And now you ask in your heart, "How shall we distinguish that which is good in pleasure from that which is not good?"
Go to your fields and your gardens, and you shall learn that it is the pleasure of the bee to gather honey of the flower,
But it is also the pleasure of the flower to yield its honey to the bee.
For to the bee a flower is a fountain of life,
And to the flower a bee is a messenger of love,
And to both, bee and flower, the giving and the receiving of pleasure is a need and an ecstasy.
People of Orphalese, be in your pleasures like the flowers and the bees.
poem by Khalil Gibran

Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Related quotes
Pleasure Is The Bait
Excitement gives pleasure;
Exploration gives pleasure;
Sexual love gives pleasure.
Pleasures are momentary.
Pleasure can peak the happiness
Or cause the valley of sorrow.
Pleasure is the bait one's after
Not minding the after-effects.
poem by Rm. Shanmugam Chettiar

Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Opposite displeasure
Success gives pleasure.
Conquest gives pleasure.
Revenge gives pleasure.
Hunting gives pleasure.
Coveting gives pleasure.
Mind; every pleasure
Gives equal and opposite
Displeasure to others.
In a way we act as sadists
04.05.2012
poem by Rm. Shanmugam Chettiar

Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Pleasure
Pleasures in my car
Even in the bar as Im searching
In the love thats strong
Breathing in the song, Im learning
(I am learning)
Pleasure in the sand
Warm within the hand shes holding
It is on the screen
Adventures at ninteen, Im searching
I am searching in my heart
Pleasure in my heart
Never let us part for pleasure
Work,work today
Never let them pay for pleasure
Leave or lose her from my heart.
Pleasure is your name
I accept he blame for falling
It is down the phone
Living in your home,Im calling
(I am calling)
Pleasure is a word
When love is left unheard,its burning
It is on the screen
Adventures at ninteen, Im searching
I am searching in my heart.
Why do you feel like breaking my heart?
What made you feel like breaking my heart tonight?
Now I am crying,now I am crying.
Pleasure in my heart
Never let us part for pleasure
Work,work today
Never let them pay for pleasure
Leave or lose her from my heart.
song performed by by Spandau Ballet

Submitted by Lucian Velea
Vote! | Copy!
In a Herber Green Asleep Whereas I Lay
In a herber green asleep whereas I lay,
The birds sang sweet in the middle of the day;
I dreamed fast of mirth and play:
In youth is pleasure, in youth is pleasure.
Methought I walked still to and fro,
And from her company I could not go;
But when I wak'd it was not so:
In youth is pleasure, in youth is pleasure.
Therefore my heart is surely pight
Of her alone to have a sight,
Which is my joy and heart's delight:
In youth is pleasure, in youth is pleasure.
poem by Robert Wever

Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
The Best Friend
Now shall I walk
Or shall I ride?
"Ride", Pleasure said;
"Walk", Joy replied.
Now what shall I --
Stay home or roam?
"Roam", Pleasure said;
And Joy -- "stay home."
Now shall I dance,
Or sit for dreams?
"Sit," answers Joy;
"Dance," Pleasure screams.
Which of ye two
Will kindest be?
Pleasure laughed sweet,
But Joy kissed me.
poem by William Henry Davies

Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Fear and Pleasure
pain is the residuals of fear, there is no fear in
the absent of acceptance, for only the mind
can rebuke the suffering of the heart
as the truth comes in a most awaited moment of
your life, the wisdom identify the soul of where
the conscience lives, it is the fear of the Lord where
the wisdom begins; a complete vow and obedient
to the giver of knowledge would guide every pleasure
to overcome fear
entangled between fear and pleasure destroyed the
unifying force that strengthen each aura to a seeking
soul to feel and accept pleasure without fear
make this fear a pleasure of strength, for what
ever encountered pleasure the one who give this
fear, be pleasured in His creation
be the pleasure be assured that what make best
for everybody may leads us to the unity of the soul
that lives in each conscience we possess
the fearless warriors has awaken the pleasure that
the Lord God bestowed, never fear of what pleasure
comes in your life, harmonize the soul with in your
conscience and live the body with the heart that exist
a fear that brings pleasure is a human impulse of
what to become worthy to the kingdom of the God, for
what ever is given, is a gift received and be shared
to all mankind..... and the acceptance brings us to
the pleasure without fear
poem by Antonio Liao

Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Guest Of A Moment
Guest of a moment I am at this pleasure seeking
Rule of cruel earth is exuding life with tone of parting
Flower blooms and exudes, traces for infinite
Flower gets pleasure at bun, takes eye to custody
Moon causes to laugh the flower the cloud's messenger
Not to be associate of dew on love letter
O! God how is this trap which encloses the life being
poem by Bongokobida Zakaria

Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Authors
OVER the meadows, and down the stream,
And through the garden-walks straying,
He plucks the flowers that fairest seem;
His throbbing heart brooks no delaying.
His maiden then comes--oh, what ecstasy!
Thy flowers thou giv'st for one glance of her eye!
The gard'ner next door o'er the hedge sees the youth:
"I'm not such a fool as that, in good truth;
My pleasure is ever to cherish each flower,
And see that no birds my fruit e'er devour.
But when 'tis ripe, your money, good neighbour!
'Twas not for nothing I took all this labour!"
And such, methinks, are the author-tribe.
The one his pleasures around him strews,
That his friends, the public, may reap, if they choose;
The other would fain make them all subscribe.
poem by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Pleasure is a by-product of doing something that is worth doing. Therefore, do not seek pleasure as such. Pleasure comes of seeking something else, and comes by the way.
quote by A. Lawrence Lowell

Submitted by Lucian Velea
Vote! | Copy! | In Romanian
It Was A Pleasure Then
It was a pleasure then
Could you just be here again
To know what there was to see
When all the sunday people
Where so quiet in the dark
Afraid to be better the next day
La la la ...
It was a pleasure then
When we could sit and stare again
Until the stars feel through the cloudy trees
Onto the grass
Stars to smile with us
Until they too had tears in their eyes
Tell us this and tell of how much we must not agree
It was a pleasure then
To see the dieing days again
In the horror of the night
Never, never, never, never, never, lise
Keep it secret
For to hide somewhere at last
As long as we could see
The sky confessed this crime
Of futile tasting hate romance
Above our shattered minds
It was a pleasure, it was a pleasure
La la la ...
song performed by by Velvet Underground

Submitted by Lucian Velea
Vote! | Copy!
In Youth is Pleasure
IN a harbour grene aslepe whereas I lay,
The byrdes sang swete in the middes of the day,
I dreamed fast of mirth and play:
In youth is pleasure, in youth is pleasure.
Methought I walked still to and fro,
And from her company I could not go--
But when I waked it was not so:
In youth is pleasure, in youth is pleasure.
Therefore my hart is surely pyght
Of her alone to have a sight
Which is my joy and hartes delight:
In youth is pleasure, in youth is pleasure.
poem by Robert Wever

Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Joy and Pleasure
Now, joy is born of parents poor,
And pleasure of our richer kind;
Though pleasure's free, she cannot sing
As sweet a song as joy confined.
Pleasure's a Moth, that sleeps by day
And dances by false glare at night;
But Joy's a Butterfly, that loves
To spread its wings in Nature's light.
Joy's like a Bee that gently sucks
Away on blossoms its sweet hour;
But pleasure's like a greedy Wasp,
That plums and cherries would devour.
Joy's like a Lark that lives alone,
Whose ties are very strong, though few;
But Pleasure like a Cuckoo roams,
Makes much acquaintance, no friends true.
Joy from her heart doth sing at home,
With little care if others hear;
But pleasure then is cold and dumb,
And sings and laughs with strangers near.
poem by William Henry Davies

Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
You Are Like A Flower
You are like a flower
Growing in beauty
Nature has its own way
Making you uniquely
So I’ll wait until the day
You sprout with love
Because anything less
Would not be enough
You are like a flower
Strong with the wind
Never giving up your roots
You grow and never let loose
Should I protect you anymore?
When the strength you have
Is already within you
You are like a flower
Giving off good qualities
Selfless and fragrant
Keeping yourself steady
You know something new
Comes out everyday
You are like a flower
You attract attention
With your good look
You are sensitive
It is what makes you strong
Though you can be easily plucked
You fight for your life
You decide what is what
You are a like a flower
For a flower is honest
What you see is what you get
You stand out like a flower should
I will remember how gentle you are
A flower in need of love, you are set
Because even if you are all these
You are soft and delicate
It’s my pleasure to make sure
That nothing changes it
My Flower
poem by Joshua Gilchrist

Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
The extreme pleasure
Pleasure of luxuries,
Pleasure of victories
Or pleasure of any other kinds
Cannot stand against
The pleasure of conquest of woman,
For all potential men.
29.04.2007
poem by Rm. Shanmugam Chettiar

Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!

Pleasure's fun. It's great, but you can't keep it going forever; just accept the fact that it's here and it's gone, and maybe then again, it will come back, and you'll get to do it again. Joy lasts forever. Pleasure is purely self-centered. It's all about your pleasure: it's about you. It's a selfish, self-centered emotion, that is created by a self-centered motive of greed. Joy is compassion. Joy is giving yourself to somebody else, or something else. And it's a kind of thing that is, in its subtlety and lowness, much more powerful than pleasure. You gethung up on pleasure; you're doomed. If you pursue joy, you will find everlasting happiness.
quote by George Lucas

Submitted by Veronica Serbanoiu
Vote! | Copy!
Sins and pleasure
Pleasure of sins lures me to sin.
Sins of pleasure follow me in.
I sow sins to harvest pleasure
And sow pleasure to harvest sins.
Virtues might promise me pleasure
But it is sins that assure of it.
Sins are the food meant for senses.
Virtues are the food made of ego.
I do sins to derive pleasure
And then repent to cleanse my soul.
Virtues I stay with; sins I flirt with.
29.03.2007
poem by Rm. Shanmugam Chettiar

Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Foolish Pleasure
Pleasing the body is quite a feat.
It's life's biggest quest.
Pleasing the soul is a bigger feat
for the soul knows you best.
You cannot hide the crimson blush.
It's the body's tell-tale sign.
You cannot see the heartened rush
for the soul's pleasure is devine.
It's beyond the pleaure the body feels
for the body is a fickle fool.
But the pleasure of the soul is lasting.
It follows every rule.
But oh that foolish pleasure
that makes us who we are
seems so stong.It is hard to stop.
It's end is way too far,
far from realitry, close to insanity
and still the body is bold.
Some say it's foolish. I say no
for the pleasure undoes the cold.
The soul abides and patiently waits
and knows the time will come
when foolish pleasure is temporary
for the body will succumb.
poem by Edwina Reizer

Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Flower Vavroovahana Pa
Flower blossoms naturally;
Beautifies nature silently.
Pervades fragrance in air;
Allures bees with pleasure.
Dazzles with sun beam;
Bees collect honey forms flowers’ stream.
Does not hesitate to flow honey;
Has made the Nature flowery.
She smiles in the lap of Nature;
Enchants the minds of poets with pleasure.
Poet’s derive inspiration;
Enjoy the beauty of creation.
A tiny flower is endowed with beauty;
Allures lovers with gaiety.
Beautiful flower tranquilises mind daily;
Deities enjoy the beauty gaily.
poem by Vavroovahana Patra

Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
None has more frequent conversations with a disagreeable self than the man of pleasure; his enthusiasms are but few and transient; his appetites, like angry creditors, are continually making fruitless demands for what he is unable to pay; and the greater his former pleasures, the more strong his regret, the more impatient his expectations. A life of pleasure is, therefore, the most unpleasing life.
quote by James Goldsmith

Submitted by Lucian Velea
Vote! | Copy!
Explore
explore
all the paths
find the meaning
of each labyrinth
there are shades
of light
from the prism
of our existences
life, death
rebirth
we do not die
all at once
do not deny
pleasure
welcome the pain
and be
freed from the prison
of the tentacles
of dread
and joy
live now and be too kind
for the truths
of love and hate
lust and pleasure
there is not a single
path reserved
for those who really
love every moment
dripping dropping
water and dew
on leaves
rivers rushing
to the sea and rain
always falling
for more
pleasure to the
earth
always there are openings
find them
always there are pleasures
try them
explore this world
of desire
for this is the gateway
to the holiness
of our soul
poem by Ric S. Bastasa

Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!