The Complete Poetry of John Milton (114 page)

   230     
Within the Gates of Hell sate Sin and Death,

               
In counterview within the Gates, that now

               
Stood open wide, belching outrageous flame

               
Farr into
Chaos
, since the Fiend pass’d through,

               
Sin opening, who thus now to Death began.

   235  
      
       O Son, why sit we here each other viewing

               
Idlely, while Satan our great Author thrives

               
In other Worlds, and happier Seat provides

               
For us his ofspring dear? It cannot be

               
But that success attends him; if mishap,

   240     
Ere this he had return’d, with fury driv’n

               
By his Avengers, since no place like this

               
Can fit his punishment, or their revenge.

               
Methinks I feel new strength within me rise,

               
Wings growing, and Dominion giv’n me large

   245     
Beyond this Deep; whatever draws me on,

               
Or sympathie,
¹⁹
or som connatural force

               
Powerful at greatest distance to unite

               
With secret amity things of like kind

               
By secretest conveyance. Thou my Shade

   250     
Inseparable must with mee along:

               
For Death from Sin no power can separate.

               
But least the difficultie of passing back

               
Stay his return perhaps over this Gulf

               
Impassable, impervious, let us try

   255     
Adventrous work, yet to thy power and mine

               
Not unagreeable, to found a path

               
Over this Main from Hell to that new World

               
Where Satan now prevails, a Monument

               
Of merit high to all th’ infernal Host,

   260     
Easing thir passage hence, for intercourse,
²⁰

               
Or transmigration, as thir lot shall lead.

               
Nor can I miss the way, so strongly drawn

               
By this new felt attraction and instinct.

           
      
       Whom thus the meager Shadow answerd soon.

   265     
Goe whither Fate and inclination strong

               
Leads thee, I shall not lag behind, nor err

               
The way, thou leading, such a scent I draw

               
Of carnage, prey innumerable, and taste

               
The savour of Death from all things there that live:

   270     
Nor shall I to the work thou enterprisest

               
Be wanting, but afford thee equal aid.

           
      
       So saying, with delight he snuff’d the smell

               
Of mortal change on Earth. As when a flock

               
Of ravenous Fowl, though many a League remote,

   275     
Against the day of Battel, to a Field,

               
Where Armies lie encampt, come flying, lur’d

               
With scent of living Carcasses design’d

               
For death, the following day, in bloodie fight.

               
So scented the grim Feature, and upturn’d

   280     
His Nostril wide into the murkie Air,

               
Sagacious of his Quarry from so farr.

               
Then Both from out Hell Gates into the waste

               
Wide Anarchie of
Chaos
damp and dark

               
Flew divers, and with Power (thir Power was great)

   285     
Hovering upon the Waters; what they met

               
Solid or slimie, as in raging Sea

               
Tost up and down, together crowded drove

               
From each side shoaling
²¹
towards the mouth of Hell.

               
As when two Polar Winds blowing adverse

   290     
Upon the
Cronian
Sea,
²²
together drive

               
Mountains of Ice, that stop th’ imagin’d way
²³

               
Beyond
Petsora
Eastward, to the rich

               
Cathaian
Coast. The aggregated Soyl

               
Death with his Mace petrific, cold and dry,

   295     
As with a Trident smote, and fix’t as firm

               
As
Delos
²⁴
floating once; the rest his look

               
Bound with
Gorgonian
²⁵
rigor not to move,

               
And with
Asphaltic
slime; broad as the Gate,

               
Deep to the Roots of Hell the gather’d beach

   300     
They fasten’d, and the Mole immense wraught on

               
Over the foaming deep high Archt, a Bridge

               
Of length prodigious joyning to the Wall
²⁶

               
Immovable of this now fenceless
²⁷
world

               
Forfeit to Death; from hence a passage broad,

   305     
Smooth, easie, inoffensive
²⁸
down to Hell.

               
So, if great things to small may be compar’d,

               
Xerxes
, the Libertie of
Greece
to yoke,

               
From
Susa
²⁹
his
Memnonian
Palace high

               
Came to the Sea, and over
Hellespont

   310     
Bridging his way,
Europe
with
Asia
joyn’d,

               
And scourg’d with many a stroak th’ indignant waves.

               
Now had they brought the work by wondrous Art

               
Pontifical,
³⁰
a ridge of pendent Rock

               
Over the vext Abyss, following the track

   315     
Of
Satan
, to the self-same place where hee

               
First lighted from his Wing, and landed safe

               
From out of
Chaos
to the outside bare

               
Of this round World: with Pinns of Adamant

               
And Chains they made all fast, too fast they made

   320     
And durable; and now in little space

               
The confines met
³¹
of Empyrean Heav’n

               
And of this World, and on the left hand Hell

               
With long reach interpos’d; three sev’ral wayes

               
In sight, to each of these three places led.

   325     
And now thir way to Earth they had descri’d,

               
To Paradise first tending, when behold

               
Satan
in likeness of an Angel bright

               
Betwixt the
Centaur
and the
Scorpion
stealing

               
His
Zenith
, while the Sun in
Aries
rose:
³²

   330     
Disguis’d he came, but those his Childern dear

               
Thir Parent soon discern’d, though in disguise.

               
Hee, after
Eve
seduc’t, unminded slunk

               
Into the Wood fast by, and changing shape

               
T’ observe the sequel, saw his guileful act

   335     
By
Eve
, though all unweeting,
³³
seconded

               
Upon her Husband, saw thir shame that sought

               
Vain covertures;
³⁴
but when he saw descend

               
The Son of God to judge them, terrifi’d

               
Hee fled, not hoping to escape, but shun

   340     
The present, fearing guiltie what his wrauth

               
Might suddenly inflict; that past, return’d

               
By Night, and listning where the hapless Pair

               
Sate in thir sad discourse, and various plaint,

               
Thence gatherd his own doom, which understood

   345     
Not instant, but of future time. With joy

               
And tidings fraught, to Hell he now return’d,

               
And at the brink of
Chaos
, neer the foot

               
Of this new wondrous Pontifice,
³⁵
unhop’t

               
Met who to meet him came, his Ofspring dear.

   350     
Great joy was at thir meeting, and at sight

               
Of that stupendious Bridge his joy encreas’d.

               
Long hee admiring stood, till Sin, his fair

               
Inchanting Daughter, thus the silence broke.

           
      
       O Parent, these are thy magnific deeds,

   355     
Thy Trophies, which thou view’st as not thine own,

               
Thou art thir Author and prime Architect:

               
For I no sooner in my Heart divin’d,

               
My Heart, which by a secret harmonie

               
Still moves with thine, joyn’d in connexion sweet,

   360     
That thou on Earth hadst prosper’d, which thy looks

               
Now also evidence, but straight I felt

               
Though distant from thee Worlds between, yet felt

               
That I must after thee with this thy Son;

               
Such fatal consequence
³⁶
unites us three:

   365     
Hell could no longer hold us in her bounds,

               
Nor this unvoyageable Gulf obscure

               
Detain from following thy illustrious track.

               
Thou hast atchiev’d our libertie, confin’d

               
Within Hell Gates till now, thou us impow’rd

   370     
To fortifie thus farr, and overlay

               
With this portentous Bridge the dark Abyss.

               
Thine now is all this World, thy vertue hath won

               
What thy hands builded not, thy Wisdom gain’d

               
With odds what Warr hath lost, and fully aveng’d

   375     
Our foil in Heav’n; here thou shalt Monarch reign,

               
There didst not; there let him still Victor sway,

               
As Battel hath adjudg’d, from this new World

               
Retiring, by his own doom alienated,

               
And henceforth Monarchic with thee divide

   380     
Of all things, parted by th’ Empyreal bounds,

               
His Quadrature, from thy Orbicular World,
³⁷

               
Or trie
³⁸
thee now more dang’rous to his Throne.

           
      
       Whom thus the Prince of Darkness answerd glad.

               
Fair Daughter, and thou Son and Grandchild both,