In vain the loveliest cheeks and eyes
This Eden of the earth supplies
Come crowding round-the cheeks are pale,
The eyes are dim-though rich the spot
With every flow'r this earth has got,
What is it to the nightingale;
If there his darling rose is not?+
In vain the Valley's smiling throng
Worship him, as he moves along;
He heeds them not-one smile of hers
Is worth a world of worshippers.
They but the Star's adorers are,
She is the heav'n that lights the Star!
Hence is it too that NOURMAHAL,
Amid the luxuries of this hour,
Far from the joyous festival,
Sits in her own sequester'd bower;
With no one near, to soothe or aid,
But that inspired and wondrous maid,
NAMOUNA, the Enchantress;-one,
O'er whom his race the golden sun
For unremember'd years has run,
t "You may place a hundred handfuls of fragrant herbs and flowers before the nightingale, yet he wishes not, in his constant heart, for more than the sweet breath of his beloved rose." Jami.
Yet never saw her blooming brow
Younger or fairer than 'tis now.
Nay, rather, as the west-wind's sigh
Freshens the flower it passes by,
Time's wing but seem'd, in stealing o'er,
To leave her lovelier than before.
Yet on her smiles a sadness hung,
And when, as oft, she spoke or sung
Of other worlds, there came a light
From her dark eyes so strangely bright,
That all believ'd, nor man nor earth
Were conscious of NAMOUNA's birth!
All spells and talismans she knew,
From the great Mantra,* which around
The Air's sublimer Spirits drew,
To the gold gemst of AFRIC, bound
Upon the wandering Arab's arm,
To keep him from the Siltim's harm.
And she had pledg'd her powerful art,
Pledg'd it with all the zeal and heart
"He is said to have found the great Mantra, spell or talisman, through which he ruled over the elements and spirits of all denominations."-Wilford.
"The gold jewels of Jinnie, which are called by the Arabs El Herrez, from the supposed charm they contain."Jackson.
"A demon, supposed to haunt woods, &c. in a human shape.-Richardson.
Of one who knew, though high her sphere,
What 'twas to lose a love so dear,
To find some spell that should recall
Her SELIM's smile to NOURMAHAL!
'Twas midnight-through the lattice, wreath'd
With woodbine, many a perfume breath'd
From plants that wake when others sleep,
From timid jasmine buds, that keep
Their odour to themselves all day,
But, when the sun light dies away,
Let the delicious secret out
To every breeze that roams about;
When thus NAMOUNA:-" "Tis the hour
"That scatters spells on herb and flower,
"And garlands might be gather'd now,
"That, twin'd around the sleeper's brow,
"Would make him dream of such delights,
"Such miracles and dazzling sights
"As Genii of the Sun behold,
"At evening, from their tents of gold
"Upon the horizon-where they play
"Till twilight comes, and, ray by ray,
"The sunny mansions melt away!
"Now too, a chaplet might be wreath'd
"Of buds o'er which the moon has breath'd,
The name of Jehanguire before his accession to the throne.
"Which worn by her, whose love has stray'd,
'Might bring some Peri from the skies, "Some sprite, whose very soul is made "Of flowrets' breaths and lovers' sighs, "And who might tell
Cried NOURMAHAL impatiently,
"Oh! twine that wreath for me to-night."
Then rapidly with foot as light
As the young musk-roe's out she flew
To cull each shining leaf that grew
Beneath the moonlight's hallowing beams
For this enchanted Wreath of Dreams.
Anemones and Seas of Gold,*
And new-blown lilies of the river,
And those sweet flowrets, that unfold
Their buds on CAMADEVA's quiver;†
The tube-rose, with her silvery light,
That in the Gardens of MALAY
Is call'd the Mistress of the Night,‡
So like a bride, scented and bright,
"Hemasagara, or the Sea of Gold, with flowers of the brightest gold colour.-Sir W. Jones.
"This tree (the Nagacesara) is one of the most delightful on earth, and the delicious odour of its blossoms justly gives them a place in the quiver of Camadeva, or the God of Love."-Id.
"The Malayans style the tub rose (Polianthes tuberosa) Sandal Malam, or the Mistress of the Night."--Pennant.
She comes out when the sun's away.
Amaranths, such as crown the maids
That wander through ZAMARA's shades;*
And the white moon-flower, as it shows
On SERENDIB's high crags to those
Who near the isle at evening sail,
Scenting her clove-trees in the gale;
In short all flowrets and all plants,
Prom the divine Amrita tree,†
That blesses heaven's inhabitants
With fruits of immortality,
Down to the basil tuft‡ that waves
Its fragant blossom over graves,
And to the humble rosemary,
Whose sweets so thanklessly are shed
To scent the desert and the dead,
* The people of the Batta country in Sumatra (of which Zamara is one of the ancient names) "when not engaged in war, lead an idle, inactive life, passing the day in playing on a kind of flute, crowned with garlands of flowers, among which the globe amaranthus, a native of the country, mostly prevails."--Marsden.
"The largest and richest sort (of the Jumbu or rose-apple) is called Amrita or immortal, and the mythologists of Tibet apply the same word to a celestial tree bearing ambrosial fruit."---Sir W. Jones.
Sweet basil, called Rayhan in Persia, and generally found in church-yards.
"In the Great Desert are found many stalks of lavender and rosemary."---Asiat. Res.
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