Sunday, April 26, 2015

In the poem, "The Soul's Prayer" by Sarojini Naidu, can you help to explain the 6th stanza?

The entire poem is about a prayer that a person offers up to God, asking him to give them everything-all of life's experiences, and to spare them nothing so that they can experience it all.  In the sixth stanza, the Lord is answering that prayer.  Before this, he has stated that he will do just that, that their soul will "know all passionate rapture and despair...drink deep of joy and fame...love shall burn thee like a fire, and pain shall cleanse thee like a flame."  So the Lord will answer her request, and let her experience it all-good and bad.


Then, he states, "So shall thy chastened spirit yearn/To seek from its blind prayer release,/And spent and pardoned, /sue to learn/The simple secret of My peace."  In this stanza he says that her spirit, through these experiences will be chastened or humbled, and she will wish a release from the prayer she offered-a release from all of these experiences.  Her soul, "spent and pardoned", or tired and exhausted, will want to know how to be peaceful.  It will want to know how to leave the fire and flame behind, the burning and cleansing, and simply experience quite, underrated peace.


All in all the poet will learn that all of the drama and excitement in life is not necessarily what makes it good; sometimes, it is the peaceful, quiet moments, and in these, we are closest to God.  I hope that helped!

No comments:

Post a Comment

What is the main function of the fool in "King Lear"? What is the secondly function?

The fool as a character is confusing, but part of this is the difference between the 1600s and today, as well as the difference in place. If...