Felicia Hemans in The New Monthly Magazine Volume 16 1826/The Invocation
The New Monthly Magazine, Volume 16, Page 573
THE INVOCATION.
Answer me, burning Stars of night!
Where is the Spirit gone,
That, past the reach of human sight,
Even as a breeze hath flown?
—And the Stars answer'd me—"We roll
In light and power on high,
But, of the never-dying soul,
Ask things that cannot die!"
O many-toned and chainless Wind!
Thou art a wanderer free;
Tell me if thou its place canst find,
Far over mount and sea?
—And the Wind murmur'd in reply—
"The blue deep I have cross'd,
And met its barks and billows high,
But not what thou hast lost."
Ye Clouds that gorgeously repose
Around the setting sun,
Answer! have ye a home for those
Whose earthly race has run?
—The bright Clouds answer'd—"We depart,
We vanish from the sky;
Ask what is deathless in thy heart,
For that which cannot die!"
Speak then, thou Voice of God within,
Thou of the deep low tone!
Answer me through life's restless din,
Where is the Spirit flown?
—And the Voice answer'd—"Be thou still!
Enough to know is given;
Clouds, Winds, and Stars, their task fulfil,
Thine is to trust in Heaven!"F. H.