THE wine, lit by a ray from his face,
Reveals the bubbles of form,
Such as the material world and the soul-world,
Which appear as veils to the saints.
Universal Reason seeing this is astounded,
Universal Soul is reduced to servitude.
Drink wine ! for the bowl is the face of the Friend.
Drink wine ! for the cup is his eye, drunken and flown with wine.
Drink wine ! and be free from heart-coldness,
For a drunkard is better than the self-satisfied.
The whole world is his tavern,
His wine-cup the heart of each atom,
Reason is drunken, angels drunken, soul drunken,
Air drunken, earth drunken, heaven drunken.
The sky, dizzy from the wine-fumes' aroma,
Is staggering to and fro ;
The angels, sipping pure wine from goblets,
Pour down the dregs on the world ;
From the scent of these dregs man rises to heaven.
Inebriated from the draught, the elements
Fall into water and fire.
Catching the reflection, the frail body becomes a soul,
And the frozen soul by its heat
Thaws and becomes living.
The creature world remains giddy,
For ever straying from house and home.
One from the dregs' odour becomes a philosopher,
One viewing the wine's colour becomes a relater,
One from half a draught becomes religious,
One from a bowlful becomes a lover,
Another swallows at one draught
Goblet, tavern, cup-bearer, and drunkards ;
He swallows all, but still his mouth stays open.
The secret rose garden:
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