by Sarojini Naidu (1879 - 1949)
Lightly, O lightly we bear her along
Language: English
Lightly, O lightly we bear her along, She sways like a [flower]1 in the wind of our song; She skims like a bird on the foam of a stream, She floats like a laugh from the lips of a dream. Gaily, O gaily, we glide and we sing, We bear her along like a pearl on a string. Softly, O softly, we bear her along, She hangs like a star in the dew of our song; She springs like a beam on the brow of the tide, She falls like a tear from the [eyes]2 of a bride. Lightly, O lightly, we glide and we sing, We bear her along like a pearl on a string.
About the headline (FAQ)
View original text (without footnotes)Confirmed with Sarojini Naidu, The Golden Threshold, London: William Heinemann, 1905.
1 Shaw: "flow'r"2 Shaw: "eye"
Text Authorship:
- by Sarojini Naidu (1879 - 1949), "Palanquin-Bearers", appears in The Golden Threshold, in 1. Folk Songs, first published 1917 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Liza Lehmann (1862 - 1918), "Palanquin-Bearers", published 1907 [ tenor, baritone, and orchestra ], from The Golden Threshold : An Indian Song-Garland , no. 4, London: Boosey & Co. [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Martin Edward Fallas Shaw (1875 - 1958), "Song of the Palanquin Bearers" [sung text checked 1 time]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 12
Word count: 118