by Henry Vaughan (1622 - 1695)
The evening watch
Language: English
The body Farewell! I go to sleep; but, when The day star springs, I'll wake again. The soul Go, sleep in peace; and when thou liest Unnumbered in thy dust, when all this frame Is but one dram, and what thou now descriest In sev'ral parts shall want a name, Then may his peace be with thee, and each dust Writ in his book, who ne'er betray'd man's trust! The body Amen! but hark, ere we two stray, How many hours dost think till day? The soul Ah! go; thou'rt weak and sleepy. Heav'n Is a plain watch, and without figures winds All ages up; who drew this circle even He fills it; days and hours are blinds. Yet, this take with thee; the last gasp of time Is thy first breath, and man's eternal Prime.
Text Authorship:
- by Henry Vaughan (1622 - 1695) [author's text not yet checked 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 Gustav Holst (1874 - 1934), "The evening watch", op. 43 no. 1, H. 159. [chorus] [text verified 1 time]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2010-12-30
Line count: 20
Word count: 136