The Temple of Nature; or, the Origin of Society Part 1

The Temple of Nature; or, the Origin of Society.

by Erasmus Darwin.

PREFACE.

The Poem, which is here offered to the Public, does not pretend to instruct by deep researches of reasoning; its aim is simply to amuse by bringing distinctly to the imagination the beautiful and sublime images of the operations of Nature in the order, as the Author believes, in which the progressive course of time presented them.

The Deities of Egypt, and afterwards of Greece, and Rome, were derived from men famous in those early times, as in the ages of hunting, pasturage, and agriculture. The histories of some of their actions recorded in Scripture, or celebrated in the heathen mythology, are introduced, as the Author hopes, without impropriety into his account of those remote periods of human society.

In the Eleusinian mysteries the philosophy of the works of Nature, with the origin and progress of society, are believed to have been taught by allegoric scenery explained by the Hierophant to the initiated, which gave rise to the machinery of the following Poem.

PRIORY NEAR DERBY,

Jan. 1, 1802.

ORIGIN OF SOCIETY.

CANTO I.

PRODUCTION OF LIFE.

I. By firm immutable immortal laws Impress'd on Nature by the GREAT FIRST CAUSE, Say, MUSE! how rose from elemental strife Organic forms, and kindled into life; How Love and Sympathy with potent charm Warm the cold heart, the lifted hand disarm; Allure with pleasures, and alarm with pains, And bind Society in golden chains.

Four past eventful Ages then recite, And give the fifth, new-born of Time, to light; 10 The silken tissue of their joys disclose, Swell with deep chords the murmur of their woes; Their laws, their labours, and their loves proclaim, And chant their virtues to the trump of Fame.

IMMORTAL LOVE! who ere the morn of Time, On wings outstretch'd, o'er Chaos hung sublime; Warm'd into life the bursting egg of Night, And gave young Nature to admiring Light!-- YOU! whose wide arms, in soft embraces hurl'd Round the vast frame, connect the whirling world! 20 Whether immers'd in day, the Sun your throne, You gird the planets in your silver zone; Or warm, descending on ethereal wing, The Earth's cold bosom with the beams of spring; Press drop to drop, to atom atom bind, Link s.e.x to s.e.x, or rivet mind to mind; Attend my song!--With rosy lips rehea.r.s.e, And with your polish'd arrows write my verse!-- So shall my lines soft-rolling eyes engage, And snow-white fingers turn the volant page; 30 The smiles of Beauty all my toils repay, And youths and virgins chant the living lay.

II. WHERE EDEN'S sacred bowers triumphant sprung, By angels guarded, and by prophets sung, Wav'd o'er the east in purple pride unfurl'd, And rock'd the golden cradle of the World; Four sparkling currents lav'd with wandering tides Their velvet avenues, and flowery sides; On sun-bright lawns unclad the Graces stray'd, And guiltless Cupids haunted every glade; 40 Till the fair Bride, forbidden shades among, Heard unalarm'd the Tempter's serpent-tongue; Eyed the sweet fruit, the mandate disobey'd, And her fond Lord with sweeter smiles betray'd.

Conscious awhile with throbbing heart he strove, Spread his wide arms, and barter'd life for love!-- Now rocks on rocks, in savage grandeur roll'd, Steep above steep, the blasted plains infold; The inc.u.mbent crags eternal tempest shrouds, And livid light'nings cleave the lambent clouds; 50 Round the firm base loud-howling whirlwinds blow, And sands in burning eddies dance below.

[Footnote: _Cradle of the world_, l. 36. The nations, which possess Europe and a part of Asia and of Africa, appear to have descended from one family; and to have had their origin near the banks of the Mediterranean, as probably in Syria, the site of Paradise, according to the Mosaic history. This seems highly probable from the similarity of the structure of the languages of these nations, and from their early possession of similar religions, customs, and arts, as well as from the most ancient histories extant. The two former of these may be collected from Lord Monboddo's learned work on the Origin of Language, and from Mr. Bryant's curious account of Ancient Mythology.

The use of iron tools, of the bow and arrow, of earthen vessels to boil water in, of wheels for carriages, and the arts of cultivating wheat, of coagulating milk for cheese, and of spinning vegetable fibres for clothing, have been known in all European countries, as long as their histories have existed; besides the similarity of the texture of their languages, and of many words in them; thus the word sack is said to mean a bag in all of them, as [Greek: sakkon] in Greek, saccus in Latin, sacco in Italian, sac in French, and sack in English and German.

Other families of mankind, nevertheless, appear to have arisen in other parts of the habitable earth, as the language of the Chinese is said not to resemble those of this part of the world in any respect. And the inhabitants of the islands of the South-Sea had neither the use of iron tools nor of the bow, nor of wheels, nor of spinning, nor had learned to coagulate milk, or to boil water, though the domestication of fire seems to have been the first great discovery that distinguished mankind from the b.e.s.t.i.a.l inhabitants of the forest.]

Hence ye profane!--the warring winds exclude Unhallow'd throngs, that press with footstep rude; But court the Muse's train with milder skies, And call with softer voice the good and wise.

--Charm'd at her touch the opening wall divides, And rocks of crystal form the polish'd sides; Through the bright arch the Loves and Graces tread, Innocuous thunders murmuring o'er their head; 60 Pair after pair, and t.i.ttering, as they pa.s.s, View their fair features in the walls of gla.s.s; Leave with impatient step the circling bourn, And hear behind the closing rocks return.

HERE, high in air, unconscious of the storm.

Thy temple, NATURE, rears it's mystic form; From earth to heav'n, unwrought by mortal toil, Towers the vast fabric on the desert soil; O'er many a league the ponderous domes extend.

And deep in earth the ribbed vaults descend; 70 A thousand jasper steps with circling sweep Lead the slow votary up the winding steep; Ten thousand piers, now join'd and now aloof, Bear on their branching arms the fretted roof.

Unnumber'd ailes connect unnumber'd halls, And sacred symbols crowd the pictur'd walls; With pencil rude forgotten days design, And arts, or empires, live in every line.

While chain'd reluctant on the marble ground, Indignant TIME reclines, by Sculpture bound; 80 And sternly bending o'er a scroll unroll'd, Inscribes the future with his style of gold.

--So erst, when PROTEUS on the briny sh.o.r.e, New forms a.s.sum'd of eagle, pard, or boar; The wise ATRIDES bound in sea-weed thongs The changeful G.o.d amid his scaly throngs; Till in deep tones his opening lips at last Reluctant told the future and the past.

[Footnote: _Pictur'd walls_, l. 76. The application of mankind, in the early ages of society, to the imitative arts of painting, carving, statuary, and the casting of figures in metals, seems to have preceded the discovery of letters; and to have been used as a written language to convey intelligence to their distant friends, or to transmit to posterity the history of themselves, or of their discoveries.

Hence the origin of the hieroglyphic figures which crowded the walls of the temples of antiquity; many of which may be seen in the tablet of Isis in the works of Montfaucon; and some of them are still used in the sciences of chemistry and astronomy, as the characters for the metals and planets, and the figures of animals on the celestial globe.]

[Footnote: _So erst, when Proteus_, l. 83. It seems probable that Proteus was the name of a hieroglyphic figure representing Time; whose form was perpetually changing, and who could discover the past events of the world, and predict the future. Herodotus does not doubt but that Proteus was an Egyptian king or deity; and Orpheus calls him the principle of all things, and the most ancient of the G.o.ds; and adds, that he keeps the keys of Nature, _Danet's Dict._, all which might well accord with a figure representing Time.]

HERE o'er piazza'd courts, and long arcades, The bowers of PLEASURE root their waving shades; 90 Shed o'er the pansied moss a checker'd gloom, Bend with new fruits, with flow'rs successive bloom.

Pleas'd, their light limbs on beds of roses press'd, In slight undress rec.u.mbent Beauties rest; On tiptoe steps surrounding Graces move, And gay Desires expand their wings above.

HERE young DIONE arms her quiver'd Loves, Schools her bright Nymphs, and practises her doves; Calls round her laughing eyes in playful turns, The glance that lightens, and the smile that burns; 100 Her dimpling cheeks with transient blushes dies, Heaves her white bosom with seductive sighs; Or moulds with rosy lips the magic words, That bind the heart in adamantine cords.

Behind in twilight gloom with scowling mien The demon PAIN, convokes his court unseen; Whips, fetters, flames, pourtray'd on sculptur'd stone, In dread festoons, adorn his ebon throne; Each side a cohort of diseases stands, And shudd'ring Fever leads the ghastly bands; 110 O'er all Despair expands his raven wings, And guilt-stain'd Conscience darts a thousand stings.

Deep-whelm'd beneath, in vast sepulchral caves, OBLIVION dwells amid unlabell'd graves; The storied tomb, the laurell'd bust o'erturns, And shakes their ashes from the mould'ring urns.-- No vernal zephyr breathes, no sunbeams cheer, Nor song, nor simper, ever enters here; O'er the green floor, and round the dew-damp wall, The slimy snail, and bloated lizard crawl; 120 While on white heaps of intermingled bones The muse of MELANCHOLY sits and moans; Showers her cold tears o'er Beauty's early wreck, Spreads her pale arms, and bends her marble neck.

So in rude rocks, beside the aegean wave, TROPHONIUS scoop'd his sorrow-sacred cave; Unbarr'd to pilgrim feet the brazen door, And the sad sage returning smil'd no more.

[Footnote: _Trophonius scoop'd_, l. 126. Plutarch mentions, that prophecies of evil events were uttered from the cave of Trophonius; but the allegorical story, that whoever entered this cavern were never again seen to smile, seems to have been designed to warn the contemplative from considering too much the dark side of nature. Thus an ancient poet is said to have written a poem on the miseries of the world, and to have thence become so unhappy as to destroy himself. When we reflect on the perpetual destruction of organic life, we should also recollect, that it is perpetually renewed in other forms by the same materials, and thus the sum total of the happiness of the world continues undiminished; and that a philosopher may thus smile again on turning his eyes from the coffins of nature to her cradles.]

SHRIN'D in the midst majestic NATURE stands, Extends o'er earth and sea her hundred hands; 130 Tower upon tower her beamy forehead crests, And births unnumber'd milk her hundred b.r.e.a.s.t.s; Drawn round her brows a lucid veil depends, O'er her fine waist the purfled woof descends; Her stately limbs the gather'd folds surround, And spread their golden selvage on the ground.

[Footnote: _Fam'd Eleusis stole_, l. 137. The Eleusinian mysteries were invented in Egypt, and afterwards transferred into Greece along with most of the other early arts and religions of Europe. They seem to have consisted of scenical representations of the philosophy and religion of those times, which had previously been painted in hieroglyphic figures to perpetuate them before the discovery of letters; and are well explained in Dr. Warburton's divine legation of Moses; who believes with great probability, that Virgil in the sixth book of the aeneid has described a part of these mysteries in his account of the Elysian fields.

In the first part of this scenery was represented Death, and the destruction of all things; as mentioned in the note on the Portland Vase in the Botanic Garden. Next the marriage of Cupid and Psyche seems to have shown the reproduction of living nature; and afterwards the procession of torches, which is said to have const.i.tuted a part of the mysteries, probably signified the return of light, and the resuscitation of all things.

Lastly, the histories of ill.u.s.trious persons of the early ages seem to have been enacted; who were first represented by hieroglyphic figures, and afterwards became the G.o.ds and G.o.ddesses of Egypt, Greece, and Rome. Might not such a dignified pantomime be contrived, even in this age, as might strike the spectators with awe, and at the same time explain many philosophical truths by adapted imagery, and thus both amuse and instruct?]

From this first altar fam'd ELEUSIS stole Her secret symbols and her mystic scroll; With pious fraud in after ages rear'd Her gorgeous temple, and the G.o.ds rever'd. 140 --First in dim pomp before the astonish'd throng, Silence, and Night, and Chaos, stalk'd along; Dread scenes of Death, in nodding sables dress'd, Froze the broad eye, and thrill'd the unbreathing breast.

Then the young Spring, with winged Zephyr, leads The queen of Beauty to the blossom'd meads; Charm'd in her train admiring Hymen moves, And tiptoe Graces hand in hand with Loves.

Next, while on pausing step the masked mimes Enact the triumphs of forgotten times, 150 Conceal from vulgar throngs the mystic truth, Or charm with Wisdom's lore the initiate youth; Each s.h.i.+fting scene, some patriot hero trod, Some sainted beauty, or some saviour G.o.d.

III. Now rose in purple pomp the breezy dawn, And crimson dew-drops trembled on the lawn; Blaz'd high in air the temple's golden vanes, And dancing shadows veer'd upon the plains.-- Long trains of virgins from the sacred grove, Pair after pair, in bright procession move, 160 With flower-fill'd baskets round the altar throng, Or swing their censers, as they wind along.

The fair URANIA leads the blus.h.i.+ng bands, Presents their offerings with unsullied hands; Pleas'd to their dazzled eyes in part unshrouds The G.o.ddess-form;--the rest is hid in clouds.

"PRIESTESS OF NATURE! while with pious awe Thy votary bends, the mystic veil withdraw; Charm after charm, succession bright, display, And give the G.o.dDESS to adoring day! 170 So kneeling realms shall own the Power divine, And heaven and earth pour incense on her shrine.

"Oh grant the MUSE with pausing step to press Each sun-bright avenue, and green recess; Led by thy hand survey the trophied walls, The statued galleries, and the pictur'd halls; Scan the proud pyramid, and arch sublime, Earth-canker'd urn, medallion green with time, Stern busts of G.o.ds, with helmed heroes mix'd, And Beauty's radiant forms, that smile betwixt. 180

[Footnote: _The statued galleries_, l. 176. The art of painting has appeared in the early state of all societies before the invention of the alphabet. Thus when the Spanish adventurers, under Cortez, invaded America, intelligence of their debarkation and movements was daily transmitted to Montezuma, by drawings, which corresponded with the Egyptian hieroglyphics. The antiquity of statuary appears from the Memnon and sphinxes of Egypt; that of casting figures in metals from the golden calf of Aaron; and that of carving in wood from the idols or household G.o.ds, which Rachel stole from her father Laban, and hid beneath her garments as she sat upon the straw. Gen. c. x.x.xi. v. 34.]

"Waked by thy voice, trans.m.u.ted by thy wand, Their lips shall open, and their arms expand; The love-lost lady, and the warrior slain, Leap from their tombs, and sigh or fight again.

--So when ill-fated ORPHEUS tuned to woe His potent lyre, and sought the realms below; Charm'd into life unreal forms respir'd, And list'ning shades the dulcet notes admir'd.--

"LOVE led the Sage through Death's tremendous porch, Cheer'd with his smile, and lighted with his torch;-- 190 h.e.l.l's triple Dog his playful jaws expands, Fawns round the G.o.d, and licks his baby hands; In wondering groups the shadowy nations throng, And sigh or simper, as he steps along; Sad swains, and nymphs forlorn, on Lethe's brink, Hug their past sorrows, and refuse to drink; Night's dazzled Empress feels the golden flame Play round her breast, and melt her frozen frame; Charms with soft words, and sooths with amorous wiles, Her iron-hearted Lord,--and PLUTO smiles.-- 200 His trembling Bride the Bard triumphant led From the pale mansions of the astonish'd dead; Gave the fair phantom to admiring light,-- Ah, soon again to tread irremeable night!"

[Footnote: _Love led the Sage_, l. 189. This description is taken from the figures on the Barbarini, or Portland Vase, where Eros, or Divine Love, with his torch precedes the manes through the gates of Death, and reverting his smiling countenance invites him into the Elysian fields.]