The Holy of Holies

Gilbert Keith Chesterton 1874 (Kensington, London) – 1936 (Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire)



‘Elder father, though thine eyes  
Shine with hoary mysteries,  
Canst thou tell what in the heart  
Of a cowslip blossom lies?  
 
‘Smaller than all lives that be,          
Secret as the deepest sea,  
Stands a little house of seeds,  
Like an elfin’s granary.  
 
‘Speller of the stones and weeds,  
Skilled in Nature’s crafts and creeds,         
Tell me what is in the heart  
Of the smallest of the seeds.’  
 
‘God Almighty, and with Him  
Cherubim and Seraphim,  
Filling all eternity—         
Adonai Elohim.’

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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

25 sec read
45

Quick analysis:

Scheme AXBA CCDX DDBD EECE
Closest metre Iambic trimeter
Characters 526
Words 84
Stanzas 4
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4

Gilbert Keith Chesterton

Gilbert Keith Chesterton was an influential English writer of the early 20th century His diverse output included journalism philosophy poetry biography Christian apologetics fantasy and detective fiction Gilbert Keith Chesterton KC*SG was an English writer, philosopher, lay theologian, and literary and art critic. He has been referred to as the "prince of paradox". Time magazine observed of his writing style: "Whenever possible Chesterton made his points with popular sayings, proverbs, allegories—first carefully turning them inside out." more…

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