1
Created purely from glass the saint stands,
Exposing his gifted quite empty hands
Like a conjurer about to begin,
A righteous man begging of righteous men.
2
In the sun lily-and-gold-coloured,
Filtering the cruder light, he has endured,
A feature for our regard; and will keep;
Of worldly purity the stained archetype.
3
The scummed pond twitches. The great holly-tree,
Emptied and shut, blows clear of wasting snow,
The common, puddled substance: beneath,
Like a revealed mineral, a new earth.
(Geoffrey Hill)
More Poetry from Geoffrey Hill:
Geoffrey Hill Poems based on Topics: Man, Light, Snow- The Triumph of Love (Geoffrey Hill Poems)
- An Apology for the Revival of Christian Architecture in England (Geoffrey Hill Poems)
- Funeral Music (Geoffrey Hill Poems)
- Mercian Hymns (Geoffrey Hill Poems)
- From "Odi Barbare" (Geoffrey Hill Poems)
- Tenebrae (Geoffrey Hill Poems)
Readers Who Like This Poem Also Like:
Based on Topics: Man Poems, Light Poems, Snow PoemsBased on Keywords: filtering, conjurer, twitches, archetype, puddled, cruder, scummed, holly-tree