A prophetic speaker, the Bard, steps forward with a voice that reaches across all time. He has heard the holy, creative word that once moved through Eden, and now he weeps for a world that has fallen away from that original light. There is sorrow here, but also a fierce promise—he can command the very stars and bring renewal. Suddenly, the tone shifts into a direct, tender plea. The Bard calls out to the Earth as if it were a sleeping lover, begging it to rise from the damp grass and leave the darkness behind. Night is almost over, the morning stirs. He asks why it keeps turning away when the star-filled floor of heaven and the glistening shore are still offered freely, a gift to hold until daybreak. The mood is one of aching hope, a charged stillness before dawn, heavy with longing and the possibility of transformation.
Songs of Experience: Introduction — Summary
Hear the voice of the Bard, Who present, past, and future, sees; Whose ears have heard The Holy Word That walked among the ancient tree;
Calling the lapsed soul, And weeping in the evening dew; That might control The starry pole, And fallen, fallen light renew!
"O Earth, O Earth, return! Arise from out the dewy grass! Night is worn, And the morn Rises from the slumbrous mass.
"Turn away no more; Why wilt thou turn away? The starry floor, The watery shore, Are given thee till the break of day."