The Loving Cup of the Papyrus
John Boyle O'Reilly 1844 (Dowth) – 1890 (Boston)
WISE men use days as husbandmen use bees,
And steal rich drops from every pregnant hour;
Others, like wasps on blossomed apple-trees,
Find gall, not honey, in the sweetest flower.
Congratulations for a scene like this!
The olden times are here—these shall be olden
When, years to come, remembering present bliss,
We sigh for past Papyrian dinners golden.
We thank the gods! we call them back to light—
Call back to hoary Egypt for Osiris,
Who first made wine, to join our board to-night,
And drain this loving cup with the Papyrus.
He comes! the Pharaoh's god! fling wide the door-
Welcome, Osiris! See—thine old prescription
Is honored here; and thou shalt drink once more
With men whose treasured ensign is Egyptian.
A toast! a toast! our guest shall give a toast!
By Nilus' flood, we pray thee, god, inspire us!
He smiles—he wills—let not a word be lost—
His hand upon the cup, he speaks:—
'Papyrus!
“I greet ye! and mine ancient nation shares
In greeting fair from Ammon, Ptah, and Isis,
Whose leaf ye love—dead Egypt's leaf, that bears
Our tale of pride from Cheops to Cambyses.
'We gods of Egypt, who are wise with age—
Five thousand years have washed us clean of passion—
A golden era for this board presage,
While ye do keep this cup in priestly fashion.
'We love to see the bonds of fellowship
Made still more sacred by a fine tradition;
We bless this bowl that moves from lip to lip
In love's festoons, renewed by every mission.
'Intern the vessel from profaning eyes;
The lip that kisses should have special merit;
Thus every sanguine draught shall symbolize
And consecrate the true Papyrian spirit.
'For brotherhood, not wine, this cup should pass;
Its depths should ne'er reflect the eye of malice;
Drink toasts to strangers with the social glass,
But drink to brothers with this loving chalice.
'And now, Papyrus, each one pledge to each:
And let this formal tie be warmly cherished.
No words are needed for a kindly speech—
The loving thought will live when words have perished.'
Font size:
Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:46 min read
- 33 Views
Quick analysis:
Scheme | ABAB CDCD EAEA FDFD XGXXAHGHA XDXD IDID JKJK LGLC MNMN |
---|---|
Closest metre | Iambic pentameter |
Characters | 2,007 |
Words | 352 |
Stanzas | 10 |
Stanza Lengths | 4, 4, 4, 4, 9, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4 |
Translation
Find a translation for this poem in other languages:
Select another language:
- - Select -
- 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
- 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
- Español (Spanish)
- Esperanto (Esperanto)
- 日本語 (Japanese)
- Português (Portuguese)
- Deutsch (German)
- العربية (Arabic)
- Français (French)
- Русский (Russian)
- ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
- 한국어 (Korean)
- עברית (Hebrew)
- Gaeilge (Irish)
- Українська (Ukrainian)
- اردو (Urdu)
- Magyar (Hungarian)
- मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
- Indonesia (Indonesian)
- Italiano (Italian)
- தமிழ் (Tamil)
- Türkçe (Turkish)
- తెలుగు (Telugu)
- ภาษาไทย (Thai)
- Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
- Čeština (Czech)
- Polski (Polish)
- Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
- Românește (Romanian)
- Nederlands (Dutch)
- Ελληνικά (Greek)
- Latinum (Latin)
- Svenska (Swedish)
- Dansk (Danish)
- Suomi (Finnish)
- فارسی (Persian)
- ייִדיש (Yiddish)
- հայերեն (Armenian)
- Norsk (Norwegian)
- English (English)
Citation
Use the citation below to add this poem to your bibliography:
Style:MLAChicagoAPA
"The Loving Cup of the Papyrus" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 10 Jun 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/22063/the-loving-cup-of-the-papyrus>.
Discuss the poem The Loving Cup of the Papyrus with the community...
Report Comment
We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.
If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly.
Attachment
You need to be logged in to favorite.
Log In