605
Both to and fro, their sorrow to augment,
606
And wish and struggle, as they pass, to reach
607
The tempting stream, with one small drop to lose
608
In sweet forgetfulness all pain and woe,
609
All in one moment, and so near the brink.
610
But Fate withstands2197 and, to oppose th’ attempt,
611
Medusa,2198 with Gorgonian terror, guards
612
The ford, and of itself the water flies2199
613
All taste of living wight,2200 as once it fled
614
The lip of Tantalus.2201 Thus roving on
615
In confused 2202 march forlorn, th’ adventurous bands,
616
With shuddering horror pale and eyes aghast,
617
Viewed first their lamentable2203 lot, and found
618
No rest. Through many a dark and dreary vale
619
They passed, and many a region dolorous,
620
O’er many a frozen, many a fiery alp,
621
Rocks, caves, lakes, fens, bogs, dens, and shades of death—
622
A universe of death, which God by curse
623
Created evil, for evil only good,2204
624
Where all life dies, death lives, and Nature breeds,
625
Perverse, all monstrous, all prodigious2205 things,
626
Abominable, inutterable, and worse
627
Than fables yet have feigned 2206 or fear conceived,
628
Gorgons,2207 and Hydras,2208 and Chimeras2209 dire.
629
Meanwhile the adversary of God and man,
630
Satan, with thoughts inflamed of highest design,2210
631
Puts on2211 swift wings, and toward the gates of Hell
632
Explores2212 his solitary flight. Sometimes
633
He scours2213 the right-hand coast, sometimes the left,
634
Now shaves2214 with le
635
Up to the fiery concave2215 towering high.
636
As when far off at sea a fleet descried 2216
637
Hangs in the clouds, by2217 equinoctial 2218 winds
638
Close sailing2219 from Bengala,2220 or the isles
639
Of Ternate and Tidore, 2221 whence merchants bring
640
Their spicy drugs—they on the trading2222 flood,2223
641
Through the wide Ethiopian2224 to the Cape2225
642
Ply 2226 stemming2227 nightly toward the pole:2228 so seemed
643
Far off the flying fiend. At last appear
644
Hell-bounds,2229 high reaching to the horrid roof,
645
And thrice threefold the gates. Three folds2230 were brass,
646
Three iron, three of adamantine rock,
647
Impenetrable, impaled 2231 with circling fire,
648
Yet unconsumed. Before the gates there sat
649
On either side a formidable2232 shape.
650
The one seemed woman to the waist, and fair,
651
But ended foul in many a scaly fold,
652
Voluminous and vast—a serpent armed
653
With mortal sting. About her middle round
654
A cry 2233 of Hell-hounds never-ceasing barked
655
With wide Cerberean mouths full loud, and rung
656
A hideous peal,2234 yet when they list,2235 would creep,
If aught disturbed their noise, into her womb,
658
And kennel 2236 there, yet there still barked and howled
659
Within unseen. Far less abhorred than these
660
Vexed 2237 Scylla,2238 bathing in the sea that parts
661
Calabria2239 from the hoarse2240 Trinacrian2241 shore.
662
Nor uglier follow 2242 the night-hag, 2243 when called
663
In secret, riding through the air she comes,
664
Lured with the smell of infant blood, to dance
665
With Lapland 2244 witches, while the laboring moon2245
666
Eclipses at 2246 their charms. The other shape
667
If shape it might be called, that shape had none
668
Distinguishable in member, 2247 joint, or limb,
669
Or substance might be called that shadow seemed,2248
670
For each seemed either—black it stood as Night,
671
Fierce as ten Furies, terrible as Hell,
672
And shook a dreadful dart.2249 What seemed his head
673
The likeness of a kingly crown had on.
674
Satan was now at hand, and from his seat
675
The monster moving onward came as fast2250
676
With horrid strides. Hell trembled as he strode.
677
Th’ undaunted fiend what this might be admired—2251
678
Admired, not feared (God and His Son except,
679
Created thing naught valued2252 he nor shunned),2253
680
And with disdainful look thus first began:
681
“Whence and what art thou, execrable2254 shape,
682
That dar’st, though grim2255 and terrible, advance
683
Thy miscreated 2256 front2257 athwart 2258 my way
684
To yonder gates? Through them I mean to pass,
685
That be assured, without leave asked of thee.
686
Retire, or taste thy folly, and learn by proof,
687
Hell-born, not to contend with Spirits of Heav’n.
688
To whom the goblin,2259 full of wrath, replied:
689
“Art thou that traitor Angel? Art thou he
690
Who first broke peace in Heav’n, and faith, till then
691
Unbroken, and in proud rebellious arms
692
Drew after him the third part of Heav’n’s sons,
693
Conjured2260 against the Highest—for which both thou
694
And they, outcast from God, are here condemned
695
To waste2261 eternal days in woe and pain?
696
And reckon’st2262 thou thyself with Spirits of Heav’n,
697
Hell-doomed, and breath’st defiance here and scorn,
698
Where I reign king and, to enrage thee more,
699
Thy king and lord? Back to thy punishment,
700
False fugitive, and to thy speed add wings,
701
Lest with a whip of scorpions I pursue
702
Thy ling’ring, or with one stroke of this dart
703
Strange2263 horror seize thee, and pangs unfelt before.
704
So spoke the grisly terror, and in shape,
705
So speaking and so
threat’ning, grew tenfold
706
More dreadful and deform. On th’ other side,
707
Incensed with indignation, Satan stood
708
Unterrified, and like a comet burned,
709
That fires the length of Ophiuchus2264 huge
710
In th’ arctic sky, and from his horrid hair
711
Shakes pestilence and war. Each at the head
712
Levelled his deadly aim. Their fatal 2265 hands
713
No second stroke intend. And such a frown
714
Each cast at th’ other as when two black clouds,
715
With Heav’n’s artillery fraught,2266 come rattling on
716
Over the Caspian,2267 then stand front to front,
717
Hov’ring a space, 2268 till winds the signal blow
718
To join2269 their dark encounter in mid-air.
719
So frowned the mighty combatants, that Hell
720
Grew darker at their frown. So matched they stood,
721
For never but once more was either like
722
To meet so great a foe. 2270 And now great deeds
723
Had been achieved, whereof all Hell had rung,
724
Had not the snaky sorceress, that sat
725
Fast by 2271 Hell-gate and kept the fatal key,
726
Ris’n, and with hideous outcry rushed between.
727
“O father, what intends thy hand,” she cried,
728
“Against thy only son? What fury, O son,
729
Possesses thee to bend 2272 that mortal 2273 dart
730
Against thy father’s head? And know’st for whom?
731
For Him who sits above, and laughs the while
732
At thee, ordained His drudge to execute
733
Whate’er His wrath, which He calls justice, bids—
734
His wrath, which one day will destroy ye both!
735
She spoke, and at her words the hellish pest 2274
736
Forbore. 2275 Then these2276 to her Satan returned:
737
“So strange thy outcry, and thy words so strange
738
Thou interposest,2277 that my sudden2278 hand,
739
Prevented, spares2279 to tell thee yet by deeds
740
What it intends, till first I know of thee
741
What thing thou art, thus double-formed, and why,
742
In this infernal vale first met, thou call’st
743
Me father, and that phantasm call’st my son?
744
I know thee not, nor ever saw till now
745
Sight more detestable than him and thee.
746
T’ whom thus the portress2280 of Hell-gate replied:
747
“Hast thou forgot me, then? and do I seem
748
Now in thine eye so foul?—once deemed so fair
749
In Heav’n when at th’ assembly, and in sight
750
Of all the Seraphim with thee combined
751
In bold conspiracy against Heav’n’s King,
752
All on a sudden miserable pain
753
Surprised thee, dim thine eyes, and dizzy swum
754
In darkness, while thy head flames2281 thick and fast
755
Threw forth, till on the left side op’ning wide,
756
Likest to thee in shape and count’nance bright,
757
Then shining heavenly fair, a goddess armed,
758
Out of thy head I sprung. Amazement seized
759
All th’ host of Heav’n. Back they recoiled, afraid
760
At first, and called me Sin, and for a sign
761
Portentous2282 held me. But, familiar grown,
762
I pleased, and with attractive graces won
763
The most averse—thee chiefly, who full oft
764
Thyself in me thy perfect image viewing,
765
Becam’st enamored, and such joy thou took’st
766
With me in secret that my womb conceived
767
A growing burden. Meanwhile war arose,
768
And fields were fought in Heav’n, wherein remained
769
(For what could else?) to our Almighty foe
770
Clear victory, to our part loss and rout2283
771
Through all the Empyrean.2284 Down they fell,
772
Driv’n headlong from the pitch2285 of Heaven, do
773
Into this deep, and in the general fall
774
I also, at which time this powerful key
775
Into my hands was giv’n, with charge to keep
776
These gates forever shut, which none can pass
777
Without my op’ning. Pensive2286 here I sat
778
Alone, but long I sat not, till my womb,
779
Pregnant by thee, and now excessive grown,
780
Prodigious2287 motion felt and rueful 2288 throes.2289
781
At last this odious2290 offspring whom thou seest,
782
Thine own begotten, breaking violent way, 2291
783
Tore through my entrails that,2292 with fear and pain
784
Distorted, all my nether shape thus grew
785
Transformed. But he my inbred enemy
786
Forth issued, brandishing2293 his fatal dart,
787
Made to destroy. I fled, and cried out ‘Death!
788
Hell trembled at the hideous name, and sighed
789
From all her caves, and back resounded ‘Death!
790
I fled, but he pursued (though more, it seems,
791
Inflamed with lust than rage), and swifter far,
792
Me overtook, his mother, all dismayed,2294
793
And in embraces forcible and foul
794
Engend’ring2295 with me, of that rape begot
795
These yelling monsters, that with ceaseless cry
796
Surround me, as thou saw’st—hourly conceived
797
And hourly born, with sorrow infinite
798
To me, for when they list 2296 into the womb
799
That bred them they return, and howl, and gnaw
800
My bowels, their repast.2297 Then bursting forth
801
Afresh, with conscious terrors vex me round,
802
That rest or intermission none I find.
803
Before mine eyes in opposition2298 sits
804
Grim Death, my son and foe, who set them on,
805
And me, his parent, would full soon devour
806
For want of other prey, but that he knows
807
His end with mine involved, and knows that I
&
nbsp; 808
Should prove a bitter morsel, and his bane, 2299
809
Whenever that shall be. So Fate pronounced.
810
But thou, O father, I forewarn thee, shun
811
His deadly arrow. Neither 2300 vainly hope