To journey up the landslide,
And mount the peak;
To hoist the tattered flag
Of tumbling kingdoms
And ring the dumb bells
Of unwanted liberty and
Long defeated kings;

To hold steadfastly
By the long abandoned faith
To sing the redemption hymn
Of universal despair
And light the candles
On mossy alters;

To kindle the ashes
Of ancient perished loves
To wake the slumbering God
And stir the cosmic agony

Till the pitiful smile
Of motherless babies
Cleave the eternal darkness
And mercy burst forth
From the serpent’s egg;

Sustained only by
The despairing hope
And the broken will:

Oh you that come so frail
Upon this sun-baked desert
This is your pilgrimage.