III
No inward inclination did I feel
To avarice or pride; my soul did kneel
In admiration all the day. No lust, nor strife,
Polluted then my infant life.
No fraud nor anger in me mov'd
No malice, jealousy, or spite;
All that I saw I truly lov'd:
Contentment only and delight
Were in my soul. O Heav'n! what bliss
Did I enjoy and feel!
What powerful delight did this
Inspire! for this I daily kneel.
IV
Whether it be that Nature is so pure,
And custom only vicious; or that sure
God did by miracle the guilt remove,
And made my soul to feel his Love
So early: or that 'twas one day,
Wherein this happiness I found,
Whose strength and brightness so do ray,
That still it seems me to surround,
Whate'er it is, it is a Light
So endless unto me
That I a world of true delight
Did then, and to this day do see.
V
That prospect was the gate of Heaven, that day
The ancient Light of Eden did convey
Into my soul: I was an Adam there,
A little Adam in a sphere
Of joys! O there my ravisht sense
Was entertained in Paradise,
And had a sight of Innocence,
Which was beyond all bound and price.
An antepast of Heaven sure!
I on the Earth did reign,
Within, without me, all was pure:
I must become a child again.