Lament IX

Thou shouldst be purchased, Wisdom, for much gold

If all they say of thee is truly told:

That thou canst root out from the mind the host

Of longings and canst change a man almost

Into an angel whom no grief can sap,

Who is not prone to fear nor evil hap.

Thou seest all things human as they are —

Trifles. Thou bearest in thy breast a star

Fixèd and tranquil, and dost contemplate