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Edgar Allan Poe - Israfel

In Heaven a spirit doth dwell
"Whose heart-strings are a lute";
None sing so wildly well
As the angel Israfel,
And the giddy stars (so legends tell),
Ceasing their hymns, attend the spell
Of his voice, all mute.

Tottering above
In her highest noon,
The enamored moon
Blushes with love,
While, to listen, the red levin
(With the rapid Pleiads, even,
Which were seven,)
Pauses in Heaven.

And they say (the starry choir
And the other listening things)
That Israfeli's fire
Is owing to that lyre
By which he sits and sings-
The trembling living wire
Of those unusual strings.

But the skies that angel trod,
Where deep thoughts are a duty-
Where Love's a grown-up God-
Where the Houri glances are
Imbued with all the beauty
Which we worship in a star.

Therefore thou art not wrong,
Israfeli, who despisest
An unimpassioned song;
To thee the laurels belong,
Best bard, because the wisest!
Merrily live, and long!

The ecstasies above
With thy burning measures suit-
Thy grief, thy joy, thy hate, thy love,
With the fervor of thy lute-
Well may the stars be mute!

Yes, Heaven is thine; but this
Is a world of sweets and sours;
Our flowers are merely- flowers,
And the shadow of thy perfect bliss
Is the sunshine of ours.

If I could dwell
Where Israfel
Hath dwelt, and he where I,
He might not sing so wildly well
A mortal melody,
While a bolder note than this might swell
From my lyre within the sky. 

Added: on May 26th, 2005 at 2:00 PM | Viewed: 1751 times | Comments and analysis of Israfel by Edgar Allan Poe Comments (3)


Israfel - Comments and Information

Poet: Edgar Allan Poe
Poem: Israfel

Comment 3 of 3, added on February 9th, 2008 at 5:43 PM.

i know that the angel israfel well blow the trumpet on judgement day.the first blow of his trumpet will shater the world and the second will awaken the dead and summon them to judgement.i know this idea from the holy quran.

rajae from Morocco
Comment 2 of 3, added on April 19th, 2006 at 5:19 AM.

i think poe writes this poem based on his lifetime.


wenda from Indonesia
Comment 1 of 3, added on May 26th, 2005 at 2:00 PM.

I think that the angel Israfel is mentioned in the holy Quran, and may be more sacred to the muslim faith.

helena from Ireland

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