Poetic Divination | Psalm Concerning the Castle

“Psalm Concerning the Castle”

by Denise Levertov

Let me be at the place of the castle.

Let the castle be within me.

Let it rise foursquare from the moat’s ring.

Let the moat’s waters reflect green plumage of ducks, let

the shells of swimming turtles break the surface or be

seen through the rippling depths.

Let horsemen be stationed at the rim of it, and a dog,

   always alert on the brink of sleep.

Let the space under the first storey be dark, let the water

   lap the stone posts, and vivid green slime glimmer upon

   them; let a boat be kept there.

Let the caryatids of the second storey be bears upheld on

   beams that are dragons.

On the parapet of the central room, let there be four

   archers, looking off to the four horizons. Within, let

   the prince be at home, let him sit in deep thought, at

   peace, all the windows open to the loggias.

Let the young queen sit above, in the cool air, her child in

   her arms; let her look with joy at the great circle, the

   pilgrim shadows, the work of the sun and the play of

   the wind. Let her walk to and fro. Let the columns uphold

   the roof, let the storeys uphold the columns, let there

   be dark space below the lowest floor, let the castle rise

   foursquare out of the moat, let the moat be a ring and

   the water deep, let the guardians guard it, let there be

   wide lands around it, let that country where it stands be

   within me, let me be where it is.

“…let that country where it stands be

 within me, let me be where it is.”

Let it be…