The Mind

Exotic Perfume

by Charles Baudelaire 1821–1867

Translated by Cyril Scott (1909) · From Les Fleurs du Mal (1857)

The Mind

When, with closed eyes, on a hot afternoon,
The scent of thine ardent breast I inhale,
Celestial vistas my spirit assail;
Caressed by the flames of an endless sun.

A langorous island, where Nature abounds
With exotic trees and luscious fruit;
And with men whose bodies are slim and astute,
And with women whose frankness delights and astounds.

By thy perfume enticed to this region remote,
A port I see, laden with mast and with boat,
Still wearied and torn by the distant brine;

While the tamarisk-odours that dreamily throng
The air, round my slumberous senses intwine,
And mix, in my soul, with the mariners' song.

MLA

Baudelaire, Charles. “Exotic Perfume.” Translated by Cyril Scott. Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/baudelaire/13/.

Chicago

Baudelaire, Charles. “Exotic Perfume.” Translated by Cyril Scott. Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/baudelaire/13/.

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