Sonnet 51 (Miscellaneous Sonnets)

Dim child of darkness and faint-echoing, space,
That still art just behind, and never here,
Death's herald shadow, unimagined Fear ;
Thou antic, that dost multiply a face.
Which hath no self, but finds in every place
A body, feature, voice, and circumstance,
Yet art most potent in the wide expanse
Of unbelief — may I beseech thy grace ?
Thou art a spirit of no certain clan.
For thou wilt fight for either God or Devil.
Man is thy slave, and yet thy lord is man ;
The human heart creates thee good or evil :
As goblin, ghost, or fiend I ne'er have known thee,
But as myself, my sinful self, I own thee.