The Mind

LI. A man went before a strange god

by Stephen Crane 1871–1900

From The Black Riders and Other Lines (1895)

The Mind

A man went before a strange god,--
The god of many men, sadly wise.
And the deity thundered loudly,
Fat with rage, and puffing,
"Kneel, mortal, and cringe
"And grovel and do homage
"To my particularly sublime majesty."

The man fled.

Then the man went to another god,--
The god of his inner thoughts.
And this one looked at him
With soft eyes
Lit with infinite comprehension,
And said, "My poor child!"

MLA

Crane, Stephen. “LI. A man went before a strange god.” Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/crane/50/.

Chicago

Crane, Stephen. “LI. A man went before a strange god.” Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/crane/50/.

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