New-York tribune., 1885-03-17
NEW PUBLICATIONS.
EDWARD ARNoLD's NEW VOLUME.

EDWARD ARNOLD'S NEW VOLUME.
THE SECRET OF DEATH Grqm the sansoT snsoIn NJ "n
iGmo pp 252. Roberts Brothers
In the dedication of this volume 10 MS uauen.oi
Mr.. Arnold frankly expresses an assurance th' hi'
Verso shall hencefOrth live .,.
On ps 10 be- In hearts as yet unoeatlng, uro
Because the East and West will some aaH ag meeting
when Faith and Doubt are friends az SONIC i"i "'
Late praise to him who dreaiheo II. ..;ao,
This furnishes the KEY to all his serious poe'ic"i
purpose. which is to interpret ana coih,onu " ="
the theological and philosophical hpecoi"V''n "
The mysterious East in whose hoary iiVcI"tuo 10
has studied so profoundly. 1t was one oi 'no US
tpon 'shipg notes of his Light of ASIA 'n"' ~
presented the spirit of Oriental thought pot DO
appeared to the European intelligence pu' DIS - % ~,
pressed itself upon the Hindoo; ana III III"
Secret of Death this sympathetic realization u
.ho Ao;otic cost of mind is evea more clearly mani
fest IL tronsceuds poctical appreciation, anu "'
least annroaches very close TO intellectual asson'
Mr.. Arnold's work therefore has direco peaiins
upon that curious tendency Ol coh'cnp''
liberalism which. in variDLs deveiopnieh'S' I'm
the scientific theism of Professor Muller even uo"n
TO the mystical antics of Colonel Olcott' SHOWS an
anxiety to roach an accommodation Win bran
manism and Buddhism by gettiDS ru vi o''i''s
peculiar to Christianity.
! aTbs Secret of Death is taken from the Katha
Unanishad and is described, in the musical ana
oantiyating introduction, of the most periec'
things in the Hindoo scriptures, pregnant WIN
subto thought faith soemnity, mystery, s'mplici'S.
insight and fancy The poet, III the character Vi
an "English saheb," readsthe Satnscrlt manuscript
with Brabman priest, and his reading ID 'ii.1i-
ripted by tho explanations and commentaries VI n0
Sage As an example of the manner Ill WHICH .niS
stndious exercise proceeds we quote the opening
lines:
Saheb. Usan ha val vajasravas-the scroll
Commenceth thus Sarvyavedasandadaum
All that be had. ysjasravas great son
Gave to the poor"
Priest 'Ts SO!
g. Tasya ha nam
Pntra As Nachiketas: "and of him
speakcth of one who Death face to face
And questioned Death, and from dread famas lips
Learned utmost lore of life and death and-deao-
Iiveth for and for ever Read AN,
This hoy scripture onward! VIII sui
Recite the comment
g. Dakshinasu, Sir!
Kumaran santan My smanasu
sraddh' avivesba i When the gifts were brought
Strong iIia pity seized the young maus heart"
(what gifts, and wherefore, PunditD
Poetry and linguistics do not mix we'll IL Mr..
Arnold is writing for the benefit of class OF pupls
I'm Sanscrit we can understand his method; but II
no is writing poetry for tho less profound public lie
has made n serious mistake. All high class poetry
can be- read aloud with pleasure and 1t VIII MI the
ear with melody and the mind with rare and noble
thought. "The Secret of Death cannot he read
aloud except 10y small number of the learned The
Sanscrit lines and phrases which freely intro
duced throughout two-thirds OF the poem destroy
the music therefore, because the reader must either
stumble at them or skip them, while they add moth
ing to the sense, because they are Immediately
translated. The legend is of Nachketas. the son OF
Gautama Who having obtained the promise OF
three boons from Yama. god of Death, asks of the
divinity knowledge of the great problems OF exist
once In the answer to these inquiries we have an |
exposition of the Brahmanica system of panthesm |
to which tho Upanishads are largely devoted. If |
We cannot find in this speculation the simplicity |
and insight still less the consoling hope and the |
lofty morality which the poet admires. We can at
all events value the beauty and compactDess OF |
phrase the felicity of imagery, and the sustained |
dignity of tone in which the strange verse of the
old world is rehearsed by this accomplished inter |
prefer. The majestic calm which broods over the
dceps of the Pundt's philosophy. and the slow
lingering richness of the poetry OF splendid ana
venerable antiquity, are reproduced with marvel |
lous skill 1t will be interesting to compare Mr..
Arnolis rendering of a well-known passage with |
the famous "Brahma of Emerson Mr. Arnold
begins with four lines of Sanscrit, which we omit
and then construes the text as follows:
".If he that slayeth thinks :" slay 1.-THE
Whom he doth stay, thinks ' am sain,' then both
Know rot Alright That which was life in each
Cannot be SLAIN, nor slsy !
1.-The untouched Soul,
Greater than all the worlds because the worlds
l3y II subsistl; smaller than sibtlctes
OF things minutest last OF uitlnates,
Sits In the hollow heart of all that lives
Whose hath laid aside desire andfeaT,
His senses mastered and his spirit still
Eees In the quiet light OF verify
Eternal, safe, majestical-his soul!
"'Resting II ranges everywhere asleep
IL roams the world, unsleepiDgl Who save /,
Know that dvinest spirit, as II is.
Glad beyond JOY, existing outside life 7
"'Behoding IL in bodies bodiless
Amid impernanency permanent
Embracing all things, yet the midst or ALL
The mind enlightened casts its grief away
"'It is not TO be known by knowledge man
woteth 1t not by wisdom learning vast
Halls short of it Only by sOu itself
Is soul perceived-when the Soul wills IL sol
There shines no light save Its own light to show
Itself unto itself!
40 None cOmpasseth
It's 10y who ia not wholly ceased from sin
Who dweIls sefcOntrOled self-centred-calm,
Lord of himself IL is not gotten else
Brahm hath IL not TO gYe!"
There are several short Oriental pieces in the