Four Quartets (Little Gidding) - T.S. Eliot
A Journey Through Time and Spirit in Little Gidding
Midwinter spring is its own season
Sempiternal though sodden towards sundown,
Suspended in time, between pole and tropic.
When the short day is brightest, with frost and fire,
The brief sun flames the ice, on pond and ditches,
In windless cold that is the heart’s heat,
Reflecting in a watery mirror
A glare that is blindness in the early afternoon.
And glow more intense than blaze of branch, or brazier,
Stirs the dumb spirit: no wind, but pentecostal fire
In the dark time of the year. Between melting and freezing
The soul’s sap quivers. There is no earth smell
Or smell of living thing. This is the spring time
But not in time’s covenant. Now the hedgerow
Is blanched for an hour with transitory blossom
Of snow, a bloom more sudden
Than that of summer, neither budding nor fading,
Not in the scheme of generation.
Where is the summer, the unimaginable
Zero summer?
If you came this way,
Taking any route, starting from anywhere,
At any time or at any season,
It would always be the same: you would have to put off
Sense and notion. You are not here to verify,
Instruct yourself, or inform curiosity
Or carry report. You are here to kneel
Where prayer has been valid. And prayer is more
Than an order of words, the conscious occupation
Of the praying mind, or the sound of the voice praying.
And what the dead had no speech for, when living,
They can tell you, being dead: the communication
Of the dead is tongued with fire beyond the language of the living.
Here, the intersection of the timeless moment
Is England and nowhere. Never and always.
Ash on an old man’s sleeve
Is all the ash the burnt roses leave.
Dust in the air suspended
Marks the place where a story ended.
Dust inbreathed was a house—
The walls, the wainscot and the mouse,
The death of hope and despair,
This is the death of air.
There are flood and drought
Over the eyes and in the mouth,
Dead water and dead sand
Contending for the upper hand.
The parched eviscerate soil
Gapes at the vanity of toil,
Laughs without mirth.
This is the death of earth.
Water and fire succeed
The town, the pasture and the weed.
Water and fire deride
The sacrifice that is not satisfied.
Water and fire withdraw
Whatever they can take or spare.
This is the death of water and fire.
The end is where we start from.
Every phrase and every sentence is an end and a beginning,
Every poem an epitaph. And any action
Is a step to the block, to the fire, down the sea’s throat
Or to an illegible stone: and that is where we start.
We die with the dying:
See, they depart, and we go with them.
We are born with the dead:
See, they return, and bring us with them.
The moment of the rose and the moment of the yew-tree
Are of equal duration. A people without history
Is not redeemed from time, for history is a pattern
Of timeless moments. So, while the light fails
On a winter’s afternoon, in a secluded chapel
History is now and England.
With the drawing of this Love and the voice of this Calling
We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.
Through the unknown, unremembered gate
When the last of earth left to discover
Is that which was the beginning;
At the source of the longest river
The voice of the hidden waterfall
And the children in the apple-tree
Not known, because not looked for
But heard, half-heard, in the stillness
Between two waves of the sea.
Quick now, here, now, always—
A condition of complete simplicity
(Costing not less than everything)
And all shall be well and
All manner of things shall be well
When the tongues of flame are in-folded
Into the crowned knot of fire
And the fire and the rose are one.
Introduction to "Four Quartets (Little Gidding)"
"Four Quartets (Little Gidding)" is a profound poem by T.S. Eliot, exploring themes of time, spirituality, and the interconnectedness of life and death. It's part of the larger "Four Quartets" series, which delves into complex philosophical and theological ideas.
Midwinter Spring: A Paradoxical Season
The poem begins with the concept of "midwinter spring," a season that exists outside conventional time. This paradoxical state, "Sempiternal though sodden towards sundown," represents a suspension between life and death, creation and destruction. The imagery of frost and fire illustrates this duality, where even in coldness there's intense heat, reflecting spiritual warmth.
The Soul’s Sap Quivers: Spiritual Awakening
Eliot describes how "the soul’s sap quivers" between melting and freezing, symbolizing an awakening or realization. This period isn't marked by typical signs of life but instead by a sudden, transient beauty—"a bloom more sudden / Than that of summer." It suggests a moment of divine insight beyond natural cycles.
Timeless Moment: Intersection of Eternity
The poem shifts to discuss the nature of presence and prayer. Eliot emphasizes that one must shed preconceived notions and senses to truly experience this sacred space. Here, "prayer is more / Than an order of words," indicating a deeper, transcendent communication with the divine, accessible through silence and humility.
Destruction and Renewal: Elements of Nature
Eliot uses elemental imagery to depict destruction and renewal. "Dust in the air suspended" marks endings, while floods and droughts illustrate the futility of human endeavors against nature's forces. These elements signify different forms of death—air, earth, water, and fire—each consuming and transforming.
Cyclical Nature of Life and History
"The end is where we start from," Eliot declares, highlighting life's cyclical nature. Every action and phrase represent both closure and commencement. This cycle ties into historical patterns, suggesting that understanding history involves recognizing these timeless moments within it.
Exploration and Simplicity: Ultimate Unity
The final section speaks to continuous exploration leading back to origins, achieving simplicity after traversing complexities. The unity of opposites—"the fire and the rose are one"—symbolizes ultimate harmony and redemption. This condition demands everything yet promises universal well-being when attained.
Conclusion: Synthesis of Themes
In "Little Gidding," T.S. Eliot masterfully synthesizes themes of time, spirituality, and renewal. Through vivid imagery and profound reflections, he invites readers to embrace the paradoxes of existence, seek deeper truths beyond sensory experiences, and find unity in life's cyclicality and apparent contradictions.
Key points
In 'Little Gidding,' the final piece of his Four Quartets, T.S. Eliot reflects on the cyclical nature of time, emphasizing that moments of spiritual connection and redemption transcend temporal boundaries; he suggests that human suffering and purification through fire lead to unity with the divine, blending Christian mysticism with universal truths about renewal and interconnectedness, ultimately teaching readers to seek meaning beyond material existence and embrace the eternal present.