
To Saturn
(The fumigation from
storax)
Etherial father, mighty Titan, hear,
Great fire of Gods and men, whom all
revere:
Endu'd with various council, pure and
strong,
To whom perfection and decrease belong.
Consum'd by thee all forms that hourly die,
By thee restor'd, their former place
supply;
The world immense in everlasting chains,
Strong and ineffable thy pow'r contains;
Father of vast eternity, divine,
O mighty Saturn, various speech is thine:
Blossom of earth and of the starry skies,
Husband of Rhea, and Prometheus wife.
Obstetric nature, venerable root,
From which the various forms of being
shoot;
No parts peculiar can thy pow'r enclose,
Diffus'd thro' all, from which the world
arose.
O, best of beings, of a subtle mind,
Propitious hear to holy pray'rs inclin'd;
The sacred rites benevolent attend,
And grant a blameless life, a blessed end.