Edgar Allan Poe – Spirits of the Dead

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“Thy soul shall find itself alone —
Alone of all on earth — unknown
The cause — but none are near to pry
Into thine hour of secrecy.“
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“Spirits of the Dead” is a poem written by Edgar Allan Poe. It was first published in June or July of 1827 in Tamerlane and Other Poems, as “Visit of the Dead”.

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Spirits of the Dead
by
Edgar Allan Poe

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Thy soul shall find itself alone —
Alone of all on earth — unknown
The cause — but none are near to pry
Into thine hour of secrecy.
Be silent in that solitude,
Which is not loneliness — for then
The spirits of the dead, who stood
In life before thee, are again
In death around thee, and their will
Shall then o’ershadow thee — be still
For the night, tho’ clear, shall frown:
And the stars shall look not down
From their thrones, in the dark heav’n;
With light like Hope to mortals giv’n,
But their red orbs, without beam,
To thy withering heart shall seem
As a burning, and a ferver [[fever]]
Which would cling to thee forever.
But ‘twill leave thee, as each star
In the morning light afar
Will fly thee — and vanish:
— But its thought thou can’st not banish.
The breath of God will be still;
And the wish [[mist or wisp]] upon the hill
By that summer breeze unbrok’n
Shall charm thee — as a token,
And a symbol which shall be
Secrecy in thee.