106
THE STAR IN THE WEST
Lo !
Man
is made one with God , an equal soul .
For he shall know
The harmony , the oneness of the Whole.
This was my purpose .
Remains
the life of earth , which
is but hell ,
Destiny's
web , and my immense
despair .
And
this
despair -as
sorrow
so
frequently
does
creates
in him a deep cynical
disgust for the world :
Man , a bad joke ; and God , mere epigram !
If we must come to that . And likewise
love .?
Only a donkey
fastened
to a post
Moves
in a circle.3
He taunts
them , insults
God ; and tells
all
,
shouting
it
far
and
broad
,
that
his
road
was
the road
of
the
Mount
of
Venus
,
the road
of
Lust
,
the fiery baptism
of
Vice which
impels Virtue
.
Then the silence breaks
,
the foul mob
of
the Self
-
sufficient
,
the spawn
of
ignor
ance
,
and
the
slime
of
superstition
,
let
loose
their
hell
-
hound
voices
:
—fiend
!
atheist
!
devil
!
are hurled
at
his
head
;
kill
him
!
Crucify
him
!
death
!
death
!
But Tannhäuser stands
a
colossus
amid the bursting
bubbles
of
this Stygian mire
of
corruption
,
and turn
ing
to
the Landgrave
he
says
:
Will they answer
you
?
My arm
is
weary
as
your
souls are not
Of beastliness
:
I
have drawn
my father's
sword
,
Hard
as
your virtue
is
the easy sort
,
Heavy
to
handle
as
your loves are light
,
Smooth
as
your lies
,
and sharper
than your hates
!
I
know
you
!
Cowards
to
the very bone
!
2
Ibid
.
3
Ibid
.
vol
.i,
p
.
254
.
1
Tannhäuser
,
vol
.i,
p
.
253
.
4
Ibid
.
vol
.
i,
p.
257
.