From the Arabic | My faint spirit | My faint spirit was sitting in the light

My faint spirit was sitting in the light

Language: English

My faint spirit was sitting in the light
  Of thy looks, my love;
It panted for thee like the hind at noon
  For the brooks, my love.
Thy barb, whose hoofs outspeed the tempest's flight,
  Bore thee far from me;
My heart, for my weak feet were weary soon,
  Did companion thee.

Ah! fleeter far than fleetest storm or steed,
  Or the death they bear,
The heart which tender thought clothes like a dove
  With the wings of care;
In the battle, in the darkness, in the need,
  Shall mine cling to thee,
Nor claim one smile for all the comfort, love,
  It may bring to thee.

About the headline (FAQ)

Text Authorship:

by Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792 - 1822), "From the Arabic", subtitle: "An imitation" [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):

by John Francis Barnett (1837 - 1916), "My faint spirit", published 1834 [ soprano ] [sung text not yet checked]
by Mary Grant Carmichael (1851 - 1935), "My faint spirit", op. 12, published 187-? [sung text not yet checked]
by Ellen Dickson (1819 - 1878), as Dolores, "Love-Song", published 1863 [ voice and piano ], London [sung text not yet checked]
by Roger Quilter (1877 - 1953), "Arab love song", op. 25 (Six songs) no. 4, published 1927 [ voice and piano ], Winthrop Rogers [sung text checked 1 time]
by Arthur Sullivan, Sir (1842 - 1900), "Arabian Love Song", published 1866 [ voice and piano ], Chappell and Co. [sung text checked 1 time]

Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

CZE Czech (Čeština) (Jaroslav Vrchlický) , "Arabské verše", Prague, J. Otto, first published 1901

Researcher for this page: Ted Perry

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 16
Word count: 107