To Hercules. The Fumigation from Frankincense.
Hear, pow'rful, Hercules untam'd and strong,
To whom vast hands, and mighty works belong,
Almighty Titan, prudent and benign,
Of various forms, eternal and divine,
Father of Time, the theme of gen'ral praise,
Ineffable, ador'd in various ways.
Magnanimous, in divination skill'd,
And in the athletic labours of the field.
'Tis thine strong archer, all things to devour,
Supreme, all-helping, all-producing pow'r;
To thee mankind as their deliv'rer pray,
Whose arm can chase the savage tribes away
Uweary'd, earth's best blossom, offspring fair,
To whom calm peace, and peaceful works are dear.
Self-born, with primogenial fires you shine,
And various names and strength of heart are thine.
Thy mighty head supports the morning light,
And bears untam'd, the silent gloomy night
From east to west endu'd with strength divine,
Twelve glorious labours to absolve is thine
Supremely skill'd, thou reign'st in heav'n's abodes,
Thyself a God amid'st th' immortal Gods.
With arms unshaken, infinite, divine,
Come, blessed pow'r, and to our rites incline
The mitigations of disease convey,
And drive disasterous maladies away.
Come, shake the branch with thy almighty arm,
Dismiss thy darts and noxious fate disarm,
To Saturn. The Fumigation from Storax.
Ætherial 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 wise.
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.
To Rhea. The Fumigation from Aromatics.
Daughter of great Protogonus, divine,
Illustrious Rhea, to my pray'r incline,
Who driv'st thy holy car with speed along,
Drawn by fierce lions, terrible and strong.
Mother of Jove, whose mighty arm can wield
Th' avenging bolt, and shake the dreadful shield.
Drum-beating, frantic, of a splendid mien,
Brass-sounding, honor'd, Saturn's blessed queen,
Thou joy'st in mountains and tumultuous fight,
And mankind's horrid howlings, thee delight,
War's parent, mighty, of majestic frame,
Deceitful saviour, liberating dame.
Mother of Gods and men, from whom the earth
And lofty heav'ns derive their glorious birth
Th' ætherial gales, the deeply spreading sea
Goddess ærial form'd, proceed from thee.
Come, pleas'd with wand'rings, blessed and divine,
With peace attended on our labours shine;
Bring rich abundance, and wherever found
Drive dire disease, to earth's remotest bound,
To Jupiter. The Fumigation from Storax.
O Jove much-honor'd, Jove supremely great,
To thee our holy rites we consecrate,
Our pray'rs and expiations, king divine,
For all things round thy head exalted shine.
The earth is thine, and mountains swelling high,
The sea profound, and all within the sky.
Saturnian king, descending from above,
Magnanimous, commanding, sceptred Jove
All-parent, -principle and end of all,
Whose pow'r almighty, shakes this earthly ball;
Ev'n Nature trembles at thy mighty nod,
Loud-sounding, arm'd with light'ning, thund'ring God,
Source of abundance, purifying king,
O various-form'd from whom all natures spring
Propitious hear my pray'r, give blameless health,
With peace divine, and necessary wealth.
To Juno. The Fumigation from Aromatics.
O Royal Juno of majestic mien,
Aerial-form'd, divine, Jove's blessed queen,
Thron'd in the bosom of cærulean air,
The race of mortals is thy constant care.
The cooling gales thy pow'r alone inspires,
Which nourish life, which ev'ry life desires.
Mother of clouds and winds, from thee alone
Producing all things, mortal life is known:
All natures share thy temp'rament divine,
And universal sway alone is thine,
With sounding blasts of wind, the swelling sea
And rolling rivers roar, when shook by thee.
Come, blessed Goddess, fam'd almighty queen,
With aspect kind, rejoicing and serene,
Cite This Text