Grandee

“ As for that whereof thou makest mention in thy letter of the slaying of my Wazirs and Olema and Grandees, this is the truth and this I did for a reason that arose with me, and I slew not one man of learning but there are with me a thousand of his kind, wiser than he and cleverer and wittier; nor is there with me a child but is filled with knowledge, and I have, in the stead of each of the slain, of those who surpass in his kind, what is beyond count. ”

“ Even as in life do the great dominant passions—love, ambition, desire of power or gold or fame or knowledge—form the proud background to the brief-lived flowerets of our youth, lift our eyes beyond the smile of their bloom, catch the glint of a loftier sunbeam, and yet, and yet, exclude our sight from the lengths and the widths of the space which extends behind and beyond them. ”

“ Worthy art thou, O Lord our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for thou hast created all things, and by thy will they were created and have their being. Revelation 4:11
Thine, O Lord, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty. For all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine. Thine is the kingdom, O Lord, and thou art exalted as head above all. ”

“ The very glory of it all, the age of it all, the wonder of it all, the mysterious beauty and thrill of it all; the thrill of these masses of humanity, their infinite possibilities for future greatness; like a great blinding flash of glory, dims one's eyes for a time. ”

“ Grand Is the Seen Grand is the seen, the light, to me—grand are the sky and stars, Grand is the earth, and grand are lasting time and space, And grand their laws, so multiform, puzzling, evolutionary; But grander far the unseen soul of me, comprehending, endowing all those, Lighting the light, the sky and stars, delving the earth, sailing the sea, (What were all those, indeed, without thee, unseen soul? of what amount without thee?) More evolutionary, vast, puzzling, O my soul! More multiform far—more lasting thou than they. ”

“ Is there anything, after all, so grand as a pure and unsullied life—a fair picture, with no ugly shadows lurking in the background—a smooth poem, with no crooked, halting line to mar the verse—a noble book, with no unholy page—a simple story, such as our children may read? Can any greatness be greater? can any nobility be more truly noble? ”

“ There it stands on the proud summit of human greatness, and could that colossal form be invested with life and consciousness, and think, and feel, and see, as Franklin; thought, and felt, and saw, with what mingled emotions of amazement and delight would it contemplate the changed aspect and condition of the world, and how would its throbbing heart be filled with ecstacy and wonder as its vision rested upon its own loved native land. ”

“ What then is the ‘respect’ in question here,—the something or other in regard to which sublimity and grandeur seemed to be allied with one another, and to differ decidedly from grace and prettiness? It appears to be greatness. Thousands of things are ‘beautiful,’ graceful, or pretty, and yet make no impression of greatness, nay, this impression in many cases appears to collide with, and even to destroy, that of grace or prettiness, so that if a pretty thing produced it you would cease to call it pretty. ”

“ Thou hast made no object but is a marvel of Thy goodness and glory. And of all Thy marvels, this is the most marvellous that we are trusted, honoured, anointed participators in Thy purposes, as we are evolved and matured into the full destiny of our life. ”

“ Verily, thou art both the shame and glory of creatures: Created excellency is exalted in thee to the highest pitch; and all created excellency is beautified and obscured before thee. This is the man, men and angels by whom all things in heaven and earth do flourish and bloom. This is the Tree of Life, the great Vine of Glory, into which we are all ingrafted as so many boughs and twigs; all the glory of his father’s house hangs upon him the Offspring and Issue, as so many chips and pieces darting out from him. ”

“ We might almost make it the test of true greatness, this wonderful power of flinging out the filaments of life in all directions; this way in which noble and creative personalities of every type seem to be so much more than themselves—to count for so much more than themselves—to be, in their generous activities, the servants of all life. ”

“ You have the right, Sir, to enjoy a form of glory which belongs to you exclusively by a sort of creation; but there is an enjoyment still more satisfying to a character like yours, that is, to have endowed the creations of your genius with the nobility of your soul and the elevation of your sentiments. ”

“ What then became of those splendid titles by which our pride is flattered? On the very verge of glory, and in the dawning of a light so beautiful, how rapidly vanish the phantoms of the world! How dim appears the splendor of the most glorious victory! ”

“ All these details I saw at a glance; but what fixed my attention was the expression of goodness, nobleness, and power, that pervaded the whole—the truly human heart and nature that shone in the eyes. As our eyes met, she said, “C’est vous,” and held out her hand. ”

“ Still whispering on that when some years are o'er,
One bright reward shall crown my toil at last,
Thy smile alone, thy smile alone,
Oh place beside the transport of that hour
All earth can boast of fair, of rich, and bright,
Wealth's radiant mines, the lofty thrones of power,—
Then ask where first thy lover's choice would light?
On thee alone, on thee alone. ”

“ The study of the human figure became a noble object of ambition, and led to conceptions of ideal grace and loveliness such as no one human being perhaps ever possessed in all respects. And not merely grace and beauty were thus represented in marble or bronze, but dignity, repose, majesty. We see in those figures which have survived the ravages of time suggestions of motion, rest, grace, grandeur,--every attitude, every posture, every variety of form. We see also every passion which moves the human soul,--grief, rage, agony, shame, joy, peace. ”

“ This is the Love of Glory, a sentiment which lurks in every stage and sphere of life,—with the young, the middle-aged, and the old,—with the lowly, the moderate, and the great,—under as many aliases as a culprit,—but, in all its different forms and guises, having one simple animating essence, the passion for the approbation of our fellow-men. ”

“ Praise and glory—the praise of our whole-hearted adoration, the glory of universal dominion—praise and glory unto Thee, the supreme, the victorious One! The praise of our deep gratitude, the praise that springs spontaneously from the fountain of feeling hearts, is Thine. The glory of eternal dominion, the glory of unrivalled supremacy, the glory of unapproachable majesty, the glory of all-ruling sovereignty, the glory of all-surpassing ascendancy, is Thine. Within our hearts, are embossed in inextinguishable characters of holy fire the hymns of Thy praise. ”

“ How gracious is your majesty, whose greatness God preserve and prosper. As upon a rose in a garden of pleasure, so are mine eyes fixed upon your majesty. May God maintain your greatness, so that your monarchy may prosper and increase, that you may obtain all your desires, worthy the greatness of your renown. ”

“ A more profound appreciation of its contents and connection changes questioning into admiration, and transforms perplexity into wondering delight. We perceive how the thoughts of the prelude light up the whole scene with a golden glow of human tenderness and Divine grandeur, so that, like a picture set in its true light, we now discern in it a depth of meaning and a wealth of beauty previously unsuspected. ”

“ That, in its true condition, the noblest, the most cultured intellect, and the loveliest, sublimest moral and emotional qualities, together weave the web that clothes the world’s great soul with imperishable beauty. ”

“ On the other hand, those who had always revelled in the magnificence of nature, had become satiated with its glory. Creation to them could unfold .no new beauty; a glance of the eye satisfied them, and it was a glory that palled upon the sense. ”

“ It's glory fills the earth, radiant in the glories of the sunset, shining in the soft light of the moon, gleaming in the lovely stars. Waiting to minister to your needs, to fulfill your desires, to comfort you, to restore you, to endow you with power. ”

“ It has its own romances,
And a wide, wide world have they!
A world where phantasie is king,
Made all of eager dreaming;
When once grown up and tall,
Now is the time for scheming,
Then we shall do them all! ”

“ What couldst thou ever ask me that I should Not bend me to achieve thy high behest? What cannot men achieve with lance in rest Who carry noble valour in their blood? And some nobility of high emprise, Lady, couldst thou make possible in me; If living ‘neath the pureness of thy eyes, I found the key to inner majesty ”

“ It is entirely in your majesty's power to make them perfect. With you, sire, it is as with the gods—'I will!' and it is done. If your majesty will condescend to adorn the Graces and sylphs, the sages and scholars, who stumble about in this sublime poem with somewhat rugged feet, with artistic limbs, they will flutter about like graceful genii, and step with majesty like the three kings of the East. ”

“ Little use to argue that of such is not the kingdom of greatness, but so long as the world is attracted by this and the human heart views this as the one desirable realm which it must attain, so long, to that heart, will this remain the realm of greatness. ”

“ It not only reveals the sublime beauty of that life that is found on the luminous spiritual heights, but also opens the way to the sweetness and glory of those lofty realms. "There is another and a better world," and this is found on the heights. ”

“ So shines the path of virtue, bright and fair,
With gentle traces, and soft blending lines,
Her train of duties scarcely shewing where,
One woos the soul, or one her charge resigns,
'Till in a stream of light, the finish'd glory shines. ”

“ All those who have had greatness thrust upon them, and the others, those who thrust themselves upon the great—those, in a word, who reach such as are above them by doing that which should be beneath them. ”

“ That giant's work at which through the centuries the noblest and best have toiled, trying to lead mankind upward toward the light, and in short, to bring our beautiful earth nearer to Heaven. Is not that worth striving for all one's life? ”

“ Thus may we grow to the measure of the stature of a complete and perfect man, passing from glory to glory, till thou finishest thy work on earth through our hands, and welcomest us to thine own kingdom of heaven, to advance for ever and ever, from glory to glory, from joy to joy, as we are led by thee. ”

“ The eye is so beautiful and serves so very many noble purposes, and is, too, so ready in the expression of tenderness, of pity, of love, of solicitude, of compassion, of dignity, of every gentle mood and noble inspiration, that in that metaphor which contemplates the eternal vigilance of the Almighty we recognize the best poetic expression of the highest human wisdom. ”

“ Replete with strong contrasts of light and shade as the age was; rugged as the life of every people long continued; yet amid the fiercer passions arose, in vividly distinctive beauty, the gentler virtues, the loftier motives, and the purer sentiments of multitudes of individuals. ”

“ As the sun struggles through clouds and mists that at times obscure his brightness, so these spirits, stirred by their innate nobility, breaking through all disadvantages attendant upon ignoble birth and iron fortune, rise to their native heights of true greatness. ”

“ It is the grandstand of the world. The vast and awful Roll-Call of the things I ought to be—the things I ought to love—in the great world voice sweeps over me. It reaches its way through all my thoughts, through the minutes of my days. ”

“ On the contrary, the structures of greatness and antiquity should be marked by a character of awful sublimity, suited to the dignity of the subject; indenting on the mind a reverential and permanent impression, and giving, at once, a corresponding and unequivocal grandeur to the picture. ”

“ From amongst all mankind hath He chosen you, and your eyes have been opened to the light of guidance and your ears attuned to the music of the Company above; and blessed by abounding grace, your hearts and souls have been born into new life. Thank ye and praise ye God that the hand of infinite bestowals hath set upon your heads this gem-studded crown, this crown whose lustrous jewels will forever flash and sparkle down all the reaches of time. ”

“ Another, embracing a more exalted vision—so that he might receive indefinite additaments of power, knowledge, beauty, glory, &c.—is ready to forego the recognition of humbler individualities of earth, and the old familiar faces. The shapings of our heavens are the modifications of our constitution; and Mr. Feeble Mind, or Mr. Great Heart, is born in every one of us. ”

“ She had that within which many of the rich and wise and great, who look at will on the glorious scenery of earth, who command the treasures of literature and art, who surround themselves with all the comforts and appliances of a home of elegant sufficiency, fail to gain—calm peace in her heart, perfect contentment with her lot, and a spring of never-failing happiness. ”