I Vow To Thee My Country

[wellinghall]

"I vow to thee, my country, all earthly things above,
Entire and whole and perfect, the service of my love;
The love that asks no question, the love that stands the test,
That lays upon the altar the dearest and the best;
The love that never falters, the love that pays the price,
The love that makes undaunted the final sacrifice.


I heard my country calling, away across the sea,
Across the waste of waters she calls and calls to me.
Her sword is girded at her side, her helmet on her head,
And round her feet are lying the dying and the dead.
I hear the noise of battle, the thunder of her guns,
I haste to thee my mother, a son among thy sons.

And there's another country, I've heard of long ago,
Most dear to them that love her, most great to them that know;
We may not count her armies, we may not see her King;
Her fortress is a faithful heart, her pride is suffering;
And soul by soul and silently her shining bounds increase,
And her ways are ways of gentleness, and all her paths are peace."


Words Sir Cecil Spring-Rice, music Gustav Holst ("Jupiter").
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Vow_to_Thee,_My_Country

And this film:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Another_Country_%28film%29

Comments

[lil-shepherd.livejournal.com]

It's one of those things that gets to you, even when you're not in agreement with the sentiments. (I am so going to question my country, and I don't believe for one moment in the sentiments of the last verse.)

Of course, Holst hated those words with a dreadful hatred...

[tree_and_leaf]

The tune is wonderful, but I'm afraid that hymn is on my personal "banned from any church I have any say in" list...

[pellegrina.livejournal.com]

Not to mention that for some of us, "my country" raises more questions than it answers, starting with "which one?".

[el-staplador.livejournal.com]

Quite apart from any ideological or theological objections (of which I have plenty, starting with 'asks no question'), I can never get my tongue round the last line in time with the music. I'm not surprised Holst didn't approve.

[elegaer.livejournal.com]

Didn't know the 2nd verse! I've always loved the 1st and 3rd though

[tigerfort.livejournal.com]

I think I prefer the version that we wrote for the Angband banquet :)

Although none of us knew the second verse, so we might have to do something about that. Shouldn't need many changes; the rest didn't....

[wellinghall.livejournal.com]

You'll have to remind me how the Angband version went.

[tigerfort.livejournal.com]

I vow to thee, Lord Melkor, above the Valar great,
Entire and whole and perfect, the service of my hate.
The hate that never falters, the hate that stands the test,
That lays upon the altar the greatest and the best.
The hate that asks no questions, the hate that claims a price,
The hate that heaps up corpses in wanton sacrifice.

And there's another country I've heard of long ago,
Most dear to them that love her, but we want her to go.
We do not count her armies, we do not fear her King.
Her fortresses we blow apart: her pride is suffering.
And stone by stone, and silently, her shining bounds decrease,
For her ways are ways of gentleness, and soon we'll make them cease.

(The Angband songsheet is available here (http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~chrisj/taruith/) if anybody wants it. I don't remember whether this one went into Morgy's Marches or not.)

[wellinghall.livejournal.com]

Thanks.