Skip to content
Linespedia

To Keep A True Lent.

By Robert Herrick

Topics: classic

Is this a fast, to keep         The larder lean?             And clean     From fat of veals and sheep?     Is it to quit the dish         Of flesh, yet still             To fill     The platter high with fish?     Is it to fast an hour,         Or ragg'd to go,             Or show     A downcast look and sour?     No; 'tis a fast to dole         Thy sheaf of wheat,             And meat,     Unto the hungry soul.     It is to fast from strife,         From old debate             And hate;     To circumcise thy life.     To show a heart grief-rent;         To starve thy sin,             Not bin;     And that's to keep thy Lent.

AI analysis available. Enable JavaScript to interact.

About this line

"Is this a fast, to keep..."

This evocative piece by Robert Herrick, titled "To Keep A True Lent.", represents a masterful exploration of classic. The lines capture a profound emotional resonance... ### Why We Love This Line At Linespedia, we believe that poetry is the ultimate sanctuary for the soul...

Attribution & Rights

Author:Robert Herrick

"Is this a fast, to keep..." by Robert Herrick

For usage rights, copyright concerns, or to report an issue with this content, please visit our Copyright & Report page.

Related lines

"I freeze, I freeze, and nothing dwells     In me but snow and icicles.     For pity's sake, give your advice,     To melt this snow and thaw th"

"Kings must be dauntless; subjects will contemn     Those who want hearts and wear a diadem."

"And, cruel maid, because I see You scornful of my love, and me, I'll trouble you no more, but go My way, where you shall never know What is become"

"For thirty years Tubbs has been proud and poor;     'Tis now his habit, which he can't give o'er."

"Here morning in the ploughman's songs is met     Ere yet one footstep shows in all the sky,     And twilight in the east, a doubt as yet,     S"

"The Text is taken from Percy's Reliques (1765), vol. i. p. 71, 'given from two MS. copies, transmitted from Scotland.' Herd had a very similar bal"

Robert Herrick

About Robert Herrick

Robert Herrick (1591–1674) was an English Cavalier poet whose "Hesperides" (1648) contains over 1,200 poems. His carpe diem verse "To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time" ("Gather ye rosebuds while ye may") and lyric poems celebrate love, beauty, and the passing of time.

Full Bibliography
Continue Reading

"I freeze, I freeze, and nothing dwells     In me b..."

Weekly Poetic Insight

Join our literary Sanctuary

Get the most inspiring lines, poetic analysis, and secret shayaris delivered to your inbox every Sunday.