When Psyche opened her eyes, she heard the soft music of two pipes. And
she awoke from her swoon with a smile. She lay still and did not move,
but looked about her. She was reclining upon a soft bed of purple,
on a couch of ivory. She lay in a crystal palace; round the palace
were pillars of crystal and a round crystal gallery. The pillars were
entwined with roses, yellow, white, and pink, and they perfumed the
sunny spring morning. Through the gallery of pillars, through the walls
of crystal, she saw round her a pleasant meadow, like a round valley,
a valley like a garden, through which ran a murmuring brook between
beds of flowers. Quite near appeared the horizon of a low hill-slope,
and the cloudless sky was like a chalice of turquoise.
The pipes changed their music. Psyche raised herself a little higher,
leaning on her arm; she laughed and looked about. In the middle of the
crystal palace was a basin of white marble, full of water, and doves
were hopping about it or drinking. Sitting at the gate of crystal
pillars, Psyche saw two girls; with their fingers they raised the
flutes to their mouth and played. Psyche laughed and listened. Then
she fell back on the bed again, happy, but tired, full of rest and
contentment, and she raised her head and looked up!...
Through a crocus-coloured curtain fell the tempered spring sunshine,
quiet and soft, joyous and still.
Psyche breathed more freely, and a sigh escaped from her heart. She put
her arms under her head; her wings lay stretched out right and left
on either side of her, and when she heard the music of the flutes,
her thoughts drifted away like an aimless dream, like rose-leaves
upon water.
She dreamed and she listened.... She no longer felt tired, and her
eyes, which had shed a brook of tears, felt moist and fresh, cooled
by an invisible hand, with invisible care. Her breathing was regular,
and her soul felt safe.... And she smiled continually....
The pipes ceased playing....
The two girls, seeing that the queen had awaked, rose up and approached
her bed with a basket of red-blushing fruit, which they set down
near her. Then they made a deep reverence, but spoke not, and sat
down again by the pillars and blew their pipes anew; but to another
tune, somewhat louder, like a voice calling, and both in unison. The
pipes sounded jubilant in the morning, and outside, high in the air,
the lark answered joyously....
Psyche smiled, stretched out her hand and took a peach, a pear,
a bunch of blue grapes.... The pipes played merrily together, and
higher and higher and higher soared the lark and sang. Then Psyche
heard the brook babbling gently; the doves answered one another,
and round her the morning sang her welcome.
Then footsteps light approached her softly; the pipes ceased playing;
the girls rose and made a deep reverence. And between the pillars of
crystal appeared Prince Eros, the King of the Present.
The girls withdrew, and Eros approached and knelt before Psyche.
He said nothing, but looked at her.
"Eros," said Psyche, "I thank you.... I have rested; my eyes cease
to burn; my hunger is appeased.... I have heard sweet music, and
everything appeared kind and to love me."
"Everything in my kingdom is glad that the queen has come. Everything
is glad that the queen has awaked."
"The Queen of the Present," murmured Psyche.
Then she put her arm round his neck, and leant her head against his
shoulder. "Eros," said she gently, "I love you.... How shall I express
my love to you! You have walked in the track of my tears, my salt
tears you have drunk; out of the desert, from the breast of the awful
Sphinx, you lifted me in your chariot, drawn by swift griffons.... In
my swoon I felt myself going through the air, not with the speed of
the fair Chimera, whose hoofs struck lightning and made the thunder
roll high in the ether ... but smoothly and evenly on wheels, over
the clouds delicately tinted with the glowing dawn. How long did we
travel...? How long have I slept? Eros, how shall I express my love
to you! My love is deep gratitude, inexpressible, because you rescued
me. My love is heart-felt thankfulness, because you have cared for
and refreshed me. My love is...."
She paused for a moment, and rose from the bed.
"What, Psyche?" said he gently, and stood up.
"My love is deep, submissive respect, O Eros, because you wanted to
weep my tears and give me the wish of my heart, which, had it been
fulfilled, would have caused you the most poignant grief."
She sank upon her knees and took his hand in hers and kissed it
long. He lifted her up and pressed her to his breast.
"My gentle Psyche!" said he. "My child and my wife and my tender
princess! Kneel not to me. In love it is sweet to give and to
suffer. Love gives, and love suffers...."
"I have only suffered, but not given," said Psyche, in a low tone.
"To suffer is to give most. To give to one we love the suffering of his
suffering soul, is the greatest gift that can be given, my child and
my princess! Try, with the remembrance sacred to Suffering and Love,
endured and loved, to be happy in the Present. Oh, let the Past be
a remembrance, a sacred remembrance, a golden remembrance; but now
look to the Present. Oh, let the Present comfort you--the Present,
little, humble, and poor. Look! this is all. This cupola is my palace,
this garden is my kingdom; these flowers and these birds, they are all
my treasures--roses and doves and the singing lark. More I have not;
but I have still my love--my love, great as the heaven and wide as the
universe. But he who lives in love so great, needs no greater palace
and no greater kingdom to rule over. For the treasures of Emeralda I
would not exchange my kingdom and my love.... Psyche, my queen, yet
I have ornaments for you. The Princess of Nakedness with the wings
may never wear jewels of precious stones, and jewels I have not. But
pearls, Psyche, I have pearls which Emeralda despises. Pearls, Psyche,
I found in your tears of yesterday. See! I strung them together,
they were a crown for you. Pearls may adorn you, tears may adorn
you, my child of suffering, my wife of love, queen of my soul and of
my kingdom...."
Then he took a little crown of twelve great pearls and put it on her
head. Then he hung a necklace of pearls round her neck. And as she
stood before him naked, so immaculately delicate in her princessly
nakedness, he threw around her loins a light, thin veil, richly
adorned with pearls, and which she fastened in a knot. Then he gave
her a mirror, and she beheld herself very beautiful, crowned like a
queen, and smiled with contentment.
"Am I a queen?" she said softly. "Am I happy? Eros, do you love me? Is
this the happiness of the Present? Eros, do I love you out of gratitude
and respect, my husband and my king...?"
He led her gently away, through the porticos, down the crystal
steps. Cupids hovered about them, the lark sang high in the heavens,
the roses perfumed the air, the brook murmured gently. The spring
rejoiced to welcome them, and behind the shrubs the pipes played
a duet. The hill-slope of the horizon was peaceful, and above, the
heaven, arched like a turquoise chalice.
Everything sang, everything was fragrant; in the grass buzzed thousands
of insects; about the flowers fluttered butterflies; and where Psyche,
on her husband's arm, walked along the flower-beds, all the flowers
bowed to her in homage--the white slender lilies, the violets with
laughing eyes, tall flowers and short flowers, on long and short
stems--and all gave forth their fragrance.
Eros pointed around.
"This is the Present, Psyche," said he, and pressed her to his heart.
"And this is happiness, that is as a lily and a violet ..." she
whispered, with her lips to his.