How fare the happy dead? Here man continuously grows, but he forgets what
happened
"before
God shut the doorways of his head;"
that is, before the skull of the infant closed. Yet sometimes
"A little flash, a mystic hint"
suggests the possibility of a previous existence.[29] "If death so taste
Lethean springs," as to leave a trace on the soul of what had happened
upon earth--the Poet here makes Lethe produce remembrance, instead of
forgetfulness, which is its normal effect. Dante describes the double
power of the mythic stream in Purgatory (Can. xxviii., l. 134)--
"On this, devolved with power to take away
Remembrance of offence; on that, to bring
Remembrance back of every good deed done.
From whence its name of Lethe on this part;
On the other, Eunoe."--Cary's Translation.
And so, "in the long harmonious years" of death, some dim touch of earthly
things may reach Hallam whilst ranging with his equals. If this should be
allowed, "O turn thee round," "resolve the doubt," whether thou art
conscious of a previous life, and listen to my guardian angel, who will
tell thee all about us here.