Psalm Concerning the Castle

Let me be at the place of the castle.

Let the castle be within me.

Let it rise foursquare from a moat's ring.

Let the moat's waters reflect green plumage of ducks, let the shells of swimming turtles break the surface or be seen through the rippling depths.

Let horsemen be stationed at the rim of it, and a dog, always alert on the brink of sleep.

Let the space under the first storey be dark, let the water lap the stone posts, and vivid green slime glimmer upon them; let a boat be kept there.

Let the caryatids of the second storey be bears upheld on beams that are dragons.

On the parapet of the central room, let there be four archers, looking off to the four horizons. Within, let the prince be at home, let him sit deep in thought, at peace, all the windows open to the loggias.

Let the young queen sit above, in the cool air, her child in her arms; let her look with joy at the great circle, the pilgrim shadows, the work of the sun and the play of the wind. Let her walk to and fro. Let the colums uphold the roof, let the storeys uphold the columns, let there be dark space below the lowest floor, let the castle rise foursquare out of the moat, let the moat be a ring and the water deep, let the guardians guard it, let there be wide lands around it, let that country where it stands be within me, let me be where it is.