Thibet and residence of the Dalai, or Grand Lama, the
pontifical sovereign of Thibet and East Asia. Here is located the
great temple of Buddha, a vast square edifice, surmounted by a gilded
dome, the temple, together with its precincts, covering an area of
many acres. Contiguous to it, on its four sides, are four celebrated
monasteries, occupied by four thousand recluses, and resorted to as
schools of the Buddhic religion and philosophy. There is, perhaps, no
other one place in the world where so much gold is accumulated for
superstitious purposes.

=17. Muses.= See note, l. 120, _The Strayed Reveller_.

=18. In their cool gallery=. That is, in the Vatican art gallery at
Rome.

=19. yellow Tiber.= So called by the ancients because of the
yellowish, muddy appearance of its waters.
[178]
=21. Strange unloved uproar.= At the time this poem was
written,--1849,--the French army was besieging Rome.

=23. Helicon.= High mountain in Boeotia, legendary home of the
Muses.

=32. Erst.= See note, l. 32, _The Scholar-Gipsy_.

=48. Destiny.= That is, Fate, the goddess of human destiny.

In what mood is the author at the opening of the poem? How does he
seek consolation? How does the calm of the Muses affect him? Can you
see how he might find help in dwelling on the pictures of the blind
beggar and happy lovers? What is the final thought of the poem? Can
you think of any other poem that has this as its central thought? What
do you think of the author's philosophy of life as set forth in this
poem? Discuss the verse form used.

LINES

WRITTEN IN KENSINGTON GARDENS

The Kensington Gardens form one of the many beautiful public parks of
London. They are located in the Kensington parish, a western suburb of
the city, lying north of the Thames and four miles west-southwest of
St. Paul's. In his poem Arnold contrasts the serenity of nature
with the restlessness of modern life. "Not Lucan, not Vergil,
only Wordsworth, has more beautifully expressed the spirit of
Pantheism."--HERBERT W. PAUL.

=4.= The pine trees here mentioned are since dead.

=14. What endless active life!= Compare with Arnold's sonnet of this
volume, entitled _Quiet Work_, ll. 4-7 and 11-12.

=21. the huge world.= London.

=24. Was breathed on by rural Pan.= Note Arnold's classic way of
accounting for his great love for nature, Pan being the nature god.
See note, l. 67, _The Str