The Ideal of Voluntary
Simplicity
Alexander Pope
Alexander Pope
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Editorial Note:
Alexander Pope (1688
-1744) is one
of the main
English poets of all time, and his
writings have much
in common with Esoteric
Philosophy. In the
following poem, he sums up the
ideal of a simple and
transcendent life. In its wider
sense, the ancient
concept of voluntary simplicity is
an essential factor
in theosophy, classical philosophy,
ecology, and even in
sustainable economy.
The poem is
reproduced from “Essay on Man and
Other Poems”,
Alexander Pope, Dover-Thrift Editions,
Dover Publications,
New York, 99 pp., 1994, page 01.
(CCA)
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Happy the man,
whose wish and care
A few
paternal acres bound,
Content to breathe his native air,
In his own
ground.
Whose herds with milk, whose fields with bread,
Whose flocks
supply him with attire,
Whose trees in summer yield him shade,
In winter
fire.
Blest, who can unconcern’dly find
Hours, days,
and years slide soft away,
In health of body, peace of mind,
Quiet by day.
Sound sleep by night; study and ease,
Together mixt;
sweet recreation:
And innocence, which most does please,
With
meditation.
Thus let me live, unseen, unknown;
Thus
unlamented let me die;
Steal from the world, and not a stone
Tell where I
lie.
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