Collected Poems by Anthony Burgess (best e ink reader for manga txt) 📕

to overthrow the

Tables of the eternal?’ The chief magician spoke,

After a pause: ‘Your majesty has touched upon

An interesting, indeed compelling, theological point.

The gods are the gods, eternal, self-created,

Subsisting out of time. There are no new gods.

But, your majesty, the gods, so we must believe,

Have no essential interest in human affairs.

It is only by virtue of prayer, sacrifice,

The raising of monuments, even the skills of conjuration,

That they can be swirled into the human orbit.

Now, as it seems to me, one god forgotten,

One long removed from the concerns of the state of Egypt,

Has been conjured. You know which god. You know

By whom.’ A nerve beat on Pharaoh’s brow.

Then he said: ‘You take us back to an old time –

A time when the false belief in a

Single god possessed many of the most subtle and

High-placed of Egyptians. You refer to Moses.

This belief has come back and it has attached itself

To a race of slaves.’ The chief magician said:

‘Logical, majesty, as you will admit. Will the slaves

Willingly embrace the gods of their masters?

These questions, as I said, are of immense

Theoretical interest, but – there remains

The matter of what is to be done. I would, I know,

Be overtreading the bounds of my office if I

Ventured to – ‘ But the first minister cut in with:

‘It is a simple matter, divine majesty.

The devotees of the god ask that they may do

Sacrifice to him. They request three day

Away from their holy work of building monuments

To the glory of the true gods of imperial Egypt.

It would be a mark of a kingly clemency to grant…’

And Pharaoh cried: ‘Be forced to grant, impelled to?”

For the slave to cease to be a slave? For the

Power of his God to be recognised, acknowledged?’ –

‘Only three days, majesty. With guarantees of return.’ –

And Pharaoh began to see what was meant. ‘Guarantees?’

He smiled. – ‘Guarantees, your divine majesty.’

Then the hailstones came, thudding on the street

And roofs and deafening, and, landing,

Spurting out flame. But not Goshen, land of

Servitude but also of sun and clean water. From Pithom

Moses and Aaron came to the palace, knowing it was

Time to ask again, and were admitted to a

Dark chamber full of candlelight, where magicians

Consulted entrails, burned rare gums and powders,

Intoned in an old tongue. Pharaoh was there.

Aaron spoke at once, saying: ‘We are come again,

King of Egypt, to ask that we be released

From our labours in order to…’ Pharaoh ignored him,

Addressing Moses instead: ‘Have you no respect

For our religion, cousin? We are at holy work.

We seek to avert these inexplicable nuisances

From the innocent Egyptian people.’ Aaron said:

‘Not innocent. Not inexplicable.’ Pharaoh sighed,

Saying: ‘Our ceremonies are tainted by the presence

Of the unbeliever. Go.’ And the magicians

Put out their fires, made obeisance, departed.

‘You seem to have reached the limit, clever cousin,

Of your resources’, Pharaoh said. ‘This magic

Hail of yours can harm no one.’ Aaron replied:

‘Harm was never intended. Not at first.

It was thought the signs of God’s power would be enough.’

But Pharaoh ignored him still, fixing Moses

With a look malevolent, admiring, even affectionate.

And Aaron: ‘Do we have an answer, sir? May we

Take an answer back to our people?’ Pharaoh still

Ignored him, addressing Moses: ‘Are you pleased

With your power, cousin? Does it satisfy you

To have impaired, even part-destroyed, this great

Flower of order? Do you wish me to bow down

To a god who is the enemy of the State?

For, believe me, the State can be hated only by the

Eternal forces of disruption, little of whose power

You have, through your trickery, shown us.

Without the State we are nothing, any of us.

Order, beauty, majesty, the unbroken

Chain of rule. To destroy the state

Is to betray us to those windy voices out there in the desert.

You wish to see Egypt become broken stone,

Lizards sunning themselves on broken stone.’

Then Moses spoke: ‘You cannot. Maintain order – ’

Pharaoh feigned amazement: ‘You have recovered your voice?’ –

‘Cannot. Maintain order. On slavery.’ Pharaoh cried:

‘What slavery? Any slavery? Or merely the

Slavery of your people? If you were to be made free,

Would you not have your highest and your lowest?

Would you not build your own pyramid?’ Aaron said:

‘Sir, we need your answer.’ And Pharaoh, in scorn:

‘Quiet, little man. I am talking to your better.’

Moses said: ‘We will build on the covenant.

On the bond. Freely embraced. The contract

Between man and man.’ Then Pharaoh bitterly:

‘Your high talk in a land you have turned into a

Charnel. I cannot stand your smell much longer.

You had better go.’ Aaron, eagerly: ‘May we then

Have a scribe called in? May we have this written

And stamped with the royal seal?’ Pharaoh spoke still

Only to Moses: ‘The word of the Pharaoh, Moses.

You may go to the desert and perform your sacrifice.

I have, may the gods forgive me, spoken.’

Moses said: ‘You have not finished, majesty.

I would rather you had said it now than shouted it

To our backs as we left your presence.’ Pharaoh cried:

‘What have I not then said?’ And then, quieter:

‘Ah yes. The men may go to the desert

And do sacrifice to the god of destruction.

The women and children shall remain behind.

As this is a kind of war, cousin Moses,

Shall we call them a hostage?’ Aaron was ready to

Rave, but Moses held him back, half-smiling:

‘Your heart is still hard, Pharaoh. This must mean

You have not yet had enough signs.

Or enough suffering.’ So they left,

And Egypt, as Moses knew, was ready for the

Ninth course. The hail had departed, the sun shone.

And God said to Moses: Take up a handful

Of the dust of the earth and hurl it into the sky.

He did so, and blackness fell. Thick, palpable

Dark in a black dark wind that doused all lights.

Nor did the other curses abate – the water blood,

Frogs, gnats, flies, locusts, murrain, plague,

Hailstones that flamed fire. Misery.

Death-carts through the dark. So, as foreseen,

Moses and his brother were summoned again to the palace,

But this time met by a minister, who said:

‘The order is that you leave Egypt and go

Into the desert, there to conduct your

Sacrifice.’ But Aaron, quickly: ‘The women?

The children?’ – ‘They are to go with you.’

Moses waited, holding Aaron back,

Aaron anxious to leave, so the minister said:

‘You expect something more?’ – ‘Something more.’ –

‘There