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Brahma
by Ralph Waldo Emerson
If the red slayer think he slays,
Or if the slain think he is slain,
They know not well the subtle ways
I keep, and pass, and turn again.
Far or forgot to me is near;
Shadow and sunlight are the same;
The vanished gods to me appear;
And one to me are shame and fame.
They reckon ill who leave me out;
When me they fly, I am the wings;
I am the doubter and the doubt,
I am the hymn the Brahmin sings.
The strong gods pine for my abode,
And pine in vain the sacred Seven
But thou, meek lover of the good!
Find me, and turn thy back on heaven.
___________________________
Brahma by Ralph Waldo Emerson is a 16 line poem, comprised of four equal stanzas (quatrains.) It is written in a rhyme scheme of ABAB CDCD EFEF GHGH and with a consistent meter of iambic tetrameter.
The first big mystery of this poem for may might be the meaning of the title. (via wiki)
Brahma (Sanskrit: ब्रह्मा, IAST: Brahmā) is a Hindu god, referred to as “the Creator” within the Trimurti, the trinity of supreme divinity that includes Vishnu and Shiva. He is associated with creation of everything, knowledge, and the Vedas. Brahma is prominently mentioned in creation legends. In some Puranas, he created himself in a golden embryo known as the Hiranyagarbha.
Brahma is frequently identified with the Vedic god Prajapati. During the post-Vedic period, Brahma was a prominent deity and his sect existed; however, by the 7th century, he had lost his significance. He was also overshadowed by other major deities like Vishnu, Shiva, and Mahadevi and demoted to the role of a secondary creator, who was created by the major deities.
Brahma is commonly depicted as a red or golden-complexioned bearded man with four heads and hands. His four heads represent the four Vedas and are pointed to the four cardinal directions. He is seated on a lotus and his vahana (mount) is a hamsa (swan, goose or crane). According to the scriptures, Brahma created his children from his mind and thus, they are referred to as Manasaputra.
That should give you some context then for the poem’s meaning and metaphor. It is from the perspective of Brahma, giving voice to the way he views the world.
Stanza One
If the red slayer think he slays,
Or if the slain think he is slain,
They know not well the subtle ways
I keep, and pass, and turn again.
The message here, from the speaker Brahma, is that he is above and beyond death, with power over both it and life. You might think you have killed someone, or you might think you’ve been killed, but it is not so. Line 4 in particular points to the Hindi belief in reincarnation. Brahma here appears to be claiming power over that process.
Emerson utilizes repetition in this stanza, repeatedly using variations of the word “slay” to create a sense of rhythm for the lines. Emerson, in conjunction with the repetition, is also using alliteration (repeating words that start – in this case – with an ‘s’ sound.) The word “subtle” is part of that effort in line 3.
Stanza Two
Far or forgot to me is near;
Shadow and sunlight are the same;
The vanished gods to me appear;
And one to me are shame and fame.
Here we see the Speaker explaining how different he is than mere humans. Line 5 expresses his lack of limitations and line 6 is an expression of his existence beyond a physical realm. He is both above and beyond even shame and fear, so much so that they are one and the same him.
Emerson again utilizes alliteration in this stanza, first with “f” sounds in line 5 and then “s” sounds again in line 6. He brings both together with an in-lime rhyme of shame and fame in line 8.
Stanza Three
They reckon ill who leave me out;
When me they fly, I am the wings;
I am the doubter and the doubt,
I am the hymn the Brahmin sings.
If the first two stanzas are the Speaker’s attempt at self-description, the third is a description of the consequence of humanity underestimating his power and influence. This stanza reminds me of a line from Tolkien:
“It does not do to leave a live dragon out of your calculations, if you live near him.”
Emerson’s Brahma here is saying much the same thing, though in a deeper and more profound way. The Speaker is claiming that he is the reason that anything happens at all. If you write a book, everything your characters do has something to do with you. If you are Brahma, everything your creation does has something to do with you as well. (That’s the general sentiment of these lines, anyway.)
Stanza Four
The strong gods pine for my abode,
And pine in vain the sacred Seven
But thou, meek lover of the good!
Find me, and turn thy back on heaven.
Here the Speaker compares himself with the other gods. he says even they fall short of his majesty. They “pine” to live where he lives. The message here, to the reader, is to seek the Speaker above all things: other gods, holy pilgrimage sites, or any other good they can imagine. Brahma argues that he is above all of those things.
The “sacred Seven” in line 14 refers to the Sapta Puri. (via wiki)
The Sapta Puri (Sanskrit सप्त-पुरी, saptapurī, “seven cities”) are a group of seven Hindu tirtha, or holy pilgrimage sites, located in India. Pilgrimage to these sites is said to bless the pilgrim with moksha (liberation from the cycle of birth and death).
From a writing technique standpoint, we again see Emerson utilizing repetition and alliteration, creating as a result a very rhythmic piece.
The subject of this piece might feel as though it is an odd one for a 19th century American. However, Ralph Waldo Emerson was part of the American “transcendentalist” movement that sought out non-Western religious and philosophical ideas. The movement was among other things a rebellion against what it perceived to be dogmatic traditional Western thinking (including therein the bulk of Christianity), so its adherents looked for enlightenment in other quarters.
For a good reading and review of the poem, I recommend the following video:
