一粒沙中看世界，一朵野花见天堂。——威廉-布莱克
Auguries of Innocenceby
William Blake
To see a World in a Grain of Sand
And a Heaven in a Wild Flower,
Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand
And Eternity in an hour.
A Robin Red breast in a Cage
Puts all Heaven in a Rage.
A dove house fill'd with doves & Pigeons
Shudders Hell thro' all its regions.
A dog starv'd at his Master's Gate
Predicts the ruin of the State.
A Horse misus'd upon the Road
Calls to Heaven for Human blood.
Each outcry of the hunted Hare
A fibre from the Brain does tear.
A Skylark wounded in the wing,
A Cherubim does cease to sing.
The Game Cock clipp'd and arm'd for fight
Does the Rising Sun affright.
Every Wolf's & Lion's howl
Raises from Hell a Human Soul.
The wild deer, wand'ring here & there,
Keeps the Human Soul from Care.
The Lamb misus'd breeds public strife
And yet forgives the Butcher's Knife.
The Bat that flits at close of Eve
Has left the Brain that won't believe.
The Owl that calls upon the Night
Speaks the Unbeliever's fright.
He who shall hurt the little Wren
Shall never be belov'd by Men.
He who the Ox to wrath has mov'd
Shall never be by Woman lov'd.
The wanton Boy that kills the Fly
Shall feel the Spider's enmity.
He who torments the Chafer's sprite
Weaves a Bower in endless Night.
The Caterpillar on the Leaf
Repeats to thee thy Mother's grief.
Kill not the Moth nor Butterfly,
For the Last Judgement draweth nigh.
He who shall train the Horse to War
Shall never pass the Polar Bar.
The Beggar's Dog & Widow's Cat,
Feed them & thou wilt grow fat.
The Gnat that sings his Summer's song
Poison gets from Slander's tongue.
The poison of the Snake & Newt
Is the sweat of Envy's Foot.
The poison of the Honey Bee
Is the Artist's Jealousy.
The Prince's Robes & Beggars' Rags
Are Toadstools on the Miser's Bags.
A truth that's told with bad intent
Beats all the Lies you can invent.
It is right it should be so;
Man was made for Joy & Woe;
And when this we rightly know
Thro' the World we safely go.
Joy & Woe are woven fine,
A Clothing for the Soul divine;
Under every grief & pine
Runs a joy with silken twine.
The Babe is more than swaddling Bands;
Throughout all these Human Lands
Tools were made, & born were hands,
Every Farmer Understands.
Every Tear from Every Eye
Becomes a Babe in Eternity.
This is caught by Females bright
And return'd to its own delight.
The Bleat, the Bark, Bellow & Roar
Are Waves that Beat on Heaven's Shore.
The Babe that weeps the Rod beneath
Writes Revenge in realms of death.
The Beggar's Rags, fluttering in Air,
Does to Rags the Heavens tear.
The Soldier arm'd with Sword & Gun,
Palsied strikes the Summer's Sun.
The poor Man's Farthing is worth more
Than all the Gold on Afric's Shore.
One Mite wrung from the Labrer's hands
Shall buy & sell the Miser's lands:
Or, if protected from on high,
Does that whole Nation sell & buy.
He who mocks the Infant's Faith
Shall be mock'd in Age & Death.
He who shall teach the Child to Doubt
The rotting Grave shall ne'er get out.
He who respects the Infant's faith
Triumph's over Hell & Death.
The Child's Toys & the Old Man's Reasons
Are the Fruits of the Two seasons.
The Questioner, who sits so sly,
Shall never know how to Reply.
He who replies to words of Doubt
Doth put the Light of Knowledge out.
The Strongest Poison ever known
Came from Caesar's Laurel Crown.
Nought can deform the Human Race
Like the Armour's iron brace.
When Gold & Gems adorn the Plow
To peaceful Arts shall Envy Bow.
A Riddle or the Cricket's Cry
Is to Doubt a fit Reply.
The Emmet's Inch & Eagle's Mile
Make Lame Philosophy to smile.
He who Doubts from what he sees
Will ne'er believe, do what you Please.
If the Sun & Moon should doubt
They'd immediately Go out.
To be in a Passion you Good may do,
But no Good if a Passion is in you.
The Whore & Gambler, by the State
Licenc'd, build that Nation's Fate.
The Harlot's cry from Street to Street
Shall weave Old England's winding Sheet.
The Winner's Shout, the Loser's Curse,
Dance before dead England's Hearse.
Every Night & every Morn
Some to Misery are Born.
Every Morn & every Night
Some are Born to sweet Delight.
Some are Born to sweet Delight,
Some are born to Endless Night.
We are led to Believe a Lie
When we see not Thro' the Eye
Which was Born in a Night to Perish in a Night
When the Soul Slept in Beams of Light.
God Appears & God is Light
To those poor Souls who dwell in the Night,
But does a Human Form Display
To those who Dwell in Realms of day.
这首诗前四句有多种译法
一颗沙里看出一个世界，
一朵野花里一座天堂，
把无限放在你的手掌上，
永恒在一刹那里收藏。
——梁宗岱 译
在一颗沙粒中见一个世界，
在一朵鲜花中见一片天空，
在你的掌心里把握无限，
在一个钟点里把握无穷。
——张炽恒 译
从一粒沙看世界，
从一朵花看天堂，
把永恒纳进一个时辰，
把无限握在自己手心。
——王佐良 译
一花一世界，一沙一天国，
君掌盛无边，刹那含永劫。
——宗白华 译
一沙一世界，一花一天堂。
无限掌中置，刹那成永恒。
——徐志摩 译
现在大多用下面的译法
一沙一世界，
一花一天堂。
双手握无限，
刹那是永恒。
一沙一世界，
一花一天堂，
一树一菩提，
一叶一如来。
天真的预言，
参悟千年的偈语。
威廉·布莱克是十九世纪英国浪漫派诗人，主要诗作有诗集《天真之歌》、《经验之歌》等。 早期作品简洁明快，中后期作品趋向玄妙晦涩，充满神秘色彩。 威廉·布莱克(William Blake)的一生极其简单，也没有什么大书特写之处，只有一些一直延续的简单事实和紧迫的艺术创作活动。1757年，他出生于伦敦一个贫寒的袜商家庭。由于个性过于独特，不喜欢正统学校的压抑气氛拒绝入学，因而没有受过正规教育。他从小就喜欢绘画和诗歌。11岁起就进入绘画学校学习了三年并表现出非凡的艺术才能。其父有意让他师从一位著名的画家继续深造，但他为了家庭及弟妹的前途而主动放弃了这次机会，去雕版印刷作坊当了一名学徒。他的一生便是一方面与妻子相依为命靠绘画和雕版的劳酬清贫为生，一方面继续从事12岁就开始的诗歌创作并配上自己的插图出版。直到1827年8月去世前的几天，他仍然在工作，“叫人用最后的几个先令去买碳笔”，画完最后一幅画把它放下，说道“我已经尽力而为了”。
谈论威廉．布莱克必然要澄清有关对他的诸多猜测与指责，有人说他是疯子和魔鬼信仰的杜撰和散播者，像伦敦夜间人们能够听到的墓地里走出的勾小孩子灵魂的新年老人，当然，布莱克不可能如拉伯雷与阿莱丁诺一样对世俗做彻底的思考或澄清，也许他是信仰的迷雾，但那也是饱蘸着痛苦和爱的“紫雾”，布莱克开创了一种藉想象力促成的幻觉而进行的思考，从这一点上看，他启发了爱米莉迪金森和迪兰·托马斯，甚至阿尔蒂尔·兰波。布莱克是想象力的先知，和经验的忠实记录者，我们宁愿把他看成从 “魔鬼作坊”里冲出来的最优秀的净化知觉的学徒。
布莱克最被人们引用和传诵的，也是后代文学大家反复赞美的几首诗歌如《擦烟囱的少年》、《保姆之歌》、《病玫瑰》、《老虎的赞美诗》，皆可以看作构筑布莱克之“天国原形”的一部分，这个自比为以西结的少年，四岁就看到了宗教幻象，并且可以用一种亲喃的语言和“白色诸神”寂静的交谈，尽管世风低落，文途滞涩，但布莱克怀着极大的天真和壮丽的想象力与战斗力，投入了类似班扬和马娄的“世俗反讽”运动中。
这种文艺复兴是旨在和针对于时弊而进行的抒情与想象力神话的回归，这些人对美大加赞美，并加之比喻为自己的面具，而对尘世中的人的命运却大加伤感，并认为他们破坏了作家的“美”的面具。于是拉伯雷戴上了讽刺，班扬戴上了布道，马娄戴上了戏拟与夸张，当然还有一种惊人的反讽，而布莱克则戴上了天真。
布莱克在和他相伴一生的乡村姑娘凯瑟琳的邂逅与***处中，获悉了平民心中的童话与贞洁，并以此与自身的经验和想象作为对比，参照了很多从中世纪就开始进行和流传的童话寓言式写作，并加上了自己独一无二的意象创造力，布莱克为我们留下了最重要的18世纪诗集《天国与地狱的婚姻—想象力的赞美诗》和《天真与经验之歌》，如果说前者是为结婚后守教的人看的，那么后者更多是小学生们的新年读物，或者圣诞老人给大家的金黄色的发光玩具。但我宁愿认为，布莱克构筑了我们世界的宏伟与庄严教堂的顶层，在那里，理想与现实的箴言熠熠闪光，时时为我们提醒着圣母般的洁净与肃穆。
布莱克从不否认自己是一个藉天真想象而进行创作的人，但同时代的人除了为他的怪异举止和热情四溢的精力而感到困惑外，还为他的面貌的高深与可敬而感到迷惑。布莱克显然不是为属他的身体命运的那个时代写作的作家一样，同阿蒂尔兰博一样，他藉一种基于神秘与梦幻经验而“对感官不同程度”的扰乱，找到了一条通向自由和赞美的 “天国诗歌”的归依与信仰。也许，这就是布莱克为我们留下的最重要的经验与价值，布莱克“玫瑰的哭嚎”和“真理总是隐藏在疯狂的暮霭中”的大胆语句，为我们找到了些许从“黑暗的烟囱”延伸到“玫瑰色天国”的神秘体验路途。