I saw my earthly life glide past in vision.
Scene after scene, forgotten long ago.
How blind—insanely blind, had I not been!
The sight of all my crimes confounded me.
They crushed my spirit with their leaden weight.
At last, I whispered—Punish me, oh Lord!
The voice replied—God claims no penalty.
Sin punishes itself. Each evil seed
Allowed to grow in wanton liberty
Must bear its bitter crop of pain and woe.
Towards the Light—A Mystic Poem, Princess Karadja, Dodd, Mead and Company, New York, 1908
Towards the Light—A Mystic Poem, Princess Karadja, Dodd, Mead and Company, New York, 1908
