Gitanjali 78

When the creation was new and all
the stars shone in their first splendor,
the gods held their assembly in the sky
and sang “Oh, the picture of perfec-
tion! the joy unalloyed!”
   But one cried of a sudden––“It seems
that somewhere there is a break in the
chain of light and one of the stars has
been lost.”
   The golden string of their harp
snapped, their song stopped, and they
cried in dismay––“Yes, that lost star
was the best, she was the glory of all
heavens!”
   From that day the search is un-
ceasing for her, and the cry goes on
from one to the other that in her the
world has lost its one joy!
   Only in the deepest silence of night
the stars smile and whisper among
themselves––“Vain is this seeking!
Unbroken perfection is over all!”