Love, health, communication

More People in Love Than Previously ThoughtBy Clara Moskowitz, LiveScience Staff Writer

posted: 20 March 2009 09:15 am ET

Romeo and Juliet would approve: A new study found that romantic love can stand the test of time.

Though it is widely held that romance and sex must ultimately yield to friendly companionship over time, new research found that's not the case. Instead about 13 percent of people reported high levels of romance in their long-term relationships, in a new study published in the March issue of the journal Review of General Psychology.


Researchers analyzed data from surveys of more than 6,000 people, including some in newly-formed pairs and many in marriages of more than 20 years. The scientists found that a surprisingly high number of people were still very much in love with their long-term partners, though the researchers drew a distinction between romantic love, which can endure, and passionate or obsessive love, which often fades after the beginning of a relationship.

"I think generally, in the literature, love has been measured as passionate love, so I think that's one reason for this widely-held assumption that love had to fade in relationships," said Bianca Acevedo, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of California, Santa Barbara, who authored the study while she was a graduate student at Stony Brook University. "The obsessive component is generally combined with the romantic component. Thought of that way, it looks like it's diminishing, but if you assess the romantic love differently than the obsessive component, it happens for a greater proportion than what was generally thought."

Romantic love has the same intensity, engagement and sexual chemistry as passionate love has, but without the obsession, Acevedo said. Passionate love, on the other hand, includes feelings of uncertainty and anxiety.

The new findings could help inspire couples to strive for better relationships, rather than resigning themselves to the inevitability of falling out of love, Acevedo said.

"Being in the mindset that [long-term romance] is probably not something to shoot for might be discouraging to some people," she told LiveScience. "They might think, 'This is probably as good as it gets.' I think it's important for people to at least know that it could be attainable."

What's the trick?

Acevedo and her advisor Arthur Aron are interested in finding out how some couples manage to keep the romance alive. So far, research indicates that it often has to do with pure hard work.

"These people are often very relationship focused," Acevedo said. "Their relationship is something that is very central to their lives, something they spend time on, work on, really care about. They seem to resolve conflicts relatively efficiently and smoothly."

Aron's previous studies suggest that couples who want to give romance a boost can benefit from doing new and challenging activities together. These novel experiences stimulate brains to create the neurochemicals dopamine and norepinephrine, which are also created during the early, exhilarating stages of romantic love.

Evolutionary benefits of love

Researchers debate whether people are really meant to stay in love throughout their lives. Helen Fisher, a professor at Rutgers University in New Jersey, has suggested that passionate love is maladaptive if it lasts too long.

"When people are in the early stages of romantic love, it's very hard for them to focus on other things," Acevedo explained. "They are constantly thinking about the other person. They have a lot of energy; they can stay up all night talking to each other. This can be very metabolically costly, and it's not efficient when it comes to work and relationships. I think this fits in well with the idea that the obsession component has to fade. It's unsustainable to be like that over the years while raising children and having jobs."

However, a certain level of love is beneficial, she said. Having a partner who increases your happiness and comfort is certainly a healthy thing, and being able to trust and rely on someone in difficult situations can improve a person's success in life.

Medical research has demonstrated the physical benefits of loving relationships. People who report being in positive relationships have been shown to be healthier, less stressed, and to have stronger immune systems. And some studies even suggest happily married people live longer than their single counterparts.

Instant Messages Reveal Relationship HealthBy Jeanna Bryner, Senior Writer

posted: 23 January 2009 08:09 am ET

The words that flow from our fingers to loved ones could say more than we think. The more frequently women use the pronoun "I" in their instant messages (IM), the more satisfied they are with their partners, a new study finds.

The guys also reported higher satisfaction in couples where the gal used "I" a lot in IMs.

While past psychological studies have analyzed couples and their communication techniques in lab settings, the new study, published last month in the journal Personal Relationships, relied on real-life scenarios.

"Instant messages are a great way to get at how people communicate in the real world," said lead study researcher Richard Slatcher of UCLA.

Great, happy, love

Slatcher and his colleagues analyzed 10 days of instant-message conversations from nearly 70 U.S. couples who had been dating for about one and a half years and had an average age of 19. The couples also answered questions about relationship satisfaction. Six months later, the couples indicated whether they were still dating. After six months, about 60 percent of couples were still dating while the others had broken up.

The researchers read through the conversations, noting the context of the IM threads. Then, they used a linguistic word count program to analyze the conversations' pronouns and words with emotional content.

Among pronouns in IMs, couples used "I" nearly 20 times more frequently than "we." And of the emotion words, all couples were most likely to use positive words.

"We found that the extent to which people used positive emotion words like 'great,' 'happy,' 'love,' tended to be happier in their relationships and to stay in their relationships for a longer period of time," Slatcher said.

Women who IMed with lots of "I's" were 30 percent more likely to stay in their relationships compared with other women.

Signs of comfort

The "I"-laden instant messages could indicate women were talking about themselves and were comfortable doing so with their partners, Slatcher said.

"Women tend to be more emotionally expressive in general and tend to be more disclosing in general," Slatcher told LiveScience. "So this finding suggests that beyond women wanting to disclose more and disclosing more in their everyday life, that when they do disclose more in their relationships, they're happier in those relationships."

He added, "An alternative explanation might be that you are not so enmeshed in your relationship that you have lost yourself completely," Slatcher said.

"What's really unique about this study is the way in which it captures naturally occurring discourse and discourse that's not a response to a particular type of situation," said Denise Solomon, professor of communication arts and sciences at Penn State University, referring to perhaps less telling lab studies set up to evaluate specific couple interactions.

"It's not these significant couple interactions that other research has focused on; it's really everyday talk," said Solomon, who was not involved in the research. "I thought that was a really important feature of the study."

Other findings included:

For women, the more they used so-called positive negations, such as "not happy," the less satisfied they and their partners were in the relationship.
The more men used positive sarcasm, such as "oh great," the less satisfied they were in their relationships and the more likely that relationship would split.

For both men and women, the use of negative emotions, such as "angry," wasn't related to their relationship satisfaction or stability.
Slatcher said the million-dollar question is whether using certain words when communicating with a partner leads to healthier relationships or that the most satisfied couples speak to each other, say, with certain pronouns and emotion words.

If couples could get a boost from changing how they speak to each other, "that's big news," Slatcher said, as the finding has implications for couples' therapy.

Mottos of LIFE

To find, recognize and embrace your beloved you must become the beloved.

To become the beloved you must be able to be-loved. So let love in through the front door, by first remembering that you are a gift from God whose worthiness of love is inherent, for at your essence, love is what you are.

To truly love we must rid ourselves of the fears that keep us silent and lazy.

We must never settle for a mere sent or flavour of love, we must not settle for the idea of love. For the true heart, the true soul has both patience and courage, for they know love is the holy grail we all seek, if only secretly.

So have patience because waiting for love gives you the time to earn the gift of true self love without which you would never know that depth that is a soul love shared.

Love is the rain that falls on the dry seed of our soul;

Fearing love and craving love are two sides of the same coin…

Both can have us holding on to someone or something, so desperately that we squeeze all the life out of it.

When you learn to love yourself you will embrace love, even knowing that its encounter may wound you. For love its self cannot wound, only the illusion of love paid for with currency of self respect leaves us wounded and emotionally bankrupt. From this bankruptcy of the heart many try to quit, swearing off love, rather than, swearing off the illusions placed upon it.

There are also those who have been wounded and they learn, they know these are not the wounds of the weak; these are the wounds that empower us to return to a deeper place of love. For the potion with which we bathe and heal the wounds of loves encounters is a rich distillation of self and mutual respect.

Only by learning to love yourself can you truly recognize love when it arrives at your door. However without knowing and embracing self respect, true love will remain hidden from you as the greatest mystery of life.

To know love, we must take a chance at love. Love is the baptism that has and that can if we let it, cleanse the heart, soul and mind of all its illusions. However, what the mind and body combined call love can also be the author of illusion.

To truly know the depth of this life we must be willing to engage in the adventure of a lifetime, knowing that love has the power to crush us under foot and at the same time raise us on the wings of angels to the heights we could have only dreamed.

Love is the rain that falls on the dry seed of our soul;
it fertilizes and nourishes that which has lain dormant in the desert of fear. Through love we learn to question our limitations so as to express our soul’s purpose.

To truly love we must rid ourselves of the fears that keep us silent and lazy.
We must never settle for a mere sent or flavour of love, we must not settle for the idea of love. For the true heart, the true soul has both patience and courage, for they know love is the holy grail we all seek, if only secretly.

So have patience because waiting for love gives you the time to earn the gift of true self love without which you would never know that depth that is a soul love shared.


To find, recognize and embrace your beloved you must become the beloved.
To become the beloved you must be able to be-loved. So let love in through the front door, by first remembering that you are a gift from God whose worthiness of love is inherent, for at your essence, love is what you are.


We can no longer afford to be ignorant!
Now is the time to step forward into the power of who you really are!


Those who choose to quickly embrace change will flourish.

We are standing on the bridge between two realities.

Your primary relationship is… The one you have with yourself!

Antidepressants and emotions

Antidepressant Drugs May Also Suppress Basic Human Emotions

Published on 02-25-2009 Email To Friend Print Version
http://blog.wired.com/wiredscience/2009/02...epressants.html


Antidepressant drugs, already known to cause sexual side effects, may also suppress the basic human emotions of love and romance.

That SSRIs, or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors — the most common type of antidepressant — cause sexual dysfunction is common knowledge. Of the 31 million adults in the United States who take the SSRIs, about 30 percent are believed to experience sexual dysfunction.

But a new theory suggests that SSRI antidepressants may also subtly alter the fundamental chemistry of love and romance, snuffing the first sparks between two people otherwise destined to become lovers, and preventing couples from bonding.

"There's every reason to think SSRIs blunt your ability to fall and stay in love," said Helen Fisher, a Rutgers University biological anthropologist who has pioneered the modern science of love.

For some people, of course, sexual side effects are an acceptable price to pay for curing debilitating depression. But as antidepressant use becomes more common, extending beyond full-blown clinical depression to disorders like anxiety and, in some cases, insomnia, the possibility of love-stunting is troubling.

SSRI antidepressants work by boosting circulating levels of serotonin, a mood-regulating neurotransmitter that also inhibits desire. The drugs also decrease dopamine, a neurotransmitter involved in a wide range of cognitive and behavioral processes, among them desire and arousal. The new research suggests that dopamine may also play a part in romance.

During sex, a cocktail of hormones is released that appears to play important roles in fostering romantic attachment within the brain. Take away sex, and romantic love can dwindle. But this is just part of the problem, say Fisher and University of Virginia psychiatrist James Thomson.

Dopamine also appears central to the neurobiology of romantic love and attachment, conditions that Fisher believes to be affected by — but ultimately distinct from — sexual love and its effects. She and Thomson say that SSRIs may do more than cause sexual dysfunction: They also suppress romance.

"There are all sorts of unconscious systems in our brain that we use to negotiate romantic love and romantic attraction," said Thomson. "If these drugs cause conscious sexual side effects, we'd argue that there are going to be side effects that are not conscious."

According to Fisher, humans have three distinct but interconnected love-related brain systems: one for sex, another for attachment and another for romantic love. This is still hypothetical — nobody knows exactly what love does in the brain — but Fisher has been a pioneering researcher on romantic love's neurobiology, and dopamine indeed appears important.

When couples have just fallen in love, the mere sight of the other causes a jump in dopamine-related brain activity. If they manage to stay in love, with the early flush giving way to long-term affection, those brain patterns stay active.

Reduced dopamine levels, however, are an inevitable effect of SSRIs. Reduce dopamine, say Fisher and Thomson, and the possibility of love itself is reduced.

Though biologically plausible, definitive evidence for this has yet to be found. The only study to specifically test the hypothesis was conducted by Saint Mary's University psychologist Maryanne Fisher, who found that women taking antidepressants tended to have muted reactions when showed pictures of attractive men. The effect was small, however, and the study has not been reproduced.

University of California at Los Angeles psychiatrist Andrew Leuchter acknowledged that increasing serotonin can decrease dopamine, but has not seen difficulties in forming emotional attachments among his patients. "I've seen people who have great difficulty with their emotional attachments, who think they've fallen out of love or want to isolate themselves, come alive again," said Leuchter, who receives funding from antidepressant drugmakers. "I'm not sure the syndrome [Fisher and Thomson] describe exists."

Thomson and Fisher, on the other hand, report the opposite: antidepressant takers who've lost the capacity for romantic feeling.

Clinical studies of antidepressant side effects do little to settle this debate. They've focused on sexual problems, which are far easier to measure than subtle effects on something so ephemeral as a spark.

Thomson recommended that psychologists investigating romance ask test subjects whether they take antidepressants. He also suggests that the possibility of romantic stunting be considered when deciding whether antidepressants should be prescribed to a child or young adult.

"Does it impact the development of those areas of the brain involved in love and sexuality? Does it impair the feelings and behaviors of romantic love and sexuality and the learning processes, which might be required to bring those areas of the brain online?" said Thomson. "We don't know."

Said Fisher, "We want to know about the side effects of other drugs. Why not know about the side effects of these drugs, which affect our reproductive future?"

Another alternative could be drugs that don't boost serotonin. Bupropion, also known as Wellbutrin, increases levels of dopamine and norepinephrine, another neurotransmitter; it's been associated with far lower levels of sexual dysfunction, but doesn't work for everyone.

Drug companies are currently designing next-generation antidepressants that raise dopamine, serotonin and norepinephrine levels simultaneously, and might have fewer romantic side effects. However, none of these drugs are yet on the market, and projected side effects remain hypothetical.

"Any drug in development is always better than anything out there," said Leuchter. "And then, once they hit the market, nothing is perfect."

WHAT MODERN MEN WANT FROM WOMEN-up-dates!

By Sally Law, LiveScience's Science of Sex Columnist

posted: 13 February 2009


What do men want in a woman? Brains? Beauty? Vacuuming prowess?

Researchers at the University of Iowa find that men increasingly are interested in intelligent, educated women who are financially stable — and chastity isn't an issue.

The findings are part of a study, conducted every decade since 1939, which asks participants to rank a list of 18 characteristics they would want in a partner on a scale ranging from "irrelevant" to "essential." Included are such items as "sociability" and "good cook, housekeeper," as well as "mutual attraction and love," which came in first place for both men and women in 2008. (In 1939, it wasn't in the top three for either sex.)

Male and female participants in 2008 rounded out their top traits with "dependable character" and "emotional stability, maturity." Men ranked intelligence fourth, a big jump from 11th place in 1939; in addition, "good financial prospect" moved to 12th place in 2008, a shift from its low 17th-place ranking in 1939 and last-place ranking in 1967.

"This is a generation of men who has grown up with educated women as their mothers, teachers, doctors, and role models," said Christine Whelan, head of the study and author of "Marry Smart: The Intelligent Woman's Guide to True Love" (Simon & Schuster, 2008). "And in tough economic times, sharing the financial burden with a spouse takes the burden off these guys to be the sole provider."

The study's participants were college students from the University of Iowa, the University of Washington, the University of Virginia, and Penn State University.

"Like attracts like, so certainly the fact that we were polling college students would suggest that intelligence and education are going to be important characteristics," Whelan says.

Another notable shift involves the significance of chastity: In 1939, it was valued more than intelligence in women, but in 2008, it was ranked the least important characteristic. Furthermore, it also was ranked the least important for men. This, coupled with the shared top-three ranking for both men and women, suggests a commonality that seems positively modern-day.

Details of the study are below.

The Most Tragic Love Stories in History
Everyone Agrees: Women Are Hard to Read
The Science of Love
Details:

WHAT MEN WANT

Essential characteristics:

Mutual attraction and love
Dependable character
Emotional stability
Important characteristics:

Education and intelligence
Good looks
Ambition
Desirable characteristics:

Good financial prospect
Good cook and housekeeper
Unimportant characteristics:

Similar political background
Chastity
WHAT WOMEN WANT

Essential characteristics:

Mutual attraction and love
Dependable character
Emotional stability
Important characteristics:

Education and intelligence
Desire for home and children
Ambition
Desirable characteristics

Good looks
Refinement
Unimportant characteristics:

Similar political background
Chastity
Comments (15)
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v_o_r wrote:
Well, at least "dependable character" and "emotional stability" are close to the top. People don't think about "chastity" (it's not "celibacy," yeesh) as closely related to "dependable character" but the characteristics are so closely related as to be nearly indistinguishable. "Chastity" means you don't cheat.

"Mutual attraction and love" are transitory (I presume this refers to the in-love feeling). It's great when you have it but if you want a lasting relationship, it will have to be based on something else.

2 Recommend | Report Abuseposted 2/13/2009 12:23:31 PMpdxmusl wrote:
Actually, chastity does refer or is often used interchangably with celibacy. More specifically it refers to morality in sexual behavior.

5 Recommend | Report Abuseposted 2/13/2009 1:04:56 PMHotone wrote:
It would be nice to see a sample size and the selection process if any.

Personally, I find it illogical that a person interested in politics could handle a mate that is from the opposite side of the political spectrum. So many arguments can erupt from different political beliefs. Chastity should be more clearly defined. Most people now days probably don't care if their partner has experience but too much "experience" would definitely be undesirable.

7 Recommend | Report Abuseposted 2/13/2009 3:31:12 PMHierophant wrote:
Good looks being rated in merely the "desireable" category in the women's section is a lie. Women are more self-conscious about their desire for good looking mates than men are. They feel those things SHOULDN'T be somewhere at the top of the list. Sadly it's true for both genders, men are just more openly shallow about it. For either gender, if they don't like what they see, they aren't going to talk to you to find out the rest of it.

16 Recommend | Report Abuseposted 2/13/2009 4:19:41 PMDebiwinters wrote:
Did you see this photo for Valentine's Day of Al Capone?


2/13/2009 5:17:27 PMsharptoothuk wrote:
I would go along with what the male survey has said. I love energetic and positive women more than anything else. Good looks would be an added bonus. Women like this are in high demand though so you need to be on the top of your game too!

From personal experience, i find some women put more emphasis on looks than others but generally they are not as shallow as men. If you can make a woman laugh and are relaxed around her then you can get build attraction. I have seen many examples of more attractive women with average looking men.


1 Recommend | Report Abuseposted 2/13/2009 5:33:58 PMhwangeruk wrote:
Aren't people fussy. I am simply looking for large boobs and a willingness to perform oral sex.
I don't even care about the laundry.

18 Recommend | Report Abuseposted 2/13/2009 5:57:36 PMnovaseeker wrote:
Chastity as unimportant?

It's one of the main reasons why marriages break up. Having both men and women not value it in selecting mates is very telling. It means people are marrying people who are quite sexually prolific, which leads to divorces down the road.


3 Recommend | Report Abuseposted 2/13/2009 7:10:39 PMHierophant wrote:
I forget who said it, but this quote has always stuck with me:

"Every man wants a virgin who's a whore."

Hey, now we men can be as self-contradicting as you women are, imagine that. :D lol

1 Recommend | Report Abuseposted 2/14/2009 4:45:32 PMEye wrote:
hwangeruk - LOL - thats for a date, not someone you want to marry. I'ld really like to see this same survey done with married people and see what their results are, I bet it would change quite a bit.

1 Recommend | Report Abuseposted 2/14/2009 5:48:12 PM
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Everyone Agrees: Women Are Hard to Read
Body Language Reveals Wealth

Evening Star- Mihail Eminescu

Longest Love Poem-world record set by the "Evening Star"

IASI, Romania -- The "Evening Star" ("Luceafarul") by Mihai Eminescu, a 98 stanzas long poem about the impossible love between immortal Evening Star and a beautiful mortal princess sets the world record for the Longest Love Poem.

Photo: The "Evening Star" -painting by Sabin Balasa (enlarge photo)

The Legend of the Evening Star ("Luceafarul") is a story about a young princess who prayed to the evening star each night. The evening star falls in love with her and is willing to give up his immortality, but realizes that the pure love he has for the young girl cannot be sustained in the mortal world.

The poem can be simply described (for the today's YouTube generation...) as a combination between "Gone with the Wind" (it is a romantic drama), "Star Trek" (it contains science fiction entertainment) and "Love Story" (the poem is one of the most romantic poems and it also ends in a drama)-all together, which means it is a romantic poem but also a third millennium modern poem.
The 100+ yrs old linden tree from the "Copou Park" of Iasi where the poet Mihai Eminescu use to get his inspiration, also known as "The Lovers Tree" has become a favorite destination for true romantic lovers from around the world.

"It's a miracle how this tree survived for so long" -says Dr. Mandache Leocov, former director of the local botanic garden.
Photo: Lovers Tree -Iasi / photo by Vlad Scanteie (enlarge photo)

Tourists from all the world-as far as Japan or Brazil- are coming here and kissing nearby the tree-which is supposed to bring good luck in love.

NASA named after "Eminescu" an impact crater from Mercury. "The crater was named in honor of Mihai Eminescu, an accomplished and influential poet who is still considered the national poet of Romania."
Poet Mihai Eminescu was also declared 'UNESCO-Year-2000-Poet-Of-The-Year'.

Luceafar (Evening Star) in Romanian is the name of the morning star (the planet Venus) which in Romanian folklore is associated with demons but is also linked to the Greek Titan Hyperion.

While the Romanian poet Mihai Eminescu (1850-1889) is often described as the essence of the Romanian soul, modern literary language in Romania is also much indebted to him.
His work encompassed every genre of poetry (love, philosophical, cosmological, mythological, historical, socio-satiric, etc.) as well as prose and journalism.

Mihai Eminescu is considered Europe's last great romantic not in the least because he gave voice of such unmistakable music to the sadness of love.

"The Evening Star" - an Italian school project (I)

"The Evening Star" - an Italian school project (II)

Book: Mihai Eminescu: Selected Poems

Saturday, February 14, 2009

EVENING STAR

There was, as in the fairy tales,
As ne'er in the time's raid,
There was, of famous royal blood
A most beautiful maid.

She was her parents' only child,
Bright like the sun at noon,
Like the Virgin midst the saints
And among stars the moon.

From the deep shadow of the vaults
Her step now she directs
Toward a window; at its nook
Bright Evening-star expects.

She looks as in the distant seas
He rises, darts his rays
And leads the blackish, loaded ships
On the wet, moving, ways.

To look at him every night
Her soul her instincts spur;
And as he looks at her for weeks
He falls in love with her.

And as on her elbows she leans
Her temple and her whim
She feels in her heart and soul that
She falls in love with him.

And ev'ry night his stormy flames
More stormily renew
When in the shadow of the castle
She shows to his bright view.

And to her room with her slow steps
He bears his steps and aims
Weaving out of his sparkles cold
A toil of shaking flames.

And when she throws upon her bed
Her tired limbs and reposes,
He glides his light along her hands
And her sweet eyelash closes.

And from the mirror on her shape
A beam has spread and burns,
On her big eyes that beat though closed
And on her face that turns.

Her smiles view him; the mirror shows
Him trembling in the nook
For he is plunging in her dream
So that their souls may hook.

She speaks with him in sleep and sighs
While her heart's swelled veins drum:
-"O sweet Lord of my fairy nights,
Why comest thou not? Come!

Descend to me, mild Evening-star
Thou canst glide on a beam,
Enter my dwelling and my mind
And over my life gleam!"

And he listens and trembles and
Still more for her love craves
And as quick as the lightning he
Plunges into the waves.

The water in that very spot
Moves rolling many rings
And out of the unknown, dark, depth
A superb young man springs.

As on a threshold o'er the sill
His hasty steps he leads,
Holds in his hand a staff with, at
Its top, a crown of reeds!

A young Voivode he seems to be
With soft and golden hair;
A blue shroud binds in a knot on
His naked shoulder fair.

The shade of his face is of wax
And thou canst see throughout -
A handsome dead man with live eyes
That throw their sparkles out.

-"From my sphere hardly I come to
Follow thy call and thee,
The heaven is my father and
My mother is the sea.

So that I could come to thy room
And look at thee from near
With my light reborn from waves my
Fate toward thee I steer.

O come, my treasure wonderful
And thy world leave aside;
For I am Evening-star up from
And thou wouldst be my bride.

In my palace of coral I'll
Take thee for evermore
And the entire world of the sea
Will kneel before thy door."

-"O thou art beautiful as but
In dreams an angel shows,
The way though thou hast oped for me
For me's for ever close.

Thy port and mien and speech are strange
Life thy gleams don't impart,
For I'm alive and thou art dead
And thy eyes chill my heart."

Days have past since: but Evening-star
Comes up againd and stays
Just as before, spreading o'er her
His clear, translucent rays.

In sleep she would remember him
And, as before, her whole
Wish for the Master of the waves
Is clinching now her soul.

-"Descend to me, mild Evening-star
Thou canst glide on a beam,
Enter my dwelling and my mind
And over my life gleam!"

He hears: and from the dire despair
Of such an woeful weird
He dies, and the heavens revolve
Where he has disappeared.

Soon in the air flames ruddy spread,
The world in their grip hold;
A superb form the spasms of the
Chaotic valleys mold.

On his locks of black hair he bears
His crown a fierce fire frames;
He floats as he really comes
Swimming in the sun's flames.

His black shroud lets develop out
His arms marbly and hale;
He pensively and sadly brings
His face awfully pale.

But his big wonderful eyes' gleam,
Chimerically deep,
Shows two unsatiated spasms
That but into dark peep.

-"From my sphere hardly I come to
Follow thy voice, thy sight;
The bright sun is my father and
My mother is the night.

O come, my treasure wonderful
And thy world leave aside
For I am Evening-star from up
And thou wouldst be my bride.

O come, and upon thy blond hair
Crowns of stars I shall crowd,
And more that all of them, up there,
Thou wild look fair and proud."

-"O thou art beautiful as but
In dreams a demon shows,
The way though hast oped for me
For me's for ever close.

The depths of my breast ache from the
Desire of thy fierce love
My heavy, big eyes also ache
When into them thine shove".

-"But how wouldst thou that I come down?
Know this - for, do I lie? -:
I am immortal, while thou art
One of those that must die!"

-"I hate big words, nor do I know
How to begin my plea;
And although thy discourse is clear
I don't understand thee.

But if thou wantest my flamed love
And that would not be sham,
Come down on this temporal earth,
Be mortal as I am!"

-"I'd lose my immortality
For but one kiss of thine!
Well, I will show thee how much too
For thy fierce love I pine!

Yes, I shall be reborn from sin,
Receive another creed:
From that endlessness to which I
Am tied, I shall be freed!"

And out he went, he went, went out,
Loving a human fay,
He plucked himself off from the sky,
Went for many a day.


Meanwhile, the house-boy, Catalin,
Sly, and who often jests
When he's filling with wine the cups
Of the banqueting guests;

A page that carries step by step
The trail of the Queen's gown,
A wandering bastard, but bold
Like no one in the town;

His little cheek - a peony
That under the sun stews;
Watchful, just like a thief, he sneaks
In Catalina's views.

-"How beautiful she grew" - thinks he -
"A flower just to pluck!
Now, Catalin, but now it is
Thy chance to try thy luck!"

And by the way, hurriedly, he
Corners that human fay:
-"What's with thee, Catalin? Let me
Alone and go thy way!"

-"No! I want thee to stay away
From thoughts that have no fun
. I want to see thee only laugh,
Give me a kiss, just one!"

-"I don't know what it is about
And, believe me, retire!
But for one Evening-star up from
I've kept my strong desire!"

-"If thou dost not know I could show
Thee all about love's balm!
Only, don't give way to thy ire
And listen and be calm.

So as the hunter throws the net
That many birds would harm,
When I'll stretch my left arm to thee,
Enlace me with thy arm.

Under my eyes keep thine and don't
Let them move on their wheels
And if I lift thee by the waist
Thou must lift on thy heels.

When I bend down my face, to hold
Thine up must be thy strife;
So, to each other we could throw
Sweet, eager, looks for life.

And so that thou have about love
A knowledge true and plain,
When I stoop to kiss thee, thou must
Kiss me too and again."

With much bewilderment her mind
The little boy's word fills,
And shyly and nicely now she
Wills not, and now she wills.

And slowly she tells him:- "Since thy
Childhood I've known thy wit,
And as thou art and glib and small
My temper thou wouldst fit.

But Evening-star sprung from the calm
Of the oblivion,
Though, gives horizon limitless
To the sea lone and dun.

And secretly, I close my eyes
For my eyelash tears dim
When the waves of the sea go on
Travelling toward him.

He shines with love unspeakable
So that my pains he'd leach,
But higher and higher soars, so
That his hand I'd ne'er reach.

Sadly thrusts from the worlds which from
My soul his cold ray bar...
I shall love him for ever and
For ever he'll rove far.

Like the unmeasured steppes my days
Are deaf and wild, therefore,
But my nights spread a holy charm
I understand no more!"

-"Thou art a child! Let's go! Through new
Lands our own fate let's frame!
Soon they shall have lost our trace and
Forgot even our name!

We shall be both wise, glad and whole
As my judgement infers
And thou wouldst not long for thy kin
Nor yearn for Evening-stars!"


Then Evening-star went out. His wings
Grow, into heavens dash,
And on his way millenniums
Flee in less than a flash.

Below, a depth of stars; above,
The heaven stars begem, -
He seems an endless lightning that
Is wandering through them.

And from the Chaos' vales he sees
How in an immense ring
Round him, as in the World's first day,
Lights from their sources spring;

How, springing, they hem him like an
Ocean that swimming nears...
He flees carried by his desire
Until he disappears.

For that region is boundless and
Searching regards avoids
And Time strive vainly there to come
To life from the dark voids.

'Tis nought. 'Tis, though, thirst that sips him
And which he cannot shun,
'Tis depth unknown, comparable
To blind oblivion.

-"From that dark, choking, endlessness
Into which I am furled,
Father, undo me, and for e'er
Be praised in the whole world!

Ask anything for this new fate
For with mine I am through:
O hear my prayer, O my Lord, for
Thou gives life and death too.

Take back my endlessness, the fires
That my being devour
And in return give me a chance
To love but for an hour!

I've come from Chaos; I'd return
To that my former nest...
And as I have been brought to life
From rest, I crave for rest!"

-"Hyperion, that comest from
The depths with the world's swarm,
Do not ask signs and miracles
That have no name nor form.

Thou wantest to count among men,
Take their resemblance vain;
But would now the whole mankind die
Men will be born again.

But they are building on the wind
Ideals void and blind;
When human waves run into graves
New waves spring from behind.

Fate's persecutions, lucky stars,
They only are to own;
Here we know neither time nor space,
Death we have never known.

From the eternal yesterday
Drinks what to-day will drain
And if a sun dies on the sky
A sun quickens again.

Risen as for ever, death though
Follows them like a thorn
For all are born only to die
And die to be reborn.

But thou remainest wheresoe'er
Thou wouldst set down or flee.
Thou art of the prime form and an
Eternal prodigy.

Thou wilt now hear the wondrous voice
At whose bewitched singing
Mounts woody get skipping to skies
Into sea Island sinking!

Perhaps thou wilt more: show in deeds
Thy sense of justice, might,
Out of the earth's lumps make an empire
And settle on its height!

I can give thee millions of vessels
And hosts; thou, bear thy breath
O'er all the lands, o'er all the oceans:
I cannot give thee death.

For whom thou wantest then to die?
Just go and see what's worth
All that is waiting there for thee
On that wandering earth!"


His first dominion on the sky
Hyperion restores
And like in his first day, his light
All o'er again he pours.

For it is evening and the night
Her duty never waives.
Now the moon rises quietly
And shaking from the waves,

And upon the paths of the groves
Her sparkles again drone...
Under the row of linden-trees
Two youths sit all alone.

-"O darling, let my blessed ear feel
How thy heart's pulses beat,
Under the ray of thy eyes clear
And unspeakably sweet.

With the charms of their cold light pierce
My thought's faery glades,
Pour an eternal quietness
On my passion's dark shades.

And there, above, remain to stop
Thy woe's violet stream,
For thou art my first source of love
And also my last dream!"

Hyperion beholds how love
Their eyes equally charms:
Scarcely his arm touches her neck,
She takes him in her arms.

The silvery blooms spread their smells
And their soft cascade strokes
The tops of the heads of both youths
With long and golden locks.

And all bewitched by love, she lifts
Her eyes toward the fires
Of the witnessing Evening-star
And trusts him her desires:

-"Descend to me, mild Evening-star
Thou canst glide on a beam,
Enter my forest and my mind
And o'er my good luck gleam!"

As he did it once, into woods,
On hills, his rays he urges,
Guiding throughout so many wilds
The gleaming, moving, surges.

But he falls not as he did once
From his height into swells:
-"What matters thee, clod of dust, if
'Tis me or some one else?

You live in your sphere's narrowness
And luck rules over you -
But in my steady world I feel
Eternal, cold and true!"