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| Rabbi Ben Ezra (1092-1167) |
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| Rabbi Ben Ezra with his disciples |
Browning in
this dramatic dialogue, published in volume “Dramatis Personae” (1864),
expresses philosophical ideas and positive acceptance of life in spite of
challenges and various changes that take place in life treating them as a part
of divine plan for the upliftment of the soul. Through the character of Rabbi
Ben Ezra, a Jewish scholar and poet, of 12th century, the poet
expresses his own philosophical ideas in his characteristic style. Unlike other
dramatic monologues, we do not find in this monologue any interaction, comments
and response from other characters or dramatic change in expression or feelings
tinged with irony and dark humour. This monologue was not written from the
perspective of any historical figure. It does not show any clear audience or
dramatic situation. It is more a philosophical poem. This poem deals with
spiritual concepts like the divine descent of man, relationship between body
and soul, the relative values of youth and age, the meaning of worldly success
and the need for divine faith.
The Rabbi’s philosophy
is a paradox since the struggles of life hold little meaning since life is but
our soul’s first step. So, a wise man should appreciate everything in life.
Only in old age can this paradox be appreciated. Rabbi praises old age as the
time when our soul reaches fruition and maturity. Man’s life is for struggle
and he should not get scared of trials and tribulations that come in his life.
He should be ready to bear all rebuffs and failures with stoic attitude.
“Then
welcome each rebuff/ That turns earth’s smoothness rough/ Each sting that bids
nor sits nor stand but go.”
“Be our joys three parts pain/ Strive and hold cheap the strain/ Learn nor account the pangs dare, never grudge the throe.” Man is allied to God “who doth provide and not partake, effect and not receive.” As we are all akin to God, we must develop the spirit and make our soul strong. Only the purified and strengthened soul will attain salvation. Man should be benefitted by his past and build the foundation for his future. “Hence work to watch / The master work, and each/ Hints of the proper craft, tricks of the tools to play.” Life is an opportunity for men to learn new lessons of life and pave their future. God is love. We should surrender to God’s mercy and believe in His dispensation. His plan of the universe is perfect. God and the soul are eternal. God is the potter and the soul is clay. The cup of human life is formed by God and this cup should be dedicated to God’s service. God will drink wine from the cup of human soul when it reaches heaven after its earthly journey is over. “Look not thou down but up! / To uses of a cup/ The festal board, lamp’s flash and trumpet’s peal/ The new wine’s foaming flow/ The master’s lips aglow.” “Thou, heaven’s consummate cup/ What needest thou with earth’s wheel?” Once the cup is formed, it has nothing to do with the potter’s wheel. Man should not be bound dizzily to the wheel of life. He should not take the mundane realities of life as the supreme reality in the world. Heavenly life after death is more real than earthly life. We must have full faith in the greatness of life in heaven and prepare ourselves for that life of beatitude and bliss.
The Rabbi
advises people to accept old age with grace as our life is not complete without
maturity of old age and everything is planned by God.” Our times are in His
hands”.
But at the
same time the narrator does not underestimate the value of youth during which
man leads an active life. Youth aspires
to reach stars beyond Jove or Mars. He admires their dreams and says that
low-minded people exist like clods of clay without any spark or ambition. “Low
kinds exist without/ Finished and finite like clods untroubled by a spark.” At the same time, he denounces those who spent
their lives in worldly joys. They are like beasts and birds which do not care
except to quench their hunger without any aspirations. It would be a poor life
if man spends all his time in gratifying the needs of the body at the expense
of soul. Body and soul should be developed side by side. Man’s life ought to be
spent properly in equipping the soul for its onward journey in its disembodied
form after its exit from the body. “Poor vaunt of life indeed/ Were a man but
formed to feed/ On joy, to solely seek and find and feast.”
Life is a
paradox. One should accept failures which show the way to success. To aspire is
enough which elevates man from the level of the brute. It should enable him to
display his spiritual side. Man learns from his past and all feelings and
thoughts treasured in one’s mind make our life precious and worth living. God
planned our lives in a perfect way and one should trust in divine design and
purpose. “Perfect I call Thy plan/ Thanks that I was man.”
Our soul is
enmeshed in the body which gives us scope to enjoy sensual pleasures. Yet our
restless soul yearns for peace and we have to strive for our own spiritual
welfare. In youth we have to face the challenges of life and face the odds
bravely. In the fire of life’s struggles, our minds become purified like gold
in furnace. Youth is the proper time to face strife so that in old age one
would not yield to temptations. Old age is meant for weighing the results of
past actions so that they can face future with confidence. “To act tomorrow
what he learns today.” One’s character is not judged by worldly standards which
are arbitrary, inconsistent and imperfect. “But all the world’s coarse thumb/
And finger failed to plumb/ So passed in making up the main account;/ All
instincts immature/ All purposes unsure/ That weighed not as his work, yet
swelled the man’s amount.” Only God knows the worth of man whom he has shaped
like a potter with a specific plan. Ordinary mortals unaware of God’s design
tend to seize the present moment and engage themselves in vain temptations. The
Rabbi calls such people as fools and advises that though time fleets, the
experiences gathered remain still and God and soul remain forever. “Fool! All
that is all/ Lasts ever, past recall/ Earth changes, but thy soul and God stand
sure.” Time’s wheel runs back or stops: Potter and clay endure.” Under the
influence of circumstances our souls are shaped to attain perfection just like
the pot is shaped on potter’s wheel.
One should
not worry about the past events of their youth or about the grim prospects of
old age. The ultimate purpose of life designed by God is more important than
the external conditions or worldly achievements. “Youth shows but half.” Youth
lacks insight into life since it is concerned with living in the moment that it
is unable to consider deeper questions. Youth will fade away soon. It is the
wisdom and insight of old age that recognizes that pain is a part of life which
makes one to appreciate the worth of joy. “Be our joy three parts pain.” One
should appreciate whatever comes since all adds to our growth towards God. We
have to embrace the paradox that life’s failures lead us on our way to success.
“He fixed thee mid this dance/ of plastic circumstance/ this present, thou,
forsooth, wouldst fain arrest; machinery just meant/ to give thy soul its bent,
/Try thee and turn thee forth, sufficiently impressed.” A wise older man
realizes that all things are gifts from God and the limitations of flesh are to
be appreciated. We should be patient since our life on earth is but one step of
our soul’s experience and our journey will continue. Youth is inclined to rage,
and age is inclined to await death patiently. Both are acceptable and wonderful
and each complements the other. The Rabbi
begs that we should not give too much credence to the earthly concerns that
engender argument and dissension. The transience of time does not matter since
this is only one phase of our existence. We need not grow anxious about
disagreements and unrealized goals since the ultimate truth is out of reach
anyway. He warns us against being distracted by the “plastic circumstance” of
the present moment. He stresses that all is a part of a unified whole, even though
we cannot glimpse the whole. At the same time age should approve of youth and
embrace the present moment It must also constantly look towards a heaven to come
and should be willing to renounce the present.
Man’s life is “heaven’s consummate cup” meant
for celebration of joy and festive spirit. “Look not down but up.” The Rabbi
implores God to help him in fulfilling God’s purpose and not get caught in
whirling struggles of life which may distract his attention. The Rabbi requests
God to use him as he had planned correcting the flaws in his soul. “My times in
Thy hand! Perfect the cup as planned.”
Finally, the
Rabbi concludes that God’s plan is perfect and every stage in man’s life
including old age and death is to be approved as a part of God’s plan. “Let age
approve of youth and death complete the same.”
The poet uses the metaphor of the pot and potter as a key or central
image to justify his philosophy and it also serves as a unifying element in
this poem. This dramatic monologue filled with penetrating insight and
philosophic vision is indeed a priceless jewel of Browning’s philosophy. It
gives inspiration and courage to youth and consolation and faith in God to
elderly persons. He underscores the supremacy of the spiritual over the secular
point of view reflecting the typical Victorian struggle between faith and
doubt. The Rabbi counsels us to come out of the cage of scientific agnosticism
and discover the secrets of joy by placing full trust in God. The poem ends on
a note of supreme satisfaction and complete acceptance of God’s plan.
Browning’s use of stanza is particularly
suitable for the reflective purpose of this philosophic lyric. This poem consists of 192 lines and is divided
into 32 stanzas and each stanza consists of six lines. Each li ne consists of
six lines with an experimental rhyme scheme (aabccb). The first, second, fourth
and fifth lines are in Iambic trimeter, but the rhyming third and sixth lines
are in Iambic pentameter. The last, long line serves to sum up the thought and
gives a final finishing touch to the stanza. The diction and style remain
basically conversational, a forerunner of modern poetry.
In
Browning’s dramatic monologues the speakers lay bare the inner thoughts and
feelings. That is why they are regarded as soul studies. A dramatic monologue
is a narrative spoken by a single character with explanatory comments on his story
and circumstances recording at the same time the reactions and attitudes of the
characters around. Subtlety of characterization, complexity of dramatic
situation, casual remarks, digressions add much to the character of the
speaker.
Most of his
characters are intellectually superior and enjoy high social status. They are eloquent rhetoricians and
speak in a satirical manner showing off their great virtues. The poet in a
subtle way reveals their failings and comments on their vices tinged with irony
and dry humour. Browning has been very much criticized for his difficult and
obscure style. His use of long involved sentences overloaded with parentheses
made his poetry complicated and not so easy to grasp the meaning. His sentences
start abruptly without any proper connections and syntax. He made frequent use
of Latin expressions, quotations, literary mythological and historical
allusions. This made his poetry rather difficult for common readers to
understand his poetry. Further he voiced philosophical concepts and optimistic
views in many of his poems. He use of far-fetched metaphors and similes coupled
with telegraphic style without proper connectives made his poetry abstract and
obscure. Omission of relatives, prepositions and articles and use of frequent
inversions and unusual compounds with jerky abrupt and rugged lines did not
attract many readers at the beginning. His poetry suffers sometimes from lack
of rhythm and melody. His vocabulary and syntax are complicated. Owing to his
vast knowledge of medieval and Italian Renaissance history, he selected unusual
and exotic themes and characters with which the readers not familiar. But his poetry is worth reading as it has
depth of meaning with a variety of characters and fine portrayal of
psychological analysis in a brief condensed style with depth of meaning.
Browning
admits: “the soul is the stage; moods and thoughts are characters.” He
emphasizes,” My stress lay on the incidents in the development of soul; little
else is worth study.” Browning tries to probe and explore the minds of
characters with objective approach. His monologues serve as a tool to examine
the issues of his day such as domestic abuse and religious hypocrisy. He
believed that the poet should try to put “the infinite within the finite.” He
thought that there was more action in character than a character in action. He
succeeded in unveiling the inner drama of mind rather than mere practical
action on stage. He made a deep analysis of psychology of various characters
who pretend to be virtuous and innocent with egoistic mentalities. Browning
popularized dramatic monologue influencing later day poets like W.B. Yeats,
Ezra Pound, T.S. Eliot and many other British poets.
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A Note on Rabbi Ben Ezra :
Rabbi Ben
Ezra (Abraham ben meir ibn Ezra), a Jewish scholar and poet, was born in Tudela
(Spain) in 1092. He introduced Islamic mathematics and Indian number systems in
Europe. He travelled widely throughout Europe from 1140 to 1160. Before this, he
even visited North African countries. He composed many books on grammar,
Biblical studies, philosophy, medicine, astronomy and astrology. He attacked
the artificial and showy language and style of early Jewish poets in Synagogues,
and he was the first to use Arabic meters in religious poems. According to him
there is no conflict between religion and science. He considered that science
and astrology were at the basis of Jewish learning. He passed away in
Calahorra, Spain in 1167.
15th September, 2022 Soamseshu Gutala
