All this was a long time ago,i remember
And i would do it again,but set down
This set down
This:were we led all that way for
Birth and Death?There was a Birth,certainly,
We had evidence and no doubt.I had seen birth and death,
But had thought they were different;this birth was
Hard and bitter agony for us,like Death,our death
We returned to our places,these kingdoms,
But no longer at ease here,in the old dispensation,
With an alien people clutching their gods.
I should be glad of another death.
(From T.S Elliott’s ‘Journey Of The Magi’)
The Magi are no longer at ease because
- they suffered alot on their way to Bethlehem
- they found greater spiritual satisfaction from their journey
- death and birth are one and the same thing
-
their kingdoms can no longer offer them satisfaction
- the world has changed for the worse