The Snows
Alfred Williams
Blue is the vault of heaven, and deep
O'er Nandadevi's awful steep;
On Kamet's top the stars look down
And weave for him a golden crown.
On nampa strikes the central fire,
And smites his soul to fierce desire,
By Bartakhanta pausing soon
To gild the sickle of the moon.
Between, in purple light and shade,
With dawn, and noon, and sunset made,
A solemn city there begets
With towers, and spires, and minarets.
My soul shrinks backward in amaze,
And half forbids the eyes to gaze,
Now, shooting forth, re-views the sight,
And leaps to heaven in sweet delight.
Nanda Devi is a mountain in the Himalayas, in the Indian state of Uttarakhand. Alfred Williams was posted to Uttarakhand during the First World War. Nanda Devi is the second highest mountain in India. The area around it is now a national park.
