The Garden of Love

William Blake (1757-1827)
From: Songs of Experience

I went to the Garden of Love,
And saw what I never had seen:
A Chapel was built in the midst
Where I used to play on the green.

And the gates of this Chapel were shut,
And "Thou shalt not" writ over the door;
So I turned to the Garden of Love,
That so many sweet flowers bore;

And I saw it was filled with graves,
And tombstones where flowers should be;
And Priests in black gowns were walking their rounds,
And binding with briers my joys and desires.

The Garden of Love

Version 2006 - After William Blake
By Gerald Moonen

I went to the Garden of Love,
And saw what I never had seen:
A Prison was built in the midst
Where I used to play on the green.

And the gates of this Prison were shut,
And "Thou shalt not" writ over the door;
So I turned to the Garden of Love,
That so many sweet flowers bore;

And I saw it was filled with graves,
And tombstones where flowers should be;
And Lawyers in black gowns were walking their rounds,
And binding with briers my joys and desires.