Jerusalem Analysis

And did those feet in ancient time
Walk upon England's mountains green?
And was the holy Lamb of God
On England's pleasant pastures seen?

And did the Countenance Divine
Shine forth upon our clouded hills?
And was Jerusalem builded here
Among these dark Satanic mills?

Bring me my bow of burning gold:
Bring me my arrows of desire:
Bring me my spear: O clouds unfold!
Bring me my chariot of fire.

I will not cease from mental fight,
Nor shall my sword sleep in my hand
Till we have built Jerusalem
In England's green and pleasant land.

.: :.

My interpretation is that Blake was intrigued by the idea that Jesus visited england once upon a time. He wonders whether Jesus' visit would have resulted in a state of happiness and contentment in england and bought about a time where society was ethical, pure and good. He finds it difficult to believe when he looks at the way england is developing now with industrialisation and possibly structural society with inequality and discontent. He then vows to never give up his spiritual battle until this 'utopia' is delivered to england, a land his sees as beautiful and pleasant and full of the potential to acheive such a status. I think it is incredibly positive and stirring though admit the music that subsequently accompanied it helps a lot. I believe it IS specifically about england and is patriotic in a sense that he loves england as thinks it has the potential to be a wonderful place.
Thats my interpretation in both senses - ie 1) its what i think he meant and 2) its what I take from it. teh fact that is is now so often associated with england sporting teams makes me love it all the more.

| Posted on 2009-08-24 | by a guest

.: :.

Sung with gusto in school assemblies and churches, the poem is full of sexual imagery and attacks the dark, satanic' churches themselves. One of Blake's less obscure pieces.

| Posted on 2009-05-16 | by a guest

.: :.

Jerusalem ; The poem does indeed refer to the legend that Jesus visited England with Joseph as a child .
Blake was never a patriot and the poem is not a patriotic one . It is a damning social comment of how government, industry and univesities were becoming more distant from true values.
The call to arms refers to a spirtual battle not a physical one .The 3rd verse links into the book of Revelations rather than an actual call to arms e.g The parting of the clouds refers to Christ 's coming on the last day .
The singing of this unpatriotic poem at national events shows how widespread is people's total misconception of it .
veronica

| Posted on 2009-05-05 | by a guest

.: :.

It me the 'a guest' from below who posted on 2009-02-02.
Well I think what you say is also the message of the poem but put more succinctly.
Yet what evidence is there that Jesus walked on Englands mountains and pastures? This I think he found in the story of Joseph of Arimathea coming here and bringing the young Jesus but also in the legends of Arthur. Blake saw Arthur as being the same as Jesus or at least an English representation of Jesus - In my opinion.
These Arthurian myths, to him, were great evidence of the idea of Jesus walking in England, at least the mythic Jesus anyway.
I think you are right with the attack on the businessman and the clergy but Blake was an opponent of the enlightenment I think he said something like- science is the road to death and art the road to life (not sure if that is the exact quote) I cannot remember, was it Urizen who gave Newton the keys to the universe? So I believe the Dark Satanic mills were the places churning out the new godless world of the enlightenment. So does this not mean, although the actual mills were a product of satan - the dark satanic mills were more the bleak protestant religions and the enlightenment philosophies that churned out the satanic products so to speak? Marching England into the 'Sleep of Ulro' or into this new world. He is saying this is not good as England is a sacred land and He (the artist) will fight against it.
Have you ever read Camelot and the Vision of Albion by Geoffrey Ashe - I have always been a massive Blake fan but have just discovered this book which is a fascinating look at the myth of Arthur and relates it a lot to Blake and Myths in general surrounding Britain and its mythological past. I thoroughly recommend it.
He gives great credence to the fact that Something weird happened in the celtic mythology of the British Isles which influenced Blake.

| Posted on 2009-02-24 | by a guest

.: :.

Surely though, Blake is not refering to KIng Arthur but to that although people believe that England is marching towards a new world it is at the cost of the land that Jesus trod on. It is an attack on the buisnessman and the clergy

| Posted on 2009-02-09 | by a guest

.: :.

Blake was referring to the English Myth that England was once Jerusalem. Albion was god and King Arthur was sort of Jesus. By Jesus I guess the mythical/mystical christ not necessarily Jesus the man. Jerusalem is obviously Heaven which according to the myth was once England. I think the previous poster was correct in the assertion that the dark satanic mills refered to the universities/churches etc rather than the actual mills of the Industrial revolution as this line is often misinterpreted. I would say the 3rd verese is something akin to Jesus's putting on your armour. I guess its like having faith in your faith. The final verse I think is refering to the inner struggle the mystic must face to attain heaven / nirvana etc. How did I do?

| Posted on 2009-02-02 | by a guest

.: :.

The interpretaion of "dark Satanic mills" is generally taken literally. Blake was an ardent no conformist and of radical mind. The "mills" could just as easily refet to the established churches and universities of the time which would turn out minds incapable of "Mental fight"

| Posted on 2009-01-13 | by a guest

.: :.

in the bible, a sword was seen as the holy word of God.
Hebrews 4:12 (King James Version)
12For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
Revalation 1: 16
16And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.

| Posted on 2008-10-22 | by a guest

.: :.

Blake was a religious man, a follower of the gentle and mystic interpretation of christanity - Emanuel Swedenborg. Therefore i fully agree that his focus is based on christianity. He saw many things to be wrong in his beloved England but did not critisize harshly, this comes across in his poems such as Jerusalem along with his idyllic views on religion and such.

| Posted on 2008-10-08 | by a guest

.: :.

I hear echoes of The Albigensian Heresy in this poem. Jesus did not die and was married to Mary Magdelene, according to that alternative Christian interpretation.

| Posted on 2008-08-31 | by a guest

.: stan asmus :.

The poem simply refers to the old tradition that Christ the holy lamb has really spent some time in England, in the Glastonbury region. Possible evidence for this can easily be found.
The dark satanic mills can indeed refer to the terrible consequences of the industrialization of England.
We should take up arms against this and make England the green and pleasant land again. Just as it was when His feet walked on England`s mountains green

| Posted on 2008-05-09 | by a guest

.: GaryR :.

The poem itself suggests that we have to work to obtain our "Jerusalem" in England. But the fact that Blake discusses England's mountains suggests that he still believes in the beauty of the country.
The fact that Blake uses weapons as a metaphor for work is simply a reflection of the language and artistic work of the time. The Old Bailey in London features a statue of Lady Justice on the roof. In one hand she has a sword, in the other scales. This is not seen as a violent symbol, when understood properly. Neither should Blake's poem.

| Posted on 2008-03-04 | by a guest

.: Jihad's comment :.

Jihad is reading something into this poem that is not there. Perhaps he wants to imagine that Christians are warlike? The poem Jerusalem is actually an excerpt from the preface to one of Blake's book, 'Milton'.

Jerusalem is the symbol of utopia where man is freed from the chains of commerce, British imperialism, and war. Blake's "mental fight" is directed against these chains. In his Blake: Prophet Against Empire, David Erdman tells us that Blake's "dark, Satanic Mills" are "mills that produce dark metal, iron and steel, for diabolic purposes. London was a war arsenal and the hub of the machinery of war, and Blake uses the symbol in that sense."
So, actually, Blake's poem is anti-war which is a fair representation of the New Testament.


| Posted on 2007-04-28 | by a guest

.: jihad :.

I can't claim an academic understanding of this poem, but it reads to me like a Christian exhortation to holy war. The bow of burning gold and arrows of desire are metaphorical enough, but when Blake promises not to let his sword sleep until he has built Jerusalem in England, it sounds a lot like he's talking about killing people in the name of God.

| Posted on 2007-03-05 | by a guest

.: :.

This is not, as is commonly held and proudly sung, a eulogy of a lost and merry England. Read carefully it is a stinging indictment on the current changes in English society witnessed by an inhabitant of the richest and largest city in the world at the beginning of the industrial revolution. It characterises England as non-Christian, removed from God/Nature (to Blake the same thing)and having the dehumanising and sacreligious machine factories of Evil. Blake wants to destroy this God-forsaken reality, battle it, burn it and replace it with a New Jerusalem YET to be realised. This poem in no way sanctifies England nor Englishness despite the popular misconception.

| Posted on 2005-09-17 | by Approved Guest