Eternity

Eternity - meaning Summary

Joy Embraced, Not Possessed

Blake contrasts two attitudes toward pleasure: binding or possessing joy destroys its vitality, while accepting and releasing it—"kissing the joy as it flies"—preserves a sense of timelessness. The poem argues that freedom from attachment allows continual renewal and access to an "eternity" of light. The terse four-line lyric condenses this moral into a memorable paradox about transience and spiritual openness.