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It is said that the poet had been smoking opium -- for medicinal or other purposes? -- while
reading a book on the famous Kubla Khan, first emperor of the Mogul dynasty in China. The
poet fell asleep and had a bizarre dream.
When he awakened, he attempted to capture the dream in poetry but was disturbed towards
the end. When he returned to the poem, however, his thoughts had faded and he could no
longer remember his vision. The poem nevertheless catches this dreamlike, magical quality.
STANZA 1 & 2
Kubla Khan, ruler of the imaginary and mystical land of Xanadu, orders that a majestic dome
be built for the pleasure of his people.
The place he chooses for its construction is where the River Alph enters a series of caves which
are so massive they cannot be measured, and where the river eventually runs into a vast
underground sea.
Alph is a particularly significant name. Alpha is the first letter of the Greek alphabet.
Jesus Christ was said to be the Alpha and the Omega. The River Alph then is the first river --
and therefore very holy.
Is there also any association with the rivers Tigris and Euphrates which were the first rivers
mentioned in the Bible and which formed the boundaries of the Garden of Eden? Does the poet
have the Garden of Eden in mind when he speaks of Xanadu?
The poet thereupon describes the area in which the pleasure-dome is being built. It measures
ten miles in length -- or does the poet mean five miles square? -- and contains fertile fields
enclosed by great walls and battle turrets.
The gardens of Xanadu are bright with flowers, and many small streams meander through it.
Sweet smelling trees grow everywhere, together with ancient cedar forests.
The poet mentions that the trees smell of incense, which is a mixture of aromatic resins. When
burnt, these resins give off a sweet smelling smoke.
Because incense is associated with religious ceremonies, the poet is able to use the word to
add to the religious or magical effect of his poem.
Have you looked at the questions
in the right column?
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TEST YOURSELF!
Read the left column and then answer
the following questions:
"In Xanadu did Kubla Khan
A stately pleasure-dome decree:
Where Alph, the sacred river, ran
Through caverns measureless to man
Down to a sunless sea."
[Need help?]
In this poem, Kubla Khan is the ruler of the imaginary and mystical land of Xanadu. There was,
however, a real Kubla Khan who was the founder of the 13th century Mongol dynasty in China.
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- Explain in your own words the meaning of the phrase, "through caverns measureless to
man". (2)
[Need help?]
The poet visualises caves that are so immense that it is absolutely impossible even to describe
their size.
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- The first stanza speaks of how small man is when compared to nature. Quote the words
which tell you this? (2)
[Need help?]
"Through caverns measureless to man."
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- Why should the sea be "sunless"? (2)
[Need help?]
Think of the vision in the poet's mind: the river tumbling down into these vast caves, then
rushing onward into an immense underground sea -- very much along the lines of the
underworld sea of Jules Verne's Journey to the Centre of the Earth.
If one is deep down inside the earth, where would the sun be? Consider the creatures which
lived in such a sea -- for them the sun would not even exist!
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"So twice five miles of fertile ground
With walls and towers were girdled round."
- Write the above lines in your own words. (4)
[Need help?]
The poet clearly has a vision of an ancient walled city. The medieval cities were totally
enclosed in high walls for protection -- and often there was space within for gardens and
animals so that the people could withstand a long siege. Usually the walls would be punctuated
with guard turrets or look-out points.
The word "girdle" means "to go around" or "to wrap around". Women in
the not-so-far-distant past used to wear girdles around their tummies to tuck away the flab and
to keep them looking slim and trim.
Remember to translate the lines into you own words. Do not quote unless you are asked to
quote! So one could perhaps translate the lines into something like this: "Walls and battle
turrets surrounded a lush area of some ten miles."
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"And here were gardens bright with sinuous rills,
Where blossomed many an incense-bearing tree;
And here were forests ancient as the hills,
Enfolding sunny spots of greenery."
- Quote the words which tell you that the poet thinks of Xanadu as a beautiful place.
(6)
[Need help?]
Read these lines carefully and highlight every word that indicates the beauty of the place:
words like fertile, blossomed, incense-bearing, etc.
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- What are "sinuous rills"? (2)
[Need help?]
One normally thinks of "sinuous" as referring to well-shaped muscles. The word usually
conjures up a feeling of admiration. In this poem, the "rills" are streams which, like the
sinuous muscles, are beautifully shaped and flow in a twisting and curving fashion down the
slopes.
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- What does the poet mean when he says that there "blossomed many an incense-bearing
tree"? (4)
[Need help?]
Incense is a powder formed by mixing various resins. When burnt, it gives of a very pleasant
aroma which is usually associated with religion and holiness, e.g. it is often burnt during
religious ceremonies.
By speaking here of incense, therefore, the poet refers not only to the sweet fragrances arising
from the trees but also of the holiness of the place.
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