O Never-Known, it may be Never-to-Know,
You are the murmur of colour in the East
When upon twilit clouds faint ghosts of sunset
Sigh from the Western rose-gardens.
Or the thin rippled tune
Of imperceptible Æolian harps
Swept by a wind out of the misty sphere
Just higher than the summit of the soul—
Music half-heard, song uncontainable.
Or you are violets whispering in the dark.
You are unshapen in the eyes of me,
But in my breast I carry all the breath
And sound and colour of you, Never-Known,
It may be Never-to-Know.
Poem by Eleanor Farjeon
The Meaning of the ‘Never Known’ Poem by Eleanor Farjeon
This poem is a lyrical meditation on the mystery of the unknowable — whether it be a person, a divine presence, or an ideal beyond human reach. The speaker addresses the “Never-Known,” a presence felt but not seen, evoked through delicate imagery: the fading colours of sunset, the faint song of unseen harps, the whispered scent of violets in darkness. These metaphors suggest something ethereal, intangible, and deeply yearned for.
Though the subject remains unshaped and unknowable to the eye, the speaker carries its essence within: a memory of feeling, sound, and beauty that lingers in the soul. The poem captures a profound longing to understand or reach something just beyond comprehension, embracing both the ache of mystery and the reverence it inspires.
Dreamlike and introspective, it is a celebration of the emotional richness that the unknowable can stir, even when it remains forever out of reach.
