Mardi Volume 2 Chapters LXXVI - LXXIX

Mardi Volume 2 Chapters LXXXV - LXXXVII

In which the company, having found no fulfilment in their quest at Serenia, face heartfelt counsel to cease their pursuit of Yillah, yet one voice remains resolute and unyielding, determined to chase the elusive phantom beyond all bounds. They encounter mysterious and fiery phantoms who lure them onward to the island of Hautia, and approach Flozella—a place steeped in ancient legend and shadowed by conflicting emotions—where hope and dread wrestle beneath the horizon.

Mardi Volume 2 Chapters LXXX - LXXXIV

In which the voyage unfolds beneath changing skies, revealing both the radiant promise of a new isle governed by love and the profound reflections of its visitors on life, death, and the spiritual mysteries that bind the cosmos. The traveller Babbalanja shares a luminous vision of celestial spheres and immortal truths, offering a glimpse into the eternal enigma that underlies existence and the solace found in humble faith.

Mardi Volume 2 Chapters LXXVI - LXXIX

In which a royal company lounges in a shady grove, discoursing upon the blind poet Lombardo’s grand yet incoherent masterpiece, the Koztanza, reflecting on the nature of genius, criticism, and inspiration amidst flowing wine and philosophical whimsy. Thereafter, the scene shifts to a jovial supper hosted by King Abrazza, where mirth and melancholy mingle beneath the harvest moon, as the company contemplates the toil of mortals and the transient joys of life’s banquet.

Mardi Volume 2 Chapters LXXI - LXXV

In which Babbalanja delivers a lengthy and contemplative discourse drawn from the ancient Ponderings of old Bardianna, meditating on the humility of mankind amidst the vast mysteries of the cosmos and the enduring enigma of existence. They then encounter a fearsome Death-cloud and later visit the sunlit isle of Bonovona, where King Abrazza, a ruler of generous pity but placid countenance, receives them amid an atmosphere of hollow laughter and enigmatic gaiety.

Mardi Volume 2 Chapters LXVI - LXX

In which a serenely calm noon beckons Yoomy to enchant the company with a flowing, triple-voiced song, amidst lively debates on the nature of poetic inspiration and philosophy; then the party ventures into a gloomy wood to seek the wise Doxodox, whose abstruse dialectics confound even the keenest minds before he abruptly dismisses them. Thereafter, as twilight falls and the lagoon lies becalmed, a ghostly encounter with mysterious canoes preludes their landing on the Isle of Cripples, where the textures of strange social custom and curious companionship with a sagacious chimpanzee unfold under King Media’s watchful, dreaming eye.