--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The Trial By Existence Even the bravest…" description: "\"“The Trial By Existence Even the bravest that are slain Shall not dissemble their surprise On waking to find valor reign, Even as on earth, in paradise..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccb/robert-frost-371_courage_the-trial-by-existence-even-the-bravest_1251417.jpg" --- # The Trial By Existence Even the bravest that are slain… ![“The Trial By Existence Even the bravest that are slain Shall not dissemble their surprise On waking to find valor reign, Even as on earth, in paradise; And where they sought without the sword Wide fields of asphodel fore’er, To find that the utmost reward Of daring should be still to dare. The…” quote by Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccb/robert-frost-371_courage_the-trial-by-existence-even-the-bravest_1251417.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccb/robert-frost-371_courage_the-trial-by-existence-even-the-bravest_1251417.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccb/robert-frost-371_courage_the-trial-by-existence-even-the-bravest_1251417.jpg) > ““The Trial By Existence Even the bravest that are slain Shall not dissemble their surprise On waking to find valor reign, Even as on earth, in paradise; And where they sought without the sword Wide fields of asphodel fore’er, To find that the utmost reward Of daring should be still to dare. The light of heaven falls whole and white And is not shattered into dyes, The light for ever is morning light; The hills are verdured pasture-wise; The angel hosts with freshness go, And seek with laughter what to brave;— And binding all is the hushed snow Of the far-distant breaking wave. And from a cliff-top is proclaimed The gathering of the souls for birth, The trial by existence named, The obscuration upon earth. And the slant spirits trooping by In streams and cross- and counter-streams Can but give ear to that sweet cry For its suggestion of what dreams! And the more loitering are turned To view once more the sacrifice Of those who for some good discerned Will gladly give up paradise. And a white shimmering concourse rolls Toward the throne to witness there The speeding of devoted souls Which God makes his especial care. And none are taken but who will, Having first heard the life read out That opens earthward, good and ill, Beyond the shadow of a doubt; And very beautifully God limns, And tenderly, life’s little dream, But naught extenuates or dims, Setting the thing that is supreme. Nor is there wanting in the press Some spirit to stand simply forth, Heroic in its nakedness, Against the uttermost of earth. The tale of earth’s unhonored things Sounds nobler there than ’neath the sun; And the mind whirls and the heart sings, And a shout greets the daring one. But always God speaks at the end: ’One thought in agony of strife The bravest would have by for friend, The memory that he chose the life; But the pure fate to which you go Admits no memory of choice, Or the woe were not earthly woe To which you give the assenting voice.’ And so the choice must be again, But the last choice is still the same; And the awe passes wonder then, And a hush falls for all acclaim. And God has taken a flower of gold And broken it, and used therefrom The mystic link to bind and hold Spirit to matter till death come. ‘Tis of the essence of life here, Though we choose greatly, still to lack The lasting memory at all clear, That life has for us on the wrack Nothing but what we somehow chose; Thus are we wholly stripped of pride In the pain that has but one close, Bearing it crushed and mystified.”” [Robert Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The poem explores the paradox of heroic effort: even the bravest face unexpected challenges, yet true reward lies in continual daring and divine purpose. **In simple terms:** Heroes keep daring despite surprise and sacrifice. Key Takeaway Embrace continual courage, not just single triumphs. Themes courage spirituality existence sacrifice divine purpose Mood reflective hopeful solemn Type poetic philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - war - personal loss - creative endeavor - spiritual crisis - ethical decision Key Concepts heroic paradox divine trial eternal striving Questions to Reflect On - What does “daring” mean in your daily life? - How can you recognize divine purpose amid hardship? 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The light of heaven falls whole and white And is not shattered into dyes, The light for ever is morning light; The hills are verdured pasture-wise; The angel hosts with freshness go, And seek with laughter what to brave;— And binding all is the hushed snow Of the far-distant breaking wave. And from a cliff-top is proclaimed The gathering of the souls for birth, The trial by existence named, The obscuration upon earth. And the slant spirits trooping by In streams and cross- and counter-streams Can but give ear to that sweet cry For its suggestion of what dreams! And the more loitering are turned To view once more the sacrifice Of those who for some good discerned Will gladly give up paradise. And a white shimmering concourse rolls Toward the throne to witness there The speeding of devoted souls Which God makes his especial care. And none are taken but who will, Having first heard the life read out That opens earthward, good and ill, Beyond the shadow of a doubt; And very beautifully God limns, And tenderly, life’s little dream, But naught extenuates or dims, Setting the thing that is supreme. Nor is there wanting in the press Some spirit to stand simply forth, Heroic in its nakedness, Against the uttermost of earth. The tale of earth’s unhonored things Sounds nobler there than ’neath the sun; And the mind whirls and the heart sings, And a shout greets the daring one. But always God speaks at the end: ’One thought in agony of strife The bravest would have by for friend, The memory that he chose the life; But the pure fate to which you go Admits no memory of choice, Or the woe were not earthly woe To which you give the assenting voice.’ And so the choice must be again, But the last choice is still the same; And the awe passes wonder then, And a hush falls for all acclaim. And God has taken a flower of gold And broken it, and used therefrom The mystic link to bind and hold Spirit to matter till death come. ‘Tis of the essence of life here, Though we choose greatly, still to lack The lasting memory at all clear, That life has for us on the wrack Nothing but what we somehow chose; Thus are we wholly stripped of pride In the pain that has but one close, Bearing it crushed and mystified.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Robert Frost" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/the-trial-by-existence-even-the-bravest-that-are-slain-shall-not/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Courage" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/the-trial-by-existence-even-the-bravest-that-are-slain-shall-not/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccb/robert-frost-371_courage_the-trial-by-existence-even-the-bravest_1251417.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccb/robert-frost-371_courage_the-trial-by-existence-even-the-bravest_1251417.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ccb/robert-frost-371_courage_the-trial-by-existence-even-the-bravest_1251417.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The Trial By Existence Even the bravest that are slain Shall not dissemble their surprise On waking to find…” — Robert Frost", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Robert Frost", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-frost/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“The Trial By Existence Even the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/the-trial-by-existence-even-the-bravest-that-are-slain-shall-not/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-frost/the-trial-by-existence-even-the-bravest-that-are-slain-shall-not/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```