The turf shall be my fragrant shrine
The turf shall be my fragrant shrine. Thomas Moore* (1779-1852).
This hymn is from Moore’s A Series of Sacred Songs, Duetts and Trios (1816). It is little known in Britain, but was popular at one time in the USA, especially in Unitarian/Universalist hymnals, although it was also found in the important Plymouth Collection* of Hymns and Tunes, edited by Henry Ward Beecher* . Its central theme of ‘the temple of nature’ was attractive to Unitarians and others of a similar persuasion. Moore’s original text was as follows:
The turf shall be my fragrant shrine; My temple, Lord! that Arch of thine; My censer’s breath the mountain airs, And silent thoughts my only prayers.
My choir shall be the...
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MLA style (see MLA Style Manual and Guide to Scholarly Publishing, 3rd Ed.)
. "The turf shall be my fragrant shrine."
The Canterbury Dictionary of Hymnology. Canterbury Press. Web. 13 Apr. 2026.<
http://www.hymnology.co.uk/t/the-turf-shall-be-my-fragrant-shrine>.
Chicago style (see The Chicago Manual of Style, 16th Ed.)
. "The turf shall be my fragrant shrine."
The Canterbury Dictionary of Hymnology. Canterbury Press, accessed April 13, 2026,
http://www.hymnology.co.uk/t/the-turf-shall-be-my-fragrant-shrine.