William Butler Yeats

The Balloon of the Mind

art & creativity lyric poem austere

Hands, do what you're bid: Bring the balloon of the mind That bellies and drags in the wind Into its narrow shed.

The Balloon of the Mind - meaning Summary

Mind's Balloon Constrained

The short poem addresses the hands as agents of control, ordering them to restrain an unruly imagination. The image of a balloon that "bellies and drags in the wind" suggests a creative or emotional force that is expansive and unwieldy. The command to bring it into a narrow shed implies discipline, containment, and the practical need to limit or secure the mind’s energies rather than let them drift free.

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