Let Us Be Like the Sun
Let Us Be Like the Sun is the sixth book of poetry by Konstantin Balmont, first published in 1903 by Scorpion in Moscow. For an epigraph, Balmont has chosen the words of Anaxagoras: "I entered this world to see the Sun." The book came out with a dedication to Valery Bryusov, Sergey Poliakov, Yurgis Baltrushaitis and Lucy Savitskaya. Background Most of its poems were written in 1901–1902 when Balmont stayed at the Sabynino estate in the Kursk Governorate. In March 1902 Balmont made the public recitals for members of G. G. Bakhman's literary circle. The censorship committee instantly got interested, examined the book and demanded that numerous changes should be made. On July 1, 1903, Balmont wrote in a letter to Yeronym Yasinsky, then the editor of Ezhemesyachnye sochinenya (Monthly Books) magazine: "Have you received the book Let Us Be Like the Sun which while running through the censorship gauntlet has lost ten poems in the process? They wanted to throw out "The Devil's Artist" too, but it was saved by the fact that it had been published already in Ezhemesyachnye sochinenya." The book was completed in late 1902 and published in 1903. Its second edition came as part of