Our two souls therefore, which are one,
Though I must go, endure not yet
A breach, but an expansion,
Like gold to airy thinness beat.
If they be two, they are two so
As stiff twin compasses are two;
Thy soul, the fixed foot, makes no show
To move, but doth, if the other do.
And though thine in the center sit,
Yet when my other far doth roam,
Thou then dost with more motion flit.
Therefore the love which thou dost owe
Doth teach thee when I go to stay
And leave such tears and sighs as these,
As well thou may'st, which are not thine.
In the context of this stanza, tear floods and sigh tempests refer to excessive displays of emotion, such as uncontrollable crying and heavy sighing, that are often associated with mourning and separation. The speaker urges his beloved not to indulge in such emotional outpourings because they are not truly hers, but rather a reflection of her attachment to him. By asking her to leave behind these emotional expressions, the speaker is emphasizing the need for strength, resilience, and acceptance in the face of separation.