I came out alone on my way to my tryst.

But who is this that follows me in the silent dark?
I move aside to avoid his presence but I escape him not.
He makes the dust rise from the earth with his swagger;

He adds his loud voice to every word that I utter.
He is my own little self, my lord, he knows no shame;

But I am ashamed to come to thy door in his company.

Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941), Gitanjali.