The poem
Sir, no man's enemy, forgiving all But will his negative inversion, be prodigal: Send to us power and light, a sovereign touch Curing the intolerable neural itch, The exhaustion of weaning, the liar's quinsy, And the distortions of ingrown virginity. Prohibit sharply the rehearsed response And gradually correct the coward's stance; Cover in time with beams those in retreat That, spotted, they turn though the reverse were great; Publish each healer that in city lives Or country houses at the end of drives; Harrow the house of the dead; look shining at New styles of architecture, a change of heart.
Although I am not familiar with past criticism of this poem, it reads as an updated version of the Lord's Prayer replete with Auden's lack of faith in the modern world to provide for the needs of human beings. I take "Sir" to be God, and the narrator to be asking God to remain distant but to help with everyday miseries. He seems to be asking for aid for all humans with small things and for God's appreciation of the simple things like architecture and kind changes of heart that make us human. Perhaps others have more to offer on this.
God is humane, but God is God after all! Hence,"Sir".By "distortions of ingrown virginity",is Auden hinting at social taboos or at inner purity? Maybe both;maybe none.But he certainly is not happy with man's ways and prefers his heart to change.