Translation:Lament I. (of Laments upon the Tiber)
Of Laments [1] upon the Tiber.
LAMENT I.
(dedicated to Celina).
In the mountains of Campania hatched oh Tiber
Where do you roll the cloudy currents of the quiet springs?
Do you dream of smashed Hydra of centuries?
Swimming between rubbles and debris ...
Your memories
Are a stream of tears, blood, crime and virtues – without a name!
In garlands of flowers between the banks of ruins
You roll eternal and cloudy waves
And watery snows of the Apennines
You take, as history of pride, in the sun of truth
To nothing - melted!
So its flow, towards eternity, the end of the oceans!
I stood under a Roman aqueduct in silence;
In the distance, the tomb of Cecilia Metella shone,
Nobody hears Rome on via Appia,
In the cave of Egeria, birds have the council [2]
Spider in the distaff, [3]
Through the broken columns the streams are sobbing!
How the eye can see [through] the waves of desert,
Debris pile up everywhere, outdo each other,
And among the Campania, Rome shines in the distance,
And rings the flocks, endlessly scattered –
There! bells are playing
Among herds stick out statues buried to the chest!
O Rome! Rome! murderess of peoples
You be a monument of the resurrection of the peoples!
O Rome! own skeleton blames you,
Damned your actions until end of the days!
From the ruins of the temple
I see how there the sun of your glory setting in a blood!
At night, I asked catacombs about the glory
The drops which fall from boulders onto boulders
I greeted the triumph of the will in captivity!
And from via Appia I took (at the ruins) illusions
Which fall
A little flower... which today was brought [4] by the toils of so many centuries ...
Over there! on the ruins of the Caracalla Baths
Which are like a horrible mammoths of Rome,
There where they trod in tears and pearls
The stars of freedom I have seen rising,
And from corals of blood
Rose the bright to millions, the sun of Christianity...
Where the Caesar house was torn in crumbs
At the Colosseum [5] I sat down in reflection,
The chains of gladiators fell silent
And from the crumbs of shakles – the seeds of freedom
They sowed on the pride
And she rose – spreads [her] arms over humanity!
In the distance – on the sands I saw this mountain
Which Master Angelo [6] covered Peter's rock
I called “The Last Judgment” as a witness! ...
O! Holy Spirit! dove of captivity
Get out! White wing
Take from the female Eagle!.. and stand up from what hurts us !.
- ↑ Lamentations or threnodies.
- ↑ In a sense like in: „The Parlement of Foules” (also known as the „Parliament of Foules”, „Parlement of Briddes”, „Assembly of Fowls”, „Assemble of Foules”, or „The Parliament of Birds”) - the poem by Geoffrey Chaucer.
- ↑ „Pająk w kądzieli” - „Spider in the distaff” - a spider in the web, (which a spider spinned; immersed in own work).
- ↑ A little flower which today brought [to the world] the toils of so many centuries ...
- ↑ Colosseum – in oryginal poem: Colizeum.
- ↑ „mistrz Anioł” – Master Angelo – Master Michelangelo.