Song No. I[1]
A
girl came out, she came out alone, like a rosy flower
Her
eyes cried, she wringed her hands, her world was changing
She
went through the dark[2]
forest, beyond the lake, picked dry heather
(Into
[her] hand) she cried pitifully, and sobbed from her heart, her voice rang with
sorrow
Jaslo
lies there, in wet clothing, in the lake beyond her
And
has a chill in [his] heart, on the cold carpet, in a fatal sleep[3]
“I
asked[4]
my father, I asked my mother, ‘Give me Kasia’
They
didn’t give me Kasia, they drove [me] out of the cottage, expelled [me] from
the village”
I
will go to him, to my Jaslo, I will kiss his temples
I
will give him up forever, for ever and ever, I will squeeze his white hand
Fish
splash in the distance, play, and in the water at the bottom
Already
Kasia rests beside her Jaslo, oh, in a fatal sleep[5]
The End
Song II
O
love! Rule my days
Happy
is he who knows you
You
are a tiny piece [of things] on Earth
[And]
the happiness[6]
that rules in Heaven
You are alone and constant
You aspire to delight[7]
without measure
[1] The following pages entitled “piesn” are referred to
as “songs,” two of which tell a story. Song No. I tells the story of Kasia and
Jaslo, a “Romeo and Juliet” style love tragedy. The Kasia and Jaslo story is a
Polish folk tradition of some sort, as there is at least one folk song about a
Kasia and Jaslo romance.
[2] Literally “grey”
[3] Or “dream”
[4] Male form
[5] Or “dream”
[6] Or “good fortune”
[7] Aspire to [a] delight without measure (“delight”=
noun)
No comments:
Post a Comment