| End of a Journey |
Jul. 20th, 2014|02:42 pm |
Ferðalok, Svavar Knútur
mp3
Jónas Hallgrímsson's epic poem of the end of the journey is a landmark in Icelandic literature. I was thrilled by this simple but sublime song by Atli Heimir Sveinsson. The poem conjures memories of love, desire, and the beautiful certainty that rests in the sentence: ”But spirits entwined will never be separated by eternity.”
Ferðalok
Jónas Hallgrímsson
1807-1845
Ástarstjörnu
yfir Hraundranga
skýla næturský.
Hló hún á himni,
hryggur þráir
sveinn í djúpum dali.
Greiddi eg þér lokka
við Galtará
vel og vandlega.
Brosa blómvarir,
blika sjónstjörnur,
roðnar heitur hlýr.
Háa skilur hnetti
himingeimur,
blað skilur bakka og egg.
En anda, sem unnast,
fær aldregi
eilífð að skilið.
Journey’s End
Star of love,
over the Crag at Hraun,
shrouded by dark’ning clouds.
She laughed in the heavens,
now sadly he pines,
the lad in the valley deep.
I combed through your tresses
by the river
long and lovingly.
Rosy lips beam
Starry eyes sparkle,
Cheeks burn warm and red.
The heavens part the planets
of the cosmos,
the blade parts the spine from its edge;
but two hearts from true love
shall never
for eternity be parted.
translation by David Gislason
2007 |
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