Friday, September 2, 2011

Good Friday

[by João da Cruz e Sousa, 1893]

Moon of absinthe, witchy & green,
spasmed, a monstrous vice . . .
A strange dog mines the dungheap
& howls at fabulous space.

On this Friday holy & black!
Christ is dead, like a vile leper,
wounded & cold, in Death’s
fierce blindfold, his blood purple & dark.

The serpent of evil, of sin,
a sinister venomous green
slides from the Corpse in cool silence.

But from the bloody Redemption of Christ
instead of great Love – pure, unforeseen –
sprout phosphorescences of gangrene.


Sexta-feira Santa

Lua absíntica, verde, feiticeira,
pasmada como um vício monstruoso . . .
Um cão estranho fuça na esterqueira,
uivando para o espaço fabuloso.

É esta a negra e santa Sexta-feira!
Cristo está morto, como um vil leproso,
chagado e frio, na feroz cegueira
da Morte, o sangue roxo e tenebroso.

A serpente do mal e do pecado
um sinistro veneno esverdeado
verte do Morto na mudez serena.

Mas da sagrada Redenção do Cristo
em vez do grande Amor, puro, imprevisto,
brotam fosforescências de gangrena!


João da Cruz e Sousa

2 comments:

  1. I found your blog by "accident," while searching for Alice Notley's "A Baby is born..." and am so glad I have. I'll continue to come back. Thank you for posting these poems.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Kathryn,

    Thanks for finding my blog. I've enjoyed your work for many years. So sorry I never got a chance to meet you when I lived in the Carolinas. We have many mutual friends.

    Carol

    ReplyDelete