Otakar Březina, translated by Paul Selver

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Otakar Březina, translated by Paul Selver An Anthology of Modern Bohemian Poetry (1912)

Betwixt two fires, the sun and the earth, 'neath a spell thro' the ages we wander,
From the thirsting roots of life to ethereal stems we have mounted,
To the splendour of flowers, that were clutched by the spasm of grievous desires,
Thro' currents of nummulite oceans, thro' gloom of diluvial forests,
Thro' kingdoms of bygone creation gigantic,
Thro' caverns, where man, the mystical brother of beasts, the releaser of earth of the future,
Stilled within us the fire of his blood, beset with a curse,
Glowing eternally, ne'er to be quenchèd.
Source: Wikisource

Otakar Březina, translated by Paul Selver An Anthology of Modern Bohemian Poetry (1912)

The balm-laden waters murmured, as tho’ they by angels were cleft;
Each breath had life's potence, as tho' for a hundred glowing days,
And the awe of the newly-born was seen in every gaze.
The load of our grievous secrets, as tho' 'twere thy will we have borne,
A missive in humbleness kissed, ere the seal asunder is torn;
And the enemy who is lurking asleep at our every gate,
Was like to thy wearied envoy whom we with a welcome await.
In solitudes havoc-ridden, on paths where the demons tread,
Our yearnings' delicate garden blooms e'en as a lily-bed
Source: Wikisource

Otakar Březina, translated by Paul Selver An Anthology of Modern Bohemian Poetry (1912)

Joy is the sun in a dream beheld; at awakening quenched,
Grief has a thousand eyes, and ne'er has it utterly blenched.
"With millions are ye by a mystical brotherly bond girt round,
And only in joy of the millions can joy that is yours be found."
On a mighty furrow of fragrance to floating islands we steer,
We float and the islands are flloating, and ne'er to them do we draw near.
Source: Wikisource

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