Merciful GodBy Kadya Molodowsky
Translated by A.Z. Foreman
(
Click for a recording of the poet herself reading the original Yiddish)
Merciful God,choose another peoplefor now.1We're tired of the death, tired of the dead.We've no more prayers for You.Choose another peoplefor now.We have run out of bloodto offer You in holocaust2.Our houses are turned into wilderness.The earth is not enough for our graves' tolls.There are no more dirges left,no more songs of woein the old holy scrolls.
Merciful God,let some other land be holysome other mountain.We've strewn each stone and every field3 with graveash and consecration.With our elderly,with our young,with little babies we have paidfor every letter of those ten decrees4 You gave.
Merciful God,lift up that fiery brow of Yoursand see the peoples of the world.Give them the prophecies, the Days of Awe.In every tongue they babble5 up Your Words, Your revelations and Your law. 6Instruct them in the Acts7and the ways of temptation.
Merciful God,
give us common clothes
of shepherds tending sheep,
of blacksmiths at the forge,
of washer-women, skin-flayers,
and even lower...the uncleanest.
And oh
merciful God
grant us this one last blessing:
strip us of the shekhina of our genius8.
Notes:
1 — The word
derveyl can mean "for the time being" or the familiar imperative of a verb for "elect, single out."
2 — Read
holocaust in its original sense of "burnt offering" (as in the original: קרבן) and of course the later meanings as well. My translation choice here, which does not duplicate the effect of the Yiddish, is nonetheless motivated by the attitude Molodowsky seems to be striking in Yiddish.
3 —
Feld has a more funereal feel in Yiddish than its German cognate. It can in fact mean "graveyard." The word
heylik "holy" here is likewise a bit funereal in connotation.
4 — The original refers to the ten commandments as
di tsen gebótn with a Germanic term, as opposed to the Hebrew term
aséres hadÃbres. The Germanic phrase is one used in Yiddish, but it has the effect of de-sanctifying the referent, objectifying it.
5 — The verb
prepln literally means "to mumble." But it is a verb that can be used to refer to non-Jewish prayer.
6 — This line is not in the original Yiddish, but it felt right to me in English.
7 — I.e. teach them the
maysim "deeds, acts." They already know the
mayses "tales."
7 — Shekhina: divine presence of God in Judaism. (The word is common enough in English writing about Judaism, and in the religious lexicon of English-speaking Jews, that I was comfortable leaving the word as is.) It is tempting to take the term ×’××•× ×•×ª
geyéynes in the sense of "scholarly inventiveness, textual brilliance" i.e. Torah study itself. It evokes exceptional skill generally, but also rabbinical learning and spiritual leadership. All of which proved useless, the author implies, against the tragedy that immolated European Jewry.
The Original:
×ל ×—× ×•×Ÿ,
קלײַב ×ויס ×ַן ×Ö·× ×“×¢×¨ פֿ×ָלק
דערווײַל,
מיר ×–×²Ö·× ×¢×Ÿ מיד פֿון שט×ַרבן ×ון געשט×ָרבן,
מיר ×”×ָבן × ×™×˜ קיין תּפֿילות מער,
קלײַב ×ויס ×ַן ×Ö·× ×“×¢×¨ פֿ×ָלק
דערווײַל,
מיר ×”×ָבן × ×™×˜ קיין בלוט מער
×ויף צו זײַן ×Ö· קרבּן,
×Ö· מדבּר ××™×– געוו×ָרן ××•× ×“×–×¢×¨ שטוב,
די ערד ××™×– ק×ַרג פֿ×ַר ××•× ×“×– ×ויף קïŒ×¨×™×
× ×™×©×˜×Ö¸ קיין ×§×™× ×•×ª מער פֿ×ַר ××•× ×“×–,
× ×™×©×˜×Ö¸ קיין קל×ָגליד
×ין די ×ַלטע ספֿרי×
×ל ×—× ×•×Ÿ,הייליק ×ַן ×Ö·× ×“×¢×¨ ל×Ö·× ×“,×ַן ×Ö·× ×“×¢×¨ ב×ַרג.מיר ×”×ָבן ×ַלע פעלדער שוין ×ון יעדן שטייןמיט ×ַש, מיט הייליקן ב×ַש×ָטן.מיט ×–×§× ×™×,×ון מיט ×™×•× ×’×¢,×ון מיט עופהלעך ב×ַצ×ָלטפ×ַר יעדן ×ות פון ×“×²Ö·× ×¢ צען געב×ָטן.
×ל ×—× ×•×Ÿ,הייב ×ויף דײַן פײַערדיקע ברע×,×ון ×–×¢ די פעלקער פון דער וועלטגיב ×–×™×™ די × ×‘×•×ות ×ון די יו×â€“× ×•×¨××™×.×ין יעדן לשון פרעפלט מען דײַן וו×ָרט–לערן די ×ž×¢×©×™× ×–×™×™,די וועגן פון × ×¡×™×•×Ÿ.
×ל ×—× ×•×Ÿ,גיב פר×ָסטע ×‘×’×“×™× ××•× ×“×–,פון פ×ַסטעכער פ×ַר ש×ָף,פון שמידן בײַ ×“×¢× ×”×ַמער,פון וועשוו×ַשער, פון ×¤×¢×œ×©×™× ×“×¢×¨,×ון × ×ָך מער ×’×¢×ž×™×™× ×¢×¡.×ון × ×•×š ×יין חסד טו צו ××•× ×“×–:×ל ×—× ×•×Ÿ× ×¢× ×¦×• פון ××•× ×“×– די ×©×›×™× ×” פון ×’××•× ×•×ª.
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