now we place gold in your mouth, and we place poppy and honey in your hands. Salve aeternum.
— Krasinski
A gold coin in the mouth; hands full of poppy and honey:
these are the final gifts of your earthly businesses.
And don’t let them incinerate me like a Roman: —
I want to taste my sleep in the womb of the earth.
I want to rise again as the spring corn,
circle the ancient track that the stars follow.
In the darkening grave, poppy and honey will rot,
the dead man’s mouth will swallow the gold coin...
But after many, many years of darkness
a stranger will come and dig my skeleton up,
and inside the blackening skull that his spade
smashes, the heavy coin will clang —
and the gold will flash in the midst of bones,
a tiny sun, the imprint of my soul.
Иди, вот уже золото кладем в уста твои, уже мак и мед кладем тебе в руки. Salve aetemum.
Красинский
В рот — золото, а в руки — мак и мед:
Последние дары твоих земных забот.
Но пусть не буду я, как римлянин, сожжен:
Хочу в земле вкусить утробный сон,
Хочу весенним злаком прорасти,
Кружась по древнему, по звездному пути.
В могильном сумраке истлеют мак и мед,
Провалится монета в мертвый рот...
Но через много, много темных лет
Пришлец неведомый отроет мой скелет,
И в черном черепе, что заступом разбит,
Тяжелая монета загремит —
И золото сверкнет среди костей,
Как солнце малое, как след души моей.
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