I Am Not the Man
I am not the man you keep looking for.
I passed/gone through the sea and among stones.
This wind does not carry with it good tidings
A short while and the almond tree will blossom, just a short while.
Mountains will dance*. Please wait another hour
I am not the man. A bell will ring
The heavy curtain will rise, sleep
Will be lighter than eyelids. I am not the man.
In these ashes you will look only in vain.
I am not the man you keep looking for.
The literal translation of this poem was made by Oded Manor
The final translated version of the poem is by The Poetry Translation Workshop
Notes
* A biblical reference: Psalm 114, 3: ‘The mountains skipped like rams, the hills like lambs.' The literal translation from Hebrew would be: ‘The mountains danced like rams...'. This psalm is part of the Passover story (Hagada). The context is exodus and the miraculous breaking up of the red sea to let the Jewish people through. I read this image as a reference to liberation.
Oded Manor
© Poetry Translation Centre 2004-2010
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