All Works

געשריי פֿון גוף,

Cry of body,

Work 319 of 440

Page 376. 'Aze kamoves ahave' conclusion: 'Geshrey fun guf' (cry of body) — the word 'guf' (body) repeated insistently. Don't tear apart 'dem letstn farbot' (the last prohibition). 'O, talyen, ruf' (oh, hangman, call — Hebrew 'talyen'), raise the scaffold's curtain. The hangman calls: 'gib... dem ershtn trot' (give the first step), you impatient one. Response: 'ikh hob dikh lib' (I love you) — thus he sings on the way to the scaffold. The hangman leads 'durkh nokh-shlofndike dorf un shtot' (through still-sleeping village and town). With his song he ascends. 'Mizrekh brent' (the East burns — Hebrew 'mizrekh') — repeated. His 'tifster gebot' (deepest commandment) is fulfilled: 'oyf dayne likhktike hent / trogstu arunter mayn guf fun eshafot' (on your bright hands you carry down my body from the scaffold) — the beloved receives the executed body, transforming death into consummation, echoing Song of Songs.

Yiddish Original

געשריי פֿון גוף,

גוף,

גוף,

גוף! —

רײַסט ניט פֿונאַנדער דעם לעצטן פֿאַרבאָט: —

— אָ, תּליין, רוף,

הייב אויף דעם פֿאָרהאַנג פֿון עשאַפֿאָט.

תּליין רופֿט:

גיב,

גיב,

גיב,

דו, אומגעדולדיקסטער, דעם ערשטן טראָט: —

— איך האָב דיך ליב,

אַזוי זינג איך אויפֿן וועג צום עשאַפֿאָט.

תּליין פֿירט,

פֿירט,

פֿירט,

פֿירט,

דורך נאָך־שלאָפֿנדיקע דאָרף און שטאָט.

און אָט דערפֿירט.

מיט מײַן געזאַנג גיי איך אַרויף אויפֿן עשאַפֿאָט.

מזרח ברענט,

ברענט,

ברענט,

ברענט,

און אָט ווערט אויסגעפֿירט מײַן טיפֿסטער געבאָט: —

אויף דײַנע ליכטיקע הענט

טראָגסטו אַרונטער מײַן גוף פֿון עשאַפֿאָט.

Transliteration

Geshrey fun guf,

guf,

guf,

guf! —

rayst nit funander dem letstn farbot: —

— o, talyen, ruf,

heyb oyf dem forhang fun eshafot.

Talyen ruft:

gib,

gib,

gib,

du, umgeduldiksker, dem ershtn trot: —

— ikh hob dikh lib,

azoy zing ikh oyfn veg tsum eshafot.

Talyen firt,

firt,

firt,

firt,

durkh nokh-shlofndike dorf un shtot.

Un ot derfirt.

Mit mayn gezang gey ikh aroyf oyfn eshafot.

Mizrekh brent,

brent,

brent,

brent,

un ot vert oysgefirt mayn tifster gebot: —

oyf dayne likhktike hent

trogstu arunter mayn guf fun eshafot.

English Translation

Cry of body,

body,

body,

body! —

don't tear apart the last prohibition: —

— oh, hangman, call,

raise the curtain of the scaffold.

Hangman calls:

give,

give,

give,

you, most impatient one, the first step: —

— I love you,

so I sing on the way to the scaffold.

Hangman leads,

leads,

leads,

leads,

through still-sleeping village and town.

And here arrived.

With my song I go up onto the scaffold.

The East burns,

burns,

burns,

burns,

and here is fulfilled my deepest commandment: —

on your bright hands

you carry down my body from the scaffold.

TRANSLATOR’S NOTE

Page 376. 'Aze kamoves ahave' conclusion: 'Geshrey fun guf' (cry of body) — the word 'guf' (body) repeated insistently. Don't tear apart 'dem letstn farbot' (the last prohibition). 'O, talyen, ruf' (oh, hangman, call — Hebrew 'talyen'), raise the scaffold's curtain. The hangman calls: 'gib... dem ershtn trot' (give the first step), you impatient one. Response: 'ikh hob dikh lib' (I love you) — thus he sings on the way to the scaffold. The hangman leads 'durkh nokh-shlofndike dorf un shtot' (through still-sleeping village and town). With his song he ascends. 'Mizrekh brent' (the East burns — Hebrew 'mizrekh') — repeated. His 'tifster gebot' (deepest commandment) is fulfilled: 'oyf dayne likhktike hent / trogstu arunter mayn guf fun eshafot' (on your bright hands you carry down my body from the scaffold) — the beloved receives the executed body, transforming death into consummation, echoing Song of Songs.

/ previous & next poem·14 toggle columns·hover a line to align all versions

Cry of body, · H. Leivick: Complete Works · Half-Voll Attempts