Taras Shevchenko
ONCE I WAS WALKING IN THE NIGHT
("Yakos'-to yduchy unochi" / "Якось-то йдучи уночі")
Once I was walking in the night
Beside the Neva, and my wits
Were pondering deeply as I walked :
"If it had been," I thought, "If it
Had been the slaves would not submit,
There would not stand on Neva’s banks
These palaces as a living shame,
A brother, a sister would remain ;
But now... no, there is nothing now,—
Not even God, nor demi-god :
And, with their brats, dog-trainers reign,
And we — the clever kennel-men —
Weep on, and breed their hounds for them!..."
So, walking at night, I chanced to be
Beside the Neva, and my wits
Formed such fine thoughts; I had not seen
That over on the other bank
A kitten, as if in a pit,
Blinked both his eyes : for there were lit
Near the Apostle’s Gate — twin lamps.
Startled from my dreams, I crossed
Myself, and spat three times for sure,
Then once again in thought was lost,
The same deep thoughts I had before.
Poem of Taras Shevchenko
"Yakos'-to yduchy unochi"
("Якось-то йдучи уночі")
1860, St. Petersburg, (С. - Петербург)
Translated by Vera Rich
Source of the original poem in Ukrainian: Taras Shevchenko. Zibrannja tvoriv: U 6 t. — Kyjiv, "Naukova dumka", 2003. Том 2: Поезія 1847 - 1861, stor. 367; 755-756.
Source of English translation of the poem: Taras Shevchenko."Song out of Darkness". Selected poems translated from the Ukrainian by Vera Rich. London, 1961, p. 112.
Here you can find Ukrainian text of the Taras Shevchenko's poem:
Original poem in Ukrainian
Read more poems, translated from the Ukrainian by Vera Rich:
Vera Rich. Famous British translator of Taras Shevchenko's works
Vera Rich - translator, journalist, poet and human rights activist. Read selected poems translated from the Ukrainian by Vera Rich.
