It’s not for people or for fame
“Ne dlia liudei, tiiei slavy”
It’s not for people or for fame,
That I pen these
Ornate and embroidered poems.
They’re for me, my brothers!
It’s easier in captivity
When I compose them.
It’s as though words fly to me
From beyond the far-off Dnipro River
And spread out on paper,
Crying and laughing
Like children. They give joy
To a lonely, wretched
Soul. It’s pleasant for me.
They give me pleasure,
The way it is for a wealthy father
with his little children.
And I am joyful and lighthearted,
And I plead for God
Not to put my children to bed
In a far-off land.
Let them fly homeward
My fleeting children.
And they will say how difficult
It has been for them on earth:
And in a joyous family the children
Will quietly be welcomed,
And the father will nod
His gray head.
The mother will say: “I wish these
Children had not been born.”
And the girl shall reflect:
“I loved them.”
Taras Shevchenko
“Ne dlia liudei, tiiei slavy”
("Не для людей, тієї слави")
1848, Kosaral (Косарал)
Translated by Michael M. Naydan
Original publication:
Taras Shevchenko, Tvory v 6 t. [Works in 6 v.], Kyiv: Naukova dumka, 1968
Source:
"Ukrainian Literature. A Journal of Translations" Volume 1.2004"
Shevchenko Scientific Society, New York, USA
http://www.shevchenko.org