Mihai Eminescu - translations by Adrian G. Sahlean & al.


home / unto the star-bantas / unto the star-c.m.popescu / unto the star-pankhurst / unto the star-walker
eve star's flight / glossa / over tree tops / wretched dionis / stars in the sky / store
Eternal
Longing

Impossible
Love

Translators Side-By-Side - Unto The Star

On this page, you are invited to sample a fragment from 'Legenda Luceafarului' /' The Legend of the Evening Star' in my rendition, as well as versions of the same text by other well-known Eminescu translators. Also side-by-side you will find links to versions of 'Glossa' ('Glossa'), 'La Steaua' ('Unto The Star') and 'Peste vârfuri' ('Over Tree Tops'). This is a unique feature for poetry sites, meant to give the reader a better insight into the difficulties of translating Eminescu's content, musicality, style of language, etc. (more on this in the Translator's Note).The featured translators, listed alphabetically, are Andrei Bantas, Dimitrie Cuclin, Petre Grimm, Roy McGregor-Hastie, Leon Levitki, Sylvia Pankhurst, Corneliu M. Popescu and Brenda Walker. Their name will appear in the navigation bar only if applicable to the featured poem. The poem is listed under my English title, while the often divergent title translation by others will be mentioned before each author's text.


home / unto the star-bantas / unto the star-c.m.popescu / unto the star-pankhurst / unto the star-walker
eve star's flight / glossa / over tree tops / wretched dionis / stars in the sky / store
Mihai Eminescu

La steaua

La steaua care-a rasarit
E-o cale-atat de lunga,
Ca mii de ani i-au trebuit
Luminii sa ne-ajunga.

Poate de mult s-a stins in drum
In departari albastre
Iar raza ei abia acum
Luci privirii noastre.

Icoana stelei ce-a murit
Incet pe bolta suie:
Era pe cand nu s-a zarit,
Azi o vedem, si nu e.

Tot astfel cand al nostru dor
Pieri in noapte-adanca,
Lumina stinsului amor
Ne urmareste inca.

Adrian G. Sahlean

Unto The Star

'Tis such a long way to the star
Rising above our shore
It took its light to come so far
Thousands of years and more.

It may have long died on its way
Into the distant blue
And only now appears its ray
To shine for us as true.

We see its icon slowly rise
And climb the canopy;
It lived when still unknown to eyes,
We see what ceased to be.

And so it is when yearning love
Dies into depth of night:
Extinct its flame, still glows above
And haunts us with its light.

Brenda Walker

From The Star

The radiance from the new-born star
Will take many thousands of years
To travel a path that comes so far
To finally reach our eyes.

Perhaps it died while on its way
Through infinite blue space,
Yet only now does its light stray
To shine upon your face.

Slowly climbing the dark skies
Is the dead star's icon:
Invisible when it did exist,
Today we see an illusion.

And so it is when passion's fled
Lost in the depth of night,
The light of our love, now dead,
Still haunts us in its flight.


home / unto the star-bantas / unto the star-c.m.popescu / unto the star-pankhurst / unto the star-walker
eve star's flight / glossa / over tree tops / wretched dionis / stars in the sky / store