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Solo Nijuin: Beyond the Labyrinth

ÖÖÖÖ*Ö*Ö*Ö*

to no avail watching
the hawthorn
a stone musical C

the mystery of white flowers
dilate mountains at dawn

in the untainted air
the silent mirrored
undulations of shape

the saint quietly sipping
universes at his teatime

n

ÖÖÖÖ*Ö*Ö*Ö*

the sea stirring
the halo of the moon
as well as flat thoughts

autumn and her lips reflect
a kiss not mine

leaves gliding
beyond the labyrinth
on the green thigh

I know why I close my eyes
whenever I have taken the wrong road

the blind are listening
to the light's deafening clap
in the cathedral

I am placing organ tubes
on Johann's tomb

 

ÖÖÖÖ*Ö*Ö*Ö*

the frosty wind
the circular garden
turns into a sound

no longer will we find in embers
the sacred music of the moon

on the writing table
Venus of Tomis
fills up the emptiness

the passing-on
defies any form of exile

alone I engrave
your kiss ideograph
on the grain of wheat

the blood-bathed ladder
I will hurl down to you

 

ÖÖÖÖ*Ö*Ö*Ö*

on the wooden beam
wheat-ears rotted
in the hands of angels

over the clock face the bonsai
is turning the minute-hand green

out of acacia blossoms
the midget is making
his house of woe

the fragrance of spring
making sound the tenderer

 

 

all verses: Constantin Severin
from the collection: The Axolotl
Translated from the Romanian by Liviu Martinescu