Nikolai Stepanovich Gumilev Poems

Oh, how silent is the nature,
It only looks and only hears,
The people's spirit in a rapture
Clings to a freedom -- fast and fierce.
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Beautiful lassies, where are you now?
You who don’t answer me anymore
You who forgot all about me;
Left me behind – now my weakened voice
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Look at the moon in the midst of
Vastly magnificent sky bed;
Hear the young winds among bamboo;
Feel the air – heavy with fragrance.
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In that magic forest, towering trees
Unexpectedly come forward from the haze.
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I walked an unfamiliar street
And suddenly heard a raven's cry,
And the sound of a lute, and distant thunder,-
In front of me a tram was flying.
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Why is that quinsy’s mouth red like fire?
Isn’t it because it’s chewing betel?
Let the new fiancée of my father
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My sailing boat, crafted of redwood, is swift,
My flute is carved out of jasper.
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Only serpents let their skin be fallen
And a soul -- all grown up and old.
We, alas, change an eternal soul,
Leaving body in eternal hold.
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Let verse of yours be flexible, but strong,
Strong as a poplar under valley's cover,
Strong as the earth under a plough, long,
Strong as a girl, who never knew a lover.
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There are the modern prophets here,
Though altars totally are felt,
Their eyes are very deep and clear –
In them, the flame of future set.
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