en

17441

Logo lyrikline pure Logo lyrikline claim
  • Contact
  • Partners
  • Donation
Login
  • Contact
  • Partners
  • Donation
  • deutsch
  • english
  • français
  • slovenščina
  • العربية
  • русский
  • español
  • português
  • 中文
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
all results
  • Poets
    • A-Z
    • by languages
    • by countries
    • All
  • Poems
    • by languages
    • in translation
    • Categories
    • All
  • Translators
    • A-Z
  • Translations
    • A-Z
  • NEW
    • Poems
    • Poets
    • Translations
Logo lyrikline pure Logo lyrikline claim
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
all results
  • Contact
  • Partners
  • Donation
  • deutsch
  • english
  • français
  • slovenščina
  • العربية
  • русский
  • español
  • português
  • 中文
  • Poets
    • new on Lyrikline
    • A-Z 
      • A
      • B
      • C
      • D
      • E
      • F
      • G
      • H
      • I
      • J
      • K
      • L
      • M
      • N
      • O
      • P
      • Q
      • R
      • S
      • T
      • U
      • V
      • W
      • X
      • Y
      • Z
    • by languages 
      • afrikaans
        albanian
        amharic
        arabic
        armenian
        aymara
        basque
        belarusian
        bengali
        bkms
        bosnian
        breton
        bulgarian
        burmese
        catalan
        chinese
        cree
        croatian
        czech
        danish
        dutch
        english
        estonian
        finnish
        french
        galician
        georgian
        german
        greek
        gujarati
        hebrew
        hindi
        hungarian
        icelandic
        indonesian
        irish
        italian
        japanese
        kalaallisut
        kannada
        korean
        kurdish
        latvian
        lithuanian
        macedonian
        malay
        malayalam
        maltese
        marathi
        montenegrin
        nepali
        northern sami
        norwegian
        oriya
        persian
        polish
        portuguese
        punjabi
        rhaeto-romance
        romanian
        russian
        scottish gaelic
        serbian
        shona
        sindhi
        sinhala
        slovak
        slovenian
        southern sami
        spanish
        swahili
        swedish
        tamil
        telugu
        tswana
        turkish
        ukrainian
        urdu
        uzbek
        vietnamese
        welsh
        xhosa
        yiddish
    • by countries 
      • Afghanistan
        Albania
        Algeria
        Andorra
        Angola
        Argentina
        Armenia
        Australia
        Austria
        Bahrain
        Bangladesh
        Belarus
        Belgium
        Bolivia
        Bosnia and Herzegovina
        Botswana
        Brazil
        Bulgaria
        Burundi
        Cambodia
        Canada
        Chile
        China
        Colombia
        Congo - Kinshasa
        Costa Rica
        Croatia
        Cuba
        Cyprus
        Czech Republic
        Côte d’Ivoire
        Denmark
        Dominican Republic
        Egypt
        Estonia
        Ethiopia
        Finland
        France
        Georgia
        Germany
        Ghana
        Greece
        Greenland
        Guatemala
        Guinea-Bissau
        Haiti
        Honduras
        Hungary
        Iceland
        India
        Indonesia
        Iran
        Iraq
        Ireland
        Israel
        Italy
        Jamaica
        Japan
        Kenya
        Kuwait
        Latvia
        Lebanon
        Libya
        Lithuania
        Luxembourg
        Macedonia
        Malawi
        Malaysia
        Malta
        Martinique
        Mexico
        Moldova
        Montenegro
        Morocco
        Mozambique
        Myanmar [Burma]
        Netherlands
        New Zealand
        Nigeria
        Norway
        Oman
        Pakistan
        Palestinian Territories
        Paraguay
        Peru
        Poland
        Portugal
        Puerto Rico
        Romania
        Russia
        Saint Lucia
        Saudi Arabia
        Senegal
        Serbia
        Singapore
        Slovakia
        Slovenia
        Somalia
        South Africa
        South Korea
        Spain
        Sri Lanka
        Sweden
        Switzerland
        Syria
        São Tomé and Príncipe
        Taiwan
        Trinidad and Tobago
        Tunisia
        Turkey
        Ukraine
        United Arab Emirates
        United Kingdom
        United States
        Uruguay
        Uzbekistan
        Venezuela
        Vietnam
        Yemen
        Zambia
        Zimbabwe
  • Poems
    • new on Lyrikline
    • by languages 
      • afrikaans
        albanian
        amharic
        arabic
        arawak
        armenian
        aymara
        basque
        belarusian
        bengali
        bkms
        bosnian
        breton
        bulgarian
        burmese
        catalan
        chinese
        cree
        croatian
        czech
        danish
        dutch
        english
        estonian
        finnish
        french
        galician
        georgian
        german
        greek
        gujarati
        hebrew
        hindi
        hungarian
        icelandic
        indonesian
        irish
        italian
        japanese
        kalaallisut
        kannada
        korean
        kurdish
        latvian
        lithuanian
        lushai
        macedonian
        malay
        malayalam
        maltese
        maori
        marathi
        montenegrin
        nepali
        northern sami
        norwegian
        oriya
        persian
        polish
        portuguese
        punjabi
        rhaeto-romance
        romanian
        romany
        russian
        scottish gaelic
        serbian
        shona
        sindhi
        sinhala
        slovak
        slovenian
        sorbian language
        southern sami
        spanish
        swahili
        swedish
        tamil
        telugu
        tswana
        tumbuka
        turkish
        ukrainian
        urdu
        uzbek
        vietnamese
        welsh
        western frisian
        xhosa
        yiddish
    • in translation 
      • abkhazian
        afar
        afrikaans
        albanian
        arabic
        araucanian
        armenian
        assamese
        azerbaijani
        bashkir
        basque
        belarusian
        bengali
        berber
        bkms
        bosnian
        breton
        bulgarian
        buriat
        catalan
        chechen
        chinese
        chuvash
        corsican
        croatian
        czech
        danish
        duala
        dutch
        english
        esperanto
        estonian
        finnish
        french
        galician
        georgian
        german
        greek
        gujarati
        haitian
        hebrew
        hindi
        hungarian
        icelandic
        indonesian
        irish
        italian
        japanese
        kalmyk
        kannada
        kashmiri
        kazakh
        kirghiz
        korean
        kumyk
        kurdish
        latin
        latvian
        lezghian
        lithuanian
        lushai
        macedonian
        malay
        malayalam
        maltese
        marathi
        mayan language
        mongolian
        nepali
        norwegian
        occitan
        oriya
        ossetic
        persian
        polish
        portuguese
        rhaeto-romance
        romanian
        romany
        russian
        sanskrit
        sardinian
        scots
        scottish gaelic
        serbian
        shona
        sindhi
        sinhala
        slovak
        slovenian
        sorbian language
        southern sami
        spanish
        swahili
        swedish
        swiss german
        tajik
        tamil
        tatar
        telugu
        tetum
        turkish
        turkmen
        udmurt
        ukrainian
        urdu
        uzbek
        vietnamese
        welsh
        yakut
        yiddish
    • genres & aspects
      • experimental poetry
      • concrete poetry
      • sound poetry
      • visual poetry
      • poetry projects
      • series / cycles
      • poetry for children
      • humorous poetry
      • narrative poetry
      • poems on poetics
      • Ecopoetry / Nature writing
      • political poetry
      • erotic poetry
      • dialect
      • performance
      • with music / sound
      • spoken word / Rap
      • translingual / hybrid / Pidgin
    • poetic forms & terms
      • ode
      • haiku / tanka
      • collage / montage
      • Dinggedicht
      • prose poem
      • rhymed stanza
      • renshi
      • sestina
      • sonnet
      • villanelle
      • ghazal
      • ballad
    • issues
      • society
        • identity (collective)
        • traditions
        • homeland
        • cities & urban life
        • history
        • politics
        • discrimination / racism
        • war
        • exile
        • economy
        • social critique / cultural criticism
      • life & relationship
        • family
          • birth
          • child
          • mother
          • father
        • infancy & youth
        • age
        • memory
        • identity (personal)
        • gender & sexuality
          • woman
          • man
          • sex / eroticism
          • homosexuality
        • friendship
        • love
        • marriage
        • relationship conflict
        • work
        • illness
        • body
        • violence
        • loss & separation
        • death / grief
        • funeral
        • religion / sprituality
        • Dream
        • travel
        • time
        • eating & drinking
        • alcohol & drugs
      • culture & science
        • architecture & design
        • poetry & poets
        • art & painting
        • literature & reading
        • fairy-tales & legends
        • medicine & science
        • music
        • mythology
        • philosophy
        • photography & film
        • popular culture
        • language
        • theater & dance
        • writing (poetry)
      • nature
        • spring
        • summer
        • fall
        • winter
        • landscape
        • water
        • animals
        • plants
    • Rhythmic Patterns
      • Parlando
      • Cadence
      • Variable Foot
      • Sprung Rhythm
      • Syncopations
      • Rubato
      • Permutations
      • Gestic rhythm (= Stressed Enjambements)
      • Cut-ups
      • Ellipses
      • Syllabic decompositions
      • Lettristic Decomposition
  • Translators
    • A-Z 
      • A
      • B
      • C
      • D
      • E
      • F
      • G
      • H
      • I
      • J
      • K
      • L
      • M
      • N
      • O
      • P
      • Q
      • R
      • S
      • T
      • U
      • V
      • W
      • X
      • Y
      • Z
    • Translates from 
      • afrikaans
        albanian
        amharic
        arabic
        arawak
        armenian
        aymara
        basque
        belarusian
        bengali
        bkms
        bosnian
        breton
        bulgarian
        burmese
        catalan
        chinese
        cree
        croatian
        czech
        danish
        dutch
        english
        estonian
        finnish
        french
        galician
        georgian
        german
        greek
        gujarati
        hebrew
        hindi
        hungarian
        icelandic
        indonesian
        irish
        italian
        japanese
        kalaallisut
        kannada
        korean
        kurdish
        latvian
        lithuanian
        lushai
        macedonian
        malay
        malayalam
        maltese
        maori
        marathi
        montenegrin
        nepali
        northern sami
        norwegian
        oriya
        persian
        polish
        portuguese
        punjabi
        rhaeto-romance
        romanian
        romany
        russian
        scottish gaelic
        serbian
        shona
        sindhi
        sinhala
        slovak
        slovenian
        sorbian language
        southern sami
        spanish
        swahili
        swedish
        tamil
        telugu
        tswana
        tumbuka
        turkish
        ukrainian
        urdu
        uzbek
        vietnamese
        welsh
        western frisian
        xhosa
        yiddish
    • Translates into 
      • abkhazian
        afar
        afrikaans
        albanian
        arabic
        araucanian
        armenian
        assamese
        azerbaijani
        bashkir
        basque
        belarusian
        bengali
        berber
        bkms
        bosnian
        breton
        bulgarian
        buriat
        catalan
        chechen
        chinese
        chuvash
        corsican
        croatian
        czech
        danish
        duala
        dutch
        english
        esperanto
        estonian
        finnish
        french
        galician
        georgian
        german
        greek
        gujarati
        haitian
        hebrew
        hindi
        hungarian
        icelandic
        indonesian
        irish
        italian
        japanese
        kalmyk
        kannada
        kashmiri
        kazakh
        kirghiz
        korean
        kumyk
        kurdish
        latin
        latvian
        lezghian
        lithuanian
        lushai
        macedonian
        malay
        malayalam
        maltese
        marathi
        mayan language
        mongolian
        nepali
        norwegian
        occitan
        oriya
        ossetic
        persian
        polish
        portuguese
        rhaeto-romance
        romanian
        romany
        russian
        sanskrit
        sardinian
        scots
        scottish gaelic
        serbian
        shona
        sindhi
        sinhala
        slovak
        slovenian
        sorbian language
        southern sami
        spanish
        swahili
        swedish
        swiss german
        tajik
        tamil
        tatar
        telugu
        tetum
        turkish
        turkmen
        udmurt
        ukrainian
        urdu
        uzbek
        vietnamese
        welsh
        yakut
        yiddish
  • Translations
    • new on Lyrikline
    • by source languages 
        afrikaans
        albanian
        arabic
        arawak
        armenian
        aymara
        basque
        belarusian
        bengali
        bkms
        bosnian
        breton
        bulgarian
        burmese
        catalan
        chinese
        croatian
        czech
        danish
        dutch
        english
        estonian
        finnish
        french
        galician
        georgian
        german
        greek
        gujarati
        hebrew
        hindi
        hungarian
        icelandic
        indonesian
        irish
        italian
        japanese
        kalaallisut
        kannada
        korean
        kurdish
        latvian
        lithuanian
        lushai
        macedonian
        malay
        malayalam
        maltese
        maori
        marathi
        montenegrin
        nepali
        northern sami
        norwegian
        oriya
        persian
        polish
        portuguese
        punjabi
        rhaeto-romance
        romanian
        romany
        russian
        scottish gaelic
        serbian
        shona
        sindhi
        sinhala
        slovak
        slovenian
        southern sami
        spanish
        swahili
        swedish
        tamil
        telugu
        tswana
        tumbuka
        turkish
        ukrainian
        urdu
        uzbek
        vietnamese
        welsh
        western frisian
        xhosa
        yiddish
    • by target languages 
      • abkhazian
        afar
        afrikaans
        albanian
        arabic
        araucanian
        armenian
        assamese
        azerbaijani
        bashkir
        basque
        belarusian
        bengali
        berber
        bkms
        bosnian
        breton
        bulgarian
        buriat
        catalan
        chechen
        chinese
        chuvash
        corsican
        croatian
        czech
        danish
        duala
        dutch
        english
        esperanto
        estonian
        finnish
        french
        galician
        georgian
        german
        greek
        gujarati
        haitian
        hebrew
        hindi
        hungarian
        icelandic
        indonesian
        irish
        italian
        japanese
        kalmyk
        kannada
        kashmiri
        kazakh
        kirghiz
        korean
        kumyk
        kurdish
        latin
        latvian
        lezghian
        lithuanian
        lushai
        macedonian
        malay
        malayalam
        maltese
        marathi
        mayan language
        mongolian
        nepali
        norwegian
        occitan
        oriya
        ossetic
        persian
        polish
        portuguese
        rhaeto-romance
        romanian
        romany
        russian
        sanskrit
        sardinian
        scots
        scottish gaelic
        serbian
        shona
        sindhi
        sinhala
        slovak
        slovenian
        sorbian language
        southern sami
        spanish
        swahili
        swedish
        swiss german
        tajik
        tamil
        tatar
        telugu
        tetum
        turkish
        turkmen
        udmurt
        ukrainian
        urdu
        uzbek
        vietnamese
        welsh
        yakut
        yiddish
Login
  •  

Gábor Schein

Túl a kordonokon

  • 1 Hajnali testek | Translations: en
  • 2 Éjszakai utazás | Translations: desl
  • 3 Felkészülés egy városra | Translations: deen
  • 4 Zuhanás | Translations: deslsr
  • 5 Túl a kordonokon | Translations: deen
  • 6 Térj vissza | Translations: en
  • 7 Üdvözlet a kontinens belsejéből | Translations: desr
  • 8 Készülődés a varjak ünnepére | Translations: enslsrde
  • 9 Ovidius szabad | Translations: sl
  • 10 Láthatatlan háború | Translations: en
Language: hungarian
Translations: german (Hinter den Kordons), english (Beyond the Cordons / Beyond the Cordoned Zones)
  • play
  • pause
Update Required To play the media you will need to either update your browser to a recent version or update your Flash plugin.

Túl a kordonokon

Voltak sarkok, körülzárt terek, ahol napokkal a szétvert tüntetés
után is érezni lehetett a könnygáz maró szagát. Ha a kiégett
autók roncsait el is távolították, a feltépett utcakövek, a burkolat
hiánya így sem hagyta feledni, hogy a város közepe bizonytalan
övezetté vált. Az éjszaka a szirénáké, a skandálóké, a gyújtogatóké lett,
a terek csapdák, az utcák határok, lezárható menekülési útvonalak
egy parancsnoki fejben, mely annyi békeév után végre háborúzhatott.

*

Bárhová fordult az ember, mindenütt rácsok voltak, kordonok. A házak
sztoikus szürkéje távolabbról érkezett, mint a holdfény. Az új haragról
a város még mindig a homlokzati szobrok holt nyelvén beszélt: Poszeidón
a főisten itt, a kontinens közepén, ahol szűk albérleti szobákban alkusznak
a lopott szerelemre. A meztelen kőtestek úgy fordultak egymás felé,
mint a bekapcsolva felejtett képernyők: a műsorszünet sűrű mákja szitált rájuk,
míg odalent gyereklégiókat gyűjtött a harag, távol mindegyik tengertől.

*

Két kéz írja tested történetét, melyek nem tudnak egymásról, két hang
hívja benned a maga ismeretlenjét. Gyűjtsd a különbségeket. A hétköznapi
hazugságokat, a magyarázatok és kifogások viruló csokrát helyezd
már most a sírodra, gondozd a sírt, tisztítsd meg az őszi lombként
ráhulló hitektől. De a hétköznapokat mégse nézd hétköznapi szemmel.
A legegyszerűbb kérdések mindig azok, amelyeket nem teszel föl, és ha
füledbe kiáltják, akkor sem hallod meg őket, míg ki nem futsz az időből.

*

Békeidőben a központ díszkövekkel, virágosládákkal, rendezett
közlekedéssel takarja öngyűlöletét, és a kimustrált villamosokat,
melyek az egyre félelmesebb peremkerületekből sűrű emberszagot
hoznak, lefolyástalan városi öblökbe vezeti. Az élet itt sosem volt más,
mint a túl lassú gyilkolás művészete. A kordonok mentén most végre
köztéri akasztások és a skizofrén szerelem más efféle álmaival
játszhatott az éber elme, és megittasulva azt hitte, politikát csinál.

*

Időnként muszáj háborúzni. Elvégre legbelül a viszonyok sosem voltak
békések. Egyetlen ember túl szűk hely ennyi vágynak és akaratnak. Annak,
akinek nincs szeme és füle, annak, aki mindig mással derül föl, és annak
a bagolyszeműnek, aki nyakába kötött kővel jár-kel, és az egyszerűség
kedvéért úgy hívja magát, én. Egyikük sem lakja ezt a világot. Mindegyik
elárulja magát. Állapotuk rendkívüli, de vereségében mind ugyanúgy
képes gyönyörködni. Hiába hoz szabályokat ellenük, aki itt beszél.

*

De hát mi bajom van tulajdonképpen? Ezt kérdezte, aki egy napon született
velem, és legalább húsz éve ismer. Kapuzárás? Reménytelenség? Unalom?
Úgy nézett rám, mintha jelentenének valamit a magyarázatok. Cserébe egy szürke
gémről kezdtem mesélni. Egy tengerparti városban láttam, minden reggel ott állt
a parkolóban egy piros Peugeot tetején, és várta, hogy a szemközti ház első
emeletéről halat dobjanak neki. Minden reggel kitette a napra a maga valószínűtlen
jelenlétét. Vedd ezt a gémet hasonlatnak, mondtam. Arra, amire akarod.

*

Ha egy napon elmész innen, ne vess a vállad fölött fillért! Mintha csukott
szemmel a Hold másik felén ülnél, növessz magadban jeget, és gyakorold
a lassú gyilkolás művészetét. Hisz sosem voltál más, mint az érzéseid
asztronautája. Űrhajód egy üres papír. Ne szánd azokat lenn, akik a harc után
sebeiket mutogatják, és mert nem győzhetik le a nehézkedést, ételszagú
vasárnapokról álmodoznak. Ne fogadj el semmit innen, és ne higgy a folyóknak,
az óceánnak! Innen csak fölfelé szökhetsz. Nem érdemes emlékezni a Földre.

From: Schein Gábor: Üdvözlet a kontinens belsejéből
Budapest: Jelenkor Kiadó, 2017
ISBN: 9789636766443
Audio production: Petőfi Irodalmi Múzeum / Petőfi Literary Museum
Categories: identity (collective), social critique / cultural criticism

Translations:

Language: german

Hinter den Kordons

Da waren Straßenecken, umschlossene Plätze, wo selbst Tage nach der zerschlagenen Demonstration der ätzende Geruch von Tränengas zu spüren war. Wurden die ausgebrannten Autowracks auch entfernt, ließen die herausgerissenen Pflastersteine das Fehlen des Straßenbelags nicht vergessen, dass die Mitte der Stadt eine unsichere Zone geworden war. Die Nacht gehörte den Sirenen, den skandierenden Massen, den Brandstiftern, die Plätze wurden zu Fallen, die Straßen zu Grenzen zwischen absperrbaren Fluchtwegen im Kopf eines Kommandanten, der nach so vielen Friedensjahren endlich Krieg machen durfte.
*
Wohin man sich auch wandte, überall nur Gitter und Absperrungen. Das stoische Grau der Häuser kam von ferner her als das Mondlicht. Die Stadt sprach noch immer in der toten Sprache der Fassadenfiguren von der neuen Wut: Poseidon ist hier der Hauptgott, inmitten des Festlandes, wo in engen Untermietszimmern um gestohlene Liebe gefeilscht wird. Die nackten steinernen Körper wenden sich einander zu wie eingeschaltet vergessene Bildschirme: das dichte Mohngeriesel nach Sendeschluss überzieht sie, während unten die Wut Kinderlegionen, fern aller Meere, versammelt hat.
*
Zwei Hände schreiben die Geschichte deines Körpers, die nicht von einander wissen, zwei Stimmen rufen in dir nach ihren Unbekannten. Sammle die Unterschiede. Lege den blühenden Strauß der Alltagslügen, der Erklärungsversuche und Ausflüchte schon jetzt auf dein Grab, pflege es, reinige es von den verschiedenen Glauben, die es dem Herbstlaub gleich bedecken. Doch siehe den Alltag nicht mit Alltagsaugen. Die einfachsten Fragen sind stets die, welche du nicht stellst, und schreit man sie dir in die Ohren, hörst du sie nicht, bis du aus der Zeit gerannt bist.

*
Zu Friedenszeiten verdeckt das Zentrum seinen Selbsthass mit Schmuckstein, Blumenkisten und geordnetem Straßenverkehr, es führt die ausgemusterten Straßenbahnen, die aus der immer fürchterlicheren Peripherie massiven Menschengeruch bringen, in abflusslose städtische Buchten. Das Leben war hier nie etwas anderes als die Kunst allzu langsamen Mordens. Entlang der Absperrungen durfte nun endlich der wache Verstand mit öffentlichem Hängen und anderen ähnlichen Träumen der schizophrenen Liebe spielen und trunken denken, Politik zu machen.

*
Von Zeit zu Zeit muss es Krieg geben. Schlussendlich waren die Verhältnisse im Innersten niemals friedlich. Ein einziger Mensch ist zu eng für so viele Sehnsüchte und so viel Wollen. Dem, der keine Augen und Ohren hat, der sich immer mit einem Anderen erheitert, und dem, der mit den Eulenaugen, der mit einem Stein um den Hals herumgeht und sich der Einfachheit halber „Ich“ nennt. Keiner von ihnen bewohnt diese Welt. Jeder verrät sich. Sie sind im Ausnahmezustand, doch vermag sich jeder von ihnen an seiner Niederlage genau so zu ergötzen. Vergeblich erlässt jener, der hier spricht, Gesetze gegen sie.

*
Was aber ist mein Problem? Das fragte jemand, der am selben Tag wie ich geboren wurde und mich seit mindestens zwanzig Jahren kennt. Torschlusspanik? Hoffnungslosigkeit? Langeweile? Er blickte mich an, als bedeuteten Erklärungen etwas. Ich erzählte ihm im Gegenzug von einem Graureiher. Den sah ich in einer Stadt am Meer, er stand jeden Morgen auf dem Dach eines roten Peugeot am Parkplatz und wartete, bis ihm vom ersten Stock des Hauses Fische zugeworfen wurden. Er stellte seine unwahrscheinliche Präsenz jeden Morgen her in der Sonne. Nimm diesen Reiher als Gleichnis, sagte ich. Wofür du es auch immer brauchst.

*
Gehst du eines Tages weg von hier, wirf keinen Groschen über deine Schulter! Lass Eis in dir wachsen, als säßest du an der Rückseite des Mondes, und übe die Kunst des langsamen Mordens. Warst du doch nie jemand anderer als der Astronaut deiner Gefühle. Dein Raumschiff ist ein leeres Blatt Papier. Bedauere nicht jene da unten, die nach dem Kampf ihre Wunden herzeigen und von Sonntagen mit Essensgeruch träumen, weil sie die Schwerkraft nicht besiegen können. Nimm nichts an von hier, und glaube nicht den Flüssen, dem Ozean! Von hier kannst du nur nach oben entkommen. Es lohnt sich nicht, sich an die Erde zu erinnern.

Übersetzung von György Buda
Language: english

Beyond the Cordons / Beyond the Cordoned Zones

Beyond the Cordones


There were corners, blockaded squares, where, for days after the routed
demonstration, the biting smell of teargas was palpable. If the burnt-out
car wrecks and the ripped-up cobblestones had all been removed, still, the missing
pavement let no one forget: the city centre was now a zone
of uncertainty. Evening belonged to the sirens, arsonists’ chants,
the squares were traps, the streets borders, trajectories of escape that could be shut down
in a commander’s head: after so many years of peace, finally able to wage war.

*

No matter where one turned, there were bars, cordons. The buildings’
stoic grey arrived from a distance farther than moonlight. The city still
spoke of the new wrath in the dead language of ornamental statuary: Poseidon
is the chief god here, in the continent’s centre, where in narrow rented rooms people bargain
for stolen love. The naked stone bodies turned towards each other,
like computer screens forgetfully left on: the thick poppyseed of visual static
sprinkled onto them, as down below, far from every sea, wrath gathered up the legions of children.

*

You write the story of your body with two hands that do not know each other,
two voices summon the unknown within you. Gather up the distinctions. Place the
blossoming bouquet of lies, explanations and objections onto
your grave now, tend your grave, clear away the beliefs falling onto it
like autumn foliage. But do not look at the everyday with everyday eyes.
The simplest questions are always the ones you don’t ask, and if
they scream into your ear, ignore them until you have run out of time.

*

In times of peace, the city centre covers its self-hatred with decorative flagstones,
flower-boxes, and ordered transportation; the decommissioned streetcars,
carrying the scent of humans from the most frightening peripheral districts,
are taken to its terminal caverns. Life here was never anything else
than the art of the too-slow massacre. Going along the cordons, now at last
the alert mind can play with its dreams of public hangings, schizophrenic love
and the like, and believe, intoxicated, that it is engaged in politics.

*

At times it is necessary to go to war. After all, deep within, relations were never
peaceful. A single person is too narrow a space for so many wants and desires. He who
has no eyes and ears, always cheerful in others’ presence, with the eyes
an owl, a millstone hanging from round his neck as he walks around, who, for simplicity’s
sake, calls himself “I”. None of them inhabit this world at all. All of them
betray themselves. Their state is emergency, but all the same, they are
capable of delighting in their own defeat. The one speaking here decrees
   against them in vain.

*

But what is in fact my problem? Someone born on the same day as me,
who’s known me for at least twenty years, asked: Closing time? Hopelessness? Boredom?
And looked at me, as if explanations would mean something. In exchange, I told a story
about a grey heron. I saw it in a city by the sea; it stood every morning
on the roof of a red Peugeot in the parking lot, and waited for fish to be thrown
from the upper floor of the house opposite. Every morning, the selfsame, unlikely
presence. Take this heron as a comparison, I said. For whatever you want.

*

If one day you leave here, don’t throw a single coin over your shoulder! Grow the ice
within yourself, as if sitting with closed eyes on the other side of the moon; practice
the art of slow murder. You were never anything else but the astronaut
of your feelings. Your spaceship is a piece of blank paper. Do not pity those below
displaying their scars after battle, and, because they cannot conquer hardship, dream
of Sundays fragrant with food. Take nothing from here, and do not believe the rivers,
the oceans! From here, you can escape only upwards. It is not worthwhile to recollect upon
   the Earth.

Translated by Ottilie Mulzet

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Beyond the Cordoned Zones

There were corners, enclosed spaces where, for days after the demonstration had been dispersed, you could smell the biting tang of teargas. The blackened ruins of cars might have been removed like the ripped up flagstones, but still there were no pavements, and no one could forget that the city centre had become a zone of uncertainty. Sirens and chanting arsonists took possession of the evening. In the mind of a military commander, at last engaged in warfare after too many years of peace, the squares turned into traps; the streets were frontiers, escape-routes that could be irrevocably sealed off.

*
No matter where one turned, there were iron barriers and cordoned zones. From a distance even further than moonlight the stoical greyness of the houses drew closer. The city spoke of this fresh wrath in the dead language of ornamental statuary: Poseidon is the great god here, at the heart of the continent, where in narrow rented rooms people bargain for stolen love. Like TV screens distractedly left on, naked stone bodies turned towards each other, thickly sprinkled with the poppy seed of static. Meanwhile, down in the street, rage frothed among legions worse than children, far from any sea.

*
Two hands which know nothing of each other write the story of your body, two voices summon from within you that which is not known. Glean all distinctions between them. Lay the bouquet of lies, explanations and objections on your gravestone, sweep away the certainties that fall there like autumn leaves. But do not look upon the everyday with everyday eyes. The most elemental questions are always those you do not ask, and if they come screaming into your ear, do not even listen until you have run beyond the limits of time.

*
With ornamental flagstones, flowerpots and well-ordered public transport, the city centre covers over its self-hatred in times of peace; decommissioned streetcars, bearing the odour of humans from the frightening outer districts, are directed to terminal caverns. Life here was never anything but the art of a slow-motion massacre. Following the cordoned zones, the alert mind can imagine public hangings and schizophrenic love, entering the dream that such wishful action might itself be politics.

*

Sometimes it is necessary to wage a war. After all, the deepest of human relations have never been peaceful. Any single person is far too narrow for so many wants and desires. He who possesses no eyes or ears, who always brightens in the presence of others; he with the owl-eyes, a millstone around his neck as he walks, calling himself “I” for the sake of simplicity: not one of them inhabits this world. All betray themselves. Their state is emergency, though they are nonetheless capable of delighting in their defeat. In vain does this poet pronounce decrees against them.

*
As a matter of fact, what is my problem? Someone born on the same day I was, and who has known me for twenty years or more, asks me: Is this all because it is closing time? Hopelessness Boredom? And looks at me, as if there were some true explanation. In exchange, I tell a story about a grey heron. I once saw it in a city by the sea, in a parking lot, standing on the roof of a red Peugeot. It was waiting for fish to be thrown down from the upper floor of a house. Every morning the same improbable presence, out in the sunlight. Take this heron, I said. And compare it with whatever you wish.

*
If ever you leave here one day, throw no coin over your shoulder. Imagine, with closed eyes, sitting on the far side of the moon, your insides iced up, and practice the art of slow murder. Surely you have always been the astronaut of your feelings, your spaceship a sheet of blank paper. Do not pity those below who display their scars when battle is done, dreaming of Sundays fragrant with food because they cannot conquer hardship. Take nothing from here. Do not believe the rivers, the oceans! From here, the only escape is upwards! Remembering is of no worth here upon the earth.

Translated by Denis Hirson

Translated by Ottilie Mulzet / Denis Hirson
previous poem
   (Zuhanás)
5 / 10
nächstes Gedicht
(Térj vissza)   
listen to all poems

Gábor Schein

photo © Lenke Szilágyi
* 02.07.1969, Budapest, Hungary
lives in: Budapest, Hungary

Gábor Schein was born in 1969 in Budapest, where he lives today. He is a writer of poetry and fiction and he has translated contemporary and classical German and English poets. He has graduated in Hungarian and German and is a professor in Hungarian literature at the Eötvös Loránd University in Budapest.

He has published political essays both in the Hungarian liberal press and in international papers such as Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. Schein is the author of nine collections of poetry, various theater plays and a libretto, staged by Munich Opera. He published twelve volumes of poetry and five novels. He was awarded many prestigious prizes in Hungary and scholarhips abroad. 

 photo © Lenke Szilágyi
Publications
  • Szavak emlékezete [Words' Memory]

    poems

    Budapest: HungAvia-Kráter, 1991

  • Cave canem

    poems

    Budapest: Kráter Műhely Egyesület, 1993

  • Elhangolás [Putting out of Tune]

    poems

    Budapest: JAK-Balassi Kiadó, 1996

  • Irijám és Jonibe [Iriyiam and Ionibe]

    poems

    Pécs: Jelenkor Kiadó, 1998

  • Üveghal [Glass Fish]

    poems

    Budapest: Magvető, 2001

  • Hosszú menet a küszöbön [Long Course on the Doorstep]

    Esszék a német irodalom tárgyköreiből [Essays on German Literature]

    Budapest: Korona, 2001

  • Mordecháj könyve [Book of Mordecai]

    kisregény

    novel

    Pécs: Jelenkor, 2002

  • (retus) [(retouch)]

    poems

    Pécs: Jelenkor, 2003

  • Lázár! [Lazarus!]

    novel

    Pécs: Jelenkor, 2004

  • Panaszénekek [Complaints]

    poems

    Pécs: Jelenkor, 2005

  • Bolondok tornya [Tower of Lunatics]

    epic poem

    Pécs: Jelenkor, 2008

  • A herceg álma [The Dream of the Prince]

    theatherplays

    Budapest: Napkút Kiadó, 2008

  • Egy angyal önéletrajzai [Autobiographies of an Angel]

    novel

    Pécs: Jelenkor, 2009

  • Éjszaka, utazás [Night, Journey]

    poems

    Pozsony: Kalligram, 2011

  • Megölni, akit szeretünk [To Kill Who We Love]

    Történetek a mából

    short stories

    Pozsony: Kalligram, 2013

  • Lazarus

    Transl. by Clara Royer

    Édition Petra, 2013

  • Márcisuban jaguárok? [Jaguars in March?]

    poems for children

    Budapest: Móra, 2014

  • Lazarus

    Tansl. by Wilhelm Droste

    Verlag Merz & Solitude, 2014

  • Lazarus

    Transl. by Svetla Koseva

    Elias Canetti House, 2014

  • Svéd [The Swedish]

    novel

    Pozsony: Kalligram, 2015

  • Lazarus

    Transl. by Ottilie Mulzet

    Seagull, 2017

  • Üdvözlet a kontinens belsejéből [Greetings from Inside of the Continent]

    poems

    Budapest: Jelenkor, 2017

  • Book of Mordechai

    Transl. by Adam Levy

    Seagull, 2017

  • Kula Ludaka

    Serbian transl. by Árpád Vicko

    Archipelag, 2017

  • Irijam in Jonibe

    Slovenian transl. by Maja Likar

    Malinc, 2017

  • Megleszünk itt [We Will Still Be Here]

    Budapest: Magvető, 2019

  • El sueco

    Transl. by Adan Kovacsics

    Acantilado, 2019

  • Der Schwede

    Transl. by Lacy Kornitzer

    Friedenauer Presse, 2019

  • Ó, rinocérosz [O, Rhinoceros]

    verse novel

    Budapest: 2021

  • Autobiographies of an Angel

    Transl. by Ottilie Mulzet

    Yale University Press, 2021

Awards
  • 1998 Radnóti Miklós Award

  • 2002 Hungarian Pulitzer Award

  • 2004 Szép Ernő Award

  • 2004 The Book of the Year in Hungary

  • 2006 József Attila Award

  • 2009 Milán Füst Award

  • 2010 The Children Book of the Year in Hungary

  • 2018 Artisjus Award

  • 2018 Szépíró Award

Remember poem / Add to List

all public lists

Poem already on my list

If you want to remember or list a poem, become a community member.

Login/Register now
more poets from Hungary more poems in hungarian Translations into hungarian

Random poem

PUSH!

gedicht page complete: (1,420s)
  • About
  • Newsletter
  • Blog
  • Links
  • Produced by
  • privacy
lyrikline is created by Literaturwerkstatt Berlin in cooperation with its international network of lyrikline partners
Poets Translators