Centre for Romanian Studies

Rafael MORALES (1919-2005) Poet Spaniol

NUD DE FEMEIE
Rafael Morales
(b. 1919, Toledo – d. 2005)

Nud de femeie, corp minunat,
Ţinut plin de fruct,
Zori cântate de ciocârlii,
Curs liniştit al serii în ape adormite.

În fildeşul tău pur mijesc zorii,
Trandafiri fierbinţi se nasc în sângele tău,
Ziua surâde în cireşul captiv al buzelor tale.

Lumina crestelor de zăpadă sclipeşte în sânii tăi
Dimineaţa vine curgând domol în braţele tale,
Iar păsărelele ciripesc
În şuvoiul de aur al pletelor tale.

Versiune în limba Română
de Constantin Roman
Londra, 29 August 2011,
© 2012, Copyright Constantin Roman

Amadeo Modigliani – Nude

MUJER DESNUDA
Rafael MORALES (b. 1919 Toledo region – d. 2005)

Hermoso cuerpo de mujer desnuda,
Territorio frutal,
País de las calandrias aurorales,
Tierno fluir del alba sobre un agua dormida.

El día está naciendo de tu nácar temprano,
De las cáldas rosas que emergen de tu sangre,
El día esta naciendo del cerezal cautivo de tu boca.

Sobre tus pechos brota la luz de los nervos,
Y port us brazos llega fluvial y prezosa la mañana,
Mientran cantan la saves
Por la clara elemeda de tu pelo.

Picasso – Toro

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE:
Rafael Morales is one of the most lyrical and humanistic poets of the post-civil-war era in Spain. Whether describing a solitary lover, a fighting bull, or an old jacket, he evokes the lyricism he perceives in all things. Among contemporary Spanish poets he has been admired for his innocence and the childlike love of all people that serves as a base for his poetic explorations.
He has also published literary criticism and children’s stories.

Born on 31 July 1919, a native of Talavera de la Reina, near Toledo, Morales grew up during the turbulent yearss of King Alfonso XIII’s reign, of the short-lived Republic, and of the civil war. During this period. Morales remained in his hometown to complete his baccalaureate, but moved to Madrid to graduate in Romance philology, at the University of Madrid. During World War II he received a scholarship to study in the Facultad de Letras de Coimbra, in Portugal and after the war he was elected Professor of Spanish literature at the Complutense University in Madrid.
His poems are resonant of a Rilkean interest in objects, animals and humans.
Rafael Morales volume Poemas del Toro remain a classic of the genre.

(Prado de serpientes, 1969-81)