Centre for Romanian Studies

Poetry in Translation (CCCXXXV), Giacomo LEOPARDI (1798-1837), ITALY/MARCHE: “To The Moon”, “Luna”

Giacomo Leopardi

To The Moon

O, lovely moon, how well do I recall
The time,–’tis just a year–when up this hill
I came, in my distress, to gaze at thee:
And thou suspended wast o’er yonder grove,
As now thou art, which thou with light dost fill.

But stained with mist, and tremulous, appeared
Thy countenance to me, because my eyes
Were filled with tears, that could not be suppressed;

For, oh, my life was wretched, wearisome,
And _is_ so still, unchanged, belovèd moon!
And yet this recollection pleases me,
This computation of my sorrow’s age.

How pleasant is it, in the days of youth,
When hope a long career before it hath,
And memories are few, upon the past
To dwell, though sad, and though the sadness last!

(English version by Frederick Townsend)

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Luna
Giacomo Leopardi
(1798-1837)

O Luna mea, ce clar îmi amintesc:
Era acum un an, când, sus pe deal,
La tine am venit, îngenunchiat,
Să te privesc senină, peste culmi,
Cu faţa ta splendidă de opal.

Umbrită-n ceaţă, tremurând uşor,
Ai chipul diafan, în ochii mei,
Când lacrimile nu le pot curma.

Căci soarta mi-a fost grea, năpăstuit
Mereu fiind, desi păstrez în vis memorii dulci,
Căci anii grei m-apasă mai uşor.

Dar ce plăcut a fost, când, tânăr fiind,
Să sper într-un parcurs strălucitor,
Dar umbre din trecut nu m-au lăsat
Pe ele sa clădesc, căci triste sunt.

Rendered in Romanian by Constantin ROMAN, London
© 2015 Copyright Constantin ROMAN, London

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SHORT BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE: Giacomo Taldegardo Francesco di Sales Saverio Pietro Leopardi (June 29, 1798 – June 14, 1837) was an Italian poet, philosopher, essayist and philologist. Although he lived in a secluded town in the ultra-conservative Papal States, he came in touch with the main thoughts of the Enlightenment, and, by his own literary evolution, created a remarkable and renowned poetic work, related to the Romantic era. The depth of his reflection on existence and the human condition makes him a philosopher of considerable depth. The extraordinary lyrical quality of his poetry made him a central protagonist in the European and international literary and cultural landscape (from Wikipedia).