【英诗鉴赏】Virtue

Toyger

Virtue
by George Herbert


Sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright!
The bridal of the earth and sky
The dew shall weep thy fall to-night;
For thou must die.

Sweet rose, whose hue angry and brave,
Bids the rash gazer wipe his eye,
Thy root is ever in its grave,
And thou must die.

Sweet spring, full of sweet days and roses,
A box where sweets compacted lie,
My music shows ye have your closes,
And all must die,

Only a sweet and virtuous soul,
Like season'd timber, never gives;
But though the whole world turns to coal,
Then chiefly lives.

Toyger

美德

甜美的白昼如此凉爽、宁静和明亮，
你是蓝天和大地幸福结合的时光；
但当今夜露水降临，露珠儿将为你哭泣、忧伤；
因为你定将消逝、死亡。

美丽的玫瑰，你的容颜鲜艳、身披盛装，
使走马观花者也不得不侧目凝视，把你观赏；
但是你的根却永远扎在坟墓里，
你也注定死亡。

美妙的春天，到处是玫瑰，到处是明媚的仰光，
你像一个匣子装满了奇妙的宝藏；
但我的歌要表明你也有归去的一天，
因为万物都要灭亡。

只有美好的心灵，善良高尚，
就像干燥的木材，永不走样；
即使整个世界都变成了煤块，
也将与世长存，永放光芒。

译者未知

Toyger

George Herbert was born to a noble family in Wales; his mother was patron to John Donne who dedicated his 'Holy Sonnets' to her. He was educated at Westminster School and Trinity College Cambridge, where in 1620 he was elected to the prestigious post of Public Orator.

His first two sonnets were sent to his mother in 1610. On the theme that the love of God is a worthier subject for verse than the love of woman. They foreshadowed his future religious and poetic inclinations, but at first Herbert seemed bent on a secular career, much involved in court life and Member of Parliament for Montgomery in Wales from 1624-5. His only published verse during this period was in Greek and Latin, for formal occasions.

In 1627, however, he resigned as Orator and was ordained a priest, becoming rector at Bemerton in Wiltshire where he was noted for his diligence and humility, traits reflected in his poetry which also expresses the conflict between the religious and worldy life.

When he realised he was dying of consumption, he sent a collection of his poems in manuscript to his friend Nicholas Ferrar to judge whether to burn them or publish them. The result was 'The Temple', religious poems using common language and rhythms of speech, published to enormous popular acclaim and running to 13 editions by 1680.

Also published after his death, in 1652, was 'A Priest to the Temple: Or the Country Parson, his Character and Rule of Life' homely, prose advice to country clerics

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