David Whyte : The Opening of Eyes

Photo by David Whyte

THE OPENING OF EYES / David Whyte
After R. S. Thomas


眼之開啟 (靈感來自 R. S. Thomas 詩作）


That day I saw beneath dark clouds,
the passing light over the water
and I heard the voice of the world speak out,
I knew then, as I had before,
life is no passing memory of what has been
nor the remaining pages in a great book
waiting to be read.

那天，我看見烏雲下
劃過水面的天光，
聽見世界的聲音揚起，
那一刻，我知道 — 我始終知道，
生命並非過去種種回憶，
亦非一部鉅作尚待閱讀的書頁。

It is the opening of eyes long closed.
It is the vision of far off things
seen for the silence they hold.
It is the heart after years
of secret conversing,
speaking out loud in the clear air.

生命是久閉之眼的開啟。
是慧見，看見
遠方景物蘊含的寧靜。
是心，於多年隱密的對話之後，
大聲宣告於清澈的大氣。

It is Moses in the desert
fallen to his knees before the lit bush.
It is the man throwing away his shoes
as if to enter heaven
and finding himself astonished,
opened at last,
fallen in love with solid ground.

生命是沙漠中的摩西
於燃燒的矮樹前屈膝。
是這位將鞋丟下，
彷如走入天堂之人，
赫然發現自己
終於被開啟，
愛上了這片紮實的大地。

(Mary May 譯）

PS. 聖經中，摩西看見一棵燃燒的矮樹，但矮樹卻沒有燒去。
他向前一探究竟，聽見上帝透過天使的聲音對他說，
要他脫下鞋子，因為他所站之處即是聖地。

聆聽詩人朗讀：

The Bright Field / R.S. Thomas

I have seen the sun break through
to illuminate a small field
for a while, and gone my way
and forgotten it. But that was the
pearl of great price, the one field that had
treasure in it. I realize now
that I must give all that I have
to possess it. Life is not hurrying

on to a receding future, nor hankering after
an imagined past. It is the turning
aside like Moses to the miracle
of the lit bush, to a brightness
that seemed as transitory as your youth
once, but is the eternity that awaits you.