La luna vino a la fragua
con su polisón de nardos.
El niño la mira mira.
El niño la está mirando.
En el aire conmovido
mueve la luna sus brazos
y enseña, lúbrica y pura,
sus senos de duro estaño.
Huye luna, luna, luna.
Si vinieran los gitanos,
harían con tu corazón
collares y anillos blancos.
Niño, déjame que baile.
Cuando vengan los gitanos,
te encontrarán sobre el yunque
con los ojillos cerrados.
Huye luna, luna, luna,
que ya siento sus caballos.
Níno, déjame, no pises
mi blancor almidonado.
El jinete se acercaba
tocando el tambor del llano
Dentro de la fragua el niño,
tiene los ojos cerrados.
Por el olivar venían,
bronce y sueño, los gitanos.
Las cabezas levantadas
y los ojos entornados.
¡Cómo canta la zumaya,
ay cómo canta en el árbol!
Por el cielo va la luna
con un niño de la mano.
Dentro de la fragua lloran,
dando gritos, los gitanos.
El aire la vela, vela.
El aire la está velando.
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Comments
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Lorca and Langston Hughes
From guest Felipe de Ortego y Gasca (contact)
In 1951 Hughes rendered an extraordinary translation of Lorca's Romance de la Luna, Luna. See Langston Hughes and Hispanic Letters @ www.ollin.com/somos. -
From guest Nevoa Shijin (contact)
A mi me ENCANTA Federico Garcia Lorca.... (I LOVE Lorca.... he has always been one of my favorite poets, and even though he died so young, he left so much behind...there is so much emotion in this poem, like his other works...) -
Este poema tiene una entonación musical, triste y melancólica, pero con tanta belleza y emoción
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non voglio la realtà datemi il sogno
From guest roberto michele mazzilli (contact)
NO quiero la verdad dais me el sueno. Don't give me the truth , give me the dream. -
the woman bit at the end
From guest kk (contact)
I actually think the "la" that the air is watching/mourning refers to la fragua, which is the blacksmith's place where it all goes down. So the air, life, is mourning the loss of the boy along with the gypsies. -
An interpreation of Lorca with translations of Spanish phrases into English
This poem takes after a popular folk song in Spanish named El niño de La Luna. The Moon's boy. It's sort of a myth/legend that provided a conclusion to people who where Albino as well as the reasons why the form of the moon changes. The song tells of a gypsy woman who wanted to have a child. So crying and begging she asked the moon to giver her children. The moon consented as long as her first born belonged to the moon. When the gypsy woman gave birth the children had olive eyes and white skin, he was albino. Her husband (a gypsy as well) thought it wasn't his child, and in anger killed the gypsy woman. So the moon descended to take the boy. And it says that when the child cries the moon becomes a crescent moon to make him a cradle and console him.
However, Lorca's interpretation is much more sexual and the boy appears to be of an older age. For example, the mention of the breast which may have a motherly implication, changes to something more sexual.
The moon shows to the child her "breast of hard prime (unprocessed) silver." The boy afraid for the gypsies tells the moon to leave for the gypsies will make of the moon necklaces and rings (silver). The moon responds, boy let me dance, when the gypsies come they will find you with your eyes closed. I believe its a much more deathly interpretation than just sleep.
As the gypsies approach the child closes his eyes and the moon takes the boy.
Whats peculiar about the last stanza is that the gypsies cry for the missing child. And the wind is the candle the candle, and the word in Spanish changes to mean mourning. So the wind is mourning the moon. In Spanish the word moon is female. La Luna, therefore the wind is mourning her. Implying the moon and not the child.
Lorca ends with the peculiar question that both the moon and the child have fallen in this process. Either the boy becomes a man and his eyes close and the moon stops having its sensual human life. Both the moon and child are lost by the end of the poem.
I'll be posting a thorough translation of this poem soon. -
my thoughts
From guest tony rodriguez (contact)
kool how dis man had all of theses brilliant ideas but a shameda way dat he just vanished with out a trace -
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I do not think that Federico Garcia Lorca vanished without a trace. He died very young during Franco's Government, but he left a great legacy, and is one of the most important Playwrighters from his time.
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But isn't this erotic!
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