Songs

V dveryakh edema angel nezhnïy
At Eden’s gates, a tender angel
Glavoy poniksheyu siyal,
Stood brightly shining, head bowed low,
A demon mrachnïy I myateshnïy
Whilst a gloomy and rebellious demon
Nad adskoy bezdnoyu letal.
Flew over the abys of hell.

Dukh otritsan´ya, dukh somnen´ya,
This spirit of negation, spirit of doubt
Na dukha chistogo vziral
Beheld that spirit of purity and truth,
I zhar nevol´nïy umilen´ya
And for the first time, he knew the vague sensation
Vpervïye smutno poznaval.
Of tenderness’s unwilled warmth.

‘Prosti,—on rek—tebya ya videl,
“Forgive me,” he uttered, “At last I have seen you,
I tï nedarom mne siyal:
And your radiance has not been for naught:
Ne vsyo ya v nebe nenavidel,
I have not hated everything in heaven,
Ne vsyo ya v mire preziral’.
I have not despised everything in the world.”