17 September 2014

Sibyl




     
     
     She stepped carefully over green sprouts
     in cracks of sidewalks—her Mother’s Back
     of nursery rhyme fame—not concrete—
     not spaces between—but what grows out.

     (Power of Eternity, Your Word
     grows flesh like You and all things Eden.)
     Cover it over but green breaks through
     delighted that she saw and transferred.

     She opened in blooming radiance
     in time and beyond.  Dawn and Food and
     Love and Wisdom flowed as she over-
     stepped boundaries of our man-made myths.

     Look at the songs she wrote, pregnant with
     Viriditas, her vision’s zenith!





Posted for my prompt

         Poets United Midweek Motif ~ Hildegard von Bingen






Copyright © 2014 S.L.Chast


“O nobilissima” is the final movement of Lux Lucis, 
a collection of three motets for women’s voices, 
on texts by Hildegard von Bingen. 



     Latin text                                                     English translation
O nobilissima viriditas                                O most noble greenness,
que radicas in sole                                      you are rooted in the sun,
et ques in candida serenitate                      and you shine in bright serenity
luces in rota                                                in a sphere
quam nulla terrena excellentia                  no earthly eminence         
comprehendit:                                             attains. You are enfolded
Tu circumdata es                                        in the embraces of divine
amplexibus divinorum                                ministries.
ministeriorum.                                             
Tu rubes ut aurora                                     You blush like the dawn         
et ardes ut solis flamma.                             and burn like a flame of the sun.

    



14 comments:

  1. I love the lines in parentheses. Beautiful!

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  2. Ah, she did indeed overstep boundaries of manmade myths; and her songs are beautiful indeed!

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  3. Yes you and all things Eden is wonderful line

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  4. Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful. Love it!

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  5. It was a tough life for those women who had talent back 1000 years ago. Even artistic geniuses who were men spent too much time genuflecting...

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  6. Susan,
    I like how you turned a theme such as a Catholic saint into something so original and far from Catholicism but for all religions and faiths out there. You nailed it!!! :)

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  7. Loved the cracks in the sidewalk reference.

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  8. What a lovely vision ~ I specially like the third stanza of blooming radiance ~

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  9. It has taken thousands of years but humanity is still reluctant to have life giving, nurturing women true recognition for their paramount role in all aspects of life. This planet has little hope without it.

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  10. The Gift of Poetry is the revelation of Saints who have accomplished so much devoting their whole life to the Service of God...'Green breaks through' as Green is Evergreen' and thus we achieve the 'awakening of the heart' that strengthens the bond between human beings . Thank you Susan for a deeply religious and historical prompt which opened another branch of Knowledge. I share my love of Green in Nature as I Honor Respected Saint Hildegard von Bingen.

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  11. Beautiful...green, life. I love this Susan.

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  12. I live the last two lines. To be filled with greenness/life is something.

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