Tiszta szívvel

Tiszta szívvel

Nincsen apám, se anyám,
se istenem, se hazám,
se bölcsôm, se szemfedôm,
se csókom, se szeretôm.

Harmadnapja nem eszek,
se sokat, se keveset.
Húsz esztendôm hatalom,
húsz esztendôm eladom.

Hogyha nem kell senkinek,
hát az ördög veszi meg.
Tiszta szívvel betörök,
ha kell, embert is ölök.

Elfognak és felkötnek,
áldott földdel elfödnek
s halált hozó fû terem
gyönyörûszép szívemen.

1925

----------------------------------------------------

Song of Innocence (With A Pure Heart)

I have no God, I have no land,
no father, nor a mother's hand.
I have no crib or coffin-cover;
I share no kisses, I have no lover.

Three days I have been starving numb
for lack of either feast or crumb.
My strength: I'm twenty, whole and hale,
my twenty years are up for sale.

If no one wants to have a try,
then let the Devil come and buy.
and I will jimmy safe and fence,
kill, too, if need, in innocence.

Upon a noose they swing me high
then in the good soil I will lie --
and tips of poison grasses start
to prick above my splendid heart.

Translated by Anton N. Nyerges, Thomas Kabdebo [& Adam Makkai]

found at: http://homepages.paradise.net.nz/hellyer/attila.html

One of my favourite poems (translation below)

József Attila: Íme, hát megleltem hazámat

Íme, hát megleltem hazámat,
a földet, ahol nevemet
hibátlanul írják fölébem,
ha eltemet, ki eltemet.

E föld befogad, mint a persely.
Mert nem kell (mily sajnálatos!)
a háborúból visszamaradt
húszfilléres, a vashatos.

Sem a vasgyűrű, melybe vésve
a szép szó áll, hogy új világ,
jog, föld. – Törvényünk háborús még
s szebbek az arany karikák.

Egyedül voltam én sokáig.
Majd eljöttek hozzám sokan.
Magad vagy, mondták; bár velük
voltam volna én boldogan.

Így éltem s voltam én hiába,
megállapíthatom magam.
Bolondot játszottak velem
s már halálom is hasztalan.

Mióta éltem, forgószélben
próbáltam állni helyemen.
Nagy nevetség, hogy nem vétettem
többet, mint vétettek nekem.

Szép a tavasz és szép a nyár,
de szebb az ősz s legszebb a tél,
annak, ki tűzhelyet, családot
már végképp másoknak remél.

1937. november 24.

-------------------------------------------

And So I've Found
My Native Country...

And so I've found my native country,
that soil the gravedigger will frame,
where they who write the words above me
do not for once misspell my name.

This black collection-box receives me
(for no one needs me any more),
this Iron Six that was worth twenty,
this coin left over from the war.

None needs that iron ring inscripted
with sweet words, that the world is new:
rights, land.--Our laws are the leftovers;
now pretty gold rings all pursue.

For many years I had been lonely.
Then many people visited.
I'd have been happy if they'd stayed.
You are alone, was what they said.

And so I lived, useless and empty,
and now I see it all quite plain.
They let me play the fool until
by now even my death's in vain.

All through my life I've tried to weather
the whirlwind that would always blow.
I was more sinned against than sinning,
and it's a laugh that it was so.

Spring, summer, autumn, all are lovely;
but winter's loveliest for one
who hopes for hearth and home and family
only for others, when all's done.

-------------------------------------------
found at : http://www.hungarianquarterly.com/no149/38.html
-------------------------------------------

although I would like to stick with the my translation of the last verse, loosing the structure of the verse:
Nice is the spring and nice is the summer
but autumn is nicer and the nicest is the winter,
for who's hopes for a fireplace and a family
Is granted only for others.

Of course the English version is not able to reflect the whole atmosphere of the poem, but it is enough to show what its about.

This is the poem of my favorite write. I don't know why, even in my "early days" when I was less then 10 years old I have remembered some of his poems. His tragedy in life and poetry influenced my life. Now that I think of it, I would rather say that I can interpret my life in his poetry and in a way I believe I understand the tragedy of his life, although I have a completely different one.

The first verse is also very near to me, but most probably from a completly different reason. I am a minority in Slovakia. It is quite normal that Slovaks don't know how to write my name down, as our surnames are traditional Hungarian ones (like Szűcs or Török) when they don't even know the letters... and I have a lot of friends who have it even harder then me. If ppl know how to write donw your name, it means that you are somehow related to them. I think this is for ppl in a minority even more important, then for other ppl.

LGT

After a nice trip to Budapest with some British guys we met in the train, I slowly got to the Sziget. Well, I'm sure it will be a hell of a week there, and would like to be there to, but no money no fun + I'm working during the week. But anyway the concert was awesome, tough with a lot of difficulties...
Basically when we bordered the train to Budapest, it was full. Well not as full as the trains on a Sunday during the school year, but it was full. A lot of people with backpacks were going to the Sziget, most of them speaking English in the train, I just happened to talk to a girl from the Netherlands and then we (I went there with my brother) got a sitting place with 3 guys from Great Britain.
After some side stories we went to the Sziget... got there, check-in went superb, no real waiting time :)
Inside a lot of foreign people. In the evening a lot of parties, good mood, smiling faces, small groups playing guitar (Oasis - Wonderwall) . We went up 14 meters on a tower, and looked around, before me 2 discos, behind a life concert (though amateurs) and drunk happy people cruising around - it was around 2:15 :)

Getting back to the concert. I learned some lessons: don't go with people, who don't have the same mindset, it can spoil a lot, even if you like those ppl... I like to be in the first rows - they don't; I wanted to buy a shirt before the concert to have something remembering me this concert... well I had the feeling at 0:30 that we will miss it... we didn't, but I was quite nervous about that...

About the concert - first the problems, then the things I want to remember:

• 3-5 times happened, that a "bass-wave" was coming from the speakers (I hope you understand what I mean, if not, give a note, I will find it out what it's called)
• A helicopter pissed up one whole song, by cruising above the stage... Though after the song Presser told us to wink at them to go away, but the one guy showing his middle finger in the audience made the difference (to see just one middle finger from around 200 hands is quite acceptable I think)...
• I missed though a stage performance they were promising, it was well, but I saw in my mind a more colorful performance
• Nothing else really bothered me... and this was max 3% of the concert.

So lets get to the thinks worth to mention!!!

• according to the organizers 50.000 people were at that concert
• age of the fans was in average I think 35-40, I believe there was somebody from every generation!
• one of the most interesting instruments I have seen in my life (something between a trumpet and a violin, which you play like a violin...)
• the audience... singing the songs of the classics was great. LGT has been listening to the audience singing one of their whole song, without playing anything - well thats quite luxurious :)
• the improvisation parts were nice, and some new feats, they tried to play Boksz with an electric guitar using a distorter. The monotone parts were quite dull, as it was overlaping all other instrument, but when they started to play the instrumental part as a duo with a normal guitar, it gave a much better sounding, then the original song
  
• the timing - exactly when I said, that there should have been a change into a more powerful song they had played it
• that I knew all the songs and most of the texts also, well I have been listening to them the last month... (and that I couldn't here myself singing, cause it had to be horrible (with my voice...), I have spoiled the night for a few ppl :))
  
• The amazing drum solos at the break, when the band was going down between the ppl (also one of the worst parts of the concert, as I couldn't see them, just on the screen).
• And of course a nice ending, seeing all four musicians behind the piano, singing Szól a rádió (The radio talks), the audience singing with them as the whole last hour and you see and here Presser fighting with his tears...

I had a great time, miss the people I used to go to such concerts with, but thank you for showing me the beauty of them. And looking forward for the next great concert.


...Nagyon jó ez a repülés, ez a távoli ragyogás!
Nagyot bámul a vasutas!
Felszállás, éjszakai vonatozás!
LGT - Éjszakai vonatozás