Album : Tell us old sage (Innid a yamγaṛ) (ENG]

[Icerfan]

Tell us old sage

Here, it is knowledge and wisdom which are calling us. The old man symbolizes the memory of oral cultures we are afraid will die with us. And even if the questions raised here reflect deep anxieties, the questioners of the old man look for a wise and reasoned solution to these problems.

Not attributed.

[Icerfan]

With grateful thanks to the language forum for their help and to Icerfan - as usual - for clarification of some tricky bits and putting me right along the way!

I'm repeating the summary from the CD...

"The old sage has said...
The old sage, symbol of oral memory, is saying that all of us hold his own answer deep in himself and no matter what, man will always soil water to purify himself."


*****************************

The wise man has spoken…

We question the sage
What will he tell us?
What has he revealed?
He says: whatever happens
The same has
Occurred in the past
nothing is new

The sky like a vault
Covers the world
And observes all since creation
It saw the days build the centuries
It saw what was
It sees what is.
It saw Men
Killing Men
It saw the errors of Men
and sees Men persisting
in error
whatever happens
The same has
Occurred in the past
nothing is new

What the century erects
the century demolishes
what was good
becomes evil
What was evil
becomes good
life turns,
redistributing its gifts
they say to us
but all that survives
after the turmoil
is what we do not wish for
whatever happens
The same has
Occurred in the past
nothing is new

Justice is [a] word
Companion of the Utopia
How many seek after it
and never find it
Arbitrary power is ancestral
It is there at the beginning
It lives in you
Fed by your fear
It nourishes
He who craves greatness
Even though he can harm you
He appears to you as intelligent
whatever happens
The same has
Occurred in the past
nothing is new

The needy one is pitied
He who does not find respite
The torments strike him down
And eat away at his carcass
The rich man is to be pitied
He has in excess.
Goods which he holds
And becomes alienated
The wise one is to be pitied
Brain tormented
Those who see him
Do not understand.
whatever happens
The same has
Occurred in the past
nothing is new

Beauty is a marvel
For those who are young
They look at it with different eyes
Beauty waits for their gaze
To mature and deepen
But the young are dazzled
And beauty despairs
Old age arrives
Abandoning its search
Hoping to resume it
But hope is useless
whatever happens
The same has
Occurred in the past
nothing is new

When strength is present
wisdom is lacking
When wisdom is present,
strength has forsaken us.
The mistakes of youth
Forge the regrets of old age
This is, and will be
And remains impossible to circumvent
Who is thirsty for peace
does not distinguish the weft from the woof
Who has peace
is unaware of its value.
whatever happens
The same has
Occurred in the past
nothing is new

Pure water
washes you
The water is soiled
Yet you are purified
You soil those
Who give you purity
You untie the shackles
of those who cultivate evil
Why do you seek
to know everything
Live (therefore) so that
you are fulfilled.
whatever happens
The same has
Occurred in the past
nothing is new


Zixi, England
March 8th 2006 with minor amendments August 2nd & 3rd 2006

[Icerfan]

Brasseurs de vent
(Asendu n waman)

According to the place given to an individual in Society, Life can become a Comedy where the subject is the actor or a Tragedy within which he is a mere onlooker.
Non-attributrable.

Brasseurs de vent - After several discussions with francophones, we came up with Blowers of hot air. As we wouldn’t say that in English, Spouting hot air… is perhaps one way of translating it. Icerfan uses 'brassage' - brewing rather than 'brasseurs' - brewers, so 'Spouting' is probably as near as I can get to the French.

Zixi, England

[Icerfan]

And a day is added
(Yerna yiwen was)


Existence is a passage and each day added brings us closer to the end. In between, there is life and the sense we want to give to it.

Non-attributable paraphrase from the CD booklet.


Zixi, England