我们能否相信——努力

Can we believe—by an effort

安慰我们的心：

comfort our hearts:

所有这些被放置在此处的，

it is not waste all this,

并不恶心的垃圾，

not placed here in disgust,

街道连着街道，

street after street,

彼此相似，

each patterned alike,

没有一种优雅

no grace to lighten

附着于这拥挤的房屋，

a single house of the hundred

使其变成花园般的美景。

crowded into one garden-space.

拥挤——我们难以相信，

Crowded—can we believe,

并非厌恶地，

not in utter disgust,

嘲讽地——

in ironical play—

而是城市的制造者，对寺庙，

but the maker of cities grew faint

对寺庙前的空旷地，

with the beauty of temple

对完美的拱形和拱形门，

and space before temple,

对那些柱子，那些延伸到

arch upon perfect arch,

奇异院落和门庭的长廊，

of pillars and corridors that led out

对所有这些美，丧失了感觉。

to strange court-yards and porches

那里，阳光

where sun-light stamped

将风信子黑色的影子

hyacinth-shadows

印在小径上。

black on the pavement.

城市的建造者，

That the maker of cities grew faint

对宫殿的辉煌，

with the splendour of palaces,

对那片刻的宁静——当芳香的花

paused while the incense-flowers

从树上

from the incense-trees

飘落于大理石地面时——

dropped on the marble-walk,

对新的思想，创造形式，丧失了感觉。

thought anew, fashioned this—

街道连着街道，彼此相似。

street after street alike.

因为，唉，

For alas,

他已经将城市挤得那么满，

he had crowded the city so full

人们无法抓住美，

that men could not grasp beauty,

美越过他们，

beauty was over them,

穿过他们，与他们擦身而过，

through them, about them,

没有缝隙可以释放

no crevice unpacked with the honey,

珍贵并无限的蜜。

rare, measureless.

因此他建造了一个新的城市，

So he built a new city,

我，我们能否相信，并非嘲讽地，

ah can we believe, not ironically

相信新的辉煌被建造，

but for new splendour

新的人

constructed new people

在缓慢中生长，

to lift through slow growth

变成一种至高无上的美——

to a beauty unrivalled yet—

新的蜂房被建造，

and created new cells,

最初是丑陋的，现在仍是丑陋的——

hideous first, hideous now—

让幼虫在其中繁殖，

spread larve across them,

没有蜜，只有沸腾的生活。

not honey but seething life.

在这些黑暗的蜂房中，

And in these dark cells,

堆积着一条又一条街道，

packed street after street,

灵魂居住其中，也是丑陋的——

souls live, hideous yet—

哦，被扭曲，被损毁，

O disfigured, defaced,

丝毫不见被人们轻轻供奉的

with no trace of the beauty

美的踪迹。

men once held so light.

我们能否相信，一些古老的蜂房

Can we think a few old cells

被留下——我们被留下——

were left—we are left—

蜜的颗粒，

grains of honey,

迷失的、古老的花粉，

old dust of stray pollen

在我们被撕裂的翅膀上隐约闪现，

dull on our torn wings,

我们被留下来，回忆古老的街道？

we are left to recall the old streets?

莫非我们注定只有更稀薄的甜蜜，

Is our task the less sweet

而幼虫仍然沉睡在他们的蜂房之中？

that the larvae still sleep in their cells?

或者爬出来攻击我们的虚弱：

Or crawl out to attack our frail strength:

你是无用的。而我们活着。

You are useless. We live.

我们等待着伟大的一刻，

We await great events.

我们在这个地球繁殖。

We are spread through this earth.

我们延续我们强大的种族。

We protect our strong race.

你们是无用的。

You are useless.

你们的细胞取代了我们

Your cell takes the place

未来的年轻的力。

of our young future strength.

他们睡着或者醒来，折磨

Though they sleep or wake to torment

并妄图取代我们古老的蜂房——

and wish to displace our old cells—

珍贵的黄金——

thin rare gold—

他们的幼虫肥胖——

that their larve grow fat—

但我们是否注定只有更稀薄的甜蜜？

is our task the less sweet?

虽然我们漫游在这垃圾场，

Though we wander about,

没有找到花蜜，

find no honey of flowers in this waste,

但我们是否注定只有更稀薄的甜蜜——

is our task the less sweet—

注定只能回忆古老的辉煌，

who recall the old splendour,

期待城市新的美？

await the new beauty of cities?

城市里

The city is peopled

挤满了人的精神，而非幽灵，哦，我的爱：

with spirits, not ghosts, O my love:

虽然他们挤在我们之间，

Though they crowded between

篡夺我唇上的吻，

and usurped the kiss of my mouth

他们的呼吸是你的礼物，

their breath was your gift,

他们的美，是你的生命。

their beauty, your life.