Sunday, July 1, 2018

Gymnosophia XVIII - I Do Not Wish to Mislead You (+ptl, es, fr)

I do not wish to mislead you
as to time, place, country,
culture, or era.
The more generic I can be,
the better,
for I have been in all
those places,
and no age
of human history
is foreign
to me.
We, all of us,
are here to warn you
of great danger.





[portunhol surenho]

Eu non quero enganar voce
quanto ao tempo, lugar, país,
cultura ou era.
Quanto mais genérico eu puder ser,
o meshor,
porque eu estive em todos
aqueles lugares,
y nenhuma idade
da história humana
é estrangeiro
para mim.
Nós, todos nós,
estamo aqui para avisá-lo
de grande perigo.


[español]

No deseo engañarte
en cuanto a tiempo, lugar, país,
cultura o era.
Cuanto más genérico puedo ser,
mejor,
porque he estado en todos
esos lugares,
y ninguna edad
de la historia humana
es extranjero
a mi.
Nosotros, todos nosotros,
estamos aquí para advertirte
de gran peligro.


[français]

Je ne veux pas vous tromper
quant à l'heure, le lieu, le pays,
culture, ou ère.
Le plus générique que je peux être,
le meilleur,
car j'ai été dans tous
ces endroits,
et pas d'âge
de l'histoire humaine
est étranger
pour moi.
Nous, nous tous,
sommes ici pour vous prévenir
de grand danger.

Saturday, June 30, 2018

Gymnosophia XVII - Layers upon Layers (+ptl, es, fr)

Layers upon layers
of selves
speak to us through
tens of thousands
of years,
in a language
of silence
that is easily
missed.
Each action,
if we listen,
is a consensus
of them all
that is called
wisdom.






[portunhol surenho]

Camadas sobre camadas
de eus
falam com nós através
dezenas de mishares
de anos,
em um idioma
de silencio
que é facilmente
perdido.
Cada asón,
se escutamo,
é um consenso
de todos eles
que é chamado
sabedoría.


[español]

Capas sobre capas
de yoes
nos hablan a través de
decenas de miles
de años,
en un idioma
de silencio
que es facilmente
perdido.
Cada acción,
si escuchamos,
es un consenso
de todos ellos
que se llama
sabiduría.


[français]

Couches sur couches
de soi
parlent-nous à travers
des dizaines de milliers
d'années,
dans une langue
du silence
qui est facilement
manquée.
Chaque action,
si nous écoutons,
est un consensus
de tous
que l'on appelle
sagesse.

I Will Admit

I will admit that some of the more popular posts in this poetry blog are those that feature nudity in the illustrations. In a way this isn't so surprising, because most people love nudity, whether or not they are in the habit of admitting it. Regular poems in the English language do well too, especially when there is something in them that recommends itself to a large number of readers (a good example is Prayer for the World). A real surprise, though, is the popularity of posts in the Udugi language, with or without a translation.

Perhaps this should not be so surprising, either. Udugi is a constructed language, based on Cherokee vocabulary and a very simple, Esperanto-like grammar. Its goal is to preserve what can be preserved of the Cherokee language, as well as the use of the Cherokee writing system. Fortunately, Cherokee is the best-documented indigenous language of North America. The melding of the vocabulary and the new, simple grammar has been done quite seamlessly, creating a beautiful and very usable product.

But who are the users of this new-old language? I don't know, since they haven't yet told me, but I can say that the greatest interest, by far, is in the United States. Other countries where there is significant interest in the language are Germany, France, and Brazil. If you are among those interested in the Udugi language, I'd love to hear from you. I can be reached by email: exolinguist at gmail dot com. Thanks for your interest!




Fun Fact (+ptl, es, fr)

Fun fact: Except for the "m" sound, you can speak both Cherokee and Udugi without closing your mouth. Does anyone know of other such languages? Comment to reply.





[portunhol surenho]

Curiosidade: Exceto pelo som "m", voce pode falar Cherokee y Udugi sem fechar a boca. Alguém sabe de outras tales línguas? Comentário para responder.


[español]

Dato curioso: a excepción del sonido "m", puede hablar tanto cherokee como udugi sin cerrar la boca. ¿Alguien sabe de otros tales idiomas? Comentario para responder.


[français]

Fait amusant: Sauf pour le son "m", vous pouvez parler tant Cherokee comme Udugi sans fermer la bouche. Est-ce que quelqu'un connaît d'autres langues semblables? Commenter pour répondre.

Friday, June 29, 2018

Gymnosophia XVI - Ghosts of the Past (+ptl, es, fr)

Ghosts of the past
frequent the present,
and will determine
the future.

The past lives amongst us,
and its voice
will be heard.






[portunhol surenho]

Fantasmas do passado
freqüentem o presente,
y vam determinar
o futuro.

O passado vive entre nós
y sua voz
será ouvido.


[español]

Fantasmas del pasado
frecuentan el presente,
y determinarán
el futuro.

El pasado vive entre nosotros,
y su voz
será oído.


[français]

Les fantômes du passé
fréquentent le présent,
et détermineront
l'avenir.

Le passé vit parmi nous,
et sa voix
sera entendu.

Lady Liberty Came to Live with Us

Lady Liberty came to live with us,
will we send her away?
Will we judge her, shame her,
slander her to her face?
Will we ban her religion,
her politics, or her race?
If she lives with us,
will she be free
to live in peace,
with equality?
Lady Liberty came to live with us,
but will she stay?



nasgi-hia iyusdidi / translations: en, ptl, es, fr

Nasgi-hia iyusdidi gesvase galvquodi ale tla yeliquase udotsali nanivquo: elohi, unole, atsilv, ama, ale adanvdo. itsula adasdelvdose ale atsisdelose nigadv nasgidvne.

ᎾᏍᎩ-ᎯᎠ ᎢᏳᏍᏗᏗ ᎨᏒᎠᏎ ᎦᎸᏉᏗ ᎠᎴ Ꮭ ᏰᎵᏆᏎ ᎤᏙᏣᎵ ᎾᏂᎥᏉ: ᎡᎶᎯ, ᎤᏃᎴ, ᎠᏥᎸ, ᎠᎹ, ᎠᎴ ᎠᏓᏅᏙ. ᎢᏧᎳ ᎠᏓᏍᏕᎸᏙᏎ ᎠᎴ ᎠᏥᏍᏕᎶᏎ ᏂᎦᏛ ᎾᏍᎩᏛᏁ.






[English]

These things are sacred, and cannot belong to anybody: earth, air, fire, water, and spirit. We will protect and defend them all.


[portunhol surenho]

Estas coisas son sagradas y non poden pertencer a ninguém: terra, ar, fogo, agua y espírito. Nós vamos proteger y defender todas elas.


[español]

Estas cosas son sagradas y no pueden pertenecer a nadie: tierra, aire, fuego, agua y espíritu. Las protegeremos y defenderemos a todas.


[français]

Ces choses sont sacrées et ne peuvent appartenir à personne: la terre, l'air, le feu, l'eau et l'esprit. Nous allons les protéger et les défendre tous.