Text. Part Ii
*
p. 10
Part Ii.
I. Proem.
, ,
;
.
288
;
;
292
,
.
296
\".
;--
\" , -- ".
300
,
.
304
.
,
.
308 !
Now already, brothers a weary time arose, now it covered the army in the wilderness. Contumely arose in the hosts of the scion of Dbog, stepped like a Maiden on the land of Troyn, splashed with her swan-wings in the blue sea; splashing them in the Don, she awakened the heavy times.
The discord of the princes ruined them against the Pagans. For, brother spake to brother;--"This is mine, and that is also mine." And the princes began to pronounce of a paltry thing, 'this is great'; and themselves amongst them to forge feuds; and the heathens from all sides advanced with victories against the Russian land. Oh, far has the hawk followed, smiting the birds into the sea! and go's brave host will rise no more!
Ii. Konk'S Invasion.
,
,
312.
, :
\"
;
316 ,
:
,
.\"
320 " , ,
After him the Accursd One shouted, leapt over the Russian land, shooting forth fire on the people in a flaming horn.
The women of Russia wailed, saying:--"Henceforth can we no longer think with our thoughts of our dear loves nor with our counsel counsel them, nor see them with our eyes nor amass gold nor silver, nay far from it?" and then, brothers,
p. 11
.
324 ;
\".
328 :
.
[paragraph continues] Kev groaned with mourning, and erngov with disasters.
Grief poured forth on the Russian land, abundant tribulation flowed through the Russian lands. But the princes themselves forged discord amongst themselves, and the Pagans with victories overrode the Russian land and took tribute from each household of a squirrel's skin.
Iii. The Consequences Of Go'S Defeat.
332 ,
,
\",
336
[ ].
\"
;
340
,
,
,
344 ;
\"
348
,.
,.
352 ,
;
,
356 ,
,
\".
360 [].
For those two valiant sons of Svyatoslv, go and Vsvolod, had aroused the wrong which their father Svyatoslv [the great and terrible of Kev] had lulled asleep. With his might having conquered, [or kept in panic] through his powerful armies and tempered swords, he invaded the Polovsk land; he trampled down their hills and clefts, sullied their streams and lakes, dried out their rivers and fens. And the heathen Kobyk he tore, like a whirlwind, from the bight of the sea, out of the great hosts of the Plovtsy; and Kobyk fell in the city of Kev in the Hall of Svyatoslv.
There the Germans and the Wends, there the Greeks and Moravians sing the faine of Svyatoslv; they obsecrate Prince go; who foundered his abundance in the bed of the Kayla, the Polovsk river, and filled it with Russian gold.
There go dismounted from his golden saddle into a slave's saddle.
p. 12
Iv. The Dream Of Svyatoslv Vsvolodi.
,
.
364.
\",
".
,
368 \" ;
372.
\"
.
\"
376 ;
,
, ,
.
380 :
\", , ".
384 ,
.
,
388
.\"
The ramparts of the cities were hushed and mirth declined. And Svyatoslv dreamed a troubled dream at Kev on the hills. "This night," he said, "from even-time, ye dressed me with a black coverlet on my bed of yew; [men] poured me out blue wine mixed with dust; they scattered great [treasure of] pearls from the empty quivers of the nomads on to my lap and [try to] soothe me. Already are the boards in my golden-roofed abode bereft of wall-plates.
All night long from even-time have the crows of Bus [or Blus] croaked; two captives [stand] by the fen: mercilessly [the foe] have carried the two to the landing-stage of the river, down to the blue sea."
And the Boyrs answered the Prince; "Already, Prince, has grief taken captive our mind. For two hawks have flown away from their sires' golden throne, to seek the city of Tmutorok, or, may be, to quaff in their helms of the Don.
Already are the wings of the two hawks by the sabres of the heathen made to walk afoot; and, [go] himself they have fettered in fetters of iron."
V. The Incursion Of The Plovtsy.
.
;
392 ;
,
.
It was dark on the third day. Two suns were dimmed; both purple columns [of the Aurora Borealis] were extinguished; and with these two the two young Moons, Olg and Svyatoslv, were draped in darkness.
p. 13
396
.
,
400 :
,
\".
404 \" ;
;
.
408 ,
.
,
.
412 , ,
.
On the stream of the Kayla darkness covered the light. Over the Russian land the Plovtsy spread out like a brood of pards. And ye two plunged into the sea your mighty daring and will abandon it for folly.
Now obloquy was upraised after praise; now need burst out on freedom; now Div cast himself down [or? whined upon] the earth.
Thus the fair maidens of the Goths sang on the shore of the blue sea, tinkling in Russian gold. They sing the time of Bus [or Blus]; they cherish the vengeance for arokn. But, now, we, the druna, are a-thirst for joy.
Vi. The Lament Of Svyatoslv Vsvolodi.
416 :--
\" , !
,
420 !
,
.
424 ,
?
428
,
,
423
Then the mighty Svyatoslv let fall a golden word, commingled with tears, and spake: "Oh my nephews, go and Vsvolod! soon have ye begun to harass the land of the Plovtsy with your swords, and to seek fame for yourselves! But, dishonourably have ye conquered, for dishonourably have ye shed the blood of the heathen. Your brave hearts are welded together in heavy steel, and tempered in audacity. This have ye wrought to me to my silvered grey hairs?
Now I no longer see the power of my brother Yaroslv, the mighty and wealthy and well-equipped, with the commanders of the erngov mercenaries, with their forces, both with the men from the Ttra, the men from elbi and Topk,
p. 14
.
436 ,
.
:--\" ;
;
440 !\"
, ,
?
,
444 \" :
.
,
\";
448.
,
--
452 \" !"
from Revukha [or Revutsa] and from Olbie. For these without shields conquer the hosts by their yells, echoing to the glory of their forebears. But ye spake:--"Let us play a man's part; let us steal the glory of yore; let us divide the glory to come for ourselves!"
But, what wonder were it, brothers, for an old man to grow young? If a hawk is moulting, it drives the birds afar high up, and will not foul its own nest.
But this disaster, oh my Prince, is irremediable: the seasons have gone backwards to nothingness.
Thus they cry out at Rim beneath the sabres of the Plovtsy--,but Vladmir [lies] beneath his wounds,--"Woe and sorrow to the son of Glb!"
Vii. The Appeal To The Princes.
(1) To Vsvolod Yevi Of Szdal'.
;
?
456
,
!
,
460 ,
!
[] \" ,
464 \".
Great Prince Vsvolod! Is it not thine to fly from afar with thy thought to guard thy fathers' golden throne? For thou canst splash the Volga with thy oars, and bale out the Don with thy helmets! If thou hadst been [there], then a potentate would be priced at twelve pence and a workman at five pence!
For, on dry land, thou canst, with the men of eryor shoot my valorous sons of Glb.
p. 15
(2) To Rrik And David Rostslavi.
- !
?
468
,
\" ?
, ,
472 \"
,
,
476 !
Thou brave Rrik and David, did they not swim in blood with your golden helms? Do not your brave Druna gallop like bulls wounded by tempered sabres in the unexplored land?
Step, my lords, into your golden stirrups, for the insult to our time, for the Russian land, the wounds of go, the brave son of Svyatoslv.
(3) To Yaroslv Vladmirkovi Of Galicia.
.
;
!
480
;
;
;
484 \"!
, , !
!
!
488
!
, , ,
,
492 !
,
!
Thou didst shatter the Galicians on the Vistula, Yaroslv; thou sittest high on thy gold-forged throne, supporting the Hungarian mountains with thy iron-clad regiments, barring the road against the [Magyar] King, closing the gates of the Danube, hurling thongs amid the Vlakhs, judging and ordaining as far as the Danube! Thy threats have sway over the lands. Thou openest the gates of Kev, shootest from thy ancestral golden throne the men of Salatyn [who are] beyond thy lands.
Shoot, my liege, the heathen Konk the slave, for the sake of the Russian land, for the sake of the wounds of go, the brave son of Svyatoslv.
p. 16
(4) To Romn And Mstslav Rostslavi.
, -, !
496 !
,
,
.
500 -
.
,--
, , , ,
504 ,
.
, ,
508 ,
:
\",
512 \".
!
, ,
516.
Thou, valiant Romn and Mstslav, your brave thought carries you with your uncle to the work. Thou floatest in thy courage to thy toil like a hawk stretching himself in the winds, wishing in his strength to slay a bird!
For ye have iron cuirasses beneath your Latin helmets. Through them the earth trembled and many countries, Hinowice, Lithuania, the Yatvygi, the men of Dremble; and the Plovtsy threw down their maces and bowed their heads beneath those steel swords.
But now, my prince, the light of go's sun has dimmed; the tree through misfortune has let fall its leaves, they [the enemy] have shared out the cities on the Ro and the Sul. And, go's brave regiment can no more rise. The Don summons thee, Prince, and calls the princes to victory.
(5) To Ngva And Vsvolod Yaroslvi.
, ,
.
520 ,
\"
!
524
!
528 ,
,
!
The lgovii, those brave princes [i.e. go and Vsvolod] have hastened to the combat. ngva and Vsvolod [Yaroslvi] and ye three Mstslavii, ye heavy-winged ones of a noble nest, by inglorious lots have ye gotten yourselves power!
Wherefor [have ye] your golden helms and Polish maces and your shields? Guard the gates of the [frontier] land with your sharp arrows for the land of Russia, the wounds of go, the brave Svyatoslvi!
p. 17
(6) Reminiscence Of Izyaslv Vasl'Kovi.
.
532
;
\"-"
536.
, ,
,
540
,
544 :
\" :--
" , ,
,
548.\"
",
:--
552
.
,
556.
.
No longer does the Sul flow with silvery stream to the city of Pereyslavl', and the Dvin flows thither in a morass to the grim hunters of Poltsk, amid the shouts of the heathen.
Izyaslv, alone, the son of Vasl'ko, rang with his sharp swords on the helmets of the Lithuanians, grasped the fame of his grandfather Vsslav; and himself beneath the crimsoned shields was laid low on the blood-stained ground by the Lithuanian swords: and with grieving spake on his bed: "The birds, oh Prince, have been covering thy druna with their wings, and the wild beasts have been licking at their blood,"
On that field there was neither his brother Bryislav, nor his next [brother] Vsvolod: alone he let fall his pearl-white soul from his brave body out through his armour at his throat.
Voices were hushed; merriment was subdued. The trumpets of Gorodno blare.
Viii. Reproach To Yaroslv Vsvolodi And The Princes.
,
\" ,
560 \" ;
".
564
,
Oh Yaroslv [Vsvolodi] and all the scions of Vsslav, ye should now lower your standards and sheathe your maimed swords; for ye have now leapt away from the Glory of your grandfathers.
Ye, with your discords, began to lead the Pagans on to Russian soil, against the
.
568 !
p. 18
life of Vsslav. From strife there has been oppression from the land of the Plovtsy.
Ix. Reminiscences.
(1) Of Vsslav Bryislavi.
.
572
;
.
576
\" ;
" ;
;
580 ,
;
.
584 ,
;
,
.
588
;--
,
592 :
,
\" ,
596
.
600 ,
.
In the seventh age of Troyn Vsslav cast his lots for the Maiden dear to him.
He with wiles at the last tore himself free: and galloped to the city of Kev; with his weapon took hold of the golden throne of Kev; galloped from them like a wild beast at midnight from Blgorod, swathed himself in a blue mist, rent asunder his bonds into three parts, opened wide the gates of Nvgorod, shattered the Glory of Yaroslv [the First]; galloped like a wolf from Dudtki to the Nemga.
On the Nemga the sheaves are laid out with heads; men thresh with flails in hedgerows; on the barn-floor they spread out life; they winnow the soul from the body.
On the blood-stained Nemga the banks were sown with bane,--sown with the bones of the sons of Russia.
Prince Vsslav was a judge to his subjects, he appointed cities for the princes: but he himself at night raced like a wolf from Kev to the Idol [or, (accepting the reading of the text unaltered)--to the Lord] of Tmutarak, raced, like a wolf across the path of the great Khors.
To him at Polotsk they rang the bells early for matins at Saint Sophia; and he at Kev heard the sound.
p. 19
\" ,
604.
, \"
,
:--
608 ' , ,
"
.'--
[paragraph continues] Although his wise soul were in a hardy [or precious] body, yet he often endured misfortunes.
To him thou, oh wizard Boyrs, didst first thoughtfully speak the refrain:--"Neither the crafty man nor the experienced, nor a bird nor a minstrel can escape God's judgments."
(2) Of Saint Vladmir.
,
612
.
616 :
,
;
620 \" !
Ah, moan for the Russian land [ye who] remember the first epoch and the first princes!
It was useless to nail down that olden-time Vladmir to the mountains of Kev; his banners now have become, some of them Rrik's and others of them David's; but [these banners] waver to and fro at the hafts at variance one with the other!
X. The Lament Of Yaroslvna.
(1) \" ;
" ,
" :--
624 \", ;
[];
.\"
(1) The mourners sing on the Danube.
Yaroslvna hears their voice; she moans early like a cuckoo in the unknown land:--"I will fly" she spoke,--"like a cuckoo along the Danube; I will wet my beaver sleeves in the Kayla river, I will wipe away for the prince his bloody wounds on his stricken body.
(2) The Incantation Of The Wind.
628 (2)
, :--
\" , ,
, ,
632 ?
?
Yaroslvna wails early at Putvl' on the rampart, saying:--"Oh Wind, little Wind, wherefore, Master, blowest thou with violence? Wherefore hurlest thou with thy tireless wing torturing arrows on the hosts of my love?
p. 20
636
\" ,
?
, ,
640 ?\"
[paragraph continues] Little were it to thee to waft woes beneath the clouds, thou who rockest ships on the blue sea; wherefore, Master,--thou who waftest away my joy over the feathergrass [of the steppe]?"
(3) The Incantation Of The Water.
(3)
, :--
\" !
644
!
648 \":
, ,
!
652 !
Yaroslvna wails early at Putvl' on the rampart, saying. "Oh Dnpr Slovti, thou hast pierced the stone mountains through the land of the Plovtsy. Thou hast rocked on thyself Svyatoslv's barges up to the armies of Kobyk; rock up to me, Master, my love. Would that I had never sent tears to him over the sea!"
(4) The Incantation Of The Sun.
(4)
\" , :--
656 \" !
!
, ,
?
660
,
!\"
Yaroslvna wails by the waters on the rampart at Putvl' early, saying:--"Oh sun, thou bright, thrice bright one! To all men art thou warm and beauteous! Wherefore, Master, hast thou spread thy burning beam over my love's men? Thou hast stretched their bows in the waterless plain with thirst, and choked their quivers with tribulation."
Footnotes
18: For reconstruction of this passage vide page 24.
20: 'Sea' must be understood any wide inland stretch of water.
p. 10
Part Ii.
I. Proem.
, ,
;
.
288
;
;
292
,
.
296
\".
;--
\" , -- ".
300
,
.
304
.
,
.
308 !
Now already, brothers a weary time arose, now it covered the army in the wilderness. Contumely arose in the hosts of the scion of Dbog, stepped like a Maiden on the land of Troyn, splashed with her swan-wings in the blue sea; splashing them in the Don, she awakened the heavy times.
The discord of the princes ruined them against the Pagans. For, brother spake to brother;--"This is mine, and that is also mine." And the princes began to pronounce of a paltry thing, 'this is great'; and themselves amongst them to forge feuds; and the heathens from all sides advanced with victories against the Russian land. Oh, far has the hawk followed, smiting the birds into the sea! and go's brave host will rise no more!
Ii. Konk'S Invasion.
,
,
312.
, :
\"
;
316 ,
:
,
.\"
320 " , ,
After him the Accursd One shouted, leapt over the Russian land, shooting forth fire on the people in a flaming horn.
The women of Russia wailed, saying:--"Henceforth can we no longer think with our thoughts of our dear loves nor with our counsel counsel them, nor see them with our eyes nor amass gold nor silver, nay far from it?" and then, brothers,
p. 11
.
324 ;
\".
328 :
.
[paragraph continues] Kev groaned with mourning, and erngov with disasters.
Grief poured forth on the Russian land, abundant tribulation flowed through the Russian lands. But the princes themselves forged discord amongst themselves, and the Pagans with victories overrode the Russian land and took tribute from each household of a squirrel's skin.
Iii. The Consequences Of Go'S Defeat.
332 ,
,
\",
336
[ ].
\"
;
340
,
,
,
344 ;
\"
348
,.
,.
352 ,
;
,
356 ,
,
\".
360 [].
For those two valiant sons of Svyatoslv, go and Vsvolod, had aroused the wrong which their father Svyatoslv [the great and terrible of Kev] had lulled asleep. With his might having conquered, [or kept in panic] through his powerful armies and tempered swords, he invaded the Polovsk land; he trampled down their hills and clefts, sullied their streams and lakes, dried out their rivers and fens. And the heathen Kobyk he tore, like a whirlwind, from the bight of the sea, out of the great hosts of the Plovtsy; and Kobyk fell in the city of Kev in the Hall of Svyatoslv.
There the Germans and the Wends, there the Greeks and Moravians sing the faine of Svyatoslv; they obsecrate Prince go; who foundered his abundance in the bed of the Kayla, the Polovsk river, and filled it with Russian gold.
There go dismounted from his golden saddle into a slave's saddle.
p. 12
Iv. The Dream Of Svyatoslv Vsvolodi.
,
.
364.
\",
".
,
368 \" ;
372.
\"
.
\"
376 ;
,
, ,
.
380 :
\", , ".
384 ,
.
,
388
.\"
The ramparts of the cities were hushed and mirth declined. And Svyatoslv dreamed a troubled dream at Kev on the hills. "This night," he said, "from even-time, ye dressed me with a black coverlet on my bed of yew; [men] poured me out blue wine mixed with dust; they scattered great [treasure of] pearls from the empty quivers of the nomads on to my lap and [try to] soothe me. Already are the boards in my golden-roofed abode bereft of wall-plates.
All night long from even-time have the crows of Bus [or Blus] croaked; two captives [stand] by the fen: mercilessly [the foe] have carried the two to the landing-stage of the river, down to the blue sea."
And the Boyrs answered the Prince; "Already, Prince, has grief taken captive our mind. For two hawks have flown away from their sires' golden throne, to seek the city of Tmutorok, or, may be, to quaff in their helms of the Don.
Already are the wings of the two hawks by the sabres of the heathen made to walk afoot; and, [go] himself they have fettered in fetters of iron."
V. The Incursion Of The Plovtsy.
.
;
392 ;
,
.
It was dark on the third day. Two suns were dimmed; both purple columns [of the Aurora Borealis] were extinguished; and with these two the two young Moons, Olg and Svyatoslv, were draped in darkness.
p. 13
396
.
,
400 :
,
\".
404 \" ;
;
.
408 ,
.
,
.
412 , ,
.
On the stream of the Kayla darkness covered the light. Over the Russian land the Plovtsy spread out like a brood of pards. And ye two plunged into the sea your mighty daring and will abandon it for folly.
Now obloquy was upraised after praise; now need burst out on freedom; now Div cast himself down [or? whined upon] the earth.
Thus the fair maidens of the Goths sang on the shore of the blue sea, tinkling in Russian gold. They sing the time of Bus [or Blus]; they cherish the vengeance for arokn. But, now, we, the druna, are a-thirst for joy.
Vi. The Lament Of Svyatoslv Vsvolodi.
416 :--
\" , !
,
420 !
,
.
424 ,
?
428
,
,
423
Then the mighty Svyatoslv let fall a golden word, commingled with tears, and spake: "Oh my nephews, go and Vsvolod! soon have ye begun to harass the land of the Plovtsy with your swords, and to seek fame for yourselves! But, dishonourably have ye conquered, for dishonourably have ye shed the blood of the heathen. Your brave hearts are welded together in heavy steel, and tempered in audacity. This have ye wrought to me to my silvered grey hairs?
Now I no longer see the power of my brother Yaroslv, the mighty and wealthy and well-equipped, with the commanders of the erngov mercenaries, with their forces, both with the men from the Ttra, the men from elbi and Topk,
p. 14
.
436 ,
.
:--\" ;
;
440 !\"
, ,
?
,
444 \" :
.
,
\";
448.
,
--
452 \" !"
from Revukha [or Revutsa] and from Olbie. For these without shields conquer the hosts by their yells, echoing to the glory of their forebears. But ye spake:--"Let us play a man's part; let us steal the glory of yore; let us divide the glory to come for ourselves!"
But, what wonder were it, brothers, for an old man to grow young? If a hawk is moulting, it drives the birds afar high up, and will not foul its own nest.
But this disaster, oh my Prince, is irremediable: the seasons have gone backwards to nothingness.
Thus they cry out at Rim beneath the sabres of the Plovtsy--,but Vladmir [lies] beneath his wounds,--"Woe and sorrow to the son of Glb!"
Vii. The Appeal To The Princes.
(1) To Vsvolod Yevi Of Szdal'.
;
?
456
,
!
,
460 ,
!
[] \" ,
464 \".
Great Prince Vsvolod! Is it not thine to fly from afar with thy thought to guard thy fathers' golden throne? For thou canst splash the Volga with thy oars, and bale out the Don with thy helmets! If thou hadst been [there], then a potentate would be priced at twelve pence and a workman at five pence!
For, on dry land, thou canst, with the men of eryor shoot my valorous sons of Glb.
p. 15
(2) To Rrik And David Rostslavi.
- !
?
468
,
\" ?
, ,
472 \"
,
,
476 !
Thou brave Rrik and David, did they not swim in blood with your golden helms? Do not your brave Druna gallop like bulls wounded by tempered sabres in the unexplored land?
Step, my lords, into your golden stirrups, for the insult to our time, for the Russian land, the wounds of go, the brave son of Svyatoslv.
(3) To Yaroslv Vladmirkovi Of Galicia.
.
;
!
480
;
;
;
484 \"!
, , !
!
!
488
!
, , ,
,
492 !
,
!
Thou didst shatter the Galicians on the Vistula, Yaroslv; thou sittest high on thy gold-forged throne, supporting the Hungarian mountains with thy iron-clad regiments, barring the road against the [Magyar] King, closing the gates of the Danube, hurling thongs amid the Vlakhs, judging and ordaining as far as the Danube! Thy threats have sway over the lands. Thou openest the gates of Kev, shootest from thy ancestral golden throne the men of Salatyn [who are] beyond thy lands.
Shoot, my liege, the heathen Konk the slave, for the sake of the Russian land, for the sake of the wounds of go, the brave son of Svyatoslv.
p. 16
(4) To Romn And Mstslav Rostslavi.
, -, !
496 !
,
,
.
500 -
.
,--
, , , ,
504 ,
.
, ,
508 ,
:
\",
512 \".
!
, ,
516.
Thou, valiant Romn and Mstslav, your brave thought carries you with your uncle to the work. Thou floatest in thy courage to thy toil like a hawk stretching himself in the winds, wishing in his strength to slay a bird!
For ye have iron cuirasses beneath your Latin helmets. Through them the earth trembled and many countries, Hinowice, Lithuania, the Yatvygi, the men of Dremble; and the Plovtsy threw down their maces and bowed their heads beneath those steel swords.
But now, my prince, the light of go's sun has dimmed; the tree through misfortune has let fall its leaves, they [the enemy] have shared out the cities on the Ro and the Sul. And, go's brave regiment can no more rise. The Don summons thee, Prince, and calls the princes to victory.
(5) To Ngva And Vsvolod Yaroslvi.
, ,
.
520 ,
\"
!
524
!
528 ,
,
!
The lgovii, those brave princes [i.e. go and Vsvolod] have hastened to the combat. ngva and Vsvolod [Yaroslvi] and ye three Mstslavii, ye heavy-winged ones of a noble nest, by inglorious lots have ye gotten yourselves power!
Wherefor [have ye] your golden helms and Polish maces and your shields? Guard the gates of the [frontier] land with your sharp arrows for the land of Russia, the wounds of go, the brave Svyatoslvi!
p. 17
(6) Reminiscence Of Izyaslv Vasl'Kovi.
.
532
;
\"-"
536.
, ,
,
540
,
544 :
\" :--
" , ,
,
548.\"
",
:--
552
.
,
556.
.
No longer does the Sul flow with silvery stream to the city of Pereyslavl', and the Dvin flows thither in a morass to the grim hunters of Poltsk, amid the shouts of the heathen.
Izyaslv, alone, the son of Vasl'ko, rang with his sharp swords on the helmets of the Lithuanians, grasped the fame of his grandfather Vsslav; and himself beneath the crimsoned shields was laid low on the blood-stained ground by the Lithuanian swords: and with grieving spake on his bed: "The birds, oh Prince, have been covering thy druna with their wings, and the wild beasts have been licking at their blood,"
On that field there was neither his brother Bryislav, nor his next [brother] Vsvolod: alone he let fall his pearl-white soul from his brave body out through his armour at his throat.
Voices were hushed; merriment was subdued. The trumpets of Gorodno blare.
Viii. Reproach To Yaroslv Vsvolodi And The Princes.
,
\" ,
560 \" ;
".
564
,
Oh Yaroslv [Vsvolodi] and all the scions of Vsslav, ye should now lower your standards and sheathe your maimed swords; for ye have now leapt away from the Glory of your grandfathers.
Ye, with your discords, began to lead the Pagans on to Russian soil, against the
.
568 !
p. 18
life of Vsslav. From strife there has been oppression from the land of the Plovtsy.
Ix. Reminiscences.
(1) Of Vsslav Bryislavi.
.
572
;
.
576
\" ;
" ;
;
580 ,
;
.
584 ,
;
,
.
588
;--
,
592 :
,
\" ,
596
.
600 ,
.
In the seventh age of Troyn Vsslav cast his lots for the Maiden dear to him.
He with wiles at the last tore himself free: and galloped to the city of Kev; with his weapon took hold of the golden throne of Kev; galloped from them like a wild beast at midnight from Blgorod, swathed himself in a blue mist, rent asunder his bonds into three parts, opened wide the gates of Nvgorod, shattered the Glory of Yaroslv [the First]; galloped like a wolf from Dudtki to the Nemga.
On the Nemga the sheaves are laid out with heads; men thresh with flails in hedgerows; on the barn-floor they spread out life; they winnow the soul from the body.
On the blood-stained Nemga the banks were sown with bane,--sown with the bones of the sons of Russia.
Prince Vsslav was a judge to his subjects, he appointed cities for the princes: but he himself at night raced like a wolf from Kev to the Idol [or, (accepting the reading of the text unaltered)--to the Lord] of Tmutarak, raced, like a wolf across the path of the great Khors.
To him at Polotsk they rang the bells early for matins at Saint Sophia; and he at Kev heard the sound.
p. 19
\" ,
604.
, \"
,
:--
608 ' , ,
"
.'--
[paragraph continues] Although his wise soul were in a hardy [or precious] body, yet he often endured misfortunes.
To him thou, oh wizard Boyrs, didst first thoughtfully speak the refrain:--"Neither the crafty man nor the experienced, nor a bird nor a minstrel can escape God's judgments."
(2) Of Saint Vladmir.
,
612
.
616 :
,
;
620 \" !
Ah, moan for the Russian land [ye who] remember the first epoch and the first princes!
It was useless to nail down that olden-time Vladmir to the mountains of Kev; his banners now have become, some of them Rrik's and others of them David's; but [these banners] waver to and fro at the hafts at variance one with the other!
X. The Lament Of Yaroslvna.
(1) \" ;
" ,
" :--
624 \", ;
[];
.\"
(1) The mourners sing on the Danube.
Yaroslvna hears their voice; she moans early like a cuckoo in the unknown land:--"I will fly" she spoke,--"like a cuckoo along the Danube; I will wet my beaver sleeves in the Kayla river, I will wipe away for the prince his bloody wounds on his stricken body.
(2) The Incantation Of The Wind.
628 (2)
, :--
\" , ,
, ,
632 ?
?
Yaroslvna wails early at Putvl' on the rampart, saying:--"Oh Wind, little Wind, wherefore, Master, blowest thou with violence? Wherefore hurlest thou with thy tireless wing torturing arrows on the hosts of my love?
p. 20
636
\" ,
?
, ,
640 ?\"
[paragraph continues] Little were it to thee to waft woes beneath the clouds, thou who rockest ships on the blue sea; wherefore, Master,--thou who waftest away my joy over the feathergrass [of the steppe]?"
(3) The Incantation Of The Water.
(3)
, :--
\" !
644
!
648 \":
, ,
!
652 !
Yaroslvna wails early at Putvl' on the rampart, saying. "Oh Dnpr Slovti, thou hast pierced the stone mountains through the land of the Plovtsy. Thou hast rocked on thyself Svyatoslv's barges up to the armies of Kobyk; rock up to me, Master, my love. Would that I had never sent tears to him over the sea!"
(4) The Incantation Of The Sun.
(4)
\" , :--
656 \" !
!
, ,
?
660
,
!\"
Yaroslvna wails by the waters on the rampart at Putvl' early, saying:--"Oh sun, thou bright, thrice bright one! To all men art thou warm and beauteous! Wherefore, Master, hast thou spread thy burning beam over my love's men? Thou hast stretched their bows in the waterless plain with thirst, and choked their quivers with tribulation."
Footnotes
18: For reconstruction of this passage vide page 24.
20: 'Sea' must be understood any wide inland stretch of water.
