FALUDY GYRGY

37 VERS

GYRGY FALUDY
37 POEMS

Faludy Gyrgy

37 vers

ANGOLRA FORDTOTTA
PETER ZOLLMAN

FROM THE HUNGARIAN BY

PETER ZOLLMAN

Gyrgy Faludy

37 Poems

Az angol szveget lektorlta Robin James Isherwood

English text read by Robin James Isherwood
A fedlen Ezst Gyrgy: Faludy Gyrgy
cm festmnynek reprodukcija
On cover: Gyrgy Faludy painted by Gyrgy Ezst

VERSEK
POEMS

by Faludy Gyrgy jogutda, 2010

English translation
by Peter Zollman, 2010
Hungarian edition
by Maecenas Knyvkiad, 2010
honlap: www.maecenaskiado.hu

Faludy Gyrgy
37 vers

Gyrgy Faludy
37 Poems

BALLADA A SENKI FIRL

BALLAD ABOUT MR. NOBODY

Mint nagy kalap, borult rem a kk g,

s h bartom egy akadt: a kd.
Rakott tlak kztt kivert az hsg,
s hallra fztam rt klyhk eltt.
Amerre nyltam, csak cserepek hulltak
s szjam szlig radt mr a sr,
utam mellett a rzsk elpusztultak
s lehelletemtl megfakult a nyr,
csodlom szinte mr a napvilgot,
hogy nha mg rongyos vllamra st,
n, ki megjrtam mind a hat vilgot,
megldva s lekpve mindentt.

I lay beneath a giant hat, the sky,

and I was left with one true friend, the fog.
At feasts my hunger would intensify,
Id freeze to death beside a burning log.
Old roof-tiles tumbled wherever I went,
the mud-flow reached my lips, it was so high,
the roadside roses lost their heady scent,
and summer faded when I heaved a sigh.
I marvel at the suns beneficence,
for warming my time-worn old derrire.
Ive been to places, all six continents,
and I was blessed and spat on everywhere.

Fagyott mezkn birkztam a szllel,

ruhm csupn egy fgefalevl,
mi sem tisztbb szmomra, mint az jjel,
mi sem sttebb nkem, mint a dl.
A matrzkocsmk mlyn felzokogtam,
ahogy a temetkben nevetek,
enym csak az, amit a srba dobtam,
s mindent megltem, amit szeretek.
Fehr dervel lngveres hajamra
s halntkomra mr az sz fekdt,
s gy megyek, ftylve egymagamban,
megldva s lekpve mindentt.

In frozen fields I take the wind to fight,

a simple fig-leaf is my only dress,
I know nothing brighter than the night
and nothing darker than bright sunniness.
I weep in taverns over a flask of wine
and laugh at tombstones in the cemetery,
what I rejected became truly mine,
I ruined everything thats dear to me.
I feel the autumn chill in every bone,
I feel it on my frosted, fiery hair,
and so I wander, whistling all alone,
I, who was blessed and spat on everywhere.

Faludy Gyrgy
37 vers

Gyrgy Faludy
37 Poems

A gyztes g fektette rm a strt,

a harmattl kk lett a homlokom
s gy kergettem az Istent, aki htrlt,
s a jvendt, amely az otthonom.
A hegytetkn rkig pihentem,
s megbmultam az izzadt ktrt,
de a dmok mellett ftylve mentem,
s kinevettem a cifra pspkt:
s ezrt csak csk s korbcs hullott rva
testemre, mely oly egyformn fekdt
csipks prnk kztt s utcasrban,
megldva s lekpve mindentt.

Triumphant heaven veiled me in its tent,

my forehead was turned bright blue by its waters,
and so I followed God backwards he went
and future, my established living quarters.
I rested on the hills for many hours,
I marvelled at the sweating quarrymen
but whistled at the tall cathedral-towers
and mocked the dressy bishop with disdain.
My body knew that kisses tasted sweet
and the whip was harsh, but didnt care.
I slept in silks or in a stinking street,
and I was blessed and spat on everywhere.

S br nincs hazm, borom, se felesgem

s lbaim kztt a szl ftyl:
lesz mg pnzem s biztosan remlem,
hogy egy nap nkem minden sikerl.
S ha meguntam, hogy aranytlbl ljek,
a palotkat megint otthagyom,
hasamrt knknt jrnak mr a frgek,
s valahol az szi avaron,
egy vn tvisbokor aljban, melyre
csak egy rossz csillag sanda fnye st:
maradok egyszer, Franois Villon, fekve,
megldva s lekpve mindentt.

Its true that Ive no roots, no wine, no wife,

and in my boots the winds are whispering,
but Ill have money later in my life,
one day I will succeed in everything.
But when Ive had my orgies long enough
Ill leave those princely mansions once again,
the worms will queue up for my rotting stuff,
and somewhere on a dank, autumnal plain
a thorny bush will rise above my head,
an evil star will watch the whole affair,
and I shall rest, Franois Villon, dead,
a poet, blessed and spat on everywhere.

(Budapest, 1934)

(Budapest, 1934)

Faludy Gyrgy
37 vers

Gyrgy Faludy
37 Poems

MICHELANGELO UTOLS IMJA

MICHELANGELOS LAST PRAYER

lld a fld s az gi boltra llvn

oly vet rsz karoddal, mint a nap.
Hetvenhat ve llok fenn az llvny
deszkzatn, de nem talltalak.

Your anvil is the earth, spanning the sky

your arm describes the orbit of the sun.
Ive worked seventy-six years on the high
scaffold but could not find you, mighty one.

Vsm alatt porladva hullt a mrvny

s klmben torz, vagy blvny maradt.
Nem leltelek meg, illan szivrvny,
ki ott ragyogtl minden k alatt.

I shape the marble, but it goes awry

into dead idols when the work is done.
The dreamy rainbows now elude my eye
that used to see them under every stone.

Magam lettem vn ktmb, szz boztban

megszaggatott, mogorva, durva, sztlan,
de lelkemben mg gi fny ragyog.

Now Im a weathered rock, it is my turn

to be ill-temperaed, tortured, taciturn,
but in my soul the rainbows brightly shine.

Hogy tudnm testem brtnt levetni?

ss rm, ha tudsz mg vn bnst szeretni,
Istenszobrsz! A mrvny n vagyok.

How can I breach my bodys prison gate?

Strike me, if you can love this reprobate:
I am the marble, Stone-carver Divine!

(Firenze, 1935)

(Florence, 1935)

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Faludy Gyrgy
37 vers

Gyrgy Faludy
37 Poems

A JUDEAI HELYTART

THE GOVERNOR OF JUDEA

Supka Gznak

For Gza Supka

Cumae fell bicegve jtt az alkony,

mint kk vitorlk lltak a hegyek
s k ketten ltek lenn a sziklaparton
s bmultk a rozsdamart eget.
S midn az est kdt kevert a kertbe,
k csak nztk nmn a kk vizet
s tgjukat fejkre hztk, melyre
fehr holdat kaszlt hat vtized.
S midn a kert, mint rgi palettknak
utols zldje, vn lett s svr
s midn Baiae felett a pineknak
fejt az alkony egybefogta mr,
s midn a Cap Misenumrl a mjus
narancsszagot hozott a mirtuszokra
gy szlt az egyik:
Pontius Piltus,
emlkszel-e mg a rgi mjusokra?
Ma harminc ve voltam a vendged,
hogy helytartja voltl Judenak:
bborban jrtl, liktorok ksrtek
s rm zentl, hogy a kertben vrjak.
Aztn lejttl s borodat ittad
s mg homlokunkra szllt a nyr pora,
zsidk legyeztek s te e npet szidtad,
mely halni gyva, lni ostoba;
e rt npet, mely rhg a Czron,

12

Dusk limped along the Cumae corridor,

the mountains rose like blue sails in the sky,
while two men rested on the rocky shore
and marvelled at the rusted clouds on high.
Though fog descended on the flower beds,
they watched the water all the afternoon,
their togas high to shield their chilly heads
six decades cropped them shiny as the moon.
Now, as the garden, like the final green
on ancient palettes, turned tired and pale,
and as the Baiae pines became a scene
of sombre shadows joined under a veil,
and Cape Misenum sent the scent of May
to make the early myrtles smell divine,
one of them started:
Pontius Pilate, pray,
can you recall that May in Palestine?
I was your guest some thirty years ago,
you ruled Judea, purpled potentate,
guarded by lictors ex officio.
Your garden was the place. I had to wait,
then you arrived. Delightful wine was poured.
Hot dust hung in the air, the sun stood high,
your servants fanned us. You mocked them, my lord:
Jews are too dumb to live, afraid to die;
they laugh at Caesar, dont follow the rules,

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Faludy Gyrgy
37 vers

Gyrgy Faludy
37 Poems

s nem tr semmi bklyt, semmi jrmot,

de a keresztfn is vitatkozik,
e npet, mely semmit sem tud a szprl,
mely ma eljul egy korbcststl,
s egy kettspontrt holnap halni ksz.

they dont accept the yoke, dont do their duty.

They argue even on the cross, the fools,
a race without the slightest sense of beauty,
they pass out at the first touch of a lash,
yet shed their blood for one dot or a dash.

Aludni mentl. S n mg aznap jjel

az utckon bolyongtam szerteszt,
mocskos lnyok kzt, kik vad szenvedllyel
hvtak magukhoz, mg szennyes, stt
siktorokban, szemt kzt, a srban
kivert gyermekek, rokkant nagyapk
hevertek, akik szemk olajban
hordoztk npk roppant bnatt.
Egy kis lebujba trtem, hol a mcses
bizonytalan vilgot sztt a ktes
falakra s egy meztelen lenyra,
ki ott tncolt a rojtos sznyegen.
Uszlynak lengett mgtte az mbraillat s fejt unottan dobta htra,
mint hogyha hzn nagy, vrs haja,
s nedves szemt, mint hogyha cskra vrna,
flig lezrta s a lass, parzna
tncot oly lmos, barbr kjjel jrta,
hogy szebbnek tnt nekem, mint Kleoptra
s azontl minden nap megnztem t.
s hangja, amely durva volt s des,
megrszegtett, mg a kormos mcses
mellett ltem a nptmeg kztt,
s mr nem kellett krlelnem hiba,

You went to bed. I walked throughout the night

along dark back-streets, narrow alleyways,
bumped into filthy females whod invite
me passionately to some squalid place,
while in the mud, behind a rubbish heap
abandoned children, men crippled or blind,
lay in their rags. Their eyes were dark and deep,
showing the boundless sorrow of their kind.
I found a tavern where a fitful flame
revealed a dirty wall. A naked girl
was dancing on a rug. Behind her came
a train of sweet ambergris in a whirl.
She tossed her head, rekindling every curl
of her fiery hair. Her misty eyes
promised a kiss, a sensuous surprise.
Her dance was lustful, she could hypnotize,
her rug became the road to Paradise.
This bronzed barbarian meant more to me
than Cleopatra meant to Antony.
I watched her by that fitful candlelight,
her voice, so coarse yet sweet as Persian roses,
intoxicated me with pure delight
as I sat in that cluster of hooknoses.
One mild Judean night she changed her mind

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Faludy Gyrgy
37 vers

Gyrgy Faludy
37 Poems

mg egy napon, kifestve, meztelen,

a langyos judeai jszakban
az Olajfk hegyre ment velem.
Mg ott ltnk a cdrusok tvben,
midn a dombok kzt kikelt a nap,
s ekkor nztem elszr a szembe,
mely hossz volt, mint egy datolyamag.

and took me to the Mount of Olives. She

came bare, still made-up, ambergris behind,
until we reached an ancient cedar tree.
We sat there when the sun woke up the skies,
when hilltops hailed the sunlight with a song
and then at last I looked into her eyes,
a pair of date-stones, luminous and long.

Ezentl t ksrtem jrl jre

Jeruzslem stt kocsmin t,
ahol a vros fiatalja s vne
zenesz mellett itta rossz bort:
aranyifjak, zsebmetszk, zsoldosok
kztt tncolt vrs, megoldozott
hajval, mg olajos, barna testt
kopasz rstudk pihegve lestk,
s mellbimbjt, min vrsltt a festk
mg egy napon nyom nlkl elveszett.
Szolgim hrom hnapig kerestk
s n mg nagyon sokig s titokban
a kocsmkban tltttem minden estt
s nyomt kutattam a siktorokban,
hrhedt hzakban, brtnben, grg
kertnk s leprsok kztt,
de nem talltam meg vrs hajt.
S aztn, egy v utn hallottam rla,
s azt mesltk: egy ifj zsidval
lttk nemrgiben Cezreban,
egy megszllott, bolyong lzadval,
ki hzrl hzra jrt tbbedmagval

I trailed her from then on, night after night,

in dingy taverns of the area
where juveniles and old men would unite
to drink some cheap wine from Samaria.
She sold her flaming hair, brown oily skin
to playboys, pickpockets and sailor-men.
Bald fatties eyed her nipples, ill at ease,
heavily panting pious Pharisees
adored her lustful, carnal witcheries.
One day she vanished. Where was she? Blank faces.
My slaves were trailing her for weeks and weeks,
I tried to find her in illicit places,
with crooks and thieves, disreputable Greeks,
procurers, lepers, whores of many races,
I spent much time in secret, meeting thugs,
I went to jails, I tasted dreadful drugs
but couldnt find the red-haired prostitute.
A year went by when I was told the news:
she joined a Jew of dubious repute,
a weird, obsessed, unsettled orator,
a mutinous adviser to the Jews
who went with his disciples door to door

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Faludy Gyrgy
37 vers

Gyrgy Faludy
37 Poems

s prdiklt,
s kit gy hvtak: Jzus, a Nazarnus,
s akit az Olajfk hegyn, a kertek
mentn elfogtak s keresztre vertek.
Mivel hrmond sem maradt utna:
felelj, Piltus, emlkszel reja?

and spread the word.

The man was called Jesus the Nazarene.
He was soon arrested, he was tried
and, as I heard it, he was crucified.
But, as we know, old memories grow dim,
so let me ask, do you remember him?

Piltus, az emlkek kzt keresve

kezt hallgatva tette homlokra.
Aztn gy szlt:
Jzus, mondod? Jzus, a Nazarnus?
Nem emlkszem reja.

Pilate was searching through his memories

hand on his forehead, silent and serene.
Then he spoke:
Jesus, you mean? Jesus the Nazarene?
I dont remember him.

(Budapest, 1935)

(Budapest, 1935)

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Faludy Gyrgy
37 vers

Gyrgy Faludy
37 Poems

ANGOL OLVASM

MY ENGLISH READER

Itt Torontban sokan mondtk, hogy hulignok

raboljk ki az embert parkban, utcn s tren,
de nem figyeltem. Aztn, tavaszi dlutnon
nejlonszatyromban hssal, sajttal, tejjel, kenyrrel

In Toronto the locals tried to warn me very soon

that young roughs rob pedestrians in parks and lonely streets,
but I didnt listen. Then on a spring afternoon,
carrying a bagful of milk, various cheeses and meats,

mentem haza utcnkon. Fiatal, magas nger

egyenest nekem rohant, csomagomat elvette,
s tfogott ersen. Azt gondoltam, megksel.
Lihegett a futstl. n reszkettem mellette.

I was walking on my way home. A tall young African

ran straight towards me, grabbed my shopping bag as he got near
and seized me firmly. No doubt, he will stab me, if he can.
He was panting after his spurt. I was trembling with fear.

Megfojt llhelyzetben ez az tkozott barbr?

Felnztem a magasba. Mosoly jrt szles ajkn.
Mg lvezte. Kiltsak: most l meg ez a ronda?

Is he going to strangle me, this barbarous disgrace?

I watched his heavy lips become a smile across his face.
He was enjoying it. Shall I shout? He kills me, the beast!

De az utca res volt. Nincsen, ki megsegt.

meg csak egyre jobban szorongatott, s ezt mondta:
Engedje, hadd leljem. Imdom verseit.

But the street was empty. There was no help within sight.
He went on squeezing me harder and said, as he squeezed:
Let me embrace you. I adore the poems you write.

(Toronto, 1989)

(Toronto, 1989)

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Faludy Gyrgy
37 vers

Gyrgy Faludy
37 Poems

ELMENTL HARMINC VE

YOU LEFT ME THIRTY YEARS AGO

Elmentl harminc ve s mg mindig szeretlek.

Emlkszel cskjaimra mr halott ajkadon?
Nyolc gyermeket akartunk, de vgl csupn egy lett.
Az emigrnsok lte nyomor s siralom.

You left me thirty years ago. Im still in love with you.

Remember how I kissed your lifeless lips in vain?
We hoped to have eight children once, but only one came true.
In exile life is cursed with misery and pain.

Szerelmnk sziklak volt, nem virgg, mely fonnyad.

Nem vltozott, nem gyenglt tizent v alatt.
Pedig a przst durva marcangolsnak mondtad
s gyllted. Ezrt csak ritkn zavartalak.

Our love was like a rock, not like a wilting flowerbed.

For fifteen years it had been standing proud and tall,
though making love was laceration, cruelty, you said.
You loathed it, so I hardly troubled you at all.

De egyszer, haldoklsod eltt alig egy httel

oly szorosan leltl karod kz az jjel,
hogy megprbltam. Csupa rkseb volt mr a tested.

But once, not long before you died, in the dark of night,
you held my body in your arms, embracing me so tight
that I did try. By then you were incurably diseased.

Nem rtem. Tlvilgi gynyrsg, lihegted

s rgtn elaludtl. Feltrdeltem az gyra.
Elszr volt gy srtam. Elszr s utoljra.

It cant be true. Its ecstasy from paradise! You wheezed

and fell asleep there. I was kneeling on the bed, aghast.
The first time in our life. I wept. The first time and the last.

(Budapest, 1993)

(Budapest, 1993)

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Faludy Gyrgy
37 vers

Gyrgy Faludy
37 Poems

A KLTRL

ABOUT THE POET

Faludy Gyrgy

Gyrgy Faludy

(19102006)

(19102006)

Egy magyar mltatja a huszadik szzadi magyar kltszet

Odsszeusznak nevezte t, aki messzi fldeket s tengereket
megjrt, s megkzdtt kora mitologikus szrnyeivel, mieltt
szlfldjre vgleg visszatrhetett. A hasonlat fleg akkor
helytll, ha nemcsak Homrosz Odsszeuszra gondolunk,
hanem a ksbbi epikai hagyomny hsre is, aki a krkkel
val leszmols prbattje utn s az ebbl tmadt konfliktusok miatt jabb hossz bolyongsra knyszerlt, s csak hajlott
korban tallt maradand megnyugvst Ithaka fldjn.
Faludy Gyrgy zsid polgri csald gyermekeknt szletett
Budapesten, apja vegyszetet tantott egy felsfok ipariskolban. Fit a blcsszeti plyra irnytottk hajlamai, s korn
jelentkezett vndorsztne, valamint nyelvi knnyedsge sugallatra felsfok tanulmnyait klfldn, a bcsi, berlini, prizsi
s grazi egyetemeken vgezte el.
Hazatrve jsgr lett, de igazban a klti plya vonzotta. 1937-ben adta ki Villon balladi cm ktett, amely tkltsekbl s Villon modorban rt sajt verseibl llt ssze.
Semmilyen anakronizmustl, semmilyen szabadsgtl nem
ijedtem meg, s amennyire lehetsges, mg a Villon-verseknl is jobb verseket igyekeztem adni, rta e ktetrl a klt.
Elszr minden kiad elutastotta a botrnytl flve, mire
Faludy sajt kltsgn, barti klcsnkbl adta ki a mvet
a knyvnapra, s mg aznap elkapkodtk minden pldnyt.

One of Faludys reviewers called him the Ulysses of twentieth century Hungarian poetry. He travelled across faraway
lands, sailed over distant seas and had to fight the mythological monsters of his age before he could return to his native
shores. This is a fitting likeness, particularly if we have in
mind not only Homers Ulysses but also the one of the later
epic tradition who had to leave again before he could find his
final rest as an old man on the island of Ithaca.
George Faludy was born in Budapest into a Jewish middle
class family. His father was a professor of chemistry in a
vocational school. Faludy had a leaning towards philology.
His Wanderlust and interest in languages led him to various
foreign universities, in Vienna, Berlin, Paris and Graz.
Back at home he became a journalist and also yielded to
his poe-tical ambitions. In 1937 he published The Ballads
of Villon, which contained free renderings of the original
poems and many of his own conceived on the model of the
French poet. I did not refrain from any kind of anachronism
or liberty, my intention was to write, if possible, even better
poems than Villon did, Faludy wrote about his work. At first
no publisher was willing to risk a scandal, so the volume was
published privately for the National Book Day, financed by
loans from friends. All the printed copies were bought on that
very day. Consequently it became easier to find a publisher,

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Faludy Gyrgy
37 vers

Gyrgy Faludy
37 Poems

Most mr akadt kiad is, s a siker tartsnak bizonyult. A

nmet megszllsig tizenkt, nagy pldnyszm kiads kelt
el, a Zeneakadmin rendezett Villon-esteken a legkivlbb
sznszek adtk el veken t a balladkat.
Az eredetihez kpest tlsznezett, terjengs, hatsvadsz
s kajnul szabad szj verseket sok tmads is rte, nem is
minden alap nlkl. Ktsgtelen rdemk volt viszont, hogy
rirnytottk a tgabb kznsg figyelmt az addig csak kevesek ltal ismert nagy kzpkori kltre, s mintegy kikveztk
az utat a mveibl kszlt hiteles fordtsok ksbbi fogadtatshoz ezek elssorban Szab Lrincnek s Vas Istvnnak
ksznhetk. Ami pedig Faludyt illeti, egynemzedknyi idre,
st azon tl is leginkbb ez a ktet kpviselte t a versolvask sokasgnak tudatban (vlogatsunkban kett tallhat a
gyjtemnybl: Ballada a Senki Firl s A halltnc-ballada); a legutbbi idkig a negyvenet is meghaladta kiadsainak
szma. Egy zben a klt meg is jegyezte nmi nirnival,
hogy fl vszzadon t gy volt Villonnal, mint a dva a hi
partnervel, aki mindig elje llt a sznpadon.
Ausztria nmet megszllsa, a hazai szlsjobboldal ersdse
s egy j hbor egyre rezhetbb fenyegetse megrlelte a kltben az elhatrozst, hogy egy szabadabb vilgba tvozik. Pesszimizmust igazoltk az vek, sok klt kortrs sorsa, aki ldozatul esett a fasizmusnak, a nyilas terrornak; az otthon maradt
hgt is a Dunba lttk, knyvei pedig mglyra kerltek. 1938ban kedves Prizsba ment, ahol sok jeles honfitrsval tallkozott, akik ugyancsak a barbrsg ell menekltek el. s lm, kt
v mlva a vros mr a nmetek kezn volt, neki pedig most valban az lett kellett mentenie. Kalandos ton jutott el Dl-Franciaorszgba, onnan egy rozzant hajn Marokkba, s vgl az

and the success proved to be lasting. During the seven years

before the German occupation of Hungary twelve large
editions of the book were sold, and for many years outstanding
actors recited his Villon poems in a series of popular evenings
in the prestigious hall of the Academy of Music.
Faludys poems more colourful, wordy and intentionally
loose-tongued than the originals, were attacked by many and
not without reason. Notwithstanding, they had the saving
grace that they directed the attention of a wider public to the
great medieval poet whom very few had known, and so paved
the way for the reception of the more authentic renderings
of Villons poems, mainly by Lrinc Szab and Istvn Vas.
As for Faludy himself, for many decades his name in the
public mind remained attached almost exclusively to his pseudo-Villon book (represented in our collection by Ballad About
Mr. Nobody and Danse Macabre). This was understandable
as the volume had run into more than forty editions. The poet
once remarked with a kind of self irony that for half a century
his relationship with Villon had been similar to that of the
actress with her vain male partner on the stage who always
managed to cover her from the audience.
The annexing of Austria by the Germans, the growing strength
of the extreme right in Hungary and the increasing threat of a
new war pushed Faludy towards the decision to leave for a freer
homeland. His pessimistic outlook came to be justified during
the following years, by the fate of many comrade poets and writers killed later by Fascism and the Arrow-cross terror. His sister
who remained in Budapest was amongst a group of people lined
up by the Danube and shot dead. His books were burnt. In 1938
he left for his beloved Paris where he met several remarkable

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Egyeslt llamokba. Ezeknek az veknek az lmnyeit rktik

meg ktetnkben az rzkeny utazs; Hullk, kamaszok, tcskzene; Marokk; Fagylaltmaradk; Arab tanrral sakkozom s
Snta teve cm versek.
j hazjban Faludy sok kivl demokrata honfitrsval
tallkozott, akik mr eltte oda menekltek, egyebek kzt
nagybtyjval, Szilrd Leval, a neves atomfizikussal. Hamarosan a Szabad Magyar Mozgalom nev szervezet titkrv s
a mozgalom Harc cm lapjnak szerkesztjv vlasztottk.
Faludy hls volt az Egyeslt llamoknak, amirt tevkenyen
vllalta a fasizmus elleni hbor tmogatst, s ezt a hlt
azzal fejezte ki, hogy nkntesen hadi szolglatra jelentkezett
hadseregbe. m nem az eurpai, hanem a japn frontra kldtk, a csendes-ceni szigetekre; itt tlttt hrom vet hrads
szolglatban, majd a hadsereg lapjnak a szerkesztsgben.
A hbor befejezdse utn egyre inkbb ert vett rajta a
honvgy, s megfogamzott benne a hazatrs gondolata. Nem
volt knny a dnts szmra. Mr vek ta lt benne a felismers, hogy Adolf Hitler s Joszif Sztlin birodalma nem sokban
klnbzik egymstl, s sejtette, hogy a bolsevizmus a szovjet
megszlls al kerlt Magyarorszg szmra slyos fenyegetst
jelent. vtk a kockzatos lpstl tapasztaltabb ids bartai is,
de ezt vallotta: a magyar irodalomba s a magyar trtnelembe szlettem bele, teljesen fggetlenl attl, hogy ez tetszik-e
nkem vagy sem. Hossz versben mondott istenhozzdot az
orszgnak (Bcs Ameriktl), ahol megzlelhette a szabadsgot, s 1946 szeptemberben hazatrt Budapestre.
A koalcis idk trkeny, rvid let demokrcija idszakban a Npszava szerkesztsgben kapott helyet, rgi bartok kztt, versktetei jelentek meg, de a biztat mozzanatokat

compatriots who also had fled barbarism. Within two years the
city was in German hands and Faludy had to run for his life.
He fled to the south of France, crossed the Mediterranean in
a dilapidated boat to Morocco, and after numerous adventures
crossed the Atlantic, and arrived in New York. The experiences of those first years of exile are reflected in a number of
poems, in our collection by Sensitive Journey; Corpses, Teenagers, Cricket-chirp; Morocco; Ice Cream Leftovers; I Play
Chess with an Arab Professor and The Lame Camel.
In his new homeland George Faludy met a number of his
countryman, eminent democrats who had fled there before
him, among others his uncle, the renowned nuclear physicist
Le Szilrd. Soon Faludy was elected secretary of the Free
Hungarian Movement and the editor of its monthly journal
Combat. Faludy felt gratitude towards the United States for
support of the war against Fascism. To express that gratitude he volunteered to join the American army. He was sent,
however, not to the European front but to the Pacific one where
he served for three years, first with the signal corps and later
on the editorial of the armys paper.
When the war was over he felt increasingly homesick and
conceived the idea of returning to Hungary. The decision was
far from easy to take. He had been convinced for a number of
years that the empires of Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin werent
all that different and could not help feeling that Bolshevism was
a severe threat to Soviet-occupied Hungary. Most of his more
experienced friends of an older generation warned him about the
risks of returning, but he said them: I was born into Hungarian
literature and Hungarian history, and it matters little whether I
like this or not. He wrote a long poem to say good-bye to the

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egyre inkbb elnyomtk a fenyeget eljelek. A Szocildemokrata Prtot, amelyhez a leginkbb ktdtt, a kommunistk prtja egyeslsre knyszertette, vezet alakjait ldzte, s a Mindszenthy-per, majd a Rajk-per vgleg eltvoltott
minden akadlyt a bolsevik diktatra tjbl.
1950 jniusban az llamvdelmi hatsg letartztatta
Faludy Gyrgyt, s hnapokon t vallattk az Andrssy
ti fhadiszlls hrhedt pincebrtnben. Sok knzs utn
vgl beismerte, hogy kmkedett az amerikaiaknak, s
beszervez tisztjeiknt Edgar Allan Poe szzadost s Walt
Whitman rnagyot nevezte meg. Hatvi knyszermunkra
tltk, amelyet a magyar GULAG legrettegettebb telepn, a
recski rzbnyban kellett eltltenie. Szerencsre 1953-ban
Nagy Imre feloszlatta a bntettborokat, s Faludy visszatrhetett a polgri let viszonylagos szabadsgba. A szrny
vek emlkeit Pokolbli vg napjaim cm nletrajzi przamvben rktette meg, amely elszr angolul ltott napvilgot Londonban, 1962-ben My Happy Days in Hell cmen,
s tbb vilgnyelven sikert aratott, de a magyar kznsg csak
1988-ban ismerhette meg, s mg akkor is csupn szamizdat
kiadsban. A gytrelmes vek megrendt verseket is ihlettek, ktetnkben a Zsuzsnak a tmlcbl, Szljegyzet papr
nlkl, Kihallgats, Zrt teherkocsi, hsg, A felsbbrend ember s a Monolg letre-hallra tartozik ide. Verseket
rni a rmsgek kzepette papr nlkl, fejben, hnapszmra rizni s emlkezetben pteni, varilni s csiszolni ket
ez egyike volt ama letment szellemi tornagyakorlatoknak, amelyek rvn a recski tbor jrszt rtelmisgi foglyai
sikeresen riztk meg lelki s szellemi psgket s emberi
mltsgukat.

land (Farewell to America) where he could taste free life, and in

September 1946 returned to Budapest.
In the brittle democracy during the short-lived coalition
period he got a job among old friends on the editorial board of
Npszava, the social-democratic daily. Now he could publish
volumes of poetry, but there were dark forebodings. The
Social Democratic Party to which he felt most attached was
forced into a merger with the Communist Party: its leading
members were persecuted, and the mock trials of Cardinal
Mindszenty and then of Rajk and his allies removed all
obstacles to a Soviet-type Communist dictatorship.
In June 1950 the State Security Department arrested George
Faludy and questioned him for some months in the dreaded
subterranean cells of the Andrssy Avenue headquarters. After
extensive torture he confessed that he had acted as spy for the
United States, and he named Colonel Edgar Allan Poe and Major
Walt Whitman as his enlisting officers. He was condemned to
six years of forced labour to be served in the quarries of Recsk,
the most dreaded camp of the Hungarian GULAG. Fortunately,
prime minister Imre Nagy closed down the repression camps in
1953, and Faludy was free to return to the relative freedom of
civil existence. He related his memories of those terrible years in
his autobiographic prose account which first appeared in London
in 1962 in English translation, My Happy Days in Hell. While the
book was published in a number of other important languages,
his Hungarian public could not read it until 1988, even then in
an underground edition. Those tormented years inspired some
harrowing poems like For Susan from the Jail, Paperless Notes,
Questioning, Closed Wagon, Hunger, Superior Being, Neck or
Nothing Monologue. Faludy conceived poems among the horrors

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Az 1956-os forradalom felemel s maradand lmny

maradt Faludy szmra (ahogy ksi vallomsa, az 1956, te
csillag tanstja), de a hsi kzdelem buksa utn msodszor is szmzte magt az orszgbl, mert noha kzvetlenl nem vett rszt a forradalmi esemnyekben, joggal tartott
tle, hogy jra a megtorlsok idszaka kvetkezik. Hat vet
Angliban, fkppen Londonban tlttt az emigrns Irodalmi
jsg szerkesztjeknt: ez a lap, amely a forradalom elksztsnek legfbb szellemi fruma volt, odahaza nem jelenhetett meg tbb, ezrt indtottk jra szabad fldn az emigrns irodalmrok. Ekkor rte a kltt a tragdia: meghalt
msodik felesge, Szeg Zsuzsa jsgr, akit hazatrse utn
ismert meg a szerkesztsgben, akihez verset rt a brtnbl,
s szabadulsa utn felesgl vette; rla emlkezik meg ktetnk utols versben (Elmentl harminc ve). Ezutn ngy
vet tlttt Itliban s Mltn, vgl 1967-ben Kanadban
telepedett meg, s Torontban lt emigrcijnak htralv
kt vtizede alatt.
Kt kanadai egyetemen tantott hosszabb ideig, s tbb
amerikai egyetem hvta meg klnbz idkben vendgprofesszornak. Mindentt tevkenyen vett rszt a magyar emigrci munkjban, tagja volt az tg Sp cm folyirat
szerkesztbizottsgnak, a chicagi Szivrvny cm folyirat szerkesztsgnek, szvesen ltott eladja az amerikai s
kanadai magyar egyesleteknek. rsait s verseit gyakran
kzltk Bcstl Haifig s Montevideig, mg szlfldjn
knyvei eltntek a kzknyvtrakbl, mg a katalguscdulikat is megsemmistettk. Sikeresen illeszkedett be Kanada szellemi letbe, s vezregynisgnek szmtott a magyar
irodalmi emigrciban. Tbb ktetben jelentek meg rgebbi s

in the absence of paper, keeping each one in the mind for weeks
or months, building them up, altering and polishing them there.
This was one of the life-saving mental exercises that helped
many captives of the Recsk camp, mostly intellectuals, to keep
up their spiritual integrity and human dignity.
The Hungarian revolution of 1956 was an elevating and lasting experience for our poet (attested by his later confession My
Shining Star, My Nineteen Fifty-Six), yet after the defeat of the
heroic uprising he exiled himself once again; although having
taken no direct part in the revolutionary events, he had good
reason to suspect that a new era of reprisals was ahead. He
spent six years in England, mainly in London, where he edited
the new Irodalmi jsg (Literary News), the successor of the
Hungarian weekly which had been the most important political and intellectual forum for the architects of the revolution;
when it was banned in Hungary, emigr men of letters restarted it abroad. In 1963 the poets wife, the journalist Zsuzsa
Szeg died. He had met her after his return to Hungary. He
sent her a poem from the jail and married her on his release;
our collection closes with a commemorative poem he wrote to
her thirty years later (You Left Me Thirty Years Ago). Faludy
spent the next four years partly in Italy and partly in Malta.
Eventually he settled in Canada in 1967 and spent the remaining twenty years of his exile in Toronto.
He taught for an extended period at two Canadian universities,
and he was also invited to several American campuses to lecture
on East European literature. He was active everywhere to help
Hungarian emigrs, he edited the short-lived periodicals tg
Sp (Five-Fold Flute) in Canada and the Szivrvny (Rainbow)
in Chicago, and was frequently invited to meet members of

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jabb versei magyar s angol nyelven is, kztk gyjtemnyes

ktetek, valamint klnfle przai rsok.
1988-ban Faludy elszr ltogatta meg szlfldjt harminckt v utn. Az enyhltebb lgkrt s a szves, st lelkes fogadtatst megtapasztalva egy v utn vglegesen hazatelepedett.
Elsknt versfordtsaibl jelent meg egy terjedelmes ktet
Test s llek cmmel, azutn sorra napvilgot lttak klfldn
ltrejtt rsai, s kzben j versekre ihlettk az lmnyek.
Ngy ktete is megjelent a huszadik szzad utols veiben,
kzttk kt szonettgyjtemny 200-200 verssel; 1994-ben
Kossuth-djjal tntettk ki.
Odsszeusz teht vgleg hazatrt az Ithakjba, ahol annyi
hnyattatsrt s keservrt krptlsul nyugalmat s mlt
elismerst kapott. Ptrirkai kort megrve, olvasi szeretettl
vezve vehetett bcst lettl.

various Hungarian societies in North America. His articles and

poems appeared in a wide circle from Vienna to Haifa and to
Montevideo, while in his native land his books were withdrawn
from certain public libraries, and even catalogue cards were
destroyed. He found his place within the cultural life of Canada
and was counted amongst the leading figures in the Hungarian
literary emigration. His old and recent poems were published
in several volumes, even collections, both in Hungarian and in
English, together with various prose writings.
In 1988 George Faludy paid a visit to his homeland, for the
first time in thirty-two years. Seeing and feeling the milder
atmosphere and the warm reception from friends and readers
he repatriated in the following year. First his poetry translations appeared in a voluminous collection, entitled Body and
Soul, then his writings from abroad were published one after
the other, while his experiences inspired new poems, too. In
the last years of the twentieth century he produced four new
books of poetry, two of them containing 200 sonnets each; in
1994 he was awarded the Kossuth Prize.
So Ulysses returned at last to his Ithaca where he enjoyed
peace and due recognition as a recompense for the vicissitudes
of his life. He died in an age of patriarchs, amidst the affections of his readers.

*
Faludy verseinek angol vltozatt Zollman Pternek ksznhetjk, aki 1932-ben szletett Magyarorszgon, s egy
dnt pillanatban, 1956-ban maga is az emigrci tjt vlasztotta. Angliban telepedett le, mrnk-fizikusknt s feltallknt igen sikeres plyt futott be, nyugdjas korban pedig
visszatrt els szerelmhez, a kltszethez. Verseket r s
fordt 1993 ta; a magyar kltszet megismertetsrt sokat
tett azzal, hogy klasszikus s kortrs kltink sok szz verst
szlaltatta meg angolul, a tartalmi s formai hsg magas
fokn. Egyebek kzt tltetett hrom fontos verses drmt,
Vrsmarty Mihlytl a Csongor s Tndt, Babits Mihly
Laodameijt s Balzs Bltl A Kkszakll herceg vrt,

In this bilingual volume George Faludys poems were translated by Peter Zollman. He was born in Hungary in 1932, and
in a decisive moment of 1956 he also chose the path of emigration. He settled in England and made a highly successful

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s ezeket sznpadon is eladatta Budapesten, Edinburgh-ban s

Indiban. A Maecenas Knyvkiad ktnyelv klti sorozatban a jelenlegi kteten kvl az nevhez fzdik Kosztolnyi
Dezs, Jzsef Attila s Nemes Nagy gnes vlogatott verseinek fordtsa.

career as engineer, physicist and inventor. In his retirement

he returned to his first love, poetry. He has written and translated poems since 1993, and has done much to introduce
Hungarian poetry to a wider readership through his renditions into English of many hundreds of poems by our classic
and contemporary poets, with a high fidelity to form and to
content. His translations of three important verse plays, Csongor and Tnde by Mihly Vrsmarty (entitled The Quest),
Duke Bluebeards Castle by Bla Balzs and Laodamia by
Mihly Babits were staged in Edinburgh, Budapest and India.
In Maecenas Publishings bilingual poetry series he has earlier provided collections from the works of Dezs Kosztolnyi,
Attila Jzsef and gnes Nemes Nagy.

Ttfalusi Istvn

Istvn Ttfalusi

198

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37 Poems

A FORDTRL

ABOUT THE TRANSLATOR

Zollman Pter fontosabb munki:

Peter Zollmans published work includes translations of

Arany Jnos: Nine Ballads and the Nightingale Kilenc ballada s

A flemile. Atlantis / Merlin;
Knydi Sndor: There is a Land. Corvina (Weidenfeld-djra jellve);
Kosztolnyi Dezs: 36 vers 36 Poems. Maecenas;
Baka Istvn: Selected Poems. Abbey Press (Weidenfeld-djra jellve);
Orbn Ott: The Witching Hour of the Night Az jnek rmjr
szaka. Atlantis / Centaur;
The Audit is Done. A Taste of 20th Century Hungarian Poetry Ksz
a leltr. Egy vszzad flszz magyar verse angolul. Ed. and
trans.: P. Zollman, European Cultural Review;
Jzsef Attila: 43 vers 43 Poems. Maecenas / Abbey Press (Seamus
Heaney Nobel-djas klt 2005-ben az v Knyvei kz vlasztotta);
Nemes Nagy gnes: 51 vers 51 Poems. Maecenas.

Jnos Arany: Nine Ballads and the Nightingale Kilenc ballada s

A flemile. Atlantis / Merlin;
Sndor Knydi: There is a Land. Corvina (shortlisted for the
Weidenfeld Prize);
Dezs Kosztolnyi: 36 vers 36 Poems. Maecenas;
Istvn Baka: Selected Poems. Abbey Press (shortlisted for the
Weidenfeld Prize);
Ott Orbn: The Witching Hour of the Night Az jnek rmjr
szaka. Atlantis / Centaur;
The Audit is Done. A Taste of 20th Century Hungarian Poetry Ksz
a leltr. Egy vszzad flszz magyar verse angolul. Ed. and
trans.: P. Zollman, European Cultural Review;
Attila Jzsef: 43 vers 43 Poems. Maecenas / Abbey Press (Seamus
Heaney Nobel Laureates selection for Books of the Year in 2005);
gnes Nemes Nagy: 51 vers 51 Poems. Maecenas;

*
Az albbi jelents antolgikban szmos fordtsa jelent meg:
The Lost Rider. Ed.: G. Szirtes, Corvina;
Attila Jzsefs Poems and Fragments. Ed.: T. Kabdebo, Argumentum /
Cardinal;
In Quest of the Miracle Stag, vols. 1 and 2. The Poetry of Hungary from
the 13th Century to the Present. Ed.: A. Makkai, Atlantis / Centaur;

200

*
and substantial contributions to such major anthologies as:
The Lost Rider. Ed.: G. Szirtes, Corvina;
Attila Jzsefs Poems and Fragments. Ed.: T. Kabdebo, Argumentum /
Cardinal;

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Island of Sound. Eds.: G. Szirtes and M. Vajda, Harvill;

Hide and Seek. Contemporary Hungarian Literature. Eds.: G.
Horvth and A. Benedek, JAK;
New Order. Ed.: G. Szirtes, Arc Publications.

In Quest of the Miracle Stag, vols. 1 and 2. The Poetry of Hungary

from the 13th Century to the Present. Ed.: A. Makkai, Atlantis /
Centaur;
Island of Sound. Eds.: G. Szirtes and M. Vajda, Harvill;
Hide and Seek. Contemporary Hungarian Literature. Eds.: G. Horvth
and A. Benedek, JAK;
New Order. Ed.: G. Szirtes, Arc Publications.

1997-ben megjelentek sajt sszegyjttt fordtsai Babel.

Translations, mainly from Hungarian, 19931996 cmen.
Versesdrma-fordtsai Vrsmarty Mihly: Csongor and Tnde,
Balzs Bla: Duke Bluebeards Castle s Babits Mihly:
Laodameia az Atlantis / Merlin Sznhz kiadsban jelentek
meg, s tbbszr sikeresen eladtk ket Edinburgh-ban, Budapesten s Indiban.
*
Mfordti munkssgnak elismersei:
Fst Miln-dj, 1999.
Pro Cultura Hungarica-emlkplakett, 2002.
Times Stephen Spender-dj, 2007.

In 1997 he produced a well-received collection of his own work

under the title Babel. Translations, mainly from Hungarian,
19931996.
His published verse-drama translations Mihly Vrsmarty:
Csongor and Tnde, Bla Balzs: Duke Bluebeards Castle
and Mihly Babits: Laodamia published by Atlantis / Merlin
Theatre, had several well received performances in Edinburgh,
Budapest and in India.
*
Recognitions for his poetry in translation:
Fst Miln Prize, 1999.
Pro Cultura Hungarica Medal, 2002.
Times Stephen Spender Prize, 2007.

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TARTALOM

CONTENTS

Ballada a Senki Firl 6

Michelangelo utols imja 10
A judeai helytart 12
A halltnc-ballada 20
Knai vers: A gzl 32
rzkeny utazs 34
Hullk, kamaszok, tcskzene 40
A Marokk-bl
IX. Marokk 52
XXIII. Fagylaltmaradk 54
XXVIII. Arab tanrral sakkozom 56
XXX. Snta teve 58
Egy pilta szl 60
Hitler halla 66
tban hazafel 70
Bcs Ameriktl 72
Remnykeds egy pannn szlhegyen 90
A Magyarorszg-bl
14. Aere perennius 96
25. Visszatr lom 100
Zsuzsnak a tmlcbl 110
Szljegyzet papr nlkl 118
Kihallgats 124
Zrt teherkocsi 130
hsg (rszletek) 134
A felsbbrend ember 140
Monolg letre-hallra 146

Ballad about Mr. Nobody 7

Michelangeloss Last Prayer 11
The Governor of Judea 13
Danse Macabre 21
Chinese Poem: The Ford 33
Sensitive Journey 35
Corpses, Teenagers, Cricket-chirp 41
From Morocco
IX. Morocco 53
XXIII. Ice Cream Leftovers 55
XXVIII. I Play Chess with an Arab Professor 57
XXX. The Lame Camel 59
A Pilot Speaks 61
Hitlers Death 67
Way Home 71
Farewell to America 73
High Hopes in a Pannonian Vineyard 91
From Hungary
14. Aere Perennius 97
25. Recurrent Dream 101
For Susan from the Jail 111
Paperless Notes 119
Questioning 125
Closed Wagon 131
Hunger (fragments) 135
Superior Being 141
Neck or Nothing Monologue 147

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A Noteszlapok-bl
Szkkt a Concorde tren 152
Wittgenstein 154
T. Gy. fiatal bartomhoz, mikor
kltemnyben heves szemrehnyssal illetett,
amirt elmenekltem Magyarorszgrl 156
Repl csszealjak 158
Arccal Kna fel 160
Emigrci 162
Van-e honvgyam, krded 164
Alkony a Vrhegy felett 166
Fehr egerek 168
1956, te csillag 176
Angol olvasm 182
Elmentl harminc ve 184

From Notebook
Place de la Concorde Fountain 153
Wittgenstein 155
For My Young Friend, G. T. Whose Poem
Speaks of Me with Indignation
Because I Have Escaped from Hungary 157
Flying Saucers 159
Facing China 161
Exile 163
Homesickness? 165
Castle-Hill in the Sunset 167
White Mice 169
You Shining Star, My Nineteen Fifty-Six 177
My English Reader 183
You Left Me Thirty Years Ago 185

A kltrl 186
A fordtrl 198

About the Poet 187

About the Translator 199

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ISBN 978 963 203 225 2

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