Lamentations of Mary
The Old Hungarian Lamentations of Mary (OHLM) (Hungarian: Ómagyar Mária-siralom) is the oldest extant Hungarian poem. It was copied in c. 1300 into a Latin codex, similarly to the first coherent Hungarian text, the Halotti beszéd (Funeral Oration), which was written between 1192 and 1195. Its text is a translation or adaptation of a version of the poem, or rather "sequence", that begins Planctus ante nescia and that was very widespread in medieval Europe. The speaker of the poem is the Blessed Virgin Mary as she laments the crucifixion of her Son, Jesus Christ while being at the side of His Cross on Calvary. As such the poem constitutes an element of Roman Catholic religious poetry. Its interpretation has been much discussed in Hungarian philology, and the meaning of some words and phrases remains disputed. Pais Dezső's interpretation is given herein, but it also relies on earlier relevant results.
The text of the poem
| Original text | Pronunciation (by Dezső Pais) | Modern Hungarian (by Ferenc Molnár) |
English |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Volek ſyrolm thudothlon |
Volék sirolm tudotlon. Sirolmol sepedik, |
Nem ismertem a siralmat, |
I did not know the lament yet, |
|
Walaſth vylagum tul |
Választ világumtuul, |
Elválasztanak világosságomtól, |
Separate me from my light, |
|
O en eſes urodū |
Ó én ézes urodum, |
Én édes Uram, |
O my sweet Lord, My only one son, Glance at the weeping mother, Withdraw her from her pain! |
|
Scemem kunuel arad |
Szemem künyüel árad, |
Szememből könny árad, |
From my eyes tears are flooding, My heart tires from torment, Your blood's falling, My heart's languishing. |
|
Vylag uila ga |
Világ világa, |
Világ világa, Virágnak virága, Keservesen kínoznak, Vasszegekkel átvernek! |
World's light, Flower's flower, They torment bitterly, With iron nails they pierce you! |
|
Vh nequem en fyon |
Uh nekem, én fiom, |
Jaj nekem, én fiam, Édes, mint a méz, Megrútul szépséged, Vízként hull véred! |
Woe to me, my son, Sweet as honey, Your beauty turns to ugliness, Your blood falls like water! |
|
Syrolmom fuha / ʒatum |
Sirolmom, fuhászatum |
Siralmam, fohászkodásom Láttatik kívül, Szívem belső fájdalma Soha nem enyhül. |
My lament, my prayer, Can be seen from outside, My heart's inner ache Never abates. |
|
Wegh halal engumet / |
Végy halál engümet, |
Végy halál engemet, Egyetlenem éljen, Maradjon meg Uram, Kit a világ féljen! |
Take me, death, Let my only one to live, Keep him, my Lord, Whom the world should fear! |
|
O ygoʒ ſymeonnok |
Ó, igoz Simeonnok |
Ó, az igaz Simeonnak Biztos szava elért, Érzem e fájdalom-tőrt, Amit egykor jövendölt. |
O for the just Simeon's Certain word reached me, I can feel this dagger of pain, What long ago he foretold. |
|
Tuled ualmun |
Tüüled válnum; |
Ne váljak el tőled, Életben maradva, Mikor így kínoznak Fiam, halálra! |
May I not be separated from you, Staying alive, When they are tormenting you, My son, to death! |
|
Sydou myth theʒ turuentelen / |
Zsidou, mit téssz türvéntelen, |
Zsidó, mit tész, törvénytelen! Fiam meghal, de bűntelen! Megfogva, rángatva, Öklözve, megkötve Ölöd meg! |
Jew, what you do is lawless! My son died, but he is guiltless! Clenched, hitched him, Plummered, bound him, You killed him! |
|
Kegug / gethuk fyomnok / |
Kegyüggyetük fiomnok, |
Kegyelmezzetek meg fiamnak, Ne legyen kegyelem magamnak, Avagy halál kínjával, Anyát édes fiával Együtt öljétek meg! |
Have mercy on my son, No mercy for me, Or with the torment of death, The mother with her own son, |