The monument to an unknown fool

 

It has become known
that of many us
are building a monument
to the unknown fool

 

It is known
that a fool only deserves
a monument
during his lifetime

 

For the fool we know
will soon be relieved
by an unknown fool
who will not suffer the memory
of one who is known

 

For the fool we known
can only cast his shadow
on this radiant today
where many of us
are building a monument
for the unknown
fool.


© Viacheslav Kuprianov, Russia
Tr. Francis R. Jones

***

The morning when
wishes come true

Such a transparent morning
as if people with aquariums
were running seawards
to release
golden fish
into the sea

Wishes have gathered

You have only to grow old
and cast
your net.

© Viacheslav Kuprianov, Russia

 

 

VYACHESLAV  KUPRIYANOV
Vyacheslav Glebovich Kupriyanov was born in Novosibirsk in 1939.  His first published works were translations of poetry from German (Hölderlin, Novalis, R.M.Rilke, Hoffmannstal, B.Brecht, G.Grass, Enzensberger, Hans Arp, Erich Fried) and English (Walt Whitman, Carl Sandburg). He studied technical sciences in the High Navy School in Leningrad (1958 - 1960),  and graduated in 1967 from the Moscow Foreign Language Institute (now Linguistic University), section of matematical linguistics and German (1967). He is a freelance writer, a member of the Moscow Writers Union, and a member of the Serbian Writers Union.

His published works include:

Poetry:  "First person", 1981 (Moscow), "Life goes on", 1982 (first free-verse poetry published in Russia after the Second World War); "Homework", 1986; "Echo", 1988, 1989; "Poems", 1994; “THE BEST TIME”, 2003.

Prose: "The shoe of Empedokles" (Novel), 1996, 2000 (Moscow), and short stories (including science-fiction) published in various magazines.

His translated works include:

In English:  "In Anyone's Tongue" (London & Boston: Forest Books, 1992), dual text, Russian and English.

In German: "Moist manuscript" ("Das feuchte Manuskript", Roman), 1991, Alkyon Verlag, "Der Schuh des Empedokles", 1994, 1999; Poetry: "Sober echo", 1986, (LCB-Edition); "Challenge to flight", 1990;  "How to become a giraffe"; 1991, 1999;  "Monument to the Unknown Coward", (Delp Verlag, 1990); "Eisenzeitlupe", 1996, (awarded first place prize in Südwestfunk-Bestenliste, 1997); “Short Stories of Eurasia”, Alkyon Verlag, 2001; “Mitlesebuch 96”, Berlin, 2006; “Im Geheimzentrum”, short stories, ERATA Verlag, Leilpzig, 2008.

In Bulgarian: "Unknown Wonder", 1987; "The Oase of Time", 2000; “Poetry”, 2006.

In Polish: "The Circle of life", 1986.

In Serbian: "Singing lesson", 1987; "Report on an angel" (awarded Library of  European Literature Prize, 1988), “Heaven on the Earth”, 2006 (Literatur Prize).

In Dutch: "The feelers of earth", Leiden, 1988.

In Tamil (Sri Lanka): "Modern poems", Colombo, 1988.

In Macedonian: "Singing and thinking lessons", Struga, 1999.