Two poems by Yehuda HaLevi

Dan Alter

בֹּעֵר וּמִשְׂתָּעֵר

צֵא נָּא וְׂהִנָּעֵר

וּלְׂכָּה בְׂאוֹר פָּנַי


קוּמָּה צְׂלַח וּרְׂכַב

דָּרַךְ לְׂךָ כּוֹכָּב

וַאֲשֶׁר בְׂבוֹר שָּכַב

עָּלָּה לְׂראֹּש סִינַי


אַל תַעֲלֹז נַפְׂשָּם

הָּאֹּמְׂרִים תֶׁאְׂשַם

צִיּוֹן וְׂהִנֵה שָּם

לִבִי וְׂשֵם עֵינַי


אֵגָּל וְׂאֶׁסָּתֵר

אֶׁקְׂצֹּף וְׂאֵעָּתֵר

מִי יַחֲמֹּל יוֹתֵר

מִנִי עֲלֵי בָּנָּי

Sleeper with your heart stirred,    burning, storm-churned,
Shake off sleep, come out now    & walk in the light of my eyes.
Onward, rise, & ride!    For you a star shines.
Who lay down in a pit    climbs to the peak of Sinai.
They shouldn't crow "Zion is to blame"    when it's always in my sight.
I'm revealed & concealed,    I erupt but hear your prayers,
Who more than I     has mercy on my child?


בֹּהּ, בִתִי, הַשָּכַחַתְׂ מִשְׂכָּּנֵךְ ?

כִּי לִשְׂאוֹל נָּסְׂעוּ נוֹשְׂאֵי אֲרוֹנֵךְ

ין חֶׁלְׂקִי מִמֵךְ, רַק זִכְׂרוֹנֵךְ ,

וַאֲחוֹנֵן אֶׁת עַפְׂרוֹת צִיּוּנֵךְ

ת אָּסוּר לִשְׂאֹּל שְׂלוֹמֵךְ וְׂאֵינֵךְ –

וַאֲשֶׁר בְׂבוֹר שָּכַב


בַת מוּצֵאת מֵחֶׁדֶׁר הוֹרָּתָּהּ –

אֵיךְ אֶׁחְׂיֶׁה וּמִנַפְׂשִי גִזְׂרָּתָּה?

צוּר אֲבַקַע עֵת אֶׁרְׂאֶׁה צוּרָּתָּהּ,

אֵיךְ תִשְׂנֶׁה לְׂבָּנָּה מֵהַדְׂרָּתָּהּ?

שָּם בִשְׂאוֹל אֶׁרְׂאֶׁה יוֹם חֲתֻנָּתָּהּ –

יךְ תָּשִים גוּש עֲפַר חֻפָּתָּה?

אֵיךְ מָּתְׂקוּ לָּהּ רִגְׂבֵי קְׂבוּרָּתָּהּ?

מַר לִי מַר, בִתִי, עַל חֶׁסְׂרוֹנֵךְ –

מִכִּי הַמָּוֶׁת יַפְׂרִיד בֵינִי וּבֵינֵךְ.


שוֹשַנָּה בְׂלאֹּ עִתָּה נִקְׂטֶׁפֶׁת,

אֲשֶׁר צַלְׂמָּהּ בֵין עֵינַי טוֹטֶׁפֶׁת –

יךְ דִמְׂעָּה כַּנָּהָּ ר שוֹטֶׁפֶׁת?

אֵיךְ בַת עָּש בְׂחֵיק עָּפָּר נֶׁאֱסֶׁפֶׁת?

וְׂאֵיךְ חַמָּה בְׂרִמָּה מִתְׂעַלֶׁפֶׁת

וְׂחֶׁבְׂלֵי שְׂאוֹל עַל ראֹּשָּהּ מִצְׂנֶׁפֶׁת?

הָּהּ, בִתִי, אֵין דָּן לְׂמָּזוֹר דִינֵךְ –

כִּי הַמָּוֶׁת יַפְׂרִיד בֵינִי וּבֵינֵךְ.


קוֹל כְּׂחוֹלָּה שָּמַעְׂתִי לְׂאֵם שְׂכוּלָּה,

הַרְׂפֵה לָּהּ, כִּי נַפְׂשָּהּ מָּרָּה לָּהּ,

כִּי מָּוֶׁת בְׂחַלוֹנֶׁיהָּ עָּלָּה.

עִם גִזְׂרַת כְּׂבֵדָּהּ כְּׂבוֹדָּהּ גָּלָּה

וַיַּהֲפֹּךְ שִמְׂחָּתָּהּ לִילָּלָּה,

יוֹם נֶׁעֶׁקְׂרָּה גֶׁפֶׁן בַלֵב שְׂתוּלָּה.

״מָּה אֶׁזְׂעַק, בִתִי, וְׂאָּזְׂנֵךְ עֲרֵלָּה

וְׂלַעֲנוֹתִי מִ לָּה אֵין בִלְׂשוֹנֵךְ ? –

כִּי הַמָּוֶׁת יַפְׂרִיד בֵינִי וּבֵינֵךְ.


הָּהּ, בִתִי, הַכְׂרַע הִכְׂרַעְׂתִינִי!״

״אוֹי, אִמִי, אוֹי לִי כִּי יְׂלִדְׂתִנִי –

אַךְ הַיּוֹם אֵיךְ מָּאוֹס מְׂאַסְׂתִנִי,

כִּי לִבְׂכוֹר מָּוֶׁת גִדַלְׂתִנִי.

בְׂהַגִיעַ תוֹר לְׂנַפְׂשִי שִלַחְׂתִנִי

וּבַעֲטֶׁרֶׁת עָּפָּר עִטַרְׂתִנִי

וּבְׂחֻפַת אֲבָּדוֹן הוֹשַבְׂתִנִי

בְׂעַל כָּּרְׂחֵךְ, אֱמֶׁת, כִּי לאֹּ בִרְׂצוֹנֵךְ –

כִּי הַמָּוֶׁת יַפְׂרִיד בֵינִי וּבֵינֵךְ״.


הַגוֹזֵר וְׂאֵין מֵפֵר גְׂזֵרוֹתָּיו

אֶׁת חֶׁבְׂלֵךְ יַפִיל בִנְׂעִימוֹתָּיו,

וְׂרַב מִהְׂיוֹת קִצְׂפוֹ עַל צִבְׂאוֹתָּיו.

יִנָּחֵם וְׂיַעְׂצֹּר מַגֵפוֹתָּיו

וִינַחֵם לֵבָּב מִקוֹרוֹתָּיו.

לְׂאֵץ יָּמִין יְׂקִיצֵךְ בְׂטַל אוֹרוֹתָּיו,

גַם יִתְׂמֹּךְ בִימִין צִדְׂקוֹ יְׂמִינֵךְ –

כִּי הַמָּוֶׁת יַפְׂרִיד בֵינִי וּבֵינֵךְ.

My daughter are you lost coming home?
As your coffin lowers into the grave
I have nothing left of you but a thought
& my heart goes to the earth you're under
When I turn to find you & you're gone
            Because death has come between us


Daughter removed from her mother's room
How can I live when her limbs came from me?
Picturing her I could split apart stones
& how did the moon's glow so fade away?
I see her there in the grave at her wedding--
How could she make a clump of earth her canopy,
& how will the clods underground turn sweet for her?
I'm more bitter than bitter, you're not there, daughter
            Because death has come between us

Flower picked far too early,
Her image before my eyes as if bound there--
How can these tears rush like a river,
A child of stars slip into the ground's arms
& how is sunlight shrouded by a worm
While she wears coils of the grave like a bridal veil?
Oh my daughter, no plea can undo this ruling
            Because death has come between us

"I hear a mother's anguished cries like birth pangs--
Let her be, her mind has turned bitter
Since death has risen in her window.
Her luck went away with this penalty
Which changed her joy to wailing
& tore a vine from the ground of her heart."
Why, daughter, should I cry: your ears stopped up
& not a word in your mouth to answer me
            Because death has come between us

My daughter how you've bowed me in sorrow!
"Oh if only, mother, you didn't give birth to me--
But now how entirely you've turned me away,
Since you raised me for the angel of death.
When my time came to marry you sent me
Adorned with a garland of earth
& sat me under a tomb for a canopy--
Helpless, I know, you never wished this--
            Because death has come between us

May the One whose judgments can't be undone
In his gentleness release your bonds
& no longer send punishment upon us.
In mercy may he leave off his plagues
& from his great heights comfort our hearts.
At the end of days may He wake you with bright dew
& take your right hand in his righteous one
            Because death has come between us


Yehudah Ben Samuel Halevi, also known as Judah ha-Levi was a Sephardic philosopher and physician. He is considered one of the greatest of the Hebrew poets of Andalusia, Medieval Muslim Spain. He is credited with inventing the sionida genre, which expresses love for the distant Jerusalem. His poetic work encompasses both religious and secular themes.



Dan Alter

Dan Alter’s poems, translations and reviews have been published in journals including Field, Fourteen Hills, Pank, and Zyzzyva; his first collection “My Little Book of Exiles” won the Poetry Prize for the 2022 Anne and Robert Cowan Writer’s Awards. He is a former fellow of the Arad Arts Project, and a member of the Community of Writers at Olympic Valley. He lives with his wife and daughter in Berkeley and makes his living as an IBEW electrician. He can be found online at https://danalter.net/. (Twitter: @arlozorof / IG: dialter54)

Back to Issue
Also in this thread
This thread has no other posts