Sappho Translations

A Poem by Michael R. Burch

Sappho, fragment 155
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

A short revealing frock?
It's just my luck
your lips were made to mock!

Sappho, fragment 156
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

She keeps her scents
in a dressing-case.
And her sense?
In some undiscoverable place.

Sappho, fragment 47
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Eros harrows my heart:
wild winds whipping desolate mountains,
uprooting oaks.

Sappho, fragment 50
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Eros, the limb-shatterer,
rattles me,
an irresistible
constrictor.

Sappho, fragment 22

loose translation by Michael R. Burch

That enticing girl's clinging dresses
leave me trembling, overcome by happiness,
as once, when I saw the Goddess in my prayers
eclipsing Cyprus.

Sappho, fragment 31
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

... at the sight of you,
words fail me ...

Sappho, fragment 24
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

... don't you remember, in days bygone ...
how we, too, did such things, being young?

Sappho, fragment 118
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Sing, my sacred tortoiseshell lyre;
come, let my words
accompany your voice.

Sappho, fragment 58
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Pain
drains
me
to
the
last
drop
.

Sappho, fragment 90
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Mother, how can I weave,
so overwhelmed by love?

Sappho, fragment 29
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Someone, somewhere
will remember us,
I swear!

Sappho, unnumbered fragment
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

What cannot be swept
aside
must be wept.

Sappho, fragment 34
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

You are,
of all the unapproachable stars,
by far
the fairest,
the brightest―
possessing the Moon's splendor.

Sappho, fragment 34
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Awed by the Moon's splendor,
the stars covered their undistinguished faces.
Even so, we.

Sappho, fragment 39
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

We're merely mortal women,
it's true;
the Goddesses have no rivals
but You.

Sappho, fragment 5
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

We're eclipsed here by your presence―
you outshine all the ladies of Lydia
as the bright-haloed moon outsplendors the stars.

Sappho, fragment 35
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

With my two small arms, how can I
think to encircle the sky?

Sappho, fragment 2
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Leaving your heavenly summit,
I submit
to the mountain,
then plummet.

Sappho, fragment 129
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

You forget me
or you love another more!
It's over.

Sappho, fragment 16
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Warriors on rearing chargers,
columns of infantry,
fleets of warships:
some say these are the dark earth's redeeming visions.
But I say―
the one I desire.

And this makes sense
because she who so vastly surpassed all mortals in beauty
―Helen―
seduced by Aphrodite, led astray by desire,
set sail for distant Troy,
abandoning her celebrated husband,
leaving behind her parents and child!

Her story reminds me of Anactoria,
who has also departed,
and whose lively dancing and lovely face
I would rather see than all the horsemen and war-chariots of the Lydians,
or all their infantry parading in flashing armor.

Sappho, fragment 137
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Gold does not rust,
yet my son becomes dust?

Sappho, fragment 36
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Vain woman, foolish thing!
Do you base your worth on a ring?

Sappho, fragment 113
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

No droning bee,
nor even the bearer of honey
for me!

Sappho, fragment 113
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Neither the honey
nor the bee
for me!

Sappho, fragment 130
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

May the gods prolong the night
-- "yes, let it last forever! --
as long as you sleep in my sight.

Sappho, fragment 37
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

I'm undecided.
My mind? Divided.

Sappho, fragment 37
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Unsure as a babe new-born,
My mind is divided, torn.

Sappho, fragment 37
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

I don't know what to do:
My mind is divided, two.

Sappho, fragment 52
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

The moon has long since set;
the Pleiades are gone;
now half the night is spent,
yet here I lie, alone.

Sappho, fragment 100
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

When the bride comes
let her train rejoice!

Sappho, fragment 90
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Bridegroom,
was there ever a maid
so like a lovely heirloom?

Sappho, fragment 19
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

You anoint yourself
with the most exquisite perfume.

Sappho, fragment 120
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

But I'm no resenter;
I have a childlike heart ...

Sappho, fragment 80
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

May your head rest
on the breast
of the tenderest guest.

Sappho, fragment 80
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Is my real desire for maidenhood?

Sappho, fragment 80
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Is there any synergy
in virginity?

Sappho, fragment 75
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Dica! Do not enter the presence of Goddesses ungarlanded!
First weave sprigs of dill with those delicate hands, if you desire their favor!

Sappho, fragment 79
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

I cherish extravagance,
intoxicated by Love's celestial splendor.

Sappho, fragment 79
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

I love the sensual
as I love the sun's ecstatic brilliance.

Sappho, fragment 81
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Assemble now, Muses, leaving golden landscapes!

Sappho, fragment 29
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Darling, let me see your face;
unleash your eyes' grace.

Sappho, fragment 29
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Turn to me, favor me
with your eyes' acceptance.

Sappho, fragment 29
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Look me in the face,
smile,
reveal your eyes' grace ...

Sappho, fragment 4
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

The moon shone, full
as the virgins ringed Love's altar ...

Sappho, fragment 11
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

You inflame me!

Sappho, fragment 11
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

You ignite and inflame me ...
You melt me.

Sappho, fragment 12
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

I am an acolyte
of wile-weaving
Aphrodite.

Sappho, fragment 14
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Eros
descends from heaven,
discarding his imperial purple mantle.

Sappho, fragment 35
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Although you are very dear to me
you must marry a younger filly:
for I'm by far too old for you,
and this old mare's just not that damn silly.

Sappho, after Anacreon
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Once more I dive into this fathomless sea,
intoxicated by lust.

Sappho, after Menander
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Some say Sappho was the first ardent maiden
goaded by wild emotion
to fling herself from the white-frothed rocks
into this raging ocean
for love of Phaon ...
but others reject that premise
and say it was Aphrodite, for love of Adonis.

Sappho, fragment 3
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

To me that boy seems
blessed by the gods
because he sits beside you,
basking in your brilliant presence.

The sound of your voice roils my heart!
Your laughter?―bright water, dislodging pebbles

in a chaotic vortex. You suck up my breath!
My heart bucks in my ribs. I can't breathe. I can't speak.

My breasts glow with intense heat;
desire's blush-inducing fires redden my flesh.
My ears seem hollow; they ring emptily.
My tongue is broken and cleaves to its roof.

I sweat profusely. I shiver.
Suddenly, I grow pale
and feel only a second short of dying.
And yet I must endure, somehow,

despite my poverty.

Sappho, fragment 93
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

You're the sweetest apple reddening on the highest bough,
which the harvesters missed, or forgot―somehow―

or perhaps they just couldn't reach you, then or now.

Sappho, fragment 145
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Prometheus the Fire-Bearer
robbed the Gods of their power, and so
brought mankind and himself to woe ...
must you repeat his error?

Sappho, fragment 159
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

May I lead?
Will you follow?
Foolish man!

Ears so hollow,
minds so shallow,
never can!

Sappho, fragments 122 & 123
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Your voice―
a sweeter liar
than the lyre,
more dearly sold
and bought, than gold.

Sappho, fragment 42
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

She wrapped herself then in
most delicate linen.

Sappho, fragment 70
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

That rustic girl bewitches your heart?
Hell, her most beguiling art's
hiking the hem of her dress
to seduce you with her ankles' nakedness!

Sappho, fragment 94
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Shepherds trample the larkspur
whose petals empurple the heath,
foreshadowing shepherds' grief.

Sappho, fragment 100
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

The softest pallors grace
her lovely face.

Sappho, fragment 36
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

I yearn for―I burn for―the one I miss!

Sappho, fragment 30
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Maidens, keeping vigil all night long,
go make a lovely song,
someday, out of desires you abide
for the violet-petalled bride.

Or better yet―arise, regale!
Go entice the eligible bachelors
so that we shocked elders
can sleep less than love-plagued nightingales!

Sappho, fragment 121
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

A tender maiden plucking flowers
persuades the knave
to heroically brave
the world's untender hours.

Sappho, fragment 68
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Lady,
soon you'll lie dead, disregarded;
then imagine how quickly your reputation fades ...
you who never gathered the roses of Pieria
must assume your place among the obscure,
uncelebrated shades.

Sappho, fragment 137
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Death is evil;
the Gods all agree;
for, had death been good,
the Gods would be mortal
like me.

Sappho, fragment 43
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Come, dear ones,
let us cease our singing:
morning dawns.

Sappho, fragment 14
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Today
may
buffeting winds bear
my distress and care
away.

Sappho, fragment 15
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Just now I was called,
enthralled,
by the golden-sandalled
dawn...

Sappho, fragment 69
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Into the soft arms of the girl I once spurned,
I gladly returned.

Sappho, fragment 29
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Since my paps are dry and my barren womb rests,
let me praise lively girls with violet-sweet breasts.

Sappho, fragment 1
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Beautiful swift sparrows
rising on whirring wings
flee the dark earth for the sun-bright air ...

Sappho, fragment 58
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

The girls of the ripening maidenhead wore garlands.

Sappho, fragment 94 & 98
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Listen, my dear;
by the Goddess I swear
that I, too,
(like you)
had to renounce my false frigidity
and surrender my virginity.
My wedding night was not so bad;
you too have nothing to fear, so be glad!
(But then why do I still sometimes think with dread
of my lost maidenhead?)

Sappho, fragment 100
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Bridegroom, rest
on the tender breast
of the maiden you love best.

Sappho, fragment 103
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Maidenhead! Maidenhead!
So swiftly departed!
Why have you left us
forever brokenhearted?

Sappho, fragment 2
loose translation by Michael R. Burch, after Sappho and Tennyson

I sip the cup of costly death;
I lose my color; I catch my breath
whenever I contemplate your presence,
or absence.

Sappho, fragment 2
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

How can I compete with that damned man
who fancies himself one of the gods,
impressing you with his "eloquence,"
when just the thought of sitting in your radiant presence,
of hearing your lovely voice and lively laughter,
sets my heart hammering at my breast?
Hell, when I catch just a quick glimpse of you,
I'm left speechless, tongue-tied,
and immediately a blush like a delicate flame reddens my skin.
Then my vision dims with tears,
my ears ring,
I sweat profusely,
and every muscle in my body trembles.
When the blood finally settles,
I grow paler than summer grass,
till in my exhausted madness,
I'm as limp as the dead.
And yet I must risk all, being bereft without you ...

Sappho, fragments 73 & 74
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

They have been very generous with me,
the violet-strewing Muses;
thanks to their gifts
I have become famous.

Sappho, fragment 3
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Stars ringing the lovely moon
pale to insignificance
when she illuminates the earth
with her magnificence.

Sappho, fragment 49
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

You have returned!
You did well to not depart
because I pined for you.
Now you have re-lit the torch
I bear for you in my heart,
this flare of Love.
I bless you and bless you and bless you
because we're no longer apart.

Sappho, fragment 52
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Yesterday,
you came to my house
to sing for me.

Today,
I come to you
to return the favor.

Talk to me. Do.
Sweet talk,
I love the flavor!

Please send away your maids
and let us share a private heaven-
haven.

Sappho, fragment 19
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

There was no dance,
no sacred dalliance,
from which we were absent.

Sappho, fragment 20
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

... shot through
with innumerable hues ...

Sappho, fragment 38
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

I flutter
after you
like a chick after its mother ...

Sappho, fragment 30
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Stay!
I will lay
out a cushion for you
with plushest pillows ...

Sappho, fragment 50
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

My body descends
and my comfort depends
on your welcoming cushions!

Sappho, fragment 133
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Of all the stars the fairest,
Hesperus,
Lead the maiden straight to the bridegroom's bed,
honoring Hera, the goddess of marriage.

Sappho, fragment 134
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

Selene came to Endymion in the cave,
made love to him as he slept,
then crept away before the sun could prove
its light and warmth the more adept.

Sappho, fragment 4
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

"Honestly, I just want to die!"
So she said,
crying heartfelt tears,
inconsolably sad
to leave me.

And she said,
"How deeply we have loved,
we two,
Sappho!
Oh,
I really don't want to go!"

I answered her thus:
"Go, and be happy,
remembering me,
for you know how much I cared for you.
And if you don't remember,
please let me remind you
of all the lovely emotions we felt
as with many wreathes of violets,
roses and crocuses
you sat beside me
adorning your delicate neck.

Once garlands had been fashioned of many woven flowers,
with much expensive myrrh
we anointed our bodies like royalty
on soft couches,
then your tender caresses
fulfilled your desire ..."

Sappho's Rose
loose translation by Michael R. Burch

The rose is ...
the ornament of the earth,
the glory of nature,
the archetype of the flowers,
the blush of the meadows,
a lightning flash of beauty.

Sappho's Lullaby
an original poem by Michael R. Burch

for Jeremy

Hushed yet melodic, the hills and the valleys

sleep unaware of the nightingale's call,

while the pale calla lilies lie

listening,

glistening . . .

this is their night, the first night of fall.

Son, tonight, a woman awaits you;

she is more vibrant, more lovely than spring.

She'll meet you in moonlight,

soft and warm,

all alone . . .

then you'll know why the nightingale sings.

Just yesterday the stars were afire;

then how desire flashed through my veins!

But now I am older;

night has come,

I’m alone . . .

for you I will sing as the nightingale sings.

NOTE: The calla lily symbolizes beauty, purity, innocence, faithfulness and true devotion. According to Greek mythology, when the Milky Way was formed by the goddess Hera’s breast milk, the drops that fell to earth became calla lilies.

Sappho, fragment 113

loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

No droning bee,

nor even the bearer of honey

for me!

Sappho, fragment 113

loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Neither the honey

nor the bee

for me!

Sappho, fragment 52

loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

The moon has long since set;

The Pleiades are gone;

Now half the night is spent,

Yet here I lie ... alone.

Sappho, fragment 2 (Lobel-Page 2 / Voigt 2)

loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Come, Cypris, from Crete

to meet me at this holy temple

where a lovely grove of apple awaits our presence

bowering altars

fuming with frankincense.

Here brisk waters babble beneath apple branches,

the grounds are overshadowed by roses,

and through the flickering leaves

enchantments shimmer.

Here the horses will nibble flowers

as we gorge on apples

and the breezes blow

honey-sweet with nectar ...

Here, Cypris, we will gather up garlands,

pour the nectar gracefully into golden cups

and with gladness

commence our festivities.

Sappho, fragment 58 (Lobel-Page 58)

loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Virgins, be zealous for the violet-scented Muses' lovely gifts

and those of the melodious lyre ...

but my once-supple skin sags now;

my arthritic bones creak;

my ravenblack hair's turned white;

my lighthearted heart's grown heavy;

my knees buckle;

my feet, once fleet as fawns, fail the dance.

I often bemoan my fate ... but what's the use?

Not to grow old is, of course, not an option.

I am reminded of Tithonus, adored by Dawn with her arms full of roses,

who, overwhelmed by love, carried him off beyond death's dark dominion.

Handsome for a day, but soon withered with age,

he became an object of pity to his ageless wife.

Sappho, fragment 132 (Lobel-Page 132)

loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

I have a delightful daughter

fairer than the fairest flowers, Cleis,

whom I cherish more than all Lydia and lovely Lesbos.

I have a lovely daughter

with a face like the fairest flowers,

my beloved Cleis …

It bears noting that Sappho mentions her daughter and brothers, but not her husband. We do not know if this means she was unmarried, because so many of her verses have been lost.

Sappho, fragment 131 (Lobel-Page 131)

loose translations/interpretations by Michael R. Burch

You reject me, Attis,

as if you find me distasteful,

flitting off to Andromeda ...

Attis, you forsake me

and flit off to Andromeda ...

Sappho, fragment 140 (Lobel-Page 140)

loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

He is dying, Cytherea, the delicate Adonis.

What shall we lovers do?

Rip off your clothes, bare your breasts and abuse them!

Sappho, fragment 36

loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Vain woman, foolish thing!

Do you base your worth on a ring?

Sappho, fragment 130

loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

May the gods prolong the night

�"yes, let it last forever!�"

as long as you sleep in my sight.

... a sweet-voiced maiden ...

�"Sappho, fragment 153, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

I have the most childlike heart ...

�"Sappho, fragment 120, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

There was no dance,

no sacred dalliance,

from which we were absent.

�"Sappho, fragment 19, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

I love the sensual

as I love the sun’s ecstatic brilliance.

�"Sappho, fragment 9, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

I love the sensual

as I love the sun’s splendor.

�"Sappho, fragment 9, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

You anointed yourself

with most exquisite perfume.

�"Sappho, fragment 19, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Awed by the moon’s splendor,

stars covered their undistinguished faces.

Even so, we.

�"Sappho, fragment 34, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Sappho, fragment 138, loose translations/interpretations by Michael R. Burch

Darling, let me see your face;

unleash your eyes' grace.

Turn to me, favor me

with your eyes' indulgence.

Look me in the face,

smile,

reveal your eyes' grace ...

Turn to me,

favor me

with your eyes’ indulgence

Those I most charm

do me the most harm.

�"Sappho, fragment 12, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Those I charm the most

do me the most harm.

�"Sappho, fragment 12, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Midnight.

The hours drone on

as I moan here, alone.

�"Sappho, fragment 52, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Once again I dive into this fathomless ocean,

intoxicated by lust.

�"Sappho, after Anacreon, loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Did this epigram perhaps inspire the legend that Sappho leapt into the sea to her doom, over her despair for her love for the ferryman Phaon? See the following poem ...

The Legend of Sappho and Phaon, after Menander

loose translation/interpretation by Michael R. Burch

Some say Sappho was an ardent maiden

goaded by wild emotion

to fling herself from the white-frothed rocks of Leukas

into this raging ocean

for love of Phaon ...

but others reject that premise

and say it was Aphrodite, for love of Adonis.

In Menander's play The Leukadia he refers to a legend that Sappho flung herself from the White Rock of Leukas in pursuit of Phaon. We owe the preservation of those verses to Strabo, who cited them. Phaon appears in works by Ovid, Lucian and Aelian. He is also mentioned by Plautus in Miles Gloriosus as being one of only two men in the whole world, who "ever had the luck to be so passionately loved by a woman."

Sappho, fragment 24, loose translations/interpretations by Michael R. Burch

1a.

Dear, don't you remember how, in days long gone,

we did such things, being young?

1b.

Dear, don't you remember, in days long gone,

how we did such things, being young?

Don't you remember, in days bygone,

how we did such things, being young?

Remember? In our youth

we too did such reckless things.

Sappho, fragment 154, loose translations/interpretations by Michael R. Burch