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“Masses” by César Vallejo 🇵🇪 (16 Mar 189215 Apr 1938)
Translated from the Spanish by Robert Bly
When the battle was over,
And the fighter was dead, a man came toward him
And said to him: “Do not die; I love you so!”
But the corpse, how sad! went on dying.
And two came near, and repeated it.
“Do not leave us! Courage! Return to life!”
But the corpse, how sad! went on dying.
Twenty arrived, a hundred, a thousand, five hundred thousand,
Shouting: “So much love, and it can do nothing against death!”
But the corpse, how sad! went on dying.
Millions of persons stood around him,
All with the same request: “Stay here, brother!”
But the corpse, how sad! went on dying.
Then all the men on the earth
Stood around him; the corpse looked at them sadly, deeply moved;
He sat up slowly,
Put his arms around the furst man; started to walk …