1919 Poem by Pavlo Tychyna

Poem by Pavlo Tychyna. Written in 1919. English translation (might be better) by Michael Naydan

І Бєлий, і Блок, і Єсенін, і Клюєв:
Росіє, Росіє, Росіє моя!
…Стоїть сторозтерзаний Київ,
і двістірозіп’ятий я.

Там скрізь уже: сонце! — співають: Месія! —
Тумани, долини, болотяна путь…
Воздвигне Вкраїна свойого Мойсея, —
не може ж так буть!

Не може ж так буть, о, я чую, я знаю.
Під регіт і бурю, під грім од повстань
од всіх своїх нервів у степ посилаю —
поете, устань!

Чорнозем підвівся і дивиться в вічі,
і кривить обличчя в кривавий свій сміх.
Поете, любити свій край не є злочин,
коли це для всіх!

***

And Bely and Blok, Esenin and Kliuev:
Russia, Russia, Russia of mine!
…There stands Kyiv tormented a hundredfold,
and I, crucified two hundred times.

Yonder everywhere is: the sun!
– they’re singing: Messiah! –
Ukraine will raise its own Moses –
it has to be!

It can’t be like this forever, I sense it, I know.
To laughter and storms, to the thunder of revolts,
from all my nerves into the steppe I send:
poet, arise!

And the black earth rises up, staring me in the eye,
and distorts its face into bloody laughter.
Poet, to love your homeland isn’t a crime
when you do it for the good of all!

***

Notes (thanks Andriy!):

Michael M/ Naydan In this text – Kliuev is Nikolay Kliuev – Russian poet who glorified the Russian countryside and the peasant. He died in prison camp in 1937.

Now we have two Kliuev brothers – oligarchs from Yanukovych’s clan. Both are now in black list of European banks. Andriy Kliuev was a right hand of Yanukovych during revolution and he is recognised as author of attacks on Maydan.

You may also pay attention to second stanza – “swampy road” – protests on Болотная площадь (Swampy square) was huge protests against Putin in Moscow 2-3 years ago.