A poem by Alexander Block – Alexandre Block – Alexandr Blok – Александр Блок
(1880-1921)
In your hidden memories
There are fatal tidings of doom…
A curse on sacred traditions,
A desecration of happiness;
And a power so alluring
That I am ready to repeat the rumour
That you have brought angels down from heaven,
Enticing them with your beauty…
And when you mock at faith,
That pale, greyish-purple halo
Which I once saw before
Suddenly begins to shine above you.
Are you evil or good? You are altogether from another world
They say strange things about you
For some you are the Muse and a miracle.
For me you are torment and hell.
I do not know why in the hour of dawn,
When no strength was left to me,
I did not perish, but caught sight of your face
And begged you to comfort me.
I wanted us to be enemies;
Why then did you make me a present
Of a flowery meadow and of the starry firmament —
The whole curse of your beauty?
Your fearful caresses were more treacherous
Than the northern night,
More intoxicating than the golden champagne of Aï,
Briefer than a gypsy woman’s love…
And there was a fatal pleasure
In trampling on cherished and holy things;
And this passion, bitter as wormwood,
Was a frenzied delight for the heart!

A few random poems:
- The Appointment by Ruth Padel
- Journey with God by Raj Napal
- In The Bus That Is Frantically Rushing From Cairo To Port Said
- English Poetry. Henry Livingston. To the Memory of Sarah Livingston. Генри Ливингстон.
- Владимир Высоцкий – Заключительная песня Кэрролла
- Владимир Маяковский – Вон самогон
- Олег Бундур – Интересный вопрос
- Николай Языков – Послание к Ф. И. Иноземцеву (Да сохранит тебя великий русский бог)
- Memorials Of A Tour Of Scotland, 1803 VI. Glen-Almain, Or, The Narrow Glen by William Wordsworth
- Iceland First Seen by William Morris
- Зинаида Александрова – Прятки
- Loitering with a Vacant Eye poem – A. E. Housman
- English Poetry. Adam Lindsay Gordon. The Rhyme of Joyous Garde. Адам Линдсей Гордон.
- Джон Китс – Чаттертону
- Elixer Vitæ poem – Ambrose Bierce poems | Poems and Poetry
External links
Bat’s Poetry Page – more poetry by Fledermaus
Talking Writing Monster’s Page –
Batty Writing – the bat’s idle chatter, thoughts, ideas and observations, all original, all fresh
Poems in English
- A Plain Life by William Henry Davies
- A Greeting by William Henry Davies
- A Great Time by William Henry Davies
- A Fleeting Passion by William Henry Davies
- Remorse For Intemperate Speech by William Butler Yeats
- Red Hanrahan’s Song About Ireland by William Butler Yeats
- Reconciliation by William Butler Yeats
- Quarrel In Old Age by William Butler Yeats
- Presences by William Butler Yeats
- Politics by William Butler Yeats
- Players Ask For A Blessing On The Psalteries And On Themselves by William Butler Yeats
- Peace by William Butler Yeats
- Paudeen by William Butler Yeats
- Parting by William Butler Yeats
- Parnell’s Funeral by William Butler Yeats
- Parnell by William Butler Yeats
- Owen Aherne And His Dancers by William Butler Yeats
- On Woman by William Butler Yeats
- On Being Asked For A War Poem by William Butler Yeats
- On A Political Prisoner by William Butler Yeats
More external links (open in a new tab):
Doska or the Board – write anything
Search engines:
Yandex – the best search engine for searches in Russian (and the best overall image search engine, in any language, anywhere)
Qwant – the best search engine for searches in French, German as well as Romance and Germanic languages.
Ecosia – a search engine that supposedly… plants trees
Duckduckgo – the real alternative and a search engine that actually works. Without much censorship or partisan politics.
Yahoo– yes, it’s still around, amazingly, miraculously, incredibly, but now it seems to be powered by Bing.
Parallel Translations of Poetry
The Poetry Repository – an online library of poems, poetry, verse and poetic works
Alexander Blok (1880-1921), also Block, was a Russian poet, writer, publicist, playwright, translator and literary critic. A classic of Russian literature.