“There is another world, and it is in this one.””

“Your voice, your eyes, your hands, your lipsOur silence, our wordsLight that goes, light that returnsA single smile between usIn quest of knowledge I watched night create dayO beloved of all, beloved of one aloneyour mouth silently promised to be happyAway, away, says hateCloser, closer, says loveA caress leads us from our infancyIncreasingly I see the human form as a lovers’ dialogueThe heart has but one mouthEverything by chanceAll words without thoughtSentiments adriftA glance, a word, because I love youEverything movesWe must advance to live Aim straight ahead toward those you loveI went toward you, endlessly toward the lightIf you smile, it enfolds me all the betterThe rays of your arms pierce the mist.””

“تو را به جای همه کسانی که نشناخته ام دوست می دارمتو را به خاطر عطر نان گرمبرای برفی که آب می شود دوست می دارمتو را به جای همه کسانی که دوست نداشته ام دوست می دارمتو را به خاطر دوست داشتن دوست می دارمبرای اشکی که خشک شد و هیچ وقت نریختلبخندی که محو شد و هیچ گاه نشکفت دوست می دارمتو را به خاطر خاطره ها دوست می دارمبرای پشت کردن به آرزوهای محالبه خاطر نابودی توهم و خیال دوست می دارمتو را برای دوست داشتن دوست می دارمتو را به خاطردود لاله های وحشیبه خاطر گونۀ زرین آفتاب گردانتو را به خاطر دوست داشتن دوست می دارمتو را به جای همه کسانی که ندیده ام دوست می دارمتو را برای لبخند تلخ لحظه هاپرواز شیرین خاطره ها دوست می دارمتورا به اندازۀ همۀ کسانی که نخواهم دید دوست می دارماندازه قطرات باران، اندازۀ ستاره های آسمان دوست می دارمتو را به اندازه خودت، اندازه آن قلب پاکت دوست می دارمتو را برای دوست داشتن دوست می دارمتو را به جای همۀ کسانی که نمی شناخته ام ... دوست می دارمتو را به جای همۀ روزگارانی که نمی زیسته ام ... دوست می دارمبرای خاطر عطر نان گرم و برفی که آب می شود وبرای نخستین گناه ...تو را به خاطر دوست داشتن ... دوست می دارمتو را به جای تمام کسانی که دوست نمی دارم ... دوست می دارم””

“Farewell SadnessHello SadnessYou are inscribed in the lines on the ceilingYou are inscribed in the eyes that I loveYou are not poverty absolutelySince the poorest of lips denounce youAh with a smileBonjour TristesseLove of kind bodiesPower of loveFrom which kindness risesLike a bodiless monsterUnattached headSadness beautiful face.””

Selected Poems (A Calderbook, Cb435)

“Liberty On my notebooks from schoolOn my desk and the treesOn the sand, on the snowI write your name On every page readOn all the white sheetsStone blood paper or ashI write your name On the golden imagesOn the soldier’s weaponsOn the crowns of kingsI write your name On the jungle, the desertThe nests and the bushesOn the echo of childhoodI write your name On the wonder of nightsOn the white bread of daysOn the seasons engagedI write your name On all my blue ragsOn the pond mildewed sunOn the lake living moonI write your name On the fields, the horizonThe wings of the birdsOn the windmill of shadowsI write your name On the foam of the cloudsOn the sweat of the stormOn dark insipid rainI write your name On the glittering formsOn the bells of colourOn physical truthI write your name On the wakened pathsOn the opened waysOn the scattered placesI write your name On the lamp that gives lightOn the lamp that is drownedOn my house reunitedI write your name On the bisected fruitOf my mirror and roomOn my bed’s empty shellI write your name On my dog greedy tenderOn his listening earsOn his awkward pawsI write your name On the sill of my doorOn familiar thingsOn the fire’s sacred streamI write your name On all flesh that’s in tuneOn the brows of my friendsOn each hand that extendsI write your name On the glass of surprisesOn lips that attendHigh over the silenceI write your name On my ravaged refugesOn my fallen lighthousesOn the walls of my boredomI write your name On passionless absenceOn naked solitudeOn the marches of deathI write your name On health that’s regainedOn danger that’s pastOn hope without memoriesI write your name By the power of the wordI regain my lifeI was born to know youAnd to name you LIBERTY””

“There is another world, but it is in this one.””

“Ta voix, tes yeux, tes mains, tes lèvres,Nos silences, nos paroles,La lumière qui s’en va, la lumière qui revient,Un seul sourire pour nous deux,Par besoin de savoir, j’ai vu la nuit créer le jour sans que nous changions d’apparence,Ô bien-aimé de tous et bien-aimé d’un seul,En silence ta bouche a promis d’être heureuse,De loin en loin, ni la haine,De proche en proche, ni l’amour,Par la caresse nous sortons de notre enfance,Je vois de mieux en mieux la forme humaine,Comme un dialogue amoureux, le cœur ne fait qu’une seule boucheToutes les choses au hasard, tous les mots dits sans y penser,Les sentiments à la dérive, les hommes tournent dans la ville,Le regard, la parole et le fait que je t’aime,Tout est en mouvement, il suffit d’avancer pour vivre,D’aller droit devant soi vers tout ce que l’on aime,J’allais vers toi, j’allais sans fin vers la lumière,Si tu souris, c’est pour mieux m’envahir,Les rayons de tes bras entrouvraient le brouillard.””

“She is standing on my lidsAnd her hair is in my hairShe has the colour of my eyeShe has the body of my handIn my shade she is engulfedAs a stone against the skyShe will never close her eyesAnd she does not let me sleepAnd her dreams in the bright dayMake the suns evaporateAnd me laugh cry and laughSpeak when I have nothing to say””

“She is always unwilling to understand, to listen,She laughs to hide her fear of herself.She has always walked beneath the arches of nightsAnd wherever she wentShe leftThe mark of broken things.””

“She always walked under the arches of nightsAnd everywhere she wentShe leftThe mark of broken things.””

Capital of Pain

“A woman is more beautiful than the world in which I live; and so I close my eyes. ””

“Adieu TristesseBonjour TristesseFarewell SadnessHello SadnessYou are inscribed in the lines on the ceilingYou are inscribed in the eyes that I loveYou are not poverty absolutelySince the poorest of lips denounce youAh with a smileBonjour TristesseLove of kind bodiesPower of loveFrom which kindness risesLike a bodiless monsterUnattached headSadness beautiful face.””

Selected Poems (A Calderbook, Cb435)

“And by the power of a word, I begin my life again.””

Selected Poems (A Calderbook, Cb435)

“« Si c’était à recommencer, je te rencontrerais sans techercher. »””

Capital of Pain

“Dans la rue de rien personne””

Last Love Poems

Quotes by Paul Éluard