Selected Poetry, 1937–1990

A educacao pela pedra / Education by Stone

A educagao pela pedra Uma educagao pela pedra: por ligoes; para aprender da pedra, freqiienta-la; captar sua voz inenfatica, impessoal (pela de dicgao ela comeqa as aulas). A ligao de moral, sua resistencia fria ao que flui e a fluir, a ser maleada; a de poetica, sua carnadura concreta; a de economia, seu adensar-se compacta: ligoes da pedra (de fora para dentro, cartilha muda), para quern soletra-la. Outra educaqao pela pedra: no Sertao (de dentro para fora, e pre-didatica). No Sertao a pedra nao sabe lecionar, e se lecionasse, nao ensinaria nada; la nao se aprende a pedra: la a pedra, urna pedra de nascenga, entranha a alma. 130 A educa<;ao pela pedra Vma educa<;ao pela pedra: por li<;6es; para aprender da pedra, freqiienta-la; captar sua voz inenfatica, impessoal (pela de dic<;ao ela come<;a as aulas). A li<;ao de moral, sua resistencia [ria ao que fiui e a fiuir, a ser maleada; a de poetica, sua carnadura concreta; a de economia, seu adensar-se compacta: li<;6es da pedra (de fora para dentro, cartilha muda), para quem soletra-la. Outra educa<;ao pela pedra: no Sertao (de dentro para fora, e pre-didatica). No Sertao a pedra nao sabe lecionar, e se lecionasse, nao ensinaria nada; la nao se aprende a pedra: la a pedra, uma pedra de nascen<;a, entranha a alma. 130 Education by Stone An education by stone: through lessons, to learn from the stone: to go to it often, to catch its level, impersonal voice (by its choice of words it begins its classes). The lesson in morals, the stone's cold resistance to flow, to flowing, to being hammered: the lesson in poetics, its concrete flesh: in economics, how to grow dense compactly: lessons from the stone, (from without to within, dumb primer), for the routine speller of spells. Another education by stone: in the backlands (from within to without and pre-didactic place). In the backlands stone does not know how to lecture, and, even if it did would teach nothing: you don't learn the stone, there: there, the stone, born stone, penetrates the soul. Translated by James Wright 131 Education by Stone An education by stone: through lessons, to learn from the stone: to go to it often, to catch its level, impersonal voice (by its choice of words it begins its classes). The lesson in morals, the stone's cold resistance to flow, to flowing, to being hammered: the lesson in poetics, its concrete flesh: in economics, how to grow dense compactly: lessons from the stone, (from without to within, dumb primer), for the routine speller of spells. Another education by stone: in the backlands (from within to without and pre-didactic place). In the backlands stone does not know how to lecture, and, even if it did would teach nothing: you don't learn the stone, there: there, the stone, born stone, penetrates the soul. Translated by James Wright 131 ...