Religion
Columcille's Farewell to Aran of the Saints
Translated by Douglas Hyde (in Hull, The Poem-Book of the Gael, 1913) · From The Poem-Book of the Gael (1913)
Farewell from me to Ara's Isle,
Her smile is at my heart no more,
No more to me the boon is given
With hosts of heaven to walk her shore.
How far, alas! How far, alas!
Have I to pass from Ara's view,
To mix with men from Mona's fen,
With men from Alba's mountains blue.
O Ara, darling of the West,
Ne'er be he blest who loves not thee!
O God, cut short her foeman's breath,
Let hell and death his portion be.
O Ara, darling of the West,
Ne'er be he blest who loves not thee,
Herdless and childless may he go,
In endless woe his doom to dree.
O Ara, darling of the West,
Ne'er be he blest who loves thee not,
When angels wing from heaven on high,
And leave the sky for this dear spot.
Cite this poem
MLA
Anonymous (Old Irish). “Columcille's Farewell to Aran of the Saints.” Translated by Douglas Hyde. Poetry Codex, poetrycodex.com/poem/anonymous-old-irish/78/.
Chicago
Anonymous (Old Irish). “Columcille's Farewell to Aran of the Saints.” Translated by Douglas Hyde. Poetry Codex. https://poetrycodex.com/poem/anonymous-old-irish/78/.
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