星尘

【美】弗兰克·比达尔      陈子弘 译

城市灯火通明，夜空横卧了无
稀星。你无情地乐见一种对价

是另一种。那晚

海枣树浓密，刚翻开的泥土
香气令人迷恋，

漆黑天空涌动稠光，无损

定格的星星迷惑了
视线，我想让你眩晕，让你沉醉。

我们躺在几乎黑暗的新挖平行

沟渠，仰望耗散的天空，光
不停地落在肉体上：万物皆隐，淹没

在我们之间现在燃烧，围绕我们，

而且可见，像冷天呼出的气。你忽略或拒绝
或不堪强忍。我欲问犹止，又

问了。即兴演奏的微光旨在搭救我们

火融为律条。我摸了摸你的衣服卷边。你拉开让我
更方便，短暂帮了下，这足以让我明白要问的缘由。

忧郁，就像剥夺，你像以往一样用土覆盖每个发光的

柴堆。光亮里是我们的坟墓。你倔强地说：我们
是黑暗。我们是城市

它的光亮污染了夜晚的星星。

译注：第19行柴堆，原文为pyre，指祭祀时火葬或焚化物品的柴堆

诗人简介：弗兰克·比达尔（Frank Bidart，1939年3月27日— ）美国学者、诗人，2018年获普利策诗歌奖，除此之外2017年他还获得过全美图书奖诗歌奖、格里芬诗歌奖终身成就奖，以及斯蒂文斯奖、耶鲁大学博林根诗歌奖和国家书评圈奖等共计13项文学奖项，出版了十部诗集。自1972年以来一直担任韦尔斯利学院英语教授，现居马萨诸塞州剑桥市。他是一个同性恋诗人。

Star Dust

By Frank Bidart

Above the dazzling city lies starless
night. Ruthless, you are pleased the price of one

is the other. That night

dense with date palms, crazy with the breath-
less aromas of fresh-cut earth,

black sky thronging with light so thick the fixed

unbruised stars bewildered
sight, I wanted you dazzled, wanted you drunk.

As we lie on our backs in close dark parallel furrows newly

dug, staring up at the consuming sky, light
falling does not stop at flesh: each thing hidden, buried

between us now burns and surrounds us,

visible, like breath in freezing air. What you ignore or refuse
or cannot bear. What I hide that I ask, but

ask. The shimmering improvisations designed to save us

fire melts to law. I touched the hem of your garment. You opened
your side, feeding me briefly just enough to show me why I ask.

Melancholy, as if shorn, you cover as ever each glowing pyre

with dirt. In this light is our grave. Obdurate, you say: We
are darkness. We are the city

whose brightness blots the stars from night.