יהודה עמיחי, אני רוצה לבלבל את התנ"ך Yehuda Amichai, I want to turn the Bible into babble

מָטוֹס עוֹבֵר מֵעַל לַתְּאֵנָה
אֲשֶׁר מֵעַל לָאִישׁ אֲשֶׁר תַּחַת תְּאֵנָתוֹ
הַטַּיָּס הוּא אֲנִי וְהָאִישׁ תַּחַת הַתְּאֵנָה הוּא אֲנִי
אֲנִי רוֹצֶה לְבַלְבֵּל אֶת התנ"ך
אֲנִי כָּל כָּךְ רוֹצֶה לְבַלְבֵּל אֶת הַתַּנַ"ךְ

אֲנִי מַאֲמִין בָּאִילָנוֹת, לֹא כְּמוֹ שֶׁפַּעַם הֶאֱמִינוּ
אֱמוּנָתִי קְטוּעָה וְקִצְרַת מוֹעֵד
עַד הָאָבִיב הַבָּא, עַד הַחֹרֶף הַבָּא
אֲנִי מַאֲמִין בְּבִיאַת הַגֶּשֶׁם וּבְבוֹא הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ
הַסֵּדֶר וְהַצֶּדֶק מְבֻלְבָּלִים: טוֹב וָרָע
עַל הַשֻּׁלְחָן לְפָנַי כְּמֶלַח וּכְפִלְפֵּל
הַכֵּלִים כָּל כָּךְ דּוֹמִים. אֲנִי כָּל כָּךְ
רוֹצֶה לְבַלְבֵּל אֶת הַתַּנַ"ךְ. הָעוֹלָם
מָלֵא דַּעַת טוֹב וָרָע, הָעוֹלָם מָלֵא לִמּוּד
צִפֳּרִים לוֹמְדוֹת מִן הָרוּחַ הַנּוֹשֶׁבֶת
וּמְטוֹסִים לוֹמְדִים מִן הַצִּפֳּרִים
וּבְנֵי אָדָם לוֹמְדִים מִכֻּלָּם וְשׁוֹכְחִים
הָאֲדָמָה אֵינָהּ עֲצוּבָה מִשּׁוּם שֶׁמֵּתִים קְבוּרִים בָּהּ
כְּשֵׁם שֶׁשִּׂמְלַת אֲהוּבָתִי אֵינָהּ שְׂמֵחָה
שֶׁהִיא חַיָּה בְּתוֹכָהּ

יַלְדֵי בְּנֵי אָדָם הֵם עֲנָנִים
וַאֲרָרָט הוּא עֵמֶק עֲמֹק
וַאֲנִי לֹא רוֹצֶה לַחְזֹר אֶל בֵּיתִי
כִּי אֶל הַבַּיִת מַגִּיעוֹת כָּל הַבְּשׂוֹרוֹת הָרָעוֹת
כְּמוֹ בְּסֵפֶר אִיּוֹב

הֶבֶל הָרַג אֶת קַיִן וּמֹשֶׁה נִכְנַס
לָאָרֶץ הַמֻּבְטַחַת וּבְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל נִשְׁאֲרוּ בַּמִּדְבָּר
אֲנִי נוֹסֵעַ בְּמַעֲשֵׂי הַמֶּרְכָּבָה שֶׁל יְחֶזְקֵאל
וִיחֶזְקֵאל עַצְמוֹ רוֹקֵד כְּמִרְיָם הַנְּבִיאָה
בְּגֵיא הָעֲצָמוֹת הַיְּבֵשׁוֹת

סְדֹם וַעֲמֹרָה מִתְפַּתְּחוֹת
וְאֵשֶׁת לוֹט הָיְתָה לִנְצִיב סֻכָּר וּדְבַשׁ
וְדָוִיד מֶלֶךְ יִשְׂרָאֵל חַי וְקַיָּם
אֲנִי כָּל כָּךְ

רוֹצֶה לְבַלְבֵּל אֶת הַתַּנַ"ךְ

Radio-controlled_aircraft

A plane passes over the fig tree that

shades the man who is under his fig tree.
I´m both the pilot and the man under the fig tree.

I want to turn the Bible into babble,

I really want to turn the Bible into babble.

I believe in trees, but not like they used to believe.

My belief is truncated and very short,

until Fall arrives, until Winter arrives.

I believe in the coming of the rain

and the setting of the sun.

Order and Justice are babble: Good and Evil
on the table before me like Salt and Pepper.

Silent artifacts. I really
want to turn the Bible into babble,

The world is filled with the knowledge of good and evil,
and also opportunities to learn.

Birds learn from the breeze

and pilots learn from the birds.

Humans learn from everything, then forget.

The Earth isn´t sad on account of the dead buried within her

just as my favorite robe isn´t happy that she lives in it.

Kids are clouds,

Mount Ararat is a deep valley,

and I don´t want to return home

because that´s where I receive all the bad news

like in the book of Job.

Abel killed Cain.

Moses entered the Promised Land,

and the children of Israel still wander the desert.

I travel in Ezekiel´s magic chariot,

and Ezekiel dances like Miriam the prophetess

in the valley of Dry Bones.

Sodom and Gomorrah have been developed,

and Lot´s wife is an ice cream cone chain.

David, King of Israel, is alive and well.

I really want to turn the Bible into babble.

translated into English by Mark F Westergreen

Commentary:

Genesis 11 

Reminds me of that wonderful song by Dolly Parton "the Grass is Blue"

Why does Yehuda Amichai want to turn the Bible into babble?

In this particular poem the poet expresses his frustration with the Bible´s continuous assertion and influence upon the modern language and culture. As poet, he is in love with the language. He wants to set it free from its constraints so it will fly and sing new songs in new forms that are oriented towards the future and not the past. But such a task with regard to the modern language is no mean feat because the language is laced throughout with echoes from the Ur-text that informs it and continuously hearkens it to its past. Like the term "לבלבל" "to confuse, confound or mix up" that is rooted in the biblical story of the tower of Babel and the term "בלל". In a sense, the modern language will not forsake its first love. The Bible is now the cultural monolith that must be scattered and confounded in order for the language to be set free. But such a feat really is godlike. Only a poet could attempt it. Humans cannot be counted upon because they are trapped within the language game and always forget. The poem functions to serve the poet´s wish fulfillment, and like in Dolly Parton´s song, he has to pretend that the opposite is true.

I have translated the term "לבלבל" as "babble" because it preserves the denotation, connotation and onomatopoeia of the word used by Amichai.

Kids are clouds יַלְדֵי בְּנֵי אָדָם הֵם עֲנָנִים :
Kids are a common theme in Amichai´s poetry. It is a reference to children being an omen and symbol of the future. They are still malleable and can learn a new language and a new song in contrast to adult humans. In another poem he says, like spotlights kids light up the next century
 ילדי מאירים את המאה הבאה כמו זרקורים .