Paganistan: Notes from the Secret Commonwealth
In Which One Midwest Man-in-Black Confers, Converses & Otherwise Hob-Nobs with his Fellow Hob-Men (& -Women) Concerning the Sundry Ways of the Famed but Ill-Starred Tribe of Witches.
Three Stag Carols for Yule
What is it about the Stag and Yule? Three traditional Midwinter's carols about stags from all over Europe, as charming as they are mysterious.
Nine-Tined Stag
Nine-tined stag a-running came
(Kalado, nine-tined stag)
came and into water gazed,
gazed and counted tines.
—Nine fine tines upon my brow,
a little twig makes ten.
On that twig, smiths hammering:
hammer, smiths, and forge!
Forge for me, my brother smiths
a little golden cup:
a golden cup for water
to sprinkle the green, green rue.
Latvian
Kalado: Traditional refrain of Midwinter carols
Boy Stag of Wonder
Boy stag of wonder
(horns of a thousand
branches and tines
a thousand bright candles)
bears in his antlers
the light of the sun
on his brow a star
on his breast the moon
courses the banks of the shining
heavenly Danube
blue stag, bearer of news
what news?
Hungarian
Carol of the Stag
A stag stood singing in the forest
tra-la-lay, O come
Hunters heard and went to find him
tra-la-lay, O come
High on a mountain they found him singing
tra-la-lay, O come
Spare my life, O do not kill me
tra-la-lay, O come
I am never the night of nights
tra-la-lay, O come
I am chief to every shepherd
tra-la-lay, O come
Chief to ewes on every mountain
tra-la-lay, o come
Every single white-capped mountain
tra-la-lay, O come
Cintecul Cerbului, “Song of the Stag”
Romanian
Translated by Steven Posch © 2010
Comments
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Thursday, 01 January 2015These are beautiful and mysterious. I couldn't help but sing along as I read them; loving them!
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Fascinating. I knew about the carol 'O the Rising of the Sun' which has the line about the running of the deer in its chorus, but these carols were new to me. Thank you.