Fàth
Mis’ an lionn a dh’fhosglas
sùil-inntinn a’ bhàird,
’s a leigeas fhaicinn
taobhan eile
nach shaoileadh tu
’s nach creideadh tu.
Mis’ an deoch
a lasas tèine-lèirsinn
is a fhadas sradag
ro-shealladh an fhàidh.
Cuid a’ creidsinn gur uisge mi
cuid bainne-cìche,
meadh, leann, uisge-beath’;
daoin’ eile muir, deòir, iteodha,
cungaidh-shuaine,
grùdadh na sìorraidheachd.
A huile nì seo mi, agus mu seach
cha ghin dhiubh mi,
a’ sìor-chruth-atharrachadh.
Mise a’ bhuineas
do shaoghail eile nach saoilte,
agus nach buin do ghin dhiubh
no do shaoghal sam bith.
Ged is fradharc mi
chan fhaicear mi.
Mis’ an deoch-eiridinn
sheunach dìomhair,
oibriche-mhiotailt
inntinn a’ bhàird,
ag iomlaid luaidh gu
comhardadh an òir;
a’ sgaoileadh sgleò
’s a’ dealrachadh deò
le caochlaideachd bhreislich.
Is ubagaiche mi
s chì na bàird fo’m sheun an cinnidhean,
an còmhradh eadarra,
a’ bruidhinn an teangan cèine,
coigrich, ach caidrich:
ag aithris an guthan:
Calliope, Euterpe,
Circe, Cassandra,
Sappho, Homer,
a’ bhan-sagart Delphi;
Artair, Merlin,
Taliesin, Gwerful
Coinneach Odhar,
Màiri, Sìleas; agus uiread
bhana-bhàrd eile airidh,
ach no-aithnichte, no-aidichte,
air an cuir fo thost
le gnàthas.
Ged is fradharc mi
chan fhaicear mi.
Shaoileadh tu gam fhaicinn
an samhla facoin, leòmhainn,
seabhaig, cait,
oidhche, là,
mnà – seo uile mi, oir
mise an Sphincs,
a’ labhairt ann an tòimhseachan.
Mise an deoch a bhuilicheas
lèirsinn uile-chùiseach fad-ruigheach,
a thàlas taibhsean le ob is ortha,
’s a thaisbeanas taobh eile
dhut nad aisling;
ag innse dailgneachd
am briathran beul nam bàrd
o chian nan cian is gu sìorraidh buan.
Bheir mi dhut aiteal
dhen thall-thairis, dhed
dhùrachd – is so-dhèantachd.
Manadh agus fàth mi,
fann-sholas ro-gheàrr
air na dh’fhaodadh teachd;
ach a’ teicheadh às fhianais
gad fhàgail an rùine na bàrdachd,
an smùid, sgleò, ceò.
Ged is fradharc mi……
Translations of this Poem
Vision
I am the potion that bestows
the vision of the bard,
that discloses
other dimensions,
unimagined,
scarce believable.
I am the drink
that ignites the fiery vision
and sparks the
foresight of the seer.
Some believe I am rainwater,
others mothers’ milk,
mead, ale, whisky;
others yet think sea, tears, hemlock,
a sleeping-draught
or a distillation of eternity.
I am all of these things,
and again none of them,
constantly shapeshifting.
I belong to worlds
other and unimagined,
and to none of them
I am not of any world.
I am vision, yet
am myself unseen.
I am a secret
druidical philtre,
the alchemy of
the bard’s mind,
turning mere lead to
versifying gold;
dispersing misted-mind
into sparkling vision
in mystifying
self-transformation.
I am an entrancer
and under my spell the poets see their kin
converse with them,
and speak in tongues strange,
foreign, but familiar:
Calliope, Euterpe,
Circe, Cassandra,
Sappho, Homer,
the Delphic priestess;
Arthur, Merlin,
Taliesin, Gwerful,
the Brahan Seer,
Màiri, Sìleas; and so many
other worthy bardesses
unacknowledged, denied,
silenced by convention.
I am vision, yet
am myself unseen.
You may imagine you see me
in the form of a falcon, a lion,
an eagle, a cat,
night, day,
woman – I am all of these,
for I am the Sphinx
speaking in riddles.
I am the potion that bestows
all-encompassing, far-reaching vision
luring ghosts with charms and incantations,
revealing another side
to you in your dreams;
speaking prophecies
from the mouth of bards
past and for all time to come.
I grant you a glimpse
of the beyond – your wishes
and your impossibilities.
I am a premonition,
a spectre of your purpose,
an all-too-brief flash
of what might be;
but then I vanish from sight
leaving you in poetry’s intimation,
in smoke, haze, mist.
I am vision, yet……
About this poem
This poem was chosen by Ceitidh Campbell as part of the Scottish Poetry Library’s ‘Champions’ project, a guest curatorship programme to help extend our national reach.
Campbell says, ‘Inspiration can be inspiration itself. The, I have a Dreamesque, refrain and references to history firmly place this work in the context of a new generation of women at the spearhead of revitalisation of the Gaelic Arts yet with an understated humility. The power that our own vision has to shape the past, present and future resonates throughout the piece. The ability to harness vision is tantalisingly both within and out of reach.’
