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| Source (Yiddish) | 1898 Transliteration, Leo Wiener (Romanization) | 1898 Translation, Leo Wiener (English) | 1914 Rhyming Translation, Rose P. Stokes & Helena Frank (English) |
|---|---|---|---|
דיא ערשטע טבילה |
Die erste Twile |
The First Bath of Ablution |
The First Bath of Ablution |
עס בּרענט דער פראָסט, עס שניידט דער ווינד, און בּאַשע פיהרט און צילה דעם פישער’ס טעכטעריל אַצינד אין קאַלטען װאַפער טבילה. |
Es schneid’t der Trost, der sturem setzt, Un’ Basche führt un’ Ziele Dem Fischer’s schoene Tochter jetzt In kalten Wasser-twile. |
The frost cuts sharply, the storm rages, and Basheh and Tsilleh lead now the fisherman’s daughter to the cold bath of ablution. |
The wind is keen, the frost is dread, Toward the icy water. By aunt and mother forth is led The fisher’s lovely daughter. |
„ניט שרעק זיך, קינד, נו, מאַך דערפון! דיא צייט האָט אָנגעוואונקען: פערגאַנגען איז דאָך שוין דיא זונן, — דו מעגסט זיך אונטערטונקען. |
„Nit schrek’ fich Kind, o, mach’ dervun! Die Zeit hāt āngewunken: Vargangen is’ doch schōn die sunn’, — Du muß sich untertunken.“ |
“Be not frightened, my child! ‘T is but a small matter. The time has approached; for, you see, the sun has gone down, and you must dive under.” |
“Dive in, dive in, my child, with haste I There’s naught whereon to ponder, The time, dear heart, we must not waste: The sun has set out yonder. |
„דעם בּורא’ס חסדים זיינען גרוים, — נישט קשה, מאַך קיין תנועה! דו שפּרינגסט אַריין און שפּרינגסט אַרױס, און כשר, צו רפואה.” |
„Dem Bōre’s Chsodim seinen grōß, — Nischkosche, mach’ kein Inue! Du springst arein un’ springst aräus, Un’ koscher, zu Refue.” |
“The mercies of the Lord are great! Do not tarry, be quick! You leap in, you leap out, and you are ritually pure.” |
“God’s mercy, child, is great and sure: Fear not but He will show it! Leap in,—leap out! and you are pure,— ‘Tis over ere you know it!” |
און זעה, עס צוקט דאָס צאַרטע לייבּ, אין ווילדען פראָסט און שטורעם, אָ, ווילסטו זיין אַ אידענס ווייבּ, געוואוין דיך צו יסורים!… |
Un’ seh’, es zuckt dās zarte Leib, In wilden Trost un’ sturem. A, willst du sein a Jüden’s Weib, Gemwoehn’ dich zu Jessurim! . . . |
And behold, the tender body shivers in the severe frost and the storm. Ah, you wish to become the wife of a Jew, so get used to suffering ! . . . |
The frost and cold with cruel knife The tender form assail. Ah, would you be a Jewish wife, You must not weep and quail! |
זיא שפרינגט אַריין, זיא שפּרינגט אַרױף, אומזיסט, אומזיסט, נחמה! דאָרט שטעהט און קוקט דער בּעל הגוף — דו בּיסט געבּליבען טמא. |
Sie springt arein, sie springt aruf, Umsüst, umsüst Nechome! Dort steht un’ kuckt der Bal-haguf, — Du bist geblieben tome. |
She leaps in, she leaps up; in vain, in vain, my dear! There stands and looks a Gentile, you remain impure. |
And in—and out,—she leaps. Once more! Poor girl, it has not served you. No purer are you than before: A Gentile has observed you! |
און וויעדער האָבּען זיך געטוקט מים שרעק דיא שעהנע גליעדער; דאָך פון דערווייטען שטעהט און קוקט דער ערל טמא וויעדער. |
Un’ wieder hāben sich getuckt Mit shreck die schoene Glieder: Doch vun derweiten stēht un’ kuckt Der Orel-tome wieder. |
And again the beautiful limbs dive under in terror, but the uncircumcised still stands at a distance and looks on. |
And into th’ icy flood again. In terror wild she leaps! The white limbs shudder . . . all in vain! The Christian— still he peeps. |
אַלץ שטאַרקער ווערט דער פּראָסט, ער בּרענט! דיא מוטער און דיא שכנה, זיי בּרעכען דיא צופראָר’נע הענט, און בּלייכער ווערט דיא שעהנע. |
Alls starker werd der Trost, er brennt! Die Mutter un’ die schcheene, See brechen die zufror’ne Händ’, Un’ blēicher werd die schoene. |
The frost grows stronger and more biting. The mother and the neighbor, they rub their frozen hands, and the beautiful one grows paler. |
The frost and cold, they burn and bite, The women rub their fingers. The lovely child grows white — and white, As on the bank she lingers. |
„נו, טהו זשע וויא דער דין איז, קינד! אַװעק איז שוין דער רשע — אַריין צום דריטען מאָל, געשווינד! קיין בּייז, קיין בּייז, נישט קשה!“ |
„Nu, thu’ že wie der Din is, Kind! Aweg if’ schōn der Rosche, — Arein zum dritten Māl, geschwind! Kēin Boes’, kēin Boef, nischkosche!“ |
“Now, do as the Law requires, my child! The evil man has gone away. Go in for the third time, quickly! It will not hurt, do not mind it!” |
“The Law, my child, we must fulfill. The scoundrel see depart! Yet once! ’tis but a moment’s chill, ‘Tis but a trifling smart!” |
דיא בּלייכע ווייכט פון דין ניט אָפּ און מהוט וויא’ס שטעהט געשריעבּען: זיא איז אַרײן, זיא איז אַראָפּ, און איז שוין דאָרט פערבּליעבּען…. |
Die Blēiche weicht vun Din nit āb Un’ thut, wie ’s steht geschrieben: Sie is’ arein, sie is’ arāb, Un’ if schōn dort varblieben. . . . |
The pale one does not break the Law, and does as is written. she leaped in, she went down, and she remained below. . . . |
The white-faced child the Law has kept, The covenant unstained. For in the waters deep she leapt. And there below remained. |
This is the poem “דיא זרשטע טבילה” by Morris Rosenfeld (1862-1923) written sometime before 1898. (If you know the date of the earliest publication of this poem, please leave a comment or contact us.) We have transcribed the poem as it was published in Rosenfeld’s collection of poems Gezamelṭe lieder (1906) pp. 167-168. The poem was romanized and translated into English by Leo Wiener and published under the title, “Die erste Twile (The First Bath of Ablution)” in Songs from the Ghetto (1898), pp. 52-55. A rhyming translation by Rose Pastor Stokes & Helena Frank under the title, “The First Bath of Ablution” was published in Songs of Labor and Other Poems (1914), pp. 72-73. I have set these all side-by-side for the first time ever. –Aharon Varady
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“דיא ערשטע טבילה | Die erste Twile | The First Bath of Ablution, a prayer-poem by Morris Rosenfeld (before 1898)” is shared through the Open Siddur Project with a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International copyleft license.
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die erste twile (Morris Rosenfeld 1906) – cropped
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ויהי נעם אדני אלהינו עלינו ומעשה ידינו כוננה עלינו ומעשה ידינו כוננהו "May the pleasantness of אדֹני our elo’ah be upon us; may our handiwork be established for us — our handiwork, may it be established." –Psalms 90:17
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