Winter Night
It snowed and snowed, the whole world over,
Snow swept the world from end to end.
A candle burned on the table;
A candle burned.
As during summer midges swarm
To beat their wings against a flame
Out in the yard the snowflakes swarmed
To beat against the window pane
The blizzard sculptured on the glass
Designs of arrows and of whorls.
A candle burned on the table;
A candle burned.
Distorted shadows fell
Upon the lighted ceiling:
Shadows of crossed arms,of crossed legs-
Of crossed destiny.
Two tiny shoes fell to the floor
And thudded.
A candle on a nightstand shed wax tears
Upon a dress.
All things vanished within
The snowy murk-white,hoary.
A candle burned on the table;
A candle burned.
A corner draft fluttered the flame
And the white fever of temptation
Upswept its angel wings that cast
A cruciform shadow
It snowed hard throughout the month
Of February, and almost constantly
A candle burned on the table;
A candle burned.
Commentary
(Excerpt from Dr.Zhivago)
(Translated into english by Bernard Guilbert Guerney)
The whole world knows Pasternak as a great novelist,but he is one of
the greatest poets of our century as well.His poems have been widely acclaimed.He belonged to the league of poets which include Anna Akhmatova,Joseph Brodsky and the likes.The poets of faith,suffering and human emotions.
When I first read Dr.Zhivago,I was fascinated by its richness of
poetry. But most of all I liked the poems written by the hero Dr.Yuri Zhivago, a poet and physician caught in the midst of Russian revolution.These are given as an appendix to the novel.
This particular poem is my favourite among the lot.It can stand by
itself.But related to the context it has more subtle dimensions.The poem is based on a simple incident.The hero still doesen’t know the heroine Lara, but on his way home on a cold February night, Yura notices a candle burning through a street window(In that room Lara is taking the decision of her life).He just writes a poem on it.Little does he know that the happenings in
that room is shaping up his destiny.
This is how Pasternak describes the incident:
“As they drove through Kamerger street Yura noticed that a candle had melted a patch in the icy crust on one of the windows.The light seemed to look into the street almost consciously, as if it were watching the passing carriages and waiting for someone.
‘A candle burned on the table,a candle burned…’ he whispered to
himself-the beginning of something confused,formless;he hoped that it would take shape of itself.But nothing more came to him.”
The poem is remarkable for its simplicity,the richness of imagery and
the evocative tone.But in a more subtle way it reflects the poet’s compassion,his astounding faith and the suffering he went through.
— Anuraj
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From the Wondering Minstrels mailing list, 1999–2008.
Anustup Datta · 31 March 1999
Thanks a lot to Anuraj for sending this poem. As he said, it is deeply lyrical and wonderfully evocative. I myself was thinking of this scene in the film - the warm glow of the candle through a window, and without, the snowflakes swirling around Omar Sharif in his Astrakh an collar. Great novel, great film.
Re Pasternak’s poetry, there is some history behind this which helps us understand his life and times. Though he was a great poet and novelist, he wasn’t allowed to write by his Soviet masters - and he was so disillusioned that he turned to translating Goethe and Shakespeare. ‘Dr. Zhivago’ couldn’t be published from the Soviet Union - it was published in Italy - and when he got the Nobel Prize, he was forced to refuse it by the Soviets. Only late in life was a volume of his poetry allowed in Russia. No wonder his protagonist was “a poet who dares to have a private life”.
Regards,
Anustup
John Bickle · 15 August 2007
David Lean is to be congratulated for capturing the poetic imagery in his film. It is one of the rare moments in film history that a poem was given such brilliant expression.