Lope de Vega

Al triunfo de Judit

Cuelga sangriento de la cama al suelo
el hombro diestro del feroz tirano,
que opuesto al muro de Betulia en vano,
despidió contra sí rayos al cielo.

Revuelto con el ansia el rojo velo
del pabellón a la siniestra mano,
descubre el espectáculo inhumano
del tronco horrible, convertido en hielo.

Vertido Baco, el fuerte arnés afea
los vasos y la mesa derribada,
duermen las guardas, que tan mal emplea;

y sobre la muralla coronada
del pueblo de Israel, la casta hebrea
con la cabeza resplandece armada.



To Judith's Triumph

From bed down to the floor all bloody hangs
the right shoulder of the merciless lord,
who storming futilely Bethulia's wall,
hurled bolts against himself towards heaven's hold.

In agony entangled, the red veil
of the pavilion, on the lefthand side,
reveals the cruel, inhuman spectacle
of his hideous trunk, now icy cold.

Spilled Bacchus stains his sturdy coat of mail,
the glasses and the table overturned;
the guards sleep, who stand him in such poor stead;

and there, atop the jagged city wall
of Israel's tribe, the Hebrew woman chaste
appears resplendent, brandishing his head. 

                     (©Alix Ingber, 1995)

Mythology and Other Links:
  1. Judith - See also the "Judith" text in the Apocrypha (start on the first page and continue through the story), and three paintings depicting the story of Judith and Holofernes (this link will open in a large browser window.
  2. Bacchus - See also Dionysus and Bullfinch's entry for Bacchus.



E-mail your comments and questions to:

Alix Ingber
Professor of Spanish
Sweet Briar College

ingber@sbc.edu



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