untitled poem 4 by Fernando Pessoa

Whether I’m happy or sad?. . .
Frankly I don’t know.
What does it mean to be sad?
What is happiness good for?

I’m neither happy nor sad.
I don’t really know what I am.
I’m just one more soul that exists
And feels what God has ordained.

So then, am I happy or sad?
Thinking never ends well. . .
For me sadness means
Hardly knowing myself. . .

But that’s what happiness is. . .

translated by Richard Zenith

6 thoughts on “untitled poem 4 by Fernando Pessoa

  1. Fernando Pessoa is a fantastic poet. He died misunderstood – clearly decades ahead of his time. His poems are so intense – he wrote under four different voices – his heteronyms. The Book of Disquiet is a must-read!

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