My belief amounts to nothing–theirs to quite something
Down the mountain come the deer–I look at the deer
They at the mountain

I believe in scarcely a single thing, if anything in mankind
They trust in nearly everything, but never humankind

They look at the mountain–while I look beyond it

The deer go down the mountainside
Beyond the mountain

translated by Jean Carpenter Efe

O sea–Please leave me in peace o sea
Summon me no more; without a sail
A poor boat am I, left alone, there’s now just me
Forgotten here on the sands

O sea–Share your secret with me
O north star, northwest wind, the storms
I who am a weary Kirghiz
Caught in the saddle of my horse
The whole winter long

O sea–Wreck me upon a rocky shore of yours, remote
Bury me in the waters so that this silent
Life of sailing finds an end
Because separated from you
I have naught but my name–No, say no more, shh

Let it be, let no one ever remember my name

translated by Jean Carpenter Efe