【クリスマスは孔雀の聖歌で〜W.B.イェイツ「孔雀」】A poetry chant for Christmas Eve. “The Peacock” by W. B. Yeats

 　本日はクリスマスイブ。七面鳥がふさわしいところだが、父親の県展入選の写真を使わせてもらうことにして、孔雀でお許しください。真っ白の羽の孔雀だが、動画制作中、彩色の誘惑に駆られ、ヴィジュアルに傾いてしまった。まあ、クリスマスでもあるし、美を意識してのこととご勘弁ください。　戦後80年も、残すところ一週間。戦闘機の代わりに「熊」が襲来する一年だった。来年こそ、まともな年になりますように。。。 　

　動画の詩「孔雀」は、W .B.イエーツ、中期の詩集「レスポンシビリティーズ」所収。世俗的な富より美こそ、と謳う。グレゴリオ聖歌などとても歌えないが、たまには美しいものを、と原文の美麗さに乗って口ずさんだもの。お気に召していただければ幸い。

　Today is Christmas Eve.

　A turkey would be more appropriate, perhaps, but instead I have borrowed a photograph by my father—one that was once selected for a prefectural exhibition—and ask your forgiveness for presenting a peacock instead.　This peacock, with its pure white feathers, was meant to remain unadorned. Yet during the process of making the video, I found myself tempted by color, and the work gradually leaned toward the visual. Since it is Christmas, I hope you will allow this indulgence as an offering to beauty.

　Eighty years since the end of the war, with only one week left in the year. It has been a year in which “bears,” rather than fighter jets, came rushing toward us. May the coming year finally be a decent one. The poetry film “The Peacock” is based on a poem by W. B. Yeats, included in his mid-career collection Responsibilities. It sings of beauty as something that surpasses worldly wealth. I cannot claim to sing Gregorian chant, but from time to time, one wishes simply to dwell in something beautiful. Guided by the elegance of Yeats’s original language, I found myself softly chanting the poem.

    If this work brings you even a small moment of pleasure, I would be glad.