Opiário

Ok, if anyone has wondered what the lines at the top of the page mean, here is a full fledged explanation of those lines.

The whole para goes like this :

Por isso eu tomo opio. é um remédio.
Sou um convalescente do Momento.
Moro no rés do chão do Pensamento
E ver passar a vida faz-me tédio.

[Fernando Pessoa/Alvaro Campos: Opi…rio]


The short Portuguese piece is actually a quote from one of the most famous and at the same enigmatic poets of Portuguese literature, Fernando Pessoa. One of the most interesting aspects of this poet was that he used different personalities; each one creating a peculiar kind of writing and a very particular universe of interpretation and artistic creation.

This piece is about the Creative power of the Drug called Opium. It is a piece of Pessoa's, on the "person" of his heteronyms Alvaro de Campos who was more directed into a kind of urban, grey, depressive poetry.

Disregarding the loss of power of language and effectiveness that translation brings forth, it means...

"Therefore I take opium. It is a medicine.
I am a convalescent of the Moment.
I live in the groundfloor of Thought
And seeing life go by, grows me tedious."

Now maybe you would wonder how a weirdo like me got to know of Portuguese poetry? Wellll, It started like this. There is this song called Opium, by a band called Moonspell. So at the end of the song, he includes this piece of poetry. I liked it. I put it up on my blog. Copyright violations? Not a darn thing... So sue me if you think otherwise. He he... ;-) And people think that William Wordsworth is profound. Saala Wordsworth Maakikirkiri...