«PERSECUTING ME, WORLD, WHAT DO YOU LOOK FOR?», TRANSLATION FROM THE POEM «EN PERSEGUIRME, MUNDO, ¿QUÉ INTERESAS?», BY SISTER JUANA INÉS DE LA CRUZ (JUANA INÉS DE ASBAJE Y RAMÍREZ)

 Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz

(Juana Inés de Asbaje)

En perseguirme, Mundo, ¿qué interesas?

¿En qué te ofendo, cuando sólo intento

poner bellezas en mi entendimiento

y no mi entendimiento en las bellezas?

Yo no estimo tesoros ni riquezas;

y así, siempre me causa más contento

poner riquezas en mi pensamiento

que no mi pensamiento en las riquezas.

Y no estimo hermosura que, vencida,

es despojo civil de las edades,

ni riqueza me agrada fementida

teniendo por mejor, en mis verdades,

consumir vanidades de la vida

que consumir la vida en vanidades.

·

 

 

Juana Inés de Asbaje, at the age of 15.

(Sister Juana Inés de la Cruz)

Persecuting me, World, what do you look for?

How do I offend you, when I only intend for

the placement of beauties in my comprehension,

not placement of my comprehension at beauties?

I don't esteem either treasures or richness;

  for it always causes me more contentment

the placement of riches in all of my thinking,

than placing my thinking in all of the riches.

And I don't esteem sightliness: expiring,

it's civil dispossession of the ages;

neither, perfidious, richness is my pleasing

taking as better, from truths that I'm keeping,

consumption, by living, of trivialities,

than consumption, by trivialities, of living.

Translation: Alfredo Salvador C. García

From August 27^th, 2014

to March 5^th, 2016.

Mexico City

 

 

For this last correction I want to thank Nicholas Kelly

(from academia.edu), who noted some grammar

mistakes

 

August 2nd, 2016