Память [Pamiat] [English translation]

Oh, my thoughts

My thoughts full of sorrow

Take me once more

Oh, to the dark woods

Oh, in those woods

My memory comes alive once more

And listening to the trees' voices

My heart stands still

Hey, awaken,

That past which has been forgotten

Truth, return

For you are yet hidden from the people

Here, on this earth

The sun dims behind the clouds

And we have disappeared again

Into the unending darkness

Hail, Svarog,1my father

May you be glorified by us!

And may you lead

The human race, and guide their path

We bring our prayers to you

Sending them up into the sky

With the smoke of the holy blazing Fire

We perform our sacred rites to you

Oh, it is not the raven who has cast the shadow of its wings

In truth upon this sacred land

No, it's the shadow of ages, which has enveloped

The bright land of the living,2and now hears us

Do we hear the echo of a past world?

Do we feel the soul of the age old oaks?

Who are you now, where is your ancestral strength?3

Do you mourn because you cannot remember your loved ones?

Hey, hey! For one hundred nights

We call back the old time

So that among the golden fields

It may nourish the future seed

Oh, wind, you who are powerful,

Bring to the people

Through a sea of dark clouds

The truth, illuminating and wise

Hey, awaken

Memory, you of eternal glory

Rise into the heights

As a noble bird

The bright land of the living

Has once again been enveloped by clouds

Open up your wings

And clear this unending darkness

Hail, Veles,4mighty ancestor

Be glorified by us!

Bring down to us your wisdom

And guide our path

We shall send the sun upon its rightful path

Raising our brotherly vessels5

And sating the blazing Fire

From the sacred cup

1. Svarog was the main Slavic god and god of the heavens.2. Yav' (Явь) is a concept found in Russian neopaganism which equates to the land of the living. Nav' is the land of the dead, and Prav' is the land of the gods. Although Slavic mythology did have a belief in three worlds, Nav' is the only one found in old sources.3. I believe this to be a wordplay involving the Slavic god Rod, who created everything. His name can be found in the root of Russian words meaning "to give birth", "family members", and "family line".4. Veles was the Slavic god of forests, waters, and earth.5. The bratina (братина) was a copper or wooden vessel used for drinking at feasts and wakes.