O Death, Dust Of Stars Poem by Charles van Lerberghe

O death, dust of stars,
Rise beneath my steps.

Like a flame, maddened with wind,
Come, somber breath, where I waver.

Come, o sweet wave that shines
In the darkness,
Sweep me along inside your silent emptiness.

It is in you that I wish to lie down,
To extinguish and vanish,
Death, longed for by my soul,
Strong God, whom she awaits
With songs and joyous sounds of love.

Come and break me like a flower of foam,
A flower of sunlight riding the crest
Of the waves,
Stripped by the night, blotted by the shadows,
Blossomed by space.

And, as if from a golden amphora,
A wine of flame and divine aroma,
Pour out my soul
Into your abyss, so it may embalm
The somber earth, the breath of the dead.