Translation of the song Heksen artist Eivør
Heksen
The Witch
1641,
1641
en novembermorgen.
a November morning
Tågen smyger sig om Ribe by
the fog clings around the town of Ribe
og om domkirkens klokketårn.
and around the cathedral's bell tower.
Tunger af ild
Tongues of fire
under horisontens mørke sky
under the horizon's dark sky
og hanerne galer
and the roosters crow
over Ribe by
over the town of Ribe
-og klokkerne, de ringer.
- and the bells, they toll.
Alle sognets klokker ringer,
All the parishes' bells toll,
ringer for en ny dag.
they toll for a new day.
Det er idag at heksen skal brænde,
It is today the witch shall burn,
brænde på sin stag.
burn on her stake.
Vognene skumler gennem byen
The wagon grumbles though the town
over broen ud over engens græs
over the bridge out over the meadow's grass
de kører ned til bålet,
they drive down to the stake,
der er betalt for toogtyve læs
which is paid for twenty-two loads
-og klokkerne, de ringer.
-and the bells, they toll.
Og så kommer kærren ud,
And so the cart comes out,
kærren hvor hun står,
the cart on which she stood,
medens vinden blæser,
while the wind blows,
blæser i hendes hår.
blows through her hair.
Hun har været på pinebænken
She has been on the rack
hvor hver tap i hjulet tæller tiden ned,
where every cog on the wheel counted down the time,
der hvor helvede
where hell
er en evighed.
is an eternity.
-og klokkerne, de ringer.
-and the bells, they toll.
Heksen skal brænde! Heksen skal brænde!
The witch shall burn! The witch shall burn!
Hun hører stemmerne, hun ser
She hears the voices, she sees
alle disse ansigter som hun kendte
all those faces she knew
men ikke kender mer.
but doesn't recognise any more.
Hun har været på pinebænken
She has been on the rack
hvor hver tap i hjulet tæller tiden ned,
where every cog on the wheel counted down the time,
der hvor helvede
where hell
er en evighed
is an eternity.
-og klokkerne, de ringer.
-and the bells, they toll.
Der bliver stille, bålet knitrer
It becomes quiet, the fire crackles
og røgen driver sort
and the smoke drifts black
hen over mængden der står og stirrer
down over the crowd that stood and stared
ind ad helvedes port.
in at Hell's gate.
Så spredes de,
And so they scattered,
båndet der bandt
the fetters that bound,
brister som ved et trylleslag
they burst as if by magic,
og der er et stort hul midt iblandt dem
and there is a big gap in their midst
som alle flygter fra
that all run away from
- og klokkerne, de ringer.
-and the bells, they toll.
Så kalder domkirkens klokker
And so the cathedral's bells call
og alle søger derhen
and all make for
til et sted hvor fælles skyld
the place where shared blame
bli'r til fælles retfærd igen.
turns into shared righteousness again.
Og kirkens klokker, de ringer
And the church's bells, they call
sjælene ind i sit favntag
the souls into its embrace
og over de bøjede hoveder
and over the bent the heads
velsigner præsten denne dag
blesses the priest that day
-og klokkerne, de ringer.
-and the bells, they toll.