by K. P. Kavafis
Translated by Alex Moskios
When you sail for Ithaka,
Wish that your trip be long,
Full of adventures, full of knowledge.
The Laistrygonians and the Cyclopes,
Angry Poseidon do not fear; things
Like these on your trip you'll never find
If your thoughts are pure, if eclectic
Emotions fill your heart and your mind.
The Laistrygonians and the Cyclopes,
Angry Poseidon you will not meet
If you do not carry them in your heart,
If your mind is not filled with them.
Wish that your trip be long.
Many a summer morns arrive
That with joy and pleasure you enter
Into ports that you've never seen before;
To stop by Phoenician trading posts
And buy things of various sorts:
Mother of pearl and corals, ebony and amber,
And hedonic perfumes of all sorts -
As many as you can carry sensual perfumes;
Many an Egyptian city you must see,
And from the experts learn and learn .
Forever Ithaka must be in your mind.
To get there is the goal of your trip.
But do not hurry your journey at all.
It is better if it were to take many years;
And you an old man to finally anchor there,
Rich with what you gathered from this trip,
Expecting no wealth that Ithaka will give you.
Ithaka already gave you that great trip.
Without her, you would have never sailed at all.
But she has nothing else to give you from now on.
And if you find her poor, she didn't mislead you.
So wise that you already are, so experienced,
You now comprehend what Ithakas really are.