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Di pensier in pensier, di monte in monte
mi guida Amor, ch'ogni segnato calle
provo contrario a la tranquilla vita.
Se 'n solitaria piaggia, rivo, o fonte,
se 'n fra duo poggi siede ombrosa valle,
ivi s'acqueta l'alma sbigottita;
e come Amor m'invita,
Hor ride, hor piange, hor teme, hor s'assicura;
e 'l volto che lei segue ov'ella il mena
si turba e rasserena,
et in un esser piciol tempo dura;
onde a la vista huom di tal vita esperto
diria: Questo arde, e di suo stato è incerto. Petrarca, Canzoniere 129, Stanza 1
English translation
Love leads me on, from thought to thought,
from mountain to mountain, since every path blazed
proves opposed to the tranquil life.
If there is a stream or a fountain on a solitary slope,
if a shadowed valley lies between two hills,
the distressed soul calms itself there:
and, as Love invites it to,
now smiles, or weeps, or fears, or feels secure:
and my face that follows the soul where she leads
is turbid and then clear,
and remains only a short time in one mode:
so that a man expert in such a life would say
at the sight of me: ‘He is on fire, and uncertain of his state.’ Translation A.S.Kline
Italian text
English translation