Bliss
David Onkinerah
16th Century
We shall live in the shade of the graceful doe and, living there, shall be sustained. We shall walk through darkness by her light, with never-ending joy. When she laughs, we will burst into song; when she frowns, we shall clothe ourselves in fear. And when she looks with radiant eyes, we shall once again be ransomed and redeemed.
While the translation is formatted as prose, the original is a poem of eight lines.
Related Guide
Early Modern Jewish Languages
As Ashkenazi and Sephardi Jews migrated eastward, Yiddish and Ladino emerged as distinct languages. Both languages developed literary traditions, as print became more widespread.
Related Guide
Early Modern Literature and the Arts
Jewish literary creativity flourished in the early modern period, dominated by Hebrew poetry that blended religious themes with Renaissance forms.
Creator Bio
David Onkinerah
Little is known about the poet David Onkinerah. He may have been born in Istanbul, and he certainly resided in Salonika. He was a gifted poet and the youngest member of the Salonika circle of poets. Five of Onkinerah’s Hebrew sonnets have survived, one of which was composed in Damascus.