Free man, you will always cherish the sea!
The sea is your mirror; you contemplate your soul
In the infinite rolling of its waves,
And your mind is a no less bitter abyss.
You enjoy plunging into the heart of your likeness;
You embrace it with your eyes and your arms, and your heart
Is sometimes distracted from its own clamor
By the sound of that untamable and savage lament.
You are both dusky and discreet:
Man, no one has sounded the depths of your chasms;
Oh sea, no one knows your intimate riches,
So jealous are you of guarding your secrets!
And yet for countless centuries
You have battled one another, without pity or remorse,
So much do you both love carnage and death,
Oh eternal combattants, oh implacable brothers!
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