Tomas Venclova

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TOMAS VENCLOVA

37 - The Aurora legend

Tai štai, prieš pat emigraciją, mes su Brodskiu sėdėjome Leningrado restorane ir pro langą matėme kreiserį "Aurora". "Aurora" reiškia garsus laivas, kuris per Spalio revoliuciją neva apšaudė Žiemos rūmus. Ir tuo pačiu pradėjo tą Spalio Revoliuciją. Iš tikrųju jisai neapšaudė Žiemos rūmų, tai buvo tiktai, tiktai legenda, buvo vienas šūvis ir tas pats tuščias. Reiškia, jeigu jis būtų šaudęs į Žiemos rūmus, tai iš tų rūmų nieko nebūtų likę. Kada karinis laivas šaudo tai jau rimtas reikalas, jis būtų nušlavęs tuos rūmus. Tai net laivo kapitonas, tuoj po revoliucijos, išspausdino laikraščiuose paneigimą, kad: mes turime pranešti, kad bet kokios informacijos apie kreiserio "Auroros" salvę į Žiemos rūmus yra klaidingos ir šmeižikiškos. Mes, revoliuciniai jūrininkai, niekada nebūtume šaudę į tokį žymų kultūros ir istorijos paminklą. O buvo tik vienas šūvis ir tas pats tuščias.

Just before emigrating, Brodsky and I were sitting in a Leningrad restaurant and we saw the cruiser Aurora through the window. The Aurora is the famous ship which, during the October Revolution, supposedly fired on the Winter Palace. And with that the October Revolution began. In fact, it did not fire on the Winter Palace that was only... only a legend. There was one shot – and a blank one at that. If it had really fired on the Winter Palace then nothing would have been left of the palace. When a war ship uses its guns, that’s a serious thing; it would have razed the palace to the ground. Even the ship’s captain, right after the revolution, published a denial in the newspapers saying, ‘We have to announce that any information about a salvo having been discharged at the Winter Palace is incorrect and defamatory. We revolutionary seamen would never have fired on such a well-known cultural and historical monument. And there was only one shot and blank one at that’.