A nossa vida é uma série de imagens quiméricas, mais ou menos distantes, claras ou confusas, retratando num fundo escuro, além do qual talvez exista o Nada, aquela negridão sem fim que circunda as últimas estrelas.
A vida é memória, presença d’almas num corpo que as alimenta de carne e sangue, porque a ilusão devora a realidade. A vida é memória, coleção de imagens fabulosas e um olhar desolado que as comtempla; um olhar que vem atrás da noite do infinito e brilha, dentro em nós, como a própria luz da consciência.
(In Livro de Memórias, 2001, p.46)
Teixeira de Pascoaes, Amarantino poet-philosopher, emerges through the slopes of Marão like a breeze that passes and fills our spirit with traces of nostalgia. The poet was born on November 2, 1877, in Amarante, and lived almost all his life in the Marão region, on a solitary walk, strongly linked to nature.
Nasci ao pôr-do-sol dum dia de novembro.
O meu berço o Crepúsculo embalou…
E até parece, às vezes, que me lembro,
Porque essa tarde triste, em mim, ficou.
(A minha História In Terra Proibida, 1997, p. 221)
Current nº 131 at Rua Teixeira de Vasconcelos – Amarante.
At the age of three, he moved with his family to the village of S. João de Gatão, more specifically to Solar de Gatão. There the poet begins to discover the surrounding landscape, establishing a permanent dialogue with nature.
The Solar will be the capsule of memories of Teixeira de Pascoaes, he lived there until the end of his days, wandered between the past and the present, and in its corners he always found the memory of his grandparents and parents.
This house and its extensions “the garden, the farm, the countryside, the mountains (…); the servants who told him stories of witchcraft, terrible cases of thieves (…); the profiles of people from the land – grotesque and tragic, obscure and yet frightening, mythical beings” (Coelho, 1967, p. 12-14) became the motto of many of his works in verse and prose, characterized by the themes of nature. , fear, shadow, Portugueseism, among others, nostalgia.
A aldeia da minha infância ainda existe. É pedra, terra, árvores e algumas criaturas que lhe deram uma expressão humana. Vejo-te, minha aldeia, através do sorriso de Jesus e ouço zumbidos de insetos, cantos de pássaros e um bulir de folhas verdes. Vejo-a, à luz dos teus olhos negros, ó Carmo! – e logo a sombra cresce do Marão. Vejo-a através dos mortos que eu amei e lhe emprestaram a própria imagem transcendente, que se amoldou, por assim dizer, à configuração dos seus outeiros.
(In Livro de Memórias, 2001, p.45)
The transition to the primary school, located at Largo do Campo da Feira, in Amarante, and to the lyceum installed at the time on the premises of the Dominican Convent of S. Gonçalo, was remarkable for the poet, leading him to confess his difficulty in adapting to the academic environment, stating that the student’s character replaced his true being.
In this village environment, Pascoaes was invaded by different scenarios and characters that linked him to his village, Gatão. Thus, he was remembering his dog Nilo, his donkey, the servant Lucrécia, his grandparents, the peasants, the birds, environments of a little boy coming from the village and who at that moment felt abstract and distant (Coelho, 1967).
In these geographies Pascoaes-man was confused with Pascoaes-poet, and here he established a close relationship with nature, a factor that allowed him, on several occasions, to reach transcendence and mysticism. The landscapes of Marão and the banks of the River Tâmega entered the man-poet spirit very early on and never left it.
From S. João de Gatão and the town of Amarante, Teixeira de Pascoaes, as mentioned by Samuel (1994), traveled to the universality of the world, creating his books of verses, prose, essays and letters that transported him to a of contacts that crossed the Portuguese borders.
Today we celebrate, in a special way, the poet from Marânus, “the prophetic thinker and writer, the Solitário de Gatão” (Coutinho, 1994, p. 6), Teixeira de Pascoaes.
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Coutinho, J. (1994). O Pensamento de Teixeira de Pascoaes – Estudo hermenêutico e crítico. Dissertação de Doutoramento em Filosofia apresentada à Faculdade de Filosofia de Braga da Universidade Católica Portuguesa.
Coelho, J. (1967). Obras Completas de Teixeira de Pascoaes. Poesia. I Volume. Livraria Bertrand.
Samuel, P. (2004). Viajar com… Teixeira de Pascoaes. Ministério da Cultura, Delegação Regional da Cultura do Norte. Edições Caixotim.
Teixeira de Pascoaes (2001). Livro de Memórias. Lisboa. Assírio & Alvim.
Teixeira de Pascoaes (1997). Belo – À Minha Alma – Sempre – Terra Proibida. Lisboa. Assírio & Alvim.
Sofia Mesquita,
Stay to Talk Instituto de Imersão Cultural
