Salve, Regína - Hermanus Contractus

Translated into ASL by David Bar-Tzur

Created 14 March 2006, links updated monthly with the help of LinkAlarm.

EXPLANATION OF THE GLOSSING SYSTEM
(to understand how I describe the signs in this translation).

Salve, Regína, Mater misericórdiae:
GREETINGS! MARY, MOTHER AND QUEEN FULL MERCY.

Vita dulcédo et spes nostra, salve.
YOU-ctr OUR LIFE, OUR COMFORT, OUR HOPE, GREETINGS!

Ad te calmámus, éxsules, fílii Hevae.
WE EVE HER-rt CHILDREN SUMMON YOU-ctr SO-MUCH FAR-AWAY.

Ad te suspirámus, geméntes
WE LOST, HAVE FEAR, WE MOURN, WE SAD

et flentes in hac lacrimárum valle.
WE CRY"over time" HERE PLACE DISCONNECT-FROM YOU-ctr .

Eia ergo, Advocáta nostra, illos tuos
PLEASE HELP, SUPPORT AND GUIDE US.

misericórdes óculos ad nos convérte.
LOOK-DOWN-ON-us US WITH EYES FULL LOVE AND FULL MERCY.

Et Jesum, benedíctum fructum ventris tui,
AND JESUS, HIMSELF-lf GROW INSIDE-SELF YOU-ctr , WE ASK BLESS US.

nobis post hoc exsílium osténde.
ALLOW US SEE YOUR-ctr SON WHEN OUR LIVE JOURNEY END.

O clemens, O pia, O dulcis Virgo María.
YOU-ctr SOFT-HEARTED. YOU-ctr LOVING. WE CHERISH YOU-ctr, VIRGIN MARY.


Notes: GREETINGS! - (2h)[B] alt. salute from the temples but with the PO away.

MARY - [M] touches NDS temple, is drawn across forehead, and descends. For a QuickTime file of this sign, see ASL Pro: Mary - 1.

MERCY - (2h)[open 8], POs > people who are receiving mercy, hands move in vertical circles normal (perpendicular) to the chest.

YOU - Underlined words are honorific indices ("indexes"), using the FT of the upturned palm to indicate who is being honored.

COMFORT - Like COMFORTABLE but signed more slowly.

EVE - [E], PO away, FO up, taps DS of chin.

SUMMON - DH [B] taps NDH [B], PO down, FO > signer, then moves > signer while closing to an [A], PO away from signer, FO up, and moving up.

SO-MUCH - (2h)[5:], POs ><, FOs away, separate while "so much" is mouthed.

FAR-AWAY - [1], twists while moving away with tongue shuttling from side to side. For a QuickTime file of this sign, see ASL Pro: Far.

FEAR - (2h)[5], POs away, FOs up, hands are held far from body and move back to body in a wavy pattern.

AND JESUS... Ford translates this line as "And Jesus - your Son, and Lord, your womb's most blessed fruit -", but my translation makes no mention of Soon or Lord. Ford has actually added this to the Latin original to have a syllable for each note in the plain song. I sometimes add signs to keep to the rhythm of the song, but here there would be too much to say and keep to the rhythm, so I omitted it. "your Son, and Lord" is not in the original Latin.

INSIDE-SELF - The FT of [C] are held against the chest and stuff the FT of [O^] into the [C] twice.

BLESS - (2h)[O^], POs ><, held at mouth. Hands are brought downwards while opening to (2h)[5]. For a QuickTime file of this sign, see ASL Pro: Bless.

SOFT-HEARTED - HEART + (2h)[5^] descend slightly twice while closing to (2h)[O^] but hands close to heart.

LOVING - LOVE+.

VIRGIN - [V], PO away, FO up, brushes against DS of chin twice.

Lyrics:

I put the Latin next to the glossing to make it easier if it is sung in Latin. Here is a translation by Paul Ford:

Hail, Mary, Mother and Queen of tender mercy,
our life, our comfort, and our hope, we hail you.
From this foreign land Eve's sons and daughters cry to you.
So lost, so full of fear, we mourn, we grieve,
we sigh from this tearful vale of exile.
Ah, then, our help, our advocate and guide
turn now to us the gaze of your all-loving eyes, so full of mercy.
And Jesus - your Son, and Lord, your womb's most blessed fruit -
show him to us when we complete our sojourn.
O gentle, O loving, O beloved O Virgin Mary.

treble clef as a symbol for musicTo hear the music (without words), go to Traditional Catholic MIDI files and click on "Salve Regina (Simple Tone)."

Home