Clamavi De Profundis - Lament for Boromir

Through Rohan over fen and field
where the long grass grows
The West Wind comes walking,
and about the walls it goes.
‘What news from the West, O wandering wind,
do you bring to me tonight?
Have you seen Boromir the Tall
by moon or by starlight?

‘I saw him ride over seven streams,
over waters wide and grey,
I saw him walk in empty lands
until he passed away
Into the shadows of the North,
I saw him then no more.
The North Wind may have heard the horn
of the son of Denethor,
‘O Boromir! From the high walls
westward I looked afar,
But you came not from the empty lands
where no men are.’


From the mouths of the Sea
the South Wind flies,
from the sandhills and the stones,
The wailing of the gulls it bears,
and at the gate it moans.
‘What news from the South, O sighing wind,
do you bring to me at eve?
Where now is Boromir the Fair?
He tarries and I grieve.

‘Ask not of me where he doth dwell
so many bones there lie,
On the white shores and the dark shores
under the stormy sky,
So many have passed down Anduin
to find the flowing Sea.
Ask of the North Wind news of them
the North Wind sends to me!’
‘O Boromir! Beyond the gate
the seaward roads runs south,
But you came not with the wailing gulls
from the grey sea’s mouth’.


From the Gate of the Kings the North Wind rides,
and past the roaring falls,
And clear and cold about the tower
its loud horn calls.
‘What news from the North, O mighty wind,
do you bring to me today?
What news of Boromir the bold?
For he is long away.’

‘Beneath Amon Hen I heard his cry.
There many foes he fought,
His cloven shield, his broken sword,
they to the water brought.
His head so proud, his face so fair,
his limbs they laid to rest,
And Rauros, golden Rauros-falls,
bore him upon its breast.
‘O Boromir! The Tower of Guard
shall ever northward gaze,
To Rauros, golden Rauros-falls,
until the end of days.