La prière [English translation]

For the little boy who lies dying close to his mother

While children play on the flower bed

And for the wounded bird that doesn't know how

His wing became suddenly bloody and falls from the sky

For the thirst and the hunger and the feverous delirium

Hail, Mary

For the beaten children, for the drunk who returns home

For the ass who gets kicked in the stomach

And for the humiliation of the innocents who are punished

For the sold virgin that is undressed

For the son whose mother has been insulted

Hail, Mary

For the old woman who stumbles under too much weight

Exclaiming "My God!", for the unfortunate ones whose arms

Couldn't rely on a human love

Like Simon of Cyrene bearing the Cross of the Son

For the fallen horse under the chariot that it drags

Hail, Mary

For the four horizons that crucify the world

For all those whose flesh is torn or dies

For all those who are without feet, who are without hands

For the sick that are operated on and moan

And for the just put among the ranks of killers

Hail, Mary

For the mother learning that her son is healed

For the bird calling the fallen bird back to the nest

For the thirsty grass that gathers rain

For the lost kiss returned by love

And for the beggar who finds his money again

Hail, Mary

• Artist:Georges Brassens