Attention! Some of this material is not in the public domain.
It is illegal to copy and distribute our copyright-protected material without permission. It is also illegal to reprint copyright texts or translations without the name of the author or translator.
To inquire about permissions and rates, contact Emily Ezust at licenses@email.lieder.example.net
If you wish to reprint translations, please make sure you include the names of the translators in your email. They are below each translation.
Note: You must use the copyright symbol © when you reprint copyright-protected material.
My desires are many and my cry is pitiful, but ever didst thou save me by hard refusals; and this strong mercy has been wrought into my life through and through. Day by day thou art making me worthy of the simple, great gifts that thou gavest to me unasked; this sky and the light, this [body and the life and the mind]1 saving me from perils of overmuch desire. There are times when I languidly linger and times when I awaken and hurry [in]2 search of my goal; but cruelly thou hidest thyself from before me. Day by day thou art making me worthy of thy full acceptance by refusing me ever and anon, saving me from perils of weak, uncertain desire.
About the headline (FAQ)
View original text (without footnotes)1 Sohal: "body, this life and this mind"
2 Sohal: "to"
Authorship:
- by Rabindranath Tagore (1861 - 1941), no title, appears in Gitanjali, no. 14, first published 1912 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in Bangla (Bengali) by Rabindranath Tagore (1861 - 1941), appears in গীতাঞ্জলি (Gitanjali), no. 14 [text unavailable]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Naresh Sohal (b. 1939), "My desires are many and my cry is pitiful", 1999, first performed 1999 [ soprano and piano ], from Songs of Desire, no. 1 [sung text checked 1 time]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in Dutch (Nederlands), a translation by Frederik van Eeden (1860 - 1932) ; composed by Hendrik Andriessen.
- Go to the text. [Note: the text is not in the database yet.]
- Go to the text. [Note: the text is not in the database yet.]
Other available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , "Mes désirs sont nombreux et mon cri fait pitié", copyright © 2013, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- GER German (Deutsch) (Bertram Kottmann) , copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2010-01-24
Line count: 14
Word count: 123
Viele Begierden treiben mich, mein Rufen wird zur Klage, doch hart weist du sie ab und rettest mich so immerfort; in meinem Leben waltet diese reiche Gnade durch und durch. Du machst mich Tag für Tag natürlicher, großart’ger Gaben würdig, die ungefragt du mir geschenkt – des Himmels, Lichts, und meines Leibs, des Lebens und des Geists - und rettest mich dabei aus der Gefahr maßloser Gier. Es gibt wohl Zeiten, die mich träge sehen, und Zeiten des Erwachens und der eil’gen Suche nach dem Ziel; doch schrecklich ist’s, wenn du dich meinem Blick entziehst. Deiner Bejahung machest du mich würdig Tag für Tag, indem du hin und wieder mich verneinst, und rettest mich dabei aus der Gefahr lauen Begehrens.
About the headline (FAQ)
Authorship:
- Translation from English to German (Deutsch) copyright © 2014 by Bertram Kottmann, (re)printed on this website with kind permission. To reprint and distribute this author's work for concert programs, CD booklets, etc., you must ask the copyright-holder(s) directly for permission. If you receive no response, you must consider it a refusal.
Bertram Kottmann.  Contact: BKottmann (AT) t-online.de
If you wish to commission a new translation, please contact: licenses@email.lieder.example.net
Based on:
- a text in English by Rabindranath Tagore (1861 - 1941), no title, appears in Gitanjali, no. 14, first published 1912
Based on:
- a text in Bangla (Bengali) by Rabindranath Tagore (1861 - 1941), appears in গীতাঞ্জলি (Gitanjali), no. 14 [text unavailable]
This text was added to the website: 2014-04-16
Line count: 14
Word count: 120