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.
Uns ist kein Sein vergönnt. Wir sind nur Strom, Wir fließen willig allen Formen ein: Dem Tag, der Nacht, der Höhle und dem Dom, Wir gehn hindurch, uns treibt der Durst nach Sein. So füllen Form um Form wir ohne Rast, Und keine wird zur Heimat uns, zum Glück, zur Not, Stets sind wir unterwegs, stets sind wir Gast, Uns ruft nicht Feld noch Pflug, uns wächst kein Brot. Wir wissen nicht, wie Gott es mit uns meint, Er spielt mit uns, dem Ton in seiner Hand, Der stumm und bildsam ist, nicht lacht noch weint, Der wohl geknetet wird, doch nie gebrannt. Einmal zu Stein erstarren! Einmal dauern! Danach ist unsre Sehnsucht ewig rege, Und bleibt doch ewig nur ein banges Schauern, Und wird doch nie zur Rast auf unsrem Wege.
Please note: this text, provided here for educational and research use, is in the public domain in Canada, but it may still be copyright in other legal jurisdictions. The LiederNet Archive makes no guarantee that the above text is public domain in your country. Please consult your country's copyright statutes or a qualified IP attorney to verify whether a certain text is in the public domain in your country or if downloading or distributing a copy constitutes fair use. The LiederNet Archive assumes no legal responsibility or liability for the copyright compliance of third parties.
Confirmed with Hermann Hesse, Sämtliche Werke, herausgegeben von Volker Michels, Band 10 Die Gedichte, bearbeitet von Peter Huber, Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp Verlag, 2002, pages 328-329.
Authorship:
- by Hermann Hesse (1877 - 1962), "Klage", written 1934 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Ulrich Hesse (1908 - 1959), "Klage" [ men's chorus, 2 horns, and strings ] [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Franz Krause (1889 - ?), "Klage", op. 30 no. 6, published 1962 [ voice and piano ], from Sieben Gedichte von Hermann Hesse, no. 6 [sung text checked 1 time]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , "Lament", copyright © 2023, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , "Lament", copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this page: Sharon Krebs [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2014-10-21
Line count: 16
Word count: 132
We have not been granted a being. We are only a current, We flow willingly into all forms: Into day, into night, into the cave and into the cathedral, We pass through, we are driven by the thirst for being. Thus we fill form after form without pause, And none becomes a home for us, for happiness, for suffering, We are continually underway, we are continually guests, We are not called to field or plow, no bread grows for us. We know not what God means to do with us, He plays with us, the clay within his hand, The [clay] that is mute and malleable, laughs not nor cries, The [clay] that is well-kneaded, yet never fired. Once to harden into stone! Once to be lasting! Toward that goal our yearning eternally strives, And yet all that remains forever is an anxious shuddering, That never comes to rest upon our pathway.
Authorship:
- Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2014 by Sharon Krebs, (re)printed on this website with kind permission. To reprint and distribute this author's work for concert programs, CD booklets, etc., you may ask the copyright-holder(s) directly or ask us; we are authorized to grant permission on their behalf. Please provide the translator's name when contacting us.
Contact: licenses@email.lieder.example.net
Based on:
- a text in German (Deutsch) by Hermann Hesse (1877 - 1962), "Klage", written 1934
This text was added to the website: 2014-10-21
Line count: 16
Word count: 152