by
Georg Trakl (1887 - 1914)
Es hat mein Dämon einst gelacht
Language: German (Deutsch)
Available translation(s): ENG FRE
Es hat mein Dämon einst gelacht,
Da war ich ein Licht in schimmernden Gärten,
Und hatte Spiel und Tanz zu Gefährten
Und der Liebe Wein, der trunken macht.
Es hat mein Dämon einst geweint,
Da war ich ein Licht in schmerzlichen Gärten
Und hatte die Demut zum Gefährten,
Deren Glanz der Armut Haus bescheint.
Doch nun mein Dämon nicht weint noch lacht,
Bin ich ein Schatten verlorener Gärten
Und habe zum todesdunklen Gefährten
Das Schweigen der leeren Mitternacht.
About the headline (FAQ)
Authorship:
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
Available translations, adaptations, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , copyright © 2011, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- ENG English (Bertram Kottmann) , copyright © 2016, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [
Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2010-10-29
Line count: 12
Word count: 78
In former times my demon laughed
Language: English  after the German (Deutsch)
In former times my demon laughed,
when I was a light in glimmering gardens,
and dalliance and dance were my companions
and the wine of love, which makes us drunk.
In former times my demon cried,
when I was a light in grief-stricken gardens
and humility was my companion,
whose clarity shines on poverty’s house.
Now that my demon neither weeps nor laughs,
I am a shadow of forsaken gardens
and have as my deathly-dark companion
the silence of the empty midnight.
About the headline (FAQ)
Authorship:
Based on:
This text was added to the website: 2016-10-26
Line count: 12
Word count: 82