Ob ein Gott sei? Ob er einst erfülle
Language: German (Deutsch)
Ob ein Gott sei? Ob er einst erfülle,
Was die Sehnsucht weinend sich verspricht?
Ob, vor irgendeinem Weltgericht,
Sich dies rätselhafte Sein enthülle?
Hoffen soll der Mensch! Er frage nicht!
Die du so gern in heil'gen Nächten feierst
Und sanft und weich den Gram verschleierst,
Der eine zarte Seele quält,
O Hoffnung! Laß, durch dich empor gehoben,
Den Dulder ahnen, daß dort oben
Ein Engel seine Tränen zählt!
Wenn, längst verhallt, geliebte Stimmen schweigen;
Wenn unter ausgestorb'nen Zweigen
Verödet die Erinn'rung sitzt:
Dann nahe dich, wo dein Verlaßner trauert
Und, von der Mitternacht umschauert,
Sich auf versunk'ne Urnen stützt.
Und blickt er auf, das Schicksal anzuklagen,
Wenn scheidend über seinen Tagen
Die letzten Strahlen untergehn:
Dann laß' ihn um den Rand des Erdentraumes
Das Leuchten eines Wolkensaumes
Von einer nahen Sonne seh'n!
Translation(s): DUT ENG FRE
List of language codes
L. Beethoven sets stanzas 2-4 in (at least) one setting - see below for more information
L. Beethoven sets stanzas 1-4, 2 in (at least) one setting - see below for more information
F. Himmel sets stanzas 2-4
About the headline (FAQ)
Submitted by Emily Ezust [Administrator]
Authorship
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive)
- by Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827), "An die Hoffnung", op. 32, stanzas 2-4. [
text verified 1 time ]
- by Ludwig van Beethoven (1770 - 1827), "An die Hoffnung", op. 94 (1813), stanzas 1-4,2. [
text verified 1 time ]
- by Friedrich Heinrich Himmel (1765 - 1814), "An die Hoffnung", 1814, published 1880, stanzas 2-4, from Gesänge aus Tiedge's Urania, no. 3. [
text verified 1 time ]
Available translations, adaptations, and transliterations (if applicable): - ENG English (Emily Ezust) , title 1: "To Hope", copyright ©
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , title 1: "À l'espérance", copyright © 2010, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- DUT Dutch (Nederlands) [singable] (Lau Kanen) , title 1: "Aan de hoop", copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Text added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Last modified: 2014-06-16 10:01:52
Line count: 23
Word count: 132
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To Hope
Language: English after the German (Deutsch)
Is there a God? Will he someday fulfill
The promises for which longing cries out?
Will, before the court of the world,
This puzzle ever reveal itself?
Man must hope. He does not ask!
You, who so gladly celebrates on sacred nights
And gently and softly veils the grief
That torments a tender soul,
O Hope! Raised through you,
Let the sufferer feel that there above,
An angel counts his tears!
When, long hushed, beloved voices are silenced,
When, underneath dead branches
Memory sits desolate,
Then come closer to where your forsaken one mourns
And, looking around at midnight,
Supports himself against sunken urns.
And if he looks up to accuse Fate,
When, departing with his days,
The last rays set:
Then permit him to see, at the rim of this earthly dream,
The light of the cloud's hem
From the near-by sun!
IMPORTANT NOTE: The material directly above is protected by copyright and appears here by special permission. If you wish to copy it and distribute it, you must obtain permission or you will be breaking the law. Once you have permission, you must give credit to the author and display the copyright symbol ©. Copyright infringement is a criminal offense under international law.
Authorship - Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © by Emily Ezust
Emily Ezust permits her translations to be reproduced without prior permission for printed (not online) programs to free-admission concerts only, provided the following credit is given: Translation copyright © by Emily Ezust,
from the LiederNet Archive -- http://www.lieder.net/ For any other purpose, please write to the e-mail address below to request permission and discuss possible fees.
(licenses at lieder dot net)
Based on
Text added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Last modified: 2014-06-16 10:01:52
Line count: 23
Word count: 143
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