by Johann Diederich Gries (1775 - 1842) and sometimes misattributed to August Wilhelm Schlegel (1767 - 1845)
Translation © by T. P. (Peter) Perrin

Nunmehr da Himmel, Erde schweigt und...
Language: German (Deutsch)  after the Italian (Italiano) 
Available translation(s): DUT ENG FRE
Nunmehr da Himmel, Erde schweigt und Winde,
Gefieder, Wild, des Schlummers Bande tragen,
Die Nacht im Kreise führt den Sternenwagen,
Und still das Meer sich senkt in seine Gründe:

Nun wach' ich, [sinne, glühe, wein',]1 und finde
Nur sie, die mich verfolgt mit süßen Plagen.
Krieg ist mein Zustand, Zorn und Mißbehagen;
Nur, denk' ich sie, winkt Friede mir gelinde.

So strömt, was mich ernährt, das Süß' und Herbe,
Aus eines einz'gen Quell's lebend'gem Strahle;
Dieselbe Hand gibt Heilung mir und Wunden.

Und daß mein Leiden nie ein Ziel [erwerbe]2,
Sterb' und ersteh' ich täglich tausend Male;
So weit entfernt noch bin ich zu gesunden.

About the headline (FAQ)

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Confirmed with Blumensträusse italiänischer, spanischer und portugiesischer Poesie von August Wilhelm Schlegel. Berlin. In der Realschulbuchhandlung. 1804, page 51. The name "Gries" appears beneath the translation.

Note: Schlegel included in his Blumensträusse, along with his own translations, four translations of Petrarca's sonnets by Johann Diederich Gries. These were republished, in revised versions, in Gedichte und poetische Übersetzungen von J. D. Gries, Stuttgart, 1829.

1 Schubert: "nun sinn' ich, glüh und wein"
2 Schubert: "erreiche"

Authorship

Based on

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive)

  • by Franz Peter Schubert (1797 - 1828), "Sonett III", D. 630 (1818), published 1895 [voice, piano], note: the Italian poet was incorrectly attributed to Dante in Schubert's manuscript (noticed by H. Daffner in Zeitschrift für Musikwissenschaft, VIII. Jg., 1925/26, p. 641); the translator was also originally erroneously given as Schlegel [ sung text verified 1 time]

Another version of this text exists in the database.

Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

  • DUT Dutch (Nederlands) [singable] (Lau Kanen) , "Sonnet III", copyright © 2010, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • ENG English (T. P. (Peter) Perrin) , "Sonnet 3", copyright © 2011, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , copyright © 2010, (re)printed on this website with kind permission


Research team for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Peter Rastl [Guest Editor]

Text added to the website: 2003-11-07 00:00:00
Last modified: 2017-10-01 12:02:42
Line count: 14
Word count: 105

Sonnet 3
Language: English  after the German (Deutsch) 
Now heaven and earth keep silent, and the winds,
birds, and beasts are wrapped in bonds of sleep;
night moves the constellations in their orbits
and, silent, the ocean sinks into its depths.

I wake now, ponder, burn, and weep to see
her only, tracking me with honeyed torment.
My normal state is warfare, wrath, unease:
the thought of her, though, gently betokens peace.

So streams my nourishment, both sweet and bitter,
from one single fountain's living jets --
the selfsame hand doles cure that deals the wounds.

And since my griefs are never done, I die
and revive each day a thousand times,
so far am I, even now, from being healed.

Authorship

  • Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2011 by T. P. (Peter) Perrin, (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.
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Text added to the website: 2011-01-12 00:00:00
Last modified: 2014-06-16 10:04:12
Line count: 14
Word count: 112