Breezes of the heavens, whither do you travel?

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by Henriette Ottenheimer (1807 - 1883)

Translation © by Sharon Krebs

Lüfte des Himmels, wo ziehet ihr hin?

Language: German (Deutsch)

Our translations: ENG

  Lüfte des Himmels, wo ziehet ihr hin?
Wir schweben und weben
Ein fröhliches Leben--
In Blättern zu wühlen,
Die Stirne zu kühlen,
Mit Blumen zu spielen--
So säuseln wir linde herab und herauf,
Und enden im Aether den spielenden Lauf.

  Wogen des Stromes, wo ziehet ihr hin?
Wir rauschende Wellen
Versinken und schwellen,
Wir küssen Gestade,
Und locken zum Bade,
Verschlungene Pfade,
Sie führen uns endlich zum Ziele daher,
Wir finden die Ruhe, die Ruhe im Meer.

  Sehnsucht im Busen, wo ziehest du hin?
Hinauf zu den Sternen
In himmlischen Fernen,
Durch endlose Weiten,
Laß träumrisch mich gleiten,
Ohn' Grübeln und Deuten--
So schwebe ich lächelnd der Ewigkeit zu,
Und finde dort oben, nur oben erst Ruh.

Available sung texts: (what is this?)

• K. Kummer • K. Rungenhagen • H. Schnaubelt

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Confirmed with Geschichtliche Uebersicht der deutschen Nationalliteratur mit Hinblick auf die gleichzeitigen Kunstbestrebungen, Ein Handbuch für den Unterricht in Töchterschulen und zur Selbstbelehrung von Dr. Friedrich Wernick, Gotha: Verlag von Hugo Scheube, 1856, page 1003

Text Authorship:

by Henriette Ottenheimer (1807 - 1883), "Beispiel" [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]

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Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Sharon Krebs [Senior Associate Editor], Johann Winkler

This text was added to the website: 2010-10-12
Line count: 24
Word count: 120

Breezes of the heavens, whither do you...

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Language: English after the German (Deutsch)

  Breezes of the heavens, whither do you travel?
We waft and weave
A merry life --
To rootle in leaves,
To cool the brow,
To sport with flowers --
Thus we rustle gently up and down,
And end our playful journey in the aether.

  Waves of the river, whither do you travel?
We rushing waves
Sink and swell,
With kiss the banks,
And entice people to bathe;
Tortuous paths,
They finally lead us on to our goal,
We find rest, rest in the sea.

  Longing in my breast, where do you travel?
Up to the stars
In the faraway places of heaven,
Through endless distances
Let me glide dreamily,
Without pondering and explaining--
Thus I waft smilingly toward eternity,
And find up there, only up there finally find rest.

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Translations of title(s):
"Wohin?" = "Whither?"
"Beispiel" = "Example"
"Lüfte des Himmels" = "Breezes of the heavens"

Text Authorship:

Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2017 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.
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Based on:

a text in German (Deutsch) by Henriette Ottenheimer (1807 - 1883), "Beispiel"
- Go to the text page.

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This text was added to the website: 2017-07-11
Line count: 24
Word count: 130