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Es liegt die Welt in Scherben, Einst liebten wir sie sehr, Nun hat für uns das Sterben Nicht viele Schrecken mehr. Man soll die Welt nicht schmähen, Sie ist so bunt und wild, Uralte Zauber wehen Noch immer um ihr Bild. Wir wollen dankbar scheiden Aus ihrem großen Spiel; Sie gab uns Lust und Leiden, Sie gab uns Liebe viel. Leb wohl, Frau Welt, und schmücke Dich wieder jung und glatt, Wir sind von deinem Glücke Und deinem Jammer satt.
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• G. von Einem • H. Fleischer • R. Junker • G. Krietsch • R. Leukauf • F. ZintlAbout the headline (FAQ)
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.
View text with all available footnotesConfirmed with Hermann Hesse, Sämtliche Werke, herausgegeben von Volker Michels, Band 10 Die Gedichte, bearbeitet von Peter Huber, Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp Verlag, 2002, page 372.
Text Authorship:
- by Hermann Hesse (1877 - 1962), "Leb wohl, Frau Welt", written 1944 [author's text checked 2 times against a primary source]
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Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Sharon Krebs [Senior Associate Editor]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 16
Word count: 81
Notre Monde est en ruines, autrefois tant aimé ; Désormais pour nous la mort Ne nous effraie plus guère. Il ne faut pas mépriser notre Monde, Si coloré et sauvage ; Des enchantements ancestraux Enveloppent toujours son image. Nous nous tenons bien à distance De sa grande roue ; Qui nous prodigua joie et souffrance, Qui nous prodigua tant d’amour. Adieu, Madame Monde, et retrouve Tes jeunes et frais atours, Nous sommes de ton bonheur Et de ta misère repus.
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View text with all available footnotesTranslations of titles
"Leb wohl, Frau Welt" = "Adieu, Madame Monde"
"Nun liegt die Welt in Scherben" = "Désormais notre Monde est en ruines"
Text Authorship:
- Translation from German (Deutsch) to French (Français) copyright © 2026 by Benoît Rivillon and Jasmine Rivillon, (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 Hermann Hesse (1877 - 1962), "Leb wohl, Frau Welt", written 1944
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This text was added to the website: 2026-08-31
Line count: 16
Word count: 78