Wenn hochentzückt mein Auge sieht
Language: German (Deutsch)
Wenn hochentzückt mein Auge sieht
Wie schön die Erde Gottes blüht,
Wie alles Wesen angeschmiegt
An ihren Segensbrüsten liegt;
Und sie, voll Mutterfreundlichkeit,
Sich jedes ihrer Kinder freut,
So inniglich sie alle liebt,
Allmilde Nahrung jedem giebt;
Wie groß und hehr, in Himmelspracht,
Ihr volles Blütenantlitz lacht,
Und wie, in steter Jugendkraft
Sie rastlos waltet, wirkt und schaft:
Dann fühl' ich hohen Feuerdrang
Zu rühmen den mit Preisgesang,
Des wundervoller Allmachtsruf
Die weite Welt so schön erschuf!
Der Wald und Kraut drauf wachsen ließ:
Von Meeren sie umgürten hieß,
Von dem der Segen alle kömmt,
Der stündlich ihrem Schoos entströmt!
Drum, o mein Geist, erheb' ihn laut,
Der diese Welt so schön erbaut!
Erfreu, so lang' es ihm gefällt,
Dich immer dieser schönen Welt!
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Confirmed with Der Teutsche Merkur. May 1780. Zweytes Vierteljahr, pages 105-106; with Lieder von Friedrich Matthisson. Vermehrte Auflage. Dessau, 1783, pages 1-2; and with Gedichte von Friedrich Matthisson. Mannheim in der neuen Hof- und akademischen Buchhandlung. 1787, pages 147-149.
There is a later version of this poem, with only five stanzas and substantial textual changes; see below.
Text Authorship:
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Research team for this page: Sharon Krebs
[Senior Associate Editor], Peter Rastl
[Guest Editor] This text was added to the website: 2010-12-02
Line count: 24
Word count: 128
When greatly enraptured my eyes see
Language: English after the German (Deutsch)
When greatly enraptured my eyes see
How beautifully God's earth blooms,
How every creature, nestling close,
Lies at her blessed breasts;
And she, full of motherly kindness,
Rejoices in every one of her children,
Loving all of them so fervently,
Giving mild sustenance to each;
How greatly and loftily in the glory of heaven
Her full-blossoming visage smiles,
And how, in everlasting vigour of youth
She blesses, works and creates unceasingly:
Then I feel a lofty, fiery compulsion
To praise Him with songs of praise,
Him, whose wondrous omnipotent call
Created the wide world so beautifully!
Him, who let forest and herb grow upon it,
Who commanded the seas to girdle it,
Him from whom come all the blessings
That flow forth from her womb every hour!
Therefore, oh my spirit, exalt Him loudly,
Him, who created this world so beautifully!
And as long as it is His desire, delight
Constantly in this beautiful world!
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Translation of titles
"Die schöne Erde" = "The beautiful earth"
"Wenn hochentzückt mein Auge sieht" = "When greatly enraptured my eyes see"
Text Authorship:
- Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2015 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 Friedrich von Matthisson (1761 - 1831), "Die schöne Erde", written 1778, first published 1780
Go to the general view
This text was added to the website: 2015-06-09
Line count: 24
Word count: 158
