My temples are already grey, and my head has become white

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by Eduard Mörike (1804 - 1875)

Translation © by Sharon Krebs

Die Unwürde des Alterns

(Sung text for setting by H. Eisler)

See original

Language: German (Deutsch) after the Greek (Ελληνικά)

Our translations: ENG FRE

Grau bereits sind meine Schläfen, und das Haupt ist weiß geworden,
Hin, dahin die holde Jugend; schon gealtert sind die Zähne.

Von dem süßen Leben ist mir nur ein Restchen Zeit geblieben.
Oft mit Tränen dies bedaur' ich, vor dem Tartaros erbebend.

Denn entsetzlich ist des Hades Tiefe, leidvoll seine Straße,
Offen steht der Stieg, hinunter --, nimmermehr herauf zu gehen.

Composition:

Hanns Eisler

Hollywooder Liederbuch

Text Authorship:

by Eduard Mörike (1804 - 1875), no title, appears in Griechische Lyrik, in 5. Anakreon Lieder, no. 37

Based on:

a text in Greek (Ελληνικά) by Anacreon (c582BCE - c485BCE) [text unavailable]
- Go to the text page.

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

ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , copyright © 2016, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , "Les flétrissures de l'âge", copyright © 2019, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website: 2003-10-18
Line count: 6
Word count: 66

The ignominy of aging

(Sung text translation for setting by H. Eisler)

See original

Language: English after the German (Deutsch)

My temples are already grey, and my head has become white,
Gone, gone my lovely youth; my teeth have already aged.
 
Of my sweet life, only a little scrap of time still remains for me.
Often with tears I regret this, trembling before Tartarus.
 
For appalling are the depths of Hades, sorrow-laden its street,
open stands the path by which one descends--, never again to ascend.

Text Authorship:

Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2016 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.
Contact: licenses@email.lieder.example.net

Based on:

a text in German (Deutsch) by Eduard Mörike (1804 - 1875), no title, appears in Griechische Lyrik, in 5. Anakreon Lieder, no. 37
- Go to the text page.

Based on:

a text in Greek (Ελληνικά) by Anacreon (c582BCE - c485BCE) [text unavailable]
- Go to the text page.

Go to the general single-text view

This text was added to the website: 2016-09-16
Line count: 6
Word count: 71