The Dead Man's Coffin-Lid | I was dead, and I said to my soul, "It is time

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by Henri Cazalis (1840 - 1909), as Jean Lahor

Translation © by Grant Hicks

Le Couvercle du mort

(Sung text for setting by D. Fleuret)

See original

Language: French (Français)

Our translations: ENG

J'étais mort, et je dis à mon âme : « Il est temps,
Quitte la tombe et viens, monte vers la lumière :
Tous ces vivants, Oh ! comme ils rient, tu les entends ?
Il fait trop noir et froid ici, sors de ta bière. »
 
Le couvercle était lourd, et je raidis mes mains :
Que de clartés là-haut et quel grands bruits de fête !
Horreur ! je retombai ; mes efforts étaient vains :
C'était l'éternité qui pesait sur ma tête !

Composition:

Daniel Fleuret

L'Illusion, poème en neuf chants de Jean Lahor

Text Authorship:

by Henri Cazalis (1840 - 1909), as Jean Lahor, "Le Couvercle du mort", written 1875, appears in L'Illusion, in 4. Heures sombres, no. 15, Paris, Éd. Alphonse Lemerre, first published 1875

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

ENG English (Grant Hicks) , "The Dead Man's Coffin-Lid", copyright © 2025, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Researcher for this page: Grant Hicks [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website: 2025-05-22
Line count: 8
Word count: 78

The Dead Man's Coffin‑Lid

(Sung text translation for setting by D. Fleuret)

See original

Language: English after the French (Français)

I was dead, and I said to my soul, "It is time,
Leave the tomb and come, climb towards the light:
All the living, oh! do you hear how they laugh?
It is too dark and cold here, come out of your coffin."

The lid was heavy, and I tensed my hands:
How many lights above, what clamors of celebration!
Horror! I fell back; my efforts were in vain:
It was eternity that weighed upon my head!

Text Authorship:

Translation from French (Français) to English copyright © 2025 by Grant Hicks, (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 French (Français) by Henri Cazalis (1840 - 1909), as Jean Lahor, "Le Couvercle du mort", written 1875, appears in L'Illusion, in 4. Heures sombres, no. 15, Paris, Éd. Alphonse Lemerre, first published 1875
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Go to the general single-text view

This text was added to the website: 2025-05-23
Line count: 8
Word count: 80