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Der Mond ist aufgegangen,
Die goldnen Sternlein prangen
Am Himmel hell und klar.
Der Wald steht schwarz und schweiget,
Und aus den Wiesen steiget
Der weisse Nebel wunderbar.
Wie ist die Welt so stille,
Und in der Dämmrung Hülle
So traulich und so hold!
Als eine stille Kammer,
Wo ihr des Tages Jammer
Verschlafen und vergessen sollt.
Seht ihr den Mond dort stehen? -
Er ist nur halb zu sehen,
Und ist doch rund und schön!
So sind wohl manche Sachen,
Die wir getrost belachen,
Weil unsre Augen sie nicht sehn.
Wir stolze Menschenkinder
Sind eitel arme Sünder,
Und wissen gar nicht viel.
Wir spinnen Luftgespinnste
Und suchen viele Künste,
Und kommen weiter von dem Ziel.
Gott, laß dein Heil uns schauen,
Auf nichts Vergänglichs trauen,
Nicht Eitelkeit uns freun!
Laß uns einfältig werden,
Und vor dir hier auf Erden
Wie Kinder fromm und fröhlich seyn!
...
Note: the text above is taken from stanzas 1-5 of the original text.
Notes: Herder's Volkslieder prints only the first five stanzas, and Claudius (in his ASMUS complete edition) separates the first five stanzas with three asterisks from the remaining two.
Stanza 1, Line 2 is a quotation from Paul Gerhardt's 'Nun ruhen alle Wälder' (a text in the same verse form used by Claudius here)
In Dalberg's score, stanza 1, line 5, word 5 is a typo ("Wolken")
Composition:
- Set to music by Franz Peter Schubert (1797 - 1828), "Abendlied", D 499 (1816), published 1885, stanzas 1-5 [ voice, piano ]
Score: IMSLP [external link]
Text Authorship:
- by Matthias Claudius (1740 - 1815), "Abendlied"
See other settings of this text.
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , copyright © 2018, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- DUT Dutch (Nederlands) [singable] (Lau Kanen) , "Avondlied", copyright © 2006, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- ENG English (Emily Ezust) , "Evening Song", copyright ©
- ENG English (Bertram Kottmann) , "Evening song", copyright © 2006, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Chant du soir", copyright © 2010, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- ITA Italian (Italiano) (Ferdinando Albeggiani) , "Canto della sera", copyright © 2008, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Malcolm Wren [Guest Editor] , Peter Rastl [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 43
Word count: 209
The moon has been arising,
the stars in golden guising
adorn the heavens bright.
The woods stand still in shadows,
and from the meads and meadows
lift whitish mists into the night.
The world in stillness clouded
and soft in twilight shrouded,
so peaceful and so fair.
Just like a chamber waiting,
where you can rest abating
the daytime's mis'ry and despair.
Behold the moon - and wonder
why half of her stands yonder,
yet she is round and fair.
We follow empty visions
and artisans' ambitions
because our minds are unaware.
We vain and wretched sinners
presume to be the winners,
but we know nothing yet.
So many neat solutions
are nought but great delusions
that farther off the path us get.
God, grant us Thy salvation!
No worldly aspiration,
no vanity allow!
Like children simple-hearted,
and joyful like we started,
let us become and teach us how!
...
Note: the text above is taken from stanzas 1-5 of the original text.
The translator wishes to acknowledge many helpful suggestions from fellow translator Walter A. Aue.
Text Authorship:
- Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2006 by Bertram Kottmann, (re)printed on this website with kind permission. To reprint and distribute this author's work for concert programs, CD booklets, etc., you must ask the copyright-holder(s) directly for permission. If you receive no response, you must consider it a refusal.
Bertram Kottmann. Contact: BKottmann (AT) t-online.de
If you wish to commission a new translation, please contact: licenses@email.lieder.example.net
Based on:
- a text in German (Deutsch) by Matthias Claudius (1740 - 1815), "Abendlied"
Go to the general single-text view
This text was added to the website: 2006-11-19
Line count: 43
Word count: 218