Attention! Some of this material is not in the public domain.
It is illegal to copy and distribute our copyright-protected material without permission. It is also illegal to reprint copyright texts or translations without the name of the author or translator.
To inquire about permissions and rates, contact Emily Ezust at
If you wish to reprint translations, please make sure you include the names of the translators in your email. They are below each translation.
Note: You must use the copyright symbol © when you reprint copyright-protected material.
Es ist so angenehm, so süß, Um einen lieben Mann zu spielen, Entzückend, wie [im]1 Paradies, Des Mannes Feuerkuß zu fühlen. Jetzt weiß ich, was mein Taubenpaar, Mit seinem sanften Girren sagte, Und was der Nachtigallen Schaar, So zärtlich sich in Liedern klagte; Jetzt weiß ich, was mein volles Herz, In ewiglangen Nächten engte; Jetzt weiß ich, welcher süße Schmerz, Oft seufzend meinen Busen drängte; Warum kein Blümchen mir gefiel, Warum der Mai mir nimmer lachte, Warum der Vögel Liederspiel Mich nimmermehr zur Freude fachte: Mir trauerte die ganze Welt, Ich kannte nicht die schönsten Triebe. Nun hab’ ich, was mir längst gefehlt, Beneide mich, Natur - ich liebe!
About the headline (FAQ)
View original text (without footnotes)Confirmed with Taschenbuch für Damen auf das Jahr 1809. Mit Beiträgen von Goethe, Lafontaine, Pfeffel, Jean Paul Richter, Schiller und andern. Tübingen in der J.G. Cotta'schen Buchhandlung, page 250; and with Friedrich Schillers sämmtliche Werke. Zehnter Band. Enthält: Gedichte. Zweyter Theil. Wien, 1810. In Commission bey Anton Doll, pages 263-264.
1 Schubert (and Schillers Werke, 1810 edition): "ein"Authorship
- possibly by Friedrich von Schiller (1759 - 1805), "Lied", written 1787?, first published 1809 [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
- possibly by Karoline von Wolzogen (1763 - 1847), "Lied", written 1787?, first published 1809 [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive)
- by Franz Peter Schubert (1797 - 1828), "Lied", D 284 (1815), published 1895 [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Václav Jan Křtitel Tomášek (1774 - 1850), "Das Lied" [ voice and piano ], confirmed with a CD booklet [sung text checked 1 time]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , "Cançó", copyright © 2018, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- DUT Dutch (Nederlands) [singable] (Lau Kanen) , "Lied", copyright © 2006, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- ENG English (Malcolm Wren) , "Song", copyright © 2017, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "Chant", copyright © 2012, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Research team for this text: Richard Morris , Guy Laffaille [Guest Editor] , Peter Rastl [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 20
Word count: 109
It is so pleasant, so sweet, To play about with a beloved man, It is delightful, like a paradise, To feel the man's fiery kiss. I now know what my pair of doves Were saying with their gentle cooing, And what the flock of nightingales Was lamenting so affectionately in their songs. I now know what my full heart Was bothered by on endlessly long nights. I now know what a sweet pain It was that often pressed, sighing, on my breast. Why no little flowers appealed to me, Why May never smiled on me, Why the birds' song performances No longer stirred up any joy in me: The whole world was mournful for me, I did not know the most beautiful impulses. I now have what I was lacking for so long, Envy me, nature, I am in love!
Authorship
- Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2017 by Malcolm Wren, (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:
- a text in German (Deutsch) possibly by Friedrich von Schiller (1759 - 1805) and possibly by Karoline von Wolzogen (1763 - 1847)
This text was added to the website: 2017-05-31
Line count: 20
Word count: 140