by Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806 - 1861)
Translation by Rainer Maria Rilke (1875 - 1926)
But only three in all God's universe
Language: English
But only three in all God's universe Have heard this word thou hast said, -- Himself, beside Thee speaking, and me listening! and replied One of us . . . that was God, . . . and laid the curse So darkly on my eyelids, as to amerce My sight from seeing thee, -- that if I had died, The deathweights, placed there, would have signified Less absolute exclusion. 'Nay' is worse From God than from all others, O my friend! Men could not part us with their worldly jars, Nor the seas change us, nor the tempests bend; Our hands would touch for all the mountain-bars: And, heaven being rolled between us at the end, We should but vow the faster for the stars.
Text Authorship:
- by Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806 - 1861), appears in Poems, in Sonnets from the Portuguese, no. 2, first published 1850 [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 Gena Branscombe (1881 - 1977), "But only three in all God's universe", published 1907 [ medium voice and piano ], from Love in a Life, no. 2 [sung text not yet checked]
- by Eleanor Everest Freer (1864 - 1942), "But only three in all God's universe", published 1907 [ mezzo-soprano and piano ], from Sonnets from the Portuguese, no. 2 [sung text not yet checked]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in German (Deutsch), a translation by Rainer Maria Rilke (1875 - 1926) , no title, written 1908, appears in Sonette aus dem Portugiesischen, no. 2 ; composed by Egon Joseph Wellesz.
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2007-12-13
Line count: 14
Word count: 123
Nur Drei jedoch in Gottes ganzem All
Language: German (Deutsch) after the English
Nur Drei jedoch in Gottes ganzem All vernahmen es: Er selbst und du, der sprach, und ich, die hörte. Und in diesem Fall war Ers, der Antwort gab ... um Ungemach auf meinen Augenlidern aufzuschichten so viel, daß nicht mit größeren Gewichten der Tod sie hindern könnte, sich zu dir noch einmal aufzuschlagen. Dieses hier, dies Nein vor Gott, mein Freund, ist schwerer als andere Nein. Wir dürften allenfalls stehn, gegen Menschen, Meer und Sturm uns sträubend, und durch Gebirg hin uns halten lernen; und stürzten Himmel hier herein betäubend: wir hielten uns noch fester zwischen Sternen.
About the headline (FAQ)
Text Authorship:
- by Rainer Maria Rilke (1875 - 1926), no title, written 1908, appears in Sonette aus dem Portugiesischen, no. 2 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in English by Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806 - 1861), appears in Poems, in Sonnets from the Portuguese, no. 2, first published 1850
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Egon Joseph Wellesz (1885 - 1974), "Nur Drei jedoch in Gottes ganzem All", op. 52 no. 2 (1934), published 1935 [ soprano and string quartet ], from Sonette der Elisabeth Barrett-Browning, no. 2 [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2007-12-13
Line count: 14
Word count: 96