You are thinking of something bitter to say | You are thinking of something bitter to say to me

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by Georg Friedrich Daumer (1800 - 1875)

Translation © by Emily Ezust

Bitteres zu sagen denkst du

Language: German (Deutsch) after the Persian (Farsi)

Our translations: CAT DUT ENG FRE

  [Bitteres]¹ zu sagen denkst du;
Aber nun und nimmer kränkst du,
Ob du noch so böse bist.
Deine herben Redetaten
Scheitern an korallner Klippe,
Werden all zu reinen Gnaden,
Denn sie müssen, um zu schaden,
Schiffen über eine Lippe,
Die die Süße selber ist.

Available sung texts: (what is this?)

• E. Wolff

About the headline (FAQ)

View original text (without footnotes)

Confirmed with G. Fr. Daumer, Hafis. Eine Sammlung persischer Gedichte. Nebst poetischen Zugaben aus verschiedenen Völkern und Ländern, Hamburg: Bei Hoffmann und Campe, 1846, page 21.

¹ Wolff: "Bitteres mir"

Text Authorship:

by Georg Friedrich Daumer (1800 - 1875), no title, appears in Hafis - Eine Sammlung persischer Gedichte, in Hafis, no. 35, first published 1846 [author's text checked 2 times against a primary source]

Based on:

a text in Persian (Farsi) by Hafis (c1327 - 1390) [text unavailable]
- Go to the text page.

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):

by Johannes Brahms (1833 - 1897), "Bitteres zu sagen denkst du", op. 32 (Neun Lieder und Gesänge) no. 7 (1864), published 1865 [ voice and piano ], Winterthur, Rieter-Biedermann [sung text checked 1 time]
by Erich J. Wolff (1874 - 1913), "Bittres mir zu sagen denkst du", Lieder no. 9, published 1914 [sung text checked 1 time]

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

CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , copyright © 2022, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
DUT Dutch (Nederlands) [singable] (Lau Kanen) , "Bitt're taal te spreken denk je", copyright © 2014, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
ENG English (Emily Ezust) , "You are thinking of something bitter to say", copyright ©
FRE French (Français) (Pierre Mathé) , copyright © 2011, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Sharon Krebs [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website: 2003-11-04
Line count: 9
Word count: 44

You are thinking of something bitter to say

Language: English after the German (Deutsch)

You are thinking of something bitter to say [to me]
But neither now nor ever might you cause offence,
Although you are so angry.
Your sharp speech
Founders on coral rocks,
And becomes pure grace,
For it must, in order to cause shame,
Sail over a pair of lips
Which is Sweetness itself.

Text Authorship:

Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © by Emily Ezust
Emily Ezust permits her translations to be reproduced without prior permission for printed (not online) programs to free-admission concerts only, provided the following credit is given:
Translation copyright © by Emily Ezust,
from the LiederNet Archive
For any other purpose, please write to the e-mail address below to request permission and discuss possible fees.
licenses@email.lieder.example.net

Based on:

a text in German (Deutsch) by Georg Friedrich Daumer (1800 - 1875), no title, appears in Hafis - Eine Sammlung persischer Gedichte, in Hafis, no. 35, first published 1846
- Go to the text page.

Based on:

a text in Persian (Farsi) by Hafis (c1327 - 1390) [text unavailable]
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website: 2003-11-04
Line count: 9
Word count: 53