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by Felix Ludwig Julius Dahn (1834 - 1912)
Translation © by Salvador Pila

Wasserrose
Language: German (Deutsch) 
Our translations:  CAT DUT ENG FRE FRE JPN SPA
Kennst du die Blume, die märchenhafte,
sagengefeierte Wasserrose?
Sie wiegt auf ätherischem, schlankem Schafte
das durchsicht'ge Haupt, das farbenlose,
sie blüht auf schilfigem Teich im Haine,
gehütet vom Schwan, der umkreiset sie einsam,
sie erschließt sich nur dem Mondenscheine,
mit dem ihr der silberne Schimmer gemeinsam:
so blüht sie, die zaub'rische Schwester der Sterne,
umschwärmt von der träumerisch dunklen Phaläne,
die am Rande des Teichs sich sehnet von ferne,
und sie nimmer erreicht, wie sehr sie sich sehne.
Wasserrose, so nenn' ich die schlanke,
nachtlock'ge Maid, alabastern von Wangen,
in dem Auge der ahnende tiefe Gedanke,
als sei sie ein Geist und auf Erden gefangen.
Wenn sie spricht, ist's wie silbernes Wogenrauschen,
wenn sie schweigt, ist's die ahnende Stille der Mondnacht;
sie scheint mit den Sternen Blicke zu tauschen,
deren Sprache die gleiche Natur sie gewohnt macht;
du kannst nie ermüden, in's Aug' ihr zu schau'n,
das die seidne, lange Wimper umsäumt hat,
und du glaubst, wie bezaubert von seligem Grau'n,
was je die Romantik von Elfen geträumt hat.

Text Authorship:

  • by Felix Ludwig Julius Dahn (1834 - 1912) [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 Richard Georg Strauss (1864 - 1949), "Wasserrose", op. 22 no. 4 (1888), published 1891 [ voice and piano ], from Mädchenblumen, no. 4, Berlin, Fürstner [sung text checked 1 time]

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

  • CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , "El nenúfar", copyright © 2020, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • DUT Dutch (Nederlands) [singable] (Lau Kanen) , "Waterlelie", copyright © 2019, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • ENG English (Emily Ezust) , "Waterlily", copyright ©
  • FRE French (Français) (Heide Wiesner) , "Nénuphar", copyright © 2009, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • FRE French (Français) (Stéphane Goldet) (Pierre de Rosamel) , "Nymphéa", copyright © 2013, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • JPN Japanese (日本語) (Naoyuki Okada) , "スイレンの花", copyright © 2025, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • SPA Spanish (Español) (Elisa Rapado) , copyright © 2020, (re)printed on this website with kind permission


Research team for this page: Emily Ezust [Administrator] , Lau Kanen [Guest Editor]

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 24
Word count: 169

El nenúfar
Language: Catalan (Català)  after the German (Deutsch) 
Coneixes la flor, el fabulós,
llegendari nenúfar?
Damunt una tija etèria, prima,
bressola el seu cap transparent, incolor,
floreix a l’estany cobert de canyís al bosquet,
custodiat per el cigne que gira solitari al seu entorn,
només s’obre a la llum de la lluna,
amb la que comparteix el seu besllum argentat:
és així que floreix, la fascinadora germana de les estrelles,
mentre la fosca falena voleteja al seu entorn
i que, a la riba de l’estany, de lluny, l’anhela
i mai l’assoleix per més que ho desitgi.
Jo anomeno nenúfar l’esvelta donzella
amb rínxols negres com la nit i galtes d’alabastre,
pensaments profunds i clarividents als ulls,
com si fos un esperit atrapat a la terra.
Quan ella parla, és com el mormol argentat de les onades,
quan ella calla, és l’intuïtiu silenci d’una nit de lluna;
sembla com si bescanviés esguards amb les estrelles,
amb la llengua de les quals, d’igual natura, s’hi ha avesat;
mai et pots cansar de mirar-li els ulls,
rodejats de llargues pestanyes de seda,
i tu creus, com encisat per una benaurada basarda,
tot el que el romanticisme ha pogut somiar dels elfs.  

Text Authorship:

  • Translation from German (Deutsch) to Catalan (Català) copyright © 2020 by Salvador Pila, (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: licenses@email.lieder.example.net

Based on:

  • a text in German (Deutsch) by Felix Ludwig Julius Dahn (1834 - 1912)
    • Go to the text page.

 

This text was added to the website: 2020-03-15
Line count: 24
Word count: 190

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This website began in 1995 as a personal project by Emily Ezust, who has been working on it full-time without a salary since 2008. Our research has never had any government or institutional funding, so if you found the information here useful, please consider making a donation. Your help is greatly appreciated!
–Emily Ezust, Founder

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