by Francis of Assisi, Saint (1182 - 1226)
Translation by Anonymous / Unidentified Author

Canticle of the Sun
Language: English  after the Italian - Medieval (Volgare) 
Most high, all-powerful good Lord,
Yours are the praises, the glory, the honor, and every blessing.

All praise to You, my Lord, with all your creatures,
and first for Brother Sun,
who is the day and through whom You give us light.

And he is beautiful and radiant with great splendor;
and bears an image of You, Most High.

All praise to You, my Lord, through Sister Moon and the stars,
You formed them clear and precious and beautiful.

All praise to You, my Lord, through Brother Wind,
and through the air, cloudy and serene, and every kind of weather,
through which You give life to your creatures.

All praise to You, my Lord, through Sister Water,
who is very useful and humble and precious and chaste.

All praise to You, my Lord, through our Sister Mother Earth,
who sustains and governs us
and who brings forth varied fruits with colored flowers and herbs.

All praise to You, my Lord, through Brother Fire,
through whom You light the night.
And he is beautiful and joyous and robust and strong.

All praise to You, my Lord, through those who pardon through your love,
and bear sickness and tribulation.

Blessed are those who endure in peace,
for by You, Most High, they will be crowned.

Praise and bless my Lord and give Him thanks,
and serve Him with great humility.

Text Authorship:

Based on:

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

Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:

  • Also set in Dutch (Nederlands), a translation by C. Mertz ENG ENG GER SPA ; composed by Theo Van der Bijl.
  • Also set in English, a translation by Matthew Arnold (1822 - 1888) , "The Canticle of the Sun", appears in Essays in Criticism GER SPA ; composed by Amy Marcy Cheney Beach, Howard Leake Boatwright, Raymond Hockley, Joseph Roff, Martin Edward Fallas Shaw, Leo Sowerby, Virgil Garnett Thomson.
  • Also set in Italian (Italiano), a translation by Gino Perara ENG ENG GER SPA ; composed by Charles Martin Tornov Loeffler.
  • Also set in Portuguese (Português), a translation by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist ENG ENG GER SPA ; composed by Ernst Mahle.
  • Also set in Spanish (Español), a translation by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist [an adaptation] ENG ENG GER ; composed by Joaquín Rodrigo Vidre.

Researcher for this page: David Evan Thomas

This text was added to the website: 2006-06-14
Line count: 26
Word count: 228