The secret of the world | Neither beginning nor end has the world

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 licenses@email.lieder.example.net

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.

by Friedrich Rückert (1788 - 1866)

Translation © by Sharon Krebs

Weltgeheimniß

Language: German (Deutsch)

Our translations: ENG

Weder Anfang hat die Welt noch Ende, 
Nicht im Raum noch in der Zeit;  
Überall ist Mittelpunkt und Wende,  
Und im Nu die Ewigkeit. 

Wie du lebst von einem Nu zum andern, 
Ewig eines lebest du;  
Laß die Welt vorüber ruhlos wandern, 
Und sieh' aus der Ruh' ihr zu.  

Nicht mit unzulänglichen Gedanken 
Machst du das Geheimniß klar, 
Doch in schwanken Schranken, Wortes Ranken, 
Stellt es dir sich bildlich dar.

Confirmed with Friedrich Rückert, Gesammelte poetische Werke, Band VII : Pantheon , Sauerlaender, 1868, pages 468-469.

Text Authorship:

by Friedrich Rückert (1788 - 1866), "Weltgeheimniß", appears in Pantheon, in 5. Fünftes Bruchstück. Zahme Xenien [author's text checked 1 time 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 Wolfgang Michael Rihm (1952 - 2024), "Weltgeheimniß", published 2009 [ medium voice and piano ], from Vier späte Gedichte von Friedrich Rückert, no. 3, Wien (Vienna), Universal Editions [sung text not yet checked]

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

ENG English (Sharon Krebs) , "The secret of the world", copyright © 2020, (re)printed on this website with kind permission

Research team for this page: Bertram Kottmann , Melanie Trumbull

This text was added to the website: 2016-03-04
Line count: 12
Word count: 70

The secret of the world

Language: English after the German (Deutsch)

Neither beginning nor end has the world,
Not in the universe or in time;
Everywhere is the centre and the point of change,
And in a moment [is] eternity.

As you live from one moment to another,
You eternally live a single thing;
Let the world wander past restlessly,
And watch it from [your] calmness.

Not with inadequate thoughts
Do you make the secret clear,
But in wavering boundaries, entwining words,
It presents itself to you metaphorically.

Text Authorship:

Translation from German (Deutsch) to English copyright © 2020 by Sharon Krebs, (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 Friedrich Rückert (1788 - 1866), "Weltgeheimniß", appears in Pantheon, in 5. Fünftes Bruchstück. Zahme Xenien
- Go to the text page.

This text was added to the website: 2020-06-12
Line count: 12
Word count: 77