by Robert Herrick (1591 - 1674)

Upon love
Language: English 
Our translations:  GER
Love's a thing, as I do hear,
Ever full of pensive fear ;
Rather than to which I'll fall,
Trust me, I'll not like at all.
If to love I should intend,
Let my hair then stand an end :
And that terror likewise prove,
Fatal to me in my love.
But if horror cannot slake
Flames which would an entrance make,
Then the next thing I desire
Is, to love and live i' th' fire.

Text Authorship:

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

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

  • GER German (Deutsch) (Bertram Kottmann) , title 1: "Über die Liebe", copyright © 2006, (re)printed on this website with kind permission


Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 12
Word count: 74