* * * 

I'm alone on the path just taken; 
Glittering, it stretches through the fog; 
Quiet night. All harkens to the Maker, 
And two stars begin a dialogue. 

It is grand and solemn in the heavens! 
In the azure radiance Earth rests... 
Why then does my heart seem so heavy? 
Do I hope? Or do I have regrets? 

No, for I hope no longer, 
And do not regret the past at all; 
I seek freedom and repose, while longing 
To obtain them in a sleep withal! 

But it's not a deathlike sleep I crave for... 
I would rather fall asleep, yet live, 
For my dormant chest might keep its vigor, 
For my dormant chest might mutely heave; 

For I would with joy forever listen 
To a gentle voice that sings of love, 
For an oak tree, always green and blissful, 
Would caress [bad word] from above. 

(перевод – Евгений Соколовский)