Before Sunrise

O heaven above me, thou pure, thou deep heaven! Thou abyss of light! Gazing on thee, I tremble with divine desires.

Oh, sky above me, pure and deep! You are an abyss of light! Looking at you, I tremble with divine desires.

Up to thy height to toss myself—that is MY depth! In thy purity to hide myself—that is MINE innocence!

To throw myself up to your height: that is MY depth! To hide myself in your purity: that is MY innocence!

The God veileth his beauty: thus hidest thou thy stars. Thou speakest not: THUS proclaimest thou thy wisdom unto me.

The God hides his beauty, and so you hide your stars. You do not speak. THAT is how you proclaim your wisdom to me.

Mute o’er the raging sea hast thou risen for me to-day; thy love and thy modesty make a revelation unto my raging soul.

Silent above the raging sea, you have risen for me today. Your love and modesty reveal something to my raging soul.

In that thou camest unto me beautiful, veiled in thy beauty, in that thou spakest unto me mutely, obvious in thy wisdom:

By coming to me beautiful, veiled in your beauty, and speaking to me silently, your wisdom plain to see:

Oh, how could I fail to divine all the modesty of thy soul! BEFORE the sun didst thou come unto me—the lonesomest one.

Oh, how could I fail to sense all the modesty of your soul! BEFORE the sun rose, you came to me, the loneliest of all.

We have been friends from the beginning: to us are grief, gruesomeness, and ground common; even the sun is common to us.

We have been friends from the beginning. We share grief, horror, and common ground. We even share the sun.

We do not speak to each other, because we know too much—: we keep silent to each other, we smile our knowledge to each other.

We do not speak to each other because we know too much. We stay silent and smile at each other, sharing what we know.

Art thou not the light of my fire? Hast thou not the sister-soul of mine insight?

Aren’t you the light of my fire? Isn’t your soul a sister to my insight?

Together did we learn everything; together did we learn to ascend beyond ourselves to ourselves, and to smile uncloudedly:—

Together we learned everything. Together we learned to rise beyond ourselves to ourselves, and to smile without a cloud:

—Uncloudedly to smile down out of luminous eyes and out of miles of distance, when under us constraint and purpose and guilt steam like rain.

To smile down with clear, shining eyes from miles above, while constraint, purpose, and guilt steam below us like rain.

And wandered I alone, for WHAT did my soul hunger by night and in labyrinthine paths? And climbed I mountains, WHOM did I ever seek, if not thee, upon mountains?

And when I wandered alone, what did my soul hunger for at night and along winding paths? And when I climbed mountains, who was I ever seeking there, if not you?

And all my wandering and mountain-climbing: a necessity was it merely, and a makeshift of the unhandy one:—to FLY only, wanteth mine entire will, to fly into THEE!

And all my wandering and mountain climbing were merely necessities, makeshifts for someone clumsy like me. My entire will wants only to FLY, to fly into YOU!

And what have I hated more than passing clouds, and whatever tainteth thee? And mine own hatred have I even hated, because it tainted thee!

And what have I hated more than passing clouds and anything that stains you? I have even hated my own hatred because it stained you!

The passing clouds I detest—those stealthy cats of prey: they take from thee and me what is common to us—the vast unbounded Yea- and Amen-saying.

I hate the passing clouds, those stealthy cats of prey. They take away what you and I share: our vast, boundless saying of yes and amen.

These mediators and mixers we detest—the passing clouds: those half-and-half ones, that have neither learned to bless nor to curse from the heart.

We detest these mediators and mixers, these passing clouds. They are half-and-half, and have never learned to bless or curse wholeheartedly.

Rather will I sit in a tub under a closed heaven, rather will I sit in the abyss without heaven, than see thee, thou luminous heaven, tainted with passing clouds!

I would rather sit in a tub under a closed sky, or in an abyss with no sky at all. Anything rather than see you, luminous sky, stained by passing clouds!

And oft have I longed to pin them fast with the jagged gold-wires of lightning, that I might, like the thunder, beat the drum upon their kettle-bellies:—

And often I have longed to pin them down with the jagged golden wires of lightning. Then, like thunder, I could beat their kettle bellies like drums:

—An angry drummer, because they rob me of thy Yea and Amen!—thou heaven above me, thou pure, thou luminous heaven! Thou abyss of light!—because they rob thee of MY Yea and Amen.

An angry drummer, because they rob me of your Yes and Amen! You heavens above me, you pure, radiant heavens! You abyss of light! Because they rob you of MY Yes and Amen.

For rather will I have noise and thunders and tempest-blasts, than this discreet, doubting cat-repose; and also amongst men do I hate most of all the soft-treaders, and half-and-half ones, and the doubting, hesitating, passing clouds.

For I would rather have noise, thunder, and storm blasts than this cautious, doubtful calm of a resting cat. And among people, I hate most of all those who tread softly, those who are half one thing and half another, and those who are like doubtful, hesitant, passing clouds.

And “he who cannot bless shall LEARN to curse!”—this clear teaching dropt unto me from the clear heaven; this star standeth in my heaven even in dark nights.

And “whoever cannot bless must LEARN to curse!” This clear teaching came to me from the clear sky. This star shines in my sky even on dark nights.

I, however, am a blesser and a Yea-sayer, if thou be but around me, thou pure, thou luminous heaven! Thou abyss of light!—into all abysses do I then carry my beneficent Yea-saying.

But I bless and say yes, if only you are around me, pure, radiant sky! Abyss of light! Then I carry my good-willed yes into all abysses.

A blesser have I become and a Yea-sayer: and therefore strove I long and was a striver, that I might one day get my hands free for blessing.

I have become someone who blesses and says yes to life. That is why I struggled for so long, so that one day my hands would be free to bless.

This, however, is my blessing: to stand above everything as its own heaven, its round roof, its azure bell and eternal security: and blessed is he who thus blesseth!

But this is my blessing: to stand above everything as its own heaven, its round roof, its blue bell, and its eternal security. Blessed is the one who blesses in this way!

For all things are baptized at the font of eternity, and beyond good and evil; good and evil themselves, however, are but fugitive shadows and damp afflictions and passing clouds.

For all things are baptized in the fountain of eternity and are beyond good and evil. But good and evil themselves are only fleeting shadows, damp afflictions, and passing clouds.

Verily, it is a blessing and not a blasphemy when I teach that “above all things there standeth the heaven of chance, the heaven of innocence, the heaven of hazard, the heaven of wantonness.”

Truly, it is a blessing, not blasphemy, when I teach: “Above all things stands the heaven of chance, the heaven of innocence, the heaven of risk, the heaven of playful freedom.”

“Of Hazard”—that is the oldest nobility in the world; that gave I back to all things; I emancipated them from bondage under purpose.

“Of Chance”: that is the oldest nobility in the world. I gave it back to all things. I freed them from bondage to purpose.

This freedom and celestial serenity did I put like an azure bell above all things, when I taught that over them and through them, no “eternal Will”—willeth.

I placed this freedom and heavenly serenity above all things like a blue bell. I did this when I taught that no “eternal Will” wills over or through them.

This wantonness and folly did I put in place of that Will, when I taught that “In everything there is one thing impossible—rationality!”

I put this recklessness and folly in place of that Will when I taught: “In everything, one thing is impossible: rationality!”

A LITTLE reason, to be sure, a germ of wisdom scattered from star to star—this leaven is mixed in all things: for the sake of folly, wisdom is mixed in all things!

A little reason, to be sure, a seed of wisdom scattered from star to star. This leaven is mixed into all things. For the sake of folly, wisdom is mixed into all things!

A little wisdom is indeed possible; but this blessed security have I found in all things, that they prefer—to dance on the feet of chance.

A little wisdom is possible. But I have found this blessed certainty in all things: they prefer to dance on the feet of chance.

O heaven above me! thou pure, thou lofty heaven! This is now thy purity unto me, that there is no eternal reason-spider and reason-cobweb:—

Oh, sky above me! Pure, lofty sky! To me, your purity means that there is no eternal reason-spider or reason-cobweb.

—That thou art to me a dancing-floor for divine chances, that thou art to me a table of the Gods, for divine dice and dice-players!—

That you are a dance floor for divine chance to me, a table of the Gods for divine dice and dice players!

But thou blushest? Have I spoken unspeakable things? Have I abused, when I meant to bless thee?

But are you blushing? Have I said things that cannot be spoken? Have I insulted you when I meant to bless you?

Or is it the shame of being two of us that maketh thee blush!—Dost thou bid me go and be silent, because now—DAY cometh?

Or are you blushing because you are ashamed that there are two of us? Are you telling me to leave and be silent because DAY is coming?

The world is deep:—and deeper than e’er the day could read. Not everything may be uttered in presence of day. But day cometh: so let us part!

The world is deep, deeper than daylight could ever understand. Not everything may be spoken in daylight. But day is coming, so let us part!

O heaven above me, thou modest one! thou glowing one! O thou, my happiness before sunrise! The day cometh: so let us part!—

O heaven above me, so modest and glowing! You are my happiness before sunrise! The day is coming, so let us part!

Thus spake Zarathustra.

This is what Zarathustra said.