Odd, the words: ‘while away the time’. How to hold it fast…
““Odd, the words: ‘while away the time’. How to hold it fast the harder thing. Who is not fearful: where is there a staying, where in all this is there any being? Look, as the day slows towards the space that draws it into dusk: rising became upstanding, standing a laying down, and then that which accepts its lying blurs to darkness. Mountains rest, outgloried be the stars - but even there, time’s transition glimmers. Ah, nightly refuged in my wild heart, roofless, the imperishable lingers. --- Wunderliches Wort: die Zeit vertreiben! Sie zu halten, wäre das Problem. Denn, wen ängstigts nicht: wo ist ein Bleiben, wo ein endlich Sein in alledem? - Sieh, der Tag verlangsamt sich, entgegen jenem Raum, der ihn nach Abend nimmt: Aufstehn wurde Stehn, und Stehn wird Legen, und das willig Liegende verschwimmt - Berge ruhn, von Sternen überprächtigt; - aber auch in ihnen flimmert Zeit. Ach, in meinem wilden Herzen nächtigt obdachlos die Unvergänglichkeit.””
About This Quote
This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.
The poem contemplates the fleeting nature of time, fear of stagnation, and the perpetual transition from day to night, seeking permanence in impermanence.
In simple terms: Time passes, we fear staying still.
Key Takeaway
Embrace change, seek meaning.
Themes
philosophy
existence
impermanence
Mood
melancholic
contemplative
poetic
Type
lyem
philosophical
ly
When to use this quote
- nighttime reflection
- personal meditation
- creative writing
Key Concepts
temporal flow
existential anxiety
nature cycles
Questions to Reflect On
- What does “imperishable” mean to you?
- How do you confront time’s passage?
A Different Perspective
Finding permanence may be impossible.