The Confessions of St. Augustine — Page 10
Hear, O God. Alas, for man's sin! So saith man, and Thou pitiest him;
Höre, o Gott. Wehe, über die Sünde des Menschen! So spricht der Mensch, und Du erbarmst Dich seiner;
for Thou madest him, but sin in him Thou madest not.
denn Du hast ihn geschaffen, aber die Sünde in ihm hast Du nicht geschaffen.
Who remindeth me of the sins of my infancy?
Wer erinnert mich an die Sünden meiner Kindheit?
for in Thy sight none is pure from sin, not even the infant whose life is but a day upon the earth.
denn in Deinen Augen ist niemand rein von Sünde, nicht einmal das Kind, dessen Leben nur ein Tag auf Erden ist.
Who remindeth me?
Wer erinnert mich?
doth not each little infant, in whom I see what of myself I remember not?
ist es nicht jedes kleine Kind, in dem ich sehe, was ich von mir selbst nicht mehr erinnere?
What then was my sin?
Was also war meine Sünde?
was it that I hung upon the breast and cried?
War es, dass ich an der Brust hing und weinte?
for should I now so do for food suitable to my age, justly should I be laughed at and reproved.
denn täte ich das jetzt um Nahrung willen, die meinem Alter angemessen ist, würde ich zu Recht ausgelacht und getadelt werden.
What I then did was worthy reproof; but since I could not understand reproof, custom and reason forbade me to be reproved.
Was ich damals tat, war tadelnswert; aber da ich Tadel nicht verstehen konnte, verboten mir Sitte und Vernunft, getadelt zu werden.
For those habits, when grown, we root out and cast away.
Denn jene Gewohnheiten rotten wir, wenn wir erwachsen sind, aus und werfen sie fort.
Now no man, though he prunes, wittingly casts away what is good.
Nun wirft kein Mensch, auch wenn er beschneidet, wissentlich weg, was gut ist.
Or was it then good, even for a while, to cry for what, if given, would hurt?
Oder war es damals gut, wenn auch nur für eine Weile, nach etwas zu weinen, das, wenn man es bekäme, schaden würde?
bitterly to resent, that persons free, and its own elders, yea, the very authors of its birth, served it not?
Bitterlich zu grollen, dass freie Personen und seine eigenen Älteren, ja, die eigentlichen Urheber seiner Geburt, ihm nicht dienten?
that many besides, wiser than it, obeyed not the nod of its good pleasure?
dass viele andere dazu, die weiser waren als es, dem Wink seines Wohlgefallens nicht gehorchten?
to do its best to strike and hurt, because commands were not obeyed, which had been obeyed to its hurt?
sein Bestes zu tun, um zu schlagen und zu schaden, weil Befehlen nicht gehorcht wurde, denen zum eigenen Schaden hätte gehorcht werden sollen?
The weakness then of infant limbs, not its will, is its innocence.
Die Schwäche der kindlichen Glieder also, nicht sein Wille, ist seine Unschuld.
Vocabulary
- Höre
- Imperative form of hören; listen or hear
- o
- Exclamatory particle expressing address or emotion
- Gott
- God; the supreme divine being
- Wehe
- Woe; expression of grief or lamentation
- über
- Over, above, or about something
- die
- Definite article the, feminine or plural
- Sünde
- Sin; a moral transgression or wrongdoing
- des
- Genitive definite article of the masculine/neuter
- Menschen
- Of humans; genitive or plural of Mensch
- So
- So, thus; in this way or manner
- spricht
- Speaks; third person singular of sprechen
- der
- Definite article the, masculine nominative
- Mensch
- Human being; a person or mankind
- und
- And; coordinating conjunction linking elements
- Du
- You; informal second person singular pronoun
- erbarmst
- Show mercy; second person of sich erbarmen
- Dich
- Yourself; accusative reflexive of du
- seiner
- His; genitive or dative pronoun referring to him
- denn
- Because, for; causal conjunction or particle
- hast
- Have; second person singular of haben
- ihn
- Him; accusative third person singular masculine
- geschaffen
- Created; past participle of schaffen
- aber
- But; adversative coordinating conjunction
- in
- In, inside; preposition indicating location
- ihm
- Him; dative third person singular masculine
- nicht
- Not; negation particle
- Wer
- Who; interrogative or relative pronoun
- erinnert
- Reminds or remembers; third person of erinnern
- mich
- Me; accusative first person singular pronoun
- an
- At, on, to; preposition indicating reference
- Sünden
- Sins; plural of Sünde, moral transgressions
- meiner
- My; genitive first person singular possessive
- Kindheit
- Childhood; the period of being a child
- Deinen
- Your; accusative plural possessive of du
- Augen
- Eyes; plural of Auge
- ist
- Is; third person singular of sein
- niemand
- Nobody; indefinite pronoun meaning no one
- rein
- Pure, clean; free from impurity or sin
- von
- From, of; preposition indicating origin
- einmal
- Once; at one time or even one time
- das
- The; neuter definite article or pronoun
- Kind
- Child; a young person or offspring
- dessen
- Whose; genitive relative pronoun masculine/neuter
- Leben
- Life; the state of being alive
- nur
- Only, just; limiting adverb
- ein
- A, one; indefinite article or numeral
- Tag
- Day; a period of twenty-four hours
- auf
- On, upon; preposition indicating surface or location
- Erden
- Earth; archaic dative form of Erde
- es
- It; third person singular neuter pronoun
- jedes
- Every, each; indefinite determiner neuter form
- kleine
- Small, little; adjective inflected form of klein
- dem
- The; dative masculine/neuter definite article
- ich
- I; first person singular subject pronoun
- sehe
- See; first person singular of sehen
- was
- What; interrogative or relative pronoun
- mir
- Me; dative first person singular pronoun
- selbst
- Myself, itself; reflexive intensifying pronoun
- mehr
- More; comparative adverb or adjective
- erinnere
- Remember; first person singular of erinnern
- Was
- What; interrogative pronoun beginning a question
- also
- So, therefore; consequently or thus
- meine
- My; first person singular possessive adjective
- War
- Was; past tense of sein, to be
- dass
- That; subordinating conjunction introducing clauses
- Brust
- Breast, chest; the front of the torso
- hing
- Hung; past tense of hängen
- weinte
- Cried, wept; past tense of weinen
- täte
- Would do; subjunctive past of tun
- jetzt
- Now; at the present moment
- um
- Around, for, at; preposition with various uses
- Nahrung
- Nourishment, food; sustenance for the body
- willen
- Sake; used in um...willen meaning for the sake
- meinem
- My; dative masculine/neuter possessive pronoun
- Alter
- Age; a person's years of life
- angemessen
- Appropriate, suitable; fitting for circumstances
- würde
- Would; conditional form of werden
- zu
- To, too, closed; preposition or infinitive marker
- Recht
- Right, law; what is just or correct
- ausgelacht
- Laughed at; past participle of auslachen
- getadelt
- Rebuked, criticized; past participle of tadeln
- werden
- Become, will; auxiliary or main verb
- damals
- Back then, at that time; past time adverb
- tat
- Did; past tense of tun, to do
- tadelnswert
- Blameworthy; deserving of criticism or rebuke
- da
- There, since, as; place adverb or conjunction
- Tadel
- Rebuke, blame; criticism directed at someone
- verstehen
- Understand; to comprehend or grasp meaning
- konnte
- Could; past tense of können
- verboten
- Forbidden, prohibited; past participle of verbieten
- Sitte
- Custom, morality; social norm or convention
- Vernunft
- Reason, rationality; the faculty of logical thought
- Denn
- For, because; causal conjunction or particle
- jene
- Those; demonstrative pronoun referring to things
- Gewohnheiten
- Habits; plural of Gewohnheit, usual practices
- wir
- We; first person plural subject pronoun
- wenn
- When, if; conditional or temporal conjunction
- erwachsen
- Grown up, adult; mature or fully developed
- sind
- Are; first/third person plural of sein
- aus
- Out of, from; preposition indicating origin
- werfen
- Throw; to cast or hurl something away
- sie
- They, her; third person pronoun plural or feminine
- fort
- Away, forth; adverb indicating departure or removal
- Nun
- Now; at this point or current moment
- wirft
- Throws; third person singular of werfen
- kein
- No, not a; negative indefinite article
- auch
- Also, too; additive adverb or particle
- er
- He; third person singular masculine pronoun
- beschneidet
- Trims, prunes; third person of beschneiden
- wissentlich
- Knowingly, deliberately; with full awareness
- weg
- Away; adverb indicating removal or departure
- gut
- Good; positive adjective or adverb
- Oder
- Or; coordinating disjunctive conjunction
- für
- For; preposition indicating purpose or benefit
- eine
- A, one; feminine indefinite article
- Weile
- A while; a period or span of time
- nach
- After, toward; preposition of direction or time
- etwas
- Something, somewhat; indefinite pronoun or adverb
- weinen
- To cry, weep; express grief through tears
- man
- One, you; impersonal indefinite pronoun
- bekäme
- Would receive; subjunctive past of bekommen
- schaden
- To harm, damage; cause injury or loss
- Bitterlich
- Bitterly; adverb expressing intense sadness
- grollen
- Resent, grumble; hold a grudge against someone
- freie
- Free; adjective meaning independent or unrestrained
- Personen
- Persons; plural of Person, individuals
- seine
- His; third person masculine possessive adjective
- eigenen
- Own; adjective meaning belonging to oneself
- Älteren
- Elders; plural of Ältere, older persons
- ja
- Yes; affirmative particle or emphatic adverb
- eigentlichen
- Actual, real; adjective meaning proper or true
- Urheber
- Originator, author; one who causes or creates
- Geburt
- Birth; the act of being born
- dienten
- Served; past tense plural of dienen
- viele
- Many; adjective or pronoun indicating quantity
- andere
- Others, other; different or additional ones
- dazu
- For that, to that; adverb of purpose
- weiser
- Wiser; comparative form of weise
- waren
- Were; past tense plural of sein
- als
- Than, as, when; comparative or temporal conjunction
- Wink
- Sign, hint, gesture; a subtle indication
- seines
- His; genitive masculine possessive pronoun
- Wohlgefallens
- Pleasure, approval; genitive of Wohlgefallen
- gehorchten
- Obeyed; past tense plural of gehorchen
- sein
- His or to be; possessive or infinitive verb
- Bestes
- Best; neuter adjective used as noun
- tun
- Do; to perform an action or deed
- schlagen
- Hit, beat; to strike with force
- weil
- Because; subordinating causal conjunction
- Befehlen
- Commands; dative plural of Befehl or infinitive
- gehorcht
- Obeyed; past participle of gehorchen
- wurde
- Was, became; past tense of werden
- denen
- To those, whom; dative relative pronoun plural
- zum
- To the; contraction of zu dem
- Schaden
- Harm, damage; injury or negative consequence
- hätte
- Would have; subjunctive past of haben
- sollen
- Should, ought to; modal verb of obligation
- Die
- The; feminine or plural definite article
- Schwäche
- Weakness; lack of strength or capability
- kindlichen
- Childlike, childish; adjective inflected form
- Glieder
- Limbs, members; plural of Glied
- Wille
- Will; the faculty of conscious decision-making
- Unschuld
- Innocence; state of being free from guilt
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