O du, mein holder Abendstern

Like a portent of death, twilight shrouds the earth
and envelops the valley in its sable robe;
the soul, that yearns for those heights,
dreads to take its dark and awful flight.
There you shine, o fairest of the stars,
and shed your gentle light from afar;
your friendly beam penetrates the twilight gloom
and points the way out from the valley.

O my fair evening star,
I always gladly greeted thee:
from a heart that never betrayed its faith,
greet her when she passes,
when she soars above this earthly valley
to become a blessed angel in Heaven!

O du, mein holder Abendstern da ópera Tannhäuser (1845)
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)