The Proverbs of Confucius by Friedrich Schiller

Translation

The stripling sets sail on the ocean with a thousand masts.
Silently, in a rescued ship, an old man drifts to shore.
—“Expectation and Fulfillment”, Epigram by Friedrich Schiller

I.

Time unfolds in a three-fold way:
The future stalks us cautiously,
The present like an arrow flies,
The past remains forever-still.

Impatience never hurries Time
On its way, if it delays.
Neither fear nor doubt impedes it
In its course, when it races by.
No remorse or magic saying
Can move the motionless.

If you wish to capture life’s joys
With true wisdom and delight,
Then heed the slow and steady one—
And never treat him as a fool.
Never befriend the fleeting,
Or treat the constant as your foe.

II.

Threefold is the shape of space:
Its never-ending length strives
Ceaselessly into the distance,
Endlessly outpours its breadth,
Bottomless remains its depth.

An image for a model life:
Always keep on going forward,
Neither idle nor retire,
If you long for perfection.
If you wish to know Earth’s wonders,
Always extend yourself broadly.
If the essence is what you seek,
You must plunge into the abyss.

Persistence lead us to the goal,
Abundance lies in clarity,
The Truth lies buried in the depths.

Translation © David B. Gosselin

Reflections and commentary

In this series of poetical aphorisms, Schiller brilliantly captures the timeless teachings of the Eastern masters in their signature spare, classic style.