Novalis: Celebrating a great banquet of love as a festival of peace

Anti-war essays, poems, short stories and literary excerpts

Novalis
From Christendom or Europe (1799)
Translator unknown

Now let us turn to the political drama of our times. The old and new order are locked in struggle. The inadequacy and destitution of the previous political institutions has become apparent in frightful phenomena. If only the historical end of the war were, as in the sciences, a more intimate and varied contact and connection between the European states!

…

No peace can be concluded among the conflicting powers. All peace is only an illusion, only a temporary truce. From the standpoint of the cabinets, and of common opinion, no unity is conceivable.

…

All conquests mean nothing, for the inner capitol of that kingdom lies not behind
earthen walls and cannot be stormed.

Who knows whether there has been enough war, whether it will ever cease, unless one seizes the palm branch, which a spiritual power alone can offer. Blood will continue to flow in Europe until the nations recognize their terrible madness. This will continue to drive them into circles until, moved and calmed by sacred music, they step before their past altars in a motley throng. Then they will undertake works of peace, celebrating with hot tears a great banquet of love as a festival of peace on the smoking battlefields.

*****

From Heinrich von Ofterdingen (1800)
Translated by Palmer Hilty

Dreams of youth are transitory,
Distant lies my fatherland;
And my house – how old my story! -
Victim fell to firebrand.
Frightful as the stormy breakers
Came the wild invading wreckers,
And my paradise was sand.

Blazing embers darted, marging
Far and wide the azure sky.
Knights on horses wildly charging
Stormed our caravanserai.
Brothers fell to sabers’ clashing,
Father under rooftree’s crashing,
We in harsh captivity.

…

How tranquilly the Christians could have visited the Holy Sepulcher without the need of starting a terrible, useless war which has embittered everything, spread endless wretchedness, and separated the East from Europe forever.

…

The new world bursts upon the sight
And darkens the daystar’s glowing light;
Where ancient mossy ruins glimmer
One sees a wondrous future shimmer;
And things once commonplace and dull
Appear now strange and wonderful.
The reign of love is ushered in
And fable now begins to spin.
Each being seeks its primal dower
And casts about for words of power.
And so the great heart of the world
Is stirred, and endless flowers unfurled.
All things must into all others flow,
Each through the other thrive and grow
And each in all others represented

The while with all of them it mingles
And avidly drops into their deeps,
Refreshing thus its nature, singles
A thousand thoughts out, new invented.
World turns to dream and dream to world,
Belief into being hurled
Which is yet is seen but from afar…