Life is a Lie (with enchanting anguish)

Life is a lie with enchanting anguish,
And that's what makes it so powerful: 
With its crude hand it writes
Lethal letters.

Every time I close my eyes, I say,
"As soon as the heart is disturbed,
Life is a lie, but even life, sometimes,
Garnishes its deception with pleasures. 

Turn your face to the gray-haired sky,
Try to read your fate in the moon;
Calm yourself, mortal, and don't demand
The truth you can't use."

How good it feels, in the blizzard of cherry blossoms,
To think that life is a road.
Let frivolous darlings lie.
Let frivolous friends betray. 

Whether a tender word touches me
Or a tongue cuts sharper than a razorblade,
I'm ready for anything,
Ruthlessly used to it all.

I feel a chill from these heights.
The fire of stars carries no heat.
Those I loved have denied me.
Those I lived for have forgotten me. 

Even so, repressed and persecuted,
I greet the dawn with a smile
On this earth, so close and so beloved, 
And thank life for everything.