
A tormented boy, born into a world of relentless abuse, spends his early days clinging to a fragile hope that life might offer something beyond the incessant beating of flesh and spirit. He watches the sun set over a landscape of relentless labor, wondering whether he must forever endure the weight of others’ cruelty or finally seek the release of death. Yet, driven by a stubborn yearning to find meaning, he steps away from surrender and begins a restless journey beyond his own body.
The narrative follows his wandering soul as it inhabits strangers across continents—an enslaved laborer in distant mines, a woman caught in the turmoil of colonial conquest, a child in a sun‑kissed land soon overtaken by foreign invaders. Through each incarnation he bears witness to the same patterns of oppression, violence, and fleeting moments of tenderness, prompting a quiet, urgent question: can a spirit ever find peace amid endless suffering? The story unfolds as a lyrical meditation on rebirth, resilience, and the search for a resting place for a weary heart.
Language
de
Duration
~47 minutes (45K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Produced by Jens Sadowski
Release date
2012-07-13
Rights
Public domain in the USA.

1892–1971
Austrian writer and translator Carl Ehrenstein was part of the German-language expressionist movement, and his life carried him from Vienna to exile in London. His work reflects a restless literary era shaped by modernism, upheaval, and displacement.
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