Poem 489

In plain words

Your whole life has run out in work and labour, and this you have counted as life; you eat three meals a day and are content, and this you have counted as life; you sleep at ease till your weariness is gone, and this you have counted as life. No! It is to know the secret of life that God has given you birth. Having intelligence and skill, yet not coming to know it, why spend all your time in vain? Live as human beings, at least from now on, my friends; what more than this can I make known?