Some joys, it’s true, are wrong in Heaven’s eyes;
Yet Heaven is not averse to compromise.[Le ciel défend, de vrai, certains contentements;
Mais on trouve avec lui des accommodements.]Molière (1622-1673) French playwright, actor [stage name for Jean-Baptiste Poquelin]
Tartuffe, Act 4, sc. 5 [Tartuffe to Elmire] (1664) [tr. Wilbur (1961)]
(Source)
Moliere inserts a note in this line, "A scoundrel is speaking [C’est un scélérat qui parle.]"
(Source (French)). Alternate translations:Heaven, it is true, forbids certain gratifications, but there are ways and means of compounding such matters.
[tr. Van Laun (c. 1870)]Heaven, it is true, forbids certain gratifications; but there are ways of compounding these matters.
[tr. Mathew (1890)]Heaven forbids, 't is true, some satisfactions;
But we find means to make things right with Heaven.
[tr. Page (1909)]It's true that heaven forbids some satisfactions,
But there are possible ways to understandings.
[tr. Bishop (1957)]It's true, there are some pleasures Heaven denies;
But there are ways to reach a compromise.
[tr. Frame (1967)]It's true that Heaven forbids certain pleasures,
but it's possible to make bargains.
[tr. Steiner (2008)]Heaven forbids, in truth, certain contentments;
But we find with him accomodations.
[Source]It's true Heaven forbids some pleasures, but a compromise can usually be found.
[E.g.]