Schlafes Bruder

Schlafes Bruder is a novel by the Austrian Robert Schneider (). The book was first published in 1992 by Reclam. It was an international success, translated to 36 languages.

The plot is set in an Austrian mountain village in the 19th century. The protagonists (Elias, Peter and Elsbeth) face hardship and fate that they cannot understand nor prevent. The title is derived from Greek mythology, where Hypnos, god of sleep, is the brother of Thanatos, god of death. A chorale which Bach set to conclude his cantata Ich will den Kreuzstab gerne tragen, BWV 56, which uses the same image, plays a role in the story.

In 1994/95, Herbert Willi () composed an opera Schlafes Bruder on a libretto by Robert Schneider, on a commission by the Opernhaus Zürich to celebrate 1000 Jahre Österreich. The production was invited to the Wiener Festwochen of 1996. In 1995, Joseph Vilsmaier directed a film Schlafes Bruder (Brother of Sleep), with André Eisermann () as Elias, Ben Becker as Peter, and Dana Vávrová as Elsbeth. It won several awards and was nominated for the Golden Globe. In 2005, the band Helangår set the novel to music.

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