# Der Ball · The Ball

Neue Gedichte · Rainer Maria Rilke · New Poems: The Other Part

Source: https://1732studios.com/books/rilke/der-ball. Data: https://1732studios.com/books/rilke/der-ball.json. Audio: https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/<line id>.m4a.

**1** Du Runder, der das Warme aus zwei Händen  
You round one, who the warmth out of two hands
> An adjective used as a noun: Runder is the adjective rund, 'round', used as a noun of direct address: Du Runder means 'you round one'. der introduces the relative clause that follows, describing what the ball does.

**2** im Fliegen oben fortgibt, sorglos wie  
in flying, up above, gives away, carefree as
> Separable verb staying joined: fortgibt is the present tense, third-person singular, of fortgeben, 'to give away'. As a separable verb it could split in other positions, but here, at the end of its clause, prefix and stem stay joined.

**3** sein Eigenes; was in den Gegenständen  
as its own; what, in the objects,
> A noun meaning its own: Eigenes is the adjective eigen, 'own', used as a noun meaning 'what is one's own'. sein Eigenes means 'its own [warmth]', referring back to das Warme, 'the warmth', from the line before.

**4** nicht bleiben kann, zu unbeschwert für sie,  
cannot stay, too unburdened for them,
> Un- prefix makes unburdened: unbeschwert means 'unburdened, carefree', combining the negating prefix un- with beschwert, 'burdened, weighed down'. zu unbeschwert für sie means 'too unburdened for them'.


**5** zu wenig Ding und doch noch Ding genug,  
too little a thing, and yet still thing enough,
> Noun repeated, too little enough: zu wenig Ding und doch noch Ding genug means 'too little a thing, and yet still thing enough'. Ding, 'thing', appears twice, once qualified by zu wenig, 'too little', and once by genug, 'enough', placed after the noun.

**6** um nicht aus allem draußen Aufgereihten  
so as not, out of all the things ranged outside,
> A negated purpose clause: um nicht ... einzugleiten means 'so as not to glide in'. um ... zu forms a purpose clause; adding nicht before the infinitive negates the purpose, so as to avoid the action named.

**7** unsichtbar plötzlich in uns einzugleiten:  
suddenly, invisibly, to glide into us:
> Infinitive completes a purpose clause: einzugleiten is the infinitive of eingleiten, 'to glide in', with zu inserted between prefix and stem: ein-zu-gleiten. It completes the um nicht ... zu construction begun in the line before.

**8** das glitt in dich, du zwischen Fall und Flug  
that glided into you, you between fall and flight
> Simple past, glided: glitt is the simple past, third-person singular, of gleiten, 'to glide'. das glitt in dich means 'that glided into you', with das referring back to something named earlier in the poem.


**9** noch Unentschlossener, der, wenn er steigt,  
still an undecided one, who, when he rises,
> An undecided one, as noun: Unentschlossener is the adjective unentschlossen, 'undecided', used as a noun, 'an undecided one'. noch Unentschlossener means 'still an undecided one', describing the ball's uncertain motion.

**10** als hätte er ihn mit hinaufgehoben,  
as though it had carried him up along with it,
> Subjunctive after als, as though: als hätte er uses hätte, the Konjunktiv II (subjunctive) of haben, 'to have'. mit is a stranded separable prefix of mit ... hinaufheben, 'to lift up along with', not the preposition 'with' here.

**11** den Wurf entführt und freiläßt–, und sich neigt  
carries the throw off and sets it free–, and inclines,
> Two verbs, carries off and frees: entführt and freiläßt are present tense, third-person singular, of entführen, 'to carry off, to abduct', and freilassen, 'to release, to set free'. freiläßt is the old spelling of freilässt.

**12** und einhält und den Spielenden von oben  
and pauses, and to the players from above
> Participle noun for players: Spielenden is the dative plural of Spielende, the present participle of spielen, 'to play', used as a noun meaning 'players'. den Spielenden von oben means 'to the players from above'.

**13** auf einmal eine neue Stelle zeigt,  
all at once shows a new place,
> An idiom, all at once: auf einmal is an idiom meaning 'all at once, suddenly'. auf, 'at, on', and einmal, 'once', combine to form a fixed phrase rather than a literal 'at one time'.

**14** sie ordnend wie zu einer Tanzfigur,  
arranging them as if into a dance-figure,
> Present participle, arranging: ordnend is the present participle of ordnen, 'to arrange, to order'. sie ordnend wie zu einer Tanzfigur means 'arranging them as though into a dance-figure', an action alongside the main verb rather than the main verb itself.


**15** um dann, erwartet und erwünscht von allen,  
in order then, awaited and longed for by all,
> Two past participles, awaited and desired: erwartet and erwünscht are past participles of erwarten, 'to await', and the adjective erwünscht, 'desired'. erwartet und erwünscht von allen means 'awaited and desired by all'. um here opens a purpose clause completed by zuzufallen two lines later.

**16** rasch, einfach, kunstlos, ganz Natur,  
swift, simple, artless, all nature,
> Suffix -los makes artless: kunstlos means 'artless, without artifice', combining Kunst, 'art', with the negating suffix -los. rasch, einfach, kunstlos, ganz Natur strings together adjectives describing the ball's motion as swift, simple, artless, all nature.

**17** dem Becher hoher Hände zuzufallen.  
to fall into the cup of upraised hands.
> Infinitive completes a purpose clause: zuzufallen is the infinitive of the separable verb zufallen, 'to fall to, to fall into', with zu inserted between prefix and stem: zu-zu-fallen. It completes the um ... zu construction begun earlier: 'in order to fall into the cup of hands'.

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Source text: public domain (Rainer Maria Rilke, died 1926; Neue Gedichte published 1907 and 1908), from Wikisource. English translation and notes: © 2026 1732 Studios, LLC. Narration: synthesized for this edition.