# Der Ölbaumgarten · The Garden of Olives

Neue Gedichte · Rainer Maria Rilke · New Poems

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

**1** Er ging hinauf unter dem grauen Laub  
He went up under the grey foliage
> Separable prefix comes last: Hinaufgehen means 'to go up'. In a main clause it splits: er ging hinauf, with the verb ging second and the prefix hinauf at the end. Hinauf marks motion up and away from the speaker.

**2** ganz grau und aufgelöst im ölgelände  
all grey and dissolved in the olive ground,
> Past participle used as adjective: Aufgelöst is the past participle of auflösen, 'to dissolve, break up, undo', used here as an adjective. Grau und aufgelöst describes the subject, coordinated with grau. Ölgelände, lower cased here, means 'olive ground'.

**3** und legte seine Stirne voller Staub  
and laid his forehead, covered in dust,

**4** tief in das Staubigsein der heißen Hände.  
deep into the dustiness of his hot hands.
> A coined abstract noun: Rilke nominalizes the phrase staubig sein, 'to be dusty', into one neuter noun, das Staubigsein, literally 'the being dusty'. German freely turns whole phrases into nouns this way. Here it names dust as a state rather than a mere coating.
> In plus accusative for motion: In here governs the accusative, das Staubigsein, rather than the dative, because the motion is into something, not rest inside it. The accusative das, instead of dative dem, marks this as a movement toward, a laying down.


**5** Nach allem dies. Und dieses war der Schluß.  
After everything, this. And this was the end.
> The end, the close: Der Schluss, spelled der Schluß here, means 'the end, the close, the conclusion'. It stands alone as its own short sentence, set apart from the rest by the periods around dies.

**6** Jetzt soll ich gehen, während ich erblinde,  
Now I am to go, while I am going blind,
> Obligation laid on one: The modal sollen expresses a duty imposed from outside: ich soll gehen means 'I am to go, I am supposed to go'. It marks the action as required of the speaker, not chosen by him.
> Subordinating conjunction sends the verb last: Während, 'while', is a subordinating conjunction, so its clause puts the finite verb at the end: während ich erblinde. Erblinden means 'to go blind, to lose one's sight'; the prefix er- marks entering a state.

**7** und warum willst Du, daß ich sagen muß,  
and why do You will that I must say

**8** Du seist, wenn ich Dich selber nicht mehr finde.  
that You are, when I myself no longer find You.
> Subjunctive for reported speech: Seist is the Konjunktiv I of sein, 'to be', the subjunctive German uses to report a claim rather than assert it directly: 'that You are, that You exist'. It marks the statement as something said, not confirmed.


**9** Ich finde Dich nicht mehr. Nicht in mir, nein.  
I no longer find You. Not in me, no.
> No longer, not anymore: Nicht mehr means 'no longer, not any more'. It implies an earlier state that has ended: something was once found and now is not. The phrase repeats across the lines that follow.

**10** Nicht in den andern. Nicht in diesem Stein.  
Not in the others. Not in this stone.

**11** Ich finde Dich nicht mehr. Ich bin allein.  
I no longer find You. I am alone.


**12** Ich bin allein mit aller Menschen Gram,  
I am alone with all of mankind's grief,
> Genitive placed before its noun: Aller Menschen is the genitive plural, 'of all people', placed before the noun it modifies, Gram, 'grief, sorrow'. This fronted genitive is literary word order; everyday German would say der Gram aller Menschen.

**13** den ich durch Dich zu lindern unternahm,  
which through You I undertook to ease,
> Unternehmen plus zu infinitive: Unternahm is the simple past of unternehmen, 'to undertake, set about'; it governs an infinitive with zu: zu lindern unternahm, 'undertook to ease'. Lindern means 'to ease, alleviate' pain or grief. Den refers back to Gram, named just before.

**14** der Du nicht bist, o namenlose Scham...  
You who are not, o nameless shame...
> Relative clause of address: Der Du nicht bist means literally 'you who are not'. The relative pronoun der reaches back to the addressed Du, and the verb bist stands at the end of its clause, as subordinate clauses require.
> Nameless, boundless: Die Scham means 'shame'. Namenlos, 'nameless', here means boundless or unspeakable, so namenlose Scham means 'unutterable shame'. The line trails off into an ellipsis rather than closing.


**15** Später erzählte man: ein Engel kam–.  
Later it was told: an angel came—.
> The impersonal pronoun man: Man is the impersonal pronoun, 'one, people, they', used for something said without naming who said it: erzählte man means 'people told, it was told'. It sets the following claim at a distance, since no witness is named.


**16** Warum ein Engel? Ach es kam die Nacht  
Why an angel? Ah, the night came
> Placeholder es with inversion: Es here is a dummy subject filling the first slot; the real subject, die Nacht, follows the verb: es kam die Nacht, 'there came the night'. German uses this es frame to delay and highlight the true subject.

**17** und blätterte gleichgültig in den Bäumen.  
and leafed indifferently through the trees.
> To leaf through, page through: Blättern in means 'to leaf through, to page through' a book. Gleichgültig means 'indifferently, with indifference'. The verb plays on Blatt, which means both 'leaf' and 'page'.

**18** Die Jünger rührten sich in ihren Träumen.  
The disciples stirred in their dreams.
> Disciples, followers: Der Jünger, plural die Jünger unchanged, is the word for a religious 'disciple, follower'. Sich rühren is the reflexive verb 'to stir, to move'. Here the disciples stir only inside their dreams.

**19** Warum ein Engel? Ach es kam die Nacht.  
Why an angel? Ah, the night came.


**20** Die Nacht, die kam, war keine ungemeine;  
The night that came was no uncommon one;
> Uncommon, extraordinary: Ungemein means 'uncommon, extraordinary', literally 'not common'. Keine ungemeine is a double negative: 'not an extraordinary one', that is, an ordinary night. Gemein in its older sense means 'common, ordinary'.

**21** so gehen hunderte vorbei.  
hundreds like it pass by.
> Separable verb vorbeigehen: Vorbeigehen, 'to pass by, go past', splits in a main clause: hunderte gehen vorbei, with the prefix vorbei at the end. Hunderte, 'hundreds', is used here as a bare plural noun.


**22** Da schlafen Hunde, und da liegen Steine.  
There dogs are sleeping, and there stones lie.
> Da fronted, verb inverts: Da, 'there', opens the clause, so the verb comes before its subject: da schlafen Hunde, 'there sleep dogs'. German fronts an adverb like this and inverts word order to keep the verb in second position.

**23** Ach eine traurige, ach irgendeine,  
Ah, a sorrowful one, ah, just any one,
> Some or other, just any: Irgendein means 'some or other, just any'. Here, feminine to agree with Nacht, it appears alone as irgendeine, 'just any one'. It reduces the noun it stands for to an unspecified instance.

**24** die wartet, bis es wieder Morgen sei.  
that waits until it be morning again.
> Subjunctive sei after bis: Sei is the Konjunktiv I of sein, used here after bis, 'until', for an event still awaited and not yet real: bis es wieder Morgen sei, 'until it be morning again'. Es wird Morgen is the impersonal idiom for 'morning comes'.


**25** Denn Engel kommen nicht zu solchen Betern,  
For angels do not come to such prayers as these,
> Coordinating conjunction, normal order: Denn means 'for, because' and is a coordinating conjunction, so it does not send the verb to the end: denn Engel kommen nicht keeps normal word order, unlike the subordinating weil. Die Beter means 'those who pray, supplicants'.

**26** und Nächte werden nicht um solche groß.  
and nights do not grow great around such men.
> Werden plus adjective, to become: Werden plus an adjective means 'to become, to grow': Nächte werden groß means 'nights grow great, become grand'. Um solche means 'around such people'.

**27** Die Sich-Verlierenden läßt alles los,  
Those who lose themselves are let go by everything,
> A nominalized reflexive verb: Die Sich-Verlierenden is a nominalized present participle of the reflexive sich verlieren, 'to lose oneself': it means 'those who are losing themselves'. Rilke hyphenates the reflexive pronoun into the noun itself.
> Separable verb loslassen: Loslassen, 'to let go, release', splits: alles läßt … los, 'everything lets go'. The object die Sich-Verlierenden is fronted before the verb, so the clause reads alles läßt die Sich-Verlierenden los, 'everything releases those who lose themselves'.

**28** und sie sind preisgegeben von den Vätern  
and they are given up by their fathers
> To give up, abandon: Preisgeben means 'to give up, abandon, expose, surrender'. The passive sie sind preisgegeben von den Vätern means 'they are abandoned by the fathers'. Von marks the agent of the passive.

**29** und ausgeschlossen aus der Mütter Schoß.  
and shut out from the mothers' womb.
> Ausschließen aus plus dative: Ausgeschlossen is the past participle of the separable verb ausschließen, 'to shut out, exclude', which governs aus plus dative. Der Mütter is the genitive plural, 'of the mothers', fronted before Schoß, 'lap, womb': aus der Mütter Schoß means 'from the mothers' womb'.

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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.