# Die Marienprozession · The Procession of the Virgin

Neue Gedichte · Rainer Maria Rilke · New Poems

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

**1** Aus allen Türmen stürzt sich, Fluß um Fluß,  
From every tower it hurls itself, stream upon stream,
> A reflexive verb of motion: Sich stürzen means 'to plunge, to hurl oneself'. Stürzt is the finite verb and sich its reflexive pronoun, both third-person singular. The grammatical subject is not named yet; Fluß um Fluß, 'stream upon stream', is an adverbial phrase, not the subject.

**2** hinwallendes Metall in solchen Massen,  
down-surging metal in such masses,
> Wallen with a directional prefix: Wallen means 'to billow, surge, seethe'. The prefix hin- adds direction away from the speaker, so hinwallend means 'surging away and down'. It is nominative neuter singular, describing Metall, 'metal', in solchen Massen, 'in such masses'.

**3** als sollte drunten in der Form der Gassen  
as though down there, in the mould of the alleys,
> An unreal comparison with sollte: Als with a subjunctive verb introduces an unreal comparison, meaning 'as though'. Sollte is the past subjunctive of sollen, 'were to, was supposed to'. It is the main verb, with drunten, 'down there', and in der Form der Gassen, 'in the mold of the alleys', depending on it.

**4** ein blanker Tag erstehn aus Bronzeguß,  
a bright day were to rise up out of bronze-casting,
> A verb meaning to arise: Erstehn, an older infinitive form of erstehen, means 'to arise, come into being'. It depends on sollte from the line above, so 'a bright day were to arise'. Aus Bronzeguß, 'out of bronze casting', is dative, depending on erstehn.


**5** an dessen Rand, gehämmert und erhaben,  
on whose rim, hammered and raised in relief,
> A genitive relative pronoun: Dessen is the masculine or neuter genitive of the relative pronoun der, meaning 'whose, of which'. It depends on Rand, 'rim', and refers back to Tag, 'day', from the previous stanza. A genitive relative clause can span a stanza break.
> Raised, and also sublime: Erhaben literally means 'raised, embossed', the term for figures standing out from a metal surface. It also means 'sublime, exalted'. Here it is coordinate with gehämmert, 'hammered', both depending on und, describing Rand, 'rim'.

**6** zu sehen ist der buntgebundne Zug  
there is to be seen the brightly-bound procession
> Sein plus zu plus infinitive: Sein combined with zu and an infinitive expresses what can be done: zu sehen ist means 'is to be seen, can be seen'. Ist is the main verb; its subject, der buntgebundne Zug, 'the brightly bound procession', is named at the end of the line.

**7** der leichten Mädchen und der neuen Knaben,  
of the light-footed girls and the new-made boys,
> Two genitive plurals in parallel: Der leichten Mädchen, 'of the light-footed girls', and der neuen Knaben, 'of the new boys', are both genitive plural, depending on Zug, 'procession'. Knabe is an elevated word for 'boy'. Together they name who makes up the procession.

**8** und wie er Wellen schlug und trieb und trug,  
and how it struck up waves and drifted and bore on,
> Three past-tense verbs in sequence: Schlug, 'struck', trieb, 'drifted', and trug, 'bore on', are third-person singular simple past forms, coordinate with each other by und. Wellen schlagen is an idiom for 'to make waves'; treiben and tragen extend the image of the crowd as moving water.

**9** hinabgehalten von dem ungewissen  
held back below by the uncertain

**10** Gewicht der Fahnen und von Hindernissen  
weight of the banners, and by obstacles

**11** gehemmt, unsichtbar wie die Hand des Herrn;  
checked — invisible as the hand of the Lord;
> A second stacked participle: Gehemmt is the past participle of hemmen, 'to check, impede'. It depends on hinabgehalten, the participle from the line before, both describing the restrained crowd. Unsichtbar wie die Hand des Herrn, 'invisible as the hand of the Lord', names the comparison.


**12** und drüben plötzlich beinah mitgerissen  
and over yonder suddenly almost swept along
> A participle meaning swept along: Mitgerissen is the past participle of the separable verb mitreißen, literally 'to tear along with'. It depends on gehemmt from the previous note, continuing the description of the crowd. Beinah, 'nearly', softens it, and plötzlich, 'suddenly', marks the moment.

**13** vom Aufstieg aufgescheuchter Räucherbecken,  
by the upswing of startled censers,
> A participle meaning startled upward: Aufgescheucht is the past participle of aufscheuchen, 'to startle into flight', normally said of birds or game. It is genitive plural, depending on Aufstieg, 'upswing', and describes Räucherbecken, 'censers'. Vom, 'by the', marks the agent of mitgerissen above.

**14** die fliegend, alle sieben, wie im Schrecken  
which, flying, all seven of them, as if in fright,

**15** an ihren Silberketten zerrn.  
tug hard at their silver chains.
> A verb meaning to tug hard: Zerrn is a clipped form of zerren, 'to tug or wrench hard', stronger than ziehen, 'to pull'. It is the main verb, third-person plural present. An ihren Silberketten, 'at their silver chains', is the dative object governed by an, depending on zerrn.


**16** Die Böschung Schauender umschließt die Schiene,  
The bank of onlookers encloses the track
> A nominalized present participle: Schauend, 'gazing, looking on', is turned into a noun and put in the genitive plural: Schauender, 'of onlookers'. It depends on Böschung, 'bank, embankment', the nominative subject of umschließt, 'encloses'.

**17** in der das alles stockt und rauscht und rollt:  
in which all this falters and rushes and rolls:
> Three verbs of motion and sound: Stockt, 'falters', rauscht, 'rushes', and rollt, 'rolls', are third-person singular present, coordinated by und. Stocken means 'to stall or come to a halt'; rauschen means 'to rush or roar'. Das alles, 'all this', is their shared subject.

**18** das Kommende, das Chryselephantine,  
the thing approaching, the chryselephantine thing,

**19** aus dem sich zu Balkonen Baldachine  
out of which up toward the balconies canopies

**20** aufbäumen, schwankend im Behang von Gold.  
rear up, swaying in their hangings of gold.
> A reflexive verb meaning to rear up: Sich aufbäumen describes what a horse does when it rears, from bäumen, related to Baum, 'tree', with the prefix auf-, 'up'. Aufbäumen is the main verb, third-person plural present. Schwankend, 'swaying', and im Behang von Gold, 'in hangings of gold', depend on it.


**21** Und sie erkennen über all dem Weißen,  
And above all that whiteness they make her out,
> A verb meaning to recognize: Erkennen means 'to recognize, to make out'. It is the main verb, third-person plural present, with sie, 'they', as its subject. Its object, das alte Standbild, is named two lines later; über all dem Weißen, 'above all that whiteness', depends on erkennen.

**22** getragen und im spanischen Gewand,  
borne aloft and in Spanish vestments,

**23** das alte Standbild mit dem kleinen heißen  
the old statue with the small, hot

**24** Gesichte und dem Kinde auf der Hand  
face and the Child upon her hand,
> An older dative ending survives: Mit governs the dative, here Gesichte and Kinde, both dative neuter singular. The final -e is an older dative singular ending, mostly dropped in modern speech. Auf der Hand uses the article der where English uses 'her', so der Hand means 'her hand'.

**25** und knieen hin, je mehr es naht und naht,  
and they kneel down, the nearer and nearer it comes,
> A proportional comparison clause: Je plus a comparative, mehr, sets up a 'the more' clause: je mehr es naht means 'the more it nears'. Naht, 'nears', repeats after und for emphasis. Knieen hin uses the separable verb hinknien, 'to kneel down', with hin as its detached prefix.

**26** in seiner Krone ahnungslos veraltend  
in its crown growing old, unaware, behind the times,
> A participle meaning growing outdated: Veralten means 'to become old-fashioned, obsolete'. Veraltend is its present participle, describing Krone, 'crown', dative feminine singular after in. Ahnungslos, 'unaware, having no inkling', also depends on veraltend.

**27** und immer noch das Segnen hölzern haltend  
and still holding the act of blessing woodenly,
> An infinitive made a noun: Any German infinitive can become a neuter noun: segnen, 'to bless', becomes das Segnen, 'the act of blessing'. It is accusative neuter singular, depending on haltend, 'holding'. Hölzern, 'woodenly', also depends on haltend, naming the manner.

**28** aus dem sich groß gebärdenden Brokat.  
out of the brocade that makes its grand display.
> A reflexive verb meaning to posture: Sich gebärden means 'to behave or carry on in a marked way, to posture'. Groß gebärdend combines this with groß, 'grandly', as a present participle describing Brokat, 'brocade', dative masculine singular. Sich is the reflexive pronoun of gebärdend.


**29** Da aber, wie es an den Hingeknieten  
But then, as past the ones knelt down
> Participle turned into noun: hinknien, 'to kneel down', forms the past participle hingekniet. It is nominalized as die Hingeknieten, 'the ones who have knelt', here dative plural after an. German readily turns participles into nouns naming people by their posture.

**30** vorüberkommt, die scheu von unten schaun,  
it passes by — they that gaze up shyly from below —
> Separable verb sent to clause end: vorüberkommen, 'to come past, pass by', is separable and stands at the end because wie opens a subordinate clause: wie es vorüberkommt, 'as it passes by'. The relative clause die schaun, 'who gaze', refers back to den Hingeknieten.

**31** da scheint es seinen Trägern zu gebieten  
it seems to command its bearers
> To command, elevated verb: gebieten means 'to command, to order' and takes a dative object, here seinen Trägern, 'its bearers'. scheinen zu, 'to seem to', frames the act as only apparent.

**32** mit einem Hochziehn seiner Augenbraun,  
with a lift of its eyebrows,
> Verb turned into a noun: hochziehen, 'to pull or draw up', is nominalized as das Hochziehn, 'a raising, a lift'. mit einem Hochziehn seiner Augenbraun means 'with one lift of its eyebrows'. Augenbraun is a poetic clipping of Augenbrauen, 'eyebrows', for the rhyme.

**33** hochmütig, ungehalten und bestimmt:  
haughty, displeased and decisive:
> Three adjectives of mood: hochmütig means 'haughty, arrogant', ungehalten means 'displeased, annoyed', and bestimmt means 'firm, decisive'. ungehalten literally means 'unrestrained', but it has narrowed to mean 'put out, cross'.

**34** so daß sie staunen, stehn und überlegen  
so that they marvel, halt and deliberate
> Introduces a result clause: so daß, 'so that', introduces a result and sends its verbs to the end: staunen, stehn und überlegen, 'marvel, stand, ponder'. The three verbs name the bearers' reactions in sequence, before they move on in the next line.

**35** und schließlich zögernd gehn. Sie aber nimmt  
and at last move off, hesitating. But she takes
> Contrast particle in second position: aber, 'but, however', stands in second position here as a contrastive particle, not as a clause opener. Sie is the statue, and nimmt, 'takes', is left at the line's end, its object delayed into the next stanza.


**36** in sich die Schritte dieses ganzen Stromes  
into herself the footsteps of this whole stream
> Strom means stream or throng: Strom means a great current or river, and by extension a flood of people. The genitive dieses ganzen Stromes, 'of this whole stream', names the crowd whose footsteps she takes into herself.

**37** und geht, allein, wie auf erkannten Wegen  
and goes, alone, as if on paths she knows,
> Known paths, dative plural: erkannt is the past participle of erkennen, 'to recognize, to know', used here as an adjective. auf erkannten Wegen means 'on known paths', dative plural after auf, agreeing with Wegen.

**38** dem Glockendonnern des großoffnen Domes  
toward the thunder of bells of the wide-open cathedral
> Compound nouns and adjectives: Glockendonnern joins Glocken, 'bells', and Donnern, 'thundering', into 'thunder of bells'. großoffnen likewise joins groß and offen, 'wide open', describing the Dom, 'cathedral'.

**39** auf hundert Schultern frauenhaft entgegen.  
borne on a hundred shoulders, womanly, to meet it.
> Stranded prefix meaning toward: entgegen means 'toward, to meet' and governs the dative, here dem Glockendonnern, 'the thunder of bells'. Placed last, it completes a separable verb begun earlier in the sentence, entgegentragen, 'to carry to meet'.

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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.