# Ein Prophet · A Prophet

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

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

**1** Ausgedehnt von riesigen Gesichten,  
Widened by enormous visions,
> Plural Gesichte, visions: Gesichte, plural of Gesicht, here means 'visions', a different sense from the ordinary Gesicht, 'face'. Ausgedehnt von riesigen Gesichten means 'widened by enormous visions', with Gesichten in the dative after von.

**2** hell vom Feuerschein aus dem Verlauf  
bright with the firelight from the course

**3** der Gerichte, die ihn nie vernichten,–  
of the judgments that never destroy him,–
> Plural Gerichte, judgments: Gerichte, plural of Gericht, means 'judgments' here, distinct from the everyday senses 'court' or 'dish of food'. der Gerichte is genitive plural, depending on a noun in the line before. die ihn nie vernichten means 'that never destroy him'.

**4** sind die Augen, schauend unter dichten  
are the eyes, gazing beneath thick
> Plural verb sind: sind, 'are', agrees with the plural subject die Augen, 'the eyes'. schauend, 'gazing', is a present participle describing the eyes, and unter dichten depends on a noun that follows in the next line.

**5** Brauen. Und in seinem Innern richten  
brows. And within his inner self there raise

**6** sich schon wieder Worte auf,  
themselves up once again words,
> Separable verb aufrichten: aufrichten, 'to raise up, to straighten', is separable: its prefix auf appears at the end of the clause while sich richten sit earlier, giving richten sich ... auf. wieder, 'again', and schon here work together to mean 'once again'.


**7** nicht die seinen (denn was wären seine,  
not his own (for what would his be,
> Subjunctive wären: wären is the past subjunctive, Konjunktiv II, of sein, 'to be'. was wären seine means 'what would his own be', a hypothetical question inside the parenthesis. The subjunctive marks it as unreal, not something that actually happens.

**8** und wie schonend wären sie vertan),  
and how gently they would be squandered),
> Participle vertan: vertan is the past participle of vertun, 'to waste, to squander'. wären sie vertan, 'they would be squandered', is Konjunktiv II passive, continuing the hypothetical begun with wären in the line before.

**9** andre, harte: Eisenstücke, Steine,  
others, hard ones: pieces of iron, stones,

**10** die er schmelzen muß wie ein Vulkan,  
which he must melt like a volcano,
> Relative die, accusative: die is a relative pronoun here, accusative plural, referring back to words named earlier in the poem. It is the object of schmelzen, 'to melt': die er schmelzen muß means 'which he must melt'. muß is the present tense of müssen, 'must'.


**11** um sie in dem Ausbruch seines Mundes  
in order to fling them, in the eruption of his mouth,
> um ... zu, purpose clause: um ... zu plus an infinitive states a purpose, 'in order to'. Here um sie ... auszuwerfen, continuing into the next line, means 'in order to fling them out'. sie is accusative plural, referring to words mentioned earlier.

**12** auszuwerfen, welcher flucht und flucht;  
his mouth which curses and curses;
> Present tense flucht: flucht is the third person singular present of fluchen, 'to curse'. Repeating it, flucht und flucht, 'curses and curses', shows the action continuing without stopping, describing the mouth that keeps cursing.

**13** während seine Stirne, wie des Hundes  
while his brow, like the dog's
> Subordinating conjunction während: während means 'while' here, introducing a subordinate clause and sending its verb to the end of that clause. It contrasts what happens to his brow with the mouth described just before it.

**14** Stirne, das zu tragen sucht,  
brow, that seeks to bear


**15** was der Herr von seiner Stirne nimmt:  
what the Lord takes from his brow:
> Noun der Herr: der Herr, 'the Lord', is masculine, nominative here as the subject of nimmt, 'takes'. von seiner Stirne nimmt means 'takes from his brow', describing what mark or burden God removes.

**16** Dieser, Dieser, den sie alle fänden,  
This one, This one, whom they would all find,
> Subjunctive fänden: fänden is the past subjunctive, Konjunktiv II, of finden, 'to find'. den sie alle fänden means 'whom they would all find', a hypothetical outcome rather than something that happens. It continues the unreal comparison begun in the surrounding lines.

**17** folgten sie den großen Zeigehänden,  
if they followed the great pointing hands,
> Subjunctive folgten plus dative: folgten is the past subjunctive, Konjunktiv II, of folgen, 'to follow', continuing the hypothetical begun with fänden. folgen takes a dative object: folgten sie den ... Zeigehänden means 'if they followed the ... pointing hands'.

**18** die Ihn weisen, wie Er ist: ergrimmt.  
that show Him as He is: enraged.
> Participle ergrimmt: ergrimmt is the past participle of ergrimmen, 'to become enraged', used here as a predicate after the colon: 'as he is: enraged'. It names the state the pointing hands would show him in, if followed.

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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.