# Esther · Esther

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

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

**1** Die Dienerinnen kämmten sieben Tage  
The serving-women combed for seven days
> Feminine plural Dienerinnen: Dienerinnen is the plural of Dienerin, 'female servant', formed with the feminine suffix -in from Diener, 'servant'. Die Dienerinnen kämmten means 'the serving-women combed', kämmten the preterite plural of kämmen, 'to comb'.

**2** die Asche ihres Grams und ihrer Plage  
the ash of her grief and of her torment,

**3** Neige und Niederschlag aus ihrem Haar  
dregs and sediment out of her hair
> Nouns Neige and Niederschlag: Neige means 'dregs, remains', and Niederschlag here means 'sediment, residue' rather than its more common sense 'rainfall'. Both are accusative objects of trugen in the next line, 'carried', describing what fell out during the combing.

**4** und trugen es und sonnten es im Freien  
and carried it and sunned it in the open air
> Preterites trugen and sonnten: trugen is the preterite of tragen, 'to carry'. sonnten is the preterite of sonnen, 'to sun, to air in sunlight'. Both take es, 'it', as their accusative object, referring to the combed-out matter, Neige und Niederschlag, from before.

**5** und speisten es mit reinen Spezereien  
and fed it with pure spices

**6** noch diesen Tag und den: dann aber war  
this day still, and that: but then there had
> Verb introducing an event: war here begins an impersonal construction completed in the next line, es war die Zeit gekommen, 'the time had come'. dann aber, 'but then', marks a shift after the days just named, noch diesen Tag und den.


**7** die Zeit gekommen, da sie ungeboten,  
the time come when, unbidden,
> Adjective ungeboten: ungeboten is built from bieten, 'to offer, to bid', with the negative prefix un- and a participial ending, meaning 'unbidden, uninvited, unasked'. It describes sie, 'she', entering the palace without being summoned.

**8** zu keiner Frist, wie eine von den Toten  
at no appointed hour, like one of the dead,

**9** den drohend offenen Palast betrat,  
she entered the threateningly open palace,
> Preterite betrat: betrat is the preterite of betreten, 'to enter, to step into'. den ... Palast is its accusative object, 'the palace'. drohend offenen describes the palace as 'threateningly open', drohend an adverb modifying the adjective offen.

**10** um gleich, gelegt auf ihre Kammerfrauen,  
to look, at once, laid upon her chamber-women,

**11** am Ende ihres Weges den zu schauen,  
at the end of her way, on him
> Infinitive zu schauen: zu schauen, 'to look upon', is an infinitive with zu, its object den, 'him', placed before it. am Ende ihres Weges means 'at the end of her way', setting up the purpose of her long walk: finally to look upon him.

**12** an dem man stirbt, wenn man ihm naht.  
at whom one dies, if one draws near to him.
> Present naht plus dative: naht is the third person singular present of nahen, 'to draw near, to approach', which takes a dative object: wenn man ihm naht means 'if one draws near to him'. an dem man stirbt means 'at whom one dies', dem the dative relative pronoun.


**13** Er glänzte so, daß sie die Kronrubine  
He shone so that she felt the crown-rubies
> Result clause with daß: so ... daß means 'so ... that', introducing a result: Er glänzte so, daß means 'he shone so brightly that'. The daß clause that follows, continuing into the next line, states the effect of his shining on her.

**14** aufflammen fühlte, die sie an sich trug;  
flame up, the ones she bore upon her;

**15** sie füllte sich ganz rasch mit seiner Miene  
she filled herself quite swiftly with his countenance
> Comparison, filling like a vessel: sie füllte sich, 'she filled herself', uses the reflexive to show the action happening to the subject herself. ganz rasch, 'quite swiftly', and mit seiner Miene, 'with his countenance', describe how fast and with what she filled up, as though a vessel.

**16** wie ein Gefäß und war schon voll genug  
like a vessel, and was already full enough


**17** und floß schon über von des Königs Macht,  
and was already brimming over with the King's might,
> Genitive des Königs: des Königs is the genitive singular of der König, 'the king', meaning 'the king's'. floß ... über von des Königs Macht means 'brimmed over with the king's might', überfließen, 'to overflow', here separated by von marking the source that overflowed.

**18** bevor sie noch den dritten Saal durchschritt,  
before she had yet crossed the third hall,

**19** der sie mit seiner Wände Malachit  
which ran her over green with the malachite
> Genitive plural Wände: Wände is the genitive plural of Wand, 'wall', here meaning 'of the walls'. mit seiner Wände Malachit means 'with the malachite of its walls', an older word order placing the genitive before the noun it depends on, Malachit.

**20** grün überlief. Sie hatte nicht gedacht,  
of its walls. She had not thought
> Pluperfect hatte gedacht: hatte gedacht is the pluperfect of denken, 'to think', built from hatte plus the participle gedacht. It marks something that had not occurred to her before the moment described, continuing into the next line with what she had not thought.


**21** so langen Gang zu tun mit allen Steinen,  
to make so long a passage with all the stones,
> Idiom einen Gang tun: einen Gang tun means 'to make a walk, to take a passage', with tun, 'to do', standing in for a more specific verb of motion. so langen Gang zu tun means 'to make so long a passage'. mit allen Steinen means 'with all the stones'.

**22** die schwerer wurden von des Königs Scheinen  
which grew the heavier from the King's radiance

**23** und kalt von ihrer Angst. Sie ging und ging.  
and cold from her own fear. She walked and walked.
> Repeated verb ging: ging is the preterite of gehen, 'to go, to walk'. Repeating it, Sie ging und ging, 'she walked and walked', shows the walking continuing without end, emphasizing the length of her approach through the palace.


**24** Und als sie endlich fast von nahe ihn,  
And when at last, almost from near, she saw

**25** aufruhend auf dem Thron von Turmalin,  
him, resting upon the throne of tourmaline,

**26** sich türmen sah, so wirklich wie ein Ding:  
tower up, as real as a thing:
> Comparison wie ein Ding: wie ein Ding means 'like a thing, as real as an object'. It compares whatever she saw towering up, sich türmen sah, to something solid and physical, wirklich meaning 'real, actual'.


**27** empfing die rechte von den Dienerinnen  
the right one of the serving-women received

**28** die Schwindende und hielt sie zu dem Sitze.  
the swooning one and held her toward the seat.
> Nominalized participle Schwindende: Schwindende is the present participle schwindend, 'fainting, swooning', used as a noun with the article die: 'the swooning one'. hielt sie zu dem Sitze means 'held her toward the seat', hielt the preterite of halten, 'to hold'.

**29** Er rührte sie mit seines Zepters Spitze;  
He touched her with the tip of his sceptre;

**30** und sie begriff es ohne Sinne, innen.  
and she grasped it, without senses, within.
> Prepositional phrase ohne Sinne: ohne Sinne means 'without senses', ohne taking the accusative, Sinne the plural of Sinn, 'sense'. innen, 'within, inside', adds a second way of describing how she understood, without using her senses at all, but from inside herself.

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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.