# Falkenbeize · Falconry

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

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

**1** Kaiser sein heißt unverwandelt vieles  
To be emperor means, unaltered, to endure
> Heißen can mean to amount to: An infinitive phrase as subject: Kaiser sein, 'to be emperor', is the subject, and heißt here means 'means, amounts to', not 'is called'. unverwandelt, 'unchanged', is fronted before its verb.

**2** überstehen bei geheimer Tat:  
much amid secret labor:
> To come through, to endure: überstehen means 'to withstand, get through, survive' an ordeal. Its object reaches back across the line break: vieles überstehen, 'to endure much'. bei geheimer Tat means 'amid secret labor'.

**3** wenn der Kanzler nachts den Turm betrat,  
when the chancellor entered the tower at night,
> Wenn sends the verb last: wenn, 'when', is a subordinating conjunction, so its finite verb is pushed to the end of the clause: wenn der Kanzler nachts den Turm betrat, 'when the chancellor entered the tower at night'.

**4** fand er ihn, des hohen Federspieles  
he found him dictating, of the high sport of feathers
> Inversion after a wenn-clause: Because the whole wenn-clause fills the first position, the main verb fand, 'found', comes next and the subject er follows: verb-second inversion. fand er ihn … sagen means 'found him dictating'.
> A genitive with an old ending: des hohen Federspieles is genitive, 'of the high falconry', with the old genitive ending -es on Federspiel. das Federspiel, literally 'the feather-play', names hawking itself.

**5** kühnen fürstlichen Traktat  
the bold, princely treatise
> A formal treatise: der Traktat is a formal treatise or learned tract. It is the accusative object of sagen in the next stanza, what the emperor dictates to the scribe.


**6** in den eingeneigten Schreiber sagen;  
into the bent-attentive scribe;
> Bent inward, attentive: eingeneigt is a rare past participle of einneigen, 'inclined, bent inward', describing the scribe leaning in over his page. in den … Schreiber sagen means 'to say into the scribe'.

**7** denn er hatte im entlegnen Saale  
for in the remote hall he had,
> A coordinating for: denn, 'for, because', is a coordinating conjunction, so unlike weil it does not send the verb to the end: normal verb-second order follows. denn er hatte … getragen is a pluperfect.
> A remote hall: der Saal is a large hall or chamber, plural Säle; entlegen means 'remote, out of the way, secluded'. im entlegnen Saale, dative, keeps the old dative -e on Saale.

**8** selber nächtelang und viele Male  
night-long and many times himself,
> Night after night: nächtelang, 'night after night, for nights on end', is built from Nächte, the plural of Nacht, plus -lang, the same pattern as tagelang, 'for days', or stundenlang, 'for hours'.

**9** das noch ungewohnte Tier getragen,  
borne the still-unaccustomed creature,
> Still not used to it: ungewohnt means 'unaccustomed, not yet used to something'; with noch, 'still', it modifies Tier, 'creature'. getragen, the past participle of tragen, completes the pluperfect hatte … getragen.


**10** wenn es fremd war, neu und aufgebräut.  
when it was strange, new and freshly brought to hand.
> A falconry term: aufgebräut, also aufbräuen, is a technical term from German falconry: to break a newly caught hawk to the fist by carrying and waking it until it grows calm.

**11** Und er hatte dann sich nie gescheut,  
And he had then never shrunk
> Reflexive verb plus zu-infinitive: sich scheuen is reflexive, 'to shy away from, shrink from, hesitate to do something'; it takes a zu-infinitive, here zu verachten four lines on. hatte … sich nie gescheut is pluperfect.

**12** Pläne, welche in ihm aufgesprungen  
plans that had sprung up in him
> A separable verb as participle: aufspringen, 'to spring up, leap up, burst open', is a separable verb; as a past participle the prefix auf- fuses back on: aufgesprungen. welche is a relative pronoun for die.

**13** oder zärtlicher Erinnerungen  
or the deep, deep inward chime
> Genitive plural of memories: zärtlicher Erinnerungen is genitive plural, 'of tender memories', depending on Geläut two lines later. zärtlich means 'tender, gentle, loving'; Erinnerung is 'memory, recollection', here plural after oder.

**14** tieftiefinneres Geläut  
of tender memories
> A coined compound, deep and inner: das Geläut is the pealing or ringing of bells. tieftiefinneres is a coined compound, tief, 'deep', doubled and joined to inner, 'inner': 'deep-deep-inmost', modifying Geläut.

**15** zu verachten, um des bangen jungen  
to despise — for the sake of the anxious young
> A wrap-around for the sake of: verachten, 'to despise, scorn, disregard', is the infinitive completing hatte sich nie gescheut zu. um … willen means 'for the sake of' and wraps a genitive: um des bangen jungen Falken willen.


**16** Falken willen, dessen Blut und Sorgen  
falcon, whose blood and cares
> Genitive relative pronoun whose: dessen is the masculine or neuter genitive relative pronoun, 'whose'. dessen Blut und Sorgen means 'whose blood and cares', referring back to des … Falken.

**17** zu begreifen er sich nicht erließ.  
he did not let himself off from grasping.
> To let oneself off something: sich etwas erlassen means 'to let oneself off something, spare oneself a duty'; negated here, er sich nicht erließ means 'he did not excuse himself'. erließ is the past of erlassen.

**18** Dafür war er auch wie mitgehoben,  
For this he too was, as it were, borne aloft with it,
> A pronominal adverb, in return: dafür, 'for that, in return for this', is a pronominal adverb bundling up everything before it. Placed first, it triggers verb-second inversion: Dafür war er. mitgehoben means 'lifted along'.

**19** wenn der Vogel, den die Herren loben,  
when the bird, whom the lords praise,
> A relative clause, whom they praise: den is the masculine accusative relative pronoun, 'whom', object of loben, 'to praise': den die Herren loben, 'whom the lords praise'. The verb loben falls to the clause's end.

**20** glänzend von der Hand geworfen, oben  
flung gleaming from the hand, above
> A participle phrase set apart: geworfen, past participle of werfen, 'to throw, cast, fling', heads a participial phrase around der Vogel. von der Hand means 'from the hand'; glänzend, 'gleaming', is an adverbial participle.

**21** in dem mitgefühlten Frühlingsmorgen  
into the keenly felt spring morning
> Felt along with, shared feeling: mitgefühlt is a participle built on mitfühlen, 'to feel with, to sympathize'. The mit- echoes mitgehoben three lines earlier. der Frühlingsmorgen means 'spring morning', dative after in dem.

**22** wie ein Engel auf den Reiher stieß.  
struck like an angel upon the heron.
> Stoßen auf takes the accusative: stoßen auf is the falconer's word for a hawk's stoop, to plunge down and strike at prey; with auf it takes the accusative den Reiher, 'the heron'. stieß is the past of stoßen.

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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.