# Irre im Garten · The Mad in the Garden

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

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

**1** Noch schließt die aufgegebene Karthause  
Still the abandoned charterhouse closes
> Older spelling for Carthusian monastery: Kartause, spelled Karthause here, names a Carthusian monastery, a charterhouse built around an enclosed courtyard. aufgegeben is the past participle of aufgeben, 'to give up, abandon', used as an adjective meaning 'abandoned'.
> Verb-second order after an adverb: German keeps the finite verb in second position: when the adverb noch, 'still, yet', opens the clause, schließt must follow immediately, before the subject die Karthause. schließen is intransitive here, 'to close, to shut around', completed by sich um den Hof in the next line.

**2** sich um den Hof, als würde etwas heil.  
around the courtyard, as though something were healing.
> als plus subjunctive for unreal 'as though': als, 'as though', introduces a comparison that is not really so, marked by the subjunctive. würde ... heil is Konjunktiv II of werden plus heil, 'whole, healed': heil werden means 'to grow whole'. After als, ob is dropped and the verb moves right behind the conjunction.

**3** Auch die sie jetzt bewohnen, haben Pause  
Even those who now inhabit it have a pause
> Relative pronoun with no antecedent noun: die here is a relative pronoun meaning 'those who', with no noun before it. sie is its object: die sie jetzt bewohnen means 'those who now inhabit it'. As a subordinate clause, the verb bewohnen, 'to inhabit', falls to the end.

**4** und nehmen nicht am Leben draußen teil.  
and take no part in the life outside.
> Separable verb teilnehmen with an: teilnehmen, 'to take part', is separable: the stem nehmen stands in second position while teil sits at the clause end, nehmen nicht ... teil. It governs an plus dative: am Leben, from an dem Leben, means 'in the life'.


**5** Was irgend kommen konnte, das verlief.  
Whatever could ever come has run its course.
> Free relative resumed by das: was opens a free relative meaning 'whatever', strengthened by irgend, 'at all, possibly': was irgend kommen konnte means 'whatever could possibly come'. das then restates that clause as the subject of the main verb, verlief, from verlaufen, 'to run its course'.

**6** Nun gehn sie gerne mit bekannten Wegen  
Now they gladly keep to familiar paths
> Adverb gern plus dative phrase: gerne is the adverb 'gladly, willingly': gehn gerne means 'like to walk'. mit bekannten Wegen, 'along familiar paths', is dative plural after mit. bekannt means 'familiar, known'.

**7** und trennen sich und kommen sich entgegen,  
and part from one another and come to meet,
> Separable verb entgegenkommen with sich: sich entgegenkommen, 'to come toward one another', is separable, so entgegen drops to the clause end: kommen sich entgegen. sich is reciprocal here, meaning 'each other', paired with sich trennen, 'to part from each other'.

**8** als ob sie kreisten, willig, primitiv.  
as if they circled, willing, primitive.
> als ob keeps ob before the verb: als ob, 'as though', is the fuller form of als and keeps ob, so the verb goes to the end: als ob sie kreisten. kreisten is the Konjunktiv II of kreisen, 'to circle, to revolve', marking an unreal comparison.


**9** Zwar manche pflegen dort die Frühlingsbeete,  
True, some of them tend the spring flower-beds there,
> zwar signals a later but: zwar means 'admittedly, it is true', and usually sets up a later aber, 'but'. pflegen means 'to tend, to care for, to cultivate'. das Frühlingsbeet joins Frühling, 'spring', and Beet, 'flower-bed'.

**10** demütig, dürftig, hingekniet;  
humble, meager, kneeling low;
> Past participle of a separable verb: hingekniet is the past participle of the separable verb hinknien, 'to kneel down', used here as an adjective meaning 'kneeling low'. The prefix hin- marks the downward, settling motion described.

**11** aber sie haben, wenn es keiner sieht,  
but they have, when no one is watching,
> keiner as subject with impersonal es: keiner means 'no one' and is the nominative subject of sieht, 'sees': wenn es keiner sieht means 'when no one sees'. es is a placeholder object with no clear referent, like English 'watching' with nothing named. The wenn-clause sends sieht to the end.

**12** eine verheimlichte, verdrehte  
a secret, contorted
> Past participles used as adjectives: verheimlichte and verdrehte are past participles used as adjectives before the noun Gebärde in the next line. verheimlicht, from verheimlichen, 'to conceal', means 'hidden, kept secret'. verdreht, from verdrehen, 'to twist', means 'twisted, contorted'.


**13** Gebärde für das zarte frühe Gras,  
gesture for the tender early grass,
> Noun for gesture delayed to this line: die Gebärde means 'gesture, bearing, movement of the body'. It is the object of sie haben from an earlier line: 'they have a secret, contorted gesture'. für takes the accusative, so das Gras is what the gesture is for.

**14** ein prüfendes, verschüchtertes Liebkosen:  
a testing, intimidated caress:
> Infinitive turned into a noun: liebkosen, 'to caress', is capitalized here and used as a neuter noun, das Liebkosen, 'a caress'. Any German infinitive can become a noun this way. prüfend, from prüfen, 'to test', means 'testing'; verschüchtert, from verschüchtern, 'to intimidate', means 'timid, cowed'.

**15** denn das ist freundlich, und das Rot der Rosen  
for that is friendly, and the red of the roses
> denn keeps normal word order: denn is the coordinating conjunction 'for, because'; unlike weil it keeps the verb in second position, as in das ist freundlich. das Rot uses the color as a neuter noun, 'the red'. der Rosen is genitive plural, 'of the roses'.

**16** wird vielleicht drohend sein und Übermaß  
will perhaps be threatening and excess
> Compound noun for excess: das Übermaß means 'excess, too-much-ness', literally 'over-measure', from über, 'over', and das Maß, 'measure'. drohend is the present participle of drohen, 'to threaten', used as an adjective meaning 'threatening'.


**17** und wird vielleicht schon wieder übersteigen,  
and will perhaps once more exceed
> Inseparable verb for to exceed: übersteigen means 'to climb over' and so 'to exceed, surpass'. Here it is inseparable, so its prefix never splits off, and it reaches forward to its object, was ihre Seele wiederkennt und weiß, in the next line. schon wieder means 'yet again'.

**18** was ihre Seele wiederkennt und weiß.  
what their soul still recognizes and knows.
> Free relative was with verbs at the end: was opens a free relative meaning 'what, that which', serving as the object of übersteigen: 'exceed what their soul knows'. wiederkennen means 'to recognize again'. It pairs with weiß, from wissen, 'to know', both closing the subordinate clause.

**19** Dies aber läßt sich noch verschweigen:  
This, however, can still be kept unspoken:
> sich lassen plus infinitive for can be: läßt sich ... verschweigen is the sich lassen plus infinitive pattern, expressing 'can be done': here 'this can be kept unspoken'. läßt keeps the old spelling ß for lässt. verschweigen means 'to keep silent about, to leave unsaid'.

**20** wie gut das Gras ist und wie leis.  
how good the grass is, and how soft.
> Shortened poetic form of leise: leis is the shortened, poetic form of leise, 'quiet, soft, faint', with the final -e dropped for the meter and rhyme. wie leis stands for wie leis es ist, 'how soft it is', a subordinate clause with its verb, ist, understood but omitted.

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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.