{"work":{"slug":"rilke","title":{"source":"Neue Gedichte","translated":"New Poems"},"author":"Rainer Maria Rilke","language":"German","languageCode":"de","url":"https://1732studios.com/books/rilke"},"unit":{"kind":"poem","number":null,"id":"schlaflied","title":{"source":"Schlaflied","translated":"Lullaby"},"section":"New Poems: The Other Part","summary":null,"url":"https://1732studios.com/books/rilke/schlaflied","lines":12},"previous":"https://1732studios.com/books/rilke/persisches-heliotrop","next":"https://1732studios.com/books/rilke/der-pavillon","license":"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.","audioBase":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/","lines":[{"number":1,"label":"1","id":"schlaflied-s1-l1","source":"Einmal, wenn ich dich verlier,","translation":"One day, when I lose you,","stanza":1,"audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/schlaflied-s1-l1.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"vocabulary","term":"einmal","title":"Someday, not literally once","body":"einmal literally means 'one time', but at the head of a clause about the future it carries the sense 'someday, at some point'. The whole poem hangs on this single uncertain future day."},{"kind":"grammar","term":"verlier","title":"Clipped form for the rhyme","body":"The verb is verlieren, 'to lose'; the regular first-person form is verliere. Rilke drops the final -e to verlier for the rhyme with dir and the meter, a common poetic license in German verse."}],"words":[{"surface":"Einmal","lemma":"einmal","morphology":"adverb","role":"depends on verlier","gloss":"one day"},{"surface":"wenn","lemma":"wenn","morphology":"subordinating conjunction","role":"depends on verlier","gloss":"when"},{"surface":"ich","lemma":"ich","morphology":"pronoun, nominative, singular","role":"depends on verlier","gloss":"I"},{"surface":"dich","lemma":"dich","morphology":"pronoun, accusative, singular","role":"depends on verlier","gloss":"you"},{"surface":"verlier","lemma":"verlieren","morphology":"verb, present, indicative, first-person, singular","role":"main verb of the sentence","gloss":"lose"}]},{"number":2,"label":"2","id":"schlaflied-s1-l2","source":"wirst du schlafen können, ohne","translation":"will you be able to sleep, without","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/schlaflied-s1-l2.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"wirst ... können","title":"Future tense with a modal","body":"wirst ... schlafen können is the future: werden, here wirst, 'you will', plus two infinitives held to the end of the clause, schlafen können, 'be able to sleep'. German pushes both infinitives to the close of the clause."}],"words":[{"surface":"wirst","lemma":"werden","morphology":"auxiliary verb, present, indicative, second-person, singular","role":"main verb of the sentence","gloss":"will"},{"surface":"du","lemma":"du","morphology":"pronoun, nominative, singular","role":"depends on wirst","gloss":"you"},{"surface":"schlafen","lemma":"schlafen","morphology":"verb, infinitive","role":"depends on können","gloss":"sleep"},{"surface":"können","lemma":"können","morphology":"auxiliary verb, infinitive","role":"depends on wirst","gloss":"be able"},{"surface":"ohne","lemma":"ohne","morphology":"subordinating conjunction","role":"head of the phrase","gloss":"without"}]},{"number":3,"label":"3","id":"schlaflied-s1-l3","source":"daß ich wie eine Lindenkrone","translation":"that I, like the crown of a linden tree,","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/schlaflied-s1-l3.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"vocabulary","term":"Lindenkrone","title":"The canopy of a linden","body":"Lindenkrone compounds Linde, 'lime, linden tree', and Krone, 'crown', here the leafy top of a tree. The linden is a fixture of German lyric poetry, and the speaker imagines being held over the sleeper like its murmuring crown."}],"words":[{"surface":"daß","lemma":"daß","morphology":"subordinating conjunction","role":"depends on verflüstre","gloss":"that"},{"surface":"ich","lemma":"ich","morphology":"pronoun, nominative, singular","role":"subject of verflüstre","gloss":"I"},{"surface":"wie","lemma":"wie","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on verflüstre","gloss":"like"},{"surface":"eine","lemma":"ein","morphology":"determiner, accusative, feminine, singular","role":"depends on Lindenkrone","gloss":"a"},{"surface":"Lindenkrone","lemma":"Lindenkrone","morphology":"noun, accusative, feminine, singular","role":"depends on wie","gloss":"linden's crown"}]},{"number":4,"label":"4","id":"schlaflied-s1-l4","source":"mich verflüstre über dir?","translation":"whisper myself away above you?","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/schlaflied-s1-l4.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"vocabulary","term":"verflüstre","title":"A coined reflexive verb","body":"verflüstre comes from flüstern, 'to whisper', with the prefix ver-, suggesting a whispering-away or whispering-into-nothing, used reflexively as mich verflüstern. It is Rilke's invention: the speaker dissolves into a hush above the beloved."},{"kind":"grammar","term":"über dir","title":"Dative marks position, not motion","body":"über takes the dative when it marks a static location, 'above you', and the accusative for motion toward. The dative dir here fixes the speaker overhead rather than moving."}],"words":[{"surface":"mich","lemma":"mich","morphology":"pronoun, accusative, singular, reflexive","role":"depends on verflüstre","gloss":"myself"},{"surface":"verflüstre","lemma":"verflüstern","morphology":"verb, present, indicative, first-person, singular","role":"main verb of the daß-clause, subject ich (previous line)","gloss":"whisper away"},{"surface":"über","lemma":"über","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on verflüstre","gloss":"above"},{"surface":"dir","lemma":"dir","morphology":"pronoun, dative, singular","role":"depends on über","gloss":"you"}]},{"number":5,"label":"5","id":"schlaflied-s2-l1","source":"Ohne daß ich hier wache und","translation":"Without my keeping watch here and","stanza":2,"audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/schlaflied-s2-l1.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"ohne daß","title":"Without, plus subordinate that","body":"ohne daß introduces a subordinate clause meaning 'without ... -ing', sending the finite verb, here wache, to the end of the clause. daß is the old spelling of modern dass, kept exactly as Rilke printed it."}],"words":[{"surface":"Ohne","lemma":"ohne","morphology":"preposition","role":"head of the phrase","gloss":"without"},{"surface":"daß","lemma":"daß","morphology":"subordinating conjunction","role":"depends on wache","gloss":"that"},{"surface":"ich","lemma":"ich","morphology":"pronoun, nominative, singular","role":"depends on wache","gloss":"I"},{"surface":"hier","lemma":"hier","morphology":"adverb","role":"depends on wache","gloss":"here"},{"surface":"wache","lemma":"wachen","morphology":"verb, present, indicative, first-person, singular","role":"main verb of the daß-clause","gloss":"keep watch"},{"surface":"und","lemma":"und","morphology":"conjunction","role":"coordinates wache and niederlege","gloss":"and"}]},{"number":6,"label":"6","id":"schlaflied-s2-l2","source":"Worte, beinah wie Augenlider,","translation":"lay words, almost like eyelids,","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/schlaflied-s2-l2.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"vocabulary","term":"Augenlider","title":"Eyelids, a compound noun","body":"Augenlider is the plural of Augenlid, a compound of Auge, 'eye', and Lid, 'lid'. The simile compares spoken words to eyelids, something soft that closes gently over the body."}],"words":[{"surface":"Worte","lemma":"Wort","morphology":"noun, accusative, neuter, plural","role":"depends on niederlege","gloss":"words"},{"surface":"beinah","lemma":"beinah","morphology":"adverb","role":"depends on Worte","gloss":"almost"},{"surface":"wie","lemma":"wie","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on Augenlider","gloss":"like"},{"surface":"Augenlider","lemma":"Augenlid","morphology":"noun, accusative, neuter, plural","role":"depends on wie","gloss":"eyelids"}]},{"number":7,"label":"7","id":"schlaflied-s2-l3","source":"auf deine Brüste, auf deine Glieder","translation":"upon your breast, upon your limbs,","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/schlaflied-s2-l3.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"auf deine Glieder","title":"Auf plus accusative, motion onto","body":"auf takes the accusative when there is motion onto a surface, which is why deine Brüste and deine Glieder are accusative here rather than dative. The words are being laid down onto the body, completed by the verb in the next line."}],"words":[{"surface":"auf","lemma":"auf","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on niederlege","gloss":"upon"},{"surface":"deine","lemma":"dein","morphology":"determiner, accusative, feminine, plural","role":"depends on Brüste","gloss":"your"},{"surface":"Brüste","lemma":"Brust","morphology":"noun, accusative, feminine, plural","role":"depends on auf","gloss":"breast"},{"surface":"auf","lemma":"auf","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on niederlege","gloss":"upon"},{"surface":"deine","lemma":"dein","morphology":"determiner, accusative, neuter, plural","role":"depends on Glieder","gloss":"your"},{"surface":"Glieder","lemma":"Glied","morphology":"noun, accusative, neuter, plural","role":"depends on auf","gloss":"limbs"}]},{"number":8,"label":"8","id":"schlaflied-s2-l4","source":"niederlege, auf deinen Mund?","translation":"down upon your mouth?","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/schlaflied-s2-l4.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"niederlege","title":"Separable verb closes the clause","body":"niederlegen, 'to lay down', is a separable-prefix verb. Held back to the end of the ohne daß clause, its main verb governs everything since Worte two lines up: 'lay words ... down upon your mouth'."}],"words":[{"surface":"niederlege","lemma":"niederlegen","morphology":"verb, present, indicative, first-person, singular","role":"second main verb of the daß-clause, coordinated with wache","gloss":"lay down"},{"surface":"auf","lemma":"auf","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on niederlege","gloss":"upon"},{"surface":"deinen","lemma":"dein","morphology":"determiner, accusative, masculine, singular","role":"depends on Mund","gloss":"your"},{"surface":"Mund","lemma":"Mund","morphology":"noun, accusative, masculine, singular","role":"depends on auf","gloss":"mouth"}]},{"number":9,"label":"9","id":"schlaflied-s3-l1","source":"Ohne daß ich dich verschließ","translation":"Without my shutting you in","stanza":3,"audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/schlaflied-s3-l1.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"vocabulary","term":"verschließ","title":"To lock, seal up","body":"verschließen means to close off, lock, or seal. The final -e is again clipped from verschließe for the rhyme with Sternanis, turning the sleeper into something kept and enclosed, like a walled garden."}],"words":[{"surface":"Ohne","lemma":"ohne","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on verschließ","gloss":"without"},{"surface":"daß","lemma":"daß","morphology":"subordinating conjunction","role":"depends on verschließ","gloss":"that"},{"surface":"ich","lemma":"ich","morphology":"pronoun, nominative, singular","role":"depends on verschließ","gloss":"I"},{"surface":"dich","lemma":"dich","morphology":"pronoun, accusative, singular","role":"depends on verschließ","gloss":"you"},{"surface":"verschließ","lemma":"verschließen","morphology":"verb, present, indicative, first-person, singular","role":"main verb of the daß-clause","gloss":"shut in"}]},{"number":10,"label":"10","id":"schlaflied-s3-l2","source":"und dich allein mit Deinem lasse,","translation":"and leaving you alone with what is yours,","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/schlaflied-s3-l2.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"grammar","term":"mit Deinem","title":"Possessive standing alone","body":"Deinem is the possessive dein, 'your', standing alone in the dative after mit, with no noun: 'with what is yours, with your own self'. The capital D, as Rilke prints it, gives the word extra weight."}],"words":[{"surface":"und","lemma":"und","morphology":"conjunction","role":"depends on lasse","gloss":"and"},{"surface":"dich","lemma":"dich","morphology":"pronoun, accusative, singular","role":"depends on lasse","gloss":"you"},{"surface":"allein","lemma":"allein","morphology":"adverb","role":"depends on mit","gloss":"alone"},{"surface":"mit","lemma":"mit","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on lasse","gloss":"with"},{"surface":"Deinem","lemma":"dein","morphology":"pronoun, dative, neuter, singular","role":"depends on mit","gloss":"what is yours","note":"Substantivized possessive, capitalized in reverence for the beloved ('with your own')."},{"surface":"lasse","lemma":"lassen","morphology":"verb, present, indicative, first-person, singular","role":"main verb of the sentence","gloss":"leave"}]},{"number":11,"label":"11","id":"schlaflied-s3-l3","source":"wie einen Garten mit einer Masse","translation":"like a garden with a profusion","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/schlaflied-s3-l3.m4a","notes":[],"words":[{"surface":"wie","lemma":"wie","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on Garten","gloss":"like"},{"surface":"einen","lemma":"ein","morphology":"determiner, accusative, masculine, singular","role":"depends on Garten","gloss":"a"},{"surface":"Garten","lemma":"Garten","morphology":"noun, accusative, masculine, singular","role":"head of the phrase","gloss":"garden"},{"surface":"mit","lemma":"mit","morphology":"preposition","role":"depends on Garten","gloss":"with"},{"surface":"einer","lemma":"ein","morphology":"determiner, dative, feminine, singular","role":"depends on Masse","gloss":"a"},{"surface":"Masse","lemma":"Masse","morphology":"noun, dative, feminine, singular","role":"depends on mit","gloss":"profusion"}]},{"number":12,"label":"12","id":"schlaflied-s3-l4","source":"von Melissen und Sternanis?","translation":"of lemon balm and star anise?","audio":"https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/schlaflied-s3-l4.m4a","notes":[{"kind":"vocabulary","term":"Melissen und Sternanis","title":"Two fragrant, calming herbs","body":"Melisse is lemon balm, Melissen its plural, and Sternanis is star anise, both fragrant, faintly calming plants. The poem ends on their scent, the beloved imagined as a closed garden heavy with these herbs."}],"words":[{"surface":"von","lemma":"von","morphology":"preposition","role":"head of the phrase","gloss":"of"},{"surface":"Melissen","lemma":"Melisse","morphology":"noun, dative, feminine, plural","role":"depends on von","gloss":"lemon balm"},{"surface":"und","lemma":"und","morphology":"conjunction","role":"depends on Melissen","gloss":"and"},{"surface":"Sternanis","lemma":"Sternanis","morphology":"noun, dative, masculine, singular","role":"depends on und","gloss":"star anise"}]}]}