# Selbstbildnis aus dem Jahre 1906 · Self-Portrait from the Year 1906

Neue Gedichte · Rainer Maria Rilke · New Poems

Source: https://1732studios.com/books/rilke/selbstbildnis-aus-dem-jahre-1906. Data: https://1732studios.com/books/rilke/selbstbildnis-aus-dem-jahre-1906.json. Audio: https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/<line id>.m4a.

**1** Des alten lange adligen Geschlechtes  
Of the old, long-noble lineage,
> A genitive placed before its noun: The phrase is genitive: des Geschlechtes means 'of the lineage', and the adjectives alten and adligen take the genitive ending -en to agree with it. Rilke places this genitive before the noun it depends on, Feststehendes, in the next line. Lange is an adverb here, 'long', modifying adligen, not an inflected adjective.

**2** Feststehendes im Augenbogenbau.  
something fixed in the arch of the brow.
> A verb turned into a noun: Feststehendes nominalizes feststehend, 'fixed, settled', itself the present participle of feststehen, 'to stand firm'. Capitalized, it functions as a noun meaning 'something settled'. Augenbogenbau is a compound of Augenbogen, the brow ridge, and Bau, 'structure', naming the bony arch above the eye.

**3** Im Blicke noch der Kindheit Angst und Blau  
In the gaze still childhood's fear and blue,
> Genitive precedes two nouns: Der Kindheit is a genitive, 'of childhood', placed before the nouns it modifies, Angst und Blau. This word order is equivalent to die Angst und das Blau der Kindheit, with the genitive following. Blau is a neuter noun here, 'the blue', paired with the abstract noun Angst, 'fear'.

**4** und Demut da und dort, nicht eines Knechtes,  
and humility here and there, not a serf's,

**5** doch eines Dienenden und einer Frau.  
but that of one who serves, and of a woman.
> Nominalized participle in genitive: Dienenden nominalizes the participle dienend, 'serving', from dienen, 'to serve'. In the genitive, eines Dienenden means 'of one who serves'. It appears alongside einer Frau, 'of a woman', both genitives depending on Demut, 'humility', named earlier in the sentence.

**6** Der Mund als Mund gemacht, groß und genau,  
The mouth made as a mouth, large and exact,
> Meaning as intended to be: Als here means 'as, in the sense of being made to be'. Der Mund als Mund gemacht means 'the mouth made precisely as a mouth'. Gemacht is the past participle of machen, 'to make', used as an adjective with the verb sein left unstated.

**7** nicht überredend, aber ein Gerechtes  
not persuading, but a just thing
> Persuade by pressure, not reason: Überreden means 'to talk someone into something, to persuade by pressure', distinct from überzeugen, 'to convince by reason'. Nicht überredend means 'not persuading' in that pressuring sense. Ein Gerechtes nominalizes the adjective gerecht, 'just, righteous', meaning 'a just thing', completed by Aussagendes in the next line.

**8** Aussagendes. Die Stirne ohne Schlechtes  
uttering. The forehead without anything base
> A participle completed next line: Aussagendes, from aussagen, 'to state, to declare', completes the phrase begun in the previous line: ein Gerechtes Aussagendes means 'something that states what is just'. The sentence runs over the line break before its meaning is complete. Ohne Schlechtes uses Schlechtes, the nominalized form of schlecht, 'bad', meaning 'without anything bad'.

**9** und gern im Schatten stiller Niederschau.  
and glad in the shadow of a quiet looking-down.
> A compound coined by Rilke: Niederschau combines nieder, 'downward', with Schau, 'a looking', related to schauen, 'to look'. It names a lowered, downward gaze. Gern is an adverb here meaning 'gladly, willingly'.


**10** Das, als Zusammenhang, erst nur geahnt;  
This, as a whole, only sensed as yet;
> A noun meaning coherent whole: Zusammenhang means 'connection, context, a coherent whole', literally a hanging together. Als Zusammenhang means 'as one coherent thing'. Geahnt is the past participle of ahnen, 'to sense, to have a presentiment of'; erst nur geahnt means 'as yet only sensed'.

**11** noch nie im Leiden oder im Gelingen  
never yet in suffering or in success
> Infinitive used as a noun: Gelingen is the nominalized infinitive of gelingen, 'to succeed, to turn out well', used here as a neuter noun meaning 'success'. It is paired with Leiden, 'suffering', in im Leiden oder im Gelingen, 'in suffering or in success'.

**12** zusammgefaßt zu dauerndem Durchdringen,  
gathered into a lasting penetration,
> An elided participle and a noun: Zusammgefaßt is an elided spelling of zusammengefaßt, the past participle of zusammenfassen, 'to gather, to sum up'. It governs the dative phrase zu dauerndem Durchdringen. Durchdringen, from durchdringen, 'to pierce through, to permeate', is used as a noun meaning 'penetration'.

**13** doch so, als wäre mit zerstreuten Dingen  
yet as if, with scattered things,
> Word order after als: Als wäre means 'as though... were', the past subjunctive, Konjunktiv II, of sein, 'to be', after als. In such clauses German places the verb right after als instead of at the end of the clause. Zerstreuten is the dative plural of zerstreut, 'scattered'.

**14** von fern ein Ernstes, Wirkliches geplant.  
from afar something serious, something real, were planned.
> Subject of the passive subjunctive: The clause begun with wäre in the previous line ends here. Its subject is ein Ernstes, Wirkliches, two neuter nominalized adjectives meaning 'something serious, something real'. Together with wäre, geplant forms a passive subjunctive, wäre geplant, 'were planned'. Von fern means 'from a distance' and modifies geplant.

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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.