# Tröstung des Elia · The Consoling of Elijah

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

Source: https://1732studios.com/books/rilke/troestung-des-elia. Data: https://1732studios.com/books/rilke/troestung-des-elia.json. Audio: https://audio.1732studios.com/rilke/<line id>.m4a.

**1** Er hatte das getan und dies, den Bund  
He had done that and this — to raise once more the covenant
> Noun for a covenant: Der Bund means a bond, league, or alliance, and in a religious context names the biblical covenant. It stands here in the accusative as the object of aufzubauen, 'to build up', in the next line, with den Bund placed ahead of its verb.

**2** wie jenen Altar wieder aufzubauen,  
as well as that altar, to build them up again,
> Separable verb as zu-infinitive: Aufbauen, 'to build up, to rebuild', is a separable verb. In a zu-infinitive, zu is inserted between the prefix and the stem, written as one word: aufzubauen. Wieder, 'again', modifies the whole phrase, giving 'to rebuild the covenant and that altar'.

**3** zu dem sein weitgeschleudertes Vertrauen  
to which his far-flung trust
> Coined compound for flung far: Weitgeschleudert joins weit, 'far', with geschleudert, the past participle of schleudern, 'to hurl, to fling'. It describes sein Vertrauen, 'his trust', as having been flung far out. Zu dem, 'to which', refers back to jenen Altar, the altar.

**4** zurück als Feuer fiel von ferne, und  
fell back as fire from afar, and

**5** hatte er dann nicht Hunderte zerhauen,  
had he not then cut hundreds to pieces,
> Prefix zer- meaning to pieces: Hauen means 'to strike, to hew'. The prefix zer- adds the sense of breaking something apart, so zerhauen means 'to cut, to hack to pieces'. Hunderte zerhauen means 'cut hundreds to pieces', the prophets of Baal killed after the contest on Carmel.

**6** weil sie ihm stanken mit dem Baal im Mund,  
because they stank to him with Baal in their mouth,
> Stinken governing a dative: Stinken, 'to stink', is joined here to the dative ihm, 'to him': sie stanken ihm means 'they stank to him', that is, they were loathsome to him. Stanken is the past tense of the strong verb stinken, stank, gestunken.

**7** am Bache schlachtend bis ans Abendgrauen,  
slaughtering at the brook until the grey of evening,
> Present participle used adverbially: Schlachtend, 'slaughtering', is the present participle of schlachten, formed by adding -d to the infinitive. Used adverbially, it attaches an ongoing action to the main verb. Am Bache keeps the older dative -e ending on Bach, 'brook'.


**8** das mit dem Regengrau sich groß verband?  
which merged, vast, with the grey of the rain?
> Reflexive verb meaning to merge: Sich verbinden mit means 'to combine, to merge with'. Das, sich groß verband means 'which merged, vast'; the relative das refers back to Abendgrauen, 'the grey of evening', joining it with dem Regengrau, 'the grey of the rain'. Verband is the past tense of verbinden.

**9** Doch als ihn von der Königin der Bote  
But when the queen's messenger
> Verb held to clause end: Als is a subordinating conjunction, so the finite verb goes to the end of its clause, here antrat, held back to the next line. Als ihn der Bote antrat und bedrohte means 'when the messenger confronted and threatened him'. Von der Königin names whose messenger he is.

**10** nach solchem Werktag antrat und bedrohte,  
confronted and threatened him after such a day's work,
> A separable verb of confrontation: Antreten is separable and literally means 'to step up to' someone. Antrat is its past tense; in a main clause the prefix would split off as trat an. Werktag means 'working day'.

**11** da lief er wie ein Irrer in das Land,  
then he ran like a madman into the wilderness,
> An adjective used as a noun: Ein Irrer is the adjective irre, 'deranged, lost', declined like a noun, giving 'a madman'. Da, 'then', opens the main clause and pushes the verb to second position: da lief er means 'then he ran'. In das Land means 'into the wilderness'.


**12** so lange, bis er unterm Ginsterstrauche  
so long, until beneath the broom-bush
> A compound plant name: Ginster is broom, the shrub Genista, and Strauch is a bush. Unterm Ginsterstrauche, 'beneath the broom-bush', shows unterm contracting unter dem, with the older dative ending -e on Strauche. So lange, bis means 'so long, until'.

**13** wie weggeworfen aufbrach in Geschrei,  
he broke, as if cast away, into a cry,
> To break open, not set out: Aufbrechen usually means 'to set out', but here it means 'to burst open': aufbrach in Geschrei is 'broke out into a cry'. Weggeworfen, the past participle of wegwerfen, 'to throw away', gives wie weggeworfen, 'as though cast away'. Geschrei means 'shouting, outcry'.

**14** das in der Wüste brüllte: Gott, gebrauche  
that roared in the desert: God, use
> An imperative addressed to God: Gebrauche is the imperative of gebrauchen, 'to use, to make use of', addressed to Gott. Its object mich continues into the next line: Gott, gebrauche mich länger nicht, 'God, use me no longer'. Das brüllte, 'that roared', refers back to the cry.

**15** mich länger nicht. Ich bin entzwei.  
me no longer. I am broken in two.
> A word meaning broken in two: Entzwei is an adverb built from in zwei, 'into two', and means 'in two, apart, broken'. Ich bin entzwei means 'I am broken in two, I am in pieces'. It closes the sentence begun two lines earlier with the command gebrauche.


**16** Doch grade da kam ihn der Engel ätzen  
But just then the angel came to feed him
> An old word for feeding: Ätzen usually means 'to corrode, to etch', but here it carries an older sense, 'to feed', as a bird feeds its young. Kam ihn der Engel ätzen means 'the angel came to feed him', with ihn as the accusative object. It is a variant spelling of the separate verb atzen.

**17** mit einer Speise, die er tief empfing,  
with a food that he received deep within,
> Food and a verb for receiving: Die Speise means 'food, nourishment, a dish', a more formal word than das Essen. Empfing is the past tense of the strong verb empfangen, 'to receive'. Die er tief empfing means 'which he received deep within'.

**18** so daß er lange dann an Weideplätzen  
so that for a long time then, past pastures
> A result clause sends the verb late: So daß, the older spelling of so dass, means 'so that' and introduces a clause of result, sending its finite verb to the end, here ging, held back a line. So daß er lange dann ging means 'so that he then walked for a long time'.

**19** und Wassern immer zum Gebirge ging,  
and waters, walked on and on toward the mountain,
> A collective noun for mountains: Das Gebirge is a mountain range, built from the collective prefix Ge- on Berg, 'mountain'. Zum Gebirge ging means 'walked toward the mountains', zum contracting zu dem. Immer here means 'on and on', marking the length of the walk.


**20** zu dem der Herr um seinetwillen kam:  
to which the Lord came for his sake:
> A fixed phrase for his sake: Um willen means 'for the sake of' and wraps around its object; with a pronoun it takes special forms like meinetwillen and seinetwillen. Um seinetwillen means 'for his sake'. Zu dem kam means 'to which it came', with dem pointing back to Gebirge.

**21** im Sturme nicht und nicht im Sich-Zerspalten  
not in the storm, and not in the splitting-apart
> A reflexive verb made a noun: The infinitive of sich zerspalten, 'to split itself apart', is capitalized with its reflexive pronoun kept, making the noun das Sich-Zerspalten, 'the splitting-apart'. Nicht und nicht, 'not and not', lists what the Lord was not in, as in the account in Kings.

**22** der Erde, der entlang in schweren Falten  
of the earth, along which, in heavy folds,
> A preposition placed after its noun: Entlang, 'along', here follows its noun and governs the dative: der entlang means 'along which', with der reaching back to der Erde, 'the earth'. Der Erde is a genitive completing Sich-Zerspalten der Erde, 'the earth's splitting apart'.

**23** ein leeres Feuer ging, fast wie aus Scham  
an empty fire moved, almost as if from shame
> A preposition naming a motive: Aus plus a bare noun names a motive, so aus Scham means 'out of shame', on the pattern of aus Angst, 'out of fear'. Ein leeres Feuer ging means 'an empty fire moved', continuing the list of things the Lord was not in.

**24** über des Ungeheuren ausgeruhtes  
at the monstrous thing's well-rested
> A genitive built from an adjective: Das Ungeheure is the adjective 'monstrous, immense' used as a noun; des Ungeheuren is its genitive, 'of the monstrous thing', depending on Hinstürzen two lines further on. Ausgeruhtes, the past participle of sich ausruhen, 'to rest', is a neuter adjective agreeing with that noun.

**25** Hinstürzen zu dem angekommnen Alten,  
plunging-down toward the old man who had arrived,
> Falling turned into a noun: Hinstürzen is separable and means 'to plunge or crash down' toward a point away from the speaker; das Hinstürzen makes it a noun, 'the plunging-down'. Angekommnen shortens the past participle angekommen, from ankommen, 'to arrive'. Der Alte means 'the old man'.

**26** der ihn im sanften Sausen seines Blutes  
who, in the gentle rushing of his blood,
> A noun for a rushing sound: Sausen means 'to rush, to whir, to swish', of wind or fast motion; das Sausen, its noun form, is that whirring sound. Im sanften Sausen seines Blutes means 'in the gentle rushing of his blood', with seines Blutes a genitive.

**27** erschreckt und zugedeckt vernahm.  
took it in, startled and covered over.
> The delayed main verb of perceiving: Vernahm is the past tense of the strong verb vernehmen, 'to perceive, to take in', the long-delayed verb of the relative clause opened by der, 'who'. Erschreckt, 'startled', and zugedeckt, 'covered over', are past participles describing the subject; ihn, the object, stands in the line before.

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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.