Rilke's Book of Hours: Love Poems to God
by Rainer Maria Rilke
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Read in January, 2006
"You, the great homesickness we could never shake / off, / you, the forest that always surrounds us."
I'm still the one who knelt before you
in monks' robes, patiently waiting.
You filled him as he called you into being -
a voice from a quiet cell
with the world blowing past.
And you are ever again the wave
sweeping through all things.
That's all there is. Only an ocean
Where now and again islands appear.
That's all there is: no harps, no angels.
And the one before whom ...more
I'm still the one who knelt before you
in monks' robes, patiently waiting.
You filled him as he called you into being -
a voice from a quiet cell
with the world blowing past.
And you are ever again the wave
sweeping through all things.
That's all there is. Only an ocean
Where now and again islands appear.
That's all there is: no harps, no angels.
And the one before whom ...more
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I actually liked these translations, or many of them anyway, despite the really sappy presentation (cover is just awful) and the not-stellar introductory essay by the translator(s?) Some of the translations are quite good I thought. My mother almost used one at my Dad's funeral, but she found something even better before the day. I was impressed. But I know the one poem in here got her.
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you walk into God as you read lines like these. "I find you there in all these things / I care for like a brother. / A seed, you nestle in the smallest of them, / and in the huge ones spread yourself hugely. // Such is the amazing play of the powers: / they who give themselves so willingly, / swelling in the roots, thinning as the trunks rise, / and in the high leaves, resurrection."
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The works in this collection are as close to contemplative prayer as published poems can be. Reflective, humble, pleading, quiet, fierce, devotional and joyous - a great cry of divine belief from a voice that pronounces its own rootedness in the experience of being simply human.
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Read in January, 1996
recommends it for:
Rilke's spiritual dialogue
I like to read through it now and then....to compare and consider this with the Duino Elegies and I'm partial to spiritual or devotional writing. Its this dichtomy of the interior well with his exterior life that fascinates me as well.
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Read in December, 2007
I've been wanting to read his work for a while- so far as powerful to me as any Nouwen prose. His ability to capture the beauty of grace as well as the inner turmoil of faith has been incredibly powerful for me to read in written word.
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Read in December, 2007
I went looking for John Dunne today & found Rilke instead. I haven't read poety since Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet (if you can call that poetry) in 2005. I felt a spark as I scanned through these pages.
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I usually don't much like all the new translations of Rilke, but Barrows does a really good job of making these extraordinary, strange, and mystical poems retain their wildness in English. Very good.
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Simply beautiful.
If I could close my eyes and read at the same time, this is the book I would pick up. The words are so full and rich, divine...I can almost taste them.
Ich liebe Rilke. :)
If I could close my eyes and read at the same time, this is the book I would pick up. The words are so full and rich, divine...I can almost taste them.
Ich liebe Rilke. :)
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Read in December, 2006
This was a Christmas present from my daddy, which means of course it has been one of my favorite books ever since. It is reminiscent of Rumi in its mysticism, but much more structured.
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Read in December, 2007
I'd read several translations of the Orpheus sonnets and Elegies(my favorite Poulin), but had limited encounters with the Hours. These are beautiful and meditative.
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Read in January, 2006
There are all kinds of poems in this books, poems about love about god about the day. I take it with me on most of my trips, it always has something to say.
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recommends it for:
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I loved these poems......they are a feminist update of Rilke's poems. Very lovely and retain as many of his images and metaphor as possible.
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Beautiful and moving. These poems are very meditative and reminiscent of the Psalms in their honesty about God and seeking meaning.
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LIke The Prophet, by Kahlil Gibran, I come back to this book repeatedly as well. It feeds me invery important ways.
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Read in February, 2007
I love Rilke, and there is some beautiful writing here, but a lot of these poems are a little too cosmic for me.
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Bautiful. Especially the Poem about Gravity. Got stolen in the Airport though, hope someone finds it good.
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Read in April, 2007
recommends it for:
Someone wanting some peace
This is a wonderful book of verse by one of Europe's best poets. It's also a spiritually stirring read.
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I know he was talking about God, but it's so interesting how romantic these poems are.
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Like the Book of Images, very readable. Has maybe even more good verses and turns.
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