St. George and the Dragon by Briton Riviere (1840-1920) (Public domain), via Wikimedia Commons
“How could we forget those ancient myths that stand at the beginning of all races, the myths about dragons that at the last moment are transformed into princesses? Perhaps all the dragons in our lives are princesses who are only waiting to see us act, just once, with beauty and courage. Perhaps everything that frightens us is, in its deepest essence, something helpless that wants our love.”
Rainer Maria Rilke is one of my all time favorite poets. He wrote mostly in German (but in French as well), and is considered by many to be Germany’s greatest poet since Goethe. The above is from Stephen Mitchell’s translation of Letters to a Young Poet (probably his most famous prose piece; doesn’t even his prose sound like poetry??).
So why am I foisting poems onto you? Like many poets, faith is an integral theme in his work. I’m not actually sure what religion Rilke espoused, but I read this poem today for the first time and it is a truly elegant answer to the question: Why be pagan in a modern world? So I wanted to share.
Sonnets to Orpheus #24
by Rainer Maria Rilke
Translated by Robert Temple
1 Shall we break off, then, our ancient friendship
With the great gods, who decline to solicit our favour?
Just because the hard steel which we forge never knew them?
And shall we suddenly search for their whereabouts on a map?5 These friends in their immensity, – they who receive our dead from us, –
At no point affect the slightest movement in our gear-wheels.
We have removed our banquets afar off,
Our baths are now more advanced.9 And we continually outrun their messengers, for long now too slow for us.
We solely depend on one another now, but without knowing one another.
Our paths no longer trace delicate meanders,12 But are plotted by degrees. And the olden fires burn now
Only in steam boilers to lift hammers, – ever larger ones.
And we meanwhile lose our strength, like swimmers.
What do you think? I’ll put my own thoughts in the comments section below, and I hope you’ll do the same!
2 comments
Jax says:
Jan 21, 2011
My thoughts on the poem. I’d love to hear yours!
2 I think the general argument of this poem can be applied to any faith, but this line in particular is delightfully pagan. Not just in the use of plural “gods,†but in the sense that pagan gods often look at humanity more as an artist looks at her work – something cool she created that now has a life of its own, not as something that must worship the creator. They’re not “soliciting our favors†or demanding our attention.
3 “hard steel†is poetically beautiful, and it makes me think of witches who bless their vacuum cleaners since they no longer use a broom. Is it the tool that matters, or the idea? For me, it’s the idea.
4 This line tripped me up on the first reading. But it makes me think of one of the things that drew me to paganism: the way it blends the spiritual into the physical. Coming from that perspective, this line is about a turning point where we cease looking for the spiritual aspects of of the world and focus purely on the physical – on things we can find “on a map.†Any other ideas?
6 What a striking contrast between the idea that the gods do not interfere with our daily movements – my computer turns on and off without any god to help – but the divine is all we have to entrust the spirits of our loved ones (and one day ourselves) to at the end of life.
8 Again with contrasts, this time between gods who still receive us and a human race that removes itself from the presence of the gods because we have technology. We don’t need them in the immediate physical way our ancestors did. Rain dance? Why when I can turn on the sprinkler system? Medicine man or just medicine?
12 “trace delicate meanders… plotted by degrees.†Reminds me of… another beloved poem! Walt Whitman’s “When I hear the Learn’d Astronomer†(It’s eight lines short if you want to check it out!)
13 I love the use of “hammers†– something hard and striking, useful but cold.
Overall, I love how Rilke describes the complete functionality of life without spirituality; I get tired of listening to people defend their faith as something “necessary.†It isn’t. Faith is a choice that many people do not make, and they lead fine lives without it.
But… but… there’s that something missing. And maybe this is a perspective thing; maybe there are people out there who really don’t miss it. But I would. There is a beauty, a comfort, a “fire†that I get from my faith that would be gone from my life if I quit seeking the spiritual in favor of only what my senses can discern. Paganism is a return to the ancient gods, the old friendship, the old fire not because it is a necessary thing for survival or even for leading a righteous life. I am pagan because I find strength in meandering down old paths.
bekki says:
Jan 24, 2011
Wow! This is intensely beautiful. I’m still digesting it, but wanted to take a moment to thank you for sharing it!