The Song Of The Beggar Poem by Rainer Maria Rilke

The Song Of The Beggar

Rating: 2.7


I am always going from door to door,
whether in rain or heat,
and sometimes I will lay my right ear in
the palm of my right hand.
And as I speak my voice seems strange as if
it were alien to me,

for I'm not certain whose voice is crying:
mine or someone else's.
I cry for a pittance to sustain me.
The poets cry for more.

In the end I conceal my entire face
and cover both my eyes;
there it lies in my hands with all its weight
and looks as if at rest,
so no one may think I had no place where-
upon to lay my head.


Translated by Albert Ernest Flemming

COMMENTS OF THE POEM
Dr Antony Theodore 08 February 2020

Am Ende verstecke ich mein ganzes Gesicht und bedecke beide Augen; dort liegt es mit all seinem Gewicht in meinen Händen und sieht aus, als ob es in Ruhe wäre, traurig. a sehr gutes Gedicht. tony

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Michael Walker 16 January 2020

The poet has empathy towards the beggar and homeless people. Such unfortunate people are not to be scorned. That's why I like this poem.

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Rainer Maria Rilke

Rainer Maria Rilke

Prague / Czech Republic
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