SUNDAY READING | THE FIRST TEN SONNETS TO ORPHEUS BY RAINER MARIA RILKE

ANIMALS CREATED BY SILENCE CAME FORWARD FROM THE CLEAR
AND RELAXED FOREST WHERE THEIR LAIRS WERE,
AND IT TURNED OUT THE REASON WHY THEY WERE SO FULL OF SILENCE
WAS NOT CUNNING, AND NOT TERROR,

IT WAS LISTENING. GROWLING, YELPING, GRUNTLING NOW
SEEMED ALL NONSENSE TO THEM. AND WHERE BEFORE
THERE WAS HARDLY A SHED WHERE THIS LISTENING COULD GO,

A ROUGH SHELTER PUT UP OUT OF BRUSHY LONGINGS,
WITH AN ENTRANCE GATE WHOSE POLES WERE WOBBLY,
YOU CREATED A TEMPLE FOR THEM DEEP INSIDE THEIR EARS.

/ TRANSLATION BY ROBERT BLY