Tuesday, June 10, 2014
Go to the limits of your longing, by Rainer Maria Rilke
Thomas Tallis - If Ye Love Me
God speaks to each of us as he makes us,
then walks with us silently out of the night.
These are the words we dimly hear:
You, sent out beyond your recall,
go to the limits of your longing.
Embody me.
Flare up like a flame
and make big shadows I can move in.
Let everything happen to you: beauty and terror.
Just keep going. No feeling is final.
Don't let yourself lose me.
Nearby is the country they call life.
You will know it by its seriousness.
Give me your hand.
from Rilke’s Book of Hours: Love Poems to God
translated by Anita Barrows and Joanna Macy
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2 comments:
This is such a striking poem, to be read over and over again. Stimulating both courage and comfort. Thank you.
You describe it so well, Hannah - challenging and encouraging at the same time, and comforting.
I'm glad for your visit!
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