In your stillest hour, ask yourself: must I?
Rainer Maria Rilke, Letters to a Young Poet, Letter 1 (Paris, 17 February 1903)
fragen Sie sich in der stillsten Stunde Ihrer Nacht: muß ich schreiben?
In your stillest hour, ask yourself: must I?
Rainer Maria Rilke, Letters to a Young Poet, Letter 1 (Paris, 17 February 1903)
What it means
Rilke's test for a vocation: in the quietest hour of the night, ask whether you must do it. If the answer is a strong, simple yes, build your life around it. If not, you are free to choose another road.
The source
"In your stillest hour, ask yourself: must I?" Rainer Maria Rilke said it in Letters to a Young Poet, Letter 1 (Paris, 17 February 1903). Translated from the original German by Spartan Surfers.
"fragen Sie sich in der stillsten Stunde Ihrer Nacht: muß ich schreiben?"Original German, Letters to a Young Poet, Letter 1 (Paris, 17 February 1903). Text read at mybook.ru.
Who said it
Rainer Maria Rilke (1875–1926). Poet born in Prague who wrote in German. Letters to a Young Poet (1929) collects ten letters he sent to a young cadet who asked if his poems were any good.
Questions
- What does "In your stillest hour, ask yourself: must I?" mean?
- Rilke's test for a vocation: in the quietest hour of the night, ask whether you must do it. If the answer is a strong, simple yes, build your life around it. If not, you are free to choose another road.
- Who said "In your stillest hour, ask yourself: must I?"?
- Rainer Maria Rilke (1875–1926). Source: Letters to a Young Poet, Letter 1 (Paris, 17 February 1903).
- What is the original German?
- fragen Sie sich in der stillsten Stunde Ihrer Nacht: muß ich schreiben?. Translated from the original German by Spartan Surfers.
- Is "In your stillest hour, ask yourself: must I?" on a shirt?
- Yes. We print it to order on our tees in 7 illustrated looks, from $44, with free US shipping.
Cite this line
"In your stillest hour, ask yourself: must I?" (Rainer Maria Rilke, Letters to a Young Poet, Letter 1 (Paris, 17 February 1903), translated by Spartan Surfers). https://spartansurfers.com/quotes/in-your-stillest-hour-ask-yourself-must-i
Filed under Self.
Wear it your way
The same line in every look it fits. Each one is printed to order on heavy cotton, same price.
More from Rainer Maria Rilke
- Go into yourself.Letters to a Young Poet, Letter 1 (Paris, 17 February 1903)
- Build your life around what you must do.Letters to a Young Poet, Letter 1 (Paris, 17 February 1903)
- Your days seem poor? Be poet enough to call up their riches.Letters to a Young Poet, Letter 1 (Paris, 17 February 1903)
- Seek the depth of things. Irony never goes down there.Letters to a Young Poet, Letter 2 (Viareggio, 5 April 1903)
- Ripen like the tree. Summer comes, but only to the patient.Letters to a Young Poet, Letter 3 (Viareggio, 23 April 1903)