Line engraving by R. Strange, 1773, after himself, 1764, after G.F Barbieri, il Guercino, Guercino, 1591-1666, Date 1773
“Consolation of Mary with Christ Arisen” by Rainer Maria Rilke
“Consolation of Mary with Christ Arisen” by Rainer Maria Rilke
What they felt then: is it not
before all secrets sweet and yet still earthly:
as he, a little pale still from the grave,
relieved stepped up to her:
at every point arisen.
O to her first. How were they then
Inexpressibly being healed.
Yes, they were healing, that was it. They had no need
firmly to touch each other.
He laid for a second
scarcely his soon to be
eternal hand to her womanly shoulder.
And they began,
still as trees in Spring,
infinitely together,
this season of their ultimate communing.
Beautiful, ethereal, eternal. Thank you for the art and the poetry which gets closest to the inexpressible .
ReplyDeleteThank you for the comment. I wavered between adding an image of trees versus the Guercino art. Or even something more abstract. I am more challenged by the Guercino, I think.
ReplyDelete(I am usually turned off by - or not drawn to - European depictions of Jesus)
… and it does seem as if Rilke’s poem references this particular picture.
ReplyDelete