Spazieren und Beten

Abstract The ›Rennewart‹ by Ulrich von Türheim describes a daily habit Willehalm pursues shortly before his death: vespertine walks that help him to say his prayers fully. The description of this routine serves as the focal point for studying how the text frames different forms of religious life in addition to the contrast between chivalric and monastic or eremitic forms of life. The article argues that the main issue in the text is not establishing a hierarchy between different forms of life, but rather addressing the question to what extent an individual can adapt established forms of life. Drawing both on a close reading of the moniage part of the text and on a reconstruction of the cultural semantics of promenading, the article interprets Willehalm’s habit of walking as an idiosyncratic practice of religious life.