Hávamál
The Sayings of Hor
Old Norse Poetry
English translation (1928) by Lee M. Hollander
Transcription by Eiður Eyþórsson.
I
About this translation
Lee M. Hollander’s translation of Hávamál comes from his 1928 edition of The Poetic Edda. In that work, the poem is presented in English translation, accompanied by Hollander’s notes and commentary.
Hollander’s work has been preserved as closely as possible to the form in which it was originally published. The translation and accompanying notes remain unchanged. Minor inconsistencies present in the original edition have been retained. For example, the numbering of stanzas skips from 17 to 19, and occasional typographical forms reflect the source text.
Hollander’s notes on individual stanzas have been moved so that they now appear directly beneath the relevant stanza. In the printed edition, these were placed at the bottom of each page.
II
Translator's Introductory note
This, the longest of the Eddic poems, is largely didactic in nature. Here, more abundantly than in any other monument, do we find that homely wisdom, that sternly realistic view of life, those not ignoble ethical conceptions, which find such classic illustration in the Icelandic sagas.
At least five separate portions can be made out.
The first, consisting of 79 stanzas (in ljóðaháttr), is a series of counsels on the more common relations of life. They stress especially the laws of hospitality, the rules of decent conduct, circumspection in one’s dealing with men, moderation in eating and drinking, the vanity of mere wealth as against true merit—all in the spirit of Germanic heathendom, with with many a pearl of shrewd wisdom, of terse humor, of noble sentiment. We may single out for admiration the deeply felt stanzas on having a home of one’s own, however humble (36, 37), and those magnificently asseverating the lastingness, in a world subject to the law of change, of a fair name (77,78).
The ensuing stanzas (80–90) are of irregular structure and more largely proverbial in substance. They form the transition to the so-called Ensamples of Óthin (91–110, in ljóðaháttr) which deal in a frankly cynical spirit with man’s relation to woman; in particular, with woman’s inconstancy and treachery, but also with her gullibility, as instanced by the two love adventures of Óthin, told in the first person.
Without any connection there follows the so-called ‘Lay of Loddfáfnir’ (111–138, for the most part in irregular ljóðaháttr). It contains miscellaneous counsels on love, friendship, etc., purporting to have been given to the ‘thul’¹a Loddfáfnir by Óthin himself. As a whole, this portion is notably inferior to the first.
A fourth part, the so-called Rune Poem, composed of somewhat incoherent stanzaic forms, deals obscurely with Runic wisdom as acquired and taught by Óthin.
Last, there are 18 magic vísur (stanzas) efficient to dull swords, cure disease, calm the sea etc., if used with the proper ‘runes’. We shall meet with similar collections in the Sigrdrífumǫl and Gróugaldr.
Manifestly, the poem is not a homogeneous whole, but a congeries of aphorisms, proverbs, magic lore, and the like, which we owe to some early collector. To establish the age and provenance of such a collection is, from the nature of the case, not feasible. However, Norwegian origin seems likely for the most of it. We know that at least certain stanzas existed in the Tenth Century; for they are quoted (or composed, for all we know) by the noted skald Eyvind skáldaspillir who died toward the end of that century.—The Codex Regius is our sole source for this monument.
¹Óthin. Etymologically, ‘the One-Eyed’, but interpreted already by Snorri (Gylfag. chap. 2) as ‘the Exalted’.
¹a‘Sage, bard, spokesman’ (A.S. þyle).
III
Here Begins Hávamál
1
Have thy eyes about thee when thou enterest a door,
be wary alway,
be watchful alway;
for never one knoweth when need will be
to meet hidden foe in the hall.¹b
¹b Disregarding this elementary caution of parlous times, the famous Einar Tambarskiælvir and his son were slain (Heimskringla, Harald Hardruler’s saga, chap. 44).
2
All hail to the giver! A guest hath come:²
say now where shall he sit?
In haste is he to the hall who cometh
to find at the fire a friend.
² Generosity is one of the cardinal virtues of Germanic antiquity. The stranger—by that same token a guest—is to be given a quick and friendly reception.—The last two lines of the stanza are difficult.
3
The warmth seeketh who hath wandered long
and is numb about his knees;
meat and dry clothes the man needeth
over the fells who hath fared.
³Water for washing one’s hands, and a towel were offered before a meal.
4
A drink needeth to full dishes who cometh,
a towel,³ and the prayer to partake;
good bearing eke, to be well liked
and be bidden to banquet again.
5
Of his wit hath need who widely fareth—
a dull wit will do at home;
a laughing-stock he who lacketh words
among smart wits when he sits.
6
To be bright of brain let no man boast,
but take good heed of his tongue:
the sage and silent come seldom to grief
as they fare among folk in the hall.
[More faithful friend findest thou never
than shrewd head on thy shoulders.]⁴
⁴Probably a later addition; cf. 10, 11.
7
The wary guest to wassail who cometh
listeneth that he may learn,
openeth his ears, casts his eyes about:
thus wards him the wise man ’gainst harm.
8
Happy is he who hath won him
the love and liking of all;
for hard it is one’s help to seek
from the mind of another man.⁵
⁵Cf. 9, which seems a variant.
9
Happy is he who hath won him
both winning ways and wisdom;
for ill led is oft who asketh help
from the wit and words of another.
10
Better burden bearest thou nowise
than shrewd head on thy shoulders;
in good stead will it stand among stranger folk,
and shield when unsheltered thou art.
11
Better burden bearest thou nowise
than shrewd head on thy shoulders;
but with worser food farest thou never
than an overmuch of mead.
12
For good is not, though good it is thought,
mead for the sons of men;
the deeper he drinks the dimmer grows
the mind of many a man.
13
The heron of heedlessness⁶ hovers o’er the feast,
and stealeth the minds of men.
With that fowl’s feathers fettered I was
when I was Gunnloth’s guest.⁷
⁶ Apparently, the state of mind superinduced by the magic use of the heron’s feathers, line 3. (Cf. Scandinavian Notes and Studies 1914, 259ff).
⁷ The reference seems to be to Óthin’s adventure with Gunnloth, 104ff (in whose cave he, however, by no means loses the powers of his mind).
14
Drunk I became, dead drunk, forsooth,
in the hall of hoary Fialar;⁸
that bout is best from which back fetches
each man his mind full clear.
⁸ Cf. Vsp. 34, note. Identical with Suttung (103), if above reference is correct.
15
Let a king’s offspring be sparing in words,
and bold in battle;
glad and wholesome the hero be
till cometh his dying day.
16
The unwise man thinks that he aye will live,
if from fighting he flees;
but the ails and aches of old age come,
though spears have spared him.
17
The fool doth gape when to folks he cometh,
he mumbleth and mopeth about;
soon is seen, when his swill he had,
what the mind of the man is like.
18
Only he is aware who hath wandered much,
and far hath been afield,
what mind doth move every man that liveth—
if he be not wanting in wit.
19
The cup spurn not, yet be sparing withal:
say what is needful, or naught;
for ill breeding upbraids thee no man
if soon thou layst thee to sleep.
20
The greedy guest gainsays his head
and eats until he is ill;
his belly oft maketh a butt of a man,
on bench ’midst the sage when he sits.
21
The herd do know when home they shall,
and gang from the grass to their stalls;
but the unwise man not ever learneth
how much his maw will hold.
22
The ill-minded man who meanly thinks,
fleers at both foul and fair;
he knoweth not, as know he ought,
that he is not free from flaws.
23
The unwise man waketh all night,
thinking of this and that—
tosses, sleepless, and is tired at morn:
nor lighter for that his load.
24
The unwise man weeneth that all
who laugh with him, like him, too;
nor seeth their scorn, though they sneer at him,
on bench ’midst the sage when he sits.
25
The unwise man weeneth that all
that laugh with him, like him, too;
findeth he then, when to thing⁹ he cometh,
few spokesmen to speed his cause.
⁹The assembly.
26
The unwise man weens him all-knowing,
since from harm he is far at home;
but knows not ever what answer to make
when others ask him aught.
27
The unwise man among others who cometh,
let him be sparing of speech;
for no one knoweth that naught is in him,
but he open his mouth too much.
28
Clever is he who is keen to ask,
and eke to answer, all men;
’tis hard to hide from the hearing of men
what is on every one’s lips.
29
Much at random oft rambleth he
whose tongue doth ever tattle;
a talker’s tongue, unless tamed it be,
will often work him woe.
30
No mock make thou of any man,
at a drinking bout though it be;
he knowing weens him whom no one hath asked,
and dry-shod hies him home.¹⁰
¹⁰ Literally, ‘remains with his skin dry’—having escaped a shower. For the meaning, cf. 26.
31
A wise man he who hies him betimes
from the man whom he has mocked;
for at table who teases can never tell
what foe he may have to fight.¹¹
¹¹ I.e. what new foe, made over the cups; cf. 29, 32.
32
Many a man meaneth no ill,
yet teases the other at table;
strife will ever start among men
when guest clashes with guest.
33
An early meal aye a man should get him,
lest famished he come to the feast:
he sits and stuffs as though starved he were,
and naught he says to his neighbors.
34
To false friend aye a far way ’tis,
though his roof be reared by the road;
to stanch friend aye a straight way leadeth,
though far he have fared from thee.
35
Get thee gone betimes: a guest should not
stay too long in one stead;
lief groweth loath if too long one sitteth
on bench, though in he was bidden.
36
One’s home is best though a hut it be:
there a man is master and lord;
though but two goats thine and a thatchèd roof,
’tis far better than beg.
37
One’s home is best though a hut it be:
there a man is master and lord;
his heart doth bleed who has to beg
the meat for his every meal.
38
From his weapons away no one should ever
stir one step on the field;
for no one knoweth when need might have
on a sudden a man of his sword.
39
Of his worldly goods which he gotten hath
let a man not stint overmuch;
oft is lavished on foe what for friend was saved,
for matters go often amiss.
40
So free-handed never found I a man
but would gladly take what is given;
nor of his goods so ungrudging ever,
to forego what is given him.¹²
¹² In return for his gifts.
41
With weapons and weeds should friends be won,
as the wise man knoweth full well;
those who give to each other will aye be friends,
once they meet half-way.
42
To his friend a man should show friendship aye,
and pay back gift for gift;
laughter for laughter¹³ he learn to give,
and eke leasing for lies.
¹³ I.e. the scornful laughter of enemies.
43
To his friend a man should bear friendship aye,—
to him and the friend of his friend;
but his foeman’s friend befriend thou never,
(and keep thee aloof from his kin).¹⁴
¹⁴ Added by the translator.
44
If friend thou hast whom faithful thou deemest,
and wishest to win him for thee:
ope thy heart to him nor withhold thy gifts,
and fare to find him often.
45
If another there be whom ill thou trustest,
yet wouldest win him for thee:
speak fair to him though false thou meanest,
and pay him leasing for lies.
46
And eke this heed: if ill thou trust one,
and hollow-hearted his speech:
thou shalt laugh with him and lure him on,
and let him have tit for tat.
47
Young was I once and went alone,
and wandering lost my way;
when a friend I found I felt me rich:
man is gladdened by men.
48
He who giveth gladly a goodly life leadeth,
and seldom hath he sorrow;
but the churlish wight is chary of all,
and grudgingly parts with his gifts.
49
In the fields as I fared (for fun) I hung
my weeds on two wooden men;¹⁵
they were reckoned folks when the rags they wore:
naked, a man is naught.
¹⁵ Probably, wooden idols as signposts beside the road, intended to protect the wayfarer from evil powers.
50
The fir-tree dies in the field that stands,—
shields it nor bark nor bast;
thus eke the man who by all is shunned:
why should he linger in life?¹⁶
¹⁶ Cf. Hámth. 4 for the same thought expressed with a similar figure.
51
Than fire hotter for five days burneth
love between friends that are false;
it dieth down when dawneth the sixth,
then all the sweetness turns sour.
52
Not great things, needs, give to a man:
bringeth thanks oft a little thing;
with half a loaf and a half-drained cup
I won me oft worthy friend.¹⁶a
¹⁶a Which was Cyrus’ means of gaining and retaining friends; Xenophon, Anabasis 1, 9.
53
A little lake hath but little sand:
but small the mind of man;
not all men are equally wise,
each wight wanteth somewhat.¹⁷
¹⁷ The meaning of this line in the original is uncertain.
54
Middling wise every man should be:
beware of being too wise;
for he is hardly happiest in life
who knoweth more than is needful.
55
Middling wise every man should be:
beware of being too wise;
for wise man’s heart is happy seldom,
if too great the wisdom he won.
56
Middling wise every man should be:
beware of being too wise;
his fate let no one beforehand know
who would keep his heart from care.
57
Kindles brand from brand, and burns till all burnt it is:
thus fire is kindled from fire;
by the words of his mouth a man is known,
but from his dumbness a dullard.¹⁹
¹⁹ In the give and take of intercourse, when ‘one thought kindles another’, it betrays stupidity to have nothing to say.
58
Betimes must rise who would take another’s
life and win his wealth;
lying wolf never got the lamb,
nor sleeping wight slew his foe.
59
Betimes must rise who few reapers has,
and see to the work himself;
much will miss in the morn who sleeps:
for the brisk the race is half-run.
60
What lathes and logs will last him out,
a man may reckon aright,
and of wood to warm him how much he may want
for many a winter month.²⁰
²⁰ One misses a stanza here telling of what man cannot forearm against.
61
Well-groomed and washed wend to the thing,
though thy clothes be not the best;
of thy shoes and breeks be not ashamed,
and still less of thy steed.
62
With lowered head sweeps to the sea when he comes,
the eagle o’er the ocean-stream;
thus eke a man among a throng
who finds but few to befriend him.²¹
²¹ I.e. he walks about anxiously, trying to find some one he may know or seek a favor from, like the vulture peering for his prey.
63
Both ask and answer let every one
who wishes to be deemed wise;
let one know it, nor none other:
if three know, thousands will.
64
A wise man will not overweening be,
and stake too much on his strength;
when the mighty are met to match their thews,
’twill be found that first is no one.²²
²² Cf. Fáfn. 17.
65
(Watchful and wary every one should be,
nor put too much trust in a friend;)²³
his reckless words, rashly uttered,
have undone oft a doughty man.
²³ Supplied after the Paper Manuscripts.
66
Too late by far to some feasts I came;
to others, all too soon;
the beer was drunk, or yet unbrewed:
never hits it the hated one right.
67
Here or there would they have me in,
if no meat at the meal I craved,
or hanged two hams in my good friend’s home,
after eating one of his own.
68
A bonny fire is a blessing to man,
and eke the sight of the sun,
his hearty health, if he holds it well,
and to live one’s life without shame.
69
All undone is no one though dreary his fate:
some with good sons are blessed,
and some with kinsmen, or with coffers full,
and some with deeds well-done.
70
Better alive (than lifeless be):²⁴
to the quick fall aye the cattle;
the hearthfire burned for the happy heir,—
out-doors a dead man lay.²⁵
²⁴ Rask’s emendation.
²⁵ The meaning is, probably: however miserable (cf. 69), life is preferable to death. Some good fortune may always befall one; but once dead and ‘outdoors’, no warm fire will cheer one—but only the ‘laughing heir’.
71
May the halt ride a horse, and the handless be herdsman,
the deaf man may doughtily fight,
a blind man is better than a burned one, aye:
of what gain is a good man dead?
72
To have a son is good, late-got though he be,
and born when buried his father;
a stone²⁵a seest thou seldom set by the roadside
but by kith raised over kinsman.
²⁵a I.e. a memorial stone.
73
It takes two to fight;²⁵b oft tongue is head’s bane;
a fist I fear ’neath every furry coat.
²⁵b Conjectural. The stanza consists of three proverbs.
74
Of the night is fain whose knapsack is full;
[short are the yards of a ship:]²⁶
fickle are the nights in fall;
there’s both fair and foul in five days’ time—
still more so within a month.
²⁶ Possibly: make short etc.—that is, as we should say: reef your sail!
75
He who knoweth nothing knoweth not, either,
how wealth may warp a man’s wit;²⁷
one hath wealth when wanteth another,
though he bear no blame himself.²⁷
²⁷ Conjectural.
76
A full-stocked farm had the Fatling’s²⁸ sons:
now they stoop at the beggar’s staff;
in a twinkling fleeth trothless wealth,
it is the ficklest of friends.
²⁸ I.e. a man as well-nourished as a fatling calf.
77
Cattle die and kinsmen die,
thyself eke soon wilt die;
but fair fame will fade never,
I ween, for him who wins it.
78
Cattle die and kinsmen die,
thyself eke soon wilt die;
but one thing, I ween, will wither never:
the doom over each one dead.
79
The unwise man who calleth his own
wealth or the love of a woman—
his overweening waxeth but his wit never,—
he haughtily hardens his heart.
80
’Tis readily found if the runes thou ask,²⁹
made by mighty gods,
known to holy hosts,
and dyed deep red by Óthin:³⁰
that least said is soonest mended.
²⁹ Arrangement of lines following Mogk.
³⁰ Cf. 143
81
At eve praise the day, when burned down, a torch,³¹
a wife when wedded, a weapon when tried,
ice when over it, ale when ’tis drunk.
³¹ Generally rendered: ‘a woman when burned’; cf. Maal og Minne 1922, 175.
82
Fell wood in the wind,³² in fair weather row out,
dally with girls in the dark—the day’s eyes are many,
choose a shield for shelter, a ship for speed,
a sword for keenness, a girl for kissing.
³² That is, probably, in the windy seasons, winter or spring, before the sap rises.
83
By the fire drink ale, skate on the ice,
buy a bony steed, a rusty blade,
feed your horse at home and your hound in his hutch.
84
A wench’s words let no wise man trust,
nor trust the troth of a woman;
for on whirling wheel their hearts are shaped,
and fickle and fitful their minds.
85
A brittle bow, a burning fire,
a gaping wolf, a grunting sow,
a croaking crow, a kettle boiling,
a rising sea, a rootless tree,
86
A flying dart, a foaming billow,
ice one night old, a coiled up adder,
a woman’s bed-talk, a broken blade,
the play of cubs, a king’s scion,³²a
³²a His promises?
87
A sickly calf, a self-willed thrall,
the smooth words of a witch, warriors fresh-slain,
88
Thy brother’s banesman, though it be on the road,³³
a half-burned house, a horse most swift—
worthless the steed if one foot he break—:
so trusting be no one to trust in these!
³³ That is, though you meet him on the main-traveled road, in the presence of others.—Stanzas 88, 89 transposed, following Dietrich’s proposal.
89
Early-sown acres let none ever trust,
nor trust his son too soon:
undoes weather the one, unwisdom the other:
risk not thy riches on these.
90
The false love of woman, ’tis like to one
riding on ice with horse unroughshod—
a brisk two-year old, unbroken withal,—
or in raging wind drifting rudderless,—
like the lame out-running the reindeer on snow-cliff.
91
Heed my words now, for I know them both:
mainsworn are men to women;
we speak most fair when most false our thoughts,
for that wiles the wariest wits.
92
Fairly shall speak, nor spare his gifts,
who will win a woman’s love,—
shall praise the looks of the lovely maid:
he who flatters will win the fair.
93
At the loves of a man to laugh is not meet
for any one ever;
the wise oft fall, when fools yield not,
to the lure of a lovely maid.
94
’Tis not meet for men to mock at what
befalls full many a one:
a fair face oft makes fools of the wise
by the mighty lure of love.
95
One’s self only knows what is near one’s heart,
each reads but himself aright;
no sickness seems to sound mind worse
than to have lost all liking for life.
96
³⁴“That saw I well when I sat in the reeds,
waiting the maid I wooed:
more than body and soul was the sweet maid to me,
yet worked I my will not with her.
³⁴ There is hardly any connection to be sought with the preceding stanza.—96–102 recount Óthin’s love escapade with Billing’s daughter who is, possibly, identical with Gunnloth, 106.
97
“Billing’s daughter on her bed I found
sleeping, the sun-bright maid;
a king’s crown I craved not to wear,
if she let me have her love.”
98
“At eventide shalt, Óthin, come
if thou wilt win me to wife:
unmeet it were if more than we two
know of this naughty thing.”
99
“Back I went; to win her love
I let myself be misled;
for I did think, enthralled by love,
to work my will with her.
100
“When next I came at night-time, then,
all the warriors found I awake,
with brands high borne and burning lights:
thus was my wayfaring wasted.
101
“Near morn when I once more did come,
the folks were sound asleep;
but a bitch found I the fair one had
bound fast on her bed!
102
“Many a good maid if you mark it well
is fickle, though fair her word;
that I quickly found when the cunning maid
I lured to lecherous love;
every taunt and gibe she tried on me,
and naught I had of her.
103
“Glad in his home, to his guest cheerful,
yet shrewd should one be;
wise and weighty be the word of his mouth,
if wise he would be thought.
A ninny is he who naught can say,
for such is the way of the witless.
104
³⁵“The old etin I sought—now am I back;
in good stead stood me my speech;
for with many words my wish I wrought
in the hall of Suttungs’ sons.
³⁵ Another, and more successful, amorous adventure of Óthin is referred to in stanzas 104–110: in his quest for the ‘mead of skaldship’ he discovers that the precious drink is hidden in a mountain where it is guarded by the giantess Gunnloth, the daughter of Suttung. With an auger he bores a hole and creeps through in the form of a snake. Gunnloth allows him to stay with her for three days and permits him to drink of the mead. After his escape he spews it out into vessels held ready by the gods. True skalds are allowed a drink of it; Bragar. chaps. 57, 58.
105
“With an auger I did eat my way,
through the rocks did make me room!
over and under were the etins’-ways;³⁶
thus dared I life and limbs.
³⁶ Kenning for ‘rocks’.
106
“Gunnloth gave me, her gold-stool upon,
a draught of the dear-bought mead;
an ill reward I her after left
for her friendship faithful,
for her heavy heart.
107
“Of the well-bought mead³⁶a I made good use:
to the wise now little is lacking;
for Óthrœrir³⁷ now up is brought,
and won for the world of men.
³⁶a Following F. Jónsson’s emendation.
³⁷ ‘Exciter of Inspiration (?)’; here, the name of the mead of skaldship, but 141 and in Bragar, the name of the vessel in which it was kept.
108
“Unharmed again had I hardly come
out of the etins’ hall,
if Gunnloth helped not, the good maiden,
in whose loving arms I lay.
109
“The day after, the etins fared
into Hór’s high hall,—
to ask after Bolverk:³⁸ whether the æsir among,
or whether by Suttung slain.
³⁸ ‘Evildoer’, Óthin’s name assumed while among the giants. This conclusion differs from the one in Bragar.
110
“An oath on the ring did Óthin swear:³⁹
how put trust in his troth?
Suttung he swindled and snatched his drink,
and Gunnloth he beguiled.”
* * * *
³⁹ Scil. that such a person was not among the gods. The oath on the ring attached to the heathen altar was a specially solemn one.
111
’Tis time to chant on the sage’s chair:⁴⁰
at the well of Urth⁴¹
I saw, but naught said, I saw and thought,
listened to Hór’s lore;⁴²
of runes I heard them speak readily,
at the hall of Hór,
in the hall of Hór,
and thus I thought them say:
⁴⁰ Beginning of the ‘Lay of Loddfáfnir’, so called.
⁴¹ There, the gods assembled for council, cf. Vsp. 19 and Grímn. 30.
⁴² In the original, Hǫvamǫl, according to the generally accepted emendation, whence the title.
112
Hear thou, Loddfáfnir,⁴³ and heed it well,
learn it, ’twill lend thee strength,
follow it, ’twill further thee:
at night rise not but to be ready for foe,
or to look for a spot to relieve thee.
⁴³ This is, probably, the name of the sage or singer (þul) who pretends to have had the following redes of Óthin addressed to him at a meeting of the gods.
113
Hear thou, Loddfáfnir, and heed it well,
learn it, ’twill lend thee strength,
follow it, ’twill further thee:
in a witch’s arms thou ought’st not sleep,
linking thy limbs with hers.
114
She will cast her spell that thou car’st not go
to meetings where men are gathered;
unmindful of meat, and mirthless, thou goest,
and seekest thy bed in sorrow.
115
Hear thou, Loddfáfnir, and heed it well,
learn it, ’twill lend thee strength,
follow it, ’twill further thee:
beware lest the wedded wife of a man
thou lure to love with thee.
116
Hear thou, Loddfáfnir, and heed it well,
learn it, ’twill lend thee strength,
follow it, ’twill further thee:
on fell or firth if to fare thee list,
furnish thee well with food.
117
Hear thou, Loddfáfnir, and heed it well,
learn it, ’twill lend thee strength,
follow it, ’twill further thee:
withhold the hardships which happen to thee
from the knowledge of knaves;
for, know thou, from knaves thou wilt never have
reward for thy good wishes.⁴⁴
⁴⁴ ‘Good wishes’ are here to be understood, it seems, as kind disposition toward him one confides in.
118
A man I saw sorely bestead
through the words of a wicked woman;
her baleful tongue did work his bane,
though good and unguilty he was.
119
Hear thou, Loddfáfnir, and heed it well,
learn it, ’twill lend thee strength,
follow it, ’twill further thee:
if faithful friend thou hast found for thee,
then fare thou to find him full often;
overgrown is soon with tall grass and bush
the trail which is trod by no one.
120
Hear thou, Loddfáfnir, and heed it well,
learn it, ’twill lend thee strength,
follow it, ’twill further thee:
a good man seek thou to gain as thy friend,
and learn to make thyself loved.
121
Hear thou, Loddfáfnir, and heed it well,
learn it, ’twill lend thee strength,
follow it, ’twill further thee:
the first be not with a friend to break
who was faithful found to thee;
for sorrow eateth the soul of him
who may not unburthen his mind.
122
Hear thou, Loddfáfnir, and heed it well,
learn it, ’twill lend thee strength,
follow it, ’twill further thee:
to bandy words with a babbling fool
will aye prove witless work.
123
For from evil man not ever wilt thou
get reward for good;
a good man, though, will gain for thee
the love and liking of many.
124
Then love is mingled when a man can say
to his bosom-friend all that him burdens;
few things are worse than fickle mind:
no friend he who speaks thee but fair.
125
Hear thou, Loddfáfnir, and heed it well,
learn it, ’twill lend thee strength,
follow it, ’twill further thee:
not three words shalt with a worse man bandy;
oft the better man forbears
when the worse man wounds thee.⁴⁵
⁴⁵ Scil. on slight provocation.
126
Hear thou, Loddfáfnir, and heed it well,
learn it, ’twill lend thee strength,
follow it, ’twill further thee:
neither shoemaker be nor shaftmaker, either,
but it be for thyself:
let the shoe be ill-shaped or the shaft not true,
and they will wish thee woe.
127
Hear thou, Loddfáfnir, and heed it well,
learn it, ’twill lend thee strength,
follow it, ’twill further thee:
if wrong was done thee let thy wrong be known,
and fall on thy foes straightway.
128
Hear thou, Loddfáfnir, and heed it well,
learn it, ’twill lend thee strength,
follow it, ’twill further thee:
in ill deeds not ever share,
but be thou glad to do good.
129
Hear thou, Loddfáfnir, and heed it well,
learn it, ’twill lend thee strength,
follow it, ’twill further thee:
look not ever up, when fighting,—
for mad with fear men then oft grow—⁴⁵a
lest that warlocks bewitch thee.
⁴⁵a The panic fear which (according to the Konungs Skuggsjá chap. 11) often seizes young and inexperienced warriors.
130
Hear thou, Loddfáfnir, and heed it well,
learn it, ’twill lend thee strength,
follow it, ’twill further thee:
if thee list to gain a good woman’s love
and all the bliss there be,
thy troth shalt pledge, and truly keep;
no one tires of the good he gets.⁴⁶
⁴⁶ I.e. she will be true to you in turn.
131
Hear thou, Loddfáfnir, and heed it well,
learn it, ’twill lend thee strength,
follow it, ’twill further thee:
be wary of thee, but not wary o’er much;
be most wary of ale and of other man’s wife,
and eke, thirdly, lest thieves outwit thee.
132
Hear thou, Loddfáfnir, and heed it well,
learn it, ’twill lend thee strength,
follow it, ’twill further thee:
never laugh at or mock, or make game of,
guest or wayfaring wight.
133
Those who sit within hall oft hardly know
of what kin be they who come;
no man so flawless but some fault he has,
nor so wicked to be of no worth.
[Both foul and fair are found among men,
blended within their breasts.]⁴⁶a
⁴⁶a Only in the Paper Manuscripts.
134
Hear thou, Loddfáfnir, and heed it well,
learn it, ’twill lend thee strength,
follow it, ’twill further thee:
at hoary singer⁴⁶b sneer thou never:
there is sense oft in old men’s saws;
oft wisdom cometh out of withered bag⁴⁷
that hangs ’mongst the hides,
and dangles ’mongst the skins drying
under roof, with the rennet.
⁴⁶b In the original, þul; cf. Intro. note 1a.
⁴⁷ The old man’s wrinkled mouth is compared to a bag (cf. Hamth. 27); which metaphor again suggests the rustic interior of the following lines.
135
Hear thou, Loddfáfnir, and heed it well,
learn it, ’twill lend thee strength,
follow it, ’twill further thee:
beshrew not the stranger, nor show him the door,
but rather do good to the wretched.
136
That bar must be strong which unbars the door
to each and every one:⁴⁸
give the beggar something, lest he bear thee ill-will
and wish thee all manner of mischief.
⁴⁸ The meaning seems to be: only a strong bolt can last in the door which is unbarred to every one. In other words: do not be too generous and hospitable. On the other hand, etc.
137
Hear thou, Loddfáfnir, and heed it well,
learn it, ’twill lend thee strength,
follow it, ’twill further thee:
when ale thou drinkest choose earth for thee:⁴⁹
[for earth is good ’gainst ale, ’gainst ague, fire,
’gainst straining,⁵¹ acorns, ’gainst witchery, steel,
’gainst house-strife, the elder,⁵² ’gainst hate,⁵³ the moon,
’gainst the rabies,⁵⁴ earth-worms, ’gainst ill luck, runes—]
for earth takes the waters all.
⁴⁹ I.e. as a remedy against any injurious effect therefrom.—The bracketed lines, containing several folk-medicinal remedies, are undoubtedly a later addition. Their translation is, for the most part, conjectural. Cf. Maal og Minne 1923, 1ff.
⁵⁰ Probably, in the form of a glowing iron.
⁵¹ I.e. tenesmus; relieved by the astringent decoction from acorns.
⁵² In folklore, the elder bush exercises a pacifying influence.
⁵³ Such ailments as rickets, the king’s evil, etc. were thought to be superinduced by ‘hate’, i.e. the evil eye.
⁵⁴ Or, ‘bites’; cured by the application of worms.
138
Now Hór’s sayings in the hall are spoken,—
of help to the sons of men,
of harm to the sons of etins;
hail to whoever speaks them,
hail to whoever knows them!
Gain they who grasp them,
happy they who heed them!
* * * *
139
⁵⁵I ween that I hung on the windy tree
all of nights nine,
wounded by spear, bespoken to Óthin,
bespoken myself to myself,
[upon that tree of which none telleth
from what roots it doth rise.]⁵⁶
⁵⁵ Here begins the portion usually called the Rune Poem.—“In order to discover the runes, and through them to become possessed of secret wisdom, Óthin sacrificed himself by hanging himself on the World-Ash and wounding himself with the spear. Hence the World-Tree is called Yggdrasil, i. e. Ygg’s (‘the Terrible One’s’, Óthin’s) Horse. The manner in which Óthin sacrificed himself is instanced also otherwise. According to the Gautreks saga, chap. 7, the hero Starkath sacrificed King Víkar to Óthin by transfixing him with a spear and suspending him from a tree.” (Gering) It is difficult, however, to avoid the conclusion that the conception of the first two stanzas (cf. also 146) is ultimately derived from the Crucifixion Scene of the Bible, as Bugge has endeavoured to prove.
⁵⁶ These lines seem to have gotten here from Fj. 14.
140
Neither horn⁵⁶a they upheld nor handed me bread;
I looked below me— aloud I cried—
fetched up the runes and fell back then.
⁵⁶a Scil. drinking-horn.
141
From the son of Bolthorn,⁵⁷ Bestla’s father,
I mastered mighty songs nine,
and a drink I had of the dearest mead,
got from out of Óthrœrir.
⁵⁷ In the Gylfag. chap. 6 we learn that the giant Bolthorn had a daughter Bestla who, by Bur, becomes the mother of Óthin, Vili, and Vé. It has been conjectured that the wise Mímir is this giant’s son (cf. Vsp. 19, 21). Thus, Óthin’s wisdom is derived from three sources: from his self-sacrifice, from Mímir’s well, and from a drink out of Óthrœrir (cf. 107 and note).
142
Then began I to grow and gain in insight,
to wax and to feel right well;
one word grew out of the other word,
one work out of the other.
143
Runes wilt thou find, and rightly read them,
deep-red dyed by Óthin,⁵⁷a
made by the holy hosts,
runes which are mighty, runes which are matchless,
which are wrought by Ragna-Hrópt.⁵⁸
⁵⁷a viz. with blood, which is thought especially potent in magic.
⁵⁸ ‘God of Gods’, Óthin.
144
Óthin among æsir,⁵⁹ for alfs, Dáin,⁶⁰
Dvalin⁶¹ for the dwarfs,
Alsvith⁶² among etins, (but for earth-born men)⁶³
wrought I some myself.
⁵⁹ Supply: wrought runes.
⁶⁰ Cf. p. 383.
⁶¹ Cf. ibid.
⁶² ‘The All-Wise’; cf. Alvís, the dwarf, Alv.
⁶³ Conjecturally supplied by Gering.
145
Know’st how to write,⁶⁴ know’st how to read,
know’st how to dye,⁶⁵ know’st how to delve,
know’st how to ask, know’st how to offer,
know’st how to speed, know’st how to spend?
⁶⁴ Scil. the runes.
⁶⁵ Cf. 143. The translation of the following lines is mainly conjectural. They deal with the correct making and interpretation of runes, and with their proper use in sacrifice and magic.
146
Better unasked than offered overmuch;
for aye doth a gift look for gain;
thus did Óthin write ere the earth began,
when up he rose in after time.⁶⁶
⁶⁶ Cf. 139 and note.
147
Those spells I know which the spouses of kings⁶⁶a
wot not, nor earthly wight:
‘Help’ one is hight with which holpen thou’lt be
in sorrow and care and sickness.
⁶⁶a Such as Sigrdrífa and Grímhild.
148
That other I know which all will need
who leeches list to be:
(on the bark scratch them of bole in the woods
whose boughs bend to the east).⁶⁷
⁶⁷ I.e. the ‘limb-runes’; cf. Sigrdr. 12, from which these lines are supplied by the translator.
149
That third I know, if my need be great
to fetter a foeman fell:
I can dull the swords of deadly foes,
that nor wiles nor weapons avail.⁶⁸
⁶⁸ On this stanza cf. Ríg. 44 and Gróug. 16.
150
That fourth I know, if foemen have
fettered me hand and foot:
I chant a charm⁶⁹ the chains to break,
so the fetters will fly off my feet,
and off my hands the halter.
⁶⁹ Consisting also of ‘runes’. In Beda’s Historia ecclesiastica IV, 22 a prisoner who frees himself from his fetters is asked ‘an forte litteras solutorias, de quibus fabulae ferunt, apud se haberet’. Also the theme of one of the Merseburg charms.
151
That fifth I know, if from foeman’s hand
I see a spear sped into throng,
never so fast it flies but its flight I can stay,
once my eye lights on it.
152
That sixth I know, if me some one wounds
with runes on moist root written;⁷⁰
or rouses my wrath by reckless speech:
him blights shall blast, not me.
⁷⁰ In which manner Grettir’s death is brought about (Grettis saga chap. 81f).
153
That seventh I know, if o’er sleepers’ heads
I behold a hall on fire:
however bright the blaze I can beat it down—
that mighty spell I can speak.⁷¹
⁷¹ Cf. Ríg. 45.
154
That eighth I know which to all men is
needful, and good to know:
when hatred runs high, heroes among,
their strife I can settle full soon.
155
That ninth I know: if need there be
to guard a ship in a gale,
the wind I calm, and the waves also,
and wholly soothe the sea.⁷²
⁷² Cf. Gróug. 11.
156
That tenth I know, if night-hags sporting
I scan aloft in the sky:
I scare them with spells so they scatter abroad,
heedless of their hides,⁷³
heedless of their haunts.
⁷³ I.e. their own ‘skins’ or forms which they leave behind on their rides. The incantations cause the witches to forget both their original forms and their homes.
157
That eleventh I know:— if I am to lead
old friends to the fray:
under buckler I chant⁷⁴ that briskly they fare
hale and whole to battle,
and hale wend to their home:
hale whereever they are.
⁷⁴ Cf. the barditus mentioned by Tacitus in his Germania chap. 3, produced ‘objectis ad os scutis.’
158
That twelfth I know, if on tree I see
a hanged one hoisted on high:
thus I write and the runes I stain⁷⁵
that down he drops
and tells me his tale.⁷⁶
⁷⁵ Cf. 143.
⁷⁶ Óthin seeks the wisdom of the dead, cf. also Bdr. 5, Hárb. 43.
159
That thirteenth I know if a thane’s son I shall
wet with holy water:⁷⁷
never will he fall, though the fray be hot,
never sink down, wounded by sword.
⁷⁷ In the heathen rite of baptism; cf. Ríg. 7, note.
160
That fourteenth I know, if to folk I shall
sing and say of the gods:
æsir and alfs know I altogether—
of unlearned few have that lore.
161
That know I fifteenth which Thióthrœrir⁷⁸ sang,
the dwarf, before Delling’s door:⁷⁹
gave to æsir strength, to alfs victory
by his song, and insight to Óthin.
⁷⁸ Unknown elsewhere.
⁷⁹ Kenning for ‘dawn’ (?). As to Delling, cf. Vaf. 25.
162
That sixteenth I know, if I seek me some maid,
to work my will with her:
the white-armed woman’s heart I bewitch,
and toward me I turn her thoughts.
163
That seventeenth I know, (if the slender maid’s love
I have, and hold her to me:
thus I sing to her)⁸⁰ that she hardly will
leave me for other man’s love.
⁸⁰ Supplied by the translator.
164
In this lore wilt thou, Loddfáfnir, be
in need anon and ever:
thy weal were it, if this wisdom thine—
’tis helpful, if heeded,
’tis needful, if known.
165
That eighteenth I know which to none I will tell,
neither maid nor man’s wife—
’tis best warded if but one know it:
this speak I last of my spells—
but only to her in whose arms I lie,
or else to my sister also.⁸¹
⁸¹ This is, perhaps, the same unfathomable secret Óthin whispered in Baldr’s ear as he lay dead, Vaf. 55.
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