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Poetic Edda
67. To their homes men would bid me hither and yon,
If at meal-time I needed no meat,
Or would hang two hams in my true friend's house,
Where only one I had eaten.
If at meal-time I needed no meat,
Or would hang two hams in my true friend's house,
Where only one I had eaten.
68. Fire for men is the fairest gift,
And power to see the sun;
Health as well, if a man may have it,
And a life not stained with sin.
And power to see the sun;
Health as well, if a man may have it,
And a life not stained with sin.
69. All wretched is no man, though never so sick;
Some from their sons have joy,
Some win it from kinsmen, and some from their wealth,
And some from worthy works.
Some from their sons have joy,
Some win it from kinsmen, and some from their wealth,
And some from worthy works.
70.[1] It is better to live than to lie a corpse,
The live man catches the cow;
I saw flames rise for the rich man's pyre,
And before his door he lay dead.
The live man catches the cow;
I saw flames rise for the rich man's pyre,
And before his door he lay dead.
71. The lame rides a horse, the handless is herdsman,
The deaf in battle is bold;
The blind man is better than one that is burned,
No good can come of a corpse.
The deaf in battle is bold;
The blind man is better than one that is burned,
No good can come of a corpse.
- ↑ The manuscript has "and a worthy life" in place of "than to lie a corpse" in line 1, but Rask suggested the emendation as early as 1818, and most editors have followed him.
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