Hávamál
What is dear to the living
Fire, sunshine, health and a life without shame are dearest. Even the sick are not stripped of everything: some are blessed in children, kin, wealth or work.
Reference: stanzas 68–69 (Bray’s numbering) (The Elder or Poetic Edda, Commonly Known as Sæmund’s Edda, part I: The Mythological Poems)
The text, stanzas 68–69
68.
Most dear is fire to the sons of men,
most sweet the sight of the sun;
good is health if one can but keep it,
and to live a life without shame.
69.
Not reft of all is he who is ill,
for some are blest in their bairns,
some in their kin and some in their wealth,
and some in working well.
- Olive Bray (editor and translator), The Elder or Poetic Edda, Commonly Known as Sæmund’s Edda, part I: The Mythological Poems (opens in a new tab) (1908), stanzas 68–69 (Bray’s numbering) Rights: Public domain. Published in 1908, so in the public domain in the United States. Text as edited online by D. L. Ashliman, Folklore and Mythology Electronic Texts, University of Pittsburgh.
In plain English
The dearest thing to people is fire, and the sweetest the sight of the sun. Health is good if one can keep it, and so is a life lived without shame.
The sick man is not robbed of everything: some are blessed in their children, some in their kin, some in their wealth, and some in doing their work well.
- Olive Bray (editor and translator), The Elder or Poetic Edda, Commonly Known as Sæmund’s Edda, part I: The Mythological Poems (opens in a new tab) (1908), stanzas 68–69 (Bray’s numbering) Rights: Public domain. Published in 1908, so in the public domain in the United States. Text as edited online by D. L. Ashliman, Folklore and Mythology Electronic Texts, University of Pittsburgh.
Modern interpretation
Read today, these are two lists of small goods to count when things are going badly. That is a modern reading.
Questions to sit with
- If you are going through something hard, what is on your “not reft of all” list? Name three things.