Step 7 of 9 · Courage, Fear and Risk
Danger, and ill tidings
Why this step
Stanza 126 says that when you see yourself in peril, confess that you are in peril, and never give peace to your foes. Stanza 127 says not to rejoice at tidings of ill but to let your soul be glad in what is good. The entry reads the pair as facing danger honestly and not taking pleasure in other people’s misfortune.
The text, stanzas 126–127
126.
I counsel thee, Stray-Singer, accept my counsels,
they will be thy boon if thou obey'st them,
they will work thy weal if thou win'st them:
when in peril thou seest thee, confess thee in peril,
nor ever give peace to thy foes.
127.
I counsel thee, Stray-Singer, accept my counsels,
they will be thy boon if thou obey'st them,
they will work thy weal if thou win'st them:
rejoice not ever at tidings of ill,
but glad let thy soul be in good.
- 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 126–127 (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.
From the Lorebook
When you are in danger, admit it, and never give your enemies peace. Do not rejoice at bad news, but be glad in what is good.