Tarrin Wills and Stefanie Gropper (eds) 2007, ‘Anonymous Poems, Hugsvinnsmál 1’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry on Christian Subjects. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 7. Turnhout: Brepols, pp. 361-2.
Heyri seggir, þeir er vilja at sið lifa
ok góð verk gera,
horsklig ráð, þau er heiðinn maðr
kendi sínum syni.
Seggir, þeir er vilja lifa at sið ok gera góð verk, heyri horsklig ráð, þau er heiðinn maðr kendi syni sínum.
‘Men who want to live with good conduct and do good works should listen to the wise advice that a heathen man taught his son.’
Lat. parallel: (Epistula) Cum animadverterem quam plurimos graviter in via morum errare, succurrendum opinioni eorum et consulendum famae existimavi, maxime ut gloriose viverent et honorem contingerent ‘Since I am aware of how very many people go seriously astray in the path of morals, I thought I should come to the aid of their understanding and take their reputations into account, so that they might live with greatest glory and obtain honour’. The st. translates the first part of the introductory letter (Epistula) preceding the Lat. poem.
Text is based on reconstruction from the base text and variant apparatus and may contain alternative spellings and other normalisations not visible in the manuscript text. Transcriptions may not have been checked and should not be cited.
Heyri seggir,
þeir eð vilja at sið lifa
ok góð verk gera,
horsklig ráð,
þau er heiðinn maðr
kendi syni sínum .
Heire Segger þeı̈r ed Vilia ad Sid Lifa og God | verk gióra hoskleg Räd þau er heidinn madur kende Sýne synum. |
(VEÞ)
Heyri seggir þeir er vilia sid nema ok goð verk gi|ora · hoslig rad er heidinn maðr kiende sinum syni
(TW)
Hlýði seggir,
þeir er vilja at lið lifi
ok góð verk geri,
horsklig ráð,
þau er heiðinn maðr
kendi sínum syni.
Hlydí segger þeir er uilia at lid lifi ok god verk giori · hosk | lig ʀad þav er heidin madur kendi sínvm synne ·
(VEÞ)
Hlijde segger þeir er vilia, ad lid life, og göd verk | giore, hoskleg ra̋d þau, er heidinn madur, kende fordum | syne sijnum.
(VEÞ)
Skj: Anonyme digte og vers [XIII], [C. E/5]. Hugsvinnsmál 1: AII, 167-8, BII, 185, Skald II, 96; Hallgrímur Scheving 1831, 7, Konráð Gíslason 1860, 549, Gering 1907, 1, Tuvestrand 1977, 71, Hermann Pálsson 1985, 24.
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