Tarrin Wills and Stefanie Gropper (eds) 2007, ‘Anonymous Poems, Hugsvinnsmál 34’ in Margaret Clunies Ross (ed.), Poetry on Christian Subjects. Skaldic Poetry of the Scandinavian Middle Ages 7. Turnhout: Brepols, pp. 381-2.
Við meinum varna skaltu á margan veg,
þótt þú sért fullsterkr at fé;
margr er sá aumr, er aurum ræðr;
ilt er auði at trúa.
Skaltu varna við meinum á margan veg, þótt þú sért fullsterkr at fé; margr er sá aumr, er ræðr aurum; ilt er at trúa auði.
You must beware of harm in many a way, although you are very well off with money; many a one is poor who possesses money; it is bad to trust in wealth.
Mss: 1199ˣ(72v), 723aˣ(79), 696XV(1v), 401ˣ(1r), 624(142)
Readings: [1] varna: varaz 696XV, om. 624 [2] skaltu: þú skalt 696XV; á margan veg: ‘ꜳ̋ [...]’ 696XV, ‘[...] margan haṫṫ’ 401ˣ, á marga vega varaz 624 [3] þótt þú: þó þú 723aˣ, ‘[...]’ 696XV; sért: vitir þik 624; fullsterkr: fullríkr 696XV, 401ˣ, vel auðgan 624 [4] margr: opt 624; er: verðr 696XV; sá aumr: aumr sá 723aˣ, 696XV, aumr 401ˣ [5] aurum: fyrir aurum 696XV, 401ˣ; ræðr: ‘[...]’ 696XV, ‘r[...]’ 401ˣ [6] ilt er auði at trúa: ilt er at trúa auð 723aˣ, ‘[...]d at trua’ 696XV, ilt er auð at trúa 401ˣ, ok verðr varr sanns 624
Editions: Skj AII, 175, Skj BII, 191, Skald II, 99-100; Hallgrímur Scheving 1831, 12, Gering 1907, 10, Tuvestrand 1977, 90, Hermann Pálsson 1985, 48.
Notes: [All]: Lat. parallel: (Dist. I, 18) Cum fueris felix, quae sunt adversa, caveto: / non eodem cursu respondent ultima primis ‘When you are happy, be on your guard against adverse things; the end does not always follow the same course as that begun’. The text of 1199ˣ might have been influenced by Sól 34. The dangers of being rich are also mentioned in, e.g., Hávm 10/4-5 (NK, 18): auði betra | þiccir þat í ókunnom stað ‘better than riches [common sense] will seem in an unfamiliar place’ (Larrington 1996, 15).
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