Sé þér í hvílu sem í hálmeldi
en í hásæti sem á hafbáru.
Þó skal þér seinna sýnu verra,
en, ef þú vilt við meyjar manns gaman hafa,
villiz þú þá vegarins; eða viltu þulu lengri?
Sé þér í hvílu sem í hálmeldi en í hásæti sem á hafbáru. Þó skal þér seinna sýnu verra, en, ef þú vilt hafa gaman manns við meyjar, villiz þú þá vegarins; eða viltu lengri þulu?
May it be for you in your bed as if [you were] in burning straw and on your high-seat like on a churning sea. Yet later may it be a great deal worse for you, and if you wish to have a man’s pleasure with girls, may you then lose your way: or do you desire a longer rigmarole?
[10] eða viltu lengri þulu ‘or do you desire a longer rigmarole’: This can be compared to HHund I 43/8 (NK 137) vill þú tǫlo lengri? ‘do you desire further speech’?, and Hyndl 31, 34, 36, 39 (NK 293-4) viltu enn lengra? ‘do you desire more’?; cf. Anon (Stu) 23IV. The use of þula ‘rigmarole’ here is comparable with the word’s other two uses in skaldic poetry (SnH Lv 7/2II and Anon Mhkv 11/3III) to refer to lists of synonyms or list-like verse. For further discussion, see Introduction to the Þulur in SkP III.