The Viaticum of Llevoed Wynebglawr

I
The world's wealth ebbs and flows
Despite man's pride on it's account
Want wears down security
Fair weather follows rain
A fair fight is not usual
Blood follows the provocation of a brave man
Each coward will be attacked
Better to avoid the berserker
Wealth follows the blessed man
god grants him glory

II
The world's wealth ebbs and flows
The lord yields plenty
The sound of wave against land is loud
When the rain comes the veil is disturbed
He with no wish to understand is stubborn
The careless man cares mot where he dwells
He who does not act justly will not be included in the realm [of the living]
There is no advantage in reciting the Beatitudes when a man flees
The deceitful warrior will be excommunicated
Greedy will be the successful sword of the destroyin hand*

III
The world's wealth ebbs and flows
Desire is voiciferous, glory is fragile
Young men compete, they thrive†
Lies do not enhance fame
The land without religion is barren
An unfulfilled promise is worthless
Joy does not benefit the elderly
He who does not contemplate god is unfaithful —
he shall not be considered sane, he will not succeed
Seek to attain godliness through endeavour —
until an accommodation is attained with Christ

IV
A fickle ally is the lukewarm churchman
Public contention opresses the heart
Better a refusal then a deceitful promise
The careless man is useless in his deeds
It is seldom that sweet things are not harmful
A mischievous agreement is bitter when a man is dead
Rare is the man with a ready excuse‡
Good never comes without a price
The world is four-sided, four-cornered
In the face of violence, better to retire than to slaughter
Sin is bad if long practiced
A good thing in extremis is supporting a monastery
God in heaven, woe the foolhardy who believe not in you
Son of Mary, the faithful shall succeed
A good thing for us is placing our hopes in thee
A man shall call upon thee in tribulation

V
The wave rushes; it beats against the beach
Violence is the fuel of battle
It is fitting for a brave man to speak quietly
Prudent the host that deceives under laughter
The powerful man leads the van
The weak are feeble, the withered are dead
Previously⁂ they were ingenious in designing a false agreement
A secret is not long kept by a wanton man
A spear brings the squirting of blood
The battle awaits the fated man.
He who is cowardly shall flee —
a wicked man, he allows his companions to die
Apart from god, there is no wizard
The lord, supreme, brings success to this realm

VI
The wave rushes, it hurls the gravel
the pain of the weak man soon returns
Heroes will be allowed to drink mead —
But each will have to accept their ending
Each man of might will die, he shall lose his strength
He who has earned a place in heaven will not be shamed

VII
So powerful art thou by your naming [O god!]
The trees wear a beautiful covering
An un-illuminated man cannot see clearly
A candle cannot succeed against coldness
The man is not blessed who does not possess patience —
a covenant with the Lord that he cheats not.

VIII
A chatterbox is he who does not possess patience
The wicked man never completes what he started
The course of the winter is cold, the marshi is barren
Better the lord than going to excess
Repentance does not avail against him
Exaggerated boasting will fail
No matter how much the mind wanders
He knew not, from his unsettled nature, whence he might go
Arrogant is he who fulfills not his duty to the trinity
Great god, how great of excellence art thou

IX
The steed runs freely on any beach
Horsemanship is the feat of a lord
There is no one who rules according to his purpose
Not everyone is born wise
The thoughts of none without fear are unlike a shop 'tween two beaches.
There is no peace between dry hay and fire
May a man live without wickedness
Splendid is the poetry of he who depends ona patron for his maintenance.
A naked man will not be an attacker
There is no law where there is no leader
A king is fearless whilst plundering
A dangerous thing is it to slay a fearless man
Frequently cowardice is a means of avoiding death
A brave man escapes by his endeavour
A fool is a drunkard, foreign⁑ people are mute.
The city of the unfaithful is a wasteland
An easy task, the entreaty of he who loves.
He praises all according to their worth
The lord loves not those without hope
The successful man is the best co-worker

X
Spring, the land is abundant
The waves crash with an awful sound
Scorned is the man without title to his posessions
He who is oft not seen is to blame
The arrogance of one without faith is reproved
[Payment in] full will be demanded from him
A woman not in demand is quiet —
generally shame comes from a long widowhood.
He who does not withdraw will die
Grief will be caused by continuous provacation
He who is dead will not soon be seen
That which is good to god is unavoidable
The fame of he who is brave is heard
He will be rewarded instead of being insignificant
Blessed is he to whom is given —
the friendship of god and a long life.

Please not that this is a new translation of this poem by me (and I believe this marks the first time that this poem and its translation has been made available on the web. If you wish to use it please contact me at . As you will notice from the text the poem itself is effectively a linked sequence of proverbs, with each successive verse echoing at least some of the themes of the previous one. As such some of the stanzas expound on the original text for clarity's sake. Elsewhere the expounding of the original theme is done in the footnotes.

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