Wise thinks himself The guest who drives away Another guest with mocking; He is not wise Who sneers at a meal If he prates among angry men. Many men Are kind to one another, Yet quarrel at the meal; This will always be The cause of men’s strife; Guest gets angry with guest. An early meal Should a man often take And not go without it into company; (Otherwise) he sits and sulks, Looks as if he were hungry, And cannot talk. It is long out of one’s way To a bad friend, Though he live on the road; But to a good friend There are short paths Though he be farther off. One should take leave, The guest should not stay Always in one place; The loved becomes loathed If he sits too long In another’s house. A homestead is best Though it be small; A man is master at home; Though he has but two goats And a straw-thatched hall (house) It is better than begging. A homestead is best Though it be small; A man is a man (master) at home; Bleeding is the heart Of him who must beg His food for every meal. A man shall not on the ground Go a step forward Without his weapons; For it is hard to know When out on roads If a man may need his spear. I never met a man So openhanded or free with his food That he would not take a gift, Nor one so lavish With his property That rewards were to him unwelcome. A man When he has gained property Should not suffer want; What was meant for the loved Is often spared for the hated; Many things go worse than expected. With weapons and clothes Such as are most sightly on oneself Shall friends gladden each other; Givers and receivers Are the longest friends, If they give with good wishes. A man should be A friend to his friend And give gift for gift; Laughter for laughter And lie for lie Should men return. To his friend A man should be a friend, To him and his friend; But no man Should be the friend Of his foe’s friend.