Helgakvitha Hundingsbana II: The Second Lay of Helgi Hundingsbane II
“Who rules the ship | by the shore so steep?Where is the home | ye warriors have?Why do ye bide | in Brunavagar,Or what the way | that ye wish to try?”
“Hamal’s the ship | by the shore so steep,Our home in Hlesey | do we have;For fair wind bide we | in Brunavagar,Eastward the way | that we wish to try.”
“Where hast thou, warrior, | battle wakened,Or gorged the birds | of the sisters of Guth?Why is thy byrnie | spattered with blood,Why helmed dost feast | on food uncooked?”
“Latest of all, | the Ylfings’ sonOn the western sea, | if know thou wilt,Captured bears | in Bragalund,And fed the eagles | with edge of sword.Now is it shown | why our shirts are bloody,And little our food | with fire is cooked.”
“Of battle thou tellest, | and there was bentHunding the king | before Helgi down;There was carnage when thou | didst avenge thy kin,And blood flowed fast | on the blade of the sword.”
“How didst thou know | that now our kin,Maiden wise, | we have well avenged?Many there are | of the sons of the mightyWho share alike | our lofty race.”
“Not far was I | from the lord of the folk,Yester morn, | when the monarch was slain;Though crafty the son | of Sigmund, methinks,When he speaks of the fight | in slaughter-runes.
“On the long-ship once | I saw thee well,When in the blood-stained | bow thou wast,(And round thee icy | waves were raging;)Now would the hero | hide from me,But to Hogni’s daughter | is Helgi known.”
Words in this poem
- bide v. i.
- To dwell; to inhabit; to abide; to stay. [OE. biden, AS. bidan; akin to OHG. bitan, Goth. beidan, Icel. bi; perh. orig., to wait with trust, and akin to bid. See Bid, v. t., and cf. Abide.]
- hamal n.
- In Turkey and other Oriental countries, a porter or burden bearer; specif., in Western India, a palanquin bearer.
- hast
- , 2d pers. sing. pres. of. Fave, contr. of havest.
- gorged a.
- Having a gorge or throat.
- helmed a.
- Covered with a helmet.
- carnage n.
- Flesh of slain animals or men. [F. carnage, LL. carnaticum tribute of animals, flesh of animals, fr. L. caro, carnis, flesh. See Carnal.]
- didst
- , the 2d pers. sing. imp. of Do.
- folk n.
- In Anglo-Saxon times, the people of a group of townships or villages; a community; a tribe. [AS. folc; akin to D. volk, OS. & OHG. folk, G. volk, Icel. f, Sw. & Dan. folk, Lith. pulkas crowd, and perh. to E. follow.]
- yester a.
- Last; last past; next before; of or pertaining to yesterday. [See Yesterday.]
- morn n.
- The first part of the day; the morning; -- used chiefly in poetry. [OE. morwen, morgen, AS. morgen; akin to D. morgen, OS. morgan, G. morgen, Icel. morginn, morgunn, Sw. morgon, Dan. morgen, Goth. maúrgins. Cf. Morrow, Morning.]
- methinks v.
- It seems to me; I think. See Me. [AS. þyncan to seem, me þynceedh, me þuhte, OE. me thinketh, me thoughte; akin to G. dünken to seem, denken to think, and E. think. See Me, and Think.]
- wast
- The second person singular of the verb be, in the indicative mood, imperfect tense; -- now used only in solemn or poetical style.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Helgakvitha Hundingsbana II: The Second Lay of Helgi Hundingsbane II is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Poetic Edda, Project Gutenberg ebook #73533, the Henry Adams Bellows translation; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Anonymous, Helgakvitha Hundingsbana II: The Second Lay of Helgi Hundingsbane II, in The Poetic Edda (1923), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #73533, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/poetic-edda/helgakvitha-hundingsbana-ii-the-second-lay-of-helgi-hundings-2.html, id L15731.
Form and metre
Helgakvitha Hundingsbana II: The Second Lay of Helgi Hundingsbane II is 35 lines in 8 verse paragraphs. It is unrhymed, as far as the pronouncing dictionary can tell. The metre is trochaic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 72%). 90% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 9.3 syllables. 5 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 9% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
See other poems in trochaic pentameter.
Measured by Laurel's pipeline, not copied from a handbook: how stress and metre are counted, how rhyme is lettered, how a drifted rhyme is found. Where the dictionary cannot confirm a rhyme the letter is withheld, not guessed.
Scansion, line by line
Each line with its syllable count and the stresses the words themselves fix: / stressed, ˘ unstressed, · a syllable the word leaves free and the metre decides. Read against trochaic pentameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| “Who rules the ship | by the shore so steep? | 9 | ········· |
| Where is the home | ye warriors have? | 9 | ·····/˘˘· |
| Why do ye bide | in Brunavagar, | 9 | ········· |
| Or what the way | that ye wish to try?” | 9 | ········· |
| “Hamal’s the ship | by the shore so steep, | 9 | /˘······· |
| Our home in Hlesey | do we have; | 9 | /˘······· |
| For fair wind bide we | in Brunavagar, | 10 | ·········· |
| Eastward the way | that we wish to try.” | 9 | /˘······· |
| “Where hast thou, warrior, | battle wakened, | 10 | ···/˘˘/˘/˘ |
| Or gorged the birds | of the sisters of Guth? | 10 | ······/˘·· |
| Why is thy byrnie | spattered with blood, | 9 | ·····/˘·· |
| Why helmed dost feast | on food uncooked?” | 9 | ··˘······ |
| “Latest of all, | the Ylfings’ son | 8 | /˘······ |
| On the western sea, | if know thou wilt, | 9 | ··/˘····· |
| Captured bears | in Bragalund, | 8 | /˘˘····· |
| And fed the eagles | with edge of sword. | 9 | ···/˘···· |
| Now is it shown | why our shirts are bloody, | 10 | ·····/··/˘ |
| And little our food | with fire is cooked.” | 9 | ·/˘/··/·· |
| “Of battle thou tellest, | and there was bent | 10 | ·/˘·/˘···· |
| Hunding the king | before Helgi down; | 9 | /˘······· |
| There was carnage when thou | didst avenge thy kin, | 11 | ··/˘···˘/·· |
| And blood flowed fast | on the blade of the sword.” | 10 | ·········· |
| “How didst thou know | that now our kin, | 9 | ······/˘· |
| Maiden wise, | we have well avenged? | 9 | /˘····˘/˘ |
| Many there are | of the sons of the mighty | 10 | /·······/˘ |
| Who share alike | our lofty race.” | 9 | ··˘//˘/˘· |
| “Not far was I | from the lord of the folk, | 10 | ·········· |
| Yester morn, | when the monarch was slain; | 9 | /˘···/··· |
| Though crafty the son | of Sigmund, methinks, | 10 | ·/˘···/˘˘/ |
| When he speaks of the fight | in slaughter-runes. | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| “On the long-ship once | I saw thee well, | 9 | ········· |
| When in the blood-stained | bow thou wast, | 9 | ·····˘··· |
| (And round thee icy | waves were raging;) | 9 | ···/˘··/˘ |
| Now would the hero | hide from me, | 8 | ···/˘··· |
| But to Hogni’s daughter | is Helgi known.” | 10 | ····/˘···· |
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