Sengoídelc - Maxims & Wise Counsel

A rigne is messu don ga�s.

Thu, 03 Feb 2005 12:13:04 -0500

A rigne is messu don gaís.

(its * slowness * (that) is * worse * for the * wisdom)

The worst of wisdom is its slowness.

A maxim from the gnomic poem "Diambad messe bad rí réil".

Ad�fenar f� f�u...

Sun, 14 Sep 2008 12:58:53 -0400

Ad·fenar fó fíu.
Ad·fenar olcc anmoínib.
Ad·fenar maith moínib.

(is repayed * good * (by) worthiness
is repayed * evil * (by) un-treasures
is repayed * goodness * (by) treasures)

Value repays virtue.
Waste repays wickedness.
Gain repays goodness.

This triad of maxims is found in the Laws (Cethairshlicht Athgabálae) at CIH ii 408.13f.

�ithiu cech delg is �a.

Sat, 14 Jan 2006 22:42:57 -0500

Áithiu cech delg is óa.

(sharper * every * thorn * that is * younger)

Younger thorns are shaper.

This maxim is found in "Passions and Homilies" (4136-37), where King David tells his son Solomon that he is more clever and keener-witted than himself, "amal atbeir isin derbárusc" ("as it says in the proverb"), which he then quotes. A slightly different version is found in "Acallam na Senórach" (1384), where Garad begs off playing fidchell with the women of the Fían, claiming that he is too old: "Is áithe cach n-delg as só".

Ar in bith �n astaither...

Fri, 20 May 2005 19:24:06 -0400

Ar in bith án astaither
A coraib bél bertaigter.

(for * the * world * splendid * is established /
from * contracts * of lips * that are proclaimed)

For the great world is secured
By contracts which are proclaimed.

These two lines of verse are from §36 of "Di Astud Chor". The translation is by Neil McLeod. In traditional Irish law, contracts -- formal agreements between individuals -- were the bedrock on which an ordered society was established. The "social contract" that allowed men to live together without destructive conflict in early Ireland was literally a network of deliberate civil contracts that individuals entered into in public rituals.

Ardibdaba dochell bl�tha.

Mon, 13 Nov 2006 22:17:38 -0500

Ardibdaba dochell blátha.

(will cut off * inhospitality * flowers)

Inhospitality will destroy flowers.

This maxim is part of Fercertne's long litany of pessimistic pronouncements about the days to come, found in his final speech in "Immacallam in Dá Thúarad". It concisely encapsulates the old belief that human behavior, a king's actions in particular, could influence the fruitfulness of the earth. A gloss in one MS identifies the "flowers" as "mess 7 torud" (wild produce and cultivated fruit).

B�odae cach br�thair fri araile.

Sun, 03 Sep 2006 11:58:27 -0400

Béodae cach bráthair fri araile.

(vigorous * every * brother * against * another)

Brothers (or, kinsmen) are energized when they compete against one another.

This maxim was quoted in the "Annals of the Four Masters" for the year 1581, when Cineál Eoghain and Cineál Chonaill came to blows. There were close kinsmen on both sides and the battle was fierce, which led the annalist to remark "ro dearbhadh an dearbh-aruscc airdearc don chur sa, .i. beodha gach brathair fri aroile". (The famous maxim was proved in this instance, that is, 'vigorous is every brother against another'.) A Scottish Gaelic saying encapsulates a similar observation: "Is e farmad a nì treabhadh." (Competitiveness is what gets the plowing done.)

Bes ild�nach bid ild�rech.

Sun, 03 Sep 2006 13:55:20 -0400

Bes ildánach bid ildírech.

(who [will be / is] multi-skilled [will be / is always] multi-honour-priced)

Whoever is highly skilled is always highly valued.

This maxim comes from the law tract "Uraicecht Becc".

Bid co h-eistechtach cailli...

Wed, 16 Mar 2005 14:55:24 -0500

Bid co h-eistechtach cailli,
bid co féchsanach muigi,
oir ní fedrais, mór in mod,
nach biad t' escara it fharrad.

(be * hearingful * of forest /
be * watchful * of plain /
for * not * you know - great * the * deed /
that not * would be * your * enemy * in your * presence)

Keep your ears open in the forest
and your eyes open on the plain,
for you don't know -- this is important --
whether your enemy is near.

This is the eleventh stanza in the poem "Fionn's Advice to Mac Lugach" at the beginning of "Acallam na Senórach". See also "Dá trian do mhíne re mnáibh" in this collection.

C�ch a bfuil acat i tig...

Thu, 06 Sep 2007 15:29:37 -0400

Cách a bfuil acat i tig
etir ith is blicht is mil,
nocha berair lat ar sét
in tan racha d'éc, a fhir.

(all * that * is * at you * in * house /
between * grain * and * milk * and * honey /
not * is carried * with you * on * road /
the * time * you will go * to death * o * man)

Everything you have at home,
all your honey, milk and grain,
you can't take with you on the road
when, my friend, you go to death.

This is the third and final stanza of a poem on generosity edited by Kuno Meyer from MS Laud 615, p. 101, in ACL III.3.

C�id cech r�t mad fri can�ine com�aimm.

Fri, 25 Feb 2005 12:05:23 -0500

Cáid cech rét mad fri canóine comúaimm.

(holy * each * thing * if be * with * scripture * harmony)

Everything that agrees with scripture is holy.

A maxim found in "Sanas Cormaic" #291.

C� messam do menmain?

Sat, 17 Dec 2005 17:33:29 -0500

Cé messam do menmain? Cóili & cróidhi & cumce. Ar ní talla nach maith for menmoin cóil crúaidh cumaing.

(what * worst * for * mind ? thinness & hardness & narrowness * for * not * is room for * any * goodness * on * mind * thin * hard * narrow)

What is worst for a mind?
Thinness and hardness and narrowness.
For there is no room for any good in a thin, hard, narrow mind.

This maxim comes from "Apgitir Crábaid", a text attributed to Colmán maccu Béognae, and found in ZCP 3.454, and on line at CELT.

C�in gair cech f�n imth�it l�n.

Wed, 02 Feb 2005 15:36:22 -0500

Céin gair cech fán imthéit lén.

(in long * in short * every * wandering * befalls * misfortune)

Sooner or later all wandering leads to grief.

A maxim from the poem "Diambad messe bad rí réil".

C�in mair molthiar, mairg �erthiar.

Fri, 04 Feb 2005 01:47:18 -0500

Céin mair molthiar, mairg áerthiar.
(long * live * (who) is praised * woe * (who) is satirized)

Happy the one who is praised, woe to the one who is mocked.

This maxim stands as a verse in a poem in LU, in the commentary on "Amrae Choluim Cille". It refers to the two powers that the Early Irish poet wielded, with which he could make or break a man: praise and satire.

Cendaig in mes m�r...

Tue, 01 Mar 2005 00:11:44 -0500

Cendaig in mes mór
ocus tess in gréin;
cendaig ith is blicht
for slicht cech ríg réil.

(buy * the * mast * great/
and * warmth * of the * sun/
buy * grain * and * milk/
on * track * of every * king * shining)

Earn fruits and nuts in plenty
and the heat of the sun;
earn grain and milk
in the way of every famous king.

This stanza is from "Cert cech ríg co réil", a poem in the "advice to princes" tradition. It gives voice to an idea about kingship that was widely accepted in Early Ireland, namely that the rule of a good king was distinguished not just by justice and wisdom, but also by the fruitful cooperation of the forces of nature. A litany of such benefits in "Audacht Morainn" includes high milk yields, tall grain, the absence of plagues and lightning, and so on. One line says "Is tre fhír flathemon ad- manna mármeso márfhedo -mlasetar": "It is through the justice of the ruler that abundances of great tree-fruit of the great wood are tasted." In our stanza, obtaining abundant mast, or forest produce on which pigs feasted and fattened in autumn, is viewed as a straightforward transaction: if the king rules in accordance with "fír" (truth), he will have earned the generosity of nature.

Cid bec, m�t frigi, do locht...

Mon, 14 Mar 2005 21:49:08 -0500

Cid bec, mét frigi, do locht,
airige for nech do chéin;
cid métithir slíab do locht,
nocha n-airige fort féin.

(although * small * size * of mite * for * a fault / you notice * on * someone * to * distance / although * as sizeable (as) * a mountain * for * a fault / not * you notice * on you * self)

Though a fault be small, a trifle,
you see it on another at a distance;
Though a fault be the size of a mountain,
You do not see it on yourself.

A sententious verse first edited by Kuno Meyer and published in ZCP vol. 1. The poet Dáibhí Ó Bruadair (c. 1625 - 1698) echoed the biblical sentiment (Matt. 7:3) of the first couplet in a leathrann of his own: "A chéillidh dochí an teimheal / ar rosc cháich don chéadshilleadh" (You're careful in a glance to see the blemishes in others' eyes).