Thereupon his head he lifted,
And he gazed aloft to heaven,
And beheld a glorious rainbow;
On the arch the maiden seated
As she wove a golden fabric.
As the silver comb resounded.30
Väinämöinen, old and steadfast,
Stayed his horse upon the instant.
And he raised his voice, and speaking,
In such words as these addressed her:
"Come into my sledge, O maiden,
In the sledge beside me seat thee."
Then the maiden made him answer,
And in words like these responded:
"Wherefore should the maiden join you,
In the sledge beside you seated?"40
Väinämöinen, old and steadfast.
Heard her words, and then responded:
"Therefore should the maiden join me,
In the sledge beside me seat her;
Bread of honey to prepare me,
And the best of beer to brew me,
Singing blithely on the benches,
Gaily talking at the window,
When in Väinölä I sojourn,
At my home in Kalevala."50
Then the maiden gave him answer,
And in words like these addressed him:
"As I wandered through the bedstraws
Tripping o'er the yellow meadows,
Yesterday, in time of evening,
As the sun was slowly sinking,
In the bush a bird was singing,
And I heard the fieldfare trilling,
Singing of the whims of maidens,
And the whims of new-wed damsels.60
"Thus the bird was speaking to me,
And I questioned it in this wise:
'Tell me O thou little fieldfare,
Sing thou, that my ears may hear it,
Whether it indeed is better,
Whether thou hast heard 'tis better,
For a girl in father's dwelling,
Or in household of a husband?'
"Thereupon the bird made answer,
And the fieldfare answered chirping:70
'Brilliant is the day in summer,
But a maiden's lot is brighter.
And the frost makes cold the iron,
Yet the new bride's lot is colder.
In her father's house a maiden
Lives like strawberry in the garden,
But a bride in house of husband,
Lives like house-dog tightly fettered.
To a slave comes rarely pleasure;
To a wedded damsel never.'"80
Väinämöinen, old and steadfast,
Answered in the words which follow:
"Song of birds is idle chatter,
And the throstle's, merely chirping;
As a child a daughter's treated,
But a maid must needs be married.
Come into my sledge, O maiden,
In the sledge beside me seat thee.
I am not a man unworthy,
Lazier not than other heroes."90