Cursed Be Iron

Curses on thee, cruel iron Curses on the steel thou givest Curses on thee, tongue of evil Cursed be thy life forever Once thou wert of little value, having neither form nor beauty Neither strength nor great importance, when in form of milk thou rested When for ages thou wert hidden, in the breasts of God's three daughters Hidden in their heaving bosoms On the borders of the cloudlets, in the blue vault of the heavens Thou wert once of little value, having neither form nor beauty Neither strength nor great importance, when like water thou wert resting On the broad back of the marshes, on the steep declines of mountains When thou wert but formless matter, only dust of rusty color Curses on thee, cruel iron Curses on the steel thou givest Curses on thee, tongue of evil Cursed be thy life forever Surely thou wert void of greatness, having neither strength nor beauty When the moose was trampling on thee, when the roebuck trod upon thee When the tracks of wolves were in thee and the bear-paws scratched thy body Surely thou hadst little value when the skillful Ilmarinen First of all the iron-workers, brought thee from the blackened swamp-lands Took thee to his ancient smithy, placed thee in his fiery furnace Truly thou hadst little vigor, little strength, and little danger When thou in the fire wert hissing, rolling forth like seething water From the furnace of the smithy when thou gavest oath the strongest By the furnace, by the anvil, by the tongs, and by the hammer By the dwelling of the blacksmith, by the fire within the furnace Curses on thee, cruel iron Curses on the steel thou givest Curses on thee, tongue of evil Now forsooth thou hast grown mighty, thou canst rage in wildest fury Thou hast broken all thy pledges, all thy solemn vows hast broken Like the dogs thou shamest honor Shamest both thyself and kindred, tained all with breath and evil Tell all who drove thee to this mischief Tell who taught thee thy malice Tell who gavest thee thine evil Tell me, now tell me Did thy father, or thy mother Did the eldest of thy brothers (Did the youngest of thy sisters) Did the worst of all thy kindred (Give to thee thine evil nature) Not thy father, nor thy mother (Not the eldest of thy brothers) Not the youngest of thy sisters Not the worst of all thy kindred But thyself hast done this mischief Thou the cause of all our trouble Come and view thine evil doings And amend this flood of damage Curses on thee, cruel iron Curses on the steel thou givest Curses on thee, tongue of evil Cursed be thy life forever