68. Fire is best
Among the sons of men,
And the sight of the sun,
If his health
A man can have,
With a life free from vice.
69. No man lacks everything,
Although his health be bad;
One in his sons is happy,
One in his kin,
One in abundant wealth,
One in his good works.
70. It is better to live,
Even to live miserably;
A living man can always get a cow.
I saw fire consume
The rich man's property,
And death stood without his door.
71. The halt can ride on horseback.
The one-handed drive cattle;
The deaf, fight and be useful:
To be blind is better
Than to be burnt:[1]
No one gets good from a corpse.
72. A son is better
Even if born late,
After his father's departure.
Gravestones seldom
Stand by the way-side
Unless raised by a kinsman to a kinsman.
73. Two are adversaries:
The tongue is the bane of the head:
Under every cloak
I expect a hand.
- ↑ That is, dead on the funeral pile.
