Päike, kuu ja tähed

I got up in the morning,
before the light of day.
What was my first work?
Big washing of my face,
large grooming of my hair,
quickly putting on my shoes.
      I trod my way to the pond,
made footsteps to the lake,
brought to drink to the Jutiks,
carried water to Kareses¹.
What did I find on leaving,
what on returning home?
I saw a horse dying,
a linen mane falling.
I ran over to watch –
I tore a horsehair, tore the other,
took them home to my mother.
      "My darling mother, my tender mother,
my dear bearer, my little bird,
please, weave me big hankies,
make large tablecloths.
Weave the Moon signs to the end,
the Sun signs on the top,
pour copper yarn at the edge,
a Rainbow print in the middle of them.
Then the Moon will woo me,
the Dawn will bring betrothal wine."

      "Hello, beautiful sky-daughter,
under heaven, you wise child –
will you be a Sun's wife, 
the bride of the Sun's son?" –
"The Sun has a lot of trouble –
getting up in the morning
going down in the evening."
      "Hello, beautiful sky-daughter,
under heaven, you wise child,
will you be a Moon's wife,
a bride of the Moon's son?" –
"No, I won't be a Moon's wife,
a bride of the Moon's son.
The Moon has a lot of trouble –
sometimes is waning, sometimes is waxing,
and the third time it goes without."
      "Hello, beautiful sky-daughter,
under heaven, you wise child,
will you be a Star's wife,
a bride of the Star's son?" –
"I need to wed the Star,
to become a wife of the Star's son.
The Star has good horses,
the Star has nice oat eaters.
Their manes flutter on the clouds,
their heads dance to the heavens,
their lips make a reel,
their hooves weave fabric."

¹ Jutik, Kares – the names of the cows

The shepherd evening song.

Roll along, roll dear Sun [=day],
    elle elle leelo leelo,
roll to your brother,
wheel to your sister!
Your brother is five versts away,
sister is behind six spruces.
There you will be cherished,
you will be held on the palm,
carried in the hollow of the hand,
put to sleep on pillows,
to rest in silk,
to fall into a golden bed,
to float into a silver bed.

On long winter evenings, when the spinning wheels are merrily whirring in front of virgins and in hands of grandmothers, when the silver-clear Moon shines in the sky, old people have much to tell about the Moon Maiden. The younger ones even eat these words with their ears, when the grandmother talks about how the have come onto the Moon.
Long ago there lived an orphan. She lived in the house of very unkind people. At dawn, she was the first to leave for work and at dusk, she was the last to lie down to sleep. Even on  Saturday afternoons she could not go to the sauna* with the others, but was only allowed to go there much, much later.  Once, after she’d taken her sauna, she crossed the yard, carrying her birch whisk and pail, and she begged of the Moon,  

Moon my dear, Moon my love,
Take me away, take me to thee!
Scant is my food in summer,
Freezing are my feet in winter!  

Whereupon the Moon gathered the orphan up and she was lifted all the way to the Moon. Ever since then, we’ve been able to see a little girl, with a birch whisk and a pail, in the Moon.  If another child on earth as good as she can be found, the Moon will gather that child up as well. However, since then no child that good has ever been found.
 

Slumber comes a-calling,
    villa kombalii,
through the forest a-singing,
    villa kombalii.

Refr:        Villa kompalija,
                villai, villai, villaija,
                villai, villai, villaija,
                villa kompalija.

The sleigh, made of pine,
spoke sticks of juniper.
The path took man went in the forest,
bridleless horse in the swamp,
The reins touched the apple tree,
the rods ran in the cherry tree,
I called the Moon, I asked the Sun,
the Moon didn't hear the calling,
the Sun a lot of asking.
The Moon listened under the dead grass,
the Sun thought behind the forest.