Cursed Be Iron

Curse on thee, cruel iron
Curses on the steel thou givest
Curses on thee, tongue of evil
Curses on thy life forever!

Once thou wert of little value
Having neither form nor beauty
Neither strength noe 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 decline 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 on thee
And the bear-paws scratched thy body.

Surely thou hadst little value
When the skilful 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 rongs, 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 sisters
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!