Muŋ ne beteyaata hadamadiŋo ye?
1 Too diyaa, wo le be tulu seeralaa ñaato,
aduŋ faa luŋo, wo le be wuluu luŋo ñaato.
2 Saŋa bunkono duŋo,
wo le ye fisa bidaŋ bunkono duŋo ti.
Hadamadiŋo bee labaŋo mu saayaa le ti,
moo-wo-moo be baluwo to,
wo si tara i sondomoo kono.
3 Niikuyaa le ye fisa jeloo ti,
kaatu niikuyaa ka fahaamuroo le fanundi.
4 Moo ñaamendiŋo sondomoo ka tara niikuyaa buŋ ne,
bari toolewo, wo sondomoo ka tara niiseewoo buŋ ne to.
5 Moo ñaamendiŋo la jalayiroo lamoyoo,
wo le ye fisa toolewo la denkiloo lamoyoo ti.
6 Ko ŋaniŋo ka fetifeti dimbaa kono ñaameŋ,
toolewo la jeloo ka tara wo le ñaama.
Ñiŋ fanaa maŋ ke feŋ ti.
7 Moo toorandoo,
ka moo ñaamendiŋo ke moo kuntaŋo le ti,
aduŋ dukoo,
a ka sondomoo jenkendi tiliŋo la le.
8 Kuwo labaŋo, wo le ka fisa a foloo ti,
muñoo le ye fisa faŋ waroo ti.
9 I jusoo kana sutiyaa,
kamfaa daakaadulaa
ka tara toolewolu le jusoo to.
10 Kana a fo ko,
“Muŋ ne ye a tinna
nunto kuwolu beteyaata saayiŋ ti?”
Ñiŋ ñininkaari siifaa,
wo maŋ ke ñaameŋo ti.
11 Ñaameŋo beteyaata le ko keetaafeŋo,
aduŋ a ka moolu nafaa le,
mennu be ñiŋ duniyaa tiloo koto.
12 Ñaameŋo mu tankaraŋo le ti,
ko kodoo mu tankaraŋo ti ñaameŋ.
A kummaayaata le ka a loŋ ko,
ñaameŋo, meŋ ye a soto,
a ka wo maarii niyo le tanka.
13 Alla la keroo juubee:
Niŋ a ye meŋ jenkendi,
jumaa le ka wo tilindi noo?
14 Kuwolu beteyaa waatoo, kontaani,
koleyaa waatoo, ñiŋ miira ko:
Alla le ye ñiŋ doo daa,
a ye ñiŋ doo fanaa daa.
Wo to hadamadiŋo te feŋ fo noo la,
meŋ be naa ke la,
ate faariŋ koolaa.
Baluwo la kuwo ñininkaaroo
15 N na ñiŋ baluu nafantaŋo kono,
ŋa moo tilindiŋo je le,
a maŋ siimaayaa a la tiliŋo kaŋ.
Ŋa moo kuruŋo fanaa je,
a siimaayaata a la kuruŋyaa kaŋ.
Ŋa ñiŋ kuu fuloo bee je n ñaa la le.
16 Kana tiliŋo landatambindi,
aduŋ i kana ñaameŋ kolenke.
Muŋ ne be a tinna la i be i faŋ tiñaa la?
17 Kana tilimbaliyaa landatambindi,
aduŋ i kana ke toolewo fanaa ti.
Muŋ ne be a tinna i be faa la,
i la waatoo maŋ sii?
18 A si beteyaa,
niŋ i maŋ landatamboo ke niŋ sila-wo-sila la.
Alla ñaasilannaa,
wo le ka tara sila betoo kaŋ.
19 Ñaameŋo ka semboo meŋ dii hakilimaa la,
wo le ka tambi kantii taŋ na saatewo kono.
20 A be koyiriŋ ne lewu ko,
moo tilindiŋo maŋ soto ñiŋ duniyaa kono,
meŋ ka kuu betoo doroŋ ke,
a nene maŋ junube kuu ke.
21 Kana i lamoyi kumoo bee la,
moolu be mennu fo la,
niŋ wo nte,
i si i nendiri kaŋo moyi
hani i la dookuulaa la.
22 Bari ñiŋ si tara i fanaa kono ko,
i nene ka moo neŋ ne, siiñaa jamaa.
23 Ŋa n na ñaameŋo le taa
ka ñiŋ kuwolu bee kotobo a la.
N hameta baake ka ñaameŋo soto,
bari a be jamfariŋ n na le.
24 Feŋolu mennu bee be sotoriŋ,
moo buka ì keñaa fahaamu noo,
a kuwo daŋo dinkata baake.
Jumaa le si a daŋo bondi noo?
25 Ŋa n hakiloo tu le,
ka kuwolu karaŋ, ka kisikisiroo ke,
aniŋ ka ñinindiroo ke ñaameŋo la kuwo la,
aniŋ kuwolu daliiloo.
N naata a loŋ ko,
kuruŋyaa mu hakili dooyaa le ti,
aduŋ tooleeyaa mu sondome kuuraŋo le ti.
26 Ŋa feŋ ne je,
meŋ jawuyaata saayaa ti:
musoo meŋ ka munta ko kutindiŋo,
a sondomoo mu jaloo ti,
a buloolu mu nee joloo ti.
Kee meŋ be Alla ye,
wo be kana la ñiŋ musoo ma le.
Bari junubelaa,
a be wo duŋ na a la jaloo kono le.
27 Kawandilaa ye ñiŋ ne fo ko,
“Ali a juubee ŋa ñiŋ ne je,
biriŋ ŋa a dati ka kuu kesoolu tomboŋ,
ka ì kafu ñoo ma domandiŋ-domandiŋ
ka kuwolu koyindi.
28 N tuta meŋ na kuwo ñini la,
m maŋ wo je.
Ka bo niŋ n sondomoo bee la,
n tarata hadamadiŋo le la kuwo kisikisi kaŋ,
hadamadiŋo meŋ tilinta.
Bari wuli kiliŋ kono,
ŋa kiliŋ doroŋ ne soto,
bari a maŋ ke musu ti.
29 Ŋa meŋ je doroŋ, wo le mu,
Alla ye hadamadiŋo niŋ tiliŋo le daa,
bari hadamadiŋo ka taa bula a fansuŋ siloolu le nooma.”
Thoughts about Life
1 A good reputation is better than expensive perfume; and the day you die is better than the day you are born.
2 It is better to go to a home where there is mourning than to one where there is a party, because the living should always remind themselves that death is waiting for us all.
3 Sorrow is better than laughter; it may sadden your face, but it sharpens your understanding.
4 Someone who is always thinking about happiness is a fool. A wise person thinks about death.
5 It is better to have wise people reprimand you than to have stupid people sing your praises.
6 When a fool laughs, it is like thorns crackling in a fire. It doesn't mean a thing.
7 You may be wise, but if you cheat someone, you are acting like a fool. If you take a bribe, you ruin your character.
8 The end of something is better than its beginning.
Patience is better than pride.
9 Keep your temper under control; it is foolish to harbor a grudge.
10 Never ask, “Oh, why were things so much better in the old days?” It's not an intelligent question.
11 Everyone who lives ought to be wise; it is as good as receiving an inheritance 12 and will give you as much security as money can. Wisdom keeps you safe—this is the advantage of knowledge.
13 Think about what God has done. How can anyone straighten out what God has made crooked? 14 When things are going well for you, be glad, and when trouble comes, just remember: God sends both happiness and trouble; you never know what is going to happen next.
15 My life has been useless, but in it I have seen everything. Some good people may die while others live on, even though they are evil. 16 So don't be too good or too wise—why kill yourself? 17 But don't be too wicked or too foolish, either—why die before you have to? 18 Avoid both extremes. If you have reverence for God, you will be successful anyway.
19 Wisdom does more for a person than ten rulers can do for a city.
20 There is no one on earth who does what is right all the time and never makes a mistake.
21 Don't pay attention to everything people say—you may hear your servant insulting you, 22 and you know yourself that you have insulted other people many times.
23 I used my wisdom to test all of this. I was determined to be wise, but it was beyond me. 24 How can anyone discover what life means? It is too deep for us, too hard to understand. 25 But I devoted myself to knowledge and study; I was determined to find wisdom and the answers to my questions, and to learn how wicked and foolish stupidity is.
26 I found something more bitter than death—the woman who is like a trap. The love she offers you will catch you like a net, and her arms around you will hold you like a chain. A man who pleases God can get away, but she will catch the sinner. 27 Yes, said the Philosopher, I found this out little by little while I was looking for answers. 28 I have looked for other answers but have found none. I found one man in a thousand that I could respect, but not one woman. 29 This is all that I have learned: God made us plain and simple, but we have made ourselves very complicated.
