Old English Reading 1: Appendix, Texts
The Wanderer

Source: Wikisource, Bright's Anglo-Saxon Reader (J. W. Bright, 1913), "XXIII. The Wanderer", the whole poem (115 lines). The dot marks the half-line break; the line numbers count the verse lines and agree with Bright's own marks at every fifth line.
Licence: The work and the 1913 edition are public domain in the US; Wikisource's own contributions to the transcription are generally CC BY-SA, which I did not check for this page.
Note: I removed Bright's textual footnotes and kept his letters, including ǫ and ę in some words. Old English Reading 1, Chapter 9 reads lines 1 to 15.
Old English only. The editors' marks are kept; no gloss or translation.

  1  Oft him ānhaga · āre gebīdeð,
  2  Metudes miltse, · þēah þe he mōdcearig
  3  geond lagulāde · longe sceolde
  4  hrēran mid hǫndum · hrīmcealde sǣ,
  5  wadan wræclāstas: · wyrd bið ful ārǣd!
  6  Swā cwæð eardstapa, · earfeþa gemyndig,
  7  wrāþra wælsleahta, · winemǣga hryre:
  8  ‘Oft ic sceolde āna · ūhtna gehwylce
  9  mīne ceare cwīþan; · nis nū cwicra nān,
 10  þe ic him mōdsefan · mīnne durre
 11  sweotule āsęcgan. · Ic tō sōþe wāt
 12  þæt biþ in eorle · indryhten þēaw,
 13  þæt hē his ferðlocan · fæste binde,
 14  healde his hordcofan, · hycge swā hē wille;
 15  ne mæg wērig mōd · wyrde wiðstǫndan
 16  nē sē hrēo hyge · helpe gefręmman:
 17  for ðon dōmgeorne · drēorigne oft
 18  in hyra brēostcofan · bindað fæste.
 19  Swā ic mōdsefan · mīnne sceolde,
 20  oft earmcearig, · ēðle bidǣled,
 21  frēomǣgum feor · feterum sǣlan,
 22  siþþan gēara iū · goldwine mīnne
 23  hrūsan heolster biwrāh, · and ic hēan þǫnan
 24  wōd wintercearig · ofer waþema gebind,
 25  sōhte sęle drēorig · sinces bryttan,
 26  hwǣr ic feor oþþe nēah · findan meahte
 27  þone þe in meoduhealle · minne wisse
 28  oþþe mec frēondlēasne · frēfran wolde,
 29  węnian mid wynnum. · Wāt sā þe cunnað
 30  hū slīþen bið · sorg tō gefēran
 31  þām þe him lȳt hafað · lēofra geholena:
 32  warað hine wræclāst, · nāles wunden gold,
 33  ferðloca frēorig, · nālæs foldan blǣd;
 34  gemǫn hē sęlesęcgas · and sincþęge,
 35  hū hine on geoguðe · his goldwine
 36  węnede tō wiste: · wyn eal gedrēas!
 37  For þon wāt sē þe sceal · his winedryhtnes
 38  lēofes lārcwidum · lǫnge forþolian,
 39  ðonne sorg and slǣp · sǫmod ætgædre
 40  earmne ānhagan · oft gebindað:
 41  þinceð him on mōde · þæt hē his mǫndryhten
 42  clyppe and cysse, · and on cnēo lęcge
 43  hǫnda and hēafod, · swā hē hwīlum ǣr
 44  in gēardagum · giefstōlas brēac;
 45  ðonne onwæcneð eft · winelēas guma,
 46  gesihð him biforan · fealwe wægas,
 47  baþian brimfuglas, · brǣdan feþra,
 48  hrēosan hrīm and snāw · hagle gemęnged.
 49  Þonne bēoð þȳ hęfigran · heortan bęnne,
 50  sāre æfter swǣsne, · sorg bið genīwad,
 51  þonne māga gemynd · mōd geondhweorfeð,
 52  grēteð glīwstafum, · georne geondscēawað
 53  sęcga geseldan: · swimmað eft on weg;
 54  flēotendra ferð · no þǣr fela bringeð
 55  cūðra cwidegiedda; · cearo bið genīwad
 56  þām þe sęndan sceal · swīþe geneahhe
 57  ofer waþema gebind · wērigne sefan.
 58  For þon ic geþęncan ne mæg · geond þās woruld
 59  for hwan mōdsefa · min ne gesweorce,
 60  þonne ic eorla līf · eal geondþęnce,
 61  hū hī fǣrlīce · flęt ofgēafon,
 62  mōdge maguþegnas. · Swā þēs middangeard
 63  ealra dōgra gehwām · drēoseð and fealleþ;
 64  for þon ne mæg weorþan wīs · wer, ǣr hā āge
 65  wintra dǣl in woruldrīce. · Wita sceal geþyldig,
 66  nē sceal nō tō hātheort · nē tō hrædwyrde,
 67  nē tō wāc wiga · nē tō wanhȳdig,
 68  nē tō forht nē tō fægen · nē tō feohgīfre,
 69  nē nǣfre gielpes tō georn, · ǣr hē geare cunne.
 70  Beorn sceal gebīdan, · þonne hē bēot spriceð,
 71  oþ þæt collenferð · cunne gearwe
 72  hwider hreþra gehygd · hweorfan wille.
 73  Ongietan sceal glēaw hæle · hū gæstlīc bið,
 74  þonne eall þisse worulde wela · wēste stǫndeð,
 75  swā nū missenlīce · geond þisne middangeard
 76  winde biwāune · weallas stǫndaþ,
 77  hrīme bihrorene, · hryðge þā ederas.
 78  Wōriað þā wīnsalo, · waldend licgað
 79  drēame bidrorene; · duguð eal gecrǫng
 80  wlǫnc bī wealle: · sume wīg fornōm,
 81  fęrede in forðwege; · sumne fugel oþbær
 82  ofer hēanne holm; · sumne sē hāra wulf
 83  dēaðe gedǣlde; · sumne drēorighlēor
 84  in eorðscræfe · eorl gehȳdde:
 85  ȳþde swā þisne eardgeard · ælda Scyppend,
 86  oþ þæt burgwara · breahtma lēase
 87  eald ęnta geweorc · īdlu stōdon.
 88  Sē þonne þisne wealsteal · wīse, geþōhte,
 89  and þis deorce līf · dēope geondþęnceð,
 90  frōd in ferðe · feor oft gemǫn
 91  wælsleahta worn, · and þās word ācwið:
 92  ‘Hwǣr cwōm mearg? hwǣr cwōm mago? · hwǣr cwōm māþþumgyfa?
 93  hwǣr cwōm symbla gesetu? · hwǣr sindon sęledrēamas?
 94  Ēalā beorht bune! · ēalā byrnwiga!
 95  ēalā þēodnes þrym · hū sēo þrāg gewāt,
 96  genāp under nihthelm, · swā hēo nō wǣre!
 97  Stǫndeð nū on lāste · lēofre duguþe
 98  weal wundrum hēah, · wyrmlīcum fāh:
 99  eorlas fornōmon · asca þrȳþe,
100  wǣpen wælgīfru, · wyrd sēo mǣre;
101  and þās stānhleoþu · stormas cnyssað;
102  hrīð hrēosende · hrūsan bindeð,
103  wintres wōma, · þonne wǫn cymeð,
104  nīpeð nihtscūa, · norþan onsęndeð
105  hrēo hæglfare · hæleþum on andan.
106  Eall is earfoðlīc · eorþan rīce,
107  onwęndeð wyrda gesceaft · weoruld under heofonum:
108  hēr bið feoh lǣne, · hēr bið frēond lǣne,
109  hēr bið mǫn lǣne, · hēr bið mǣg lǣne;
110  eal þis eorþan gesteal · īdel weorþeð!’
111  Swā cwæð snottor on mōde, · gesæt him sundor æt rūne
112  Til biþ sē þe his trēowe gehealdeð: · ne sceal nǣfre his torn tō rycene
113  beorn of his brēostum ācȳþan, · nemþe hē ǣr þā bōte cunne,
114  eorl mid ęlne gefręmman. · Wel bið þām þe him āre sēceð,
115  frōfre tō Fæder on heofonum, · þǣr ūs eal sēo fæstnung stǫndeð.