Saturday, August 08, 2009

Prayer of the Woods

I got an e-mail from someone asking about "Prayer of the Woods." He's seen web sources that say that it is over 1000 years old, and that it was translated from Portuguese.

Surely there's someone in this community who can confirm the origins, and maybe even give us more detail.

Prayer of the Woods

I am the heat of your hearth on cold winter nights, The friendly shade from the summer sun, and my fruits are refreshing draughts quenching your thirst as you journey on.

I am the beam that holds your house, and the board of your table. The bed on which you lie, and the timber that builds your boat.

I am the handle of your hoe. The door of your homestead, the wood of your cradle and the shell of your coffin.

I am the bread of kindness and the flower of beauty. Ye who pass by, listen to my prayer: Harm me not.

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4 comments:

  1. It's at least a hundred years old:

    http://books.google.com/books?id=82oDAAAAMAAJ&pg=RA1-PA621&lpg=RA1-PA621&dq=I+am+the+handle+of+your+hoe.+The+door+of+your+homestead,+the+wood+of+your+cradle+and+the+shell+of+your+coffin.&source=bl&ots=PGv2-wrFfA&sig=krO6gAuGYXQ6vfi3DQThKr4JmFo&hl=en&ei=Q0aAStPyI4T8tgfM9_jnAQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2#v=onepage&q=&f=false

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  2. It's not one I've ever encountered before FWIW...

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  3. Anonymous7:23 AM

    This Prayer of the Woods is posted by the state in a few of our local state parks, and I've always wondered about the author. Still no clue.

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  4. I think that it is really new to me Prayer of the Woods is something so strange, I think that it is really good, is it the Portuguese Origin??22dd

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