Havamal Snippets 115: never seduce another mans wife

This verse advises against extramarital affairs with other men's wives.  It shows that monogamy is the way of the Viking, or at least the way of living that they aspired towards (after all, they were only human, and may have suffered temptation as we do in modern times). 

The benefits of not interfering with another man's wife is similar to not interfering with another mans property: it promotes mutual feelings of trust amongst the two men, and then amongst the community as a whole.  In turn this allows men to feel safe in their surroundings and thus provides them with a good environment in which to express themselves, to express their own character, to express their own Will.  A society in which men exploit one another and cheat one another is not conducive to this, and thus is not pleasant.  Thus respecting other men's property (inlcuding his wife) is the way to go.

 

 

 

115

Ráðumk þér Loddfáfnir

en þú ráð nemir

njóta mundu ef þú nemr

þér munu góð ef þú getr

annars konu

teygðu þér aldregi

eyrarúnu at          

 

I advise you, Loddfafnir,

to take advice;

you would benefit, it you took it,

good will come to you, if you accept it:

[6] never seduce

[5] another's wife

to be your mistress.

 

[End.]