Tavousu ta Ori rota
1 Liku kado orivoya para ndrani ido tägyi ŋgutruro drisi; ago tu odra ro orivoya kadopara ndrani tu 'di utiro ri. 2 Orivoya kadopara oyine 'ba ruṛuo'bero ya ndrani oyine 'ba karama onyaro ya ri; tana odra ni ädu lidri cini ro; ago ànya se lidriidriro ri ta 'do oyine drî ànyaro ya.
3 Tusu orivoya kadopara ndrani ugu ri, tana mi tusu ro ka di o'ba ni a'done riyä ro.
4 'Dise aza tavouni be ka iro alo ta odra ro usuna ayani oko amamai kayi iro alo ta riyä ro usuna ayani.
5 Ta drio'biro mano tavouni'ba ro erine orivoya kadopara ndrani amama ri mi räṛune loŋgo si ri.
6 Lägu ugu amamai ro orivoya oso kukyi kabe tuhwe asi ya lakaza zele ronye; 'do kpa orivoya taawi yi.
7 Endaro ta 'diocoro ka mano tavouni'ba o'bana a'done amama ro, ago ŋga miogyero ka 'di enjini.
8 Ädu ŋga cini ro orivoya kadopara ni etovona ri; ago yaiŋgyi orivoya kadopara ni driuŋgyi ri.
9 Miŋga ko ndri kyilaro, tana kyila ka ori ya mano se amama ro roya.
10 Nyeji ta ko mikye: “Ayi, ŋga a'do gwo tu kyeno kai ya kadopara ndrani tu yausi kwoi ya ri etaya?” Tana taeji nonye ono ko orivoya tavouni ro yi.
11 Tavouni orivoya ŋga kado yi oso drimbi ronye; 'do orivoya kandrakado yi 'dise cini lidriidri ro ri.
12 Tana tavouni ka 'di äti oso parata kabe 'di äti ronye, oko kandrakado tauni ro, ka tavouni'ba o'ba londroro.
13 Nyusu tase Lu koyebe ono tavona. A'di unina ni ŋgase Lu ko'babe torogo'diro ono lotone ŋgye ya? 14 Ondro ta kate ugu a'do kadoro miri oko, nya'do riyä si, ago ondro rriti kesate oko nyusu tavona, Lu kani riyä ndi rriti be ezina riti, tana 'diaza unina ko ŋgase ka oyebe a'done ndäri tu mileya ya unine.
15 Ori maro taawi ro ono ya, mandre ŋga cini te kigye, mano se ca taŋgye'ba ro ka odra, oko mano se ca takozi'ba ro ugu dri gi ori. 16 Nya'do ko takado'ba ro ndra, ago mi'ba andivo miro ko tavouni'ba ro ndra; tana e'di nya andivo miro ufuna niya? 17 Nya'do kpa ko takozi'ba ro ndra, kode nya'do kpa ko amama ro ndra, tana e'di mile odrane kyeno teinye tu miro ri osa ako niya? 18 Orivoya kado ta alodi ätine ago ko azana e'bene; tana mano se kabe Lu oro ätina ànya riti ndi kado.
19 Tavouni ka mano tavouni'ba o'ba a'done mbara ro ndrani 'bädri'bai 'butealo 'bakici ro drisi.
20 Endaro 'diaza alona i'do 'bädri ya se ka tase ŋgye oyena tu cini si ago se cu ye takozi ko alona.
21 Miga bi ko ŋgase cini lidri kabe tana atana iyi tana ya, ukyi nyeri ruindu'ba miro 'da mi lo'davoya; 22 tana andivo miro mini ṛote tuna amba nya'dote azi lo'davoya.
23 Tase cini ono mojo tana te tavouni si, tana makye male a'done tavouni be; oko tavouni a'do ṛo lozo ni maresi. 24 'Diaza unina takaci tavouni ro eŋwanyeya? Orivoya pari gyuru, orivoya rritiro ndra tana unine. 25 Oko mozo andivo maro te unine ago enane; tavouni uṛine ndi tadrioza ta azaka robe unine, ago ta takozi ndi amaama 'dise ŋgäbä ro ro tenyine.
26 Ago musu ŋga aza kpa kozipara ndrani odra ri, toko se ŋgalu na ka'di uru oso abari kode kyimba ronye; ago drì anyaro ka 'di baṛi oso nyori ronye. Mano se tana kusi Lu be opana vo ndi ni anya rigye, oko anya uruna 'dise takozi'ba ro ndi. 27 Mindre, ono ni tase musu vona be owo, ma Taope'ba mani ata nonye, musu tavo ŋga cini rote ba alo alo tana uniza, 28 mäṛivona te kpe kpe, oko musu kote, musu manoago alodi aza ndi ni kutu alo lakosi taŋgye be, oko musu toko alodi aza kote ni ànya cini lakosi taŋgye be. 29 Ono ni tase cini mänibe owo: Lu 'ba ama te kado, oko ma'ba andivo amaro ni a'done rritiro.
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.