English
The Fasting King
The wife spoke to the king's officer:
Get up, lucky man, and knock on the door of our daily bread.
Go and get a share from the royal table,
for your little children are waiting, watching the road.
He said: The kitchen is cold today,
for the king has vowed to fast tonight.
In despair the wife dropped her head,
her heart torn by hunger, and said to herself:
What did the king want from this fast of his,
when his breaking of it would have been a feast day for our children?
A man who eats but does good with his hands
is better than one who fasts forever yet worships the world.
Fasting truly counts for the one
who gives the helpless a loaf at noon.
Otherwise, why bother making the effort,
to deny yourself only to eat it yourself?