The Test of Love (I Went Out to the Meadow)

– I went out to the meadow, ; I was lying down, ; The great sási snake has hidden itself in my bosom. ; ; It bites my heart, ; It eats my liver, ; The belt of my red blood, ; My throat is constricting. ; ; – My mother, my dear mother, ; Reach into my bosom, ; Pull out of my bosom, ; The great sási snake. ; ; – I would rather be smothered, ; My love for you, ; Than for me to be smothered, ; My arm for you. ; ; Come, my good daughter, ; Come to your brother, ; Come to your brother, ; Perhaps he will pull it out. ; ; – Pull it out, my brother, pull it out, ; That is hiding in my bosom, ; The great serpent of the Sási. ; ; – I will not pull, my brother, ; It will bite my hand, ; It will bite my hand, ; It will tear off my finger. ; ; I would rather be smothered, ; My brother's, ; Than I would be smothered, ; My arm's, ; ; Come, my good brother-in-law, ; Come to your wife, ; Come to your wife, ; Perhaps she will pull it out. ; ; – My wife, my dear wife, ; Reach into my bosom, ; Pull it out of my bosom, ; The great serpent of the Sási. ; ; It squeezes my heart, ; The belt of my red blood. ; It will tear my weak waist, ; Now it will tear it in two. ; ; – I would rather be smothered, ; My arm is for him, ; As if I were a bird, ; My dove is for him. ; ; He put it into his bosom, ; He pulled it out of him, ; The great serpent of the Sási, ; Being my golden one. ; ; So my beloved, ; Better than my true child, ; For twelve years now ; That I have sought him.