Do Not Scold Me, Do Not Beat Me lyrics and meaning
Nebark mani, nemušk mani,
Aš turiu tėvelį, užtars mani.
Išarsiu laukus, pasėsiu rugius,
Nebrasi kelalio pas tėvulį.
Aš rugelius praskindama,
Rugiagėles raškydama,
Atrasiu kelalį pas tėvulį.
Nebark mani, nemušk mani,
Aš turiu motulį, užtars mani.
Išarsiu laukus, pasėsiu kviečius,
Nebrasi kelalio pas motulį.
Aš kvietelius, praskindama,
Kukuotėlius raškydama,
Atrasiu kelalį pas motulį
Nebark mani, nemušk mani,
Aš turiu brolalį, užtars mani.
Išarsiu laukus, sodinsiu medžius,
Nebrasi kelalio pas brolalį.
Aš medelius apeidama,
Gegužėlas klausydama,
Atrasiu kelalį pas brolalį.
Do Not Scold Me, Do Not Beat Me: song interpretation
This song can be understood as a married woman's song about resilience and the support of her birth home. At the beginning she asks not to be scolded or beaten, because she has a father who will defend her. This address can be interpreted as an appeal to family protection.
Each stanza imagines obstacles on the road to her relatives: fields are plowed, rye and wheat are sown, trees are planted so that she will not find the little road. But the woman answers that she will still find the way: parting the rye, picking cornflowers, listening to cuckoos. These images can be understood as determination to overcome every barrier.
The repeated structure with father, mother, and brother shows that the birth family remains a refuge. Her persistence can be interpreted as a woman's resilience in a difficult fate, where kin are a source of support. That is one possible meaning, but the motifs of resilience and reliance on the birth home are clear.
Do Not Scold Me, Do Not Beat Me: symbols and phrases
- "Do not scold, do not beat; I have a father"
- A plea not to be harmed because family will defend her. It marks an appeal to kin protection.
- Plowed fields and sown rye
- Obstacles blocking the road to relatives. They mark attempts to separate the woman from home.
- "I will find the little road"
- The repeated resolve to find a path to family. It marks resilience and determination.
- Cornflowers and cuckoos
- Nature signs accompanying the path. They become guides back to the birth home.
Do Not Scold Me, Do Not Beat Me: song history
"Do Not Scold Me, Do Not Beat Me" belongs to family songs in which a married woman seeks support in her birth home. The repeated formula "do not scold me, do not beat me, I have a father (mother, brother) who will defend me" rests on a contrast typical of family songs between strangers and one's own people: harm experienced in the husband's home is countered by the hope that the birth family will defend and shelter her.
The song is built as a chain of three parallel stanzas - father, mother, brother - in which the same pattern of obstacles and overcoming is repeated. Although fields are plowed, rye and wheat are sown, and trees are planted so there will be no road, the woman still finds a path to her own people. No exact recording place or time is given on this page, so the song is presented through genre features; Aukštaitian dialectal forms such as "mani," "kelalio," and "brolalis" point to eastern Aukštaitija, but no more precise attribution can be made.
sources
- Lietuvių liaudies dainynas, vols. 1-23, Vilnius 1980-2011 (LLTI)
- Lietuvių liaudies dainų katalogas, 6 vols., Vilnius 1972-1986
Do Not Scold Me, Do Not Beat Me: sources
Do Not Scold Me, Do Not Beat Me: frequently asked questions
Who is asking not to be scolded or beaten?
It is a married woman's address: she asks not to be beaten because she has a father, mother, and brother who will defend her.
What do the plowed fields and sown rye mean?
They are obstacles placed across the road back to her own people, symbolizing an attempt to separate her from her birth home.
How does the woman find the road to her family?
She parts the rye, picks cornflowers, and listens to cuckoos. Nature signs become guides leading her back to father, mother, and brother.
Why do the stanzas repeat with father, mother, and brother?
The chain-like repetition strengthens the idea that the entire birth family remains a source of support, a structure typical of family songs.