A hymn of the San Bushmen of southern Africa, sung to the moon the night before a day spent hunting. See also Re-Birth, a San poem on how the moon appears to die and then be reborn over the course of it’s lunar cycle.
Young Moon!
Hail, Young Moon!
Hail, hail,
Young Moon!
Young Moon! speak to me!
Hail, hail,
Young Moon! Tell me of something.
Hail, hail!
When the sun rises,
Thou must speak to me,
That I may eat something.
Thou must speak to me about a little thing,
That I may eat.
Hail, hail,
Young Moon!
from Specimens of Bushman folklore (1911),
collected by W.H.I. Bleek and L.C. Lloyd