A good translation, Llama. The only thing I'd add, for the uninitiated, is
that it is clear from the grammatical gender of 'öll' and 'sjálfri' that a
woman is being addressed.

There are several similar spells along these lines. There are two in
Ólafur Davíðsson's "Þulur og þjóðkvæði", page 104. There's also one here:

http://www.hi.is/~mattsam/g34.htm

This one calls upon Odin to aid the spellcaster.

Kveðja,
Haukur

> "I place my palm in your palm, my will in your will. May you feel in
> your bones as if you're burning up unless you love me as you love
> yourself. May these words be as hot to you, as strong and mighty, as
> eternity."
>
> --- In norse_course@yahoogroups.com, Haukur Þorgeirsson <haukurth@...>
> wrote:
>>
>> I'm reminded of an Icelandic love spell:
>>
>> Legg ég lófa minn i þinn lófa,
>> minn vilja í þinn vilja.
>> Verði þér í beinum
>> sem þú brennir öll,
>> nema þú unnir mér
>> sem sjálfri þér.
>> Svo heit verði
>> þér þessi orð,
>> so megn og sterk sem
>> eilífðin er.
>>
>> This, again, (lines 5-6) assumes that everyone loves themself a lot :)
>>
>> Kveðja,
>> Haukur
>>
>>
>> > Hello to all -- I'm new to the group here. I'm trying to get an
> accurate
>> > translation on a
>> > poem from one of the Bergen runes.
>> >
>> > The complete phrase, as translated into Old Norse, is this:
>> >
>> > "kann ek segja thér, sem thú mant reyna af mér, at ek skal unna
> thér engu
>> > verr enn mér."
>> >
>> > The alleged English translation is this:
>> >
>> > "I can say to you, as you will experience with me, that I will
> love you no
>> > less than myself."
>> >
>> > This seems to me to simply be a word-for-word translation, rather
> than one
>> > that
>> > translates the meaning of the poem. Can anyone here give me a more
>> > accurate translation
>> > in modern English that preserves the essence of what the poet is
> really
>> > saying? I can't
>> > imagine the poem is saying, "I love myself so much, hang out with
> me long
>> > enough and I'll
>> > end up loving you the same."
>> >
>> > And if the phrase were simply shortened to:
>> >
>> > "ek skal unna thér engu verr enn mér"
>> >
>> > would this have a different meaning on its own, without the intro? Or
>> > would it literally be:
>> >
>> > "I will love you no less than myself."
>> >
>> > Many thanks in advance.
>> >
>> > Wade
>> >
>> >
>>
>
>
>