The Selkirk Grace.

    Some hae meat and canna eat,
        And some wad eat that want it;
    But we hae meat and we can eat,
        And sae the Lord be thanket.

Robert Burns

Robert Burns, also known as Rabbie Burns, the Bard of Ayrshire, and various other names and epithets, was a Scottish poet and lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland and is celebrated worldwide. Born on January 25, 1759, in Alloway, he is best known for works such as 'Auld Lang Syne,' 'Scots Wha Hae,' and 'A Red, Red Rose.' He passed away on July 21, 1796, in Dumfries.

Robert Burns

Stay, My Charmer.

Robert Burns, Simple Poetry

When Januar' Wind.

Robert Burns, Simple Poetry

My Ain Kind Dearie O.

Robert Burns, Simple Poetry

It Is Na, Jean, Thy Bonnie Face.

Robert Burns, Simple Poetry

English

Suggested Poems

Explore a curated selection of verses that share themes, styles, and emotional resonance with the poem you've just read.

A Grace Before Meat.

    O thou in whom we live and move,
        Who mad'st the sea and shore,
    Thy goodness constantly we prove,
        And grateful would adore.
    And if it please thee, Power above,
        Still grant us with such store,
    The friend we trust, the fair we love,
        And we desire no more.

Robert Burns

To A Haggis

    Fair fa' your honest, sonsie face,
    Great chieftain o' the pudding-race!
    Aboon them a' ye tak your place,
        Painch, tripe, or thairm:
    Weel are ye wordy o' a grace
        As lang's my arm.

    The groaning trencher there ye fill,
    Your hurdies like a distant hill,
    Your pin wad help to mend a mill
        In time o' need,
    While thro' your pores the dews distil
        Like amber bead.

    His knife see rustic-labour dight,
    An' cut you up wi' ready slight,
    Trenching your gushing entrails bright
        Like onie ditch;
    And then, O what a glorious sight,
        Warm-reekin, rich!

    Then horn for horn they stretch an' strive,
    Deil tak the hindmost, on they drive,
    'Till a' ...

Robert Burns

A Grace.

    Lord, we thank and thee adore,
        For temp'ral gifts we little merit;
    At present we will ask no more,
        Let William Hyslop give the spirit.

Robert Burns

Holy Willie's Prayer.

"And send the godly in a pet to pray."

Pope.


    O thou, wha in the heavens dost dwell,
    Wha, as it pleases best thysel',
    Sends ane to heaven, and ten to hell,
        A' for thy glory,
    And no for ony gude or ill
        They've done afore thee!

    I bless and praise thy matchless might,
    Whan thousands thou hast left in night,
    That I am here afore thy sight,
        For gifts and grace,
    A burnin' and a shinin' light
        To a' this place.

    What was I, or my generation,
    That I should get sic exaltation,
    I wha deserve sic just damnation,
        For broken laws,
    Five thousand years 'fore my creation,
        Thro' Adam's cause.

    When frae my mither's womb I fell,...

Robert Burns

Letter To James Tennant, Of Glenconner.

    Auld comrade dear, and brither sinner,
    How's a' the folk about Glenconner?
    How do you this blae eastlin wind,
    That's like to blaw a body blind?
    For me, my faculties are frozen,
    My dearest member nearly dozen'd,
    I've sent you here, by Johnie Simson,
    Twa sage philosophers to glimpse on;
    Smith, wi' his sympathetic feeling,
    An' Reid, to common sense appealing.
    Philosophers have fought and wrangled,
    An' meikle Greek and Latin mangled,
    Till wi' their logic-jargon tir'd,
    An' in the depth of science mir'd,
    To common sense they now appeal,
    What wives and wabsters see and feel.
    But, hark ye, friend! I charge you strictly
    Peruse them, an' return them quickly,
    For now I'm grown sae curse...

Robert Burns

A Grace Before Dinner.

    O thou, who kindly dost provide
        For every creature's want!
    We bless thee, God of Nature wide,
        For all thy goodness lent:
    And if it please thee, Heavenly Guide,
        May never worse be sent;
    But, whether granted or denied,
        Lord bless us with content!
                    Amen.

Robert Burns