These were sent to me by Jed Hartman `90(?) who suggested that they be used by trolls in future hunts. - Charles I cleaned it up a bit (put the anwers with the riddles, got rid of the duplicates, edited the worst of the typos out, etc.) and will be adding some more riddles, probably tomorrow. -Stephen &roo '94 There is not wind enough to twirl That one red leaf, nearest of its clan, Which dances as often as dance it can. The sun (from a poem by Samuel Taylor Coleridge) Half-way up the hill, I see thee at last Lying beneath me with thy sounds and sights -- A city in the twilight, dim and vast, With smoking roofs, soft bells, and gleaming lights. The Past (courtesy of Longfellow) I am, in truth, a yellow fork From tables in the sky By inadvertent fingers dropped The awful cutlery. Of mansions never quite disclosed And never quite concealed The apparatus of the dark To ignorance revealed. Lightning (from a work of Emily Dickinson's) Many-maned scud-thumper, Maker of worn wood, Shrub-ruster, Sky-mocker, Rave! The Ocean (with regards to John Updike) Make me thy lyre, even as the forests are. What if my leaves fell like its own -- The tumult of thy mighty harmonies Will take from both a deep autumnal tone. The wind ((specifically the West Wind) from a poem by Percy Bysshe Shelley) This darksome burn, horseback brown, His rollock highroad roaring down, In coop and in comb the fleece of his foam Flutes and low to the body falls home. A river ((I'd accept waterfall) from a poem by Gerard Manley Hopkins) I've measured it from side to side, 'Tis three feet long and two feet wide. It is of compass small, and bare To thirsty suns and parching air. The grave of a child (a hard one), described by Shakespeare My love, when I gaze on thy beautiful face, Careering along, yet always in place -- The thought has often come into my mind If I ever shall see thy glorious behind. The Moon (attributed to Sir Edmund Gosse (who claimed that his chambermaid wrote it)) Then all thy feculent majesty recalls The nauseous mustiness of forsaken bowers, The leprous nudity of deserted halls -- The positive nastiness of sullied flowers. And I mark the colours, yellow and black, That fresco thy lithe, dictatorial thighs. A spider (from Francis Saltus Saltus, a man who did not like them) You eat something you neither plant nor plow. Salt. It is the son of water, but if water touches it, it dies. Ice A serpent swam in a silver urn. A golden bird did in its mouth abide The serpent drank the water, this in turn Killed the serpent. Then the gold bird died. A wick floating in a silver oil lamp with the flame above it. Teacher, open thy book. A butterfly My tines are long. My tines are short. My tines end ere My first report. Lightning Two horses, swiftest travelling, Harnessed in a pair, and Grazing ever in places Distant from them. Your eyes (the Sun and Moon is claimed, but I don't see it) It can be said: To be gold is to be good; To be stone is to be nothing; To be glass is to be fragile; To be cold is to be cruel. Unmetaphored, what am I? A heart round she is, yet flat as a board altar of the Lupine Lord Pearl on black velvet Jewel in the sea Unchanged yet e'er changing Eternally. The moon Twice four and twenty blackbirds sitting in the rain I shot and killed a quarter of them How many do remain? Since, after shooting 1/4 of the birds, the rest will fly off, the answer should be either (2*(4+20))/4=12 or ((2*4)+20)/4=7. first will be last last will be first and all inbetween will also be cursed open the door and the thing will be there so be carefull and beware ! It has a golden head It has a golden tail but it hasn't got a body. A gold coin A leathery snake, With a stinging bite, I'll stay coiled up, Unless I must fight. A whip (this, of course, neglects the possibility of other uses for whipsÉ ;) My life can be measured in hours, I serve by being devoured. Thin, I am quick Fat, I am slow Wind is my foe. A candle What has roots as nobody sees, Is taller than trees, Up, up it goes, And yet never grows? A mountain (we will negect tectonics and vulcanism for purposes of the last line) Thirty white horses on a red hill, First they champ, Then they stamp, Then they stand still. Teeth, Precious, teeth! But we has only six. Voiceless it cries, Wingless it flutters, Toothless bites, Mouthless mutters. Wind An eye in a blue face Saw an eye in a green face. "That eye is like to this eye" Said the first eye, "But in low place, Not in high place." Sun on the daisies It cannot be seen, cannot be felt, Cannot be heard, cannot be smelt. It lies behind stars and under hills, And empty holes it fills. It comes first and follows after, Ends life, kills laughter. Dark A box without hinges, key, or lid, Yet golden treasure inside is hid. Eggses an orange Alive without breath, As cold as death; Never thirsty, ever drinking, All in mail never clinking. (Thinks an island Is a mountain Thinks a fountain Is a puff of air) Fish This thing all things devours: Birds, beast,trees, flowers; Gnaws iron, bites steel; Grinds hard stones to meal; Slays king, ruins town, And beats high mountain down. Time You feel it, but never see it and never will. Your heart. You must keep it after giving it. Your word As light as a feather, but you can't hold it for ten minutes Your breath Has a mouth but does not speak, has a bed but never sleeps. A river Runs smoother than any rhyme, loves to fall but cannot climb! Water You break it even if you name it! Silence It passes before the sun and makes no shadow. ??? You feed it, it lives, you give it something to drink, it dies. Fire A red drum which sounds Without being touched, And grows silent, When it is touched. Your heart A harvest sown and reaped on the same day In an unplowed field, Which increases without growing, Remains whole though it is eaten Within and without, Is useless and yet The staple of nations. War If you break me I do not stop working, If you touch me I may be snared, If you lose me Nothing will matter. Hope All about, but cannot be seen, Can be captured, cannot be held No throat, but can be heard. Wind ??? I go around in circles, But always straight ahead Never complain, No matter where I am led. A wheel Lighter than what I am made of, More of me is hidden Than is seen. An iceberg If a man carried my burden, He would break his back. I am not rich, But leave silver in my track. A snail Weight in my belly, Trees on my back, Nails in my ribs, Feet I do lack. A boat (a cave is given as an alternative, but then I don't get the nails line) You can see nothing else When you look in my face I will look you in the eye And I will never lie. A mirror ??? I am always hungry, I must always be fed, The finger I lick Will soon turn red. Flame Three lives have I. Gentle enough to soothe the skin, Light enough to caress the sky Hard enough to crack rocks. Water Glittering points That downward thrust, Sparkling spears That never rust. Icicles teeth stalactites Each morning I appear To lie at your feet, All day I follow No matter how fast you run, Yet I nearly perish In the midday sun. Your shadow Keys without locks Yet I unlock the soul. Music (a piano, harpsichord, clavichord, organ, accordionÉ) Something wholly unreal, yet seems real to I Think my friend, tell me where does it lie? In the mind I am so simple, That I can only point Yet I guide men All over the world. A compass For our ambrosia we were blessed, by Jupiter, with a sting of death. Though our might, to some is jest, we have quelled the dragon's breath. Who are we? Bees Colored as a maiden tweaked, time was naught when I began; through the garden I was sneaked, I alone am the fall of man. What am I? An apple Early ages the iron boot tread, with Europe at her command. Through time power slipped and fled, 'til the creation of new holy land. Who am I? Rome One thin, one bold, one sick, one cold. The earth we span, to prey upon man. Who are we? Famine, War, Pestilence, and Death One where none should be, or maybe where two should be, seeking out purity, in the kings trees. What am I? A Unicorn He who makes it does not keep it. He who takes it does not know it. He who knows it does not want it. He who gathers it must destroy it. What is it? Counterfeit money One tooth to bite, he's the forests foe. One tooth to fight, as all Norse know. What is it? An axe This creature, part man and part tree, hates the termite as much as the flea. His tracks do not match, and his limbs may detach, but he's not a strange creature to see. What is it? A person with a wooden leg The part of the bird that is not in the sky, which can swim in the ocean and always stay dry. What is it? A shadow Dead and bound, what once was free. What made no sound, now sings with glee. What is it? A wooden stringed instrument The root tops the trunk on this backward thing, that grows in the winter and dies in the spring. What is it? An icicle Touching one, yet holding two, it is a one link chain binding those who keep words true, 'til death rent it in twain. What is it? A wedding ring The man who made it didn't need it. The man who bought it didn't use it. The man who used it didn't want it. A coffin A Statue with the Inscription : All ye who Enter here, weep, for my Story is a sorrowfull one. (Or something similar) The correct response was to weep in front of the statue, which opened a secret door behind It. I used a slightly harder version of that on my Group, and it stumped them for quite a while :-) The wise and knowledgeable man is sure of it. Even the fool knows it. The rich man wants it. The greatest of heroes fears it. Yet the lowliest of cowards would die for it. What is this upon which I ponder? Nothing I am and yet can not am an Idea, yet can rot am two but none am on land, but on sea. What am I? A paradox all in white Fossil, fresh snow, a loan, the sky, Just what am I? A bride (something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue) I am a wonderful help to women, The hope of something to come. I harm No citizen except my slayer. Rooted I stand on a high bed. I am shaggy below. Sometimes the beautiful Peasant's daughter, an eager-armed, Proud woman grabs my body, Rushes my red skin, holds me hard, Claims my head. The curly-haired Woman who catches me fast will feel Our meeting. Her eye will be wet. An onion I saw a swift one shoot out on the road: I saw a woman sitting alone. Urin(e|ation) A small miracle hangs near a manÕs thigh, Full under folds. It is stiff, strong, Bold, brassy, and pierced in front. When a young lord lifts his tunic Over his knees, he wants to greet With the hard head of this hanging creature The hole it has come to fill. A key I heard of something riseing in a corner, Swelling and standing up, lifting its cover. The proud-hearted bride grabbed at that boneless Wonder with her hands; The princeÕs daughter Covered that swelling thing with a swirl of cloth. Bread dough A moth ate songs Ñwolfed words! That seemed a weird dishÑthat a worm Should swallow, dumb thief in the dark, The songs of a man, his chants of glory, Their place of strength. That thief-guest Was no wiser for having swallowed words. A (literal) bookworm Sometimes a lady, comely and proud, Locks me up, boxes me tightÑ Sometimes draws me out on demand And hands me over to her pleasing prince Who shoves his hard head in my hole, Slides up while I slip downÑ A tight squeeze. If the man who seizes me Presses with power, something shaggy Will fill me up, muscle me outÑ A precious jewel. Say what I mean. A shirt I saw a creature wandering the way: She was devastatingÑbeautifully adorned. On the wave a miracle: water turned to bone. An iceberg Who am I who stand so boldly by the sea-roadÑ High-towering, cheek-bright, useful to men? A lighthouse Suckled by the sea, sheltered near shore, Cradled in the cold catch of waves. Footless and fixedÑoften I offered To the sea-stream a stretch of mouth. Now a man will strip my bonelike skin From the sides of my body with a bright blade And bolt my flesh, relish me raw: A quick cuisineÑcrack to jaw. An oyster Shunning silence, my house is loud While I am quiet: we are movement bound By the ShaperÕs will. I am swifter, Sometimes strongerÑhe is longer lasting, Harder running. Sometimes I rest While he rolls on. He is the house That holds me livingÑalone I die. A fish in a river Power and treasure for a prince to hold, Hard and steep-cheeked, wrapped in red Gold and garnet, ripped from a plain Of bright flowers, wrought - a remnant Of fire and file, bound in stark beauty With delicate wire, my grip makes Warriors weep, my sting threatens The hand that grasps gold. Studded With a ring, I ravage heir and heirloom. To my lord and foes always lovely And deadly, altering face and form. A sword As I was going to Saint Ives, I met a man with seven wives, With each wife were seven sacks, In each sack were seven kits, With each kit were seven cats, Kits, cats, sacks, and wives, How many were going to Saint Ives? One (or, if the question is how many members of the set {kits, cats, sacks, and wives} are going to St. Ives, none) Dawns away, The day's turned grey, And I must travel far away. But I'll be back, And then we'll track, The light of yet another day. A shadow (the Sun is given, but does not track its own light) Deep, dark, underground, That is the place where I'll be found. Yet brought into the light of day, I sprinkle sunlight every-which-a-way. Though dulled with oil I will be found, I am remarkably well and throughly sound. Cut me quick and it will be seen, That I instantly have a marvelous sheen. A gemstone Little hips, Bent thighs, Long legs, One eye. A pair of tongs What has six eyes, Six arms, Six legs, Three heads, And a very short life? Three peasants about to be eaten by a dragon The Monkees TV show What is it that speaks without any words? And can be loudly, and distinctly heard? Will drive away friend, and foe alike. And is enough to make a stolid man's face alight? Flatulence What must be in the oven yet can not be baked? Grows in the heat yet shuns the light of day? What sinks in water but rises with air? Looks like skin, but is fine as hair? Yeast Little Johnny Walker, My, but he was a talker! Yet nary a word did he say! When I took him out, Then they would all point and shout! And ask that I put him away. ??? (This is NOT a dirty riddle,So get your mind out of the gutter!) Two legs sat upon three legs with one leg in his lap. In comes four legs, grabs one leg, and runs off with him. Up jumps two legs, grabs up three legs, throws it after four legs, and makes him bring back one leg. A man sits on a tree-legged stool eating a leg of mutton. A dog comes up and steals the mutton, and the man throws the stool at the dog. A man with 2 legs has a 3-legged girlfriend. He's sitting on her lap. Her little brother has 1 leg, and is sitting on the boyfriend's lap. The 4-legged father comes in and rushes the little boy off to bed. The man gets up and throws his girlfriend after her father. They are many and one, They wave and they drum, Used to cover a stare, They go with you everywhere. Your hands Stomp, stomp, Chomp, chomp, Romp, romp. Standing still, all in gear. Horses Sweet tooth, Ah shoot, All gone, We all long, For another piece of it. Candy It comes in on little cat's feet, Is neither sour, nor sweet. Hovers in the air, And then is not there. Fog Mist A laugh, A cry, A moan, A sigh. Emotions What is it you have to answer? But to answer you have to ask? And to ask you have to speak? And to speak you have to know, The answer. A riddle I can hit you in the eye, Yet twinkle in the sky, Expanding when I die, What do you think am I? A star (but only some stars expand when they die) Squishes, Squashes, Wishes I washes, Can get it in my hair, Makes me not look too fair. Mud White on black, And black on white. Helps you to know things, By using your sight. A computer monitor Up a hill, Down a hill, Over them I may roam, But after all my walking, There's no place like my own. Home This thing is a most amazing thing. For it can be both as sharp as a knife, Or as flat as a floor. And yet, for all that it can be, It is as natural as a bee. Music Deep, deep, do they go. Spreading out as they go. Never needing any air. They are sometimes as fine as hair. Roots Oh Lord! I am not worthy! I bend my limbs to the ground. I cry, yet without a sound. Let me drink of waters deep. And in silence I will weep. A willow Shifting, Shifting, Drifting deep. Below me great and mighty cities sleep. Swirling, Scurling, All around. I'm only where no water will be found. The desert I bubble and laugh And spit water in your face. I am no lady, And I don't wear lace. A fountain What has wings, But can not fly. Is enclosed, But can outside also lie. Can open itself up, Or close itself away. Is the place of kings and queens, And doggerel of every means. What is it upon which I stand? Which can lead us to different lands. The stage Do not begrudge this, For it is the fate of every man. Yet it is feared, And shunned in many lands. Causes problems, and sometimes gaps, Can hobble the strongest, and make memory lapse. What is this danger we all face? For being a part - of the human race. Growing old Woe to Norman, That craggy man. Who's known such horrors, As to exceed the grief of man. And as it was written, A daughter was lost. When the seas came a coming, With a shout, and hoar frost. Oh, where can he be? This man of cruel fate. Whose teeth are gnashing, And a face full of hate. The reef of Norman's Woe (from the Wreck of the Hesperus by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow) His eyes were raging, At scraggly beast. His lips were bursting, With rows of angry teeth. Upon his back a razor was found, And in his thoughts - my death abound. It was a fearsome battle we fought, My life - or his, one would be bought. And when we were through, and death chilled the air, We cut out his heart, and ate it with flair. Who was he? A wild boar I travelled inwards, To that heart where no one else roamed. Where only the birds and animals found a home. Where the pixies flew with an audible air, And tangles twigs and leaves within my hair. Ah. I love this place, this paradise, Where everything is so beautiful, So still, and so nice. Where did he go? The heart of the wood (no Riddley Walker comments, if it's all the same to you) Of these things - I have two. One for me - and one for you. And when you ask about the price, I simply smile and nod twice. Sharing ??? I am a strange creature, Hovering in the air, Moving from here to there, With a brilliant flare. Some say I sing, But others say I have no voice. So I just hum - as a matter of choice. What am I? A hummingbird Sleeping during the day, I hide away. Watchful through the night, I open at dawn's light. But only for the briefest time, Do I shine. And then I hide away, And sleep through the day. A morning glory Looks like water, But it's heat. Sits on sand, Lays on concrete. People have been known, To follow it everywhere. But it gets them no place, And all they can do is stare. A mirage A part of heaven, Though it touches the earth. Some say it's valuable, Others - no worth. A rainbow I stand, And look across the sea, With its waves, crests, troughs, and valleys. I stride, Across this water, my horse following after, And while it laps against his withers, And brushes against my thighs, I fill the emptiness with laughter. And he - with his sighs. Whether do we go? Or do we go at all? Or are we simply out here wading, To the next port of call. Where the sea ends, Where the loam lays firm beneath my feet, And I can mount my steed again, And continue til next we meet. What is really being talked about? A plain or prairie It roars its challenge, And I respond. It takes my abuse, And goes beyond. Filled with liquid, In my hurried haste, I wield my staff, In this turgid race. But once I have vanquished, The mighty foe, I float like a thistle, While moving ever so slow. What are we talking about really? Going down a rapids (in a boat) I was born blind, And could not see, Until it was a quarter of three. I could not smile, Til half past six, And all of my arms and legs Were made of sticks. A doll Ah! My breath doth shake, My limbs are thin, My belly aches. Whiteness doth crown my head, And the tracks I leave, Are unsteady where I've led. I look out through rheumy eyes, And seem to say my last goodbyes. The darkness doth draw me near, I lean towards it - the better to hear. Old age A riddle given by two people to a third: (1st person, 2nd person) Tis not, tis is. Tis good, tis bad. Tis left, tis right. Tis day, tis night. Paradox Opposites Hick-a-more, Hack-a-more, On the King's kitchen door. All the King's horses, And all the King's men, Couldn't get Hick-a-more, Hack-a-more, Off the King's kitchen door. Sunlight It is a tolling of the night. When all is still. And the wind whispers near the mill. Twas struck twelve times! And his voice rang out! And then, it was stilled. A clock at midnight (possibly with a town crier, depending on interpretation of his voice rang out) What mysteries are in its creation? Who's hand did bend its ore? Where did the knowledge come from? And could he have made any more? On his finger it did lie, Yet on his soul the more. For the fire it would bring, Would make his heart ring, And death, would come knocking at his door. A ring of fire The One True Ring of Power It was asked of me what I could be made, And so people were fed from me. It was asked of me what I could be made, And so houses were built. It was asked of me what I could be made, And so it was written. It was asked of me what I could be made, And so I fertilized the ground. But when asked more of what I could be made, There was nothing to be found. A tree With this you can do wonderous things. Look at things close, or far away, You can see things big, Or you can see things small. Or maybe you don't see things at all. I come in many colors and hues, Sometimes green and sometimes blue. And when I'm red - it's not from shame, But from something with a different name. Your eyes Oh how I love my dancing feet! They stay together - oh so neat. And when I want to walk a line, They all stay together and do double time. I count them up, ten times or more, And race on-off, across the floor. A centipede or millipede (but they actually only run with 4 legs at a time) They were made for a fairy queen's feet. To cover them and keep them tidy, and neat. A flower, of various sizes and hues, Their name is the opposite of a grown man's shoes. Ladyslippers Part pickle, part crazy, You can't call this flower lazy. It perks its head up with a snout And if it had a voice - I'm sure it'd shout. Daffodil They can be harbored, but few hold water, You can nurse them, but only by holding them against someone else, You can carry them, but not with your arms, You can bury them, but not in the earth. A grudge Deep as a bowl, round as a cup, Yet all the world's oceans can't fill it up. A sieve or collander A Water Thief A Sphere of Annihilation ;) Though desert men once called me God, To-day men call me mad, For I wag my tail when I am angry, And growl when I am glad. A cat