Chcesz się dostać do nieba, nie żałuj biednym kęsa chleba.
Listen
What it means
“If you want to get to heaven, don’t begrudge the poor a morsel of bread.” Generosity toward the needy is a virtue that will be rewarded. A call to charity rooted in Christian folk ethics.
English equivalent
Charity will get you to heaven.
Vocabulary
- dostać się — to get to, to reach
- niebo — heaven, sky
- żałować — to begrudge, to regret
- biedny — poor, needy
- kęs — morsel, bite
- chleb — bread
Grammar note
'Nie żałuj' is a negative imperative. 'Biednym' is dative plural — 'for the poor'. 'Kęsa chleba' is genitive, as required after 'żałować'.
Cultural context
Reflects the deep connection between Polish folk culture and Catholic values of almsgiving.
Intermediate
Noticed a typo, a wrong translation, or anything that doesn't look right? We'd love to fix it — just let us know via the contact page. Thank you!
More Polish proverbs
- "A stepmother, even if made of sugar, is always bitter." No matter how kind a stepmother tries to …
- "For a wise head, two words are enough." A clever person needs only a brief hint to understand; …
- "A Pole is wise after the damage is done." Poles (or people in general) tend to learn from mistakes …
- "The wise will accept advice; the fool will scorn it." Intelligent people are open to counsel, while …