Ventadorn

Ventadorn

Stanza 1:

He has been asked by his lord to sing a song.  He is singing his reply.  He never sings for long.  He lost a lover.  He asks how he should sing, since he has had bad luck lately.  He then asks if the love has totally gone.  No, it is not completely gone, but he still feels lonely.

Stanza 2:

His lord has been generous with gifts.  He loves a pretty woman and she loves him too.  He cannot tell how she is doing though.  This troubles him, but he cannot go to see her.

Stanza 3:

She makes him so happy that it totally consumes him and he is so distracted that he cannot hear if someone calls for him.  Even though he is with his friends in person, his best part, his heart, is with her.

Stanza 4:

They have a problem and he does not know what to do.  They are having a conflict, so bad that the results might kill him.  Unless she lets him go up to her bedroom and have sex. 

Stanza 5:

He will not give up his love for any reason, even if it gets him in trouble or makes him feel bad because he cannot attain the woman he loves.  When God was generous, he took as much as he could.  Now that God no longer gives him as much as he used to, he will suffer equally to the amount of enjoyment he gained from the gifts he previously got.  He might think the woman he loves was a gift from God, but now that he cannot have her, this is the suffering.  He tells her to wait because he will eventually find a way for them to be together.

Stanza 6:

He thanks her for her love.  He says he loves her more than all the women he previously loved.  He says he belongs entirely to her, but he would appreciate some attention from her.

Stanza 7:

He asks God to give him strength, since he is wandering endlessly to find his love.  He is apparently also wandering with someone named Escudor. 

Stanza 8:

Escudor does what he can to help.  He is referred to as a magnet, so maybe he is helping guide the author.