Кабы знал, где упасть, так соломки бы подстелил
With accent marks:
Кабы́ знал, где упа́сть, так соло́мки бы подстели́л.
Translation:
If I knew where I would fall, I would lay some straw there.
Meaning:
You should not reproach yourself and others for the mistakes, erroneous actions, illogical decisions. People often have no idea what could happen to them in the next moment. If they knew, then he would have acted differently, "prepared some straw" so it is not so painful to fall.
Other Russian proverbs
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За двумя зайцами погонишься – ни одного не поймаешь
If you are chasing two hares at once, you won’t catch a single one.
-
Не руби сук, на котором сидишь
Do not chop the branch you sit on
-
Предупреждён – значит вооружён
Forewarned is forearmed.
-
A well-fed man does not understand a starving one.
-
Лучше горькая правда, чем сладкая ложь
Bitter truth is better than sweet lies.
-
Чем дальше в лес, тем больше дров
The further into the forest, the more firewood is there.
-
The best is the enemy of the good.
-
Не рой яму другому, сам в неё попадешь
Do not dig a hole for another one, you will fall into it yourself.
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