A short, strange poem about luck passed down from the dead. The speaker holds dice taken from a dead man's pocket and shakes them in their hand, as if about to throw. The title, "Gambler's spell," suggests the act is half game and half ritual, a bit like casting a charm.
The second stanza turns the dice into something like a pen. The speaker says they "write out like a dagger / all my red ink." Red ink usually suggests debt, losses, or being in the red, so the speaker may be a gambler who is already in trouble. The dagger adds danger and violence: writing out the losses feels like a wound, or even a kind of killing.
The mood is tense, superstitious, and a little grim. The speaker seems drawn to the dead man's dice, hoping for luck or fate to change, while also sensing that the same dice could cut them. The poem leaves it unclear whether this is a gamble or a warning.