Greek Reading: 103

**I'll be away for the coming week, but will be back on October 9 with more proverbs.**

Here's the conclusion of the story of Hermes and the woodcutter; the first part is here. This comes from Analecta Graeca Minora by Andrew Dalzel, which is available at the Internet Archive. You'll find the story below, first in Greek, then segmented, and then interwoven with English, broken up into two pieces this time; the title is linked to the Internet Archive page. 

Ξυλευόμενός καὶ Ἑρμῆς (β)

Παραγενόμενος οὖν πρὸς τοὺς ἑταίρους αὐτοῦ, διηγήσατο αὐτοῖς τὰ συμβάντα αὐτῷ. Εἷς δέ τις ἐξ αὐτῶν τοῦτον ἐπιφθονήσας ἐβουλήθη καὶ αὐτὸς τὸ ἴσον παραγενόμενος ἐκεῖσε διαπράξασθαι. Διόπερ ἀναλαβὼν πέλεκυν, παρεγένετο ἐπὶ τὸν αὐτὸν ποταμὸν ξυλευσόμενος, καὶ ἐπιτηδείως τὴν ἑαυτοῦ ἀξίνην ῥίψας ἐν τῷ ποταμῷ, ἐκαθέζετο κλαίων. Αὐτίκα οὖν τοῦ Ἑρμοῦ ἐπιφανέντος καὶ τὴν αἰτίαν τῶν θρήνων πυνθανομένου, ἔφη ὅτι πέλεκυν ἀπώλεσα ἐν τῷ ποταμῷ· ὅπερ ἀκούσας ὁ Ἑρμῆς, καταβὰς χρυσοῦν πέλεκυν ἀνήγαγε. Καὶ δὴ φήσαντος αὐτοῦ εἰ τοῦτον ἀπώλεσεν, ἔφη μετὰ χαρᾶς· « Ναὶ ἀληθῶς οὗτός ἐστιν. » Ἰδὼν οὖν ἐκεῖνος τὴν ἀναίδειαν καὶ τὸ ψεῦσμα αὐτοῦ, οὐ μόνον τοῦτον οὐκ ἐδωρήσατο αὐτῷ, ἀλλ’ οὐδὲ τὸν ἴδιον ἀπέδωκε πέλεκυν.

Παραγενόμενος οὖν 

πρὸς τοὺς ἑταίρους αὐτοῦ, 

διηγήσατο αὐτοῖς 

τὰ συμβάντα αὐτῷ. 

Εἷς δέ τις ἐξ αὐτῶν 

τοῦτον ἐπιφθονήσας 

ἐβουλήθη καὶ αὐτὸς τὸ ἴσον 

παραγενόμενος ἐκεῖσε 

διαπράξασθαι. 

Διόπερ 

ἀναλαβὼν πέλεκυν, 

παρεγένετο ἐπὶ τὸν αὐτὸν ποταμὸν 

ξυλευσόμενος, 

καὶ ἐπιτηδείως 

τὴν ἑαυτοῦ ἀξίνην ῥίψας 

ἐν τῷ ποταμῷ, 

ἐκαθέζετο κλαίων. 

Παραγενόμενος οὖν  ...  So the woodcutter went 

πρὸς τοὺς ἑταίρους αὐτοῦ  ...  to his companions

διηγήσατο αὐτοῖς  ...  and told them

τὰ συμβάντα αὐτῷ  ...  what had happened to him.

Εἷς δέ τις ἐξ αὐτῶν  ...  One of them 

τοῦτον ἐπιφθονήσας  ...  was jealous of him 

ἐβουλήθη καὶ αὐτὸς  ...  and he also wanted 

παραγενόμενος ἐκεῖσε  ...  to go there

τὸ ἴσον διαπράξασθαι ...  and do the same thing. 

Διόπερ  ...  Accordingly 

ἀναλαβὼν πέλεκυν  ...  he picked up his axe, 

παρεγένετο  ...  and went 

ἐπὶ τὸν αὐτὸν ποταμὸν  ...  to the same river, 

ξυλευσόμενος  ...  to cut wood, 

καὶ ἐπιτηδείως  ...  and on purpose

τὴν ἑαυτοῦ ἀξίνην ῥίψας  ...  he hurled his axe 

ἐν τῷ ποταμῷ  ...  in the river

ἐκαθέζετο κλαίων  ...  and sat down, weeping. 

Αὐτίκα οὖν 

τοῦ Ἑρμοῦ ἐπιφανέντος 

καὶ τὴν αἰτίαν τῶν θρήνων 

πυνθανομένου, 

ἔφη ὅτι 

πέλεκυν ἀπώλεσα 

ἐν τῷ ποταμῷ· 

ὅπερ ἀκούσας ὁ Ἑρμῆς, 

καταβὰς 

χρυσοῦν πέλεκυν ἀνήγαγε. 

Καὶ δὴ φήσαντος αὐτοῦ 

εἰ τοῦτον ἀπώλεσεν, 

ἔφη μετὰ χαρᾶς· 

Ναὶ ἀληθῶς οὗτός ἐστιν. 

Ἰδὼν οὖν ἐκεῖνος 

τὴν ἀναίδειαν καὶ τὸ ψεῦσμα αὐτοῦ, 

οὐ μόνον 

τοῦτον οὐκ ἐδωρήσατο αὐτῷ, 

ἀλλ’ οὐδὲ τὸν ἴδιον ἀπέδωκε πέλεκυν.

Αὐτίκα οὖν  ...  Immediately 

τοῦ Ἑρμοῦ ἐπιφανέντος  ...  Hermes appeared 

καὶ πυνθανομένου  ...  and asked

τὴν αἰτίαν τῶν θρήνων  ...  the reason for his grief,

ἔφη ὅτι  ...  and he said,

πέλεκυν ἀπώλεσα  ...  I love my axe 

ἐν τῷ ποταμῷ  ...  in the river.

ὅπερ ἀκούσας ὁ Ἑρμῆς  ...  When Hermes heard this

καταβὰς  ...  he plunged down 

χρυσοῦν πέλεκυν ἀνήγαγε  ...  and brought up a golden axe. 

Καὶ δὴ φήσαντος αὐτοῦ  ...  ANd when he asked him  

εἰ τοῦτον ἀπώλεσεν  ...  if he had lost that axe

ἔφη μετὰ χαρᾶς  ...  the man joyfully said:

Ναὶ ἀληθῶς οὗτός ἐστιν  ...  Yes, truly, that's it!

Ἰδὼν οὖν ἐκεῖνος  ...  When Hermes saw  

τὴν ἀναίδειαν  ...  the man's shamelessness 

καὶ τὸ ψεῦσμα αὐτοῦ  ...  and deceit, 

οὐ μόνον  ...  not only

οὐκ ἐδωρήσατο αὐτῷ  ...  did he not give him

τοῦτον  ...  the golden axe,

ἀλλ’ οὐδὲ ἀπέδωκε  ...  but he also refused to return

τὸν ἴδιον πέλεκυν  ...  the man's own axe.

Bewick's Aesop

And here's a random proverb and a random LOLCat too:

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Greek Reading 102

Another long story — in fact, one so long that I need to break it up into two posts. It is one of my favorite stories from the Aesopic tradition (not always told at such great length), and I hope you will like it! It comes from Analecta Graeca Minora by Andrew Dalzel (Sir Walter Scott's Greek teacher!), which is available at the Internet Archive. 

You'll find the story below, first in Greek, then segmented, and then interwoven with English, broken up into pieces; the title is linked to the Internet Archive page. I'll be back on Monday with the conclusion.

Ξυλευόμενός καὶ Ἑρμῆς (α)

Ξυλευόμενός τις παρά τινα ποταμὸν τὸν ἑαυτοῦ πέλεκυν ἀπεβάλλετο. Τοῦ δὲ ῥεύματος παρασύραντος αὐτόν, ὑπὸ πολλῆς συσχεθεὶς θλίψεως, καθήμενος παρὰ τὰς ἀκτὰς τοῦ ποταμοῦ ὠδύρετο. Ἑρμῆς δὲ ὁ τοῦ ποταμοῦ θεὸς ἐλεήσας αὐτὸν ἧκε μαθεῖν θέλων παρ’ αὐτοῦ τὴν αἰτίαν δι’ ἣν ἔκλαιε. Τοῦ δὲ εἰπόντος αὐτῷ, καταβὰς ὁ Ἑρμῆς χρυσοῦν πέλεκυν ἀνήνεγκεν ἐκ τοῦ ποταμοῦ, καὶ ἐπυνθάνετο εἰ τοῦτον ἀπώλεσεν. Ἀρνησαμένου δὲ αὐτοῦ, ἐκ δευτέρου καταβὰς ἀργυροῦν ἀνήνεγκεν. Ὁ δὲ πάλιν ἠρνήσατο κἀκεῖνον μὴ εἶναι αὐτοῦ. Καταβὰς δὲ ἐκ τρίτου τὴν ἰδίαν ἀξίνην ἐκόμισεν· ἐπηρώτησε δὲ τοῦτον καὶ πάλιν, εἰ ταύτην ἀπώλεσεν· ὁ δὲ· « Ἀληθῶς ταύτην ἀπώλεσα, » εἶπεν. Ὁ δὲ Ἑρμῆς ἀποδεξάμενος αὐτοῦ τὴν δικαιοσύνην καὶ τὸ ἀληθὲς πάσας αὐτῷ ἐχαρίσατο. 

Ξυλευόμενός τις 

παρά τινα ποταμὸν τὸν 

ἑαυτοῦ πέλεκυν ἀπεβάλλετο. 

Τοῦ δὲ ῥεύματος 

παρασύραντος αὐτόν, 

ὑπὸ πολλῆς συσχεθεὶς θλίψεως, 

καθήμενος 

παρὰ τὰς ἀκτὰς τοῦ ποταμοῦ 

ὠδύρετο. 

Ξυλευόμενός τις  ...  A woodcutter

παρά τινα ποταμὸν τὸν  ...  by the riverside 

ἑαυτοῦ πέλεκυν ἀπεβάλλετο  ...  dropped his axe. 

Τοῦ δὲ ῥεύματος  ...  When the current 

παρασύραντος αὐτόν  ...  carried the axe away, 

συσχεθεὶς  ...  he was seized

ὑπὸ πολλῆς θλίψεως  ...  by great distress, 

καθήμενος  ...  and sitting down 

παρὰ τὰς ἀκτὰς τοῦ ποταμοῦ  ...  on the edge of the river 

ὠδύρετο  ...  he sobbed.

Ἑρμῆς δὲ 

ὁ τοῦ ποταμοῦ θεὸς 

ἐλεήσας αὐτὸν 

ἧκε 

μαθεῖν θέλων παρ’ αὐτοῦ 

τὴν αἰτίαν 

δι’ ἣν ἔκλαιε. 

Τοῦ δὲ εἰπόντος αὐτῷ, 

καταβὰς ὁ Ἑρμῆς 

χρυσοῦν πέλεκυν 

ἀνήνεγκεν ἐκ τοῦ ποταμοῦ, 

καὶ ἐπυνθάνετο 

εἰ τοῦτον ἀπώλεσεν. 

Ἑρμῆς δὲ  ...  Hermes, 

ὁ τοῦ ποταμοῦ θεὸς  ...  the god of the river, 

ἐλεήσας αὐτὸν  ...  felt sorry for him 

ἧκε  ...  and showed up 

μαθεῖν θέλων  ...  wanting to know 

παρ’ αὐτοῦ  ... from him

τὴν αἰτίαν  ...  the reason 

δι’ ἣν ἔκλαιε  ...  why he was weeping. 

Τοῦ δὲ εἰπόντος αὐτῷ  ...  When he told him, 

καταβὰς ὁ Ἑρμῆς  ...  Hermes plunged down 

ἀνήνεγκεν ...  and brought up  

χρυσοῦν πέλεκυν  ...  a golden axe 

ἐκ τοῦ ποταμοῦ  ... from out of the river,

καὶ ἐπυνθάνετο  ...  and asked

εἰ τοῦτον ἀπώλεσεν  ...  if he had lost that axe. 

Ἀρνησαμένου δὲ αὐτοῦ, 

ἐκ δευτέρου καταβὰς 

ἀργυροῦν ἀνήνεγκεν. 

Ὁ δὲ 

πάλιν ἠρνήσατο κἀκεῖνον 

μὴ εἶναι αὐτοῦ. 

Καταβὰς δὲ ἐκ τρίτου 

τὴν ἰδίαν ἀξίνην ἐκόμισεν· 

ἐπηρώτησε δὲ τοῦτον 

καὶ πάλιν, 

εἰ ταύτην ἀπώλεσεν· 

ὁ δὲ· 

Ἀληθῶς ταύτην ἀπώλεσα, 

εἶπεν. 

Ὁ δὲ Ἑρμῆς 

ἀποδεξάμενος αὐτοῦ 

τὴν δικαιοσύνην καὶ τὸ ἀληθὲς 

πάσας αὐτῷ ἐχαρίσατο. 

Ἀρνησαμένου δὲ αὐτοῦ  ...  The man said no, 

ἐκ δευτέρου  ...  and a second time 

καταβὰς  ... Hermes plunged down

ἀνήνεγκεν  ...  and brought up

ἀργυροῦν  ...  a silver axe.

Ὁ δὲ πάλιν  ...  And the woodcutter again

ἠρνήσατο  ...  said no; 

κἀκεῖνον μὴ εἶναι αὐτοῦ  ...  it too was not his. 

Καταβὰς δὲ  ...  Hermes plunged in 

ἐκ τρίτου  ...  a third time;

ἐκόμισεν  ...  he brought back

τὴν ἰδίαν ἀξίνην  ...  the man's own axe 

ἐπηρώτησε δὲ τοῦτον ...  and asked him

καὶ πάλιν  ...  yet again

εἰ ταύτην ἀπώλεσεν  ...  if he had lost this one. 

ὁ δὲ εἶπεν  ...  And the man said

Ἀληθῶς ταύτην ἀπώλεσα  ...  Truly, I lost that one! 

Ὁ δὲ Ἑρμῆς  ...  Then Hermes, 

ἀποδεξάμενος  ...  pleased with 

αὐτοῦ τὴν δικαιοσύνην  ...  the man's righteousness

καὶ τὸ ἀληθὲς  ...  and truthfulness,

πάσας αὐτῷ ἐχαρίσατο  ...  gave him all the axes. 

... But that's not all there is to the story! Stay tuned for more. 

17th-century Aesop illustration

And here's a random proverb and a random LOLCat too:

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Greek Animal Vocabulary: Sept. 25

Here are today's animal names; it's Group 194. Click on the word to learn more at Logeion:

κύων ~ κυνός (noun c.): dog 

ὄϊς ~ ὄϊος (noun c.): sheep 

ὄνος ~ ὄνου (noun m.): donkey 

λύκος ~ λύκου (noun m.): wolf 

βοῦς ~ βοός (noun c.): ox, cow 

These are the proverbs (and there are always more proverbs at the blog):

Κύων εἰς τὸν ἴδιον ἔμετον.

Πρίν κεν ὄϊν λύκος ποιμαίνοι.

Ὄνῳ τις ἔλεγε μῦθον, ὁ δὲ τὰ ὦτα ἐκίνει.

Λύκος ἐν αἰτίᾳ γίγνεται κἂν φέρῃ κἂν μὴ φερῃ.

Οὐ δύναμαι τὴν αἶγα φέρειν, ἐπί μοι θέτε τὸν βοῦν.

And now, some commentary:

Κύων εἰς τὸν ἴδιον ἔμετον.

The dog (returns) to its own vomit.

This is a shorter version of a saying you've seen before: Κύων ἐπὶ τὸν ἴδιον ἔμετον ἐπιστρέψας. It comes from the Biblical Book of Proverbs.  Here is the verse in the King James version: As a dog returneth to his vomit, so a fool returneth to his folly. From Greek ἔμετος we get English "emetic."

Πρίν κεν ὄϊν λύκος ποιμαίνοι.

Sooner than the wolf shepherds the sheep.

This is an impossibility, ἀδύνατον: the wolf does not shepherd the sheep; the wolf eats the sheep. So, if something is supposed to happen sooner than this impossibility... that means it is never going to happen. Compare the English sayings, "When hell freezes over" or "When pigs fly." For more, see Wikipedia: Adynaton.

Ὄνῳ τις ἔλεγε μῦθον, ὁ δὲ τὰ ὦτα ἐκίνει.

Someone told a story to a donkey, and the donkey moved his ears.

It's foolish to try to talk to a donkey, but that foolish speaker might be encouraged by the donkey wiggling his ears... which donkeys do, of course. (Of course, now we have bots instead of donkeys, and the bots do more than wiggle their ears.) The Roman poet Horace imitates the saying in one of his Epistles: narrare asello fabellam surdo.

Λύκος ἐν αἰτίᾳ γίγνεται κἂν φέρῃ κἂν μὴ φερῃ.

The wolf is blamed whether he takes or doesn't take.

The wolf has been guilty of theft so many times that, even when he hasn't taken something, he's going to get blamed. 

Οὐ δύναμαι τὴν αἶγα φέρειν, ἐπί μοι θέτε τὸν βοῦν.

I can't carry a goat, and you've laid on ox on me.

You can find this one in Plutarch's treatise against borrowing money (English translation); he labels it a proverb, παροιμία.

medieval wolf and sheep

And here's a random proverb and a random LOLCat too:

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Greek Reading: 101

Today's story (it's a long one, so just one story today) comes from the Sertum Greek Reading Book for students at Eton, which is available at the Internet Archive. 

You'll find the story below, first in Greek, then segmented, and then interwoven with English; the title is linked to the Internet Archive page. I've broken it up into three parts: the Aesopic opening, the animal story, and then the Aesopic close.

Ἀλώπηξ καὶ ἐχῖνος 

Αἴσωπος ἐν Σάμῳ δημηγορῶν, κρινομένου δημαγωγοῦ περὶ θανάτου, ἔφη· Ἀλώπεκα διαβαίνουσαν ποταμὸν ἀπωσθῆναι εἰς φάραγγα· οὐ δυναμένην δʼ ἐκβῆναι πολὺν χρόνον κακοπαθεῖν, καὶ κυνοραϊστὰς πολλοὺς ἔχεσθαι αὐτῆς· ἐχῖνον δὲ πλανώμενον, ὡς εἶδεν αὐτὴν, κατοικτείραντα εἰπεῖν, εἰ ἀφέλοι αὐτῆς τοὺς κυνοραῖστάς· τὴν δὲ οὐκ ἐᾶν. Ἐρομένου δὲ, διὰ τί, ὅτι οὗτοι μὲν, φάναι, ἤδη μου πλήρεις εἰσὶ καὶ ὀλίγον ἕλκουσιν αἷμα, ἐὰν δὲ τούτους ἀφέλῃ, ἕτεροι ἐλθόντες πεινῶντες ἐκπιοῦνταί μου τὸ λοιπὸν οἷμα. Ἀτὰρ καὶ ὑμᾶς, ἔφη, ὦ ἄνδρες Σάμιοι, οὗτος μὲν οὐδὲν ἔτι βλάψει· πλούσιος γάρ ἐστιν· ἐὰν δὲ ἀποκτείνητε, ἕτεροι ἥξουσι πένητες, οἳ ὑμῖν ἀναλώσουσι τὰ κοινὰ κλέπτοντες.

Αἴσωπος 

ἐν Σάμῳ δημηγορῶν, 

κρινομένου δημαγωγοῦ 

περὶ θανάτου, 

ἔφη· 

Αἴσωπος  ...  Aesop

δημηγορῶν  ...  was addressing the people

ἐν Σάμῳ  ... on the island of Samos, 

κρινομένου δημαγωγοῦ  ...  defending a demagogue 

περὶ θανάτου  ...  on a capital charge, 

ἔφη  ...  and he said: 

(the story is told with accusative plus infinitive in indirect speech)

Ἀλώπεκα 

διαβαίνουσαν ποταμὸν 

ἀπωσθῆναι εἰς φάραγγα· 

οὐ δυναμένην δʼ ἐκβῆναι 

πολὺν χρόνον κακοπαθεῖν, 

καὶ κυνοραϊστὰς πολλοὺς 

ἔχεσθαι αὐτῆς· 

ἐχῖνον δὲ πλανώμενον, 

ὡς εἶδεν αὐτὴν, 

κατοικτείραντα εἰπεῖν, 

εἰ ἀφέλοι αὐτῆς 

τοὺς κυνοραῖστάς· 

τὴν δὲ οὐκ ἐᾶν. 

Ἐρομένου δὲ διὰ τί, 

ὅτι οὗτοι μὲν

φάναι 

ἤδη μου πλήρεις εἰσὶ 

καὶ ὀλίγον ἕλκουσιν αἷμα, 

ἐὰν δὲ τούτους ἀφέλῃ, 

ἕτεροι ἐλθόντες 

πεινῶντες ἐκπιοῦνταί 

μου τὸ λοιπὸν οἷμα.

Ἀλώπεκα  ...  A fox,

διαβαίνουσαν ποταμὸν  ...  crossing a river,

ἀπωσθῆναι εἰς φάραγγα  ...  was thrust (by the current) 

εἰς φάραγγα  ...  into a gully,

οὐ δυναμένην δʼ ἐκβῆναι  ...  and was not able to get out. 

πολὺν χρόνον κακοπαθεῖν  ...  She was badly off for a long time

καὶ κυνοραϊστὰς πολλοὺς  ...  and many dog-ticks

ἔχεσθαι αὐτῆς  ...  seized her.

ἐχῖνον δὲ πλανώμενον  ...  A hedgehog wandered by;

ὡς εἶδεν αὐτὴν  ...   when he saw her

κατοικτείραντα εἰπεῖν  ...  he felt sorry for her and asked

εἰ ἀφέλοι  ...  if he could remove 

αὐτῆς τοὺς κυνοραῖστάς  ...  the ticks from her, 

τὴν δὲ οὐκ ἐᾶν  ...  but she refused. 

Ἐρομένου δὲ διὰ τί  ...  When he asked why, 

φάναι ὅτι ...  she said that

οὗτοι μὲν  ...  "These ticks

ἤδη μου πλήρεις εἰσὶ  ...  have already had their fill of me 

καὶ ὀλίγον ἕλκουσιν αἷμα  ...  and are drawing little blood, 

ἐὰν δὲ τούτους ἀφέλῃ  ...  but if you remove these, 

ἕτεροι ἐλθόντες  ...  other will come, 

πεινῶντες ἐκπιοῦνταί  ...  hungry ones who will drink

μου τὸ λοιπὸν οἷμα  ...  what blood I have left."

Ἀτὰρ καὶ ὑμᾶς, 

ἔφη,

ὦ ἄνδρες Σάμιοι, 

οὗτος μὲν 

οὐδὲν ἔτι βλάψει· 

πλούσιος γάρ ἐστιν· 

ἐὰν δὲ ἀποκτείνητε, 

ἕτεροι ἥξουσι πένητες, 

οἳ ὑμῖν ἀναλώσουσι 

τὰ κοινὰ κλέπτοντες.

Ἀτὰρ καὶ ὑμᾶς ... And likewise you,

ἔφη  ...  said Aesop,

ὦ ἄνδρες Σάμιοι  ...  O men of Samos! 

οὗτος μὲν  ... For this man

οὐδὲν ἔτι βλάψει ... won't harm you anymore, 

πλούσιος γάρ ἐστιν ... because he is rich, 

ἐὰν δὲ ἀποκτείνητε ... but if you kill him, 

ἕτεροι ἥξουσι  ... others will come, 

πένητες  ...  poor men,

οἳ ὑμῖν ἀναλώσουσι  ... and they will use you up,

τὰ κοινὰ κλέπτοντες  ....  robbing your treasury.

illustration by Grandville

And here's a random proverb and a random LOLCat too:

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