Greek Proverbs: March 26

Here are today's Greek proverbs with LOLCats! These are repeats of previous proverbs, but now with illustrations (and there are always more proverbs at the blog):

Κτώμενος ἥδου.

Enjoy what you have acquired.

This is one of those Delphic maxims recorded by Stobaeus, and it also fits very nicely with the Buddhist idea of "want what you have" instead of wanting what you don't have. The form here, ἥδου, is a middle imperative; you'll see another form of this verb below.

Ὅμοιον ὁμοίῳ φίλον.

Like likes like.

In Greek, it is literally "a (similar) thing is friendly to a similar thing." The saying appears in Plato's Lysis (τὸ ὅμοιον τῷ ὁμοίῳ φίλον εἶναι) in a debate about whether friendship is more likely among people who are similar or whether people who are similar are prone to envy and resentment, with friendship more naturally occurring between people who are dissimilar. From the Greek root ὁμο- we get the homo- words in English like homogeneous and homonym.

Πηγάσου ταχύτερος.

Swifter than Pegasus.

The adjective ταχύτερος is a comparative form of ταχύς, meaning swift, so it takes a genitive complement: Πηγάσου. For more about the famous winged horse, see Wikipedia: Pegasus.

Ἕνα ἀλλὰ λέοντα.

One, but a lion.

This is the punchline to an Aesop's fable: when the fox rebukes the lioness for having only one cub, this is the lioness's reply. That's why the words are in the accusative: "(I have only) one (cub), but (he is) a lion." In other words, all the offspring of the fox could never equal a single lion. Here are some English versions of the Aesop's fable.

Τὰ Ταντάλου τάλαντα.

The talents of Tantalus.

This saying is about the fabulously wealthy King Tantalus, and the τάλαντα here, or "talents" in English, referred originally to weighing scales, and then came to mean the money that was weighed in the scales. You can find out more about King Tantalus at Wikipedia. In addition to the proverbial talents of Tantalus, there are the famous τάλαντα of the Gospels: Parable of the Talents. This parable is what gave rise to the modern meaning of "talent" in English; you can find out more at the wiktionary: talent. Of course, things did not turn out well at all for King Tantalus, so this saying is a warning, not a blessing.

And to finish up, here's a random proverb and a random LOLCat too:

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Greek Proverbs: March 24

Here are today's Greek proverbs with LOLCats! These are repeats of previous proverbs, but now with illustrations (and there are always more proverbs at the blog):

Μισῶ μνήμονα συμπότην.

I hate a drinking companion with a memory.

The word συμπότης is a compound, συμ-πότης, a co-drinker — and yes, from this same root we get the English word symposium. The Greek συμπόσιον was a drinking party! A drinking-companion who remembers what is done and said at a symposium is dangerous because, as you learned in a previous post: Ἐν οἴνῳ ἀλήθεια. Meanwhile, from the Greek verb μισέω we get English words like misogyny and misanthrope.

Φιλόσοφος γίνου.

Be a lover of wisdom.

This is one of the maxims of the Seven Sages recorded by Stobaeus; for more, see Wikipedia: Delphic maxims. Like many compound adjectives, there is not a distinctive feminine form; φιλόσοφος is both masculine and feminine, depending on context. It is often used substantively as a noun, which is the origin of our "philosopher" in English.

Μνήμην καμήλου.

(He has) the memory of a camel.

The Greeks believed that the camel had a good memory. A related proverb states: μνησικακία καμήλου, "the camel's remembrance of wrongs" (μνησι-κακία), i.e. the camel remembers any person who has treated it badly and will seek revenge. You can see the root μνημ- in the name Μνημοσύνη, the Greek goddess of memory: Wikipedia: Mnemosyne.

Χρόνου φείδου.

Be sparing of time.

The verb φείδου is another middle imperative; the verb φείδομαι has only middle forms, and it takes a genitive complement: χρόνου. This is another one of the maxims that Stobaeus attributed to the Seven Sages; see above for another one.

Δικαίως κτῶ.

Acquire possessions rightfully.

The word κτῶ is a middle imperative from the verb κτάομαι (it looks especially weird because the word has only one syllable; hence the circumflex). The adverb δικαίως is formed from the adjective δίκαιος which is in turn formed from the noun δίκη meaning order or justice. For the goddess of Justice, see Wikipedia: Dike.

And to finish up, here's a random proverb and a random LOLCat too:

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Greek Proverbs: March 19

Here are today's Greek proverbs with LOLCats! These are repeats of previous proverbs, but now with illustrations (and there are always more proverbs at the blog):

Πᾶσιν ἁρμόζου.

Accommodate yourself to everyone/everything.

This is one of the so-called Delphic maxims recorded by Stobaeus. Note the middle/passive imperative: ἁρμόζου. The Greek word has a wonderfully wide range of metaphorical uses which you can see in the LSJ dictionary entry.

Ἰατρὸς νόσου ὁ ὕπνος.

Sleep is the doctor of sickness.

In other words: get some sleep — you'll feel better! The words are adapted from a fragment of Sophocles. From root of the Greek word ἰατρός, we get a variety of English compound words formed with -iatric: pediatric, geriatric, etc. Compare a similar saying you saw earlier at this blog: Ὕπνος δὲ πάσης ἐστὶν ὑγιεία νόσου.

Ἐξ ὄνυχος τὸν λέοντα.

By the claw (you know) the lion.

The idea is that you can recognize someone by a specific trait or feature, although it might be very small; a lion is very big, but his claw is very small. Plus lions, like other cats, often keep their claws hidden... you might not recognize the lion until it is too late!

Τὸ φῶς ἡλίῳ δανείζεις.

You're loaning light to the sun.

This is another proverb about acting both foolishly and presumptuously: the sun doesn't need any light from you! From Greek φωτο- we get a huge number of English photo- words, and from ἥλιος we get English helium and also heliotrope. For more about the sun god Ἥλιος, see Wikipedia: Helios.

Φίλοις βοήθει.

Help your friends.

This is one of the so-called Delphic maxims recorded by Stobaeus. Notice that the verb βοηθέω takes a dative complement: φίλοις.

And to finish up, here's a random proverb and a random LOLCat too:

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Greek Proverbs: March 17

Here are today's Greek proverbs with LOLCats! These are repeats of previous proverbs, but now with illustrations (and there are always more proverbs at the blog):

Χαῖρε, φίλον φῶς.

Farewell, dear light.

This saying was used when extinguishing a lamp or candle. 

As Erasmus explains, these words could be used in all seriousness, as when a character in a tragedy is about to die, but the words could also be used in more risque contexts; for example, he relates a story for teaching purposes (docendi causa) about an old woman who is about to have sex, and who thus speaks to the candle before she puts it out so that her lover will not see her wrinkles.

Ἰλιὰς κακῶν.

An Iliad of evils.

As Erasmus explains, this refers to a series of disasters and calamities, alluding to the disasters and calamities that befell Troy in their war with the Greeks as narrated in Homer's Iliad. The word κακῶν is the neuter adjective being used substantively: An Iliad of evil (things). The word Ἰλιὰς (genitive Ῑ̓λῐᾰ́δος, hence English Iliad) is formed from Ἴλιον, Ilium, i.e. Troy. The Homeric evidence suggests that this name began with a digamma: *Ϝίλιον. You can find out more about the Greek digamma at Wikipedia.

Τέχνῃ χρῶ.

Use your skill.

The word χρῶ is a middle imperative from the contract verb χράομαι, which takes a dative complement: τέχνῃ. This is one of the maxims Stobaeus attributes to the Seven Sages. The Greek root τέχν- gives us all the English tech- words. It is related to the word for weaving in Latin, texo (which gives us English words like textile and text).

Γόρδιος δεσμός.
The Gordian knot.
You can read about Alexander the Great and the "knot of Gordium" at Wikipedia: Gordian Knot. The word δεσμός refers to any kind of bond or tie, literal and metaphorical; it can also mean a binding spell or charm.

Ἄδύνατα θηρᾷς.

You're hunting things that are impossible.

The adjective ἀδύνατα is an alpha-privative form of δυνατά: im-possible; note also the change in stress. The Greek word appears in English rhetorical terminology as adynaton, meaning a hyperbole so extreme as to be impossible. See Wikipedia: Adynaton for examples.

And to finish up, here's a random proverb and a random LOLCat too:

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