62: money, edge, darkness, garment, kingdom

Here are today's vocabulary words; they are nouns shown in the nominative and genitive plus gender, along with a brief definition. Click on the word to learn more at Logeion, and there's also a study tips post.

1. χρῆμα ~ χρήματος (noun n.): property, money 
2. ἀκμή ~ ἀκμῆς (noun f.): edge, point, tip

3. σκότος ~ σκότου (noun m.): darkness, gloom 
4. χιτών ~ χιτῶνος (noun m.): tunic, garment 
5. βασιλεία ~ βασιλείας (noun f.): kingdom, dominion 

Here are the proverbs and sayings:

Μίδου χρήματα.

Ἐπὶ ξυροῦ ἀκμῆς.

Ἐν σκότῳ ὀρχεῖσθαι.

Ὁ ἔχων δύο χιτῶνας μεταδότω τῷ μὴ ἔχοντι.

Μακάριοι οἱ πτωχοί, ὅτι ὑμετέρα ἐστὶν ἡ βασιλεία τοῦ θεοῦ. 

Listen at SoundCloud.

Laura Gibbs · Greek Proverbs: 062

Plus some commentary:

Μίδου χρήματα.

The wealth of Midas.

King Midas was legendary for his wealth, but the "touch of gold" came at a terrible price; you can read the story at Wikipedia: Midas. Erasmus cites some other Greek sayings about the proverbially wealthy Midas: Μίδου πλοῦτος, "the riches of Midas" and Μίδου πλουσιώτερος, "richer than Midas."

Ἐπὶ ξυροῦ ἀκμῆς.

Upon the razor's edge.

This works just like "razor's edge" in English, the idea being that something balanced upon the very thin edge of a razor is teetering dangerously between failure or success. As Erasmus explains, this proverbial saying can already be found in Homer's Iliad, and you can find out more in this article online: On a Razor’s Edge” (Il. 10.173): Iliadic Images of Imbalance and Uncertainty. English has borrowed the Greek word ἀκμή as "acme," referring to the high point or tip of something, rather than the edge.

Ἐν σκότῳ ὀρχεῖσθαι.

To dance in the dark.

This proverbial expression is also found in Erasmus, who explains that it means to do something which is not witnessed or judged because one cannot see what dancers are doing in the dark. Likewise, it can refer to someone who is doing something at random, without any purpose or reason. The phrase is noted as proverbial, "as they say," in Lucian's Hermotimus:  Ἐν σκότῳ, φασίν, ὀρχοίμεθα, "we would be dancing, as they say, in the dark." The space on which the dancers danced in the Greek theater was called the ὀρχήστρα, from the verb ὀρχεῖσθαι, hence the English word "orchestra," which now refers to the musicians who occupy that space, not dancers.

Ὁ ἔχων δύο χιτῶνας μεταδότω τῷ μὴ ἔχοντι.

Let the one who has two garments give to the one who has none.

The words come from the Gospel of Luke. The second part of the verse urges the same with regard to food: καὶ ὁ ἔχων βρώματα ὁμοίως ποιείτω, "and let the one who has food do the same." Note the third-person imperatives: μεταδότω and ποιείτω.

Μακάριοι οἱ πτωχοί, ὅτι ὑμετέρα ἐστὶν ἡ βασιλεία τοῦ θεοῦ.

Blessed are (you who are) poor, because the kingdom of god will be yours.

These words also come from the Gospel of Luke. This is the first of the four "beatitudes," in which Jesus blesses the people who are poor, who are hungry, who are grieving, and who are hated. You can find out more at Wikipedia: Beatitudes. From the root βασιλ- in βασιλεία, we get English words like basil and basilica.

Here is Midas's daughter turned to gold by Walter Crane:

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