Daily Greek Vocabulary Challenge: Dec. 5

Here are today's vocabulary words; it's Group 119. Click on the word to learn more at Logeion:

παρά (prep.+dat.): beside, with, at 

φρονίμως (adverb): wisely, prudently 

τάχιον (adverb): more quickly, very quickly 

ὅς ~ οὗ (pronoun): who, which 

ἐγώ ~ ἐμοῦ (pronoun): I 

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

Παρ᾿ ὄνῳ λυρίζεις.

Κινδύνευε φρονίμως.

Ὃ ποιεῖς ποίησον τάχιον.

Οὐδεὶς φίλος ᾧ πολλοὶ φίλοι.

Καὶ ἐγὼ αὐτὸς ἄνθρωπός εἰμι.

And now, some commentary:

Παρ᾿ ὄνῳ λυρίζεις.

You're making music for a donkey.

This is yet another Greek proverb about the mismatch between donkeys and the music of the lyre. To have a donkey for your audience means, metaphorically, that you are wasting your time; the person you are speaking to cannot appreciate what you are saying. See this earlier post: Ὄνος λύρας ἀκούων κινεῖ τὰ ὦτα — and also this one: Τί γὰρ κοινὸν λύρᾳ καὶ ὄνῳ;

Κινδύνευε φρονίμως.

Take risks wisely.

This is one of those maxims attributed by Stobaeus to the Seven Sages. The adverb φρονίμως is from the adjective φρόνιμος, which is in turn from the noun φρήν, often found in the plural φρένες, which gives rise to a range of important words in Greek; you can see a list of derived words at the Wiktionary.

Ὃ ποιεῖς ποίησον τάχιον.

That which you do, do (very) quickly.

The adverb τάχιον is the comparative form of ταχύ; as often, the neuter adjective is being used as an adverb. The words come from the Gospel of John, when Jesus dismisses Judas from the Last Supper, knowing that Judas will betray him.

Οὐδεὶς φίλος ᾧ πολλοὶ φίλοι.

The one who has many friends has no friend.

The words are from Aristotle's Eudemian Ethics. He worried about the nature of real friendship long before the advent of "Facebook friends" who might be many in number but not in reality. In English we "have" friends, but in Greek, this kind of possession is expressed with the dative — ᾧ — literally: to whom there are many friends, ᾧ πολλοὶ φίλοι, there is no friend, οὐδεὶς φίλος.

Καὶ ἐγὼ αὐτὸς ἄνθρωπός εἰμι.

I too am human.

The words come from the Book of Acts when Cornelius has had a vision of an angel; then, when he meets Peter, he reacts as if Peter were an angel likewise, and Peter corrects his misunderstanding with these words. You can find out more at Wikipedia: Acts 10. The word καί is being used adverbially here: I too (like you) am a human (not an angel).

Cornelius worships Peter

And here's a random proverb too:

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