Greek Vocabulary Challenge: Feb. 11

Here are today's vocabulary words; it's Group 142. Click on the word to learn more at Logeion:

ἄνω (adverb): upwards, above

ὡς (adv./conj.): so, thus, as

ἅμα (adverb): at the same time, at

μηδέποτε (adverb): never

νῦν (adverb): now

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

Ἄνω ποταμῶν χωροῦσι πηγαί.

Λόγοι σοφῶν ὡς τὰ βούκεντρα.

Μὴ ἅμα ἀρχῇ πᾶν τέλος καταφαίνεσθαι.

Μηδέποτε πειρῶ δύο φίλων εἶναι κριτής.

Μακάριοι οἱ πεινῶντες νῦν, ὅτι χορτασθήσεσθε.

And now, some commentary:

Ἄνω ποταμῶν χωροῦσι πηγαί.

The sources of the rivers are moving upwards.

In other words, things are topsy-turvy. Rivers flow downstream from their sources, not upstream. The phrase shows up in this form in Euripides' Medea, adding the word ἱερῶν, making the rivers holy:

ἄνω ποταμῶν ἱερῶν χωροῦσι παγαί.

Λόγοι σοφῶν ὡς τὰ βούκεντρα.

The words of the wise are goads. 

The Greek βούκεντρα is a compound word: βού-κεντρα, cattle-goads. In other words, the hoi polloi are like cattle that the wise men drive, willing or not, with their words. The saying comes from the Biblical Book of Ecclesiastes.

Μὴ ἅμα ἀρχῇ πᾶν τέλος καταφαίνεσθαι.

At the beginning, the whole business is not clear.

In other words, you can't tell how things are going to turn out! Herodotus quotes this as a saying, labeling it παλαιὸν ἔπος, an "old saying" and attributing the words to the Persian Artabanos in a dialogue with his nephew Xerxes. The accusative τέλος is the subject of the infinitive, καταφαίνεσθαι.

Μηδέποτε πειρῶ δύο φίλων εἶναι κριτής.

Do not ever try to play the judge between two friends.

There are two forms of his adverb: οὐδέποτε and μηδέποτε; this saying uses the μη form because it is an imperative (πειρῶ is a middle imperative of πειράω). This is one of the sayings preserved in the one-liners (monostichs) of Menander. Here is the iambic meter marked:

Μηδέποτ' πει||ρῶ δύο φίλων || εἶναι κριτής.

Μακάριοι οἱ πεινῶντες νῦν, ὅτι χορτασθήσεσθε.

Blessed are those who now hunger, for they will be well fed.

The words come from the Gospel of Matthew, in the passage known as the Sermon on the Mount. You can find out more at Wikipeda: Beatitudes. Here is the Church of the Beatitudes on the Sea of Galilee, built on what was supposedly the site of Jesus's sermon:

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

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