Greek Vocabulary Challenge: May 22

Here are today's vocabulary words; it's Group 168. Click on the word to learn more at Logeion:

ἥδομαι ~ ἡσθήσομαι ~ ἡσάμην: enjoy, delight in 

φεύγω ~ φεύξομαι ~ ἔφυγον: flee, escape 

ποιέω ~ ποιήσω ~ ἐποίησα: make, do 

ζήω ~ ζήσω ~ ἔζησα: be alive, live 

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

Κτώμενος ἥδου.

Λύκος ἀετὸν φεύγει.

Ἡ φύσις οὐδὲν ποιεῖ ἅλματα.

Ἀπὸ λεπτοῦ μίτου τὸ ζῆν ἠρτῆσθαι.

Ὁ χοῖρος ἥδεται κόπροις καὶ βορβόρῳ.

And now, some commentary:

Κτώμενος ἥδου.

Enjoy what you have acquired.

This is another 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.

Λύκος ἀετὸν φεύγει.

The wolf flees the eagle.

The idea is that because an eagle has wings, even the wolf, fierce though he is, struggles to escape the eagle's pursuit. Metaphorically, then, the situation replies to someone formidable having to run away from someone even more formidable. When Erasmus comments on this saying, he observes: "This Greek saying is found in Diogenianus, and also Zenodotus, but they do not indicate the origin of the proverb, and I've never heard about eagles actually harassing wolves."

Ἡ φύσις οὐδὲν ποιεῖ ἅλματα.

Nature makes no leaps.

This ancient Greek philosophical notion is best known in its Latin form, Natura non facit saltus (saltus is accusative plural here: Nature doesn't make leaps), and as such it was an important notion in the early development of both modern mathematics (infinitesimal calculus) and the biological sciences (biological gradualism and, later, evolution); you can find out more at Wikipedia: Natura non facit saltus.

Ἀπὸ λεπτοῦ μίτου τὸ ζῆν ἠρτῆσθαι.

Life hangs by a slender thread.

Here the articular infinitive, τὸ ζῆν, is the subject of the verb: "to live" = "living, life." The saying may allude to the famous sword that Damocles suspended by a thread. You can read that story at Wikipedia: Sword of Damocles.

Ὁ χοῖρος ἥδεται κόπροις καὶ βορβόρῳ.

The pig delights in filth and mud.

Of course, this does not speak well of the pig. The saying comes from Clement of Alexandria, echoing a similar characterization of the pig in the New Testament letter of 2 Peter: κύων ἐπιστρέψας ἐπὶ τὸ ἴδιον ἐξέραμα, καί, ὖς λουσαμένη εἰς κυλισμὸν βορβόρου — in King James: The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.

Sword of Damocles

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

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