“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” ~ Leonardo da Vinci (Adopted by Steve Jobs)
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A Man was lost at night and a Satyr gave him lodging.
As they travelled, the Man blew on his hands. The Satyr asked why, and the Man explained it was to warm them.
At the Satyr’s home, the Satyr put a smoking dish of porridge before him. The Man raised the dish blew into it. Again, Satyr asked why, and the Man said that he did it to cool the food.
“I can no longer consider you as a friend,” said the Satyr, “a fellow whose breath blows hot and cold with the same breath I could never trust.”
Moral of the Story: A man who talks for both sides is not to be trusted. Beware, friend here, enemy there.
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Introduction – The Essential Aesop – Epilogue
Related Article: Trusting the People, Trusting the Deal – The Wolf and the Crane; No. 13. Bad Bargains, Power, and Vulnerability By Temptation – The Wolf and the Crane; 31. The Bats, Birds and Beasts; No. 97. Einstein, Jesus, and the Shared Kiss – The Fox and the Cat
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Why We Loved It: Such as it is with so many other idioms, “to breathe hot and cold in the same breath” finds its origins with Aesop, referencing duplicity.
And, of course, Aesop uses his Satyr, the reputed bad-boy of mythology, being a creature that is part man and part beast. We might assume that a Satyr would be forgiving of contradictions, but here—somewhat casting against type in irony—Aesop does not allow it to be so. Alas, even the wonton half-man/half-beast Satyr is not accepting of his friend’s inconstancy. Perhaps it takes one to know one.
Such as in The Bear and the Two Travelers and The Bats, Birds and Beasts, Aesop warns of trusting unreliable fair weather friendships. Sure, another person might have principles that are abrasive to us, but that is much of the point of having principles: they tend to be stronger than the thing that would force them back; therefore, they can be abrasive. But, while the bad of someone’s principles might be that they are abrasive, the good of someone’s principles is that the are constant, stable and trust-worthy. Principles, for better or worse to another, hold the line. Thus, the adage that the person who talks ill carelessly about others to you, will talk ill carelessly about you to others.
Aesop shows that even his half-man/half-beast Satyr will not settle to trust a person failing in constancy. Friend today, enemy tomorrow. Friend here, enemy there. Aesop’s Satyr knows something about contradiction and duplicity. Forewarned is forearmed.
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© 2013 Arnold Zegarelli and Gregg Zegarelli, Esq. Gregg can be contacted through LinkedIn. Arnold Zegarelli can be contacted through Facebook.
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