“Menander the Sage said: …” These words introduce a collection of wisdom sayings written in the Syriac language. The purpose of the author in drawing up this anthology of maxims was to show his readers how they could best live in a world in which good and evil, misfortune and fortune are mingled in an unpredictable way. Passing through a world of this nature, people need to be provided with direction, and the author gives such guidance by means of various counsels. The work is often designated a florilegium, and this seems to be a fairly good name for the collection, whose maxims have apparently been taken from the current stream of wisdom tradition.
The Epitome of the Sentences of the Syriac ‘Menander’
by T. BAARDA
Storytelling, the Meaning of Life, and The Epic of Gilgamesh
Arthur A. Brown
Translator: H. L. Ginsberg
Arthur Brown