Mythos, epos, logos

Words, words, words! In the ancient Greece, there were three types of 'words'. Mythos (myth) was the form of legends and fairy tales. Epos (epic) was a gift to the poets, a magic melody. And logos (logic) was the talk of reality, the truth of nature. For some people there are two types of 'words': true or false. For some people there is only one word, the word they speak. I am no crazy, I would not venture to decipher the logos beyond the mythos. But this is my daily job, I am a tour guide, and this is my perspective, my approach...

I have shared the following stories with hundreds of travellers. Perhaps the keen smile of approval that I saw on their faces encouraged me. Patience and courage, dear guest!

Midas with the golden touch

No gold was found in his tomb. Was he really Midas the Golden Touch? Well, he was the King of Phrigia and a clever economist. Although there was a kind of bazaar, money was not invented yet, and the people were bartering their goods. Since there were no standards for measuring the size, amount and quality of the items, every single day was bringing new bulk of complaints in front of the King's throne. And it was almost impossible to collect the taxes. Finally, Midas took the advice of his consultants and started to apply a critical solution. The new key concept was 'price'. What 'price'? First, they should find a unit and a constant rate, and they did. The first ounce and carat units of the history were defined. Then, they started to calculate the 'prices' of the items according to value of the gold.

Soon after everything he touched or 'taxed' in his country turned into gold. Attention please, I do not mean any change in the nature of the items; wheat was wheat, olive was olive, as before. Midas used gold as a standard unit of comparison; i.e. the price of one amphora olive oil was 2 carats (of gold) and the price of one amphora wine was also 2 carats. So, here is your oil, give me my wine.

No longer than 50 years, the first coins of the history were in the Anatolian market, 'electronium'; a natural mixture of gold and silver.

The famous misinterpreted phrase 'Golden Touch' was another clever metaphor of Aesop, the Phyrigian slave at the palace of Croesus, not an unfathomable mystery.

(From the History of Economics)

Author's note:
Studying differential equations was boring and I often preferred to browse at some more interesting books in the library. I've read a similar story in a book called 'A Brief History of Economics', but I forgot the author's name.

Two stories and the truth

Politicians are always the same. This time I used some tactics of strategic intelligence. Move, chess player, it's your turn.

Don't tell your secrets in a corn field!

Last night, there was a godly competition. Apollo played his lyre, and Marsyas challenged him with the Magic Flute. Midas-the Phrigian King was to judge. He chose Marsyas. 'Too much for a mortal human, learn how to respect your gods and pay for your sins!' cried jealous voice of Apollo. His eyes gazed with anger and with his cruel hands, yes with those godly hands he killed Marsyas. 'You dare to prefer a mortal song, then be ready to face the music!' Poor Midas, Apollo turned his ears into those of a donkey.

Nobody, but his barber knew the reality hidden behind a turban. Despite his fear, the barber could not stand it for so long and whispered the secret to an empty water well; 'Midas has donkeys ears'. Goodness, there was some water left at the bottom and a crack on the wall; the cloudy water leaked out of the well, mixed with underground rivers and flowed down to the farm. With the first morning wind, the corns started to sing 'Midas has Donkeys ears'...

Ever since then, we have this proverb;
'Don't tell your secrets in a corn field'.
(Because the corns have ears, ha, ha!)

Know thyself

Rumours rose up. Day by difficult day, King Midas was suffering; no fear to lose his throne, no fear to lose his crown. He was in love with his country and its people. And those people had always been proud of the King. He was afraid to lose this love. But, no; he was still Midas and to have such donkey ears was not a real minus. 'Know thyself, Midas' he said and within a sudden decision, he sent his men. 'Go and call everyone to a big feast!'

The people obeyed their King's wish as they have used to do and gathered in the courtyard.
No single syllable could be heard, even the wind stopped whispering the 'Donkey song'.

The King got out of his palace, saluted his people and roared like a lion, 'Know thyself!', briefly, he opened his turban.

'Pure Diane, my Goddess, my ears, oh my ears, they are normal again, oh, Praise be to Diane!'

The Magic Flute

'Word of the mouth' said the old man, 'chats to cheat the ears!' Midas was a clever economist, Midas was a great soldier and a successful statesman, but Midas was also a mischievous politician.

Marsyas, the Magic Flute, was one of his political dissidents. Those forlorn songs of misery were eating into his unchecked prosperity. Somebody stop Marsyas! Non of the weapons of a king, but a sacred, ruling melody from a god could kill a music genius; a folk hero and an innocent shepherd. That night Midas was drunk(!), if not, he would not say(!) anything against a god, if not, he would think(!) that the anger of a god could harm Marsyas, our hero, if not, he would not have to suffer(!) donkeys ears...

Nobody saw his men hidden behind the bushes singing the 'Donkey song!' and the barber made a real fortune from his humble 'behind the closed doors' story.

Would the strategic intelligence tricks of archaeology bless your tears Midas? I know that no physical change happened neither to your ears, nor to your mentality. It was all about the money, which was honey in a rich man's world. Who would have cared about the faith of common people?

Check-mate! Hey, mate?

End of the game. This theatre closes, but the real theatre will start...And you dear guest, you are an actor. So? Take an action, to make things better!

Umit Ozaydin
Your guide in Turkey

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