- English translation
A living man who wishes death on another living man is a lunatic who ought to be cauterized.
- Literal wording
A living one sought the death of a living one: a madman who deserves the cautery.
- Meaning and lesson
The proverb scorns anyone who sits waiting for another person to die, whether to gloat once that person is gone or to profit from what is left behind. Such a hope is branded as outright madness, deserving the harsh old remedy of burning the head, invoked here as scornful exaggeration rather than a real recommendation.
The reasoning is that no one controls how long a life lasts; that is in God's hands. The one who waits is himself alive and just as exposed to death, so building plans on another's end is both foolish and presumptuous.
- When it is used
Said as a sharp rebuke to someone plainly waiting for another person to die, out of spite or in hope of an inheritance. It reminds them that their own lifespan is just as uncertain as the life they are counting down.
Cite or copy proverb
How this record reached us: Editorially sourced.
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