- English translation
One bondwoman waiting on another? Now that is a calamity of the highest order.
- Literal wording
A slave woman serving a slave woman; he said: this is a lofty calamity.
- Meaning and lesson
The saying concerns two enslaved women who stand on the same footing until fortune lifts one of them above the other. As a result, one ends up waiting on her equal, and nothing but luck accounts for the difference in their positions.
The woman who serves is understood to take on that role out of need, not because she is of lower standing. The voice in the saying names the arrangement a great calamity, one that has befallen her.
- When it is used
Said of two people of equal standing when luck places one above the other, so that the second comes to serve or depend on the first despite their shared original position.
Cite or copy proverb
How this record reached us: Editorially sourced.
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