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Do good and throw it into the sea.

Arabic, Turkish and Greek proverb

PhilosophyProverbs

The story behind the card

The saying is shared around the eastern Mediterranean. Arabic has “Do good and throw it into the sea”; Greek says it with a rhyme, “Káne to kaló ke ríxto sto gialó”; and Turkish adds an ending: “İyilik et denize at, balık bilmezse Halik bilir”, if the fish do not know it, the Creator will. Throwing it into the sea means doing good and then letting it go, without keeping score or waiting for thanks, like handing in a lost wallet without leaving your name.

Türkçe oku
İyilik yap, denize at.
Arap, Türk ve Yunan atasözü

Söz, Doğu Akdeniz'in ortak malıdır. Araplar da “İyilik yap, denize at” der; Yunanlılar aynı sözü kafiyeli söyler: “Káne to kaló ke ríxto sto gialó.” Türkçede sözün bir devamı da vardır: “İyilik et denize at, balık bilmezse Halik bilir.” Halik, yaratan yani Allah demektir. Denize atmak ise iyiliği yapıp unutmaktır: Hesabı tutulmaz, karşılığı beklenmez. Yolda bulduğu cüzdanı adını bile vermeden sahibine ulaştıran kişi, tam da bunu yapar.

Sources and further reading

Background reading: Altruism
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