Greenland Proverbs (18)

Den, der raster, ruster.

“He who rests, rusts.”

Constant motion, work, and effort keep a person capable; standing still leads to decline.

“Old age does not lie.”

The knowledge and judgment built up over a long life can be trusted.

“The world is great indeed.”

A lifetime of travel and effort reveals just how vast and humbling the world truly is.

“Be careful never to tell what you have seen, or it will go ill with your hunting hereafter.”

Boasting about good fortune, especially in hunting, is believed to turn luck bad; discretion protects what you have gained.

“The human soul is what makes you beautiful, what makes you into a human being.”

Inner character and spirit, not outward appearance, define a person's true worth.

“Nature is great; but are not men greater?”

Human endurance and the works people build are, in their own way, as remarkable as the vastness of nature itself.

“Before it was you who needed me, now it's me who needs you.”

In hardship, dependence shifts between companions, and loyalty holds even when the roles reverse.

“My poems were based on my identity as an Inuit. I was fighting injustice and asking for respect for the basic human rights of all indigenous peoples.”

Poetry can be a direct instrument of political voice when it grows out of a fight for identity and rights.

“If you kill more than one seal to-day, you will never kill seal again hereafter.”

Taking more from the hunt than is needed invites bad luck; restraint protects future survival.

“You should not begin to eat from the wrong side.”

Proper order and custom matter even in small daily acts; doing things the right way shows respect for tradition.

“When you see a great rock in your way, take great care to drive round behind it.”

Face an obstacle with caution and go around it carefully rather than forcing your way through.

“If you eat of those berries, you will never return.”

A warning that tempting shortcuts or forbidden things can carry a cost from which there is no going back.

“Now mind you do not tell tales, for if you do as we say, then you will gain strength again.”

Discretion and obedience to good counsel are rewarded with renewed strength and fortune.

“Little bear, remember to sheathe your claws when you play with them.”

Even in play, strength must be handled with restraint so that it does not harm others.

“When you've come so far that you can't take another step, you've only done half of what you're capable of doing.”

The point of exhaustion is not the true limit of human ability; there is always more strength in reserve.

“If we are to create a strong nation, it's not by creating new buildings or new facilities. It's creating awareness of your own nation.”

A nation is built first through the people's awareness and pride in their own identity, not through infrastructure alone.

“Never give up your language. Never give up the priorities your ancestors gave you... anything that comes from outside replaces that which allowed you to survive.”

Language and inherited values are what carried a people through hardship, and losing them means losing the very means of survival.

“The atmosphere was very different. Way more optimistic and progressive.”

Reflecting on the hopeful spirit of a nation's early steps toward self-government, contrasted with later disappointment.