Daily Latin

The Stoics and Epicureans agree philosophy is the way.Philosophiae servias oportet, ut tibi contingat vera libertas.It is necessary that you must serve philosophy, so that you may gain true freedom.Philosophiae: to philosophyServias: may you serve, you must serveOportet: it is necessaryUt contingat: so that it may happenTibi: to youVera libertas: true freedom

Virgil prophesies Carthage’s avenger.Exoriare aliquis nostris ex ossibus ultorMay someone arise, an avenger, out of our bonesExoriare: may you ariseAliquis: someoneNostris: our (abl. pl.)Ex ossibus: from (our) bonesUltor: avenger

Ausonius shows battles won without weapons, or anything else really.Armatam vidit Venerem Lacedaemone Pallas. “Nunc certemus,” ait, “iudice vel Paride.” Cui Venus: “Armatam tu me, temeraria, temnis, quae, quo te vici tempore, nuda fui?”Minerva saw Venus armed in Sparta.“Now let us fight,” she said, “with Paris as judge, even.”To whom Venus: “reckless are you to scorn me, now I am armed, I, who at the time when I last defeated you, was naked?”Armatam: armedVidit: she sawVenerem: VenusLacedaemone: in SpartaPallas: Pallas Athene / MinervaNunc: nowCertemus: let us competeAit: she saidIudice vel Paride: even with Paris as judgeCui: to whomTe: youMe: meTemeraria: recklessTemnis: you scornQuae: who, which, that (relative pronoun)Quo … tempore: at the time whenTe vici: I defeated youNuda fui: I was naked

Statius on the power of dignity and justice.Vade, atra dature supplicia, extremique tamen secure sepulcri.Go, you who are destined to suffer dark punishments, yet without fear of your final tomb.Vade: Go!Atra: black, gloomyDature: about to give, sufferSupplicia: punishmentsExtremi sepulcri: of the final tombTamen: yet, neverthelessSecure: without fear, safely

Lucretius on how to live in the world.Quod siquis vera vitam ratione gubernet, divitiae grandes homini sunt vivere parce aequo animo; neque enim est umquam penuria parvi.That if anyone should govern their life with true reason, there are great riches to a man who may live simply with a calm mind; for indeed one lacks not, who has little.Quod: but, because, thatSiquis: if anyoneVera: trueRatione: reasonVitam: lifeGubernet: should governDivitiae grandes: great richesHomini sunt: are to a manVivere parce: to live frugally, simplyAequo animo: with a calm mindNeque enim: for indeed notEst umquam: as everPenuria: poverty, lackParvi: of little

Ovid drinks to oblivionAut nulla ebrietas, aut tanta sit, ut tibi curas eripiatEither no drunkenness, or let it be so great that it dispels your worriesAut … aut: either … orNulla: noEbrietas: drunkennessTanta: so great, muchSit: let it beUt: so thatTibi: for you Curas: cares, worriesEripiat: takes away, dispels

Martial says the rich get richer.Dantur opes nullis nunc nisi divitibus.Wealth is now given to no one but the rich.Dantur: are givenOpes: wealthNullis: to no oneNunc: nowNisi: except, unlessDivitibus: to the rich

Statius on the fatalism of epic warfare.Huc mecum ad manes.Come here, with me, to the spirits of the dead.Huc: to hereMecum: with meAd: to, towardManes: the spirits of the dead

Seneca is circumspect on success.Non est tuum, fortuna quod fecit tuum.It is not yours, what Fortune has made yours.Non est: it is notTuum: yoursFortuna: the goddess of luckQuod: whatFecit: madeTuum: yours

Aeneas makes landfall in Italy having lost his father.Hic labor extremus, longarum haec meta viarum.This, our final struggle, the last of our long wanderings.Hic: thisLabor: labour, effort, struggle, trialExtremus: last, finalLongarum: longHaec: demonstrative pronoun referring to metaMeta: goal, end pointViarum: of the roads/journeys

Martial’s irony captures the essence of wealth.Quas dederis solas semper habebis opes.The only riches you will always have, you will have given away.Quas: relative pronoun referring to opesDederis: you will have givenSolas: onlySemper: alwaysHabebis: you will haveOpes: wealth, riches

Statius is no self-help guru.Invida Fata piis et Fors ingentibus ausis rara comes.Fate spites the righteous and Fortune rarely attends to the daring.Invida: jealous, spitefulFata: fates, destiniesPiis: to the righteous, dutifulEt: andFors: FortuneIngentibus: mighty, vastAusis: daring deeds, bold venturesRara: rareComes: companion, attendant

Seneca’s secret to be content.Nisi sapienti sua non placentUnless to the wise person, his own things are not pleasingOr more idiomatically: The wise alone are content with what is theirsNisi: unlessSapienti: to the wise man/woman/personSua: his own thingsNon placent: are not pleasing

Virgil, on the sorrow lived and seen as one wanders the world.Sunt lacrimae rerum et mentem mortalia tangunt.There are tears for such things, and mortal things that touch the heart. Sunt: there areLacrimae: tearsRerum: of things, events, affairsEt: andMentem: mind, heartMortalia: mortal things, human affairs, things subject to deathTangunt: touch

Why rush fame, if the price is death? Martial is in no hurry.Si post fata venit gloria, non propero.If after the fates glory comes, I am not rushing.Si: ifPost fata: after the fates (i.e. after death)Venit: comes, arrivesGloria: gloryNon propero: I do not hurry, I am not rushing

Love is a battlefield, says Ovid.Bella mihi, video, bella parantur.Wars against me, I see, wars are being prepared.Bella: warsMihi: for me, against meVideo: I seeParantur: are being prepared

Ausonius plays on passion ungoverned. Nymphis quae Hylam merserunt furtim: Naides amore saevo et irrito: ephebus iste flos erit.To the nymphs who secretly drowned Hylas,  the Naiads’ with savage and unfulfilled love,  that young man will be a flower.Nymphis: to the nymphsQuae: whoHylam: accusative of HylasMerserunt: they drowned, plungedFurtim: secretly, stealthilyNaides: the NaiadsAmore: with loveSaevo et irrito: savage and unfulfilled (ablative)Ephebus: young man (from the Greek)Iste: thatFlos erit: will be a flower

One friend is a stage, for Seneca.Satis enim magnum alter alteri theatrum sumus.Indeed, we are a large enough stage for one another.Satis: enough, quiteEnim: for, indeedMagnum: great, large, impressive (agrees with theatrum)Alter … alteri: one … for the other (reciprocal pronouns)Theatrum: theatre (literal), stage, spectacle, audience (metaphorical)Sumus: we are

Ovid speaks of the daring love requires.Per Styga detur, Stygias transabimus undas; sunt mihi naturae iura novanda meae.If passage be granted through the Styx, we will cross over Stygian waves; the laws of my nature must be changedPer: throughStyga: Styx (accusative singular)Detur: if it be grantedStygias: Stygian (plural adjective)Undas: wavesTransabimus: we will cross overSunt mihi: I haveNaturae meae: of my natureIura: lawsNovanda: must be changed

Seneca emphasises that philosophy is to be livedZenonem Cleanthes non expressisset, si tantummodo audisset.Cleanthes would not have imitated Zeno if he had merely heard himZenonem: Zeno (accusative singular)Cleanthes: proper noun (nominative singular)Non: notExpressisset: would have imitatedSi: ifTantummodo: only, merelyAudisset: had heard