LATIN WISDOM
My interest in ancient Western wisdom is not entirely recent. Yesterday I found a book entitled "Amos, Amas, Amat and More" in my bookcase. Subtitled "How to Use Latin toYour Own Advantage and to the Astonishment of Others." Written by Eugene Erlich. My edition was published in 1987.
What amazed me was finding folded in the book eleven pages from a legal-size pad (turning brittle on the edges) on which I had copied out approximately 110 of the phrases in the book, the original Latin, the English translation and the explanation. I date this to between 20 to 30 years ago. Undoubtedly these were expressions I thought had particular aptness or wisdom.
Now, in the time of viral isolation, I went through those pages and picked out the "creme de la creme," including some I like but do not yet fully understand. I include them below the photo:
abiter bibendi - the judge of drinks [the person assigned to supervise the amount of wine drunk
at feasts and its proper watering down to customary strength]
asinus asinum fricat - the ass rubs the ass [conceited people flatter each other]
auri sacra fames - the cursed hunger for gold
castigat ridendo mores - laughter corrects behavior [the best way to change things is
to point out their absurdity and laugh at them]
deus ex machina - a god out of a machine [an unlikely providential solution to a problem
- from ancient Greek theater, especially Euripides, when impossible complexities of plot
were resolved by a god set down on stage by a mechanical crane]
Extra joke - This reminds me of the professor of Greek who brings a pair of torn pants to a tailor.
The tailor says, "Euripides?" The professor replies, "Eumenides?"
fabas indulcet fames - hunger sweetens beans
homo homini lupus - man is a wolf to man
ira furor brevis est - anger is brief madness [Horace]
mundus vult decipi - the world wants to be deceived
naturam expelles furca tamen usque recurret - you may drive out nature with a pitchfork.
but it will still return [Horace, Epistles]
nemo liber est qui corpori servit - no one is free who is a slave to his body [Seneca]
obsta principiis - resist the beginnings [be watchful for the early encroachments on rights or virtues]
parturient montes, nascetur ridiculus mus - mountains labor and a ridiculous mouse is born
[Horace, Ars Poetica]
probitas laudatur et alget - virtue is praised and left to freeze
qui docet discit - he who teaches, learns
qui scribit bis legit - he who writes reads twice
quis custodiet ipsot custodes - who will guard the guards?
raram facit misturam cum sapienta forma - beauty and wisdom are rarely found together
[Petronius, Satyricon]
timeo hominem unius libri - I fear the man of one book [Aquinas]
unus vir nullus vir - one man is no man
verbum sat sapienti - a word is enough for a wise man
veritas simple oratio est - the language of truth is simple
virtutis fortuna comes - good luck is the companion of courage
vitam regit fortuna non sapienta - chance, not wisdom, governs life
The lesson: It's never too late to enjoy Latin
END
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