10 , 47 Analysis

Most charming Martialis:

These things will give you solace:

Wealth that’s unmerited

Since it’s inherited;

Land yielding fair returns,

A fire that always burns;

A lack of legal woes

Or need for formal clothes;

Peace and tranquility,

Well-honed nobility;

Good health, an earnest way

Free of naivete;

Good friends with homes to share,

A table’s hearty fare;

A night’s sobriety

Without anxiety,

A bed not too austere,

Sound sleep to still your fear

And self-awareness

Free of insecurity.

Don’t race to death’s release

But face that day with peace.



— Translated from the Latin of Martial

by A. M. Juster





(Original Latin)



VITAM quae faciunt beatiorem,

Fucundissime Martialis, haec sunt:

Res non parta labore sed relicta;

Non ingrates ager, focus perennis;

Lis numquam, toga rara, mens quieta;

Vires ingenuae, salubre corpus;

Prudens simplicitas, pares amici,

Convictus facilis, sine arte mesa;

Nox non ebria sed soluta curis,

Non tristis torus et tamen pudicus;

Somnus qui faciat breves tenebras:

Quod sis esse veils nihilque malis;

Summum nee metuas diem nec optes.

There have been no submitted criqiques, be the first to add one below.