Category: 04 Liber IV

Nemo gloriari nisi suo debet

Nemo gloriari nisi suo debet. <...> Lauda in illo quod nec eripi potest nec dari, quod proprium hominis est. Quaeris quid sit? Animus et ratio in animo perfecta.

Niekas neturi didžiuotis tuo, kas jam nepriklauso. <...> Girk tai, ko negalima nei atimti, nei duoti, kas yra jo paties. Tu paklausi: kas tai? Siela ir joje tobulas protas.

No man ought to glory except in that which is his own. <...> Praise the quality in him which cannot be given or snatched away, that which is the peculiar property of the man. Do you ask what this is? It is soul, and reason brought to perfection in the soul.

Habeat vires magnas, moderatas tamen

“Quid ergo? Non aliquando et insurget?” Quidni? Sed salva dignitate morum, quam violenta ista et nimia vis exuit. Habeat vires magnas, moderatas tamen; perennis sit unda, non torrens.

“Kaip? Ar jai niekados nedera pakelti balso?” Kodėl gi ne? Tačiau reikia išsaugoti savigarbą, kurią išguja tas stiprus ir per didelis polinkis kalbėti. Tegu kalba turi daug jėgos, bet toji jėga privalo būti pažabota. Tegu ši kalba liejasi nesibaigiančia srove, bet ne griaudžiančiu kriokliu.

“What then?” you say; “should not philosophy sometimes take a loftier tone?” Of course she should; but dignity of character should be preserved, and this is stripped away by such violent and excessive force. Let philosophy possess great forces, but kept well under control; let her stream flow unceasingly, but never become a torrent.

Supervacua fuerant facta sint necessaria

Voluptatibus itaque se mergunt quibus in consuetudinem adductis carere non possunt, et ob hoc miserrimi sunt, quod eo pervenerunt ut illis quae supervacua fuerant facta sint necessaria. Serviunt itaque voluptatibus, non fruuntur, et mala sua, quod malorum ultimum est, et amant; tunc autem est consummata infelicitas, ubi turpia non solum delectant sed etiam placent, et desinit esse remedio locus ubi quae fuerant vitia mores sunt.

Todėl daugelis ir skęsta malonumuose, be kurių negali apsieiti, nes prie jų įprato. Tokie yra patys nelaimingiausi, nes nuėjo taip toli, kad tai, kas jiems kadaise buvo nereikalinga, dabar pasidarė būtinybė. Taigi jie ne naudojasi malonumais, bet jiems vergauja ir žavisi savo ydomis. O tai jau yra didžiausia blogybė. Nelaimės bedugnę pasiekia tas, kuriam šlykštynės ne tik malonios, bet ir patinka. Nėra vaistų tam, kurio nusižengimai virto įpročiais.

It is for this reason that men sink themselves in pleasures, and they cannot do without them when once they have become accustomed to them, and for this reason they are most wretched, because they have reached such a pass that what was once superfluous to them has become indispensable. And so they are the slaves of their pleasures instead of enjoying them; they even love their own ills,—and that is the worst ill of all! Then it is that the height of unhappiness is reached, when men are not only attracted, but even pleased, by shameful things, and when there is no longer any room for a cure, now that those things which once were vices have become habits.

Philosophia bonum consilium est

Philosophia bonum consilium est: consilium nemo clare dat.

Filosofija yra geras patarimas, o patarimo niekas neduoda pakeltu tonu.

Philosophy is good advice; and no one can give advice at the top of his lungs.

Sine missione nascimur

Sine missione nascimur.

Jeigu jau gimėme, nebus mūsų pasigailėta.

There is no discharge for us from the moment we are born.

Nec infantes pueros nec mente lapsos timere mortem

Nec infantes pueros nec mente lapsos timere mortem et esse turpissimum si eam securitatem nobis ratio non praestat ad quam stultitia perducit.

Kūdikiai, vaikai ir pamišėliai nebijo mirties, ir didžiausia gėda, kai protas neduoda tokios ramybės, kokią duoda kvailumas.

Infants, and boys, and those who have gone mad, have no fear of death, and it is most shameful if reason cannot afford us that peace of mind to which they have been brought by their folly.

Aequo animo debet rediturus exire

Quod si tanta cupiditas te longioris aevi tenet? cogita nihil eorum quae ab oculis abeunt et in rerum naturam, ex qua prodierunt ac mox processura sunt, reconduntur consumi: desinunt ista, non pereunt, et mors, quam pertimescimus ac recusamus, intermittit vitam, non eripit; veniet iterum qui nos in lucem reponat dies, quem multi recusarent nisi oblitos reduceret. <...> Aequo animo debet rediturus exire.

Jei tu didžiai trokšti ilgesnio gyvenimo, manyk, kad niekas iš to, kas dingsta iš akių, nežūva, bet slapta grįžta į prieglobstį gamtos, iš kurios kilo ir iš kurios greitai vėl išeis. Viskas baigiasi, bet nežūva. Mirtis, kurios labiausiai bijome ir vengiame, nutraukia gyvybę, bet jos neatima. Vėl ateis diena, kuri mus sugrąžins į saulės šviesą. Daugelis jos nenorėtų, jei nebūtų užmiršę savo ankstesniojo buvimo. <...> Ramia širdimi turi išeiti tas, kuris grįš.

And yet, if you are possessed by so great a craving for a longer life, reflect that none of the objects which vanish from our gaze and are re-absorbed into the world of things, from which they have come forth and are soon to come forth again, is annihilated; they merely end their course and do not perish. And death, which we fear and shrink from, merely interrupts life, but does not steal it away; the time will return when we shall be restored to the light of day; and many men would object to this, were they not brought back in forgetfulness of the past. <...> Since you are destined to return, you ought to depart with a tranquil mind.

Res est inquieta felicitas

Res est inquieta felicitas; ipsa se exagitat. Movet cerebrum non uno genere: alios in aliud irritat, hos in impotentiam, illos in luxuriam; hos inflat, illos mollit et totos resolvit.

Sėkmė — netikras dalykas: ji save gainioja iš vietos į vietą įvairiai veikdama žmonių protus. Vienus ji varo į valdžią, kitus — į prabangą. Pirmuosius padaro pasipūtėlius, antruosius — ištižėlius, tačiau visus vienodai pražudo.

Prosperity is a turbulent thing; it torments itself. It stirs the brain in more ways than one, goading men on to various aims,—some to power, and others to high living. Some it puffs up; others it slackens and wholly enervates.

Qui amat non utique amicus est

Qui amicus est amat; qui amat non utique amicus est; itaque amicitia semper prodest, amor aliquando etiam nocet.

Draugas visada myli, bet tas, kas myli, nebūtinai yra draugas. Draugystė visada duoda naudos, o meilė kartais net kenkia.

A friend loves you, of course; but one who loves you is not in every case your friend. Friendship, accordingly, is always helpful, but love sometimes even does harm.