Letter 4017: It is rightly believed that the tongue announces what lies within the heart.
Ennodius of Pavia→Decoratus, a Devoted Man|c. 506 AD|Ennodius of Pavia
friendship
From: Ennodius, deacon in Pavia
To: Decoratus
Date: ~506 AD
Context: A letter arguing that the tongue is rightly believed to be the announcer of the heart's contents — what we say reveals what we are.
Ennodius to Decoratus.
It is rightly believed that the tongue announces what lies within the heart. Speech is not merely decoration; it is revelation. The man who speaks well reveals a well-ordered mind, and the man who speaks carelessly reveals the opposite.
I say this not as a rebuke but as an encouragement. Your own words, when they come, confirm the quality of the mind that produces them. Write more often, and let the world see what I already know. Farewell.
XVII. ENNODIVS DECORATO.
Recte creditur enuntiatrix esse lingua penetralium, quae
latentis secreta animae ad lucem uocat eloquio: nesciretur
amor pectorum, nisi illum sermo proditor indicaret: iure ueterum
sapientia epistolis usa quasi clauibus repositum per eas uulgauit
affectum. tracta est in testimonium scriptionis mens testata
diligentiam: mutari caritatem non licuit, quam desiderans
pagina interueniente promisisset. huic me ego consuetudini
uel legi potius mancipaui, adserens litterarum fide quid de
magnitudine tua sensibus inoleuit. uos si mecum pari cura in
deuinctionem conuenitis, si fida interpres amicitia se aestimans
uotum uidet alterius, responsum deferens tabella significet. ego
munera salutationis inpertiens deliberationem meam non tamquam
uerborum auarus occului.
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From:Ennodius, deacon in Pavia
To:Decoratus
Date:~506 AD
Context:A letter arguing that the tongue is rightly believed to be the announcer of the heart's contents — what we say reveals what we are.
Ennodius to Decoratus.
It is rightly believed that the tongue announces what lies within the heart. Speech is not merely decoration; it is revelation. The man who speaks well reveals a well-ordered mind, and the man who speaks carelessly reveals the opposite.
I say this not as a rebuke but as an encouragement. Your own words, when they come, confirm the quality of the mind that produces them. Write more often, and let the world see what I already know. Farewell.
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.