Letter 91
Our friend Liberalis is now downcast;
for he has just heard of the fire which has wiped out the colony of Lyons.
Such a calamity might upset anyone at all, not to speak of a man who dearly
loves his country. But this incident has served to make him inquire
about the strength of his own character, which he has trained, I suppose,
just to meet situations that he thought might cause him fear. I do
not wonder, however, that he was free from apprehension touching an evil
so unexpected and practically unheard of as this, since it is without precedent.
For fire has damaged many a city, but has annihilated none. Even
when fire has been hurled against the walls by the hand of a foe, the flame
dies out in many places, and although continually renewed, rarely devours
so wholly as to leave nothing for the sword. Even an earthquake has
scarcely ever been so violent and destructive as to overthrow whole cities.
Finally, no conflagration has ever before blazed forth so savagely in any
town that nothing was left for a second. So many beautiful buildings,
any single one of which would make a single town famous, were wrecked in
one night. In time of such deep peace an event has taken place worse than
men can possibly fear even in time of war. Who can believe -----
---
b Probably Aebutius Liberalis, to whom
the treatise De Beneficiis was dedicated.
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it? When weapons are everywhere at rest and when peace prevails
throughout the world, Lyons, the pride of Gaul, is missing!
Fortune has usually allowed all men, when she has assailed them collectively,
to have a foreboding of that which they were destined to suffer.
Every great creation has had granted to it a period of reprieve before
its fall; but in this case, only a single night elapsed between the city
at its greatest and the city non-existent. In short, it takes me longer
to tell you it has perished than it took for the city to perish.
All this has affected our friend Liberalis,
bending his will, which is usually so steadfast and erect in the face of
his own trials. And not without reason has he been shaken; for it
is the unexpected that puts the heaviest load upon us. Strangeness
adds to the weight of calamities, and every mortal feels the greater pain
as a result of that which also brings surprise. Therefore, nothing
ought to be unexpected by us. Our minds should be sent forward in
advance to meet all problems, and we should consider, not what is wont
to happen, but what can happen .
For what is there in existence that Fortune, when she has so willed, does
not drag down from the very height of its prosperity? And what is
there that she does not the more violently assail the more brilliantly
it shines? What is laborious or difficult for her? She does
not always attack in one way or even with her full strength; at one time
she summons our own hands against us; at another time, content with her
own powers, she makes use of no agent in devising perils for us.
No time is exempt; in the midst of our very pleasures there spring up causes
of suffering.
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War arises in the midst of peace, and that which we depended upon for
protection is transformed into a cause of fear; friend becomes enemy, ally
becomes foeman, The summer calm is stirred into sudden storms, wilder than
the storms of winter. With no foe in sight we are victims of such
fates as foes inflict, and if other causes of disaster fail, excessive
good fortune finds them for itself. The most temperate are assailed
by illness, the strongest by wasting disease, the most innocent by chastisement,
the most secluded by the noisy mob.
Chance chooses some new weapon by which
to bring her strength to bear against us, thinking we have forgotten her.
Whatever structure has been reared by a long sequence of years, at the
cost of great toil and through the great kindness of the gods, is scattered
and dispersed by a single day. Nay, he who has said "a day" has granted
too long a postponement to swift- coming misfortune; an hour, an instant
of time, suffices for the overthrow of empires! It would be some
consolation for the feebleness of our selves and our works, if all things
should perish as slowly as they come 1nto being; but as it is, increases
are of sluggish growth, but the way to ruin is rapid. Nothing, whether
public or private, is stable; the destinies of men, no less than those
of cities, are in a whirl. Amid the greatest calm terror arises,
and though no external agencies stir up commotion, yet evils burst forth
from sources whence they were least expected. Thrones which have
stood the shock of civil and foreign wars crash to the ground though no
one sets them tottering. How few the states which have carried their
good fortune through to the end!
We should therefore reflect upon all
contingencies,
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and should fortify our minds against the evils which may possibly com.
Exile, the torture of disease, wars, shipwreck, - we must think on these.
Chance may tear you from your country or your country from you, or may
banish you to the desert; this very place, where throngs are stifling,
may become a desert. Let us place before our eyes in its entirety
the nature of man's lot, and if we would not be overwhelmed, or even dazed,
by those unwonted evils, as if they were novel, let us summon to our minds
beforehand, not as great an evil as oftentimes happens, but the very greatest
evil that possibly can happen. We must reflect upon fortune fully
and completely.
How often have cities in Asia, how often
in Achaia, been laid low by a single shock of earthquake! How many
towns in Syria, how many in Macedonia, have been swallowed up! How
often has this kind of devastation laid Cyprus in ruins! How often
has Paphos collapsed! Not infrequently are tidings brought to us of the
utter destruction of entire cities; yet how small a part of the world are
we, to whom such tidings often come!
Let us rise, therefore, to confront
the operations of Fortune, and whatever happens, let us have the assurance
that it is not so great as rumour advertises it to be. A rich city
has been laid in ashes, the jewel of the provinces, counted as one of them
and yet not included with them; rich though it was, nevertheless it was
set upon a single hill, and that
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not very large in extent. But of all those cities, of whose magnificence
and grandeur you hear today, the very traces will be blotted out by time.
Do you not see how, in Achaia, the foundations of the most famous cities
have already crumbled to nothing, so that no trace is left to show that
they ever even existed? Not only does that which bas been made with
hands totter to the ground, not only is that which has been set in place
by man's art and man's efforts overthrown by the passing days; nay, the
peaks of mountains dissolve, whole tracts have settled, and places which
once stood far from the sight of the sea are now covered by the waves.
The mighty power of fires has eaten away the hills through whose sides
they used to glow, and has levelled to the ground peaks which were once
most lofty - the sailor's solace and his beacon. The works of nature
herself are harassed; hence we ought to bear with untroubled minds the
destruction of cities. They stand but to fall! This doom awaits them,
one and all; it may be that some internal force, and blasts of violence
which are tremendous because their way is blocked, will throw off the weight
which holds then down; or that a whirlpool of raging currents, mightier
because they are hidden in the bosom of the earth, will break through that
which resists its power; or that the vehemence of flames will burst asunder
the framework of the earth's crust; or that time, from which nothing is
safe, will reduce them little by little; or that a pestilential climate
will drive their inhabitants away and the mould will corrode their deserted
walls. It would be tedious to recount all the ways by which fate
may come; but this one thing I know: all the works of mortal man have been
doomed to
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ortality, and in the midst of things which have been destined to die,
we live! Hence it is thoughts like these, and of this kind, which
I am offering as consolation to our friend Liberalis, who burns with a
love for his country that is beyond belief. Perhaps its destruction
has been brought about only that it may be raised up again to a better
destiny. Oftentimes a reverse has but made room for more prosperous fortune.
Many structures have fallen only to rise to a greater height. Timagenes,
who had a grudge against Rome and her prosperity, used to say that the
only reason he was grieved when conflagrations occurred in Rome was his
knowledge that better buildings would arise than those which had gone down
in the flames. And probably in this city of Lyons, too, all its citizens
will earnestly strive that everything shall be rebuilt better in size and
security than what they have lost. May it be built to endure and,
under happier auspices, for a longer existence! This is indeed but
the hundredth year since this colony was founded - not the limit even of
a man's lifetime. Led forth by Plancus, the natural advantages of its
site have caused it to wax strong and reach the numbers which it contains
to-day; and yet how many calamities of the greatest severity has it endured
within the space of an old man's life! Therefore let the mind be
disciplined to understand and to endure its own lot, and let it have the
knowledge that there is nothing which fortune does not dare - that she
has the same jurisdiction over empires as over emperors, the same power
over cities as over the citizens who dwell therein. We must
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not cry out at any of these calamities. Into such a world have
we entered, and under such laws do we live. If you like it, obey;
if not, depart whithersoever you wish. Cry out in anger if any unfair
measures are taken with reference to you individually; but if this inevitable
law is binding upon the highest and the lowest alike, be reconciled to
fate, by which all things are dissolved. You should not estimate our worth
by our funeral mounds or by these monuments of unequal size which line
the road; their ashes level all men! We are unequal at birth, but
are equal in death. What I
say about cities I say also about their inhabitants. Ardea was captured
as well as Rome. The great founder of human law has not made distinctions
between us on the basis of high lineage or of illustrious names, except
while we live. When, however, we come to the end which awaits mortals,
he says: "Depart, ambition! To all creatures that burden the
earth let one and the same law apply!" For enduring all things, we are
equal; no one is more frail than another, no one more certain of his own
life on the morrow. Alexander, king of Macedon, began to study geometry;
unhappy man, because he would thereby learn how puny was that earth of
which he had seized but a fraction! Unhappy man, I repeat, because he was
bound to understand that he was bearing a false title. For who can
be
"great" in that which is puny? The lessons which were being taught
him were intricate and could be learned only by assiduous application;
they were not the kind to be
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comprehended by a madman, who let his thoughts range beyond the ocean.
"Teach me something easy!" he cries; but his teacher answers: "These
things are the same for all, as hard for one as for another." Imagine that
nature is saying to us: "Those things of which you complain are the
same for all. I cannot give anything easier to any man, but whoever wishes
will make things easier for himself." In what way? By equanimity.
You must suffer pain, and thirst, and hunger, and old age too, if a longer
stay among men shall be granted you; you must be sick, and you must suffer
loss and death. Nevertheless, you should not believe those whose noisy
clamour surrounds you; none of these things is an evil none is beyond your
power to bear, or is burdensome. It is only by common opinion that
there is anything formidable in them. Your fearing death is therefore
like your fear of gossip. But what is more foolish than a man afraid
of words? Our friend Demetrius is wont to put it cleverly when
he says: "For me the talk of ignorant men is like the rumblings which
issue from the belly. For," he adds, "what difference does it make
to me whether such rumblings come from above or from below?" What madness
it is to be afraid of disrepute in the judgment of the disreputable!
Just as you have had no cause for shrinking in terror from the talk of
men, so you have no cause now to shrink from these things, which you would
never fear had not their talk forced fear upon you. Does it do any
harm to a good man to be besmirched by unjust gossip? Then let not
this sort of thing damage death, either, in our estimation; death also
is in bad odour. But no one of those who malign death has made trial
of it. {Hamlet]
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Latin / Greek Original
[1] Liberalis noster nunc tristis est nuntiato incendio quo Lugdunensis colonia exusta est; movere hic casus quemlibet posset, nedum hominem patriae suae amantissimum. Quae res effecit ut firmitatem animi sui quaerat, quam videlicet ad ea quae timeri posse putabat exercuit. Hoc vero tam inopinatum malum et paene inauditum non miror si sine metu fuit, cum esset sine exemplo; multas enim civitates incendium vexavit, nullam abstulit. Nam etiam ubi hostili manu in tecta ignis inmissus est, multis locis deficit, et quamvis subinde excitetur, raro tamen sic cuncta depascitur ut nihil ferro relinquat. Terrarum quoque vix umquam tam gravis et perniciosus fuit motus ut tota oppida everteret. Numquam denique tam infestum ulli exarsit incendium ut nihil alteri superesset incendio. [2] Tot pulcherrima opera, quae singula inlustrare urbes singulas possent, una nox stravit, et in tanta pace quantum ne bello quidem timeri potest accidit. Quis hoc credat? ubique armis quiescentibus, cum toto orbe terrarum diffusa securitas sit, Lugudunum, quod ostendebatur in Gallia, quaeritur. Omnibus fortuna quos publice adflixit quod passuri erant timere permisit; nulla res magna non aliquod habuit ruinae suae spatium: in hac una nox interfuit inter urbem maximam et nullam. Denique diutius illam tibi perisse quam perit narro.
[3] Haec omnia Liberalis nostri adfectum inclinant, adversus sua firmum et erectum. Nec sine causa concussus est: inexpectata plus adgravant; novitas adicit calamitatibus pondus, nec quisquam mortalium non magis quod etiam miratus est doluit. [4] Ideo nihil nobis inprovisum esse debet; in omnia praemittendus animus cogitandumque non quidquid solet sed quidquid potest fieri. Quid enim est quod non fortuna, cum voluit, ex florentissimo detrahat? quod non eo magis adgrediatur et quatiat quo speciosius fulget? Quid illi arduum quidve difficile est? [5] Non una via semper, ne trita quidem incurrit: modo nostras in nos manus advocat, modo suis contenta viribus invenit pericula sine auctore. Nullum tempus exceptum est: in ipsis voluptatibus causae doloris oriuntur. Bellum in media pace consurgit et auxilia securitatis in metum transeunt: ex amico <fit> inimicus, hostis ex socio. In subitas tempestates hibernisque maiores agitur aestiva tranquillitas. Sine hoste patimur hostilia, et cladis causas, si alia deficiunt, nimia sibi felicitas invenit. Invadit temperantissimos morbus, validissimos pthisis, innocentissimos poena, secretissimos tumultus; eligit aliquid novi casus per quod velut oblitis vires suas ingerat. [6] Quidquid longa series multis laboribus, multa deum indulgentia struxit, id unus dies spargit ac dissipat. Longam moram dedit malis properantibus qui diem dixit: hora momentumque temporis evertendis imperis sufficit. Esset aliquod inbecillitatis nostrae solacium rerumque nostrarum si tam tarde perirent cuncta quam fiunt: nunc incrementa lente exeunt, festinatur in damnum. [7] Nihil privatim, nihil publice stabile est; tam hominum quam urbium fata volvuntur. Inter placidissima terror existit nihilque extra tumultuantibus causis mala unde minime expectabantur erumpunt. Quae domesticis bellis steterant regna, quae externis, inpellente nullo ruunt: quota quaeque felicitatem civitas pertulit! Cogitanda ergo sunt omnia et animus adversus ea quae possunt evenire firmandus. [8] Exilia, tormenta [morbi], bella, naufragia meditare. Potest te patriae, potest patriam tibi casus eripere, potest te in solitudines abigere, potest hoc ipsum in quo turba suffocatur fieri solitudo. Tota ante oculos sortis humanae condicio ponatur, nec quantum frequenter evenit sed quantum plurimum potest evenire praesumamus animo, si nolumus opprimi nec illis inusitatis velut novis obstupefieri; in plenum cogitanda fortuna est. [9] Quotiens Asiae, quotiens Achaiae urbes uno tremore ceciderunt! Quot oppida in Syria, quot in Macedonia devorata sunt! Cypron quotiens vastavit haec clades! Quotiens in se Paphus corruit! Frequenter nobis nuntiati sunt totarum urbium interitus, et nos inter quos ista frequenter nuntiantur, quota pars omnium sumus! Consurgamus itaque adversus fortuita et quidquid inciderit sciamus non esse tam magnum quam rumore iactetur. [10] Civitas arsit opulenta ornamentumque provinciarum quibus et inserta erat et excepta, uni tamen inposita et huic non latissimo monti: omnium istarum civitatium quas nunc magnificas ac nobiles audis vestigia quoque tempus eradet. Non vides quemadmodum in Achaia clarissimarum urbium iam fundamenta consumpta sint nec quicquam extet ex quo appareat illas saltem fuisse? [11] Non tantum manu facta labuntur, nec tantum humana arte atque industria posita vertit dies: iuga montium diffluunt, totae desedere regiones, operta sunt fluctibus quae procul a conspectu maris stabant; vasta vis ignium colles per quos relucebat erosit et quondam altissimos vertices, solacia navigantium ac speculas, ad humile deduxit. Ipsius naturae opera vexantur et ideo aequo animo ferre debemus urbium excidia. [12] Casurae stant; omnis hic exitus manet, sive <ventorum> interna vis flatusque per clusa violenti pondus sub quo tenentur excusserint, sive torrentium <impetus> in abdito vastior obstantia effregerit, sive flammarum violentia conpaginem soli ruperit, sive vetustas, a qua nihil tutum est, expugnaverit minutatim, sive gravitas caeli egesserit populos et situs deserta corruperit. Enumerare omnes fatorum vias longum est. Hoc unum scio: omnia mortalium opera mortalitate damnata sunt, inter peritura vivimus.
[13] Haec ergo atque eiusmodi solacia admoveo Liberali nostro incredibili quodam patriae suae amore flagranti, quae fortasse consumpta est ut in melius excitaretur. Saepe maiori fortunae locum fecit iniuria: multa ceciderunt ut altius surgerent. Timagenes, felicitati urbis inimicus, aiebat Romae sibi incendia ob hoc unum dolori esse, quod sciret meliora surrectura quam arsissent. [14] In hac quoque urbe veri simile est certaturos omnes ut maiora celsioraque quam amisere restituant. Sint utinam diuturna et melioribus auspiciis in aevum longius condita! Nam huic coloniae ab origine sua centensimus annus est, aetas ne homini quidem extrema. A Planco deducta in hanc frequentiam loci opportunitate convaluit: quot tamen gravissimos casus intra spatium humanae <pertulit> senectutis! [15] Itaque formetur animus ad intellectum patientiamque sortis suae et sciat nihil inausum esse fortunae, adversus imperia illam idem habere iuris quod adversus imperantis, adversus urbes idem posse quod adversus homines. Nihil horum indignandum est: in eum intravimus mundum in quo his legibus vivitur. Placet: pare. Non placet: quacumque vis exi. Indignare si quid in te iniqui proprie constitutum est; sed si haec summos imosque necessitas alligat, in gratiam cum fato revertere, a quo omnia resolvuntur. [16] Non est quod nos tumulis metiaris et his monumentis quae viam disparia praetexunt: aequat omnis cinis. Inpares nascimur, pares morimur. Idem de urbibus quod de urbium incolis dico: tam Ardea capta quam Roma est. Conditor ille iuris humani non natalibus nos nec nominum claritate distinxit, nisi dum sumus: ubi vero ad finem mortalium ventum est, 'discede' inquit 'ambitio: omnium quae terram premunt siremps lex esto'. Ad omnia patienda pares sumus; nemo altero fragilior est, nemo in crastinum sui certior.
[17] Alexander Macedonum rex discere geometriam coeperat, infelix, sciturus quam pusilla terra esset, ex qua minimum occupaverat. Ita dico: 'infelix' ob hoc quod intellegere debebat falsum se gerere cognomen: quis enim esse magnus in pusillo potest? Erant illa quae tradebantur subtilia et diligenti intentione discenda, non quae perciperet vesanus homo et trans oceanum cogitationes suas mittens. 'Facilia' inquit 'me doce'. Cui praeceptor 'ista' inquit 'omnibus eadem sunt, aeque difficilia'. [18] Hoc puta rerum naturam dicere: 'ista de quibus quereris omnibus eadem sunt; nulli dare faciliora possum, sed quisquis volet sibi ipse illa reddet faciliora'. Quomodo? aequanimitate. Et doleas oportet et sitias et esurias et senescas (si tibi longior contigerit inter homines mora) et aegrotes et perdas aliquid et pereas. [19] Non est tamen quod istis qui te circumstrepunt credas: nihil horum malum est, nihil intolerabile aut durum. Ex consensu istis metus est. Sic mortem times quomodo famam: quid autem stultius homine verba metuente? Eleganter Demetrius noster solet dicere eodem loco sibi esse voces inperitorum quo ventre redditos crepitus. 'Quid enim' inquit 'mea, susum isti an deosum sonent?' [20] Quanta dementia est vereri ne infameris ab infamibus! Quemadmodum famam extimuisti sine causa, sic et illa quae numquam timeres nisi fama iussisset. Num quid detrimenti faceret vir bonus iniquis rumoribus sparsus? [21] Ne morti quidem hoc apud nos noceat: et haec malam opinionem habet. Nemo eorum qui illam accusat expertus est: interim temeritas est damnare quod nescias. At illud scis, quam multis utilis sit, quam multos liberet tormentis, egestate, querellis, supplicis, taedio. Non sumus in ullius potestate, cum mors in nostra potestate sit. Vale.