Carpe diem

The maxim "Carpe diem" has currently risen to a different meaning from the original Horace's lyric poet of the Carmina.

As a matter of fact Horace's dialogue to the young Leuconoe is not an invitation to enjoy blindly the life, but is better a call to live the possible happyness that the incertainty of our life can offer to us (carpe diem: quam minimum credula postero).

In this point of view "carpe diem" accords with the right meaning contained in Saint Mathew's Gospel (Chapter 6, 25-31) with which Jesus invites us to live today without the ambush for tomorrow.

So we can say, with Novalis,  that the great latin poet  Horace,  was the real priest-poet. 

Please don't go

Please don't go away

We share the same history

Our roots are merged 

in a common mud

made of blood, of sweat, of love.

We have walked together

since that day Julius Caesar

discovered that my land and your land

were just parts of the same unity.

Please don't go:

we need each other

we need to minge together

our fantasy and your cleverness

our genius and your greatness.

Europe won't be

the same without you

Albion sons, Cox brothers:

just don't go away.

To Brexit or not to Brexit - 2

I want to spend a few words in favour of British people, whatever might be the decision on Brexit (it seems yes, since now, but you never know).
That's a decision who is up on British governement and I'll respect it, whatever it might be.
British people are good people. I know English people more than Irish and more than Scottish, even more than Welsh people. And I'm sure that English people are good people.
If some of them have thought to go out of European Union they might have good reasons.
British people are not selfish people; but they are not silly nor stupid.
May be they are simply fed up with this kind of European Union. And so am I.
Of course I would be glad if Great Britain would stay with us to fight against European burocracy in order to change EU.
I still remain a believer in European Union, I mean in the Union of all European people to be happier and whealthier together. I feel all the European people are brothers and they must increase this brotherhood creating a common market, a common governement and sharing a unique flag without renouncing to their peculiarity and their identity.
I dream of the United State of Europe with the United Kingdom, that means with English, Welsh, Scottish and irish people.
I have this dream and I'm not going to give it up.

Ars Poetica

The Ars Poetica of Horace is incredibly pungent and present even though more than 2000 years have passed since the great Latin poet wrote this work, also known as the Epistle to Piso . The work attracted the attention of Giacomo Leopardi who made i , in 1811 , a fine octave transposition in rhyme.
Here are some pearls in all faithful to the original that inspired them .
" If you want to deserve altars or temples / wait at least nine years, dear brother / before to publish your poems/and work on them as blacksmith does to make the iron shape!!! "
" Meanwhile, everyone is kindly asked to be short  / and either delight or to be useful in his rhymes! "
" But if you are in  search of  honor and praise / writing four verses, oh Piso  / show them to your  parents or to a wise and good censor ;/ keep them locked up for a long time / for if a man has once ever escaped/  he's not  coming back never indeed ! "
" We can tolerate mediocrity in anything ;/ but not in  poetry: thus in honey /  choosey mouths do not like   / a bitter almond  inside . / The best would be to write on prose / if a versifier  is just too cruel / as the football player leaves balloon and balls / and  abandon the disc who is not too strong  ! "
Let us meditate on these verses together, all of us who want to be poets !

Titus Lucretius Carus

Lucretius (Titus Lucretius Carus) was a Roman poet, presumibly born in 98 B.C., and dead at the age of 55 (but according to other sources he commeteed suicide at the age of 44).  

He's contemporary of Cicero, who was younger than him, and who had to be, after Lucretius' death, the curator of his masterpiece (for which is anyway known):  the philosophical epic De Rerum Natura (About the Nature of the Things), a comprehensive exposition of the Epicurean world-view.

Very little is known of the poet’s life,     either if he was of noble or humble origins. However, his   personality emerges vividly from his poem.

 His epic work is made of six books and shows a  complete explanation of the physical origin of the universe.

 Included in this presentation are theories of the atomic structure of matter and the emergence and evolution of life forms – ideas that would eventually form a crucial foundation and background for the development of western science.

 Besides  his scientific influence, Lucretius has been a  source of inspiration for a wide range of modern philosophers and western Writers.

The critics, unanimously, believe that Lucretius is a sort of usher in sprouding Epicurean theories in Rome.

But recently, a very fond italian classical scholar, Angelo Ruggeri,  has expressed mare than a doubt on these slavish theories.

As matter of fact it's difficult to imagine such a writer promoting in Rome a faithless, careless, nihilist (ante litteram) doctrine, like it was the Epicurianesim.

In the  opinion of Angelo Ruggeri, "the “De Rerum Naturae” of Lucretius is very important in the history of western culture also because it provides the key required  to understand  many other poets of successive eras, from Dante to Leopardi, the more Lucretian of all. I am convinced that we must not believe the appearances in interpretating  poems , because the poets often  do not report theirs own ideas, but  those of their times, relying then on the intelligence of the readers for the understanding and Dante warns many times the readers of his poem to well use their intelligence!"

 Following I present a very bright translation of Venus' Iymn from the Proem of the epic Lucretius' work. I hope the Readers of my blog may enjoy it.

Venus of Lucrezio Caro - VV 1-25

Translated by Angelo Ruggeri

Mother of Eneades,  Holy Venus , love of men and gods,

who, under the rotating  stars of the sky,

adorn the sea ploughed by ships and  make land fruitful,

through you every species of animals is conceived

and breed to smile at the light of the sun.

As soon as you come, o goddess,

winds and clouds flee  from the sky

and  the  architect earth  raises  nice flowers on your path.

The sea waves  smile at you and the sky shines with diffuse light,

and as soon as the spring bears  beautiful and serene days

 and the fruitful zephyr  blows with new force,

first the birds of the air, touched by your strength in the heart,

announce your arrival, and then the flocks  celebrate you

jumping happily in the meadows and swimming  in the fast rivers .

So, taken by your pleasure, all  follow you ,

wherever you want get them,

and then in the sea, on  the mountains, in the  rivers ,

in the houses of birds, and in the  green fields ,

putting in all the hearts the sweet love

you do that life spread joyfully.

And since you alone governs the nature of things

and without you nothing may come in the light of day

and nothing is pleasant and nice,

I wish you companion to write the verses

that I am composing about the nature of things.

... to be continued...

CARPE DIEM

The maxim "Carpe diem" has currently risen to a different meaning from the original Horace's lyric poet of the Carmina.
As matter of fact Horace's dialogue to the young Leuconoe is not an invitation to enjoy blindly the life, but is better a call to live the possible happyness that the incertainty of our life can offer to us (carpe diem: quam minimum credulo postero).
In this point of view "carpe diem" accords with the right meaning contained in Saint Mathew's Gospel (Chapter 6, 25-31) with which Jesus invites us to live today without the ambush for tomorrow.
So we can say, with Novalis that the great latin poet, Horace was the real priest-poet.