Solon's Advice and the Maxims of Chilon and Cleobulus — Ausonius, The Play of the Seven Sages, lines 80–155, Latin & English

ut in orbe tereti nominum sertum inderet,¹

so that he might place a wreath of names in a smooth circle,

ne primus esset, ne vel imus quispiam.

lest anyone should be first, or even last.

eorum e medio prodeo gyro Solon,

From the middle of their circle, I, Solon, step forward,

ut, quod dixisse Croeso regi existimor,

so that what I am thought to have said to King Croesus,

id omnis hominum secta sibi dictum putet.

every school of men may consider as said to themselves.

Graece coactum est ὅρα τέλος μακροῦ βίου,

In Greek it is compressed into “hora telos makrou biou”,

quod longius fit, si Latine dixeris:

which becomes longer if you say it in Latin:

spectare vitae iubeo cunctos terminum.

”I bid all to look upon the end of life.”

proinde miseros aut beatos dicere

Therefore, avoid calling people wretched or happy,

evita, quod sunt semper ancipiti in statu.

because they are always in a precarious state.

id adeo sic est. si queam, paucis loquar.

This is indeed so. If I can, I shall speak in a few words.

Rex an tyrannus Lydiae, Croesus, fuit

Croesus, king or tyrant of Lydia, was

his in beatis, dives insanum in modum,

among these happy ones, wealthy to an insane degree,

lateribus aureis templa qui divis dabat,

who used to give temples to the gods with golden bricks;

is me evocavit. venio dicto oboediens,

he summoned me. I come obedient to his word,

meliore ut uti rege possint Lydii.

so that the Lydians might enjoy a better king.

rogat, beatum prodam, si quem noverim.

He asks me to declare a happy man, if I know any.

Tellena dico civem non ignobilem:

I name Tellus, a citizen not ignoble:

pro patria pugnans iste vitam obiecerat.

he had offered his life fighting for his country.

despexit, alium quaerit, inveni Aglaum:

He looked down on him, and seeks another; I found Aglaus:

100

fines agelli proprii is numquam excesserat.

he had never exceeded the boundaries of his own little field.

at ille ridens: “Quo dein me ponis loco,

But he, laughing, said: “In what place then do you put me,

beatus orbe toto qui solus vocor?”

who alone am called happy in the whole world?”

Spectandum dico terminum vitae prius:

I say that the end of life must be looked upon first:

tum iudicandum, si manet felicitas.

then it must be judged if happiness remains.

105

dictum moleste Croesus accepit: ego

Croesus received this saying with annoyance; I

relinquo regem, bellum ille in Persas parat,

leave the king; he prepares war against the Persians,

profectus, victus, vinctus, regi deditus,

marched out, was conquered, bound, and delivered to the king.

stat ille, captans funeris iam instar sui,

He stands, already catching the likeness of his own funeral,

qua flamma totum se per ambitum dabat

where the flame was spreading itself through the whole circumference,

110

volvens in altum tumidos aestu globos.

rolling high thick clouds of smoke with the heat.

ac paene sero Croesus ingenti sono,

And almost too late, Croesus, with a huge sound,

O vere vates, inquit, O Solon, Solon

said, “O truly a prophet,” he says, “O Solon, Solon!”

clamore magno ter Solonem nuncupat.

With a great shout, he calls upon Solon three times.

qua voce Cyrus motus, extingui iubet

Moved by this voice, Cyrus orders to extinguish

115

gyrum per omnem et destrui ardentem pyram:

the fire through the whole circle and to destroy the burning pyre;

et commodum profusus imber nubibus

and opportunely a heavy rain poured from the clouds

repressit ignem. Croesus ad regem illico

and repressed the fire. Croesus is immediately led to the king

per militarem ducitur lectam manum:

by a chosen military hand:

interrogatur, quem Solonem diceret

he is questioned, what Solon he was speaking of,

120

et quam ciendi causam haberet nominis?

and what reason he had for calling upon his name.

seriem per omnem cuncta regi edisserit.

He explains everything to the king in full detail.

miseratur ille vimque fortunae videns

He pities him, and seeing the power of fortune,

laudat Solonem: Croesum inde in amicis habet

praises Solon: from then on he has Croesus among his friends,

vinctumque pedicis aureis secum iubet,

and orders him, though bound with golden fetters,

125

reliquum quod esset vitae, totum degere.

to spend with him all that remained of his life.

ego duorum regum testimonio

I, by the testimony of two kings,

laudatus et probatus ambobus fui.

was praised and approved by both.

quodque uni dictum est, quisque sibi dictum putet.

And what was said to one, let everyone think said to himself.

Ego iam peregi, qua de causa huc prodii.

I have now finished the purpose for which I came out here.

130

venit ecce Chilon. vos valete et plaudite.

Behold, Chilon comes. Farewell, and applaud.

LUMBI sedendo,² oculi spectando dolent,

My loins hurt from sitting, my eyes from watching,

manendo Solonem, quoad ad se se recipiat.1

while waiting for Solon to withdraw.

hui, quam pauca, di, locuntur Attici!

Ah, how few words, by the gods, the Athenians speak!

unam trecentis versibus sententiam

He has finally finished one maxim in three hundred verses

135

tandem peregit meque respectans abit.

and goes away, looking back at me.

Spartanus ego sum Chilon, qui nunc prodeo.

I am Spartan Chilon, who now comes forward.

brevitate nota, qua Lacones utimur,

With the well-known brevity that we Laconians use,

commendo nostrum γνῶθι σεαυτόν, nosce te,

I commend our “gnothi seauton”, “know thyself”,

quod in columna iam tenetur Delphica.

which is already kept on the Delphic column.

140

labor molestus iste fructi est optimi,³

That troublesome labor is of the best fruit,

quid ferre possis, quidve non, dinoscere;

to discern what you can bear and what you cannot;

noctu diuque, quae geras, quae gesseris,

night and day, to examine what you are doing and what you have done,

ad usque puncti tenuis instar quaerere.2

even to the likeness of a minute point.

officia cuncta, pudor, honor, constantia

All duties, modesty, honor, constancy

145

in hoc, et ulla spreta nobis gloria.

are in this, and all glory is despised by us.

Dixi: valete memores, plausum non moror.

I have spoken: farewell, keeping this in mind; I do not wait for applause.

CLEOBULUS ego sum, parvae civis insulae,

I am Cleobulus, a citizen of a small island,

magnae sed auctor, qua cluo, sententiae:

but author of a great maxim, for which I am famous:

ἄριστον μέτρον quem dixisse existimant.

whom they think to have said “ariston metron”.

150

interpretare tu, qui orchestrae proximus

Translate, you who sit closest to the orchestra

gradibus propinquis in quatuordecim sedes:

in the fourteen seats on the near steps:

ἄριστον μέτρον an sit optimus modus,

whether “ariston metron” is the best measure,

dic! adnuisti? gratiam habeo, persequar

speak! Did you nod? I thank you. I shall proceed

per ordinem, iam dixit ex isto loco

in order; already from that place of yours

155

Afer poeta vester ut ne quid nimis,⁴ 1

your African poet said, “nothing in excess.”

Syntax notes4 items

80inderet
It forms a noun clause introduced by ut with the imperfect subjunctive, dependent on suasit (advised) in line 78, representing the advice given by the Delphic god to arrange the names in a circle.
131sedendo
An ablative of the gerund representing cause ("from sitting"). The parallel spectando likewise indicates the cause of pain in the eyes from watching.
140fructi est optimi
fructi is an archaic genitive of the fourth-declension noun fructus. Together with est, it forms a genitive of quality, meaning "is of the most excellent fruit (yield)."
155ut ne quid nimis
The adverbial ut ("as") introduces the famous quote ne quid nimis (nothing in excess) from Terence's comedy Andria, with an ellipsis of a verb of speaking like dixerit.

Translated by Gemini 3.5 Flash (published 2026-05-22) · Revision history (1, latest 2026-09-22)

2026-09-22 AI review — source 1

urn:cts:latinLit:stoa0045.stoa018.humanitext-lat2:80-155