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Name: Plato Date: 428
BCE – 348 BCE Region: Athens [modern Greece] Citation: Greek Anthology 7.99 |
The Fates spun a life of tears
For Hecuba* and the wives of Troy
The minute they were born.
But in your case, Dion**,
after you had completed your accomplishments & achievements,
They dashed all of your hopes and dreams.
And now you lie revered throughout your bustling country,
O Dion, you who have burned my soul with love.
* Hecuba (Hekabe) was the Queen of Troy during the Trojan War
** This is Dion of Syracuse
δάκρυα μὲν Ἑκάβῃ τε καὶ Ἰλιάδεσσι γυναιξὶ
Μοῖραι ἐπέκλωσαν δή ποτε γεινομέναις:
σοὶ δέ, Δίων, ῥέξαντι καλῶν ἐπινίκον ἔργων
δαίμονες εὐρείας ἐλπίδας ἐξέχεαν:
κεῖσαι δ᾽ εὐρυχόρῳ ἐν πατρίδι τίμιος ἀστοῖς,
ὦ ἐμὸν ἐκμήνας θυμὸν ἔρωτι Δίων.
Lacrimas quidem Hecubaeque et Iliacis matronis
Parcae neverunt* olim modo nascentibus;
tibi autem, Dio,
postquam-confecisti pulchrorum triumphum factorum
dii amplas spes
effuderunt.
Iaces vero lata
in patria honoratus civibus,
o meus
vehementius-qui-incendisti-animum amore Dio.
*neo, -ere: to spin
Plato [428 BCE – 348 BCE, modern Greece] was an Athenian
philosopher who is considered one of the most influential minds of Greek
thought. Using his predecessor Socrates as his mouthpiece, he composed a number
of philosophical dialogues that explored various ethical, philosophical, and
moral concepts. He was the founder of the Athenian Academy, and was the mentor
of the famous philosopher Aristotle.
