M/M: I Miss You, Buddy: Ausonius to Paulinus 1.16-19

Name:  Ausonius Date:  310 – 395 CE Region:  Aquitania, Gaul [modern France] Citation:  Letter 27.34 – 37

In this letter to Paulinus, Ausonius complains about his absence by comparing their relationship to other great relationships of mythology.

 

Faithless one! You’d really break up Pirithous and Theseus,

Separate Euryalus from his Nisus?

You’d convince Pylades to abandon Orestes,

And keep the Sicilian Damon from offering himself as a hostage

So Pythias can escape?

Impie, Pirithoo disiungere Thesea posses,

Euryalumque suo socium secernere Niso!

Te suadente fugam, Pylades liquisset Orestem,

Nec custodisset Siculus vadimonia Damon!

Ausonius [Decimus Magnus Ausonius; 310 – 395 CE, modern France] was a Roman poet from Aquitania, Gaul who lived during the 4th century CE. He is best known for his epic poem Mosella, which describes the Moselle River, and his Epistles, a series of literary poems between himself and the Christian poet Paulinus. 

Blessed Are those in love! Bion fr. 8

 

Name: Bion Date:  c. 2nd – 1st century BCE Region: Smyrna [modern Turkey] Citation:  Fragment 8

Blessed are those who are in love,

Especially when it is reciprocated!

Theseus was happy with Pirithous by his side,

Even when he descended into the inescapable halls of Hades.

Orestes was blessed even in the harsh land of his enemies

As long as Pylades was traveling by his side.

Achilles was blessed for as long as his companion Patroclus lived;

And once he died, Achilles returned to his blessed state,

For he used his death to avenge his lover’s.

 

Ὄλβιοι οἱ φιλέοντες, ἐπὴν ἴσον ἀντεράωνται. ὄλβιος ἦν Θησεὺς τῶ Πειριθόω παρεόντος, εἰ καὶ ἀμειλίκτοιο κατήλυθεν εἰς Ἀΐδαο. ὄλβιος ἦν χαλεποῖσιν ἐν Ἀξείνοισιν Ὀρέστας, ὥνεκά οἱ ξυνὰς Πυλάδας ᾄρητο κελεύθως. ἦν μάκαρ Αἰακίδας ἑτάρω ζώοντος Ἀχιλλεύς: ὄλβιος ἦν θνᾴσκων, ὅτι οἱ μόρον αἰνὸν ἄμυνεν.

Beati sunt qui amant, quum pariter redamantur.  Beatus erat Theseus, quum Pirithous adesset, etsi descendit in implacabilis Plutonis domum. Beatus erat inter asperos barbaros Orestes, quoties cum eo communia Pylades susceperat itinerat. Erat felix Aeacides socio vivente Achilles beatus erat moriens, quod ei mortem infelicem ulciscebatur. Translated into Latin by  Franz Siegfried Lehrs

Bion of Smyrna [c. 2nd to 1st century BCE; modern Turkey] was a Greek poet from Smyrna [modern Turkey]. Little is known about his life, and only fragments remain of his poetry, but he was considered to be one of the best and most influential bucolic poets of ancient Greek and Roman literature.

Love Can Not Save You From Death: Horace, Carm 4.7

Name:  Horace Date:  65 – 8 BCE Region: Venosa / Rome [modern Italy] Citation:  Songs 4.7

In this poem, Horace uses two examples from mythology (Diana's asexual love for Hippolytus and Theseus' love for Pirithous) to convince the addressee, Torquatus, to contemplate his own mortality.

The snow has melted, the grass has returned to the fields

And leaves have returned to the trees

The earth has changed seasons again

And the ebbing rivers are bubbling along the riverbanks.

One of the Graces dares to lead the dance naked

And her twin sisters and fellow nymphs join her.

Stop hoping for never-ending things;

The [changing] year and the hour that snatches away each life-giving day shows you otherwise.

The cold softens the west-wind,

The summer wears down the spring,

Which in turn will soon pass away.

Bountiful autumn scatters its fruits

 And then sterile winter comes back.

The swift [cycles of the] moons restore each season’s damage:

 Yet when we drop down [to death]

To where father Aeneas dwells,

Where wealthy Tullus* and Ancus* dwell,

We are only dust and shadow.

Who knows whether the immortal gods will add a tomorrow

To the end of today?

Every hour that you spend with a cheerful outlook

Will not fall into the greedy hands of your heirs.

Torquatus, at some point you will die, and

Minos will make a glorious judgment about your soul**

Your lineage will not save you.

Your eloquence will not save you.

Your character will not save you.

Diana could not save the chaste Hippolytus

From the Underworld,

Nor could Theseus break free Pirithous from

His Stygian chains.

*Tullus Hostilius and Ancus Marcius were legendary kings of early Rome

** According to Greco-Roman mythology, Minos judges the souls of the dead.

 Diffugere nives, redeunt iam gramina campis

     arboribusque comae;

mutat terra vices et decrescentia ripas

     flumina praetereunt;

Gratia cum Nymphis geminisque sororibus audet               5

     ducere nuda choros.

Inmortalia ne speres, monet annus et almum

     quae rapit hora diem.

Frigora mitescunt Zephyris, ver proterit aestas,

     interitura simul               10

pomifer autumnus fruges effuderit, et mox

     bruma recurrit iners.

Damna tamen celeres reparant caelestia lunae:

     nos ubi decidimus

quo pater Aeneas, quo dives Tullus et Ancus,               15

     pulvis et umbra sumus.

Quis scit an adiciant hodiernae crastina summae

     tempora di superi?

Cuncta manus avidas fugient heredis, amico

     quae dederis animo.               20

Cum semel occideris et de te splendida Minos

     fecerit arbitria,

non, Torquate, genus, non te facundia, non te

     restituet pietas;

infernis neque enim tenebris Diana pudicum               25

     liberat Hippolytum,

nec Lethaea valet Theseus abrumpere caro

     vincula Pirithoo.

 

  

Horace [Quintus Horatius Flaccus; 65 – 8 BCE, modern Italy] is known for his famous line, “Carpe Diem.” He was an Italian-born poet who lived during the rise and reign of Rome’s first emperor, Augustus. Although his life began with civil unrest and uncertainty (his father was enslaved and later freed during the civil wars of the 1st century BCE), Horace became friends with the influential entrepreneur Maecenas and earned the position in Augustus’ literary circle.  His poetry provides valuable insight into social changes that occurred during the transition from republic to empire. 

M/M: Love in these Trying Times, Ovid, Tristia I.ix.23-36

Caesar doesn’t mind a person staying true to their friend in troubled times, even if you’re a friend to his enemy. He won’t even get mad—his self-control is beyond compare—at someone in trying times who loves whatever it is he loved before.

Thoas himself is said to have approved of Pylades after he heard the story of Orestes’ companion.

From Hector’s mouth came praises of the loyalty of Patroclus for his great Achilles.  

When “pious” Theseus went with his friend Pirithous to the Underworld, they say that the god of the Tartarus himself grieved for him.

One can believe that when the tale of Nisus’ & Euryalus’ faith were told to you, Turnus, your cheeks were wet with tears.

 
There is piety among the wretched, and it is valued even among the enemy.

But oh my, how few men are moved by my words!

sed tamen in duris remanentem rebus amicum

     quamlibet inviso Caesar in hoste probat,

nec solet irasci—neque enim moderatior alter—

     cum quis in adversis, siquid amavit, amat.

de comite Argolici postquam cognovit Orestae,

     narratur Pyladen ipse probasse Thoas.

quae fuit Actoridae cum magno semper Achille,

     laudari solita est Hectoris ore fides.

quod pius ad Manes Theseus comes iret amico,

     Tartareum dicunt indoluisse deum.

Euryali Nisique fide tibi, Turne, relata

     credibile est lacrimis inmaduisse genas.

est etiam in miseris pietas, et in hoste probatur.

     ei mihi, quam paucos haec mea dicta movent! 

--Ovid, Tristia I.ix.23-36

 Ovid was one of the most famous love poets of Rome’s Golden Age. His most famous work, the Metamorphoses, provides a history of the world through a series of interwoven myths. Most of his poetry is erotic in nature; for this reason, he fell into trouble during the conservative social reforms under the reign of the emperor Augustus. In 8 CE he was banished to Bithynia, where he spent the remainder of his life pining for his native homeland.

When I Find Myself In Times of Trouble... Ovid, Trist.1.5.17-34

 

Name:     Ovid Date:       43 BCE – 17 CE Region:   Sulmo [modern Italy] Citation: Sorrows 1.5.17-34

In this poem, the exiled poet Ovid writes about the importance of true friendship and loyalty.

 

If my ship were sailing on a friendly wind,

Perhaps I could forget your loyalty.

For Pirithous would not have felt Theseus’ friendship

If he hadn’t gone on a quest to the Underworld.

If not for wretched Orestes’ madness,

Pylades would not be seen as a paragon of love.

If Euryalus had not fallen in battle against the Rutulians, Nisus would have no glory.

Just like gold bubbles up from the smelter’s furnace,

Faith also must endure a tribulation.

Whenever Fortune smiles down upon us serenely

She blesses us with uninterrupted prosperity,

But as soon as she grows angry,

Our good times flee,

Instead of the tons of friends we once had,

We can scarcely find one.

And although I used to ponder examples of this trope,

Now this evil has befallen me, too.

Of all my “friends,” y’all are the two or three friends I have left.

The rest belong to Fortune’s clique, not mine.

  

Si tamen haec navis vento ferretur amico,

ignoraretur forsitan ista fides.

Thesea Pirithous non tam sensisset amicum,

si non infernas vivus adisset aquas.

Ut foret exemplum veri Phoceus amoris,

fecerunt Furiae, tristis Oresta, tuae.

Si non Euryalus Rutulos cecidisset in hostes,

Hyrtacidae Nisi gloria nulla foret.

Scilicet ut flavum spectatur in ignibus aurum,

tempore sic duro est inspicienda fides.

Dum iuvat et vultu ridet Fortuna sereno,

indelibatas cuncta sequuntur opes:

at simul intonuit, fugiunt, nec noscitur ulli,

agminibus comitum qui modo cinctus erat.

Atque haec, exemplis quondam collecta priorum,

nunc mihi sunt propriis cognita vera malis.

Vix duo tresve mihi de tot superestis amici:

cetera Fortunae, non mea turba fuit.

Ovid [Publius Ovidius Naso; 43 BCE – 17 CE, modern Italy] was one of the most famous love poets of Rome’s Golden Age. His most famous work, the Metamorphoses, provides a history of the world through a series of interwoven myths. Most of his poetry is erotic in nature; for this reason, he fell into trouble during the conservative social reforms under the reign of the emperor Augustus. In 8 CE he was banished to Bithynia [modern Turkey], where he spent the remainder of his life pining for his native homeland.

I Get By With a Little Help From My Friends: Ovid, Ex Ponto II.iii.41-49

 

Name:   Ovid Date:     43 BCE – 17 CE Region:    Sulmo [modern Italy] Citation: Letters from Pontus 2.3.41 – 48

Ovid wrote this poem while in exile, the lowest point of his life. In this passage, he reaches out to his friend Maximus for help while comparing their relationship with famous examples from mythology: 

 

Consider how Achilles honored his friend Patroclus when he died, 

And remember that this life of mine is a living death!

Theseus accompanied Pirithous to the Underworld;

How far off is my death from the Stygian waves?

Pylades supported Orestes through his mental crisis;

My troubles have given me no less a crisis.

Maximus, accept the same praise that these heroes received,

And keep doing what you are doing,

Helping me however you can while my life is in ruins.

Cerne quid Aeacides post mortem praestet amico:

instar et hanc vitam mortis habere puta.

Pirithoum Theseus Stygias comitavit ad undas:

a Stygia quantum mors mea distat aqua?

Adfuit insano iuvenis Phoceus Orestae: 

et mea non minimum culpa furoris habet.

Tu quoque magnorum laudes admitte virorum,

ut facis, et lapso quam potes adfer opem.

Ovid [Publius Ovidius Naso; 43 BCE – 17 CE, modern Italy] was one of the most famous love poets of Rome’s Golden Age. His most famous work, the Metamorphoses, provides a history of the world through a series of interwoven myths. Most of his poetry is erotic in nature; for this reason, he fell into trouble during the conservative social reforms under the reign of the emperor Augustus. In 8 CE he was banished to Bithynia [modern Turkey], where he spent the remainder of his life pining for his native homeland.

M/M: A List of "Really Good Friends": Hyginus, Fab. 257

 

Name: Hyginus   Date:  64 BCE – 17 CE Region:  Hispania [modern Spain] / Alexandria [modern Egypt]; Rome [modern Italy] Citation:  Fables 257

People who were “really good friends”:

·            Strophius’ son Pylades was “really good friends” with Agamemnon’s son Orestes

·            Ixion’s son Pirithous was “really good friends” with Theseus

·            Peleus’ son Achilles was “really good friends” with Menoetes’ son Patroclus

·            Tydeus’ son Diomedes was “really good friends” with Capaneus’ son Sthenelus

·            Aeacus’ son Peleus was “really good friends” with Amyntor’s son Phoenix

·            Jupiter’s son Hercules was “really good friends” with Poeas’ son Philoctetes

·            Harmodius and Aristogiton [loved each other] like brothers

·            In Sicily, there was a very cruel tyrant named Dionysius. Moeros [1] wanted to kill him because he was torturing and killing his own citizens. Guards caught Moeros in the act and brought him to the king. When he was interrogated, he confessed his plot. Naturally, the king ordered him to die by crucifixion. Moerus asked for a three day extension so that he could arrange his sister’s wedding. He offered the tyrant his friend and companion Selinuntius, who would serve as collateral for his pledge to return on the third day.  The king granted his request, and told Selinuntius that he would die instead if Moerus didn’t return on the proper day. Then he let Moerus go.

Once he arranged his sister’s affairs, Moerus started his journey back, but a sudden rainstorm occurred and flooded the river so much that he could neither ford nor swim across it. Moerus sat upon the river bank and began to weep, saddened that his friend would have to die for him.

Therefore when the tyrant ordered the crucifixion of Selinuntius on noon of the third day, Selinuntius responded that the day was not yet over.

In the middle of the afternoon, the king ordered Selinuntius’ execution. No sooner had he been led to the cross when Moerus, having crossed the river, ran up to the executioner and shouted as he neared, “Hold up! I’m here—release my friend!”

Once this was done, this news was relayed back to the king. The king ordered both men to be brought before him and told them that since they had proven their friendship to each other, he would spare Moerus’ life.

Also, Nisus was “really good friends” with Euryalus, and died for him.

 

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[1] This is the story of Damon and Pythias.

A List of “Really Good Friends” from Mythology

Qui inter se amicitia iunctissimi fuerunt:

·         Pylades Strophii filius cum Oreste Agamemnonis filio.

·         Pirithous Ixionis filius cum Theseo Aegei filio.

·         Achilles Pelei filius cum Patroclo Menoetii filio.

·         Diomedes Tydei filius cum Sthenelo Capanei filio.

·         Peleus Aeaci filius cum Phoenice Amyntoris filio.

·         Hercules Jovis filius cum Philocteta Poeantis filio

·         Harmodius et Aristogiton [more fraterno]

·         In Sicilia [Dionysius] tyrannus crudelissimus cum esset suosque cives cruciatibus interficeret, Moeros tyrannum voluit interficere. Quem satellites cum deprehendissent armatum, ad regem perduxerunt. Qui interrogatus respondit se regem voluisse interficere. Quem rex iussit cruci figi, a quo Moerus petit tridui commeatum ut sororem suam nuptui collocaret et daret tyranno Selinuntium amicum suum et sodalem qui sponderet eum tertio die venturum. Cui rex indulsit commeatum ad sororem collocandam, dicitque rex Selinuntio, ut nisi ad diem Moerus veniret eum eandem poenam passurum, et dimittit Moerum. Qui collocata sorore cum reverteretur, repente tempestate et pluvia orta flumen ita increvit ut nec transiri nec transnatari posset. Ad cuius ripam Moerus consedit et flere coepit ne amicus pro se periret. 

[Tyrannus] autem Selinuntium cruci figi cum iuberet ideo, quod horae sex tertii iam diei essent ne veniret Moerus, cui Selinuntius respondit diem adhuc non praeteriisse. cumque iam et horae novem essent, rex iubet duci Selinuntium in crucem. Qui cum duceretur vix tandem Moerus liberato flumine consequitur carnificem exclamatque a longe, “Sustine, carnifex! Adsum, quem spopondit!” Quod factum regi nuntiatur. Quos rex ad se iussit perduci vitamque Moero concessit, rogavitque eos ut se in amicitiam reciperent [2]

·         Nisus cum Euryalo suo pro quo et mortuus est.

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[2]The story of Harmodius and Aristogeiton follows this story.

Hyginus [Caius Julius Hyginus; 64 BCE – 17 CE, modern Spain or Egypt] was one of Augustus’ freedmen and a famous mythographer. He was originally from Hispania [modern Spain].  Some think that he was actually from Alexandria [modern Egypt], and brought to Rome as a boy by Caesar after the fall of Alexandria. He studied under the Greek scholar Cornelius Alexander, then followed in his footsteps. He was in charge of the Palatine library, and despite this, still had the time to teach many people. He was very close friends with the poet Ovid and Clodius Licinius, the former consul and historian who, after Hyginus fell into poverty, supported him financially for as long as he lived.