Met. 15.745Hic tamen accessit dēlūbrīs advena nostrīs:
Caesar in urbe suā deus est;Yet he came to our shrines as a stranger: Caesar is a god in his own city; Met. 15.746quem Mārte togāque
praecipuum nōn bella magis fīnīta triumphīs
rēsque domī gestae properātaque glōria rērum
in sīdus vertere novum stellamque comantem,
750quam sua prōgeniēs;him, outstanding in war and in the toga, it was not so much the wars ended in triumphs, his achievements at home, and the swiftly won glory of his deeds that turned into a new star and a comet, as his own offspring; Met. 15.750neque enim dē Caesaris āctīs
ūllum maius opus, quam quod pater exstitit huius:
scīlicet aequoreōs plūs est domuisse Britannōs
perque papȳriferī septemflua flūmina Nīlī
victrīcēs ēgisse ratēs Numidāsque rebellēs
755Cīnyphiumque Iubam Mithridātēīsque tumentem
nōminibus Pontum populō adiēcisse Quirīnī
et multōs meruisse, aliquōs ēgisse triumphōs,
quam tantum genuisse virum?for of all Caesar's deeds there is no greater work than that he became the father of this man: is it indeed a greater thing to have subdued the sea-girt Britons, and to have led victorious fleets through the seven streams of papyrus-bearing Nile, and to have added the rebel Numidians and Cinyphian Juba and Pontus, swelling with the names of Mithridates, to the people of Quirinus, and to have earned many triumphs and celebrated some, than to have fathered so great a man?
Met. 15.758Quō praeside rērum
hūmānō generī, superī, fāvistis abundē!With him as ruler of the world, gods above, you have abundantly favoured the human race! Met. 15.760Nē foret hic igitur mortālī sēmine crētus,
ille deus faciendus erat.So that this one, then, should not be sprung from mortal seed, that one had to be made a god. Met. 15.761Quod ut aurea vīdit
Aenēae genetrīx, vīdit quoque trīste parārī
pontificī lētum et coniūrāta arma movērī,
palluit et cūnctīs, ut cuique erat obvia, dīvīs
765"adspice" dīcēbat, "quantā mihi mōle parentur
īnsidiae quantāque caput cum fraude petātur,
quod dē Dardaniō sōlum mihi restat Iūlō.When the golden mother of Aeneas saw this, and saw too that grim death was being prepared for the high priest and conspirators' arms were being moved, she grew pale and kept saying to all the gods, as each met her: 'See with what a mass of treachery a plot is being prepared against me, and with what deceit that head is being sought which alone remains to me from Dardanian Iulus. Met. 15.768Sōlane semper erō iūstīs exercita cūrīs,
quam modo Tȳdīdae Calydōnia vulneret hasta,
770nunc male dēfēnsae cōnfundant moenia Troiae,
quae videam nātum longīs errōribus āctum
iactārīque fretō sēdēsque intrāre silentum
bellaque cum Turnō gerere, aut, sī vēra fatēmur,
cum Iūnōne magis?Shall I alone always be harassed by just cares, I whom now the Calydonian spear of Tydeus' son wounds, now the walls of ill-defended Troy confound, I who see my son driven by long wanderings, tossed on the sea, entering the abodes of the silent dead, and waging war with Turnus, or, if we confess the truth, rather with Juno?
Met. 15.774Quid nunc antīqua recordor
775damna meī generis?Why do I now recall the old losses of my race? Met. 15.775Timor hic meminisse priōrum
nōn sinit: ēn acuī scelerātōs cernitis ēnsēs?This fear does not allow me to remember earlier ones: look, do you see the wicked swords being sharpened? Met. 15.777Quōs prohibēte, precor, facinusque repellite, nēve
caede sacerdōtis flammās exstinguite Vestae!"Prevent them, I beg, and repel the crime, and do not extinguish Vesta's flames with the slaughter of her priest!' Met. 15.779Tālia nēquīquam tōtō Venus ānxia caelō
780verba iacit superōsque movet, quī rumpere quamquam
ferrea nōn possunt veterum dēcrēta sorōrum,
signa tamen lūctūs dant haud incerta futūrī.Such words anxious Venus throws out in vain all over heaven, and moves the gods above, who, although they cannot break the iron decrees of the ancient sisters, yet give not uncertain signs of the grief to come. Met. 15.783Arma ferunt inter nigrās crepitantia nūbēs
terribilēsque tubās audītaque cornua caelō
785praemonuisse nefās;They say that arms clashing among black clouds and terrible trumpets and horns heard in the sky forewarned of the crime; Met. 15.785sōlis quoque trīstis imāgō
lūrida sollicitīs praebēbat lūmina terrīs.the sun's sad image too offered lurid light to the anxious earth.
Met. 15.787Saepe facēs vīsae mediīs ārdēre sub astrīs,
saepe inter nimbōs guttae cecidēre cruentae.Often torches were seen to burn in the midst of the stars, often drops of blood fell amid the rain-clouds. Met. 15.789Caerulus et vultum ferrūgine Lūcifer ātrā
790sparsus erat, sparsī Lūnārēs sanguine currūs.Lucifer was dark, his face sprinkled with black rust, and the Moon's chariot was sprinkled with blood. Met. 15.791Trīstia mīlle locīs Stygius dedit ōmina būbō,
mīlle locīs lacrimāvit ebur, cantūsque feruntur
audītī sānctīs et verba minantia lūcīs.In a thousand places the Stygian owl gave sad omens, in a thousand places ivory wept, and songs and threatening words are said to have been heard in the sacred groves. Met. 15.794Victima nūlla litat magnōsque īnstāre tumultūs
795fībra monet, caesumque caput reperītur in extīs.No victim gives favourable omens, the entrails warn that great tumults are at hand, and the head is found cut off among the vitals. Met. 15.796Inque forō circumque domōs et templa deōrum
nocturnōs ululāsse canēs umbrāsque silentum
errāvisse ferunt mōtamque tremōribus urbem.And in the forum and around houses and the temples of the gods, they say, dogs howled by night, and shades of the silent dead wandered, and the city was shaken by tremors.
Met. 15.799Nōn tamen īnsidiās ventūraque vincere fāta
800praemonitūs potuēre deum, strictīque feruntur
in templum gladiī;Yet the warnings of the gods could not overcome the plot and the coming fates, and drawn swords are carried into a sacred place; Met. 15.801neque enim locus ūllus in urbe
ad facinus dīramque placet nisi cūria, caedem.for no place in the city pleases for the crime and the dire slaughter except the senate-house. Met. 15.803Tum vērō Cytherēa manū percussit utrāque
pectus et Aeneadēn mōlītur condere nūbe,
805quā prius īnfestō Paris est ēreptus Atrīdae
et Diomēdēōs Aenēās fūgerat ēnsēs.Then indeed Cytherea struck her breast with both hands and strives to hide the descendant of Aeneas in a cloud, in which Paris was once snatched away from hostile Atrides and Aeneas had escaped the sword of Diomedes. Met. 15.807Tālibus hanc genitor: "Sōla īnsuperābile fātum,
nāta, movēre parās?Her father addresses her thus: 'Are you preparing, alone, my daughter, to move unconquerable fate? Met. 15.808Intrēs licet ipsa sorōrum
tēcta trium: cernēs illīc mōlīmine vāstō
810ex aere et solidō rērum tabulāria ferrō,
quae neque concussum caelī neque fulminis īram
nec metuunt ūllās tūta atque aeterna ruīnās.You may yourself enter the house of the three sisters: you will see there the records of events, a vast structure of bronze and solid iron, which, safe and eternal, fear neither the clash of heaven nor the wrath of lightning nor any ruin.
Met. 15.813Inveniēs illīc incīsa adamante perennī
fāta tuī generis: lēgī ipse animōque notāvī
815et referam, nē sīs etiamnum ignāra futūrī.You will find there the fates of your race carved in everlasting adamant: I have read them myself and noted them in my mind, and I shall tell them, so that you may no longer be ignorant of the future. Met. 15.816Hic sua complēvit, prō quō, Cytherēa, labōrās,
tempora, perfectīs, quōs terrae dēbuit, annīs.This man for whom you labour, Cytherea, has completed his time, the years he owed to earth fulfilled. Met. 15.818Ut deus accēdat caelō templīsque colātur,
tū faciēs nātusque suus, quī nōminis hērēs
820impositum feret ūnus onus caesīque parentis
nōs in bella suōs fortissimus ultor habēbit.That he may enter heaven as a god and be worshipped in temples, you will bring about, you and his son, who as heir to his name will bear alone the burden laid on him, and as most valiant avenger of his murdered father will have us as allies in his wars.
Met. 15.822Illīus auspiciīs obsessae moenia pācem
victa petent Mutinae, Pharsālia sentiet illum.Under his auspices the walls of besieged Mutina, conquered, will sue for peace, Pharsalia will feel him. Met. 15.824Ēmathiīque iterum madefient caede Philippī,
825et magnum Siculīs nōmen superābitur undīs,
Rōmānīque ducis coniūnx Aegyptia taedae
nōn bene fīsa cadet, frūstrāque erit illa mināta,
servītūra suō Capitōlia nostra Canōpō.Emathian Philippi will be drenched again with slaughter, and a great name will be overcome in Sicilian waters, and the Egyptian wife of a Roman general, who trusted ill in that marriage, will fall, and in vain will she have threatened that our Capitol would be slave to her Canopus. Met. 15.829Quid tibi barbariem, gentēsque ab utrōque iacentēs
830oceanō numerem?Why should I recount to you the barbarian lands, and the nations lying by either ocean? Met. 15.830Quodcumque habitābile tellūs
sustinet, huius erit: pontus quoque serviet illī!Whatever habitable land the earth supports will be his: the sea too will serve him! Met. 15.832Pāce datā terrīs animum ad cīvīlia vertet
iūra suum lēgēsque feret iūstissimus auctor
exemplōque suō mōrēs reget inque futūrī
835temporis aetātem ventūrōrumque nepōtum
prōspiciēns prōlem sānctā dē coniuge nātam
ferre simul nōmenque suum cūrāsque iubēbit,
nec nisi cum senior Pyliōs aequāverit annōs,
aetheriās sēdēs cognātaque sīdera tanget.When peace has been given to the lands he will turn his mind to civil law, and as a most just lawgiver will pass laws, and govern morals by his example, and looking forward to the age of future time and of grandsons to come, he will bid the son born of his chaste wife bear both his name and his cares, nor until he, grown old, has equalled the years of the Pylian, will he reach the heavenly seats and his kindred stars.
Met. 15.840Hanc animam intereā caesō dē corpore raptam
fac iubar, ut semper Capitōlia nostra forumque
dīvus ab excelsā prōspectet Iūlius aede."Meanwhile, snatch this soul from the murdered body and make it a star, so that the deified Julius may always look out upon our Capitol and Forum from his lofty temple.' Met. 15.843Vix ea fātus erat, mediā cum sēde senātūs
cōnstitit alma Venus, nūllī cernenda, suīque
845Caesaris ēripuit membrīs neque in āera solvī
passa recentem animam caelestibus intulit astrīs.He had scarcely spoken these words when kindly Venus stood in the middle of the senate-house, seen by no one, and snatched the soul of her Caesar from his limbs and, not allowing it to dissolve into the air, carried it, fresh, to the stars of heaven. Met. 15.847Dumque tulit, lūmen capere atque ignēscere sēnsit
ēmīsitque sinū: lūnā volat altius illa,
flammiferumque trahēns spatiōsō līmite crīnem
850stella micat nātīque vidēns bene facta fatētur
esse suīs maiōra et vincī gaudet ab illō.And as she carried it, she felt it catch light and burst into flame, and released it from her bosom: it flies higher than the moon, and trailing its fiery hair over a wide course, it gleams as a star, and seeing the good deeds of his son, confesses that they are greater than his own, and rejoices to be surpassed by him.
Met. 15.852Hic sua praeferrī quamquam vetat ācta paternīs,
lībera fāma tamen nūllīsque obnoxia iussīs
invītum praefert ūnāque in parte repugnat:
855sīc magnī cēdit titulīs Agamemnonis Atreus,
Aegea sīc Thēseus, sīc Pēlea vīcit Achillēs;Although the son forbids his own deeds to be ranked above his father's, yet fame, free and subject to no commands, ranks him first against his will and in this one respect disobeys: so Atreus yields to the titles of great Agamemnon, so Theseus surpassed Aegeus, so Achilles Peleus; Met. 15.857dēnique, ut exemplīs ipsōs aequantibus ūtar,
sīc et Sāturnus minor est Iove: Iuppiter arcēs
temperat aetheriās et mundī regna trifōrmis,
860terra sub Augustō est;finally, to use examples equal to themselves, so too Saturn is less than Jupiter: Jupiter governs the heights of heaven and the realms of the threefold world, the earth is under Augustus; Met. 15.860pater est et rēctor uterque.each is father and ruler. Met. 15.861Dī, precor, Aenēae comitēs, quibus ēnsis et ignis
cessērunt, dīque Indigetēs genitorque Quirīne
urbis et invictī genitor Grādīve Quirīnī,
Vestaque Caesareōs inter sacrāta penātēs,
865et cum Caesareā tū, Phoebe domestice, Vestā,
quique tenēs altus Tarpeiās Iuppiter arcēs,
quōsque aliōs vātī fās appellāre piumque est:
tarda sit illa diēs et nostrō sērior aevō,
quā caput Augustum, quem temperat, orbe relictō
870accēdat caelō faveatque precantibus absēns!Gods, I pray, companions of Aeneas, before whom sword and fire gave way, and you native gods, and you, Quirinus, father of the city, and you, Gradivus, father of unconquered Quirinus, and Vesta, hallowed among Caesar's household gods, and you, Phoebus of the household, together with Caesar's Vesta, and you, Jupiter, who on high hold the Tarpeian citadel, and all others whom it is right and holy for a poet to invoke: slow may that day be, and later than my own lifetime, on which the august head, leaving the world he governs, shall approach heaven and, absent, show favour to those who pray!
Met. 15.871Iamque opus exēgī, quod nec Iovis īra nec ignis
nec poterit ferrum nec edāx abolēre vetustās.And now I have completed a work which neither Jupiter's wrath nor fire nor sword nor devouring age will be able to destroy. Met. 15.873Cum volet, illa diēs, quae nīl nisi corporis huius
iūs habet, incertī spatium mihi fīniat aevī:
875parte tamen meliōre meī super alta perennis
astra ferar, nōmenque erit indēlēbile nostrum,
quāquē patet domitīs Rōmāna potentia terrīs,
ōre legar populī, perque omnia saecula fāmā,
sīquid habent vērī vātum praesāgia, vīvam.When it wishes, let that day, which has power over nothing but this body, end the span of my uncertain life: yet in my better part I shall be borne, everlasting, above the lofty stars, and my name will be indelible, and wherever Roman power extends over conquered lands, I shall be read on the lips of the people, and through all the ages, in fame, if the prophecies of poets have any truth, I shall live.