Meditations — Page 15
The petty annoyances of injustice or unkindness are looked on by each with the same magnanimity.
Le piccole seccature dell'ingiustizia o della scortesia sono considerate da ciascuno con la stessa magnanimità.
'Why doth a little thing said or done against thee make thee sorry?
«Perché una piccola cosa detta o fatta contro di te ti rattristisce?
It is no new thing; it is not the first, nor shall it be the last, if thou live long.
Non è una cosa nuova; non è la prima, né sarà l'ultima, se vivrai a lungo.
At best suffer patiently, if thou canst not suffer joyously.'
Nella migliore delle ipotesi sopporta pazientemente, se non puoi sopportare con gioia.»
The Christian should sorrow more for other men's malice than for our own wrongs; but the Roman is inclined to wash his hands of the offender.
Il cristiano dovrebbe addolorarsi di più per la malvagità degli altri uomini che per i propri torti; ma il romano è incline a lavarsi le mani dell'offensore.
'Study to be patient in suffering and bearing other men's defaults and all manner infirmities,' says the Christian; but the Roman would never have thought to add, 'If all men were perfect, what had we then to suffer of other men for God?'
«Studia ad essere paziente nel soffrire e nel sopportare i difetti degli altri uomini e ogni sorta di infermità», dice il cristiano; ma il romano non avrebbe mai pensato di aggiungere: «Se tutti gli uomini fossero perfetti, cosa avremmo allora da soffrire degli altri uomini per Dio?»
The virtue of suffering in itself is an idea which does not meet us in the _Meditations_.
La virtù del soffrire in sé è un'idea che non incontriamo nelle _Meditazioni_.
Both alike realise that man is one of a great community.
Entrambi si rendono ugualmente conto che l'uomo fa parte di una grande comunità.
'No man is sufficient to himself,' says the Christian; 'we must bear together, help together, comfort together.'
«Nessun uomo è sufficiente a se stesso», dice il cristiano; «dobbiamo sopportare insieme, aiutarci insieme, consolarci insieme.»
But while he sees a chief importance in zeal, in exalted emotion that is, and avoidance of lukewarmness, the Roman thought mainly of the duty to be done as well as might be, and less of the feeling which should go with the doing of it.
Ma mentre il cristiano vede un'importanza capitale nello zelo, vale a dire nell'emozione elevata, e nell'evitare il tepore, il romano pensava principalmente al dovere da compiere nel miglior modo possibile, e meno al sentimento che dovrebbe accompagnare il compierlo.
To the saint as to the emperor, the world is a poor thing at best.
Per il santo come per l'imperatore, il mondo è nella migliore delle ipotesi una cosa meschina.
Vocabulary
- piccole
- Small, little (feminine plural adjective)
- seccature
- Annoyances, nuisances, petty troubles
- ingiustizia
- Injustice, unfairness, wrongdoing
- scortesia
- Rudeness, discourtesy, lack of politeness
- considerate
- Considered, regarded, viewed (feminine plural past participle)
- ciascuno
- Each one, every person, everyone individually
- stessa
- Same (feminine singular); herself, itself
- magnanimità
- Magnanimity, generosity of spirit, noble-mindedness
- piccola
- Small, little (feminine singular adjective)
- detta
- Said, spoken (feminine singular past participle)
- fatta
- Done, made (feminine singular past participle)
- contro
- Against; preposition indicating opposition
- rattristisce
- Saddens, makes someone feel sad or sorrowful
- prima
- Before, first; temporal adverb or adjective
- né
- Nor; negative conjunction linking two elements
- ultima
- Last, final (feminine singular adjective)
- vivrai
- You will live; future of 'vivere'
- lungo
- Long; also used in 'a lungo' meaning for a long time
- migliore
- Better, best; comparative/superlative of 'buono'
- ipotesi
- Hypothesis, assumption, supposition; also 'case'
- sopporta
- Bear, endure, tolerate (third person singular present)
- pazientemente
- Patiently, with patience and calmness
- sopportare
- To bear, endure, tolerate something difficult
- gioia
- Joy, happiness, delight
- cristiano
- Christian; relating to Christianity or its follower
- dovrebbe
- Should, ought to; conditional of 'dovere'
- addolorarsi
- To grieve, feel sorrow, be pained by something
- malvagità
- Wickedness, evil, malice of others
- uomini
- Men, human beings (plural of 'uomo')
- propri
- Own, one's own (masculine plural adjective)
- torti
- Wrongs, injustices suffered (plural of 'torto')
- romano
- Roman; of or relating to Rome or Romans
- incline
- Inclined, prone, tending toward something
- lavarsi
- To wash oneself; reflexive form of 'lavare'
- mani
- Hands (plural of 'mano')
- offensore
- Offender, wrongdoer, one who commits offense
- Studia
- Study, strive (imperative/present of 'studiare')
- paziente
- Patient; tolerant of delay, suffering, or hardship
- soffrire
- To suffer, endure pain or hardship
- difetti
- Defects, faults, flaws (plural of 'difetto')
- ogni
- Every, each; invariable adjective of quantity
- sorta
- Sort, kind, type of something
- infermità
- Infirmity, weakness, illness, frailty
- avrebbe
- Would have; conditional of 'avere'
- mai
- Never, ever; temporal adverb of frequency
- pensato
- Thought, considered (past participle of 'pensare')
- aggiungere
- To add, to append something to a statement
- tutti
- All, everyone (masculine plural); universal quantifier
- fossero
- Were (third person plural imperfect subjunctive of 'essere')
- perfetti
- Perfect, flawless (masculine plural adjective)
- avremmo
- We would have; first person plural conditional of 'avere'
- allora
- Then, at that time; consequential adverb
- Dio
- God; the divine being in monotheistic religion
- virtù
- Virtue, moral excellence, goodness of character
- sé
- Oneself, itself; stressed reflexive pronoun
- incontriamo
- We encounter, we meet (first person plural present)
- Meditazioni
- Meditations; reflective writings, thoughts on inner life
- Entrambi
- Both (masculine plural); referring to two people or things
- rendono
- Render, make, realize (third person plural present)
- ugualmente
- Equally, in the same way or degree
- conto
- Account, realization; 'rendersi conto' means to realize
- parte
- Part, portion; member of a larger whole
- comunità
- Community, group of people sharing common bonds
- Nessun
- No, none, not any (masculine singular adjective)
- sufficiente
- Sufficient, enough, adequate for a purpose
- stesso
- Same, self (masculine singular); himself, itself
- dobbiamo
- We must, we have to; first person plural of 'dovere'
- insieme
- Together, jointly, as a group
- aiutarci
- To help each other; reflexive of 'aiutare'
- consolarci
- To console each other; reflexive of 'consolare'
- mentre
- While, whereas; temporal or contrastive conjunction
- importanza
- Importance, significance, weight of something
- capitale
- Capital, chief, paramount; of greatest importance
- zelo
- Zeal, fervor, enthusiastic dedication to a cause
- vale
- Is worth; third person singular of 'valere'
- emozione
- Emotion, feeling, strong inner sensation
- elevata
- Elevated, high, lofty (feminine singular adjective)
- evitare
- To avoid, to prevent, to stay away from
- tepore
- Tepidness, lukewarmness, lack of enthusiasm or passion
- pensava
- Was thinking, used to think; imperfect of 'pensare'
- principalmente
- Principally, mainly, above all else
- dovere
- Duty, obligation; also the verb 'must, to have to'
- compiere
- To carry out, accomplish, perform a task or duty
- miglior
- Best, better; truncated form of 'migliore'
- modo
- Way, manner, method of doing something
- possibile
- Possible; able to be done or achieved
- meno
- Less; comparative adverb indicating lesser degree
- sentimento
- Feeling, sentiment, emotion, inner sensation
- accompagnare
- To accompany, to go along with someone or something
- compierlo
- To carry it out; 'compiere' with clitic 'lo'
- santo
- Saint, holy person; also adjective meaning 'holy'
- imperatore
- Emperor; ruler of an empire
- meschina
- Petty, mean, miserly, small-minded (feminine singular)
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