Chapter 22
Original Latin
79 apud Xenophontem autem moriens Cyrus maior haec dicit: nolite arbitrari, o mihi carissimi filii, me, cum a vobis discessero, nusquam aut nullum fore. nec enim, dum eram vobiscum, animum meum videbatis, sed eum esse in hoc corpore ex eis rebus quas gerebam intellegebatis. eundem igitur esse creditote, etiam si nullum videbitis.
80 nec vero clarorum virorum post mortem honores permanerent, si nihil eorum ipsorum animi efficerent, quo diutius memoriam sui teneremus. mihi quidem numquam persuaderi potuit animos dum in corporibus essent mortalibus vivere, cum excessissent ex eis emori; nec vero tum animum esse insipientem cum ex insipienti corpore evasisset, sed cum omni admixtione corporis liberatus purus et integer esse coepisset, tum esse sapientem. atque etiam, cum hominis natura morte dissolvitur, ceterarum rerum perspicuum est quo quaeque discedat, abeunt enim illuc omnia, unde orta sunt; animus autem solus nec cum adest nec cum discessit apparet. iam vero videtis nihil esse morti tam simile quam somnum.
Musean translation
Complete machine-assisted Musean translation made directly from the Latin in all 23 chapters and 85 sections. Latin-source editorial review recorded; no human specialist certification is claimed.
79 “In Xenophon, Cyrus the Elder says on his deathbed: ‘Do not suppose, my dearest sons, that when I leave you I shall be nowhere, or shall cease to exist. Even while I was with you, you did not see my soul, but understood from my actions that it was in this body. Believe, then, that it still exists, even though you see nothing of it.’”
80 “‘Nor would the honors paid to famous men endure after their deaths if their souls did nothing to make us retain their memory longer. I could never be persuaded that souls live while they are within mortal bodies, but die when they leave them; nor that the soul becomes unwise when it escapes an unwise body. Rather, when freed from all mixture with the body it begins to exist pure and whole, then it becomes wise. Moreover, when a human being’s nature is dissolved by death, it is plain where each of the other elements goes, for all return to their source. The soul alone is invisible both when present and when departed. And you see that nothing resembles death so closely as sleep.’”
Plain English translation
Complete machine-assisted Plain English translation made independently and directly from the Latin in separate source-only production passes, not from Musean or a historical English translation. Latin-source editorial review recorded.
79 “In Xenophon’s account, Cyrus the Elder says this while dying: ‘My dearest sons, do not think that when I leave you I will be nowhere or will no longer exist. Even when I was with you, you could not see my soul. You knew it was in my body because of the things I did. So believe that it still exists, even when you cannot see it.’”
80 “‘The honors given to famous men would not continue after their deaths if their own souls did nothing to make us remember them longer. Nobody has ever been able to convince me that souls are alive when they are inside mortal bodies but die when they get out. Nor do I think the soul loses its understanding when it leaves a body that has no understanding. Instead, it becomes wise when it is free from every bodily mixture and starts to exist pure and complete. Also, when death takes a human being apart, it is obvious where each of the other parts goes. They all go back to where they came from. The soul alone is unseen, both while it is here and after it has left. And you can see that nothing is as much like death as sleep.’”
About this section
Chapter 22 is part of On Old Age by Marcus Tullius Cicero. This page sets the Latin original beside 2 direct-source translations, so any line can be checked against the source. It is chapter 22 of 23 in the work, which is kept in the Roman tradition.
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