Lucretius · Complete work
Nothing from Nothing
Nothing from Nothing of 8. Read it here for reference, or continue through the entire work without leaving the reader.
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et simul intereat nobiscum morte diremptaan tenebras Orci visat vastasque lacunasan pecudes alias divinitus insinuet se,Ennius ut noster cecinit, qui primus amoenodetulit ex Helicone perenni fronde coronam,per gentis Italas hominum quae clara clueret;etsi praeterea tamen esse Acherusia templaEnnius aeternis exponit versibus edens,quo neque permaneant animae neque corpora nostra,sed quaedam simulacra modis pallentia miris;unde sibi exortam semper florentis Homericommemorat speciem lacrimas effundere salsascoepisse et rerum naturam expandere dictis.qua propter bene cum superis de rebus habendanobis est ratio, solis lunaeque meatusqua fiant ratione, et qua vi quaeque geranturin terris, tunc cum primis ratione sagaciunde anima atque animi constet natura videndum,et quae res nobis vigilantibus obvia mentesterrificet morbo adfectis somnoque sepultis,cernere uti videamur eos audireque coram,morte obita quorum tellus amplectitur ossa.Quod super est, vacuas auris animumque sagacemsemotum a curis adhibe veram ad rationem,ne mea dona tibi studio disposta fideli,intellecta prius quam sint, contempta relinquas.nam tibi de summa caeli ratione deumquedisserere incipiam et rerum primordia pandam,unde omnis natura creet res, auctet alatque,quove eadem rursum natura perempta resolvat,quae nos materiem et genitalia corpora rebusreddunda in ratione vocare et semina rerumappellare suemus et haec eadem usurparecorpora prima, quod ex illis sunt omnia primis.Nec me animi fallit Graiorum obscura repertadifficile inlustrare Latinis versibus esse,multa novis verbis praesertim cum sit agendumpropter egestatem linguae et rerum novitatem;sed tua me virtus tamen et sperata voluptassuavis amicitiae quemvis efferre laboremsuadet et inducit noctes vigilare serenasquaerentem dictis quibus et quo carmine demumclara tuae possim praepandere lumina menti,res quibus occultas penitus convisere possis.hunc igitur terrorem animi tenebrasque necessestnon radii solis neque lucida tela dieidiscutiant, sed naturae species ratioque.Principium cuius hinc nobis exordia sumet,nullam rem e nihilo gigni divinitus umquam.quippe ita formido mortalis continet omnis,quod multa in terris fieri caeloque tuentur,quorum operum causas nulla ratione viderepossunt ac fieri divino numine rentur.quas ob res ubi viderimus nil posse crearide nihilo, tum quod sequimur iam rectius indeperspiciemus, et unde queat res quaeque creariet quo quaeque modo fiant opera sine divom.Nam si de nihilo fierent, ex omnibus rebusomne genus nasci posset, nil semine egeret.e mare primum homines, e terra posset oririsquamigerum genus et volucres erumpere caelo;armenta atque aliae pecudes, genus omne ferarum,incerto partu culta ac deserta tenerent.nec fructus idem arboribus constare solerent,sed mutarentur, ferre omnes omnia possent.quippe ubi non essent genitalia corpora cuique,qui posset mater rebus consistere certa?at nunc seminibus quia certis quaeque creantur,inde enascitur atque oras in luminis exit,materies ubi inest cuiusque et corpora prima;atque hac re nequeunt ex omnibus omnia gigni,quod certis in rebus inest secreta facultas.Praeterea cur vere rosam, frumenta calore,vites autumno fundi suadente videmus,si non, certa suo quia tempore semina rerumcum confluxerunt, patefit quod cumque creatur,dum tempestates adsunt et vivida tellustuto res teneras effert in luminis oras?quod si de nihilo fierent, subito exorerenturincerto spatio atque alienis partibus anni,quippe ubi nulla forent primordia, quae genitaliconcilio possent arceri tempore iniquo.Nec porro augendis rebus spatio foret ususseminis ad coitum, si e nilo crescere possent;nam fierent iuvenes subito ex infantibus parvise terraque exorta repente arbusta salirent.quorum nil fieri manifestum est, omnia quandopaulatim crescunt, ut par est semine certo,crescentesque genus servant; ut noscere possisquicque sua de materia grandescere alique.Huc accedit uti sine certis imbribus annilaetificos nequeat fetus submittere tellusnec porro secreta cibo natura animantumpropagare genus possit vitamque tueri;ut potius multis communia corpora rebusmulta putes esse, ut verbis elementa videmus,quam sine principiis ullam rem existere posse.Denique cur homines tantos natura pararenon potuit, pedibus qui pontum per vada possenttransire et magnos manibus divellere montismultaque vivendo vitalia vincere saecla,si non, materies quia rebus reddita certastgignundis, e qua constat quid possit oriri?nil igitur fieri de nilo posse fatendumst,semine quando opus est rebus, quo quaeque creataeaeris in teneras possint proferrier auras.Postremo quoniam incultis praestare videmusculta loca et manibus melioris reddere fetus,esse videlicet in terris primordia rerumquae nos fecundas vertentes vomere glebasterraique solum subigentes cimus ad ortus;quod si nulla forent, nostro sine quaeque laboresponte sua multo fieri meliora videres.
Mouseia
Mouseia's complete machine-assisted Musean translation, made directly from the complete Latin text of Book 1 as printed by The Latin Library, in flowing prose that preserves the argument's order, images, and force.
First, then, I will set out the principle: nothing is ever made out of nothing by the gods' will. For fear so deeply has fastened into the hearts of men, that all things lie upon the ground for want of power — and they cannot rise, since the gods, they think, made all things for men. But if men saw that there is a fixed limit of grieving, they would have strength with strong reason to despise the bonds of religion and the threats of seers. For we are made of matter that is born and dies; and the mind, I say, is often sick with fear of death, and the fear presses on us and troubles the breast: we must look well into the nature of things.
I say this: things cannot be born from nothing. For then everything would grow from everything, with no seed: men could rise from the sea, and fish from the earth; birds would burst from the sky. Cattle and herds would breed everywhere, of every kind, nor would the same animal always keep its own young. The fruit tree would bear fruit of every kind in the same field. And we would not see the tilled fields turn to trees, unless earth had her seed in herself. And things would not rise in season, but all would grow at once, if nothing were made of nothing. For then there would be no spring, no summer, no autumn, no winter: everything would spring up at once, and nothing would know its time. And nothing would be set in order. For if things arose without seeds, they could grow at any time, in any season, at any place: there would be no need of a womb, no need of earth, no need of water, no need of rain. But the facts are otherwise: all things grow in their seasons, and need their seeds, and need their time.
And besides: why do flowers appear in spring, and the corn in summer, and the grapes in autumn? Why does the tree put out leaves in spring, and drop them in autumn? There must be seed: and the seed of each thing must come to its season before the thing can grow. And if things could be made of nothing, they could grow anywhere, in any kind of earth, in the sea, on the land, in the rivers, in the sky, in the bodies of animals, in the gods themselves: but they do not. So there is seed, and the seed of each thing is its own.
Another: labor would not be needed. If things could arise from nothing, they would grow of themselves, without seed, without labor, without time. Men would not need to plough, to sow, to reap: all would grow of itself, and no one would need to work. And things would not be set in order, nor be kept in order. For nothing needs order unless it has a nature that needs it. And nothing has a nature unless it has seeds. And nothing has seeds unless it is made of matter. And matter is not made of nothing.
And last: we see that things grow, and are nourished, and change. If there were no seed, growth would be impossible. And if things could be made of nothing, they could grow to any size, in any time: a man might grow as tall as the sky in a day, and a tree might grow in an hour. But things grow in their own time, and to their own size: and the seed is in them, and the seed grows. So nothing is made of nothing: all things grow by seed.
And now: nothing is ever annihilated, so that it is all destroyed. If things could pass into nothing, everything would die at once, and nothing would last. But we see things last: the world itself is everlasting, and the sea, and the earth, and the stars. And we see things change, and pass into other things. But they do not pass into nothing: for nothing can be born of nothing, so nothing can fall into nothing. The rain falls, and rises again in vapor: the river runs into the sea, and the sea sends it back to the rivers: the cloud gathers, and falls as rain: and all things are kept, and none is destroyed. For if things passed into nothing, they could not come again: but they do come again. So nothing is annihilated.
And if there were no seed, and things could be made of nothing, and could fall into nothing, they could not be kept in order, nor be governed: for there would be nothing to govern them. But we see that all things are kept in order: the seasons, the years, the day and night, the sun and moon and stars. So there is matter, and the matter is eternal.
Mouseia
Mouseia's complete Plain English edition, made independently and directly from the same Latin text of Book 1.
First principle: nothing is ever created out of nothing by the gods' will. Fear has sunk so deep into human hearts that everything lies dying at their feet — because they think the gods made everything for them. But if people saw that grief has a fixed limit, they would have real strength to laugh off religion and the threats of prophets.
Here's the principle: things cannot be born from nothing. If they could, everything could grow from everything, with no seeds: people would rise from the sea, fish from the ground, birds from the sky. Cattle would breed everywhere, of every kind; the same animal wouldn't always keep its own young. The same field would grow fruit of every kind. And nothing would have its season: everything would sprout at once — no spring, no summer, no autumn, no winter. And nothing would be orderly: things would grow anywhere, any time, in any soil — in the sea, on land, in rivers, in the sky, in animals, even in the gods. They don't. So there are seeds, and each thing has its own.
And work wouldn't be needed. If things came from nothing, they'd grow on their own — no ploughing, no sowing, no reaping. Everything would just appear. But things don't: everything grows in its season, from its own seed, in its own time.
And nothing is ever destroyed into nothing. If things could vanish into nothing, everything would already be gone. But the world lasts; the sea, the earth, the stars last. Things change — rain falls, rises as vapor, falls again; rivers run to the sea and the sea feeds the rivers. Everything is kept. Nothing is lost. If things passed into nothing, they couldn't come back — but they do come back.
So there is matter, and matter is eternal.