Virgil, Aeneid XI.362
Melphi speaks
Nulla salus bello: pacem te poscimus omnes,
The priest translates
«There is no safety in war: we all ask you for peace,»
And interprets
This verse speaks to you of peace, and perhaps not by chance. If these days you are caught in a conflict, with a relative, an ex, a business partner, a neighbour, Melphi tells you frankly that going on fighting will not save you. Every battle you win costs you energy, sleep, affection. The people around you are as tired as you are, and they are asking you, even without words, to stop. It is not surrender: it is the courage to change course. Just be careful about one thing: real peace asks for something concrete, not only fine words. It is the right time to propose an agreement and to keep it.
The historical translations
Annibal Caro (1581)
Esponi indarno? e qual è ne la guerra
Più salute e speranza? A te noi tutti
Pace, Turno, chiedemo, e de la pace
Esponi indarno? e qual è ne la guerra
Più salute e speranza? A te noi tutti
Pace, Turno, chiedemo, e de la pace
Theodore C. Williams (1910)
War will not save us. Not a voice but sues
for peace, O Turnus! and, not less than peace,
War will not save us. Not a voice but sues
for peace, O Turnus! and, not less than peace,
Source
Publius Vergilius Maro, Aeneis, ed. J. B. Greenough (1900)
Virgil, Aeneid XI.362