Virgil, Aeneid IV.653
Melphi speaks
Vixi, et, quem dederat cursum fortuna, peregi,
The priest translates
«I have lived, and I have run to the end the course that fortune gave me,»
And interprets
This line, which in the poem sounds like a farewell, comes to you as an invitation to take stock. Perhaps you are closing a chapter: a job, a relationship, a home, a role you held for years. It is natural to feel wistful and even a little afraid. Melphi invites you to look back honestly and say, as the queen did: I have lived, I have done my part. Acknowledge what you built, the walls you saw rise, without being crushed by what went wrong. Closing a chapter well is an act of dignity, and it frees your energy for what comes next.
The historical translations
Annibal Caro (1581)
Mi liberate. Ecco, io son giunta al fine
De la mia vita, e di mia sorte il corso
Ho già compito. Or la mia grande imago
Mi liberate. Ecco, io son giunta al fine
De la mia vita, e di mia sorte il corso
Ho già compito. Or la mia grande imago
Theodore C. Williams (1910)
and from my woe set free! My life is done.
I have accomplished what my lot allowed;
and from my woe set free! My life is done.
I have accomplished what my lot allowed;
Source
Publius Vergilius Maro, Aeneis, ed. J. B. Greenough (1900)
Virgil, Aeneid IV.653