Apuleius: METAMORPHOSES

[1] Circa primam ferme noctis vigiliam experrectus pavore subito, video praemicantis lunae candore nimio completum orbem commodum marinis emergentem fluctibus; nanctusque opacae noctis silentiosa secreta, certus etiam summatem deam praecipua maiestate pollere resque prorsus humanas ipsius regi providentia, nec tantum pecuina et ferina, verum inanima etiam divino eius luminis numinisque nutu vegetari, ipsa etiam corpora terra caelo marique nunc incrementis consequenter augeri, nunc detrimentis obsequenter imminui, fato scilicet iam meis tot tantisque cladibus satiato et spem salutis, licet tardam, subministrante, augustum specimen deae praesentis statui deprecari; confestimque discussa pigra quiete alacer exsurgo meque protinus purificandi studio marino lavacro trado septiesque summerso fluctibus capite, quod eum numerum praecipue religionibus aptissimum divinus ille Pythagoras prodidit, [laetus et alacer] deam praepotentem lacrimoso vultu sic adprecabar:

[1] Around nearly the first watch of the night, awakened by sudden fear, I see the orb of the moon, pre-shining, filled with excessive brightness, just then emerging from the marine waves; and having found the silent secrets of the dark night, convinced as well that the supreme goddess excels with especial majesty and that human affairs are altogether ruled by her providence, and that not only herd-creatures and wild beasts, but even inanimate things are quickened by the divine light and by the nod of her numen, and that the very bodies of earth, sky, and sea are now by increases correspondingly augmented, now by diminutions obediently reduced—fate, to wit, now sated with my so many and so great disasters and supplying a hope of deliverance, though slow—I resolved to implore the august manifestation of the present goddess; and forthwith, the sluggish sleep shaken off, brisk I spring up and immediately, with a zeal for purification, commit myself to a marine bath, and, my head plunged seven times beneath the waves—since that number the divine Pythagoras declared most apt for rites—[glad and brisk] I thus with tearful countenance besought the all-powerful goddess:

[2] "Regina caeli, — sive tu Ceres alma frugum parens originalis, quae, repertu laetata filiae, vetustae glandis ferino remoto pabulo, miti commonstrato cibo nunc Eleusiniam glebam percolis, seu tu caelestis Venus, quae primis rerum exordiis sexuum diversitatem generato Amore sociasti et aeterna subole humano genere propagato nunc circumfluo Paphi sacrario coleris, seu Phoebi soror, quae partu fetarum medelis lenientibus recreato populos tantos educasti praeclarisque nunc veneraris delubris Ephesi, seu nocturnis ululatibus horrenda Proserpina triformi facie larvales impetus comprimens terraeque claustra cohibens lucos diversos inerrans vario cultu propitiaris, — ista luce feminea conlustrans cuncta moenia et udis ignibus nutriens laeta semina et solis ambagibus dispensans incerta lumina, quoquo nomine, quoquo ritu, quaqua facie te fas est invocare: tu meis iam nunc extremis aerumnis subsiste, tu fortunam collapsam adfirma, tu saevis exanclatis casibus pausam pacemque tribue; sit satis laborum, sit satis periculorum. Depelle quadripedis diram faciem, redde me conspectui meorum, redde me meo Lucio, ac si quod offensum numen inexorabili me saevitia premit, mori saltem liceat, si non licet vivere."

[2] "Queen of heaven, — whether you are Ceres, the kindly, the original parent of fruits, who, rejoicing at the finding of your daughter, with the ferine fodder of the ancient acorn removed, and gentle food shown, now cultivate the Eleusinian soil; or you the celestial Venus, who at the first beginnings of things joined the diversity of the sexes by Love begotten, and, the human race propagated with eternal offspring, are now worshiped in the sea-surrounded sanctuary of Paphos; or the sister of Phoebus, who, childbirth of the pregnant restored by soothing remedies, have reared such great peoples, and now are venerated in most renowned shrines at Ephesus; or Proserpina, dreadful with nocturnal ululations, with three-formed face compressing spectral onsets and restraining the bars of the earth, wandering through diverse groves are propitiated with varied cult, — you who with this feminine light illumine all ramparts and with moist fires nourish glad seeds, and with the circuits of the sun dispense uncertain lights, by whatever name, by whatever rite, by whatever face it is right to invoke you: do you now at once stand by my extreme distresses, do you make firm my collapsed fortune, do you, the savage misfortunes having been toiled through, grant a pause and peace; let there be enough of labors, let there be enough of dangers. Drive away the dire visage of the quadruped, restore me to the sight of my people, restore me to my Lucius, and if some offended divinity presses me with implacable savagery, at least let it be permitted to die, if it is not permitted to live."

[3] Ad istum modum fusis precibus et adstructis miseris lamentationibus rursus mihi marcentem animum in eodem illo cubili sopor circumfusus oppressit. Necdum satis conixeram, et ecce pelago medio venerandos diis etiam vultus attollens emergit divina facies; ac dehinc paulatim toto corpore perlucidum simulacrum excusso pelago ante me constitisse visum est. Eius mirandam speciem ad vos etiam referre conitar, si tamen mihi disserendi tribuerit facultatem paupertas oris humani vel ipsum numen eius dapsilem copiam elocutilis facundiae subministraverit.

[3] With prayers poured out in that manner and wretched lamentations adjoined, sleep, flowing around, again oppressed my drooping spirit in that same little bed. I had not yet sufficiently gathered myself, and behold, in the midst of the sea a divine face emerges, lifting a countenance venerable even to the gods; and then gradually, with her whole body, a pellucid simulacrum, the sea shaken off, seemed to have taken its stand before me. I will strive to relate to you also her wondrous aspect, if nevertheless the poverty of the human mouth shall have granted me the faculty of discoursing, or if her very numen shall have supplied a bountiful store of eloquent fluency.

Iam primum crines uberrimi prolixique et sensim intorti per divina colla passive dispersi molliter defluebant. Corona multiformis variis floribus sublimen destrinxerat verticem, cuius media quidem super frontem plana rotunditas in modum speculi vel immo argumentum lunae candidum lumen emicabat, dextra laevaque sulcis insurgentium viperarum cohibita, spicis etiam Cerialibus desuper porrectis <conspicua. Tunica> multicolor, bysso tenui pertexta, nunc albo candore lucida, nunc croceo flore lutea, nunc roseo rubore flammida et, quae longe longeque etiam meum confutabat optutum, palla nigerrima splendescens atro nitore, quae circumcirca remeans et sub dexterum latus ad umerum laevum recurrens umbonis vicem deiecta parte laciniae multiplici contabulatione dependula ad ultimas oras nodulis fimbriarum decoriter confluctuabat.

Now first, very rich and long hair, gently twisted and loosely dispersed, was flowing softly down over her divine neck. A multiform crown with various flowers had bound her lofty vertex, whose middle—a flat roundness above the brow—was flashing forth a candid light in the manner of a speculum, or rather as the emblem of the Moon, held in on right and left by furrows of uprearing vipers, and made conspicuous also by Cerial ears of grain stretched out from above; <conspicuous. A tunic> multicolored, woven with fine byssus, now bright with white candor, now saffron-yellow with crocus bloom, now flaming with rosy rubor; and that which by far—and far off—was even confounding my gaze, a most black palla, gleaming with jet-black splendor, which, circling all around and returning from beneath the right side to the left shoulder, with one part cast down to do duty in the stead of a boss, in a manifold contabulation of laciniae hanging down, to the furthest edges with little knots of fringes, was gracefully billowing.

[4] Per intextam extremitatem et in ipsa eius planitie stellae dispersae coruscabant earumque media semenstris luna flammeos spirabat ignes. Quaqua tamen insignis illius pallae perfluebat ambitus, individuo nexu corona totis floribus totisque constructa pomis adhaerebat. Nam dextra quidem ferebat aereum crepitaculum, cuius per angustam lamminam in modum baltei recurvatam traiectae mediae paucae virgulae, crispante brachio trigeminos iactus, reddebant argutum sonorem.

[4] Through the woven extremity and on its very flat surface, scattered stars were coruscating, and in their midst a half-moon was breathing flaming fires. Wherever, however, the circuit of that remarkable mantle flowed, a crown, adhering with an indivisible nexus and constructed of whole flowers and whole fruits, clung. For in her right hand she bore a bronze crepitaculum (sistrum), through whose narrow lamina, curved back in the fashion of a belt, a few little rods passed across the middle, as the arm quivered in triple casts, gave back a clear, shrill sound.

Laevae vero cymbium dependebat aureum, cuius ansulae, qua parte conspicua est, insurgebat aspis caput extollens arduum cervicibus late tumescentibus. Pedes ambroseos tegebant soleae palmae victricis foliis intextae. Talis ac tanta, spirans Arabiae felicia germina, divina me voce dignata est:

On her left there hung a golden cup, from whose little handle, on the side where it is conspicuous, the head of an asp rose up, lifting high with its neck broadly swelling. Her ambrosial feet were covered by sandals woven with the leaves of the victorious palm. Such and so great, breathing out Arabia’s felicitous shoots, she deigned to address me with a divine voice:

[5] "En adsum tuis commota, Luci, precibus, rerum naturae parens, elementorum omnium domina, saeculorum progenies initialis, summa numinum, regina manium, prima caelitum, deorum dearumque facies uniformis, quae caeli luminosa culmina, maris salubria flamina, inferum deplorata silentia nutibus meis dispenso: cuius numen unicum multiformi specie, ritu vario, nomine multiiugo totus veneratus orbis. Inde primigenii Phryges Pessinuntiam deum matrem, hinc autochthones Attici Cecropeiam Minervam, illinc fluctuantes Cyprii Paphiam Venerem, Cretes sagittiferi Dictynnam Dianam, Siculi trilingues Stygiam Proserpinam, Eleusinii vetusti Actaeam Cererem, Iunonem alii, Bellonam alii, Hecatam isti, Rhamnusiam illi, et qui nascentis dei Solis inlustrantur radiis Aethiopes utrique priscaque doctrina pollentes Aegyptii caerimoniis me propriis percolentes appellant vero nomine reginam Isidem. Adsum tuos miserata casus, adsum favens et propitia.

[5] "Lo, I am present, moved by your prayers, Lucius, parent of the nature of things, mistress of all the elements, the primordial progeny of the ages, the highest of the divinities, queen of the Manes, first of the celestials, the uniform visage of gods and goddesses, I who by my nods dispense the luminous summits of the sky, the health‑bringing breezes of the sea, the lamented silences of the infernal regions: whose single numen the whole world venerates in multiform appearance, with varied rite, under many a name. Hence the primigenial Phrygians call me the Pessinuntian Mother of the gods, the autochthonous Attics the Cecropian Minerva, the sea‑tossed Cyprians the Paphian Venus, the Cretans, arrow‑bearing, Dictynna Diana, the trilingual Sicilians Stygian Proserpina, the ancient Eleusinians Actaean Ceres; some Juno, others Bellona, these Hecate, those Rhamnusia; and both the Ethiopians who are illuminated by the rays of the rising god Sol , and the Egyptians, excelling in ancient doctrine, who cultivate me with my proper ceremonies, call me by my true name, Queen Isis. I am present, having pitied your misfortunes; I am present, favorable and propitious.

Mitte iam fletus et lamentationes omitte, depelle maerorem; iam tibi providentia mea inlucescit dies salutaris. Ergo igitur imperiis istis meis animum intende sollicitum. Diem, qui dies ex ista nocte nascetur, aeterna mihi nuncupavit religio, quo sedatis hibernis tempestatibus et lenitis maris procellosis fluctibus navigabili iam pelago rudem dedicantes carinam primitias commeatus libant mei sacerdotes.

Now send away your tears and omit lamentations, dispel mourning; already, by my providence, the salutary day dawns for you. Therefore, then, bend your solicitous mind to these my commands. The day which shall be born from this night everlasting religion has dedicated to me—on which, the wintry tempests stilled and the sea’s stormy billows softened, with the deep now navigable, my priests, dedicating the new keel, pour a libation of the first-fruits of provisions.

Id sacrum nec sollicita nec profana mente debebis opperiri.

You must await that sacred rite with a mind neither anxious nor profane.

[6] Nam meo monitu sacerdos in ipso procinctu pompae roseam manu dextera sistro cohaerentem gestabit coronam. Incunctanter ergo dimotis turbulis alacer continuare pompam mea volentia fretus et de proximo clementer velut manum sacerdotis osculabundus rosis decerptis pessimae mihique iam dudum detestabilis belvae istius corio te protinus exue. Nec quicquam rerum mearum reformides ut arduum.

[6] For at my prompting the priest, at the very forefront of the procession, will bear in his right hand a rose-crown adherent to the sistrum. Therefore, without delay, with the tumults removed, be eager to continue the procession, trusting in my goodwill, and from close at hand gently, as though kissing the priest’s hand, having the roses plucked, at once strip yourself of the hide of that most evil beast, long since detestable to me. Nor fear anything of my affairs as arduous.

Nam hoc eodem momento, quo tibi venio, simul et ibi praesens, quae sunt sequentia, sacerdoti meo per quietem facienda praecipio. Meo iussu tibi constricti comitatus decedent populi, nec inter hilares caerimonias et festiva spectacula quisquam deformem istam quam geris faciem perhorrescet vel figuram tuam repente mutatam sequius interpretatus aliquis maligne criminabitur. Plane memineris et penita mente conditum semper tenebis mihi reliqua vitae tuae curricula adusque terminos ultimi spiritus vadata.

For at this very moment, at which I come to you, being present there as well, I instruct my priest in his sleep that the following things are to be done. By my command the people, packed in a tight company, will give way for you, nor amid cheerful ceremonies and festive spectacles will anyone shudder at that misshapen face which you bear, or, interpreting your figure suddenly changed in a worse sense, will anyone maliciously accuse you. Be sure to remember, and you will always keep stored in your inmost mind, that the remaining courses of your life—even to the termini of your last breath—are to be gone through for me.

Nec iniurium, cuius beneficio redieris ad homines, ei totum debere, quod vives. Vives autem beatus, vives in mea tutela gloriosus, et cum spatium saeculi tui permensus ad inferos demearis, ibi quoque in ipso subterraneo semirutundo me, quam vides, Acherontis tenebris interlucentem Stygiisque penetralibus regnantem, campos Elysios incolens ipse, tibi propitiam frequens adorabis. Quodsi sedulis obsequiis et religiosis ministeriis et tenacibus castimoniis numen nostrum promerueris, scies ultra statuta fato tuo spatia vitam quoque tibi prorogare mihi tantum licere."

Nor is it unjust that to her by whose beneficence you have returned to men you should owe entirely that you live. You will live blessed, you will live glorious under my tutelage, and when, having measured the span of your lifetime, you descend to the Underworld, there too, in the very subterranean semi-rotunda, me—whom you behold—shining through the darknesses of Acheron and reigning in the inner penetralia of Styx, I myself inhabiting the Elysian fields, favorable to you, you will frequently adore. But if by assiduous services and religious ministries and tenacious chastities you shall have merited our numen, you will know that it is permitted to me alone to prolong for you life also beyond the spaces set by your fate."

[7] Sic oraculi venerabilis fine prolato numen invictum in se recessit. Nec mora, cum somno protinus absolutus pavore et gaudio ac dein sudore nimio permixtus exsurgo summeque miratus deae potentis tam claram praesentiam, marino rore respersus magnisque imperiis eius intentus monitionis ordinem recolebam. Nec mora, cum noctis atrae fugato nubilo sol exsurgit aureus, et ecce discursu religioso ac prorsus triumphali turbulae complent totas plateas, tantaque hilaritudine praeter peculiarem meam gestire mihi cuncta videbantur, ut pecua etiam cuiusce modi et totas domos et ipsum diem serena facie gaudere sentirem.

[7] Thus, with the end of the venerable oracle pronounced, the invincible numen withdrew into itself. No delay: at once released from sleep, mingled with fear and joy and then with excessive sweat, I rise, and, greatly amazed at so clear a presence of the powerful goddess, sprinkled with sea-dew and intent upon her great imperia, I was recalling the order of the monition. No delay: with the cloud of black night put to flight, the golden sun rises, and behold—by a religious and altogether triumphal running-about, little crowds fill all the streets, and with such hilarity, beyond my own particular joy, everything seemed to me to exult, that I felt that even cattle of every kind, and whole houses, and the day itself were rejoicing with a serene face.

Nam et pruinam pridianam dies apricus ac placidus repente fuerat insecutus, ut canorae etiam aviculae prolectatae verno vapore concentus suaves adsonarent, matrem siderum, parentem temporum orbisque totius dominam blando mulcentes adfamine. Quid quod arbores etiam, quae pomifera subole fecundae quaeque earum tantum umbra contentae steriles, austrinis laxatae flatibus, germine foliorum renidentes, clementi motu brachiorum dulces strepitus obsibilabant, magnoque procellarum sedato fragore ac turbido fluctuum tumore posito mare quietas adluvies temperabat, caelum autem nubilosa caligine disiecta nudo sudoque luminis proprii splendore candebat.

For even the frost of the day before had been suddenly followed by a sunny and placid day, so that even the tuneful little birds, allured by the vernal warmth, were sounding sweet concert, soothing with a bland address the mother of the stars, the parent of the seasons and the mistress of the whole world. What of the trees also—both those fertile with a pomiferous progeny and those sterile, content with only their shade—loosened by southern breezes, re-shining with the sprout of leaves, with a gentle motion of their arms were whispering sweet murmurs; and, the great crash of tempests calmed and the turbid swelling of the waves set down, the sea was tempering quiet washings, while the sky, its cloudy gloom dispersed, was gleaming white with the bare and clear splendor of its own light.

[8] Ecce pompae magnae paulatim praecedunt anteludia votivis cuiusque studiis exornata pulcherrume. Hic incinctus balteo militem gerebat, illum succinctum chlamide crepides et venabula venatorem fecerant, alius soccis obauratis inductus serica veste mundoque pretioso et adtextis capite crinibus incessu perfluo feminam mentiebatur. Porro alium ocreis, scuto, galea ferroque insignem e ludo putares gladiatorio procedere.

[8] Behold, the preludes of the great pomp gradually go before, most beautifully adorned by each one’s votive enthusiasms. Here, girt with a belt, one played the soldier; that one, girt with a cloak, his sandals and hunting-spears made him a hunter; another, with gold-embroidered slippers, clad in a silken garment and with precious adornment, and with hair woven upon his head, with a flowing gait pretended to be a woman. Moreover, another, distinguished with greaves, shield, helmet, and steel, you would have thought to be coming forth from the gladiatorial school.

Nec ille deerat, qui magistratum fascibus purpuraque luderet, nec qui pallio baculoque et baxeis et hircino barbitio philosophum fingeret, nec qui diversis harundinibus alter aucupem cum visco, alter piscatorem cum hamis induceret. Vidi et ursam mansuem <quae> cultu matronali sella vehebatur, et simiam pilleo textili crocotisque Phrygiis Catamiti pastoris specie aureum gestantem poculum et asinum pinis adglutinatis adambulantem cuidam seni debili, ut illum quidem Bellerophontem, hunc autem diceres Pegasum, tamen rideres utrumque.

Nor was he lacking who would play the magistrate with fasces and purple, nor he who, with pallium and staff and baxae sandals and a goatish little beard, would fashion himself a philosopher, nor he who, with diverse reeds, the one would present a fowler with birdlime, the other a fisherman with hooks. I even saw a tame she-bear <who>, in matronal attire, was carried on a chair, and a monkey, with a woven cap and Phrygian saffron garments, bearing a golden cup in the guise of Catamitus the shepherd, and a donkey, with feathers glued on, walking alongside a certain feeble old man, so that you would call that one Bellerophon, and this one Pegasus; nevertheless you would laugh at both.

[9] Inter has oblectationes ludicras popularium, quae passim vagabantur, iam sospitatricis deae peculiaris pompa moliebatur. Mulieres candido splendentes amicimine, vario laetantes gestamine, verno florentes coronamine, quae de gremio per viam, qua sacer incedebat comitatus, solum sternebant flosculis, aliae, quae nitentibus speculis pone tergum reversis venienti deae obvium commonstrarent obsequium et quae pectines eburnos ferentes gestu brachiorum flexuque digitorum ornatum atque obpexum crinium regalium fingerent, illae etiam, quae ceteris unguentis et geniali balsamo guttatim excusso conspargebant plateas; magnus praeterea sexus utriusque numerus lucernis, taedis, cereis et alio genere facticii luminis siderum caelestium stirpem propitiantes.

[9] Amid these ludicrous amusements of the populace, which were wandering everywhere, already the special procession of the saving goddess was being set in motion. Women, shining in a white raiment, rejoicing in varied burdens, blooming with vernal coronals—who from their laps along the road where the sacred retinue advanced were carpeting the ground with little flowers; others, who with gleaming mirrors reversed behind their backs would show forth to the coming goddess a homage meeting her; and those who, bearing ivory combs, by the gesture of their arms and the bend of their fingers would feign the adornment and braiding of royal tresses; those too who with other unguents and with a festal balsam, shaken out drop by drop, were sprinkling the streets; moreover, a great number of both sexes, with lamps, torches, wax-candles, and other kinds of artificial light, propitiating the stock of the celestial stars.

Symphoniae dehinc suaves, fistulae tibiaeque modulis dulcissimis personabant. Eas amoenus lectissimae iuventutis veste nivea et cataclista praenitens sequebatur chorus, carmen venustum iterantes, quod Camenarum favore sollers poeta modulatus edixerat, quod argumentum referebat interim maiorum antecantamenta votorum. Ibant et dicati magno Sarapi tibicines, qui per oblicum calamum, ad aurem porrectum dexteram, familiarem templi deique modulum frequentabant, et plerique, qui facilem sacris viam dari praedicarent.

Then sweet symphonies, and panpipes and flutes resounded with the most honeyed measures. After them there followed a delightful chorus of the choicest youth, radiant in snow‑white vesture and gleaming with cataclista, repeating a charming song which, by the favor of the Camenae, a skillful poet had modulated and proclaimed, whose argument meanwhile recalled the pre‑chantings of the vows of the ancestors. There also went flute‑players dedicated to great Sarapis, who, through a slanting reed stretched to the right ear, kept up the familiar cadence of the temple and the god, and very many who were proclaiming that an easy way was afforded to the sacred rites.

[10] Tunc influunt turbae sacris divinis initiatae, viri feminaeque omnis dignitatis et omnis aetatis, linteae vestis candore puro luminosi, illae limpido tegmine crines madidos obvolutae, hi capillum derasi funditus verticem praenitentes, magnae religionis terrena sidera, aereis et argenteis immo vero aureis etiam sistris argutum tinnitum constrepentes, et antistites sacrorum proceres illi, qui candido linteamine cinctum pectoralem adusque vestigia strictum iniecti potentissimorum deum proferebant insignis exuvias. Quorum primus lucernam claro praemicantem porrigebat lumine non adeo nostris illis consimilem, quae vespertinas illuminant epulas, sed aureum cymbium medio sui patore flammulam suscitans largiorem. Secundus vestitum quidem similis, sed manibus ambabus gerebat altaria, id est auxilia, quibus nomen dedit proprium deae summatis auxiliaris providentia.

[10] Then there flow in crowds initiated into the divine sacra, men and women of every dignity and every age, luminous with the pure candor of linen garb: the women, their dripping hair wrapped in a limpid covering; the men, with hair shaven to the root, their crowns gleaming—terrestrial stars of the great religion—making a shrill ringing with bronze and silver, nay indeed even golden, sistra; and those high-priests, chiefs of the rites, who, invested in white linen—a pectoral-girt vestment drawn tight down to the feet—were bearing forth the distinguished emblems of the most powerful gods. Of these, the first held out a lamp flashing with clear light, not so similar to those of ours which illuminate evening banquets, but a golden bowl, in the middle of its open hollow kindling a rather larger little flame. The second, similar indeed in dress, but with both hands was carrying altaria, that is, “aids,” to which their proper name was given by the provident care of the goddess, the supreme Helper.

Ibat tertius attollens palmam auro subtiliter foliatam nec non et Mercuriale caduceum. Quartus aequitatis ostendebat indicium deformatam manum sinistram porrecta palmula, quae genuina pigritia, nulla calliditate nulla sollertia praedita, videbatur aequitati magis aptior quam dextera; idem gerebat et aureum vasculum in modum papillae rutundatum, de quo lacte libabat. Quintus auream vannum laureis congestam ramulis, sextus ferebat amphoram.

I went third, lifting a palm-branch delicately foliated with gold, and also a Mercurial caduceus. The fourth displayed the token of equity: a disfigured left hand, with the little palm extended, which, endowed with innate slowness and furnished with no cleverness, no skill, seemed more apt to equity than the right hand; the same man also bore a little golden vessel rounded in the manner of a teat, from which he made a libation of milk. The fifth carried a golden winnowing-basket heaped with laurel twigs, the sixth bore an amphora.

[11] Nec mora, cum dei dignati pedibus humanis incedere prodeunt; hic horrendus ille superum commeator et inferum, nunc atra, nunc aurea facie sublimis, attollens canis cervices arduas, Anubis, laeva caduceum gerens, dextera palmam virentem quatiens. Huius vestigium continuum sequebatur bos in erectum levata statum, bos, omniparentis deae fecundum simulacrum, quod residens umeris suis proferebat unus e ministerio beato gressu gestuosus. Ferebatur ab alio cista secretorum capax penitus celans operta magnificae religionis.

[11] No delay, when the gods, having deigned to advance with human feet, come forth; here is that dread go‑between of the supernal and infernal powers, now with a black, now with a golden face, exalted, raising the dog’s towering necks—Anubis—bearing the caduceus in his left hand, shaking a green palm in his right. His step was continuously followed by a cow lifted into an upright posture, a cow, the fruitful simulacrum of the all‑parent goddess, which, resting upon his shoulders, one of the ministry carried forth with a blessed gait, deft in bearing. There was borne by another a cista of secrets, capacious, deeply hiding the covered things of the magnificent religion.

Gerebat alius felici suo gremio summi numinis venerandam effigiem, non pecoris, non avis, non ferae ac ne hominis quidem ipsius consimilem, sed sollerti repertu etiam ipsa novitate reverendam, altioris utcumque et magno silentio tegendae religionis argumentum ineffabile, sed ad istum plane modum fulgente auro figuratum; urnula faberrime cavata, fundo quam rutundo, miris extrinsecus simulacris Aegyptiorum effigiata; eius orificium non altiuscule levatum in canalem porrectum longo rivulo prominebat, ex alia vero parte multum recedens spatiosa dilatione adhaerebat ansa, quam contorto nodulo supersedebat aspis squameae cervicis striato tumore sublimis.

Another carried in his own happy lap the venerable effigy of the supreme divinity, resembling neither herd-beast, nor bird, nor wild creature, nay, not even man himself, but by a skillful invention to be revered even for its very novelty—an ineffable emblem of a higher religion, which in any case must be veiled in great silence—yet fashioned precisely in this manner in gleaming gold: a little urn, most expertly hollowed, with a very rounded bottom, figured on the outside with wondrous images of the Egyptians; its mouth, not raised very high, stretched out into a channel, projecting as a long little spout; from the other side, however, much set back, there adhered by a spacious widening a handle, above which was poised an asp, lofty with the striated swelling of a scaly neck, upon a twisted knot.

[12] Et ecce praesentissimi numinis promissa nobis accedunt beneficia et fata salutemque ipsam meam gerens sacerdos adpropinquat, ad ipsum praescriptum divinae promissionis ornatum dextera proferens sistrum deae, mihi coronam — et hercules coronam consequenter, quod tot ac tantis exanclatis laboribus, tot emensis periculis deae maximae providentia adluctantem mihi saevissime Fortunam superarem. Nec tamen gaudio subitario commotus inclementi me cursu proripui, verens scilicet ne repentino quadripedis impetu religionis quietus turbaretur ordo, sed placido ac prorsus humano gradu cunctabundus paulatim obliquato corpore, sane divinitus decedente populo, sensim inrepo.

[12] And behold, the benefits promised by the most-present numen draw near to us, and the priest, bearing my fates and my very safety, approaches, bringing forth with his right hand the sistrum of the goddess as the very ornament prescribed by the divine promise, and for me a crown — and by Hercules, a crown in due sequence, since, with so many and so great labors drained and so many dangers traversed, by the providence of the greatest goddess I would overcome Fortune, most savagely wrestling against me. Yet, not carried away by sudden joy, I did not rush out with an unrestrained course, fearing of course lest by the sudden onset of the quadruped the quiet order of the rite be disturbed; but with a calm and thoroughly human step, lingering, gradually with my body inclined aside — the people, to be sure, by divine impulse giving way — I gently creep forward.

[13] At sacerdos, ut reapse cognoscere potui, nocturni commonefactus oraculi miratusque congruentiam mandati muneris, confestim restitit et ultro porrecta dextera ob os ipsum meum coronam exhibuit. Tunc ego trepidans, adsiduo cursu micanti corde, coronam, quae rosis amoenis intexta fulgurabat, avido ore susceptam cupidus promissi devoravi. Nec me fefellit caeleste promissum: protinus mihi delabitur deformis et ferina facies.

[13] But the priest, as I could actually ascertain, having been reminded by the nocturnal oracle and marveling at the congruence of the mandated office, immediately halted and, of his own accord, with his right hand outstretched, presented the crown right before my very face. Then I, trembling, with my heart flashing from incessant running, the crown—which, interwoven with pleasant roses, was gleaming—having received it with an eager mouth, eager for the promise, I devoured. Nor did the heavenly promise deceive me: straightway the misshapen and bestial face slips down from me.

Ac primo quidem squalens pilus defluit, ac dehinc cutis crassa tenuatur, venter obesus residet, pedum plantae per ungulas in digitos exeunt, manus non iam pedes sunt, sed in erecta porriguntur officia, cervix procera cohibetur, os et caput rutundatur, aures enormes repetunt pristinam parvitatem, dentes saxei redeunt ad humanam minutiem, et, quae me potissimum cruciabat ante, cauda nusquam! Populi mirantur, religiosi venerantur tam evidentem maximi numinis potentiam et consimilem nocturnis imaginibus magnificentiam et facilitatem reformationis claraque et consona voce, caelo manus adtendentes, testantur tam inlustre deae beneficium.

And at first indeed the squalid hair flows down, and then the thick skin is thinned, the obese belly subsides, the soles of the feet, through the hooves, go out into toes, the hands are no longer feet, but are stretched forth to their erect offices, the long neck is held in, the mouth and head become rounded, the enormous ears recover their former smallness, the stony teeth return to human minuteness, and that which most tortured me before—the tail—nowhere! The peoples marvel, the devout venerate so evident a potency of the greatest numen and a magnificence akin to the nocturnal images and the facility of the reformation; and with clear and consonant voice, lifting their hands to heaven, they attest so illustrious a benefaction of the goddess.

[14] At ego stupore nimio defixus haerebam, animo meo tam repentinum tamque magnum non capiente gaudium, quid potissimum praefarer primarium, unde novae vocis exordium caperem, quo sermone nunc renata lingua felicius auspicarer, quibus quantisque verbis tantae deae gratias agerem. Sed sacerdos utcumque divino monitu cognitis ab origine cunctis cladibus meis, quamquam et ipse insigni permotus miraculo, nutu significato prius praecipit tegendo mihi linteam dari laciniam; nam me cum primum nefasto tegmine despoliaverat asinus, compressis in artum feminibus et superstrictis accurate manibus, quantum nudo licebat, velamento me naturali probe muniveram. Tunc e cohorte religionis unus inpigre superiorem exutus tunicam supertexit me celerrume. Quo facto sacerdos vultu geniali et hercules inhumano in aspectum meum attonitus sic effatur:

[14] But I, fixed in excessive stupor, was standing stock-still, my mind not containing so sudden and so great a joy—what principal thing I should first declare, whence I should take the exordium of a new voice, with what speech I should more felicitously auspicate my now reborn tongue, with what and how great words I should give thanks to so great a goddess. But the priest—somehow by divine monition having learned from the origin all my disasters, although he himself too was moved by the remarkable miracle—having first indicated by a nod, orders that a linen strip be given me for covering; for when the ass had first stripped me of the nefarious covering, with my thighs pressed tightly together and my hands very carefully crossed close, so far as it was permitted to one naked, I had duly fortified myself with my natural covering. Then one from the cohort of the religion, energetically, having taken off his upper tunic, covered me over very swiftly. This done, the priest, with a genial and—by Hercules—more-than-human countenance, astonished at my appearance, speaks thus:

[15] "Multis et variis exanclatis laboribus magnisque Fortunae tempestatibus et maximis actus procellis ad portum Quietis et aram Misericordiae tandem, Luci, venisti. Nec tibi natales ac ne dignitas quidem, vel ipsa, qua flores, usquam doctrina profuit, sed lubrico virentis aetatulae ad serviles delapsus voluptates curiositatis inprosperae sinistrum praemium reportasti. Sed utcumque Fortunae caecitas, dum te pessimis periculis discruciat, ad religiosam istam beatitudinem inprovida produxit malitia.

[15] "After many and various labors exanclated, and driven by great tempests of Fortune and by the greatest storms, to the port of Quiet and the altar of Mercy at last, Lucius, you have come. Neither your birth nor even your dignity, nor the very learning in which you flourish, profited you anywhere; but on the slippery footing of your green little age, having slipped down into servile pleasures, you carried back the ill‑omened reward of unprosperous curiosity. Yet somehow the blindness of Fortune, while she was excruciating you with the worst dangers, by improvident malice brought you forth to that religious beatitude."

Eat nunc et summo furore saeviat et crudelitati suae materiem quaerat aliam; nam in eos, quorum sibi vitas <in> servitium deae nostrae maiestas vindicavit, non habet locum casus infestus. Quid latrones, quid ferae, quid servitium, quid asperrimorum itinerum ambages reciprocae, quid metus mortis cotidianae nefariae Fortunae profuit? In tutelam iam receptus es Fortunae, sed videntis, quae suae lucis splendore ceteros etiam deos illuminat.

Let her go now and in utmost fury let her rage and seek other material for her cruelty; for against those whose lives the majesty of our goddess has claimed <in> the service, hostile chance has no place. What have bandits, what wild beasts, what servitude, what the back‑and‑forth meanders of the harshest journeys, what the fear of daily death, profited nefarious Fortune? You have now been received into the guardianship of Fortune, but a seeing one, who with the splendor of her own light illuminates even the other gods.

Sume iam vultum laetiorem candido isto habitu tuo congruentem, comitare pompam deae sospitatricis inovanti gradu. Videant inreligiosi, videant et errorem suum recognoscant: en ecce pristinis aerumnis absolutus Isidis magnae providentia gaudens Lucius de sua Fortuna triumphat. Quo tamen tutior sis atque munitior, da nomen sanctae huic militiae, cuius non olim sacramento etiam rogabaris, teque iam nunc obsequio religionis nostrae dedica et ministerii iugum subi voluntarium.

Assume now a more cheerful countenance, matching that white attire of yours; accompany the pomp of the Saviour‑goddess with a renewed step. Let the irreligious see, let them see and recognize their error: lo, behold, Lucius, released from his former hardships, rejoicing in the Providence of great Isis, triumphs over his own Fortune. Yet that you may be safer and more fortified, give your name to this holy militia, at whose sacrament not long ago you were even being asked; and now at once dedicate yourself to the obsequy of our religion and take upon yourself the voluntary yoke of ministry.

Nam cum coeperis deae servire, tunc magis senties fructum tuae libertatis."

For when you begin to serve the goddess, then you will more fully perceive the fruit of your liberty."

[16] Ad istum modum vaticinatus sacerdos egregius fatigatos anhelitus trahens conticuit. Exin permixtus agmini religioso procedens comitabar sacrarium totae civitati notus ac conspicuus, digitis hominum nutibusque notabilis. Omnes in me populi fabulabantur: "Hunc omnipotentis hodie deae numen augustum reformavit ad homines.

[16] In this manner, the distinguished priest, having prophesied, drawing weary breaths, fell silent. Then, mingled with the religious throng and proceeding, I accompanied the shrine, known and conspicuous to the whole city, notable to the pointing fingers and nods of men. All the people were talking about me: "Today the august numen of the omnipotent goddess has restored this man to humankind.

Felix hercule et ter beatus, qui vitae scilicet praecedentis innocentia fideque meruerit tam praeclarum de caelo patrocinium ut renatus quodam modo statim sacrorum obsequio desponderetur." Inter haec et festorum votorum tumultum paulatim progressi iam ripam maris proximamus atque ad ipsum illum locum quo pridie meus stabulaverat asinus pervenimus. Ibi deum simulacris rite dispositis navem faberrime factam picturis miris Aegyptiorum circumsecus variegatam summus sacerdos taeda lucida et ovo et sulpure, sollemnissimas preces de casto praefatus ore, quam purissime purificatam deae nuncupavit dedicavitque. Huius felicis alvei nitens carbasus litteras [votum] <auro> intextas progerebat: eae litterae votum instaurabant de novi commeatus prospera navigatione.

“Happy, by Hercules, and thrice blessed is he who, by the innocence and faith of his preceding life, has deserved so illustrious a patronage from heaven that, as if reborn in a certain way, he is forthwith betrothed to the service of the sacred rites.” Amid these things and the tumult of festal vows, little by little advancing, we now draw near the sea’s shore and we come to that very place where the day before my donkey had been stabled. There, with the images of the gods duly set in order, the chief priest—with a shining torch and with egg and sulfur, having prefaced the most solemn prayers from a chaste mouth—declared and dedicated to the goddess a ship most skillfully made, variegated all around with wondrous Egyptian paintings, purified as purely as possible. The gleaming linen canvas of this fortunate hull displayed letters [votum] interwoven: those letters renewed the vow concerning a prosperous navigation of the new convoy.

Iam malus insurgit pinus rutunda, splendore sublimis, insigni carchesio conspicua, et puppis intorta chenisco, bracteis aureis vestita fulgebat omnisque prorsus carina citro limpido perpolita florebat. Tunc cuncti populi tam religiosi quam profani vannos onustas aromatis et huiusce modis suppliciis certatim congerunt et insuper fluctus libant intritum lacte confectum, donec muneribus largis et devotionibus faustis completa navis, absoluta strophiis ancoralibus, peculiari serenoque flatu pelago redderetur. Quae, postquam cursus spatio prospectum sui nobis incertat, sacrorum geruli sumptis rursum quae quisque detulerant, alacres ad fanum reditum capessunt simili structu pompae decori.

Now the rounded pine-mast rises up, lofty in splendor, conspicuous with a distinguished carchesium, and the stern, twisted into a goose-neck, clothed with golden leaf, was gleaming, and the whole keel, polished with limpid citron-wood, was in full bloom. Then all the people, as well religious as profane, in rivalry heap up fans (winnowing-baskets) laden with aromatics and supplications of this sort; and moreover they libate the waves with a mash bruised and prepared with milk, until, the ship filled with liberal gifts and auspicious devotions, loosed from the anchor-twists, it was rendered to the sea by a particular and serene breath. Which, after by the space of her course she makes the sight of herself uncertain to us, the bearers of the sacred things, taking up again what each had brought, briskly set about a return to the shrine with a like structure of becoming pomp.

[17] At cum ad ipsum iam templum pervenimus, sacerdos maximus quique divinas effigies progerebant et qui venerandis penetralibus pridem fuerant initiati intra cubiculum deae recepti disponunt rite simulacra spirantia. Tunc ex his unus, quem cuncti grammatea dicebant, pro foribus assistens coetu pastophorum — quod sacrosancti collegii nomen est — velut in contionem vocato indidem de sublimi suggestu de libro de litteris fausta vota praefatus principi magno senatuique et equiti totoque Romano populo, nauticis navibusque quae sub imperio mundi nostratis reguntur, renuntiat sermone rituque Graeciensi ploiaphesia. Quam vocem feliciter cunctis evenire signavit populi clamor insecutus.

[17] But when we had now come to the temple itself, the high priest, and those who were carrying forth the divine effigies, and those who long before had been initiated into the venerable penetralia, received within the goddess’s cubiculum, duly arrange the lifelike simulacra. Then one of these, whom all called the grammateus, standing before the doors, with the assembly of the pastophori—which is the name of the sacrosanct college—summoned as if into a contion, from there, from a lofty platform, from the book of letters, after prefacing auspicious vows to the great princeps and to the senate and the equestrian order and the whole Roman people, and to the sailors and the ships which are governed under the imperium of our world, proclaims in Graecian speech and rite the ploiaphesia. Which word a shout of the people, following, marked as happily to befall all.

Exin gaudio delibuti populares thallos verbenas corollas ferentes exosculatis vestigiis deae, quae gradibus haerebat argento formata, ad suos discedunt lares. Nec tamen me sinebat animus ungue latius indidem digredi, sed intentus <in praesentis> deae specimen pristinos casus meos recordabar.

Then, smeared with joy, the townsfolk, bearing shoots, vervains, and garlands, after kissing the goddess’s footprints, who, fashioned in silver, clung to the steps, depart to their own Lares. Yet my spirit did not allow me to withdraw from there a nail’s breadth, but, intent upon the goddess’s appearance <present>, I was recalling my former mishaps.

[18] Nec tamen Fama volucris pigra pinnarum tarditate cessaverat, sed protinus in patria deae providentis adorabile beneficium meamque ipsius fortunam memorabilem narraverat passim. Confestim denique familiares ac vernulae quique mihi proximo nexu sanguinis cohaerebant, luctu deposito, quem de meae mortis falso nuntio susceperant, repentino laetati gaudio varie quisque ad meum festinant ilico diurnum reducemque ab inferis conspectum. Quorum desperata ipse etiam facie recreatus oblationes honestas aequi bonique facio, quippe cum mihi familiares, quo ad cultum sumptumque largiter succederet, deferre prospicue curassent.

[18] Nor, however, had winged Fame, the bird, ceased through the slowness of her pinions, but straightway throughout the fatherland of the provident goddess she had everywhere narrated the adorable benefaction and my own memorable fortune. Forthwith, then, my familiars and homeborn servants, and all who were joined to me by the nearest nexus of blood, laying aside the mourning which they had assumed at the false notice of my death, rejoicing with sudden gladness, each in his own way hasten instantly to the diurnal sight of me, a returnee from the infernal regions. Refreshed, I too, by the sight of their once-despairing faces, graciously take in good part their honorable oblations, since my household, to the end that there might be ample supply for attire and outlay, had with foresight taken care to bring things in.

[19] Adfatis itaque ex officio singulis narratisque meis propere et pristinis aerumnis et praesentibus gaudiis me rursum ad deae gratissimum mihi refero conspectum aedibusque conductis intra conseptum templi larem temporarium mihi constituo, deae ministeriis adhuc privatis adpositus contuberniisque sacerdotum individuus et numinis magni cultor inseparabilis. Nec fuit nox una vel quies aliqua visu deae monituque ieiuna, sed crebris imperiis sacris suis me, iam dudum destinatum, nunc saltem censebat initiari. At ego quanquam cupienti voluntate praeditus tamen religiosa formidine retardabar, quod enim sedulo percontaveram difficile religionis obsequium et castimoniorum abstinentiam satis arduam cautoque circumspectu vitam, quae multis casibus subiacet, esse muniendam.

[19] Therefore, after addressing each person in due form and quickly recounting my own former hardships and present joys, I return again to the sight of the goddess most gratifying to me, and, lodgings having been rented within the precinct of the temple, I establish for myself a temporary home; assigned as yet to the private ministries of the goddess, inseparable in the shared quarters of the priests, and an inseparable worshiper of the great numen. Nor was there a single night or any repose barren of the goddess’s vision and admonition; rather, by frequent commands she judged that I, long since destined, should now at least be initiated into her sacred rites. But I, although endowed with a desirous will, was nevertheless delayed by religious fear; for by diligent inquiry I had learned that the observance of the religion is difficult, the abstinence of chastities quite arduous, and that a life which is subject to many contingencies must be fortified by cautious circumspection.

Haec identidem mecum reputans nescio quo modo, quanquam festinans, differebam.

Reflecting on these things again and again with myself, I know not how, although hastening, I kept deferring.

[20] Nocte quadam plenum gremium suum visus est mihi summus sacerdos offerre ac requirenti, quid utique istud, respondisse partes illas de Thessalia mihi missas, servum etiam meum indidem supervenisse nomine Candidum. Hanc experrectus imaginem diu diuque apud cogitationes meas revolvebam, quid rei protenderet, praesertim cum nullum unquam habuisse me servum isto nomine nuncupatum certus essem. Utut tamen sese praesagium somni porrigeret, lucrum certum modis omnibus significari partium oblatione credebam.

[20] One night the high priest seemed to me to offer his lap, full; and, as I asked what ever this was, he answered that those portions had been sent to me from Thessaly, and that my slave as well had arrived thence, by name Candidus. Having awakened, I kept turning this image over and over for a very long time in my thoughts, what it might portend, especially since I was certain that I had never had a slave called by that name. However, however the presage of the dream might extend itself, I believed that a sure profit in every way was signified by the oblation of the portions.

Sic anxius et in proventum prosperiorem attonitus templi matutinas apertiones opperiebar. Ac dum, velis candentibus reductis in diversum, deae venerabilem conspectum adprecamur, et per dispositas aras circumiens sacerdos, rem divinam procurans supplicamentis sollemnibus, de penetrali fontem petitum spondeo libat; rebus iam rite consummatis incohatae lucis salutationibus religiosi primam nuntiantes horam perstrepunt. Et ecce superveniunt Hypata quos ibi reliqueram famulos, cum me Photis malis incapistrasset erroribus, cognitis scilicet fabulis meis, nec non et equum quoque illum meum reducentes, quem diversae distractum notae dorsualis agnitione recuperaverant.

S Thus anxious and, thunderstruck for a more prosperous outcome, I was awaiting the temple’s morning openings. And while, the gleaming curtains having been drawn back to either side, we entreat the venerable sight of the goddess, and the priest, going around the arranged altars, conducting the divine service with solemn supplications, from the inner shrine with a libation-bowl he pours as libation the requested water; with the rites now duly consummated, with salutations of the newborn light, the devout, announcing the first hour, make a din. And lo, there arrive from Hypata the servants whom I had left there, when Photis had bridled me with wicked errors—having, of course, learned my tales—and they were also bringing back that horse of mine as well, which, though it had been sold off, they had recovered by recognition of the dorsal brand, a distinctive mark.

Quare sollertiam somni tum mirabar vel maxime, quod praeter congruentiam lucrosae pollicitationis argumento servi Candidi equum reddidisset colore candidum.

Therefore I then marveled most of all at the ingenuity of the dream, because, besides the congruence of the lucrative promise, by the token of the slave Candidus it had given back a horse white in color.

[21] Quo facto idem sollicitius sedulum colendi frequentabam ministerium, spe futura beneficiis praesentibus pignerata. Nec minus in dies mihi magis magisque accipiendorum sacrorum cupido gliscebat, summisque precibus primarium sacerdotem saepissime conveneram petens ut me noctis sacratae tandem arcanis initiaret. At ille, vir alioquin gravis et sobriae religionis observatione famosus, clementer ac comiter et ut solent parentes inmaturis liberorum desideriis modificari, meam differens instantiam, spei melioris solaciis alioquin anxium mihi permulcebat animum: nam et diem, quo quisque possit initiari, deae nutu demonstrari et sacerdotem, qui sacra debeat ministrare, eiusdem providentia deligi, sumptus etiam caerimoniis necessarios simili praecepto destinari.

[21] This done, I, more anxiously, kept frequenting the assiduous ministry of worship, my hope of the future pledged by present benefactions. Nor was it less, but day by day my desire for receiving the sacra was swelling more and more, and with highest prayers I had very often approached the chief priest, asking that he at last initiate me into the arcana of the hallowed night. But he— a man otherwise grave and renowned for the observance of a sober religion— gently and affably, and as parents are wont to be moderated by the unripe desires of their children, deferring my urgency, soothed my otherwise anxious mind with the consolations of better hope: for both the day on which anyone can be initiated is shown by the nod of the goddess, and the priest who ought to minister the sacred rites is chosen by that same Providence, and the expenses necessary for the ceremonies are likewise appointed by a similar precept.

Quae cuncta nos quoque observabili patientia sustinere censebat, quippe cum aviditati contumaciaeque summe cavere et utramque culpam vitare ac neque vocatus morari nec non iussus festinare deberem; nec tamen esse quemquam de suo numero tam perditae mentis vel immo destinatae mortis, qui, non sibi quoque seorsum iubente domina, temerarium atque sacrilegum audeat ministerium subire noxamque letalem contrahere; nam et inferum claustra et salutis tutelam in deae manu posita, ipsamque traditionem ad instar voluntariae mortis et precariae salutis celebrari, quippe cum transactis vitae temporibus iam in ipso finitae lucis limine constitutos, quis tamen tuto possint magna religionis committi, silentia, numen deae soleat elicere et sua providentia quodam modo renatos ad novae reponere rursus salutis curricula; ergo igitur me quoque oportere caeleste sustinere praeceptum, quanquam perspicua evidentique magni numinis dignatione iam dudum felici ministerio nuncupatum destinatumque; nec secus quam cultores ceteris cibis profanis ac nefariis iam nunc temperarem, quo rectius ad arcana purissimae religionis secreta pervaderem.

He judged that we too should sustain all these things with observant patience, since I ought supremely to beware of avidity and contumacy and avoid each fault, and neither, when called, delay, and also, when ordered, make haste; nor, however, is there anyone of his number so lost in mind—or rather devoted to death—who, without the Lady herself also bidding him separately, would dare to undergo a rash and sacrilegious ministry and contract a lethal guilt; for both the bars of the underworld and the guardianship of salvation are placed in the hand of the goddess, and the very “tradition” is celebrated in the likeness of a voluntary death and a supplicatory salvation, since, with the times of life spent and men already set on the very threshold of finished light, the numen of the goddess is wont to draw forth silences through which great matters of religion can safely be entrusted, and by her providence to set, as if reborn, upon the courses of a new salvation; therefore it was proper for me also to await the heavenly precept, although by the clear and evident condescension of the great divinity I had long since been named and destined for a felicitous ministry; and, just as the worshipers, to abstain henceforth from other profane and nefarious foods, so that I might more rightly make my way to the arcana, the secrets of the most pure religion.

[22] Dixerat sacerdos, nec inpatientia corrumpebatur obsequium meum, sed intentus miti quiete et probabili taciturnitate sedulum quot dies obibam culturae sacrorum ministerium. Nec me fefellit vel longi temporis prolatione cruciavit deae potentis benignitas salutaris, sed noctis obscurae non obscuris imperiis evidenter monuit advenisse diem mihi semper optabilem, quo me maximi voti compotiret, quantoque sumptu deberem procurare supplicamentis, ipsumque Mithram illum suum sacerdotem praecipuum divino quodam stellarum consortio, ut aiebat, mihi coniunctum sacrorum ministrum decernit. Quis et ceteris benivolis praeceptis summatis deae recreatus animi necdum satis luce lucida, discussa quiete, protinus ad receptaculum sacerdotis contendo atque eum cubiculo suo commodum prodeuntem prodeuntem continatus saluto.

[22] The priest had spoken, and my obsequiousness was not corrupted by impatience, but intent in gentle quiet and reasonable taciturnity I diligently for many days performed the ministry of the cult of the sacred rites. Nor did the saving benignity of the powerful goddess deceive me or torture me by a prolongation of long time, but in the dark of night with commands not obscure she clearly warned that the day, ever desirable to me, had arrived, on which she would make me a sharer of my greatest vow, and with what expense I ought to make provision for the supplications; and she appoints as minister of the rites that Mithras of hers, her chief priest, joined to me by a certain divine consortium of the stars, as he said. By these and, after I had taken up the other benevolent precepts, my mind refreshed by the goddess, sleep shaken off and the light not yet sufficiently bright, I straightway hasten to the priest’s lodging and, catching him conveniently coming out of his chamber—coming out—I greet him.

Solito constantius destinaveram iam velut debitum sacris obsequium flagitare. At ille statim ut me conspexit, prior: "O" inquit "Luci, te felicem, te beatum, quem propitia voluntate numen augustum tantopere dignatur"; et "Quid" inquit "iam nunc stas otiosus teque ipsum demoraris? Adest tibi dies votis adsiduis exoptatus, quo deae multinominis divinis imperiis per istas meas manus piissimis sacrorum arcanis insinueris." Et iniecta dextera senex comissimus ducit me protinus ad ipsas fores aedis amplissimae rituque sollemni apertionis celebrato ministerio ac matutino peracto sacrificio de opertis adyti profert quosdam libros litteris ignorabilibus praenotatos, partim figuris cuiusce modi animalium concepti sermonis compendiosa verba suggerentes, partim nodosis et in modum rotae tortuosis capreolatimque condensis apicibus a curiositate profanorum lectione munita.

I had now determined, with more than my usual steadiness, to demand as if due the obsequy of the rites. But he, as soon as he caught sight of me, forestalling me, said: “O, Lucius, happy you, blessed you, whom the august divinity with propitious will so greatly deigns to favor”; and he said, “Why are you even now standing idle and delaying yourself? The day is at hand for you, longed for by assiduous vows, on which, by the divine commands of the many-named goddess, through these my hands you will be insinuated into the most pious arcana of the rites.” And with his right hand thrown upon me, the most companionable old man at once leads me to the very doors of the most ample shrine; and, the solemn rite of opening having been celebrated and the morning sacrifice performed, from the veiled adytum he brings forth certain books, pre-marked with letters not to be known—partly figures of animals of every sort suggesting compendious words of set discourse, partly characters guarded from the curiosity of the profane by knotted tips twisted in the manner of a wheel and packed densely in vine-tendril fashion, so that they resisted reading.

Indidem mihi praedicat, quae forent ad usum teletae necessario praeparanda.

From there he proclaims to me what things must, of necessity, be prepared for the use of the telete (initiation).

[23] Ea protinus naviter et aliquanto liberalius partim ipse, partim per meos socios coemenda procuro. Iamque tempore, ut aiebat sacerdos, id postulante stipatum me religiosa cohorte deducit ad proximas balneas et prius sueto lavacro traditum, praefatus deum veniam, purissime circumrorans abluit, rursumque ad templum reductum, iam duabus diei partibus transactis, ante ipsa deae vestigia constituit secretoque mandatis quibusdam, quae voce meliora sunt, illud plane cunctis arbitris praecepit, decem continuis illis diebus cibariam voluptatem coercerem neque ullum animal essem et invinius essem. Quis venerabili continentia rite servatis, iam dies aderat divino destinatus vadimonio, et sol curvatus intrahebat vesperam.

[23] Those things I straightway, briskly and somewhat more liberally, take care to have bought up, partly myself, partly through my companions. And now, at the time—as the priest said—that matter required, he, with me escorted by a religious cohort, leads me down to the nearest baths and, first, after delivering me to the customary bath, having prefaced by asking the god’s pardon, he washes me, most purely sprinkling all around; and again, having led me back to the temple, now with two parts of the day spent, he stations me before the very footsteps of the goddess, and with certain instructions in secret—which are better by voice—he plainly enjoined this with all as witnesses: that for those ten continuous days I should restrain the pleasure of food, and that I should eat no animal and be without wine. These things having been duly kept with venerable continence, now the day had come appointed by the divine recognizance, and the sun, bending, was bringing in evening.

Tum ecce confluunt undique turbae sacrorum ritu vetusto variis quisque me muneribus honorantes. Tunc semotis procul profanis omnibus linteo rudique me contectum amicimine arrepta manu sacerdos deducit ad ipsius sacrarii penetralia. Quaeras forsitan satis anxie, studiose lector, quid deinde dictum, quid factum; dicerem, si dicere liceret, cognosceres, si liceret audire.

Then, lo, from every side the crowds flow together, honoring me each with various gifts according to the ancient rite of the sacra. Then, with all the profane removed far away, the priest, having covered me with a linen and rough covering, my hand seized, leads me down to the inmost parts of the shrine itself. You may perhaps inquire quite anxiously, studious reader, what then was said, what was done; I would tell, if it were permitted to speak; you would learn, if it were permitted to hear.

Sed parem noxam contraherent et aures et lingua, <ista impiae loquacitatis>, illae temerariae curiositatis. Nec te tamen desiderio forsitan religioso suspensum angore diutino cruciabo. Igitur audi, sed crede, quae vera sunt.

But both ears and tongue would incur equal guilt, <the one of impious loquacity>, the other of reckless curiosity. Yet I will not torture you, held perhaps in suspense by religious longing, with protracted anguish. Therefore listen—but believe—what is true.

Accessi confinium mortis et calcato Proserpinae limine per omnia vectus elementa remeavi, nocte media vidi solem candido coruscantem lumine, deos inferos et deos superos accessi coram et adoravi de proximo. Ecce tibi rettuli, quae, quamvis audita, ignores tamen necesse est. ergo quod solum potest sine piaculo ad profanorum intellegentias enuntiari, referam.

I approached the confine of death, and, having trodden Proserpina’s threshold, borne through all the elements I returned; at midnight I saw the sun coruscating with candid light; I approached the gods below and the gods above face to face and adored them at close hand. Behold, I have recounted to you things which, although heard, it is nevertheless necessary that you not know. Therefore I shall relate that alone which can, without impiety, be enunciated to the intelligences of the profane.

[24] Mane factum est, et perfectis sollemnibus processi duodecim sacratus stolis, sed effari deo eo nullo vinculo prohibeor, quippe quod tunc temporis videre praesentes plurimi. Namque in ipso aedis sacrae meditullio ante deae simulacrum constitutum tribunal ligneum iussus superstiti byssina quidem sed floride depicta veste conspicuus. Et umeris dependebat pone tergum talorum tenus pretiosa chlamida.

[24] Morning came, and, the solemnities having been completed, I proceeded consecrated in twelve stoles; yet I am restrained by no bond from uttering this, since at that time very many were present to see. For in the very midmost of the sacred temple, before the image of the goddess, a wooden tribunal having been set up, I was ordered there, conspicuous in a byssine (fine-linen) garment indeed, but floridly painted. And from my shoulders there hung down behind my back, down to the ankles, a precious chlamys.

Quaqua tamen viseres, colore vario circumnotatis insignibar animalibus; hinc dracones Indici, inde grypes Hyperborei, quos in speciem pinnatae alitis generat mundus alter. Hanc Olympiacam stolam sacrati nuncupant. At manu dextera gerebam flammis adultam facem et caput decore corona cinxerat palmae candidae foliis in modum radiorum prosistentibus.

Wherever, however, you might look, I was being marked all around with animals delineated in variegated color: here Indian dragons, there Hyperborean griffins, which the other world begets in the form of a winged bird. This the consecrated call the Olympiac stole. But in my right hand I bore a torch blazing with flames, and my head was gracefully encircled with a crown of white palm, its leaves standing forth in the manner of rays.

Sic ad instar Solis exornato me et in vicem simulacri constituto, repente velis reductis, in aspectum populus errabat. Exhinc festissimum celebravi natalem sacrorum, et suaves epulae et faceta convivia. Dies etiam tertius pari caerimoniarum ritu celebratus et ientaculum religiosum et teletae legitima consummatio.

Thus, with me adorned in the likeness of the Sun and set, in turn, as a simulacrum, suddenly, the curtains drawn back, the populace wandered into view. Thereafter I celebrated the most festal natal day of the sacred rites, with sweet banquets and witty convivialities. The third day too was celebrated with an equal rite of ceremonies, with a religious breakfast and the lawful consummation of the telete.

Paucis dehinc ibidem commoratus diebus inexplicabili voluptate simulacri divini perfruebar, inremunerabili quippe beneficio pigneratus. Sed tandem deae monitu, licet non plene, tamen pro meo modulo supplicue gratis persolutis, tardam satis domuitionem comparo, vix equidem abruptis ardentissimi desiderii retinaculis. Provolutus denique ante conspectum deae et facie mea diu detersis vestigiis eius, lacrimis obortis, singultu crebro sermonem interficiens et verba devorans aio:

Pand then, having tarried there for a few days, I was enjoying an inexplicable delight at the divine image, indeed pledged by an unremunerable benefit. But at length, at the admonition of the goddess, although not fully, yet, according to my own measure, my suppliant thanks having been duly paid, I prepare a sufficiently slow homeward return, scarcely indeed with the reins of a most ardent desire torn away. Finally, prostrate before the presence of the goddess, and after I had long wiped her footprints with my face, tears welling up, frequently interrupting my speech with sobbing and devouring my words, I say:

[25] "Tu quidem sancta et humani generis sospitatrix perpetua, semper fovendis mortalibus munifica, dulcem matris adfectationem miserorum casibus tribuis. Nec dies nec quies nulla ac ne momentum quidem tenue tuis transcurrit beneficiis otiosum, quin mari terraque protegas homines et depulsis vitae procellis salutarem porrigas dexteram, qua fatorum etiam inextricabiliter contorta retractas licia et Fortunae tempestates mitigas et stellarum noxios meatus cohibes. Te superi colunt, observant inferi, tu rotas orbem, luminas solem, regis mundum, calcas tartarum.

[25] "You indeed, holy and perpetual protectress of the human race, always munificent in fostering mortals, grant the sweet affection of a mother to the misfortunes of the wretched. Neither day nor any repose, nay not even the slightest moment, runs idle of your benefactions, but on sea and land you protect human beings and, the storms of life having been driven away, you extend a saving right hand, by which you draw back the threads of the Fates even when inextricably entangled, you mitigate the tempests of Fortune, and you restrain the noxious courses of the stars. The gods above worship you, the gods below obey you; you wheel the orb, you illumine the sun, you rule the world, you tread Tartarus.

Tibi respondent sidera, redeunt tempora, gaudent numina, serviunt elementa. Tuo nutu spirant flamina, nutriunt nubila, germinant semina, crescunt germina. Tuam maiestatem perhorrescunt aves caelo meantes, ferae montibus errantes, serpentes solo latentes, beluae ponto natantes.

To you the stars respond, the seasons return, the divine powers rejoice, the elements serve. At your nod the winds breathe, the clouds nourish, the seeds germinate, the shoots grow. At your majesty the birds coursing through the sky, the wild beasts roaming the mountains, the serpents lurking in the soil, the beasts swimming in the deep, shudder.

At ego referendis laudibus tuis exilis ingenio et adhibendis sacrificiis tenuis patrimonio; nec mihi vocis ubertas ad dicenda, quae de tua maiestate sentio, sufficit nec ora mille linguaeque totidem vel indefessi sermonis aeterna series. Ergo quod solum potest religiosus quidem, sed pauper alioquin, efficere curabo: divinos tuos vultus numenque sanctissimum intra pectoris mei secreta conditum perpetuo custodiens imaginabor." Ad istum modum deprecato summo numine complexus Mithram sacerdotem et meum iam parentem colloque eius multis osculis inhaerens veniam postulabam, quod eum condigne tantis beneficiis munerari nequirem.

But I, for recounting your praises, am slender in talent and for offering sacrifices scant in patrimony; nor does an abundance of voice suffice me for saying what I feel about your majesty, nor a thousand mouths and just as many tongues, nor the eternal series of untiring discourse. Therefore I will take care to effect the only thing that a man religious indeed, but otherwise poor, can accomplish: I will imagine your divine countenances and your most holy numen, laid up within the secret places of my breast, keeping them guarded forever." In this manner, when I had entreated the highest godhead, embracing Mithras the priest and now my parent, and clinging to his neck with many kisses, I was asking pardon, because I could not reward him worthily for such great benefactions.

[26] Diu denique gratiarum gerendarum sermone prolixo commoratus, tandem digredior et recta patrium larem revisurus meum post aliquam multum temporis contendo paucosque post diebus deae potentis instinctu raptim constrictis sarcinulis, nave conscensa, Romam versus profectionem dirigo, tutusque prosperitate ventorum ferentium Augusti portum celerrime ac dehinc carpento pervolavi, vesperaque, quam dies insequebatur Iduum Decembrium, sacrosanctam istam civitatem accedo. Nec ullum tam praecipuum mihi exinde studium fuit quam cotidie supplicare summo numini reginae Isidis, quae de templi situ sumpto nomine Campensis summa cum veneratione propitiatur. Eram cultor denique adsiduus, fani quidem advena, religionis autem indigena.

[26] After lingering long, finally, with a prolix discourse of thanks rendered, at length I depart, and straightway, to revisit my paternal Lar, after some I press on for much time; and a few days later, at the instigation of the mighty goddess, my little packs having been quickly tied up, a ship being boarded, I direct my departure toward Rome; safe in the prosperity of favoring winds, I very swiftly the Port of Augustus, and from there I sped by carriage, and on the evening before the Ides of December, I come to that most sacrosanct city. Nor was any pursuit from then on so preeminent for me as to supplicate daily the supreme divinity of Queen Isis, who, from the situation of the temple taking the name Campensis, is propitiated with the highest veneration. I was, in fine, an assiduous worshipper—indeed an outsider to the shrine, but a native to the religion.

Ecce transcurso signifero circulo Sol magnus annum compleverat, et quietem meam rursus interpellat numinis benefici cura pervigilis et rursus teletae, rursus sacrorum commonet. Mirabar, quid rei temptaret, quid pronuntiaret futurum; quidni? <Qui> plenissime iam dudum videbar initiatus.

Behold, with the sign-bearing circle traversed, the great Sun had completed the year, and the ever-wakeful care of the beneficent divinity again interrupts my rest and again admonishes me to initiation, again to the sacred rites. I marveled what affair it was attempting, what it was pronouncing would be; why not? For I already long since seemed most fully initiated.

[27] Ac dum religiosum scrupulum partim apud meum sensum disputo, partim sacratorum consiliis examino, novum mirumque plane comperior: deae quidem me tantum sacris imbutum, at magni dei deumque summi parentis invicti Osiris necdum sacris inlustratum; quanquam enim conexa, immo vero unita ratio numinis religionisque esset, tamen teletae discrimen interesse maximum; prohinc me quoque peti magno etiam deo famulum sentire deberem. Nec diu res in ambiguo stetit. Nam proxuma nocte vidi quendam de sacratis linteis iniectum, qui thyrsos et hederas et tacenda quaedam gerens ad ipsos meos lares collocaret et occupato sedili meo religionis amplae denuntiaret epulas.

[27] And while I partly debate a religious scruple within my own sense, partly examine it by the counsels of the consecrated, I plainly discover something new and wondrous: that I was indeed only imbued with the goddess’s rites, but not yet illumined by the rites of the great god and unconquered Osiris, father of the highest gods; although the rationale of the numen and of religion was connected, nay truly united, yet a very great difference in the initiation; therefore I too ought to perceive that I am being sought as a servant even by the great god. Nor did the matter remain long in ambiguity. For the next night I saw someone wrapped in sacred linens, who, bearing thyrsi and ivy and certain things to be kept silent, would set them at my very household Lares, and, having occupied my seat, would announce the banquets of ample religion.

Is ut agnitionem mihi scilicet certo aliquo sui signo subministraret, sinistri pedis talo paululum reflexo cunctabundo clementer incedebat vestigio. Sublata est ergo post tam manifestam deum voluntatem ambiguitatis tota caligo et ilico deae matutinis perfectis salutationibus summo studio percontabar singulos, ecqui vestigium similis ut somnium. Nec fides afuit.

He, in order to supply me recognition, to be sure, by some definite sign of himself, advanced with a gentle step, the ankle of his left foot a little bent back, with a hesitating footprint. Therefore, after so manifest a will of the gods, the whole darkness of ambiguity was lifted, and immediately, once the goddess’s morning salutations were completed, with utmost zeal I was questioning individuals, whether anyone had a footprint like the dream. Nor was assurance lacking.

Nam de pastophoris unum conspexi statim praeter indicium pedis cetero etiam statu atque habitu examussim nocturnae imagini congruentem, quem Asinium Marcellum vocitari cognovi postea, reformationis meae <minime> alienum nomen. Nec moratus conveni protinus eum sane nec ipsum futuri sermonis ignarum, quippe iam dudum consimili praecepto sacrorum ministrandorum commonefactum. Nam sibi visus est quiete proxima, dum magno deo coronas exaptat, * * * et de eius ore, quo singulorum fata dictat, audisse mitti sibi Madaurensem, sed admodum pauperem, sui statim sua sacra deberet ministrare; nam et illi studiorum gloriam et ipsi grande compendium sua comparari providentia.

For among the pastophores I at once caught sight of one who, besides the token of the foot, in the rest of his stature and dress exactly corresponded to the nocturnal image; I afterward learned he was called Asinius Marcellus—a name by no means alien to my reformation. Not delaying, I approached him immediately—indeed he himself was not unaware of the coming conversation, since long before he had been reminded by a similar precept about ministering the sacred rites. For in his most recent repose he seemed to himself, while fitting garlands upon the great god, * * * and from his mouth—wherewith he dictates the fates of individuals—to have heard that a Madaurensian was being sent to him, but very poor, who ought straightway to minister his rites; for both for that man the glory of studies and for himself a great profit was being procured by his providence.

[28] Ad istum modum desponsus sacris sumptuum tenuitate contra votum meum retardabar. Nam et viriculas patrimonii peregrinationis adtriverant impensae et erogationes urbicae pristinis illis provincialibus antistabant plurimum. Ergo duritia paupertatis intercedente, quod ait vetus proverbium, inter sacrum ego et saxum positus cruciabar, nec setius tamen identidem numinis premebar instantia.

[28] In this way, though betrothed to the sacred rites, I was, against my vow, delayed by the tenuity of expenditures. For the little threads of my patrimony had been worn away by the expenses of peregrination, and the urban disbursements far surpassed those former provincial ones. Therefore, with the hardness of poverty intervening, as the old proverb says, I, set between the sacred and the stone, was tormented; nor, for all that, was I any the less, again and again, pressed by the insistence of the divinity.

Iamque saepicule non sine magna turbatione stimulatus, postremo iussus, veste ipsa mea quamvis parvula distracta, sufficientem contraxi summulam. Et id ipsum praeceptum fuerat specialiter: "An tu" inquit "si quam rem voluptati struendae moliris, laciniis tuis nequaquam parceres: nunc tantas caerimonias aditurus impaenitendae te pauperiei cunctaris committere?" Ergo igitur cunctis adfatim praeparatis, decem rursus diebus inanimis contentus cibis, insuper etiam deraso capite, principalis dei nocturnis orgiis inlustratus, plena iam fiducia germanae religionis obsequium divinum frequentabam. Quae res summum peregrinationi meae tribuebat solacium nec minus etiam victum uberiorem subministrabat, quidni?

And now, having been pricked often enough, not without great perturbation, and at last ordered, by selling even my very garment, although a little one, I gathered a sufficient little sum. And this very thing had been specially enjoined: “What? If you were contriving any matter for constructing pleasure, you would by no means spare your rags; now, about to approach such great ceremonies of an unrepentable poverty, do you hesitate to commit yourself?” Therefore, with all things prepared in sufficiency, for ten days again, content with inanimate foods, and moreover with my head shaved, illumined by the nocturnal orgies (rites) of the principal god, now with full confidence in the genuine religion I kept frequenting the divine service. This afforded the highest solace to my pilgrimage and no less also supplied a more bountiful livelihood—why not?

Spiritu faventis Eventus quaesticulo forensi nutrito per patrocinia sermonis Romani.

By the spirit of favoring Success, I was nourished in a little forensic livelihood through the patronages of Roman speech.

[29] Et ecce post pauculum tempus inopinatis et usquequaque mirificis imperiis deum rursus interpellor et cogor tertiam quoque teletam sustinere. Nec levi cura sollicitus, sed oppido suspensus animi mecum ipse cogitationes exercitius agitabam, quorsus nova haec et inaudita se caelestium porrigeret intentio, quid subsicivum, quamvis iteratae iam, traditioni remansisset: "Nimirum perperam vel minus plene consuluerunt in me sacerdos uterque"; et hercules iam de fide quoque eorum opinari coeptabam sequius. Quo me cogitationis aestu fluctuantem ad instar insaniae percitum sic instruxit nocturna divinatione clemens imago: "Nihil est" inquit "quod numerosa serie religionis, quasi quicquam sit prius omissum terreare.

[29] And behold, after a little time I am again interpellated by the unexpected and everywhere wondrous imperatives of the gods and compelled to endure a third teletē as well. Not anxious with a light concern, but exceedingly suspended in mind, I myself kept more strenuously tossing over thoughts with myself, to what end this new and unheard-of intention of the celestials was extending, what subsistence, although already repeated, had remained to the tradition: "Surely each priest consulted concerning me wrongly or less fully"; and by Hercules, I was already beginning to think the worse also about their good faith. While I, wavering in this surge of thought, driven to the likeness of insanity, was thus instructed by a clement image through nocturnal divination: "There is nothing," it said, "in the numerous series of religion, as if anything had been omitted before, for which you should be terrified."

Quin adsidua ista numinum dignatione laetus capesse gaudium et potius exsulta ter futurus, quod alii vel semel vix conceditur, teque de isto numero merito praesume semper beatum. Ceterum futura tibi sacrorum traditio pernecessaria est, si tecum nunc saltem reputaveris exuvias deae, quos in provincia sumpsisti, in eodem fano depositas perseverare nec te Romae diebus sollemnibus vel supplicare iis vel, cum praeceptum fuerit, felici illo amictu illustrari posse. Quid felix itaque ac faustum salutareque sit, animo gaudiali rursum sacris initiare deis magnis auctoribus."

Rather, rejoice in that assiduous favor of the divinities, take up joy, and exult at being about to be thrice (initiated)—a thing which is scarcely conceded to others even once—and presume yourself with good right to be always blessed among that number. Moreover, the forthcoming tradition/initiation of the sacred rites is most necessary for you, if you now at least reckon with yourself that the goddess’s vestures, which you assumed in the province, remain deposited in that same fane, and that at Rome on the solemn days you are not able either to supplicate them or, when it shall have been prescribed, to be adorned with that felicitous amict. Therefore, what is happy and auspicious and salutary is, with a joyful mind, to be initiated again into the rites, with the great gods as authors.

[30] Hactenus divini somnii suada maiestas, quod usus foret, pronuntiavit. Nec deinceps postposito vel in supinam procrastinationem reiecto negotio, statim sacerdoti meo relatis quae videram, inanimae protinus castimoniae iugum subeo et lege perpetua praescriptis illis decem diebus spontali sobrietate multiplicatis instructum teletae comparo largitus, ex studio pietatis magis quam mensura rerum collatis. Nec hercules laborum me sumptuumque quidquam tamen paenituit, quidni?

[30] Up to this point the persuasive majesty of the divine dream pronounced what would be of use. Nor thereafter, with the business neither postponed nor cast into supine procrastination, I immediately, after reporting to my priest what I had seen, submit at once to the yoke of lifeless chastity and, by a perpetual rule, those ten prescribed days multiplied by voluntary sobriety, I prepare myself, equipped for the initiation, having lavished contributions, with furnished more from zeal for piety than from the measure of my resources. Nor, by Hercules, did I regret anything of the labors and expenses—why should I?

Liberali deum providentia iam stipendiis forensibus bellule fotum. Denique post dies admodum pauculos deus deum magnorum potior et potiorum summus et summorum maximus et maximorum regnator Osiris non in alienam quampiam personam reformatus, sed coram suo illo venerando me dignatus adfamine per quietem recipere visus est: quae nunc, incunctanter gloriosa in foro redderem patrocinia, nec extimescerem malevolorum disseminationes, quas studiorum meorum laboriosa doctrina ibidem exciverat. Ac ne sacris suis gregi cetero permixtus deservirem, in collegium me pastophorum suorum immo inter ipsos decurionum quinquennales adlegit.

Liberal providence of the gods now had me cosily fostered by forensic stipends. Finally, after very few days, the god—Osiris, god more potent than the great, and of the more potent the highest, and of the highest the greatest, and of the greatest the ruler—not refashioned into some alien personage, but in his own venerable presence, deigned to receive me with an address during sleep: that now I should render, without delay, glorious patronages in the forum, and not be afraid of the disseminations of the ill‑disposed, which the painstaking discipline of my studies had there provoked. And, lest I should serve his sacred rites mingled with the rest of the flock, he enrolled me into the college of his pastophori—nay, among the very quinquennial decurions themselves.

Rursus denique quaqua raso capillo collegii vetustissimi et sub illis Syllae temporibus conditi munia, non obumbrato vel obtecto calvitio, sed quoquoversus obvio, gaudens obibam.

Then again, with my hair shaved all around, I gladly went about performing the duties of a very ancient college, founded under those times of Sulla, my baldness not shaded or covered, but obvious on every side.