Now is the time your artifice to try,Act not so much the lover as the spy;For vanity makes all the fair presumeThere's nothing which their charms can misbecome.Take this occasion her defects to find,When you can fix them deeply in your mind;In the dull minute of your discontents,(The pensive mood when sated love repents,)To your sick thoughts her blemishes display,And, for aversion, by those means make way.These helps, you'll say, are trivial; I confess,Singly they are, but join'd will have success.By one small viper's bite an ox is killed;The forest-boar by a less dog is held.Unite my precepts if apart they fail,And by resistless number you'll prevail.But different minds for different methods call,Nor what cures most will have effect on all;E'en that which makes another's flame expire,Perhaps may prove but fuel to your fire.For one disgusted with the nymph's undress,Grows cold and weary of her warm caress,Another from his wanton mistress flies,When he his rival's recent raptures spies,Like warm desire; and he but little loves,Whom ev'ry trifle shocks, and nothing moves.To those I write, for my advice they need,Whose hardy passion can unbalk'd proceed.What think you of that lover who could lieConcealed, to see what custom must deny?I to no such indecent means direct,Not to be practis'd tho' of sure effect.
Et pudet, et dicam: venerem quoque iunge figura,Qua minime iungi quamque decere putas.Nec labor efficere est: rarae sibi vera fatentur,Et nihil est, quod se dedecuisse putent.Tunc etiam iubeo totas aperire fenestras,Turpiaque admisso membra notare die.At simul ad metas venit finita voluptas,Lassaque cum tota corpora mente iacent,Dum piget, et malis nullam tetigisse puellam,Tacturusque tibi non videare diu,Tunc animo signa, quaecumque in corpore menda est,Luminaque in vitiis illius usque tene.Forsitan haec aliquis (nam sunt quoque) parva vocabit,Sed, quae non prosunt singula, multa iuvant.Parva necat morsu spatiosum vipera taurum:A cane non magno saepe tenetur aper.Tu tantum numero pugna, praeceptaque in unumContrahe: de multis grandis acervus erit.Sed quoniam totidem mores totidemque figurae,Non sunt iudiciis omnia danda meis.Quo tua non possunt offendi pectora facto,Forsitan hoc alio iudice crimen erit.Ille quod obscenas in aperto corpore partesViderat, in cursu qui fuit, haesit amor:Ille quod a Veneris rebus surgente puellaVidit in inmundo signa pudenda toro.Luditis, o siquos potuerunt ista movere:Adflarant tepidae pectora vestra faces.Adtrahat ille puer contentos fortius arcus:Saucia maiorem turba petetis opem.Quid, qui clam latuit reddente obscena puella,Et vidit, quae mos ipse videre vetat?Di melius, quam nos moneamus talia quemquam!Ut prosint, non sunt expedienda tamen.
If to excess you find your passion rise,I would at once two mistresses advise:Divided care will give your mind relief;What nourish'd one may starve the twins of grief.Large rivers, drain'd in many streams, grow dry;Withdraw its fuel, and the flame will die.What ship can safely with one anchor ride?With several cables she can brave the tide.Who can at once two passions entertain,May free himself at will from either chain.If treated ill by her whom you adore,A kinder nymph your freedom must restore.No sooner Minos did fair Procris view,But scandal on Pasiphae's fame he threw.From his first charmer soon Alcmaen fled,Callirhoe once admitted to his bed.Oenone still had Paris' mistress been,Had Paris fairer Helen never seen.So Progne's beauty, tho' a wife, endear'dHer Tereus, till Philomel appear'd.But I too long on dry examples dwell,Some new desire your former must expel.A fruitful mother with one child can part,The rest surviving to support her heart;But she's impatiently of one bereft,Who has, alas! no second comfort left.But lest you think that I new laws decree(Tho' proud of the invention I could be),The same long since wise Agamemnon saw;(What saw he not who held all Greece in awe!)The beauteous captive to himself he kept;Her father fondly for his daughter wept.Why dost thou grieve, old sot? thy daughter's blest!A royal whore. But, to assuage the pest,When with his mistress he was forced to part,The prudent prince ne'er laid the loss to heart.Achilles keeps as fair a lass as she,Their form, their very names, almost agree."Let him," said he "resign her by consent,Or he shall feel my kingly power's extent;If to my subjects this shall give offence,The name of monarch is a vain pretence.Rather than reign and have my love confin'd,My throne shall to Thersites be resign'd."He said: and, for a charming mistress lost,Repair'd his sufferings at another's cost.Do you this royal precedent pursue,And quench your former passions by a new.
Hortor et, ut pariter binas habeatis amicas(Fortior est, plures siquis habere potest):Secta bipertito cum mens discurrit utroque,Alterius vires subtrahit alter amor.Grandia per multos tenuantur flumina rivos,Saevaque diducto stipite flamma perit.Non satis una tenet ceratas ancora puppes,Nec satis est liquidis unicus hamus aquis:Qui sibi iam pridem solacia bina paravit,Iam pridem summa victor in arce fuit.At tibi, qui fueris dominae male creditus uni,Nunc saltem novus est inveniendus amor.Pasiphaës Minos in Procride perdidit ignes:Cessit ab Idaea coniuge victa prior.Amphilochi frater ne Phegida semper amaret,Calliroë fecit parte recepta tori.Et Parin Oenone summos tenuisset ad annos,Si non Oebalia paelice laesa foret.Coniugis Odrysio placuisset forma tyranno:Sed melior clausae forma sororis erat.Quid moror exemplis, quorum me turba fatigat?Successore novo vincitur omnis amor.Fortius e multis mater desiderat unum,Quam quem flens clamat 'tu mihi solus eras.'Ac ne forte putes nova me tibi condere iura(Atque utinam inventi gloria nostra foret!),Vidit ut Atrides (quid enim non ille videret,Cuius in arbitrio Graecia tota fuit?)Marte suo captam Chryseïda, victor amabat:At senior stulte flebat ubique pater.Quid lacrimas, odiose senex? bene convenit illis:Officio natam laedis, inepte, tuo.Quam postquam reddi Calchas, ope tutus Achillis,Iusserat, et patria est illa recepta domo,'Est' ait Atrides 'illius proxima forma,Et, si prima sinat syllaba, nomen idem:Hanc mihi, si sapiat, per se concedat Achilles:Si minus, imperium sentiat ille meum.Quod siquis vestrum factum hoc incusat, Achivi,Est aliquid valida sceptra tenere manu.Nam si rex ego sum, nec mecum dormiat ulla,In mea Thersites regna, licebit, eat.'Dixit, et hanc habuit solacia magna prioris,Et posita est cura cura repulsa nova.Ergo adsume novas auctore Agamemnone flammas,Ut tuus in bivio distineatur amor.
If you're a stranger to the sex, enquireWhere you may find a mistress to admire.To learn their haunts my books of love peruse,Where from a swarm of beauties you may choose.But if my precepts have the least pretenceTo truth, and if I speak Apollo's sense,Tho' Aetna's fires within your bosom glow,Dissemble, and appear more cold than snow.In spite of torture, still from tears refrain;Laugh when you have most reason to complain.Nor do I such severe commands impart,At once to bid you tear her from your heart:But counterfeit; you'll prove in the event,That careless lover whom you represent.Oft when the merry round I would not keep,I've seem'd to nod, and, seeming, fall'n asleep.I've laugh'd at him who fool'd away his heart,Dissembling passion, till he felt the smart.Love comes by use; disuse will love expel;Learn to feign health, and you will soon be wellIf she has bid you come, and fix'd the night,Tho' sure that she to mock you did invite,Yet go; and if you find the door fast lock'd,Endure the disappointment; be not shock'd;Nor curse the gate, nor fond entreaties make,Nor on the threshold a hard lodging take:And when you see her next, complaints forbear,Nor in your looks the least resentment wear.Her pride will stoop, and give your feign'd neglectWhat she denied to your sincere respect.Nor is't enough your mistress thus to cheat,You on yourself must put the same deceit:Acquaint not your own thoughts with the design,Till the work's done and you have sprung the mire.For else 'tis odd, but nature in your heartWill faction raise, and take your mistress' part.What you propose will soon effected be,Your progress sure, if made with secrecy.Conceal your nets; if they are spread in sight,The bird you meant to take you'll only fright.Nor suffer her you love, so much to prizeHer charming self, that she may you despise.Take courage; conscious of your merit seem,And worthy you'll appear of her esteem.E'en then when you her door wide open spy,Nay, tho' called in, yet pass regardless by.She'll offer you her bed; refuse to takeThe favour, or a doubtful answer make.Let wisdom once but teach you to abstainFrom what you wish, you may your wish obtain.Perhaps at my severe advice you'll start,But know, I act a reconciler's part.Diseases in a thousand forms are rang'd;As tempers vary, med'cines must be chang'd.Some bodies must a sharp long course endure,A single drug on others works a cure.If your soft nature yield to Cupid's stroke,And strength is wanting to support his yoke,Forbear against the wind and tide to strive;Slacken your sail, and with the current drive.For first the raging thirst in which you fry,Must be assuag'd, ere other means you try:Drink freely then: nor can you safely trustTo satisfaction, drink even to disgust.Visit your mistress, keep her in your sight,Lock'd up all day, and in your arms all night.Still sit at board, though appetite decay,And though you find you could be absent, stay:Indulge desire, till your desires are cloy'd,And love by too much plenty is destroy'd.
Quaeris, ubi invenias? artes tu perlege nostras:Plena puellarum iam tibi navis erit.Quod siquid praecepta valent mea, siquid ApolloUtile mortales perdocet ore meo,Quamvis infelix media torreberis Aetna,Frigidior glacie fac videare tuae:Et sanum simula, ne, siquid forte dolebis,Sentiat; et ride, cum tibi flendus eris.Non ego te iubeo medias abrumpere curas:Non sunt imperii tam fera iussa mei.Quod non es, simula, positosque imitare furores:Sic facies vere, quod meditatus eris.Saepe ego, ne biberem, volui dormire videri:Dum videor, somno lumina victa dedi:Deceptum risi, qui se simularat amare,In laqueos auceps decideratque suos.Intrat amor mentes usu, dediscitur usu:Qui poterit sanum fingere, sanus erit.Dixerit, ut venias: pacta tibi nocte venito;Veneris, et fuerit ianua clausa: feres.Nec dic blanditias, nec fac convicia posti,Nec latus in duro limine pone tuum.Postera lux aderit: careant tua verba querellis,Et nulla in vultu signa dolentis habe.Iam ponet fastus, cum te languere videbit:Hoc etiam nostra munus ab arte feres.Te quoque falle tamen, nec sit tibi finis amandiPropositus: frenis saepe repugnat equus.Utilitas lateat; quod non profitebere, fiet:Quae nimis apparent retia, vitat avis.Nec sibi tam placeat, nec te contemnere possit;Sume animos, animis cedat ut illa tuis.Ianua forte patet? quamvis revocabere, transi.Est data nox? dubita nocte venire data.Posse pati facile est, ubi, si patientia desit,Protinus ex facili gaudia ferre licet.Et quisquam praecepta potest mea dura vocare?En, etiam partes conciliantis ago.Nam quoniam variant animi, variabimus artes;Mille mali species, mille salutis erunt.Corpora vix ferro quaedam sanantur acuto:Auxilium multis sucus et herba fuit.Mollior es, neque abire potes, vinctusque teneris,Et tua saevus Amor sub pede colla premit?Desine luctari: referant tua carbasa venti,Quaque vocant fluctus, hac tibi remus eat.Explenda est sitis ista tibi, quo perditus ardes;Cedimus; e medio iam licet amne bibas:Sed bibe plus etiam, quam quod praecordia poscunt,Gutture fac pleno sumpta redundet aqua.I, fruere usque tua, nullo prohibente, puella:Illa tibi noctes auferat, illa dies.Taedia quaere mali: faciunt et taedia finem.Iam quoque, cum credes posse carere, mane,Dum bene te cumules et copia tollat amorem,Et fastidita non iuvet esse domo.
Even fear with passion will some minds inspireRemove distrust, and passion will retire.Who fears some rival should his mistress gain,Machaon's skill can scarce relieve his pain.Since no fond mother for her darling son,Feels greater pangs, when to the wars he's gone.Near the Salarian gate a temple's plac'd,With Erycinian Venus' worship grac'd;'Tis there Lethaean love cures love's desire,Bedews his lamps, and water blends with fire;There sweet forgetfulness griev'd lovers find,And, injur'd nymphs, whose husbands prove unkind.There in a vision, (if a vision 'twere)I heard the Cupid speak, or seem'd to hear."0, thou who dost sometimes teach youth to love,Then rules prescribe their passion to remove:One powerful precept more let me impart,Unknown to you a master in the art.Bid him who loves, and would love's yoke reject,On his own life's misfortunes oft reflect:For all have crosses, 'tis the common lot.Let him, who deeply into debt has got,Think on a gaol, and how he shall sustainConfinement, more severe than Cupid's chain.Let him who serves a rigid father's willAnd sees his filial duty treated ill,(Whate'er success in other things he find)Keep still his father's angry looks in mind.Let him who has that double curse of life,At once a shrew and beggar to his wife,Instead of gallantry abroad, contriveDomestic famine from his door to drive,You that are masters of a gen'rous soil,Look to your vines, employ your careful toil,Lest sudden frosts the hopeful vintage spoil.One has a trading vessel homeward bound;Let him imagine storms, his ship unsound,Bulg'd, founder'd, wreck'd, and more, some barb'rous coastEnrich'd with the dear cargo he has lost.Fear for your son, who serves in this campaign,And for your daughter be in greater pain.For mortifying cares you need not roam,By thousands they will throng to you at home.If, Paris, Helen's charms you would abhor,Behold your brothers weltering in their gore."Thus spake the god, till from my fancy's viewHis youthful form, sleep from my eyes withdrew.What shall I do, my Palinurus gone,And left to steer through untried seas alone?
Fit quoque longus amor, quem diffidentia nutrit:Hunc tu si quaeres ponere, pone metum.Qui timet, ut sua sit, ne quis sibi detrahat illam,Ille Machaonia vix ope sanus erit.Plus amat e natis mater plerumque duobus,Pro cuius reditu, quod gerit arma, timet.Est prope Collinam templum venerabile portam;Inposuit templo nomina celsus Eryx:Est illic Lethaeus Amor, qui pectora sanat,Inque suas gelidam lampadas addit aquam.Illic et iuvenes votis oblivia poscunt,Et siqua est duro capta puella viro.Is mihi sic dixit (dubito, verusne Cupido,An somnus fuerit: sed puto, somnus erat)'O qui sollicitos modo das, modo demis amores,Adice praeceptis hoc quoque, Naso, tuis.Ad mala quisque animum referat sua, ponet amorem;Omnibus illa deus plusve minusve dedit.Qui Puteal Ianumque timet celeresque Kalendas,Torqueat hunc aeris mutua summa sui;Cui durus pater est, ut voto cetera cedant,Huic pater ante oculos durus habendus erit;Hic male dotata pauper cum coniuge vivit,Uxorem fato credat obesse suo.Est tibi rure bono generosae fertilis uvaeVinea? ne nascens usta sit uva, time.Ille habet in reditu navim: mare semper iniquumCogitet et damno litora foeda suo.Filius hunc miles, te filia nubilis angat;Et quis non causas mille doloris habet?Ut posses odisse tuam, Pari, funera fratrumDebueras oculis substituisse tuis.'Plura loquebatur: placidum puerilis imagoDestituit somnum, si modo somnus erat.Quid faciam? media navem Palinurus in undaDeserit; ignotas cogor inire vias.
But solitude must never be allow'd;A lover's ne'er so safe as in a crowd.For private places private griefs increase;What haunts you there, in company will cease.If to the gloomy desert you repair,Your mistress' angry form will meet you there.What makes the night less cheerful than the day?Your griefs are present, and your friends away.Nor shun discourse, nor make your house a cell;Despair and darkness still together dwell.To comfort you some Pylades admit,Which is of friendship the chief benefit.To death's cold arms what made poor Phyllis fly?'Twas less her grief than want of company.Wild as a bacchanal, her way she took,With hair dishevell'd, and distracted look;Far out to sea she cast her prying eyes;Now stretched upon the sandy beach she lies:"Faithless Demophoon!" to deaf waves she cried,While sighs her interrupted words divide,Hard by a lonesome tree its shadow cast,As if for solitary mischief plac'd:'Twas now her ninth sad visit to the shore;No sail appears, and she'll expect no more:Her nuptial girdle round her waist was tied,Just o'er herhead a stretching bough she spied;She offers, and flies back, dreads what she dares;And, thus confus'd, the fatal knot prepares.Now, wretched Phillis, while this deed was done,I could have wish'd thou hadst not been alone.Let disappointed lovers warning takeBy thee, and never company forsake.
Quisquis amas, loca sola nocent, loca sola caveto!Quo fugis? in populo tutior esse potes.Non tibi secretis (augent secreta furores)Est opus: auxilio turba futura tibi est.Tristis eris, si solus eris, dominaeque relictaeAnte oculos facies stabit, ut ipsa, tuos.Tristior idcirco nox est quam tempora Phoebi;Quae relevet luctus, turba sodalis abest.Nec fuge conloquium, nec sit tibi ianua clausa,Nec tenebris vultus flebilis abde tuos.Semper habe Pyladen aliquem, qui curet Oresten:Hic quoque amicitiae non levis usus erit.Quid, nisi secretae laeserunt Phyllida silvae?Certa necis causa est: incomitata fuit.Ibat, ut Edono referens trieterica BacchoIre solet fusis barbara turba comis,Et modo, qua poterat, longum spectabat in aequor,Nunc in harenosa lassa iacebat humo.'Perfide Demophoon!' surdas clamabat ad undas,Ruptaque singultu verba loquentis erant.Limes erat tenuis longa subnubilus umbra,Quo tulit illa suos ad mare saepe pedes.Nona terebatur miserae via: 'viderit!' inquit,Et spectat zonam pallida facta suam,Aspicit et ramos; dubitat, refugitque quod audetEt timet, et digitos ad sua colla refert.Sithoni, tum certe vellem non sola fuisses:Non flesset positis Phyllida silva comis.Phyllidis exemplo nimium secreta timete,Laese vir a domina, laesa puella viro.
But while society I do prescribe,I mean not those of your own sighing tribe:For nothing sure can so injurious beTo one in love, as lovers company.A patient, who my orders did obey,And to his cure was in a hopeful way,By keeping lovers' company one night,Relaps'd beyond my skill to set him right.Such dang'rous neighbourhood you must avoid:A flock's by one contagious sheep destroy'd.If health you'd keep shun those who are unsound;By looking on sore eyes, our own we wound;Dry lands are oft by neighb'ring rivers drown'd.Love's pest allows no safety but in flight;And the infected, to infect delight.Another, who quite through his course had gone,By living near his mistress was undone.Rashly his strength, ere well confirm'd, he tries,Too weak to stand th' encounter of her eyes.She meets, and conquers with one single view,And all his fresh-skin'd wounds gush forth anew.To save your house from neighb'ring fire is hard,Distance from danger is the surest guard.Avoid your mistress' walks, and e'en forbearThe civil offices you paid to her.Change all your measures, new affairs pursue;Find out, if possible, a world that's new.A table spread in view gives appetite;To see a gushing rill does thirst excite.To leap their females in a neighb'ring plain,Your bull will break his fence, your steed his rein.Nor is't enough to quit the nymph, but youMust to her friends and kindred bid adieu;Nor to your sight admit the page or maid,By whom the tender billet doux's convey'd.And, though impatient, stifle your desire;Nor of her health, nor what she does enquire.E'en you who powerful reasons can assign,That 'twas ill-treatment made your love decline,Forbear complaints, and no invectives make;By scornful silence, best revenge you'll take.Bury your passion in a speechless grave,Desist from love, but do not say you have.If over much you boast, the symptom's ill;Who always cries, "I've done with love," loves still.To make sure work, quench leisurely the fire;He's safe, who can by just degrees retire.A torrent's swift, a stream does gently glide,But that's a short, and this a lasting tide;That love must irrecoverably decay,Which does by atoms waste itself away.
Praestiterat iuvenis quidquid mea Musa iubebat,Inque suae portu paene salutis erat:Reccidit, ut cupidos inter devenit amantes,Et, quae condiderat, tela resumpsit Amor.Siquis amas, nec vis, facito contagia vites;Haec etiam pecori saepe nocere solent.Dum spectant laesos oculi, laeduntur et ipsi,Multaque corporibus transitione nocent.In loca nonnumquam siccis arentia glebisDe prope currenti flumine manat aqua:Manat amor tectus, si non ab amante recedas;Turbaque in hoc omnes ingeniosa sumus.Alter item iam sanus erat; vicinia laesit:Occursum dominae non tulit ille suae.Vulnus in antiquum rediit male firma cicatrix,Successumque artes non habuere meae.Proximus a tectis ignis defenditur aegre;Utile finitimis abstinuisse locis.Nec quae ferre solet spatiantem porticus illam,Te ferat, officium neve colatur idem.Quid iuvat admonitu tepidam recalescere mentem?Alter, si possis, orbis habendus erit.Non facile esuriens posita retinebere mensa,Et multam saliens incitat unda sitim.Non facile est taurum visa retinere iuvenca,Fortis equus visae semper adhinnit equae.Haec ubi praestiteris, ut tandem litora tangas,Non ipsam satis est deseruisse tibi.Et soror et mater valeant et conscia nutrix,Et quisquis dominae pars erit ulla tuae.Nec veniat servus, nec flens ancillula fictumSuppliciter dominae nomine dicat 'ave!'Nec si scire voles, quid agat, tamen, illa, rogabis;Perfer! erit lucro lingua retenta tuo.Tu quoque, qui causam finiti reddis amoris,Deque tua domina multa querenda refers,Parce queri; melius sic ulciscere tacendo,Ut desideriis effluat illa tuis.Et malim taceas quam te desisse loquaris:Qui nimium multis 'non amo' dicit, amat.Sed meliore fide paulatim extinguitur ignisQuam subito; lente desine, tutus eris.Flumine perpetuo torrens solet altior ire:Sed tamen haec brevis est, illa perennis aqua.Fallat, et in tenues evanidus exeat auras,Perque gradus molles emoriatur amor.
Yet, e'en humanity must needs abhor,That you should hate the nymph you did adoreFor he discovers a mere brutal mind,Whose love to enmity the way can find.A gentle cure is what I recommend;For he whose passion can in hatred end,As soon may to his first desire return;His fire does still beneath the embers burn.To see two lovers at outragious odds,Is scandal and offence to men and gods.Many have rail'd, and yet been reconcil'd,That minute they their mistresses revil'd.Others I've known, who parting without strife,Have fairly taken leave-but ta'en for life.A nymph but lately passing in her chair,Met with her lover (I by chance was there);He storm'd, and with reproaches fill'd the air.At last, " Come forth thou harlot, come," he criedShe came; at sight of her his tongue was tied;The writings in his hand he flings away,Runs to her arms, and has but pow'r to say,"You've conquer'd, and no more I'll disobey."Let her the presents you have sent retainAnd to a less prefer the greater gain.Weigh the advantage by that loss you reap,And think the purchase of your freedom cheap.If to her presence you by chance are driven,Straight recollect the precepts I have given.Since with your Amazon you must engage,To whet your courage muster all your rage.Think on your rival in her chamber kept,While you, excluded, on her threshold slept.How falsely she has treated you; and thenMore falsely sworn to draw you in again.Study no dress when she is to be seen,But wear your garments careless as your mein.Or, if the sparkish mode your fancy seize,Take care it be some other nymph to please.What most retards your cure, I'll now reveal;And to your own experience dare appeal;Hoping to be at last belov'd, (though vainThose hopes) we linger, and indulge our pain.T' our own defects, through self-opinion, blind,We wonder how the fair can be unkind.Ne'er think that what she says or swears is true;She fears the gods no more than she fears you.Nor trust her tears, though plenteous tears distil;Their eyes are disciplin'd to weep at will.With various arts they storm a lover's mind,Like some bleak rock expos'd to waves and wind.Nourish the just resentments in your heart,But ne'er declare the reason why you part.For tax'd with crimes, she'll plead her innocence;And you'll too much incline to her defence.Contract th' indictment; spinning out the charge,But shows you'd have her clear herself at large.
Sed modo dilectam scelus est odisse puellam:Exitus ingeniis convenit iste feris.Non curare sat est: odio qui finit amorem,Aut amat, aut aegre desinet esse miser.Turpe vir et mulier, iuncti modo, protinus hostes;Non illas lites Appias ipsa probat.Saepe reas faciunt, et amant; ubi nulla simultasIncidit, admonitu liber aberrat amor.Forte aderam iuveni; dominam lectica tenebat:Horrebant saevis omnia verba minis.Iamque vadaturus 'lectica prodeat' inquit;Prodierat: visa coniuge mutus erat.Et manus et manibus duplices cecidere tabellae,Venit in amplexus, atque 'ita vincis' ait.Tutius est aptumque magis discedere pace,Nec petere a thalamis litigiosa fora.Munera quae dederas, habeat sine lite, iubeto:Esse solent magno damna minora bono.Quod si vos aliquis casus conducet in unum,Mente memor tota quae damus arma, tene.Nunc opus est armis; hic, o fortissime, pugna:Vincenda est telo Penthesilea tuo.Nunc tibi rivalis, nunc durum limen amanti,Nunc subeant mediis inrita verba deis.Nec compone comas, quia sis venturus ad illam,Nec toga sit laxo conspicienda sinu.Nulla sit, ut placeas alienae cura puellae;Iam facito e multis una sit illa tibi.Sed quid praecipue nostris conatibus obstetEloquar, exemplo quemque docente suo.Desinimus tarde, quia nos speramus amari:Dum sibi quisque placet, credula turba sumus.At tu nec voces (quid enim fallacius illis?)Crede, nec aeternos pondus habere deos.Neve puellarum lacrimis moveare, caveto:Ut flerent, oculos erudiere suos.Artibus innumeris mens oppugnatur amantum,Ut lapis aequoreis undique pulsus aquis.Nec causas aperi, quare divortia malis:Nec dic, quid doleas: clam tamen usque dole.Nec peccata refer, ne diluat: ipse favebis,Ut melior causa causa sit illa tua.Qui silet, est firmus; qui dicit multa puellaeProbra, satisfieri postulat ille sibi.
Nor yet abruptly should you leave the fairAnd, like Ulysses, drive them to despair:To no such violent methods I'll advise,Nor aid a lover while his mistress dies.I mean not Cupid's purple wings to clip,Nor break his bow, or feather'd arrows strip.The counsels that I gave are just and true,Do you as faithfully my rules pursue.Phoebus, to thee once more for aid I run;Assist me, as thou hast already done.He comes, he comes, he'll instantly appear,His quiver, and his sounding harp I hear,Both signs most certain that the god is near.Compare your bastard scarlet with the right,The difference will appear, though both are bright.Your charmer so by first rate beauties place,And her defects by brighter lustre trace.Pallas was tall and graceful, sternly fair,And Juno carried a majestic air;Singly they pleas'd, and by each other charm'd,But both by Venus' presence were disarm'd.Nor manhood yet must you so far disgraceAs to become the vassal of a face,Nor to mere beauty your devotion pay;Her breeding, humor, and her manners weigh;But in the scale of an impartial mind,Or inclination will your judgment blind.
Non ego Dulichio furari more sagittas,Nec raptas ausim tinguere in amne faces:Nec nos purpureas pueri resecabimus alas,Nec sacer arte mea laxior arcus erit.Consilium est, quodcumque cano: parete canenti,Tuque, favens coeptis, Phoebe saluber, ades.Phoebus adest: sonuere lyrae, sonuere pharetrae;Signa deum nosco per sua: Phoebus adest.Confer Amyclaeis medicatum vellus aënisMurice cum Tyrio; turpius illud erit:Vos quoque formosis vestras conferte puellas;Incipiet dominae quemque pudere suae:Utraque formosae Paridi potuere videri,Sed sibi conlatam vicit utramque Venus.Nec solam faciem, mores quoque confer et artes:Tantum iudicio ne tuus obsit amor.
What more I have to say will lie compris'dIn little room, but must not be despis'd.Those short receipts have cures on many done,And of that number, I myself am one.The letters sent you when your nymph was kind,Revise not, for they'll shake your constant mind:But say, when you commit them to the fire,"Be this the fun'ral pile of my desire;Perish, my love, in this just flame expire."Althaea burnt the fatal brand, and knew,The brand consuming, her own son she slew.Can you whose kindness had a worse returnRepine, a few deceitful words to burn!No: make a total sacrifice, nor spareThe very seal that does her image bear.From all such places too you must remove,As ever have been conscious to your love.You'll say, (and grieve to think those joys are fled)This was th' apartment, this the happy bed!The dear remembrance will renew desire,And to fresh blaze blow up the sleeping fire.The Greeks could wish t' have shun'd th' Eubaean coast,And vengeful fire by which their fleet was lost.Wise sailors tack, when Scylla's rock they spy;So you should from your mistress' dwelling fly,There stands the rock, on which you split before,Imagine there you hear Charybdis roar.But chance itself sometimes may stand your friend,And give your griefs an unexpected end.Had Phaedra's wealth to poverty declin'd.She never for Hippolitus had pin'd.Or were Medea born a rural maid,No faithless Jason had implor'd her aid.But love in pamper'd palaces is bred,By pleasure and luxurious riches fed.Not Hecale or Irus could arriveAt Hymen's joys, though long they did survive,For both were poor: and Cupid still shoots high,His shafts above the humble cottage fly.Yet so severe a cure I can't approve,Or bid you starve yourself, to starve your love.
Exiguum est, quod deinde canam; sed profuit illudExiguum multis: in quibus ipse fui.Scripta cave relegas blandae servata puellae:Constantes animos scripta relecta movent.Omnia pone feros (pones invitus) in ignes,Et dic 'ardoris sit rogus iste mei.'Thestias absentem succendit stipite natum:Tu timide flammae perfida verba dabis?Si potes, et ceras remove: quid imagine mutaCarperis? hoc periit Laodamia modo.Et loca saepe nocent; fugito loca conscia vestriConcubitus; causas illa doloris habent.'Hic fuit, hic cubuit; thalamo dormivimus illo:Hic mihi lasciva gaudia nocte dedit.'Admonitu refricatur amor, vulnusque novatumScinditur: infirmis culpa pusilla nocet.Ut, paene extinctum cinerem si sulpure tangas,Vivet et e minimo maximus ignis erit,Sic, nisi vitaris quidquid renovabit amorem,Flamma redardescet, quae modo nulla fuit.Argolides cuperent fugisse Capherea puppes,Teque, senex, luctus ignibus ulte tuos.Praeterita cautus Niseïde navita gaudet:Tu loca, quae nimium grata fuere, cave.Haec tibi sint Syrtes: haec Acroceraunia vita:Hic vomit epotas dira Charybdis aquas.Sunt quae non possunt aliquo cogente iuberi,Saepe tamen casu facta iuvare solent.Perdat opes Phaedra, parces, Neptune, nepoti,Nec faciet pavidos taurus avitus equos.Cnosida fecisses inopem, sapienter amasset:Divitiis alitur luxuriosus amor.Cur nemo est, Hecalen, nulla est, quae ceperit Iron?Nempe quod alter egens, altera pauper erat.Non habet, unde suum paupertas pascat amorem:Non tamen hoc tanti est, pauper ut esse velis.
But ne'er frequent the wanton theatre,Where vain desires in all their pomp appear;From music, dancing, and an am'rous part,Perform'd to th' life, how can you guard your heart?Against myself I frank confession make;Into your hands no am'rous poet take,Whose Syren muses draw the list'ning throng,And charm them into ruin by their song.Callimachus first from your sight remove.Banish Philetas next; they're friends to love.How oft have Sappho's odes set me one fire!Who can contain, that hears Anacreon's lyre?Who reads Tibullus must his passion feel;Propertius can dissolve a heart of steel:Nor Gallus fails the coldest breast to warm;And e'en my muse has found the art to charm.But if Apollo, who conducts my song,Secure me in this point from guessing wrong,The pain with which most sensibly you're griev'd,Is on th' account of jealousy conceiv'd.No fear of rivals must your heart torment:For true, or false, yet for your own content,At least persuade yourself that you have none,And that the harmless creature sleeps alone.Orestes ne'er could find his nymph had charms,Till he beheld her in another's arms.Why, Menelaus, dost thou now take on?In Crete you long could sauntering stay alone;Your Helen's absence ne'er disturb'd your rest:No sooner fled she with her Trojan guest,The royal cuckold raves, and he must makeA ten years' war, to fetch the harlot back.'Twas on this score the fierce Achilles wept;With Agamemnon his Briseis slept.Good cause to weep, the maiden toy was got,Or great Alcides was a sov'reign sot.His game of love were Ovid to have play'd,The poet had the better hero made.At last, with gifts he did the loss restore,And that she was untouch'd profoundly swore,Swore by his sceptre; — nor can that seem odd;He knew his sceptre but a wooden god.
At tanti tibi sit non indulgere theatris,Dum bene de vacuo pectore cedat amor.Enervant animos citharae lotosque lyraequeEt vox et numeris brachia mota suis.Illic adsidue ficti saltantur amantes:Quod caveas, actor, quam iuvet, arte docet.Eloquar invitus: teneros ne tange poetas!Summoveo dotes impius ipse meas.Callimachum fugito: non est inimicus Amori:Et cum Callimacho tu quoque, Coë, noces.Me certe Sappho meliorem fecit amicae,Nec rigidos mores Teïa Musa dedit.Carmina quis potuit tuto legisse Tibulli,Vel tua, cuius opus Cynthia sola fuit?Quis poterit lecto durus discedere Gallo?Et mea nescio quid carmina tale sonant.Quod nisi dux operis vatem frustratur Apollo,Aemulus est nostri maxima causa mali:At tu rivalem noli tibi fingere quemquam,Inque suo solam crede iacere toro.Acrius Hermionen ideo dilexit Orestes,Esse quod alterius coeperat illa viri.Quid, Menelae, doles? ibas sine coniuge Creten,Et poteras nupta lentus abesse tua.Ut Paris hanc rapuit, nunc demum uxore carereNon potes: alterius crevit amore tuus.Hoc et in abducta Briseide flebat Achilles,Illam Plisthenio gaudia ferre viro;Nec frustra flebat, mihi credite: fecit Atrides,Quod si non faceret, turpiter esset iners.Certe ego fecissem, nec sum sapientior illo:Invidiae fructus maximus ille fuit.Nam sibi quod numquam tactam Briseida iuratPer sceptrum, sceptrum non putat esse deos.
Oh, could you once arrive but to the pow'rAs unconcern'd, to pass your mistress' door!Strongly resolve, though ne'er so loath to stir,For now's the time to stretch with whip and spur.Think there's the Syren's den, the deadly bay,Make all the sail you can and scud away.Your fond resentment quit, and condescendTo take your very rival for your friend.Salute him kindly, though with deep regret;Embrace him, I'll pronounce your cure complete.Now to perform a true physician's part,And show I'm perfect master of my art;I will prescribe what diet you should use,What food you ought to take, and what refuse.Mushrooms of ev'ry sort provoke desire,Salacious rockets set your veins on fire;The plant I recommend is wholesome rue,It clears the sight and does the blood subdue:But, in a word, of all the herbs that grow,Take only such as keep the body low.If my opinion you would have of wine,It quenches love, and does to love incline.A little breath of wind but fans the fire,Whose flame will in a greater blast expire.In wine you must no moderation keep;You must not drink at all; or drink so deep,So large a dose, as puts your cares to sleep.Now to our port we are arriv'd; bring downThe jolly wreath, our weary barque to crown.Your grief redrest, and now a happy throng,Ye nymphs and youths applaud my healing song.
Di faciant, possis dominae transire relictaeLimina, proposito sufficiantque pedes.Et poteris; modo velle tene: nunc fortiter ire,Nunc opus est celeri subdere calcar equo.Illo Lotophagos, illo Sirenas in antroEsse puta; remis adice vela tuis.Hunc quoque, quo quondam nimium rivale dolebas,Vellem desineres hostis habere loco.At certe, quamvis odio remanente, saluta;Oscula cum poteris iam dare, sanus eris.Ecce, cibos etiam, medicinae fungar ut omniMunere, quos fugias quosque sequare, dabo.Daunius, an Libycis bulbus tibi missus ab oris,An veniat Megaris, noxius omnis erit.Nec minus erucas aptum vitare salaces,Et quicquid Veneri corpora nostra parat.Utilius sumas acuentes lumina rutas,Et quidquid Veneri corpora nostra negat.Quid tibi praecipiam de Bacchi munere, quaeris?Spe brevius monitis expediere meis.Vina parant animum Veneri, nisi plurima sumasEt stupeant multo corda sepulta mero.Nutritur vento, vento restinguitur ignis:Lenis alit flammas, grandior aura necat.Aut nulla ebrietas, aut tanta sit, ut tibi curasEripiat; siqua est inter utrumque, nocet.Hoc opus exegi: fessae date serta carinae;Contigimus portus, quo mihi cursus erat.Postmodo reddetis sacro pia vota poetae,Carmine sanati femina virque meo.