Lucretius Book 1 - Opening "When Human Life..." - Elli

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    Oh, you guys are in for a treat this Thanksgiving Day in the USA. Here is Elli with the opening of Lucretius Book 1 -

    Lucretius Book I (Rolfe Humphries)

    When human life, all too conspicuous,

    Lay foully groveling on earth, weighed down

    By grim Religion, looming from the skies,

    Horribly threatening mortal men -- a man,

    A Greek, first raised his mortal eyes

    Bravely against this menace. No report

    Of gods, no lightning-flash, no thunder-peal

    Made this man cower, but drove him all the more

    With passionate manliness of mind and will

    To be the first to spring the tight-barred gates

    Of Nature's hold asunder. So his force,

    His vital force of mind, a conqueror

    Beyond the flaming ramparts of the world

    Explored the vast immensities of space

    With wit and wisdom, and came back to us

    Triumphant, bringing news of what can be

    And what cannot, limits and boundaries,

    The borderline, the bench mark, set forever.

    Religion, so, is trampled underfoot,

    And by his victory we reach the stars.

    SHE BEAT ME TO IT! This is one of my favorite passages, and I'm glad it's one of the first to make it to the radio (you've noticed with the recent release of my album, I'm a little behind on my projects, but am looking forward to contributing to our acoustic presentations!)

    There's no rule that says we can't have many versions of this selection! It is indeed one of the best - but in fact the opening of each of the six books starts out with a rousing shout-out to Epicurus, and each one would be great to record.

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