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 Denn mit Göttern
Soll sich nicht messen
Irgend ein Mensch.
Hebt er sich aufwärts
Und berührt
Mit dem Scheitel die Sterne,
Nirgends haften dann
Die unsichren Sohlen,
Und mit ihm spielen
Wolken und Winde
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For with the gods
may
No mortal himself
At any time measure.
Should he be lifted
Up, till he touches
The stars with his forehead,
Nowhere to rest find
The insecure feet
And he is plaything
Of clouds and of winds.
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[J.
W. Goethe, 1749-1832, Grenzen der Menschheit /
Limits of Humanity]
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"... it is by no means to everyone
that the gods grant a clear sight of themselves."
[Homer,
Odyssey 16.160]
"Let us first make an announcement
to the gods, saying that we are not going to
investigate about them, for we do not claim to be
able to do that." [Socrates, 469-399 BC. Plato,
Cratylus 401a]
"... I hold that no man knows about
the gods more than another ..." [Herodotus, 484-430
BC,
History 2.3]
"Of the portents recorded in
ancient tales many did happen and will happen
again." [Plato, 427-347 BC,
Statesman 268e]
"As a general thing we find that
the ancient myths do not give us a simple and
consistent story; consequently it should occasion
no surprise if we find, when we put the ancient
accounts together, that in some details they are
not in agreement with those given by every poet and
historian." [Diodorus Siculus, 80-20 BC,
The
Library of History
4.44.5]
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"... the gods of Greece and of
freedom—they are identical—..." [Aelian,
ca. AD 170-235,
Varia
Historia 12.1]
"... we are not here to criticize
the myths and are not ready to refuse them
credence." [Philostratus Lemnius, born c. AD 190,
Imagines 1.24]
Don Quijote: "...y así lo ha
de hacer y hace el que quiere alcanzar nombre de
prudente y sufrido, imitando a Ulises, en cuya
persona y trabajos nos pinta Homero un retrato vivo
de prudencia y de sufrimiento, como también
nos mostró Virgilio, en persona de Eneas, el
valor de un hijo piadoso y la sagacidad de un
valiente y entendido capitán, no
pintándolos ni describiéndolos como
ellos fueron, sino como habían de ser, para
quedar ejemplo a los venideros hombres de sus
virtudes." [Miguel de Cervantes 1547-1616,
Don
Quijote de la Mancha, Primera Parte, Cap. XXV]
"Be Homer's works your study and
delight,
Read them by day, and meditate by night."
[Alexander Pope 1688-1744, An
Essay on Criticism]
"We are all Greeks. Our laws, our
literature, our religion, our arts, have their root
in Greece." [Percy Bysshe Shelley, 1792-1822,
Hellas]
"Homère est nouveau, ce
matin, et rien n'est peut-être aussi vieux
que le journal d'aujourd'hui." [Charles
Péguy, 1878-1914, Cahiers de la
Quinzaine, 8-26
avril 1914]
"A people gets the gods which it
deserves." [Sir Cecil Maurice Bowra, 1898-1971:
The
Greek Experience]
"... nos refus ou nos
acquiescements ont eu lieu déjà ; nos
vices et nos vertus ont des modèles grecs."
[Marguerite Yourcenar, 1903-88:
Mémoires
d'Hadrien]
"In life it's not a matter of how
much you know, what's important is how little you
allow yourself to forget." [Homero Expósito,
1918-87, Entrevista en La Maga]
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