De la naturaleza : De rerum natura

Written around 50 BC, the poem "De rerum natura" is the great scientific epic of materialist Epicureanism. Considered a pinnacle of Latin poetry, Ovid prophesied that it would endure as long as the world itself. Across some 7,400 dactylic hexameters, it offers an explanation of the universe based on atomistic physics, without the intervention of guardian gods or providential designs. Lucretian philosophy aims to liberate humanity from the horrors of the afterlife, not by promising a victory over death, but by inviting us to accept it serenely as a definitive fact. Since Cicero, one of its earliest readers, the text has navigated pagan and Christian dogmas, withstood the ravages of time, survived its near disappearance during the Middle Ages, and reached us, vibrant and fresh, after its rediscovery in the 15th century. This translation in hendecasyllables, by Luis T. Bonmatí and Ángel L. Prieto de Paula, aims to faithfully convey the doctrine and preserve the lyrical brilliance of the original.