1 Todo está ya en su punto, y el ser persona en el mayor. 2 Más se requiere hoy para un sabio que antiguamente para siete; 3 y más es menester para tratar con un solo hombre en estos tiempos que con todo un pueblo en los pasados.
1 Everything is now at its peak, and being a great man at the highest. 2 More is required now for one wise man than in ancient times for seven; 3 and more is needed to handle a single man in these times than a whole people in those past.
Posted by Michael Hendry at March 1, 2004 12:00 AMIt should probably not go unremarked that this is a clear reference to the "seven sages" of antiquity. Exactly which seven were the seven sages is not entirely certain or agreed. For anyone interested, a good online introduction is Carlos Parada's GML page on the subject.
Googling on "seven sages," one discovers that the idea is not uniquely western or ancient. Some numbers, like seven, have a certain...appeal. I have a little bit more on that at my online glossary.
Posted by: Al Kriman at March 4, 2004 12:32 AM