Sol 6.1

  1. I did not wish to surprise the people with counsel,

    so I went along with them, that they might grow accustomed to me.

  2. They felt at ease with me; then I reproached them for their errors,

    and debated with them gently and kindly.

  3. Then they drew away from me and could not

    turn from desire and a deeply rooted disposition.

  4. They did not benefit from my wisdom as much as I

    imitated them in waywardness and debauchery.

  5. Were it not for my vigilance, I would have forgotten my own nature,

    and grown accustomed to every shameful act.

  6. And strange is a young man's life, alone with

    reason among people profoundly mad.

Sol 6.1