Morituri Te Salutemus.
That is the expression that slaves were required to shout to the Roman Imperial ruler when they entered the arena for gladiatorial death matches.
We, who are about to die, salute you.
When I was young, what struck me was the intimate knowledge of mortality – the “who are about to die” of the expression. Knowing that your chances of dying in the arena were quite high must have had a profound impact on the mindset of the gladiatorial slaves.
These days, I am more focused on “te salutemus” – we salute you. The enslaved fighters were required to pay lip service to their Roman rulers, in opposition to their actual feelings about their perilous position.
As leaders, we should never put those we lead in either situation:
- Those we lead should never have cause to refer to themselves as morituri – “we who are about to die.”
- Those we lead should never be expected to pay public lip service (te salutemus) to leadership without regard to their own opinions, feelings, and experiences.
We have come a long way since the ancient Roman Empire, and in some ways not so far. One of the best parts of learning about ancient culture is recognizing that.