So, over in the worldbuilding department, thinking about the Chant of Light from Dragon Age has inspired me to do some polishing of the holy books that exist in my universe, and specifically some of the more commandment-y parts.

And then, in thinking about them, I not only came up with the opening for that particular canticle, but also translated it. So, for you conlang fans out there:

el darav naratis an-saraivar elen fe essyref apnal

• el = individual description operator
• darav = person, sophont
• naratis = tense operator, now + ongoing into the past and future, i.e. now and for all time
• an-saraivar = inverted verbized form of “judge, weigh, assess”
• elen = mass description operator
• fe = possessive referring back to first entity in sentence
• essyref = form of “create” meaning “created thing”, “creation”
• apnal = standard portmanteau of “ap nall”, i.e. “and none”, “and no-one”

Or, translating as a sentence:

“A soph is judged by its creations alone.”