Sic transit gloria mundi



Sic transit gloria mundi is a Latin phrase that means "Thus passes the worldly glory." In idiomatic contexts, the phrase has been used to mean "fame is fleeting".

The phrase was used in the ritual of papal coronation ceremonies between 1409 (when it was used at the coronation of Alexander V) and 1963. As the newly chosen Pope proceeded from the sacristy of St. Peter's Basilica in his sedia gestatoria, the procession stopped three times. On each occasion, a papal master of ceremonies would fall to his knees before the Pope, holding a silver or brass reed, bearing a tow of smoldering flax. For three times in succession, as the cloth burned away, he would say in a loud and mournful voice, "Pater Sancte, sic transit gloria mundi!" ("Holy Father, so passes worldly glory!"). These words, thus addressed to the Pope, served as a reminder of the transitory nature of life and earthly honours.

A form of the phrase appeared in Thomas à Kempis's 1418 work The Imitation of Christ: "O quam cito transit gloria mundi" ("How quickly the glory of the world passes away").

In literature and art

 * American poet Emily Dickinson's first published poem was titled "Sic Transit Gloria Mundi".
 * An 1819 etching by British illustrator George Cruikshank is titled The Sailors Progress: Sic Transit Gloria Mundi.
 * In Robert A. Heinlein's novel Starman Jones, toward the end of Chapter 12 "Halcyon", there is this line of dialogue: "Sic transit gloria mundi—Tuesday is usually worse."
 * The first-season finale of American TV series Yellowjackets is titled "Sic Transit Gloria Mundi".
 * Robert Hugh Benson's novel Lord of the World ends with a reference to the phrase: "Then this world passed, and the glory of it."
 * It is the last line spoken in the movie The Masque of the Red Death, by the Red Death after he reveals he spared six from his plague.
 * In the opening scene of the final episode of Babylon 5, season 4 entitled "The Deconstructions of Falling Stars," a person in the crowd welcoming President Sheridan and Ambassador Delenn can be seen holding a sign that reads "Sic Transit Gloria Mundi."
 * The Alternative band Brand New named a single from their 2003 Album Deja Entendu, "Sic Transit Gloria...Glory Fades."
 * In the video game Overwatch 2, The character "Soldier 76" uses the voice line "Sic Transit Gloria Mundi.)
 * In the feature film 'The Tracker' (2002) directed by Rolf de Heer, a fanatic policeman says 'Sic transit gloria mundi', each word accompanied by him pointing a pistol where the heads of a group of Indigenous Australians had been minutes before. He was a significant participant in their slaughter and explains to the other characters that the phrase means 'So passes the glorious world.'