Being now 36, I have nearly forgotten all the Latin I learnt in school…
I’m getting a tattoo, which is kind of personal, but is important to me. I want it to say:
“Turn your face to the Sun, and the shadows fall behind you”
If you could help I would be very grateful, also if you could let me know where the first clause ends that would be great, since I want it on two lines. If you Cant one line is still a great help.
Also a friend recommended either, “Vultus tuus ad solem vertatur, recidanturque a tergo umbrae.” or “Obtutum contra solem teneas ut tenebrae post te iaceant” But I am unsure if they are correct and hold the right meaning. Which is forget the bad past and look forward to the future sort of thing…
Let me just say that this is one of the only times I can remember that someone provided a suggestion for a Latin translation that isn’t horribly flawed in some way. Thank your friend for the thoughtful translations.
They both look good to me, but keep in mind that there is rarely one “correct” translation. Translations into Latin will usually change the wording slightly to make it sound more natural and authentic. There will probably be a number of other valid suggestions here.
“Vultus tuus ad solem vertatur, recidanturque a tergo umbrae.”
This literally means, “Let your face be turned towards the sun, and let the shadows shrink/recede from behind.”
“Obtutum contra solem teneas ut tenebrae post te iaceant”
This means, “Hold your gaze against the sun so that the shadows may lie behind you.”
If you wanted it to be very literal, you might do “Vultum ad solem verte, et tenebrae retro cadunt.” However, I think the first suggestion is more poetic.
Thank you very much, I think the first one does sound more poetic and it’s just what I’, looking for, thanks for your help 
In the first suggestion, I believe it should be “recidantque”, not “recidanturque”.
Quite right. Sorry to have missed that.