Book 1, Chapter 1

1 There is an ancient belief, reaching back to the age of heroes and upheld by the common consent of the Roman people and every nation, that a power of divination exists among human beings. The Greeks call it μαντικήν: a foreknowledge and understanding of things to come. A magnificent and saving power, if such a power exists, and the nearest mortal nature can approach the might of the gods! Just as we do many other things better than the Greeks, so our ancestors derived the name of this supreme gift from the gods, while the Greeks, as Plato explains, derived theirs from madness.

2 Indeed, I see no nation so civilized and learned, or so savage and barbarous, that it does not believe the future is signaled and that certain people can understand those signals and foretell events. To begin with the Assyrians, tracing the authority for this belief to its remotest source: because their country was vast and level, and the sky lay open and unobstructed on every side, they observed the passages and movements of the stars. They recorded these and handed down accounts of what each sign foretold for each person. Among this people the Chaldeans, whose name comes from their nation, not their profession, are thought to have established through long observation a knowledge of the stars that made it possible to predict what would happen to each person and under what destiny each was born. The Egyptians too are believed to have attained the same art over an immense stretch of time, through almost countless generations. The Cilicians and Pisidians, and their neighbors in Pamphylia—peoples whom I myself have governed—believe that the flights and cries of birds reveal the future as the surest of signs.

1 There is an old belief, going back to the age of heroes and supported by the agreement of the Roman people and every nation. It is that people have a power of divination, which the Greeks call mantikē: a feeling for, and knowledge of, things to come. If this power really exists, it is a wonderful and helpful thing. Through it, human nature can come closer to the power of the gods than in any other way. In this, as in many other cases, our people have done better than the Greeks. We named this outstanding power after the gods. The Greeks, as Plato explains, named it after madness.

2 I can see no nation so civilized and educated, or so wild and uncivilized, that it does not believe future events give signs of themselves, and that some people can understand and predict them. To begin with the most ancient authorities, the Assyrians lived in vast, flat regions. With an open, clear view of the sky in every direction, they regularly watched the stars move across it. They recorded those movements and passed down what each sign meant for each person. One group within that nation was called the Chaldeans: this was a people's name, not the name of a profession. They are thought to have built up, by long observation of the stars, a body of knowledge that allowed them to predict what would happen to each person and the fate under which each was born. The Egyptians too are thought to have acquired this same skill over an almost countless number of centuries. The Cilicians, the Pisidians, and their neighbors in Pamphylia—peoples I myself governed—believe the flights and calls of birds are completely reliable signs of what will happen.