Book 1, Chapter 11

17 “But whom should I use as an authority or witness rather than you? I have even learned, and gladly, the verses that the Muse Urania speaks in the second book of your poem On My Consulship:

“‘First Jupiter, ablaze with heaven’s fire,Turns, flooding the whole world with light,And with his divine mind seeks out sky and earth—The mind that holds human senses and lives deep within,Enclosed and sheltered in the eternal ether’s vaults.And if you wish to know the movements and wandering coursesOf the stars set in the stations of the constellations,Which wander only in the Greeks’ misleading words,But in truth are borne along a measured path and span,You will see that divine mind has ordered everything.

18 “‘For first, in your consulship, the stars’ swift movementsAnd their grave conjunctions, blazing with light,You too saw, when you traversed the snow-clad heightsOf the Alban Mount and celebrated the Latin rites with rich milk;You saw the comets trembling with bright flame,And thought that much would be thrown into turmoil by slaughter at night,For the Latin Festival had fallen at an ominous time,When the moon hid her bright form in gathered shadowAnd suddenly was quenched in the starry night.And what of Phoebus’ torch, grim herald of war,Which flew in blazing fire toward the great height,Seeking the sky’s western regions and its setting?Or when a citizen, struck by a dreadful thunderbolt,Lost the living light of his eyes on a clear, bright day?Or when the earth shook through its ponderous body?Then, too, the many dreadful shapes seen in the nightGave warning of war and upheaval,And throughout the land prophets poured from frenziedHearts many oracles threatening bitter disasters,

17 “But what better authority or witness could I use than you? I even learned by heart—and gladly—the lines spoken by Urania the Muse in the second book of your On My Consulship:

“‘First Jupiter, blazing with heavenly fire,Turns and lights up the whole universe,And with his divine mind reaches through heaven and earth.That mind holds human thoughts and lives deep within it,While itself enclosed within the vaults of the eternal heavens.And if you want to know the movements and wandering pathsOf stars occupying their places among the constellations,Whose wandering exists only in the Greeks' misleading language,But really move along a fixed track and in a fixed orbit,You will see that a divine mind has marked out everything.

18 “‘For first, during your consulship, the swift movements of starsAnd the serious meetings of stars flashing with fireWere seen by you too, when you visited the snow-covered heightsOn the Alban Mount and celebrated the Latin Festival with rich milk;You also saw the comets quivering with bright flames,And thought much confusion was coming from destruction in the night.For the Latin Festival fell at an ominous time,When the moon hid its bright shape in darkened lightAnd suddenly vanished in a starry night.And what of Phoebus' torch, the grim messenger of war,Which flew toward its great height in a blaze of fire,Seeking the plunging regions of the sky and the setting sun?Or when a citizen was hit by terrible lightning,And the light of life left his eyes on a clear day?Or when the earth shook its pregnant body?Then terrible shapes of different kinds, seen at night,Warned of war and unrest.Across the land prophets, their hearts in a frenzy,Poured out many oracles threatening grim disasters,